Legacy Rejected

by Robin Patchen

  Ginny had spent Monday morning at the food bank helping to unload crates of donated food, and she’d had an inspection yesterday afternoon. So she couldn’t have joined Kade and his father even if she’d been invited.

  Kade knew her schedule. That’s why he hadn’t invited her. Logically, that made perfect sense. But what if his father had spent the day trying to convince Kade to dump her?

  What if the whole family had spent the evening talking sense into him?

  If Kade ended things with Ginny, his dreams would be back on track. His family had to know that. If they had his best interests at heart, then of course they’d advise Kade to end their relationship.

  Except when he’d called her the night before, he’d seemed as devoted as ever.

  Maybe she was being ridiculous.

  And she didn’t want to think about what it meant to Kade’s business that he was standing by her. Her very existence was ruining his life.

  Tuesday morning, Ginny was working in the trailer at Clearwater Heights. Her assistant had been there all day Sunday and Monday and reported that not a single prospective buyer had walked through the doors. Even on their slowest days, they’d had people who wanted to see the show homes. Ginny refused to believe it was due to Saturday’s article. Everybody in southern New Hampshire couldn’t have read the article in Saturday’s Nutfield Gazette. Right?

  Except when she typed Clearwater Heights into the search bar on her laptop, the article was the first thing that came up, even above the website she and Kade had developed to showcase the property.

  Scandal Surrounds Clearwater Heights.

  Excellent.

  Ginny had already accomplished everything she’d planned for the day, and it wasn’t even noon yet. Normally, she’d be interrupted by potential buyers. Not today, though. She’d blame the weather, except the sun was shining. It was a perfect June day.

  It was Tuesday. People worked on Tuesdays. All was not lost.

  It just felt that way.

  She’d been inside the cramped office too long, and the walls were closing in. She stepped outside and locked the door behind her. It was hot—mid-eighties, at least—and humid. She’d probably regret this, probably return covered in sweat, but she had to get out of there for a few minutes. At least she’d worn capris and sandals instead of her usual slacks and heels. With no scheduled meetings, she’d dressed to walk around the property, planning to show people the land to help them envision all Kade had planned.

  All around, men hammered and drilled, working on the few houses already under construction. Their talk and laughter carried on the wind.

  In front of her, the partially constructed clubhouse stood empty. Construction had been halted after Saturday’s article.

  Ginny turned right, passed the two show homes she’d helped decorate, and continued down the hill along the recently paved asphalt road, little flags waving from the plotted-off land on either side. For Sale signs marked each one. She couldn’t bear to look. They wouldn’t ever sell if she continued on as the agent. She’d lost nearly all of her residential clients already. Only the investors, like Jack Rossi, had stuck with her so far. They didn’t care if her reputation was sullied. They only cared that she was good at finding deals.

  That wasn’t fair, though. Jack and Harper were friends. At least Ginny still had some of those.

  This was all going to blow over.

  Rae had told Ginny the article about her would come out the next day. She’d even offered to send Ginny an early copy, but she hadn’t wanted to see it. It felt weird having someone write about her life. It hadn’t even come out yet, and Ginny felt like a circus attraction.

  Like a victim.

  She hated it. She wasn’t a victim, not of her past, not of her parents. Something Kade had said right after they’d met came to mind. He’d said maybe she’d become who she was not because of her parents but despite them.

  Now she’d be using her ugly past to garner sympathy, to… ugh, she hated thinking about it, but it felt like she was using it to manipulate people into liking her, into supporting her. Yes, everything she’d said to Rae was true. But still…

  Ginny hadn’t left California because she’d wanted to escape her past. Her mom had forced her to leave, had shoved a bag of money at her and told her to run.

  At the time, it had felt like the worst betrayal, as if she’d lost everything. But then, when she’d achieved some distance from her parents, she realized her mother’s insistence that she leave had been a gift—even if Mom hadn’t meant it that way. When Ginny had gotten settled in Nutfield, when she’d made friends and started building her business, she’d realized the freedom that came from being far from her mother, from the darkness that had always hovered over their family, from the pressure of trying to get them to love her.

  Now she was trying to get the townspeople to love her. The article coming out in tomorrow’s newspaper made her feel uncomfortable, exposed. But she’d already been exposed. Thanks to Bruce Collier, the town already knew all her dirty secrets.

  Ginny reached the lake and peered across the sparkling blue surface. The inlet surrounded on three sides by Kade’s land was quiet, but beyond that, motorboats buzzed by. Every so often, Ginny could hear the squeal of a child playing somewhere on the far shore, where vacation homes dotted the landscape.

  A car door slammed in the distance, and she swiveled toward the sound.

  Beside an old red pickup truck, a man stood on the road in dingy jeans, boots, and a dirty T-shirt. Ginny expected him to turn away, to head toward one of the construction sites nearby, but instead, he lifted his hand to shield his eyes and looked toward the water.

  No, toward her.

  She recognized him. She’d seen him at the groundbreaking Friday. He must have been one of the construction workers. He had blond hair and wide shoulders. Even from this distance, she could see the muscles bulging beneath his T-shirt.

  He was familiar, and not just from Friday.

  She’d seen him before.

  An image of her father’s burial came to mind. It had been a cold, drizzly day. She and her mother and sister had sat in the front row beneath a tent arranged for the occasion. A few others had come out for the burial, had listened to the short ceremony. When it was over, when Ginny was thanking friends and inviting them back to the house, she’d seen someone standing near the line of cars, watching.

  The same man who was watching her right now.

  A chill slithered down her back despite the sunshine beating down on her.

  He lifted his hand as if in greeting, then climbed in his truck and drove away.

  Ginny waited until he was out of sight before she rushed up the hill.

  It couldn’t have been the same person. Except something told her it had been.

  Maybe he’d been the one who’d searched her house.

  Maybe he’d been watching her all along.

  Ginny rushed toward the trailer. At every noise in the distance, she turned, certain she was about to see that red truck barreling toward her.

  She tried to tell herself the man had just been a construction worker. Maybe he was just a creepy guy who didn’t understand it wasn’t okay to stare at women. Maybe he’d waved because she’d caught him.

  She wanted to believe her fear was unfounded. She wanted to believe she had nothing to worry about. But he’d been too familiar.

  Kathryn’s words came back to her. Kathryn had seen someone in town who’d been at the funeral.

  Saturday, Brady had said he believed that the timing of the newspaper article didn’t make sense. That perhaps the timing had been planned, the information planted by someone.

  The man in the red truck?

  Though the hill that led back to the trailer wasn’t a steep incline, the weather and her speed had sweat dripping down her back. She longed for the air-conditioned comfort of the trailer. And the safety of the door she could lock.

  And the handgun she’d left in her purse, despite Kade’s ef
fort to get her to carry it wherever she went.

  When she rounded the wide curve and saw the trailer in the distance, she exhaled in relief. Almost there.

  There were two cars in the driveway. One a minivan she recognized as Rae’s. The other was Kade’s Mercedes.

  She was still ten yards away when Kade stepped outside, a phone pressed to his ear. He spied her and spoke. “Never mind. She’s here.” He met Ginny’s eyes, no smile. After a moment, he spoke again to whomever was on the other end of his call. “Believe me, I’ll tell her.”

  When he disconnected, she tried for a bright smile. “Am I in trouble?”

  Kade slipped his cell into his jeans’ pocket. “Where’ve you been?” His words were harsh, and the look he gave her was no kinder.

  “I took a walk.”

  “I’ve been trying to reach you.” His cheeks were flushed, the corners of his mouth tight. “Why didn’t you take your phone?”

  She checked her pockets. “I didn’t realize I’d left it.”

  A moment passed while he glared at her. She resisted the urge to step back.

  Then, he took a deep breath and approached, his arms outstretched.

  She stepped into them. She was too hot to hug, but when she was in his arms, she forgot about the heat.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “When you weren’t here…”

  He didn’t finish. After a minute, she said, “I’m fine.” And then she remembered. “When you were driving in, did you happen to see a red pickup truck?”

  He stepped back, narrowed his eyes. “No. Why?”

  She glanced around the area, but even in the distance where the construction workers were busy at their tasks, she didn’t see the vehicle.

  “Let’s go inside,” she said. “I’m melting.”

  He held the door open, and Ginny stepped inside to find Rae sitting in one of the chairs on the guest side of the desk.

  The cool air hit her moist skin, and she shivered.

  Rae stood when she entered. “I thought I heard your voice out there.” She approached, gave Ginny a quick hug. She had the grace not to mention how sweaty Ginny must have been. “Glad you’re here. I thought Kade was going to have a stroke when he dialed your number and it rang on the desk.”

  Behind her, Kade said, “What’s the deal with the red truck?”

  Ginny related what had happened at the lake shore.

  “Had you seen him before?” Rae asked.

  “I saw him at the groundbreaking on Friday. He reminded me of someone.”

  “Who?” Rae asked.

  Rae looked curious, mildly worried with her lips pressed together, her head tilted to the side.

  Kade’s eyes were narrowed, his hands on his hips.

  “Um…” It was going to sound stupid, and Kade was already furious. “It’s probably nothing.”

  Kade continued glaring.

  “There was a guy at my father’s funeral.” She explained that she thought perhaps it was the same person. “Except, really, I didn’t get a good look at him then. Or today. Maybe it was just the moment that was familiar, the feeling of being watched from afar.”

  “Did you get a license plate number?” Rae snatched her phone from her purse.

  “The angle was wrong. I couldn’t read it from where I stood.” And it hadn’t occurred to her.

  “Was it a New Hampshire license?” Rae asked.

  Kade’s shoulders were bunched as if he’d just taken on a great weight.

  She closed her eyes, tried to picture the plate. New Hampshire plates were bluish-gray with an image of the Old Man on the Mountain. They had green lettering.

  The plate had been white with red lettering. “Massachusetts, I think.”

  Phone pressed to her ear, Rae stepped out of the trailer. “Brady, there was a red truck…” The words were lost when the door closed behind her.

  Kade said, “I’m just going to drive around, see if I see him.” He left, too.

  Ginny grabbed a bottle of water from the mini-fridge and sipped it. She checked her phone for missed messages. Aside from the ones from Kade and Rae, there were none. She sat and perused her email, finding nothing that needed responding to immediately.

  Ten minutes that felt like an hour passed before Kade returned. “Rae’s still on the phone out there.”

  “Did you see him?”

  “No sign of the truck. Guess he’s long gone.” He looked so serious, almost angry, as he approached her. “You left your phone, your purse, and your gun here.”

  “I just went—”

  “It’s not safe. I understand it’s been a while since the break-in at your house, but after what Brady said the other day, I’d think you’d be more careful.”

  “I needed to get out of here for a minute.”

  The anger leached from his face. He stepped closer and wrapped her in his arms. “I’m not angry with you. It just scared me when you weren’t here. And then that man—”

  “That was probably nothing.” Ginny let herself enjoy the moment. “He probably works here for one of the construction companies, don’t you think?”

  “If he did, then I’d have seen his truck when I drove around.”

  Good point. She stepped out of his arms. “Why is Rae here?”

  Kade shrugged. “No idea. I came to see if you wanted to get lunch. I wish you could have joined us yesterday.”

  “Me, too.”

  “Dad wanted to meet you, but he and Mom are coming back in August, and they’ve already made me promise they can meet you then.”

  “Your parents want to meet me?” She hated the uncertainty in her voice, the fear.

  “Of course. My siblings told Dad all about you. And Mom’s been grilling Andrea. They can’t wait.”

  “Oh.” She couldn’t think of a thing to say, so relieved at the words. Relieved and concerned. “I want to meet them, too. But we haven’t had a person stop by to look at the lots in days. I just think maybe—”

  “We’re not talking about ending this.” Kade stepped away.

  “But maybe we should.”

  “The article is going to come out tomorrow, and when it does, everyone in this town is going to love you as much as I do.” His lips quirked with a smile. “Well, maybe not quite as much.” He brushed her hair back from her face. “Stop trying to talk me into dumping you. It’s not going to happen.”

  The door opened, and Rae stepped back inside. “Brady’s got his men on the lookout for that truck.”

  “It was probably nothing,” Ginny said.

  “I’m glad you’re both here. I have some news.” By the look on her face, it wasn’t good.

  Kade slid his arm around Ginny’s back, and they faced Rae. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Why don’t we sit?”

  Uh-oh. This wasn’t starting well, and the look on Rae’s face brought no comfort.

  Ginny slipped into one of the guest chairs. Kade rounded the desk and sat in the rolling chair on the far side.

  Rae sat beside Ginny and focused on her. “My editor called me this morning. He’s not going to run our article tomorrow.”

  Kade stood. “What? Why?”

  “I don’t know. He just said the timing wasn’t right.”

  “The timing is perfect,” Kade said. “Everybody in town is talking about her right now.”

  Her. As if Ginny weren’t there.

  “People will devour it,” he added.

  Rae said, “I’m sorry. I can’t force him—”

  “Take it to the Union Leader, then. Maybe they’ll—”

  “I work for the Gazette. I can’t write an article for another newspaper. It doesn’t work that way.”

  Kade ran his fingers through his hair. “If that article doesn’t come out…”

  But the words trailed off.

  Ginny didn’t need him to end the sentence. She stood. “It’s over, then.”

  Kade faced her. “We’ll figure something out.”

  “You will. Without me.�
�� She kept her voice emotionless, forced out words she knew nobody in the room would believe. Not yet, anyway. “You’re a nice guy, Kade. But this is more trouble than it’s worth, for both of us. It’s been fun, but seriously, I can’t handle any more drama.”

  He blinked once, twice. “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m sorry. I’m done.” She waved around the room at the messy files and paperwork, at the poster propped on the easel beside her. “Thanks to your development, I’ve lost my business. I have to try to salvage it, either here or elsewhere. And you’ll have to salvage this.” She snatched her purse from the table. “We’re done.”

  She didn’t meet Rae’s eyes as she passed. She pushed open the trailer door and stepped into the blazing sun.

  She hurried to her Toyota, but she needn’t have. Kade didn’t follow her out.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kade had spent half the day Saturday trying to get Ginny not to break things off with him. Hours he should have spent reassuring his investors instead of dealing with her drama.

  And at the first sign of trouble, she’d dumped him.

  Fine, then.

  He wasn’t going to try to talk her out of it. He couldn’t be the only one fighting for their relationship. If she was so willing to let him go, then he’d let her.

  Kade didn’t subscribe to the newspaper. He read most of his news online, including the Gazette’s. But this morning, despite the rain that had moved in the night before, hope had bloomed. Maybe Rae’s editor had changed his mind and run the feature article. It made no sense that he’d decided not to. He had nothing to gain by seeing Clearwater Heights fail, and the paper had been supportive of the development for months.

  So after Kade dressed and read his Bible, he hurried to the closest gas station and bought a newspaper. Just a glance at the front page told him his hopes had been in vain.

  Back home, he fixed his coffee, sat at his kitchen table, and read the headline.