Secrets in a Small Town (10 page)

“With you? No. It’s personal.”

“Ah, personal. So you and Garrett are having a thing?”

She looked at him sharply. How did he know she’d been with Owen? “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she retorted coolly. “Go bother someone else with less work to do. I’m busy.”

“So busy that you missed your interview with Councilman Olivo?” he inquired with fake concern. Her gaze flew to her large-format calendar and there it was in bright red pen. She gasped and he chuckled at her distress. “Yeah, he called, looking for you. Seemed pretty pissed off that you’d stood him up. You know how he gets. But I’m sure it’s fine.”

Darn it. She’d meant to put the appointment and the phone number in her cell phone, but she’d been distracted and put it off for later, except later seemed to have passed by without her notice. “It’s here somewhere.” How’d she forget such an important interview? How completely appalling. Top professionals kept a myriad of dates and times and other important details in their head and yet she’d managed to blow off a major player in the city of Dayton because she’d been intoxicated by the possibility of interviewing Owen. Damn it.

“For such a persnickety personality, you have the organizational skills of a homeless person,” Charlie observed, causing her to whirl and hiss at him.

“Don’t you have anything better to do than bother me?”

“Not presently.”

“Well, I don’t have time to listen to your crap. Go pester someone else.”

“Why would I do that when pestering you is not only fun but also beneficial?”

“Beneficial? How so?”

“Because seeing you so riled gives me joy, which in turn causes a sweet endorphin rush and when that happens, my blood pressure lowers, which is beneficial to my health.”

“So happy to help,” she said drily. “Now, get out of my space before I file a harassment claim against you. I don’t care if your uncle owns the paper or not—rules are rules and you’re creating a hostile work environment for me.”

Charlie’s mouth pinched and his laughter faded. Unfortunately, she didn’t have time to enjoy her victory. She found the Post-it she was looking for, but before she could celebrate, Charlie interrupted her again.

“I think the editor might find it interesting that you’re doing something on the side that involves Owen Garrett. You know how my uncle, the publisher, feels about freelancing.”

Yes, she knew. He’d made it very clear that he expected his reporters to save their best for
his
publication. Any moonlighting could be cause for termination. Technically, as long as the publication wasn’t in direct competition with the newspaper, legally, he really couldn’t say what she could do with her off time; however, with California businesses subscribing to the at-will employee rule, basically, the publisher could fire her for whatever he wanted if it suited him, as long as it wasn’t
obviously
against the labor laws.

And that included moonlighting.

With only one newspaper in town and most newspapers in the immediate area in a hiring freeze, she couldn’t afford to lose her position at the
Tribune.
Damn Charlie for knowing it, too.

She turned. “What are you talking about?” she asked, blinking in what she hoped appeared as confusion.

“Don’t go all Bambi eyes on me. I know you’ve been doing all this after-hours research on the Red Meadows raid. You’re not the only one who pays attention.”

She shrugged. “What’s your point? What I do on my own time is my own.”

“Yeah, but you’re not just doing this stuff on your own time. You’re using company time to do your research.”

“Prove it. In the meantime, get out of my space. You’re contaminating the energy with your negative, slimy self. It’s a wonder they let you around kids, Charlie,” she said, secretly holding her breath. She couldn’t show weakness around the little worm. He’d run to his uncle for sure.

Since she didn’t cave or quail, Charlie had nothing to build on. Frustration laced his tone as he exited, saying, “You’re going to slip up and when you do…I’ll be there.”

As soon as he was gone, she exhaled.
Crud.
He was hot on her tail. She’d need to be more careful around the tattletale. No more sneaking off to do research.

She sighed and prepared to make up a plausible excuse for blowing off the biggest ego in Dayton.

Quinn nodded in answer as they rounded the corner to Gretchen’s room, where she’d been downgraded from intensive care to a standard room earlier that afternoon while he’d been with Piper.

He peeked inside and swallowed when he saw Gretchen lying against the white pillow, her eyes closed. He looked to Quinn and put a finger to his lips with a “shh,” and they padded silently into the room.

Owen placed the bouquet vase—which happened to be in the shape of a stork, because that’s all the florist had on such short notice so late in the afternoon—on the small bedside table, and tried to hold back the wince when he caught Gretchen’s battered face. “Oh, man,” he breathed, taking in the full extent of her injuries. She’d been beaten within an inch of her life it seemed. He was afraid to look at her belly. It was hard to tell with the blankets covering her if her stomach had lost the basketball roundness she’d been sporting a few days earlier.

“Mama,” Quinn whispered, tears clogging her voice. She stared up at Owen, looking for answers he didn’t have. Quinn tried again. “Mama? It’s Quinn…”

Gretchen’s eyes opened but her gaze remained bleary and unfocused. Quinn approached the bed and gently touched her mama’s hand. It was enough to make Owen choke up. God, he hoped to hell the cops had found Danny and put his ass in jail for what he’d done.

“Owen,” Gretchen’s voice sounded like she’d eaten gravel for breakfast. She smiled weakly at Quinn. “Thanks for taking care of my girl.”

“You don’t even have to ask,” he said gruffly. “How are you feeling?” If the way she looked was any indication, she probably felt like crap. She made a small expression that said “eh, I’ve been better” but she attempted a wider smile. She was a trouper. Now for the hard question. He swallowed and gestured toward her belly. “What about the baby?”

She nodded. “Baby is fine. It’s another girl.” Gretchen said to Quinn. “You’re getting a baby sister.”

“A sister?” Quinn’s voice brightened. “Does that mean I get to name her?”

Gretchen nodded. “That was the deal. Better put your thinking cap on. It has to be the most perfect name ever because she’s been through a lot already.”

“Oh, it will be,” Quinn promised fervently then sobered, the worry returning to her voice. “When are you coming home, Mama?”

“Soon, sweetheart,” Gretchen answered. “Can you do me a favor, sugar?” Quinn nodded. “Can you go ask the nurse for some more water for me. I’m pretty thirsty and my pitcher is empty.”

“Yes, Mama,” Quinn said, grabbing the pitcher and disappearing from the room.

“That was a ploy to get her out of the room, wasn’t it?” Owen asked. “What’s wrong?”

She closed her eyes and winced as she tried to move a little. “Cops haven’t found Danny yet. I’m scared of what he might do when he finds out the cops are looking for him. The house is leased in his name. I can’t go back there. I don’t know what to do. Can you keep Quinn for a few more days until I figure out where we can stay? I know it’s a lot to ask and I’ll understand if you say no. I just don’t know who to turn to.” A small tear escaped and slid down her cheek. He hated to see a woman cry and he’d do anything to keep it from happening.

“You can stay with me,” he offered, his mouth working faster than his head. He wondered what Piper would think of another woman moving into his house. He supposed she wouldn’t care two figs, since they weren’t anything to one another. Gretchen stared, uncomprehending. “Yeah, well, it’s nothing fancy but it’ll do in a pinch. I’ve a spare bedroom you can share with Quinn. We’ll get this figured out. I don’t need you worrying about your safety with that asshole out there. My house is at least safe even if it’s not the lap of luxury.”

“Why would you do this for us?” she asked, blinking back tears.

“Because you’re a good employee and I don’t want the hassle of training someone new,” he joked, but there was some truth to his blithe statement. He didn’t have time to interview and then babysit someone new when Gretchen was the best office manager he’d ever had. If he had to put her up for a few days, it was worth his sanity and his productivity.

She smiled around her cracked lip. “Well, you have a point there,” she said. “Then, I accept your offer. Thank you. We appreciate it.”

“No problem.” It felt good to help, but he had to know one more thing. “Is it over between you and Danny Mathers?” he asked, then gestured at her injuries. “What happened? I figured him for a loser but not a violent one.”

She drew a shuddering breath and more tears leaked down her face. “It’s definitely over. He tried to kill me. Said he didn’t want the baby and it was my fault for pressuring him into fatherhood. He didn’t care if we lived or died. How could I have been so blind?”

“We’ve all made bad calls in our life,” he said, trying to offer some kind of solace but rage had kindled in his gut at the new information. “The police talk to you yet?” he asked, his voice rough.

She nodded. “I gave a statement about an hour ago.” Her unhappy frown gave way to more tears. “I never imagined he could be so cruel. I just thought he had cold feet and he’d come around but I never suspected… Oh, God, Owen, he could’ve hurt Quinn, too. I get sick to my stomach just thinking of what he could’ve done to her if he was willing to do what he did to his own child.”

Owen didn’t have any words of comfort that wouldn’t sound disingenuous so he remained silent and let her cry it out. She gingerly wiped away the remaining tears and he handed her a fresh tissue for her nose. “It’s going to be all right,” he assured her, all the while entertaining dark fantasies of mayhem against Danny Mathers. Heaven help the man if Owen got a hold of him before the cops did. In the meantime, he’d do whatever he had to to keep Quinn and Gretchen safe. “We’ll get everything figured out.”

She flashed him a watery smile and shook her head. “If only people knew the real you. They’d forget about all that other stuff, you know?”

He thought of Piper and the possibility of clearing his father’s name. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to walk down the street without feeling as if he had to defend his every action? Hell yes. Maybe he’d even get the fresh start he’d been trying to achieve since moving back. The idea was enough to make him yearn for the future in more ways than just safeguarding his livelihood. He crooked a smile at Gretchen. “I told you to keep that on the down low. I don’t want my secret to get out,” he teased, reaching to pat her hand softly. “Get some rest. I’ll check in on you tomorrow. Don’t worry about Quinn. I managed to figure out the school scheduling thing and everything is fine.”

“You’re awesome,” Gretchen said, smiling with true relief. “I’ll find a way to make it up to you.”

“You just focus on getting better. We’ll figure everything else out later.”

She nodded, her eyes drifting shut as she succumbed to the fatigue he read in her expression. The burden she carried, he couldn’t imagine. It was easy for him to say that she’d better drop the SOB who put her in the hospital but his dad had once told him “the heart wants want the heart wants and sometimes it defies reason.”

He hoped to God that Gretchen’s heart wanted nothing to do with Danny Mathers from here on out but he knew better than to assume anything.

“Farley! What are you doing here?” she asked, her hands flying to shield her breasts and private parts. “Good God! Close your eyes or turn around, please.”

Farley chuckled and made a show of covering his eyes but then peeped through his fingers. “Ah, gotcha,” he teased but when she continued to glare at him, he sighed and did as she asked.

The nerve,
she fumed as she jerked a robe over her body. She was going to have to talk to her parents about Farley. He was getting out of control. She stared Farley down, hoping he read the fury in her eyes as she said, “This is unacceptable. You can’t come into my home like you own it or something. I’m within my rights to call the cops, you know.”

“I apologize,” Farley said, the seeming picture of contrition but there was something else lurking in his gaze and to her mind it looked suspiciously like delight at catching her naked, which only caused her temper to spike even higher. She was about to pick up her cell phone and report him when he said, “But I think I may have found something of importance to you.”

“Yeah? Such as?” she asked warily. She couldn’t imagine there was anything Farley knew that she didn’t already. It wasn’t as if Farley were a fountain of untapped knowledge.

“First, a kiss…” he suggested, and she balked.

“Are you serious?”

“As a heart attack,” Farley answered with a grin.

“Farley…you have ten seconds to get your butt out of my house before I report you to the cops for breaking and entering, peeping and whatever else cops charge people with for generally annoying the crap out of a person.”

“One kiss?”

She held up her fist. “How about a knuckle sandwich?”

He grimaced, disappointment evident. “It’s a box,” he answered dully, all play leaching from his tone as he continued. She almost felt sorry for him. She imagined it was hard to be in love with someone who didn’t feel the same for you. “I was busy cleaning out the old shed behind the greenhouse and found a box of stuff you might want to sift through.”

So far she wasn’t intrigued. “And why would I want to look through an old box?” she asked, irritated.

“Because it’s full of your old things from when you lived on the farm. I guess your parents forgot about the old shed. It’s got some little mementos and stuff I thought you might like to hang on to. It’s in the car. I’ll leave it on the porch for you.”

She suppressed another wave of annoyance but she held her tongue. Farley looked fairly miserable and she wasn’t cruel. Attempting a smile for old times’ sake, she said, “Thank you, Farley. I’ll check it out. I appreciate you letting me know.”

“Of course,” he said, his adoring grin returning. “Happy to help.”

She pointed toward the door. “Now, out. And don’t pull another stunt like this or, I swear, you’ll regret it.”

“My apologies,” he murmured, his cheeks reddening. “I didn’t think you’d mind…given as how we were both raised on the farm.”

“Well, I don’t live on the farm any longer and I do mind. I mind very much.”

He nodded and ducked out, closing the door behind him.

Piper rolled her eyes to the ceiling and blew out a short breath. What was she going to do with that love-sick man? Honestly…

For a moment, she imagined that instead of Farley standing there it had been Owen. She sucked in a tight breath and she laughed shakily. Wow. That was…telling.

Well, all she could say about that was thank God it hadn’t been Owen standing there after all.