by Tina Leonard
“How do you know that?”
“He told me.”
“David did?”
“No. The investigator.”
Dustin narrowed his eyes. “He was doing a job for her and he told you?”
Eunice shrugged. “She fired him. He was an old acquaintance of mine. It wasn’t unethical, Dustin. There was nothing to uncover, but she wanted dirt. He felt like I was going to be backed into a bad position and was kind enough to warn me. I don’t think he liked the possibility of his reputation being slandered, either.”
Dustin couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You didn’t tell me this before?”
“I’m sorry, Dustin. I would have remembered sooner or later. With the scare over baby Holly and whatnot, it flew right out of my head. It didn’t even strike me as being that important since I’d expected Maxine not to pull her punches. I knew she would be watching our every move. It is, after all, a custody battle. She has to prove something about us that will assure the judge we’re unfit to have Joey.”
“I guess.” Dustin rubbed his forehead tiredly. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
His mother laid a comforting hand on his arm. “Because that’s the way Maxine’s mind works, not yours, honey. You don’t have so much experience with her deviousness.” She leaned back, massaging her lower back with one hand. “I’ve known Maxine Copeland all my life. I know what she’s capable of. Frankly, I think she’s losing her edge.”
“You don’t mean that.”
She nodded her head assertively. “I do. If all she can come up with is smoke and mirrors, I don’t think the judge is going to be impressed.”
“He’s in her pocket.”
“But David’s not.”
Dustin stared at his mother, then shook his head. “David isn’t with us much anymore. Even if he was coherent the day of the trial, I wouldn’t dare to hope he’d go against Maxine in any way, whether it was denying that you two had an affair or any other nefarious charge she manufactures.”
“Well, all I know to do right now is keep the faith. Joey is going to be here for Christmas, and I don’t believe anything else.”
He let out a deep breath before shooting a quick look her way. She had ceased rubbing her back, but was now sitting up straight to find a more comfortable position. If she was suffering lower back pain, that might indicate her arthritis was going to flare up again. Optimistically, it could be from the strain of picking Holly up and holding her constantly. Though he hoped it was the latter, he hated to think of his mother sitting in a hard wooden courtroom seat for hours if she wasn’t feeling well. The case was going to be difficult enough to sit through as it was.
“I hope you’ll pay no mind to Maxine’s bitterness about Jill.”
Dustin raised his brows. “You heard.”
“Honey, the whole county heard. Including Jill, I imagine.”
He nodded wearily. “I don’t know what to do about it.”
“I should think I pass as a decent witness to your good behavior, Dustin. Maxine is just consumed with sadness over Nina’s death.” She rolled her shoulders and sat up straighter. “Actually, she’s eaten up with guilt because she knows her own role she played in her daughter’s death. It’s so much easier to blame you, though.”
“I don’t think she’d agree with you about that.”
“Of course not. Maxine needs to hate us so she won’t have to take responsibility for her meddling. If she’d left the two of you alone, your marriage might have had a prayer.”
Dustin shook his head. “I couldn’t give Nina what she wanted.”
“No, and David couldn’t give Maxine what she wanted. It’s a vicious cycle.”
He frowned, considering her words. It was a well-known fact that the Copelands didn’t have the happiest of marriages. Maxine ran the show, while it appeared that, over the years, David had learned to stay out of his wife’s way. There were rumors of shady business deals and flaunting of their upscale, in-town life, but never was David’s name mentioned. While people tended to try to avoid Maxine, her husband was a well-liked member of the country club golf set, his personality and generosity winning him many friends. In fact, he’d been one of the first people to call when Dustin’s father had died.
But David hadn’t satisfied Maxine, apparently, not by the amount of money he made nor with the social standing he was able to achieve. In the end, he’d faded away rather than continue trying to meet his wife’s endless yardstick for success.
“Try not to think about it anymore, Dustin. I think what needs to be done now is to decide about Jill and let her know. I would venture to say she’s pretty worried about her position right now.”
“Yeah.” Dustin pounded his fist lightly on the vanity top. “Truth is, Maxine worried me with that little speech. It wouldn’t be good for Jill’s name to get dragged through the mud. She doesn’t deserve to get wrapped up in our concerns.”
“Dustin.” His mother tapped him on the arm meaningfully. “Let Jill decide what is a concern to her. She hasn’t indicated that she’d like to desert us yet, so why should you push her out the door?”
“It isn’t fair to her, Mother. You and I both know she’ll stay.”
“So don’t let Maxine get her way on this.”
“I have to consider that it’s one more thing for her to muddy up the water with.”
“Our water is clean enough to filter out some dirt, Dustin. I expect you not to allow Maxine to cow you. She’s brought this trouble on herself, and while I am deeply sorry for her loss, I don’t see why we should have to give up any more than we have just because she’s a spiteful old woman.”
Dustin thought about that for a moment. “Jill may decide this has all been too much for her, anyway.”
Eunice shook her head. “She has plenty of starch in her, Dustin. I don’t think she’ll be giving you her resignation.”
“She did say she needed the bonus pretty badly.”
“Bah! If you think that, go ahead and give her the three thousand dollars. When she stays anyway, then what excuse are you going to come up with for her staying?”
“Hell, I don’t know why she would.”
“I do. Jill fits in here as naturally as calving does to springtime. She loves Joey. She likes me very well, I’m pleased to say. And though you can be a pain, Jill seems to be able to sail on through a day without tacking for your mood shifts. We’re a good family, Dustin, though we’re on a hard stretch of road right now. Jill sees that. But if you want to let Maxine have her way, go ahead and tell Jill to go.”
“Jeez.” Dustin waved off his mother’s pitiful expression. “I have to think about what’s right for us, not about our housekeeper’s employment status.”
“Fine. You talk to Jill about it. The two of you can surely decide what the best route is to take. But don’t keep her hanging too long, Dustin.”
“All right.” He got up slowly, feeling like he’d pulled an all-nighter. Jill deserved to have a say in the matter, but he didn’t want to talk to her about it. Not after last night’s kiss. There was too much swirling through his mind in a kaleidoscope of chaos. Who was right? Marsh? Maxine? Was he doing the wrong thing by keeping Jill on when he knew he was sexually attracted to her?
To complicate it all, he knew there was so much more than attraction racing through his veins. He liked looking at the woman, and knowing he was going to find her calm disposition warming his home at the end of a brutally cold workday was like a beer when he was tired, dusty and thirsty. There wasn’t a moment when he worried about his son anymore, either. He knew Joey was in kind, caring hands—and those hands had been soft and welcoming last night to Joey’s father.
As much as he wanted to take his mother’s advice, deep in his heart Dustin knew he couldn’t avoid the truth. There was more going on between him and Jill McCall than dishwater and clean-swept floors.
Jill forced herself to focus on the precise cutting of the gingerbread dough. It seemed no sooner than she got
one laid out than Joey had him dressed with colorful sprinkles and Red Hots. She might actually be enjoying the process if her mind would stop mulling over what Dustin was going to say to her after he talked to his mother. If she was smart, she’d start packing her bags during Joey’s naptime. It was going to be humiliating to linger a moment longer than she had to if Dustin told her she had to leave.
Which he had every right to do, in light of the custody problem. Maxine certainly planned to make everything as difficult as possible on him, and Jill’s presence had sparked a fuse. Jill figured she should offer to resign, but then she’d have to admit to eavesdropping. Not only that, but she just wasn’t a quitter. If Dustin wanted her to go, she would. It would be mortifying, but she would thank him for her employment and make a graceful exit.
It would be devastating, though—because of the kiss. She should never have done it.
Now he might feel obligated to keep her when he shouldn’t. Perhaps he would think she expected more because of what had happened. She sighed and pressed out another cookie.
“Look, Jill. I…I make him happy.”
Joey pointed to the crooked curve of sprinkles where the gingerbread man’s mouth was. Jill nodded and managed a smile.
“You…you happy now, too?”
“Oh, Joey.” Jill put down the cutter and gave him a hug. “I’m very happy. I like doing this with you. I thought about it a lot yesterday while you were gone.” She brushed some flour off his face. “I used to love making gingerbread men when I was a little girl. It’s even more fun showing you how to do them.”
“You…not smiling. You making brows.”
She hadn’t been smiling while she’d been thinking about what Dustin might say to her. There probably had been a frown line etched on her face. The concern on Joey’s upturned face, serious and yet hopeful all at once, touched her.
“Well, I won’t make brows anymore. I’ve been thinking too hard, but now I’m not going to think about anything but you and these spicy little guys, okay?”
“Okay.”
Joey went back to carefully placing Red Hots for buttons on a gingerbread man. Jill kept her lips pressed into a smile, glancing the child’s way occasionally.
“Jill?”
“Yes?”
“You…you gonna stay for Christmas and…and watch me open my presents?”
She hesitated, trying to think of an answer that would satisfy Joey yet be truthful as well. Dustin strode into the kitchen, poured himself a cup of coffee, nodded briefly in her direction, and left. The front door slammed.
Her heart sank. She looked back at Joey. “I’d like to,” she said simply.
He went back to his work, but Jill’s concentration was shot. Dustin’s demeanor had resembled a thundercloud and he’d barely looked at her.
Whatever minor easing of tension they’d managed to achieve had reverted to friction again. She couldn’t help thinking that the Reed Ranch might not be her home much longer.
It was a very painful thought.
Dustin was letting Rooster pick his way along a stream when he heard Marsh’s loud whistle. He returned the signal, then waited for his friend to appear. Moments later he did, astride one of Dustin’s geldings.
“You must have news or you wouldn’t have ridden out here to find me,” he said.
“Yep. And I’m a damn good friend to do it, too.”
He pulled his hat a little farther down over his eyes to shield them from the light. Marsh had managed to park himself in the path of west-riding sun. “Give me the bad news.”
“They’re gone, Dustin. Sadie and her mother have left town. They’ve had their mail routed to a post office box and canceled their newspaper.”
“Where did they go?”
Marsh shrugged. “No one seems to know. Or else they’re not telling. Would your mother have an idea of where any of Vera Benchley’s family might live?”
Dustin pushed his boots into the stirrups to shift his position while he thought about it. “She might. But how do you know they’d hunt out family?”
“I don’t. I’m grasping at straws.”
“Yeah.” They all were. “Why would they leave if Holly is theirs? Why would they leave her behind instead of taking her with them? Wouldn’t she be safer out of town?”
“I don’t know. Dustin, I hate to say this, but I’m beginning to think this picture isn’t hanging on the wall straight.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Marsh looked away briefly. “All I know is this. Jill McCall shows up on your property at the same time a stray baby does. She claims she has a scare in town, but we don’t have any eyewitnesses to that. It was a helluva good story. Your mother definitely buys it, right down to imagining that a stitched crown on a blanket is a message. What I don’t get is, why isn’t there any record of birth in any of the hospitals, and why the Benchleys wouldn’t alert us to their problem, if, in fact, there was one? Why dump the baby on your land if she was in so much danger? And where is this guy with the shaved head that Jill supposedly saw?”
Dustin tried to throttle his temper. He reminded himself that this was his friend, his best friend of many years, who was only trying to look at the situation from a cop’s perspective. Stranger things had happened than what Marsh was suggesting Jill might have done. Still, it was all he could do not to give his horse a swift kick and leave Marsh alone by the stream.
“Maybe there is no record of birth because the baby was born at home. If Vera’s such a damn good seamstress, maybe she’s good at other things, too,” he said, careful to keep his tone neutral. “I don’t know why they didn’t go to the police, unless they were simply scared out of their skin to do it. For all I know, the guy might have threatened them if they did say anything. As for the guy in question, I don’t know where he is. You’re the one who keeps his ear to the ground with the local youth. Do your damn job and ask around.”
“I am, damn it, Dustin. And you know I am. But I wanted to run this past your thick skull and see if we could thresh out any alternative storyline than what we’re getting from your housekeeper. You wouldn’t be so damned touchy about the thing if you weren’t…”
Dustin’s eyes narrowed. “If I wasn’t what?” he asked, his voice dangerously soft.
“Well, hell! If you weren’t blinded by that bright smile and that daisy-fresh appeal of Jill’s. I mean, damn, friend. Every time you walk into the room, Jill looks like she’s seeing the dawn of a new day. She lights up like a star on a Christmas tree.”
He kicked the horse into motion, intent on getting away from Marsh and everything he was saying. He didn’t want to hear it, and he wasn’t going to hear it. What he was saying about Jill was ridiculous both about the baby and about her.
Marsh galloped up alongside him, throwing out an arm to drag him off the horse. They went tumbling to the ground, rolling down into a ravine, punching at each other and swearing like devils.
“You sorry ass son of a gun,” Dustin shouted, pinning Marsh to the ground. “You could have killed me! Or you, not that it would have been any great loss!”
“I’d like to kill you, ’cause I think that’s what it’s gonna take to get you to listen. You mule-headed son of a bitch, you’re thinking with your crotch and not your head!” With a roar, he threw Dustin off of him, leaping to his feet in a boxing stance.
“I’m not buying the crap you’re peddling, friend. You can’t solve the case, so you’d rather lynch Jill than keep working it.”
Marsh circled warily. “I’m the best damn lawman around. I never leave a case until it’s solved. If you don’t think Jill’s cooked up this scam, then you tell me where the bald-headed boyfriend is.”
“I hope he’s in hell. That’s where you’re going when I get through with you,” Dustin said, lunging to pack a punch at Marsh’s jaw. It connected solidly, but the sheriff got one off, too, before Dustin backed up, eyeing his opponent cautiously.
“I don’t think he exists, except
in the mind of your housekeeper. She’s bought herself a pretty secure position, with everybody worrying about the baby getting snatched.”
“Not too damn secure after the visit Maxine paid me today,” Dustin growled.
Marsh relaxed his arms slightly. “What the hell are you mouthing off about now?”
He relaxed his stance a little, too, though he didn’t completely release the fisted position of his hands. Marsh was known to get a thrill out of a sucker punch every once in a while. Not that he’d ever pulled it on Dustin, but he would never have bet Marsh would drag him off a galloping horse just to chitchat, either.
“Maxine learned I had a new housekeeper, courtesy of Joey. He was a bit too enthusiastic about her, and Maxine automatically leaped to the same conclusion you have. That Jill is a bed warmer and on her way to becoming a permanent one.”
Marsh had the grace to look sheepish. “I’ve been wondering if Jill heard me say that.”
“She’s heard plenty today I’m sure she’d rather she hadn’t.” He tried to release the tension in his chest but couldn’t. There was a spring of fury inside him, all coiled up and ready to burst any second. Punching Marsh had taken a little of the tightness out of him, but it wasn’t all gone yet. “Maxine wants me to fire Jill. I didn’t take her seriously, until she leveled an accusation against my mother. That she had an affair with David Copeland.”
“Oh, yeah, right. And Santa isn’t a fairytale fat boy.”
Dustin completely relaxed his arms, knowing that Marsh and he could finish their conversation now without their fists. “Well, that’s how determined she is to win this thing. She made no bones that she’s going to make everything much more difficult if Jill remains at the ranch, replacing Nina in the family, to her mind.”
Marsh whistled at his horse, which came to graze at his side. “The old bat’s crazy.”
“Yeah. But you can see that Jill isn’t exactly the most popular person in Lassiter. No one, except my mother and me, seems to think her being here is a good thing.”
“I just want you to think, buddy. There’s something niggling at me about that woman that I just can’t put my finger on. All that sweetness and light bothers me. Maybe it’s Nina, remembering that’s the way she acted when she was trying to hook you. I don’t know. All I do know is that I feel like I’m reading a book, but the last page has been thrown away. How can there be so many pieces to this story missing? Jill’s the one answer that ties everything together.”