A Place to Belong

by RaeAnne Thayne

  “Why did you let Jase stay?” It was the question that still plagued her. Why was her brother important enough to keep when she could be so easily discarded?

  “He was different.” Declan shrugged. “It’s not logical, but the Crenshaws had been a family of boys for generations. Bad boys that turned into lousy men. I figured Jase could handle anything that came down the pike because it was in his blood. But you...” He sighed, his eyes drifting closed. “You were different. You were this bright, shiny thing in the cesspool of my life. A girl. The first one with the name Crenshaw in three generations. The thought of what could happen to you in this town...” He threw up his hands. “Your mom was right to take you away.”

  “I still don’t believe that. Not the way she did it—letting me think you didn’t want me.” She took a breath, then added, “That you didn’t love me.”

  “I always loved you,” he said, moving forward. “I always will, baby girl. Whether you’re in Crimson or Chicago or halfway around the world.”

  She bit down on the inside of her cheek to keep from crying. She would not cry.

  “Do what you want with those checks,” he said, covering her hand with his. “I never understood why I was saving them, but now I know it was to give them to you. You can hate me and refuse to speak to me but don’t ever doubt that I love you.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “In my own messed-up way.”

  She choked back a sob. “Is there any other way to love someone?”

  He pulled her in for a tight hug. “Not in this family,” he said.

  After a moment, Sienna relaxed into him, and it felt like coming home.

  * * *

  Sienna watched the black Porsche tear into the ski resort’s empty parking lot. Dust flew up around the SUV as it came to a quick stop in front of where she sat on the gravel.

  She sucked in a breath as a man rushed from the vehicle, slamming shut the driver’s side door and stalking toward her. Shep Bennett was indeed identical in looks to Cole, although Sienna would never confuse one brother for the other. She’d been shocked when Paige had told her Shep’s company had bought the ski resort and that he was personally under contract to purchase The Bumblebee.

  Of course, she couldn’t call Cole to ask him about it because she wasn’t speaking to Cole—wasn’t sure if she’d ever speak to him again. She knew it didn’t make sense, but the fact that he hadn’t told her what he knew about her parents’ arrangement felt like a bigger betrayal than her family lying to her all those years. Although she knew in her heart—her broken heart—the lie was just an excuse.

  “You’re trespassing, Sienna.” He pointed a finger at her. “Not to mention making me think my resort was on fire and scaring the hell out of me.”

  Sienna looked up at the plume of smoke wafting into the air, then poked a stick at the smoldering logs in the metal fire pit she’d dragged from around the back of the lodge.

  “You know who I am,” she said quietly.

  Shep nodded. “My brother is pretty much tied in knots over you. I’ll admit I was curious, although he forgot to mention your pyromaniac tendencies. You know there’s a fire ban around here?”

  “That’s why I’m in the parking lot, where there are no trees. It seemed safe.” She glanced at Shep and raised a brow. “Are you going to call the cops?”

  Shep blew out a breath. “Sadly, you don’t look like a handcuffs type of girl.”

  “You have no idea what kind of woman I am.”

  “The kind my brother fell in love with, which says something about you.”

  “That I was crazy,” Sienna muttered, “to get involved with him.”

  “Well, yes,” Shep agreed, rubbing a hand over his jaw in a gesture so similar to Cole’s that it made her heart ache. He glanced back at the SUV, then crouched down next to her. “What’s with the fire?”

  “Maybe I wanted to make s’mores.”

  “Or burn down the forest.” He grabbed the stick from her hand. “Enough poking at it. You got your point across.”

  “Back off, Smokey Bear,” she said under her breath.

  Shep laughed. “I can see why Cole is so damn in love with you.”

  She leveled a glare at him. “Your brother said he cares about me, which is not the same thing as love.”

  “Not always silky smooth, that guy. I also heard he lied to you, although he wasn’t forthcoming with much in the way of details.”

  “I’ve got the details right here.” Sienna plucked another check out of the envelope she held between her knees, wadded it into a ball, then tossed it into the fire. The edges caught first, burning bright orange, then turning to black as the paper disintegrated in the heat of the fire.

  She’d come out to the ski resort because she wanted to be alone but didn’t trust her rental car on the dirt roads that led into Forest Service land. The mountains were so close here it felt like they were embracing the valley, and it surprised her that no one had bought the property sooner.

  Shep straightened when a noise came from the SUV. He jogged around the driver’s side and Sienna heard a small cry, then the soft rumble of Shep making soothing sounds.

  “Tell me you don’t have a baby in that Porsche,” she called as she stood.

  “Rosie will actually be eighteen months next week,” Shep said as he reappeared, a child snuggled to his chest. “She’s officially a toddler.”

  Sienna felt her mouth drop open. “Where did you get her?”

  “Aisle seven of the local grocery,” Shep answered with a wink. “Near the canned peas.”

  “Shep.”

  He moved forward, smoothing fine, dark hair away from Rosie’s face. “Rosie is my daughter.”

  “Does Cole know?”

  Shep shook his head, his full lips thinning. “Not yet. Hell, I didn’t even know about her until recently.”

  “You shouldn’t curse in front of a child,” Sienna said automatically.

  “Thanks for the tip,” Shep said tightly. “I’ll add it to the list of things I need to learn about being a dad.” He cupped a hand on the back of Rosie’s head. “It’s a long damn list.”

  “Shep.”

  He groaned. “No cursing. Right.”

  “Dada,” Rosie said in a tiny voice. She tipped up her face to look at Shep. “Damn, Dada.”

  “I’m a bad daddy.” Shep dropped a kiss on the tip of the young girl’s nose. “I’ll do better next time.”

  “That’s why no cursing,” Sienna told him, unable to hide her smile. “Hi, Rosie.”

  Rosie shifted in her father’s arms, looked at Sienna, then buried her face in Shep’s shirtfront.

  “She’s kind of shy,” Shep offered. “Plus she fell asleep in the car, and it takes her a while to wake up from a nap. Takes after her daddy in that respect. This is Sienna,” he explained to his daughter. “She’s a friend of your uncle Cole’s. I told you about him, remember? He looks like Daddy, only not as handsome.”

  After a moment, Rosie turned to look at Sienna again, her gaze wary. The girl was adorable, with big brown eyes and dark hair that curled above her ears. She wore a wrinkled pink dress and polka-dot socks on her feet.

  “Is it just the two of you?” Sienna asked.

  “I brought a nanny with us from California, but she took off this morning.” Shep rolled his eyes. “Saw a bear on her run and freaked out.”

  “She just left?”

  “So fast it would make your head spin.”

  “Jettie,” Rosie said with a sniff.

  “Jessie had to go back to Los Angeles,” Shep said with a sigh. “Where there are way scarier things on the streets than bears if you ask me.”

  “You need help.”

  “No doubt,” Shep agreed. “But the first thing I need is for you to completely put out that fire.”

  “Got it.” Sienna picked up the bu
cket of water she’d set to one side of the fire pit. “I was prepared. I really wasn’t trying to cause trouble.” She closed her eyes for a moment as the memory of Cole teasing about her being a troublemaker played through her mind.

  Shep eyed the now empty envelope on the ground. “What exactly were you doing? I can’t imagine Cole writing love letters for you to burn.”

  The wood sizzled as she dumped the bucket of water over it, a huge rush of smoke pouring into the air.

  Rosie covered her ears and shouted, “’Moke, Daddy.”

  “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ve got you.” Shep stepped back toward the SUV.

  When the smoke cleared, Sienna turned to Cole’s brother. “Just getting rid of some old family drama.”

  “Cole and I have plenty of that ourselves,” Shep told her. “Next time, drown your sorrows at a bar like he did. It’s a lot safer for all of us.”

  She picked up the envelope and crumpled it into a ball as Shep opened the door and loaded Rosie into her car seat. “Cole had sorrows to drown?”

  “Oh, yeah. He was a bad drunk and that never happens to my brother. I’m sure whatever he did to mess things up was bad, but I can guarantee he regrets it. I hope you give him another chance.” He shut the door and flashed a wide grin. “I have a feeling he’ll be a lot easier to deal with if you’re a part of his life. I know I would be.”

  Sienna gave a small wave as Shep climbed in the Porsche and drove away. Her feelings were still jumbled enough that she wasn’t sure she wanted another chance with Cole. She could easily forgive him for not telling her about the checks. But she’d told him she loved him and he’d offered her nothing in return.

  After spending most of her life wondering if she was even worthy of love, Sienna had finally realized she deserved so much more than she’d ever believed. And she was no longer willing to settle for someone who’d give her anything less.

  Chapter 19

  “Isn’t there some kind of limit on how many turns a person can take with this thing?” Cole climbed back onto the dunk tank platform at the Crimson Fourth of July Festival the following weekend, pushed sopping wet hair away from his face.

  “It’s for charity, boss,” Marlene called from the ticket table she was manning next to the booth. She held up the cash box in his direction. “We’re making lots of money for the community center.”

  “Yeah, Sheriff. Don’t be a bad sport.”

  Cole glared at his brother, who was gleefully handing over another five-dollar bill to Marlene.

  “I’m a great sport,” Cole argued, gathering the hem of his uniform shirt in his hands to wring out the water. It had been Marlene’s idea that he wear the uniform, but he’d refused the sign she’d tried to hand him that read Did I Give You a Ticket? No sense in giving the festival-goers too much motivation.

  He glanced up at the clear sky, grateful for another bluebird day in Colorado. At least he had the sunshine to warm him between dunks, although thanks to the ice-cold water in the tank, he was still shivering slightly. “But you’re taking too much pleasure in soaking me.”

  “Just loosening up the arm,” Shep said with a laugh, shifting his hold on Rosie. “You want to see Daddy dunk Uncle Cole again, sweetheart?”

  Rosie clapped her chubby hands. “Dunk, Daddy!”

  “Good idea.” Cole pointed toward Shep through the bars of the dunk tank. “Why don’t we change places?”

  “Not a chance. Besides, the good people of Crimson want to see their fine, upstanding sheriff take the plunge, not his newcomer brother.” Shep turned to the crowd that had gathered in front of the dunk tank, tossing a ball in the air. “Isn’t that right, everyone?”

  A round of cheers went up and Cole gave an obligatory smile and wave.

  The festival was in full swing. Booths housing carnival games and food trucks lined the perimeter of the field next to the county fairgrounds outside of town. An oversize tent with picnic tables under it and a large stage were situated at one end of the festivities, and a three-piece bluegrass band played to an audience of older folks and families.

  But the big draw this afternoon was the dunking booth, especially since Cole had climbed onto the platform thirty minutes ago. He’d replaced Jase, who’d only had a few people interested in dunking him. Cole, on the other hand, was a popular target.

  First up had been Emily, then Katie Crawford, then Declan. Cole was pretty sure Sienna’s father would have rather aimed the ball directly at Cole’s head, but the old man managed to send him into the tank of freezing water on the first throw. Impressive for a man still recovering from a stint in the hospital.

  Cole hadn’t complained or tried to defend himself against Sienna’s little posse of protectors. He wanted to fix the mess he’d made.

  He’d even paid a visit to Declan’s house after he’d learned Sienna had moved in to help take care of her father. Declan had seemed to take great pleasure in slamming the door shut in Cole’s face. Cole hadn’t slept in a week, had no appetite and could barely focus on work as his thoughts were consumed with Sienna and how to win her back. But earning a second chance was difficult when she apparently wanted nothing to do with him.

  “I’d like to dunk the newcomer,” a voice called out now, and Cole watched the sea of bystanders part to reveal Paige Harper glaring at Shep.

  “It’s about time,” Cole muttered under his breath. “I need a break.”

  “I’ve got a baby in my arms,” Shep said, glancing over his shoulder at Cole, then back to Paige. “Miss, I’m not sure what I’ve done to raise your ire, but I can assure you—”

  “Save it, buddy.” She plucked the ball from Shep’s fingers. “Cute kid, by the way.”

  Cole couldn’t help but smile at the shocked look on Shep’s face as Paige leaned in to tickle Rosie’s dimpled chin. The little girl, who was the shyest child Cole had ever encountered, giggled and reached for Paige.

  “Stay with your daddy,” Paige said, smoothing a hand across Rosie’s soft hair. “I have business with your uncle Cole, too.”

  Rosie flashed a toothy grin, then shoved her fist into her mouth.

  Cole had never seen his brother at a loss for words, but Shep stared at Paige like she was standing there juggling in nothing but her birthday suit.

  Paige stepped forward, eyeing the ball in her hand. “How much for a guaranteed dunk?” she asked Marlene.

  “That’s not part of the deal,” Cole shouted. “She has to hit the target.”

  “I’ll hit it all right,” Paige shouted back. “But I’ll wish it were your face.”

  Shep let out a low moan. “A toddler whisperer with a temper? I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

  “I tried calling her but she won’t answer,” Cole said to Paige, leaning forward as if that would prevent the rest of the town from hearing his words. He’d made a habit of keeping his private life just that, but somehow everyone in Crimson seemed to know that things had gone south between Sienna and him. Hard to believe, when it had been only a few weeks since he’d stopped her on the road from Aspen, but that’s how small towns worked. Nothing was private in Crimson. Not for long anyway.

  “Ten dollars,” Marlene told Paige, who quickly pulled a few bills from her purse.

  “Done,” she said, slapping them on the table, then stalking toward Cole. “You should try harder.”

  “Tell me how.”

  She gave a small shake of her head, curls bouncing. “You don’t deserve to know. I told you she needed someone in her corner.”

  “I know you did.” Cole swiped a hand across his eyes, sweat beginning to bead along his forehead despite the cool breeze whirling across the fairgrounds. “I should have been that person.”

  “But you weren’t.” Paige yelled the words despite the fact that she was standing right next to the dunk tank. “You broke her heart. You hurt her. Do you know that she almos
t—?”

  “Paige.”

  The tiny woman clasped a hand over her mouth and turned as Sienna walked out of the crowd.

  “Almost what?” Cole asked, leaning forward. He sucked in a breath as Sienna moved toward the dunk tank. She wore a red floral shirt with lace detailing around the neckline and slim denim jeans that molded over her curves in a way that made his mouth go dry. Her long hair was down, casually curling over her shoulders. She looked so beautiful, happy and at peace in a way he hadn’t seen before.

  Then she met his gaze and the pain in her eyes was like a gunshot to his heart because he knew he’d put it there.

  “You don’t have to do this,” she said, her gaze gentling as she looped an arm around Paige’s shoulder. “As much as I appreciate it—”

  “I have pent-up aggression,” Paige muttered, darting a glare toward Shep. “And I can’t take it out on the brother holding the kid. Cole’s an easier target.”

  “Literally,” Cole said, then shrugged when both women turned to him. “I’m stuck in this cage and half the town has some sort of bizarre need to defend your honor.”

  “I’m heading to the beer tent,” Paige said, giving Sienna a quick hug. “Meet me there.”

  Sienna nodded, then tipped up her chin as she focused on Cole once again. “I can take care of myself.”

  “I know you can,” he whispered, loving how color flooded her cheeks even as she glared at him. Loving everything about her. Offering up a thousand silent prayers that she’d give him another chance—one he wouldn’t squander.

  “I almost left Crimson,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “That’s what Paige was about to tell you. As much as I wanted to, I didn’t think I could stand to stay and risk running into you and pretend like things were right between us.”

  “I want us to be right.”

  She shifted to look back at the crowd of people watching them. His brother. Her brother and Emily. Declan. Marlene. A dozen other people he knew in some capacity. His most colossal mistake on display for everyone to witness, and he still had no idea how to make it better.