Leaving Liberty (29 page)

           
He raised a hand and tipped his hat, not really sure what she meant by ‘nice’.
She’d drawn the word out a bit and she was grinning. Either she liked the
uniform or she was teasing him. He decided to think positively.

           
“Thanks. Daisy calls it my ‘hot cop’ outfit.”

           
Ana let out a bark of laughter and Daisy’s cheeks went pink.

           
“Are you on lunch?” Ana asked.

           
“Nope. Just a doughnut run. A cliché that happens to be true. Cops do like
their doughnuts.”

           
 “You saying that office will never have large, pink cardboard containers
of carrot and celery sticks?” Rocky asked.

           
“Not likely. But all things in moderation.” Lane patted his stomach, knowing it
was only a matter of time before he had to run more and eat less. He was a
young man with a young man’s metabolism. But sitting in a patrol car eating
fried desserts sure didn’t do much for the arteries.

           
Nancy came around the counter with the large box. “Tell Oliver that we’re out
of the lemon-filled. I don’t want him to think I forgot him.”

           
“Will do.” He left the money on the counter and nodded to Rocky. “See you
later. Not much we can do with the garden today, I suppose.”

           
“Agreed.” The old man looked like he was doing his best to keep calm but
perspiration beaded his brow. Lane couldn’t imagine how it felt to stand so
near the person you’d disappointed so deeply. Just like Jason, Rocky was man
enough to move forward instead of staring back at the mistakes he’d made, man
enough to stand in front of the person who could bury him in justifiable anger.
He touched Rocky’s shoulder and walked toward the door.

           
Daisy stood to the side, letting him pass. Her lips were pressed together and
he could see the anxiety in her eyes. This was hard for everybody.
Lord,
grant them peace.
If only he could wipe away the years of pain and
hardship. But life didn’t work that way. It was what it was and we were left to
make the best of a bad situation.

           
He paused in front of her, wishing the entire bakery wasn’t listening.

           
 “My parents are coming down tomorrow and they wanted to know if you’d
like to meet us at church.” He could feel the attention of the two old ladies
at the corner table. This was practically the same as getting down on one knee,
but his mom would be unhappy if he didn’t pass on the invitation. He wasn’t
dumb enough to make his mother unhappy, no matter what other people said.

           
Daisy looked up, eyes widening. “Oh, that’s nice. Which church?”

           
“St. Patrick’s, on Alder Street.”

           
“We went there last week. Do you only go when your parents come to town?” Ana
asked.

           
 “Nope. Every Sunday, high noon. I’m in the pew before the bells stop
ringing.”

           
“Ah.” Daisy nodded. “We went to the early service. Ana’s one of those weirdoes
who gets up at the crack of dawn.”

           
“Seven is hardly the crack of dawn,” Ana said.

           
“So… noon?” For some strange reasons his palms went damp and he lifted a hand
to tug on his hat. Daisy’s gaze followed the movement and her lips turned up at
the corners.

           
“Sure. I’ll see you then.” She was still smiling, eyes locked on his when she
seemed to remember Ana was present. “We, I mean. Both of us.”

           
Lane nodded, sent another wave at Rocky and stepped out of the bakery. The soft
rain pattered down, dotting the pink cardboard. He could feel a goofy smile
plastered to his face but couldn’t seem to wipe it off. Seeing her made his
day, plain and simple. If it weren’t for the nagging reality of the summer’s
end, life would be about perfect. As it was, this feeling he had for Daisy was
bittersweet to the core.

                                                                       
***

           
Daisy watched Lane walk out the door and wished she could run after him. Hot
cop aside, he made her feel safe. It had been annoying in the beginning but his
protective stance and gentle words were something she had grown to love. She
shot a glance at Ana, who raised her eyebrows. She wanted someone to tell her
what to do. She wanted a responsible adult to walk over, put their arm around
her shoulders and whisper directions in her ear. But that wasn’t going to
happen.

           
Marie’s words came back to her in a rush.
Will you take all the love you
have for me and spread it around?
It wasn’t what she wanted to do. She
wanted to hold it tight inside, deep down where no one could touch it. But
Marie had been wiser than anyone she’d ever known. Daisy knew that holding on
to her love for Marie would make it twisted, tarnishing it with selfishness.

           
Taking a deep breath, she walked toward the counter. Rocky stood awkwardly to
the side, waiting for Nancy to give him his change. His hair was gray and thin,
and he had more wrinkles than she ever remembered. But something was different
about the man she used to know. He looked up at her and she struggled to pin it
down. In her memory his shoulders were slumped, eyes bleary. But now his
posture was straight and there was a quickness in his gaze that was completely
foreign to her. He was looking at her, really looking. Aside from their meeting
in the garden, it was the only time she’d ever met his eyes and seen any real
awareness there. She realized how much courage it took to for Rocky look her in
the face and she respected that. It wasn’t an emotion she’d ever associated
with him before.

           
“Did you want to sit with us and have some coffee?” It came out a little faster
than she intended.

           
His mouth dropped. Nancy’s expression was a perfect match, her eyes gone wide.

           
“I’d like that,” he said. His voice cracked on the last word and he cleared his
throat. He looked like he was trying to decide whether to add something else,
then the words rushed out. “If you don’t mind, you don’t have to, but I’d like
to buy you doughnuts and coffee. If that’s all right.”

           
Daisy nodded. His nervousness was right on target because two weeks ago she
would rather have gone hungry than let him pay for anything of hers. She would
have rather eaten out of the gutter than take anything from the man who had
neglected her when she’d needed him most. Things had changed.
She
had
changed. She could accept his small gesture with grace and humility.

           
As they settled at the café table, the conversation was stilted and a bit
awkward but Daisy felt something shift deep inside. It was an easing, an
unfolding of something that had been so tightly bound that she had lost
feeling. Like a string wrapped too tightly around her finger, it had hurt and
then gone numb, until she hadn’t even noticed she was wounded. Loosening the binds,
the pain rushed in, but it brought new life.

           
She looked up, into the eyes of the man she had once hated with all her
strength, and smiled.

Chapter Twenty-Three

           
Lane waited outside the doors of the church, adjusting his cuffs and wishing he
hadn’t worn a tie. He felt ridiculous. Too dressy. He wore a tie every Sunday,
but he couldn’t shake the self-consciousness today. The sun had come out for
the first time in days and he should be thrilled, but he was too nervous to
feel much of anything.

           
“Hi, Lane. Come on in!” Nita waved at him from the side of the steps. Rocky was
with her, gray hair brushed back and wearing a nice jacket. He whispered
something in Nita’s ear and she nodded in understanding. “Never mind, see you
inside!”

           
As they passed through the doors, Lane heaved a sigh. The entire place knew he
was waiting for Daisy and Ana. He must look like a groom stranded at the altar.
Wait, no. He shook the wedding analogy from his head. Altar, yes. Groom, no.

           
“I’m so sorry we’re late,” Daisy said, rushing up the sidewalk and taking the
steps two at a time. “There was so much mud in the driveway, Ana’s rental got
stuck. We got it out, but mud was everywhere and I had to change.”

           
He grinned, reaching out to wipe a small dot of mud from her cheek. “Looks like
country living isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

           
 “Got that right.” She smoothed down her hair and straightened her dress.
It was pale green and some sort of soft, flowing material. The top was fitted
but below a thin belt, it swished gently around her knees. She caught his
appraising glance and asked, “Is this okay? Do you think I should have worn
something longer? I don’t have many outfits and the dress I was wearing this
morning is soaking in the sink. I don’t want your mom to think I don’t dress up
for church.”

           
He felt his grin widen. She was just as nervous as he was. “My mom wears pants
most of the time. They’re not the kind of people who care too much how you look
when you come to church. Just sing loudly and they’ll be happy.”

           
She nodded, eyes losing a bit of anxiety. Her hair was swept up, leaving softly
curling tendrils around her face. It reminded him of the picture Marie had kept
on her desk, from when Daisy had been in high school. She was older now, in a
way that showed in the confident way she carried herself, but the shy smile was
the same. He wanted to reach out and tuck a curl behind her ear but kept his
hands in his pockets.

           
“You look beautiful, by the way.”

           
“Oh.” Her cheeks went pink. “Well…”

           
“You can just say thank you.”

           
She glared. “Yes, thank you. I was trying to decide whether to compliment you
on getting out of the flannel shirt and ratty ball cap.”

           
“Ratty? It’s my favorite cap.” Okay, so it had seen better days. Many better
days. A long time ago.

           
“I’m here!” Ana rushed up, her sweater in one hand and purse in the other.
“There wasn’t a parking space until the next block. This church must be
packed.”

           
The bells in the tower sounded far above their heads, the deep tones resonating
in the air.

           
“That’s our cue. My parents are up on the left, toward the front.” He strode to
the door and waved them in. “After you, ladies.”

           
Ana stepped through and Daisy followed, the light scent of her perfume reaching
him. His heart lifted as they entered the red-carpeted foyer and the organist
played the first chords of an old hymn. It would be fine, nothing to it.
Friends, family and tradition, all in one spot. He couldn’t help the smile that
spread over his face. The future was completely uncertain, but for this one
hour, he would do his best to stay in the moment. In the end, it was all he had
anyway.

                                                           
***

           
Daisy followed Ana, Lane’s parents and Lane out the church doors and down the
wide steps, Liberty residents to her left and her right. So many familiar
faces. Some faces came paired with names, some jarred memories and feelings
loose from the dusty places she’d kept them on the shelves of her heart. Last
week she’d tried not to meet anyone’s gaze and left as soon as the last hymn
was sung. Now she was part of that after-church crowd that huddled in small
groups at the foot of the steps, smiling and greeting, acting like just one
more Liberty resident.

           
Lane listened to an old man complain about the flood ruining all the best
fishing holes and rested a hand on Daisy’s back, like an afterthought. The
warmth of his fingers seemed to unlock something inside and she took a deep
breath. He glanced at her, a question in his eyes. She nodded, letting her body
relax from its rigid posture.

           
Two years ago she never could have imagined standing in this crowd and feeling
anything less than fury and shame. Even a month ago, the tightness in her
throat would have kept her from speaking. It was different now and it made so
very little sense. Marie was her protector, her confidant, her cheerleader.
She’d thought that without Marie, Liberty would be a nightmare. So why did she
feel so at home?

           
Brushing the hair from her eyes, Daisy scanned the church goers, struggling to
pinpoint  what was different. Ana was telling a story to Lane’s dad about
Fresno traffic. Lane’s mom was hugging a group of women, one by one. Rocky
emerged from the big double doors, Nita at his side. Daisy felt her eyes go
wide. She shot a glance at Lane.

           
“What?” He leaned down, whispering in her ear, his breath tickling the fine
hairs at her temple.

           
“Do Rocky and Nita always go to church together?”

           
“Mm-hm.” He straightened up and gave her a wink.

           
Well, of all the strange events she’d thought today would bring, a Rocky/Nita
romance wasn’t one of them. She watched them come nearer, Rocky studiously
avoiding her gaze and Nita’s cheeks a bit pinker than usual. Her gray hair was
brushed into waves and a soft coral outfit made her seem more approachable than
her usual, no-nonsense library attire.