Leaving Liberty (5 page)

“Rookie says the library’s shutting
down.”

“Shoot. My kid is all signed up for the
summer program.”

Lane held up a hand. “Wait, I don’t know
exactly what’s going to happen. But what I do know is that Lindo is set to
close it for good and Daisy is determined to keep it open.”

Oliver frowned. “Daisy McConnell?
Rocky’s kid?”

He hid a grimace. That’s the way it was
in a small town. You could be living your own life, in a big city, and when you
come back to town, you’re always somebody’s kid. He liked Rocky. He was a good
guy. But most people couldn’t forget the twenty years he’d spent as the town
drunk.

Liberty was the closest thing to
perfection Lane had ever seen, but he could only imagine how Daisy would feel
being always known as ‘Rocky’s kid’. He’d made peace with being the Rookie.
Somehow Daisy didn’t seem the type to submit to carrying Rocky’s name around
with her, alongside all the bad memories of her years here.

“She was at the funeral but I didn’t
recognize her. We met over at the library when she went to pick up something.”
Met wasn’t really the word. She’d chased him down in heels, in the rain. “It’s
a long story but she got wind of the city manager’s plans and now she’s got
this idea it can be saved.”

“Of course it can. She’s right.” Butch
pounded one fist into an open palm, ready to take on the task.

 “It’s complicated. The building
isn’t safe.”

“It’s condemned?” Oliver frowned, as if
he couldn’t imagine a beautiful building like that having problems.

“Not quite. It’s got support issues and
it needs a lot of money to fix.”

“Well, we better start fundraising
because we can’t go without a library.” Oliver turned and walked back to his
desk. Conversation over.

Great. He’d inadvertently converted
Daisy’s first two supporters all by himself. Complicated was an understatement.
And it was going to get even messier as the days wore on. The thought of the
library having a structural failure made his stomach clench. If Daisy could see
the light, then they could all move on from the pain of closing the library.
Maybe there could be fundraising for a new building, a few years from now. As
it was, pushing a lost cause would just prolong the pain for the kids.

Plus, she didn’t look like she was
considering contacting Rocky at any time, so it was going to be awkward at the
very best. Small town life wasn’t big enough to let two adults avoid each other
for months on end. Eventually, they would meet up and there would be trouble.

He hauled in a breath and tried to focus
on the phone messages in his inbox. Daisy needed to go home. But he had no idea
how to convince her of that fact.

Chapter Five

           
“I think our connection is fuzzy. Say all of that again.”

           
Daisy smiled into the phone and didn’t pause while slipping on her shoes. Her
best friend in Fresno was having a hard time believing the news. Completely
understandable. She was having a hard time believing it herself.

           
“Ana, I’ve got to go check out a place that’s got a short summer lease and
isn’t too expensive. Everything I said is true. I’m staying in Liberty.”

           
There was a long pause. Daisy could just imagine the curvy, dark haired young
woman biting her lower lip, puzzling out this new development. Ana’s tone was
careful, cautious. “You always said you hated that place. Did you meet someone?
That would be sort of sudden. Not that I don’t believe in love at first sight.
It’s totally romantic. But don’t give in like that just because you’re the
woman. He should be able to pick up and move as well as you can. Unless he’s
the mayor or something.”

           
A laugh startled out of her at the thought of dating Mayor Featherstone,
gray-haired and rotund. “No, not the mayor. It’s not a person. It’s a
building.”

           
“If it was possible to be more confused, I would be.”

           
“Listen, I’ll give you the whole story in,” she checked her watch and let out a
groan, “an hour. I was supposed to be there ten minutes ago. This old bed and breakfast
doesn’t know what wake-up call means, apparently. I should have set the alarm
on my phone.”

           
“Go on and check out it, but will you do one thing for me?”

           
“Sure.” It wasn’t hard to say that word, since Ana had proven herself to be
witty, charming and most of all, wise.

           
“Don’t sign any papers or put down a deposit until you call me back. It’s not
the ski season. They can wait an hour.”

           
“I promise.” Daisy snapped the phone closed and paused by the door of her room,
evaluating her own reflection in the small decorative mirror. She pasted on a
friendly smile. She looked like a tourist. They would probably charge her an
arm and a leg. Then again, if it meant being mistaken for anybody other than
Rocky’s daughter, she might just be all right with that.
          The ad stated the usual
summer prices for weekly rentals of the little cabin but she was hoping they
would see the value in lowering the price for a longer stay. A teacher’s salary
couldn’t stretch to covering a city apartment
and
a mountain cabin. Wavy
blond hair, dark green eyes, nice teeth, dress clothes. On the surface, pretty
unremarkable.  But to her own eyes, she looked angry. Her mouth had a
tightness to it, a wariness in her eyes that translated into a smile not
completely sincere.  Of course, she’d rather look angry than scared.
Irrational fear was what she really felt deep inside when she let herself
imagine the days and weeks ahead in Liberty. The memories blended together into
one big stew of anxiety, ready to overflow at any moment.

           
Taking a deep breath, she smiled wider. It was only for a summer. She could
fake it for that long. Three months in the place of her nightmares was a small
price to pay for protecting Marie’s legacy.

                                                           
***

           
Lane slumped into the deck chair and stretched his legs out in front of him.
Sammy took the cue and dropped his furry golden retriever self into hanging out
mode, head on paws, tummy to the floor.

Late people were obnoxious. The more he
thought about it, the less he wanted to rent to someone who couldn’t even show
up on time. His sister had passed the message to him that morning, thinking it
would be easier for him to come out than dragging her kids along. He was on his
way to the creek, anyway. Old hiking boots, cargo pants and a flannel shirt
probably wasn’t Jamie’s idea of good landlord attire, but at least he’d look
authentically rural.

           
He leaned back in the old chair and tugged his baseball cap over his face,
shutting out the early morning sun. Sitting on this porch made him think of
summers here as a kid. Grandpa Jim had been the best kind of man. Calm, clever,
faithful. His throat felt tight just thinking of all the time they’d spent here
together. In every memory, his brother was somewhere at the edges, playing
checkers, catching fish in the creek out back. He’d taken him for granted and
hated himself for it. Maybe it was losing Marie, maybe it was because he was so
exhausted but the pain was sharp and clear this morning. He felt emotionally
raw.

 Going to bed last night had been a
waste of time, tossing for hours and then pacing the hall. He hadn’t such a
rough night since after Tara decided she hated living in Liberty. Blindsided
wasn’t the half of what he’d felt. She said she loved him, just not this town.
He still didn’t understand that, probably never would, but he sure remembered
the sleepless nights.

It was right after he’d been passed over
for that promotion. He’d been lucky not to be demoted, honestly. Of course,
Tara hadn’t mentioned that. Her reason was there wasn’t enough excitement, she
needed a really big city, even with Denver right down the road. Okay, so it was
half an hour of straight highway, but that was no big deal. Daisy probably
drove more than that just to get to work.

           
 He shifted in his chair, irritated with himself. Everything seemed to
come back to Daisy, like his mind was on a hamster wheel, spinning endlessly
and going nowhere. He hadn’t seen her since the day of the funeral, a whole
week ago, but everyone in town was talking about the new summer resident.
Rhonda had told half the town when she’d overheard Daisy canceling her plane
tickets. Butch saw Daisy checking the want ads on the local grocery store
bulletin board. The guy who pumped his gas this morning thought it was
important for Lane to know that Daisy’s rental car got better gas mileage than
his old truck. He huffed out a breath. Bunch of old gossips.

           
Sammy perked up, then rested his heavy Labrador retriever’s head on Lane’s
thigh. Dog version of an unspoken question.

           
Lord, this is all yours. Today, tomorrow, yesterday.
Rubbing behind
Sammy’s ears and noting the resulting thump of his heavy tail against the
wooden planks of the porch, Lane tried to let his tension ease away. He’d enjoy
his first Saturday off in weeks, no matter what. He’d meet the summer tourist,
grab some coffee, and head to the river for some fishing.

           
The sound of gravel under car tires traveled to his ears. Sammy was at
attention. Lane bumped the brim of his hat and watched a small red car make its
way down the short driveway. They weren’t the only cabin on the road and he
appreciated the driver’s careful approach.

           
Somewhere between those last few feet and the flash of sunlight that passed the
windshield, Lane’s stomach dropped into his boots.

           
The door flew open and Daisy popped out. He would say she stepped out, but that
would be wrong. She seemed to hop from the car like she was hitting the ground
at full speed.

           
“Hi there, so sorry I’m late. I told the hotel to give me a wake-up call at six
but she slept in and…” Her voice trailed away as he got to his feet, shoving his
hands deep in his pockets. “Oh. It’s you.”

           
“I could say the same.”

           
That got a small smile. He wanted to look away but his eyes weren’t quite
obeying him. He couldn’t recall jeans and a simple cream sweater ever having
looked so nice. She came closer, tucking wavy blond hair behind her ears,
giving him the once over, eyes thoughtful.

           
“I didn’t recognize you out of your uniform.”

           
“Cops are people, too.”

           
This time she laughed, a full throated sound that made him want to grin like a
fool. He resisted. Barely.

           
“I gathered.” She tilted her head. “And the dog comes with the cabin?”

           
Sammy perked up at that, tongue rolling out in an enormous grin. “Nope, he’s
with me.”

           
“Too bad, he’s gorgeous.” She stretched out her hand and Sammy nosed it, then
gave her a salutatory lick. “Is he your background check?”

           
“Probably not a good idea. He’d approve anybody who slipped him a treat. We’d
be ruined in weeks.”

           
She scratched Sammy behind the ears, just where he liked it, and surveyed the
cabin. “You getting into real estate? Probably a wise move, with all the
tourism.”

           
He blinked. Did she think he was buying up real estate on a cop’s salary? The big
city got closer every year, property rates were rising. He wasn’t likely to
start collecting homes any time soon. “My grandparents’ place. We spent a lot
of time here as kids. Always thought our parents would retire here but they
bought a condo in Denver after my brother passed away.”

           
“Colt?” Her eyes went wide. “I’m so sorry to hear that.”

He nodded in acknowledgement. It had
been his senior year at the police academy. What should have been full of
celebration was dampened by grief. He still missed his laugh, his warmth. What
happened to Colt should never have happened to anyone. Careless, thoughtless…
He pulled himself back from the thought.

Daisy looked as if she wanted to say
something more, maybe ask a question. He didn’t want to talk about Colt. He
waved a hand. “Here’s the outside.”

All right, it wasn’t the most brilliant
segue but she only nodded. Her gaze slowly took in the sturdy porch, peaked
metal roof, large flower garden to the side, towering pines. “What a view, I
could look at that all day. I bet this place is hugely popular.”

“Why don’t I show you around the inside.
You might be projecting some of that view into areas that need work, like the
kitchen.”

There was that laugh again and his lips
moved up of their own accord, as if they were obeying some secret signal. “Lead
the way.”

He turned and pushed open the heavy
front door, painted bright red. “My sister redecorated so don’t blame me for
all the weird furniture.”