by Angela Smith
Ice knifed through Winona at Naomi’s words, and she hesitated. Was something wrong? Had they already heard from the guys? Maybe Lillian had refused to hand over Amy. Or worse.
After Jake’s time in New York, he’d returned to Montana and prepped for Amy’s arrival. He and Garret had gone today, with Nick flying them to pick up Amy and bring her back. This morning, watching Jake and Garret load up in the plane, heaviness crept into her heart. An indescribable heaviness. Now she worried that unnamed anxiety was unraveling in real life.
“It’s Reagan,” Naomi continued. “She’s going crazy. Talking about leaving Garret. I need your help.”
“Be there in ten.”
Winona didn’t know what to think as she quickly dressed and headed to Reagan’s house on her motorcycle. Was Reagan still upset about Garret’s consideration of the job of police chief? As far as she knew, they had cleared the air and he hadn’t yet decided.
Or was she upset that Garret had taken part in this investigation with Amy and Lillian? Amy was to stay with them at their house so she wouldn’t have to stay in a hotel with Jake. They’d agreed to let Jake stay in the spare bedroom, so he could be with Amy. Maybe Reagan didn’t want them to.
Winona had offered to let them stay in her condo, but Jake’s only concern was to make Amy comfortable, and Winona had a feeling he didn’t want to give Amy the wrong idea about them being together.
Parking her bike, she walked up the sidewalk and knocked on the door. After no answer, she let herself in and headed to Reagan’s room.
Clothes were piled all over the bed, scattered across the floor. Suitcases were open with clothes strewn half in and half out. Reagan seemed to be trying to pack while Naomi counteracted her efforts by folding and hanging clothes.
“What’s going on?”
Naomi stopped to look at Winona, relief washing over her face as if Winona could fix this situation. Her attempt at a smile sagged. Reagan continued packing.
“Are you upset with me?” she asked Reagan.
Reagan scowled at her, but continued throwing clothes in her suitcase. “Of course not. Why would you think that?”
“Are you upset Amy is coming here to stay?”
“No!”
“Well, that’s what she’s going to think.”
Reagan stopped, her shoulders slumping. She plopped to the bed amidst the mound of clothes. Tears filled her eyes.
“I don’t want her to think that.”
“Well, she will.”
Reagan surveyed the room, her eyes wide, as if trying to decide what to do. Naomi remained quiet and let Winona be the one to talk sense to Reagan.
“She’s already shy about coming here,” Winona continued. “She’s been through so much with losing her dad, and her kidnapping.”
“I can’t stay here with Garret anymore,” Reagan said, her voice shaky.
“Why not?”
“I’m so upset. I mean, he promised me the only excitement he needed was in my arms, or on the slopes. Now he’s applying for police chief. We’ve been through enough danger before we married to last beyond a lifetime. More than most people could ever possibly go through. I want to live a simple life. I don’t want to go through any of that again. And I don’t want to go through the worry of something terrible happening while he’s at work.”
Naomi grabbed a box of tissues from the bathroom and settled next to Reagan. Winona fell into the bed beside them.
“He hasn’t applied yet,” Winona said. “He was approached and asked to consider it, but he hasn’t made up his mind.”
“Oh, I think he has. This whole thing with Lillian and Amy has spurred him on and he remembered how much he loved investigating crimes. He told me this morning he thinks he’ll at least put in his app. Even after I told him how I feel about it. Even after promising me that he never wanted that kind of life again.”
“I’m sorry. This is all my fault. But working as police chief is probably less dangerous than helping me in Jake’s situation. And less dangerous than skiing on these mountains.”
Reagan stared at her and blew her nose. “He’s just going to get Amy and bring her back for a couple of weeks. That’s hardly dangerous.”
“Don’t forget her father was murdered and she was there when it happened.”
Reagan’s face paled. “I haven’t forgotten,” she said softly.
“You’re being selfish,” Naomi asserted, earning a hard gaze from Reagan.
“How am I being selfish? My husband wants to run for sheriff and he hasn’t asked me my opinion, but I’m being selfish because I’m upset? I’m not allowed to have feelings about this? I’m selfish because I don’t want my husband to go back into that line of work and risk his life? Because my husband doesn’t feel safe talking to me about his plans, so goes behind my back? And I’m being selfish?”
“He isn’t running for sheriff. He’s applying for police chief.”
“Same thing.”
Naomi sat up and stared her cousin down. “It’s not at all the same thing.”
“It’s law enforcement,” Reagan said.
“You’re just going to leave your husband without telling him? He’s gone to get a little girl and you’ll let him come home and find you gone?”
“It’d serve him right. I could go visit my father.”
“Yes, Reagan, I’d say you’re being selfish. No, actually, you’re being a bitch. Haven’t you learned running away doesn’t do anything? Isn’t your relationship with Garret more important than that?”
“His relationship with me should be more important. But I’m not enough for him. He’s bored.”
“Maybe it’s you who is bored.”
Reagan launched a pillow at Naomi. Winona jumped from the bed. “Stop it, girls.” She started picking up the clothes from the bed and hung them as Naomi had been doing earlier. “If you leave, Amy will blame herself. Garret will come home, frantic to find you gone, and it will create a new set of nightmares for that child.”
Reagan blew her nose again as tears streamed down her face. Naomi gave her a side hug and continued to hold her. Silence stretched among them. Winona hoped Reagan would let unselfishness feed her, and she’d put aside her own wishes for now.
“Do you love him?” Winona finally asked.
“Of course I do. More than anything.”
“Then you can’t just give up.”
“I want a family. How can I have a family with someone who devotes his life to work and danger?”
“No one is promised tomorrow,” Winona said. “You knew who he was before you married him.”
“Yes, but he retired from law enforcement before I married him.”
“You’re supposed to stick with each other and triumph through changes.”
“That’s a bunch of hogwash.”
“So love is a bunch of hogwash?” Naomi interjected.
“No. But happily ever after is.”
Reagan wanted to feel like she was important in Garret’s decision, and she thought running away and him chasing her would reveal that importance. Or at least, that was how Winona saw it.
“You know he cares what you think,” Winona said. “Otherwise, he wouldn’t have told you. I’m sure he told you to get your opinion. Instead, I’m sure you froze up and refused to speak to him.”
“Jeez, you should have been a psychologist,” Reagan muttered.
“Oh, didn’t I tell you? I minored in psychology in college. It helps to know how humans think when you’re investigating them.”
Reagan gave her a long, hard look.
“I recommend next time,” Winona said, “you talk to him like a rational adult. Hear him out without reacting. Speak your mind without hurling out accusations and making him feel bad. That breeds resentment more than anything. He’ll appreciate your opinion if you learn to voice it the right way.”
“Yes, and I see you have a lot of experience in the relationship field,” Reagan snapped, but judging by the way her face fell, she reg
retted it. Winona didn’t take offense. She knew Reagan was upset and felt comfortable with her friends.
“Stop being a bitch, Reagan,” Naomi said. “You know she’s right.”
“Maybe I’m not married,” Winona continued. “Maybe I’ve never been engaged. But that doesn’t mean I don’t know the human mind.”
Reagan released a sigh, but Winona could tell her words worked.
“If you want to leave after this little girl goes home, leave after she goes home,” she continued. “But please, please don’t leave now. For her sake. For Jake’s sake. For my sake.”
Reagan sat another moment, eyeing Winona before she pushed Naomi aside and stood. “We’d better get these clothes put up and get this house clean before Amy gets here. And go shopping for kid food. Coloring books. Things like that.”
Naomi jumped up and started hanging clothes. Winona hugged Reagan.
“Thank you,” Winona said. “I appreciate it. And I know Jake does, too.”
The change that came over Reagan was magnificent. She blasted through the grocery store with a smile on her face and a newfound energy, choosing things she thought a seven-year-old would love. Three different coloring books, markers, crayons, colored pens and pencils.
“I’d love a bottle of wine,” Winona said wistfully.
“Grab one,” Naomi said.
“I can’t. I don’t feel right drinking with Jake around.”
“Oh yeah.”
“He doesn’t mind. I know he doesn’t. But I do.”
“That explains the mood,” Naomi said.
“We talk on the phone like teenagers when he isn’t around. We laugh, we joke, we make fun of you and Chayton.”
“That’s love, baby doll.”
“Speaking of baby dolls,” Reagan interrupted as she held up a doll wearing a strawberry-colored dress. “Do you think Amy will like this?”
Naomi grabbed it from her and shoved it in the cart. “Absolutely.”
“It’s not love,” Winona continued.
“Yeah, darling, it is.”
“Lust and love are totally different.”
“You can feel lust and love for the same man. And when you do, it’s absolutely awesome. That’s when you know he’s the one. Isn’t that right, Reagan?”
Reagan’s tight shoulders softened. “I suppose so.”
“Doesn’t mean it’s easy. Hell, Chayton and I wanted to kill each other when we professed our love for each other. Still do, almost every day. Or at least once a week.”
“That’s because you’re both stubborn asses,” Reagan said.
Naomi looked at Winona and winked. They continued their shopping and when Reagan approached the counter and started unloading groceries, Winona bent over, retrieved a box of cereal, and slammed it on the conveyor belt. Stress was starting to get to her, eating a hole in her stomach, making her head hurt, and here she was taking it out on the cereal.
Reagan pushed her aside. “Let it alone. I’ll do it.”
Winona stepped back, watching the groceries slide to the cashier, who hid a smile as she asked how they were doing today and if they found everything they needed. Winona tried to give Reagan money, but she stopped her with a palm up.
“Jake already gave me money. I tried to refuse, but he left it on the counter. I don’t need yours.”
After the cart was loaded with groceries, they walked outside to the car. Reagan insisted she would unload them, so Naomi and Winona stood and watched.
“What’s with her?” Naomi whispered.
“I think I pissed her off.”
“She’s so emotional.”
“Maybe she’s pregnant.”
Naomi gasped and eyed her cousin. “No way.”
“Could be. Or maybe it’s the same thing that’s wrong with me.”
“She’s in love with Jake?” Naomi teased.
Winona swatted her. “She’s scared.”
“And what are you scared of?”
“Loving Jake. Losing Jake. He’ll leave when it’s all over. When Amy goes back home, he’ll go home.”
“So she’s scared of losing Jake?”
Winona elbowed Naomi. “Shut up. You know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I think you’re right. We need to go back in and get a pregnancy test.”
• • •
When the guys made it home with Amy, none were the wiser of what had happened earlier. The clothes were put up, the house cleaned, groceries in the cabinets, and dinner on the stove.
Even the perfect investigator would never guess Garret had almost come home to an empty house.
Reagan greeted him with a smile and a kiss, then enthusiastically showed Amy to her room. She’d found some dolls, a chalkboard, and colorful pillows to decorate the room and to give Amy something to play with while she stayed. Winona wondered if Reagan was trying to overcompensate for her earlier plans of abandonment.
“Dinner’s about ready,” Naomi said as she took the last of the chicken fingers out of the fryer. Winona finished up the mashed potatoes. The girls had spent hours cooking and planning and cleaning, hurriedly trying to make everything perfect.
“Great,” Garret said. “What are we having?”
“Chicken fingers, salad, macaroni and cheese, and mashed potatoes.”
“Macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes?” Garret raised his brow and peered over the stove.
“Yes,” Reagan said. “I remember how much I begged for both when I was a child, and my mom always said you can’t have two starches at dinner. And besides, if she doesn’t like one, she’ll have the other to choose.”
“She’s not a picky eater,” Jake said. “She helps me cook semi-gourmet meals.”
“Semi-gourmet?” Naomi asked as she set the table.
“They are, actually,” Winona chimed in. “He’s a wonderful cook.”
“Well, I hope our simple homemade cooking will suffice,” Reagan said. “Next time I’ll let you handle the cooking.”
Jake approached Reagan and set his hand on her shoulder. “I didn’t mean anything by it. Just that she eats better than most kids. I appreciate everything you’re doing.”
Reagan smiled in an attempt to let Jake know she hadn’t taken offense, but Winona could tell something was still off with her friend. “It’s not a problem. I’m happy to do it.”
• • •
Within minutes, they were all seated at the dining room table, eating and laughing. Amy shared stories of her previous school year and talked about how much she wanted to go swimming with Uncle Jake, the best swimmer she knew.
“He wins his swim meets all the time, you know,” she said. “And we swim all the time together in the summer. I haven’t gotten to do that much this year.”
A pang shot through Jake at Amy’s words, and he realized once school started, he probably wouldn’t have much of a chance to see her. And without a court order, Lillian may not ever let him see her again. Probably wouldn’t have if it hadn’t been for Garret. He needed to hire an attorney and see what he could do to guarantee his rights to see her. Unfortunately, he knew he’d have a fight on his hands. As a second cousin, he wasn’t what most courts would consider an important family member, and even as a godparent he meant nothing in the court’s eyes. He feared Lillian would paint him as a terrible person who only wanted Amy for one reason. The thought sickened him.
“You okay?” Winona asked softly as she placed her hand on his leg.
He continued to chew and nodded, mustering a smile he was sure didn’t reach his eyes.
Amy talked about her dad over the dinner table, but only joy and oblivion shadowed her words. Jake’s gut tightened as she talked with gusto, and he appreciated that the adults didn’t exchange awkward glances.
His heart swelled. He was falling in love with this family. They had been so accepting and supportive of him. He’d never be able to get through his ordeals without them. And the toys Reagan had bought to fill up the room Amy would stay in showed him how much t
hey truly cared. There were no words, no actions to describe his appreciation for them, and they barely knew him.
They finished their food but hadn’t risen from the table when Reagan said, “Anybody ready for dessert?”
“I am!” Amy said, waving her hand.
“Okay. We’ve got ice cream in a cone or in a bowl with sprinkles of chocolate and nuts.”
“Can I have it in a cone with chocolate and nuts?” Amy asked.
“Of course. Anybody else?”
“I’ll have the same,” Winona said. Naomi agreed. Chayton wanted a bowl, and Garret and Jake said they’d have one later.
Jake watched as the three girls made a team of preparing the ice cream. He shot a glance at Garret, whose eyes were lit on his wife with great passion. Jake could see why. She was an awesome woman and would make an excellent mother.
Jake sat at the table and finished his tea as everyone ate their ice cream. Afterwards, he began clearing the table.
“You don’t have to do that,” Reagan said.
“Yes, I do. You girls cooked. And you’re letting me and Amy stay here. So I’ve got to clean up.”
Garret moaned and rose from the table. “You’re making us look bad, boy. But I guess I can help.”
Chayton followed suit and before long, the men and Amy—who wanted to help—stood at the sink. Amy stood on a chair to reach the dishes. Amy washed, Jake rinsed, Chayton dried, and Garret put them away.
“How many men does it take to wash dishes?” Naomi asked.
“Three,” Winona piped. “With help from a girl.”
Amy guffawed as if it was the funniest joke she’d ever heard.
Garret turned away and grabbed a broom. “Okay. I’ll sweep.”
“And I’ll wipe down the counters,” Chayton said.
“Yeah, you’re good at that,” Naomi teased as she approached Chayton and squeezed his biceps. He slapped her on the butt, which Amy also thought was funny, and before long the kitchen was spotless.
After everything was clean, Reagan asked, “What do you want to do now? We have movies—”
“Let’s play a game!” Amy said.
“Okay, that sounds fun. What should we play?”
“Charades.”
“Charades?” Reagan arched her brow and glanced at Jake, obviously thinking Amy too young to play.
