“Becca set all this up?’
Zane nodded. “She’s been at it nonstop since she got back from Florida. Oh, and that reminds me. I’m supposed to ask if you’d be interested in donating a gym membership or a gift certificate for the auction.”
“Sure.” That was a no-brainer—tax write-off plus free advertising. “Do I get to come to the dinner and the dance?” he joked.
“Yeah, if you want.” Zane took the flyers and arranged them on the desk. “Actually, Becca told me to ask if you and Sienna wanted to come.”
It didn’t matter how many times a day he thought her name. When someone else said it aloud, Mike’s heart did a stutter step. “Yeah, I don’t know…”
“You still doing that friends-only thing?”
Hans looked up with interest.
“Yes,” Mike said, looking first at Zane and then at the kid. “So it might be kind of weird for me to ask her to go. Like it’s a date.”
Zane shrugged. “Whatever. Just thought I’d mention it.”
Mike took a few flyers and stuffed them into his jacket pocket. “I’ll put some on the desk out at the garage too.”
“Thanks. It’s a good cause and all that.”
Mike grinned. Might be a good cause, but it looked as though his friend was already halfway to falling in love with Becca Ericksen, and feelings like that could make you leave flyers around town, ask for donations, or adopt stray animals in a heartbeat.
“I’ll get that gift certificate to you next week,” Mike said as Zane turned for the door.
“Thanks.” With a touch of his hand to his forehead, he was gone, though not before bumping into a broad-shouldered guy walking into the gym at the same time Zane was walking out.
Mike almost didn’t recognize him in the bulky winter coat and red watch cap. He wished a second later he hadn’t, or that he’d left for the school ten minutes earlier. Because the absolute last person in the world he wanted to run into, the last person he thought would return to Pine Point, stood on the other side of the desk with a crooked grin.
“Hey, Mike. Long time no see.”
Not long enough. Bile rose in the back of his throat, and he had to fight to keep his hands at his sides. The last time Mike had looked Al Halloran in the eye, the two of them had been on their way to serving time in the Los Angeles county jail.
Chapter Sixteen
Mike glanced at Hans and then walked around the desk and steered Al back toward the door. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Al unzipped his coat like he was planning to stay.
“When did you get back?”
“Last night.” Al pulled off his watch cap. Gray peppered his dark, close-cut hair. He’d served fifteen months to Mike’s eight, and the time had definitely worn him down. Wrinkles cut into the corners beside his eyes, and he needed a shave. Stubble covered his chin and throat.
Mike glanced over his shoulder. Most people in town probably remembered Al. His younger brother had moved away years ago, but his dad, Doc Halloran, had worked as Pine Point’s family doctor for decades. Mrs. Halloran had split when the boys were still in grade school.
“What do you want?”
Al grinned, and Mike could see a missing eye tooth. Prison fight? Probably. “Looking for a job. Thought maybe you could help me out.”
“Why don’t you ask your father?”
Al sneered. “That fucker disowned me years ago.”
“Can you blame him? Stealing prescriptions isn’t exactly the way to get on Daddy’s good side.”
Al’s breath hitched, and for a minute Mike thought he might throw a punch. Then he laughed. “Hell, guess you’re right.” He looked over Mike’s shoulder. “I heard you opened a gym. Had no idea it was this fancy.”
“It’s not.”
“Fancier than what I got going on.”
“Getting off the drugs would help.”
The front door opened, and two middle-aged moms walked inside. “Hi, Mike.”
“Hi, Beth. Sherry. Have a good workout.”
“We will.”
Al waited until they’d checked in at the desk and walked toward the locker room before speaking again. “You can get yourself some tail here pretty much anytime you want, huh? Good plan.”
Mike cracked his knuckles and didn’t bother with a response. “I gotta get back to the desk.” The clock on the wall read five minutes to two. So much for visiting Sienna’s class.
“Do people here know?” Al asked.
“Know what? About L.A.?” Mike shook his head. “I don’t think so. Like to keep it that way.” He leaned closer to Al and lowered his voice, “I don’t need you running your mouth. Telling people isn’t gonna get you a job either.” His arms tightened. He had twenty pounds of muscle and an inch or two on Al. If the guy knew what was good for him, he’d turn around and leave. Leave Springer Fitness, leave Pine Point, leave the whole damn country.
Except felons couldn’t cross international boundaries.
Al twisted his hat in his hands. “Don’t worry. I won’t blow your secret. You think I want people here knowing what we did?” Don’t use the word we. Mike’s jaw clenched. Now the clock read two-oh-two. The only thing I did was try to get back what was mine.
“Just stopped in to say hello,” Al said, “and ask if you knew of anyone hiring.”
“I’m sure you can find a construction job when the weather warms up.” As long as you don’t have to fill out an application. Checking that box at the bottom to answer if you’d ever been convicted of a crime could be a major downer.
“Yeah, maybe.” Al’s gaze moved past Mike again, taking in the gym full of equipment, the locker rooms, the sleek wooden desk, and the smoothie bar behind it. “Keep me in mind.”
Mike had no intention of doing anything of the kind. “Sure.” He opened the door for Al. “See you around.”
* * * * *
Four hours later, Mike stormed up the front steps and into his mother’s living room. He turned over his phone in his hand. He’d thought about texting Sienna a half-dozen times. But to say what? He hadn’t promised to stop by her classroom. She’d probably forgotten she’d mentioned it to him at all. Besides, he was still so worked up over Al’s reappearance that he’d probably say something stupid. The last thing he needed was Sienna finding out about the mistakes in his past.
“Mike?” His mother poked her head out from the bedroom. “I didn’t expect you here.”
“I know.” He often stayed late at the gym on Fridays to close up, then went out for a burger and a beer. Not tonight.
The bedroom door closed and then opened again a few minutes later. His mother emerged wearing a pretty flowered top and blue jeans. She had hoop earrings in her ears and a silver watch around her thin wrist.
“You look nice.” Mike sat up and put his phone away. “You going out?”
“Martha and I are having dinner at the diner. Nothing fancy.”
“That’s nice.”
She nodded but looked concerned as she joined him on the couch. “Would you like me to stay home?” She patted his leg. “You look like you’ve had a rough day.”
“It’s that easy to see?”
“I’m your mother, sweetheart. Of course it is.”
Mike hesitated. Ma knew everything that had happened in L.A. She’d written letters to the governor asking for his early release. She’d bought his plane ticket home. He could tell her all about Al’s reappearance, and she’d know exactly what to say to make him feel better.
“Don’t stay home for me,” he said. No reason to bother her. With any luck, Al would take the next bus out of Pine Point. Doc would never let him live in his childhood home around the corner.
“You’re sure?”
“I’m positive.” He stood. “I’m going to take a hot shower, order a pizza, and watch the Knicks game.”
“All right.” She stood too and looped her purse over her shoulder. “I won’t be late.”
He kissed her cheek. “You be as late as you want.”
She smiled as a horn beeped outside. “That’s my ride.”
Mike waved from the front window as the two women pulled away and drove down Cornwall Road. Actually, a shower and a pizza would be the perfect ending to this day. He headed upstairs, peeling off his jacket and shirt as he went.
But under the shower, his thoughts returned to Sienna. Had she waited for him today, looking up from her book as she read to her students? Had she thought of him at all? He shampooed, rinsed, and then soaped up from head to toe. He still didn’t take the luxury of a long hot shower for granted. His hand closed around his cock, and he stroked it as he thought of her.
Was he a complete idiot for keeping his distance? His hand moved faster, harder. He rested one arm against the wall, the water moving over his shoulders and down his back as visions of a naked Sienna filled his head. He wanted to kiss her, He wanted to touch her, to feel her move underneath him. He wanted to fill her up with—
His orgasm shook him, and his legs wobbled as the release came. Mike let out a long breath. This was the situation he’d doomed himself to with that brilliant move of shaking hands over a friendship-only arrangement. Sure, Sienna was leaving town in a few months. Did that mean they couldn’t enjoy each other’s company in the meantime?
Mike rinsed and then toweled off. Yes, he was trying to start a new life in Pine Point. No, he didn’t want to make the same mistakes he had in the past. But he hadn’t just met Sienna. He knew her last name and her goals, and he admired the hell out of her career. He wrapped the towel around his waist and walked out to the living room, where he picked up the clothes he’d dropped on his way in the door.
As he hung up his jacket, his fingers closed on the stack of papers he’d stuffed inside hours ago. He pulled them out and laid them on the kitchen table, smoothing the wrinkles.
Pet Me! Love Me! Take Me Home!
Boy, would he like to do that to Sienna. His cock stirred under the towel again.
“Fuck it.” Life was too damn short to deny himself every pleasure. Maybe they’d be friends, maybe they’d be something more, but he was tired of sitting home alone when a woman he honest-to-God liked lived less than ten miles away.
Mike reached for his cell phone and dialed before he could talk himself out of it.
Chapter Seventeen
Sienna almost missed Mike’s call. Hungry patrons filled Zeb’s Diner, and the door kept opening and closing behind her, letting in a fresh gust of cold air each time. Above the noise of constant conversation, she didn’t hear her phone buzz on the counter. Only when Josie pointed at it on one of her runs to the kitchen did Sienna see the incoming call.
Her heart skipped a beat as she scooped up the phone. “Hi.”
Josie returned and set a coffee mug in front of Sienna. She was about to ask for decaf, but the waitress already had her hand on the pot with the orange neck.
“I’m sorry I didn’t make it today,” Mike said. “For your reading time.”
She stared at the counter as her cheeks warmed. “It’s okay. I’m sure you have a lot going on.”
“I wanted to. Planned on it. Something came up.”
“I understand. You don’t have to apologize.” Although it was awfully nice of him to say the words, she had to admit.
“Thought I might make it up to you,” he went on. “There’s a fundraiser next Saturday night. For Pine Point Paws.”
“The animal shelter?”
“Yeah. Becca set it up. They’re having a dinner and…” He cleared his throat. “And other stuff, like a silent auction. I wondered if you wanted to go.”
She smiled. He might have missed read-along time with her students, but he still wanted to spend time with her. On a Saturday night. “Like a date?” she teased.
He didn’t answer.
“Okay, not like a date. Like a friends’ thing?”
“Yeah, I guess. Zane said Becca asked if you and I wanted to go. It seems like a good cause, and to be honest, I’d rather go with you than go alone, so…”
“I’d love to.” She pointed at the pot-roast special and slid her menu over to Josie, who nodded and scribbled on an order slip. “Good cause and all that.”
“It’s over in Silver Valley, so I can drive if you want.” A paper rustled in the background. “I’m not sure what time it starts. I’ll ask Zane.”
“Sounds good.” Two older women walked into the diner, arm in arm. Sienna stared at them. That one looks so familiar. Former school teacher? A nurse from the hospital?
“Have a good weekend,” Mike said. “I’ll talk to you later.”
Sienna hung up and tucked her phone into her purse. The women sat at a table nearby, and Sienna tried to figure out who she might be. For only being back in Pine Point a couple of weeks, she’d grown to know quite a few faces. Ella Ericksen sat in a back booth with a good-looking guy that Sienna guessed was probably the boyfriend of the month. They held hands and cooed at each other across the table. Two men from the maintenance crew at school sat at a table near the door, and a lanky bus driver had a family of five crammed into a booth beside them. People talked over each other, waved, got up to show pictures on their phones, and Sienna cataloged it all as best she could.
“Refill, honey?” Josie asked. She waved the coffee pot in front of Sienna with a bemused smile. “Or you busy taking in the Friday night sights?”
“Oh. Sorry. It’s crowded in here.”
“Every Friday at dinner time. Don’t know why. Maybe people don’t like to cook at the end of the week.”
She looked again at the two older women, one about ten years older than the other, with dyed-red hair turning white at the roots and a broad laugh. The younger one had frosted hair and a wide smile.
That’s it. The smile.
And the blue eyes, obviously passed down from mother to son. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t remembered Loretta Springer right away. “Hey, Josie?”
The waitress ambled over, clearing plates and topping off drinks as she did.
“That’s Mike Springer’s mom sitting over there, right?”
Josie’s gaze shifted. “Yep. Want me to introduce you?”
“No, that’s okay.” Sienna took a long sip of coffee. She didn’t need an introduction. She’d already met Loretta, eleven years ago in the waiting room of the Med Center. Heat moved over her, and she scratched the scar on her wrist. The kind woman had been the only person to talk to Sienna, besides Doc Halloran, the day her mother died. She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten.
I should go over there. Say something. Thank her. But before Sienna could, the diner door opened, and all the color left Loretta’s face. She blinked a few times, turned to her companion, and muttered something. Sienna couldn’t hear the conversation, but it involved hushed tones and frowns. Sienna studied the man who’d just stepped inside. He didn’t look out of the ordinary, other than needing a shave. He wore a red watch cap and a dark jacket that looked handed down a few times. He rubbed his bare hands together and looked around for an empty table.
“Well, would you look at what the cat dragged in.” Josie set down her coffee pot and brushed her hands on her apron. “Didn’t think we’d be seeing you again anytime soon.” She pointed at the only empty stool at the counter, right beside Sienna. “Have a seat, Al, and tell us what the hell you’ve been up to.”
He ducked his chin. “Evenin’, Josie.” He walked up to the counter, but he didn’t sit. Instead, he ordered a cheeseburger to go and then disappeared into the restroom.
“You know Doc Halloran?” Josie asked. She slipped her order pad next to the cash register.
Sienna nodded.
“That’s his oldest son. Albert.” Josie loo
ked around and then lowered her voice. “He moved away for a while, was workin’ odd jobs and such, and no one heard from him. He got in some trouble with the law here, don’t know if you heard, but he was takin’ pills from his daddy’s office, I guess. Back when he was still in high school.” She snapped her gum and hollered across the diner, “I see ya wavin’ your arm, Henry. I’ll be there in a minute. Can’t you see I’m havin’ a conversation?”
She turned back to Sienna and shook her head. “Anyway, I’m surprised to see Al. His father threw him out after all that mess with the cops an’ told him never to come back.”
“Really? That’s some pretty hardcore stuff to happen in Pine Point.”
“Woo whee, tell me about it.”
I’ll have to find the old news articles. Sienna began a mental list. See what he’s been doing and where he’s been living. And why he came back, and whether Doc’s glad to see him. Actually, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to pick up the daily paper for her research. The police blotter, town meetings, and letters to the editor might give her more insight into the underbelly of Pine Point. She finished her burger in three large bites. This, finally, was the reason she’d come to town. She waited for Al to return, but he didn’t. Ten minutes passed. Josie packaged up his burger and left it sitting on the counter.
“What happened to him?” Sienna asked after a while.
Josie shrugged. “Henry said he went out the back. He always was a strange duck.” She carried a bucket of dirty dishes into the back. Sienna yawned. Time for some work and then some shut-eye. She fished out Josie’s order pad and flipped through it, looking for hers so she could pay.
I long to be deep inside your soul,
Two hearts joined as one despite the…
My fingers and yours, ten then twenty.
Sienna dropped the pad as if it had caught fire in her hands. She recognized the large, loopy writing. Without a doubt, it belonged to Josie. But these weren’t diner orders. Her gaze returned to the register, where another identical order pad rested. She blinked. Josie writes love poems? As fast as she could, Sienna shoved the pad in her hands back where she’d found it.
Spring Secrets: Pine Point, Book 3 Page 10
