No One But You (Silver Springs #2)(14)

“You heard me,” he replied.

Her jaw fell open. “You’re on the police force! Don’t tell me you’re saying that if I call for help from the Reed farm, no one will come...”

“Of course someone will come,” George said.

Pete nudged him. “But we can’t promise whoever it is will come real quick,” he added with a laugh.

Sadie glared at him. “You’re a self-righteous bastard, Pete Montgomery. Now I know why you get along so well with Sly.”

He sobered instantly. “Whoa! Sounds to me like you deserve whatever you might get!”

“And it sounds to me as if you’ve appointed yourself judge, jury and executioner—not only for Dawson Reed but for me, as well.”

“You’re the one putting yourself in a bad situation.” He shoved his coffee out of the way as he leaned forward. “The question is why? Do you and Dawson have something going on? Is he warming your bed at night now that he’s out of lockup?”

She shook her head. “You’re disgusting.”

“What?” He gestured as if he’d said nothing wrong. “You wouldn’t be the first to want to spread your legs for him. You should’ve seen the women on that jury, preening and making eyes at him whenever he walked into the courtroom. If not for them, he’d be in prison right now, awaiting an execution date. So next time you think he’s innocent because that damn jury handed down a ‘not guilty’ verdict, you might consider there were seven women on it.”

“Women can weigh evidence as well as men,” she snapped.

He nearly spilled George’s coffee when he shoved his water glass into it. “Don’t give me that feminist bullshit!”

“Pete, that’s enough,” George mumbled, looking around. “You’re going too far.”

People were starting to stare, but he didn’t seem to care about that. “She’s the one who won’t listen!” he responded.

“Thanks for your concern, but tell Sly I’ll make my own decisions,” she said.

Glenn Swank, down the bar, was growing impatient with her lack of attention. “Hey, Sadie! Are you going to bring my check sometime today or what?” he called out. “I gotta go to work!”

Sadie nodded to reassure him. “I’m coming.”

“Remember, you’re taking a big chance,” Pete growled as she hurried away. “Are you sure he’s worth it?”

*

Sadie was still livid when she reached the grocery store. Every time she thought about that visit at the diner from Pete and George, she wanted to go ballistic. How dare they say what they did! They had no right. They were just taking up for Sly. He’d sent his buddies over because she wouldn’t listen to him.

“Pricks,” she muttered.

“What’d you say, dear?”

Sadie turned to see the organist from her church standing behind her in the aisle and felt her face grow hot for cursing. “Nothing,” she muttered.

“I’m sorry. I thought you were talking to me.”

Fortunately, Mrs. Handley was partially deaf. “No. I was just...mumbling to myself.”

“Nowadays you never know what people are doing.” She shook her head in apparent exasperation. “What with those little devices—blue teeth or whatever they’re called—they have in their ears.”

“Bluetooth. People talk on Bluetooth.”

“That’s it.”

Sadie smiled, trying to relax. “How have you been?”

“Good, and you?”

“Busy.”

“Will I see you at church on Sunday?”

If Dawson didn’t murder her first. The idea that he might be dangerous had always been daunting. But now she knew the police would be slow to react if she called for help. Pete, George and Sly had all warned her not to take the job, so they felt justified in letting her go it alone. They meant to teach her a lesson, even though it could be a costly lesson indeed.

She’d almost told them she’d been forced to take the job because Sly was being so stingy with his child. It cost a lot more to take care of Jayden than the $250/month Sly was currently paying. That didn’t even cover his child care! But she knew that would only cause more problems. Sly would call her up and accuse her of trying to make him look bad in front of his friends, and they’d be headed toward yet another terrible argument.

“Yes. I’ll be there,” she told Mrs. Handley.

“I’m glad. I’ll see you then. Have a nice day, dear.”

“You, too.” Sadie wheeled her cart around to the next aisle and then the next, whizzing through the store, grabbing everything on her list. She needed to get started cleaning Dawson’s house so that she could accomplish something before it was time to go home.

Once she’d bought his food and supplies, she stuck the receipt in her purse and loaded the items in her car. Dawson owed her $189.03. She hoped he was good for it. She also hoped he’d like what she bought as far as groceries. She’d picked up a roast and some vegetables to put in her slow cooker, which she needed to pick up, since she hadn’t thought of using it when she put her vacuum in the back of the car earlier. After being out on the farm all day, she figured he could use a solid meat-and-potatoes kind of meal.