Cole in My Stocking

by Jessi Gage

  Loved. Worthy. Safe.

  He touched his forehead to mine. “I hate to spoil this, but I’ve got something to show you before Glenmore gets here.” My hand in his, he led the way out of the garage and up to his front porch, a simple, concrete slab with a wooden railing. A pair of muddied Sorels leaned on each other beside the doormat. A snow shovel stood propped against the railing. The ground was bare, but the shovel was ready for the next accumulation.

  Cole inserted the key and pushed open the door. A high-pitched tone met our entry. He punched in his security code to disarm the alarm.

  The entryway was polished parquet, out of date but clean and well cared for. Beyond was an expanse of beige carpet with fresh vacuum lines that stretched into a simply furnished living room. The couches were tan leather. The coffee table was a standard furniture store special made of oak with a beveled glass top. A stone fireplace took up most of one wall. Above it hung an impressive set of antlers and a few framed photographs I couldn’t make out from the entryway. There was no TV. It was a formal living room, but formal in the way a bachelor would do formal. It had all the basics, but no decoration to make it welcoming. No throw rugs or blankets, no pillows on the couch. Not even any Christmas decorations. In fact, it didn’t look lived in. Did he have a den like Dad, a sort of man cave for his entertainment system and shelves of DVDs? A room where he could get comfortable, toss back some beers and enjoy himself?

  “Do I get the grand tour?” I asked, eager to see more of how Cole lived. If his living room was anything to go by, he wasn’t overly concerned with appearances, but he took pride in his home and appreciated tidiness and cleanliness. In that way, he was very different from Dad.

  “How about after we talk with Glenmore?”

  I nodded. My fascination with Cole’s house could wait. “Shoes off?” I asked as he slipped my coat off and hung it in the nearby coat closet.

  “Nah. Unless you’d be more comfortable.” He hung his parka up and started to walk away.

  I grabbed his arm. “We’ve been walking around on soot,” I reminded him, toeing off my Mary Janes.

  “You’re right. Probably a good idea to take them off, then.” He stooped to unlace his fashionable but unfussy dress shoes.

  We faced each other in the entryway, unshod, smiling uncertainly.

  “You want some coffee?” he asked.

  “Sure.” It would keep me awake, but I had a feeling it was going to be a while before I got to sleep anyway. Once my head hit the pillow, I’d have a lot to process. It had been quite the day.

  On the way to the kitchen, we passed a flight of carpeted stairs that was open to the dining room along one side. I glided my fingers over the tiger-paw end of the oak banister.

  Growing up in a mobile home, I’d always dreamed of living in a house with stairs. Homes with two stories had always seemed magical to me. I used to entertain fantasies of sliding down a wooden banister like this one or sending a Slinky down end over end. Simple fantasies, but impossible ones since Dad would never have entertained moving from the property that was so convenient to his business. Maybe my fascination with two-story structures was the reason I’d loved being in Dad’s shop so much. That had never been home, though. The shop had always been Dad’s domain. I’d felt tolerated there at best.

  Cole flicked on the lights to reveal a dated but clean kitchen. The appliances were white, the countertops beige laminate. A cooking island with a chest-high breakfast bar bracketed one end of the room. At the other was a square wooden table with some mail scattered on it. The space was bright and open and about four times larger than the kitchen in Dad’s trailer. The ceilings were high enough that Cole didn’t appear in danger of banging his head on the light fixtures.

  “I like your house,” I said.

  He smiled big and genuine. His eyes were warm. “Glad you like it, honey, because it’s your home for as long as you’re in town.”

  Gah. He gave me the warm fuzzies. When he looked at me like that, used that tender tone with me, I melted. I hauled myself up onto a barstool lest I turn into a puddle of goo on the linoleum.

  The movement of his muscles under his dress shirt as he measured out ground coffee from a can mesmerized me. For a minute there, I’d forgotten he had something to tell me about Dad, something relating to the safe. “You mentioned earlier you had more to tell me?” I ventured. “Things about Dad?”

  His shoulders stiffened. After starting the coffee maker, he met my eyes, looking weary again. I couldn’t begin to guess what it was he had to tell me, but I hated seeing him stressed.

  “Would it help if I promised not to get upset, no matter what it is?”

  Leaning on the counter, he looked at me skeptically.

  “I appreciate you wanting to give me time to rest, I guess, in between telling me things. That’s sweet. Really. But you don’t need to, you know.” I hopped off the stool and went to him, wrapping my arms around his waist to bring us chest to stomach. Good grief, he was tall. I loved the way I had to crane my neck to look up at him when I was this close. “I see you carrying this weight, and all I can think is that I want to share it with you, even if it’s unpleasant.”

  His body went from wound up to relaxed. I didn’t know if it was my words or my touch that did that to him, but I liked the feeling of power, like I had some control over this large, strong man, like maybe he was a little helpless where I was concerned.

  “I saw how you seemed lighter after telling me about that motorcycle gang and the bust and the…videos. If I can handle that, I can handle anything. I want to handle it, for you. So, just tell me everything. Don’t hold back. Let me share this burden with you. I can take it.”

  He sighed and kissed my temple. “You’re amazing. You know that?”

  I shivered at the kiss. And the praise.

  After a rub of his stubbled cheek along my hair, he said, “Come on. I’ve got something to show you.” Arm around my shoulders, he steered me to a hallway that ran behind the kitchen and stairs. He opened a door and turned on a light. It was a set of stairs going down into a basement. “My safe’s down here. I got one like your dad. Have some guns in there. And something you need to see.”

  Between the water heater and the washer and dryer was a six-foot safe. He worked the combination and pulled the door open an inch. “I told you how your dad did work for the MC.”

  “I remember.”

  His gaze cut to mine. “They paid him for the work. He didn’t want the money, but he didn’t refuse it, either. He took it to pacify them but never spent it. It was dirty money.”

  He had a question in his eyes, asking if I understood. I nodded. I didn’t like the thought of my dad accepting dirty money, but I supposed I was glad he hadn’t spent it.

  Cole swung the door open. He stooped and unzipped a duffel bag. I stepped up beside him and peered inside the bag. Bundles of cash filled the thing like something out of a bank robbery. It had to be thousands upon thousands of dollars.

  “That’s the money?”

  He nodded. “Almost four hundred thousand.”

  “Whoa.” That was a lot of money. I frowned. “What’s it doing in your safe?”

  “You remember I was with your dad when he passed?”

  “Yeah.” My eyes got hot. I cleared my throat. “I remember.”

  “I didn’t know about the money until then. He only told me after I let him know the MC was taken down, that they weren’t a threat to you anymore.” He stood from his squat but didn’t straighten to his full height. He leaned toward me in that way of his that made me feel protected. “He asked me to get the money out of the safe and hand it over to the FBI. With him gone, they obviously wouldn’t be able to charge him with wrongdoing. He gave me the combination and told me to keep you out of it. He didn’t want this money to touch you in any way.”

  I blinked. Dad had never wanted me to know about this money. I’d never wanted him to know about my assault. Neither of us
had gotten our wish. I was glad he wasn’t here to experience the disappointment and to see what had become of his house, his cherished collectibles.

  Which had been in the safe along with this money.

  Oh. It all came together.

  “But it did touch me,” I said. “The fire.” Cole had told me the fire was probably to cover the tracks of whoever broke into the safe. “This is what they were after, isn’t it?”

  “Smart girl.” He rubbed his hand up and down my arm.

  “When did you get it out? Before I got into town?”

  He shook his head. “Remember Saturday, when we planned your dad’s funeral? You took a phone call in your room.”

  I felt my eyes widen. “You snuck it out while I was in my room?”

  His ears turned red. “I hated doing it behind your back. Wouldn’t have done that if your dad hadn’t asked. Forgive me?”

  My brain had to reprocess that morning of funeral planning. I’d never suspected Cole might have been up to anything behind my back. It felt strange. A little bad.

  “Is that why you came by the morning after I got back in town?” I asked, a heavy hurt welling in my chest. I’d thought he’d wanted to extend his friendship and support, but all that time, he’d been waiting for an opportunity to get the money out of Dad’s safe. “And the funeral planning session? It was all about the stupid money?”

  “No,” he quickly denied. “I mean, yes and no.” He shook his head, agitated. “The morning after you got back, yes. Your dad gave me that combination, and I figured it was to the safe up in the shop. I told you I was checking to make sure no one had broken in, and I did check for that. But I was looking for this too.” He stabbed the bag with his toe. “But the combination didn’t work. I didn’t know Grip kept a safe in the house. I saw it the first time on Saturday, after I came over to help you with the funeral stuff. I wanted to do that. Wanted to spend time with you. Yeah, I still needed to figure out where the money was, but I wasn’t going to work on that problem until after the funeral. Then you opened the safe to get Grip’s military records and there was the bag, up high on a shelf. You never even looked at it, so I didn’t think you’d miss it. I was going to tell you once the funeral was well behind us.”

  His sincere tone pacified my hurt, but knowing he’d been duplicitous that first morning irked me, even if he had good reason. I took a step away from him, needing space, needing to think.

  The doorbell rang.

  “That’ll be Glenmore,” Cole said. He closed and locked the safe. “I thought you might be upset about the money because it should technically belong to you. With the will out of the picture, everything your dad had goes to you. That thought never even crossed your mind, did it? That you might want the money.”

  Stunned, I shook my head. It hadn’t. Dad might have earned it, but he’d thought of it as dirty money. He hadn’t wanted me to have anything to do with it and hadn’t spent a dime. That made me proud of him. How many people would have been able to resist spending that money?

  He held out his hand. “Come on. Let’s tell the chief about this. It might shed light on the arson.”

  I took Cole’s hand. As we left the basement together, Cole’s choice of words sank in. “With the will out of the picture...” That made it sound as if Cole knew there had been a will, just like Tooley had insisted.

  Cole left me in the kitchen to go answer the door. I heard him exchanging greetings with Glenmore, but I wasn’t listening. I was remembering what Max had said after everyone had left Dad’s shop and it was just me and him. I think we both know there’s no reason to mention Officer Plankitt was up here yesterday.

  I gasped. Could Cole have destroyed Dad’s will?

  He strode into the kitchen with Glenmore behind him and headed for the coffee pot.

  He had essentially lied to me the morning he’d gone up to check the security of Dad’s shop. He’d been looking for that money. What if he’d been looking for the will too? What if he’d destroyed it to get back at Tooley for being fired?

  My heart raced as I considered the possibility. An hour ago, I never would have entertained the thought. In fact, when Max had suggested we keep Cole’s presence in Dad’s shop to ourselves, I’d thought nothing of it. Of course Cole hadn’t tampered with Dad’s will. He’d been doing me a favor, looking out for my safety and the safety of Dad’s business. But he hadn’t. Not really.

  Cole put a mug in front of me. “You like milk or sugar?” he asked.

  I couldn’t bring myself to meet his gaze. I did like milk and sugar, but I didn’t want anything from him at the moment. I didn’t want his coffee. I didn’t want to be in his house. I felt betrayed.

  “Mandy?” he asked. I heard the concern in his voice.

  I shook my head, still not looking at him.

  “Babe? What’s going on?”

  I stared at the breakfast bar and felt my eyes well with tears.

  “Shit.” He glanced at Glenmore. “Can I meet you in the living room in a minute?”

  I heard the chief’s footsteps retreat back the way they’d come.

  Cole rested a hand on my shoulder.

  I shrugged it off and nudged the coffee away.

  He bent his head to meet my eyes.

  Tears slipped down my cheeks. “It was you,” I said. “You destroyed Dad’s will.”

  Cole hissed in a breath. He glanced over my shoulder, the way Chief Glenmore had gone. “Jesus, honey. You’re too smart for your own good.”

  Anger stopped my tears. He’d as good as confessed it. How dare he? Not only had he betrayed me, but he’d also betrayed Dad by destroying the last record of his wishes.

  “How could you?” I kept my voice to a whisper, mindful of the chief of police in the next room and of the fact that tampering with a will was very, very illegal. But I didn’t bother disguising my rage. “You had no right. Since the minute I got back in town you’ve been going behind my back and doing things without my knowledge. Dad’s funeral. Getting that money out of the safe. God, Cole, you’ve been lying to me the whole time I’ve been back.”

  The emotions that passed over his face surprised me. Shock. Fear. Dread. There and gone. His features went hard as stone, hiding whatever was going on inside.

  “Never meant to hurt you,” he said. “Or mislead you.” His hands opened and closed at his sides, like he wanted to reach for me but was holding himself back. “We’re going to talk about this, but I’ve got Chief Glenmore in there, and he needs to hear about that money so he can work on finding your arsonist. Hopefully find your dad’s guns, yeah?”

  He’d stressed chief, as if I’d expose him for his crime without hearing his side. I was incensed, but I wasn’t about to get him in trouble, not without hearing him out first. Maybe we could salvage this situation. If Dad had truly wanted Tooley to get the gun business, maybe we could figure out how to make that happen without a signed will.

  “Don’t worry. I’m not going to say anything.” I cut my eyes toward the living room. “Go on. Tell him about the money.”

  “You don’t want to come?”

  I shook my head and slipped my phone from my purse. I pulled up my app for cab services.

  “What are you doing? Who are you calling?”

  “I’m not staying here. I’m calling a cab. I’ll find a motel for the night.” Plaistow had plenty of amenities, but I couldn’t remember seeing any motels along the main strip. I would call a cab first then do a search for rooms to rent. I might have to go as far as Haverhill across the Mass border, or Exeter if I went north instead of south. I’d figure it out, but I couldn’t do it with Cole breathing down my neck.

  “Jesus. Stop. Just stop.” He put a hand over my phone.

  I yanked it away. “No, you stop. I need space, Cole.” I was breathing heavily. I felt panic rising. If he pressed, I worried I might scream. Even in my upset state, I recognized that would be over-the-top. Cole wouldn’t hurt me. Not physically
, anyway. Unfortunately, he had the power to hurt me in other ways, ways I could have protected myself from if I’d kept him at a distance like a smart person.

  Cole held his hands up, non-threatening. His eyes looked as panicked as I felt. “Please. Don’t go. I can explain about the will. Please give me that chance.”

  I shook my head, backing away from him. I liked him. Probably more than liked him. But he’d let me down and abused my trust. I had to get away, needed time to think. “I can’t. I have to go.” I took my phone and purse and headed for the front door. When I made it into the living room, I nodded at Chief Glenmore.

  He fixed alert eyes on me. How much had he heard? I’d raised my voice at the end there. Crap. Glenmore probably thought I was out of my mind.

  “I’m sorry,” I told him. “I can’t stay. But if you have a pen, I’ll jot down my number so you can get in touch with me. And of course, I’ll stop by the station tomorrow.”

  I felt Cole come in close behind me. The hairs on the back of my neck rose, and it wasn’t with fear or panic. My body liked having him nearby. If anything, his presence soothed me. I was confused. I needed time to sort out how I felt.

  “I’ll give him your info,” Cole said behind me.

  I didn’t turn to face him.

  A pair of keys appeared over my shoulder, dangling from a large, pale finger. “Don’t call a cab. Take my truck. Call me when you settle in someplace. I want to know you’re okay.”

  I turned around to find his face as intense as ever, but his eyes were sad. Vulnerable. Ouch. Seeing him like this hurt worse than realizing he’d lied to me about Dad’s will. I bit back an urge to apologize for my mini-rant in the kitchen.

  “Take them,” he said, pressing the keys into my hand. “Hold on a sec, okay?”

  I pulled on my coat while he jogged up the stairs. A minute later he returned with a laptop and charger. “This might come in handy. Use it if you need to check email or buy stuff online or whatever. Tomorrow we’ll go shopping to replace whatever you need, okay? Don’t worry about money. Your dad had insurance. It might take a while, but we’ll sort all this out. Just, God, please be safe tonight.”