“Have a good time?”

Syd nodded. “He took me to my first Phillies game, but I didn’t order anything to eat, so now I’m starving.”

The guy scanned the menu. “I think we’ll go for an order of fries and wings. Bone in. Sixteen.”

I skedaddled off to place the order and when I returned, old man Melvin was at the bar, waiting for me.

Oh no.

I smiled at him even though he looked like he was ready to unload, but my smile faltered as the door opened, and Aimee with two e’s rolled in. Her gaze swept the bar, and not finding Jax, she made her way over to the bar farthest from me, in front of an annoyed-looking Nick.

I sat the beer down on a napkin in front of Melvin without him asking, hoping that would somehow fend him off.

It didn’t work.

“What’s this I hear about Rooster’s body being tossed on your doorstep?” he demanded, wrapping his hand around the bottle.

The guy stiffened, and the girl’s eyes widened.

“Damn shame what these druggies are doing to this town,” Melvin went on, oblivious to the eyes on him. He took a hefty swig of his beer. “This used to be a good town, a good place. Now we have them keeling over dead, bullet wounds to their heads. Freaking shame.”

“Kyler,” the girl whispered as she talked to him slowly. “Um . . . ?”

He said nothing as his gaze moved to me. Before I could speak, Melvin decided he wasn’t done. “Can’t say it’s a shame about Rooster, though. Who didn’t see that messy end coming for him? He was nothing but a lowlife and—”

“Are you wanting wings or fries today?” I asked, hoping to distract him before he sent the poor couple running off into the night screaming bloody murder.

Distracted by my question, he eventually grumbled out an order for wings. As I left to place that order, the couple’s wings and fries were ready. When I returned, I was thanking the heavens that Melvin’s buddy had showed up and they moved away from the bar.

“Sorry about that,” I said, placing the baskets on the counter. “We usually don’t have those kinds of problems.”

The guy leaned in. “Was there really a body on your porch?”

I winced. “Yeah. Long story.”

“Whoa,” he murmured, sitting back.

The door swung open again, and I looked up, spying Katie strolling in. I knew the exact moment the girl saw her, because her eyes grew even wider. Might have something to do with the fact Katie was wearing a hot pink fishnet dress over what appeared to be a bikini. Or pasties. I didn’t want to look long enough to figure it out.

Grinning, she bounced over to where I was at. “Girl, you look good today. Despite the fact you got dead bodies dropping on your head.”

Oh. My. God.

“Actually, you look like someone who got recently laid,” she continued, and my mouth dropped open. “Yeah, you do. You so do.”