The Soldier's Valentine--A Clean Romance

by Pamela Tracy

  She dialed Russell’s number. He didn’t answer. No surprise. She quickly called Lydia.

  “Russell’s right here,” Lydia said.

  “Yes?” Russell’s voice came on the line. It sounded stronger and happier than it had in years.

  “Jace here yet?” she asked.

  “We’re in the truck. Lydia’s driving us to Santa Fe to get him. His flight arrives at noon.”

  “Think your truck will make it?” Leann said, half jesting, half concerned.

  “Brian said it’s in better condition than a lot of others of the same age and make that he’s seen.”

  So, Brian was good with cars, too. Just like Gary’s father.

  “Russell,” Leann said, “do you remember when Angela showed up on your doorstep with Lydia and Jace? I mean the exact date.”

  “No, I don’t. All I remember is I was sitting at my kitchen table eating chili, the next minute I’m staring at Angela, and she has in tow two grandchildren I didn’t know I had. Wait a minute.”

  Leann listened while Russell shared the conversation.

  Lydia took back the phone. “It was May. I missed the last two days of fifth grade, and boy was I annoyed because it meant I missed the class party. Plus, Mom only let us pack one bag.”

  “Why?”

  “I guess, really, it was all we had left. People came and took the furniture, toys and stuff. I know we had a date to get out of the house. All Mom did was cry. We were totally out of money. We didn’t eat anything on the bus from California to here.”

  “Where was your father?”

  “They separated. I didn’t know it at the time, but we never had any contact with him after that.”

  “Your mom just had money for bus fare?”

  “Not even that. She got it from a friend. He paid for the tickets, met us at the bus station here and brought us to Grandpa’s.”

  Was the friend Berto Guzman?

  Leann looked over at Gary. She knew he was listening intently while searching his father’s cracked leather wallet.

  “Do you remember what friend?”

  “No, I only met him a few times, and it’s been years. I know Mom grew up with him.”

  “What if I showed you a photo?”

  “Why are you asking?”

  “I’m following a lead,” Leann said.

  “Why don’t you come to Russell’s place for dinner tonight, sevenish,” Lydia invited. “We’ll be celebrating Jace’s homecoming. I’ll cook hamburgers and hot dogs for everyone.”

  Bring everyone? Her boys might be with their father and new stepmother. Leann was pretty sure Gary didn’t want to be anywhere near Brian until the DNA swab result came in.

  “I’ll be there.” She hated that she would be cutting in on Jace’s reunion, but she’d also get to hear what Jace had to say, why he left.

  “Be where?” Gary asked.

  “I’m invited to Russell’s tonight to talk.”

  On the phone, Lydia said, “Go ahead and bring Gary.”

  Leann wasn’t quite sure how Lydia knew it was Gary. Could have been Oscar, Lucas, the mailman.

  “Are you positive?”

  “Of course. If Brian and Gary are related, they need to work this out.”

  In theory, that was true, but Leann wasn’t confident that would happen. What Gary had learned about his family had affected him deeply.

  Gary was watching her, waiting.

  She swallowed, knowing if she brought him with her, she was admitting this could be a “relationship.” If she didn’t let him come along, then he was just a man who happened to be a part of an ongoing investigation, who happened to be the brother of her favorite coworker, who happened to be handsome, single and likely to pop up at inopportune times.

  “Okay,” Leann finally said, “Gary will be there tonight, too.”

  After she ended the call, Gary asked, “Where will I be tonight?”

  “Over at Russell’s. We’ll be celebrating Jace finally coming home.”

  Gary raised an eyebrow and shook his head. “I’ve got things to do.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like work on the cabin, like look into Brian’s claim, like—”

  “You’d rather do that than spend the evening being supportive of Russell?”

  “Russell wants to be surrounded by family.

  “Russell considers you family,” Leann said.

  “No, not really.”

  “Yes, really. And if Brian turns out to be a relative that he shares with you, it will make the bond that much stronger.”

  “No. Russell was simply happy to have a neighbor around to talk to. Now, his family is here and he’s not lonely.”

  “I don’t think Russell was the only one lonely. And you’ve got family here also.”

  “You like to argue.”

  “I like being right.”

  “This thing with Brian isn’t going to be quite that easy.”

  “No, but how hard it is will ultimately be up to you.”

  He didn’t answer right away, so she continued. “I have no business giving advice on family. My relationship with my parents, my brother and sister, and even my ex means I’m not anywhere close to being an expert, but if it meant a change for the better for my sons, then I’d give it a chance.”

  “I’m only here temporarily. Oscar’s probably better suited for dealing with this.”

  Leann flinched. She’d almost forgotten that he’d not put down roots. She closed her eyes, not wanting him to see her true feelings. “Well, I still like being right, so, you’ll go with me tonight?”

  “Yes.”

  It had to be enough.

  For now.

  * * *

  LEANN RETURNED GARY to the station, saying very little. He didn’t have much to offer either, images of his dad and how happy their family had been flooding his mind. Leann might be right about his attitude making the situation harder. He’d decided that were Brian truly a half brother, then so be it.

  It was telling his mother that he dreaded.

  She parked, and he followed her inside to the office that already seemed to belong to Oscar, listened to her report and watched Oscar’s expression when Leann showed him Angela’s photo.

  He admired his older brother. Oscar had to be reeling from the possible connection between Russell’s family and theirs, but he remained professional and merely said, “Document everything, no matter how small the detail.”

  “Is our father’s disappearance still considered a cold case?” Gary asked.

  “Yes, but that might change. I feel like Brian has more that he could be telling us.”

  “You think Blackgoat might know something? Be involved somehow?”

  “One way to find out,” Oscar said. “Gain his trust. Tonight, be reasonable.”

  Gary’s snort was cut short when Leann said softly, “Don’t forget, every action you take will also affect Russell and Lydia.”

  Gary nodded.

  Thirty minutes later, Gary was back at his cabin. He let Wilma and Goober out of their runs, gave them fresh water and hard food, before pausing to stand in front of the cabin. He was desperate to try to lighten his mood.

  Goober ran over to him and arched her back until he reached down to pet her. Then she ran off to join Wilma again. The dogs were as restless as he was. He watched them playing for a long while, then whistled. Goober obeyed immediately. Wilma took a moment, proving her independence, and then came to him. He gave them both peanut-butter-filled bones, a treat usually reserved for special occasions. They settled down.

  He didn’t.

  He changed into his work clothes and started on his cabin.

  His cabin?

  No, his aunt’s cabin. Not really his. Even the dogs belonged to somebody else.

 
; He was woefully behind; life kept getting in the way. What he needed to do now was take two of the cabin’s interior walls down to their studs. He’d work off steam, maybe take the edge off the adrenaline.

  Then, he’d shower and follow Leann up to Russell’s house to learn more about Brian and figure out what he and Oscar would have to tell their family, their mother.

  The sledgehammer was on his workbench. At least something in his life was where it should be. He hunted up the pry bar, donned gloves, then punched a hole in the middle of the first wall.

  It was usually Oscar who took care of family matters, delivered both bad and good news. Gary had always been gone. This time, though, he had to be the one. This was his story. He felt it in his bones, just like he felt a solid change shifting in his own mind-set.

  He’d been such a wanderer. When he’d arrived in Sarasota Falls, the word temporary had been his mantra. But now he was having trouble imagining leaving. He had things to do. Finish fixing up the cabin, his cabin; take care of the dogs until their owners returned—he was keeping Goober; and teach Leann...

  Teaching was the furthest thing from his mind.

  Kissing was more on his mind.

  He stopped pounding the wall, enjoyed the feel of his muscles getting a workout and finally stepped back, thinking of the night in Russell’s backyard: the walk, the tiny cemetery containing generations, the kiss.

  He wanted more nights like that.

  Letting out a long breath, he felt a hint of a smile. Until Brian showed up with his tall tale that wasn’t looking so tall anymore, Gary had been smiling a lot more lately. Being in love had that effect.

  Love?

  He started working again, setting down his small sledgehammer and starting to pry apart aged—some rotting—wood.

  No, surely not love—maybe intense like. He really liked Leann, liked being with her, touching her, smelling her, seeing her smile.

  His mom used to smile a lot before his father disappeared.

  He paused, breathing in and out, sweat in the small of his back.

  His mother had been smiling a lot more lately, mostly because of Oscar, who’d gotten married and started a family. Oscar had been smiling a lot, too, before all of this business began about their father.

  Taking his phone from his back pocket, he punched Oscar’s number. His brother answered not with a “Hello” or “Guzman here” or even a “Yeah,” but with a “What have you learned?”

  Looking around the cabin, his cabin, the one he needed to offer to buy, he said, “I’ve learned that family is what’s important and if Brian is our half brother, then we deal with it.”

  “What?” Oscar sounded amazed.

  “Take care of your people—they’ll take care of the mission.”

  “Don’t spout a code of value at me,” Oscar sputtered. “This is Leann’s fault.”

  Gary started to sputter back but didn’t.

  “Yup,” Oscar continued, “all sappy. Figure out what’s going on tonight. Do reconnaissance. We’ll drive up and visit Mom in the morning.”

  “Sir, yes, sir!”

  Oscar chuckled. “Little brother, you’ve got it bad.”

  Gary hit the off button. Tonight, he’d kiss Leann and tell her how bad.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  WITH BRIAN BLACKGOAT out on bail, Oscar on duty and Chief Riley on the mend and giving orders via phone since he wasn’t allowed back to work yet, the Sarasota Falls Police Station had almost returned to normal.

  Leann relaxed. Maybe she’d catch up on—

  “There’s someone to see you,” Oscar interrupted that thought.

  Leann looked up from the report she was finishing. “Who?”

  Oscar shifted uncomfortably.

  “Hello, Leann.” Her ex, Ryan Bailey, stepped into the room. His reddish-brown hair was still cropped short, his complexion still a bit ruddy and his smile identical to Tim’s.

  Leann rethought normal. “Ryan, what are you doing here?” This wasn’t the place or time for a meeting. She’d envisioned it at the lawyer’s office, or maybe at her house with him—all humble—apologizing for letting the kids down and seeing what a great life their boys had with a new trampoline in the backyard and Peaches standing guard at her side.

  “I was hoping we can have a moment to talk without the lawyer, without the boys, or my parents—”

  “Or your new wife.”

  Oscar raised an eyebrow, then interceded, “You finished with your reports?”

  “All but one.”

  “Important?”

  “Traffic infraction, failure to yield.”

  “You can finish it tomorrow. Go ahead and take off.”

  Chief Riley would have made her finish, but then, Riley knew Ryan and would have made him wait until she was off shift.

  “Thanks, I need to get my stuff.” Turning to Ryan, she said, “If you wait in the lobby, I’ll only be a minute.”

  He nodded and left.

  “You going to be okay?” Oscar asked. “Want me to call Gary?”

  “I’ll be just fine, and no, I don’t want you to call Gary. Why would you even ask that?” The last thing she wanted was for Gary and Ryan to size each other up before she even knew what brought Ryan here, so hat in hand. Plus, Gary wasn’t her boyfriend. In fact, she wasn’t sure what Gary was to her...

  She went to the locker room, got her purse and headed for the foyer.

  Ryan fell into step with her. “Want to go to the Station Diner? Get some coffee?”

  “No.” Too many people would ogle them.

  He tried again. “How about the tiny park beside the library?”

  She nodded, half-afraid he’d suggest the park near her house if she didn’t. Way too many memories there. They walked the short distance in silence.

  School was still in session so the park was mainly empty. A mother and toddler were packing up to leave. Her third-grade teacher, now retired, sat on a bench. There was a book in her hand, but she was sound asleep.

  “Thanks,” Ryan said. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here yesterday as promised.”

  “You got married.”

  “That’s right. I didn’t know you knew.”

  “The boys overheard your mom on the phone. Aaron spilled the secret.”

  Ryan shook his head. “Mom’s pretty miffed that I didn’t wait and invite them.”

  “Spur of the moment?” Leann asked, surprised that her voice sounded calm.

  “Melanie and I had the license. We were going to do it in about two weeks, after I’d worked out...” He faltered a bit. “After you and I worked things out. I wanted the boys to meet her.”

  “But?”

  “I don’t know. We were at the beach. There was a couple exchanging vows. We watched, and it ended. The priest congratulated them and walked away. I don’t know what came over me. I stopped him and asked him if he’d marry us. He was more than surprised that I had the marriage license in my car.”

  “So, you got married.”

  “We did. What’s even funnier is the bride and groom from the original wedding signed as our witnesses. We’re going to meet on the beach in one year and celebrate together.”

  “Melanie’s idea?” Leann knew that Ryan wasn’t much of a romantic.

  “No, mine.”

  Okay, Ryan hadn’t been much of a romantic with Leann. She got it.

  “Look,” Ryan said, “Leann, there was a time when we were friends, a time when we loved each other, enough to—”

  “I get it.”

  Chagrined, he continued, “I met Melanie over a year ago. So, we didn’t hurry, though, of course, the wedding makes it seem like we did.”

  Leann could only nod.

  “I want to be part of my boys’ lives. I want to have a civil relationship with you, to make it e
asier on Tim and Aaron.”

  This Melanie must have quite an influence on Ryan. Leann closed her eyes and thought about Tim feeling that he needed to keep secrets. She thought about the help Ryan’s parents were. She thought about her conversation with Gary and how she’d advised him to not make things harder than they needed to be. And, she recognized that change had to happen, even if it meant she had to accept her ex-husband back in her, their, boys’ lives.

  “All right.”

  “What? Really? Oh, I can’t tell you how relieved I am.”

  Leann didn’t tell him that she felt a little bit relieved, too.

  “I haven’t been home yet,” Ryan continued. “I know my mother picked the boys up from school. Melanie and I would like to take them out for pizza tonight. Just show up and surprise them.”

  She hesitated, wanting to protest but realizing that she had the opportunity to make things easier on her boys.

  “That would be fine. I—I have something to do tonight, so you could have them for the evening. They’ll have homework,” she warned.

  He whooped, got out his phone and texted.

  “Tim needs the most help with math. Don’t let Aaron fool you into playing more than an hour on any of the games on his phone. They’ll be spending the night at your parents’ house since I’ll be out late. I’m going to Russell Blackgoat’s place.”

  Ryan nodded. “I remember Russell. He taught me how to tie a trucker’s knot.” Ryan motioned to a car that was parking nearby. A tall blonde woman exited the vehicle and hurried their way. With hands outstretched, she embraced Leann before Leann could move.

  “I’ve seen your picture, Leann, and the boys are so handsome. I look forward to spending lots of time getting to know them.”

  Leann was a cop. More than anything she wanted to question, dig and, yes, believe the worst. No such luck.

  Instead, she said, “Congratulations.”

  “I’m sorry we were a day late. We rented a condo by the beach for just one night. In February, there’s lots of availability.”

  “Sometimes an opportunity lands in your lap and you need to embrace it.” Funny, even as Leann said the words, she thought about Gary.