KENNICK: A Bad Boy Romance Novel by Meg Jackson Page A

breath caught in her throat. He did not just say that. Even Ed seemed
shocked as he watched Pastor Hendrix shake with rage.

 
    “You’ll see! You’ll all see!” he said, backing away
from the desk. Kim wondered if he was so crazed with rage that his own words
hadn’t even hit him yet. “And once that Mayor of ours gets back, I expect a
call. You tell him Dick Hendrix deserves to be heard!”

 
    “Holy shit,” Ed murmured as the man slammed the door
shut behind him.

 
    “Literally,” Kim said, equally stunned – and still
angry about the way he’d threatened Kennick and his brothers. “So…how can I
help you, Ed?”

 
    “Came by to speak to Tom,” he said. “Guess he’s not
here?”

 
    Kim shook her head.

 
    “Well, I’m glad I came by anyway. Asshole. You
alright? Look a little shaken up,” Ed said, rolling his shoulders as though
Pastor Hendrix’s presence had put a knot in them. Kim wouldn’t have been
surprised if that was true. Pure rage could have that effect on a person.

 
    “It’s just…did you hear what he said? I mean…wow,” Kim said, shaking her head slowly. Ed offered
her a sympathetic smile.

 
    “Men like him want to call everyone a sinner,” he
said. “Even the victims. But you…you have a personal stake in the matter, don’t
you?”

 
    Kim blushed. Of course Ed Kerry knew. He and Ricky
were gossip buddies. They had a deep dish session at Sid’s Diner every Monday
morning to go over everything that had gone down over the past week, and Kim
had told her sister about the date on Sunday night, so it was fresh in her
mind. The two most incorrigible gossips in town – and Kim had the luck to be
related to one.

 
    “Well, just so you know,” Ed said, leaning close with
a twinkle in his eye, “I can’t say I’m not a little jealous. Those are some
fine specimens of men. Even if they don’t wash behind their ears.”

 
    “Wish everyone was so accepting of them,” Kim said
with a sigh. “I have a feeling things are going to get rough around here. And I
just don’t want to be waltzing myself into the middle of it all.”

 
    “It’s a small town, people will come around when they
see nothing’s amiss,” Ed said confidently. “I mean, maybe not everyone. Just
don’t get Pastor Hendrix to officiate at the wedding.”

 
    Kim laughed.

 
    “I doubt it will get that far, Ed.”

 
    “Hey now, don’t go stomping all over my fantasies. You
ever seen a gypsy wedding? Those things are awesome. You better invite me.”

 
    “You can walk me down the aisle if it happens,” Kim
said. “But it won’t, so don’t get your hopes up.”

 
    “You never know. I saw the way that big man was
looking at you in the bar. He’s got something more than knocking boots on his
mind. Trust me. I’m a man.”

 
    “I barely know him!” Kim couldn’t help but laugh as
she blushed harder.

 
    “Well, Sleeping Beauty didn’t know Prince Charming
from Mr. Clean before he smooched her. And honey, if ever there was a Sleeping
Beauty in Kingdom, it’s you.”

 
    “You’re awful. Get out of here. Don’t you have a
supermarket to run?”

 
    “You never let me have any fun,” Ed faked a pout but
turned around, only to open his arms as Mayor Gunderson entered the room.
“Perfect! Just the man I came to see! And wouldn’t you know, this woman here
was going to make me leave?”

 
    “I’m sure she had good reason,” Mayor Gunderson said,
flashing them a million-dollar grin while he held his hand out for Ed to shake,
adding an amiable pat on the back to the greeting. “What can I do for you,
Eddy?”

 
    “I was just checking in after the other night,” Ed
said, his tone softening. Kim saw Mayor Gunderson stiffen slightly, but a
moment later he was his old easy-going self. “You were a bit keyed up. Should
we go into your office?”

 
    “Naw,” Mayor Gunderson said. “Kim was there. She saw
it too. I know, I got a bit