Her Hometown Redemption

by Rachel Brimble

  * * *

  AN HOUR LATER, Tanya approached her office. Lucy sat on the curb outside, her head bent over her phone as her fingers moved in a blur on the touch screen.

  Tanya smiled. “You’re early.”

  Lucy pushed to her feet, dropping her phone into her bag. “If you lived in a house with your mother, brother, his girlfriend and their three-year-old daughter, you’d be eager to leave and get to work, too.” She grinned. “Of course, being early also helps impress your new boss.”

  Tanya laughed. “It certainly does. Shall we go inside? I want to make a start before it gets any warmer. I couldn’t wait to jump into a cold shower when I got home last night.” She unlocked the door and walked over to the window to open the blinds. “We’ve made such good progress, I don’t think there’s much more for us to do...” She glanced at Lucy as she walked toward the kitchen at the back of the room. “In fact, I want you to take a full hour’s lunch today so I can lock up for a while.”

  Lucy turned and raised her eyebrows. “Is everything okay?”

  “I just have a couple of errands to run and you deserve a break, too. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you missing lunch since you’ve been here. I’m working hard to get rid of my tyrant reputation, and having you working a solid eight-hour day without a break isn’t going to help.”

  “You? A tyrant?” Lucy snorted. “I don’t think so.”

  Pride brought heat to Tanya’s cheeks. “You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear you say that, but you didn’t know me before. I was...” She grimaced. “A lot more uptight back then.”

  “You were?”

  “I’m surprised Scott hasn’t said anything to you.” Tanya walked to her desk, extracting some files from one of the drawers and hugging them to her chest. “I’ve come back to Templeton to start over in every way. It isn’t all about business for me anymore. I want a second chance to have some fun here, too.”

  Lucy’s smile wavered and the brightness faded from her eyes. “Seems everyone comes back to Templeton looking for second chances.”

  Tanya frowned. “Did I say something wrong?”

  Lucy seemed to hesitate before she slumped her shoulders and stepped closer to the desk. “My father came back at Christmas after being away from us for ten years. I’m finding it difficult to adjust...and forgive him.”

  Tanya lowered into her seat and leaned forward on her elbows, her heart aching to see such insecurity in Lucy’s usually shining eyes. “I see. How do Scott and your sisters feel about his return? Have you all spoken to your dad since he came back?”

  Lucy sighed. “Yep. We didn’t have much choice. Mum kind of thrust him on us.”

  “Ah.”

  Lucy crossed her arms and stared toward the office window. “Scott is being...well, Scott. I think he’s holding back from what he really wants to say to Dad for our sakes.” She faced Tanya. “Scottie did everything for us while Dad was gone, so I understand his anger that Dad’s come back expecting God knows what. There’s no way any of us will let Dad start throwing his weight around or pushing Scott out of the way.”

  Tanya frowned, concern for Lucy growing with every passing second.

  “I can’t shake off my anger at him.” Lucy’s eyes filled with sadness. “Being this way isn’t like me. To be so angry and unforgiving isn’t who I am. People deserve a second chance. I need to at least try to trust he won’t disappear again, don’t I? When you said about coming back to the Cove to start again, it made me think all Dad wants is an opportunity to make up for his mistakes. To right some wrongs...like you.”

  Habitual regret twisted inside Tanya. She’d undoubtedly caused others sadness as Lucy’s father had her. Guilt pressed down on Tanya’s chest. “Maybe your dad wants a second chance, but how you deal with that is up to you. Not him. I’m not expecting anyone’s forgiveness. If, and when, they want to accept me back, that’s up to them. Neither your father nor I have any control over other people’s emotions or reactions. All we can do is hope, in time, people welcome us back into their lives. This is about you and your feelings, not your father’s.”

  Lucy’s expression of confusion and trepidation mixed with a hint of desperate hope pulled at Tanya’s heart. Like Lucy’s dad, Tanya had no right to expect others’ forgiveness, either...including Liam’s. But that didn’t prevent her from wanting it more than anything.

  Liam’s and Sasha’s faces rose in her mind’s eye and Tanya sighed. “Whether or not you decide to forgive your dad is up to you. You don’t owe him anything. What happens between the two of you from here on in is your choice. I walked away from people who loved me, too. There’s no time limit on these things, and he shouldn’t expect there to be, either.” Tanya smiled softly. “Can I make a suggestion?”

  “Uh-huh. I need all the advice I can get.”

  “Tell him how you feel so he knows how he hurt you. He needs to hear it so he can acknowledge the pain he’s caused. With that done, however hard it might be, there’s every possibility you’ll be able to move on. Together.” Tanya stared toward Liam’s office across the street. “I’m certainly going to make it clear to a few people around here that they need to tell me what’s going on inside their heads and hearts before I can start to make amends.”

  “Maybe.”

  Lucy looked so dejected; Tanya stood and walked around the desk. She slipped her arms around the younger woman’s shoulders and pulled her in close. “Tell you what. How about you and I support each other? You can tell me off if I forget I have to work for forgiveness, and I’ll tell you off when I think you’re keeping your pain inside. How’s that?”

  Lucy met Tanya’s gaze and smiled. “Sounds good to me.”

  Tanya grinned. “Good. Then I’ll start listening to the people I hurt. Deal?”

  “Deal.” Lucy shook Tanya’s hand to seal the promise. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  They separated and Tanya glanced toward the window once more. “Do you happen to know where Liam Browne is likely to grab a bite to eat at lunchtime?”

  “Probably Marian’s. Why?”

  Tanya inwardly groaned. Where else? She forced a smile. “No reason.”

  * * *

  LIAM GRIPPED THE phone tighter. “So there’s no record of a Matt Davidson? No criminal record anywhere in the county?”

  His reliable researcher, Justin Keyes, sighed. “Nothing. Whoever this guy is, I couldn’t find any record of a filed complaint, charge, caution or anything else. Is there any chance he could’ve assumed another name after he left Templeton?”

  “I got a sneaking suspicion he was a traveler.” Liam repeatedly stabbed his pen on the legal pad in front of him. “I’m also starting to think there’s a good chance his name isn’t even on the damn electoral roll.”

  “Then you’ve got your work cut out for you, my friend.”

  “Yeah, tell me something I don’t know.” Liam stared toward his office door. “Look, I’d better go. I’ll call you soon.”

  “No prob. Speak to you later.”

  Liam ended the call and tossed his phone onto the desk. Despite his decision to steer clear of an intimate relationship with Tanya, the fact Davidson seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth sealed the deal that he would help her find him...regardless of the emotional damage that was bound to occur.

  A sleepless night filled with erotic dreams was one thing...but his lingering thoughts on the fun times they had together, and the pain he felt when she left, screamed of his returning feelings for her, welcome or not.

  He swiveled around in his chair and laced his fingers behind his head. He’d reacted like an ass when she’d told him about her breakdown, but the shock of her confession had poleaxed him. The Tanya he knew could handle anything and everything. The realization of how long she must have struggled before rea
ching a breakdown had been like a hammer strike to his heart. Why the hell hadn’t she called him? Asked for his damn help before she got to that position.

  Liam clenched his jaw. He’d failed her—made it look as though her leaving him was justified, after all, because when all was said and done, she believed him too weak to look after her.

  Frustration slammed through him. “Goddamn it, Tanya.”

  He stood and paced the office.

  Focusing on Davidson was the only way forward if Liam was going to protect his heart from a second wounding. Ensuring the scumbag had his day in court was more than enough to shift Liam’s emotions to anger rather than the potential for something far more dangerous. He loved Tanya. Had always loved her...but feared he would never be enough for her.

  If that was the case, it didn’t mean he wouldn’t do the right thing by Sasha and Sasha only. One way or another, Tanya would get back on the right side of people and make her new business a success, but he wanted no part of that.

  Helping her find Davidson was a different matter entirely.

  He wandered toward the window; a ritual that had somehow, over the past few days, bypassed habit and become compulsion. He narrowed his eyes as passion for more in his work-ridden life rippled through him. His hope of meeting and falling in love with the right woman remained like a rock in his consciousness. He wanted someone who was true, loyal and solid in her idea of what she hoped for in a man.

  He clearly wasn’t what Tanya hoped for...but he couldn’t deny her need to find Matt Davidson was real, and most likely eating her up from the inside out.

  Her mistaken belief she might have been able to do something to protect Sasha from Davidson clearly haunted Tanya’s every thought. Liam frowned. He was certain it would have been Sasha’s revelation about Davidson that pushed Tanya to return to Templeton. Discovering such a horrendous family secret would easily have put such fear in her eyes.

  Empathy rose up, dissolving a little of his wariness of her.

  How could he not do something to help lay that particular demon to rest for her? She might not be the woman for him, but that didn’t mean he wanted her to spend her life unhappy.

  He strode toward his desk and snatched up his phone, thumb hovering over the keypad. No matter his reservations about spending time with Tanya—and keeping his damn itching hands to himself—he couldn’t ignore that someone had hurt Sasha, one of his dearest and most beloved friends. How could he turn away when Davidson continued to prowl God only knew where?

  Liam’s anger toward Davidson bubbled as he scrolled through his contacts. He stopped when he reached Jay Garrett. Part of him was desperate to ring Cat and demand she tell him what she knew of Davidson, but, first and foremost, Sasha needed to be told what Tanya was doing.

  “Shit.” He dropped the phone back onto the desk and returned to the window.

  Involving the police had to be Sasha’s decision. He and Tanya needed her permission to move forward. Things could get dangerous, and he would not allow Tanya to put her life at risk over a man who wasn’t worth the ground he walked on.

  He glared toward Tanya’s office. A sign had been hung over the door, albeit covered with a sheet, ready for tomorrow night’s grand opening. He wouldn’t be there.

  Her invitation to him had been pushed through his letter box a couple of nights ago, along with most other people’s in Templeton, he imagined. Marian had brandished hers like a samurai sword at the bakery yesterday morning. The woman had made it her mission to ensure everyone in town attended the opening, or else have their limbs lopped off.

  Striding over to his desk, Liam whipped his jacket from the back of the chair. He had the next few hours free of appointments and, even though he had depositions to prepare, he wasn’t due in court for a pro bono case until four-thirty. There was little chance of him concentrating on anything until then. He snatched up his phone and keys and left the office.

  Suzie looked up from her computer. “Will you be back later?”

  “Sure, I’m just going out for a while.” Liam hung his jacket over his arm and slid his phone into his shirt pocket. “I shouldn’t be more than an hour. Two, at the most. Could you hold my calls unless it’s urgent?”

  “No problem.”

  He headed out of the office and into the street. The heat rippled on the sidewalk as he steadfastly avoided glancing in the direction of Tanya’s office. Making for the underground parking area, Liam walked down the sloping entranceway and pointed his key at his car. The locks opened and he slid into the driver’s seat.

  He turned the ignition and set the air-conditioning to full blast before placing his phone in its holder and turning on the speakerphone function. If he talked to Jay, rather than his wife, Liam wouldn’t be involving the police, which he knew Tanya would prefer right now. He owed her the space and time to clear things with Sasha first.

  He and Jay had become good friends over the past year or so. Jay might be able to give Liam some information on Davidson. No matter how small.

  Liam dialed Jay’s number and pulled out of the parking spot.

  “Jay Garrett speaking.”

  “Jay, it’s Liam.”

  “Hey, how you doing?”

  “Good. Listen, I need to speak with you about something. Do you have any free time this afternoon?”

  “Sure. You’ve caught me on my way home for lunch. Why don’t you join me?”

  Anticipation of their forthcoming conversation set Liam’s adrenaline pumping. “Sure, sounds good. I’ll be there within the hour. Is that ok?”

  “Sure.”

  Liam inhaled. “I assume Cat’s working?”

  Silence loomed for a second or two before Jay spoke again. “Why? Is this something she needs to be here for?”

  Liam grimaced at the wariness in Jay’s tone. “Actually, I’d prefer it be just us.”

  “What’s this about?”

  “I’ll tell you when I get there.”

  “Fine, then I’ll see you soon.”

  The line went dead and Liam ended the call, pushing himself farther back into his seat. Jay had sounded more than a little cagey. His wife came first above everything.

  God only knew how Liam would get Jay to talk to him without involving Cat.

  Liam drove on through the center of town and pulled to a stop outside Marian’s bakery. A couple of her honeycomb muffins might go some way toward smoothing the path ahead with Jay.

  He stopped out front and got out of the car. The usual line of people spilled through the bakery’s doors and Liam joined the back of the queue. Another sweltering day fried the Cove, and the faces of his fellow customers told the whole story of how the residents’ nerves were as frazzled as the yellowing grass at the public park.

  He yanked on his tie to loosen it and rolled back his shirtsleeves as he entered the bakery, grateful for the rush of the air-conditioning.

  When he reached the front of the line, Marian greeted him with a wide smile from behind the counter. “Well, good afternoon, Mr. Browne. It’s nice to see you...even if you do have a crease on your forehead deep enough to hold one of my cheese-and-onion buns.”

  He lifted his shoulders. “Just having one of those days.”

  “One of those days? Or one of those weeks?” She leaned her palms on the counter, her eyes glinting. “How is Miss Tanya?”

  Liam arched his eyebrow. “Really? We’re going to do that now?”

  Marian laughed, its boom ricocheting from the walls. “She’s got fire about her, that one...and set up her new place right opposite your office. It’s fate, I swear.”

  Liam glared. “Don’t even go there with your matchmaking. Tanya and I...” He frowned. “Tanya and I...”

  “Are going to send me and the rest of Templeton on some kind of ‘will they, won’t they’ trip.” She s
hook her head. “Just spare us the drama and get yourself over to that office of hers, strip to your waist and start hefting some boxes around. One glance at that fine body of yours, and it’ll rip that false bravado she’s got going on right off.”

  Liam lifted his eyebrow. “Are you saying you’ve noticed my body?”

  She shrugged. “I might be old, but I’m not dead.”

  Grinning, he nodded toward the displays of cream buns, éclairs and muffins beside him. “I’ll have a couple of your best honeycomb muffins to go before you say anything else that might have me leaping over the counter to ravish you... Tanya or no Tanya.”

  “I don’t mind if you... Well, well, speak of the devil.”

  Liam turned.

  Tanya came into the bakery, her head turned toward Lucy Walker, who walked in behind her. Judging by the breadth of their smiles and the rapidity of their moving lips, it appeared Tanya had found someone who had no qualms about her being in town. They moved closer to the counter. He might not want anything to do with Tanya personally, but the last thing he wanted was for her to be lonely. Loneliness was a pain in the ass.

  Liam glanced at Marian and his smile vanished. The woman’s eyes sparkled with an almost demonic glee. He glared. “Marian,” he hissed from between clenched teeth. “Don’t.”

  She tipped him a wink and darted her gaze straight past his shoulder. “And what can I get you ladies this lovely, sunny afternoon?”

  The rush of feminine chatter came to an abrupt halt behind him and Liam silently cursed before turning. He nodded. “Tanya. Lucy.”

  Tanya lifted her chin, her gaze carefully assessing. “Liam.”

  “Hi, Liam.” Lucy grinned, her blue eyes brighter and happier than Liam had seen them in a while. She dived into her bag and pulled out her purse before turning to Tanya. “What can I get you?”

  Liam looked at Tanya and she cast her gaze over his face before snapping her eyes to Lucy. “Don’t be silly. I’ll get the drinks. What do you—”

  “These are on me.” Lucy touched Tanya’s arm. “To say thank you for taking me on at the Party Place. Please.”