Once in a Blue Moon

by Sharon Sala

  This was the urgency within them.

  Never to waste another day apart.

  * * *

  It was still raining when Gage Brewer arrived in Blessings. He found the bed-and-breakfast using the GPS on his phone, and parked. The huge porch spanning the length of the front was welcome shelter from the rain as he ran up the steps, then stopped to shake the water from his jacket before going inside.

  The welcome warmth and the aroma of baking sweets enveloped him as he approached the man at the front desk.

  “Hi, I’m Gage Brewer. I have a reservation.”

  “Yes, Mr. Brewer… Welcome to Blessings. I’m Bud Goodhope, the proprietor. We have your room all ready for you. Will you be staying with us long?”

  “I’ll be here until my business is finished,” Gage said. “Hopefully it won’t take long. A day or two at best.”

  Bud nodded. “Breakfast is served from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. every morning, and there are several different places here in town to get your other meals. Granny’s Country Kitchen comes highly recommended by all of us, but there’s also Broyles Dairy Freeze and a good barbecue place as well.”

  “Good to know,” Gage said. “It’s almost 7:00 p.m. How late does that Granny’s place stay open?”

  “Until 10:00 p.m. every night. Same goes for the other two places as well. There’s not a lot of night life here, but if anyone gets an itch for that, Savannah is just an hour’s drive away. Now…if you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to your room.”

  “Do you lock up the front door at a certain time each night?” Gage asked.

  “Midnight, unless we’re expecting a late arrival,” Bud said.

  Gage picked up his bag and followed Bud up the stairs, then down the hall to his room.

  Bud led the way inside and then began pointing out the amenities.

  “As you can see, there’s a Keurig and K-cups in different flavors, as well as some of my wife Rachel’s homemade goodies. She is a phenomenal cook.”

  “Everything looks very inviting,” Gage said. “I’m sure I’ll be comfortable here. I’ve been traveling all day, so I think I’ll not go back out in this weather. I’ll stay in for the night and avail myself of some of these goodies for dinner.”

  Bud pointed to the phone. “There are cookies and cinnamon-sugar muffins in the welcome basket, cold pop in the mini-refrigerator, and as I pointed out, your Keurig. Just press 7 if you need anything, and rest well.”

  “Thanks,” Gage said.

  He’d almost asked the man if he knew Cathy Terry, and then didn’t. He didn’t want her to know someone was asking about her, and take a chance on her running again.

  Blessings, Georgia, might be one of the smaller places he’d ever been in his life. How hard would it be to find one redheaded woman driving a rental car in a little place like this?

  * * *

  Duke was on his way home when he got a phone call from Rhonda Bailey. The family had finally come up with an asking price for their dad’s property, and Duke accepted it without question. He knew the price was fair, and he also knew they needed every penny they were going to get for it to pay for their father’s long-term care.

  “I want it,” he said. “Are you going through the local realty company?”

  “Yes. They’ll handle getting everything brought up to date. As soon as there’s paperwork to sign, I’ll let you know. But they said you need to put up earnest money.”

  “Yes, of course. Are we doing this before Thanksgiving?”

  “No. As far as we’re concerned, your word is gold, and we’re happy to know you’re the one who’s going to buy it.”

  “Thank you, Rhonda. It’s a beautiful old home. I’m looking forward to making her shine again.”

  “Thank you, Duke. I’ll tell my brothers, and happy Thanksgiving to all of you.”

  “The same to all of you,” Duke said, and disconnected.

  He got back to the farm in time to help Jack with the evening chores, and updated him on his plans.

  Jack didn’t know whether to congratulate him or be sad, but Duke was so elated that Jack couldn’t bring himself to burst the bubble.

  Hope didn’t get home until after dark. She was in the ER when the ambulance arrived with Big Tom Rankin and had spent the next three hours attending Dr. Quick as he assessed and diagnosed Tom’s injuries before admitting him to the hospital for overnight observation.

  Tom had a concussion, staples in his head, cracked ribs, and a fractured kneecap, and was lucky to be alive.

  His son, Albert, arrived only minutes after Tom was brought in, and thanks to Albert’s phone call, Ethel was right behind him. They were both horrified by what had happened and grateful Tom was alive.

  But Hope’s exhaustion was evident when she finally got home. She’d thought about her waning energy level for most of this week, and when she walked in the back door and found Jack waiting for her, she burst into tears and fell into his arms.

  Jack was startled, and then worried. “Honey! What’s wrong?”

  “I’m just so tired,” Hope said. “Can we talk?”

  “Absolutely,” he said. “You sit. I’m going to heat up your supper, and you can talk while you eat.”

  She nodded, and then took a big drink of the sweet tea he put in front of her before heating up the meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

  “Thank you, darling,” Hope said, as Jack slid the plate in front of her and then handed her a fork.

  “Eat…then we talk.”

  She nodded, and took the first bite. As always, the comfort of home, food, and the man she loved was just what the doctor ordered.

  Finally, she laid down her fork and pushed the plate aside.

  “I’m not holding up like I thought I could,” Hope said. “There are other nurses there who work clear up to a month before they deliver, but I don’t know how they do it. I’m so tired by midafternoon that I don’t feel like I’m giving my patients the care they need.”

  Jack reached across the table and took her hands.

  “We don’t need the income, honey, and you know that. We’ve been banking most of yours for years. Just give notice and come home. You can sleep in on the days you don’t feel good, and enjoy the days that you do without added pressure. I would love it if you were home.”

  Hope sighed. The relief was huge. “I’ll turn in my resignation when I go back. I think it’s the right thing for me to do.”

  Jack got up and then pulled her into his arms and hugged her.

  “Get in the tub and soak. You have the next three days off anyway. Before you go to bed tonight, make a list of the stuff you’re going to need for the dinner, and Duke or I will go get it for you.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Thank you for understanding, and for always being my biggest cheerleader. I am the luckiest woman ever. I’ll make the list after a while.”

  Jack gave her a light pat on the backside as she left, which made her laugh. He was still grinning as he cleaned up after her late meal, and then went through the pantry and started the list for her, leaving the details for her to finish.

  Duke overheard enough of the conversation between Jack and Hope to know she was going to give notice at work. He supported that wholeheartedly and, at the same time, felt a greater urgency to give them personal space. At least he knew for sure now that the Bailey place was going to be his—his and Cathy’s.

  Later that night he went up to his room, showered, and got ready for bed, but he couldn’t think of sleeping without telling Cathy goodnight, so he gave her a call.

  * * *

  Cathy was sitting up in bed watching television, but she kept thinking back to the afternoon. She could still smell Duke’s aftershave on the pillow and was hugging it to her as she waited for the late night news to come on. And then her phone rang, and she knew before she looke
d that it was him.

  “Hello, you,” she said.

  Duke smiled. “Hello, darlin’. I called to tell you goodnight, and give you a little bit of news. Rhonda Bailey finally called me this afternoon with a price on her homeplace, and I accepted it. We have all the paperwork to go through, but the place is ours.”

  “Oh honey…this is wonderful! I’m so excited for you…for us.”

  “Me too. Either Jack or I will be coming into Blessings tomorrow to do some last-minute shopping for Thanksgiving, but we’re on a tight schedule. Hope has everything all planned out, and we are her runners.”

  Cathy smiled. “And fine ones you are, I’m sure. Please remind her that I’d be happy to bring something. Just let me know, okay?”

  “Yes, I’ll tell her, but I think she’s got everything covered. I just wanted to tell you good night.”

  “Good night. Love you,” Cathy said.

  “Love you, too,” Duke said, and disconnected.

  Cathy put her phone back on the charger and then snuggled down into the bed, pulled the pillow up closer beneath her chin, and fell asleep.

  She didn’t see the end of her movie or the late night news. And when she woke a few hours later, she turned off the television and her lamp, and went back to sleep, unaware that Blaine Wagner had not only found her again, but had a man on her tail.

  Chapter 14

  Gage Brewer came down to a breakfast buffet that would have put any Las Vegas buffet to shame. There were four other guests in the dining area when he arrived, and a very attractive middle-aged woman was bustling in and out of the kitchen with fresh food every few minutes. When she saw him walk in, she came to greet him with a smile.

  “Good morning. You must be Mr. Brewer. I’m Rachel Goodhope. Hot drinks are all on the sideboard, and the rest is self-explanatory. Enjoy your breakfast.”

  “Thank you, ma’am. It looks good,” Gage said, and hung his jacket on the back of a chair before going to the buffet.

  He started with a plate of crispy fried bacon strips, scrambled eggs with cheese, and hot biscuits with gravy, and when he got up to refill his coffee cup, brought back a short stack of pancakes soaked with blackberry syrup.

  It was the best meal he’d ever eaten in his life, and if nothing came of finding Cathy Terry here, this meal alone was worth the trip.

  Rachel came by later with a carafe of hot coffee to top off her diners’ cups. She paused at Gage’s table to warm his up, and he took the opportunity to feel her out about Wagner’s ex-wife.

  “This meal was amazing,” Gage said, as Rachel topped off his coffee. “You could make a fortune in Vegas cooking like this.”

  “Oh, are you from Las Vegas?” Rachel asked.

  He nodded, and stirred more sugar into the coffee she’d just poured into his cup.

  “Yes, I am. I have an acquaintance from Vegas who recently moved here. Maybe you know her? Her name is Catherine Terry. She’s going to help me do some genealogy research at the cemetery here in Blessings.”

  Rachel started to say yes, and then something stopped her.

  “The name doesn’t ring a bell,” Rachel said.

  Gage hid his disappointment with a shrug. “I understand. She hasn’t been here long.”

  Rachel saw his expression fall, which made no sense. Why would he care whether she knew his friend or not?

  “So you’re into family research. How fascinating!” Rachel said. “Then you’ll be visiting our All Saints Cemetery while you’re here, I guess. What’s the family name you’re researching?”

  “Um…my father’s side…the Brewers.”

  “Well, happy ghost-hunting,” Rachel said, and then smiled again before heading back into the kitchen.

  But the moment she was there, she grabbed Bud by the arm.

  “That new guy who checked in last night…Gage Brewer…he asked if I knew Cathy Terry.”

  “So?” Bud asked.

  “He said she’s going to help him do family research at the cemetery here, but I don’t believe him.”

  “Well, he hasn’t broken any laws,” Bud said. “So don’t go causing trouble for no reason.”

  Rachel sniffed, but she already felt a measure of loyalty to Cathy Terry for her recent heroism at the park. She felt the need to warn Cathy, just in case, but she didn’t know how to contact her.

  “I wish I had her phone number,” Rachel said. “I’d at least call to confirm she knows this man.”

  Bud sighed. “I heard Duke Talbot is seeing her. Hope probably has the number. You could call her.”

  “I think I will,” Rachel said. “You make another run through the dining room. I’m going to the office.”

  “Okay. Whatever it takes to make you happy,” Bud said, and winked, but Rachel missed the wink. She was already on a mission. Unaware that inquiries in small towns piqued both curiosity and suspicion, Gage finished up his coffee, then put on his jacket and left. He wasn’t quite sure how to go about looking for Cathy Terry, because cruising up and down streets would only call attention to the presence of a stranger in a small town, which was the exact opposite of what he intended.

  But as it turned out, the streets were busier than usual because of Thanksgiving, and the busiest place in town was the Crown. Shopping for groceries for family feasts was happening in large numbers.

  After a couple of turns up and down Main Street, Gage pulled into the parking lot at the Crown and set up a kind of stakeout…watching for a curly-haired redhead driving a black Jeep Cherokee. Once he found out where she was living, he’d call it in and still make it home for Thanksgiving with a neat little bundle of money for his trouble.

  But Rachel was on a mission in direct opposition to Gage Brewer, as she made the call to Hope.

  It rang a couple of times and then Hope answered.

  “Hello, this is Hope.”

  “Hi, honey, this is Rachel. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

  “No, no, I’m fine. I’m off work for the next two days. What’s up?”

  “I was wondering if you have Cathy Terry’s phone number. I need to call her about something.”

  “Duke does. Hang on a second,” Hope said, then went down the hall to where Duke was putting extra leaves in the dining table. “Duke…Rachel wants Cathy’s phone number. Can you help her?”

  “Sure,” Duke said, and pulled up Cathy’s number in his own phone as Hope handed hers over. “Hey, Rachel. Hope said you want Cathy’s number?”

  “Yes…I may be overreacting, but we had a late-arrival guest last night, and this morning during breakfast he said he was from Las Vegas. Then asked me if I knew Catherine Terry. Then gave me some dubious story about Cathy being a friend from Vegas and that she was going to help him do research at the local cemetery for family history. I never heard where Cathy was from, so I didn’t volunteer anything about her.”

  The hair rose on the back of Duke’s neck. He knew she’d run into the old friend in Savannah just a few days ago, and now some guy from Vegas had shown up asking about her. This didn’t feel right.

  “What was his name?” Duke asked.

  “Gage Brewer. Listen, Duke…I don’t know much about Cathy’s story, but if this sounds fishy to you, I think she needs to know there’s a stranger in town asking about her.”

  “I do know her story, and it’s fishy,” Duke said. “I’ll call her right now, and if it’s nothing, then thank you so much for caring enough to give her a heads-up. And if this is what I think it is, you’ve just done her a huge favor.”

  “Okay…thanks. I feel better leaving this in your hands,” Rachel said, and disconnected.

  “What’s going on?” Hope asked as Duke handed back her phone.

  “Someone from Vegas is in town looking for Cathy.”

  Hope gasped. “Is she in danger?”

  “I don’t know yet, but
I’m going to call her,” Duke said. He took his phone out onto the front porch and sat down in one of the white wicker chairs to make the call, dreading it even as she answered.

  “Hello, my love,” Cathy said.

  Duke sighed. “Hi, baby. What are you doing today?”

  “I slept in, and I’m just cleaning house. Does Hope want me to bring something?” she asked.

  “That’s not why I’m calling. Rachel Goodhope—the woman who runs Blessings Bed and Breakfast—just called me. She was a little concerned about their late check-in last night. He’s from Las Vegas. And this morning he was asking if she knew you.”

  Cathy moaned, and dropped into the nearest chair.

  “No, no, no. It was that damn Pamela St. James. She went straight back to Vegas and told everyone she saw me. I knew she would. I was just hoping Blaine would let me be. I should have known better.”

  “Blaine Wagner didn’t check in. It was a man named Gage Brewer. Have you ever heard of him?”

  “No.”

  “Well, he told Rachel you were going to help him in some family history search at the local cemetery.”

  “That’s a lie,” Cathy said. “Where is he now?”

  “I don’t know, honey. Probably somewhere in town looking for you. Just stay in the house. I’m coming to get you.”

  “I’m not hiding,” Cathy said. “And I’m not running. Not again.”

  Duke’s heart stopped when she hung up.

  “Oh dammit, you little hothead,” he muttered, and grabbed his jacket and car keys as he ran through the house. “Sorry. Gotta run into Blessings. I won’t be long. If you need anything, text me and I’ll bring it back,” he said, and then was out the door.

  He jumped in the truck and took off toward town, trying to call Cathy back as he drove. It just kept going to voicemail, so he called Lon, filled him in on what was happening, and asked him to find either Cathy or Gage Brewer before they found each other.