She tried to get started on preparations for lunch, but she was distracted. She halfheartedly pulled the vegetables out of the refrigerator, then spent far too long rinsing them in the sink, listening all the while for the sound of the police leaving. At last, she heard the sound of a door opening and the voices of two men deep in conversation. She put the green pepper she was holding down and hurried out of the kitchen just in time to see the two police officers walk through the front doors. Nick was standing just behind them, watching them leave.
“Nick,” she called out as he turned to go. She realized that some of the residents, including Westley Phillips and his grandson, were watching them. She lowered her voice. “Wait for me.”
She hurried over to him and fell into step beside him as he returned to his office. “What was that all about?”
“Nothing,” he said shortly. “Nothing important, anyway. Don’t worry about it.”
“What’s going on?”
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “How’s lunch coming?”
Autumn fell silent, then mumbled that she still had to finish it. She turned on her heel and went back to the kitchen. She was stunned by the way Nick was acting. Was he mad at her? Had she stepped over some line? They had only been seeing each other for a couple of months, but she had thought that he was comfortable talking to her about the important things. What was going on?
Autumn finished washing and preparing the vegetables for the salad, then pulled one of the large cans of tuna out of the cupboard and opened it. Today, they were having tuna salad on toasted whole-wheat bread, and fresh green salad with baby spinach leaves, green peppers, and shredded carrots.
Autumn had always preferred chicken salad to tuna salad, but she had practiced with a couple of different recipes in her spare time, since it was a staple here at the nursing home. She found one that she quite liked and had cleared all of the ingredients with Nick before making changes to the existing recipe at the nursing home.
She drained the can of tuna in the sink and dumped the fish into a mixing bowl, then grabbed the light mayonnaise out of the fridge and carefully measured in the right amount. Next, she added a tablespoon of mustard, then mixed it all together with a wooden spoon. She chopped the onions, celery, and sweet pickles, and tossed those into the mix. After stirring again, she spooned a small amount out to taste.
“Perfect,” she said.
She was so involved with cooking that she barely thought about her encounter with Nick until the meal was ready to be served, when all of her doubts came rushing back to her. As she helped Emily carry the plates out to the residents, she wondered again what might have caused the police to visit him. She wasn't the only one, as she discovered when she heard a couple of the residents talking amongst themselves. It seemed that news about the police visiting Nick had spread quickly.
“What do you think he did?” she heard Adrian Phillips ask his grandfather. He was visiting for lunch, which looked like it would be a regular occurrence for him.
“I don't know,” Mr. Phillips said. “Maybe nothing. It could have something to do with one of the residents, or their families. He’s responsible for a lot of people here.”
Autumn was glad when her aunt and uncle didn't ask her anything about the mysterious police visit. Instead, her uncle simply smiled and complimented her on the food. “You're such a good cook, dear. And I love seeing you every day. I'm so glad you got this job.”
“Me too,” she said. “And thank you. There's been a bit of a learning curve, but I'm enjoying it.”
She kept her eyes peeled for Nick as she helped clean up after lunch but didn't see him. It was unusual for him not to make the rounds during a meal. He usually took that time to talk with the residents and guests and make sure everyone was happy.
When it was time for her break, she went to the office only to find his door shut and locked. “Do you know where Mr. Holt went?” she asked Emily as the girl passed by with a cart full of dirty bedding. “I think he left for the day,” Emily said. “If I see him, though, I'll tell him you're looking for him.”
Frowning, Autumn gazed over at the front doors. While it wasn't terribly unusual for Nick to leave during the day, it was odd for him to go without saying anything to her. Was he mad at her? If he was, what in the world had she done to deserve it?
CHAPTER EIGHT
* * *
When Autumn got home that evening, she checked online for more news about Jessie's death. She wasn't expecting to find anything new, so she was shocked when she saw that a new article had been published giving his name, and, surprisingly, his cause of death.
“Head wound,” she muttered. So, it was possible that his death had been an accident after all. She didn’t know if that made her feel better or worse about the whole thing. His entire future had been erased by one simple instance of pure, dumb luck. How was that fair? It was frightening to think that it could happen to anyone. One misstep, one slip, and that was it.
She shut the screen off, feeling shaken. People their age weren't supposed to just die. Life shouldn’t be able to end so suddenly, without any warning at all. The thought that it could happen to someone her age, someone she knew, was chilling.
She picked up her phone, wanting to text Nick, then put it down again. If he was upset with her, she didn't want to push him. Instead, she decided to call Alicia. It wasn't until the phone had started ringing that she remembered her friend had lost her voice and couldn't talk.
Do I really have no one I can reach out to? she wondered. There was one more person, and it was only because she was feeling so lonely and sad that she picked up the phone for a third time, this time to call her mother.
“Autumn?” her mother said when she answered the phone, sounding surprised. “Is everything all right?”
“Gee, thanks, Mom. I'm not allowed to call just to chat?”
“Of course you are, dear. But you never do. I just assumed that something important must be going on if you’re calling me.
Autumn wanted to argue, but she couldn't; her mother was right. There was something going on. “I just needed someone to talk to, and Alicia’s sick and Nick is going through something of his own right now, and I didn't know who else to reach out to.”
“Well, I'm glad you called,” her mother said sounding more pleased than Autumn had expected. “What is it, dear?”
“Someone I know passed away, and it's really been bothering me,” she said. She took a deep breath, then launched into her story about Jessie. When she was done, her mother was silent for a second, probably gathering her thoughts so she could formulate the perfect response.
“I'm sorry you had to see that,” she said at last. “It sounds to me like you've already got everything all figured out, though. The thing that's bothering you so much about his death is the fact that it reminds you of your own mortality. I'm sure you see death all the time at the nursing home, but it's different if it's a peer.”
“I don't see it all the time there,” Autumn said. “In fact, no one has passed away since I started working there. It's not as if they’re just dropping like flies.”
“I didn't mean that. Sorry if I offended you.”
Autumn sighed. This was how things always were between her and her mother. Even when they were trying to get along, they couldn’t,
“Sorry for bothering you,” she said. “I guess I'm going to get going now. I’ll just watch television or something; that should take my mind off all of this.”
“I think you should call that Bonnie person you mentioned,” her mother said. “See if you can meet up with her. It sounds like the two of you might be able to comfort each other; you both knew the man, after all.”
That was actually good advice. Autumn thanked her mother, this time meaning it. “I already told Alicia I would give Bonnie a call tomorrow if we hadn't heard from her, so if I do, I’ll invite her out to for coffee. You're right; it might be good to talk to someone else who has been affected by all of this.”
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She hung up the phone, feeling a bit better even though she didn't quite know why. She loved her mother, but their relationship was complicated. Still, she knew that the older woman would always be there for her, and that was comforting.
Now, what about Nick? she wondered. It wasn't like him to ignore her or to be short with her, and she just wished that she knew why he was acting the way that he was. Was he all right? Had something bad happened to someone he knew? Was he in trouble?
This is ridiculous, she thought. If he didn't want to tell her exactly what was going on, fine, but he could at least let her know that he was okay. It was fair to ask that much of him.
She grabbed her phone and dialed his number before she could second-guess herself. She was relieved when he answered.
“Is this a good time?” she said.
“Yeah, what's up?” he asked, sounding as casual as ever.
“I just wanted to make sure you're all right. I've been worried about you. What happened today?”
“I had a meeting with the nursing home’s board. It was on the calendar, wasn't it?”
“Oh.” She hadn't thought to check the calendar. She had been convinced that his sudden departure had to do with whatever he had been talking to the police about. “I guess I had nothing to worry about. Is everything okay, other than that?”
“It's fine, Autumn,” he said.
“Good,” she said after a moment. “Are we still on for dinner tomorrow night?”
“Yes,” he said. “I've been looking forward to it.”
“Me too,” she said, feeling relieved. She must have been overthinking the whole thing. Nothing was wrong between them. She would just have to believe Nick when he said that whatever the police had wanted to talk about wasn't important.
“So, I'll see you tomorrow night? Call me if you want to get together earlier in the day. Enjoy your weekend off. Do you have any plans tomorrow morning?”
“I'm going to sleep in, then I’ll try to get some cleaning done around here. I may visit a friend, too.”
“Well, that sounds like a nice, relaxing day,” he said. “I've got a couple of tours to give before lunch. There are a few more people who want to get on the waiting list.”
“That's good,” she said. “Have you ever thought about seeing if you could expand the nursing home?”
He chuckled. “That would be quite the project,” he said. “We’d have to add a whole new wing, and I don't even want to think about how much that would cost. It's something that might happen if we get a major donation from someone, but otherwise, it’s just a dream. I know the board has talked about it in the past, but it’s never panned out.”
“It would be neat if it could happen someday,” Autumn said. “There aren’t that many good options for homes around here. Asheville Meadows is the best place I've ever seen or heard about in the area. Not that I'm an expert, by any means.”
“I agree that there need to be more options for the elderly,” he said. “It's an expensive endeavor, though. We're lucky that Asheville Meadows is doing so well in the first place. A lot of homes are stretched too thin, and just can't afford to do anything more.”
They chatted for a while longer about the state of nursing homes and Asheville Meadows’ future, then Autumn and Nick said their goodbyes. She was glad that she had called, and she felt much better. Everything was okay between her and him, and tomorrow she would see if Bonnie wanted to talk about Jessie some more. Gradually, she knew, life would move on.
CHAPTER NINE
* * *
Her positive outlook didn’t last far into the next day. After sleeping in as late as she could and taking an hour to tidy up the house, she texted Alicia and got Bonnie's cell phone number from her. She was all set to go out and meet the other woman over a cup of coffee and commiserate, but Bonnie didn't answer. Concerned, she called Alicia, and her friend, speaking hoarsely, told her that Bonnie hadn't been heard from since they had gone over a couple of days ago to tell her about Jessie’s death.
“Do you think she's all right?” Autumn asked, her stomach beginning to feel uneasy. “She didn't know him all that well. You don't think she would do something… drastic?”
“I don't know,” Alicia said. “Bonnie is… well, she's Bonnie. Not to sound mean, because she's a wonderful person, but she isn’t exactly… stable. She takes things very personally, and is affected by everything, good and bad, deeply.”
“Should one of us stop by and make sure she's okay?” Autumn asked.
“Let me call a couple of other people in the book group and see if they've heard from her,” Alicia said. “I'll see if anyone knows if she's been to work. I think one of the other ladies works with her, so I might start there.”
“Okay, just let me know,” Autumn said.
She hung up, feeling more worried than ever for Bonnie. I could drive by her house and make sure she's okay, she thought. She knew where the other woman lived, and her house was only a few minutes away. She didn't know if her presence would be welcome, though. She had only met Bonnie twice, and the other woman may not appreciate her dropping by unannounced.
Autumn decided to wait while Alicia made her calls. She knew her friend wouldn't give up easily.
She spent the rest of the day at home, reading another of Westley Phillips’ books and taking Frankie for a walk. Mysteries weren't really her style; she preferred romance books and adventure novels, but she could see why people were so excited to meet him. Westley was a good writer, and his mysteries were very well thought out. As she read, she thought about Jessie. Was his death a mystery that needed solving, or was it simply a heartbreaking accident?
Ever since reading about the head injury in the news article, she had assumed that his death had been accidental. What if she was wrong? The police hadn't officially labeled the death an accident yet, had they? Was it possible that someone had killed Jessie?
Suddenly a thought occurred to her, one that she wasn’t proud of. What if Bonnie had done it? Was she acting so distraught in an attempt to cover up what she had done? Alicia herself had said the other woman wasn’t a very stable person.
Don't be ridiculous, she told herself. I've been reading too many mystery books. It's time to take a break from this. She put the book down and got up, stretching. A glance at the clock told her it was about time to start getting ready to go. Nick would be picking her up in about an hour, and she hadn’t even picked out her outfit yet.
She loved going on dates with Nick. They always went somewhere new, and he enjoyed being adventurous with food just as much as she did. Her ex, Brandon, had been a steak and potatoes kind of guy, and rarely ventured out of that portion of the menu. She loved experimenting with food and was glad to have someone to share that experience with her.
She had always enjoyed cooking, and still had a dream to open her own restaurant one day. Cooking at Asheville Meadows was close, but not quite the same. While she had input on the menus each month, she didn't have complete control over them, and there were quite a few restrictions that she had to follow. She did her best to make every meal as tasty and inviting as possible, but sometimes there was only so much she could do when the meals had to be low-sodium, low-fat, and low-cholesterol.
She began pulling clothes out of her closet, trying to decide what to wear. After a while, she settled on a nice pair of black slacks and a shimmering dark green button-down blouse. She would wear her leather jacket and her leather boots with the low heels, since Nick liked to take walks after eating.
“Sorry, sweetie,” she said to Frankie. The dog was staring at her from the bedroom door. “You're going to have to stay here tonight. I'll be back in a couple of hours, okay? Don't look so sad, you got plenty of attention today. You're going to have to learn to share me with Nick.”
She had a habit of talking to the dog, which she figured was probably healthier than just talking to herself. She had lived alone ever since she had moved out of her parents’ house and wasn't sure how she would
adjust if she ever reached the point where she moved in with someone else. She enjoyed her quiet life with Frankie, but she still wanted more one day. A husband, kids, a restaurant to call her own… she wanted it all.
Nick arrived right on time, every bit as punctual as ever. She opened the door before he could knock, which prevented Frankie from going ballistic with her barking. The little dog still let out a couple of high-pitched, excited yips and pranced around Nick's feet until he petted her.
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