by Harper Lin
A week later, the arson had been all over the news, but the woman found was barely a blip on the radar. Even Amelia had forgotten about her. She had too many things on her mind. Like why Dan hadn’t called for several days. She didn’t know whether he was alive or dead. She assumed alive. But she kept her thoughts to herself.
“Now, my friend is a little eccentric,” Lila said as she drove Amelia in her big red Cadillac to a rather isolated part of town. It was not quite rural, but it was pretty close.
“Why does he want to sell the truck?” Amelia asked.
“He bought it for a woman who wanted to start her own business. Pizza or hoagies or something. According to him, when she realized that he wasn’t going to pay for her employees and well, learn to make said pizza or hoagies, she got mad. He took it back and the key to his house as well.”
“And how do you know this guy?”
“Oh, he and I go way back.”
“What’s his name?”
“Robert Jayne,” Lila said.
“Robert Jayne. I’ve never heard you mention him.”
Lila shrugged and kept her eyes on the road.
“Lila? Why do I get the feeling that there is a little more to this story than you are letting on? Why, Lila Bergman… you are blushing!” Amelia squealed.
“It isn’t like that.” She shook her head and shrugged.
“Then what’s it like? Come on. I tell you about Dan. I let you ramble on about us getting seedy connected hotel rooms in Vegas.”
“Did I ever say the words ‘seedy’ or ‘Vegas’? Sounds to me like you were putting a lot more thought into a getaway with him than you care to admit.” Lila laughed.
“Don’t try and change the subject.” Amelia was laughing, too, and could barely get the words out. “What’s the story?”
“Nothing. Now, dummy up. We’re here.”
“Fine. I’ll just ask Robert Jayne the story,” Amelia threatened with a twinkle in her eye.
“You’ll do no such thing,” Lila said, driving up a long gravel driveway that led to the most elegant farmhouse Amelia had ever seen.
“This is his house?” She gasped. It was a sprawling plantation that made Skywalker Ranch look like a shed. A bright red barn behind the house had its doors open. A huge chicken coop was alive with beautifully colored birds.
After parking her car, Lila got out and started heading toward the barn.
“Shouldn’t we ring the doorbell?” Amelia pointed to the fabulous porch that had ceiling fans and comfy-looking wicker chairs.
“The barn door is open. He’s in there.” She pointed and kept walking.
Before she got to the open barn door, a huge man who had to be at least six feet tall suddenly appeared. He wore tight-fitting blue jeans and a stained white T-shirt that hugged well-defined pectorals. Had he not had a full head of gray hair, Amelia wouldn’t have believed he was a day over thirty.
“I’ve been waiting for you!” he shouted to Lila. “My, you are looking good,” Robert said as he strolled out of the barn with as much attitude in his strides as Lila had.
“Why, Mr. Jayne, you do say the craziest things.” Lila smiled from ear to ear and had the same mischievous twinkle in her eyes as Robert scooped her up in his strong arms and lifted her completely off the ground.
“Have you eaten yet? I’ve got some grub up at the house. Mimosa? Bloody Mary? Maybe a Bailey’s and coffee.”
“Now, Robert, this is a business meeting,” Lila said as she slipped her hand through his beefy arm. “Robert Jayne, meet my dearest friend and boss, Amelia Harley.”
Amelia almost didn’t catch the introduction as she took in the view. And she hadn’t even had a chance to look at the property. Not only was Robert Jayne in perfect physical shape but he had a square jaw, bright blue eyes, dimples in his cheeks when he smiled, and beautifully straight white teeth. His skin was a healthy color. Even the wrinkles around his eyes were sexy. His hair wasn’t just gray—it was peppered, cut close around the sides like he’d been in the military.
“Hello,” Amelia said, reaching out her hand and looking at Lila with a suspicious grin. He was quite a change from Lila’s last beau, Rusty, who was a biker and built like one, not a drill sergeant.
“Amelia. You’re here to see my merchandise, is that right?” Robert said flirtatiously as he took her hand.
“If you’re ready to show it to me.” She couldn’t believe the words came out of her mouth, and she felt her cheeks ignite.
“Oh, you two are going to get along just fine,” Lila said, rolling her eyes and pulling Robert along.
“Okay, business before pleasure. Follow me. I’ve got the truck on ice,” Robert said as he let go of Amelia’s hand and led the ladies along the long gravel driveway to a smaller barn, just as bright red as the big one.
Using just one arm, flexing his muscles and making the sleeve of his T-shirt stretch tight, he pulled open the door.
Inside was a silver food truck that looked like it had just rolled off the assembly line. The truck was a tiny bit smaller than the Pink Cupcake, but that accounted for one less oven.
“Oh my.” Amelia walked up to the truck and started peeking around. She didn’t think she’d ever lay eyes on anything prettier than Robert Jayne, but here it was. Instantly, her mind started calculating what every feature was worth, and soon she had it well over her budget.
“So, you like it?” Robert asked.
“It’s great, Robert, but I have to tell you that I just don’t think I can manage what this truck costs. Even with one less oven than my main truck.” She shrugged and looked at Lila. “This is like a James Bond car compared to my truck. It’s just a little out of my league.”
“Oh no. You are taking this truck. I can’t stand the sight of it.” Robert growled. “What was I thinking?” He looked at Lila and patted her hand around the crook of his arm.
“Those younger women don’t appreciate you, Robert. I keep telling you that,” Lila scolded. “It just isn’t worth it.”
“Well, how much is it going to take for you to make me happy, Lila?”
Amelia gasped, her eyes surprised into wide saucers.
“You had your chance.”
“I know. I know. Don’t remind me. If only I could do it all over again. I’d get it right, Lila. Just try me.”
Amelia’s mouth hung open before Robert turned to her and shouted out his asking price for the truck.
“Are you kidding?” Amelia asked.
“Nope. The whole thing is yours. I’m just asking for a few bucks to keep it legit and give you a write-off on your taxes.” He winked, making Amelia’s heart jump. “What do you say, Amelia? Do we have a deal?”
“We do, Robert.” She extended her hand to shake, but he took her hand and drew her close, folding her gently into his arms for a big bear hug. He smelled like fresh hay and tobacco.
“Okay, break it up. You said something about mimosas?” Lila said, taking Amelia by the hand.
“You ladies go on up to the house. Lila, you know where everything is. Give Amelia the nickel tour while I finish up here and I’ll meet you both inside.” Robert arched his eyebrow at Lila and winked again.
As the ladies walked up the gravel path to the wrap-around porch, Amelia squeezed Lila’s hand.
“What are you waiting for?” she shouted in a whisper. “Can I ask why you are not taking Mr. Perfect Body up on his offer? He’s crazy about you. Look at this place. Look at him. Lila, I always knew you were crazy, but even this is too weird for words.”
Lila smiled and looked over her shoulder to see Robert looking over his at her.
“I tried. We’ve known each other for many years. I met him a bit after my husband left. Surprisingly, we have a lot in common. Humble beginnings. Health concerns. No real family to speak of.” She smiled sadly. “But as a man grows older, he can decide to look his age, or he can look like Robert. Either one is fine with me.” She chuckled. “I think my own legs would turn black and fall off i
f I were to set foot in a gym. But I don’t begrudge a woman my age from doing it.”
“I don’t understand,” Amelia said.
“Robert likes the attention he gets from looking the way he does. And believe me, he gets a lot of attention. Then they find out about his money.” Lila shook her head. “That was what broke us up. He cheated on me with a young lady who made it clear she wanted a sugar daddy.”
“But he acts like he wants you back. You don’t want to give him another chance? Maybe it was just a fluke. A midlife crisis of sorts.”
Lila took a deep breath. “I wish that were true. I’m just not willing to let it go. Not yet. Not today. Not when you are getting the deal of a lifetime on that truck and part of it is due to him feeling guilty.” She chuckled.
“Do you love him?”
“I want him to be happy. And he is fun to be around in moderation. But pretty soon those big muscles would be bumping into everything like a bulldog trying to be dainty. It would just end up making a mess.” Lila shook her head as she looked down. “But I’ll admit it’s tempting.”
“Jeez, Louise, it sure is. I didn’t know they made guys like that,” Amelia whispered. “He’s like a living G.I. Joe action figure.”
“Do you like the truck?” Lila asked, already knowing the answer.
“It’s the only thing prettier than Robert. I love it. We’ll have to schedule the paint job. Wait until Meg sees this. She’s going to flip.” Amelia beamed.
“Come on. Let’s celebrate with a little ambrosia,” Lila said as they stepped into the house. “You deserve it.”
“Heck, you deserve it, too. For having the strongest willpower of any woman I’ve ever known,” Amelia said before laughing out loud. Just then, a side door opened, and Robert stepped in with his shirt off.
“I’ll be with you in a minute, ladies. I just need to wash up.”
His thick legs made long strides before he disappeared up the staircase. Amelia’s mouth hung open.
Lila shook her head. “Come on. Let’s have that drink.”
“I need something cold, that’s for sure,” Amelia replied.
Chapter Six
Amelia drove her new food truck home. As soon as she pulled into the driveway, Meg came running out of the house.
She squealed and jumped up and down. “What is this?”
“We’re getting too big for our britches.” Amelia smiled as she climbed out of the driver’s seat. “I had to go buy another truck. We’ll have to get her painted, and she’s been sitting still for a while, so she’ll need a tune-up and some fresh air in the tires, but I don’t think she looks half bad, do you?”
“Another truck? Wait until I tell Katherine! This is so great, Mom.” She wrapped her arms around Amelia and squeezed.
“It is pretty great, isn’t it? Where’s your brother?”
“He’s in his troll cave,” Meg said, pulling away to hop around the truck and inspect everything. “This just has two ovens. Will that work for us?”
“I think it will,” Amelia chuckled.
“You’ll need to get a fire extinguisher. This one doesn’t have one. And I might be wrong, but it looks like a bolt is missing at the bottom of the shelving unit. But that can probably be fixed easily.” Meg put her hands on her hips and peeked into the service window. “Other than that, it looks good.”
“I should have brought you with. I probably could have had another few dollars knocked off the price.” Amelia couldn’t have been prouder of her daughter.
“You should have. I’ll come with when you go to buy the third truck.” She folded her arms and leaned on the windowsill. “What does Dan think of it?”
Amelia didn’t want to tell Meg that she hadn’t spoken to Dan since the night he canceled on dinner. That was over a week ago. She’d tried to call and left a message or two. But when that got her nowhere, she stopped calling. Instead, she busied herself with work, the purchase of another truck, and making all the financial adjustments needed to incorporate a new addition to the business.
“I haven’t told him,” Amelia said.
“You haven’t told him? Call him. Call him right now.” Meg came bounding off the truck. “He’ll drop everything to come see it. I know he will.”
“Well, honey, I haven’t heard back from Dan in a few days.” Amelia swallowed hard as she watched her daughter’s face transform from happy to worried.
“Is he sick?”
“I don’t think so,” she replied honestly.
“He’s not breaking up with you.”
“I’m not sure what is going on, Meg. But I don’t want you to worry about it. We’ve got too much on our plate now with this puppy.” She pounded on the side of the truck. “I can’t be worried about a few days without a phone call.”
Just then, Adam came out of the house, scratching his head.
“Is this yours?” he asked before giving his mom a peck on the cheek.
“It is now. I’m thinking of setting up on the opposite side of town from Food Truck Alley. Or maybe this will be our catering truck. Just use it for catered affairs.” Amelia tried to change the subject, but Meg wouldn’t let it go.
“Dan hasn’t called Mom. He doesn’t even know about the truck,” she blurted out.
“What do you mean, Dan hasn’t called?” Adam looked puzzled.
“It’s nothing. Your sister is just worried…”
“Dan hasn’t called mom in over a week. And he canceled the last time he was supposed to come over,” Meg said with worried eyes.
“Is that true, Mom?”
“He’s a cop. They are different from normal people. You guys both know that.” Amelia smoothed her son’s hair to no avail. It went back to the mop-like, wavy mess it always was. “Besides, sometimes things change, and you don’t have any control over it. So there is no use worrying about something that is out of our hands. Especially when our hands are going to be filled with twice as many cupcakes.”
Amelia smiled and turned to walk into the house. Her gut knotted, and she didn’t want to think about Dan breaking up with her, if that was what he was doing.
“Dan would be stupid to break up with you, Mom,” Adam said as he followed Amelia inside.
“Yeah. What does he think? He can do better? Hardly,” Meg said, running up behind them. “There isn’t a woman in Portland who has what you have.”
“Oh yeah? And what’s that?” Amelia held the door open for her children.
“Us,” they both said in unison, making Amelia laugh and hug them both.
“You are right about that,” she said.
After feeding the kids some roast beef sandwiches, chips, and a frozen apple pie for dessert, she went upstairs to wash up. She really just wanted to be alone. The kids had done their best to cheer her up, but they voiced what had danced around her mind for the past several days.
She’d never known Dan to not call it as he saw it. He wasn’t the kind of guy to play games. But he had said those words. Those three little words that had the ability to send some guys running for the hills had been spoken.
Maybe he was having second thoughts. Maybe he wished he hadn’t said them. Tears came to her eyes, and Amelia hated herself for acting this way. She’d cried over John for how long while they were still married? And she stood by and waited until he asked for the divorce, which she knew all along was coming.
After splashing some cold water on her face and smoothing the hair at the nape of her neck, Amelia decided to take some action. She changed from her worn blue jeans and T-shirt to a crisp white blouse, black slacks, and a tricolored scarf around her waist.
“I’m going out for a little while, guys,” Amelia said as she quickly made a couple of sandwiches and a slice of pie and put them in a big paper bag.
“Okay, Mom,” Adam said.
“You look nice,” Meg added.
“Thanks.” She didn’t want to tell them where she was going. “I’ll be back in about an hour.” Amelia decided she wanted an answer
from Dan. She’d bring him some food, and if he were breaking up with her, she’d know and hope he choked on every bite. But if she were wrong, if something else kept him away, well, at least he’d have some food in his belly.
When she pulled up in front of the police station and got out of her car, she saw his beat-up old sedan parked in its usual spot and felt a twinge of guilt. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe she should just go home.
But as two uniformed police officers gave her the onceover and an enthusiastic “Good afternoon, ma’am,” when she walked by, she decided she wasn’t going to let him off the hook. Whatever his issue was, she would find out.
In only a matter of minutes, word had spread throughout the precinct that a woman was asking for Dan Walishovsky. The expression on his face as he came out of his office was all Amelia needed to know the answer to her question.
Chapter Seven
“Are you a sight for sore eyes,” he said with that half smirk she’d grown so fond of seeing.
“If the mountain won’t come to me, I guess I better go to the mountain,” Amelia said, looking up at him. “Did I come at a bad time?”
“Nope.”
“I brought lunch.” She held up the big bag.
“I’m starved. Come on. I know a quiet table for two.” He strode through the police bullpen to his office. Amelia felt like every eye was on her, probably because it was. Little did she know that no one had ever come to the precinct to visit with Detective Walishovsky. They came to complain. They came to argue. They came to beg him to perform a miracle. But they never came to just visit.
She stepped into his office and let out a sigh. “This looks exactly as I pictured it.” Files were everywhere: newspaper clippings and Post-it notes on every other surface. A white board with pictures of women taped to it hung on the wall.
“I’m sorry,” he said, turning the chair on the other side of his desk so the back faced the whiteboard. “It’s what’s had me so busy.”
“So it is another woman.” She sat down in the seat, smiling.
“Not just one. We’re talking about four,” Dan said as he took the bag from Amelia and started unloading the food. “This looks great. Grab a couple of Cokes from the fridge.” He pointed to a mini-fridge in the corner.
