by Eve Gaddy
“You don’t have to tell them the whole truth, you know. Be vague.”
“The whole truth? We’re already going to have to lie like convicts about when and how and why we decided to marry, and about why we want to be foster parents and when we knew we wanted to do that. Now—” she waved a sheet of paper “—this is just more stuff to have to lie about.”
“Why are you so worried? We’ll work it out.”
She ignored him. “I’m not telling them anything about him,” she said. “I’m just going to act as if that whole…revolting episode never happened.”
Tucker assumed she was referring to being with the married slime. “It happened a long time ago,” he agreed. “That shouldn’t have a bearing on your parenting abilities.”
“Right. I was young, stupid and it has nothing to do with me now.” She looked down and scribbled something on a piece of paper. “And I’m not talking about Spencer, either.”
“Maggie?”
“Hmm.” She wasn’t looking at him, but frowned at the papers in front of her.
“Who’s Spencer?”
She looked up and met his gaze. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “How do you know about him?”
“Because you just mentioned his name. Who is he? Not the man—”
“No. Not him.”
He waited but she didn’t seem to want to add to that. “Is this another story I need to know about?” he said when she didn’t speak.
“No. I don’t want to talk about it.”
Ho-kay. Touchy subject, obviously. “Then why did you bring it up?”
“Because I wasn’t thinking.” She got to her feet. “Let’s go eat. I’m starving.”
He followed her lead, but he had to wonder about the other man she wasn’t talking about. Should he push her to talk, or should he just let her be? Because there was definitely a story here.
Before long they were being shown into the Café Diva. A small, elegant restaurant with a gorgeous mahogany bar and a wood-burning fireplace, it had a cozy, romantic ambience. The snow falling outside completed the perfect picture. The walls were graced with paintings from local artists and it was also known for its wonderful food and an excellent wine list.
Tucker greeted the owner and their waitress by name, as he’d known both of them for several years. He introduced Maggie as his wife and they were suitably surprised and pleased to have the honeymooning couple eat with them.
“Do you know everyone in this restaurant?” Maggie asked him after the waitress left to get their drinks.
“Not everyone. But I’ve been coming to Steamboat for years now and always make sure to eat here at least once. It’s one of my favorite places.” He watched her reach behind her back and frown.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I wish I hadn’t left my Glock at home. I feel naked without it.”
Tucker laughed. “Believe me, I’d have noticed if you were. I thought you said since you were going out of state it would be easier not to carry it.” He realized she’d taken her customary position at the table, with her back to a wall and where she could see the door. He wondered if all cops did that and, if so, what did they do when a bunch of them got together?
Maggie shrugged. “It’s still weird.”
Tucker patted her hand. “Steamboat’s pretty tame. I doubt you’ll need it. There’s a little crime around the mountain during high season, with all the transients and tourists, but not much. It’s a lot like Aransas City in a way. In town the residents don’t even lock their doors.”
“It does seem like a nice town. When did you start coming here?”
“My parents used to come years ago when I was a kid and they’d bring me.”
The waitress served their wine and brought them some crusty French bread and olive oil with balsamic vinegar. Maggie ate a bite and said, “Oh, this is delicious.”
They talked a bit until the waitress came back and discussed the menu with them. After they ordered, Maggie said, “Why did you decide to move back to the Aransas Bay area? I heard you were doing well in San Antonio. Didn’t you like it?”
“I liked it. I just decided I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life there. I missed the coast, for one thing.”
“I know what you mean. I missed it, too, when I lived in Dallas. I didn’t expect to, but I did.”
Before long their entrées arrived and they both began to eat. “Why did you move to Dallas?” Tucker asked Maggie. “Was it just to go to the police academy?”
She nodded. “That was part of it. Plus, I wanted to get out of Aransas City. I wanted out of the hick town and into the big city. I was all set to accomplish great things. That didn’t exactly happen.” She laughed and Tucker detected a note of bitterness.
“Did you like being on the Dallas police force?”
“Mostly. Some of it was hard. Some of the crime scenes we went to were…pretty brutal,” she admitted. “But most of the time I liked my job.”
“So you didn’t leave Dallas to get away from police work.”
She put down her fork and looked at him. “I came back to Aransas City because I wanted to. Why don’t we just leave it at that?”
Clearly, something had happened while she was in Dallas that she wasn’t ready to talk about. He suspected it had something to do with the man she’d mentioned, Spencer. He wanted to ask her about him, but he figured she’d tell him when she was good and ready. He’d already discovered that Maggie could be very stubborn and closemouthed, so he let the subject drop.
“Whatever you say. Did you want to get some dessert? They have a dynamite crème brûlée.”
Maggie sent him a grateful glance. “How about we split it? I don’t want to eat a whole one. I’m already stuffed from eating the entrée.”
They ordered the dessert and talked about skiing and their plans for the next day. While they were eating dessert, Maggie said, “Weren’t you a partner in a big firm in San Antonio? Wasn’t that hard to walk away from?”
Unlike Maggie, that wasn’t one of the things that bothered him to talk about. He’d already told her the only thing about his past that still stuck in his craw. Admitting that he’d let Leila Anderson play him had been difficult. In fact, he was a little surprised he’d told Maggie about her.
Maggie took another bite of dessert. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want.”
He shook his head. “No, I don’t mind. I got tired of the pressure, and the pace. You know the difference between a small town like Aransas City and a big city. I discovered I was tired of that more frenetic lifestyle, so I came back to the coast. I didn’t want to live too close to my parents, which is why I chose Aransas City. There wasn’t one instance that triggered the decision to move, but more of a gradual buildup of dissatisfaction.”
“Do you think you’ll stay in Aransas City?”
He smiled at her. “For the foreseeable future, anyway.”
Her eyes darkened to a deep, mossy green. “I really appreciate what you’re doing for me, Tucker.”
“Believe me, Maggie, it hasn’t been a hardship.” Except one thing was becoming a hardship. Keeping his hands to himself. It’s just the honeymoon, he told himself. The romance of it. Once you get back home things will return to normal. Won’t they?
“That’s what you say now, but that could change.”
“I don’t see why it should.”
“You could meet another woman and…well, you’d be stuck because you’re married to me. At least until we find out about Grace.” She wasn’t looking at him but had applied herself to the last of the dessert.
What was this about? “I’m not interested in another woman. Have I given you any reason to believe I am?”
She shot him a glance he couldn’t read. “No, so don’t get your shorts in a twist. But we both know the reasons behind our marriage. All I’m saying is you could have a change of heart and regret tying yourself down. Then what would we do?”
He stared at her a moment, tryin
g to figure out where she was coming from. It dawned on him that this might have something to do with the mysterious Spencer. “Is that what he did? Have a change of heart?”
Her eyes had changed color, they were flat and very nearly gray, with no green to be seen. “No. His heart never changed. That was the problem.”
The waitress came just then to ask if they needed anything else and to give him the bill. But Tucker wasn’t sure Maggie would have said any more even if they hadn’t been interrupted. It appeared that this story was one he would have to drag out of Maggie in bits and pieces. If indeed he managed to get the whole story out of her at all.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
ONCE THEY RETURNED from their honeymoon and moved Maggie’s belongings into Tucker’s house, Maggie and Tucker became serious about becoming licensed in foster care. The preliminary training course wasn’t a problem and they both soon completed it. As far as she could tell, the individual interviews that had been conducted at the CPS office had gone well. But the in-home joint interview loomed ahead of them and though Maggie wouldn’t admit it to Tucker, she worried about it. And one of the major sources of her worry was that while they weren’t sharing a bedroom, they had to make it look as if they were.
Of course, it had been her idea not to have sex, which she still believed was the right thing to do. And he’d agreed with her after he’d thought it over. But who knew it would be so difficult to live with a man platonically? she thought one morning.
He came into the kitchen just then, smiling that sleepy smile as he poured a cup of the coffee he couldn’t function without. How was she supposed to ignore that every day? Bare-chested, wearing a pair of faded Levi’s, his beard a sexy stubble on his cheeks, he made her…want.
Maybe she should just do it, she thought. She could talk Tucker into it, she was sure. They could do it, get it over with and then go on about their business.
She shook her head, marveling at how easy it was to rationalize. No, those were hormones talking. She ought to just go take a cold shower.
He sat and shook out the paper to read it, still not having spoken. She knew by now he didn’t usually talk much in the morning, but how could he be so calm when today was their joint interview?
“Are you going in to work?” she asked him.
He glanced up. “Yes, why?”
“Today’s the in-home joint interview,” she reminded him.
He smiled. “I know. You’ve told me half a dozen times since yesterday. It’s not until one. Plenty of time for me to get something done this morning.”
“We have to do something to your bedroom. To make it look more like we share it. And the master bath, too. No woman in her right mind would give up that dream of a bathroom.”
He looked really amused now, which irritated her. “I told you to take my bedroom.”
“No, that wouldn’t be right,” she said decisively, if a bit wistfully. “I’ll have to move some of my stuff in there. I should probably leave it, too, since they might visit unexpectedly. Probably will, if I had to guess.”
“There’s another option,” Tucker said, waiting until she glanced at him to speak. “You could move into the bedroom with me.”
“Oh, sure. I’m going to share a bedroom with you and not have sex with you. That’s going to happen. It’s hard enough to—” She broke off, annoyed at what she’d almost let slip. Tucker didn’t seem to have any problems resisting her. His seeming lack of interest burned her, considering she was the one who had originally wanted to keep the marriage platonic.
He grinned. “Just a thought, babe.”
A thought she was not going to explore. “Let me know when you’re finished dressing and I’ll start moving stuff in there. In the meantime, I’ll clean up my bedroom. Don’t you think it will be okay if I just shove everything into drawers and closets?”
“Beats me. I’ve never been interviewed for something like this. You’ve said they’re pretty invasive.”
“Invasive is one thing. Looking into a person’s closets and drawers is just…sick,” she decided.
Tucker laughed, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand. “Relax, Maggie. Everything’s going to work out, I promise.”
“I hope so.”
“It will.” He gave her hand a last squeeze and got up. “I’m going to shower. Maybe you ought to do yoga. Or go whale on the punching bag.”
Not a bad idea, she thought. “Tucker?” He stopped at the door and glanced back at her. “Thanks.”
He simply smiled and left the room. She watched him go, thinking that he looked nearly as good going as he did coming. Maggie turned her thoughts away from the tempting possibilities Tucker had brought to mind and back to the task of convincing the caseworker that she and Tucker were the perfect couple to foster a child.
THE INTERVIEW went better than Maggie had expected, and as far as she could tell, the caseworker had no problems with them. Tucker charmed her, spinning what, to Maggie, sounded like a believable story about why they wanted to be foster parents.
The woman had indeed peeked into all the rooms, but Maggie had worked hard on the master bedroom to make sure it looked lived-in by both of them. She’d even spritzed a little perfume in the master bath. She smiled, remembering Tucker’s expression when he’d gone in there. He clearly hadn’t expected that. Then Maggie had to show the woman where she planned to keep her weapon and assure her that it would either be locked up or on Maggie’s person whenever she was at home, but she’d expected that.
The only thing Maggie hadn’t anticipated, and she should have, she realized, was that the caseworker wanted to know how much interaction their extended family would have with them and the foster child, as well as their degree of acceptance. And she wanted to meet with both sets of their parents, though she said that wasn’t urgent.
Maggie decided to talk to her parents that afternoon, but Tucker had wanted her with him when he told his parents about their plans. They had made arrangements to meet his folks for dinner, at a restaurant in Rockport.
She didn’t expect to have a problem with her parents. They might wonder why she and Tucker wanted to be foster parents, but they certainly wouldn’t throw a wrench into the works. Her mother in particular spent a lot more time worrying about her younger sister than she did Maggie.
Late that afternoon, she went into her parents’ house through the back door, which was unlocked, as usual. “Mom, Dad, where are you?”
Her mother came into the kitchen, her eyes sparkling. “I’m glad you stopped by. We have some exciting news to tell you.”
“Where’s Dad?” She wondered what kind of news would make her normally placid mother so excited.
“He’s on the phone. No, here he is now,” she said as Frank walked in the room. “Tell her, Grandpa.”
“Hey, Maggie,” he said, though he seemed preoccupied. He turned to his wife. “Colleen, we have a meeting with the Realtor at four-thirty, so we can’t talk long.”
“Realtor?” Maggie echoed. “Why are you meeting a Realtor? Are you buying a new house?” She couldn’t imagine it. Her parents had lived in the same small brick house for longer than Maggie had been alive.
“We’re putting the house on the market. Your father’s finally agreed to move.”
Maggie’s heart sank. She’d known her parents had been considering moving to Florida to be with her sister and her family, but she’d hoped they’d decide against it.
“Why did you decide to move so suddenly? I thought you didn’t want to leave here, Dad?”
Frank grunted and took a seat at the kitchen table. “Well, Lorna’s pregnant again and she wants your mother there to help her.”
Pregnant? Again? “Summer’s only six months old. You mean to tell me Lorna’s having another baby already?” This one would make number four. Just how many children did Lorna intend to have?
“That’s right. Isn’t it wonderful?” her mother asked.
No, Maggie wanted to say, but she bit her tongue. “But you
don’t even know how long they’re going to be in Florida. What if John gets transferred again?”
“Then we’ll move to wherever they go.” Colleen put her hand on Maggie’s arm. “What’s wrong, honey? Are you worried we won’t see you? We can still get together at holidays and such. I know it’s a big change, but Lorna needs us. With all those children…” Her voice trailed off, and she searched Maggie’s face with a look of concern.
Maggie simply looked at her. She knew her parents loved her. But all her life it seemed she’d come in second to her baby sister. She didn’t think her parents did it on purpose, or even realized they were playing favorites. But the fact remained, Maggie had felt like an afterthought in their lives for a long time. She moved away to stare out the window.
“Maggie, you understand, don’t you? Lorna needs us.”
She turned back to her mother. “Sure, Mom. I understand.” She understood perfectly. Her parents might love her, but they loved her sister more. Why should it hurt? She was used to it, wasn’t she?
“I was so excited I forgot you’d said you had something to tell us. What did you want to talk to us about, Maggie?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Maggie said. “I’ll talk to you later. I’ve got to get back to work.”
She didn’t, but she couldn’t stay in the house with them and pretend everything was hunky-dory when she was embarrassingly close to tears. What difference did it make what her parents thought about her becoming a foster parent when they wouldn’t even be around? She’d simply tell the caseworker that her parents didn’t give a tinker’s damn about her, and were moving to freaking Florida, besides. So there was no need to worry about their reaction to any foster children Maggie might or might not have.
I’m thirty-four years old, she thought. I’ve been grown and on my own for a long time now. The fact that my parents are moving shouldn’t be a big deal.
