by Irene Hannon
“I think I’ll stick around until they get here.” He dropped onto the sofa, ignoring her irritated scowl.
“I really don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Because having me here makes you uncomfortable?”
“Why would it?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe you can fill me in while we wait.”
“You’re as exasperating as ever, Levi. You know that?” She sat on the edge of an easy chair, her cheeks pink.
“And you’re as lovely as ever.”
“Still a shameless flirt, too? Why am I not surprised?”
“Actually, I gave up flirting years ago. What I just said was a compliment, pure and simple.”
“Then I suppose I should thank you.”
“But you won’t?”
“I’m way past the days of enjoying childish games, and that’s what this conversation feels like.” She frowned, crossing the room and staring out the window.
“I apologize. That’s not what I intended it to be.”
She sighed and shook her head. “I’m the one who’s sorry. After what just happened, I’m on edge, but I shouldn’t take that out on you.”
“You’re not.”
“I was, so let’s not argue about it.” She smiled, rubbing the back of her neck. “Deer Park is supposed to be—” The sound of sirens filled the room, cutting off her words. “It sounds like the police are here.”
She hurried from the room, and Levi followed, waiting a few feet away as she opened the door. Cold air drifted in, carrying the scent of pine needles and rain. They were the scents of Levi’s past and, for better or worse, his future. His uncle’s illness had forced him back to a place where he’d never thought he’d be.
And dropped him back into Shauna’s life.
There was a reason for that. Levi believed that as surely as he believed that God had led him back to Deer Park, back to the life he’d once turned his back on. Maybe, eventually, God would see fit to fill him in on the reason for that. Until then, Levi would just have to go with the flow and pray he didn’t make as big of a fool of himself at thirty as he had at eighteen.
Chapter Four
Footsteps sounded on the porch and a uniformed officer appeared in the doorway, his gaze jumping from Shauna to Levi and back again. “Heard there was some trouble here, Shauna. What’s going on?”
Levi stayed silent as Shauna filled the officer in. Her face was pale, her hands fisted. Still, she managed to sound calm and composed. That was something he’d forgotten about her, the way she faced troubles with determination and strength. He’d admired that as much as he’d admired her easy-going nature and loving heart. What he hadn’t admired were her small goals, her little dreams. He’d told her that the day he’d broken up with her.
Not one of his finer moments, but, then, he’d been young and foolish and sure God had more in store for him than work at his family’s contracting company and marriage to a woman who wanted nothing more than a teaching job and a big family.
“Levi McLeary, right?” The officer took a step toward him, his words pulling Levi from thoughts of the past.
“That’s right.”
“I thought I recognized you. It’s been a long time.”
“Twelve years,” he responded, but couldn’t quite place the man’s deeply tanned face and dark brown eyes.
“Bet you don’t remember me. We didn’t exactly hang with the same crowd. I’m Richard Anderson. We were in English composition together our senior year.”
“Nice to see you again, Richard.”
“Shauna said you got a look at the perp’s car?”
“It was American. Chevy or Ford. Big. Looked like an old-model station wagon. Dark color. Black or blue.”
“Sounds like you got a pretty good look. That should help us find the guy.”
“I hope so. I don’t think I’ll feel safe again until I know he’s behind bars.” Shauna spoke quietly, her gaze on Richard, and Levi had the impression that she’d rather stare at the officer all day than look his way.
“We’ll do everything we can to make sure that happens. In the meantime, if you remember anything else, give me a call. Levi, do you mind giving me your contact information? I may have some more questions for you after we’re finished here.”
“Sure.” He rattled off his new address and phone number as Richard scribbled in a small notebook.
“So, you’re right next door?”
“That’s right. My uncle is undergoing cancer treatment, and I’m taking over at his business until he’s ready to return. Since he owns the property next door, he’s letting me use the place while I’m in town.”
“The Harrison property?” Shauna sounded surprised and maybe a little alarmed.
“That’s right.”
“It’s been on the market for months. Your uncle didn’t mention that he bought it.” Or that you were going to be living there. She didn’t add the last, but Levi was sure that’s what she was thinking.
“He didn’t mention that the two of you were friends, either. But, then, that’s how Uncle Jack is. Only gives out information on a need-to-know basis.” And he probably hadn’t thought either Levi or Shauna needed to know that he was arranging for them to be neighbors.
“I’m still surprised he didn’t mention it. I’ve had his grandkids in my class the past couple of years, and we’ve gotten to know each other pretty well.”
“So, you really did become a teacher.”
“I’m afraid so.” She smiled, but there was no hiding the bite in her words.
“Mind if we walk outside for a minute, Levi? I’d like you to show me where the car was parked,” Richard broke in.
“No problem.” Levi followed him out to the porch, but he’d rather have stayed. Shauna, on the other hand, seemed more than willing to watch him walk away.
Chapter Five
It was pitch-black outside and cold, and Levi told himself he was anxious to answer Richard’s questions and get back to his warm house.
The truth was a little more complicated.
The truth was that he wouldn’t have minded going back into Shauna’s house and spending a few more minutes with her. Catch up a little more. Find out how she’d spent the last dozen years, what had become of her dreams of having an old Victorian house with a big family to fill it. Little dreams, he’d called them just before he’d told her he had bigger dreams for his life.
Big dreams that he’d fulfilled.
Lately, though, he’d been thinking little dreams weren’t such a bad thing. When he looked at Shauna, he couldn’t help wondering if he’d passed up on the one dream that he really should have fulfilled.
A wife.
A few kids.
A nice home.
A few years ago, he’d thought he would have them all. Instead, he had a thriving business and a penthouse apartment in downtown Seattle.
He frowned, not liking the direction of his thoughts. He was content, happy even, but something was missing, and maybe his uncle knew it. Maybe that’s why Jack had bought the little house right next door to Levi’s high school flame.
“So, where was the car parked?” Richard asked, and Levi gestured to a spot across the street.
“It was under the tall pine. I noticed it because it wasn’t there when I arrived this afternoon. That would mean the driver parked there sometime between three and six.”
“And the car was a dark-colored station wagon?”
“It looked like it.”
“But you didn’t see the driver?”
“Just a glimpse as he was running to the car. Not enough to give a description.”
“Too bad. That might have helped us find the guy.” Richard turned on a flashlight and aimed it at the knife that was still lying on the porch floor. “I’m going to have Shauna turn on the light out here. Maybe our perp left something besides that knife behind.”
He knocked on the door, pushed it open, obviously familiar enough with Shauna to walk into her h
ouse without an invitation. Why that bothered Levi, he didn’t know.
Or maybe he did, and he just didn’t want to acknowledge it.
“Can you turn on the light out here, Shauna?”
“The bulb is blown. I noticed it when I got home.” She appeared in the threshold, her face pale.
“Blown? You’re sure about that?” Richard’s flashlight beam landed on the fixture beside the door, and he leaned close, frowning.
“What else would it be?”
“Looks to me like there isn’t a bulb in the fixture at all.”
“Of course there is. I leave the light on so the porch will be lit when I get home every night.”
“Take a look for yourself. There’s no bulb.”
“I don’t understand. There was one there this morning.” Shauna stepped out onto the porch at the same moment Levi took a step forward. They collided, his arms going around her as hers wrapped around him. Without any thought at all, his arms tightened, his hand smoothed down her back, and he felt what he hadn’t thought he could—as if he were finally home.
Chapter Six
She should not be standing in Levi’s arms. Shauna knew it, but for a moment she didn’t care. What harm could hugging an old friend do?
What harm? You could have your heart broken all over again, that’s what harm!
Right. And she did not want another broken heart.
She stepped back, her cheeks heating as she met Richard’s gaze. What was he thinking? That she was falling for Levi again?
She wasn’t.
She wouldn’t.
“There was a bulb in that fixture this morning, Rich. It was on when I left for work.”
“You’re sure?”
“Of course.” She sidled past Levi, doing her best not to come in contact with him. She didn’t need any more reminders of how good it felt to be in his arms.
“There isn’t one now.” Rich removed the fixture cover. He was right. No bulb.
“That’s strange.”
“Looks like we’re dealing with a premeditated crime. Have you had any trouble at work? Any run-ins with the neighbors?” Richard seemed more intense than he’d been when he first arrived, and his concern only added to Shauna’s fear.
“Of course not.”
“How about an ex-husband or boyfriend?” Levi broke in, and Shauna had the urge to tell him she had a hundred ex-boyfriends pining for her love. Unfortunately, her love life had been pretty dull since Matthew stood up in front of their wedding guests and proclaimed his love for another woman.
“None that would be holding a grudge.”
“What about Matthew? I hear he’s back in town.” Richard looked up from the notebook he was scribbling in.
“He called a few times, but I didn’t have anything to say to him. And I didn’t return the calls.”
“I think I’ll give him a ring. See what he has to say.” Richard tucked the notebook in his pocket. “In the meantime, keep your doors locked and your eyes open. If anything comes up, call me. You have my cell phone number, right?”
“Yes.”
“And I’ll be right next door,” Levi offered as if they still had the kind of relationship that would make her want to depend on him.
“I’ll be fine. Thanks.”
“Probably, but in case you aren’t, I’m a lot closer than the police.”
Shauna didn’t think she needed a reminder of that. All she had to do was look out the kitchen window and see the lights from the Harrison place, and she’d know Levi was there.
“Thanks.” It was the only response she could manage, and Levi nodded, said a quick goodnight to Richard and jogged down the porch steps. Shauna watched as darkness swallowed him, remembering all the times she’d watched him walk away when they were teens. Remembering the last time he’d walked away.
“Strange, isn’t it?” Richard asked, and Shauna forced her attention away from the past.
“What?”
“That Levi is back. He made it pretty clear he wasn’t a small-town guy.”
“Jack needs help. And Levi is family.”
“True, but maybe there’s something else to it. Maybe he’s tired of big-city living, and he’s finally ready to come home.”
Shauna doubted that, but she saw no sense in arguing the point. She and Levi had cared about each other once, but that was a long time ago.
“Do you think you’ll find prints on the knife?” She changed the subject, turning the conversation back to the real problem.
“I hope so. I’ll give you a call one way or another. In the meantime—”
“I’ll keep the doors locked.” She walked into the house, offering Richard a quick wave before she closed the door.
Chapter Seven
The house seemed too quiet after Richard left. Shauna went into the kitchen, filled the teakettle and set it to boil. It had been a long day, and the night stretched out in front of her, dark and quiet and lonely.
Lonely? She wasn’t lonely.
She poured hot water into a cup, dropped a tea bag into it, her gaze caught by a light shining from a window at the Harrison place. A shadow crossed the light. Levi moving through his kitchen. Maybe making a cup of coffee or unpacking his things, going about his life just as he had for over a decade. Shauna was going to go about her life the same way. There’d be no renewal of friendship or dating or anything else. Two broken hearts in a lifetime were two too many, and there was no way she was going to risk being hurt again.
She brought the tea to her room, turned on the small television and tried to lose herself in mindless sitcoms. But her thoughts kept circling back to Levi, their conversation replaying itself over and over in her mind until she finally drifted off to sleep.
The television was still on when the phone rang. Shauna sat up quickly, her heart pounding, her mind still foggy with sleep as she grabbed the phone.
“Hello?”
“Shauna? It’s Krista Mallory.”
“What’s wrong?” Shauna glanced at the clock. Three in the morning wasn’t a normal time for her boss to be calling.
“There’s been a break-in at the school.”
“When?”
“Less than an hour ago. I wouldn’t have called, but it’s your room they broke into. The police are asking if anything is missing, and I’m not sure what to tell them.”
“Do you need me to come in?”
“If you can.”
“Give me ten minutes, and I’ll be there.” She hung up and dressed quickly, the last vestiges of sleep gone, her mind racing with a million thoughts. The fact that she’d been accosted at knifepoint hours before her classroom was broken into couldn’t be a coincidence. Someone had something against her, and she had no idea who or why. That scared her more than she wanted to admit. For the first time in a long time, she wished she had a man around. A big strong burly guy who could walk out to the car with her, make sure no knife-wielding lunatic was waiting to pounce.
She scowled, frustrated with her thoughts. She’d spent the two years since her wedding day humiliation convincing herself that she was more than happy to live life alone. One run-in with a maniac, and she was ready to throw in the towel and hunt for a man.
“But you don’t need a man. And you don’t want one. So walk out the door, get in your car and go!” The pep talk got her to the front door, and she paused there, hand on the doorknob as she tried to convince herself that no one was lying in wait outside.
But she couldn’t.
She’d been on the wrong end of a butcher knife just a few hours ago, and there was no way she was walking outside unprotected. She grabbed the fireplace poker, and carried it like a spear as she jogged to her car.
Chapter Eight
The night was silent, the darkness deep black as Shauna shoved the car keys into the lock. Her hands were shaking so hard she could barely turn the key. She thought about putting the poker down, but anyone could be watching from the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
“It’s a little early in the morning for a drive, isn’t it?” The voice was so unexpected, Shauna screamed, swinging the poker, ready to bring down whoever was behind her.
“Whoa! Careful with that thing, Red. I’m not in the mood to take a trip to the emergency room tonight.” The poker was caught midswing and yanked from Shauna’s hand.
Red?
There’d only been one person who’d called her that—only one person that she’d ever allowed to call her that.
Levi.
Anger flooded through her, replacing fear. She clung to it as she snatched the poker from his hand and threw it into the car. “If you don’t want to make a trip to the emergency room, then you shouldn’t sneak up on people in the dark.”
“I wasn’t sneaking. I was walking across the yard, and I wasn’t being all that quiet about it.”
“Who walks across his yard at three in the morning?”
“Apparently, both of us.”
“Someone broke into my classroom at school, and my principal wants me to come in to see if anything is missing, so I’ve got an excuse.”
“I was working and saw your lights go on. I thought I’d better come by to make sure everything was okay, so guess I’ve got an excuse, too.” There was a smile in his voice, and if she looked hard enough, Shauna was sure she’d see him grinning through the darkness.
She wasn’t going to look.
“I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine. If you’ll excuse me, I really need to get going.” She knew she sounded stiff and formal, and she didn’t care. She got in the car, grabbed the door handle, started to close the door, but Levi held it open.
“It’s probably not a good idea for you to drive over there by yourself.”
“Why not? I drive to the school by myself every day.”
