Smart Girls Think Twice (19 page)

“Hey, I can do hysteria as well as, if not better than, the next girl.”

“You got that ability from Mom.” Grinning widely, Emma quickly sidestepped Leena’s attempt to sock her arm and made her escape.

Still in a good mood, Emma returned to her apartment to find Oliver engrossed in his e-mail.

“I brought you some spring rolls,” she said.

“Thanks. I got an e-mail you might be interested in. A friend of mine is an assistant editor at a small press that’s looking for nonfiction projects. Remember how you used to go on and on about writing a book someday? This might be the day.”

“I can’t write a book in a day.”

“I meant this might be the most auspicious time to submit a book proposal. She’s accepting e-mail submissions if someone has been recommended, which you have been. By me.”

“What did you tell her I was writing?”

“Something great. I didn’t go into any more detail than that. Just sit down and start with stream of consciousness and see what you come up with, what areas interest you. You’ve got this small-town regeneration research going.”

“Yes, but I’m planning to submit that to a professional journal.”

“Well, just try brainstorming other subjects within your field that interest you.”

Jake interested her. What made someone take the risks he had? What made someone an adrenaline junkie? An hour later she’d written several pages of notes, filled with more questions than answers.

Across the street in Nick’s Tavern, Jake had more questions than answers too. Why did women freak out when you least expect it? Why had Emma practically tossed him out of her apartment?

It wasn’t because she hadn’t enjoyed their kisses. So what was the problem?

He really didn’t need a distraction like her right now. He should be thinking about finding his birth mother. She held the answers to who he was. Or so he hoped. No,
hope
wasn’t in his vocabulary. He just wanted the facts. Why had she given him away? Who was his father? Jake’s near-death experience on the mountain in Peru made him question everything, including who he was. Some answers were beyond his reach—like why Andy died in that avalanche and not him. But this, finding his birth mother, this was an answer he could pin down.

Jake was much more accustomed to wondering about the external things in his life. Was this snowboard faster than the previous one? Was this mountain route tougher than another? Was this trick more difficult than the last, this endeavor more challenging?

Jake looked up from the glass he was wiping clean to see Emma’s mom climbing onto a bar stool.

“Hello, Jake.”

Had Emma sent her mom after him? No, she’d never do that. Emma probably didn’t even know her mom was here.

Maxie said, “I’d like a Diet Coke—”

“With a slice of lime, right?”

She beamed at him. “Right. How nice of you to remember.” She looked around. “The tavern isn’t busy this time of day.”

“It’s early yet.” The place was empty aside from Old Mo. Every weekday the grumpy old geezer sat in the far corner working the newspaper crossword puzzle while nursing a glass of beer for two or three hours.

“This gives us a chance to talk,” Maxie said. “I didn’t get to speak to you at my daughter’s reception. I know that you and Emma left before the conga line started.”

“I’m not much of a dancer.”

“I find that hard to believe, a muscular athlete like you. You do know that Emmitt Smith, the football player, became a championship dancer on
Dancing with the Stars
, right?”

“I must have missed that.”

“They even called him Twinkletoes.”

Jake, aka Slayter the Slayer, had no intention of being called Twinkletoes in this lifetime or any other.

“You do know that before we moved down to Florida, I was a hairdresser here in town, right?”

Did he know that? Had Emma mentioned it? He wasn’t sure so he just agreed with Maxie.

“Right.”

“Well, in small towns like this your hairdresser knows everything. Granted, most of my customers were collecting Social Security, but I still picked things up. Information. I’ve told my daughter that I could help her with her study about Rock Creek, but she turned me down. I was thinking that maybe you could talk to her.”

Hairdressers. Knew everything. Emma might not need Maxie’s help, but Jake could sure use it.

“So did you know Zoe, Lulu’s mom?”

“Zoe hasn’t been back in Rock Creek for a long time.”

“Right.” He knew the year she’d left. The investigator had been able to get that much info on her.

She’d gone to Cleveland, Chicago, and they’d lost track of her in Toronto. But he was more interested in Zoe’s life
before
she left Rock Creek. Like thirty years ago—the year he was born and the year she’d first left town.

“I can remember the day she left as if it were yesterday,” Maxie said. “They say your memory gets worse the older you get, but not mine. Zoe’s not a natural blond. She uses Miss Clairol. Or she used to in those days. She was quite the rowdy one. Her dad couldn’t keep her under control.”

“Do you know why she left?”

“She never said, never warned anyone she was leaving. She didn’t even leave a note for her dad.

She was just another runaway. I believe she was barely sixteen at the time.”

“Is that when she had Lulu?”

“Heavens no. Lulu is only twenty. Zoe had been gone ten years by the time Lulu was born.

Lulu was just a toddler when Zoe came back and moved in with her father. But it wasn’t long before she took off again, leaving Lulu behind. Lulu’s grandfather raised her. He did a good job, but Lulu’s got her mother’s wild blood in her.”

Jake wondered if he had the same wild blood in him.

“Maxie, what are you doing gossiping in my bar in the middle of the day?” Nic demanded as she blew into the tavern.

“Nice haircut,” Maxie said. “Where did you get it done?”

“At a new place over in Serenity Falls. I just came to pick up some paperwork from the office and to enjoy some eye candy.” Her eyes wandered over Jake. “Are you here to enjoy the view too, Maxie?”

“Jake is dating my youngest daughter Emma.”

“The smart one?”

“Yes.”

“That’s too bad.” Nic sashayed toward the tiny office in the back. Two minutes later, she was out the door, cursing under her breath about accountants and paperwork.

“It’s probably a good thing Nic never had kids,” Maxie said.

“How do you know she hasn’t?”

“She had an infertility problem. She never wanted kids anyway so it wasn’t a big deal to her. Not that she ever talks about it.”

Which meant his boss wasn’t his birth mother. Thank God.

“This bar is her baby,” Maxie continued, “and she doesn’t take good care of it. She doesn’t like change. That must be it. That must be why she hasn’t updated the place. I know Sue Ellen got a degree in interior decorating online and could help Nic out here, adding some splashes of color. But no, Nic turned her down.”

“Does everyone in town know she owns this bar?”

“Not everyone, no. In fact, she likes to keep it pretty much under wraps. Nic . . . well, she’s a real character. Rock Creek has a lot of those. Take Nancy Crumpler, for example. Her sister is a nun yet she’s been married four times and divorced three. Rumor has it that at one point Nancy was a dancer in one of those places in the Poconos. From there she went on to be a dancer at a casino in Las Vegas.”

“She was a Vegas showgirl? When was that?”

“Oh, that would be thirty years ago now. She left Rock Creek for the Poconos, then went to Las Vegas maybe a year after that.”

Which meant she was still in the running.

“She got married in Vegas, divorced, married again, divorced again. She came back to Rock Creek after that. Married a local businessman pretty quickly. Divorced him. Married Al Crumpler, who eventually died and left her the auto parts store.”

“What about children?”

“She and Al didn’t have any together, but she had two by a previous husband. Her kids are in their twenties now and live in Nevada. But there were rumors . . .” Maxie’s voice trailed off.

“What rumors?”

“That when she was dancing in the Poconos that she might have been”—Maxie looked around before whispering—“pregnant.”

With him? This felt so weird.

Maxie was right. Hairdresssers knew everything. She’d given him more info than the private investigator had. Granted it was all based on gossip and rumor, but it was better than nothing.

“Enough with the old history,” Maxie said. “Let’s get back to my daughter Emma. Did you two enjoy your time together?”

Jake nodded. He wasn’t accustomed to being grilled by a girl’s mom. Females had been chasing him since he was a teenager. He’d never had to go after a woman before. He never had to watch what he said to a woman’s mom because he’d never met her mom.

“I’m so glad. Emma never tells me anything.”

Jake stayed silent. If Emma never told her mom anything, he sure wasn’t about to.

“You know, Leena’s wedding is coming up next. I hope you’ll be Emma’s guest at that as well.”

Considering the fact that Emma had just tossed him out of her apartment, he wasn’t sure what the status was on the next wedding gig. He’d filled out her questionnaire so she’d gotten what she wanted

Or had she? She’d seemed to want him big time when they’d made out in the back of his Jeep.

And when he’d kissed her earlier today in his apartment.

So again Jake stayed quiet and let Maxie do all the talking. Finally she finished her drink and left.

“Mom just walked out of Nick’s Tavern,” Leena told Emma over the phone.

“What?” Up in her apartment, Emma swiveled her head from her laptop to the large window facing Barwell Street.

“I just saw her walk out of the tavern. Uh-oh, she saw me. She’s coming.”

A minute later Maxie took the phone. “Hi, Emma. I was just talking to Jake.”

“About what?” Emma said.

“About all kinds of things,” Maxie said coyly.

“Did he tell you that Emma’s living with a guy?” Leena said in the background.

“Emma, have you moved in with Jake?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then who are you living with?”

“I have a friend staying with me for a few days, that’s all.”

“A male friend?”

“Yes.”

“But where will he sleep? You only have a studio apartment. A tiny hovel.”

“He has a sleeping bag. He’ll sleep on the floor.”

“Who is this man?” Maxie demanded.

“He’s more a geeky guy than a man,” Leena said in the background.

“His name is Oliver,” Emma said, “and he’s a friend from Boston.”

“Why is he in town?”

“He’s visiting.”

“No one used to visit Rock Creek, but I guess things are different now that we have that crafty art loop and everything. Where is this Oliver? I’d like to meet him.”

“He’s here in my apartment.”

“Good. I”ll come right up.”

Emma heard Maxie handing the phone back to Leena, who then said, “I’ve already had the pleasure of meeting Oliver, so you two go ahead without me. I’ve got tons to do yet on my wedding list for today.”

Emma didn’t have much of a choice. She could see her mom out the window heading straight for Emma’s building.

“My mother’s coming,” she warned Oliver. She wanted to add “Run for cover,” but there was no place to hide in the small apartment.

Emma met Maxie at the door.

“I don’t understand why you’d want to live in this rundown building when you could stay in your old bedroom at the trailer.”

“This building is not rundown. They’ve just recently done renovations on it.”

“Hmm.” Maxie wasn’t impressed. “And you must be Oliver.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He wiped his damp palms on his pants before awkwardly shaking her hand.

“Oliver Howser.”

“Are you her boyfriend from Boston?”

“Her boyfriend was my brother.
Is
my brother. Well, he’s still my brother, but he’s no longer her boyfriend. They broke up.” Oliver gulped for air. “Okay, I’ll shut up now.”

“Who cuts your hair, Oliver?” Maxie asked.

“Uh, my mom.”

“Is she a beautician?”

“No.”

“I didn’t think so.” She ran her hand through his shaggy hair. “I can do a much better job.

How do you feel about adding some blond highlights to your brown hair?”

“Mother!”

Maxie turned to face her. “What?”

Emma didn’t know where to begin.

So Maxie turned back to Oliver. “She only calls me Mother when she’s peeved with me. So Oliver, about those highlights—”

“Can’t you just accept him the way he is? Why do you always have to pick on someone’s appearance? Why do you always think you know best?”

Maxie did her customary eye roll and head shake combo, meant to indicate that the answer should be evident. “Because I’m a mother, that’s why.”

“Oliver has a mother, and she thinks his hair looks fine the way it is.”

“What would Lulu think?” Oliver asked.

“Lulu?” Maxie repeated. “You mean Lulu who works at the comic-book store here?”

“Yes, that’s her,” Oliver hurriedly agreed. “What would she think of me getting blond highlights?”

“Are you kidding?” Maxie said. “She’d love it.”

Emma wasn’t ready to wave the white flag just yet. “Oliver, it doesn’t matter what Lulu or my mom thinks. What matters is you.”

“When can you do the procedure?” Oliver asked Maxie.

“Heavens, it’s not brain surgery. It’s not a procedure, it’s a grooming treatment. Why don’t you come on with me now over to our place and I’ll get you all set up.”

“Okay.”

Oliver might be getting his degree from MIT but that didn’t in any way prepare him for nor protect him from Maxie’s clutches. Emma felt she had to do something. She just didn’t know what.

“We have extra room at our trailer,” Maxie told Oliver. “You’re more than welcome to stay with us while you’re in Rock Creek.”

“You’re getting ready for Leena’s wedding,” Emma reminded her mother. “Oliver stays here.”

Maxie did another eye roll minus the head shake this time. “Okay, okay. Don’t get your panties in a knot, Emma. Come on, Oliver.” She hooked her arm through his. “Let’s leave Emma alone to calm down on her own.”