The Deputy's New Family (3 page)

Mary Ryken’s eyebrow lifted, but the expression on her face had fallen into disappointment. “You’re in law enforcement.”

“Yes, ma’am. A deputy.” Nick drained his glass of milk. Mary had offered him cookies until he’d stuffed himself.

“My husband worked for the same but was killed on duty.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry for your loss.” He’d looked it up. It was what made her a good choice. Mary understood a cop’s life. She’d lived it. She’d understand if his shift ran late.

Her eyes grew stern. “Don’t let it happen to you. That boy needs you.”

Nick nodded. It was why he was here. Why he’d transferred out of undercover work. “I don’t plan on it.”

“No one ever plans on it, but it happens. And it happens to the best of them.” Mary’s tone hardened.

He waited for her to pass on watching Corey but she didn’t say a word, only looked at him expectantly.

“The job’s yours if you want it.”

“I do.” She smiled. “And weekends are no trouble. I’m a homebody on weekends, and Corey can go with me to church if that’s okay with you. Our church has a good children’s program.”

“That would be great. We need to find one anyway.” He wanted to get back in the habit of going when he wasn’t working. It’d been a long time. A dry time.

Again Nick glanced out of the large windows. Beth and Corey had finished filling the birdfeeders and sat on a wooden swing together. Corey laughed at something Beth said. His son looked like what a seven-year-old should look like. Carefree.

Since he’d taken Corey back from his grandparents, the boy acted so careful, careful in what he did and said—if he said anything. Nick had learned to accept shrugs as their primary mode of communication. His boy had a lot to say to Miss Ryken.

Mary glanced at the clock.

Nick followed her gaze. It was closing in on four-thirty. Time to leave.

Mary smiled. “Why don’t you and Corey stay for dinner?”

That surprised him, but then it didn’t. If Mary Ryken cooked half as well as she baked, they were in for a real treat. He’d like to see how Corey responded to her. “Thank you, Mrs. Ryken. I appreciate your offer. We’ll stay.”

The woman stood. “Good, and please call me Mary.”

“What can I do to help?” He also got to his feet.

“Not a thing.” She waved him away and then stepped out of the sliding glass door. “Beth, why don’t you show Nick around since Corey will be coming here after school. And, Corey, would you like to help me in the kitchen?”

Nick gave Mary a double take. She’d turned down his help.

As if sensing his confusion, Mary explained, “I might as well get to know the boy a little better, and you’ll want to make sure everything is secure for him here. Beth will show you.”

“Oh. Yeah, thanks.” For a minute there, Nick thought she was throwing him and her daughter together.

Corey raced into the kitchen. “Really, I get to come here after school?”

Nick folded his arms. “That okay with you?”

His son nodded.

Nick remembered Corey’s comment about Beth reminding him of his mom. Of Nick’s wife. Was that why his son wanted to come here? To recapture a feeling of home and what he’d lost?

“Corey, why don’t you wash your hands in the bathroom around the corner and then come back and I’ll tell you what I need you to do.” Mary had a nice way of issuing orders.

“Yes, ma’am.” Corey had a nice way of following them, and he slipped out of sight.

Nick’s sense of ease at this choice hit a speed bump when Beth walked into the kitchen. Seeing her regularly might be a problem. He couldn’t muddy the waters of his life with an ill-timed relationship. Not when he needed to rebuild his relationship with Corey.

He sure could use a friend, though, and she was Corey’s teacher. Keeping it friendly presented a unique challenge considering his track record. But it was only a couple of months until school was done. He’d figure out somewhere else for Corey to spend his days during the summer months because Mary worked in the mornings.

Surely he’d survive the next two months. They’d all survive.

Beth stood before him. “I’ll give you the tour.”

“We’re staying for dinner.” He watched her reaction closely.

“Mom always makes more than enough.” She gave him another sunny smile.

“Do you mind?” They’d invaded her space.

“Not at all. Come on. We can chat about Corey.”

Nick blanched at the serious teacher look on Beth Ryken’s face. He got the feeling that she’d found something wrong with his boy and he was going to hear about it. “Lead the way.”

It didn’t take long to walk through the downstairs. Each room looked crowded with wall hangings and books and knickknacks. Beth’s mom had collected a lot of stuff over the years, and that stuff seemed to pop up in odd spots like her flowers outside.

“There’s a bathroom and two bedrooms upstairs. Just so you know, my father was in law enforcement and we have his firearms. But they’re locked in a safe upstairs.”

“No problem.” Nick had guns at home, too, locked up where Corey couldn’t get at them.

Someday he’d teach his son how to use and respect them. He’d start off with the BB gun his father had given Nick when he was Corey’s age. Keeping that gun had been one of many disagreements between him and Susan. She didn’t want their boy following in his father’s footsteps.

Nick stepped outside with Beth. The day had grown warm enough to forego jackets. The backyard was surrounded by a tall wooden fence. Huge trees grew along the other side and their branches shaded part of the yard, lending more privacy.

One of Mary’s more organized flower beds had been set up in the corner, complete with statues and greens poking up through the soil. The yard felt secluded, winsome even, as if he might find a secret passageway to some imaginary land, if a person was given to that kind of fancy. He wasn’t.

He glanced at Beth. “You wanted to talk about Corey?”

She nodded and headed for the swing she’d occupied with his son earlier. “Maybe we should sit down.”

He swallowed hard. “Okay....”

Whatever she had to say wasn’t going to be good. It hadn’t been good at Corey’s previous school, either. The social worker there had said Corey displayed antisocial behavior. What was so antisocial about being quiet? Corey had been withdrawn, but Nick couldn’t blame the kid. He’d lost his mom, and that school worried about how often he colored with a black crayon!

He waited for her to get comfortable before settling himself next to her, taking care to keep space between them. That pretty skirt she wore draped across her knees and swayed against her long legs, which were bare. Her feet were, too.

“What can you tell me about Corey’s education?”

He gathered his wandering thoughts. “What do you want to know?”

“Corey said his grandmother was his teacher?”

Nick nodded. “For a little bit. Corey lived with his grandparents the last six months before we moved here. His grandmother pulled him out of school after Christmas break. She homeschooled him. Why?”

“Why wasn’t he with you?” Beth’s eyes widened as if she hadn’t expected to ask that question. “I’m sorry, that’s way too personal.”

He felt his brow furrow. “No. It’s okay. At the time, it seemed like the perfect solution. My wife’s parents were glad to have him and I knew he’d be safe there. I was working a delicate undercover case that I couldn’t walk away from.”

“Undercover?” Beth’s expression froze. She even scooted away from him a little.

There it was. That look of distaste for what he did was written all over Miss Ryken’s face. Any interest she might have had in him died right then, he could tell. Probably a good thing, too.

“I worked as an undercover officer for years in Grand Rapids. I transferred into the sheriff’s department here and start next week as one of their deputies.”

“Oh.”

Evidently, the Ryken women didn’t like the idea of men in law enforcement. “I understand your father was a deputy sheriff, as well.”

Beth stared at her hands. “Yes. Look, Mr. Grey, back to Corey. Can I ask why you allowed him to be pulled out of school?”

Nick leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. He’d been deep in finishing up his case and hadn’t the time to double-check. Maybe he should have made the time. “My mother-in-law thought it might be best for Corey. I trusted her judgment and agreed.”

“Did his grandmother follow a lesson plan, do you know?”

He should have known, but he didn’t. Another failure. “Why? Is there a problem?”

“I’m not sure. Do you read together?”

Nick had plenty of excuses like working nights and leaving education concerns to his wife. He hadn’t read to his boy since Corey started school. So many things he hadn’t done for his own son. But that was changing, starting with this move north.

“No.”

Beth gave him an encouraging smile. “I’ll send him home with some books. Read together and see how it goes.”

He narrowed his gaze. “What are you trying to say?”

“It’s too soon to say anything other than I think your boy struggles with reading.”

“Which means what?”

He watched her shutter her thoughts with a calm face. “We’ll cross that bridge when we know more. After I hear from Corey’s previous school.”

That bridge was looming awfully close considering it was April. He knew for a fact that Corey’s previous school had nothing good to report. It was why Nick had agreed to his in-laws pulling the boy out.

Nick looked into Beth’s eyes expecting to find more disappointment, even censure, but it wasn’t there. She was a blank page with that teacher face going.

At that moment Mary Ryken poked her head out of the sliding glass door to announce that dinner was ready.

“After you, Mr. Grey.” Beth stood and waited for him to do the same.

His appetite was pretty much gone, leveled flat by Beth’s concerns and the half-dozen cookies he’d ingested earlier. He’d make room, though.

As they walked away from the swing, Nick couldn’t get the conversation out of his head. Corey had issues with reading. His boy had enough stress in his life—he didn’t need more. As his father, Nick didn’t want Corey to feel like a failure or be ashamed of his lack of skill with words. His kid was smart. He’d always been good with numbers.

Before they reached the door that would take them back inside, Nick stalled Beth with the touch of his hand to her arm. “Whatever I need to do to help Corey, let me know.”

“Mr. Grey—”

He cut her off. “He can’t be held back.”

Her eyes widened.

Nick softened his tone. “This is important.”

“Of course it is. All my students are important.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

She held up her hand. “I know, Mr. Grey. We’ll do everything we can.”

“Thank you.” But Nick had the sinking feeling that Corey’s second-grade teacher had already written the boy off as a lost cause for this year. That didn’t sit well. Nick had succeeded in getting some really bad guys off the streets, but at what cost?

Walking into the house, Nick was struck by the sound of his son chattering about baseball with Mary Ryken as they set the table.

“My mom’s a die-hard Detroit Tigers fan,” Beth said.

Nick nodded. Corey loved baseball. They used to watch games together on TV. One more thing they hadn’t done in a long time. But all that would change, starting today with bringing his son to the Ryken house. He’d made a good move.

For Corey and maybe, with time, him, too.

Chapter Three

“H
ere, Corey, try this one.” Beth handed him a beginning-level reader book about puppies.

Corey glanced at her and then cracked the cover. He stared at the page, muttered a couple of correctly read words and then pushed the book away. “I don’t feel like reading.”

She smiled at him, knowing this was the excuse he hid behind. “It’ll get better with practice. I promise.”

“Can I go across the street now?”

“Let’s get through this book first.”

The boy slumped lower in his chair.

“I know you can do it, Corey. And I’m here to help. Let’s try again.”

The boy let out a sigh and picked the book back up. Hearing the kid stumble over several words in a row, Beth’s heart sank. Her suspicions had been correct. Corey Grey was nowhere near a second-grade reading level. “Let’s sound this word out....”

It took a while to get through only a few pages. Beth was glad she’d called her mom before they’d even started and let her know that Corey was going to hang out with her after school. This was going to take patience, something she wasn’t sure Corey’s father had.

Nick Grey’s reaction to Beth’s concerns a few days ago still bothered her. He’d displayed such vehemence that his boy pass second grade. Was it a pride thing? Nick seemed to have more depth than that. She hoped he did.

Holding back a child to repeat a grade was openly debated within the LeNaro school district. Beth believed in some cases the hard choice was needed. Might even be needed here. But she wouldn’t get Nick’s cooperation, that was for sure. He wasn’t offering up any information about Corey’s old school, either. Beth called to rush those transcripts. The sooner she reviewed what was there, the sooner she’d figure out what to do. And find out why Nick had allowed his son to be pulled out.

She couldn’t ignore Corey’s failure to meet reading benchmarks, move him forward and hope for the best. The chances of him becoming more lost and falling further behind were too great. He excelled with math, proving the boy both was bright and could see. The need for glasses wasn’t the issue here. So why did he lag so far behind in reading? What had he missed? And more important, could he catch up before the end of the school year?

By the time Beth and Corey finished the book and made their way to Beth’s home across the street, Beth knew it’d take a lot of work to get Corey reading where he should. She had a theory, though. If she was correct, maybe they could go back and fix what Corey had missed.

“What took you two so long?” Beth’s mom was decked out in a ruffled apron she’d purchased off a home-shopping show.

Beth smiled at Corey. “We were working.”

Corey didn’t look amused. Frustrated for sure.

Her mom clicked her tongue. “Corey, did you have anything to eat since lunch?”

“No.”

“Well, dinner’s almost ready. Go wash up and we’ll eat right away. Your dad called. He’ll be a little late.”

Beth watched the boy do as her mother asked without hesitation, before she let loose her irritation. “This better not become a habit.”

Her mom lifted her chin. “What are you talking about?”

“Corey’s dad being late.”

Her mother gave her a hard look. “That’s between him and me. He promised to pay me extra when he’s late.”

Beth sighed. She couldn’t really argue with that. Her father used to be late a lot, too. At least Nick had called.

“So why’d you keep Corey at school so long? The poor kid needs an afternoon snack.”

Beth scrunched her nose. How much could she really share with her mom? “We were reading.”

“He’s behind, isn’t he?”

Beth’s eyes widened. “How’d you know?”

Her mom shrugged as her gaze shifted behind her before she focused back on Beth. “Set the table, would you? Corey, you can help.”

The boy had returned. Reason enough for her mother’s quick change of subject. But still, how’d she know? And if it was that easy for her mother to figure it out, why hadn’t Nick? Or Corey’s grandparents? Even worse, why hadn’t someone done something to help the child?

Beth set the table, letting the dishes clunk hard as she laid them down.

Corey gave her a quick look with wide eyes. “Are you mad?”

That question stopped her cold. It wasn’t exactly fear she read in his face but something close to it. Almost as if he’d braced for impact. It made her sick to ponder the implications of that single glance from a sad-eyed seven-year-old.

She wouldn’t jump to conclusions. Not before reading those reports from Corey’s previous school, if they ever got here.

Beth smiled, feeling like a heel. “No. I’m not mad. More irritated that I have to set the table, something I don’t like to do, but I shouldn’t take it out on the plates, huh?”

Corey surprised her with a big grin. The fear was gone, replaced by a sardonic expression that looked much too old for the child giving it. He looked so much like his dad. “They could break.”

Beth grinned back. Had she read way too much into Corey’s expression? “I suppose my mom wouldn’t like it if I broke her dishes.”

“No.” Corey shook his head. “I don’t think she would.”

Beth watched him lay down forks and knives around each plate. He’d been through a lot at a young age, but were there additional concerns she should worry about?

A fierce sense of protection for Corey filled her. She’d find out, real quick. Starting with the boy’s father.

* * *

Nick pulled into Mary Ryken’s driveway. A few raindrops splashed against the windshield of his patrol car, promising more soon. He got out and rushed for the front porch and made it before the deluge.

Beth Ryken came out looking darker than the rain clouds overhead. “Can I talk to you a minute?”

That sounded like trouble. She looked stern. Still beautiful, though. Always beautiful. He took a deep breath. “Hey, sorry I’m late. I had to finish up the paperwork of an arrest.”

“It’s not that.” A crease of worry marred her otherwise-perfect forehead. “Nothing serious?”

He let out a bark of laughter. “Maybe for the drunk and disorderly seventy-eight-year-old woman who refused to get out of the vehicle of the man who picked her up hitchhiking. The poor guy didn’t dare touch her, so he called us. I thought the whole thing was pretty funny.”

That didn’t earn him any points. Beth’s gaze grew cool. Icy. “Have you been using the books I sent home with Corey?”

He nodded. “Every night before bed we read one of those storybooks.” Nick enjoyed revisiting that quiet time together.

“Who’s doing the reading?” Her gaze narrowed.

“Both of us. Corey struggles, but I help him out.” What was up with this woman? Two days ago she sent home the books. Why the grief when he followed her directions?

“They’re barely first-grade level.” Her voice had dropped to nearly a whisper.

The rain pounded the ground, but that was nothing compared to the bomb his son’s teacher had thrown at him. “But I’ve seen him reading the backs of cereal boxes, and comic books.”

“Probably following the pictures.”

Nick stared at her with dread crawling up his spine. He didn’t know what kinds of books kids read in what grades. Nick clenched his fists. Had she sent those books home to entrap him? To prove her point? That wasn’t fair. Not fair to his son. To him.

At that moment Corey flew out the door. “Hi, Dad.”

Nick looked at his boy. “Corey, can you wait in the car?”

His son glanced at Beth and then back at him. “Okay....”

“I’ll only be a minute. Don’t touch anything.”

Corey’s shoulders slumped and he flipped up the hood of his rain slicker and dashed for the vehicle.

Nick watched him get into the SUV cruiser and then focused on Beth. “There has to be something I can do.”

“This late in the school year, I don’t know. I’m sorry.” Beth Ryken didn’t beat around the bush, that was for sure.

“But there has to be something—”

The front screen door opened with a squeak, and Mary Ryken had a loaded plate wrapped in foil. Dinner? “We had more than enough.”

Mary had made enough for both him and Corey to take home the previous night, too. “Thank you.”

Nick’s focus followed to where Beth pointed, toward the sheriff patrol vehicle. Corey was messing with something. “I’ve got to go.” He stared hard at his son’s teacher. “But this conversation is far from over.”

He saw how Beth’s eyes widened, but she didn’t say another word as he ran for the car. His uniform got soaked in the process.

Nick slipped behind the wheel and set the foil-wrapped plate on the backseat. “I asked you not to touch anything.”

Corey looked at him. “Are there games on this?”

Nick turned his computer monitor back around. “No. No games.”

As Nick backed out of the Rykens’ driveway, he glanced at the porch. Beth waved. Corey waved back. “What did you do at Mary’s today?”

“I was at school with Miss Ryken.”

“How come?”

Corey shrugged.

Nick drove with care, slow and sure. “Did she ask you to read?”

His boy’s face fell. “Yeah.”

“And you had trouble, huh? Like with the books we have.”

More dejection. “Yeah.”

Nick swallowed hard. “Corey, why didn’t you tell me you were having a hard time reading words? I could have helped.”

“You weren’t there.”

The barb hit hard and true, piercing his heart with bitter regret. “Grandma and Grandpa would have helped you to read better.”

Corey shrugged again.

It wasn’t the kid’s fault. Why hadn’t Susan’s parents picked up on it? Nick rubbed the bridge of his nose. They were dealing, too. He couldn’t blame them. Maybe if he’d made Corey read more. If he’d been around...

“Dad?”

“What?”

“I think I made Miss Ryken mad.”

Nick felt himself frown. “I’m sure you didn’t, son.”

“But she slammed the plates on the table. But not like Mom. Miss Ryken didn’t break any.”

Nick couldn’t breathe. He never had the right words to explain Susan’s odd behavior. Couldn’t excuse it, either. They’d argued so much toward the end. Way too much.

“Don’t worry. Miss Ryken wasn’t mad at you.” She was probably madder than a hornet at him, though, for letting his boy down. And rightly so.

Nick turned left onto the road that took them north of town to where they now lived. He needed to talk to Beth Ryken.

“Hey, bud, do you have recess before your lunch break or after?”

“After,” Corey said. “Why?”

“Just wondered.”

Nick knew his son ate lunch around noontime. So, maybe he’d stop by tomorrow. And see if he couldn’t have a chat with Miss Ryken.

* * *

Beth checked her watch and growled. She was late. Way too late for her early-morning dentist appointment. She pushed down on the gas pedal and picked up speed. And then spotted the flashing lights.

“Really?” Beth slowed and pulled over to the side of the road.

Another growl escaped while she checked her glove box for registration and proof of insurance. Beth jumped at the quick tap to her driver’s-side window. And then her stomach sank.

Deputy Officer Nick Grey with a shining gold star on his chest opened the door for her. He stood there tall and solemn. His mouth twisted into a crooked grin. “In a hurry this morning, Miss Ryken?”

Her stomach, which had dropped somewhere near her sandal-clad feet, now fluttered back to life. Why’d the man have to look so good in that brown uniform?

She let out a sigh. “Late for an appointment. I guess I was going a little too fast, but there’s no point now—I’ll never make it in time.”

“Do you know what the speed limit is on these roads?”

She squinted at him. Seriously? “My dad was a cop, remember? Fifty-five.”

He cocked one eyebrow, but there was a definite twinkle in his eye. “I clocked you at sixty-eight. Not wise on back roads with deer roaming in the fields.”

Irritation filled her. Irritation that she’d get a ticket, irritation that Nick Grey might be a low-down scoundrel who not only scared his little boy but didn’t attend to his education. Even more irritating still was despite all that, Nick Grey grew more attractive every time she looked. “Just give me the ticket and we’ll both be on our way.”

“Would you step out of the car?”

Her eyes flew wide. “What! Why? I’ve got my papers right here. Look me up and you’ll see I don’t have a history of speeding tickets. This will be my first one.”

His brows drew together and he looked stern. Downright scary, too. For a skinny guy, Nick was pretty intimidating. “I’m not giving you a ticket.”

“Then why...?”

“I need to talk to you. Please?”

Oh, there was no denying that pleading look he gave her. And that only fueled the anger simmering inside. She got out of her car and slammed the door harder than she’d intended. “What do you want?”

“What’s with the attitude?”

Beth didn’t hold back. “I saw fear in your son’s eyes last night and I’d like to know why.”

Again the man only cocked one eyebrow, cool as can be. “When you slammed the plates on the table?”

Beth gasped and then sputtered, “I, uh—”

“Corey told me. Look, Miss Ryken, there’s something you should probably know. My wife had mood swings. During one of her more manic ones, she smashed a stack of plates because I was late for dinner. Corey’s a little sensitive.”

Beth’s mouth dropped open, and she slapped her hand over it. She was going to be sick. Corey wasn’t afraid of his father; he’d been afraid of her!

“It’s okay. No harm done. But it hasn’t been easy for Corey, and I didn’t make it any easier by sending him to live with his grandparents. But I’d run out of options.”

Beth’s heart broke all over again. “I’m so sorry.”

“For what? Thinking ill of me? You should. I let my boy down.”

“No, for scaring your son.” Beth leaned against her car and stared at the cherry orchard across the street. She’d called that one all wrong.

The sun shone on dewdrops clinging to the tree buds, turning them into sparkling crystals. Those cherry buds would soon burst open into white blossoms. Just one of many breathtaking sights in Northern Michigan. She sidled a glance at Nick. Yup, breathtaking sights everywhere.