Special Delivery (Mountain Meadow Homecoming 1) (2 page)

Tyler giggled. “Sports cars and potholes aren’t a good mix. There’s a house up ahead.”

“And a truck parked out front.”

As they stopped in front of the small, wood-frame house, the door opened and a stoop-shouldered man stepped out onto the porch. He eyed them suspiciously.

“Can I help ya?” he called as Holly got out of the car.

Crossing her fingers behind her back for luck, she said, “I’m new around here. My little brother and I are looking for someplace to live. Do you know where I might be able to find a rental or real estate agent?”

The old man’s eyes narrowed. “Might be I could help you. I been thinking about renting this place out. Ain’t nothin’ fancy, but the roof don’t leak and it’s cheap.”

And right now, cheap suited Holly to a T. Making an instant decision, she smiled. “Sounds perfect. I’ll take it.”

“Ain’t offered it yet.”

She smiled. “But you’re going to, aren’t you?”

The old man laughed. “I like you. You got nerve.”

They hammered out a rental agreement, signed it with a handshake, and it was Holly’s car that stayed while the old man and his truck bumped back to the main road.

* * * *

If the church ladies could just see him now, they’d have a cow. Cards and poker chips were on the table. Jake grinned as he glanced around the living room. He’d pushed the big table that stood in front of the double window to the middle of the room with the kitchen chairs pressed into service around it. Knowing Sam and Evan would want cigars, Jake had set an ashtray to one side. Beer was in the fridge, along with soft drinks for the preacher. Potato chips and peanuts—check. He’d brought home pizza from Mercer’s. He even had some spray cheese and crackers. Yep. He was ready. How freaking domestic.

With just himself for company, he’d admit it would be nice to have some noise around the big old house. He hadn’t thought about how empty it would seem when he bought it.

Maybe because he’d pictured it full of kids, like his house had been growing up with his three brothers and Becca, the baby. They had all gone their own ways as adults, but damn it would be nice to have family around. He rubbed the ache in his chest.

Right.

Single and not a woman in sight, and he was thinking kids.

When the door opened without a knock, he grinned. “In here, Evan.”

His friend sucked his teeth. “Aren’t you the domestic goddess. Are we having those little canapés on triangulated white bread?”

Jake grunted. “Pizza and beer. You want cucumber sandwiches, you need to hook up with one of those blue-blooded sorority girls your mama and daddy keep tossin’ your way.”

“Not hooking up with anyone, bro. Not happening.”

Jake laughed. “Right. You bought the big house just for you to ramble around in?”

Evan’s eyes narrowed. “Pot and kettle, man, and I bought mine before you. You have all the signs, Allred.”

“What signs?”

“Of a guy just looking to get hooked up.”

Jake snorted.

The door knocker thumped. Jake left his friend and the conversation behind, somewhat relieved Sam and his preacher buddy had interrupted.

“Jake…this is Joe Taylor,” Sam rumbled in his deep voice. “You met yet?”

“In passing.” Jake stuck out his hand. “Welcome, preacher.”

“Joe,” the younger man grinned, returning Jake’s greeting with a firm handshake. “This is definitely not a parochial visit. I’m hoping to fleece some of my potential flock…all proceeds to go to the church general fund, of course.”

Evan laughed. “I like you. Nice addition, Sam.”

The sheriff nodded. Sam was a big man, as tall as Evan and as broad as Jake. A little older than the rest of them, he was still a fixture—born and raised in Castle County.

As they sat and the dealing began, Jake thought his earlier conversation with Evan was over and done with, but after so many years, he should have known better. As Jake passed out pizza and paper towels, Evan said, “So, Sam, don’t you think Jake has the look of a man just looking to settle down and get busy on the two-kids-and-a-dog routine? I mean, look how domestic he is already all handing out paper towels so we can wipe our fingers.”

“Bite me.” Jake laughed. “I just don’t want greasy fingerprints all over my cards. As to settling down? Unlike you, Ev, I don’t have any exes hanging around.”

This time the smile left Evan’s eyes and Jake knew he’d gone too far. Before he could think up some awkward apology, Sam spoke up. “You’re both thirty. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the two of you with rings through your noses or on your fingers before the New Year.”

Jake and Evan’s eyes met and the two men howled.

* * * *

Almost a month after arriving in Mountain Meadow, Holly began to let down her guard. Tyler was enrolled in the local elementary school. The bus picked him up at the end of the lane. She’d discovered few people braved Mistletoe Lane once they got a good look at the potholes. She lurched her way to the part-time job she’d found keeping books for Crawford Pallets. The job suited her and the pay was okay. Mr. Crawford, her boss, had been desperate to find someone to untangle the company finances, which were in terrible shape with invoices and receipts shoved willy-nilly into file folders and nothing entered on computer.

She’d straightened that out, and he was making noise about bringing her on full-time. Holly grinned. Extra hours would help. Mr. Crawford had been so relieved to have her handling the books, he’d even mentioned allowing her to bring the baby to work. At lunchtime, she knocked on his office door.

“Mr. Crawford, I just wanted to remind you about my doctor’s appointment this afternoon.”

He smiled over the half-moons of his reading glasses. “Right. Thanks, Holly. We’ll see you tomorrow then.”

She’d told Tyler to wait for her at the general store after school. With it being right off the town square, she figured it would be safe enough, especially since the courthouse and the police station were both within sight of it.

From Spence, she’d heard nothing at all. Of course, with their tightening finances, she’d had to let the cell phone go, so now he had no way to harass her. And he’d been cautious about calling her cell since the restraining order. No, he was very careful not to provide any solid proof of his badgering.

Her fingers tightened on the wheel as she drove to her appointment. Spence was a chameleon. That had been part of the problem. The face he presented to everyone else certainly wasn’t what she saw, at least now. He’d been smooth enough to begin with. That’s how she’d gotten sucked in. Only later did she discover he was an adult and much more dangerous version of the kid who was always pinching or punching people behind the teacher’s back.

She wasn’t fooled anymore. He was a snake, and she needed to stay on her guard to make sure he didn’t slither back into their lives unnoticed.

The clinic was located in a building right next to the hospital. Holly’s choice of where to stop had been pretty fortunate. Mountain Meadow was the Castle County seat and laid claim to the sole hospital in a three-county area—something she would need. Holly sat in the waiting area with people of all ages. A family practice wouldn’t have been her first choice, but it was close, and she’d had a lot of her prenatal care already done by her obstetrician before she left.

“Miss Morgan?”

As the nurse called her name, the curious stares of two older women zeroed in on her stomach. Holly had experienced censure before. Her gaze skimmed around the room, and she noticed only one other expectant mother, an uncomfortable looking father-to-be at her side.

Holly put her chin up. Well, she couldn’t boast any proud papa, nor did she want to if the choice was Spencer Dilby. He had been little more than a sperm donor, and she shuddered to think of that experience.

The nurse showed her into the doctor’s office. “Dr. Owens will be right with you.”

Holly nodded and sat. Knowing she would be leaving Lynchburg, she’d obtained copies of her medical history and dropped them off a couple of days ago. Medical books lined the shelves along one peach-painted wall, but there were no pictures of a husband or children. Her examination halted when the door opened and a petite blonde entered the room. Her hair was cut chin-length, as sleek and businesslike as the doctor seemed to be.

She held out her hand. “I’m Dr. Owens. Most patients call me Doc or Doc Jenny.”

Instead of going behind the desk, she sat next to Holly, softening the businesslike exterior. “I read through your file and wanted to ask you a couple of questions before we do an exam. There was a notice you are a no-information patient. I’ll make sure that stays in place.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it.”

“Has the baby’s father been attending any birthing classes with you?”

Holly shifted. Just the thought of Spence having anything to do with her baby’s birth was enough to make her queasy. “The father is the reason I’m a no information patient. H-he denied paternity to begin with, then after our split changed his mind. He’s been pressuring me to give him the baby.”

“Pressuring?”

Holly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her hand just a bit shaky. “He’s the heir to the Dilby Department store fortune,” she explained watching the doctor’s eyebrows lift. “It seems his new fiancée can’t have kids, so he’s decided he ‘needs’ mine. His words.”

“And this pressure was enough you left?”

“I have a protective order in place against him, which did nothing. He didn’t leave me a lot of choice. See, in addition to myself and the baby, I’m also guardian to my little brother. I had to think about what was best for all of us.”

Doc Owens nodded. “I’ve seen your ultrasound, so I see you’re having a little girl. Are you aware your doctor had written in his notes he had some concern about your cervix?”

“No.” A ripple of unease trickled down Holly’s spine.

“I’d like to take a look. You’re just six weeks from your due date, so chances are there’s not a problem, but let’s be sure, particularly since it’s your first. At twenty-two, your age works in your favor.”

A half hour later, they were back in Doc Owens’s office once more. This time, the doctor’s expression was more serious. “Holly, have you been experiencing any cramps or feelings of heaviness?”

“Some. I figured it was just stress from moving and everything.”

Doc tapped her finger against the ultrasound image she’d been studying. “Well, you’re already effaced and starting to dilate, like someone a whole lot closer to term. How accurate is this due date?”

Holly sucked in a shaky breath. “Very. There was just one night…”

Jenny nodded, her finger still tapping. “I’d like you on bed rest. You could go into labor any time. If we can get your little girl to hold off, I’d prefer it not be for at least three more weeks. The nearest obstetrician’s more than an hour’s drive away. It might be simpler to have you in the hospital…”

“No. I can’t do that. I have my little brother to take care of. I have a job…and I don’t have health insurance.” A vision of what might happen if there were complications began to form, but Holly pushed it away. Panic was the last thing she could afford right now.

When she left the clinic, Holly was still trying to take everything in. She’d always tried to take things in stride, but this overwhelmed her. Bed rest. What on earth was she going to do?

* * * *

“I’m sure we can find her, Mr. Dilby.”

Spence sat across from the private detective who was looking at the information Spence had given him about Holly. The paunchy guy tapped Tyler’s picture. “This might be our best place to start. She’ll have to enroll him in school. I’ve also got a contact who can help me out with tax info. If she’s working someplace, she’ll show up on his records.”

Spence allowed himself a slight smile. “Excellent. Needless to say, this needs to be kept quiet. I’m now engaged to another woman, but I’m concerned about the welfare of my unborn child. Holly has shown signs during the pregnancy of depression, and I just can’t help thinking about all those cases involving new mothers…” He let his voice trail off and, as he hoped, the detective’s expression grew even more concerned.

“We’ll find her. Don’t you worry.”

Spence stood, shook his hand and exited the office building with a small smile of self-satisfaction.

* * * *

Jake noticed the dark-haired boy sitting on the bench outside of Mountain Meadow General Store when he drove around the square to pull up in front of the small, brick building that housed the police department and his cramped office. An hour later, as he walked over to Tarpley’s, what most folks called the store, to grab some chips and a drink, the kid was still there.

“Hey, buddy,” he greeted him. “How’s it going?”

“Okay.” The kid gave him a sidelong glance from eyes that held more suspicion than he was used to from a boy so young.

“Kind of cold to be sitting out here so long. You waiting on your mom?”

“My sister. She’s at the doctor.” He scuffed his sneakers on the pavement.

“Well come on in. I’ll get you a candy bar and you can warm up. Mr. and Mrs. Tarpley won’t mind if you sit inside.”

The kid glanced at Jake’s badge, then at the store. “If you think it’d be okay. My butt is getting kinda cold.”

“What’s your name?”

“Tyler Morgan.”

“I’m Lieutenant Allred.” Jake grinned at him and they walked inside together. After introducing him to the older couple who’d run the store ever since Jake could remember, he let Tyler pick out a candy bar. While the kid sat near the window, munching on the chocolate and caramel, Jake spoke to the Tarpleys. “Haven’t seen him around here. He new?”

Susie Tarpley nodded. “He and his sister Holly rent the old Crawley place.”

Jake raised his brows in surprise. The house had been run-down when he was a teenager, and knowing old man Crawley, he doubted anything had changed. The bell above the door jingled and a burst of cold air entered. Jake glanced over and caught his breath, feeling as if someone had sucker punched him right in the gut. The woman who walked in was gorgeous, with hair the color of aged whisky, pale skin, and cheeks just touched with pink from the cold air.