“I’d kiss you for that if I didn’t think I’d give you this crud I have.”
“Downside to coming in contact with rug rats five days a week.” He took her by both arms, placed his lips on her forehead. “You feel like you still have a fever.”
She sighed. “Low-grade now. I’ve felt so rotten I haven’t even looked at the paperwork for my house that Nick emailed me.”
“Don’t worry about that now. I know how excited you were but that house isn’t going anywhere. A couple of days delay won’t make a difference in your grand scheme.”
She sniffed and grabbed for a Kleenex, blew her nose. “I’m sorry.”
He started unpacking the bag, brought out some extras besides the soup.
“Is that chocolate mousse from The Pointe I’ve heard so much about? Ryder, you shouldn’t have.”
He laughed at her reaction to getting chocolate. “My mom swears that it fixes anything.”
“I’m beginning to feel a real affection for your mother.”
“My mom’s a gem. When you get to feeling better why don’t you schedule a field trip for your class, bring them out to Taggert Farms. We have teachers making arrangements for class trips all the time. Better still, bring the kids after April First when the fruit stand is up and running.”
“Actually that sounds like a good idea. They’d get to see a real working farm up close.”
“Now that that’s settled, let’s eat and then pop in a movie.”
“What movie did you bring?”
“Something I think you’ll like. My own personal favorite. I hope you like monsters.” He located her DVD player and slid in the disc.
Julianne recognized what he’d brought as soon as it began to play. “How in the world did you know Aliens is one of my all-time favorites?”
“Who in their right mind doesn’t like sci-fi thrillers featuring an ugly, giant, menacing space alien? And this one is tops in my book.”
For the next two plus hours, they sat glued to the screen watching as Ellen Ripley took charge on planet LV-426. By the time the credits rolled, they’d drained the containers of soup and scarfed down the remnants of the pudding.
“Being sick I’ve had time to think about our next step.” When she saw him cringe at the words “next step” she sighed. “Relax. I’m not talking about the next step in our relationship, not that we have one. No, I mean I think we should try to figure out the names of the people in those class photographs I saw.”
“Isn’t that Brent’s job?”
“It is. And I plan to talk to him on my next trip to Pelican Pointe. But in the meantime, I thought I might get in touch with the former principal, a guy by the name of Henry Nash.”
Ryder frowned and shook his head. “I talked to Brent this morning when he wandered over to the site to see how much work we’ve done so far. Even though I prodded him, he wouldn’t give me specifics. But he did give me the impression he’s making progress on the case by talking to several of the former staff members still in the area.”
“I should’ve known Brent would be one step ahead of me. It’s just as well. I’m no cop and with everything else on my plate, not much time to devote to solving mysteries.”
“It’s normal to be curious, especially since you’re the one who discovered the bloody fabric. You look better,” Ryder decided as he stared at the way she stretched out on the opposite end of the couch.
“I feel better thanks to you.”
“What are friends for?”
“I promise I’ll return the favor when you come down with this crap.”
“I never get sick,” he echoed.
“Uh-oh, famous last words.”
Two days later, the virus had worked its way through Ryder’s system enough to knock him on his ass and cause him to miss a day of work. Every bone and joint in his body hurt. Even his eyelids had trouble closing without causing him pain.
It sure as hell was no way to spend a Saturday.
He pulled the blanket from the bed, threw it around his shoulders for warmth. Coughing and hacking, he hobbled into the kitchen to get water, convinced this must have been what Valley Forge felt like in the winter of 1777. It was impossible to get warm. Even jacking up the thermostat hadn’t produced enough heat. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. And frankly at this point, he didn’t have the strength to fix anything other than to reach for a loaf of stale bread.
About that time, he heard a car pull up outside. He hoped to God it wasn’t another problem to deal with. He’d already had a disagreement with a vendor who was late on a delivery. On top of that he’d authorized overtime for several employees, and approved shipments that had to get where they were going by Monday. The bad thing about living so close to your job was that sometimes you couldn’t get away from its demands.
Redirecting his momentum, he shuffled to the window to look out. His eyes hurt so much he thought he was seeing things when Julianne got out of her minibus. He watched as she removed a crock pot from the passenger side and hauled it up to the porch.
Dragging his feet to the door, he turned the knob.
She stood on his stoop beaming back at him sunny as a spring day. At the sight of her, he felt suddenly grubby, sporting a day’s worth of stubble. He wasn’t too sick to notice her snug pair of jeans and a form-fitting sweater. Her dark brown eyes glistened with amusement. Her smile radiated out like a thousand-watt bulb.
“What…are you doing here?” he wheezed out.
“Returning the favor. I thought you said you never got sick.”
“No need to rub it in. You must’ve had some super bug that attached itself to me and doesn’t want to let go. How did you know?”
“I talked to Nick this morning when I closed on the house. He mentioned you were noticeably absent at the site yesterday when he stopped by the school. I asked him for Troy’s number. Troy pretty much painted a picture that you were at death’s door. So…I brought…wait for it…chicken soup. Sorry it isn’t Perry’s famous recipe. But you don’t look like you’re in any shape to exert a picky attitude. Mine’s homemade plus you get plenty of leftovers that’ll last for a couple of days.”
“Bless you. I’m starving. But aren’t you afraid of re-catching this terminal flu or whatever the hell it is?”
“Now, now, let’s not exaggerate. I got over it in a couple of days. You will, too. Where should I put this?” She held up the slow cooker.
“Kitchen. That way.”
“Go ahead and sit down. I’ll fix you a tray. Bring it to you after I’ve made you some tea with lemon and honey.”
He disliked hot tea but it seemed rude to mention it now. He dropped his body down into the recliner and didn’t think he could budge unless an earthquake jolted him out of it.
He heard the cabinet doors opening and closing, realized she was hunting for bowls.
When she came back into the living room, she carried a tray he didn’t even know he had. “First, let’s get a little broth in you and then we’ll see if you can handle the noodles.”
He let her spoon-feed him the liquid, alternating between sips of the tea. “This is the best tea I’ve ever tasted.”
“That’s because I spiked it with bourbon.”
“Ah. No wonder. Good move.”
She laid a hand on his forehead. “You’re burning up with fever. Have you taken aspirin?”
“I’m pretty sure I took some kind of something yesterday.”
She sighed, went down the hall in search of the bathroom and the medicine cabinet.
She came back clutching a glass of water and a bottle of ibuprofen. After she watched him swallow the meds, her eyes landed on the fireplace and the stack of firewood beside it. The chill in the air had her tossing a few logs on the grate before using kindling to get the flame going.
Digging in her handbag, she pulled out the DVD she’d brought, held it up. “This time I picked the flick.” She slid it into the player, got settled on the ancient couch.
&
nbsp; His eyes zeroed in on the box. “Raiders of the Lost Ark. A classic. I had an Indiana Jones lunchbox, used it to conk Bobby Harding on the head after he tried to take off on my bike.”
“How old were you?”
“A very worldly six.”
He looked tired she noted. And sure enough, halfway through the movie, Ryder dozed off.
She got up, went in search of blankets and tucked him into his chair.
She cleaned up her mess in the kitchen, saved the leftovers into a container for the fridge, and tidied up the living room. The fire needed tending, so she added more logs and turned off the lights. Still not a hundred percent herself, a little tired after the chores, she curled up into a ball on the sofa.
A sound jolted her awake. Sitting up, she blinked at the time on her watch. Four-fifteen. She looked over at the lump in the La-Z-Boy® that was Ryder still sacked out.
Creaking floorboards, in what she considered the middle of the night, put her on alert. In unfamiliar surroundings, she tossed back the cover. Fully clothed, she stood up and zeroed in on the source of the noise.
All caution evaporated.
Gritting her teeth to keep from yelling at the sight of Scott, she lowered her voice. “It’s four in the morning. Mind telling me what you’re doing skulking around here?”
“I saw your bus in the driveway. I wanted to see if the two of you…you know…hooked up.”
She put her hands on her hips. “You’re spying on people now? You’re using your ghostly powers to go covert? That’s…that’s…intrusive. That’s…so wrong.”
“Hey, there isn’t a lot of opportunity for me to have fun. This is it.”
“Well, cut it out. Get out of here. Now!”
“I can see I’ve caught you at a bad time.” Scott eyed Ryder in the armchair and added, “This would’ve been so much more interesting if you two had been…you know…sharing the same space.”
“He’s sick. No, on second thought you are.” She looked around for something to throw at him and swiped up a sports magazine off the coffee table. It sailed through the air just as Scott managed to vanish and the booklet thudded against the wall.
Ryder bolted upright at the sound. “What? What’s wrong?”
“Go back to sleep,” she said to him, stepping over to test his forehead with the palm of her hand. It wasn’t as hot as it had been before but he was still feverish and his eyes still looked dull and glassy.
Before she could take her hand back he held on to it. “You stayed.”
“We both fell asleep during the movie.” She didn’t see the harm in the little white lie. “You never made it past the snake pit scene.”
“Damn. I love that part. Did I hear voices just now?”
“You were dreaming. Now go back to sleep,” she repeated.
He yanked her down into the chair with him. “Only if you stay right here with me, curled up against me for another few hours. It’ll make me feel better.”
“There isn’t room for the both of us.”
“Sure there is.” He scooted over so they could scrunch together and had her snuggled up against his chest in one smooth move. In less than two minutes, he was snoring softly again.
Looking into his face, she was very much afraid she was already falling for the guy. Closing her eyes to the beat of his heart, she drifted into dreams.
Several hours later when the light peeked through the curtains, she moved to get up but Ryder caught her around the waist.
“Don’t go,” he said sleepily.
“I’m just getting up to put on coffee. How’re you feeling?”
“Better, thanks to you. Do you have plans for today?”
“I’d hoped to take a run by the house, other than that…”
“Then spend the day with me, here. The weather’s gray and dreary out. We could hunker down here, watch the movie you brought, listen to music, or just lounge around if we want. Taggert had this old record collection. I promise you it’s worth a listen.”
“What about the milking?”
“Silas has that chore till tomorrow morning.”
“How do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled with a little cheese.”
They got to their feet together, made their way into the kitchen. Ryder dumped coffee into a filter, pushed the button on an ancient Mr. Coffee while Julianne dug into the refrigerator for breakfast fixings.
She got out a skillet, tossed in strips of bacon. While it began to sizzle, she whipped up the eggs.
“Did you get the impression Nick was serious about loaning money to people with a business idea?” Ryder asked.
“Absolutely. Thinking about one?”
Over the meal, he told her about how he’d always wanted to build boats and why.
“Ah, the influence from the architect grandfather. Makes sense.”
“It does?”
“You obviously have fond memories of spending that time with him. It was special and something the two of you could do together. Where was the camp?”
“Beautiful Maine. My first year there was spent with my dad. Good times. Then after he was gone, every summer after that…from eleven to fifteen…I’d get out of the city with my Gramps, go up there and spend June to mid-August on the water. We got to create and design our own watercraft. It was a world away from Philly. I’d like to take you there sometime.”
“And I’d love to see it. Your eyes light up when you talk about that time in your life. Did you know that?”
Together, they began to clear the dishes. When she noted the look of embarrassment on his face she wanted to know, “I’m curious. Why didn’t you keep going back to the camp after fifteen?”
“My grandfather was diagnosed with cancer. He passed away a couple months later. Money was tight so I went to work installing cabinets on a construction crew.”
“And just like that, your childhood pretty much came to an end.”
“No self-respecting fifteen-year-old considers himself a child.”
She picked up his hand, squeezed his fingers. “But you have fond memories before that.”
“That one summer, I learned a lot from my dad, then later, my grandfather. No one can take that away from me.”
She decided to get that wistful look off his face. “Let’s go through that treasure trove of albums.”
As it turned out, Taggert’s collection offered up a wide variety of music. It seems the farmer’s taste ran the gamut from Louis Armstrong to Frank Sinatra to Beethoven to Gerry Rafferty. Perusing the selections, they took turns reading aloud the liner notes and the track listings.
“Ed Sullivan presents Annie Get Your Gun.”
“Here’s one, The Best of Nat King Cole.”
Julianne slid out an LP from its paper sleeve and gently placed it on the turntable, pointed the needle to the groove. “How about this instead?”
“Billie Holiday. There’s one here for Bonnie Raitt from 1971, different time maybe, but the man obviously loved his blues.”
They swayed to As Time Goes By and then, when the track changed to Moonglow, they made another pass around the room. As the saxophone riff introduced Baker Street, Julianne closed her eyes to the refrain.
Ryder took the opportunity to breathe in her hair, nibble on her neck and run his hands down her back. He boosted her up, dipped his head down, angled his mouth over hers. The press of lips ramped up, heated. Teasing tongues wanted more while hands roamed to slide clothes off to the side.
He thumbed a nipple through her shirt. Her fingers were moving down to his zipper when someone pounded on the door.
“Ryder! Ryder! I know you’re sick, but you got to come quick. You gotta see this.”
“What now?” Ryder said through gritted teeth. “Is there a hidden force at play here to explain why we keep getting interrupted?”
Julianne looked down at the bulge in his pants. “You can’t open the door like that, at least not until you…”
He spared a glance downward at his swe
at pants sticking out. Doing his best to stall for time, he yelled through the door, “What’s wrong, Silas? What has you in such a frenzy today?”
“Someone let the cows loose. They’re out on the highway. It’s just me here today. I need help getting them rounded up.”
“Let me get my boots on and I’ll be right there.” He grabbed Julianne, covered her mouth in a sultry kiss. “Sorry, but it looks like I’m on the clock. This may take a while.”
“But Ryder, you’re sick.”
“Not anymore.”
While Ryder chased down and rounded up a bunch of cows on the road to town, Troy and Bree spent their day exploring Treasure Island. This time, they had the pebbly beach and craggy ground all to themselves.
“We should really take some time to dive the shipwreck.”
“I’ve only snorkeled in shallow water, never dived before.”
“Hmm, that pretty much sums it up for me, too. Maybe we should take lessons together,” Troy suggested. “Russ Dennis dives. We should go see him about it. Maybe he could point us to a good instructor.”
“You’re really thinking I can do this?”
“I know you can. And it would be good for the area.”
“I’ve never had anyone believe in me like you do, Troy. You make me want to succeed at whatever I try.”
“We all want to get ahead. In fact, I’m talking to Logan about buying one of the houses he bought in his grandparent’s old neighborhood. You know the one, that row of little Spanish bungalows on Athena Circle, behind the old newspaper office. They’re tiny but so is the cul-de-sac they’re on. Logan bought three of them. They need a lot of work but I’m willing to fix it up. Just look at what Julianne’s taking on with that beat-up old cottage over on Ocean Street. I figure if I help her I’ll learn how to do my own.”
“You’re amazing.”
“I’m glad you think so because I think you’re the most beautiful woman on the planet.” He picked up the strands of her red hair as the breeze tossed it around her face. “All this ginger color makes you stunning.”
She leaned into him, pressed her lips to his. “It’s nice having the island to ourselves. We should make a fire.”
Last Chance Harbor Page 14
