The Diva Digs up the Dirt by Krista Davis Read Free Book Online Page B

me.”
    “That’s sweet of you. I’d much rather be outside helping Troy. Maybe we can dress up your pots another day?”
    My job for the next week became clear. Troy would invent tasks for Natasha, and I had to invent reasons to send her back outside to him.
    Ordinarily, I would have whipped up breakfast, but I had no desire to linger out of fear that Troy would turn the tables on me again. I popped yogurt, blueberries, and bananas into a tall jar and used my immersion blender to puree it into summery fruit smoothies. I poured one for each of us, making sure Natasha stayed in the house for a bit so that Troy wouldn’t realize what I had done to him too soon.
    I whispered to Nina to keep Natasha busy, took the stairs two at a time, and changed into gardening clothes—khaki skorts, a sleeveless pink top, leather deck shoes, and a straw hat—as fast as I could.
    Tiptoeing, I dared to sneak into a back bedroom and peek out the window. I slapped a hand over my mouth to stifle a shriek. My entire back fence had been knocked down. Ugly bulldozer tracks churned up the lush green grass. My potting shed had been lifted from its base and now rested at an odd tilt far too close to my house.
    It took all the strength I had to resist the temptation to run outside and stop them from any further destruction. I had made my bed, and now I would have to deal with whatever nightmare they created in my lovely, peaceful backyard. I was about to leave when I spotted an onlooker in the alley.
    Mona peered into my yard. Her hair as perfect as the day before, she wore a short-sleeved yellow dress, but she had wised up and worn white running shoes.
The better to follow me with, eh? Not if I could help it.
    I grabbed a pair of small hoop earrings from my bedroom and put them on in the kitchen.
    “Where are you going dressed like that?” ask Natasha. “You look like a young version of Francie! I really should go through your closet and help you weed out some of your homely clothes.”
    Nina giggled until Natasha said, “I could do the same for you. Those pants aren’t even worth saving as dust rags.”
    Mochie had nestled on the window seat for his post-breakfast snooze. I filled a small bag with a few gardening items and clipped a leash to Daisy’s collar. We left by the kitchen door, Natasha heading to the backyard while Nina and I went in the opposite direction. Nina crossed the street to her house, and Daisy and I turned the corner to the sidewalk that ran along my fence. We walked to the alley and came to a halt. I peered around the corner of the side fence and saw exactly what I had hoped for—the back of a woman in a yellow dress. Daisy and I sped across the opening of the alley. I looked back briefly to be sure Mona hadn’t seen us. We were in luck.
    We jogged down the block and looked back to check on Mona one more time. No sign of her. Hoping I’d managed to dodge Mona, I tossed the bag in my car and took Daisy for her morning walk.
    Just my luck, as we strolled by Café Olé, Wolf shoved open the door and stepped onto the sidewalk. There was no avoiding him. I tried to use a dazzling smile like Troy did, but I had a feeling it just looked goofy on me.
    Wolf must have noticed because a twisted grin crossed his face, and he bent to kiss me on the cheek. “I’m sorry I was an ogre.”
    “Me, too.”
Oops.
That wasn’t exactly what I’d meant to say. “I mean I’m sorry we had a spat.”
    “Are you still going to meet with Roscoe?”
    My breath caught in my throat.
Not again!
“I don’t want to argue about this, Wolf.”
    “Can’t you just trust me?”
    “I trust you more than just about anyone I know. But it’s not like I’m meeting a known drug dealer on a loading dock at midnight.” I lowered my voice, in case anyone was listening to our conversation. “Roscoe is a respected member of the community.”
    “He’s trouble, plain and simple.” Daisy pawed at Wolf, and he rubbed her ears. “Is that good enough for