Thirty-Two and a Half Complications (8 page)

“I want to protect you.”

“Then send Mason the mug shots.”

“No.” His voice was firm. “I’ll show you the mug shots, and then we’ll set up some type of protective detail with the sheriff’s department for when you’re out on the farm.”

I released a sarcastic laugh. “Yeah, because that worked out so well last time.”

“Things are different. Several deputies were corrupt and in league with Crocker, but the department has been cleaned out now, and anyone watching you would really protect you this time.”

While Mason had suggested the same thing, I was still nervous about trusting the sheriff’s office. “Just let me look at the mug shots. Hopefully, I’ll find the guy on the first try and you can go arrest him. Then we’ll talk about the detail.”

He took several breaths before answering. “Fine. We’ll go with that plan for now.”

“So when are we going to look at the mug shots?”

“I haven’t pulled them yet, but I can do that now and come out to the farm tonight.”

I shook my head. “No. I’ll come to your office.”

“Everyone in the sheriff’s department knows you’re dating Mason. And they also know that you and I used to date. How’s it going to look if you come to my office and we close the door?”

I closed my eyes. I knew Joe didn’t give a rat’s ass how it looked. But he knew that I wouldn’t want to hurt Mason’s reputation and he was using that fact in his favor. “Fine. Come out tonight.”

“I’ll cook you dinner if you’d like. I know you love my chicken parmesan.”

“No. This is
not
a date. You bring the mug shots, I’ll look through them, and then you leave.”

“You have to eat, Rose.”

“Stop it, Joe, or I won’t let you come at all.”

“Fine, no need to get worked up.” He grinned, making me instantly regret my agreement. “I can bring them out to you at around seven.”

“Okay.” I turned around and grabbed the doorknob.

“Rose.”

I paused and looked over my shoulder.

“It’s good to see you again. I’ve missed you.” Then he turned around and walked down the steps.

I went inside and closed the door, pressing my back to the wood. What had I just gotten myself into?

Chapter Six

I dug out my phone and called Mason, grateful that he answered on the first ring. “You were right about Joe.”

He paused. “So he called you?”

“No. I had to pick up Violet’s kids and bring them to her house because Mike got tied up. Joe was waiting on Violet’s front porch. Waiting for
me
.”

“How’d he know you would be there?”

“Violet. I’m sure she told him.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he told her why he wanted to talk to me.” But it was just about more than I could take. She could have at least warned me. I’d never felt more betrayed by her in my life, and that was saying something.

“How’d it go? Are you okay?”

“It was ugly. But I’m fine.”

“I called him right after you left, but he didn’t say much. He just told me that he’d think about it and get back to me. I’m sorry, Rose. I should have warned you.”

“It’s not your fault.” I tried to stuff down my frustration. “He says he’ll bring the mug shots out to the farm tonight.”

“The farm?”

“He says it will look bad if I show up at his office and he shuts the door.”

Mason was quiet for several seconds before he exploded. “
Goddamn
him. I knew he’d take advantage of the situation, but I should have realized he’d go above and beyond my expectations. That self-centered, egotistical, entitled bastard.”

I wasn’t sure what to say.

“Did he say what time he’s coming?”

“Seven.”

He groaned. “I have a meeting at seven. With the sheriff.” He cursed again. “But then he knew that. He did this on purpose.”

“I’ll cancel.”

“You can’t. We need you to ID the guy so they can catch him.”

“Just hurry home when you can, okay?”

“I will. Call me if you need me.”

I hung up and spent the next half hour with the kids before Mike knocked on the front door. Ashley ran to it and threw it open.

“Daddy!”

I was sitting on the sofa with Mikey on my lap, so I stood and set the little boy down. “Hi, Mike.” It was hard to believe that I hadn’t seen him since Halloween. “How are things going with you and Violet?”

He grimaced. “She hasn’t kept you informed of our progress?”

“No. We don’t talk too much outside of work lately.”

His smile fell. “Things really
have
changed between you two.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, we’re still going to a counselor, but it’s rocky.” He lowered his voice so the kids couldn’t hear. “I think she might be seeing Brody again. Ashley mentions that Mommy goes to the store a lot but doesn’t come home with any bags.” He took a deep breath. “For now, I think it’s best if we don’t spend much time together outside of therapy.” He bent down and picked up Mikey. “I’m still trying to forgive her. And if she’s seeing Brody again—especially since he’s back with his wife—I’m not sure I’ll
ever
forgive her.”

I gave him a kiss on the cheek. It hadn’t occurred to me that Violet might be seeing the mayor again, but I wasn’t exactly surprised. “I’m sorry you’re going through this, Mike, but I’m always here for you. You deserve better.” I pulled Ashley into a hug. “I have to go, but I’ll see you later.”

“Bye, Aunt Rose.”

Although we were almost out of food, I skipped going to the store and headed straight home with Muffy. Mason had his meeting, which meant he’d probably order something from Merilee’s, and my stomach was too worked up for me to consider eating. Instead, I grabbed a package of crackers out of the pantry and considered reading one of the business books on my nightstand, but something else was pulling me. I dug my birth mother’s diary out of the dresser in Dora’s old bedroom, where I’d originally found it. Muffy had chosen this bedroom for me when we first stayed on the farm, and it was the room Mason and I now shared.

When Mason and I were under protective custody, I’d taken the opportunity to explore my birth mother’s house while we waited for Crocker to be apprehended. It was the first time I’d ever been there. My uncle, who had been the executer of my estate until I discovered the truth about my birth mother, had kept everything almost exactly the way it had been when Dora left for work the day of her car accident. When I was less than two months old.

I’d found the diary and a box of photos and, most shocking of all, the nursery Dora had made for me. I’d read a few of her diary entries and examined some of the photos, but most of her private things were still untouched. I’d been busy after our nightmare with Crocker came to a close, so I hadn’t had time to properly explore these remnants. But now, as I waited for Joe to come and attempt to disrupt my life once again, I wanted to read the entries in which my birth mother grappled with the biggest decisions of her life.

Muffy hopped up on the canopy bed that had been Dora’s and curled into a ball in the middle of the queen-sized mattress. I’d kept most of the furniture in the house, only replacing the living room set. My sofa and chair were only a few months old and Dora’s had been uncomfortable. But now the bed looked enticing. It wasn’t even six yet, but I was exhausted after my crazy day. I lay down and rolled onto my side, opening the diary to the first page.

Dora had started journaling in high school. The first entries said the journal was a project for her junior English class. But she wrote in it sporadically through the rest of high school and even after she graduated.

Her first entry was general, but enlightening. Dora was an only child and her parents had died in a car accident when she was five. She barely remembered them, which bothered her more than she let on to most people. She’d moved in with her grandparents here on the family farm, but her grandfather had died her freshman year of high school. Her biggest fear was her grandmother dying and leaving her alone. Her greatest joy was her horses.

My eyelids were heavy, so I closed the cover and rested my eyes. When I woke up, the room was dark. I heard banging on the back kitchen door, followed by the sound of breaking glass.

I sat upright in bed, my chest tightening. Where was my phone? Fear shot through me when I realized I’d left it downstairs in the kitchen. I was on my own.

Muffy hunkered down on the bed and released a low growl.

I rested my hand on the back of her head and rubbed lightly. “Easy, girl.” If Muffy had been a bigger dog, I might have let her loose to try and scare off my intruder, but it would be too easy for someone to overpower my eight-pound dog. I couldn’t risk letting her get hurt.

When Mason and I had first checked out the house, we’d both walked right by the converted sunroom that was attached to the master bedroom. If Muffy and I hid there, we might go undetected.

I slid off the bed and was reaching for my dog when I heard my name shouted.

“
Rose!
”

I froze, recognizing the voice. “Joe?” I called out.

Joe had broken into my house.

I turned on the bedside lamp, then headed into the upstairs hallway.

“Rose?
Where are you?
”

The last thing I wanted was for him to come upstairs. “I’m heading down.”

A light flicked on in the living room, illuminating Joe, who was standing at the base of the stairs with a pistol in his hand.

“Did you break my back window, Joe McAllister?” I asked in disbelief.

He gave me an exasperated look as he shoved his gun in its holster. “Why didn’t you answer? I knocked and tried calling. I knew you were here because your truck’s out front. With the bank robbers on the loose, I was worried something might have happened.”

It was hard to be mad at him when he’d broken into the house with the best of intentions, but now one of my windows needed to be replaced. With money I didn’t have. “I fell asleep.”

Worry replaced his irritation. “Are you not feeling well?”

My stomach had been a mess of nerves most of the day, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. “I’m fine, just tired. Bruce Wayne and I had a big demo job today,” I said as I descended the staircase, Muffy bolting ahead to greet Joe.

He bent down to rub her head. “What do you mean, demo job?”

“You know how I hired Bruce Wayne and David to help me with the landscaping job at Jonah’s church?” Of course he did. He’d never approved of the decision. “Well, turns out that Bruce Wayne and I both love it. So we started a landscaping side for the nursery and we’ve had plenty of business. We ripped out a bunch of shrubs and bushes today and I got worn out.”

“You shouldn’t work so hard, Rose. I know you like the planting, so why don’t you hire someone else to help Bruce Wayne with the hard labor?”

I stopped at the bottom of the stairs and looked up at him, shaking my head. “Stop.”

His mouth parted as I walked past him and into the kitchen to examine the damage.

The kitchen door had nine rectangular windows on the top. The one directly over the doorknob had been knocked in, and shards of glass littered the wood floor.

Muffy must have sensed the tension in the room because she headed straight for her dog bed underneath the windows on the back wall, burrowing into it.

I grabbed the broom and dustpan from the pantry, but when I headed for the mess, Joe blocked my path. “You don’t have any shoes on. You’re going to get cut.”

I looked down at my feet, forgetting I’d taken my shoes and socks off.

“I see that you go barefoot even in the winter,” he said, his voice lowering. “I always wondered what it would be like to sleep with you in the winter. Whether you’d put your cold feet on my legs.”

My back stiffened with anger. “Let’s get one thing straight right now.” I glared and pointed my finger at his shocked face. “You are here for a
professional
matter,
Deputy Simmons
. You are here to show me mug shots so that I can point out the man I saw in my vision. If, God willing, I find him, you will figure out how to arrest the man. But let me be
perfectly
clear:
You and I
are no longer together.
You
walked out of my house two months ago. That was the end of us, whether you changed your mind or not. So I will not tolerate your continued intrusion into my personal life and matters. Is that clear?”

To my surprise, he grinned. “Yes, ma’am.”

I shoved the broom and dustpan at him. “You broke the window, so you can clean it up.”

He took them from me, actually chuckling now.

That was not how I’d expected him to react. With my hands on my hips, I scanned the room. “Where are the mug shots? I’ll look at them while you clean.”

“Shouldn’t the chief deputy sheriff be the one issuing the orders around here?” he teased.

“Shut up and give me the mug shots.”

“I left them in the car. When I saw that the lights were off but your truck was here, I worried something had happened to you.”

That curbed my anger right quick. “Thanks.”

“Just doin’ my job, ma’am.” He rested the broom against the kitchen counter. “I’ll get the photos. Leave the mess for me to clean up while you look.”

“Okay.”

He headed to the living room and out the front door while I grabbed the tea kettle from the cabinet. After I filled it with water and set it on the stove, I pulled out two cups, tea bags, and a jar of honey, setting them on the counter.

“Are you actually making me a cup of tea,
Ms. Gardner?
” Joe asked when he re-entered the kitchen. “Doesn’t that cross the boundaries you established mere moments ago?”

I lifted my eyebrows. “Do you want a cup of tea or not?”

“Yes, ma’am. I do.”

I scowled. Joe was definitely up to something.

He pulled a folder out from under his arm and set it on the kitchen table. “Just look through these and let me know if any of the guys look familiar.” Then he pulled the chair out, waiting for me to sit.

I narrowed my eyes.

“
Ms. Gardner,
my mother, bitch or not, taught me to be a gentleman, just like any other well-bred Southern man. We may be treating this as a professional situation, but I will treat you with the same respect I would give any other woman. I open doors. I pull out chairs. Deal with it.”