by Elle James
Leigha’s face split in a big grin. “He said it was okay. I could show you and Dix, but no one else.”
“Great.” Andrew lifted her in his arms and turned around in the foyer. “Which way should we go? And do we need anything like a flashlight or a loaf of bread?”
Her little brows wrinkled. “Bread?”
“You know. To leave a trail of bread crumbs so that we can find our way back.”
Leigha giggled. “I have a flashlight where we’re going. But we don’t need bread. I know the way back. And if we lose our way, Bennet will help us get home.”
Andrew shot a glance toward Dix over Leigha’s head. “Oh, good. I feel so much better, knowing Bennet will be there.”
“He’s very nice and he takes care of me and Brewer.”
Andrew’s lips thinned.
Dix could tell he was kicking himself for leaving Leigha to fend for herself while he worked.
Leigha wiggled in Andrew’s arms. “Put me down. I’ll show you where we start.”
Andrew set the child on her feet.
She darted toward the back of the house and turned toward the west wing. “Follow me!” she called, her hair flying out behind her.
“You heard her—follow Leigha.” Dix took off at a slow jog, afraid that if she let the child get too far ahead, she might disappear.
Since she’d spent a good portion of the early morning hours searching rooms, touching walls and feeling for hidden doorways or panels, she still hadn’t a clue as to where the other secret passageways were located. They were at the mercy of a six-year-old and a ghost to find them.
Leigha ran halfway down the first-floor hallway of the west wing and stopped in front of a small alcove with an arched entrance. A life-size statue of a Roman woman holding a baby took up the majority of the space.
Dix remembered running across her as she’d patrolled the halls in the middle of the night. She’d walked all the way around her, searching for a doorway, a lever or a switch. The only switch she’d found was a button. When pressed, the light over the statue came on.
Leigha pushed the button and waited.
The light came on. Leigha turned to the statue and grabbed the baby’s toe.
Dix leaned closer and noticed the toe moved into the statue.
Still nothing major happened.
Then Leigha pushed the button on the wall again and the alcove, statue and all, rotated into the wall, exposing a doorway.
Leigha started to enter when Andrew grabbed her arm and held her back.
“Wait.” Andrew tipped his head toward the wood floor of the hallway.
Dix stared hard at the dark wood. Then she saw them. Footprints. “Sweetheart, let me go first.” Her hand went to the gun beneath the blazer she wore.
Leigha looked up at her. “But you don’t know the way.”
“Brewer does, doesn’t he?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll follow Brewer. You can hold your father’s hand and help him find the way.”
She considered Dix’s words and nodded. “Okay. But you’ll need this.” She reached around Dix and plucked a flashlight from a cubbyhole in the secret passage, switched it on and handed it to Dix. “This hall doesn’t have a light switch.”
“Nice to know.” Dix balanced the light in her left hand, keeping her right hand free to pull her gun, if needed. She focused the beam down the narrow corridor and stepped into the passageway. “Did you put the flashlights in the corridors?”
“No,” Leigha said from behind. “They were here. Bennet showed me how to find them.”
“Bennet seems to be a handy friend to have,” Andrew muttered.
“He’s very smart and knows his way around the house and caves.”
“I’d like to meet him someday.” Andrew’s voice carried to Dix.
She almost laughed, wondering how he’d react if Leigha introduced him to Bennet the same way she’d introduced him to Dix.
The corridor made a ninety-degree turn to the left and another to the right. At one point it ended in a T-junction.
“Which way?” Dix asked.
“If you go to the right, it leads to the garden,” Leigha said. “Left leads you to a staircase that takes you up to the tower. You can see all the way to Cape Churn up there.”
“I’ll take your word for it. Are there any other corridors off either of these choices?” Dix asked.
“No.”
“Then let’s go to the garden.” Dix turned right and walked approximately fifty feet to a door. She held her hand up, hoping Andrew would hold back Leigha while she checked to see what was on the other side of the door.
A glance over her shoulder proved he’d understood. He held on to Leigha’s hand, pulling her back behind him.
Dix turned the doorknob and swung the door open. Brewer ran out.
Light filtered through a veil of vines.
Dix passed through the door and parted the vines. She stood still, scanning the garden, the bushes and shadows for movement.
Brewer trotted along a stone path, his nose to the ground, sniffing. When he came to a low stone wall, he reared on his back legs, planted his front paws on the wall. The dog looked over the top, his tail still for several seconds, and then he wagged it. Apparently satisfied no one was lurking on the other side, he dropped to the ground and turned back toward Dix as if to say The coast is clear.
Dix felt a little bit of relief, but she wouldn’t be much of a bodyguard if she based her actions on what she thought the dog was thinking. Dix moved into the open, crossed to the wall and glanced over the top.
She noted the small patch of dirt on the other side. Everywhere else was covered in grass or moss. Peering closer, she could swear the patch of dirt had a shoe print in the middle.
Dix vaulted over the wall, deliberately landing on the grass. Hugging the bushes, she made a one-hundred-eighty-degree sweep of the area around the wall, moving farther into the woods just to be certain no one was out there who could harm her or her clients.
When she was as sure as she could be, she returned to the wall and squatted beside the dirt patch. Definitely a footprint. The pattern indicated some kind of work boot. She straightened and swung her legs over the stone wall.
Andrew stood with Leigha near the vines. “Anything?” he asked.
“It’s a lovely garden.” Dix bent to pick up a stick. “Leigha, does Brewer know how to play fetch?”
Leigha nodded and held out her hand. “Want me to show you?”
“Please.”
She took the stick, walked a few feet away and threw the stick.
Brewer raced after it, snatched it up with his teeth and dropped it at Leigha’s feet. She giggled and did it again, moving a little farther away from where Andrew and Dix stood.
“What did you find?” Andrew asked.
“I didn’t find the perpetrator, but I did find a boot print in the dirt on the other side of the wall. Whoever hit you last night probably left through the secret passage.”
“I suppose I need to stock up on locks.”
“You might consider installing a security monitoring system.”
“It’s on my list of upgrades, as soon as the contractor can get to me.”
“You might want to move it to the top of your priority list.”
He nodded. “Leigha, are there any more secret hallways in the house that lead to the outside?”
She threw the stick for Brewer once more and came to stand beside Andrew. “None that lead outside. Only this one and the one that goes through the cave.”
“Let’s go back inside. I want you to show me the one you showed Dix yesterday.”
“Okay.” She ducked through the vines, disappearing into the house.
If Dix hadn
’t known where the door was, she wouldn’t have known it was there. The vines and shadows completely hid the door. She was surprised Andrew hadn’t discovered it as a boy exploring his grandfather’s house.
Brewer followed Leigha, Andrew went next and Dix brought up the rear, closing the door behind her. When she turned, she nearly ran into Andrew.
He hadn’t moved far into the narrow corridor. “I’ll come back with a lock after she shows me the cave.”
Her heart hammered against her ribs. Standing as close as she was to Andrew, she could smell the sexy scent of his aftershave.
He reached out to brush a strand of her hair away from her forehead. “I’m sorry things didn’t work out the way we’d planned last night.”
She fought the urge to lean her cheek into his palm. Instead she stared up at him, forcing herself to be professional. “It’s probably just as well our plans didn’t happen. Not that I wanted you to be hurt. It’s just that I’m here for the short term. What good is it to start something we both know we can’t finish?”
“How do you know?”
“I’m not the right person for you and Leigha. I have too many issues.”
“And we don’t?”
“Three wrongs don’t make a family.”
“So that’s it?” He tipped her chin up and stared into her eyes in the dim glow of the flashlight he carried in his other hand. “You’re not even willing to see what might come of us?”
“I told you—”
“I know. You’re damaged goods. I hope someday you’ll explain to me how different you are from me and Leigha.” He bent his head until his lips hovered over hers. “The way I see it, we have a lot more in common than you’re willing to admit.” He brushed his lips lightly over hers. “Resist all you want. I like what I know so far, and I’m not ready to give up on you.”
Then he deepened the kiss, pushing his tongue past her teeth to tangle with hers. He lifted his head and smiled. “You might think you’re all tough and hard as stone.” He touched a finger to her chest. “But I’d bet my last dollar you’re all soft and squishy on the inside.”
“Are you coming?” Leigha asked. “We still have to go through the cave. And Brewer’s hungry for one of Mrs. Purdy’s cookies.”
“Coming,” Andrew answered. Then, to Dix, he said, “You heard that. Brewer needs a cookie. But don’t forget—I’m not ready to give up on you.” He turned and shone the flashlight ahead of him.
Dix stayed rooted to the floor, her lips tingling from his kiss, her heart squeezing so tightly in her chest she was afraid it would implode.
You might not be ready to give up on me, Andrew Stratford. But it’s not you I’m worried about. I don’t know if I have what it takes to stay.
Chapter 17
Leigha wasted no time leading them to the sitting room and through the hidden doorway in the fireplace. When they reached the door that would lead into the cave, they paused while Andrew worked the combination lock.
Dix led the way through the tunnel, carrying the flashlight.
Andrew was shocked when the tunnel emptied out into the cavern and even more disturbed by the next tunnel’s exit over a cliff and down the trail to the beach. The tide was out, so he could see the little strip of sand, just enough for someone to beach a skiff.
“How did I not know about this?” Andrew said as he watched his daughter and Brewer play on the sand.
“The bigger question is how Leigha found it.” Dix shook her head. “I can’t imagine she found those two passages on her own. Someone had to have shown her the triggers to open the hidden doors.”
“But who?” Andrew didn’t like it. “All the while I was working in my office, she was wandering through secret tunnels and caves. She could just as easily have slipped off a cliff or gotten lost in the woods.”
“At least you know now and can keep her safe.”
He rubbed his scarred hand through his hair and winced when his stitches snagged. “I wish parenting came with a how-to book.”
Dix chuckled. “She’s amazing. I can’t imagine a book would be adequate.”
Leigha ran back to the two of them, her hair in disarray, her jeans wet from kneeling in the sand. “Brewer is ready for his cookie.”
“What about Bennet?” Dix asked.
“That’s silly. Bennet doesn’t eat cookies.”
“Why not?” Andrew asked.
“He can’t.” Leigha started up the stone steps. “He’s a ghost,” she called out over her shoulder. “Everyone knows ghosts don’t need to eat.”
And so Andrew was schooled on what ghosts could and couldn’t do. Never in a million years would he have guessed he’d be living at his grandfather’s estate in Oregon, talking to a six-year-old who believed in ghosts. His six-year-old daughter.
Leigha hurried them back through the tunnels and cave to the house. Once she emerged from the fireplace, she made a beeline for the kitchen, skipping across the marble-tiled floor, Brewer racing ahead.
By the time Andrew and Dix entered, Leigha was at the table with a cookie and a glass of milk.
“You two look like you need a cookie. Would you prefer coffee or milk?”
Dix and Andrew replied as one. “Milk.”
Dix turned to Andrew. “Really? I would have pegged you for a coffee drinker.”
“And I am. But nothing goes better with one of Mrs. Purdy’s cookies than milk.” He leaned close to her as he stepped around her. “Yet another thing we have in common.” Before she could protest, he reached for the cup and cookie and took the seat beside Leigha. “Mrs. Purdy, are any of my grandfather’s cronies still alive?”
She brought a cookie and a glass of milk and set it on the table across from Andrew and motioned for Dix to take the seat. “Why do you ask?”
“I’d like to talk to them about my grandfather and this house.”
She tilted her head and stared at the far corner for a moment, and then her face brightened. “As a matter of fact, Mr. Giddings, the owner of the hardware store in Cape Churn, is still alive and kicking. I think the man is going to outlive us all.” She shook her head. “He and your grandfather met for coffee once a week at the café. I believe they used to play cards here at the house when they were younger.”
“And he still works at the hardware store?”
“He does. He’s got to be pushing ninety. But he likes feeling useful and he knows everything there is to know about lumber, hardware and fixing things. He works a shorter day than his son. If you want to see him, you should go in the next hour or two.”
“Leigha, how would you like to go to town with me and Dix?” Andrew asked. “We could run by the school and get you registered for first grade.”
“I can go to school?” Her face lit and she practically bounced in her chair. “With kids like me and a teacher?”
Andrew laughed. “Yes. With kids like you and a teacher.”
“Yes, please.” She leaped out of her chair and ran for the door.
“Leigha,” Andrew said, his voice firm.
Leigha slid to a halt on the tiled floor. “Yes, sir?”
“We’ll go after we finish our cookies and milk that Mrs. Purdy so nicely provided.”
She walked back to the table, slid into her seat and proceeded to gobble up the rest of the cookie and drink her milk. When she set her glass down, she had a milk mustache and a smile. “Can we go now?”
Andrew finished the last bite of his cookie, upended his glass of milk and sighed. “Yes, we can go.”
Leigha pointed at him and laughed.
Andrew looked around, pretending he didn’t know he had a matching milk mustache. “What?”
“You have milk on your lip.” Leigha giggled again.
“Oh, you mean like the milk on your lip?” He grabbed a
napkin and wiped the milk from her mouth. “There.”
Dix handed Leigha a napkin and she repeated the gesture, wiping the milk from Andrew’s lip. “There,” she echoed.
Andrew and Leigha turned to Dix.
“What?”
“Are you ready?” Andrew asked.
Dix shoved the last bit of her cookie into her mouth and drank her milk so fast she got milk on her upper lip.
Leigha dissolved into giggles, rolled out of her chair onto the floor.
Brewer saw his chance to lick her face, which made her giggle more.
Andrew loved the sound of his daughter’s laughter. And he loved that Dix, the former Army Ranger and MMA fighter, had enough of a sense of humor that she could be silly along with a six-year-old and her father.
He applied a fresh napkin to her lip and wiped the milk away. Then he brushed a quick kiss where the white mustache had been. “Ready?”
She shook her head, but got up from her chair anyway.
Andrew knew it wasn’t going to be easy to convince Dix to stay long enough to get to know each other. But he was up for the challenge. He’d been to hell and back. He could handle it.
Based on Mrs. Purdy’s recommendation, Andrew gathered Leigha’s birth certificate and immunization record. He, Leigha and Dix loaded into his SUV and drove into Cape Churn. They made their first stop at the school administration building, where Andrew registered Leigha for school. Leigha met the school superintendent and learned the name of the elementary school. She was so excited when they left, Andrew felt bad that he’d isolated her for so long.
After dealing with the school registration, they stopped at the hardware store.
In the front window of the store, someone had set up a display of a small chicken coop and populated it with live yellow chicks. When they went inside, Leigha planted herself in front of the chicken display while Andrew and Dix located Mr. Giddings, the elderly owner of the hardware store.
He was counting wood screws for a customer and dropping them into a thick paper bag. “That’s fifty. Is there anything else I can get for you, Mrs. Laney?”
Andrew waited for the woman to pay for her purchase and leave before he spoke. “Mr. Giddings, do you remember my grandfather—”