Peggy Dulle - Liza Wilcox 04 - Saddle Up
Page 25
“I forgot the cups and spoons,” I told her.
She pulled out a larger Ziploc bag filled with sand toys.
“Let’s go.”
Jordan and I walked down to the beach. It was a private beach for the condos and deserted. I plopped myself down near the water, took off my shoes, and set my toes in the ocean. It was cold and felt wonderful.
Jordan sat a few feet higher than me and started on her castle.
“That’s my girls!” I heard Dad say.
Both Jordan and I whipped are heads around, then jumped up and launched ourselves at Dad.
“Easy girls,” he said, falling back onto the sand.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“You didn’t escape, did you Dad?” Jordan chimed in.
“No,” he said, glancing over his shoulder.
Off to the left and over by the sand dune stood two men, both dressed in dark suits.
“The Feds?” I asked.
“Have a seat on the sand and I’ll tell you all about it.”
We did and Dad told us that he agreed to testify against the guys who killed Tad Jenkins and set the platform at the Lagoon to explode.
“I wouldn’t tell them the names of my people, but it was enough to get me out of jail, at least until the trial.” He glanced back at the two men. “Except I have my two entourage agents following me around everywhere.”
“That’s great,” both Jordan and I said together and hugged Dad again.
He pushed us away and said, “I see my girls haven’t changed. One is building sandcastles and the other is staring out into the ocean.”
“It’s like a family vacation at the beach,” Jordan said.
“Yes it is,” Dad agreed with her.
Jordan went back to her sandcastle adding shells and little blue beads around the perimeter she had made.
I went back to staring at the waves.
Dad sat down with me.
“How are you, Liza?” he asked.
“I’m fine, Dad.”
He put his arm around me and pulled me close.
“Tell me what happened after I left.”
I filled him in on the rest of the story, including Jack Daniels and Grace.
“That’s great,” he said and lifted my hand. “Where’s the ring?”
“I gave it back.”
“Oh, Liza,” Dad said.
“He arrested you, he knew it would break my heart, and he didn’t even care. I can’t be with a man like that.”
“He’s the reason I’m out, you know.”
I didn’t answer.
“He came to me in the federal holding cell they put me in. Up to that point I wouldn’t talk to anybody about anything. He told me how much I meant to you and how losing me again would affect you. He also pointed out how my sneaking in and out of your life, now and again, was upsetting you. After he left, I thought long and hard about what he’d said. I am tired of running and hiding. I love you and your sister. You two mean more to me than my own life and certainly more than some stupid idiots who wanted to blow up a church.”
“I know that, Dad.”
“So why haven’t you called him in the last month?”
“I can’t, Dad. I said some awful things to him after he handcuffed you.”
“You can always take back words.”
“Not these words.”
“What did you say?”
“I told him to go to hell, that I hated him and to take his stupid ring that was his mother’s back.”
“Ouch,” my dad said.
“You don’t come back from those words, Dad.”
“Your foolish pride is holding you back, Liza. They’re just words, they’re not the way your heart feels.”
“My heart is fine.”
“Yeah, I can see that.” He pulled me closer and I put my head on his shoulder.
The tears started again. Damn it! I promised myself I was done crying!
“Hey, Dad,” Jordan called.
Dad turned his head and said, “Yes.”
“Let’s go for a run down the beach.”
Dad laughed, kissed me on the forehead, and said, “That’s a great idea. I can’t wait to see the Feds trying to keep up with us, especially in those suits.”
Dad and Jordan took off running down the beach. The suits jogged behind them. I closed my eyes to soak up the sun, felt the wind on my cheeks, and tried to not think. But I couldn’t keep my mind from thinking about Tom. I missed the man, I missed his laughter and love and I was miserable without him. But I couldn’t call him. How do you take back – I hate you?
I remembered all the times we had sat together with me in front of him with my head on his chest and his arms wrapped tightly around me. We would be on his deck at his house, on my back porch, and even on the balcony when we had gone on that Mexican cruise. It felt so real I could almost feel his arms around me. God, I missed his arms around me.
“Love me, honey?” his voice in my head said.
I laughed.
“Do you?” his voice asked again.
“You know I do,” I answered to the wind and the waves.
Then I felt something being slipped onto the finger of my left hand. I looked down and saw Tom’s ring.
He pulled me close and said, “You’ve got four weeks to organize a wedding, honey. Don’t you think you’d better get started?”
EPILOGUE
I know that this book didn’t end like the other three but you can be assured that Tom, Justin, Liza, Jordan and their dad will find themselves wrapped in another adventure very soon.
After all, Liza’s got a wedding to plan in just four weeks. If that’s not stressful enough, she’s going to have to deal with a dead florist, an exploding cake, and the wedding planner from hell.
Also there weren’t any good desserts in this book – sorry about that! But I would like to share my mom’s wonderful recipe for waffles! Enjoy!
Nana’s Waffles
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 Tablespoon Cornmeal (optional)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg (separated)
2 Tablespoon butter (melted)
2/3 cup buttermilk
Pinch of cream of tartar
Directions:
1. Sift together: flour, cornmeal (if using), salt, and baking soda.
2. In a separate bowl whisk together: egg yolk, butter and then add buttermilk.
3. In another bowl: whip the egg whites with a pinch of cream of tartar
4. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients – add the buttermilk, butter, egg yolk mixture, then fold in the egg whites.
5. In a heated waffle iron, spread batter and bake.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
PEGGY DULLE has been an educator since 1986. She lives in Hilmar, California with her husband and oldest daughter. They recently moved to Hilmar to be close to their other daughter and grandson.
Other books in the Liza Wilcox series are: Death is Clowning Around, Apple Pots and Funeral Plots, and Secrets at Sea.
Other books by Peggy Dulle: The River’s Secret, A Get Away Diner Mystery.
To learn more about Peggy and her books, please visit her website at: www.peggydulle.com