Summer's Desire (6 page)

“No, of course not. He’s a friend. I know Colt too.
Caleb is always taking in strays and I suppose he saw me as a stray. I don’t
want or need that type of entanglement. Men are off the menu as far as I’m
concerned.”

He took a deep breath and let it go. Turning toward
her, he studied her as though he could see her soul. “It wasn’t your fault.
Matt knew better and his brothers told him not to. I’m starved.” He left her
standing there without another word.

Somehow she felt cheated. Where was the offer to
stay? Where was the question about not wanting entanglements? Heck, she should
be glad that he hadn’t sent her packing. Holden O’Leary was an infuriating, confusing,
yet caring man, and she’d probably never understand him. She wanted to tell him
about the robbery at the bar and grill, but now wasn’t the time. Hopefully an opportune
moment would crop up soon. He needed to hear it from her first.

Chapter Three

Holden helped Matt into the house, leading him to
the freshly made up couch. Matt objected and tried to steer away from it. “I’m
no cripple.” Holden sighed. It was going to be a very long weekend.

The doctor ordered Matt to stay off his feet for a
while before he could use crutches. But Matt wasn’t the most patient of people.

Summer walked into the great room with a wide smile
for Matt. Holden wasn’t on the receiving end of any smiles from her, but at
least she had stopped scowling at him.

Watching her last night with Mark, Luke and John had
been enlightening. She soothed their worries and their guilt. She gave them the
tender care they’d been missing since their parents died. He wasn’t sure what
to do. It was unimaginable she was capable of being an accomplice in a robbery,
let alone murder, but according to Beverly, a lot of people believed her guilty.
What about the guy who did rob and beat them? Where was he? He couldn’t
remember if Beverly had shared that little tidbit with him.

“Tell me your favorite foods, Matt.” Again, she had a
great big smile for Matt.

“My favorite is homemade mac and cheese. I also like
baked ham and sweet potatoes. I like eggs with bacon. And—”

“I think she gets the idea.” Holden chuckled. His
phone rang. He was needed in the office. “Summer, I’m going to leave you some
money so you can get groceries. Don’t worry about the boys. I’ll have John stay
with Matt while Mark and Luke get some work done.”

Doubt and something he couldn’t decipher were in her
eyes. “It’ll be fine.” He handed her two one hundred dollar bills and laughed when
her eyes widened and eyebrows rose. “What? We eat a lot.”

She nodded. He could sense her reluctance but didn't
have time to dwell on it. Someone with a sick dog was at the clinic.

Even during the drive he still couldn’t get her out
of his mind. In the short time he’d spent with her he’d come to admire her. The
kindness she showed his brothers was beyond her job description. Even if she
couldn’t stand him, he liked her well enough. Maybe more than just well enough.
When he parked, he said a quick prayer of thankfulness that Beverly Rain wasn’t
waiting for him. He rushed into the office and was instantly in Vet mode.

The little Chihuahua, named Tiny, required surgery on
its knee cap. Mindy Sue certainly impressed him as she helped him and her pink
hair was so outrageous today, he smiled.

It warmed his insides when he later reassured Mrs.
Beasley,
Tiny’s
thankful owner. She bubbled over with
gratitude, then grabbed his cheeks and kissed him on the lips. Holden wanted to
gag but he was a professional. As soon as she left Mindy Sue broke out in
laughter and handed him a bottle of mouthwash she kept in her desk drawer. He
grabbed the bottle and headed into the bathroom to rinse his mouth.

“Doc, come quick,” Mindy Sue called seconds later.

Holden quickly dried his hands and raced to the
waiting room. The sheriff stood in the middle of the room with his feet planted
shoulder width apart. Beady brown eyes stared him down. He hoped it wasn’t his
brothers.

“Sheriff, what a nice surprise.”

“Brown, Sheriff Brown and this is not a social
visit.” He took off his cap and scratched his head. He wore a military style
crew cut. “Do you know Summer Louise Fitzgerald?”

“Yes, what’s this all about?”

“She claims
you
gave her two, one hundred dollar bills but I think the money is from the recent
robbery she is suspected to be involved in. I’ve been biding my time waiting
for her to make a mistake.” He held up the two one hundred dollar bills.

Holden’s jaw dropped. “Her claim
is the truth. I gave her the money to buy groceries with. Where is
she?”

The sheriff’s eyes narrowed. “She wouldn’t be doing
anything illegal to earn this money would she?”

Holden’s body stiffened as he clenched his hands.
“No. She works for me, end of story. I’d like my money back and I demand to
know where Summer is.”

The disappointment on the sheriff’s face amazed
Holden. “She’s in a cell.”

“What?” The urge to punch first and talk later was
strong. He grabbed his Stetson and locked gazes with Mindy Sue “Call if you
need me. I might as well find out where the local jail is.” Wide eyed, Mindy
Sue nodded.

Holden didn’t talk to the sheriff the whole way to
the jail. He just stalked behind him, fuming. If there had been one shred of
proof, he had no doubt that Summer would have been arrested and charged.

Following the sheriff into the police station, he
frowned. The jail was tiny with two holding cells. Summer's arms were crossed across
her chest and she appeared gloriously defiant sitting on the bench in one of
the cells.

Sheriff Brown opened the cell and waved her out.
“You don’t want to get mixed up with the likes of her, Doc. It’ll only bring
you misery in the end. Oh and don’t get too attached to her either. She’ll end
up behind bars where she belongs soon enough.”

Holden grabbed Summer’s hand as soon as she opened
her mouth. “Let’s get out of here,” he murmured.

She closed her mouth and held on to his hand as he
led them out of the police station. “Thank you for coming to get me.”

He stopped outside the door and gazed at her hardened
face. “Did you have doubts?”

 
“No one ever
came to get me before.”

He wrapped her in his arms and pulled her to him. No
matter what life threw at him he always had his brothers but she had no one, it
seemed. Her softness against him stirred him and his heart began to beat
faster. The scent of vanilla filled him. It was a scent he was beginning to
crave.

Summer pulled away. “Please, not here. People
already have the wrong idea of me. I don’t want them to think badly of you.”

“I don’t care what they think.”

Her sad smile melted his heart. “You will
eventually. I wasn’t able to get the groceries by the way. I had them all in
the cart and when I tried to pay all hell broke loose.”

He took his phone out of his pocket and called Mindy
Sue, asking her to pick up the groceries if they were still in the cart and
giving her a short list to grab if they weren’t. Hanging up, he took Summer’s
hand. “Let’s go home.”

“I’ll meet you there.”

“Oh no, I’m not letting you go.” He stood firm.

“What about the truck? Surely you don’t want to
leave it in town.”

He gave her hand a light squeeze. “I’ll have Mark
get it next time I come to town, which by the way is too often. I’m thinking
about getting another receptionist and having Mindy Sue as my tech full time. I
want to pay for her to go back to school. She’s a natural with animals and we
need more than one vet around here.”

“You have been busy.”

“We’ll see what I can work out.” He opened her door
for her and it amused him when her lips parted forming an “o”.

Sliding into his seat he tried to give her a
reassuring grin. Her eyes
teared
up, but she didn’t
cry. She was tough and fragile both, in her own way. He liked that about her.

The drive home was silent. He figured she needed to
gather her thoughts. He’d been mulling over the whole scene himself. He needed
to talk to her about it, to know the whole story so he could help.

Soon enough they were home. While they walked to the
house side by side, he wished he had some words that would make her feel
better.

He reached for the doorknob and felt her gentle hand
on his arm. Turning he gazed into her sad blue eyes.

“Thank you again for coming to get me.” She took a
deep breath, let it out, and put a slight smile on her face. “I hope Matt is
still on the couch resting.” Her shoulders straightened as she preceded him
into the house.

*
* * *

The boys were confused about why she didn’t come
home with groceries and were a bit put out when they didn’t get any answers.
They were even more confused when Mindy Sue showed up with the food later. Summer
almost didn’t recognize her with pink hair and plaid nails. Envy washed over
her as she watched Mindy Sue’s easy way with people. She had all the boys
eating out of her hand.

Gazing at Holden, Summer noticed that he was
entranced by her too. Maybe Holden was the type that liked pink hair. She
really didn’t know him enough to say. Hadn’t he mentioned something about
paying for Mindy Sue to go to school?

Summer put the groceries away and tried to smile as
she thanked Mindy Sue. Her already heavy heart grew weighty when Holden walked Mindy
Sue out to her car. It wasn’t any of her business. She hardly knew Holden and if
he was dating Mindy Sue then so be it. She was here to work.

She couldn’t help herself. She walked to the window
and watched Holden and Mindy Sue talking. It did matter, she conceded, but
there was nothing she could do about it. Any chance she’d had ended the moment Sheriff
Brown arrested her. Trembling, she turned away and went back to setting the
kitchen to rights.

Homemade mac and cheese was in order. She needed the
comfort food as much as Matt did. Glancing over at Matt she found that he
switched around on the couch so that he could watch her.

“Did you get along well enough while I was in town?”

Matt nodded. “I suppose, but I sure am glad that
you’re here.”

“That’s so sweet.”

Matt scowled. “I’m not a child you know.”

“I know.” She turned back to the kitchen counter.
Matt was trying so hard to prove he was all grown up. She never had a choice.
She was a girl one day and a grown up the next. The accident that took her
parents left her on her own. If the whole robbery hadn’t have happened she
would have been proud of her success in keeping a roof over her head. Now the
pride was gone.

The front door opened and closed. Summer didn’t turn
around, continuing to grate the cheddar cheese. Soon enough she could feel the
heat of him behind her. He breathed on the back of her neck sending a shiver
down her spine.

“I’m making mac and cheese.” It sounded lame to her.

He stepped closer until his body barely touched
hers. “I see that. Smells good.”

Turning her head slightly, she saw the side of his
face as he looked over her shoulder.

“What are you doing?” Matt sounded angry.

Summer instantly straightened, but Holden was extremely
slow at stepping back. “Making dinner is all.” Her voice wavered.

As Holden stepped away, she instantly missed his
nearness and she knew she was a fool. Who’d want to be with her, the suspected accomplice?
Besides he seemed to have his eye on Mindy Sue.

Holden took her hand in his big, strong one. “We’ll
talk about the sheriff later.”

She gazed into his eyes trying to read him. He
confused her to no end. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Hell, she
barely knew him and she needed to get a grip on her wayward emotions. “Fine.”

He let go of her hand and ambled over to Matt. He sat
in a chair next to the couch and the two talked in low tones. Neither one
looked at her, so she ignored them and concentrated on cooking.

The thought of talking later interfered with her
focus. Would she still have a job? It amazed her that she no longer felt the
fear of being jobless. Caleb took care of that. It was the power of her
feelings for Holden that worried her the most.

Dinner was jovial with the boys all teasing Matt
about how much work they have to do with him laid up. Summer did not look at Holden
at all. She could feel the heat of his gaze, but she needed to be in self-preservation
mode. It was bound to hurt when he told her to leave. In the short time she’d
been there she’d grown attached to all of the
O’Learys
.
Who’d want a suspect in their house anyway? Holden needed to do what was best
for his family and the best thing would be for her to go.

Yet, he had touched her in the kitchen. Her thoughts
whirled as she pushed the food around on her plate. The boys didn’t seem to
notice how upset she felt. She gave them half smiles and half answers. The end
of the meal couldn’t come fast enough.