by Jen Talty
“I didn’t want to wake you,” he said. “When I went up stairs, you were so sound asleep, well, I figured you needed it.”
“I did.” But she needed him more, a thought, she kept to herself.
“Is the morning sickness bad?”
“So far, it’s just bacon that sets it off. I was just about to go make some coffee. Want some?”
“That would be great.”
She paused at the picture window, taking in the beautiful view of the lake. The sun was rising from behind the house, casting a glow across the water. A few fishing boats hummed along the shoreline, a sure sign that spring was on the way.
“Nice view, huh?” Reese asked.
“One of the best,” she said. “Want some breakfast to go with that coffee?”
“I’ll just make some frozen waffles. I bought some on my way home, which reminds me, I bought some of those breakfast bars you like so much.”
“Thanks.”
She pushed through the swinging kitchen doors, which Patty had always thought weird. If she owned this place, the first thing she’d do was get rid of the doors and tear down some of the walls, opening the kitchen up to the family room. But it wasn’t her place.
But it could be, she thought with a quick beat of her heart. Her place with Reese. Things had changed so much between them, and she had started to trust him again. Trust that he’d tell her anything she asked. Trust that he wasn’t keeping some other deep, dark secret. Mostly, she trusted that what was going on between them was real. It would take time. There were no guarantees.
But the possibility made her smile.
The kitchen had little in the way of food and utensils, but she managed a full pot of coffee. She was pouring two cups when the doorbell rang. She froze, not wanting to see who could possibly be at the door at eight in the morning, much less at a house that the world had no idea was currently occupied.
Reese burst through the kitchen doors. “Shit,” he said as he opened the door in his boxers. “Nana, what the hell are you doing here?”
“Didn’t you get my text?” a scolding female voice said.
“Two seconds ago.”
“I sent it yesterday,” she huffed, “and you’re the one telling me to check the phone more often.”
Patty turned, surprised to see a woman in perhaps her early seventies, with the most beautiful white hair she’d ever seen, standing in the doorway. She had the same facial features as Reese, and she was tall, with a figure to die for.
“You could have called. When did you get here? Why are you here?”
“You wanting to buy a hotel is a big change. Too big. I came to see what is really going on with you,” she said. “I have to say it was hard to find you. Nice of you to tell me the rental you were living in had burnt to the ground.” There was no mistaking the resentment and hurt in the woman’s voice.
Patty watched, still stunned, as this woman kissed Reese on the cheek and then pushed her way into the kitchen.
“Hello,” the woman said. “And you are...?”
“Nana, this is Patty. Patty, this is Elizabeth Baxter, my Nana.”
“Nice to meet you,” Patty said.
“You, as well,” Elizabeth said. “May I ask what kind of a relationship you have with my grandson?”
“Nana,” Reese said. “You’re out of line. And I’m not twelve.”
“Perhaps,” Nana said. “You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, young man. Get me some coffee, and then start by telling me why you’ve chosen to keep certain things from me. Like the trailer, and why you want the hotel—and no offense Patty, but what does she have to do with this?”
“I didn’t want you to worry, so I chose not to tell you about the fire.” He glanced at Patty, who just arched a brow, seeing it finally sink in for him how the smallest of things, even done out of love and kindness, could be misconstrued as secretive and uncaring. “I want to buy this hotel and this house because I like it here. I want to live here. And Patty and I… We’re going to have a baby.”
Nana gasped and covered her mouth with both her hands. “I feel like I just went back in time.”
“It’s not like that,” Reese said.
Patty knew this was going to be one hell of a breakfast. “Can I make you some eggs?” she asked, unable to think of anything else to say to diffuse the tension.
“I’d love some eggs,” Nana said. “And bacon. You’ve got bacon, right?”
“No bacon,” he said. “It makes Patty nauseous, so just eggs and toast. Or frozen waffles.”
“I’ll take eggs and toast,” Nana said. “Now go put on some clothes, and then we’ll talk.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Patty was mortified. The last few days had been a blaze of insanity, and she had not a single thing to say to this woman. So, as she cracked open a few eggs, put some toast in the toaster, she continued to say nothing.
Elizabeth Baxter took off her coat, put her purse on a chair, then sat down.
“Cream? Sugar?” Patty asked, placing a cup of coffee on the table but turning instantly to the pan, sizzling with a bit of butter.
“Black, please,” Elizabeth said. “How far along are you?”
“Almost three months,” Patty admitted. She felt a wave of nausea, which could have been discomfort, or just morning sickness. She figured it was a combination.
“What stake do you have in Reese buying this property?”
“None,” Patty said, turning to face Elizabeth. “This is Reese’s idea. His place. His deal. I want nothing from Reese. Nothing.” Which wasn’t entirely the truth, so she added, “He wants to be a part of the baby’s life, so that is all I want from him.”
“What do you know about his past?”
“Enough to know—”
“Nana, this is none of your business,” Reese said as he finished pulling a shirt over his head.
“You are too full of secrets,” Elizabeth said. “Why didn’t you tell me about the baby, or this young woman?”
“Because I wanted to tell you in person,” he said.
Reese sat at the table next Elizabeth, placing his hand over hers. “When did you get here?”
“Yesterday evening. This morning, I went to the address I had, but it was a burned-down trailer. Why on earth were you living in a trailer?”
“Please tell me where you stayed last night,” Reese said. He had an uncanny ability to redirect people, and Patty suspected he got that from Elizabeth.
“The Village Inn,” she said. “Then I met this lovely woman named Stacey when I went to the station house first thing, and she told me about you staying here with this young woman as if I knew everything about your life. Quite the little talker, that one.”
“One of these days, it’s going to get her in trouble,” Reese muttered.
Patty placed a plate of food in front of Elizabeth, then a couple of waffles and syrup in front of Reese. “Can I get you anything else?”
“No, thank you,” Elizabeth said, then took a few small bites of toast. “I don’t know how to feel about all this. It feels so complicated. Rushed. I know you’re a grown man, but really, do you understand my concern?” she asked.
“Of course I do,” he said. “The only complication is Jessica. Otherwise, Patty and I will work things out.”
Patty wanted to agree with Reese, but she found herself tongue-tied.
“I have to find and divorce Jessica,” Reese said.
“Then what?” Elizabeth asked. “No offense. I’m sure you’re lovely”—Elizabeth pointed to Patty—“but if you know about Jessica, you know my grandson hasn’t had the best judgment when—”
“That’s enough,” Reese said. “I know you’re upset, but that’s no way to treat Patty. She’s a good woman. With a good heart. And she’s the mother of your great-grandchild, so a little respect, please.” Patty wanted to wring his neck for speaking to his Nana that way, but his defense of her made her flush with warmth.
“Oh, Patty,” Nana said.
“I do apologize. I’m taking my anger out on you when I should be putting Reese over my knee. I had no right to say those things. Please understand, I’m just a little shocked.”
“Should have seen the look on my face when I found out Reese was married.”
Elizabeth cracked a smile. “Can we start over?”
“Of course we can,” Patty said. “I’ll leave you two alone to catch up. I need to go get dressed.” Though for what, she had no idea.
“You should have told me you were coming,” Reese said, shifting the food around on his plate, knowing he was playing with fire, but the silence after Patty left the room was deafening. Nana had a way of being able to sit quietly in a confrontational situation, waiting for someone, anyone, to break the ice. It was almost never her.
“You’ve got some nerve,” Nana said. “Seems your secrets go way deeper than an ‘oh by the way, I’m coming to town’”.
“You’re right.” Reese shoved the plate away. “I am sorry you had to find out about the baby…about…everything this way.” When he’d been nine, he lied to his grandparents about breaking a vase. He’d tried to glue it together. Thought he’d done a damn good job, until Nana asked him to get it and put some flowers in it that she’d just received from the governor’s wife. Nana explained to him that one always filled the vase first, then cut the stems, then put the flowers in the vase. She told him to go give it a try, then bring the arrangement back into the living room where she’d been entertaining eight very important and powerful guests.
He should have learned his lesson then. Nana knew everything. If she didn’t, she’d find out.
“You should be more than just sorry.” Nana moved gracefully about the kitchen, putting dishes in the dishwasher, then refilling her cup. She’d been wealthy her entire life. Old money. So old, no one really knew where it had come from. The daughter of a philanthropist, and married to one of the richest men in the state, but they always lived a relatively un-flashy lifestyle. Where their friends had a couple of estates in various cities or countries, half a dozen cars, and at least two private jets, and made sure the world saw their fancy toys, the Baxters usually chose to fly commercial. They drove what Reese always considered normal cars, and Reese didn’t even know his grandparents were rich until he was in his late teens.
“I really did want to tell you in person, but I have some things to work out with Patty.”
“Such as...?”
“Everything,” Reese admitted. “I had no idea how much I cared for her until she dumped me, then a few weeks later, she told me she was pregnant. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride since them.”
“Just because you get a girl pregnant, doesn’t mean the first thing you do is run off and get married—”
“I can’t marry Patty until I’m divorced, but that would be the plan, eventually.”
“Being honorable is not always the best thing. I thought you would have learned that the first time.”
“I agree,” he said. “This time, it’s not about honor. It’s what I want. I’ve dug a hole just deep enough with Patty that I’ve got a lot of making up to do. But we are getting through it.”
“You really care about her?”
He nodded. “I have a lot of changes to make. A lot of wrongs to right, and a lot of proving to do.”
“Actions, my dear boy.”
“I know.” His first action of the day was to deal with the injunctions. As long as Chris Riley signed the affidavit that stated there was no binding verbal agreement, then he was golden. He had a meeting with Andrew Taft right before work, so that should get the ball rolling on that end. He was going to have to get Patty to work closely with Andrew on all the legal stuff. He knew the law pretty well, but he didn’t know lawyering.
“You find out anything about Jessica from her family?” Reese asked.
Nana reached for her bag, a large one, usually filled with everything but the kitchen sink. She rummaged around in it for a half a minute before pulling out a small envelope. “My contacts didn’t find out anymore than your PI friend. Seems she’s disappeared, but here is everything up until then, and she’s nothing but a con artist. Her family has disowned her, and her mother looked so sad just talking to me about it that I felt bad for her.”
“I appreciate you asking them,” he said. “The money for the down payment on this place? The financial reports?”
“In my briefcase in the car,” she said, “but until you are divorced from that gold-digging, baby murdering hussy, or we find out she’s dead, this hotel will be in my name. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Now, I suppose there is another bedroom for me here.”
“I have two other house guests. It’s a long story, but we’ll need to buy some furniture for one of the other guest rooms.”
“Perhaps I will take Patty with me.”
“I don’t think that’s a good—”
“I don’t care what you think.” Nana looked at her Apple Watch. “I was told you need to be at work soon, so you should go clean yourself up. Tell Patty I’ll be back in an hour with my things, and she and I will spend the day shopping.”
“I don’t think she’ll—”
“Just stop thinking,” Nana said. “It’s too painful.”
Reese heard giggles coming from the other room. He hugged and kissed his Nana and then watched her walk out the door. He stood in the kitchen, waiting to be harassed by Frank, Lacy, and Patty.
It was starting out to be a banner day.
13
Patty had been looking forward to spending the day with Reese’s nana, but she needed to address the injunctions and meet with a lawyer on Reese’s behalf. His nana seemed genuinely grateful that Reese had Patty to take care of those things. Patty didn’t know how she felt about anything, other than that meeting with Andrew meant a possible job opportunity, and she wasn’t going to feel guilty about taking that opportunity.
His offices were in Bolton Landing, a small town off the east shore of Lake George. He rented space over a diner on the corner of Main Street. There was a small reception area, and two offices, one for him and one for his partner. The furniture a dark cherry. The reception area had a brown leather sofa with two matching, wingback leather chairs. Both rooms had built-in floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, lined with legal books and journals.
“Everything looks good,” Andrew said. “I’m making copies for Reese, but we should be able to push this sale through in a couple of days, as long as we get the affidavit signed by both Riley girls and a judge, stating there was no previous verbal offer with Holland Development.”
“We’re working on that,” Patty said. “Thanks for your help on this.”
“My pleasure.” “I have a couple other projects I would like to contract you to work on. I can’t give you full-time hours, or even an office, but I can pay you for your time.”
“I’m good with contract work.” Andrew was short, in his early fifties, with a thick head of graying brown hair. He was fit for his age, and while he didn’t look old, he didn’t look young, either. Nothing about the man that stood out, except that he was genuinely a nice guy.
That went a long way.
“I’ll let you know when I get that signed affidavit,” Andrew said.
Patty decided to go out on a limb. “Have you ever worked with Holland Development before?”
“No,” he said, “but I have friends who aren’t fond of him or his development company.”
“Why is that?”
“Holland doesn’t fight fair.” He handed her a large envelope. “That’s everything you need to stop that one injunction. Once I get that signed affidavit, I’ll push everything through, and Reese should be rid of Holland for good.”
“Thanks. We really appreciate it.” Patty took the envelope then made her way to where she’d parked on Main Street, constantly looking around, feeling as though someone could be watching. Her heart beat a little faster. She quickly texted Reese, let
ting her know her whereabouts. Normally, that would be silly, but right now, it felt like she was being smart. The sun was bright, the snow nearly gone. If she had reservations about Reese, they were quickly melting like the snow. Deep down, she wanted him to have this hotel, and she wanted him to be part of her life.
No. She wanted to be with him. Simple as that.
Her phone rang. She quickly got in her car and put it through Bluetooth, then pulled out on the street, heading toward Route 9. “Hey, Lacy,” she said. “What’s up?”
“Talk to Reese or Frank in the last hour?”
“No, why?”
“The sheriff’s office determined the rat infestation was intentional. I guess they were able to identify the rats and where they came from.”
“That’s creepy.”
“More than creepy, and it gets weirder,” Lacy said. “They came from a medical research facility that reported a break-in yesterday, and over fifty rats went missing. The same rats that showed up in the house.”
“Who would do that?” Patty pulled onto Route 9, looking forward to navigating the twists and turns without the snow and ice. She took the corners tight, but not too fast. She slowed as she approached the intersection, tapping gently on the brakes.
“Everyone thinks it was Holland,” Lacy said.
A loud bang ripped through the car as it jolted to the right. “Oh, my God!”
“What’s going on?” Lacy asked, but Patty didn’t have time to answer, much less figure out what had happened or what to do next, because the world went black.
“What do you remember?” Reese knew he sounded more like a cop than a concerned boyfriend, but he was in uniform, in the hospital, taking a statement from the victim of a potential crime.
“I got in the car. I was talking with Lacy, then I heard a loud bang, and then I don’t remember anything until I woke up while the EMTs were pulling me from my car.”
