Then Came You: A Lake Howling Novel

by Vella, Wendy

  “Let’s go for a hospital bed this time,” Buster added, looking pale.

  “You just take it easy, Willow. Lots of rest.”

  “She’s not Samantha, bud,” Cubby said from beside him. “She’s Willow, just like Bran is who she is, and the same goes for Annabelle. Most women handle childbirth with ease—”

  “Spoken like a man who never had to pass a large baby out of their—”

  “Okay, all men present get the point, thanks, honey.” Buster cut her off.

  “I’m just saying, is all,” Cubby whispered so only Noah could hear. “You need to understand not everyone is a bitch like her.”

  “She wasn’t a bitch, Cubby. There’s a lot more to what happened you all don’t know about. We were both in the wrong.”

  “Well as you never told us what that ‘lot more’ entails, we had to form our own opinions. You came back a broken man, and she’s got to have played a part in that.”

  “I was not broken,” Noah lied, entering the hall. “And why do you and everyone else feel like they can discuss my past like it’s daily news all of a sudden.”

  “You discuss ours, and we think it’s time you moved on now. All this brooding Heathcliff shit is getting old,” Buster said, unrepentant that he’d been listening in.

  “Wuthering Heights, seriously? She’s got you watching that now?” Cubby asked the baker.

  “He cried when Heathcliff went to see Catherine in her coffin,” Willow said.

  “It’s a classic,” Buster defended himself.

  “Whatever, now shut up,” Noah said as Ethan waved to them from a seat up the front. Beside him were Macy and Billy. In front were the McBrides. Buster nudged him in, and too late he found himself seated beside Lani and Mrs. C.

  “Hello, handsome.” Mrs. C looked around Lani, who was trying to ignore him.

  “Hello, sweet cheeks, looking gorgeous as always,” Noah replied, because it was expected of him.

  Lani made a noise.

  “What?”

  “What?” She didn’t look at him, just said the word out of the side of her mouth. Her cap was pulled low, and the short curls were showing underneath. She wore the ever-present baggy jeans and top. On her feet were the sturdy heeled boots.

  “You made a noise.”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Fine, whatever.” He wasn’t arguing with her. “How’s the hand?”

  “Healing, thank you.”

  Noah wondered if Mrs. C had managed to get her to stay in the room above the Howlery. He been furious when he saw her Bronco pulling out of that unused track this morning. He’d known instantly she’d slept in her car but managed to control his anger enough to tell her it wouldn’t be happening again. He’d then called Mrs. C on his return trip to Howling. He felt no shame in it, and Mrs. C’s outrage had assured him she would do what she could to get a roof over Lani’s head.

  “I shouldn’t be here,” Lani whispered.

  “Why are you then?”

  “Mrs. C made me come.”

  “She’s like a pit bull when she wants something.”

  “I need to go.”

  “You’re here, so stay. Unless you have somewhere to be?”

  “This is not my business.”

  “Everyone should show concern about the environment, Lani.”

  She looked at him, one brow lifting.

  “If they’re genetically modifying food, it could affect the environment around here.”

  “So, why do you think they’re finally showing their hand?” Hope asked from the row in front of them. Clearly she’d been listening to their conversation too. “I mean, they’ve been in town for months.”

  “Bowing to pressure, maybe?” Newman said.

  They talked around him and he listened, but also watched Lani from the side of his eye. She was twisting her hands together. Uncomfortable, he thought. Looking to the stage, Noah watched someone set up a camera to record everything that was said tonight.

  He felt Lani move, and looking her way, saw she was sinking lower in the seat. “What are you doing?”

  “Nothing.”

  “You look like a teenager.”

  “What?” She shot him a look.

  “Slouched in your seat,” Noah explained. “Like you’re going to get detention.”

  “You do a bit,” Buster agreed. Lani sat upright.

  “You found somewhere to stay yet, or do I need to give you one of my rooms?” Noah decided he’d give himself an alibi. If she thought he’d talked to Mrs. C, it was likely she’d refuse anything offered.

  “It’s none of your business.”

  “I told you what I’d do, Lani.”

  “I’m staying above the shop, and not because of you, but Mrs. C.”

  “Excellent.”

  “Don’t smirk.”

  “No smirking here.”

  Soon the hall was full, and everyone fell silent as two men and a woman walked down the aisle and took the steps up to the stage. Beside him, Lani slouched again.

  What is her deal?

  “What’s the problem here?” The seats weren’t wide, and he could feel the length of her thigh down his.

  “What?”

  “You. You’re tense and behaving weird, and I don’t think it’s just my masculine beauty doing it.”

  “Have you always had a monumental ego?” Her eyes were on the stage as she whispered the words.

  “Pretty much.”

  “I’m not tense, and you don’t know me well enough to understand if I’m behaving weird.”

  “Your knuckles are white.”

  “Sssh.”

  “That was an extremely loud sssh.”

  She ignored him. Strangely, sitting here next to her made his mood lighten. No way was Noah examining that thought.

  “Ladies and gentlemen of Lake Howling.”

  The man who spoke was tall, and if Noah had to use one word to describe him, it would be slick. His hair was perfect, he wore a suit that screamed money, and his leather shoes were polished to a perfect sheen. Looking left, Noah noted the toe of Ethan’s worn trainer that did not scream money, even though the Texan could afford to buy Lake Howling.

  “My name is Dr. Tobias Trask.”

  “Congratulations,” someone called. “Now tell us what the hell you’re doing in our town!”

  Noah smiled. If Mr. Slick thought he was going to walk in here and be greeted with smiles, he needed a rethink. Howlers weren’t pushovers, nor were they dumb. They wouldn’t be railroaded with a bunch of letters after a name.

  “That’s what I’m here for,” Trask said with a smile that reminded Noah of a snake.

  Beside him, Lani muttered something. “You need to relax there, sweet cheeks. The end of your finger will fall off if you don’t stop gripping it.” He reached over and untangled her hand and placed it flat on her thigh. A rather lovely thigh, he remembered. He then tried to focus as Trask talked in detail about what they were doing at the “research facility,” as he’d called it.

  “We came to Lake Howling as you have superior soil quality and a wonderful unpolluted lake—”

  “And we want to keep it that way!”

  Cubby sighed from his place beside Willow, then got to his feet and made his way out of the row and down the aisle. He stopped before the stage and looked at everyone seated. The rumbling stopped.

  “I’ve always admired that ability in him,” Buster whispered.

  “How he can shut a person up with a look?” Noah said.

  Buster nodded.

  “It’s impressive.”

  “Now you all need to let the man talk. We can’t understand what’s happening in those houses if we don’t listen and get all the facts straight.”

  “I know it’s bad, Sherriff. You should just run them out of town!”

  Cubby’s expression didn’t change but Noah could tell he’d just sighed again.

  “They’ve been there for two months and no one’s said a word, Jed, so simmer down.
This is not the Wild West. We don’t run people out of town anymore. Now you shut up and listen or I’ll lock you up.”

  “Can he do that?” Lani whispered.

  “Yes, and not many people will tangle with our sheriff.”

  “He is intimidating.”

  “And a pussy cat. In third grade, he got beat up by Louise Galler. It’s fair to say he’s never recovered.”

  Lani snuffled.

  “Must be nice having all your friends around you. Real friends, I mean, ones you grew up with.”

  “It has its moments, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  She turned suddenly, and their eyes caught.

  “You are a very lucky man.”

  “I’ve always thought so. How about you? You miss your friends?”

  She looked away. “Of course.”

  Noah didn’t know anything about Lani Sullivan other than she liked to bake and eat peanut butter by the jar. She knew his friends, his sister, and plenty of other things, but wasn’t offering any information about herself. Okay, there was that noise she made when they’d made love, but he didn’t think it likely she even knew she’d made it. He sure wished he hadn’t remembered that right in this moment. Noah thought about the swim he’d taken earlier in the cold waters of Lake Howling. That cooled him off.

  “There is a disease that is wiping out the Oregon potato crop. It’s dire, and we have been growing another crop by genetically inserting DNA. I won’t go into detail, but basically, we are giving it new or different characteristics. This could be something life changing to the way the plant grows or making it resilient to disease.”

  Trask spoke well, Noah would give him that, but he didn’t like the man. Something was off with him, and he couldn’t pin down what.

  “Dr. Trask, what happens when you leave? How can we be sure that what you leave behind doesn’t affect the ecological characteristics of our environment?”

  “That’s a hell of a good question from Declan,” Buster muttered.

  “He does do a lot a research,” Willow added.

  “We will undertake rigorous tests to ensure it is left as we found it. Plus, our facility follows guidelines to ensure there is no impact on the surrounding area. We put our potatoes through strict tests before they are consumed by anyone.”

  “Says you!”

  Howlers were great hecklers. It was something they relished, if given the opportunity.

  “We have a surplus of potatoes and have brought them to town for you all to try.”

  “I don’t want to wake up with an elbow growing out of my forehead!”

  “For the love of God, Jed. Eating a potato that is genetically modified won’t do that,” Cubby growled.

  “I still think they’re aliens,” Ethan whispered. He looked tired and not his usual slick self. But happy, and that was what mattered.

  “I think we should have potato day!” Noah searched for the owner of that voice and found Gussie Neeps. She was the local fudge maker and had ties that dated back to the beginning of Howling. “We can have the best food created from potatoes. Potato and spoon races.”

  “Is she actually serious?” Lani whispered, looking torn between laughter and horror.

  “Totally. Howlers love parades, carnivals, in fact anything they can put a label on and call a celebration. We already have about a dozen festivals for things each year.”

  “I’ve never been anywhere like this place. It’s like a little microclimate of weird.”

  “But in a good way, right?” He leaned in and inhaled. Her scent wasn’t anything from a bottle, but it was still sexy as hell.

  “Is there a good way to be weird?”

  “Totally.”

  “If you say so.”

  “I’ll judge the competition,” Dr. Trask said with a smile that had a few of the women sighing. Lani, he noticed, was scowling.

  “So how are your potato peeling skills?”

  “Why?”

  “Because we’re having a potato festival.”

  “I thought you were against whatever was going on down there in those greenhouses.”

  “I am, but surely you’ve heard the expression keep your friends close, and your enemies closer?”

  He wasn’t sure, as she’d turned to face Mrs. C, but thought she said “amen to that.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lani looked to where the man called Dr. Trask stood. He was smooth and confident, which wasn’t a crime but it didn’t lean her toward liking him. She’d met plenty of those kinds of men, and her opinion wasn’t favorable.

  “Why are you slouching again?”

  “I’m not.” Lani sat upright, her eyes on the camera that was recording the meeting. It wasn’t pointed her way, but still, she wasn’t taking any risks.

  “It’s really bad for your posture,” Noah added.

  “Maybe I don’t care about my posture.”

  “You should.” Jake turned to face her. “Slouching can cause all kinds of body issues in your senior years.”

  “Senior years, that’s what we’re calling then now?” Noah asked.

  Jake flipped him the bird. These people were always annoying each other, and it was all in the name of friendship. Weird.

  “You see Mikey yet, Jake?”

  “I did, and you’re right, something’s off with him, Noah, but he’s not talking. Bran’s tried, and me, but he just keeps saying he’s okay.”

  “He’s not.” Branna joined the conversation. “I’m really worried about him.”

  “I’ll see Connor today, he’s working on some catering for me,” Buster said. “I’ll ask him what he knows.”

  “Who is Connor?”

  “Mikey’s brother.”

  “And what’s wrong with Mikey?” Lani shouldn’t ask, but she really wanted to know. She hadn’t spent time with the boy, but she’d liked what she’d seen of him at Rose’s party.

  “He’s off with his attitude, and he doesn’t look right,” Noah said.

  “He’s fifteen. Maybe he’s just turning into an awkward teenager,” Macy said.

  “No.” Branna shook her head. “This is more, I’m sure of it.”

  “Okay, we’ll all keep an eye on him,” Macy added.

  They had each other’s backs, and that must be nice, Lani thought.

  “So, Potato Day is in four days! All proceeds go to the upgrade of the church,” someone said.

  “Now HRH is involved, it’s in stone,” Noah said.

  “What does HRH stand for?”

  Noah looked at her. Their eyes locked, and that zing of awareness shot through her.

  “Henrietta Roberts Haigh. She used to put the fear of God into us all at school. Not much has changed, really.”

  “She’s looks an intimidating woman.” Lani looked back at the stage. “I have to make a cake for her.”

  She hadn’t wanted to sit next to Noah. Being this close was playing hell on her senses. The man smelled good.

  Maybe it would be better if Lani just left town, after all. It wasn’t like she’d see Mrs. C again, so letting her down shouldn’t matter.

  Strangely, it really did, and the thought of leaving depressed her. Just a bit longer. Soon she’d go; for now she’d keep her head down. No more mingling with the locals.

  “Four days is not a great deal of time to get a festival organized, surely?” The woman who spoke was Millicent Lawrence. Lani heard Hope moan.

  “Militant is her mother,” Noah whispered. “The woman was born angry, and it grew from there.”

  “I met her this morning.”

  “And you’re still standing, nice work.”

  He had really nice eyes this close. The little golden flecks weren’t that easy to see from a distance. She liked his beard too; it added just the right touch of sexy.

  “Lani is going to move in above the Howlery until those thefts calm down.”

  Dragging her eyes from Noah, she looked at Mrs. C, who was smiling and looked vibrant. There was no sign of
the woman who’d coughed and clutched her chest earlier, which doubled Lani’s belief that maybe she’d been played.

  “Thefts?” she heard Buster say, then he grunted and added, “Oh, those thefts. Yes, it’s a nasty business.”

  “Have you been burgled too, Buster?” Lani asked.

  “Not yet, but you can’t be too cautious.”

  “You need anything up there? Blankets, side tables?”

  Lani was suddenly the focus of attention.

  “Side tables, Noah? Really, that’s what you think she’d need?” Ethan asked.

  “Need something to rest your night light on,” Noah added.

  “No… thanks, I have enough stuff.”

  “What about blankets? It’s getting cold,” Branna said.

  “I have bedding in my Bronco.”

  “Because you’re sleeping in it?” Noah thankfully whispered those words into her ear.

  “I’ll have emails sent and flyers posted by tomorrow afternoon with competition details. I’ll need a committee!” HRH said into the microphone she’d taken out of Dr. Trask’s hands. The man did not look pleased, but Lani was happy for the distraction.

  “I’d like to ask Dr. Trask some more questions before we get into organizing the Potato Festival, Henrietta,” Declan O’Donnell said, getting to his feet.

  Lani watched as the man on the camera swung it her way. She moved closer to Noah so she was hidden. Unfortunately that just about put her in his lap.

  “You want a cuddle, sweet cheeks?”

  “Sorry.” She moved an inch.

  “No need to apologize to me. I like the feel of you.”

  “Stop that!” Lani hissed. Noah laughed softly under his breath.

  They listened as Declan asked several questions.

  “He seems up on this kind of thing,” Noah whispered.

  “Clearly he’s smart.”

  “He is, and apparently has done his research.”

  The questions kept coming from Declan and others in the room.

  “If you can’t answer these questions, then who can?” Newman said. “We deserve, as the inhabitants of the town, to know what is going on down there and what you’ll leave behind.”

  “It’s my land.” Lani got out of her seat slightly to find who was talking. A short man wearing a cap like her was standing.

  “Stefan Leigh. He’s the owner of the land Dr. Trask is using. Only one thing motivates him, and that’s money. He’s let that land go to ruin for years, but now he’s found a way to make it work… and not a good way,” Noah said. “I tried to buy it off him a few years ago but he refused.”