Feeding the Fire: A Rosewood Novel

by Andrea Laurence

  Grant latched the leash to the collar of his new dog, Chopper. After he and Pepper broke up, he’d gone the next Saturday to hunt down a more suitable companion. When Grant saw his name on the cage, he knew that was his dog. Only a guy who drove a Harley could appreciate a dog named Chopper. He was a mutt of the finest pedigree, adopted from the animal shelter in Pell City. He was part hound dog, part whatever got over the fence, with long floppy ears, rusty red fur, and sad brown eyes.

  He reminded Grant a little of Pepper, actually, but he wouldn’t hold that against the dog. The best part was that he could take Chopper with him to the fire station. A few years back, they’d had a Dalmatian named Hydrant. Hydrant retired and now stayed at home with Paul’s kids. When Grant mentioned getting a dog to Mack, he’d worried about leaving him home during his long, twelve-hour shifts. Mack had told him that he was welcome to bring the dog along once he was cleared to come back to the station. Grant still had a few more days before he could return to work.

  On the plus side, the bandages were gone and he didn’t have to take any more pain medication. The stitches were removed from his head and he was almost feeling back to normal. Well, except for the giant, aching hole in his chest that the antacids didn’t relieve, and that had nothing to do with the accident.

  Grant and Chopper went down the stairs and started their evening stroll through downtown Rosewood. They started up Second Avenue toward the square and the park. It was slow going at first, as Chopper stopped to sniff and christen every tree, rock, tire, and post. They were stopped to investigate a tree across the street from Anthony’s Auto Shop when he noticed the lights were still on in the office. The shop had closed for the day a while ago. Perhaps Pepper’s mom was still working, although that was Vince’s truck, not Kate’s sedan parked in the back.

  He must be feeling good enough to return to work. Good for him, Grant thought. He knew that Pepper worried a lot about her dad. About her family, in general. He still didn’t know what was going on between her and her brother, what she couldn’t talk to him about, but he figured it probably had something to do with a family affair. In retrospect, he should’ve realized that and respected it. As much as he pushed for honesty, he should know that not everyone wanted to air their dirty laundry. He certainly wasn’t about to stand on a street corner with a sign that read NORMAN IS AN ADULTERER.

  Chopper started pulling on the leash, so Grant continued on down the street. It wasn’t until he saw Vince come out of the back of the garage and wave at him that he stopped again. He wasn’t exactly sure what he would say to Pepper’s father, but it would be rude to ignore him.

  He crossed the street, stopping beside Vince’s truck. He was looking a lot better than he had before, although he still had the cane.

  “Evening, Mr. Anthony.”

  “Evening, Grant. I noticed you have a fine new companion.”

  “This is Chopper. I got him from the shelter a few days ago.”

  Vince bent down to scratch the enthusiastic dog behind the ears. “That’s a good-looking dog. Are you two off to something important?”

  “No, sir. We’re just off for a stroll to get out of the house. It’ll be a few more days before I’m back at work and I’m getting stir-crazy.”

  “Do you think you could help me with something, inside? You can bring Chopper in, too.”

  “Sure thing.” Grant followed Pepper’s father into the back door of the garage. They walked through the parts room, past the actual garage where they worked on the cars, and into the office where Kate took care of all the paperwork for the business.

  “Have a seat,” Vince said, gesturing to the guest chair.

  Grant sat down, curious as to what his chore might be. There wasn’t much he could do in the office, especially sitting.

  “I wanted to chat with you, son.”

  Alarm bells started going off in Grant’s mind, but there was nothing he could do about it. Trap or no, he couldn’t be rude to Mr. Anthony. And he couldn’t run, because Chopper had just curled up to take a nap on his foot. “What about, sir?” he asked, knowing full well it probably had to do with his breakup with Pepper.

  “Well, my wife came home from her hair appointment the other day and gave me a real earful. She told me that you and Pepper had called it quits. I think that’s a shame.”

  Grant’s brow went up slightly in surprise. “I thought your family would be celebrating to hear the news.”

  “Bah,” Vince said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Not all of us are worried about all that. My concern, first and foremost, is for my daughter. May I ask what happened? She wasn’t very chatty on the topic, at least to her mother.”

  This was the perfect example of where his policy of honesty might get him in trouble, but he couldn’t help himself. “Well, sir, I try to live a very transparent life. There are enough people in the world who lie about important things and I decided I wouldn’t be one of those people.”

  “Sounds noble,” Vince noted.

  “The problem is that I expect the same honesty from others in my life, especially in the woman I . . .” Grant suddenly wasn’t sure how to finish the sentence. The words that very nearly rolled off his tongue were “the woman I love.” That was a frightening prospect, and a thought he hadn’t allowed to slip into his mind before. “In the women I date,” he corrected. “Something was bothering Pepper. She’d been pretty distant since Estelle’s funeral. When I asked her, she said she couldn’t talk about it. She got in a fight with her brother the other morning and when I pushed her about it, she just ended things between us.”

  “I’ve always found Pepper to be very forthright,” her father noted. “If she was keeping something from you, she probably had a good reason for it.”

  “She wouldn’t elaborate either way. All she would tell me was that it wasn’t her secret to tell and that all things considered, maybe us dating was a bad idea.”

  “And you let her go?”

  Grant’s jaw tightened at her father’s assessment. It made him sound cowardly, although he supposed that’s how it looked. And felt, after the fact. “Well, sir, this is the second time she’s dumped me. My ego wasn’t up for a third round. I’ve already had a pretty crappy few weeks.”

  “And how are you feeling now?” Vince asked.

  Grant got the distinct impression he wasn’t talking about his arm. “I’m feeling stupid. I let my self-righteousness get in the way of the best relationship I’ve ever had. And yet, how could she really care about me if she’s keeping things from me? Whatever it was, it was important to her. Logan had threatened to stop talking to her over it. The whole thing really seemed to throw her for a loop, but she wouldn’t confide in me. What chance do we have if she can’t talk to me about things?”

  Vince nodded thoughtfully. “Communication is important—even more important than attraction, because that fades, but communication has to stay strong.” He sighed and ran his hand over the short stubble of his beard. “Son, how do you feel about my daughter? Is this serious?”

  “It was. I was really thinking she might be . . . the one.”

  “Do you love her?”

  Grant swallowed hard. That was a huge thing to say. He’d never said it to anyone outside of his family before. And yet, the answer that nearly leapt from his mouth when he was asked was yes. “I’ve never been in love before, Mr. Anthony, so it’s hard for me to answer that question. I know that there’s this empty feeling in my stomach that won’t go away no matter how much I eat. I miss her smile and her laugh. I wake up and reach for her, only to have my hand continue across the cold, empty mattress. I can still feel her in my arms and smell the scent of her shampoo. The idea that I might never hold her again . . . it makes my chest ache just to think about it.”

  Vince nodded and clapped Grant on the shoulder. “Afraid that’s love, son.”

  All Grant could do was nod as the revelation sunk in. Love. He was in love. With the woman who dumped him. Good job, Chamberlain.

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nbsp; “Since you love my daughter, I’d like to tell you something important—what she’s keeping from you, actually. If you two are meant to be together, this shouldn’t be a barrier. She was telling the truth when she said that it wasn’t her secret to tell. It’s Logan’s secret. And mine, in a way. But it’s also going to impact you. Once I tell you, things will change, you understand? If you’d rather not know, I’ll shut my mouth, but I think it will help you understand where she’s coming from.”

  It would impact him? Pepper had said something like that before, but how could something like that have anything to do with him? “Tell me,” he said, before he lost his nerve. If he didn’t find out now, he’d always wonder what she was hiding from him.

  “Now, this is not public knowledge. I’m telling you in confidence as a part of my family, you understand?” Grant nodded, getting more and more anxious about what he was about to hear.

  “Logan is not my biological son. Pepper recently learned this and it’s really bothered her. She knew even before Logan did, so it was a terrible burden for her to carry. It will probably be a greater burden for you to carry for a similar reason because you can’t tell anyone about it.”

  Great. Another big secret he had to carry around. He wasn’t thrilled, but he’d do it for Pepper. He wasn’t entirely certain why Logan’s paternity was an issue for him, but . . . Grant’s eyes widened. The pieces slowly came together, making his stomach start to ache. Pepper’s mother hated his family, his father in particular. She insisted that Pepper stay away from him because he would just use her. Logan had recently learned the truth and hated his family more than ever. If Mr. Anthony wasn’t Logan’s father . . .

  “Logan is your half-brother, Grant. Kate got pregnant with Norman’s child before your parents got engaged.” That. That was the piece that made everything make sense. And at the same time, made everything seem so much worse. His brother. Logan was his brother.

  “You okay, Grant?”

  “Yes, sir,” Grant nearly choked out the words. “That wasn’t what I was expecting when I came in here tonight.”

  “I’m sure it wasn’t. And I’m sorry to dump that information on you, knowing that you’ll have to keep it from your family. Maybe one day, Logan will decide that he wants people to know who his biological father is. I don’t know what he’s going to do.”

  “I can imagine that’s a hard decision to make, especially in a small town like ours.” Another secret to eat at him. And all because of his stupid father. Grant felt so naïve. He knew his father had been spreading himself around for years. Why hadn’t it ever occurred to him that he might’ve fathered a few illegitimate children along the way? “Does my father know about him?”

  Vince nodded. “He wasn’t too interested, to put it simply. But aside from him, Kate, Logan, Pepper, myself, and now you, no one else knows the truth. You understand why Pepper had to keep it from you?”

  “I do. If I were in her position, I don’t know what I would do. Probably the same thing.” The pained expression in her eyes as she pushed him away was all the more meaningful to him now. She sacrificed their relationship to protect her family. As she should have.

  “May I ask what you plan to do now, son?”

  That was a really good question. He opened his mouth and answered with the first thing that came to mind. “I plan to ask for your daughter’s hand, sir.”

  It surprised both of them. Even Chopper lifted his head to look up at him.

  “I’ve let her get away twice, Mr. Anthony. I don’t intend to make that mistake a third time.”

  The older man watched him for a moment, then slowly nodded in consent. “See that you don’t.”

  Pepper opened the envelope with her paycheck and nearly choked when she saw the total. “Uh, I think we’ve got a very serious typo on my paycheck here, Sarah.”

  Sarah smiled and shook her head. “Nope. I assure you it’s correct.”

  Pepper looked back down at her check with the amount that was about four thousand dollars more than she was expecting. “There’s no way I did this much in two weeks. It’s been slower than usual. I had two clients cancel and I sold almost no product.”

  Her boss planted a hand on her hip and looked at her with an amused smirk. “But some of the product you did sell was to a very wealthy and particular client. One who dumped water on your lap and cost you four grand, if you’ll recall.”

  Pepper frowned. “I don’t understand. My appointment with Miss Adelia was a month ago. She stopped in last week, but all she did was buy some of that violet shampoo.”

  “Yes, that’s all she bought, technically, but our receipts always have the line for tips and she filled it out generously.”

  “Four grand? She really meant to tip me four grand?”

  “Yes,” Sarah said with a serious nod of her head. “Believe me, I double-checked before she left the store.”

  “She left me a tip that huge and you didn’t think to mention it? She bought that shampoo last week.”

  “I know.” Sarah crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s been killing me, but she swore me to secrecy. She wanted it to be a surprise for you. She told me she felt so bad about the whole thing at the auction but was glad it brought you and Grant together in the end. You must’ve been right when you said you thought she was trying to fix you two up.”

  “The surprise is on her,” Pepper said bitterly. “I wonder if she knows Grant and I broke up pretty much right after she did this.”

  Sarah frowned and got her purse out from under the counter. “I don’t know, but I don’t think it would’ve made a difference to her. I’m sorry you two didn’t work out.” She put a comforting arm around Pepper and squeezed her shoulders. “I liked the idea of you and Grant.”

  “Me, too,” Pepper replied and looked back down at her massive check. “But I’ll live. I’m going to go deposit this bad boy before someone changes their mind about it and then I’ll keep myself busy working on the house. Do you want me to take the deposit?”

  “Sure.” Sarah handed over the pouch. “Are you really okay?”

  Pepper shrugged. “I’ll be fine.”

  Her boss didn’t press any further and for that, she was thankful. They locked up the salon and Pepper started around the square to the bank. She needed to get there before they closed. That massive check was burning a hole in her pocket. From there, she headed up Main Street to pick up a bottle of wine and a few other things at the grocery store. She put Miss Adelia’s tip to good use, splurging on a good bottle of white zinfandel and a carton of Twinkies.

  Pat Kincaid smiled at her as she left the store, an expression of sympathy on his face. She imagined that over the last few days, copious amounts of wine and desserts might’ve been consumed at his house, too.

  She was on her way back to her SUV when she heard someone call her name. Turning, she saw Logan jogging down the sidewalk after her. She hadn’t seen him since their blowup outside Ellen’s. She’d given up her relationship with Grant to protect her brother’s secret, but that didn’t mean she liked it, or wanted to look at Logan and listen to his tirades about the evil Chamberlains. Still, there was no avoiding him.

  “Let me help you,” he said, taking the sack of groceries from her hands.

  Without acknowledging him, she turned and they walked down the street together to her car. They cut across the expansive lawn that connected the Rosewood Library with the courthouse in the center square of town. Every minute Pepper could shave off this potentially uncomfortable conversation, the better.

  “I heard about you and Grant,” he said as they neared her SUV.

  Hitting the button, she popped her hatch and lifted it. “Is that why I’m fit to speak to now? Because I’m no longer tainted by the touch of the Chamberlains?”

  Logan sighed and put her wine in the trunk. “Of course not. Listen, I’m sorry I said that. I haven’t been handling all of this well and I took it out on you. You didn’t break up with Grant for me, did you?”


  She turned to look at her brother. “No. I wouldn’t have done that. The drama ended the relationship all on its own.”

  “Pepper, you know this isn’t your problem, right?”

  That stopped her short. “What do you mean?”

  “Me, Dad, the secret. Now that I know the truth, it’s my issue to deal with, not yours. You don’t need to carry this cross on your shoulder anymore. Frankly, it really isn’t even your business.”

  “Not my business?” If it wasn’t her business, why had it managed to ruin everything she’d built over the last few weeks? It sure as hell felt like her business.

  “Yes. I’m not sure what I’m going to do, but whatever happens from here on out has nothing to do with you. So do me a favor and just stay out of it.”

  Pepper had expected an apology for Logan’s rude behavior the other morning, but this was anything but. She didn’t even know what to say. “You don’t have to be so mean-spirited about it, Logan.”

  “I’m not trying to be mean-spirited. I’m trying to get these mental obstacles out of your way so you can admit that you’re in love.”

  She gasped, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I certainly do. You love Grant. There’s no accounting for taste, but you do. I’m not going to let you co-opt my issue and turn it into a reason not to be with him. I’ll deal with Norman my way. In the meantime, you need to talk to Grant and tell him the truth.”

  “The truth about you?”

  He shook his head. “The truth about you. I don’t think he’ll give a hoot about my secret once you tell him yours.”

  “I don’t think I can do that.” Pepper crossed her arms defensively over her chest. “He wants honesty, Logan, and I can’t be honest about everything with him. You’re his half-brother. It isn’t inconsequential to him.”

  “Then tell him.”

  “What?” Had everyone gone mad? “No. You just said it wasn’t my business.”

  Logan gripped Pepper’s shoulders in his hands. “I want you to be happy. If you have to tell him, tell him. I’m okay with that.”