by Stacey Wilk
“See ya, kiddo,” he said.
“You are dense. Pretty lady needs help, and you stall. You’re single, ain’t you? You never mention a lady.”
“Don’t go playing match maker. I don’t have time to get involved.” And not with her.
“Not how I see it. You work here and go home. That’s it. You need a hobby.” Jim laughed.
Raine Kennedy was no hobby. Not a woman with her expensive clothes, but inconspicuous car. She was hiding from something and he had no intention to find out what it was. He had his own problems.
Chapter Four
Raine had to get out of Silent Water before it was too late. She itched to pack her bags. Her very handsome, but shut down neighbor had to be a cop. He had cop eyes, and eyes like that didn’t miss a detail. She couldn’t afford to have him discover who she was and what she was running from. The single mom looking to start over routine wouldn’t fly with Chase Shepherd, and that was a problem because for a brief second this morning she wanted him to fix her heater. And maybe turn the dials on her own personal thermostat. She shook her head. Enough with the fantasies.
She dragged firewood from the trunk of the Camry to the fireplace inside the house. The place needed to warm up. She could see her breath as she huffed back and forth. The no heat thing could be the reason to leave. Badger couldn’t argue. He could keep the money she’d given him.
She and Landon could be gone by the end of the day, and no one would be the wiser. They could drive all night and maybe cross the border into Canada with the fake passports by midnight. But then what? Was there another town without cell phone service she could start over in? She needed more money, time, and a decent night’s sleep. If the heater wasn’t working by morning, then they’d slip away. She would give it that long.
Acker Propane hadn’t returned her call. She threw some logs into the fireplace, and stuffed paper under and around them. Smaller sticks would’ve been nice.
“Hey, Landon, do you want to play a game?”
His booted feet clamored over the hardwood floors. “Sure. What kind of a game?”
“Let’s see how many sticks and branches you can find.”
“Are you going to look too?”
“Yup.” At least she’d pretend to look. She’d keep her eye on him, but she wanted to see if she could peek in the windows of Chase’s house for some clue as to who he really was. Clearly, he wasn’t married, but there had to be something to him. “I’ll time us. Whoever finds the most sticks in ten minutes wins.”
“What do I win?”
“Watching a movie with me under the blanket?”
“How about ice cream in a cone?”
“It’s a little cold for ice cream, don’t you think?” If Silent Water didn’t have an ice cream store open in January, they could stop at the grocery store and pick some up. Her boy deserved a little happiness. She’d ripped him away from his home and he’d barely complained. Maybe he was glad to be away from their old life.
“Nope. I’m going to win.” He took off running.
“Landon, you left the door –”
Chase Shepherd filled up the doorway and stopped the words on her tongue. He wore his dark hair brushed back. She hadn’t noticed before, but the sides were streaked gray. His beard was close to his skin as if he had decided not to shave more than he meant to grow it in. His chin was covered in matching gray stubble, but the rest of the beard was dark. What would that stubble feel like under her fingers? Her insides started to heat up at the thought of exploring. She needed to erase those thoughts from her head immediately.
He narrowed his blue eyes at her. They were a startling bright blue trimmed with creases that suggested he spent time laughing, but there was no humor on his face. What had happened to this man to make him so stoic?
“Is there something I can help you with?” She couldn’t see past him to where Landon had run off to. She didn’t want him getting too close to the road.
“What are you looking at?” He turned and looked out the door.
“I need to find my son.”
“Did you lose him?” He turned back to her.
“He’s running out in the yard. I don’t want him to wander too far.”
He put down the tool box he was holding and pulled out a pair of binoculars. “Here.”
She put the binoculars up to her eyes. Landon’s blue coat dodged between pine trees as he scooped up sticks and pinecones. “Do you always carry binoculars in your tool box?” Was he some kind of a stalker?
“I just like to be prepared.” He turned in the direction she stared.
“Prepared for what?” She handed them back.
“For anything.” He placed in the metal box. Their fingers grazed.
“Were you a Boy Scout or something?” The scrape of his skin against hers sent a charge over her skin she wasn’t expecting.
“Something. But that was a long time ago.”
“So, what can I do to help you? I’m rather busy at the moment.” She craned her neck to see Landon running around trees.
“I came to fix the heater.”
“There’s no need. I have a call into the propane company. I’m sure everything will be settled by tonight.” What had him changing his mind from earlier? Not that the reason mattered all that much. She needed heat.
“You probably left a message and no one has returned your call. Pretty typical for Acker. He services most of the town. Everyone has that complaint. I can take a look if you want, or you can drag sleeping bags by the fireplace and sleep on the floor. You’ll be lucky if he calls you back in two days. Up to you.”
“Why are you being so nice to me?”
****
Chase had no idea why he was being so nice to her. His instincts kept telling him to stay away, but something in his gut said fixing the heater for her and her boy was the right thing to do. The lady might need a break, the least he could do was make sure they were warm.
Her long hair cascaded in waves past her shoulders, and over her breasts. He liked long hair. She rolled her full bottom lip between her teeth which made the small dimple in her chin dance side to side. Jim was right. He needed a hobby.
“Do you want me to fix the heater or not?”
“How much will it cost?”
“Nothing. I’m just being neighborly.” And possibly horny.
She fisted her hands on her hips. “Nothing is for free. Tell me the price so I know what to budget for.”
“You can water my plants.”
She narrowed her green eyes at him. “Do you have plants?”
“Nope. I kill them all. I do have a rabbit. You can come by and feed him when I’m away on vacation.”
“Do rabbits bite?” Her gaze quizzed him.
“I don’t think so. I just got him.”
“Do you take vacation?”
“You ask a lot of questions.”
“I don’t like owing people.”
He could understand and respect that. “I’m just helping out because it’s the right thing to do. I’ll be going, though because clearly you don’t want the help. Good luck, and I hope you and Landon don’t freeze tonight.” He turned and scanned the area for Landon. A blue jacket ducked behind an evergreen to the south. A smile tugged at his lips. Yeah, the kid was cute. The mother was damn near stopping his heart, but the kid was cute all right.
“Wait.” Her voice was hesitant.
He turned back to her.
“Would you mind taking a look at the heater?”
The smile tugged harder, and he couldn’t fight it off. He ducked his head and stepped past her. She smelled of fresh air, and rugged cliffs.
“Landon, come inside.” She yelled past him. Landon ran into the house with sticks and dumped them by the fireplace.
He’d never been inside the guest house. The place was wide open with a small kitchen to the back. He could pace the room in ten strides. The furniture was dark, and the walls were paneled except for the back wall which was all windows and had a view o
f the lake. That glass would break without much effort. He’d call Badger about setting up an alarm system here too. If Raine and Landon were going to stay here, they might as well have extra protection. And if by chance she was running from someone, like an ex-husband who maybe had an affair with his secretary, the alarm might be enough to scare him off. The executive types didn’t really want trouble. They wanted a clean divorce.
“The furnace is in the basement. Landon, we’ll be right back.” She led the way giving him a good view of her backside. Knock it off. When was the last time he was with a woman? He couldn’t remember. Pretty pathetic.
The basement had low ceilings, and a dirt floor. Very little light came through the dirty windows too small for a person to crawl through. Okay, no need for alarm sensors on those. Raine yanked on a string and brought to light the one bulb. He retrieved his Anker LED flashlight from his metal box.
“Wow, that’s bright.” She shielded her eyes.
“If you want to see what’s coming at you, this is what you want in your hand.” He kept the light away from her as he poked around by the furnace.
“Do you think it’s going to be an expensive fix? I don’t need a brand new heater, do I? Mr. Badger still hasn’t returned my calls. A new heater could take a while to fix and he’ll probably want to get estimates. I should’ve had the house inspected before we got here.”
Was all that rambling how she really talked or was she covering up nerves? He rummaged around in his tool box.
“You’re not saying anything. It’s bad, isn’t it? You know what, let me go check on Landon while you finish here.” She ran up the steps.
The silence washed over him. He worked better without the talk, but he hadn’t minded Raine’s runaway thoughts as much as he thought he would.
He finished up, and the furnace rumbled awake. He turned out the light on the way up the steps. She had started a fire. The room was quickly warming up.
“Mom is making hot chocolate. Do you want some?” Landon had taken a seat at the table. His stuffed monkey had the seat next to him. “Walter will let you sit with him if you want.”
“Landon, sweetie, Mr. Shepherd doesn’t want to sit with Walter.” She turned to him. “Sorry about that.”
He removed Walter from the seat, plopped down, and placed Walter on his lap. Landon’s smile broke wide across his face. Chase’s heart shuddered a little in his chest. He had wanted to prove to the lady he didn’t mind stuffed animals at all. A long time ago, in another life time, he had a room in his house filled with stuffed animals. His heart shuddered some more. “I’d love some hot chocolate. Consider it payment for the furnace. You don’t have to feed Elmer.”
“What was wrong with it?” She brought over two cups of steaming mugs and dropped one large marshmallow into Landon’s. “Would you like a marshmallow?”
“I’m good, thanks. Your pilot light was out.”
“Seriously? I didn’t check that. Stupid.” She tapped at her head. “Thank you for fixing it.”
“No problem. It was an easy miss.”
“Maybe, but not for me. I can’t afford to make simple mistakes like that.”
“Everyone makes mistakes.” He knew that better than anyone, yet he couldn’t forgive himself for the biggest mistake he ever made no matter how hard he tried. “An unlit pilot light is no big deal. Don’t sweat it.”
“Easy for you to say. You knew where to look and you don’t have anyone to worry about.” Her voice shook. She stroked the top of Landon’s head.
“Mom, stop.” Landon squirmed under her touch the way little boys do.
He stood. “I’d better be going. Thank you for the hot chocolate.”
“But you didn’t even drink it.” Landon leaned over the still full mug then looked up at him wide-eyed.
“You know what, kiddo, I remembered a phone call I have to make. How about I take a rain check on that drink?” He shoved his arms back into his coat.
“What’s a rain check?”
“He means another time.” Raine turned her back and wiped her nose with a dish towel. “Landon, why don’t you unpack those school supplies we bought?”
“Why now?”
She turned back to face her son. “Because I don’t want you to forget anything, okay? Please go and do that for me.” Landon dragged himself off the chair. “Bye, Chase.” And scurried from the room. Tears brimmed in her eyes.
He didn’t know what to do with a crying woman. He should make a quick escape before she was full on sobbing. “See you around.”
“Chase, please wait.” Her voice was a whisper. She pushed off the counter and closed the distance between them.
“Look, I can see something has you upset. You don’t owe me an explanation.” He didn’t want to be dragged into her mess. He should’ve minded his own business and not fixed the damn furnace, but the pain in her eyes made him want to put an arm around her petite shoulders and pull her close. Instead, he backed up.
“I’m sorry about just now. It’s not like me to break down in front of Landon. We’ve been through a lot lately, and your kindness toward him, well it was unexpected. Thank you.” She folded her hands together.
He waited for her to say something more, to tell him what her story was, but she stood there with her green eyes fixed on his, and red blooming on her neck and cheeks.
This woman gave him thoughts he hadn’t had in a very long time. He swore he’d never get involved again after Denise left him, but something about Raine Kennedy made him want to peel the layers back just a little and look inside. Shit. “You’re welcome. I’ll see you around.”
He didn’t wait for her to say anything else. He showed himself to the door and shut it behind him. The cold air froze his lungs, but he welcomed the numbness.
He didn’t want to feel anything because he’d worked hard to fight his emotions. Now this woman and her child were cracking that veneer. Was he ready to try again or was he just too tired to keep fighting?
Chapter Five
For a brief second, Raine wanted to tell Chase everything. She couldn’t understand why she was ready to spill her secret. Maybe because he’d fixed the heater, or maybe his way with Landon and putting that stupid monkey on his lap, or maybe she was just plain old tired and wrung out. Telling the first person who came to her rescue was only going to get them all in trouble. Matt certainly wouldn’t stop at hurting anyone who knew what she’d done. She needed to remember that.
The sky was black behind the windows. The agonizing wind rattled the glass and her nerves. A branch banged against the side of the house. She dropped to the floor of her bedroom and did another set of pushups. She’d follow those up with sit ups, lunges, and squats. She hadn’t had time or the space to pack her boxing gloves, and certainly not her heavy bag. She missed the feel of her gloved hand connecting with the bag, and the emptiness in her mind when she trained. It would be a while before she had another bag. In the meantime, she could work out at home, shadow box, and if she got desperate she could tack pillows to the wall.
The more she thought about Chase the more she heated up at the core. She had stopped noticing men. Matt hadn’t been discreet about his other women, and she hadn’t wanted him touching her with the smell of someone else still on him. She gagged just thinking about it. He had been all too happy to leave her alone as long as she didn’t try to stop him.
The tears threatened to come again. She swatted them away then jabbed at her pretend partner. She had been foolish all these years. By the time she came to her senses Landon was toddling around the house. It took years to be ready to slip away. Now that she had, she’d never go back. Matt would have to kill her first, and he would without hesitation. He’d never hurt their son, but then Landon would grow up under the wing of his father and become the same kind of evil man Matt had become.
With sweat running down her back, she checked on Landon. He was fast asleep. She pulled the covers up over his slim body and placed a kiss on his head. She would protect him at
all costs.
She double checked the locks on all the doors and peered out the window toward Chase’s house. The wind continued to push the trees around. The fifteen acres was nice, but it offered too many places to hide. Would the power hold? What would she do if Matt snuck up on her?
Maybe having a neighbor wasn’t so bad. He had one light on upstairs. The rest of the house seemed dark. Would he tell her if someone snuck onto the property unexpectedly? Could she share some of her fears? She shook the thoughts away. Never could she share what she was running from. He’d only end up dead. Even if he was or had been a cop, he’d be no match for Matt.
She made a cup of tea and climbed into bed. Matt would discover her trail in Seattle led through Canada to Alaska. She’d paid a woman with a child to check into a motel on the edge of Seattle and check out after two days. She was to be seen heading north and then disappear. Their trail would go cold after a while, but Matt would keep looking.
The lights flickered. The tree continued its tap, tap, tap against the house. Her heart pounded in her throat. That wasn’t the tree. Something or someone knocked at the front door. She jumped from the bed and doused the light. Keeping as low as she could, she made her way down the hall. The knocking continued. Had her luck run out? She’d hoped for more time, and grabbed a steak knife from the block.
Landon hadn’t come out of his room. Hopefully, he’d sleep through the noise. The front door didn’t have a peep hole. She had to press her back firmly against the wood and glance over her shoulder out the window.
The man was average height, but he had a knit cap pulled low on his head making it hard to see his face. He wore a down jacket zipped up to his chin, and black gloves. A gun or a knife could be hiding in that coat. She ran back to the kitchen and dialed Badger’s number. He answered on the first ring.
“Mr. Badger, it’s Raine Kennedy. Do you have Chase Shepherd’s number?”
The knocking continued.
“Evening. I sure do. Everything okay over there? You get that heater fixed? Did Acker ever show up?”
Landon came out of his room. “Mom, I think someone is at the door. Do you want me to answer it?”
