“Well,” she began, “it’s an easy enough guess. Not many people would be concerned about the bank’s security like that. Only someone who was in that field would think about it.”
“Or someone who doesn’t want his money to be stolen,” he pointed out.
She laughed. “No one in town is scared of that. All the money here is guaranteed.”
“Insurance?” he asked.
“Something like that,” she answered. “I’m sure you appreciate that I can’t divulge all of the bank’s secrets.”
Then the vixen did the most insane thing she could do.
She winked.
A full-on wink like this was an after-school special, and she was a kindly and matronly woman. But there was nothingmatronlyabout her.
Parker nearly swallowed his tongue. His knees nearly buckled, and he wasn’t sure if he could still breathe. No woman had ever winked at him before, but that didn’t matter. He had the feeling that the only reason why this particular wink was so effective was entirely due to the woman who had aimed it at him.
“What’s your name?” he asked. “You don’t have a name tag.”
She giggled, and once again, he was taken aback by the powerful reaction his body had. He all but had to grip the side of the counter to keep from toppling over.
“I don’t need a name tag in this small town,” she explained. “All …” She stopped and laughed softly, “mostof the people who come in here have known me since I was born, or I’ve known them since they were born. My name is Jade, though. Jade Curran. A pleasure to meet you.”
“Jade Curran,” he repeated. Even her name sounded beautiful on his tongue.
What the hell is wrong with me? Why in the hell am I getting all turned around by a bank teller? I’m worse than a high school kid with a crush. Get your shit together, Dawson.
He cleared his throat and pulled his sunglasses out of his back pocket to have something to do with his hands. “Well, when do you think the system will be back up and running, Jade?”
She shrugged. “Oh, there is no way for me to know that, unfortunately. It’ll come back when it feels like it.”
He shook his head. “Whenitfeels like it?” Of all the strange things to say! “I don’t understand this town.”
“You get used to it. I promise.”
“Why doesn’t someone fix this electricity and internet issue?” he mumbled more to himself than to her.
Jade laughed softly. “Do you really think no one has tried? They have. There’s no fixing it. It’s just the way the woods and lake are around here. It causes too much interference or something.”
Parker didn’t want to point out that her explanation didn’t really make any sense, but he just sighed. “Just one of those small-town things I need to get used to, I guess.”
“Yup, something like that,” she continued to smile at him. “You’ll get used to it. It’s not that big of a deal, really. And living in Half Moon Key is totally worth the minor inconvenience every now and again.”
“Minor inconvenience,” Parker repeated.
“Yup!”
“You are one chipper woman,” he commented despite trying to kill the words before they came out of his mouth. It was too late, though. He had already said them, and judging by the look on Jade’s face, she heard them loud and clear. She was now looking at him as if she were trying to figure him out.
He wanted to wish her luck.
He lived in his own head, and he wasn’t able to figurehimselfout most days.
“I’ll try again later, then. See you around, Jade.”
“Right back at you!” She waved at him before he turned back and walked out of the bank.
Parker pulled out his phone, but he wasn’t surprised to see that there was no signal. Whatever was happening in Half Moon Key wasn’t natural.