Zack fidgeted with the change in his pocket. “There were other photos?”
She nodded. “Lord yes. The one of that pretty little thing laying a lip lock on you in Oklahoma and even one of you two at a candlelit table in California.”
His head popped up. “I didn’t know there was a photographer there then.”
“Them paparazzi is sneaky. Now what can I get you for sweetie? Pie and tea? How about a blue plate special first?”
“Pie and tea’s fine, Trix.” He slipped onto a bar stool at the counter. “How’s everything else around here?”
She rolled her eyes. “Honey, if the world stood still, everything here would stay in one place. Sometimes I think even time here is set in concrete. But there is a guy sneaking around the town, an outsider I don’t trust. Better watch out, ‘cause I think he may be that man I saw with you in Oklahoma. He’s not that tall, black hair. Kind of looks like Napoleon except no hat and he doesn’t slip his hand inside a vest.”
Zack exhaled sharply. Jeez, the shit had followed them all the way out here. Talk about not giving up. “Wonder where he’s staying?”
“At the B&B in Sandy Hill.”
He grinned.
Trixie shrugged. “Well, I am the town’s number one snoop. I have a reputation to uphold.”
“Your number one status may be in question, considering your sister’s talents.”
“She’s an amateur.” Trixie waved her hand. “Roxie only pays attention to affairs and lawsuits. I do not discriminate.”
Zack chuckled. “Okay, why isn’t he staying in town then?”
“You know I asked him sweetie.” She leaned closer. “I’d do anything for you. If I were just a little younger and hadn’t married that couch potato, I’d be fightin’ that pretty young thing for a lip lock. Anyways, this foreigner just laughed when I asked and said he preferred to stay in Sandy Hill and be out of firing range.”
“He may have a point.” Zack grinned. “I guarantee there will be some explosives going off since he’s here. You haven’t seen any touring buses anywhere, have you?”
Trixie laughed. “This place isn’t really a tourist attraction unless you’re into historic buildings. I’d rather go to Disney World.”
“Yeah, well, there will be a couple of them roll into town, nevertheless.” He took a bite of pie. “Oh my God,” he said. “This gets better every time. Don’t let anyone else have a slice, okay?”
Trixie smiled and stared into his eyes. “Darlin’ I promise I won’t share. You can eat anything I have anytime.”
****
When he got to his mother’s house, Zack’s eyebrows shot up. What was a touring bus doing in her driveway? Damned if he’d knock at his family home if Brooks were here. Bravely entering without knocking, he saw Brooks laughing as he sat on the sofa, a cup and saucer in his hands and his mother sitting in a chair perpendicular to him.
“Well, Zack,” Brooks said, beaming, “You didn’t tell me what a delightful woman your mother is. I just invited her out to my compound on Lake Michigan. She and my wife would have gotten on like a house of fire.”
His mother giggled. Actually giggled. He’d never heard her do that. “Gerry is so charming,” she said. “I just don’t think I could trust the man if I were out there on a big old compound all alone with him.”
You better believe it.
“Well,” he leaned over and took her hand, kissing it. “While I’m here, I’ll wear down your defenses.” He glanced back up at Zack, who was doing a slow boil. “Your mother says your daughter is staying with a friend of hers for a couple of days. So she has generously agreed to have not only you but Ms. Drake here at the house. Isn’t that cordial and so Southern of her?”
“Crandall, here?” He felt like screaming the words, but managed to modulate his voice, even though his jaw had locked.
“It’s an excellent idea, sweetheart.” His mother gave him that icy glare, the one she used to give him when he used to sneak cookies out of the kitchen. “After all, I had to meet the woman who has had all those enticing photos with you in the paper.”
Great. He’d hoped his mother hadn’t noticed. So much for hopes. “Mom, tabloids can make pictures look any way they want to.”
“I’m pretty certain that was you in the Jockey’s.” Her eyes narrowed.
“Well,” Brooks stood after patting her hand once more time. “Miriam, it has been an honor and a privilege to get to know you. We will have that dinner before I leave.” He winked at her.
Winked! Zack fisted his hands at his sides. The old codger was coming on to his mother. Of all the gall.
“Time to go,” Brooks said. “I have to meet with the mayor and go over details for the contest at City Hall and then make sure Ms. Drake finds her way here. But, Miriam,” he pointed at her and grinned. “I will see you later, sweet lady.”
She started to get up, and he motioned her back down. “No need to bother, you lovely woman. I can see myself out while you catch up with your son. I’m sure he has tales to tell. ‘Til later.” He got up and strode to the door and with one more wave in her direction, he walked out the door closing it behind him.
“Isn’t he the dearest man?” his mother said, sighing.
“You aren’t serious.” Zack quickly made his way to the sofa and fell down into it. “That guy was flirting with you.”
“I know.” Her cheeks turned pink. “Isn’t it wonderful? I haven’t had any attention like that since your father died. Except maybe from the bank President when he was trying to get me to invest more money in CDs.”
“Mom, he is not serious.” Zack gulped air like a fish out of water. “That man is out for Gerald Brooks, himself all the way. I guarantee it.”
She shook her head. “I don’t believe it. I just think the poor man is lost without a woman to steer him in the right direction.”
Zack rubbed his temples. “Okay, I’ll come back to this subject tomorrow. Why did you send Meredyth to a friend’s house?”
“Because that woman is coming.”
Her eyes said it all. It was like she was waiting for the devil herself. “Mother, Crandall is a very nice woman. She has values and upbringing and manners.”
“And a powerful case of lust if you ask me.” She laced her fingers together. “I’ve never known a woman who got you in bed with her the very first time you met her.”
“Who said that?”
“Why, it was on Entertainment P.M. Didn’t you watch it? Candid photos of you on the shore in a deep groping embrace. Then her sneaking down the hallway holding her heels in her hand and her hair all over her head. It doesn’t take a P.I. to figure it out.”
“Why has no one else seen these pictures?” he asked. “They made up like half of everything you’ve seen.”
“These just came out,” she said, now crossing her arms. “They were on last night’s broadcast, P.M. After Hours. There’s supposed to be more tonight in Prime Time.”
How had Trixie missed those? Couch Potato must have more life in him than she let on.
“I’ll have to see it to believe it.”
She shook her head. “You’re a terrible liar. When you blink like that and hold your jaw that way, you’ve been caught. I learned that tell when you were three.”
“Nice to know.” He coughed. “You could have told me sooner. But don’t believe everything you see, mother. There are a few people involved in this whole contest who are skilled at the art of deceit.”
She nodded. “We’ll see. I’ll know for sure when I meet Crandall Drake.”
****
As Crandall drove into town in her airport rental car, she felt like the weight of the world suddenly dropped on her shoulders. She didn’t know what caused it, but she definitely felt like someone was talking about her, and not in a good way. What a way to start in Zack’s hometown.
The place looked like the South, okay, lots of roadside veggie markets, open for the first time this spring. Abandoned cars in yards outside the cit
y. Served her right for driving in from Raleigh. Once inside the actual town, things looked a bit more modern and neat. In fact the downtown section was actually quaint. Bigger but still reminding her of Mayberry, RFD, a show she had no recall of when it originally ran. Nothing like American nostalgia.
She drove on to Main Street and her stomach growled, making her decide to stop for a bite at the quaint diner, circa fifties style. Why not? It was something she could see her parents coming to when they were young. Who couldn’t use a good dose of old fixtures and probably black and white checkered floors? After all, she wasn’t to meet her host until an hour from now.
As she parked, she was curious regarding Brooks’ request that she stay at what he had called “a quaint homey place,” and the woman would be expecting her. No last name, simply Miriam. The whole thing was odd for a B&B owner, and knowing Brooks there had to be a catch. One thing Crandall knew for sure, if she had to share a room with Zack, all bets were off.
Entering the diner, Crandall saw a woman in a white apron with a pencil behind her ear look up from a barstool. Chewing furiously on what had to be a stick of gum, the woman turned off the wall-mounted TV as Crandall strode in. “Well Lord child.” She jumped up. “Don’t tell me you’re just getting round to eatin’ lunch at three? No wonder you’re nuthin’ but skin and bones. Let Trix pack on a burger, fries and a piece of homemade pie.”
Crandall smiled and nervously bit on her lip as she sat down at a table. It was the South all right. She wasn’t used to being everyone’s immediate friend. This was going to be a trial. “I’ve been in the air, just got off the plane. You know they don’t feed you anymore, and I won’t take first class just for plane food.”
The woman nodded. “I hear you.” She strode over, wiped her palm on her apron and extended her hand. “Name’s Trixie. Me and my couch potato husband own this diner.”
Crandall shook her hand, wondering what the woman had been wiping off it. “Nice to meet you. My name is Crandall Drake.”
“Now you didn’t have to tell me that one.” Trixie sat down across from her. “Why most of the town knows who you are already. ‘Spect I told near half of them myself. Mayor says I’m the town’s informal meeter and greeter.”
And town gossip. “How did you know who I was?”
“All your photos with my boy Zack were plastered all over the paper child. We don’t miss keeping up with our own. Especially when it’s juicy.”
A feeling of unease crept up her spine. “You’re not his mother are you?”
The woman’s eyebrows shot up as she patted her hair. “Hell, no honey. I’m a few years older than Zack but got a lot of fire still in the furnace. Too bad no one’s stokin’ it.”
A laugh twitched at Crandall’s lips. “I’m just relieved. Those tabloid photos are fairly risqué, though you know most of the stuff was fabricated.”
She nodded. “Whatever you say, sweetie. It’s nice to stand by him. Though I have to say the ones on P.M. After Dark last night would be hard to doctor. Those were movies, actually. Didn’t see them until about an hour ago. I Tivo it. Can’t get near the remote with Floyd at home.” She pointed at the LCD TV screen on the wall. “This time of day’s quiet.”
Crandall laughed nervously. “What on earth could TV have on about me that’s new?”
“Oh.” Trixie rolled her eyes and grinned. “This was footage shot on some island. Very suggestive stuff.” She leaned forward, her elbow on the table. “Tell, me how is Zack in bed? I always wished I could find out. But fate has been cruel.”
The heat started at her chest and burned her face. She wished she had a glass of water. “Trixie, I wouldn’t, I mean, I didn’t, that is, you shouldn’t…”
The waitress, patted her hand. “That’s okay honey, just proves you don’t kiss and tell or anything else and tell either. I should be getting you some food. What would you like?”
Crandall exhaled, almost moaning. “Have any dead duck?”
****
By the time Crandall left the diner, she’d decided she liked Trixie. The woman was nosier than the FBI, but had her ear to the heart of everything going on in Briny Bay and beyond. She’d chuckled when Crandall asked about the B&B on Oak Street, telling her it didn’t have an official name because people rarely stayed there. Yet another puzzle, but Trixie said she was sure Crandall would be interested in the owner.
As she pulled into the driveway of the address Brooks gave her, she stared at a nice but unassuming two story white brick home with yellow shutters and wondered how in the world this place had ever been allowed in the middle of a residential section. However, the clientele must be upscale if the Mercedes parked out front were any indication.
She rang the doorbell, and, as the door opened, a woman stood there with sort perfectly coiffed hair and a neat pantsuit on. The woman’s eyes speared Crandall upon contact. Her breath seemed to suddenly get sucked out of her mouth. “Are you Miriam?”
The woman’s eyes narrowed even more. “Most younger women call me Mrs. Graham.”
Crandall folded her arms across her body in self-defense. “I apologize. Gerald Brooks only told me your name was Miriam. You have the same last name as…”
“My son.” Miriam Graham stared at her, heat blistering her from the woman’s cold dark blue glare. “I assume you’re that woman.”
Something bustled behind Mrs. Graham, thankfully diverting her attention from this icy welcome. She saw Zack edging in sideways next to the woman. “Mother, how about letting Crandall into the house?”
Crandall felt her gut lurch. Shit! Brooks set her up again. This was Zack’s family house. Of all the damned…She drew on all her reserves, clutching her fists behind her and trying hard to place a weak smile on her face. “Zack Graham, I assume this is your mother and your family’s home? The one I presume you grew up in?”
“The same.” Miriam Graham said. “The one where Meredyth Graham also lives.”
Crandall’s eyes flew open and she turned to stare into Zack’s eyes. “You’re married?”
“He was married.” Miriam answered for him as he stood there, transfixed, apparently frozen in place. “He did the unthinkable. His wife…”
“No, I’m not. I was but…”
“This isn’t a good idea.” Crandall turned. “I’ll just get a hotel room,” she called over her shoulder as she started to step off the stoop.
A hand clamped on her shoulder. “No.” Zack said. “Mother is just a bit edgy but you are welcome, so please come in.”
Miriam Graham was grinning through clenched teeth as Crandall turned and glanced at her. “Of course,” she said, her voice sounding strangled. “We’re in the South and you deserve Southern hospitality.”
Crandall nodded. Copperhead-style.
****
Finally out of the house, Crandall breathed her first easy breath. Miriam Graham was worse than being around Brooks, if that were possible. All she wanted now was a nice glass of wine, some chill time and a few minutes of peace. Then she could go back to the den of vipers, excuse herself and go to bed. The good news was she had her own room.
She drove to a small Italian restaurant off the beaten track and slipped inside, pleased to see low lights and candles in old Chianti bottles on the tables. Nice, not high end, just right. She seated herself at a back booth after the hostess showed her to it and studied the menu. What was it about this place that suddenly made her so hungry? Nerves, Crandall. It’s just nerves.
“Calmed down yet?”
She glanced up and saw Zack standing next to her. “What are you doing here? I thought you might be milking your mother’s teeth for venom.”
He grinned. “Cute. You’re right, of course. I didn’t want to get bitten any more than you did.” He slipped in the other side of the booth.
She stared at him. “Well, make yourself at home, but I have to warn you that I’ll tell you something you don’t want to hear. I don’t like your mother very much.”
“See?” He he
ld out his arms. “Yet another thing we agree on. We’re very compatible.”
Her jaw dropped down and she placed the menu on the table. “You don’t like your own mother?”
“Can you blame me?”
She gasped. “But I am a stranger and you were born from her womb.”
He shook his head. “No I wasn’t. She’s my stepmother. Since I was three, but still my stepmother.”
“But you call her mother.”
Nodding, he held her eyes with his and a slight sadness shone in their depths. “Dad insisted. He said I needed to call her that because my real mom would have wanted it that way.”
Crandall shook her head. “Well, all I can say is she’s very protective of you.”
He shook his head. “Not really. She’s protective of Meredyth. She raised her.”
Falling back in her booth Crandall gaped at him. “You have a sister too?”
He shook his head. “I have a daughter. What are you eating?” He picked up the menu. “Hmm, I do love their baked spaghetti. It has meat sauce pepperoni and meatballs.”
Her stomach growled in spite of her. “This is not a casual conversation. Where’s your wife?”
“Former,” he mumbled. “Dead.”
Stunned, Crandall grabbed the table. “How can you act like you don’t care?”
When he glanced up, she saw his eyes were filled with confusion and pent up anger all at once. Zack looked like he could explode. “Look, it’s complicated. Really complicated, okay?”
She nodded, trying hard to restrain herself. He obviously had no desire to talk about it. “Okay, then how about telling me why your mother hates my guts.”
“Is it okay if I order for you too? I think you’d like the Crab Alfredo. All blue crab. Wonderful.”
She pulled the menu out of his hands. “Zack, please answer me.”
He took a deep breath. “My stepmother saw film of us on the island, including us kissing on the beach and your leaving my room. That plus my centerfold in your robe has her thinking I am not a suitable father for my daughter and you’re a tramp. Clear enough?”
Unforgettable Heroes Boxed Set Page 33