She couldn’t bail because that kiss two nights ago changed everything. It made her realize life was less without the touch of another human. By keeping herself safe, she kept her life lonely. Sage wanted more, but she knew that Cannon would never be able to offer her anything if the burdens in his life shut him down.
When he said he didn’t want this, he lied. Like her, he was protecting himself. She felt his passion. His burgeoning want pressed against her body. The taste of desire dripped like honey from his lips. His heart nearly beat out of his chest.
Cannon Bishop was a liar just like her. How many times had she fibbed to herself to make life palatable?
Damaged. Tortured. Two words she’d use to describe the man who was as fabulous as he was frustrating.
Her grandma once told her not to judge a man until she’d walked a mile in his shoes. After seeing what Cannon went through on a daily basis, she felt the need to help.
Once he’d driven away this morning, she hurried over, hopeful she’d find Ben at home. She lifted her hand and knocked again, this time hard enough to bruise her fingers. Moments later, she heard the shuffle of feet.
Her small stature didn’t send a rush of fear through anyone. Most times, her mean face made people laugh. Sage was as scary as a guard dog in a tutu. Despite her less than intimidating appearance, she squared her shoulders and pulled herself as tall as her five-foot-two-inch frame would allow.
Dressed in navy-blue scrubs, she listened to the old man on the other side of the door cuss and complain about the noise.
Ben flung the door open and stood before her, looking like a homeless man in soiled jeans and a torn T-shirt.
“What do you want?” he snapped.
She breezed past him. “Good morning, Ben.” A thread of fear raced down her spine. She no longer sported two black eyes, but she’d never forget what they felt like. The bruising was now a faint greenish-yellow she did her best to conceal. Too bad there wasn’t something a scared girl could apply to ease her anxiety or cover her fear.
“What are you doing?” He slammed the door and followed her into the kitchen.
“I’m here to pick you up.” Her time in Aspen Cove hadn’t been a complete waste. She did learn the fine art of manipulation from Doc Parker. He’d helped her out. She owed him. The same was true for Ben.
“Pick me up for what? I’m not going to rehab again.”
She opened the cupboards to find a coffee cup. Her first challenge was to get him drinking coffee instead of vodka. “No rehab for you. You owe me.”
“I owe you?” His breath floated through the air like a green cloud, the smell putrid and ripe. The last time something so foul touched her nostrils was when Lydia put her egg salad sandwich in a drawer instead of the refrigerator. It took Sage three days to find the offending odor. She couldn’t be upset, though. Lydia had pulled a thirty-hour shift.
The roiling in her gut forced her to breathe through her mouth. She popped a K-cup into the coffee maker and pressed “Brew.” Leaning over the cup to smell the coffee beans, she inhaled deeply.
“Yes, sir. You owe me. I saved your life. The way I see it, you stole time from me with your antics. My time is valuable.”
When the pot stopped spitting coffee into the cup, she passed it to Ben. “Drink.” The tone she used was reminiscent of Cannon’s when he told her to put her feet in his lap.
A victorious smile fought to break loose when Ben brought the cup to his mouth. He swallowed and shivered from his silver-gray hair to his bare feet.
“I didn’t ask for your help.”
Emboldened, she pulled out a chair and pointed to it. To her surprise, he sat.
“No, you did not, but it doesn’t matter to me. I spent yesterday calculating the worth of my time and effort. A life saved is worth something. You will pay me back.” The reality was, she spent yesterday reliving the kiss and figuring out how to get more of them. She also sanitized the hell out of the newlyweds’ room.
“What do you want from me?”
On top of the bowl of fruit was a banana that matched the hue of Ben’s skin. She pulled back the peel and pressed it into his free hand. “Eat.”
“If I eat this, you’ll leave?” He lifted his bushy brows to where they nearly touched his shaggy bangs.
“You’re not getting off that easy, mister. You broke my nose. You hurt my feelings. You almost made me freeze to death. You’re a real pain in my keister. Many people would turn their back on you, but not me.” She laughed. “I’m told I have a savior complex, and you’re my next project.”
“Bullshit. I’m no one’s project.” He took a bite of the banana and drank more coffee.
She said a silent thank you to the universe. She’d been with Ben for ten minutes. Despite his bad breath and surly disposition, she was still in one piece. There was also the coffee and banana being consumed, and that was a victory in her book. “If I owe Doc an entire day for the half hour he spent fixing my nose, you owe me. By my calculations, I’d say it’s at least a few days of labor.”
His jaw dropped, and she got a good look at his half-chewed breakfast. “I’ve got plans today.”
“Yep, you do. Get in the shower, Ben. We’re leaving in fifteen minutes.”
He shoved the rest of the banana into his mouth and downed the remaining coffee before he left her alone in the kitchen.
Sage knew that Ben’s problem wasn’t that he wanted to die. It was that he didn’t have a reason to live. He had no purpose. One would think that two sons were enough, but with some people, family didn’t count.
Yesterday, while she licked her wounds after being rebuffed, she considered the needs of the town as it pertained to the individuals. Doc needed her help today. She owed him. She’d help. Ben needed more help than anyone could offer, but he could help Katie, and maybe in helping her, he’d help himself.
When he walked into the kitchen, he appeared a cleaner version of his drunken self. With shaking hands, he reached under the sink and grabbed a bottle of glass cleaner, except it wasn’t a bottle of cleaner. Her first clue . . . it was clear. Her second . . . Ben twisted off the cap and took a deep drink.
“What are you doing?” She swiped the bottle from him and gave it a good sniff. “Really, Ben? In the cleaning supplies?”
He shrugged. “I can’t do anything if my body shakes from detox.”
Sage hadn’t considered his alcoholism. A man didn’t become sober overnight after years of inebriation. She paced back and forth. Her eyes went to the cleaner bottle and back to Ben several times. She needed to find a way to move him from stumbling drunk to regular drunk to not a drunk.
“How much can you drink and still function?”
Ben chuckled. “I always function.”
“Geez, Ben, I need you to be able to follow directions. How many drinks do you need to keep the shakes away?”
“One an hour.” His answer came too quick, to be honest.
“You’ll get one every three.” Sage grabbed the bottle from the counter and pushed past him. “Let’s go. You’re needed at the bakery, and I’m needed at the clinic.”
Otis waited in the front seat, his tag waggling with exuberance when he saw her.
Once Ben was in the back seat, she pulled her SUV out of the driveway and drove into town.
“Why’s the mutt in the front and I’m in the back?” Ben leaned between the seats to look at Otis.
“He’s earned his place. You haven’t. Listen, Ben, I get that you’re hurting. Let’s put those emotions to work someplace more positive.”
“Did Cannon put you up to this?”
She shook her head. “Absolutely not. This is about what you owe me. As for Cannon, you’ll have to figure out how to repay him. From what I’ve seen, it’s a huge debt.” She looked at him in the rearview mirror. There was no bow of his head. No look of regret. The only sign he’d heard her was a grim thin line of his lips.
“I’m only here because you’ve got my stash held hostage. I’m wor
king to ransom it.”
“The reason doesn’t matter.” At least Ben wasn’t drowning himself inside a bottle today.
Last night, she’d called Katie and asked for help. This whole give-and-take was an odd concept for Sage. She’d never been one to ask for anything, but there was a good lesson to be learned in the process. By asking others for help, she gave them purpose.
She pulled up in front of the bakery. She had fifteen minutes to get Ben settled and get to the clinic.
The smell of muffins seeped through the crack in the door. The display case was filled with today’s special. Sage closed her eyes and tried to figure out what it was. She smelled spice and sweet but couldn’t begin to guess. There was no doubt the right ingredients had arrived just in time.
Ben opened the car door. He stood in the street, looking ready to bolt.
“Let’s go, Ben.” She held up the bottle of vodka and shook it. The liquid sloshed back and forth.
He grumbled something unintelligible but followed her into the shop. On the counter sat a tray of samples. Sage plucked two from the plate. She popped one into her mouth and one in Ben’s.
They both hummed in unison.
“What do you think?” Katie appeared from the backroom, wiping her wet hands on her apron. She took in Ben and smiled.
He frowned.
Sage tried to see him through Katie’s eyes. He was thin and had a sickly pallor to his skin. This wasn’t a quick fix, but a long journey. At least he was showered and on two feet. Sage knew the measurement of success for Ben would have to be celebrated breath by shaky breath.
She ignored his scowl and looked at the tented card in the display case that read “Carrot Cake.” “They’re amazing.” She stood aside. “This is Ben. Put him to work. You know the drill.”
Sage looked at Ben. She tucked his drink of choice into her purse. “I’ll be back at noon to dose you.”
She hated to saddle Katie with him, but the woman’s excitement at being able to help him lessened the guilt.
What was it that she was told when she arrived in town? Aspen Cove takes care of its own. That seemed to apply to everyone but Ben. Wasn’t it time someone took care of him?
She grabbed another muffin bite and walked out the door. Once she freed Otis, they walked across the street. No good deed went unpunished.
Chapter Twenty-One
Two little giggling boys ran past her. She caught one by the hoodie before he could knock over the cardboard Pepto Bismol display sign.
“Thank you.” Louise Williams waddled from the back room to the boys, who both had mastered the repentant look with their downcast eyes and pouty lips.
“Go sit down.” She pointed toward the clinic door where a row of seats lined the wall.
Disobedience was only a second away. They looked at Otis, and Sage could tell they were warring with themselves. Did they mind their mother or rush to the dog?
Wanting to save Louise the trouble of a punishment, Sage said, “Go sit down, and I’ll bring Otis over to say hello.”
Light shined in their expressions as they ran off to the hallway that led to the exam room.
“Thanks, they’re good boys, but they’re a handful.” She set her hands on her big belly. It was like a tabletop. Set a plate of spaghetti on it, and all Louise would have to do is scoop it into her mouth. Sage put her hand to her own stomach and wondered if she’d ever know the joys of motherhood.
“How far along are you?” Sage tapped her leg, and Otis followed her to the hallway, where chairs lined the wall. Six eager Williamses sat like angels.
“I’m almost fully cooked. Another few weeks should do it.” Louise walked past the kids and took the empty seat at the end of the row.
Sage looked at each child as she passed. They were all brown-haired and brown-eyed. She could tell by the way most of them rocked and fidgeted in their seats, they were barely controlling themselves. “You’ve got quite a collection. I don’t know how you do it.” There were a lot of Williamses present, but they were all healthy-looking and clean—well cared for.
Otis’s tail thumped impatiently on the floor. He was ready for the attention of six little hooligans, but he knew better than to take off. Sage hadn’t trained him in this way, but she wondered if his missing leg was the thing that tempered his reactions.
She knew little about how he’d lost it, except that he’d been hit by a car and abandoned by his family.
“Is it okay if I introduce Otis to the kids?” His tail’s pace and power increased. A thump thump thump filled the air. Little bodies moved like unearthed worms in the chairs.
“Please do. They’d love to pet your dog.”
Sage held up her hand, which was Otis’s cue to lie down. He flopped down in the center of the hallway and rolled onto his back.
“Okay, one at a time.” The kids were sitting in order from tallest to smallest. “We’ll start with the little guy here.” Sage pointed to the youngest Williams, who couldn’t have been more than eighteen months or so. His barely bigger sister let him loose, and he toddled to the dog.
“That’s David,” Louise said. She went down the line of children as they each rose for their turn. There was Jill, Melissa, Thomas, Eric, and Brian. Otis was happy to be a recipient of their sticky hands and sloppy kisses. That was the wonderful thing about dogs. To them, love was love, and it didn’t matter the package it came in.
“Are you going to dawdle all day or earn your keep?” a gruff voice came from behind.
Sage smiled, knowing that Doc Parker hid behind his grumpy-old-man-persona. He was nothing but a big softie.
“I’m coming. I’m offering that warm, thoughtful part of medical care you must have forgotten years ago.”
“No dogs in the clinic.” His eyes narrowed in on Otis.
Louise piped in, “He’s not a dog; he’s the sitter.”
Doc shook his head. With spread fingers, he rubbed his eyebrows, making the white tufts stand up. “In that case, he can stay.”
“You’re up, Louise.” She struggled to stand, and Doc offered her a hand.
She turned to her children while Sage turned to Otis, and they both said, “Stay,” at the same time.
Louise smiled. “Raising dogs and kids are similar.”
Sage laughed. “ It would seem.” Sage looked at Doc. “ I can hold the fort down out here if you want.”
“I’m not paying you to babysit.”
“You’re not paying me at all.” She rose to her feet and followed him into the exam room.
“You owe me time, not Louise.” He turned toward the pregnant woman. “If you want to hire Sage, do it on your time, not mine.”
Not afraid of the Doc’s salty demeanor, Louise fired back, “It’s either a lack of coffee or sex?” The big woman looked at the mug in Doc’s hand and laughed. “You need more sex.”
Doc patted the exam table and helped her up. “You need less. Now let’s see how this little girl is doing.”
While Doc thumbed through her file, Sage asked her a few questions, then took her vitals and checked her ankles for swelling.
“You trying to take my job?” He handed her the patient file to record Louise’s numbers.
Feeling comfortable enough to tease the old goat, she fired back, “You could always turn back to real estate.” She pulled out the table and helped Louise lie down. Sage realized how easy it was to work next to Doc Parker, even though he tried to pretend he was disagreeable and cantankerous.
“It’s a good thing you decided to stay. Even if you wanted to sell, it could take years to offload that property.”
“Really?” She was surprised, because it was a lovely house on a lake.
“It takes a certain kind of person to live in a small town.” He palpated his patient’s stomach. “Hell, Bobby and Louise might populate Aspen Cove by themselves.”
Sage was surprised when Louise reached up and cuffed Doc lightly on the side of the head.
“I left a message for a develop
er, but he never called back or stopped by.”
Doc ignored her. “Everything looks good, Louise. You could go anytime now.” He talked to her like she was an active volcano ready to erupt. “Get the first kid ready for their shots.” He helped her down while Sage wiped the table and prepared for the children.
Doc set out a tray of syringes.
“You know,” he said, “it would be a crime to sell that property to a developer. They’d turn Aspen Cove into something it’s not. Probably push the locals out to make room for hotels and tourist shit like Starbucks.”
She tilted her head. It was something to think about. She didn’t want people like Louise and Doc to have their lives turned upside down. On the other hand, a Starbucks seemed reasonable.
Doc gave each of the Williams kids a shot. As soon as they opened their mouths to cry, he popped in a Life Saver and sent them out to have Otis lick the tears from their faces.
By the time they’d run through the family, it was lunchtime.
Sage walked over to the bakery with her bag in hand and Otis by her side. Before she could open the door, she found Cannon walking up the sidewalk. Last time he approached her in this location, he was coming at her like a runaway freight train. Today, he warmed her with a smile.
Cannon stepped out of his truck and saw her walking to the bakery. Like a bug to a light, he found himself heading in her direction. Stopping in front of Sage, he looked at her navy-blue scrubs. “The old coot was serious. He put you to work.” He leaned down and petted Otis, who was happy to give him a lick.
“It seems to be a thing in this town.” She pulled him to his feet and threaded her arm through his. At the corner of the shop, they peeked through the window. He didn’t know what she wanted him to see, but what he did see was his father pulling down the old wallpaper next to the display case. Dad’s hands shook like he was suffering from withdrawal, but he pulled and tore at the stubborn striped paper without regard to his unsteady grip.
“What the hell?” Cannon’s eyes grew big, and his mouth dropped open when he turned toward her.
One Hundred Reasons Page 13
