Safe Harbor: A Cold Creek Homecoming

by Sherryl Woods

  Chapter Seven

  When Drew turned off the coastal highway into Tina’s driveway, it was close to midnight. His headlights picked up Billy’s forlorn, hunched figure sitting in the shadows. Lady MacBeth sat on his shoulder. For once, the normally talkative bird was absolutely silent. A flutter of dread rippled through Tina.

  Anxious words tumbled out almost incoherently as she leapt from the car and ran up the walk. “Billy, what are you doing out here at this hour? Has something happened? Is somebody sick? Are you okay?”

  “Sure,” he mumbled, swiping at the tears on his cheeks. He didn’t look at her.

  Drew approached more slowly and touched a restraining hand to Tina’s arm. When she would have probed further, he shook his head, then asked Billy casually, “Mind if we sit here with you for a while, then? It’s a nice night.”

  Billy shrugged, his gaze still directed toward the ground. They sat down on either side of him, waiting for more, letting the silence go on and on, thickening with an unbearable tension.

  “Where is everyone else?” Tina asked finally when she could keep her voice calm.

  “Out back, I guess. Maybe they’ve gone to bed. I don’t know.”

  “Were you waiting for us?”

  Suddenly Billy turned to face her, his eyes no longer sad but filled with anger. He drew back a hand as though he wanted to hit her, but at the last second he stopped himself and demanded in a choked whisper, “Why didn’t you tell me what was going on? How could you keep something this important from me? Don’t I count around here?”

  “Tell you what, son?” Drew said when Tina couldn’t think of a thing to say in the face of such smoldering rage and heartrending anguish.

  “That me and Aunt Juliet are going to have to go away.”

  “That’s not so,” Tina said. She reached out to Billy, but he jerked back as though he couldn’t bear her touch. His rejection wrenched her heart. From the moment she’d rescued Billy and his aunt, he’d been her adoring shadow. He’d trusted her and now he obviously felt she’d not only betrayed him but was abandoning him as well.

  “Billy, no one is going to make you go away. I swear to you, everything is going to work out.”

  He glowered at her, his eyes disbelieving. “But you didn’t tell me anything, and that’s not what they were saying tonight. They said some guy’s coming in the morning and he’s going to make us leave. It’ll be just like it was before, when my folks went off and dumped me with Aunt Juliet. We won’t have any money, nothing to eat. Aunt Juliet can’t live like that. She gets so cold. Last winter she coughed all the time. She should have gone to the doctor, but we didn’t have any money.”

  Billy shuddered, and Tina could only imagine what his memories must be like. He was far too young and vulnerable to have shouldered such responsibilities. She should have seen what the DCF threat would do to him and prepared him for it.

  “I promise you, we’re going to work this out.”

  “Why are they coming after all this time? It doesn’t make any sense. We’ve been here for ages.”

  “It’s because of me,” Drew admitted. Tina could hear the guilt and sadness in his voice. He was seeing firsthand the traumatic effect of his well-meaning actions. “I filed a complaint.”

  Billy stared at him in stunned disbelief, his lower lip quivering. “But I thought you liked us. I mean after that talk we had and all, I even thought you and I were going to be pals. Is it because I broke your window? Are you still mad about that?”

  “Of course not.” Drew swore gently, briefly touching Billy’s arm. Tina noticed that the boy didn’t pull away from the tender, comforting gesture. “I’m only human, Billy. I made a mistake. A big one. I thought things were different than they are. The people at DCF are making the same mistake. Once they arrive, they’ll know better, just like I did.”

  Billy’s gaze swept anxiously over Tina’s face. “Do you believe that?”

  She embraced him. Though he didn’t respond, this time he didn’t move away, and her breath escaped in a tiny sigh of relief.

  “I have to believe it, Billy. I don’t know what I’d do if they ever took you away. You’re part of my family now.” She managed a tremulous smile for him and brushed the hair off his face. “Now why don’t you go on up to bed. Tomorrow’s an important day and we all need to be ready for it.”

  “Can I stay home from school?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll talk about it in the morning.”

  His lip curled defiantly. “You can’t make me go. I want to be here with you.”

  “We’ll talk about it in the morning,” she repeated firmly.

  Billy’s skinny arms wound around her and held her tight. “Don’t worry, Tina. I’ll tell ’em that we love you. Then they’ll have to let us stay, won’t they?”

  “That might do it,” she said, but she wondered if it would be nearly enough.

  When Billy had gone inside, Drew pulled Tina into his arms. The tension eased, then fell away as she buried her face in his shoulder, the smooth fabric of his shirt soft against her cheek. His arms were so much stronger than Billy’s and just as loving. She let her eyes drift shut. She felt so safe right now, but how long would that fragile feeling last? Would it survive even another twenty-four hours?

  “We’re only postponing things between us,” Drew reminded her as though he’d read her mind. “You and I are going to have our time together someday. This won’t change that.”

  “I hope you’re right,” she said wistfully, suddenly aware of just how much she needed him in her life. It was too soon to describe that emotion as love, but there was an undeniable aching desire building inside that went straight to her soul.

  “I know I’m right, and it’s going to be soon, because I’m not sure how long I can wait to hold you in my arms.”

  She gave him a faltering half smile. “You are holding me in your arms. Should I be insulted that you haven’t noticed?”

  “I noticed all right, but I’m trying not to think about it.” His voice was rough with frustration.

  “That doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

  “It does, when you’re not sure if you can control yourself.”

  Tina fiddled flirtatiously with his loosened tie and gazed up at him provocatively through half-lowered lashes. “I thought Drew Landry was the sort of man who was always in control.”

  Uttering a low groan deep in his throat, Drew stilled her roaming fingers, which were headed daringly down his chest. “He was until he met a bewitching, spirited neighbor, who seems to invite everyone to live with her except him. It’s doing terrible things for his ego.”

  “You have a perfectly good home of your own,” she retorted.

  He brightened. “If that’s what it takes, I’ll sell it first thing in the morning.”

  “Nice try, but I think I’m in enough trouble with the group I’ve got now.”

  He sighed heavily, but she noted that the corners of his lips were twitching with amusement. “Okay,” he said regretfully. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “You are going to be here when they come, then?”

  “Of course. You ordered me to be here.”

  “And you listened?” she said in mock astonishment. “Amazing. I’ll have to remember the technique.”

  He kissed her lightly. “Don’t let it go to your head.”

  Then he kissed her again, his tongue sliding over velvet softness as ripples of excitement danced along her spine. Her fingers tangled in his dark hair as she held him close, reveling in his strength and his gentleness. Problems that had seemed insurmountable vanished, caught up in a whirlwind of thrilling sensations. She hadn’t wanted to feel that way in his arms, hadn’t wanted to face the rush of heat and alluring tension that his touch created, but it was there, beyond her control.
>
  Despite her intentions to the contrary, that kiss would have lasted until dawn if Tina had had her way. It would be accompanied by every nuance of lovemaking that she and Drew could explore. Part of her wanted, needed, that tonight, but once again she rejected it as coming at the wrong time. She was attracted to Drew, but she didn’t know him. Loving intimacy deserved much more. It deserved a depth of feeling built on trust and sharing, things that couldn’t happen overnight.

  Breathless, she pulled away as far as Drew’s tight embrace would allow. “I think you’d better go.”

  “Give me a rain check?” he asked and pressed a burning kiss at the hollow in her throat. Flesh that had been cool to the touch turned feverish, and her pulse pounded with a shattering violence. Too much, she thought with a moan. She withdrew from the heated temptation.

  “You’ve got it,” she said softly, trailing her fingers along his cheek, astonished at the possessiveness that flared inside her.

  And then, just when she would have kept him with her, he was gone and the long, lonely night was all that waited for her.

  * * *

  It was a particularly somber group that gathered to await the arrival of the DCF inspectors. Aunt Juliet was in her usual black attire, which did nothing to brighten the mood. In her nervousness she’d drawn her hair back so tightly that her face had a pinched look.

  After much heated discussion about the impression it might make on DCF, Billy had been allowed to stay home from school. Drew’s vote had been the clincher. Before Billy came downstairs, he warned them that leaving Billy out would devastate him, shattering the feeling of belonging he’d finally found. The others finally agreed.

  Normally, a day off from school would have thrilled Billy. Today, though, he sat next to his aunt, clutching her hand and trying valiantly not to let his own anxiety show.

  “I don’t suppose anyone wants breakfast,” Sarah asked hopefully, twisting her lace-edged hankie with nervous fingers. Not even Drew responded.

  “I’ll go fix some coffee anyway. We might as well be wide awake for this.” She bustled off to the kitchen.

  “I can’t stand this waiting around,” Mr. Kelly grumbled to no one in particular. He stood up and hitched up his khaki pants. “I’m going out to pick tomatoes. Can’t let ’em die on the vines just ’cause some fancy bureaucrats take it into their heads to come nosin’ around where they don’t belong. Anyone wants me that’s where I’ll be.” He stomped off through the French doors. Tina could hear him muttering long after he’d disappeared from sight.

  Drew, who’d arrived practically at first light, took Tina’s icy hand and held it until she could feel her blood stirring to life. She smiled at him gratefully.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice filled with concern.

  She nodded. “I’ll be fine once this morning is over with. It’s the waiting that’s killing me. I couldn’t sleep last night. Mr. Kelly and I were bumping into each other in the halls all night long.”

  “Let me handle things,” Drew suggested again. “They may listen to me. You’re all too emotionally involved.”

  Tina scowled at him. “Drew, you got us into this.”

  “Which means it’s up to me to get you out.”

  “You already had a chance yesterday, and it didn’t work. Besides, I’ve told you before that I don’t need a protector. I’m perfectly capable of fighting my own battles.” She grinned as his jaw set stubbornly. “Drew Landry, I mean it. It’s my battle.”

  “Then what the hell am I doing here if you don’t need me?”

  “You’re here to watch,” she reminded him lightly, then sighed and gently touched his cheek. “And I do need you just to be my friend.”

  “Always,” he promised, “but I can’t swear I’ll be able to keep my mouth shut.”

  Sarah returned with a silver coffee service just then, but before she could even pour the first cup the doorbell rang. Edward Grant and two young assistants were on the doorstep, all of them carrying battered, bulky briefcases. The introductions were perfunctory. Mr. Grant obviously was as anxious to get through the ordeal as Tina was.

  Tina had no sooner escorted them to the living room, than the doorbell rang again. She opened the door this time to find several reporters outside. Most were society-page writers in search of titillating gossip, but a prominent business columnist from Miami was among them, and the sight of him made Tina’s blood run cold.

  Before she could get the door closed, a dashing, elderly man with a shock of white hair and startlingly familiar blue eyes walked in, followed by the reporters.

  “I’m Seth Landry,” he told Tina, looking a little bemused by all the confusion. “That son of mine around here someplace? I told him I’d be coming down for a little visit, and he’s disappeared. That tight-lipped old butler next door seemed to think he might be here.”

  “Of all days,” Tina muttered, but she smiled brightly and waved Drew’s father vaguely in the direction of the living room where everyone else had gathered. She considered boarding up that awful room with all the combatants inside and then fleeing to Bermuda. It was a very attractive, if cowardly notion. Instead, she took a deep breath and jumped into the fray.

  The noise level was so high, it was impossible for Tina to hear herself think. Only Mr. Kelly, returning from the garden and brushing dirt off his trousers, seemed unduly complacent. Tina knew perfectly well that was because his hearing aid was upstairs on his dresser. She almost wished she had one too, so she could shut out the din.

  Apparently Mr. Grant was equally dismayed by the unexpected interest in his inspection. He beckoned Tina over.

  “I wasn’t aware that this would attract quite so much attention,” he muttered, blinking at her from behind his glasses. He didn’t look nearly as sure of himself as he had yesterday. “Could we go somewhere else to talk?”

  “Certainly.” She started to lead the way to a cheerful room across the hall, but everyone jumped up to follow them. Mr. Grant, his eyes wide, stared at Tina helplessly. She stifled a grin and said, “Everyone, please. If you’ll wait here until I conclude my meeting with the gentlemen from DCF, I’ll be happy to answer any questions.”

  Grumbling, the reporters sat back down. Grandmother Sarah, delighted at finding a way to keep occupied, offered them coffee and fresh-baked blueberry muffins. She recruited Juliet to help.

  Billy and Drew, however, were not about to let Tina go off alone with the enemy. “It’s okay,” she told them.

  “Tina, please,” Billy pleaded, running his fingers through his slicked-down hair. The gesture created rows of little spikes all over his head. He looked as though he’d stuck a finger in a light socket. “I gotta tell him how I feel.”

  “You’ll get a chance to talk with us, young man,” Edward Grant promised, smiling for the first time. That smile, as tepid as it was, gave Tina renewed hope. Billy looked at her and, when she nodded, he retreated to help in the kitchen.

  Drew was less easily persuaded. Finally, Tina suggested he stay with Mr. Kelly. “I know he’s more upset than he’s letting on. It can’t be good for his blood pressure. Please, Drew.”

  “Are you positive you don’t need me? I’m sure Dad would be happy to keep Mr. Kelly occupied. They could go out and look at the garden. Dad’s crazy about compost.”

  “Stay with them. I need to do this myself.”

  “Damn it all, woman,” he muttered, but he went.

  Tina took Mr. Grant and his assistants through the house. None of them said a word as they saw the rooms in which her friends were staying, each of them bright and cheerful and filled with personal memorabilia. Each also had a private bath. If the inspectors were surprised that Grandmother Sarah and the rest hadn’t been banished to servants’ quarters or worse, they kept it to themselves. At subtle signals from Mr. Grant, the assistants made frantic notes on form
s they carried with them on clipboards.

  Back downstairs, Mr. Grant asked if there was someplace where he could interview each of the guests privately. Tina showed him into a room and brought Grandmother Sarah to him. Mr. Kelly followed, and Mr. Grant agreed to interview Billy and Aunt Juliet together at the end.

  Tina sat outside the door while the first interview went on and on, her hands folded in her lap. She knew that she appeared totally relaxed. She’d conditioned herself from childhood not to show her emotions and thus upset her parents. It was an ability that had been extraordinarily helpful when she’d been confronted with difficult board members as well. Never once had they been able to read her intentions or her fears.

  Despite the outward appearance of calm, the inside of her stomach was churning. When Grandmother Sarah came out, the older woman’s expression had brightened considerably. She sat beside Tina and patted her hand.

  “Well, now, that wasn’t half as bad as I’d expected. Stop fretting. Edward is really quite a nice young man.”

  “Edward?” Tina glanced at her sharply. “Are you referring to that emotionless automaton inside by his first name?”

  “Really, Tina, I’m surprised at you,” Sarah scolded. “You’re normally quite a good judge of character. Edward is just trying to do his job.”

  “It’s a lousy job,” she retorted crossly. “And that’s not what you were saying about him yesterday.”

  “That may be, but I can admit a mistake when I make one. He explained it all very carefully. He has to learn the truth. Not everyone is as lucky as we are.”

  “Do you think he can see that?”

  “I think he’d be a fool if he didn’t, and Edward is no fool. Trust me,” she said and patted Tina’s hand again. “Why don’t I send Drew out here to keep you company?”

  “I’m not sure I’m speaking to him today after all.”

  “Oh, posh-tosh. This will be over soon and you’ll forget all about it. Don’t throw away a chance at an exciting new life over a little thing like this.”