Redemption at Hawk's Landing

by Rita Herron

  She had given him no indication that she cared about him or wanted to stay. That she might even love him.

  So he gritted his teeth and let her climb from the SUV and head inside his cabin. With a heavy heart, he drove toward the farmhouse on Hawk’s Landing to meet his brothers.

  * * *

  AS HONEY WALKED through Harrison’s cabin, the memory of making love to him made her heart ache with love. She wanted to stay, to comfort him when he returned, to tell him how much she cared for him.

  But she didn’t belong here. Not with a Hawk.

  She had to tie things up and go back to Austin where no one knew the girl she’d been and the family she’d come from.

  Where they only knew her as Honey Granger, the fixer-upper, the renovator/designer who turned crumbling properties into beautiful homes for families.

  She repacked her suitcase, then drove to her old neighborhood. The devastation was stark, the scent of smoke and burned rubble so strong she had to inhale deep breaths to calm the queasiness in her stomach.

  Queasiness from the destruction but also from the fact that the people who’d lived here had suffered, lost their homes to the bank and, now, to fire. And that other kids like her would grow up homeless, in shelters or on the streets because they had no good place to go.

  Kids who’d be bullied and teased like she was.

  Elden’s face flashed in her mind, and as much as she regretted what he’d done, she couldn’t have been mean to him years ago.

  That would have been wrong, too.

  Sympathy for him also filled her. He hadn’t meant to hurt the girls. He’d simply wanted love and hadn’t realized his own strength.

  She hugged her arms around herself and turned in a wide arc to study the property. The neighborhood could hold at least ten to fifteen homes. Although three had completely burned down due to Elden’s mother, ten others still stood in poor condition. Abandoned and left for dead.

  A vision of what the houses could look like hit her, and adrenaline surged through her just as it did at the beginning of any new project.

  She hadn’t always believed in fate, but perhaps everything that had happened in her past and this past week was for a reason. She couldn’t change anything in that past, but she could do something about the future.

  She could give other children the kind of hope that she’d craved. And if she found some investors and financial assistance, she could give them an affordable home and prove to the people in Tumbleweed that she’d made something of her life.

  Decision made, she retrieved her cell phone and called Jared to tell him her plans. Together they could put together a deal and make this burned-down, run-down neighborhood into something to be proud of.

  * * *

  HARRISON AND HIS brothers gathered around their mother in the den and delivered the news. Her face crumpled, but she seemed to accept the fact that Chrissy was gone as if in her heart she’d known it all along.

  She knotted a tissue in her hands. “So Waylon Granger and his daughter had nothing to do with it?”

  Harrison shook his head. “No, Mother. Elden was infatuated with little girls and drawn to the pretty ribbons in their hair. He’s mentally challenged and didn’t realize how big or strong he is and tried to hold them when they ran from him.”

  “He smothered them,” Lucas said quietly.

  A choked sob came from their mother. “Our poor little Chrissy lying up there all alone all these years.”

  Harrison’s stomach twisted. The thought of Chrissy lying in that cold cave made him feel ill inside, as well. They had searched it so many times but never moved those damn rocks aside.

  Brayden squeezed their mother’s hand. “Elden’s mother said she put the other girls there so they wouldn’t be alone.”

  His mother gave him a sharp look as if that comment didn’t offer any comfort. “What’s going to happen to the Lynches?”

  Harrison glanced at Dexter. Technically Elden was a serial killer although the circumstances were a consideration. “Elden will be charged, but considering his mental impairment, he’ll go into a special facility where he’ll be monitored. But he won’t be able to go free and hurt anyone else.”

  “And his mother?”

  “She’ll be charged as an accomplice for covering up the crimes,” Harrison said.

  “The judge may be sympathetic to her,” Dexter said. “But if she’d come forward and institutionalized Elden after he killed Chrissy, those other little girls would still be alive.”

  Harrison nodded. “I’m sorry, Mother. No one suspected Elden or noticed signs that he was violent. It really was more accident than intention. He...loved the girls.”

  Tears streamed down his mother’s face. “It doesn’t bring our little girl back, though.”

  “No,” Harrison said softly. “But at least we know that she wasn’t killed by a deviant who tortured her or inflicted unnecessary pain on her.”

  “We can give her a nice burial,” Brayden added. “And now we’ll have a place to visit her.”

  Their mother nodded and wiped at her tears. Dexter moved to the kitchen to make some tea while his mother retrieved the photo album she’d kept of Chrissy’s childhood. They spent the next two hours looking at pictures and sharing memories of Chrissy.

  She had been lost long ago, but at least they had her back now, and they would always remember her in their hearts.

  * * *

  THREE HOURS LATER Harrison left the ranch house. His mother had already started making arrangements for a service for Chrissy and was going to try to get some rest. Brayden offered to stay at the house with her that night while he and Dexter and Lucas left.

  As they’d reminisced over Chrissy, he couldn’t help but think about Honey. She had the answers she needed about her father. What was she going to do now?

  His lungs squeezed for air as he remembered making love to her. And he had made love to her—it hadn’t simply been sex.

  He cared about Honey.

  A pain ripped through him. His family had found closure, finally. But sometime during the last few days while he was looking for Chrissy and trying to find Waylon Granger’s murderer, he’d fallen in love with Honey.

  He pulled up to his cabin and instantly noticed that Honey’s car was missing. Disappointment bombarded him. She couldn’t have gone back to her father’s. There wasn’t enough house left to stay in.

  He ran a hand through his hair as he parked and walked up to the door. The house was dark when he entered, a lone lamp illuminating the den.

  The floors creaked as he walked into the entryway, the emptiness accentuating the loneliness engulfing him.

  She was gone.

  Dammit.

  He flipped on a light and strode into the kitchen, then spotted a note lying on the table. Hope budded inside him.

  Maybe she’d gone to the inn for the night and he would see her in the morning.

  But emotions pummeled as he read the note.

  Dear Harrison,

  My heart aches for you and your family. I’m so sorry about Chrissy. I wish I could go back and change things, but I can’t.

  I can leave town, though, so your family can honor your sister the way Chrissy deserves without having me as a reminder of the past.

  Take care of yourself, Harrison.

  Goodbye,

  Honey

  Harrison crushed the note in his hands. He didn’t want Honey to leave, but he couldn’t blame her for hating this town after the way they’d treated her.

  But dammit, he’d lost Chrissy a long time ago.

  And now he’d just found Honey, and he’d lost her, too.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  The next week was hell.

  Harrison tried to focus on his famil
y’s needs and his mother during the memorial service and his sister’s burial, but all he could think about was Honey and why she hadn’t stayed around to say goodbye to him in person. He’d called her numerous times, but she hadn’t returned his call.

  She obviously didn’t love him.

  She’d walked away without looking back, just as she’d left Tumbleweed years ago and lost touch.

  Except she’d built a life for herself and a good reputation and business. And just this afternoon Geoffrey Williams had told him that she’d bought the land/lots in her father’s neighborhood and planned to transform the area into affordable, nice homes for low-income families. How she planned to pull it off, he didn’t know. But he trusted that Honey would do what she’d said.

  She had integrity.

  “She’s back,” Cora said as Harrison sipped his coffee.

  “What?” For a moment, he was disoriented. “Who’s back?”

  “Honey Granger,” Cora said. “They’ve already started bulldozing that land where her daddy lived. Leroy Pirkle and Betty Sumner saw the plans for the development and it’s quite impressive.”

  Leroy and Betty were on the town council.

  “Honey is here herself or did she send her coworker?” He’d heard that her partner, Jared, had met with Leroy and Betty.

  “I saw her van myself,” Cora said. “Not sure how long she’s staying, but she booked a room at the inn for two weeks.”

  Harrison’s pulse jumped, but he forced himself to remain passive. He hadn’t yet told anyone, including his family, how he felt about Honey.

  But he missed her like crazy. And he wanted her back in his life.

  She left you without saying goodbye.

  That had hurt.

  Except he’d reread her note a hundred times and sensed she thought she didn’t belong in this town.

  She was wrong.

  He stood and tossed some cash on the table to pay for his lunch. “Thanks. I gotta go.”

  Cora smiled, took the money along with his empty coffee cup and dish and sauntered toward the kitchen.

  Heat suffused him, nearly robbing his breath, as he stepped outside. Three buildings down, his gaze zeroed in on the jewelry store.

  He had no idea how Honey felt about him, but he knew how he felt about her. And it was damn time he told her.

  She might laugh in his face or tell him to get lost, but this time if Honey Granger left Tumbleweed, she’d know that she was loved and that at least one person wanted her to stay forever.

  * * *

  ADRENALINE SURGED THROUGH Honey as she watched the bulldozer clear the burned rubble from her father’s house and the neighboring properties. She had worked with Jared and an architect to design a street lined with Craftsman and ranch homes that would provide comfortable, affordable homes and add value to the town of Tumbleweed.

  She’d spent the last week working on the plans, drawing designs and soliciting financial assistance. She was also using local building companies, suppliers and workers, which would feed money back into the community.

  She couldn’t wait to see the houses popping up and families moving in.

  “This is going to be fabulous,” Jared said. “But you know this project will take time.”

  Honey nodded. She wanted to be here every step of the process, but that would mean she’d be close to Harrison.

  Too close.

  She couldn’t stay here and not want him.

  “Are you interested in overseeing it?” Honey asked.

  Jared’s eyes widened in surprise. “I thought you’d do that. I know this was your hometown.”

  “It was, but I have mixed memories here and—”

  Harrison’s SUV rolled down the street, cutting off the rest of her statement. Her breathing turned choppy, a blend of nervous anticipation and sadness.

  The owner of the bulldozer shouted that he needed to talk to them, and she gestured for Jared to handle him.

  Harrison parked on the side of the street, his big body taut with tension as he strode toward her.

  She told herself to run. To get in her car and drive away before she did something stupid like admit that she was in love with him.

  “I heard what you’re doing,” he said in a gruff voice.

  She nodded. “It’s a good business move.” Although business really had nothing to do with it. Her heart was in this project because like it or not, part of her heart was still here.

  With Harrison.

  His dark gaze met hers as if he recognized the lie. She averted her gaze, determined to keep her emotions at bay, but she could smell his masculine scent and the aftershave that had lingered on her skin after they’d made love, and tears burned the backs of her eyelids.

  He took her hand and pulled her beneath a sawtooth tree away from the work crew and Jared.

  “Honey,” he said on a deep breath. “I had to see you.”

  “What’s wrong?” she said. “Did Elden or his mother get out?”

  “No, they’re both locked away now, and all the families have been notified.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “The people, little girls, in town are safe.”

  She breathed out in relief. “Good. I know it hasn’t been easy on your family and your mother.”

  He released a weary breath. “No, but she’s holding up. But that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about.”

  Heat seared her skin where he was still holding her hand. She should let go. Put some distance between them. But she couldn’t bring herself to break the moment.

  He lifted her hand and kissed her palm and her heart melted. “I’m glad you came back,” he said in a low voice. “I...missed you.”

  “Harrison, don’t—”

  “Why not?” His voice grew stronger, and he cupped her face between his hands. “When you left, I realized how much I missed you, how much you meant to me.” His eyes darkened, and he slid one hand into his pocket.

  Her breath caught as he opened his palm to reveal a stunning diamond in an antique setting. “I love you, Honey. I want you to marry me.”

  Oh, God, she wanted that, too. She loved him with all her heart. She probably always had.

  She always would.

  But his mother hated her.

  And there was no way she could come between them.

  “I’m sorry, Harrison, it would never work.”

  Pain flashed in his eyes. “Because you don’t feel the same way.”

  “Because I’m Honey Granger, the girl your mother has always despised. She thinks I’m a tramp and that I’m not good enough for you.”

  “I don’t give a damn about what she thinks,” he said. “Besides, she’s wrong.”

  “Well, I care what she thinks,” Honey said. “She’s your mother and you love her. Your family has been through enough. I certainly won’t be the reason for more tension and unhappiness between you.”

  “But Honey—”

  She pressed her finger to his lips. “No, Harrison.” She closed his fingers around the ring and kissed his cheek. “Thank you, but no, I can’t marry you. I’m leaving my partner in charge of the project and I’m leaving town tonight.”

  She hadn’t planned that, but now that he’d proposed she had to. If she stayed another minute, she’d back down, confess her love and throw herself at him.

  Her chest burned with the pressure of holding back her tears, and she rushed to her van, climbed inside and sped away from the curb. She glanced in the rearview mirror and wished she hadn’t. He stood ramrod still, his handsome face etched in hurt, staring after her.

  But she didn’t turn back. She told herself to keep driving until she reached Austin.

  * * *

  HARRISON MET HIS brothers at the Broken Spoke for a beer to drown his s
orrows.

  “You look like someone shot you,” Lucas said.

  Dexter elbowed him as he poured himself a beer from the pitcher. “Or run over you.”

  Brayden took a mug for himself. “Yeah, what gives?”

  Honey had turned him down, that was what was wrong.

  She must not love him.

  “If you’re worried about Mom, I think she’s okay,” Brayden said.

  “Yeah, except she hates Honey,” Harrison muttered in frustration.

  “What does that matter?” Dexter asked.

  Harrison stared into his beer, sullen and brooding.

  “Uh-oh,” Lucas said. “I know what’s wrong. You fell for Honey, didn’t you?”

  Harrison cut his eyes toward Lucas. “She’s nothing like what Mom thought.”

  “I know,” Brayden said. “Hell, have you seen the houses she’s renovated in Austin? They’re amazing.”

  “And she’s doing that here in Lower Tumbleweed,” Dexter said, a hint of awe in his voice.

  Misery clawed at Harrison. “She’s pretty amazing.”

  Lucas chuckled. “So what are you going to do about it?”

  Harrison grunted and took a sip of his beer. “I asked her to marry me.”

  “Whoa,” Brayden said. “That’s serious.”

  “When’s the wedding?” Dexter asked.

  Harrison cursed. “She turned me down.”

  “Damn,” Lucas said.

  “Why?” Dexter asked.

  “I thought she was crushing on you in high school,” Brayden added.

  “Mother hasn’t made any bones about the way she feels about Honey,” Harrison said, his throat rough with emotions. “Honey said she wouldn’t come between me and my family.”

  “Good God, she does love you,” Brayden said.

  Harrison looked at them in confusion. “Did you hear me? I said she turned me down.”

  “She wouldn’t care so much about your family if she didn’t love you,” Dexter said.

  Harrison rubbed his hand over his eyes. Were his brothers right? Did Honey love him?