Driftwood Cove--Two stories for the price of one

by Debbie Mason

  “You’re lucky I have a healthy sense of self-esteem. Some men might find your need to be in control all the time emasculating.”

  “It has nothing to do with control. You just drive too slow.”

  Michael gave her a look and then went to wrap things up with the locals. Fifteen minutes later they were on their way. Less than ten minutes later, she parked the snowmobile at the side of the old-fashioned blue clapboard inn.

  “You know, you won’t lose your superhero card if you go the speed limit,” Michael grumbled as he got off the snowmobile.

  She kept her smile under wraps as she took off her helmet. “Sorry, we must have passed the signs when you were yelling at me to slow down. You’re a terrible backseat driver, you know.”

  “I wasn’t yelling at you. I had to yell to be heard over the roar of the engine as you drove down an incredibly narrow path at full throttle, in the dead of night, in a blizzard,” he said as he walked to the steps that led to the white wraparound porch.

  As much as she was teasing him, he was teasing her. She could hear the hint of amusement and admiration in his voice. That was the thing that made Michael different from the men she’d dated over the past five years, and the reason why they’d never made it to first base; he wasn’t intimidated by her. He didn’t want to change her. He liked who she was. He was confident with a strong sense of self. When he was younger, those qualities had come across as arrogance, but now he was just good in his own skin.

  For some reason, she wanted to let him know how much she loved that about him, how much she respected the man he’d become. Maybe she wanted to tell him how she felt about him because she’d come so close to losing him. He would’ve died without knowing he was it for her.

  She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her cheek to the wet wool of his black coat. “Thanks for not dying tonight.” She closed her eyes. That’s not what she meant to say.

  He turned in her arms and wrapped his around her, his eyes crinkled with warmth and humor. “Thank you for saving the day, and for loving me enough to put your life on the line for me. I’d do it for you, too, you know. But I have a feeling I’ll never get the chance.”

  “God, I hope not,” she said, and shivered as much with cold as at the thought of him risking his life for hers.

  He laughed and then gave her a quick kiss. “Come on, you’re freezing, and I’m freezing. We’ll get the key from Mrs. Jaworski and beg her for some food.”

  She drew back. “Mrs. Jaworski still owns the place?”

  “That’s what Jim said. She was in her midfifties when we used to come here. She’s not that old.”

  “Right.” She looked around, trying to come up with an excuse not to make a trip to the inn’s reception desk. “You go ahead. I wanna move the snowmobile to a more sheltered location.”

  “Leave it. I’ll do it later.”

  “No, I…” She looked up at him. “I don’t want to face Mrs. Jaworski tonight, okay? I haven’t seen her since the trial.”

  “Don’t keep doing this to yourself, babe. Mrs. Jaworski would love to see you. She—”

  “Please.”

  “Okay. I won’t be long.” He jogged up the stairs.

  “Michael,” she called after him.

  He turned. His gaze roamed her face, and then he nodded. “I’ll make sure we get another room.”

  Shay sat on a bench tucked in a corner of the deck. Like the small cove with its driftwood-littered beach now covered in snow, she was somewhat sheltered from the gale-force winds coming off the Atlantic. But there weren’t enough walls, external or internal, to completely protect her from either the elements or her memoires. Michael was right; in many ways she was her own worst enemy. She’d allowed what she’d done to define her.

  She thought of herself as an ex-con, someone who wasn’t worthy of love or respect, someone who was less than. But the truth of it was, that if her life hadn’t been interrupted, if she hadn’t gone to prison, she might have been sucked deeper into Charlie’s world. Even if she hadn’t been put away, eventually his mother would have come between them. The guy he used to be would’ve caved to the pressure, and then where would Shay have been?

  Certainly she wouldn’t have developed the skills that made it possible for her to protect Michael and his partner today. Nor would she have gotten her degrees. Degrees, she reminded herself, that were going to waste. She’d let fear win. Her master’s in social work wouldn’t provide the income she’d felt compelled to strive for in a bid to protect herself from being put away again. But Ray Sterling had proven to her that sometimes even money wasn’t enough to keep you out of jail.

  She looked over at the sound of a door closing and heavy footfalls coming her way. Michael smiled as he rounded the corner, a key and a bag of what smelled like fried chicken in his hand. Her stomach tightened in anticipation. Whether in response to the food or Michael, she wasn’t sure. Even cold, wet, and slightly battered, the man looked as delectable as the chicken smelled. And if the blizzard kept up, they could be stranded here for a week.

  If Charlie wasn’t out there somewhere, she couldn’t think of anything she’d like better. The thought surprised her. For years, she wouldn’t let herself think about the Inn at Driftwood Cove, let alone throwing caution to the wind, burying the hurts of the past, and finally going after what she wanted.

  Apparently tonight had been the turning point, the thing that sent her on a path to Michael and love. Knowing Costello had ordered a hit on him, not knowing if she’d get to him on time, seeing him in the middle of a shoot-out, terrified that she might lose him, had made her realize that nothing else mattered but the man who was looking at her with love in his staggering blue eyes.

  “Ready?” He held up the bag and key.

  She smiled. “You have no idea how ready I am.”

  He helped her off the bench and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “That sounded like it was about more than getting a room and something to eat.”

  “It was. It was about us. I love you, Michael. I never stopped. I don’t think we would’ve made it, though, even if I hadn’t stolen your car and gone to jail. I’m sorry about that, by the way. I’m not sure I’ve ever said that to you.” She remembered him saying he was sorry to her at the pub and how much it had meant to her.

  “It was never about the car. It was about waking up after the best night of my life to find you gone. To realize that you didn’t trust me or love me enough to tell me what was going on.”

  “I guess we didn’t know back then that we had something worth fighting for.”

  “I did. I just didn’t know how to fight for you. I do now.” He stopped in front of a door at the end of the long porch.

  Shay blinked at the plaque on the door. “It’s the honeymoon suite.”

  He turned the key with a grin. “Which means it has a Jacuzzi. Even better, Mrs. Jaworski says it’s looking like we might be stuck here for a few days.”

  Michael drew her into the room with him and set down the bag and key on the desk before drawing her into his arms. “I know you’re worried about Charlie, but Costello doesn’t have him. Luigi would’ve told you if they did. And I would’ve gotten it out of his buddies before they took them away. Charlie’s smart. All he needs to do is lie low for the next few days. We’ve got them, babe. Thanks to you, Luigi’s agreed to provide state’s evidence in exchange for immunity.”

  “I know, but you have to bring it to the DA, and then a judge has to sign off on it before you can make a move against Danny. You said so yourself that it could take days.”

  “And it probably will. But there’s nothing we can do about that now, so let’s take the win. We’re here, and we’re together, and we have fried chicken and a Jacuzzi.”

  “And a really big bed.”

  Chapter Twenty

  I hope the manor’s liability insurance is up to date,” Colleen said to Simon as they watched Jasper secure the pole to both the ceiling and the floo
r in the main sitting room after the ballroom had proved impractical.

  Shay’s friend Cherry had insisted they hold the Widows Club introductory Strippercise class at the manor instead of the Salty Dog. Colleen overheard Cherry tell Jasper it was on account of the mob looking for Shay.

  At least the woman had the good sense not to say it loud enough for Maura to hear. Colleen’s granddaughter-in-law had been on a tear since she’d caught Shay in the library. It’d gotten worse last night when Aidan came by to let them know Michael had been involved in an incident near Driftwood Cove, an incident that Shay had been involved in too.

  Aidan couldn’t give them details, only to say the couple was fine and riding out the blizzard together at the Inn at Driftwood Cove. Maura had been in a right state after that. It was a good thing Logan had been here to calm his mother down and confiscate her car keys.

  Colleen had sent up a prayer of thanks last night. This was exactly what Michael and Shay needed, time alone.

  “Oh, Jaspy, that looks perfect,” Cherry said as she walked into the sitting room with her partner Libby, and Libby’s two children, Teddy and Gabby, the youngest of whom carried a pink poodle. School had been canceled for the day. The two women were dressed in stretchy bra tops and boy shorts. Libby’s had a leopard print, and Cherry’s were, not surprisingly, electric pink with rhinestones.

  “I might’ve taken up pole dancing myself if it came with a guarantee my stomach would look like theirs…Holy Mary Mother of God, what were they thinking?” Colleen said when Kitty strolled in with her best friend and fellow member of the Widows Club, Rosa DiRossi. They wore high-heeled boots and black Lycra dresses that skimmed their thighs.

  Jasper had turned to address Cherry, and his eyes went wide. He opened his mouth as though speaking but no words came out. Unless Colleen had suddenly lost her hearing. “Is he saying anything, Simon?”

  But Simon had left her side to wind himself around Cherry’s and Libby’s long, toned legs. She should’ve known she’d lose his attention. He was a leg man.

  Logan walked in with Atticus by his side. He took one look at his grandmother and Rosa, said Jesus under his breath, and then turned around and walked out.

  “Hey you, handsome, get back here,” Libby called.

  “Mom,” Teddy said, like only an embarrassed teenager could, drawing Colleen’s attention to the pretty girl with the long dark hair and attitude. As her gaze moved from Teddy to the little girl at her side, Colleen was shocked to find light blue eyes locked on hers.

  Colleen touched her chest. “Can you see me, little one?” she asked Gabby, working to ensure her expression was as genial as possible so as not to frighten the child.

  The little girl gave her a hesitant nod, looking about as though to gauge whether she alone could see Colleen. Simon lifted his head and stared at the child. “You’re a canny lad, aren’t you?” she said to the cat.

  Jasper, as though picking up on something, too, drew his gaze from Kitty to glance from Simon to the little girl.

  This was it, exactly what Colleen had been praying for. Now that Michael and Shay were well on their way to happily-ever-after, Colleen wanted to seal the deal by ensuring that Shay received a copy of the page in her memoir that Jasper and Kitty had clearly forgotten to give Charlie. If they were going to try and correct the wrongs on her behalf, the least they could do was get it right. Shay needed to know that, in the end, Colleen had tried to make amends by intervening on her behalf with social services.

  “I need your help, little one,” Colleen said to Gabby, whose mother had gone off in search of Logan with Teddy and Cherry following after her. Kitty and Rosa weren’t paying any attention to anyone. They were busy examining the pole. Colleen hoped that’s where their focus remained. The last thing she wanted to endure was another attempt at a ghostorcism.

  Colleen got up from the chair and walked to within a few feet of the child so that she stood between Gabby and Jasper. “Tell him”—she pointed at Jasper—“That GG says he forgot a page for Shay.”

  “GG says you—”

  Jasper shot a look at Kitty, who was helping Rosa get her leg up and around the pole. “Morane a mi, not so high,” Rosa exhorted, making the sign of the cross.

  Looking relieved that the women hadn’t heard the little girl, Jasper passed through Colleen as she frantically waved her arms. “No, child. Whisper it in his ear.”

  Gabby put down the poodle and crooked a finger at Jasper, who obediently crouched in front of the little girl. He nodded, frowned, then nodded again, and said something quietly to the child. Gabby smiled at Colleen and made a zip-it motion with her fingers at the same time Rosa fell off the pole.

  “You see, that’s exactly why we need you and your muscles,” Libby said to Logan as she dragged him into the sitting room. Cherry and Jasper hurried to Rosa’s aid while Kitty frantically assured her friend it had been an accident.

  Logan, looking uncomfortable, turned as several more members of the Widow’s Club arrived. “You’ve got plenty of spotters now,” he said with a thank God expression on his face.

  “Yes, but none of them are as gorgeous as you. You know, I—”

  “Mom!” Teddy groaned.

  Logan raised a hand to get Jasper’s attention. “Jeeves, you got a sec?”

  Now what was that about? Colleen wondered. Thinking her great-grandson might have news to share about either his mother or Michael, Colleen followed him. He waited outside the sitting room for Jasper, glancing around as though something had gone missing. He stepped away to visually search the great room.

  “Atticus,” he called to the wolfhound, who was sniffing around two men at the bar.

  “You’ll have to retrieve him yourself, Master Logan. His vision is rapidly deteriorating,” Jasper said when he joined them.

  “You and Michael are spoiling him. He can hear better than you and I combined, Jeeves. Come here, boy,” he called, offering an apology to the men at the bar, who barely spared him a passing glance.

  Jasper pursed his lips. “I think perhaps I should take him for his walk, Master Logan.”

  “Yeah, okay. I want to head over to the police station and talk to Aidan, see if he needs another set of eyes on the pub and Shay and her uncle’s place.”

  “You’re a fine man, Logan my boy, that you are. You belong here, you know. And once I’ve ensured your brother and Shay have found their happily-ever-after, you’re next, laddie. Though I may have to dust off my matchmaking cap. The woman I had chosen for you has gone and gotten herself engaged. And wouldn’t you know it, she’s getting married at the manor. Oh well, in the end it might be for the best. I think her family had a secret, a big one at that. I may have exposed it…or maybe I didn’t. I can’t be sure anymore.”

  Colleen had been so busy having a conversation with herself that Jasper and Logan had already gone about their business. As she drew her gaze from their retreating backs, she caught the two men at the bar watching them intently. She took in their dark clothing and shifty eyes, and it hit her who they were. The mob had come to the manor.

  “Simon! Come quick!” she called into the sitting room. As though recognizing the panic in her voice, Simon didn’t saunter as he was wont to do. He hightailed it out of there so fast he was but a blur, the pink poodle chasing after him. “Jasper. Get Jasper, Simon. Trouble has come to Greystone.”

  When the manor door closed after Logan, Jasper, and Atticus, the older of the two men gave his companion a nod. The tall, skinny one got up and headed to the door. Colleen knew right away what he was about. He was standing guard. They’d drawn the conclusion that without the presence of Logan and Jasper to protect them, the women wouldn’t put up a fight.

  “Little do you know what you’re up against, laddie,” she murmured as the older man headed across the grand hall. Colleen hurried to Gabby’s side and crouched in front of the little girl. “Close the door and bar it, child. Get Teddy to help you. The men looking for Shay, they’ve come to the manor. Don’t
you worry, though. I’ll take care of them, but I need help. Go now.”

  Gabby ran to where her sister sat in the corner on her phone, whispered in her ear, and pointed at Colleen. Teddy laughed and shook her head. Colleen glanced out the open door. The man was coming their way. Quickly, she knelt beside the coffee table. Centering all her energy on her hand, she slowly closed it around the coffee cup. She didn’t cheer when her hand wrapped around the ceramic and held firm. She stayed focused, concentrating on lifting the cup off the table. She caught sight of Teddy gaping as the cup hung in midair. Colleen’s focus broke, and the cup fell, coffee spilling onto the oriental rug.

  Teddy raced to the door with her sister and slammed it shut. “Gabby!” She pointed at the buffet table, both of them hurrying to each grab an end, struggling to carry it to the door.

  The women in the room finally took notice and asked what they were doing. Gabby whispered something to Teddy. The teenager nodded, then said, “There’s a man out there. I think it’s the guy who was after Charlie. The one who’s looking for Shay.”

  Libby gasped. “Cherry, they’re gonna use you to draw her out.”

  Cherry goggled at the woman. “I never thought of that. I thought they were coming after me because I told them at the club I was Charlie’s girlfriend.”

  “You what?” Libby shrieked, slapping a hand over her mouth when there was a loud knock on the door. Several of the Widows Club gasped and leaned back on their heels.

  As Libby ran to grab her daughters, Rosa said, “Cherry, get on the pole. Not too high. Ladies, gather around like she’s teaching you. Kitty, wait until I say okay, and then open the door.”

  “You want me to let him in? Are you crazy?”

  Rosa walked to the fireplace and grabbed the brass poker, slapping it lightly on her open palm. “You don’t think I can deal with one measly wise guy? Eh, my father, he was a made man, a member of the Costa Nostra.”