by C. J. Miller
“Danny, come in and have some juice.” Her voice wavered with nervousness. In ten seconds, she had a crush on the mysterious stranger. But she wouldn’t let that change anything. No more too-fast relationships. From here on out, she was Gram Dottie–slow, like she needed fifteen dates before a man could kiss her hand.
She was talking to Danny as if he was a five-year-old, but Gemma and Rafe had put her in charge and she wouldn’t let them down.
Danny jammed his hands in his pockets and looked between the two of them. “It’s okay, Molly. This is my brother, Matt.”
Molly paused. Sounded innocent enough. Should she call Rafe or Gemma? She couldn’t leave Annabelle alone inside, but she couldn’t keep a close eye on Danny. What if Danny walked away with his brother? Though Rafe had been vague about the details, Molly knew that Danny was somehow involved in the problems at the clinic.
Making a decision, she peeked back into the house on Annabelle. Still coloring.
“Why don’t you come in for a drink? Of juice. Or milk.” She wanted to be clear she wasn’t offering alcohol, but in the presence of the other man, she felt tongue-tied. The last man who had left her tongue-tied on first meeting was Jimmy Johnson—the cad. She had other nastier names for him, but she was trying to be more positive and put her anger with Jimmy behind her.
It wasn’t easy. Misplacing her trust in a thief, con man and liar had made her look a fool in front of her family and the town and had broken her heart.
Matt touched the brim of his cowboy hat. “Much obliged.”
He threw his arm around Danny and they strode onto the porch.
“I’m sorry for dropping by without calling first, but I had the afternoon off and I wanted to see my little brother.” Deep voice. Too good-looking. Red danger signals flashing everywhere.
Molly straightened. “Where do you work?”
“At the animal rehab center with Cole Colton,” Matt said.
Molly’s anxiety lowered. “Cole is my cousin. Distant cousin.” If Cole had hired Matt to work with him, Matt had to be all right. At least, not likely a criminal, unlike her ex.
“Come on in and I’ll fix snacks,” Molly said, hoping Dr. Granger had refreshments in his pantry.
She lucked out and found a box of cookies. She set them on the table.
Annabelle grabbed a handful and Molly laughed. “Just one, Annabelle. Your dad will be here soon to pick you up and you’ll have dinner with him.”
The little girl appeared sad. “I miss Mommy. When is she coming home?”
Molly’s heart squeezed. “That’s why we’re making her these pictures. Aunt Gemma will take them to your mom and then you can talk with her on the computer.”
It seemed to cheer her and Molly mouthed “the virus” over her head to Matt. Matt nodded. Almost everyone in Dead River knew someone with the virus and the prognosis wasn’t good for anyone.
Matt sat across from Annabelle. “Hi, Annabelle. I’m Matt. Danny is my brother. I know it’s hard when families have to be apart. My brother and I love each other, but we can’t be together as much as we want to be.”
Annabelle took a bite of her cookie and watched Matt. “Why?”
Danny and Matt exchanged looks. An undoubtedly complex situation. How to explain it to a five-year-old?
Molly waited, seeing a kindness and warmth in Matt’s eyes. “I have to work and Danny has to go to school. One day, we’ll live together again and we’ll take care of each other. But you have your dad and Molly and your Aunt Gemma to take care of you. You’re lucky to have so many people who love you.”
Annabelle nodded. “That’s what Mommy says too. When I saw Mommy on the computer she said I was brave.”
“You are brave. I bet you’re the bravest girl in Dead River,” Danny said.
A knock at the door and then Annabelle’s father came in. He looked tired. “Molly, Danny, thank you again for looking after Annabelle.”
Annabelle ran to her father, throwing herself into his arms and hugging him.
Molly gathered up the pictures she and Molly had colored and handed them to Tom along with her camera’s memory card. She had taken photos of Molly playing to share with Jessica. “I love spending time with her. She’s fun.”
After gathering Annabelle’s toys and belongings, she and Tom waved goodbye. Molly stood on the porch and watched them drive away. Her chest felt tight thinking of what it had been like when she’d lost her own parents. She had been older, but it was pain no child should have to experience so young.
Molly went back inside to clean up and start dinner. Matt and Danny were talking in the kitchen. They went quiet and looked up when she entered.
“Danny, will you give me a hand with dinner? Tacos,” she said.
Danny rolled his eyes. “Again?”
“Hey, it’s what I know how to make.” With the limited food and supplies coming into the town, it was also a dish she could gather the ingredients for because she could make do with beans or meat and whatever toppings were available.
“Matt, would you like to stay for dinner?” she asked.
Danny looked at her gratefully and Matt appeared surprised. “If I’m not intruding.”
Molly shook her head. “You’re not intruding. I make extra because I don’t know who will be here for dinner and it’s great as leftovers.”
“You work for Rafe Granger?” Matt asked.
Molly shook her head. “Nah, I’m a waitress at the diner. Just pitching in to help Gemma with Annabelle. We’re doing a little extra because so many people are having a hard time.”
She didn’t mention her own hard time, her stupidity for falling for the biggest jerk in the state and losing her money and her heart to him.
“Molly is the girl who was supposed to marry that guy from the auto shop,” Danny said.
Molly cringed. She didn’t know that Danny had connected her and Jimmy Johnson. Danny hadn’t said anything to her. It had been in the news when Jimmy became a person of interest in the theft of her grandmother’s heirloom engagement ring. People who knew her were aware she was the victim. Flint had managed to keep her name out of the news, but word spread fast in a small town.
She waited for Matt to speak disparagingly. Living in Dead River, the theft was big news for a while, at least before the virus had taken over the headlines and Hank Bittard had escaped the jail. She’d heard remarks ranging from pity for her foolishness to blaming her for being blind to implying the theft was a carefully hatched plan to defraud her extended family. Ridiculous of course. Jimmy had taken the ring and her money and run.
“That guy is a real piece of work,” Matt said. “Who treats a woman that way? From what I hear, he’s on the run with some killer, so I say, what a grand pair the two of them are. Maybe they’ll disappear together.”
“If he disappears, my grandmother won’t get her ring back. He took it when he left.” A major source of guilt for Molly.
“It will turn up. Maybe in a pawn shop,” Matt said.
She recoiled thinking of her grandmother’s engagement ring sitting in a seedy shop, waiting for someone to buy it, likely at a tenth of its value, not knowing how much it would mean to her to have it returned.
Even if the ring did turn up, her savings would be gone. She had put Jimmy’s name on her bank account, thinking they would be a real family. He had taken everything. Everything. She unrolled her fists. Getting angry wouldn’t help. She had been making progress in getting over what had happened and learning to accept it. It didn’t seem like she had another choice.
Danny and Matt were staring at her. She felt she had to speak. “I can’t believe I was duped. Jimmy seemed so honest and nice.”
“Some guys have the ‘honest, nice guy’ routine down pat,” Matt said.
“Like you?” Molly asked, feeling unreas
onably hostile and defensive.
Matt and Danny laughed. “Thank you for the compliment. I don’t think a woman has ever called me honest and nice. Rough around the edges and rude, sure.”
Matt could use a shower and a shave, but she didn’t think he looked ragged. “I don’t think you’re rough and rude.”
“You’re too much of a lady to say anything even if you did,” Matt said.
A lady? That description made her feel a little better about what had happened with Jimmy. She had been a lady. She could have torn through town badmouthing him and raging like a lunatic, but she had kept her composure, at least in public. “Lately, I’ve been blunt with people,” Molly said.
“Just lately?” Matt asked.
“I figure with the virus loose, I don’t have time for games.”
“I’m with you there,” Matt said.
“I missed the warning signs with Jimmy.” She took a deep breath, suddenly not feeling an enormous weight when she spoke of him. Matt was easy to talk with. Nothing in his face reeked of judgment. “It moved too fast. It was too perfect. He was too nice and accommodating. Liked the same music I did and wanted to see the same movies.” He said romantic things. He had once read her poetry, which she had thought was his own work, but was stolen from a famous poet.
“Sounds like you’re a nice girl who gave the wrong guy a chance,” Matt said.
She liked how that sounded over the ways others had described it. “I’ll be more careful next time.”
“You should be careful. You’re a beautiful woman and some men will want to take advantage of you. But don’t be too careful. You’ll end up alone, shutting everyone out.”
She had felt alone for a long time. Since her parents had died, she’d had her grandmother and her cousins, but that gaping hole in her heart was painful and raw. Jimmy had filled that hole; at least it had seemed as if he had. He had given her hope that they would have a family of their own and the idea of holding a baby in her arms, maybe naming him after her father, had been salve on a deep wound. “My parents died when I was eighteen. I haven’t made the best choices since then.”
Matt inclined his head toward his brother. “Welcome to the club. It’s a crappy club filled with lots of sad kids that miss their parents, but at least you won’t be judged.”
Could Molly trust Matt? Despite rumors floating around town about Danny and trouble at the clinic, Molly liked him. She liked his older brother Matt even more.
She could always use another friend, but was she repeating the mistakes of her past and trusting the wrong man?
* * *
Gemma sat at the foot of Jessica’s bed.
Jessica was sipping some freshly brewed herbal tea. She was too thin, but she swore food sounded disgusting. Not even the decadent foods of the Blue Bear Restaurant could entice her.
That was most worrisome to Gemma. Jessica had always had a healthy appetite, and she couldn’t get her friend to eat anything. Not even chicken soup or fresh veggies or applesauce.
At least Gram Dottie forced herself to eat the chicken soup that the Dead River Diner had become known for. According to Nina, they were making it by the stockpot full and selling out on a regular basis.
“I heard that some men were planning to climb the Laramie Mountains to escape,” Jessica said.
“Who told you that?” Gemma asked. She wasn’t as looped into Dead River gossip as she once had been.
“Tom mentioned it on the phone last night. Some of the wranglers were talking about it. He also mentioned thinking it was a bad idea. If they make it, what will they do on the other side?” Jessica asked.
“Have their freedom? Not come back to Dead River?” Gemma asked.
Jessica held her tea in her lap, cradled between her hands. “Is your sexy doctor still planning to escape?”
“I know he’s not planning to scale the mountains or slip past the patrolled border, but he still can’t wait to leave. He’s also not my doctor.” Although he was sexy.
Jessica smiled. “You like him.”
“Of course I do.” She wouldn’t lie to her best friend. “Something happened though.”
“Something good, or something bad?” Jessica asked.
“Not really either. Just confusing. Are you sure you want to hear this?” Gemma asked. Her relationship issues with Rafe seemed silly compared to Jessica and her family’s current struggles.
“Please tell me. I want the sexy details.”
“We were driving to see a patient and we got into a heated conversation. He told me he thought I was sexy and obviously you know how I feel about him. One thing led to another and...”
“You had sex?” Jessica asked.
“Sort of. I got on my knees in front of him and...”
“No!” Jessica’s eyes appeared wide and bright for the first time that day. “You are so bad and I mean that in the best possible way.”
“I wasn’t thinking about the consequences, like how weird it could make things between us at work or how it would impact our friendship. It’s been a while since I’ve had a good fling and once he was touching me, all I could think about was how much I wanted to.”
“Good. You should take what you want if it’s being offered,” Jessica said.
“But that’s the thing. He wanted to return the favor and I wouldn’t let him.”
“Because you want to call in the favor on your terms?” Jessica asked.
Her friend knew her so well. “That’s part of it. As long as I don’t let him touch me, then I can’t fall for him. That’s screwed-up logic, I know, but I loved doing it to him, and I was thinking if we kept it one-sided then we have some boundaries.”
Jessica inclined her head. “Why do you need boundaries? You know he’s leaving. Why not have fun with it?”
“If it was any man but Rafe, I would. But he’s always been this demigod in my world and now that he’s paying attention to me, it’s almost like he could reciprocate my feelings.” In which case, she would fall for him. She knew it.
“He must reciprocate your feelings, at least somewhat,” Jessica said.
That should make her happy. But it didn’t. “That scares me. I like him. More than just for sex.”
“You’re worried he’ll stomp your heart like Jackson did?” Jessica asked.
“Yes.” Had she learned enough from Jackson not to fall into the same emotional traps?
“This is different. You’re older and worldlier now. Unlike Jackson the snake, Rafe isn’t lying to you.”
“What do you think I should do?” Gemma asked.
“I think you should enjoy yourself. Relax with the little free time you have and let your inner vixen have some fun.”
“My inner vixen?” Gemma asked.
“Every woman has one. Some men can handle her. Others can’t. Based on what I’ve seen of Dr. Rafe, he can most definitely handle her.”
* * *
“Gemma, I need to speak you, please,” Rafe said. His tone was sharper than he’d intended. He’d wanted to speak with her, to clear the air, to unwind the tension that had been escalating since their encounter in his car.
He couldn’t get her off his mind. He needed to find out if she was thinking the same.
With a development in the lab, he’d lead with that.
They were nearing the end of their shift and Gemma appeared tired. Despite his and the rest of the staff’s urging, she hadn’t taken off any time in the last several days. Rafe wondered if her bruises from the attack on Main Street were bothering her.
“If this is bad news, I’m not sure I can handle it,” Gemma said. Her hair was knotted in a messy ponytail and pieces had escaped and fallen down her shoulders.
He kept his hands at his sides. He wouldn’t touch her until he knew how she was feel
ing. “Can we talk in the lounge?”
“Only if you promise you won’t try to convince me to nap. Lately, everyone keeps telling me I need to take a break. I’m starting to feel like you,” Gemma said and gave him a small smile.
They put on their coats and walked to the recently converted doctor-and-nurse lounge. Dr. Goodhue had done a nice job with the lounge. She’d found a few cots, a small table and a couple of chairs.
Rafe closed and locked the door behind them. He didn’t want any interruptions to their conversation. If their patients needed them, his pager, which was connected to the virus wing’s alert system, would go off.
When they were alone in the lounge, Rafe took her hands in his. “I think I have good news.”
Gemma leaned forward. “About the cure?”
“I made progress in the lab.”
Gemma’s face filled with excitement. “What did Dr. Goodhue say?”
Rafe paused. “I haven’t told anyone but you. We don’t know who is trying to sabotage us.”
“It’s not Dr. Goodhue. She’s built her career finding cures for illnesses. She wants a cure found,” Gemma said.
Rafe didn’t think it made sense for anyone to destroy their lab results or attempt to stop them from finding a cure, but just the same, someone was.
“Rafe, Dr. Goodhue might be able to help,” Gemma said.
Rafe shook his head. “I’m in the early stages, but I’ve found a few common sequences in our samples. If I can match those to other strains of viruses, we’re closer to a cure.”
Gemma’s face darkened. Rafe reached for her instinctively, sensing her unhappiness. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
“A cure will save Gram Dottie and Jessica. But a cure also means you’ll leave. I’m happy to think about life getting back to normal.”
“I’m not part of your normal,” Rafe said.