by Stacy Finz
On the other hand, it was an excellent reminder that men always left when there was something better dangling in front of them.
Chapter 16
Christmas morning, Maddy spent much of the day lounging in her pajamas, talking to her family in Wisconsin, and opening presents. From Dave she’d gotten a bottle of French perfume and a ridiculously expensive pair of diamond studs that screamed guilt gift. She’d gotten him nothing.
They’d talked earlier by phone; him mostly begging for her to take him back, her mostly screaming at him to sign the goddamn divorce papers. He’d made it obvious that he thought she was only going through the motions to scare him and that he still hoped to win her back. Hence, the over-the-top gifts. But no amount of material things would change her mind.
It had dawned on her recently that she missed the familiarity of Dave more than she actually missed his companionship. Even before she’d learned of his affair, they’d seemed to have less and less to talk to each other about. She had to take some responsibility for that. Because, let’s face it, spending most of her days getting mani-pedis, shopping, and working on their house didn’t exactly add to her repertoire of scintillating conversation topics.
Since the move to Nugget, he seemed to sense the monumental changes in her, and his panic had become palpable. Maybe her newfound independence had suddenly made her seem more attractive to him. She didn’t know. And more important, she didn’t care.
She slept on and off, curling up with the books Virgil had lent her.
When evening fell, Maddy slipped into a sparkly blouse and a pair of black velvet cigarette pants and carefully applied her makeup before heading off to Sophie and Mariah’s for Christmas dinner.
Once she got there, the night had seemed somewhat stilted, devoid of the usual festiveness of one of their affairs. Maddy suspected that it was because her friends still hadn’t decided on a donor. Lithuanian Man, despite his love for Maroon Five, was still the front-runner. But Sophie and Mariah couldn’t seem to pull the trigger, signaling to Maddy that Nate had been right. There was trouble in paradise.
Maddy stayed through dessert, then begged off early. Even though she knew they’d never see her that way, her new single status made her feel like an interloper.
For the last five years she’d spent Christmas with Dave. And despite everything he’d done, they’d made good memories together. What do you do with those recollections, she wondered; neatly pack them away in a closet? Eventually, yes, Maddy supposed. But for now, those moments seemed too sacrosanct to suddenly start new ones. Next year, she promised herself.
Back at home, she dragged Rhys’s surprise onto the porch and tied it with a big red bow. At one point, she’d nearly brought it back inside the house to save for another time, fearing that Rhys would find the gift presumptuous. Especially now that she knew he and his father didn’t exchange Christmas presents. But she’d been planning this ever since Rhys had talked about feeling out of place in Nugget. So she left it on the porch and waited.
Finally, at about nine o’clock, she heard his footsteps climbing up the stairs, and the scraping of Shep’s shoes. She ran to the front window and pressed her face against the glass. But the angle was wrong and she cursed herself for not planning better. She dashed to the bathroom to check her hair, ran back to the living room, and marked time on the couch, gazing into the lights on her tiny tree.
The knock came about fifteen minutes later. She opened the door and there he stood, gorgeous, in a forest green field coat with snowflakes frosting his hair.
He crushed her in a warm embrace and whispered, “Thank you.”
“Do you like it?”
He lifted her chin and softly pressed his lips to hers. “Yeah,” he said into her mouth and she realized that he was a little choked up.
With Maddy’s input, Colin had designed and crafted the rocking chair especially for Rhys. But the inscription engraved on the headrest—Here’s To Finding Home—had been all her idea.
When she saw that he was still halfway outside, she pulled him over the threshold and shut the door. “Thanks for being such a wonderful friend to me, even if you were sort of a dick about that whole Addison deal.”
“A dick?” he said with affected outrage. “I’m the law, sugar.”
She let her eyes roam over him. “I’m gonna let the sugar thing slide, since it’s Christmas. You want beer, wine, tea, hot apple cider?”
“Cider sounds nice.” He followed her into the kitchen and watched her prepare a pouch of mulling spices. “I got you something, too.”
“You did not. What is it?”
He grinned. “It’s in the trailer, be right back.”
She fixed them each a mug, brought it out on a tray, and placed it down on the coffee table. When he came back in, she didn’t see a package on him. He caught her looking and patted his pocket.
“Good things come to those who wait,” he said, taking in her outfit. “You look great.”
“Thanks. Just wanted to be festive . . . you know . . . for Sophie and Mariah’s thing. Did you have a nice time at Clay’s?”
“Yeah. How ’bout you?” He sat down next to her on the sofa and took a sip of the cider.
“Mm hmm. I could reheat that,” she offered.
“The cider’s good, plenty warm. What did y’all have for dinner?”
“Oh, you know, the usual. How about you guys?”
“Clay made prime rib,” he said. “I did all the sides.”
“Get out. You cook?”
“Restaurant quality, sugar.”
She laughed. “I had no idea you cooked.”
“I do a lot of things, Maddy.” He looked at her in a way that made his meaning clear. “I’ve got leftovers in the fridge if you want to see for yourself.”
“I’m fine. Maybe tomorrow if there’s any left.” She shifted on the couch to better face him. “Did the kids like their gifts?”
“Oh, yeah. Although I probably should’ve gotten Clay an Xbox, too. He’s gonna hog the thing.”
“You got them an Xbox? Pretty big ticket, don’t you think?” Oh, she wished she’d been there to see the expression on Rhys’s face when the kids opened his presents. “What you get Lina and Sam?”
“Nothing too exciting.” He smirked, and Maddy sincerely hoped he was lying. Not cool to give your nonrelatives better gifts than your siblings.
“Did they have a good time?”
“Sam did. Lina . . .” He shrugged. “She’s pretty unhappy with me these days.”
“Why’s that?”
“You really are quite nosey.”
“I am not. Why’s she unhappy with you?”
“Pushy, too.” Rhys stretched out on the couch. “We’re in a disagreement over Shep’s care. She wants to keep him home indefinitely. When the time comes, I want to put him in an assisted-care facility with professionals.”
“So you can go back to Houston?” she asked.
“Because it’s the right thing to do. But I’m sure that’s what Lina thinks.”
“Can I make a suggestion?”
“Can I stop you?” He grinned at her, and despite the gravity of their conversation she really, really wanted to make out with him. Did that make her a bad person?
“You could hire in-home professionals,” she said. “That’s what we did with my grandmother. Costwise, it works out to be the same as a good rest home.”
“And where would I put them, Maddy?”
“They can move into my side of the duplex as soon as the innkeeper’s quarters are completed,” she offered, knowing that it was the perfect solution. “I could definitely get the guys to speed that up.”
“You’re not moving into the Lumber Baron until I nab the meth-heads who stowed their stash in your basement.” He put his hand on her knee and left it there.
Ordinarily his high-handedness would’ve put her on the defensive, but she was too distracted by what his hand was doing. Or more accurately what it wasn’t doing. She scooted c
loser to him on the couch and touched his hand. He moved closer and looked at her. Really looked.
“What do you want to do, Mad?” His eyes lowered to her lips. When she didn’t say anything, he reached over and kissed her.
She whimpered into his mouth.
“You like that?” He lowered her onto her back, leaned over her, brushing his lips against her throat. “Mmm, you smell nice.”
She had a momentary twinge of guilt. Dave’s French perfume, which she’d generously dabbed on her pressure points, was what smelled so good. But when she felt Rhys’s weight settle on her, all thoughts of Dave evaporated.
He still had the field coat on and Maddy pushed it open with her hands. Rhys leaned up on one elbow and managed to shrug it off with amazing dexterity. Then he began unbuttoning her blouse, trailing kisses across her neck and swirling his tongue around her ear.
“Mmm,” she moaned.
Encouraged, he worked his way back down to her lips and explored the inside of her mouth with his tongue. God, this man could kiss. He tasted like apples, cinnamon, and cloves, and she couldn’t get enough of him. She grabbed him around the neck and pulled him closer so they could take the kiss deeper, more intense.
He shuddered as she ran her hands over his arms and chest and down his belly. Maddy wanted to feel his skin, but before she could get his shirt off, Rhys pressed his erection against her. She spread her legs for him as he rocked into her.
The friction made her crazy, so she grabbed his perfect backside and held it firmly against her, pushing her pelvis into his hardness until she felt ready to explode. “Oh, God.”
He was devouring her again with his mouth. Or maybe he’d never stopped. But now the kiss felt hungrier, more frenzied, almost desperate. Rhys went back to her shirt, opening the last of her buttons and spreading it open. He lifted up on his elbows so he could gaze down at her breasts.
“So beautiful.” With a finger he traced the lace of her bra, dipped his mouth down and gently tugged the cups with his teeth. He pushed her breasts together with his big hands so he could take both nipples in his mouth at once, sucking and laving them with his tongue until they ached.
“Oh, Jesus. I want you, baby.” He reached for the waistband of her pants, let his fingers dip into her panties, and within seconds was pulling down her zipper. And just like that his hands went completely limp. “You hear that?”
“What? No. Don’t stop.”
He forced himself to sit up, straddling her with his knees, and pressed his ear to the wall.
“Let’s go in the bedroom?” Maddy pleaded, barely able to breathe.
Rhys shut his eyes. “Shep’s awake.”
Maddy reached up and tried to pull him back down.
“We’ve gotta quit, sugar.”
She wanted to scream. “Why? Lina’s in there.”
Rhys pulled her up and into his arms and cuddled her close, kissing her hair. “I’m sorry . . . He’s having night issues. Bathroom stuff that Lina can’t handle. In a minute she’ll be banging on the trailer, looking for me.” He let out a deep sigh and stood up. Scooping his jacket off the floor, he reached inside the pocket for a small, prettily wrapped box. “I need a second.” He looked down at his crotch and shook his head.
Putting on his jacket, Rhys took a few minutes to catch his breath and walked over to Maddy’s little Christmas tree. “What’s this?” He held up the velvet box containing Dave’s diamond earrings.
Before she could respond, he flipped the lid up and Maddy saw his face instantly deflate.
“From Dave?” He tried to act indifferent, but she could tell he was angry.
She nodded, silently cursing herself for leaving the stupid box in plain view.
“Nice.” He put the earrings back under the tree. “See you around.”
“Rhys—”
He walked out before she could form a coherent sentence, tossing the small parcel he’d been holding into the trash can with her wet umbrella. Once she heard his screen door close, Maddy fished out the package, tore off the wrapping paper and opened the plain white box to find a silver locket. Nestled inside the pendant was a tiny picture of the Lumber Baron.
She touched the photograph with her fingertip, then went into the bedroom, where Maddy used the dresser mirror to clasp the necklace around her neck. Dave’s earrings she shoved to the back of her underwear drawer, next to her wedding ring.
Before Rhys left for work he took another look at Maddy’s rocker in the light. The chair was beautifully rustic, made from honeyed lodgepole pine. While most of Colin’s chairs were chunky, this one had a refined quality. Instead of using rounded logs, Colin had built the chair with flat wooden slats. It could be something that might be handed down from generation to generation.
Women had gotten him gifts before. Shirts. Cologne. CDs. An occasional tie. But nothing like this. He ran his hand over the inscription. Last night he’d gotten caught up in the moment, thinking that maybe he and Maddy could have something. Then Dave’s diamonds shocked him back to his senses like a bucket of ice water being dumped over his head.
But he’d always treasure the chair.
His cell phone rang and Rhys answered it, glad for the distraction.
“What’s up?” He climbed into his truck.
“Chief, Jake just responded to a two-eleven at the Nugget Market. Suspect got away.”
Shit! Robberies didn’t happen in Nugget. “Anyone hurt?”
“No. The checker’s a little flipped out. He’s just some kid who helps out on weekends and holidays. Jake’s there now.”
“Okay, Connie. I’m on my way.” Rhys jumped in his truck and turned on his portable siren.
Jake had the department rig. But Rhys had managed to find two seized all-wheel vehicles that were practically new. They were due in any day now. If the weather forecast for the week turned out to be right, they’d need those trucks.
By the time he pulled into the market’s parking lot, a small group of residents had assembled. Rhys could tell from their animated body language that they were discussing the robbery.
“Hey, Chief,” one of the old-timers in the group called out to him.
Rhys waved, noticed the “Flush the Lumber Baron” banner hanging over the store, shook his head, and went inside. Jake was talking to a teenager, scribbling down notes in a steno pad. The boy must be the cashier, Rhys thought, putting his age somewhere between fifteen and seventeen. The owners of the Nugget Market stood off to the side.
“Ethel. Stu.” He tipped his head. “You have an office in the back, somewhere we can talk?”
Stu nodded and led them behind the deli counter to a small room with a desk and a chair, but not much else. Ethel shut the door.
“Were the both of you here at the time of the robbery?” Rhys asked.
“Ethel was home. I was in the back, breaking down boxes. Jesus, in all the time we’ve been here nothing like this has ever happened. Thank God, no one was hurt. But that dirtbag got the entire till—more than five grand. Being that yesterday was Christmas, we didn’t make our usual bank run.”
“You got insurance?” Rhys asked.
Stu nodded. “Not sure if it covers holdups, though.”
“Show me where you were breaking down those boxes.”
Stu directed him to a refrigerated storage room separated from the market by a set of swinging doors. Rhys peered through the doors’ two oval-shaped glass windows. The meat counter blocked his view of the rest of the store. “What did you see?”
“Not a damn thing. Didn’t even know anything was wrong until I heard one of the customers yelling to call 9-1-1.”
“You have any security cameras in or out of the store?”
“Nah.” Stu played with the string on his butcher apron. “Occasionally, one of the high school kids will lift a pack of cigarettes or a candy bar. Hardly worth the expense of a security system.”
“You notice anyone suspicious in the store during the last couple of days . . . Someone you d
idn’t recognize, who looking back on it might’ve been casing the place?”
“No.” Stu shrugged.
Rhys looked at Ethel, who shook her head.
“We’ve been awful busy these last couple of days with the holidays and all,” she said. “Even if someone came in, we might not have paid attention.”
Rhys addressed both of them, “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell anyone how much money got stolen. I’d like you to ask the other employees to also keep it under their hats.”
“Even the insurance company?” Stu asked.
“You can tell them,” Rhys said. “It would just be better not to publicize how much money you keep on hand.”
“That’s not our typical—”
Rhys held up his hand. “I get it, Stu. But we don’t want any potential robbers out there thinking the Nugget Market is Fort Knox.”
“Oh, God, you don’t think he’ll come back?” Ethel asked.
“I don’t. But for the next couple of weeks one of us will drop by every couple of hours. In the meantime, anyone seem suspicious, you call it in. Okay?”
“Yes, Chief,” both Stu and Ethel said together.
He wished he could say something more hopeful, but he didn’t want to make any promises he couldn’t keep. By now the robber could be in Nevada, playing blackjack with their hard-earned cash. When Rhys walked back to the front of the store Jake stood waiting for him.
“You get a description from the kid?”
“Male. Caucasian. Average height. Slight build. He wore a hood and sunglasses.” Jake lowered his voice. “But the checker saw a scorpion tattoo on the back of his left hand. He also thought the suspect might be on something—seemed twitchy.”
Rhys brightened at the mention of the tattoo. “A scorpion, huh?”
“Yeah, I thought you’d like that.” Jake smiled. “I’ll do some checking with the Department of Corrections, the sheriff, and neighboring departments. See if we can find the owner of that scorpion.”
“He have a gun?”
Jake looked over at the boy, who was now being consoled by Ethel. “The kid says yes. But when I pressed him, he acknowledged that the guy had his hand in the pocket of his hoodie the whole time. Might’ve been a pistol. Might’ve been his fingers.”