One Hundred Excuses (An Aspen Cove Romance Book 5)

by Kelly Collins

  “It’s hard to go inside when I know those kisses are waiting out here. I’d love to invite you in, but with an impressionable four-year-old, it’s not the right thing to do.”

  “As much as I’d love to sit on that couch and kiss you silly, you’re right. There’s more than us and kisses to think about.” He knew the second her thoughts went back to the call. The light left her eyes and her smile fell into a tight, stretched line. “Hey.” He moved her off his lap and stood, pulling her up with him. “You don’t have to worry about him. I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.”

  She gave him a half smile. “You don’t understand how much that means to me.”

  He walked her to the back door and kissed her one last time before he held it open for her to enter. “How about a barbecue tomorrow at my house? Nothing special, just hotdogs and chips.”

  She licked her lips and nodded. “That sounds amazing.”

  “I’ve got the day shift, but I’ll be home by five. Dinner will be ready by six.” He leaned in for another quick kiss. He couldn’t get enough of her. “I’m a phone call away.” They exchanged numbers before he stepped away.

  “Good night, Aiden.”

  He loved the way his name whispered from her lips.

  “Good night, Marina.”

  He waited for her to close and lock the door. As he walked away, his anger toward Craig Caswell grew. That whole family was a problem. He understood how Marina had been caught in their world. They were black widow spiders waiting for someone to get tangled in their web. Craig had used his daughter as bait to lure in Marina. Once she was there, she’d been good and trapped.

  Aiden’s aim was to make sure they didn’t get close enough to bite ever again. He turned and gave her home one last glance before he cleared the fence and went back to his deck.

  Marina was special. She was vulnerable and scared. She was his. He’d known it the minute he saw her. Confirmed it the second they kissed. He’d never put a wish on the wall before but was happy his for a kiss had been granted so quickly.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Marina woke to the sound of her phone. She hated to look at the screen. If it was a Caswell, she’d die. All night long she’d dreamed of Aiden and his kisses and she didn’t want the memory of that dream erased by an unwelcome call. By the third ring, she knew she couldn’t ignore whoever was on the line. She lifted her phone to see it was Katie.

  “Hey,” she said sounding relieved and more awake than she felt.

  “Are you still in bed? It’s after seven. You’ve got a four-year-old.”

  “She likes to sleep until eight.” Marina wiped the sleep from her eyes and sat up.

  “I’d hate you if I didn’t like you so much.” In the background, the whir of the mixer’s bowl filled the silence. “Hold on a second. Have to add the walnuts.” The pinging sound of nuts hitting the blade added a cadence to the whine. It was almost like music. “I’m back.” Katie sounded out of breath. “I need you here now, as in five minutes ago.”

  Marina hopped out of bed, looking for the jeans she’d worn yesterday. She tugged them on. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, but this is super important and you and Kellyn need to come right away.”

  “You’re scaring me.” What could be important enough to need her at the crack of dawn?

  Katie laughed. “That’s my superpower. Ask Bowie.” Marina knew about Katie’s heart transplant and how she took risks that scared the hell out of her family, but Katie told her if there was no risk, there was no reward. Her daughter Sahara was her biggest risk and her greatest reward.

  Marina knew exactly how she felt. She’d risked everything for Kellyn and would do it again. Some things were worth putting it all on the line for. She thought about Aiden and smiled. He was another risk that seemed more like a reward.

  “What’s going on?” She put her phone on speaker and finished dressing. Once she’d slipped on shoes, she picked up her phone and rushed to Kellyn’s room. “Tell me something. She’ll be grumpy if I wake her up early, so there better be at least a muffin in it for her.”

  “Get over here. It’s a good thing, and it’ll be worth getting up early for. I promise.” Katie hung up before Marina could say another word.

  She shook Kellyn gently until she stirred. “Hey, sweetie. We have to get up.”

  Kellyn’s eyes popped open. She searched the room for danger. “Nothing’s wrong.” God, she hoped that was true. Katie sounded excited and buoyant. She’d said it was a good thing, but Marina knew what was good could be open for interpretation. “Ms. Bishop wants us to come to the bakery. Sounds like she has a surprise for us. At least I know she has a muffin.”

  Kellyn rolled out of bed dragging her doll with her. While she visited the little girl’s room, Marina picked out shorts and a shirt.

  “Aiden invited us over for hotdogs tonight. That will be fun, right?” Kellyn peeked around the corner, but she couldn’t hide her smile. She liked Aiden, and that made Marina feel all the better about him. She might not be able to trust her gut, but Kellyn was a good judge of character. She was a tough sell, but if she liked you it meant you were a good person.

  In fifteen minutes, they were out the door and on their way to the bakery. They walked inside to find Doc Parker and his girlfriend, Agatha, sitting at the front table.

  “You’re here,” Katie sang from behind the counter. She shoved two muffins on a plate and grabbed a chocolate milk for Kellyn on her way around the display case. Rather than put everything on an unoccupied table, she placed their plate of muffins and Kellyn’s milk on the occupied table.

  “Sorry, Doc,” Marina said.

  She reached for the plate of muffins, but Doc stopped her from picking them up. “Join us.”

  “Yes,” Katie said with triumph in her voice. “Join them.” She turned and walked into the backroom, leaving the four of them alone.

  “How’s the house been treating you?”

  She’d rented the house from Doc Parker. It had been his home before his wife passed away and his daughter left town.

  “It’s great. We’ve been working in the backyard.” She laughed. “Actually, Aiden has been working in the backyard. He planted us a garden and put in a swing for Kellyn.”

  They all looked down at the little one, who was busy picking the nuts out of her muffin.

  “Sheriff Cooper is a good man. I’m glad he’s your neighbor,” Agatha said. “A woman could do worse than have a handsome lawman living next door.”

  Doc shook his head. “Should I worry about you and Sheriff Cooper, Agatha?” The smile on his face said he was teasing, and Lord knew Aiden was a good thirty years younger if not more, but Agatha was old and not dead. She recognized quality when she saw it.

  “Oh, fiddlesticks,” she said, slapping his arm. “I’ve got you, why would I want Aiden?” She picked up her coffee and sipped. “Besides, I hear he has his eyes set on a little girl with brown hair. Seems to think her mother is okay too.”

  Marina blushed. “He’s been kind to us.” She looked around the room. Surely, Katie hadn’t called her at the crack of dawn on a Sunday to have muffins with Doc Parker and Agatha. “Is there a reason I’m here?”

  Doc took off his glasses and wiped them on his shirt before he balanced them back on the bridge of his nose. “I hear things are a bit tight for you?”

  Her stomach dropped to the checkerboard floor. Was he afraid she wouldn’t come up with the rent? “Yes, but I’m figuring it all out. I can assure you I’ll have next month’s rent. I’m no slacker, Doc Parker. I may have a last name that’s synonymous with laziness and poor work ethic, but I’m a hard worker, and I’ll make ends meet each month.”

  Doc laid his gnarled hand on top of hers. “I don’t think I said I was worried about anything.” He looked at Agatha. “Did you hear me say I was worried about the rent?”

  She smiled. “No, dear. You said nothing about the rent.”

  They both stared at Marina.

  “I�
��m confused.”

  Doc sat back and ran his hands through his hair. “I’m going to need a trim.” He rubbed his stubbly face. “Probably a good shave too. You know how to use a straight edge?”

  Marina did, but it wasn’t something women requested at the beauty shop, so she was rusty. “I can give you a haircut, Doc, but I’m afraid I wouldn’t trust myself with a razor close to your neck.”

  “That’s no problem. It’s a shame that a good old-fashioned shave went by the wayside years ago. Love the feel of a foamy brush on my face, and the sound of a sharp blade removing my tougher-than-titanium whiskers. The older you get, the harder they hang on.”

  She opened Kellyn’s chocolate milk. “So I’m here because you want a haircut?”

  “Yes, that’s exactly why you’re here. This whole damn town needs a haircut. Have you seen the Williamses’ kids? Hippies, the whole lot. Then there’s Tilden. He’s as Grizzly Adams as they get. Lives up in the hills and helps old man Tucker make moonshine.”

  She’d heard about the bootleggers from Sage. “Didn’t he set himself on fire?”

  “Yep, Zachariah Tucker damn near killed himself.” Doc looked down at Kellyn. “Excuse my language, young lady.”

  “Get on with it, Paul,” Agatha said, using Doc’s first name. “The poor girl is turning gray waiting for your offer.”

  “Offer?” Marina asked.

  “Right. Right.” He pointed across the street to the building with the whitewashed windows. “That building over yonder belongs to me. It’s not fancy, but it’s got the basics.”

  Marina’s heart rate picked up. “I don’t understand.”

  “We need a hair person. I need a cut, and while my Agatha is beautiful no matter what she looks like, she likes them rollers in her hair once a week and drives to Copper Creek to get it done. That’s a long way to drive when there’s a qualified hairdresser in town.”

  She looked between the older couple and then over her shoulder at Katie, who pointed to The Wish Wall.

  Holy hell, they’d done it again. “You want me to work in your shop?”

  Doc shook his head. “Nope. I don’t want to own a beauty shop. Have you seen me lately? What do I know about beauty except how to admire it?” He gave Agatha a soft look then turned his attention to Marina. “I hoped you could do me a favor and take the shop off my hands.”

  “Take it off your hands?”

  He gave her a flustered look. “Do you always repeat what people say to you?”

  “No, not usually.” She wasn’t sure what was going on here. Just the other day she’d put her wish to have clients on the wall, and now she was being offered a shop. “I can’t afford to buy or rent the shop.”

  “There she goes again, Agatha. She’s hearing words I’m not speaking.”

  Agatha set her hand on top of Doc Parker’s, whose hand was still on top of Marina’s. Kellyn looked at the stack of hands and put hers on top of them like they were playing a game, but this wasn’t a game. Doc Parker and Agatha were offering her the opportunity of a lifetime. “What are the terms?”

  They took their hands back. Kellyn went back to her muffin while the three adults stared at the abandoned storefront across the street.

  “You want terms?” Doc rubbed his whiskers. “I’ll give you terms. The place is in a state. Needs a good cleaning. Probably a coat of paint too. I don’t paint. It’s got two sinks and three chairs. Old as dirt, but still functional. You open the doors and people will come.”

  “Surely you want something for the use of the building.” Nothing in her life had ever come this easy. Not that being beat for two years was easy, but being in Aspen Cove could never be considered hard.

  “I thought I made that clear. I want a haircut and Agatha wants curlers.”

  “Why would you do that for me?”

  He gave her a fatherly smile. “Haven’t you learned anything since you’ve been here? Aspen Cove takes care of its own. You belong to Aspen Cove. We’re here for you.” He took a set of keys from his pocket and set them on the table. “I get to be your first customer.” He stood and offered his hand to Agatha. “You ready, lovey? I need more than a muffin on Sunday. Let’s go to the diner and get bacon and eggs.”

  They left Marina sitting at the table staring at the keys in her hand. Seconds later, Katie plopped into Doc’s vacated seat with two cups of coffee.

  “Drink up, you’re going to need it.” She looked at her watch. “Help is coming in an hour.”

  “What? What help?”

  Katie cupped her cheek. “Oh, honey. You’ll learn.”

  It didn’t take an hour for people to show up. Cannon and Bowie came first with ladders and brooms. Sage arrived next with paint and brushes. As the morning faded, half the town was inside her new shop cleaning it up.

  More than once she had to excuse herself to cry. Never in her life had anyone given her so much.

  At lunchtime, Maisey brought a tray of pasta for anyone who was hungry. By the time five o’clock rolled around, what once had been an abandoned beauty shop was a thing of beauty. The sinks shone like polished porcelain. The checkerboard floors sparkled as if they were new. A fresh coat of off-white paint did wonders for the yellowing walls. The old name was scraped off the window and Cove Cuts was painted in its place. Kellyn helped too. On the wall by the front door she painted a smiling face and a ladybug. Nothing ever looked sweeter.

  The only person she hadn’t seen was Aiden, but she knew he was working. Occasionally, she caught herself staring at the sheriff’s office across the street, hoping to catch sight of him.

  “Do you care if I steal the little sprout here for a bit?” Katie asked. “My Sahara loves her and needs some Kellyn time.” Katie winked at her twice before she tossed her head toward where Aiden stood in the doorway. Katie was working her magic again.

  Marina dropped to her knees. “Do you want to visit Sahara or stay here and finish up with Mommy?”

  There was no hesitation. She wrapped her hand in Katie’s and pulled her to the door. When she saw Aiden she let go of Katie and raced to him. For a second, she stood in front of him as if she wasn’t sure what she’d do, and then she pulled him down to her level and gave him a hug.

  Marina swore the man almost cried. He hugged her back and wiped his eyes. “Lots of dust in the air.”

  “Whatever.” Katie gave him a knowing look. “We’ve got Kellyn.” She smiled at Aiden and then at Marina. “You kids be good.”

  Within minutes everyone had cleared out of the beauty shop.

  “I heard we got a hot hairstylist in town, but damn.” He moved to her and took her in his arms.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “I’m a sweaty mess,” Marina said, but she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He’d watched all day as the townsfolk came and went. Each person brought their bit of magic to Marina’s world.

  He’d stayed away because she needed to fully understand that she was part of a community. He would have loved to keep her to himself, but that wasn’t how these things worked. Life in a small town was give and take. In Aspen Cove it was more give than anything else. That’s what he loved about the place.

  With her in his arms, he pressed his lips to hers for a quick kiss. “Yes, but you’re a beautiful mess.”

  “I’m so glad you’re blind with no sense of smell.”

  “Baby, you smell like coconut and feel like heaven.” He brushed away the hair that fell over her face. “So damn beautiful.” He looked around the shop. He’d never been here when it was open. It had been vacant for a long time before he became the sheriff of Aspen Cove. He was surprised at how fresh and new it looked. “You got everything you need?”

  She scanned the room. “Almost. I need to get good shampoo and other hair products, and then I’ll be set.”

  “Hold that thought.” He rushed out the door and picked up the box he’d placed there on his way inside. “Samantha called in a favor. Said she owed you. Anyway, she had these delivered from a spa
in Silver Springs.” He put the cardboard box down and opened it. Inside were no less than a dozen jumbo bottles of shampoo and conditioner.

  “Oh my God, what’s with you people?”

  “It’s a disease. One you caught long before you moved here. It’s why you fit right in. Give me a tour?”

  She held his hand and walked him around the room, pointing out where she’d wash and cut and perm and curl. Once she finished, he helped her stock the empty shelves with shampoo.

  He opened a bottle and took a sniff. “Thank goodness.”

  She pulled it from his hand. “Does it smell good?”

  “Not as good as you. If everyone around town smelled like coconuts, I’d be in trouble.” He looked down at the already growing bulge in his pants.

  She followed his line of sight. “Coconut does it for you, huh?”

  He pulled her into his arms. “You do it for me. Shall we get to those hotdogs?”

  “I should go shower first.”

  “I’d rather you came to my place.”

  “Persistent much?” She picked up her purse and walked to the door. She looked over her shoulder and smiled. “I can’t believe this happened.”

  He stepped outside the door while she locked up the shop.

  He glanced toward the once whitewashed windows. “Wishes are powerful things. I got mine when you kissed me. You got yours today.”

  She climbed inside her SUV and he followed her home in the cruiser. Aiden was hyper vigilant now that Craig had reached out to her. His eyes scanned the streets for cars that didn’t belong. He didn’t like that the asshole knew where to find her, but he understood why Marina had answered the phone. People like the Caswells never stopped. She’d learned to pick and choose her battles. Craig Caswell would be the loser if he battled with Marina.

  She parked in front of her house and got out of her SUV. “Are you sure I can’t take a few minutes to shower?”

  While he didn’t want to give up a second with her, he knew she’d feel more comfortable if she didn’t feel grimy. “You go shower. I’ll meet you in my backyard when you’re finished.”