“Thursday afternoon at three.”
Danny sent off a quick text to Sam, and his bangs fell over his forehead and into his eyes. He pushed at them in irritation, and then paused with his hand in his long hair. He pocketed his phone and turned to Devon. “Do you have any idea where I can get a haircut?”
He wished he’d used his phone camera to capture Devon’s expression.
Chapter Fourteen
Danny hesitated near the back doors of the large sanctuary, looking in at the crowd. Hymns drifted from the organ and people were talking quietly. He felt a fissure of discomfort and he reached up to run his hand through his hair, only to remember most of it was gone and the rest was gelled in place.
Devon had suggested a barber, all right. When he was done, Danny had stared at himself in horror and asked if he’d once worked for the Marine Corps. The trim he’d wanted had become a scalping, and his hair, the hair he’d spent most of his adolescence hiding behind, was gone. By the time he’d gotten back to the house he’d been in a full-scale panic, until Devon walked up behind him and looked at his reflection in the bathroom mirror.
“Before you completely freak out,” he said softly, “actually look at yourself, Dan. What do you see?”
“My entire fucking face,” he snarled.
Devon gave him a slight smile. “Yeah. Precisely.”
Danny stared, yanking his eyes from the new haircut—short on the sides and back, and just long enough to curve over his right eyebrow in the front—to look at his entire reflection. It was then he thought he saw what Devon meant.
His bone structure, the bone structure his mother had made a fortune with, was now prominently displayed but instead of soft and pretty, his cheekbones looked sharp and his jaw square and strong. His brows, which had never shown before, were inky black and arched to frame his large eyes. His mouth looked full and soft, but it didn’t look remotely girlie. In fact, for the first time in his life Danny had looked at himself and seen a man looking back, not a boy. He swallowed heavily.
“My ears are going to get cold,” he said, but his brother just laughed.
“So buy a hat.”
Now he stood in the open doorway, and even though he knew he looked appropriate in his dress shirt and tie, designer jeans and vest, he felt as out of place as he ever had in his life. Where was he supposed to sit? And what did you do at a funeral?
A man approached him, an inquiring expression on his face, and Danny swallowed nervously.
“Are you a member of the family?” His tone was solicitous.
“No.” The deep voice came from right behind Danny’s right shoulder.
Devon was behind him wearing dark slacks, a shirt and tie, and a black leather jacket Danny had never seen before. Cal and Will were both with him, Cal wearing a gray suit and Will in brown slacks and a tweedy-looking jacket. When Danny had come downstairs and they’d been standing there, ready to go with him, he’d felt a surge of gratitude. He’d promised Sam he’d go, but he’d been glad he didn’t have to go alone.
“We’ll just sit in the back, if that’s all right.”
“Of course.”
The man gestured toward the back pew.
It didn’t take Danny long to realize Sam wasn’t there. The front pews on both sides were empty, and he thought the family must be going to sit there. A white coffin sat on a raised dais at the front of the church, a blanket of pink roses and stargazer lilies laid across the lid. Dozens of floral tributes were arranged on both sides. There was a particularly spectacular one with the words We Love You, Mom on the dark pink ribbon.
Danny found the one he’d gone into Spokane to order. It was comprised of orange tiger lilies, peach roses and white phalaenopsis orchids, and he’d signed the card from all of them. On the back he’d written I’m still here if you need me. Afterward, he hoped writing Sam Ignatius and family on the envelope might keep Sam’s aunt from seeing the message.
He was still looking at the flowers when Devon nudged him in the side.
“What do you suppose he’s doing here?”
Entering a pew across the aisle was Eric Angus. He was wearing a dark blue suit and looked suitably somber, but Danny thought it odd he was there. He bumped Cal with his elbow.
“Look who just showed up.”
Cal’s tone was mild. “It’s a small town. No doubt they knew one another.”
“True.” Danny frowned at the man’s profile. Man, he really hated that guy.
The hymns stopped, and a pastor walked up the center aisle, followed by Bernard Ignatius and his daughters. He had one on each arm, and it looked as if they were holding him up. He looked awful, even worse than at the hospice, and Danny felt a deep surge of pity. They were followed by Aunt Edie and what Danny assumed was her husband and children, and another woman with gray hair, clinging to the arm of a younger man. Finally, at the very back of the entourage was Sam, and Danny’s eyes clung to him.
He looked tired but elegant in a stark black suit with a gray shirt and black-and-gray-striped tie. The afternoon sun slanting through the tall windows caught in his golden hair, and for just a moment it looked like a halo of light around his head. He was so handsome, so straight and tall, and Danny felt a deep-seated possessiveness that surprised him in its intensity. He wanted him, he realized. More than he’d wanted anything in a very long time.
Sam’s family filed into the pew on the left, first the aunts and their families, then Ignatius senior and the two girls. There wasn’t room for Sam. He stood for a moment, looking at his father and sisters, and then gracefully sat in the pew on the other side of the aisle. Alone.
Danny was so angry he could hardly breathe. The aunts and their entire fucking families didn’t need to be there—Sam should be sitting with his father and sisters, not across the aisle. Apparently not one to make a scene, Sam had done the dignified thing, but seeing him alone, separated from his family, made something fierce claw its way into Danny’s throat. He felt a push on his arm.
“Go on.”
Danny turned to find Cal studying him.
“Go on. You want to, don’t you?” His eyes held Danny’s.
Danny pushed to his feet, stepping over Cal and Will’s legs as he went to the outside aisle, then turned and walked resolutely to the front of the church. He could feel eyes following him, but he didn’t care. When he reached the front pew, he walked the length of it as nonchalantly as possible and sat next to Sam.
“Hello,” he said.
“Hi.” Sam stared at him.
“I thought you looked lonely up here. You don’t mind, do you?”
Sam shook his head, his eyes avid. “Your hair.”
“Someone told me I needed it cut.”
“It looks—really good.”
“Thanks.” Danny settled next to him, attempting to get comfortable in the wooden pew.
Danny felt someone settle beside him, and looked to find Leroy, Jose and a lovely woman with long dark hair who could only be Marisol, who gave him a friendly smile. She leaned forward and spoke quickly, her voice just above a whisper.
“I hope you don’t mind that we joined you.”
Danny shook his head. “Not at all.” They exchanged small smiles.
Now Sam’s side of the aisle was filled, too. With people who cared about him.
The service was mercifully brief. The clergyman was kind when he spoke of Sam’s mom. He’d obviously known her and remembered her with fondness. A woman in a hideous pink suit spoke of her years as a politician’s wife and what a wonderful support she’d been. Then Aunt Edie took the podium, read a Bible verse and then went on about Sam’s mom being “a fine Christian woman who tried valiantly to raise her children in the Lord.” Sam’s hand tightened into a fist on his thigh, and Danny reached over and settled his hand on top of it, gently stroking the taut tendons. After a moment he relaxed and turned his hand, linking his fingers through Danny’s. He held firm as their hands settled palm to palm, and Danny didn’t care who saw.
When the service ended and the congregation began to file slowly out of the sanctuary, Sam leaned in to Danny. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For coming up here to sit by me.”
“You invited me. I thought this is where I was supposed to sit.” Sam gave him a slight smile.
“Sam?” One of his sisters was standing at the end of the pew, her eyes damp. “Sam, I’m so sorry. Aunt Edie just pushed in. Never in a million years would I have wanted...”
Sam stood, slipping his arm around her shoulders. “Don’t worry about it, Dana. I wasn’t alone.” He glanced at Danny, who stood. “By the way, this is my friend, Danny Redmond. Danny, this is my sister, Dana.”
That was how Danny found himself meeting not just Dana but Leslie and their husbands. Sam moved out into the aisle, and when he was standing at Sam’s side, even Bernard Ignatius thanked him for coming. Danny was fairly certain it was because he didn’t recognize him.
The only one who seemed to have a problem with him, predictably, was Aunt Edie. Even her brood didn’t seem to care and basically ignored him. But Aunt Edie walked up the aisle, disapproval hanging over her like a cloud. Danny didn’t pay any attention to her. He’d learned to ignore people like that long ago.
They made their way slowly to the back of the church. “Are you done?” he asked Sam.
“With the service, yes. We’re not going to the graveside. Mom hated graveside services, especially in the rainy season.” He smiled faintly. “Her heels always sank into the grass.”
“Intelligent lady.”
“Very.” He sighed. “I do have to go back to the house. They’re having a...Christ, I don’t know. A ‘please God eat all the fucking casseroles’ get-together. I don’t suppose you and your brothers would like to come?”
Danny raised a brow. “I don’t suppose you’d like World War Three to break out in your living room.”
“You know what? I honestly don’t give a shit.”
“You would if it got ugly on the day you buried your mom. If you want to come over later, that would be great.”
He paused just inside the doors. “I’ll do that.” He stared down at Danny. “Have you any idea how amazing you look?” His voice was soft. He didn’t touch him, but his gaze was so intense Danny almost felt it glide over his skin. “I wish I could kiss you right now.”
“You really do want old Aunt Edie’s head to explode, don’t you?”
“From your mouth to God’s ears.”
Danny swallowed a smile.
They followed the crowd out onto the steps. The sky was lavender as the sun set, fluffy clouds along the horizon line bathed in shades of peach and pink.
Sam inhaled deeply, his eyes on the sky. “She loved sunsets like this.”
“Maybe it’s not an accident.” Danny stood close enough he could feel Sam against his side.
Sam looked down, the sky reflected in his eyes. “You think?”
“That your mom might paint goodbye in the sunset? Why not?”
Danny was startled when Sam wrapped his arms around him, his forehead on Danny’s shoulder. He slipped his arms around Sam’s waist and held on.
“I’m so glad you’re here.” Sam’s voice sounded raw, and Danny tightened his hold.
“There’s nowhere else I would be.”
Sam finally straightened, clearing his throat, and Danny released him reluctantly. A stretch limo pulled up in front of the church steps, and Bernard Ignatius was helped into it by his daughters. The cynic in Danny wondered if Sam was paying for that, too. When Aunt Edie and her husband started to climb in, one of Sam’s sisters, Leslie, held out her arm to stop her and scanned the crowd. He saw her lips form Sam’s name.
“I have to go.” Sam took a step away. He looked back at Danny. “Later?”
Danny nodded and was grateful when Dana pulled her brother into the limo with the rest of their family and closed the door before Edie could follow. She straightened, startled, and watched the car drive away.
Danny didn’t mean to laugh. He snorted, then covered it with his hand, but Edie heard and whirled. Her nostrils flared and she glared at him, her eyes flinty.
Cal stepped smoothly in front of Danny and took his arm. “Time to go.”
Devon materialized on his other side, and they edged him toward the parking lot. Danny looked between them. “Are you my security detail?”
“When you engage the wicked witch of the east, absolutely.” Devon looked up at the sky. “Where’s a twister when you need one?”
* * *
The clock struck ten, and still Sam hadn’t made it to Neverwood.
“These things can run long, Danny.” Cal and Will sat cuddled together on the far end of the long sofa. Danny had just come back from looking out through the front door for the hundredth time.
“I just hate the idea of him being stuck over there.” Danny plopped into a chair and sighed. “Maybe we should have gone.”
Devon chuckled from his place in another overstuffed chair. They’d found the entire set at a yard sale. Huge, dark leather, worn and ugly, the couch and two chairs had been deemed a perfect fit for the large lounge. “Oh, sure. With Auntie Edie already blowing smoke out her nose like an enraged bull? It would have been great fun.”
Danny scowled. “Maybe I don’t care.”
“Yes, you do.” Will was watching him, a stoic expression his face. “You wouldn’t do anything to hurt him for the world.”
Danny couldn’t dispute his statement.
He wouldn’t hurt him. He cared about Sam. A lot. So much he wanted to protect him from his vicious aunt and her brood of rednecks. So much he wanted to take the pain of his mother’s death away. So much he wanted to feel things, do things with Sam he hadn’t wanted with anyone else in years. He’d been so wrapped up in himself for so long he hadn’t spared much thought for anyone else. Except Audrey, he supposed. And Cal. Then Devon and Will. Now Sam. Slowly but surely the unlikely cast of characters had gotten past his defenses. Sam had found his way into his heart.
The doorbell rang and he jumped to his feet, tearing out of the room. He could see Sam on the porch and he yanked the door open, looking up at him anxiously. He was still wearing his suit and tie and looked worn, but when he saw Danny he smiled tiredly.
Danny returned it tentatively. “You’re okay?”
Sam nodded. “I’d just eaten as much casserole as I could stomach.”
“Christ.” Danny made a face and opened the door wider. “Come in. I’ll get you an Alka-Seltzer.”
Sam chuckled. “Thanks.”
They walked into the lounge, and Sam was greeted warmly. Danny offered to take his jacket, and Sam handed it to him before loosening his tie and dropping back into the overstuffed chair Danny had vacated.
“So, how was it?” Devon put his feet up on the scarred coffee table and sipped his beer.
“Interesting.” Sam frowned, and Danny perched on the arm of the chair.
“Interesting, how?”
Sam rubbed his hand over his jaw. “Well, let’s see. There was Pastor Bob, who I happen to like, gently reprimanding me for holding hands with my—how did he put it? Oh yes. My ‘young man’ where impressionable children might see.”
Danny cringed. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” His hand slid onto Danny’s thigh. “After that there was Eric Angus, who kept trying to find a way to corner my dad.”
The brothers and Will exchanged meaningful looks.
“My sisters ran interference and he finally left, but it was weird.”
Devon sat forward, his elbows on his knees.
“What do you think he wanted?”
“No idea. I mean, I know they’re acquainted. Angus has been trying to get something brought before the city council.”
“You have no idea what it might be?” Danny asked.
Sam shrugged. “Just that it has something to do with zoning.”
Devon looked at Cal and Will, his expres
sion strained. Danny offered Sam a weak smile. “Would you like something to drink?”
“If you have something with more alcohol content than coffee.”
“Would you like a beer?”
“Absolutely,” Sam answered with feeling. “But first, I need to get rid of some of that coffee I mentioned. Is there—” He gestured vaguely.
“The closest one is up the stairs and through the lounge on the left.”
“Thanks.”
Conversation lagged until he was gone, and then Devon cursed.
“That son of a bitch isn’t going to let go, is he?”
Cal sighed. “You didn’t really expect him to, did you? I just wish I understood what he’s doing.”
“Can you save this conversation until I get back from the kitchen?” Danny asked, already moving. “I’m going to go get Sam’s beer.”
Devon nodded and waved him off, and Danny jogged through the dining room into the kitchen, pulling open the refrigerator door.
“He believes the house should be his.”
Danny heard Audrey behind him, and he straightened, hitting his head on the refrigerator. He cursed, rubbing the spot as he turned.
He hadn’t heard her voice in days, and had almost convinced himself he’d never heard her at all. But there it was, the soft, cultured voice, clearer than ever before
“He’s my cousin.”
Danny blinked quickly, swallowing hard.
“His side of the family believes my grandfather stole Neverwood from them.” Her voice sounded farther away. “Do a web search for Maxwell J. and Dylan P. Rasmussen.”
The final words were so soft they were almost unintelligible. He looked around quickly, then grabbed a pencil and small tablet from the counter, scribbling quickly. He pocketed the note, chewing his lower lip. What was he supposed to do with the names now that he had them?
He remembered to grab Sam’s beer as he headed back for the lounge.
They all talked quietly for a while, but then Cal and Will stood and bid the room good-night. Devon joined them, and there were a few moments of overlapping conversation. Cal was speaking softly with Sam and Devon when Danny felt a chill breeze touch his neck, like an icy fingertip. It set off gooseflesh down his arms.
The Growing Season Page 12
