Then There Was You

by Miranda Liasson

  “Don’t you have to get going to work?” he asked, steering Hannah along the driveway to her car.

  “Geez, you’re such a killjoy. I’m allowed to look at boys. Maybe someday I can even date them like normal girls whose brothers don’t do background checks on them before they can come within a five-mile radius.”

  Colton frowned. As was so often the case with his sister, words failed him. He owed her parental guidance because a) he was responsible for her and b) he didn’t think Cookie would be blunt enough. But every time he tried, his tongue got tied up in knots. “I want you to be safe. Date someone nice.” Actually, not dating at all would be his preference.

  “Geez, Colt, do you think I’m going to be a virgin forever?”

  He blanched. “Maybe just until you’re thirty.” He tried to smile, but to him it wasn’t really a joke. “Have a nice day at work. Don’t talk to any boys.”

  She saluted. “Aye, aye, Chief.” But her eyes slid back to Aiden.

  Aiden was ripped, he’d give him that. He was tanned and muscled, and he wore a ball cap backward as he worked. Exotic tattoos covered his shirtless chest, back, and arms and disappeared beneath the waistband of his jeans. He was also destined for trouble unless someone intervened. He’d been busted for smoking pot with his deadbeat buddies, most of whom already had criminal records. His dad was a drunk and his mother was gone. Colton had first noticed him doing his community service hours at the park, picking up litter. The kid had filled five large trash bags in a half hour while the other kids were whining and complaining it was too hot.

  Colton had decided to give him a chance, just as Chief McGregor, the former police chief, had given Colton a chance when he was an insolent, angry kid all those years ago. He’d taken a parked car for a joyride on a dare and gotten busted for it. The chief had made him do a hundred community service hours, but more than that, he’d taken Colton under his wing.

  “Run along, Hannah,” he said, giving his sister a gentle tug toward her car.

  “No fair, Colton.” She pushed out her lower lip like she’d done when she was three. “I’m enjoying the view.”

  “Time to go teach those little girls how to do pirouettes,” Colton said, opening her car door. And to stop noticing ripped guys with tattoos.

  “Bye, Cookie.” She waved to her grandmother and blew Colton a kiss. “Love you both!” she called as she drove down the driveway.

  “That girl’s going to be the death of me,” he said, clutching his stomach. Judging from the little jabs of pain he was experiencing, maybe he was getting an ulcer.

  “You’ve got to let her grow up, Colton,” his grandmother said. “She’s going to be living on her own in just a few months.” Hannah would be starting college at Ohio State in the fall. Wasn’t it yesterday that she’d been a sweet, big-eyed toddler with chocolate ice cream dripping all down her chin?

  “How do you know she’s going to make good decisions?”

  “You don’t. You just pray a lot and hope what we’ve taught her sticks.”

  He cracked a little smile. “Did you worry about me like that?”

  Cookie shook her head and laughed. “A thousand times worse.”

  He wrapped his grandmother up in a hug. It couldn’t have been easy, taking in a thirteen-year-old boy and a one-year-old baby. He’d been argumentative. Disrespectful. And so angry over his mother’s succumbing to the addiction that had taken over her life after his father was killed. How had his grandmother ever dealt with him?

  Cookie patted him on the back. “But look how far you’ve come. Your father would be so proud, do you know that?”

  He drew back from his grandmother’s embrace. “I don’t know what my father would think about me being a small-town cop. Maybe he’d be disappointed.” Aw hell, he shouldn’t have said that. Cookie would think he was fishing for praise.

  “Nonsense. Don’t even think like that.” Of course she would say that. Cookie was Colton’s biggest fan.

  “Have I ever thanked you for everything you did for me?” he asked.

  “Sweetheart, you thank me every day by letting me see what a good man you’ve become. And as far as your job, no person should ever underestimate their influence. You’ll know if you’re in the right place. Your heart will tell you. Just like it will when you’ve found the right girl.”

  “Yada, yada,” Colton said, starting to walk toward the house.

  “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to go tell this kid to get a shirt on. Especially when Hannah’s around.”

  “I’m off to book club. If you’re hungry, there are bagels on the counter.”

  He gave a wave to his grandmother and approached Aiden, who was down from the ladder and taking a swig from his water bottle. “How’s it going?” he asked the kid, extending his hand for a fist bump.

  “Great,” Aiden said. “I’ve been here since eight, but it was raining, so I went and bought the paint. And I’ve got most of this side scraped.”

  “Looks great. Hey, why don’t you pack it up for the night? It’s already seven.”

  “I want to get a little more done before it starts to get dark. I’ve got to work at the discount warehouse tonight so I might not get back here until noon tomorrow.”

  Colt knew Aiden stocked shelves at night and parked cars on the weekends for events at a big hotel in downtown Cleveland. The kid was a worker, he’d give him that.

  “So, have you given any thought to your plans for the fall?” Colton asked.

  “If you mean college, it’s not for me.”

  “I thought you wanted to be an electrician.” He owed it to the kid to press him, just as Chief McGregor had gotten on Colton’s case when he was a kid. The chief had been his dad’s best friend, and his investment in Colton had made all the difference.

  “I missed the deadline for applying to the program at the technical college.”

  “No excuses.” Colt crossed his arms, knowing it made him look a little intimidating.

  “Give me a break, Chief,” Aiden said. “The deadline was around the time I got in trouble last spring.” He glanced downward. “Plus I don’t have money for school.”

  “Well, there’s loans and scholarships and—”

  “Those are for people with better grades than me. I’m not—”

  “Good enough? Look, you’re not going to get anywhere if you talk like that. And I actually made a call to the technical college. They admit people if someone drops out. So get your application in so you can get on the waiting list. You never know what can happen.” Plus Colt had a buddy who taught at the college and said he’d look into what he could do for the kid. Colt didn’t tell Aiden that, though.

  “It was easier for you because you came from a good family.”

  Colton sighed. He really hated telling his story, because it was still painful in a way. But this kid needed to hear it. “My parents both died before I went to high school. I was an all-state wide receiver with a full ride to a D1 school until I blew my ACL in the last game of the season. I had to give up my scholarship and my dream of playing football. Even though I rehabbed that knee for a year, I never got back to my prior form. But people lent me a hand and I got through it. You can too.”

  He’d become a cop because his dream had gotten shot all to hell, and because the Angel Falls force, who had known his father well when he’d worked here as a rookie cop, took care of their own.

  Not that he’d deserved their help. He’d been an arrogant SOB and hadn’t wanted anyone’s help. But they’d offered him a job cleaning toilets and emptying the city’s trash cans, then helping out at different events like the traffic camp for little kids, and they’d shown him a cop’s life. It had changed his outlook, given him another purpose, and he’d discovered he wanted to be a cop.

  After college and the police academy, Chief McGregor offered him a job, and he came home to take care of Cookie and Hannah. He might’ve had grander dreams, but family was family, and Angel Falls was where
he’d ended up, for better or for worse. Not that he didn’t like his job—he did, a lot. He just wondered sometimes if he should be somewhere he could make a real difference instead of rescuing people’s dogs and giving out parking tickets.

  “The way I see it, you can accept you’re not going to get anywhere and have a shitty life or fight like hell to pull yourself up.” He slapped Aiden on the back. “Bring your application by the station and I’ll go over it with you.”

  “Yes, sir,” Aiden said.

  “And Aiden?”

  “Yes, Chief?”

  “You should put your shirt on so you don’t sunburn and get skin cancer.”

  “Aw, don’t worry about me, Chief. I’m wearing sunblock.”

  “I’m sure you are. But my grandmother can see you and it might be too much excitement for her.”

  “Aw, Chief, your grandmother’s not going to care if…”

  Colt interrupted. “It’s not just my grandma I’m worried about, if you get my meaning.”

  Aiden rubbed the back of his neck.

  “Just keep the shirt on, got it?”

  “Yes, sir,” he said cautiously.

  Colton nodded. As he turned to walk to the house, a dog bounded over to them from across the grass.

  A bull terrier with brown ears and a big pirate patch over his left eye.

  Rocket.

  As he looked up from petting the dog, sure enough, there was Sara’s grandmother coming up the driveway, a little out of breath. She was dressed in turquoise pants, a sweater, and white orthopedic walking shoes, and she was carrying Rocket’s leash. She didn’t look disheveled at all, but he recognized a certain look of panic in her eyes.

  “Oh, Colton, I’m so glad to see you!” she said, clutching his arm. “Hello,” she said politely to Aiden.

  Colton patted her hand. “Is something wrong, Rose? How can I help you?”

  “Oh, you’re a dear. Maybe you can help me. This isn’t my street. I—can you tell me where Glenwillow Lane is? I was taking Rocket for a walk, but I was so busy daydreaming I wandered off course a little bit.”

  Wandered off course. Ever since her dementia diagnosis, he’d been keeping an extra eye out, but she’d never done this before. His cell phone went off at his hip before he could reach for it to call Rafe.

  “Hey, Colty, you big hunk of love,” said Carmen, his dispatcher, the pleasant lilt of her Puerto Rican accent familiar and friendly. She was sassy and flirty and really good at her job. Plus at sixty, she didn’t take crap from anyone, even him.

  “Hey, Carmen, what’s up?” Worry instantly pricked Colton’s neck. Carmen fiercely guarded his time off. She never called unless it was important.

  “I know you’re off duty, but I just got a call from Sara Langdon that her sweet old abuela’s gone missing. I thought I’d catch you on your cell because you might be somewhere around the ’hood. Unless you’re with a lady friend or something, in which case I do not want to know.”

  Colton ignored the lady comment. Carmen was always trying to find out details about his love life. “You have great instincts, because Rose just walked into my grandmother’s yard.”

  “I always have great instincts as far as you’re concerned, babe.” Carmen paused. “Sara’s worried about Rocket too. You got Rocket there?”

  Colton bent down to scratch the dog behind the ears. He promptly went belly up for more. “Rocket’s present and accounted for. Thanks, Carmen.” Rocket started bathing his hand with his tongue in a gesture of gratitude. Colton stood up. He and Rocket were pals, but he drew the line at being coated with doggy saliva. “Hey, will you call Sara right away and tell her everything’s under control? And will you give me her number, please?”

  He’d call her and tell her he was driving Rose home. As a public service, of course.

  “Bold move, Chief. How much is it worth to you?” his smart-ass dispatcher said.

  Oh, for God’s sake. “Just text me the number, Carmen.”

  “Okeydokey, Colty. And you show that girl what a gem you are, baby. Make her forget all about that no-good ex-fiancé of hers.”

  “Bye already, Carmen.”

  He guided Rose up to the back patio. She wound her arm through his, placing her thin, veined hand on his forearm as they walked through the grass. “Come sit down a minute, and then I’ll drive you home.” He wanted to make sure she was all right. Offer her some water or something. And call Sara.

  “It was the strangest thing, Colton. All of a sudden I looked around and I didn’t see anything I recognized. Until I saw you.” She patted his hand. The fear in her eyes twisted his gut. What kind of disease was this that hijacked a person’s life, made someone who’d lived here her whole life forget her own damn neighborhood? He felt bad for Rose. And for Sara, who must be panicking.

  Speaking of Sara, suddenly there she was, running down the sidewalk, waving.

  Just then Cookie came out the back door. She was dressed for book club in white pants and pumps and a bright floral blouse, but when she saw him sitting with Sara’s grandmother, she tossed her purse on a chair and walked over.

  “Hi, Rose, dear,” Cookie said, giving her a hug, then stooping to pet Rocket. “I just made some lemonade. Can you stay and chat for a few minutes?” She looked over at Aiden, who was carrying a bucket to the hose. “Aiden, you too. Come have a drink.” She winked at Colton, and he nodded. Thirty years as a kindergarten teacher had made Cookie an excellent multitasker, always ready to jump into action.

  Colton met Sara halfway down the driveway, took her by the elbow, and guided her to his cruiser. She was clutching a hand to her chest, a look of alarm on her face.

  “She’s fine,” he said, holding on to her arms and looking her in the eye until he was certain that registered. Her eyes instantly filled with tears, and she clamped a hand over her mouth.

  “Oh, Colton. Thank God. Carmen called me, and I just took off running down here.”

  He rubbed her arms, which wasn’t very professional, but she was clearly upset. “You OK?”

  “Just upset with myself. I told Nonna I’d go for a walk with her and went up to find shoes and then she was just…gone. Like she’d forgotten I was coming with her, maybe? Anyway, I panicked and called the station.”

  “You did the right thing,” he said in the most calming voice he could muster. “Rose saw me out in the yard and walked over. She was a little panicked. Said she didn’t know how to get back to her street.”

  “Oh God.” She took a step toward her grandmother, but Colton stopped her.

  “I don’t think it would help her if you’re upset. Maybe take another minute before you go over there.”

  She nodded. “I was supposed to be keeping an eye on her. That’s the whole point of my coming back home to live with her.”

  Ah. He’d wondered why Sara had come back home. “Don’t blame yourself. Everything’s fine. She didn’t go far, and she knew to ask for help.”

  Sara nodded, but he could tell by her expression it wasn’t fine at all.

  She turned those piercing green eyes on him, and he nearly melted. “Thank you for taking care of her.”

  “Not a problem. I’m happy to help anytime you need me.” And, strangely enough, he meant it.

  He released her, and together they walked over to the back patio. Aiden was standing with the older women, giving them a tour of the numerous tattoos inked all over his arms and chest while they watched, enraptured. “This one is the Chinese symbol for ‘gentle but strong’ and this is my dog’s name, Sparky. He died last year.”

  Colton made sure not to roll his eyes. He wasn’t sure if he should be horrified or pleased. The kid was certainly friendly. But he still had his damn shirt off.

  Rose saw Sara and broke into a smile. “Oh, there you are, dear.” She held out her hand, which Sara immediately grabbed. To Sara’s credit, she didn’t get emotional or freak out. “I was just taking Rocket out for a walk,” Rose said, “and look who we ran into. Colton and Cookie invite
d me to sit down for a drink, wasn’t that nice?”

  “Help yourself to a brownie, dear,” Cookie said, pointing to the table. “And some lemonade.”

  Sara hugged Cookie and thanked her, then sat next to her grandmother and made small talk. Rocket came and sprawled at her feet, resting his head on her tennis shoe.

  Colton sat down too. Sara was telling a story that made the ladies laugh about a kid she’d treated in her residency. She was animated, using her hands, her eyes lighting up with laughter.

  That started Cookie off telling school stories. At one point Colton caught Sara looking at him. Or maybe she caught him looking at her, he wasn’t sure which. But she shot him a grateful look and mouthed Thank you.

  It was strange seeing this side of her. He was used to the wound-too-tight Sara, the one who was a perfectionist above all else and expected the same from everyone else around her. When she chatted and laughed, she looked like a normal person. A pretty person. One whose phone number he had in his phone.

  Where had that thought come from? He’d never call her. No way. Out of the question.

  His thoughts were distracted, fortunately, by Hannah’s car pulling back up the driveway. She got out, clearly in a hurry, not bothering to close her car door. “I forgot my dance bag!” she called in their direction, waving to everyone gathered on the porch.

  She stopped suddenly on her way into the house. “Oh my gosh, Sara, what are you doing here? Hi, Mrs. F. Rocket! There’s my good boy! How are you?” Rocket came bounding over, thumping his tail against the patio stone and leaning against Sara’s leg in admiration. “Oh, I’ve missed you so much,” she crooned, petting him. “My mean brother took Champ with him when he moved out and I’m totally doggy deprived.” She looked up at Sara. “What’s going on?”

  “We were just passing by on a walk,” Sara said. Hannah stole a look at Colt as if to say, What alternate universe is this? But Colt kept his expression neutral.

  “I’m glad you’re back in town,” Hannah said to Sara. “Talk to you soon, K?”

  “Let’s have coffee and catch up,” Sara said.

  “Sounds great. I gotta go!” She bolted into the house. A few seconds later she ran out the door with more quick waves.