Promise Cove (A Pelican Pointe Novel Book 1) (50 page)

W
hen
o
ther
cus
t
ome
r
s
s
t
a
r
t
ed
lini
n
g
up
behind
J
or
d
an, he
let
the
co
n
ve
r
sation
die
a
quick
death.
The
t
ownspeople did
n
’t
need
a
n
y
more
fodder
for
the
grap
e
v
in
e
.
N
ic
k
’
s
a
r
r
i
v
a
l
ou
t
a
t
The
C
ove
had
spread
like
w
ildf
i
r
e
throug
h
t
own.
J
or
d
a
n
did
n
’
t
nee
d
s
p
i
te
f
u
l
g
o
ss
i
p
ma
k
i
n
g
thi
n
gs
a
n
y
wo
r
s
e for
he
r
.

Once
out
s
ide,
J
or
d
an
pushed
her
ca
r
t
t
o
w
ard
her
F
ord
E
xplorer
and
noticed
a
woman
s
quatti
n
g
next
t
o
it
holdi
n
g
a tire
iron
in
her
hand.
S
he
w
as
t
r
y
i
n
g
despera
t
ely
t
o
get
the
lug nuts
off
a
f
l
at-as-a-pancake
rear
tire
on
a
faded
-
out
red
Es
co
r
t parked
in
the
space
next
t
o
the
S
U
V
.
The
t
r
unk
s
t
ood
open.
T
w
o
s
ma
ll
ch
i
ldre
n
w
it
h
r
un
n
y
n
os
es
wer
e
hunkere
d
do
wn next
t
o
their
mother
w
a
t
chi
n
g
as
she
st
r
uggled
t
o
lo
os
en
one of
the
bolts
holdi
n
g
the
tire
like
glue
on
t
o
the
wheel.
The
lug
nuts
re
f
u
s
ed
t
o
budg
e
.

“
I
ha
t
e
tha
t
,
”
J
or
d
a
n
commen
t
ed
,
pu
l
li
n
g
th
e
ca
r
t
t
o
a s
t
op
at
the
rear
of
the
E
xplore
r
.
“
Got
y
our
milk
and
eggs
in the
ca
r
,
y
our
pe
r
i
sh
a
bl
e
s,
and
the
car
le
a
v
e
s
y
ou
stranded
.
”
I
t
ha
d
happene
d
t
o
he
r
l
a
s
t
sp
r
i
n
g
whe
n
H
u
t
t
o
n
ha
d
been
just
three
months
old.
F
o
r
t
una
t
el
y
,
sh
e
’
d
been
a
ble
t
o
u
s
e the
phone
in
the
s
t
ore,
get
W
a
lly
P
ierce
from
the
g
as
s
t
ation
t
o
come
over
and
cha
n
ge
the
tire
for
he
r
.
B
ut
this
woman dre
ss
ed
in
her
wo
r
n-thin
jeans
and
a
r
a
t
t
y
old
T
-shi
r
t
did
n
’t look
like
she
could
aff
or
d
t
o
d
o
tha
t.
A
nd
t
r
y
i
n
g
he
r
hard
e
st
t
o
pu
ll
o
n
tha
t
t
ir
e
iron
,
sh
e
could
n
’
t
h
a
v
e
weighe
d
mor
e
than
a
hundred
and
five
pounds.

“
I
though
t
I
coul
d
j
u
s
t
…
y
o
u
k
no
w
,
ge
t
th
e
ol
d
t
ir
e
to
com
e
off
,
bu
t
th
e
s
e
thi
n
g
s
wo
n
’
t
budge
,
”
sh
e
s
queake
d
in
a
quive
r
i
ng
v
o
ic
e
a
s
i
f
sh
e
’
d
reache
d
th
e
en
d
o
f
he
r
rop
e.
“
I
’
v
e
bee
n
t
r
y
i
n
g
.
”

“T
h
os
e
thin
g
s
are
hard
to
get
of
f
.
”
N
o
t
to
men
t
ion
they
looked
l
i
ke
the
y
’
d
been
welded
onto
the
ca
r
’
s
whee
l
s
s
i
nce
the
eigh
ti
e
s
.
J
ordan
k
new
n
o
thing
a
b
out
ca
r
s
or
t
ir
e
s
or
lug
nu
ts
.
B
ut
she
did
reco
g
nize
thread
-
bare
t
ir
e
s
when
she
s
a
w the
m
.
A
l
l
four
t
ir
e
s
looked
in
bad
shape.
“
I
’
m
J
ordan
by
the
w
a
y
.
J
ordan
Ph
il
l
i
p
s
.
A
nd
th
i
s
i
s
H
utto
n
.
Do
you
h
a
ve
a
spare?”