by Wendy Vella
The passenger door opened, and it was the man who got out that had every muscle in her body tightening.
Jay was here! She watched others get out of the vans and found the rest of the Wildlife staff that until recently she’d been a part of.
Christ!
She turned away from them so quickly she stumbled, then righted herself and hurried down the street.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Buster Griffin appeared before her. Horrified that it was him of all people, especially considering the history between them, she simply nodded and tried to leave. She needed to put some distance between herself and the Wildlife team. Couldn’t allow them to see her here. Searching her memory, she didn’t think she’d mentioned Howling at all. So it was likely no one knew this was her hometown. Why were they here?
“Come in and have a coffee. You look like you need one, Hope.”
“What?” Buster was walking beside her as Hope hurried in the opposite direction to Jay and the others. The rage at seeing him so soon after her photos in that magazine was making her want to punch something. But nothing would be gained by a confrontation now… or ever. No one would believe her story.
“You’re pale, and shaking. Come and have a coffee.”
“Oh, no… really, I’m fine.” His fingers held her still as she tried to leave.
Buster Griffin was well-built, with soft green eyes, thick black lashes, and short-cropped dark hair. He’d terrified Hope in school. Then she’d ruined his life and avoided him ever since.
“Get in here.” He took her arm. “We going to have this thing between us forever?”
“What thing?”
The cafe was busy, but he found a table, and pulled out a chair.
“You know very well what thing. Now sit.”
She sat, and only just resisted lowering her head between her knees to breathe. Jay was here, it was a disaster!
Buster then braced a hand on the back of her chair and the other on the table, caging her in, and bent to look into her eyes.
“You were what? Fifteen? You’d had the best part of a bottle of wine, and I came across you stumbling home. I tried to help, you told me I was an asshole, then pushed me and I went over the bank. I ended up with ten stitches in my head, a hell of a headache, and my wrist in a cast. Move on, Hope, I have.”
She felt the heat of shame wash over her. She’d stolen that bottle from her mother, because Millicent had refused to let her go to a party with the other kids. She’d then hidden in the trails and drunk it.
“I never really apologized, Buster.”
“Sure you did. That letter your mother made you write covered it.”
“But you missed the finals for your college football team. I cost you a scholarship.” Hope had wanted to say these words for years; instead she’d avoided Buster.
His smile was small, but a smile nonetheless.
“I wouldn’t have gotten a scholarship, Hope. I wasn’t that good.”
“They all said—”
“They have no idea what they’re talking about.”
Hope swallowed to ease the tightness in her throat. She shouldn’t have come back to Howling, that was obvious now. There were just too many memories tugging and pulling at her, stirring up emotion inside that she’d managed to avoid for years. She’d come home after wandering aimlessly for weeks because it had seemed like a good idea when she was sitting on the side of the road with nowhere else to go, and no money to get there…. Turned out she was wrong. Coming here was a bad idea.
“So we’re good?”
“What?” Hope looked up at Buster, who in turn sighed patiently.
“Focus, Hope. You were one of the smart ones in school, remember?”
“I really wasn’t,” she felt duty bound to say. “But my mom made me do homework and complete assignments on time, or I’d have to do extra chores.” Great, she was rambling now.
“That’ll do it,” Buster said in his gruff voice. “But where I was going with that focus comment, was that I don’t want this between us anymore. So no more running the opposite way when you see me, okay?”
She nodded.
“I need the words, Hope. Because I’m not entirely sure you didn’t stay away from Howling as long as you did because of me.
“W-we’re good,” she managed. Because if he was handing out an olive branch, she really should take it. “Really.” She looked out the window, but saw no sign of the Wildlife team. What would she do if they came in here?
“Right.” He patted the top of her head. “Now, coffee and muffin on the house.”
“Oh no, you don’t have to do that,” she said, as her tummy rumbled… loudly.
He laughed and walked away. Hope got up and went to the window. She couldn’t see any sign of the vans now. The relief made her light-headed.
“Hi, I’m Willow.” A pretty woman with long auburn hair and amazing eyes approached. “Buster told me to talk to you, and stop you from running out of the cafe.”
The thing about most of the Howlers was that avoidance was not in their vocabulary. If something needed to be said, then it was, and by the most direct route.
“He said you had a hang-up about that incident with his arm. You really shouldn’t, because he doesn’t.”
“It’s hard to let go of something you’ve nurtured for many years.”
“Oh, I know. I have a few of those inside me as well.”
The cafe door opened again, and in walked Cubby Hawker and Katie McBride. Hope had heard from Ryan that they were an item. They certainly looked good together. Tall, athletic, they had that healthy vibe you got off indecently fit people. Behind them came Newman. She really didn’t want to go another round with him right now, but couldn’t leave without him realizing it.
“If you met Newman in a business setting, you’d never think him the same guy,” Willow said.
He wore worn shorts and a T-shirt, and when she’d seen him in the Roar, she’d thought the look suited him as much as the corporate one he wore with ease away from Howling. Not that she’d ever tell him that, or that it bothered her. She was now over whatever the hell had happened between them. Well and truly, she reminded herself as she tried not to look at the muscles bunching in his arms as he punched Buster in the shoulder. Dragging her eyes away, she vowed not to look at him again… for at least five minutes. Then she’d get out of here, run home and pack, and leave on the next available transport. She could not let Jay and the Wildlife team see her.
“And I repeat,” Cubby said as Newman approached the counter. “That eye you got in Denver was from walking into a door. No way in hell could a pretty boy like you get into a brawl with more than one man and walk away.”
“The hell you say,” Newman said, scanning the cabinets while his friends continued to abuse him. “You weren’t there to serve and protect, Sheriff, so I had to.”
That produced hoots of laughter.
“I didn’t believe it when I heard how you got it. Imagine you defending the honor of your nemesis,” Buster said softly.
“Why are you whispering?” Newman said. He was then shoved sideways by Katie.
“Well I believed it, because Newman’s one of the good guys,” she said, reaching for a pie.
“Hey, that’s the last chicken with cheesy crust!”
“Poor baby.” She patted his cheek.
“I got more, don’t get your panties in a twist,” Buster grumbled. “You want coffee?”
Newman gave his friend an insulted look.
“Right, strong, I got it. Go sit with your damsel and I’ll bring it all over. After all, what else was I put on this earth for if wasn’t to serve you idiots.”
“It certainly wasn’t your manners,” Cubby said.
Newman turned his head so fast he was sure his neck clicked, and there she was again. Hope “pain in his ass” Lawrence. She’d bolted out of the Roar, but it surprised him that she’d end up here, with Buster. He knew they had history between them.
&
nbsp; “Tell me you didn’t actually pay money for that shirt?” Her eyes turned his way as he approached. Not a scrap of makeup, eyebrows in a line as she frowned. “Is that a shoelace in your hair?” He hadn’t noticed that one before.
“So what if it is.”
“Morning, Newman.”
“How’s my favorite girl?” Newman kissed Willow’s cheek.
“Doing good, thanks. The wedding plans are coming along well.”
“The archway’s coming along, and it will be all ready by the end of the month.” Willow and Buster were getting married on his lawn, overlooking the lake.
“I can’t wait to see it. Buster and Hope are all good now, FYI. They talked it through, and now she can settle back into Howling without having to avoid him.”
“Good to hear.” Newman looked at Hope, who in turn looked uncomfortable. He guessed she wasn’t big on people talking about her.
Willow gave him a hug, then went to join her man, leaving him alone with Hope, a fact that she was not happy about by the look in her eyes.
“I’m not sure what business it is of yours that Buster and I have come to an understanding, plus I don’t want to hear your opinion about my clothing again,” she said. “I like the way I dress, and it’s rude of you to say otherwise.”
“Probably, but as I have to look at you, I have something to say. And it’s likely Willow told me because she thinks you and I are friends, seeing as I came home with a black eye from saving your skinny ass.”
“My ass is not skinny.”
“Notice you didn’t question that I saved you, though.”
She flicked her fingers at him as if that was old news.
“Don’t look if you don’t like what I wear.” She ran her eyes over him, and Newman felt everywhere they landed, which was just plain disturbing. “And you’re not exactly a picture yourself. Your designer shorts have creases. What happened, you out of fabric softener?”
There’d been no heat in the words, which surprised Newman. Looking at her, he saw the nerves, and yes it was there again, the fear. He watched her eyes go to the window before returning to him.
“What’s happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Something’s upset you. Tell me what.”
“You saw those pictures.”
“Sure, but they didn’t make you scared, just sad.”
“Hey there, Hope.”
“Sheriff Hawker.”
“Just Cubby will do, Hope.”
“Katie.” Hope nodded again as Jake’s sister settled herself beside her man. “I… ah. I need to go.”
“Buster’s bringing you a coffee. Be a shame to waste it.” Katie smiled at Hope.
He’d noticed that about her too. She didn’t like to be with people. She was a solo kind of girl. Too bad , he thought. In Howling there was no escaping contact. He wasn’t entirely sure how she’d managed it for so many years before leaving.
“Thank him for me, but I just remembered something I have to do. Bye.”
She was out of her chair so quick, Newman didn’t have time to stop her, then ran out the door with everyone watching her.
“Okay, that was weird even considering it was Hope,” Cubby said.
“She’s not weird,” Newman said.
“Different then?”
“I’ll buy into that,” he said, wondering what the hell had her running this time.
CHAPTER TWELVE
She’d meant to go back to the house; it had been her plan. Once there she’d pack and get out of town. Instead she’d found herself in the trails after sprinting down the main street so no one from Wildlife saw her, in case they were still in town. Once the cool of the redwoods surrounded her, she stopped and exhaled.
“Hello.”
A young boy was coming toward her. Tall, thin, he hadn’t yet grown into his feet or legs. She had an inkling she knew who he was.
“You lost?” The tone of his voice told Hope he’d encountered his fair share of lost tourists on the trails.
“No, I’m a local. Hope Lawrence.”
“Really? Wow.”
She found a laugh at his shock. It was a common reaction.
“What’s the problem, did you expect me to have horns and a tail like my mother?”
Color flooded his cheeks.
“It’s all right, I know her faults. Don’t beat yourself up.” And she did, but Hope also knew that her mother would lay down her life for her children, she just had a strange way of showing it.
“You any good with that?”
He was pointing to the camera she had slung around her neck.
“Not bad actually. How about you?”
“I don’t have one, but we get to use the school ones, and I’m quite good with that. The teacher says I have an eye for it.”
His large feet were in worn sneakers, and he wore a T-shirt two sizes too big. Baggy shorts hung off his skinny hips.
“What’s your name?”
“Mikey Tucker.”
Her hunch had been right. Mikey Tucker was a local kid who Branna and Jake McBride had kind of unofficially adopted. As had their posse. She took him for about fourteen now.
“So what are you photographing at school at the moment?” Hope walked and Mikey fell in beside her. This place had magical qualities, she was sure of it. Shafts of light filtering through the trees touched here and there. The scent was raw and natural. Hope loved it. She could breathe here, surrounded by what she loved. She felt the tightness inside her ease with every step.
“A bonsai tree that my teacher, Mr. Bird, brought in.”
“So here’s the thing about photography, Mikey. It’s all about manipulation and capturing light. Some people will tell you it’s about the camera, but actually the real magic is getting the light right. A really well-lit subject can be photographed badly, just as a badly lit subject won’t look good.”
Hope took some time with Mikey to think about something other than the implosion that was her life. Photography was her life, so why not share some of that.
Mikey pulled out his phone.
“You’re making a phone call now… really?”
“No, I’m taking notes.”
“Okay, right. You’re not into notepads then?”
He gave her a look that told her she was a dinosaur.
“Whatever. Now listen up. If I was to photograph those trees there, how would you have me do it?” Hope pointed to the left.
He studied the scene.
“I’d stand here.” He pointed to a spot a foot from where Hope stood.
“Sure, and that would be a good shot, but there’s a couple of things you need to consider when taking pictures of trees. Firstly, which is the lead actor tree, and which ones are his supporting cast. Secondly, you don’t need to center everything, because often the perfectly centered shot loses its balance.”
“Well, hell. Have a little faith, Hope.”
Hope turned to find Faith Harris coming toward her, tall, elegant, with beautiful deep brown eyes, soft arched brows, and thick lashes. Hope had been jealous of those eyelashes in school. Faith’s Native American heritage was in the thick, straight long black hair and mocha-colored skin. They’d been friends of a sort in school, even though Faith was older. Weirdly, Faith had liked Hope, even though she’d been one of the “it” kids. That could have had something to do with Hope doing her homework however.
“Have a little hope, Faith,” she said by way of reply. It had always been their thing to greet each other this way.
“Ha,” Mikey said. “That was quite funny.”
“For old people, do you mean?” Faith said.
“Yeah,” he added. “So I don’t have anyone to build my boat with, because Jake’s with Buster, Newman is with Noah, and the Texans are pairing up. Then Branna is with Annabelle, and Macy is judging. Willow told me she’s drawing, too. So will you two help me?”
“Are we your last resort? Because if that’s the case, I’m offended,” Faith said.
>
Mikey was a bright boy, and simply smiled at Faith.
“I’m in because I want to beat Noah, and she’ll help I’m sure,” she added, nodding to Hope. “She was really smart in school.”
“I’m smart,” Mikey said, “so that could work.”
He wasn’t bragging, just stating it as it was, Hope realized.
“Oh, I’m not sure I’ll be here,” she said quickly. “Anyway, haven’t you got a brother?”
“Connor’s a dickhead.”
“Well that settles that then, and I’m sure I should tell you not to swear, Mikey,” Faith said, winking at him. “So what are you two doing out here? Burying a body? Smoking something illegal? Or maybe being one with nature?”
“Hope’s teaching me about photography. She’d good, and I want to learn,” Mikey said. “So maybe we could do this again tomorrow at the same time. I’ll meet you down at the lake by the sheriff’s office. Water’s a problem for me, because of the glare on the lens. Bring some ideas for the boat. See ya.”
Before Hope could tell him she couldn’t commit to the lessons, and wouldn’t be there to help with the boat race, the boy had gone, lifting a hand in farewell.
“Do I get a say?”
“Not so much,” Faith said, as they watched him lope away.
“So, Hopeful, tell me this. Can I get you behind the bar tonight? We had two employees call in sick this morning, and Noah’s pulling his hair out.”
“Ah, no, I don’t think so, but thanks.” If she was behind the bar, she could run into the Wildlife people.
Faith studied her.
“Why not? You get rich while you were gone?” Faith looked her over. “Because if you did, you need to do something about this.” She waved a hand up and down, indicating Hope’s clothing.
“What’s with you people and this fixation you all have about looking good?”
“Honey, just looking normal would work for you.”
“Bitch,” Hope muttered.
“Sure, now listen up. If you’re worried about those Wildlife folk seeing you, seeing as I know you worked for them, then don’t. They came into town a while ago, picked up supplies, and then left. They’ve hired the old Harboridge House four miles out of town. They don’t plan on coming back, because they’re too good for us.”
