by Jen Talty
“She and Doug make an odd couple,” Reese said.
“I don’t think they’re happy.”
“I think Stacey has the hots for Doug.” Thankfully, Reese’s tone had leveled off, doing what he did best, redirecting.
This time, however, she was glad for the deflection, easing her rising panic. “Your best bet would be a land lawyer who understands contract law, and the best one I know is Andrew Taft of Taft and Associates.”
“Actually, I believe that’s who Jim uses,” Reese said. “I want you to stay with me tonight.”
He’d eased closer and looped his arm around her, pulling her close against his strong frame. She felt safe there. Before she could answer Stacey and Doug made their way around to the front of the house.
“What’s the verdict?” Reese said.
“I can’t be a hundred percent positive, but a piece of siding was cut off, and the wood behind it was also cut out, then nailed back in. Looks recent. It would be easy to put a small animal between the walls and trap them there. My guy says he can take care of the problem, but everyone will have to vacate for forty-eight hours.”
“Not a problem,” Reese said. “I’m renting the main house at the Heritage, so we’ll all stay there, but it’s a crime scene now, so I can’t have him doing that until we have a few other things taken care of.”
“I’ve called in forensics, so they will dust for prints,” Stacey said.
“On a more positive note, one of the injunctions has already been tossed,” Doug said. “I suspect another will be by the end of the week. The one that will give us trouble is that Holland Development is claiming they had a verbal agreement with Chris Riley, one of the owner’s daughters, before Reese’s offer came in and LuAnn Riley accepted it.”
“They countered the offer, and gave me until end of the day to accept. I accepted immediately, and the paperwork has been signed. What’s the issue?”
“Holland is saying that LuAnn had no idea of a verbal offer and acceptance by the other sister. Until that offer is accepted or rejected, the sale can’t go through.”
“That sounds nuts,” Reese said. “What do I do?”
“My wife is an attorney. I can ask her—”
“I suggested Andrew Taft,” Patty said. “He specializes in things like this.”
“I think he’d be better than Mary,” Stacey said. “I know Mary has been working fourteen-hour days, and her boss has her jumping through hoops to make partner, so why add more to her plate?” It was obvious Stacey added the latter just to keep the peace. “Besides, Taft is the lawyer you use for all your land and contract deals.”
Maybe it wasn’t to keep the peace, but to poke Doug. Patty wondered if these two had any idea the sparks that flew between them. She leaned into Reese.
“Let’s go!” Mary yelled. “I’ve got to get back to the office.”
“Guess your dinner plans just got canceled,” Stacey said.
“At least I had dinner plans,” Doug said. “Didn’t Todd the Toad make up some excuse not to come see you this weekend?” Doug turned his attention back to Reese. “Contact Taft. Tell him we sent you. I’ll fax him over all the information we have.”
“Thanks for your help.”
“No problem.” Doug turned and headed toward his truck.
“I can see why you like his ass. It’s pretty sexy,” Reese said.
“What?” Patty looked at Doug’s ass, which, she had to admit, was nice, but was totally confused by Reese’s comment.
“You’ve been hanging around Jared too long,” Stacey said. “And by the way, Patty, your boyfriend has been looking at my ass. Says it’s bony.”
Patty buried her face in Reese’s neck and started laughing. The entire conversation was absurd, but oddly, made total sense. More importantly, it eased her fear.
“Well, let’s get your bony ass back in the patrol car. We’re not off duty.” Reese tossed her the keys. “And you’re not driving. Just need a moment.”
“Men,” Stacey muttered.
“She’s interesting,” Patty said.
“She’s going to be a good cop, once we duct tape her mouth closed.” Reese rested his hands on Patty’s shoulders. “I want you to gather a few things and go right to the main house.” He pressed the keys into her hands. “You’ll be safe with me. I’m off at midnight. I’ll let Frank know what’s going on, and I’m going to ask him, Lacy, and Andy to stay, too. There’s plenty of room.”
“I bought sheets for the two beds that are there. But really, there’s almost no furniture.”
“It will be enough for now. Don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of this and end it.”
“I’m just tired of feeling on edge.” She considered staying with a relative, or a friend, or even at a real hotel, but she didn’t have the energy to fight him. Or her own desires.
“I know,” he said. “I’m sorry for my part in all of that.”
She allowed him a quick kiss on the lips before letting him go. “Don’t waste any time,” he said. “And text me when you’re at the house. I’ll be sending a patrol car to check in on you. Don’t hesitate to call 9-1-1, and then me.” He arched a brow.
“I won’t hesitate,” she promised.
Chapter Twelve
PATTY FELT COMFORTABLE in the residency, even though it was scantily furnished, and the fact she was alone. Reese texted her every thirty minutes. Frank called every hour and even Stacey had gotten in on the action.
The family room had one sofa and a coffee table with a lamp. The living room, dining room, and den were all empty. The master bedroom had a bed and a single dresser. The bedroom at the end of the hall had the same. She’d gone up to bed the same time Lacy and Frank had, around ten, but she couldn’t sleep until she heard Reese come home. She’d been so bone tired, she fell fast asleep as soon as she’d confirmed it was in deed Reese. She slept through the night, though she had a mixture of good and bad dreams. When she rolled over, she expected Reese to be by her side.
He wasn’t.
Panic rushed through her body as she bolted out of the room and down the stairs. She stopped at the entrance of the family room. Reese was sleeping on the sofa, his one leg bent, his knee peeking out from under the small blanket and one arm behind his head.
“Morning,” Reese said, breaking her from her thoughts. He rolled the side, stretching as the blanket dropped to the floor. “Sleep okay?”
“I did, thanks,” she said, staring at him in his boxers as if it were the first time she’d seen him nearly naked. “You could have slept upstairs. It’s a big bed.” She couldn’t hide the disappointment she felt in the tone of her voice.
“I didn’t want to wake you,” he said. “When I went up stairs, you were so sound asleep, well, I figured you needed it.”
“I did.” But she needed him more, a thought, she kept to herself.
“Is the morning sickness bad?”
“So far, it’s just bacon that sets it off. I was just about to go make some coffee. Want some?”
“That would be great.”
She paused at the picture window, taking in the beautiful view of the lake. The sun was rising from behind the house, casting a glow across the water. A few fishing boats hummed along the shoreline, a sure sign that spring was on the way.
“Nice view, huh?” Reese asked.
“One of the best,” she said. “Want some breakfast to go with that coffee?”
“I’ll just make some frozen waffles. I bought some on my way home, which reminds me, I bought some of those breakfast bars you like so much.”
“Thanks.”
She pushed through the swinging kitchen doors, which Patty had always thought weird. If she owned this place, the first thing she’d do was get rid of the doors and tear down some of the walls, opening the kitchen up to the family room. But it wasn’t her place.
But it could be, she thought with a quick beat of her heart. Her place with Reese. Things had changed so much between them, and she had star
ted to trust him again. Trust that he’d tell her anything she asked. Trust that he wasn’t keeping some other deep, dark secret. Mostly, she trusted that what was going on between them was real. It would take time. There were no guarantees.
But the possibility made her smile.
The kitchen had little in the way of food and utensils, but she managed a full pot of coffee. She was pouring two cups when the doorbell rang. She froze, not wanting to see who could possibly be at the door at eight in the morning, much less at a house that the world had no idea was currently occupied.
Reese burst through the kitchen doors. “Shit,” he said as he opened the door in his boxers. “Nana, what the hell are you doing here?”
“Didn’t you get my text?” a scolding female voice said.
“Two seconds ago.”
“I sent it yesterday,” she huffed, “and you’re the one telling me to check the phone more often.”
Patty turned, surprised to see a woman in perhaps her early seventies, with the most beautiful white hair she’d ever seen, standing in the doorway. She had the same facial features as Reese, and she was tall, with a figure to die for.
“You could have called. When did you get here? Why are you here?”
“You wanting to buy a hotel is a big change. Too big. I came to see what is really going on with you,” she said. “I have to say it was hard to find you. Nice of you to tell me the rental you were living in had burnt to the ground.” There was no mistaking the resentment and hurt in the woman’s voice.
Patty watched, still stunned, as this woman kissed Reese on the cheek and then pushed her way into the kitchen.
“Hello,” the woman said. “And you are...?”
“Nana, this is Patty. Patty, this is Elizabeth Baxter, my Nana.”
“Nice to meet you,” Patty said.
“You, as well,” Elizabeth said. “May I ask what kind of a relationship you have with my grandson?”
“Nana,” Reese said. “You’re out of line. And I’m not twelve.”
“Perhaps,” Nana said. “You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, young man. Get me some coffee, and then start by telling me why you’ve chosen to keep certain things from me. Like the trailer, and why you want the hotel—and no offense Patty, but what does she have to do with this?”
“I didn’t want you to worry, so I chose not to tell you about the fire.” He glanced at Patty, who just arched a brow, seeing it finally sink in for him how the smallest of things, even done out of love and kindness, could be misconstrued as secretive and uncaring. “I want to buy this hotel and this house because I like it here. I want to live here. And Patty and I… We’re going to have a baby.”
Nana gasped and covered her mouth with both her hands. “I feel like I just went back in time.”
“It’s not like that,” Reese said.
Patty knew this was going to be one hell of a breakfast. “Can I make you some eggs?” she asked, unable to think of anything else to say to diffuse the tension.
“I’d love some eggs,” Nana said. “And bacon. You’ve got bacon, right?”
“No bacon,” he said. “It makes Patty nauseous, so just eggs and toast. Or frozen waffles.”
“I’ll take eggs and toast,” Nana said. “Now go put on some clothes, and then we’ll talk.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Patty was mortified. The last few days had been a blaze of insanity, and she had not a single thing to say to this woman. So, as she cracked open a few eggs, put some toast in the toaster, she continued to say nothing.
Elizabeth Baxter took off her coat, put her purse on a chair, then sat down.
“Cream? Sugar?” Patty asked, placing a cup of coffee on the table but turning instantly to the pan, sizzling with a bit of butter.
“Black, please,” Elizabeth said. “How far along are you?”
“Almost three months,” Patty admitted. She felt a wave of nausea, which could have been discomfort, or just morning sickness. She figured it was a combination.
“What stake do you have in Reese buying this property?”
“None,” Patty said, turning to face Elizabeth. “This is Reese’s idea. His place. His deal. I want nothing from Reese. Nothing.” Which wasn’t entirely the truth, so she added, “He wants to be a part of the baby’s life, so that is all I want from him.”
“What do you know about his past?”
“Enough to know—”
“Nana, this is none of your business,” Reese said as he finished pulling a shirt over his head.
“You are too full of secrets,” Elizabeth said. “Why didn’t you tell me about the baby, or this young woman?”
“Because I wanted to tell you in person,” he said.
Reese sat at the table next Elizabeth, placing his hand over hers. “When did you get here?”
“Yesterday evening. This morning, I went to the address I had, but it was a burned-down trailer. Why on earth were you living in a trailer?”
“Please tell me where you stayed last night,” Reese said. He had an uncanny ability to redirect people, and Patty suspected he got that from Elizabeth.
“The Village Inn,” she said. “Then I met this lovely woman named Stacey when I went to the station house first thing, and she told me about you staying here with this young woman as if I knew everything about your life. Quite the little talker, that one.”
“One of these days, it’s going to get her in trouble,” Reese muttered.
Patty placed a plate of food in front of Elizabeth, then a couple of waffles and syrup in front of Reese. “Can I get you anything else?”
“No, thank you,” Elizabeth said, then took a few small bites of toast. “I don’t know how to feel about all this. It feels so complicated. Rushed. I know you’re a grown man, but really, do you understand my concern?” she asked.
“Of course I do,” he said. “The only complication is Jessica. Otherwise, Patty and I will work things out.”
Patty wanted to agree with Reese, but she found herself tongue-tied.
“I have to find and divorce Jessica,” Reese said.
“Then what?” Elizabeth asked. “No offense. I’m sure you’re lovely”—Elizabeth pointed to Patty—“but if you know about Jessica, you know my grandson hasn’t had the best judgment when—”
“That’s enough,” Reese said. “I know you’re upset, but that’s no way to treat Patty. She’s a good woman. With a good heart. And she’s the mother of your great-grandchild, so a little respect, please.” Patty wanted to wring his neck for speaking to his Nana that way, but his defense of her made her flush with warmth.
“Oh, Patty,” Nana said. “I do apologize. I’m taking my anger out on you when I should be putting Reese over my knee. I had no right to say those things. Please understand, I’m just a little shocked.”
“Should have seen the look on my face when I found out Reese was married.”
Elizabeth cracked a smile. “Can we start over?”
“Of course we can,” Patty said. “I’ll leave you two alone to catch up. I need to go get dressed.” Though for what, she had no idea.
* * *
“You should have told me you were coming,” Reese said, shifting the food around on his plate, knowing he was playing with fire, but the silence after Patty left the room was deafening. Nana had a way of being able to sit quietly in a confrontational situation, waiting for someone, anyone, to break the ice. It was almost never her.
“You’ve got some nerve,” Nana said. “Seems your secrets go way deeper than an ‘oh by the way, I’m coming to town’”.
“You’re right.” Reese shoved the plate away. “I am sorry you had to find out about the baby…about…everything this way.” When he’d been nine, he lied to his grandparents about breaking a vase. He’d tried to glue it together. Thought he’d done a damn good job, until Nana asked him to get it and put some flowers in it that she’d just received from the governor’s wife. Nana explained to him that one always filled the vase first,
then cut the stems, then put the flowers in the vase. She told him to go give it a try, then bring the arrangement back into the living room where she’d been entertaining eight very important and powerful guests.
He should have learned his lesson then. Nana knew everything. If she didn’t, she’d find out.
“You should be more than just sorry.” Nana moved gracefully about the kitchen, putting dishes in the dishwasher, then refilling her cup. She’d been wealthy her entire life. Old money. So old, no one really knew where it had come from. The daughter of a philanthropist, and married to one of the richest men in the state, but they always lived a relatively un-flashy lifestyle. Where their friends had a couple of estates in various cities or countries, half a dozen cars, and at least two private jets, and made sure the world saw their fancy toys, the Baxters usually chose to fly commercial. They drove what Reese always considered normal cars, and Reese didn’t even know his grandparents were rich until he was in his late teens.
“I really did want to tell you in person, but I have some things to work out with Patty.”
“Such as...?”
“Everything,” Reese admitted. “I had no idea how much I cared for her until she dumped me, then a few weeks later, she told me she was pregnant. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride since them.”
“Just because you get a girl pregnant, doesn’t mean the first thing you do is run off and get married—”
“I can’t marry Patty until I’m divorced, but that would be the plan, eventually.”
“Being honorable is not always the best thing. I thought you would have learned that the first time.”
“I agree,” he said. “This time, it’s not about honor. It’s what I want. I’ve dug a hole just deep enough with Patty that I’ve got a lot of making up to do. But we are getting through it.”
“You really care about her?”
He nodded. “I have a lot of changes to make. A lot of wrongs to right, and a lot of proving to do.”
“Actions, my dear boy.”
“I know.” His first action of the day was to deal with the injunctions. As long as Chris Riley signed the affidavit that stated there was no binding verbal agreement, then he was golden. He had a meeting with Andrew Taft right before work, so that should get the ball rolling on that end. He was going to have to get Patty to work closely with Andrew on all the legal stuff. He knew the law pretty well, but he didn’t know lawyering.
