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Laughing, I said, “He’s told me a time or two.”

“Okay, Sierra, what in the hell are you talking about? What did you do to the poor guy?”Advertisement

“Dodge, Ryn. Dodge is my new lawyer. Dodge for Christ’s sake!”

“Umm . . . Dodge?”

Rolling my eyes, I let out a frustrated moan. “Yes! Dodge. Well, wait, he goes by Aaron now.”

“Wow. I’m at a loss for words right now.”

Letting out a sarcastic chuckle, I said, “You? Imagine my surprise. I’m so fucked.”

“Oh, Sierra honey, Dodge will be an amazing lawyer for you. Y’all just have to put your personal feelings aside and focus on bringing your ex down.”

Gripping the steering wheel to settle my rattled nerves, I headed home to my small little house in Hyde Park. I loved that house. The moment I found out Robert was cheating, I moved out of our house and bought a three-bedroom, cottage-style house in my favorite neighborhood of Austin. Now the fucker was saying I used part of his money to buy it.

I hate him.

“Sierra? Are you even listening to me?”

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“Yeah, sorry, Ryn. Hey, did you mention anything to Dodge about Chris and me?”

“What do you mean? Is there a you and Chris? Why didn’t I know about this! I mean, I know y’all got touchy feely there for a bit, but when did it become you and Chris? Oh. My. God. How could you not tell me?”

Sighing, I shook my head. Clearly Ryn hadn’t said anything. “There is no me and Chris. Holy hell, settle your ass down. My gosh, Ryn! Can we say freak out?”

“Oh. Okay, well so what do you mean then? What’s going on?”

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I said, “I don’t know. I told him I was heading to south Texas, and he immediately assumed I was heading down to see Chris.”

“Well . . . I mean . . . the last time Dodge saw you and Chris together, y’all were all over each other. You blatantly ignored Dodge and gave Chris all your attention.”

Sucking in a breath, I said, “I did not!”

“Um . . . yeah you did, Sierra.”

Knowing Ryn was right, I didn’t utter a word. I’d seen the way Dodge had been looking at me on more than one occasion. I wasn’t sure how to react so I focused on Chris. Chewing on my lip, I tried to figure out what to do. “Hey, speaking of coming down there, I think I’m going to have to pass.”

“What? Why? I wanted you to help shop for the house, Sierra. I was so hoping to have some girl time.”

Sighing, I pulled down the oak-lined street that led to my perfect little hideaway. “I know, but I think it’s best if I stay in town. I mean, Dodge is talking about bringing in an old friend who Robert is accusing me of having an affair with. Now is not the time to be leaving town.”

Hearing Ryn moan, my heart broke just a little. With Dodge being the new lawyer on my case, and the chance of me getting to see him more often now, I couldn’t think of a better reason to stay in Austin.

Oh Jesus. I’m pathetic.

“Fine, I understand. Maybe I can talk Lark and Azurdee into coming down.”

Smiling, I pulled into my driveway. I already was feeling better as I looked at the new geraniums I had planted along the sidewalk, in full bloom. “I bet she would love to get away and have a couple days relaxing and shopping with you.”

“Yeah, maybe. Hey, I’ve got to run, a client is calling. Talk to you soon, Sierra.”

“Okay. Tell Tristan hi and I’ll chat with ya soon.”

Stepping out of the car, I inhaled a deep breath. Even though I was in the middle of Austin, it still felt like I was far away from everything and everyone. Walking up to the door, I smiled as I thought about the nice hot bath I was fixin’ to soak in.

Finally getting my heart to calm down after my meeting with Dodge, I headed to the master bedroom after tossing my purse and keys on the coffee table.

“What I need is a nice long hot bath and to push Dodge, or Aaron, or whoever he is now, far from my mind.”

After pouring lavender into the hot running water, I headed back into the bedroom as I stripped out of my clothes. Grabbing my iPod, I walked back into the bathroom. Slowly slipping into the hot water, I slid down and sighed. My body instantly relaxed as I put my ear buds in and set my iPod down on the old stool I kept next to the tub.

Keeping my eyes closed, I let the heat of the water and the smell of the lavender completely take all my troubles away as I listened to Stoney LaRue sing in my ears. My body slowly began to relax as images of Dodge popped into my mind. I wasn’t sure how long I was in the tub, but when my body started to chill, I knew I had been sitting in there long enough. Pulling the plug, I stepped out of my claw-foot tub and grabbed a towel. Wrapping it around my body, I headed into my bedroom. Stopping dead in my tracks, I sucked in a breath as I looked at the red rose laying on my pillow. Spinning around, I quickly began going through my house. Walking up to the front door, I noticed it was still locked. Running into the kitchen, I checked the back door. pqdm.com