Chapter 35
The next day was business as usual at the Pork Pit. I still had a barbecue restaurant to run.
I cooked food, waited on tables, and cleaned up after my customers. But for once, my mind wasn't really focused on the tasks at hand and I was just going through the motions. My misery must have shown, because Sophia stopped chopping onions long enough to give me a tight hug. I thanked the dwarf and got back to the macaroni salad I was making.
About three o'clock that afternoon, someone not entirely unexpected walked through the front door - Phillip Kincaid.
The casino boss was once again in a suit and tie, and he had his blond hair slicked back into his usual ponytail. Kincaid surveyed the other customers in the storefront, then walked over and took a seat on a stool right next to the cash register.
"Gin."
"Phillip."
I didn't ask why he was here. I was still too preoccupied with Owen. Besides, I figured Kincaid would get to it sooner or later.
Kincaid ordered a couple of hot dogs, coleslaw, fries, and three of the chocolate cupcakes that I'd baked fresh that morning. I fixed his food, set it in front of him, and picked up my copy of Little Women. Normally, I would have breezed through the rest of the book hours ago, but I was having a tough time concentrating. Still, I gave it a shot, even though I had to go back and skim the paragraphs so I could recall the words I'd just read moments before.
Kincaid ate his meal in silence. He didn't bother me, and I didn't speak to him, but the quiet between us wasn't hostile. If anything, it was almost . . . friendly.
He finally let out a satisfied sigh, pushed his empty plates away, and untucked the napkin in his collar. "Another fine meal."
"That's what I do here."
I thought he might pay up and leave, but instead Kincaid threaded his fingers together on top of the counter and looked at me.
"I went to see Owen last night," he said. "He invited me out to his place for a drink. Cooper too. The three of us spent most of the night talking. It was . . . nice. Like the old days."
It didn't surprise me. Now that the truth was out and Salina was dead, there was nothing standing in the way of Owen and Kincaid resuming their friendship. I was happy for them. They'd been family once upon a time, along with Cooper and Eva, and I thought they could be that again.
"I know the two of you are having trouble right now," Kincaid said. "I'm sorry for that. Really, I am. It was never my intention to cause those sorts of problems for the two of you. I just . . . I just wanted Owen to know the truth. Finally."
I shrugged. Kincaid being sorry didn't change things between me and Owen, but it made me feel a little better.
"You know, I'd enjoy getting to know Owen again while you can," I said in an easy voice. "Because once he realizes that you're in love with Eva, he's going to morph right back into that overprotective, big brother, bear mode."
Kincaid froze, his glass of iced tea halfway between the counter and his lips. "What? What are you talking about?"
I laughed, a genuine, bona fide, amused laugh. "Oh, come on. It's so obvious. The way you were looking at Eva on the riverboat, you hiring me to be there to protect her in case Salina showed up, the fact that you still let Eva get away with calling you by that ridiculous childhood nickname. If that's not love, I don't know what is." I gave him a hard stare. "But you need to keep in mind that she's only nineteen. And you're not exactly the safest guy to be around in Ashland."
Kincaid shrugged, but he didn't deny any of it. If anything, his eyes brightened at the thought of her. "Eva Grayson was the first person who ever gave a damn about me. That's not the sort of thing you forget."
"No," I agreed. "It's not."
"And that's why I'm going to give Eva some time to grow up - a lot of time, actually. Like you said, she's still young. She hasn't figured out what she wants out of life yet. I'm going to give her that chance. And in the meantime, I plan to have plenty of fun."
I arched an eyebrow. "And if it comes to pass that she doesn't want you?"
He grinned. "Oh, she'll want me. I'm even more irresistible to women than your friend Finn is."
I had to laugh at his confidence, if nothing else. My chuckles were just fading away when the bell over the front door chimed and a guy stepped inside the restaurant. He was a dwarf wearing a plaid shirt that was too tight for his muscled upper body, jeans, and a pair of dusty cowboy boots. He started flexing his hands as soon as he stepped inside, and his gaze cut right, then left, like he was looking for someone specific to give a beat-down to.
I sighed. I knew the type - some low-level hood who wanted to move way, way up in the underworld food chain by taking out the Spider.
The dwarf looked in my direction, and his eyes narrowed, indicating that he'd found his target - me. I put down my book, straightened up, and gave him a cold smile. Kincaid noticed my evil grin, and he swiveled around to see who I was glaring at with murder in my eyes.
The dwarf took a step forward, like he was going to charge me right here in the storefront, but he froze when he saw Kincaid. The dwarf's eyes widened, and he started chewing on his lip - thinking hard. Kincaid arched his eyebrows in a silent command, then made a shooing motion with his hand.
The dwarf didn't have to be told twice. He turned around and practically ran out of the Pork Pit as fast as his cowboy boots would carry him. Kincaid turned back around to me.
"Funny thing," I said. "Since that night at Salina's, no one has come into the restaurant and tried to kill me. Until right now."
"That is funny . . . since we both know how infinitely lovable you are."
"Why, Philly," I drawled. "If I didn't know better, I'd almost say that was a joke."
Kincaid grinned at me. "What can I say, Gin? You bring out the worst in me."
I thought of Owen, and my chest tightened. "Yeah, I tend to do that to people."
He looked at me, but he didn't get up to leave. Instead, he stared at me, an amused smile on his face. "Don't tell me you've forgotten already."
"Forgotten what?" I asked, having no idea what he was talking about.
"We had a deal, remember? You kill Salina, and I get the folks gunning for you to back off. As many as I can, anyway. You held up your end, and I intend to do the same with mine."
I frowned. "That dwarf? He was one of yours?"
"Of course not. I would never be so crass as to send a hit man after you. Let's just say I've let it be known that I've developed something of a grudging fondness for you. He saw me, and he thought better of things. That's all."