Free Tangled Fury by Kristen Middleton, Book Cover By Design, K. L. Middleton

you don’t like it, well… that’s just tough. Isn’t that right, Emma?”
    Emma, w ho’d been surprisingly silent, now began jumping up and down in delight. “That’s right! We’re staying and that’s final! No more moving!”
    “See that, the re,” he said, his eyes softening. “Emma’s already put her stamp of approval on it. Besides, you can’t leave us now. The flowers wouldn’t survive without that little lady.”
    F rom the look on his face, I had a feeling that he was also speaking of himself, and not just the garden. Fred had been so good to us, and deep down, I wasn’t ready to move away from him either. And now, fate had taken another turn, this time in our favor.  We’d found a way to still be near him, along with a permanent home - one that was safe and near two people who both cared deeply. It seemed too good to be true.
    I blinked back tears and laughed. “I guess I can’t argue with that logic.”
    “Good,” he said. “Now, dinner is almost ready. Emma, why don’t you come inside and help me set the table?”
    “Okay,” she answered, bu bbling with excitement. She seemed to enjoy helping Fred in the kitchen almost as much as she loved gardening. “I’m coming.”
    He began walking towards the house with Emma and she grabbed his hand. He smiled down at her and it was a moment that I wished I could have captured on camera.
    “He really loves her, doesn’t he?” I said to Arlene.
    “How can you not love her?”
    I smiled.
    Fred looked back at us. “By the way, y ou two ladies – don’t go too far. Dinner will be ready shortly.”
    “ Sounds good, Fred.” She looked at me and began removing her other gardening glove. “You know, I’m going to run home and wash up. I’ll return in a few.”
    “I’d better change my clothes, too,” I answered, looking down at my outfit.
    She began walking towards her yard. “Yes, relax now, you’re home.”
    I really was…
    “I’ll let Fred know that you’ll be back,” I called, walking towards the house. As I stepped through the sliding glass door and into the kitchen, Fred handed me my cell phone.
    “Looks like you’ve missed some calls.”
    “Five from the same caller,” I said, biting my lower lip. “Hmm… The number shows ‘Private’ and isn’t listed. God, I just hate that.”
    “ I know. It’s probably just a telemarketer trying to sell you something. You know how persistent they can be.”
    “ Maybe. Whoever it was didn’t leave a message. So, I’m sure it wasn’t that important.”
    He opened up the refrigerator and took out the bowl of potato salad. “Hey, it could be your new boss.”
    “I’m pretty sure he would have left a message.”
    “What did you think of him?”
    “He seemed okay. You’ve known him for a while?”
    “Grew up with his father, although I don’t know Than e very well. Sam knows him better than I do.”
    “Yeah, I heard that he was going to cater the Christmas party this year.”
    “For that swanky salon?” His eyes twinkled . “Now that should be interesting.”
    “Sam’s a good cook.”
    He chuckled. “Yeah, but he’s a fry cook. Not a caterer.”
    “Mom had mentioned that he’d wanted to be a caterer,” I said, thinking back to that conversation. “She wanted to help him get started.”
    “ I didn’t know that,” he replied, smiling. “My brother the caterer. Huh.”
    “ So, where’s Emma?” I asked, looking around the kitchen.
    “She went to the bathroom. ”
    I plugged my phone into the wall charger. “It’s odd that someone would call five times and not leave a message, isn’t it?”
    He shrugged. “Maybe they realized they had the wrong number. I wouldn ’t think too hard about it.”
    “What if it’s Ray?” I said, lowering my voice. “What if he’s found us, again?”
    “Now, don’t get into a pa nic, Sera,” he replied calmly. “There isn’t anything linking you to this place. And because we were able to hook you up with a new last name