Janet Evanovich - Full Bloom

Annie shot a frantic look at the others. "Um, Theenie isn't feeling well."

"Digestive problems," Doc said authoritatively. "It happens to the best of us."

Another moan. Danny looked concerned. "Is it serious?"

"Not sure." Doc chuckled. "Might have to put her down."

Annie rolled her eyes. "She'll be fine."

The bathroom door opened and Theenie stepped out, holding Wes's boxer shorts. "I'm glad to have that behind me," she said. "It wasn't as easy as I thought it would be." Her eyes widened when she spied Danny. "Oh, I didn't know we had company." She wadded the boxers in her hands.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm a little sore from all the strenuous activity, but—" She stopped abruptly as though realizing she'd said more than she should. "I think I'll just put these in the dryer," she told Annie, hurrying away.

"I really need to head back to the office," Jamie said, already backing away. "I'll see myself out." Fleas, who'd managed to sleep through the whole thing, got up, shook himself, and followed.

Annie managed to say a quick good-bye before she turned to Danny. "What are you doing here?"

He looked surprised. "Just thought I'd drop by for a cup of coffee."

"Oh." It wasn't unusual for Danny to stop by if he was in the neighborhood; he was like family. He and Annie started hanging out together years before, during the summers she spent with her grandmother. Some people mistook them for brother and sister, since they both had red hair and green eyes. "Um, gee, I wish I could visit with you," she said, slipping her arm through his and prodding him toward the living room, "but we're up to our ears in work, what with the wedding and all." She hadn't even told Danny who was getting married.

He looked amused. "Are you throwing me out?"

"No, of course not," she said, opening the door and shoving him onto the piazza. "I'm just, um, really busy right now. Bye." She started to close the door.

"Wait! I'd also hoped you might want to take in a movie this week."

"Movie? Oh, right," she said quickly. She and Danny usually grabbed a quick dinner and saw a movie every week. "May I get back to you on that?" she asked.

"Well, sure. Hey, are you okay? You seem awfully nervous."

"Nervous?" She thought she was acting pretty calm considering there was an unconscious butt-naked man in her bathtub. "I just need to go through my to-do list for the wedding; after that I'll have a better idea how long it's going to take. I'll call you."

"That's fine," he said. He turned. "By the way, whose Harley is that? It's one mean-looking machine."

Annie wondered how she'd missed the massive chrome and black motorcycle. "It must belong to one of Erdle's friends. See you later." She closed the door and leaned against it. She gave an enormous sigh of relief when Danny pulled away in his car. She knew darn well who the motorcycle belonged to; it had Wes Bridges written all over it. That would explain his biker clothes. What she didn't know and couldn't figure out was why Wes had shown up in her backyard in the first place.

* * * * *

Several hours later, Wes was still out cold, and Destiny was in her room taking a nap. Annie prepared a meat loaf for dinner and iced a pan of brownies while Theenie peeled potatoes. They worked in silence, but every so often Theenie would look at Annie and shake her head.

"I know," Annie finally said. "I can't believe we have a naked man lying in the bathtub, either."

"I'll set the table," Theenie said once she'd put the potatoes on to boil.

"Thanks." Annie was grateful that both of her full-time tenants were only too eager to help around the place; it made her job a lot easier. She was only forced to hire help when her bed-and-breakfast was full. She checked on Wes, shook him lightly, but there was no movement.

Destiny came downstairs looking rested. She wore tight jeans and a low-cut royal blue blouse with gold moons and stars that did not detract from her cleavage.

"Something smells good," Destiny said. "What can I do to help?"

As Annie put the finishing touches on dinner she assigned Destiny a small task.

Erdle showed up as the women carried the food to the table. He had showered, changed his clothes, and scrubbed the dirt from beneath his fingernails, a rule Annie had put into place long ago. He took his usual chair, tucked his napkin inside his collar, and waited for the women to sit, but his eyes were fixed on Destiny.

"Please say grace, Erdle," Annie said, not because he was particularly good at it but because she thought it might put him on the path of the straight and narrow. So far it hadn't worked.

He bowed his head. "Rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub."

Theenie pursed her lips. "I wish you'd learn a new prayer. That is not at all proper. One of these days the ground is going to split right open and swallow you whole."

He shrugged and looked at Annie. "I picked up all the branches, raked the leaves, and trimmed the weeds," he said proudly as they passed the food around. "We've got some leftover pine straw in the carriage house, so I'll put it out tomorrow."

Annie knew Erdle was just sucking up so she wouldn't evict him. "You'll have to stay on top of it so it stays nice. In the meantime you can start tilling that patch of ground behind the carriage house."

Erdle shifted in his chair. "That tiller is pretty old, been sitting around for years. I'm pretty sure it don't work."

"It works. I've already checked."

Erdle paused and fixed a weary gaze on her. "Tell me again why you want that land tilled?"

"I've already told you I want to plant a vegetable garden back there. It's more than large enough." Annie hoped by planting her own vegetables she would save on the grocery bills. "I need to get started right away, with the weather being so warm."

"You can't grow nothing back there. Not enough sun."

"You're wrong. It gets the morning sun."

"You're just not up early enough to notice," Theenie said.

Erdle didn't respond. Instead, he concentrated on his food.

Annie kept her gaze fixed on him. The man would stall as long as he could to keep from doing any work. "Erdle?"

"Okay," he said. "I'll get on it."

Annie was about to pin him down as to when he would get on it, but a sound from the bathroom startled her. She jumped from the table and hurried in that direction with Destiny and Theenie right behind. Wes was still lying in the tub, his eyes open. "Oh, thank goodness!" Annie said. "You're awake."

He didn't look happy to see her. "Would you care to explain why in the hell I'm lying naked in this effin' bathtub?"

Annie opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

Theenie peered around her. "How nice to see you awake. You're just in time for dinner."

Wes ignored her, his gaze fixed on Annie. "I asked you a question."

"Okay, but you're not going to like the answer."

"Somehow I managed to figure that much out for myself."

"It's not Annie's fault," Theenie said, beginning to fidget with her hands. "As hard as it must be for you to believe, she's had nothing but your best interests at heart since she accidentally hit you, uh, twice."

"The medication Doc gave you was stronger than we thought," Annie said, deliberately being vague. She didn't want Doc listed in Wes's lawsuit.

He stared back at her for a full minute. Finally, he sat up and rubbed the back of his head, wincing when he touched the knot. "How long have I been out?"

"All day," Annie said.

"What the hell did the man give me, a horse tranquilizer?"

Annie and Theenie exchanged looks. "It was an accident," Annie said.

Wes scowled. "Another accident? There seems to be a lot of that going around." His gaze narrowed on Annie. "Are you the one who undressed me?"