The Heartbreaker

“You should have seen Lucki yesterday, Reverend Halcomb.”

Lucki turned to the voice. J.J. was grinning from ear to ear.
“You're heading down the wrong path, J.J.” Lucki glanced to the smiling child and then threw Sam a warning look.

“Sam had to dig a BB out of Lucki's butt on Mama's kitchen table.”

Missy Hawkin's penciled eyebrows rose. Sam's eyes narrowed. Reverend Halcomb was all ears.

“Spud shot her with his BB gun.”

“That's enough, J.J.” Sam's expression was stern.

“We watched him take it out. We peeked through the kitchen window.” He turned to Lucki. “It looked like Sam had to go in deep. He was poking in around back there for a long time.”

Sam groaned. Lucki gritted her teeth and spoke out of the corner of her mouth. “You're dead meat, kid.”

“Of course Sam being a doctor and everything, he had every right to feel around on your rear end while you were laying there over the table. Sam was only trying to get the darned thing out. I bet it hurt a little, didn't it, Lucki?”

She gritted her teeth tighter. “Not as much as you're gonna hurt when—”

“Of course, you did have on that skimpy bathing suit. It was kind of natural that when you bent over to pick up that sponge that me and Spud would think about shooting you. It was too tempting. Of course, it was Sam that gave us the idea.”

Lucki's gaze lifted to Sam. Now his eyes were big as Aunt Emma’s Sunday saucers and Missy's were narrowed to slits. Reverend Halcomb was still all ears.

“What do you mean Sam gave you the idea?” she bit out.

Reverend Halcomb stepped back two steps as Lucki strode toward Sam.
There was a brief pause. Lucki watched Sam's Adam's apple move up and down, then J.J. spoke up. “He said you ought to be shot for wearing a bathing suit like the one you were wearing. He said it showed too much T and A, whatever that is. And he said if you didn't stop parading around all over your back yard dressed like that, he might not be responsible for his actions.”

The next instant Missy Hawkins slapped Sam square across the face.