Heart's Refuge (Lucky Numbers)

by Cheryl Harper

  Will picked up the paper. “Almost all of it.” He shook his head. “Did you skip second grade or something? I’ve never seen writing this bad.”

  Sarah reached over to snatch the list out of his hands. “I thought you wanted it quickly. I’ll type it up for you.”

  “Next time. Do you need me to show you how to work that computer?”

  “My handwriting’s bad. That doesn’t mean I’m dumb.” She rolled her eyes and marched out of his office.

  Caught off guard, Will froze half out of his chair and replayed their exchange in his head.

  “Nope. Still don’t follow.” Did he care why she’d jumped to the wrong conclusion? Considering the many and varied insults she’d heaped on him when they were kids, he should let her hold on to it.

  Her ego could withstand a poke or two.

  When he caught himself peeking at her around the door frame, he knew something had to be done.

  Get out of this office before you lose what common sense you have left.

  “Chloe, you up for a walk?” He eased around Sarah, who turned away to stare out the window, and tapped Chloe’s shoulder. When she reluctantly removed the headphones, he said, “Let’s go see Brenda.”

  Chloe immediately turned back with a disgusted huff, saved her game and closed the window showing a knight standing on a castle wall. “I’m not a baby. I can stay here by myself.”

  He had a feeling this was the whole issue with Chloe, currently manifesting itself as bright pink hair. She wasn’t a baby anymore, but he still had a hard time letting her go anywhere by herself.

  “Sure, but Brenda will need the help with the morning rush.” Sometimes that worked, explaining it was about someone else needing help instead of babysitting.

  Chloe narrowed her eyes at him, glanced over at Sarah and stood. “Some vacation this is.”

  She was out on the sidewalk before he could tell her to wait. Chloe pointed at the concrete and stepped to a spot framed by the window where he could keep an eye on her.

  Sarah moved quickly to take the seat behind the desk. “Phone rings. I take a message. Otherwise, I’ll work on the request for Rebecca. Good luck with...everything.”

  Will wanted to ask if she meant his clients or his daughter.

  Then he realized it was clear which relationship he needed more luck with. But Sarah would not be the person he turned to for advice on how to deal with Chloe. “Okay. It’s got a password. You can use admin and that will get you access to whatever you might need.”

  Her shoulders drooped. “Oh, okay. Thanks.”

  Determined not to ask a hundred questions to make sure Sarah Hillman was going to be all right, Will reached behind her and pulled out the big binder.

  “You’ll find notes on answering the phone and greeting people who come in without appointments in here.” He flipped the binder open to the first section.

  Sarah still avoided his gaze when she turned to scan the short outlines. “Wow. Thorough.”

  Since his last, short-lived assistant had called it something less flattering, he had an idea what she really meant. The heat washing his cheeks annoyed him.

  “We’re dealing with people’s money. There are laws. I want to make sure I can document every single communication. That’s all.” The binder was overkill. He didn’t care. This was his career.

  He wasn’t going to apologize.

  “I get it.” She shook her head. “Making sure every person who works with you is on the same page is important.” Finally, she peeked up at him. “Whether you’re running an animal shelter with a bunch of volunteers who come and go as they please or dealing with...a temporary employee manning the phones. We’ve got a binder at Paws for Love, too. Not like this, but that’s on my list of things to do. I’m pretty good with checklists and procedures, Will. I get it.”

  And she wasn’t going to make fun of him because of it.

  Sarah Hillman...a checklist fan?

  That was enough to make his head hurt if he thought about it for too long.

  Sarah turned away to enter the password and the computer dinged in response. She bit her fingernail while the machine whirred, and when the screen lit up with a nearly blank desktop, she relaxed against the chair. “Now, then. Everything is set. No worries.”

  “Okay. I’ll see you later.” He waved the list and stepped out onto the sidewalk. The day was bright with warm sunshine and blue skies. A perfect Texas morning.

  And instead of staring at it from the fortieth floor of a Dallas skyscraper, he was...holding up sidewalk traffic in the sleepy downtown of Holly Heights.

  Life could take some unexpected turns.

  But the air was fresher here, even if the woman he’d stepped out in front of huffed in disgust on her way around him.

  “What’s the holdup?” Chloe fidgeted with her ponytail, removing the long pink hank she’d clipped in that morning to shove it in her purse. “I could go for some breakfast.”

  She thought about her stomach a lot. It was one of the qualities that made it clear they were related. Watching her march toward the diner reminded him of how he’d carefully followed behind her across the living room floor when she took her first steps.

  Then the toe of her sneaker caught on a raised edge in the sidewalk. She tripped but regained her balance quickly. Was it a sign that she was catching up to her growth spurt, the ability to avoid a tough fall?

  And now, while he was strolling down memory lane, she was standing with one hand on the diner’s door, a frown wrinkling her brow. “Are you dawdling?” Her reflexes were improving. So was her vocabulary.

  “Dawdling?” Will caught up. “Yes, I believe I was. Could you define that word for me?”

  Chloe snorted. “Dragging your feet. Brenda uses it to say she’s got another job for me when I spend too much time at the video game. You use it to warn me about stranger danger on the sidewalk. I pick things up, you know?”

  He’d probably gotten it from Brenda, too. She was a solid believer in being busy. Everyone should be busy.

  “Good one.” Will shook his head and spotted a guy who seemed to be following them. When he looked directly at the guy, who was dressed in a button-down and dark pants, the man cut across the street to head into the shop on the corner.

  But Will was pretty sure he’d been somewhere in the background when he’d stepped out of his office.

  Weird.

  Holly Heights was a small town, where everyone knew everyone else.

  In Dallas, he never would have noticed the guy.

  Paranoia. With one last check over his shoulder, Will followed his daughter into the diner.

  His mother would have launched into a cool dance of guilt and pleasure at seeing him.

  Brenda had no time for anything other than honest emotion. She wrapped one arm around his neck and juggled the coffeepot in the other.

  “I wondered when you’d slow down enough for a hot breakfast,” she said as she hugged him. “Always such a go-getter. You haven’t changed a bit, and your daughter? She’s a chip off the old block, winning at the video game, clearing tables and earning tips. She’s a Barnes through and through. Come in. Sit down.”

  Brenda steered him to a spot at the long counter, grabbed a cup and poured more blessed coffee inside, then jotted down an order and shoved it through the window. “Order up. Make it good. This is family.”

  Any other place, he might have worried that he’d given her no order.

  But he trusted Brenda.

  “Tell me how it’s going. Chloe here says you work twenty-four hours a day.” Brenda rested a hip against the counter. “Wouldn’t expect anything less.”

  Uncomfortable with the cold, hard truth, Will slanted his eyes at Chloe, who immediately headed for the line of old-school video game machines along the wall.

  When he noticed the same guy outside the window, this time staring down at his phone, Will pointed over his shoulder. “Do you recognize that guy, Brenda?”

  She craned her neck t
o study the man on the sidewalk. “Nope. Probably looking for one of the businesses down on the corner. Some people have trouble with the address, the whole North Main versus South Main thing.” Brenda waved a hand. “If he comes in, I’ll give directions. Do it at least once a day. Now dish, Will.”

  Ignoring the man was his best move for now. “Well, thanks to the town’s lottery winners, I’ve got some projects to work on. Rebecca insists on giving all of her winnings away, but Stephanie and Jen are as determined that nobody takes advantage of her or her good nature. And for my sake, I want to use the money to make more money.” He smiled at Brenda. “Job security.”

  At the tinny rattle of a bell, Brenda turned to grab two plates and slid them onto the counter. Chloe abandoned her video game and settled next to him without a word. She wasn’t one to waste time on social convention when the food hit the table. Brenda pointed at Chloe’s bent head and mouthed, “Reminds me of you.”

  Will loved hearing that. Every single time.

  “You always were a smart cookie. I told Jenny she needed to call you, take you on these shopping sprees she insists on. But if you’ve always been smart, she’s always been stubborn.” Brenda sighed. “So, now she’s determined to buy a Toyota new—” Brenda whispered as if it was a dirty word “—and she’s looking at houses. You should talk some sense into her. That money’s nice but it won’t last forever, not at this rate.”

  Will thought about disappointing Brenda by telling her that he’d bought all of his own trucks new, mainly because he worked hard and he wanted something new, and if Jen had the same philosophy, who could blame her? Or he could explain that if she’d wanted to waste money, there were better choices than a reliable Toyota.

  Instead, he scooped up a forkful of eggs and shook his head consolingly as he chewed.

  When he’d cleared all the bacon and most of the eggs, he washed it all down with hot coffee and realized the diner had emptied while he was in a breakfast haze. And Brenda was watching him with a small smile. “Guess you were hungry.”

  Will realized he was hunched over the plate as if someone was going to take it from him and straightened as he folded his napkin. Chloe had started bussing tables. Every tip was carefully deposited in the big jar on the counter.

  “I’ve gotten tired of my own cooking. Frozen pizza. Microwave dinner. Alternate until you can’t remember what real food tastes like.” As a kid, he’d done pretty well at fending for himself, but as soon as he’d started making real money, he’d paid other people to cook for him through a variety of nice restaurants.

  The selection here in Holly Heights was severely limited.

  “Come to dinner. You can tell Jen why she needs to be more careful with this windfall. I’m sure she’ll appreciate your advice.” Brenda folded her towel and then blinked at him innocently. “Chloe needs real food, not frozen dinners.”

  Guilt. So much guilt. He appreciated Brenda’s confidence in his judgment. But praising him at Jen’s expense was not good. How could he tell Brenda to back off without disappointing her?

  She’d been his strongest family connection for years, even after she divorced his father and he moved to Dallas.

  Being a guilt-free stepson was hard. Being a guilt-free parent was impossible.

  Will rested his elbows on the counter and propped his chin on his hands. Stirring up old history wouldn’t accomplish much.

  “Are you avoiding dinner because of Jenny?” Brenda shook her head. “You kids need to bury the hatchet. You’re family.”

  They weren’t, not really. His father had married her mother and for five years they’d been thrown together, first during awkward summers and then in the same small house until he’d graduated. After the divorce, there wasn’t much holding them together.

  The jutting chin he’d often seen on Chloe’s face now showed on Brenda’s. “She hired you. Now take that inch and turn it into a mile. Isn’t that what you do? Talk to her. You’re the smartest person I know.”

  “With money, maybe. Not women who’ve never liked me.” When Brenda found out he was helping Sarah Hillman, surely even his biggest fan would change her mind about his wisdom.

  Brenda picked up the plate and slid it under the counter. “Wish I knew how to smooth things over. You’ve never done anything but try to help.”

  Will appreciated Brenda’s support. At some point, he’d probably have to track Jen down and make her explain the problem. Even when they were kids, her preferred method of dealing with him had been ducking him. She was fast, too.

  Now he had even less leverage. No one was dumping her backpack in the trash can during lunch. The Sarah Hillmans of the world had stopped screeching names like Raggedy Jen and Spots when she walked by. He’d once earned her nearly three weeks of blessed peace by helping Sarah’s group with a science fair project his junior year.

  Not that Jen had ever thanked him.

  Her normal response had been drop-dead glares. At this point, he’d be lucky if she stuck to ignoring his calls. She could actually afford a hit man now.

  “Come to dinner. When I invite you, show up. Jen will be there. You’ll wear her down with your charm and success. It’s that simple.” Brenda raised one eyebrow in her best gunslinger stare. “Besides, Chloe’s your ace. Jen never fails to mention a new photo on Chloe’s Facebook page.”

  After a quick glance to see that Chloe had returned to punching buttons on the video game in the corner, Brenda leaned forward to whisper, “When she saw the pink hair, I thought she was going to go for a matching stripe. I had to convince her pink and red would clash.” Brenda pursed her lips. “Of course, if any redhead could pull that off, it’s my girl. Never seen style like hers.” The pride in Brenda’s eyes was unmistakable.

  Will nodded. “Fine. I’ll do it. Name the time and Chloe and I are there. If you’ll let me take you out somewhere nice in exchange.”

  Brenda rolled her eyes. “You and Jenny. Both of you are determined to treat me like an old woman. I like to work, a fact I remind Jenny of loudly whenever the suggestion of quitting, living on her winnings, comes up, which is almost every time we talk. It does my soul good to have my kids seated at a table, eating what I’ve fixed. Why would you rob me of that?” She clasped both hands over her chest and blinked mournfully.

  “We want to take care of you.” An apology burned on the tip of his tongue...for not doing more while he’d been charging at high rollers in a big city hours away. But first, there had been his mother. Loyalty suggested he should put her first. Then Jen’s dislike was powerful. And he was lazy. Getting to Austin took time. So many excuses.

  He could definitely show up for an awkward dinner.

  Brenda sniffed. “Wash the dishes after dinner, same rules as always.” Then she arched an eyebrow. “But if you really want to make me happy, you could try inviting a nice girl, too.” Her singsong tone would have been cute if he had something to say in response.

  He watched Chloe scoot closer, as if she couldn’t quite hear the conversation. But he remembered what it was like dealing with new stepparents and siblings and how the holidays got so complicated. Adding a girlfriend into the mix would be a high-stress maneuver. He already had more women in his life than he knew what to do with. Rebecca, Stephanie and Jen were keeping him busy.

  And then there was Sarah.

  Who was beautiful.

  But a mess.

  Being reminded of her made him wonder about Brenda’s opinion on the Bobby Hillman situation.

  And whether or not the diner ever made donations to area organizations like Paws for Love.

  Which he was definitely not fund-raising for. At all.

  Nope, he was doing dumbly heroic things like making electricity payments and calling in favors.

  “What do you know about Bobby Hillman? His embezzlement.” Will sipped his coffee and then held the cup out for a refill.

  “That’s quite a left fielder. What makes you ask?” Brenda filled his cup and returned the coffeepot to the warmer
.

  “Uh, well, his daughter, Sarah, has asked me for some help with a charity. I was surprised a Hillman would need to ask for help with anything.”

  Brenda crossed her arms over her chest. “Half the town’s convinced she’s in on the plan, whatever it is. Can’t imagine a man like Bobby—who doted on his kid—abandoning her, especially if she was involved. I know she’s hanging in there. Some ladies scour the resale shop for her things, and they can name where Sarah wore or carried almost every item.” Brenda sighed. “She never did work harder than she had to, but she was a beautiful little girl. Wish she’d had better direction growing up.”

  Brenda shook her head sadly. She’d always been able to find the good in everyone, even the girl who’d sent her daughter home in tears at least once a week for all of tenth grade.

  “Heard much about the shelter? Good or bad?”

  Brenda started to say something but changed her mind. Then she bustled around the counter and gave him a hug. “The only thing I know for sure is that a lot of people are mad at the Hillmans. Some folks have good reason, but I feel sorry for her. You do your best to take care of those animals.”

  “But keep away from the girl?” Will frowned. What difference did the answer make? He was too smart to fall for her.

  “Well,” Brenda said slowly, “I’d say be careful with the girl. She’s got some baggage you might not want to lug around, you know?”

  That was pretty good advice. If he thought about what Sarah had convinced him to do in the few days she’d strutted back into his life, he knew she was dangerous.

  “Thanks, Brenda,” Will said as he dropped a bill on the counter large enough to include a sizable tip. She narrowed her eyes at him but didn’t argue.

  He pointed at Chloe and Brenda nodded. “We’ve got this down to a fine art, don’t we, Chloe?”

  His daughter dropped onto the stool. “Yes, ma’am. You want me to wrap some silverware?”

  Brenda set a tray down. “Yes, ma’am. You want a share of my tips?”

  Will thought about arguing, but Brenda waved him off.