by K. L. Ramsey
Worth the Wait
Book One of The Harvest Ridge Series
K.L. Ramsey
ISBN 978-1-912768-15-8
Published 2018
Published by Black Velvet Seductions Publishing
Worth the Wait Copyright 2018 K.L. Ramsey
Cover design Copyright 2018 Jessica Greeley
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite eBook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
All characters in this book are completely fictional. They exist only in the imagination of the author. Any similarity to any actual person or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.
Dedication
To my best friend Niki-
You are the Sunny to my Piper and I couldn't love you more.
Prologue
Piper Flynn waited by the giant Christmas tree in the hotel lobby, admiring the shiny silver and gold bulbs that adorned the massive spruce. Some of the ornaments were larger than her head, but, at twelve, she was still one of the smallest kids in her school. The week before Christmas her parents had decided to take a last-minute trip to the Big Apple to meet with an ice cream distributer. Now, with the impending snow storm, they were in a rush to get out of New York City to make it home in time for Christmas in Colorado.
Piper didn’t want to miss seeing her family on Christmas morning. She had purchased a special gift for her Aunt Lorna. She hoped that her aunt would like the little snow globe with the Statue of Liberty that she'd found on a street vendor’s stand in front of their hotel. She’d bought it with the money that she’d saved from helping her parents around their ice cream shop, What’s the Scoop.
The shop had really been her mom’s idea. Since she was as crazy about ice cream as Piper, it was a good fit. Piper’s dad had thought up the name, playing off his own job as the editor for the only newspaper in a fifty square mile radius. Her aunt helped around the shop and practically ran the place for her mom. Her mother was more of the free spirit of the two. Piper liked to think that she was like her, but, in reality, she was more like her aunt. She liked organization and efficiency. Which was probably why the random scattering of bulbs on the hotel’s tree was bothering her to no end.
Her parents finished checking out of the hotel and grabbed their two massive suitcases. Piper knew that her mother had done some shopping while in the city. She hoped that she’d dropped enough hints about the walkie talkies that she wanted for her mother to pick up on. Her best friend, Sunny, lived two houses down from her and they wanted to be able to talk to each other at night. Her parents didn’t let her talk on the phone after 8pm, and that’s when Sunny seemed to remember all the good gossip from the day.
Her friend was a night owl, one of the many things that they didn’t have in common. But the old saying ‘opposites attract’ worked in their friendship. Since the day that she’d met Sunshine Francis, they’d been best friends. Piper couldn’t wait to get home to tell Sunny all about the massive buildings and museums that her parents had taken her to.
Sunny had never been out of Colorado. She had never seen a skyscraper. Piper’s parents made regular trips to New York to visit her father’s family. Her grandmother lived in a penthouse on the Upper East Side, but her dad wasn’t close with his mom. Their visits consisted of a few minutes of polite conversation in the lobby of her building, followed by promises for lunch. She didn’t know her grandmother very well, which was fine with her. She really didn’t understand why anyone would want to live in a city with so much noise and pollution. Piper missed being able to take a deep breath without choking on thick, dirty air that seemed to be everywhere.
“You ready Pipe?” Her mother strode up beside her, wrapping her arm around Piper’s shoulders. She smiled at the nickname her mother used for her. She couldn’t remember a time when her parents called her anything else. They only used her full name when she was in trouble, which wasn’t too often. Piper saw how other kids acted towards their parents, rebelling and avoiding them. She actually liked hanging out with both of her parents. She enjoyed listening to her mother’s humming around the shop, dreaming about different ice cream flavors to add to their already extensive menu. Piper felt that she was most like her father. She loved spending her mornings listening to him read news articles from other areas’ papers. They often discussed politics and current events over breakfast before she headed to school for the day. As an only child, she never felt lonely.
Sunny had two brothers and two sisters. She often asked Piper what she did for fun, never understanding when Piper told her about something funny her father had said or some crazy flavor of ice cream that her mother had dreamed up. The truth was, Piper was never lonely. She had her parents and her aunt. Sure, she’d wished for a little brother or sister when she was younger, but now she couldn’t imagine having to share her three favorite people with someone else.
“Sure, Mom, I’m ready. Are we going to the airport now?” Piper was anxious to get home before the storm hit.
“Yes, we just need to stop at a convenience store to buy some gum. Your father can’t fly without chewing gum, his ears won’t pop, and he’ll be miserable.” Her mom rolled her eyes, giving Piper a giggle.
The three of them walked the two blocks, luggage in hand, to the little corner store that the hotel clerk had recommended.
“How about you wait out here, Pipe? That way we don’t have to drag the luggage into the store with us. It seems a little cramped in there already.” Piper’s father handed her his suitcase and she sat it down with a ‘thunk’, nodding her head. She just wanted to get into a cab and be on their way back home.
“Don’t talk to any strangers,” her mother added. “I’m going to run in and find a good trashy magazine to read on the plane. You want anything honey?” Piper rolled her eyes at her mother, shaking her head. Her mom sure did love her trashy magazines. If aliens and a movie star were involved in the story, her mother couldn’t seem to get enough.
“We won’t be long, Pipe, promise.” Her father rustled her hair as he walked past her towards the store.
Her mother kissed her cheek and followed her father into the little corner store. Piper felt like a sentry, standing guard over her family’s luggage. She noticed that her father’s name tag was starting to come undone on his suitcase handle. She reached down, trying to secure the strap with his personal information written on it, knocking it down to the dirty cement. She ducked down to retrieve it, then froze at the blood-curdling scream that came from the store.
She straightened and looked through the glass front of the store, to see her parents both on their knees. A man stood in front of them, pushing what she assumed was a rag into her mother’s mouth. Her father seemed to be pleading with the man to stop. They both knelt with their arms behind their bodies and Piper couldn’t understand why her father didn’t push the man away from her mother. Why was he just kneeling there, doing nothing?
She took a step closer, wanting to hear what was being said. Her mother’s eyes widened, as if telling her to stop. Her gaze seemed fixed on Piper, begging her to stay where she was. The man shoved something into her fat
her’s mouth, effectively ending his pleading. Her parents were crying, bound and gagged, in front of her and Piper didn’t know what to do. Her first instinct was to run in and demand that the man release her parents. They were supposed to be flying home. Her aunt Lorna would be waiting for them at the airport, in Colorado. She would worry about them when they didn’t get off the plane.
The man moved around behind her parents, to join another who was holding a gun to their backs. She could see both of her parents, the fear evident in their eyes. She was standing only feet in front of them—so close, she could almost touch them. They both watched her back through the glass of the store’s front window. Tears were streaming down their faces and she swore she could see all the love that they both felt for her. She reached her hand, covered in her red mitten, up to her face, to find that she had hot tears running down her cold cheeks.
The contrast between the bitter cold air and her tears stunned her back to reality. She started for the door, knowing that she had to do something. She could see the flare of fear in both of her parents’ eyes. Her father gave a slight shake of his head, as if telling her to stay away. She wanted to obey, but if she did nothing, what would happen to her parents? She didn’t have much time to consider her next move—the man holding the gun fired it at the store clerk, who was standing behind the cash register. The clerk stammered back against the window, blood smearing the clean glass as he slid down to the floor. He had been shot in the chest.
Her eyes darted back to her parents. Her mother seemed near hysterical. She was shaking and crying, watching Piper through the store window. Her father once again shook his head at Piper’s forward movement. She wanted to run into the store and wrap her arms around her parents, protecting them from the evil man that held the gun to her father’s head. But she felt frozen in place, unable to run to her parents or for help. She wanted to shout for help, scream at the injustice that was happening in the store, but she was silent. She looked up at the sky as the first snowflake fell, hitting her on the tip of her nose.
Then the shot rang out that took her father’s life. She looked back in time to see his lifeless body slump forward. Another shot broke through the silence as she watched the snow now falling freely around her, and she turned back to find her mother’s limp body lying over her father’s.
Time seemed to slow down. A scream ripped from Piper’s chest, garnering attention from the big man that had held the gun to her parents’ heads just seconds before. He extended his arm and pointed the gun at Piper. She could see her own hot breath escape into the air. She knew that she was about to meet the same fate as her parents and the store clerk, but still felt frozen in place, unable to move from the spot she was rooted to.
The sound of sirens broke through the quiet of Piper’s world. The man that had gagged her parents pulled the gunman’s arm down, removing her from danger. They seemed to be having a conversation. She couldn’t help but watch through the front glass window, still unable to move. The gunman looked back out at her and pointed his hand in her direction. He seemed fixated on Piper, while his accomplice kept pointing to the back of the store, tugging on the gunman’s arm. She watched as they both disappeared through the small aisle to the back of the store, away from her.
The world seemed to spin faster again; people were rushing past Piper and into the store, kneeling to check her parents. She knew what they were going to find— her parents were gone. She had watched their lives being taken, their bodies slumping to the floor like the trash that littered the city streets. Piper slid down to sit on her father’s leather suitcase. She wasn’t sure what to do, she felt cold and numb. The snow was falling heavily around her, coating her parents’ luggage and her jacket.
“You alright, honey?” A police officer stood in front of her, cautious in his approach. The way he moved towards her reminded her of someone trying to corner a frightened, stray dog. Piper could feel her head nodding, although why, she had no idea. She didn’t feel alright; her entire world was laying on the floor inside the convenience store. She was completely alone and hours from home. She laughed, knowing that the police officer was still watching her. Did she even have a home? Where was she going to go? Who would take care of her? Piper felt her whole body shiver; the police officer took that as his cue to wrap his coat around her. It smelled like cigarette smoke and mints.
“Thank you,” she stuttered.
“Sure,” he said softly. “Were those your parents?” His question was almost a whisper. Piper nodded her head, her throat burned with unshed tears.
“Did you see what happened to them?” Piper nodded her head again, still not trusting her own voice.
“Can you tell me your name?”
“Piper Flynn,” she croaked. “I just want to go home, please.” Now her tears were flowing unchecked down her face. The officer held out his gloved hand, prompting Piper to reach for him.
“My name is Officer Kennedy and I will make sure you get home honey, but I’m going to need to ask you a few questions first.” He eyed Piper’s luggage. “I’m guessing that your family was heading back home today?”
Piper nodded again.
“Do you know anyone in the city, Piper?” The officer pulled a pad of paper and a pen from his shirt pocket. “Can I call anyone locally to meet us at the station?”
Piper thought about his question, carefully considering if she wanted the police officer to contact her grandmother.
“My dad’s mom lives here.” She looked up to see him scribbling something on his pad. “Her name is Agnes Flynn.” Piper always called her grandmother “Aggie”. The older woman never wanted to be called the normal grandmotherly names, like Nana or Grandma. Piper’s father even called his own mother by her first name. She always found it strange, almost like they weren’t all family.
“Okay, Piper. I’ll give your grandmother a call when we reach the station. For now, I’m going to need for you to come with me.”
Piper looked at the suitcases that she sat on. “I’m not supposed to leave our bags,” she whispered, tightening her hold on her father’s bag. She still held his identification tag in her left mitten.
“I’ll have my friend bring your bags with us, will that be okay?” The police officer looked down hopefully at Piper. She nodded, knowing that she couldn’t sit on her dad’s suitcase for the rest of the day.
She chanced one last look into the store. She watched as police officers hovered over her mother’s lifeless form. She secretly hoped that her parents would get up from the floor, walk out through the door and join her on the street. But she wasn’t a foolish little girl; she knew that they were gone and that her whole world was about to change.
“I need to call my Aunt Lorna. She is supposed to meet us at the airport when we get home.” The police officer nodded down to her.
“Sure, Piper. Let’s get you warm and dry and we can call your aunt after we call your grandmother.”
Piper took the hand that the officer once again offered her, letting him lead her to the police car that sat just feet away. She didn’t look back to the store again. She knew what she would find there— nothing, just her past. Her parents couldn’t help her now. She was on her own.
Chapter One
Thirteen years later
Piper woke to her own screams, sweat pouring from her body. The nightmares were always the same: watching her parents’ deaths. Sometimes the man who pulled the trigger, murdering them both, had a face and sometimes he didn’t. She had been to enough therapy sessions to know that she was intentionally blocking out his face, not wanting to see the evil that took her parents from her.
Each time she woke from the nightmare, she felt like that scared twelve-year-old girl, all alone in the world. Sure, she had her Aunt Lorna, who’d raised her after her parents’ deaths. Her grandmother, Agnes, hadn’t put up much of a fight to keep her in New York. Once Lorna had showed up, the day after her parents’ murders, the police had released her to her aunt’s care. Lorna had told Ag
nes that she wanted to take Piper back to Colorado with her and raise her as her own.
Piper had expected her grandmother to raise a fuss, but she’d been surprised at just how much her father’s mother didn’t seem to care. Sure, she’d shed a tear when asked to identify her son and daughter-in-law’s bodies, but she’d seemed cold and distant the rest of the time. Aggie hadn’t even hugged Piper good-bye when she left the police station. She’d told her that she wished her well, and if Piper ever needed anything, to please let her know.
Lorna had shown up the next day to claim Piper and take her back to Colorado. She’d been a mess, crying as if she had witnessed the murders herself. As for Piper, she hadn’t cried since she got into the officer’s car. It was as if her tears had dried up. Even through all the questions and having to identify the two men that had taken her parents away from her, she never shed a tear. Her therapist later told her that it was okay for her to grieve in any way that felt normal to her. There was no right or wrong way to mourn her parents.
Life felt both normal and completely changed once she and Lorna got back to Colorado. They settled into the routine of her small town, Lorna moving into her parents’ home. It was next door to the ice cream shop and it made life easier on Piper not to have to give up the only home she had ever known. Lorna didn’t want to uproot Piper’s life any more than it already had been, so her aunt gave up her small apartment to move in with her.
Lorna tried to run the ice cream shop for a few months, but found the new responsibility of raising Piper and running a business to be too much. Piper agreed with Lorna that closing the shop was the only way to go. Lorna got a job at the little library in town and the two seemed to manage. When Piper turned sixteen, she got a waitressing job at the diner in town. It was the only local place to eat out, so business was usually decent. It felt good to be able to help her aunt out with the tips that she made. People would ask her when she was going to re-open her mom’s shop, to which she would smile and shrug. She toyed with the idea but wasn’t sure if she even wanted to stay in Harvest Ridge.