His Secret Heart (Crown Creek)

by Theresa Leigh

  I leaned forward… Then stood straight up when it came to a stop. Right next to Sky's lot.

  A bearded man jumped from the passenger seat and opened the back door. He held out his hand, helping a woman climb out of the back seat.

  As she emerged, her long braid swung behind her. The same kind of braid Rachel wore back when she and Beau first got together.

  I’d hardly started making sense of this when she reached into the car and hefted a tiny child into her arms. She turned and looked at the man again. Her posture was one of, ‘what now?’

  Her answer - and mine - came when the driver’s side door opened.

  I’d seen the pink-sweatshirted woman from the camp store several times. But she’d always been behind the counter. I was perversely surprised to see that she had legs. I was even more surprised to see that her hair was braided in the same way as the woman holding the child. It swung behind her as she walked around to the young couple.

  She hugged the woman first, gesturing with her hands and nodding repeatedly. The young woman looked down and nodded. Then shook her head and looked at the young man, who crossed his arms over his chest. The woman from the camp store touched his arm, and then went to her trunk and pulled out a faded green bundle. He looked at the young woman, and then rushed around to collect the bundle. The young woman jiggled the baby on her hip, then stiffened like she’d heard something. The baby was barely old enough to walk, but she set it down before reaching into the backseat again.

  She emerged cradling a tiny bundle, swaying and soothing. The baby on the ground tugged at her skirt and then plopped down on its butt. The young mother fluttered a second, then bent and scooped the bigger one up with the smaller one.

  I was impressed. I wondered if my mom had looked like that with Beau and me once Claire came along. That kind of kid-juggling was usually a two person job. But the guy she was with was over wrestling with the green bundle.

  With a sickening jolt, I realized it was a tent. The camp store woman was pulling away, leaving the young couple at Sky’s site. They had two babies and were about to spend a night - that would no doubt dip into freezing temperatures - in a faded old Army tent.

  Instinct propelled me out my door and right across the road before rational thinking made me stop and raise my hand in greeting. “Good morning!’ I called.

  The woman turned first, fear written all over her face. “Cute kids!” I called. “You guys just getting here, huh?”

  This was stupid. What the hell was I doing besides freaking her out even more? Back the trailer, I’d thought she was older than me. But now I could see she was Claire’s age. Maybe even younger.

  And though his beard aged him, the guy was younger than me for sure. He glared at me, glancing between me and the woman several times. Then abandoned his tent-erecting and came over to stand right next to her. He crossed his arms over his chest like a knight guarding his castle.

  I swallowed. “Have a good day, then,” I called, getting the message loud and clear. With another wave, I went back into my trailer.

  But they stayed with me the rest of the day, that small family. I found myself drawn to the window again and again, watching that faded green tent see if they’d come out again. Trying to engineer a way to “bump into them” and offer something hot to drink. What were they doing out in this weather with such little ones? And did that braid mean what I thought it meant?

  I finished The Great Gatsby in record time - and without absorbing a single word. I was too distracted by checking out the window every five seconds. Were they okay? How would I know if they weren’t? They wouldn’t talk to me. They seemed terrified to even look my way.

  It dawned on me. Slowly at first, because this ‘caring about others' thing was still new to me. But when I finally figured it out, I smacked myself in the forehead.

  Sure, they wouldn’t talk to me. But the woman from the camp store? Talking to me was her very favorite thing in the world.

  Maybe I could finally put that endearing personality quirk of hers to good use.

  I walked briskly past the faded tent. I could hear voices inside, too low to understand, but they went quiet as soon as they heard my footsteps.

  This young family, with two tiny kids, was crammed into a single person tent. In the middle of a cold snap. And being really sneaky about it too.

  They had to be hiding from something.

  But what?

  I hurried on to the camp store with questions circling in my brain. I hoped like hell the woman in the pink sweatshirt would be there and feeling chatty.

  She was, except her sweatshirt was blue now. And she was wearing a name tag over her heart.

  Wait, had that always been there and I only noticed now?

  “How are you today, Mr. Prince?” she asked with a bright smile.

  “I’m good, Dinah, thanks.”

  She looked startled that I’d called her by her name. I wandered around, picking up items at random.

  And then my curiosity got the best of me.

  "So. I see I have some new neighbors?"

  Dinah gave a tight, cautious smile. “They're not going to bother you," she said quickly. "They won't be here more than a couple days."

  "I'm not worried about them bothering me. I was just curious if you could tell me anything about them."

  "Why do you want to know?"

  It was a fair question. I've never showed an interest in any of the other guests. “The little kids. Do they need coats or anything?”

  Dinah’s mouth twitched. “They might.”

  “And the mom, um. Her braid?”

  Her face went as rigid as a stone. Why do you care? a voice inside of me screamed. It’s not your problem.

  Because this is what a good person would do. I had no idea if that was the case, but it seemed right.

  “It’s just,” I went on. “It reminds me of my future sister-in-law's.” I looked up at her. “Yours does too.”

  Her eyes widened. She ducked her head and covered her mouth with her hand so that I had to lean in to hear her. “Is your sister-in-law Chosen?” she asked in a tight whisper. Then glanced behind me as if she expected someone to be listening.

  Startled by her fear, I nodded, dropping my voice to match hers. "She grew up there, yeah. But she left, uh….” I wracked my brain, trying to remember Rachel’s story. It felt wrong that I couldn't remember the exact dates, because I was certain I had heard them before. Was I really so wrapped up in my own mental breakdown that I had forgotten? "Three years ago," I said, with a sudden rush of triumph. “She left because she couldn't have kids."

  "You mean Rachel?" Dinah gasped.

  I pressed my lips together, uncertain about whether I should be say anything further. But Dinah was nodding faster and faster. “Then I’ll tell you, because you’re family.” She licked her lips and lowered her voice some more. “After the season ends, you know, after it clears out from too many eyes, I let them use it.”

  “Who?”

  “Families that want to escape. I give them a place." She gestured. “They can use it as a way station.

  I could not have been more startled if she reached across the counter and slapped me in the face. “You do that for them?”

  She nodded and lifted her braid. “Family is family,” she stated in a way that made me certain she’d said those words before.

  Before I knew what I was doing, I’d grabbed my wallet. "Here," I said, pulling out every bit of cash I had left and dumping it on the counter in front of her.

  She looked startled. "What is this for?"

  I looked down at it. “Get them started. Help them make a new life. They deserve a fresh start."

  “I can't accept this." She was shaking her head with her hands lifted, like she was afraid to touch it.

  “If you won’t give it to them, then I will.”

  "Maybe you should," Dinah said with a little glint in her eye. "I haven't seen you talking to anyone since that blonde with the pretty eyes left. I
was getting worried about you. Couple times, I almost knocked on your door."

  "Yeah." I swallowed hard.

  "Have you heard from her?" Dinah pressed.

  I shook my head. “No."

  "You want me to ask if anyone knows where she ended up?" Her grin was proud. "I've got a lot of people.”

  I licked my lips and looked at the drift of bills on the counter. It wasn’t enough. But it was a start. And maybe it could be a start... for me.

  “Not yet,” I told Dinah. “Soon.”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Sky

  When Livvy got home from work, she stopped dead in the middle of her kitchen and gaped. “Oh my God!” she cried.

  I jumped up from where I’d been kneeling by the sink and stretched the cramp from my neck. Then wiped away a piece of hair that was stuck in my sweat. “You’re home? Shit. I thought I still had another hour. It’s still a mess.”

  “No. It’s not.” Livvy looked around her, open mouthed.

  I brushed my hair back again and smiled as I watched her take in my efforts.

  Phase one of project ‘stop being a selfish asshole’ was well underway. I’d spent this morning tackling the massive cleaning project Livvy hadn’t managed to get to yet.

  Starting with the kitchen. I’d opened all the windows and washed the streaks from the glass. I’d scrubbed the dead bugs from the screens and washed the grime from the windowsills. I'd mopped the floor, and then mopped it again. I'd emptied an entire bottle of scouring powder into the sink and scoured it until it shone like new. I'd pulled everything out of the grubby cabinets and washed every single shelf. Then I washed all the dishes for good measure.

  It was like a new place... if I did say so myself. The dusty gloom had lifted and light was now streaming in through the windows. What dirt I couldn’t get up with fevered scrubbing had been thoroughly doused in bleach. Janet used to call that 'clean dirt.'

  “Holy crap, Sky. You cleaned my kitchen. It must have taken forever!” Livvy stepped into the center of the linoleum floor and twirled in a full circle. “It’s not gritty under my feet anymore!” she laughed. “It must have been so gross!”

  “Now you can have people over,” I said, and then laughed when she squealed and hugged me.

  Then she pulled back and wrinkled her nose. “Oof, girl. You need a shower.”

  I laughed and nodded. “Like I said, I thought I had another hour. I was gonna take one once I finished up.”

  She grabbed the sponge from my hand. “You’re finished. Come on, go get cleaned up.”

  “What’s the hurry?”

  “We’re going out.”

  “Out?”

  “It’s Thursday.” She said this like it was significant.

  “What’s Thursday?”

  “Just come on!”

  I still smelled like bleach, but at least I was cleaned up. Because it turned out that Thursday was the night Livvy met her friends at the Crown Tavern, a bar right smack dab in the middle of town.

  It was a wood-paneled, comfortable place. The reassuring scent of a million spilled beers rose from the wide-planked floor. I walked in and let the heavy door swing shut behind me, my eyes quickly adjusting to the homey dimness. The front end was given over to a small stage area where an acne-riddle teenager was strumming his guitar for a few uninterested patrons. But the back end was scattered with mismatched tables and chairs, and that’s where we headed.

  A bearded, barrel-chested man who looked like he ate a dozen eggs every morning glowered at us from behind the bar. Livvy gave him a cheerful wave. “That’s Taylor,” she explained. “He hates everything and everyone, so just ignore him.”

  “She’s not ignoring him.” I gestured to the girl perched on a barstool. She had her elbows planted on the bar and was staring Taylor down with a serious expression on her face.

  Livvy called out to her. “Sadie! Hey! This is my cousin Sky.”

  Sadie turned with that same serious expression on her face. She looked at me so long I felt like she was inspecting me with X-ray vision. “Your eyes are like your name,” she finally announced.

  I blinked at her directness. “You’re right.”

  “Was that intentional?”

  “Not by me.”

  She leaned in and pressed her finger to my wrist. “You should own it,” she whispered.

  “Hey!” A loud voice rang out across the bar. Sadie, Livvy and I all turned to see a tall woman with a short, blonde bob approaching us. She was dragging a reluctant looking guy behind her. “That’s Claire,” Livvy whispered to me. “Don’t let her scare you. She’s all bark and no bite.”

  I grinned and nodded.

  “Is this her?” Claire bellowed, pointing to me. “The cousin?”

  I opened my mouth to agree with her, and then froze.

  Claire was close enough now for me to see her eyes.

  There was no one else on earth with hazel eyes that matched Finn’s in intensity.

  Except, possibly, his sister.

  As I stood there, frozen to the spot, Claire finished dragging the guy forward. “This idiot actually thought he was staying in tonight,” she announced for the group. She stared him down.

  “That’s Ethan,” Livvy jumped in to explain. “He’s cousins with Taylor, which is why she’s dragging him along like this. Whenever he comes out with us, Taylor lets us drink for free.”

  “And he thought he could get out of it, too,” Claire laughed.

  I couldn’t help staring at her. I felt like I needed to shake my head over and over again, just to keep it clear enough to make sense of her.

  Her expressions were the same as Finn’s, right down to the eyebrows she could arch one at a time. She had his same intensity, no doubt, though hers was definitely less brooding. And more bossy.

  I knew all this because I’d spent time with her brother. More recently than she had, I knew that too. And the sheer heavy guilt of it weighed me down like I was holding a bowling ball.

  What did I owe him? What did she know? If mentioned a guy at the campground with eyes like hers, how would she react? Would she be happy? Angry?

  Or maybe she already knew and I’d be butting into her family’s business for no reason at all?

  I’d just started over in this town. Could I afford to have enemies already?

  It was that thought that had me pressing my lips together and swallowing hard. “You okay?” Livvy murmured when she saw me standing there like my feet were stapled to the floor. “I know, Claire can be a bit much. But once she’s on your side, there’s no one better.”

  “Yeah, I’m a ride or die bitch,” Claire piped up, clearly eavesdropping.

  “Emphasis on the bitch,” Ethan muttered. When Claire socked him in the stomach, he smiled like it was a kiss. “What? I told you I needed to stay home tonight! I have a paper to do.”

  Claire leveled him with her gaze. “You’re boring and annoying and I only use you for rides.”

  I blinked at Claire’s rudeness. But from the way Ethan was looking at her, I got the feeling that this how she always talked to him. And he loved it. And loved her too.

  “So anyway,” Livvy interjected. “Sky’s crashing on my couch for a hot minute.” She looked at her group. “You guys remember me talking about Sky, right? My cousin who worked on Broadway?”

  “Off-Broadway,” I corrected, even though I was touched she’d bragged about me. “And the show closed the second night.”

  “Are you an actor?” Sadie asked as she floated over from Taylor to join us.

  I shook my head. “Costumer. Wardrobe, mostly.”

  “Wait!” Claire raised her index finger for quiet, then pointed it at me. “Are you the cousin from Reckless Falls?”

  I lifted my chin. “Yeah, I grew up there.”

  A hush fell over the group. Claire looked at Livvy, who looked away. Sadie stared at me. Ethan looked up at the ceiling.

  “What?” I asked. Then it dawned on me. “Did you tell them?” I de
manded of Livvy.

  “Not all of it!” Livvy protested, looking guilty as all hell. “But, like, remember how I told you you didn’t have to do it alone?”

  “Ride or die,” Claire added with an emphatic nod.

  I was shaking my head. ‘“How can we ride? I don’t even know where were going yet?”