Unexpected Love (White Oak-Mafia #2)

by Liza O'Connor

  “Not a problem. We started on it today.”

  “And how is it coming along?”

  She could hear the worry in his voice. “I’m learning a great deal about how to do an archeological dig. Maybe I’ll go for a double major.”

  “Dinner is served,” Steel declared and placed three plates of food on the kitchen counter. He hurried to Helen. “May I assist you to the kitchen?

  Helen shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”

  He knelt beside her. “I could bring you your food on a tray.”

  She patted his hand. “You are a good man, Steel. I’m glad you’re here.”

  He rose and looked to Tess.

  Tess smiled his way and motioned for him to come to her. When he did, she handed him the phone. “Tom wishes to talk to you.”

  After checking on her Grams, who insisted she needed more sleep and would eat later, Tess sat down at the counter and eyed the grilled bass on her plate. It smelled delicious. Beside it was a small serving of black beans and something that looked like salsa with avocado slivers on top.

  Through her food examination, she listened to Steel give their boss the good news that the damn bear was gone and they had been working on a detailed plan while he cooked.

  He fell silent for a minute and then burst out with a loud ‘Yes!’ and slammed his hand on the wall. She smiled, knowing Mr. Barkman had just told him about the carbon dating.

  “We’ve hit the damn mother lode!” He then repeated the news to her, not realizing she already knew.

  “Tess has to be cleared to be on site now. Otherwise, you’ll never get the detail you need for the plan.” After a short pause, he smiled and nodded at her.

  “This is the best news you could possibly give me. Thank you, Tom. I didn’t expect to get those carbon datings for months. You’re a fucking miracle worker.”

  Tess glanced at her grams. She couldn’t have possibly slept through Steel’s loud celebration. She worried about his use of the f-word. Grams didn’t like the word, and the last time her uncle had used it at the cabin, he got a pitcher of cold well-water over his head.

  Either Grams didn’t mind it when spoken in a beautiful British accent, or she was just thrilled that site was not only authentic, but the only one of its kind. Or she was dead. Tess abandoned her food and ran to her Grams’ side. While her eyes were closed, a faint smile on her lips and slow steady movements of her chest told her Grams remained with them.

  Since Steel continued his conversation with Tom, Tess returned to the tantalizing dinner before her. It smelled delicious. She teased out a small bit of white flesh and sat it on her tongue, ready to spit it in her napkin if necessary.

  Instead, the flavors tantalized her taste buds. She stood at once and carried her plate to Grams. “You’ve got to taste this.”

  Grams’ eyes fluttered open. Then she shook her head.

  “I’m not asking you to eat.” She’d read on the Internet that when a body was dying, it no longer wanted food.

  “I just want you to put a bite in your mouth. Steel cooked it, and it’s fabulous. You have to taste it.”

  Grams eyed her with caution, evidently thinking this to be a trick.

  “Grams, this could be the best thing you ever taste in your life.”

  “All right,” she said, skepticism audible in her voice.

  Tess tugged out a tiny bit of the grilled bass and held the fork out.

  Grams took the small bit into her mouth. Her eyes rounded a moment later. Her hand took possession of the fork, and she took another bite. Then she tasted a small bite of the beans.

  “Oh, my!”

  “Are they not good?” Tess whispered.

  Her grams lifted a large forkful to Tess’s mouth.

  Tess laughed and then opened her mouth, expecting not-fully-cooked beans. While Tess groaned with pleasure, Grams tasted the stuff that looked like salsa and leaned back and closed her eyes. Her smile of pure bliss said it all.

  Tess tasted it and then added a bit of bass to her fork. She groaned from the pleasure bouncing about her mouth.

  In the background, she heard Steel tell Tom he had to get off the phone. “My diners are groaning.” He came over and knelt beside Tess. “I hope those are good groans and not a need to have your stomachs pumped.”

  Grams patted his arm. “You constantly amaze me. I’m so glad you came here.”

  His blue eyes sparkled as his hand gently covered Grams. “Best thing that’s happened in my life.”

  Tess smiled at him, overwhelmed with love and admiration. He wasn’t just better than any man she’d ever met; he was better than she conceived any man could be. Had she written the specs for the perfect man, he wouldn’t be this fabulous. She had a great desire to blurt out a marriage proposal, but thankfully got control of herself.

  The barriers between them were still there, and under no circumstances would she risk Steel’s life or career.

  He chucked her chin. “You okay?”

  “I’m thrilled about the site. Your meal is the finest food I’ve ever tasted. And we’ve even gotten rid of Grumpy. This day is without question the best day of my life.”

  He hugged her. “Mine, too.” He released her and leaned over and kissed Gram’s cheek. “And I couldn’t have better friends to share it with.”

  When Grams fell asleep, they moved back to the dining table and ate while they worked on the archeological plan.

  Steel finished his dinner ten minutes before Tess and spent the time explaining what they might find and what each possibility would require.

  Tess now understood why creating a project plan was so difficult for him. Every find could alter all future plans depending on its importance.

  An hour into the possible avenues, she smiled. “I see how we can create a plan.”

  He sighed. “I’m all ears.”

  “We need to move up a level. The initial plan is how we determine and prioritize our presently unknown finds. The second main action is about how we open our work to the public. And that we can provide detail because the problems will be tied in with the state park in general.”

  Steel frowned. “You want to let visitors wander about my archeological sites?”

  “No! But is there any reason why they cannot watch from a platform a safe distance away and listen to audio telling them what they are watching and about the Paleo-Indians who once lived here? We could even provide white boards presenting close-ups of finds thus far.”

  Steel leaned back in his chair. “I was going to say that they’d find it very dull watching, but with audio and other visuals, we might be able to open up the site, assuming we can secure it.”

  “We’ll need to have the archeological site fully fenced in before we have access roads into these woods, which I have planned for next spring. Securing it should be first on our timeline.”

  “I wasn’t planning anything like this…but you’re right. It’s a state park. We can’t drag our feet opening it to the public. You and I’ll go out tomorrow and review the area and see the best way to protect the site from scavengers.”

  “We’ll want to ensure we have the proper postings so we can legally prosecute anyone who attempts to trespass.”

  “And the best outdoor security cams.”

  She typed in these items into the detail section. Each one would get its own project plan timeline.

  As they continued brainstorming, Tess glanced at her plans for bringing in a marketing expert to develop quality advertising. “We should have the producers know about our intentions to allow visitors to see a real archeological dig. They’ll want to include that as soon as they can.”

  “Just don’t let them over-promise it,” Steel warned.

  Tess made a note. I’ll be sure they know not to promise the public more than we can deliver. If they expect a real Paleo Indian to rise from the ground and shake their hand, they are going to be disappointed.” She glanced at her watch and frowned. “Whoa! We need to sleep. It’s already past thre
e AM.”

  “Well, I’ll sleep like a baby now. You not only solved how we can present a plan, but it’s a plan I can actually use.”

  ***

  Steel went to his room amazed at how everything had turned around for him. Yet, there was a price for all his good luck. Tess Campbell was the first and probably only woman he’d ever had intense feelings for, but he had to keep matters platonic.

  If he took the relationship further, he could destroy everything and possibly lose his life. But God, he never wanted anything more than to celebrate their success by making passionate love to her.

  Instead, they had spent the night working on the project plan, something he’d always considered a waste of time until Tess had found a way to make it work.

  Thank God, she’d forgiven him for being such an ass when he mistook her for a driver. No way he could manage this without her. He closed his eyes and had almost fallen asleep when he recalled something he’d pushed from his consciousness.

  Tess would be leaving for college in a few months.

  She couldn’t. He needed her here.

  Unable to sleep, he called Tom…who had been asleep but proved remarkably good-natured about being awaken.

  “Are you two still working out the plan? I don’t require it by tomorrow, you know,” Tom teased.

  “No, but I’m optimistic we’ll have a plan I can actually use in short time. Tess is amazing.”

  “She has a gift,” Tom agreed.

  “Yeah, well half of this great partnership we have intends to leave for college in two months.” Steel expected him to curse or throw something.

  “A month and a half, I believe,” he replied.

  “Tom…you haven’t seen the plan she’s creating. I can’t hire a replacement for her. I guarantee you there is no one capable of getting this done except for Tess.”

  Tom sighed heavily. “I’m hoping she’ll come to that conclusion and postpone her degree. However, my hands are tied by the terms of the land donation. It clearly states she’ll be allowed to attend college until she obtains her degree, and then she becomes the forest manager for the park for as long as she wishes to keep the job.”

  “Wow…I’m amazed you agreed to allow some unknown young woman with a guaranteed job for life join your staff.”

  “Well, fortunately, the woman donating the land had me meet Tess and tour the woods before I saw the details of the document. It was actually prudent. If I were to leave for any reason, I guarantee my replacement would want to place his best guy in charge of this state park.”

  Steel sighed. “Okay, then I’m glad for the clause, but if Tess doesn’t voluntarily delay getting the degree she’s overqualified for, I’m in serious trouble.”

  “Then plan for it. Hire people better than you need for the slots. All the salaries are twenty percent more than any park in this country, so you can be choosy.”

  “I’ll talk to Tess. She’ll be hiring her staff.”

  “Tell her why you need them to be overqualified. That might get her to volunteer.”

  “That’s good advice. I’ll approach the topic tomorrow.”

  “Be sure you do, because according to her plan, she’ll submit her second staff requirements tomorrow.”

  “Her second. She’s already made a submission?” Shouldn’t she have at least mentioned that to him?

  “Yeah, the four people with the competency to run the GPR, the ERM, and the magnetometers. You know about this.”

  Steel rubbed his head and laughed. “I do. I didn’t realize you required paperwork to get that done.”

  “Honestly, I planned to sort that stuff out later, but Tess called my assistant an hour after our conversation and got downloads of every request form imaginable. I had the completed request forms before I called four very good men I’ve had my eye on.”

  Steel frowned. “So you’re doing my hiring?”

  “Not at all. I’m loaning you four men overqualified for the jobs requested. Unlike normal candidates, these you get to try out for two months. If you don’t like them, I’ll take them back. They are technically on loan to you from Harper Ferry.”

  “You trust them?” Steel asked, worried they might sabotage his work rather than help.

  “Absolutely,” he stated. “I would never jeopardize this site. In fact, I’m willing to piss several people off to ensure you have good help immediately. But after this, you are going to need to complete paperwork, interview candidates, and get them on the payroll all on your own. On these four, if you want them, I’ll do the paperwork from here.”

  Steel groaned. “God, I feel like a jerk. You have gone out of your way to help me, and I’m getting annoyed at stupid issues. I’m sorry, Tom. I should be kissing your ass for all you’ve done for me.”

  He chuckled. “I don’t trust or like people who kiss my ass. And your reaction was reasonable. It always pissed me off when the prior governor would send me resumes of unqualified people to staff my parks.”

  “So when can I expect these guys?” Steel asked.

  “Well, Harper Ferry insisted they can’t run their state park without a full staff, so I’m doing a major sleight of hand. I’m taking four rangers from each park and shuffling them about to other sites for two months. Their mission will be to exchange ideas and improve practices. Only four of the lesser sites will only get three rangers so Harper Ferry will remain fully staffed.”

  “But the four I get I can keep if I want or give some of them back if I’m not satisfied?” Steel asked.

  “Yes, your four are different. I’m just hiding that from their current boss. They are hoping to be hired because I’ve promised them the work, the salary, and the boss are all an upgrade.”

  Steel smiled. “Well on that happy note, let me say they can’t have a better boss than I do.” After thanking him once again, he hung up and collapsed on the bed. His thoughts turned to Tess. He mulled over ways to get her to give up her education on her own.

  He woke a few minutes later when an urgent hand shook his shoulder. He stared at Tess’s worried face.

  “What’s wrong?” He sat up and gripped her hands.

  “Grams is gone.”

  “Gone? Gone where?” The poor old woman could hardly walk yesterday.

  “I don’t know. She…she might be in the woods…or maybe my father has taken her.”

  “Taken her where?”

  “To a hospital so they can make her live in pain as long as possible. He’d do that in a second. Only, he isn’t supposed to know about this area of the house. She should have been safe here.”

  Steel pushed out of bed and dressed. When he turned to ask Tess another question, he realized she’d left.

  He hurried out to the hall. “Tess?” He walked to her room and opened the door. For a moment, he got an eyeful of beautiful breasts before Tess turned her back to him.

  “Sorry, I’ll wait in the kitchen,” he said and closed the door. Those perky breasts with dark-hued nipples were now permanently lasered into his brain.

  God, she was perfect for him in all ways.

  Desperate to change his thoughts, he went to Helen’s room, knocked, and then entered. The room was neat and tidy. Nothing out of place except a white envelope resting on the pillow. He lifted it and read Tess’s name. He took it with him as he headed to the kitchen. Tess opened her door and blushed at the sight of him.

  He held up the letter. “I found this on Helen’s bed pillow.”

  She grabbed and opened it in one swift motion. Upon reading the note, her legs gave out. Steel snared her before she fell, then carried her back into her room where he placed her on the bed. He sat down beside her and teased the crumpled letter from her hands.

  Tess,

  I stayed as long as I dared and longer than my body wished. I’ve no idea if I can reach the mounds in my current condition. That’s where I want to die. If I can’t make it, then look for me in the woods between here and there.

  If I have any say in my next job, I will try
my hardest to become your guardian angel. But just in case I get recycled at once, allow me to give you one last word of advice: Don’t lose the one true friend you have left. No matter how much you hurt and miss me, do not push Steel away. He’s a good man…better than any I’ve ever met, and he loves you.

  I know you fear your father and what he might do, but Steel is not some nobody who can disappear without notice. Although he doesn’t put on airs, he’s got powerful connections. If your father threatens him, you tell Tom, and he’ll contact the Secret Service. Under no circumstances are you to send Steel away, thinking that will make him safe. The two of you need each other. Whatever you face will go better if you stand against it together.

  Now, to my departure. Rest assured, given the number of painkillers I possess, I have died peacefully. I won’t tell you not to grieve because I know you will. But hopefully, you will find some peace in the knowledge that I died on my own terms in my own way. I had a good life and, with the help of a handful of very good people, I managed, against all odds, to save these woods and give you the chance for a good life with a good man.

  So I leave this earth feeling very proud of myself and of you. Now everything I’ve ever loved is in your hands. Be strong and focus on your wonderful future.

  With all my love and more,

  Grams

  Steel sniffled as he finished the letter. “Do you want me to find Helen? We might be able to stop her?”

  Tess shook her head. “This is the way she wants to die.”

  Steel focused on the part that said she wanted to die on the mounds. “I doubt she could make it up the hill.”

  Tess sat up. “I agree.” She met his eyes. “Will you help me find her and take her there?”

  He opened his mouth to object that the mounds were now an archeological site, but he couldn’t. Not with Tess in such pain.

  He nodded, and she rewarded him with a quick hug before she rushed from the room.

  He followed behind her. When Tess grabbed the carrier, he found his voice. “We don’t need it. I can lift her.”