What Madeline Wants

by Linda Style

  “Uh…today. Right now. I mean, as soon as—” she couldn’t look at Rachel “—as soon as my mother leaves.”

  J.D. turned to look at her mother.

  Rachel rose to her feet, her body rigid.

  “Mad-e-line,” Rachel said softly in the same firm tone she’d always used when Maddy was a child and had needed reprimanding.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. Mother, this is my employer, J.D. Rivera. J.D., this is my mother, Rachel Inglewood.”

  Rivera nodded toward her mother. “Nice to meet you, ma’am. I’d shake hands but I’m all dirty.” He wiped a grubby hand across his sweat-soaked T-shirt.

  Rachel’s shock couldn’t be disguised. But being the well-mannered lady that she was, she pulled herself up and managed a civil “How do you do, Mr. Rivera.”

  “Let me know as soon as you’re ready,” J.D. said to Maddy, “so I can go over the plans with you.” He gave Rachel another nod. “Have a nice trip home, ma’am.” He gave her a two-finger salute and left the room.

  Maddy didn’t know whether to be excited or wary. Was he actually going to let her help? “I’ll be there in a few minutes,” she called after him. “Right after I take a quick shower.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  J.D. KEPT WORKING OUTSIDE for another half hour after Madeline’s mother had left, and then he headed for the kitchen. Why he’d told the teacher she could help he didn’t know. Yes, he did. He hated to see anyone being manipulated. Hell, couldn’t Madeline tell that her mother was doing exactly that?

  And after Maddy’s impassioned plea earlier, he’d given her ideas on the kitchen some serious consideration. She had a point. Why tear everything out when restoration might work? And if it saved him money, all the better. But time was the important factor. If he tried her way and it didn’t work out, he’d have to start over.

  “Hi,” Madeline greeted him cheerily as he came into the kitchen.

  She was standing next to the table studying the blueprints he’d laid out earlier. The sunlight coming through the windows formed a golden aura around her head. Her hair, still a little wet from her shower, appeared lighter than when she’d arrived. “I’m still on the fence about this,” he grumbled, then walked over to her.

  She smelled fresh and clean, like fruit or something, not all perfumey like some women.

  A droplet of water rolled down her temple, and he felt an overwhelming urge to lick it off. An obvious case of repressed testosterone, that was all it was. The last thing he needed to be thinking about was a woman. Especially not a rich, I’m-looking-for-excitement type. Tripplehorne was just a blip on the teacher’s radar screen, a touch-and-go on her way to New York and her big-time job at the UN.

  “And what’s going to make you jump over that fence?”

  He thought for a moment. “You tell me exactly what you have in mind, how long it will take, how much money it’ll cost me, what type of expertise is required and how much manpower is involved. After you get that information for me, I’ll make a decision.”

  Without preamble, she said, “Great! I’ll put a work plan together right now. That way you can see everything on paper.” Her eyes sparkled as she talked, and the timbre of her voice rose in proportion to her obvious excitement.

  Blue. Her eyes were blue, he realized. Sky blue. And as clear as a cloudless day.

  He didn’t want to notice her eyes. He didn’t want to feel anything—not even irritation. For nearly three weeks, he’d worked from sunup till he dropped into bed at night, too tired to think or feel or remember. If it got too dark to work outside, he worked inside. All he had to do was go through the motions of living.

  And if he didn’t make the deadline, he’d crawl back to another two-bit Vegas motel and numb his brain with more pills and alcohol. That was his backup plan.

  But now, this woman had him thinking again. Feeling again. And he hated it.

  EARLY THE NEXT MORNING, Saturday, Maddy stood outside on the back deck waiting for Annie to pick her up. They were going to Los Rios. She wasn’t sure she should even be horning in on Annie’s friends, but since she’d had no response from J.D. about the work plan she’d given him last night, she didn’t have anything else to do. She’d wanted to discuss the suggestions with him right away, but he’d said he’d look at it and they could talk later.

  “Going somewhere?”

  Maddy turned. J.D. stood in the doorway. His arms were crossed and his tanned skin contrasted with the white T-shirt that seemed to be his work uniform. “Annie’s picking me up for some kind of brunch with her friends.”

  “Ah, the good ladies of Los Rios,” he said with no small amount of sarcasm.

  “I hesitated about going, but decided since I didn’t have anything else to do, I might as well. Besides, I really like Annie.”

  He went over to the stove and poured himself a cup of coffee. “You make this? It smells different.”

  She nodded. “My special blend. Vanilla hazelnut. I brought a little bit with me.”

  “I prefer the regular kind—black and strong.”

  “Oh, for goodness’ sake. Quit complaining and taste it. Then you can give me your opinion.” She surprised herself with her outburst, but how could he have an opinion about something he hadn’t even tried?

  He backed up as if she were a cat baring her claws. Then he took a sip and gave her a so-so gesture with his hand. “Not bad. Not great, but not bad, either.”

  “And you wouldn’t admit if it was fantastic.”

  At that, he laughed. “Okay, you got me.”

  “Really? I feel better already.”

  “But don’t test your luck.”

  He took another sip. Finally he said, “I like your plan. I’ve got some questions, though. Maybe we can talk about it when you come back.”

  She couldn’t stop the wide smile that erupted. He liked her plan. He liked her plan! He’d said so. Amazing. “Of course.”

  “So how long will you be gone?”

  “I don’t know. A half day, maybe.”

  Just as he was going out the back door, Annie pulled up. Grabbing her purse, Maddy suddenly realized she’d forgotten to check on Zelda. She slipped out the door practically on J.D.’s heels. “Can you please tell Annie I’ll be right there, as soon as I finish with Zelda.”

  J.D. looked at her askance, but said, “Sure. If she comes around back where I’m working.”

  As Maddy hurried to take care of Zelda, her heart raced. If she’d gone off with Annie and forgotten to feed the dog, no telling what might’ve happened. And then the little confidence J.D. had in her would be impaired.

  But she hadn’t forgotten. Even in her excitement, she’d remembered. Feeling good about that, she hurried to the compound and went in without developing a single butterfly in her stomach. She didn’t have time for shaky nerves right now.

  Zelda didn’t seem to be around and Maddy figured she was probably still sleeping inside her fancy house. She smiled to herself. All dogs should be so lucky. Then, as she finished filling the food bowl, she noticed Zelda poke her little dark nose outside her door. The animal dropped down, head on her front paws, soft brown eyes peering up at Maddy.

  “What’s up, pup? You’ve got everything you need.” Maddy motioned to the food and water cache. “So, no big eyes, okay?”

  As she closed the gate, Maddy had a fleeting sense that Zelda wasn’t herself. Come to think of it, she’d been listless the day before, too. There’d been no big welcome from her.

  “Maddy? You coming?” Annie’s voice sounded from behind.

  “I’ll be back later, Zelda,” Maddy said and hurried out, shutting the gate behind her. Coming around the side of the house she found her new friend standing by the open door of a small white SUV. Annie waved when she saw Maddy coming.

  “Good morning,” Maddy said. “Sorry, I was checking on the dog.”

  She went to the passenger side, got in and fastened her seat belt, and as she did, she saw J.D. turn to look at them.

  She pressed
the button, opened the window and asked, “Do you want me to pick up anything while I’m in town?”

  He shook his head.

  “You sure? Last chance.”

  “Positive.”

  She turned to Annie and shrugged. Annie shifted into gear and they were off.

  “He likes you,” Annie said as she pulled onto the main road. “Which is really unusual since he hardly likes anyone.”

  Maddy gave an offhand laugh, but her insides warmed at the comment. “He has to put up with me, that’s all. His aunt hired me, and he’s stuck with it.”

  “Right. And that’s why—according to Grady—his eyes light up whenever your name is mentioned.”

  That was news to her. “Grady’s imagining things.”

  Annie smirked. “You can think what you want.”

  A half hour later, in the back room of the Sunflower Café, Maddy and Annie were chatting with eight other women, all members of the Los Rios Ladies Club. Carolyn, Abigail and Mary appeared to be somewhere in their late forties and early fifties, Annie, Jennifer and Serena, late twenties to mid-thirties, Kelsey, who looked no more than sixteen, and Gertrude who was pushing eighty if she was a day. According to Annie, the group met biweekly to work on whatever town project was on the agenda, eat sinful food and gossip about everyone. The topic at hand was the September Festival, slated for the next weekend.

  “We’d love to have you join our group,” the woman named Carolyn said.

  “What she means is we’re desperate for help,” Annie interjected.

  “I’ll be happy to do what I can. But as far as joining the group, I’m only going to be here a few weeks.”

  “Just as well,” Gertrude said. “Considering.”

  “Considering what, Gram?” Kelsey, who was carrying in coffee and tea from the restaurant, impaled the older woman with a critical gaze.

  Gertrude raised her chin. “Considering she’s staying out there with that Rivera man,” she said to the group as a whole, then to Maddy, “You be very careful out there, dear. He killed a man, you know.”

  “Gram!” Kelsey dropped the tray on the table with a crash. “It was an accident. I read it in the newspapers. You can’t condemn someone for an accident.”

  “It’s true, Gert,” one of the other women piped up. “I read it myself.”

  Gert sniffed. “Maybe so. But I say, like father, like son. There’s bad blood in the man and nothing can change that.”

  Kelsey rolled her eyes and mumbled something unintelligible under her breath, and then said, “Well, if the rest of the guys around here looked like he does—”

  “Kelsey!” Carolyn snapped. “Watch your mouth. As far as that man goes, we should all just mind our own business.”

  “Mom!” Kelsey rounded on the older woman. “That’s everyone’s solution to everything around here.”

  “We wouldn’t even be having this conversation if that man hadn’t come back here in the first place,” Carolyn retorted.

  “Ohhhh.” Kelsey’s face went red. “And you wonder why I can’t wait to turn eighteen and leave this town?”

  “This isn’t the place to be airing your gripes, young lady,” the girl’s mother reprimanded.

  To which Kelsey shrugged dramatically, “There must be someplace in this country where people are more open-minded.”

  Having been raised in a small town herself, Maddy had wondered the same thing many times. Then after going away to school, she’d learned that the people in Epiphany were no different than people anywhere else.

  But she had to admit, Gert’s comment about J.D. grated. What had the woman meant about bad blood? What had J.D.’s father done that was so bad?

  “Moving away isn’t necessarily a solution,” Maddy said to Kelsey, hoping she might be able to smooth things over. “Prejudice is alive and well in the big cities as much as it is in small towns.”

  Carolyn stiffened at the comment and several other ladies exchanged quick glances. Realizing what she’d just said, Maddy fumbled to correct her faux pas. “What I meant is that attitudes are the same everywhere. People are people.”

  “We know what you meant, Maddy,” Annie said. “No point belaboring the issue. It’s time to get on with our projects. We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

  Maddy was grateful for the save.

  Abigail, who’d been silent during the earlier exchange, said, “I agree. We all have different opinions, so let’s put the subject to rest. On another note, we’d love to have you join us at the festival, Madeline, whether you have time to help or not.”

  “Thank you,” Maddy said. “I’ll be happy to do whatever I can.”

  IT WAS AFTER 1:00 p.m. when they headed back to the ranch. “What was all that about bad blood?” Maddy asked Annie as the car bumped down the road.

  “Y’know, I wasn’t even born when it all went down over thirty years ago, but I heard it had something to do with a fire and a couple of people dying. J.D.’s father was arrested. But some people in this town have a way of blowing things out of proportion. And that stuff about bad blood—who even thinks like that?”

  “Gertrude, and apparently her daughter, Carolyn.”

  “Well, pay no attention to them. They don’t know what they’re talking about.”

  Maddy wasn’t so sure that was true. But she didn’t see any point in asking more questions, since her friend didn’t have any answers. “Do you have a computer, Annie?”

  “Sure. Why?”

  “I need to get some information, and I thought about having my brother send my laptop out here, but J.D. doesn’t have a connection at the ranch.”

  “You can use my computer anytime you want. I only need it to do the accounting for the business and to get recipes from the Internet once in a while.”

  Annie liked to cook, Maddy had learned earlier. Her dream was to open a catering business someday.

  “Thanks. I may have to do that. I don’t know where else to get information around here. There’s not even a library in town.”

  “There’s one in the school. You could use that.”

  “Tough without transportation. I can’t even get to your place without wheels.”

  Annie pondered that for a minute, then said, “I can look up the information for you. It might even force me get more experience on the computer.” She laughed. “I’m so computer challenged.”

  “Gosh, I wish I had a car. I could help you with that. I was a real techno geek in school. But, yeah, I need information, and maybe you could get it for me.”

  Once they agreed on that, Maddy approached Annie about her other idea. “Remember the woman I told you about, Juana’s sister, Mariela?”

  Annie nodded. “Sure. The one who makes great clothes.”

  “Well, I was wondering if it would be possible to get her a booth at the festival.”

  “Of course. All she has to do is fill out a form and pay the money.”

  “That’s what I figured. But she doesn’t speak English, and I don’t think she has much money.”

  Annie thought for a minute. “I might know a solution for that.”

  They talked it over, and finally Maddy was back at the ranch, where she waved goodbye to Annie and headed toward the house. Scanning the yard for J.D., she noticed no one seemed to be working.

  Strange. J.D. and company—Carlos and Benito—practically worked round the clock, but today their hammers were mute.

  She glanced at Zelda’s run. Zelda was half in and half out of her house, her head resting on her paws. Nothing unusual, so Maddy went inside.

  The rest of her lunch with the ladies had gone well with no more confrontations. The women had planned the festival down to the last toothpick. Maddy had made suggestions where she could. They’d planned the decorations for two different booths, and Maddy had agreed to work in one of them for an hour or so on Saturday and do any other tasks they wanted to assign her.

  Kelsey had stuck by Maddy’s side the whole time, firing off questions, one after the other.
What was Maddy going to do when she left Los Rios? How had she decided on a career and where she wanted to live? Did she think J.D. was hot and was he as gorgeous close up as he was from a distance?

  The girl was brimming with energy and Maddy was reminded of herself at that age—before she’d changed into someone she hardly knew.

  But now she was back on track, thanks in large part to the opportunity J.D. had given her. He was a strange man. On the one hand, she wasn’t sure he thought she was competent, but on the other, he seemed to push her into doing things. She’d never have gone near Zelda if he hadn’t nudged her. She’d never have taken such a dilapidated truck into Los Rios alone if he hadn’t asked her to do it. And if she hadn’t done that, she’d never have met Annie.

  With each small success, she felt her self-confidence building, and her determination to make changes in her life became even stronger.

  She stepped inside the house. No J.D., Juana or Carlos. Where were they? She’d hoped to discuss the plan she’d given J.D. and maybe start working.

  In her room, she changed clothes, and since she couldn’t do any real work in the kitchen without first talking to J.D., she decided to read for a while. Two hours later, she awakened from an unplanned nap, got up, splashed her face and went to the kitchen again, hoping to find someone. But there wasn’t a soul around.

  She checked outside. She began to check everywhere and when she got to J.D.’s room, the door was ajar. She knocked. No answer. She knocked again, harder this time, and the door creaked open a little more.

  With one hand on the knob, she leaned forward and peered inside. The blinds were drawn, the light was dim. “J.D. Are you in here? I’d like to talk for a minute if you have time.”

  Nada.

  When her eyes adjusted, she saw the bed was unmade, and the door on a gun cabinet against one wall was ajar. What the— She crossed to the cabinet where several rifles stood on end, all securely locked in their slots—except one. She whirled around.

  “J.D.?” The bathroom door was open, but he wasn’t there, either.