If We Dare to Dream (22 page)

“Yeah, well, it’s awkward.”

Confusion spread across Hayden’s face, but Grady stepped in on his behalf. “The guy has been ostracized for years now and suddenly he’s got to start all over. I’m sure that makes him feel awkward. Give him time. He’ll settle in once he realizes that no one here is going to bite him.”

“You sure about that?” Ian called. He had bent over to light the grill but straightened and stared pointedly at Jamie. “Mama Bear over there looks angry enough to bite him hard.”

“Grady’s right,” Torie said, ignoring Ian. “I could see it on his face when we spoke. He looked like a deer in headlights. Can’t blame him… I guess we all just need to be patient.”

“What is this ‘we’?” Jamie said. “It’s done. I spoke to Chuck and he says that the detectives are looking at two suspects, one of which is pretty interesting. He lived in Kit’s apartment complex and was considered a weirdo. If they make the arrest, Andrew will resume his life without any help from me.”

“But you’re the only friend he has right now.”

“That we know of,” Jamie said to Torie. “He may have a whole bunch of old buddies.”

She shook her head. “I don’t think so. He doesn’t strike me as the most outgoing of individuals.”

Having lit the grill and closed the lid to allow it to warm up, Ian joined the group at the table. “He’s here now, and we’ll all be as polite as possible. We’re adults and can behave as such, Jamie.”

Her lips twisted sarcastically. “Fine. We’ll all behave.”

They did.

Ford and Andrew were not gone long, and when they returned Ford was looking very satisfied. Jamie kept her distance, preferring to work in the kitchen with her niece, Ana. They prepared a potato salad and fresh greens while Ford and Isabel catered to Andrew in an effort to make him more comfortable. Torie worked on the other side of the kitchen preparing chili and beans as side dishes. Though she tried not to, Jamie stole several surreptitious glances to the patio to check on Andrew, and each time he appeared as nervous as she felt.

Awkward.

Ana chatted gaily with Jamie while they worked, filling her in on her latest Facebook friend and the drama of being a freshman in high school. While Ana kept up the chatter, Torie brought Jamie a glass of wine, and she gulped it down quickly to steady her nerves.

Luckily the wine helped. By the time they began to bring out the food and set the kids up at the secondary patio table, Jamie was feeling more accepting of Ford’s deviousness and more relaxed. The appreciative words of the hungry family pleased her, and though Andrew did not speak much the way he dug into his meal with gusto gave her a sense of satisfaction.

As was customary, talk during dinner went around the table. Every member gave an update on their lives and careers, and Jamie noticed how carefully Andrew listened. Rather than have him squeeze in between others, Isabel had placed him in her seat at the opposite end from Ford. The position placed him in plain view of her, and Jamie kept a close eye on him throughout the meal. He eventually relaxed as the conversation continued, but she never saw him crack even the hint of a smile despite the ribbing between the brothers and laughter from the others. In normal Evans way, they continued their noisy dinner until darkness approached and Jamie arrived with dessert. Ian leaned back in his chair with his customary appreciative belch.

“Great dinner,” he announced. “Although,
I
must take credit for the awesome grilling job. The meat came out perfectly, if I may so.”

A murmur went around the table, first admonishing Ian for his terrible table manners, followed by hearty thanks from all around. When Jamie offered Andrew the plate with chocolate chip brownies, he met her stare for the first time since his arrival.

“Thank you for dinner,” he said.

After reaching for a brownie, his pale gaze held hers for several moments, and she took the opportunity to search his eyes for some inclination as to what he was feeling. He was so guarded that she could not read any emotion in the honey depths, but she wanted to. Oh, how she wanted to. Another charged moment passed before she finally looked away in disappointment. She just could not read him.

Smiling thinly, she withdrew the plate. “Anytime.”

Continuing around the table, she handed out the rest of the brownies before clearing off the remaining plates and returning to the kitchen to help with the cleanup. By the time she reappeared outside to say goodbye, Hayden and Ana were in the pool with the boys playing volleyball while the remaining brothers had taken over the lounge chairs and were cheering the kids. Though Andrew watched in silence, Jamie immediately noticed that his body was less stiff, and he seemed to be more relaxed than when he first arrived. She approached and hugged each brother in turn, but when she reached Andrew he had already come to his feet and was returning his chair to the table.

“I’ll walk out with you,” he said in explanation.

Jamie hid her surprise from her gaping brothers and nodded her agreement. “Okay.”

Following Jamie’s lead, Andrew expressed his thanks to everyone while Jamie went to the kids in the pool. When she was done, he was waiting patiently by the sliding glass door, his hand resting on the handle as though he was ready to bolt. Another round of farewells followed in the kitchen before Jamie and Andrew stood alone for the first time since they had initially met. They stood uneasily outside the front door as Andrew scanned the driveway. His brow was creased in a frown.

“Which car is yours?”

“Oh, I walked over. I don’t live far from here.”

“You walked?” He stared up at the sky, which had grown dark in the hours they had spent with her family.

“Of course. Why drive when it’s just down the street?”

“But it’s dark… I’ll give you a ride.”

Unable to help herself, she laughed out loud. “I’m fine. I walk here all the time. This neighborhood isn’t exactly dangerous.”

Andrew had the grace to look slightly embarrassed at her teasing words. “You’re right… Tools of the trade.”

Jamie immediately felt guilty. Surely it was not Andrew’s fault that he was nervous. After all, he had seen enough in his lifetime to never trust anyone again. “Sorry about that.”

He glanced down at her with a determined set to his jaw. “I’ll walk you home.”

“If you do that, you’ll have to walk all the way back to get your truck,” she pointed out wryly.

“I don’t mind. After eating all that food this afternoon, I could use a good walk myself.”

Heart pounding in her throat, Jamie looked up and met Andrew’s pale gaze again. It was too dark to read his expression, but he was actually looking at her for a change in addition to asking for her company, which had to mean something. Now she was responding by suddenly feeling nervous? Reminding herself that this was her opportunity to have him to herself, Jamie bit back her anxiety. Why was she seizing up with indecision and feeling vulnerable and afraid? That was not the Jamie Morton she knew. Taking a deep breath, she spoke before she could refuse.

“All right then. Let’s go.”

Chapter 11

Hands stuffed deep into his pockets, Andrew walked alongside Jamie in the darkness, listening to her even breathing and the sound of her flip flops slapping against the hot pavement. He was not sure what had spurred him to walk her home; she did not seem to want his company anyway. However, there they were walking side by side in silence, and he had absolutely no idea what to say to her.

He felt like an inexperienced teenager.

To her credit, Jamie appeared as relaxed as ever. Though he had caught a glimmer of hesitation when he first insisted, she had carefully masked it and seemed as confident as usual. It surprised him how easily she had given in and agreed to walk alone in the dark with a convicted murderer, and he had to admire her pluck for placing her trust in him so effortlessly. If he were anyone else, he would have shaken her for doing something so foolish.

They were approaching the end of Ford’s street when Jamie thankfully broke the silence. “So you’re taking a job with Ford?”

There was no reprimand in her voice, only curiosity. He sent her a sidelong glance. “For the time being, yes.”

“Good for you.”

That sounded earnest.

It bolstered his confidence slightly, and he attempted to keep the conversation going. “You have an interesting family.”

She chuckled. “That I do.”

As she spoke, he realized he really did like her family. They had not stared at him strangely or asked him questions about his past. They seemed normal and wanted to treat him as if he was too. He wondered if that would ever be possible, but he had to give them credit for trying. “They seem like good people.”

“They are.”

He was growing frustrated with her closed-ended answers, and he could not come up with anything else to talk about. She took a right at the end of Ford’s street, her pace fluid but unhurried. They were now on the main road going through the community, and orange street lights lit their path. Her pace remained even as she pointed to side-street far ahead.

“I’m up there.”

In a last ditch effort to come up with something to talk about, Andrew reached for his last straw. “Ford told me that you used to ride.”

He sensed rather than saw her step falter, but her voice was clear when she answered. “He did?”

“Yeah, when you came to see my grandmother. He mentioned that you used to do events.”

“Jumping.”

“Impressive. Why did you stop?”

She turned her head to stare at him curiously. “My parents got sick with cancer. First my mother; then my father. I had no time to show anymore because I was caring for them.”

This was something he did not know, and he immediately felt remorse. “I’m sorry… I didn’t know that.”

She smiled briefly. “I wouldn’t expect you to.”

He glanced down at her, but she was still looking forward.

“When they died, I moved in with Ford and Isabel while I finished high school. Ford took me to some events, but it was too much, and I sold Duffy. I haven’t ridden since.”

“That’s too bad.”

She waved her hand in dismissal. “It was a long time ago.”

“Have you considered riding again?”

A silence descended as she considered his words. “Honestly, I hadn’t thought about it. Life goes on, you know?” When he nodded, she continued. “First there was college, then the career, then marriage followed by divorce… Now all this. I guess I’ve been too busy to think about what to do in my off-time.”

“You’re divorced?”

As soon as he spoke, he wanted to kick himself. In his efforts to speak with Jamie, he was bringing up every painful memory the woman had. No wonder she did not want to be near him.

Without looking at him, she nodded her head. “Yeah, a while ago now.”

He swallowed hard and gathered his courage. Change the subject quick, he thought, or this walk home with her will be your last walk home with her. There was a time when he never would have hesitated. He would have found it easy to talk to her and express his interest. The night he first met her, she had liked him. He left feeling confident that had she not have been engaged he would have gotten her number. But so much had changed since then. Now he was labeled a criminal.

Taking a deep breath, he took the plunge. “Now that I have a job, I’m going to need help caring for the boarders and training Tabasco so I can sell him. If you’re not too busy and may be interested, come on out.”

Bracing himself for the polite refusal, he held his breath. After meeting her family, he now understood where Jamie learned her graciousness, so he expected nothing less than a friendly but unequivocal snub. However, he was taken aback when she stopped and stared at him in open-mouthed surprise. He also stopped and stared as her dark eyes widened to the size of saucers, and he was instantly reminded of an excited child being granted a much coveted gift. While not what he expected, he had to admit that he was pleased. However, before he could relish the moment, her eagerness subsided and her tone became more suspicious.

“You want me to help you with your horses?”

“They’ve been pretty lazy lately.” He saw the uncertainty return to her eyes and immediately felt suspicion of his own. “Why?”

She shrugged, but he heard the hurt in her voice. “I didn’t think you liked me.”

Now that was unexpected. He could not have been more surprised if she had reached out and slapped him across the face. Without another word, Jamie turned the corner onto the side street and crossed the gravel in the front yard of a modest ranch house. He watched her for a moment and then began to follow, still stunned. She reached into the pocket of her shorts and pulled her keys free before looking over her shoulder for him, and his steps quickened until he caught up to her standing by her darkened front door. “Why would you think that?”

“For obvious reasons, I guess.” She reached out and patted his arm lightly. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s no big deal.”

“No, I’m glad that you did,” he said firmly. “Jamie, there are many things that I may think of you, but I can tell you right now dislike is not one of them.”