It Had to Be Love (An It Had to Be Novel)

by Tamra Baumann

  Tara chuckled and waited for the back door to close. “Ryan told you about us, then, I take it?”

  Ruth nodded. “I called him earlier about something else and he told me. Can’t quite figure out how the same woman who was so excited to make Ryan a meal one day could turn around and tell him to hit the road the next.”

  “Circumstances changed. And it’s because I care about him that I want what’s best for him, Ruth. If Jake had asked you to go on the run with him after he’d robbed the bank, would you have gone?”

  “I’ll tell you something I’ve never told anyone, Tara. He’d asked me to move away with him. Away from my family and friends and the only life I’d ever known. I was so infatuated with him I didn’t hesitate.” She shook her head and sighed. “Jake said he had an errand to run and to be ready to go. I had my bags packed, all ready to jump into his spiffy car, but he never came for me. He took off the opposite way so fast it broke my heart. He’d never planned to take me along. He’d just used me to get what he wanted and then he left me behind like yesterday’s trash on the side of the road. I found out later he’d had me pack because we’d been evicted for not paying the rent.”

  “I’m sorry for that. But in the end, isn’t it better that he broke your heart and left you behind rather than endanger your life or your freedom?”

  Ruth frowned. “Just what are we really talking about here with your circumstance, Tara? Surely nothing as bad as robbing banks?”

  “As dangerous, but very different.” What would it hurt to say a little without specific details? She’d be gone for good in a few days anyway. “I have things going on I can’t share with you. But it wouldn’t be fair to saddle Ryan with my problems. Just like it wouldn’t have been right for Jake to take you with him.”

  “We’ll never know, I guess, but maybe you should let Ryan decide if he wants to jump in the getaway car with you. Unless it’s really that you’re the one afraid to take a chance on another man and be brokenhearted again?”

  She was scared she would fall for the wrong man again and get her heart broken. “It’s a little of both, I guess.”

  “You already don’t look all that happy about the breakup to me, so maybe you should rethink that last part.” Ruth stood and leaned on her cane before she bellowed, “Eric, time to go!”

  Eric and Sherlock quickly reappeared.

  Ruth asked, “So, we still on for tomorrow night for the big dig? We’ll meet up at my house just before sunset. I might have a few more ideas by then. But I’ll leave you two to do the digging.”

  Eric said, “I’m in!”

  Ruth’s lips tilted into one of her rare smiles as she turned to Eric. “I have a good feeling about this. You ask anyone in town and they’ll tell you I’m always right—even when I’m not.” She winked at Tara and headed for the door. “Come on, Eric. Be a gentleman and walk an old lady to her doorstep.”

  Tara beat them to the front door and held it open for them. Feeling like she was about to lose a best friend she said, “Ruth, thanks for everything. The stories you told tonight only confirm you’re the scariest and yet most amazing woman I’ve ever met.”

  Ruth laughed. “I like the scariest part. I work on that, you know.” She suddenly stopped walking and glanced over her shoulder. “Wait a minute. That sounded an awful lot like a goodbye, Tara. You going somewhere?”

  She hadn’t meant to tip her hand like that. Her emotions were getting the better of her.

  Before she could reply, Eric said, “You never know when you might never see a person again. That’s why we made the deal. I’m taking Sherlock for Tara in case something happens to her, and she’s helping me look for the whiskey so I can pay my own way through college.”

  Ruth’s eyes narrowed at Tara. “That’s some pretty detailed planning ahead, now isn’t it? Got your bags all packed waiting for the getaway car, Tara?”

  “My parents don’t like pets, so I’d have no one to take Sherlock in, that’s all. And I was just thanking you for teaching me how to make dinner the other night. Ryan really loved it.”

  Ruth slowly nodded. “Well, I hope you’re not planning to do something dumb, Tara. That always messes things up. So will I see you tomorrow?”

  Dammit. Ruth saw right through her. Must be where Ryan got it from. “Yes. I can promise you’ll see me tomorrow.” But she couldn’t make any promises after that.

  She hated to leave and have everyone think she didn’t care about them. She’d found her true home in Anderson Butte. It killed her to think of leaving it and everyone behind.

  Especially Ryan.

  The next evening after work Tara walked into the diner, taking an extra-long look around. She memorized each detail so she could revisit the place in her mind on one of the long, cold, wintery nights that was surely in her future. She smiled when her gaze landed on the booth where she’d had her first sort-of date with Ryan.

  Her mind kept going back to the question Ruth had asked her. If she could have Ryan—which she never could, for his own safety—but if she could, would she risk her heart again? She’d been so fooled by Spencer’s charms, like Ruth had with her bank robber, she’d actually fallen in love with him. Or was it just infatuation? They hadn’t known each other all that long. That’s what scared her the most. Could she trust her heart’s desires?

  Gloria called out a greeting and waved. Tara lifted a hand in return and then slipped into her favorite booth. It was unlikely her next home would have as warm and welcoming a place for someone new in town to have dinner by themselves without feeling alone. She’d never realized it until then, but that was how she’d always felt about coming to Gloria’s to eat. Maybe that’s why she hadn’t been in any hurry to learn to cook for herself until she’d met Ryan?

  “Hiya, Tara.” Gloria slid into the booth across from her. “Sorry to hear about you and Ryan. I placed a bet on you winning out over Sarah.”

  That was sweet. “Sorry you’re out the cash.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t care about the money. I care about you. I’m rarely wrong when it comes to stuff like this. And just so you know, Ryan came in for dinner last night. He’s driving Sarah to Denver tomorrow because he needed to go for a job interview anyway, just in case you hear different. I’m hoping you and Ryan can still work things out.” She slid out of the booth and started to walk away, but then stopped. “Look at me. So flustered I forgot to take your order. What’ll you have?”

  It warmed her soul that Gloria sensed Tara’s true feelings for Ryan. And that’d she care enough to try to help them stay together. “Gloria, you have the biggest heart in town and I hope you’ll find someone to share it with again soon. Are you dating anyone?”

  Gloria smiled. “I have a few gentlemen callers now and again, but I’m pretty much married to the diner. And all my regulars here are like my children. I’m happy and content. Now, what can I get you?”

  A serving of happy and content would be great, but Tara gave that up when she’d screwed up and married Spencer. “Whatever the special is will be fine, Gloria. Thanks.”

  Gloria shoved a pencil into her tall hair, then gave Tara’s forearm a gentle squeeze. “Hope it all works out, sweetheart.”

  Yeah, she did too. But the most she could hope for was that the people in her new town would be half as welcoming and caring as the people in Anderson Butte.

  After she finished her meal, she walked to the store to pick up some dog treats so Eric would know the kind Sherlock liked the best. She tugged open the door to the general store and made her way to the pet food aisle.

  A gravelly voice she didn’t recognize called out, “Evenin’, Tara.”

  She turned to find Fred waving at her from the register. She picked up the box of treats and then headed his way. “Hi, Fred. Got a cold, huh?”

  He coughed into the crook of his elbow and nodded. “That’s why I was hunting for Doctor Ander
son’s number yesterday on my phone but I hit Doctor Carter instead. Sorry about that.”

  So it was Fred who’d called? Not someone working for Spencer? Had she panicked too soon? “No worries. I hope you feel better soon. I don’t need a bag.”

  “Thanks, Tara. Have a good evening.”

  “You too.”

  She walked slowly out of the store while considering her hasty decision to leave. As she wandered across Town Square, she detoured to the bandstand that stood in the middle and sat on the steps. Had she been too quick to pull the trigger based on fear? She already regretted her decision to leave.

  She took in the tidy buildings that stood so straight and neat around the square. Drawing in a deep breath, she held the scent of hundred-year-old pines in her lungs until her chest burned for release. Another memory she’d always have.

  No. Leaving was for the best. But in the next town she would not make the same mistake of trusting anyone with the truth again. Look what that’d gotten her. A broken heart.

  She glanced up and spotted Ryan slowly walking down the steps from his office, headed her way. Dressed in his uniform, he looked so handsome it made her smile. But when his eyes locked with hers, her stomach clenched.

  It pained her to look him in the eye knowing how much she’d hurt him.

  “Hi.” He sat on the step beside her. “What are you doing?”

  “Nothing. Well, maybe just saying goodbye to the town.”

  “So it’s official?”

  As much as she wanted to blurt out how badly she wished she could stay and how she didn’t want to go to Alaska, she only nodded.

  He laid a hand on her thigh and gave a soft squeeze.

  That unspoken gesture of support for her troubles clogged her throat with emotion.

  He said, “We need to talk about this. I’m not ready—”

  “Ryan, please don’t.” Tears welled in her eyes. “I have to leave. End of story. I just hope one day you’ll be able to forgive me for hurting you.”

  “I just . . .” His jaw clenched like it did whenever he was annoyed. “So there’s nothing that would change your mind?”

  She could only shake her head. Her throat was so constricted words couldn’t possibly squeeze past the lump that had formed.

  He huffed out a breath and pointed to the dog treats. “What will happen to Sherlock when you go?”

  She managed to clear her throat enough to whisper, “Eric said he’d take care of him for me.”

  “Could I keep him?”

  Tara turned and met his steady gaze. “Really?”

  “I’ll need a friend when I move to Denver.” He smiled weakly. “And he’d always remind me of you.”

  That did it. The dam burst and tears slowly dripped down her cheeks. That he’d love Sherlock and think of her when she was gone moved her beyond reason. “Thank you, Ryan. I’d like that very much.” She slid her arms around his shoulders and snuggled her face into the warm crook of his neck, breathing in his unique, sexy, intoxicating scent—another memory to tuck away in her heart forever.

  She whispered, “I’ll never forget you, Ryan.”

  “I’ll never forget you either.” He gave her a tight squeeze.

  She held on for another few moments, relishing that small dose of happiness and contentment only he seemed to be able to give her, before reluctantly releasing him.

  He cleared his throat. “My grandmother called and said I was to stay out of your hair tonight. Good luck with the digging.” He stood and jammed his hands into his pockets. “I’ll be back from Denver on Friday evening, if you want to drop Sherlock off?”

  “Okay. Thanks, Ryan. For everything.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but then huffed out a breath and turned to go. “Goodbye, Tara.”

  “Bye.” She watched him slowly walk away, and out of her life. Forever. Unbearable sadness descended upon her at the thought of the rest of her life without him. She sat there numb with grief, while reliving that horrible conversation she’d had with Ryan in his office. And the lie she’d told him about never seeing a future with him. But she couldn’t bring the kind of trouble Spencer represented to Anderson Butte. The long line of Anderson sheriffs whose pictures hung outside of Ryan’s office had kept the town safe all these years.

  She smiled thinking that one day Ryan’s picture would hang right next to all the others who had served before him. He came from a long line of handsome men, the pictures on the walls proved that. And Ryan would age well, most likely. She wished she could have stuck around long enough to see for herself.

  Suddenly a brief flash of memory from the old pictures hanging in the hallway outside of Ryan’s office appeared. The bandstand she sat on was in the pictures. It had been there the whole time. Before paved streets. And it was located exactly in the middle of the town, according to the old newspaper articles she’d read. It provided shade and shelter, and wasn’t located too far west of the lake. She blinked as realization dawned. The box might be buried right there!

  She hopped up and stood at the south side of the structure. That was where they needed to dig. And she wasn’t going to wait for dark to do it. She didn’t care who saw them digging, she knew in her heart she was right. She grabbed her cell to call Eric. Hopefully he was about to become the wealthiest kid in town!

  After Eric agreed to meet her in ten minutes, Tara jogged home and changed into jeans and tennis shoes, then she grabbed the shovels that Ryan had lent them off the porch. She was tempted to ask Ryan to come too, so he could be a part of the fun, but thought better of it. It’d just prolong their painful goodbye.

  She jogged all the way to the bandstand, eager to start digging. When she got there Ruth and Eric were sitting on the steps waiting for her.

  “Hey, guys. Ready to dig?”

  Eric jumped up and grabbed the shovel Tara held out. “Yep. You’re right, Tara, this spot makes perfect sense.”

  The note Arthur had left said the box was buried about three feet deep, but the south side of the bandstand was at least ten feet wide. That was a big stretch. Should she start right in the middle? “Ruth, if you were going to bury a box at the south end of this bandstand, where would you bury it?”

  Mrs. Anderson stood and moved next to Tara. Looking over her shoulder, she said, “He was probably skulking around at night.” She looked up. “The closest street lamp is over there so I’d say on the opposite side of that, in the shadows by the steps.”

  Made sense. “Then that’s where we’ll start. Let’s do this, Eric!”

  She and Eric got busy. Three feet hadn’t sounded so deep until her shoulders and arms starting screaming in agony at about two feet. But they needed to hurry before they attracted too much attention, so after wiping the sweat from her brow, she kept going.

  When they got a little deeper, she slowed down, wanting Eric to be the one to see the box first. But by the time they were nearly four feet deep, they hadn’t found it. “Eric, I think this is the wrong place.” But where to dig next? Were they going to have to dig a ten-foot-long trench to find it?

  Tara looked over her shoulder and smiled at the onlookers they’d attracted.

  If that’s what it took, then they’d just have to do it. She and Eric quickly filled the hole back in, then tapped down the grass on top. Not perfect, but not a bad patch job.

  Zeke wandered up and stood next to her. “You know, old Arthur was a precise one. And the town doesn’t sit exactly true north. It sits a little catawampus to the west. If I had a compass I could show you.”

  Tara dug her phone from her back pocket. “I’m sure there’s an app for that—let’s check.”

  After she’d downloaded a compass app she handed the phone to Zeke. “Here you go.”

  Zeke chuckled as he scratched the stubble on his wrinkled chin. “Who’da ever thought a person could just pull a compass o
ut of thin air like that? Pretty slick.” He held the phone flat in his hand and walked to the middle of the south side of the bandstand. Tara looked over his shoulder as Zeke slowly walked to the right until the needle stood dead to the north. “And here you go. I’ll bet this is where you’ll want to dig.”

  The spot was a bit to the right of the center point. “Thanks, Zeke!” She and Eric quickly started in while the others cheered them on. They had about ten people lined up.

  Gloria called out, “Tara, we feel awful for not helping, but none of us want to risk our shares. Can I run back to the diner and get you guys some cold water or something?”

  “No, we’re fine, but thanks, Gloria.”

  The encouragement from the crowd fueled the excitement as she and Eric got closer. Only a few more inches and maybe they’d hit pay dirt.

  Fred called out, “The mayor’s coming, Tara!”

  Crap!

  “Eric, stop digging and lay the shovel down.”

  Eric quickly dropped the shovel and stuck his hands in his pockets.

  She turned around and waited as the mayor barreled his way through the crowd. “What the hell is going on here?”

  She lifted her chin, refusing to be intimidated by the bully. “I’m looking for the box your uncle hid.”

  He crossed his arms and leaned closer. “Just because you’re sleeping with my son doesn’t give you the right to disregard my rules!”

  She leaned even closer. “And just because you’re the mayor doesn’t give you the right to force people to live by your silly little made-up rules either!”

  A gasp went up from the crowd.

  Red slowly seeped up the mayor’s neck. “You listen here now, young la—”

  “That’s enough, Mitchell!” Mrs. Anderson moved by Tara’s side. “I asked Tara and Eric to dig for me because I’m too damned old to do it on my own. It’s me you need to be directing all that bluster to.”

  The mayor turned toward his mother. “You don’t think I’ll cut you off from the corporation just like anyone else in town, Mother? Because I will if you don’t stop this right now!”