by K. C. Crowne
And when it came to me helping her financially, we went through the same song and dance every month. I always found some way to send her money. She hadn’t been able to work for a few months; her doctors had ordered her on bed rest.
Besides, it’s what Henry would have done had the situation been reversed. Not that I’d ever have a kid, but that was beside the point. If I’d died and left a family behind, Henry would have taken care of them. That’s just who he is.
Was.
That’s who he was.
Fuck.
“You still shouldn’t have,” Alice repeated. “I mean it, Kellen. Henry died in the line of duty. He worked in a dangerous profession, and the fire department is taking care of us.”
It wasn’t enough.
It would never be enough.
Henry had been a good man, one of the best I knew. His wife was one hell of a woman too. She didn’t deserve this.
“You know I’m doing okay,” I said. “I’ve stashed away a lot of money over the years, and God knows, I have more than I’ll ever need in a lifetime.”
Alice groaned on the other end of the line.
“Alice?”
“Yeah, sorry, I—”
My heart raced.
“I think Matilda might be ready to make an appearance,” Alice said, breathing heavily.
The baby was coming.
Jesus fucking Christ, the baby was coming.
Not being there made my skin crawl.
I needed no further convincing to get my ass to the airport.
Finally, I stated the obvious.
“Get off the phone and call an ambulance.”
“Yeah, probably a good idea,” she said. “I think this is the real deal.”
She cried out in pain as we said our goodbyes.
“I’ll book the first flight out to see you,” I promised before hanging up the phone.
She was alone.
Her parents were dead. No siblings.
And her husband dead too.
I couldn’t let Alice deliver her baby alone.
Her pregnancy hadn’t been easy. She’d struggled with high blood pressure, probably from the stress of becoming a widow while she was pregnant. I wasn’t a doctor, but I’d bet my life on that being the cause. She had other issues, things I didn’t understand, and been confined to bed rest for the last few weeks.
But now, it was time.
***
After the phone call, I’d looked up flights to Washington and booked one for that afternoon. Being in the middle of nowhere meant it would take me awhile to get to the nearest major airport.
I had my reasons for living in the mountains. But living the life of isolation became a huge pain in the ass in times like these
I had some quick business to attend to before leaving town and I had no time to spare.
Taking a heavy breath, I grabbed my phone and dialed my only actual friend in town, Grant.
“Hello Kellen. Bit early, even for you,” he grumbled on the other end of the line. “Everything okay?”
“Sorry to wake you man. I need to head out of town for a few days,” I said. “Family emergency.”
“Oh? I didn’t know you had any family,” Grant muttered.
I didn’t talk to anyone about my family much these days. Not even Grant.
Alice may not have been my blood but I considered her family. And alongside her, I had my biological sister to call family.
“It’s fine Kellen. Take all the time you need. I’m guessing you need me to fill in for you while you’re away?”
“That would be great. I was building some cabinets for the diner,” I said. “They just need some sanding and finishing up, and then they’re ready to be delivered.”
“Got it. No problem, man. Do whatever you need to,” he agreed. “I’ll take care of everything else.”
Both Grant and I shared an unusual love for woodworking, and while we weren’t officially in business together, we’d talked about it and referred clients to each other when our plates were full.
I didn’t need the work, or the money, but it was good to stay busy. Woodworking kept my hands and mind busy on nights the nightmares got too much to handle.
“I’ll stop by and let Felicity know what’s going on before I leave,” I said.
“Sounds like a plan.”
I hung up the phone and threw some shit together in a duffel bag. I had no idea how long I’d be gone. It would depend on how things went. I didn’t know the first thing about taking care of a baby, but I could throw dinner on the grill and make sure Alice at least ate well.
I hopped in my truck and drove down the curvy, mountain road into town.
Liberty wasn’t exactly a tourist mecca, not like some of the other mountain towns in Utah, but that’s why I picked it. I wanted to get away from people - not be bothered by them.
Problem was, a town as small as Liberty meant everyone knew everyone else.
Except for me. I was new to town and kept to myself. I didn’t come to make friends. I came to be alone. Which was why I was hesitant to open up to Grant, one of the few who seemed to understand me. Being an ex-Army Ranger, he’d experienced loss too. He knew what it was like.
Not that we talked about our past, but he had the familiar look of pain in his eyes.
A look I knew all too well.
I pulled into the tiny parking lot of Smothered in Love, a little diner run by a local chef. The place was packed for breakfast, as usual. I’d have come back later in the day if I could, but the clock was ticking. With so few parking spots in the tiny lot, it was hard to get my massive truck into any of them.
When I climbed down, a Prius pulled up behind me. I noticed there were no more parking spots left, and my truck took up more than one. Scratching my beard, I thought long and hard about what I was going to do, but before I could figure out a solution, a petite brunette stepped out of the car.
Wow.
Where did she come from?
She was a sexy little thing.
No taller than five-three.
Her hands were on her curvy hips, and her full, luscious lips were pursed in annoyance as she glared at me with big, chocolate brown eyes.
Her toned legs were in a wide, challenging stance and her large, pert breasts heaved as she huffed a breath in my direction.
She had to be careful because the sheer sight of her could stop traffic.
“Excuse me but you can’t park like that,” she said, pointing to my truck.
When she moved her head, her long, brown ponytail bobbed around her head. She was shaking her head, clearly frustrated.
It was wrong, but I found it sexy as hell.
“I’m going to be a second,” I said. “Then you can have both spots.”
If she could wait just two minutes, enough time for me to talk to the owner of the diner, she’d be able to get on with her day. The parking lot didn’t accommodate large trucks, which was crazy in a mountain town, but the place didn’t have that much space to begin with.
“I don’t need both spots, I just need one,” she argued. “But your truck is taking up half the parking lot.”
“That’s a pretty gross exaggeration,” I scoffed, stifling my laughter as I continued toward the entrance of the diner. I turned to find her scowling at me and held up two fingers as I mouthed the words, “Two minutes.”
She crossed her arms in front of her chest and shook her head. “Because obviously your time is more valuable than everyone else here.”
I let that comment slide. Maybe she was also in a hurry to get to some big life event, like a friend of hers having a baby.
How the hell was I supposed to know?
I seemed to doubt it. And in this case, yes, my time was more valuable. I needed to get to Alice, and my flight would leave without me if I didn’t get there in time.
If it were a different day, I’d gladly give her my parking spot.
But hell, not today.
I opened the door to
the diner, and right away, I knew it would be longer than two minutes. I felt bad for lying to the girl, but I couldn’t help it. The place was packed, and the owner - Felicity - was running around like a chicken with her head cut off. Sweat ran down her face as she ran from the cash register to the people sitting at the counter and then back to the kitchen. She saw me and offered a friendly, but tired, smile.
“Short staffed today?” I asked.
“You bet we are. Our hostess and one of our waitresses called out sick,” she groaned, rushing past me to the counter. She dropped off three plates of pancakes and eggs to a few older patrons, and then ran back to the kitchen again.
I stuffed my hands in my pockets and waited in line like everyone else. The door to the diner opened, and a voice piped up from behind me.
“Two minutes, my ass,” the woman from the parking lot muttered. “Luckily someone else left, or I’d still be out in the sweltering heat waiting on you.”
“I didn’t know it’d be this busy,” I said, shrugging. “I just need to take care of some business with the owner.”
“You didn’t know the most popular diner in all of Liberty would be packed on a Sunday morning? Right before church?” the woman asked. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
I turned to face her, and even though she was easily a foot shorter than me, she stood tall and put on her best intimidating look. I had to admit, if I’d been a lesser man, it might have made me take a step or two back.
Her fierce sultry eyes met mine with a heat that was both terrifying and sexy as hell.
I knew I had to back off.
Not because I was afraid of the little lady, but because the more we bickered, the more attractive she became.
And shit, I had no intention of dating anyone in this town.
I had bigger concerns today. Getting into a petty little argument with a local was the last thing I needed. I needed to get in and out as quickly as possible. So I ignored the woman’s comment and flagged Felicity down as she made another run to the cash register.
“Hey, can I have a second? I need to get going,” I said.
The brunette rolled her eyes, getting hotter by the minute.
Felicity stopped and wiped her hands on her apron. “Sure thing, darling. But I literally only have a second. I’m also the damn chef today.”
Felicity took me to the side, and I explained I was heading out of town.
She thanked me for letting her know but didn’t seem too worried about it and was grateful for Grant stepping in for me.
I couldn’t blame her - there was a line out the door and pancakes that needed to be flipped.
I let her go and walked toward the exit. The brunette was still waiting to be seated.
Then I did something I knew was asking for trouble.
I winked at her and gave her a devilish grin as I walked past her and reached the door, all before she could roll her eyes once more.
I pushed the door open and left the diner.
A part of wished I’d gotten her number, but I quickly told that part to shut up. I wasn’t looking for a relationship.
Summer had come to Utah, and it was hotter than a cup of Felicity’s famous coffee.
Okay, so maybe I was a little bit of an ass, making her wait in her air-conditioned, electric-hybrid hippie car, but it wasn’t that serious.
Reaching Alice, on the other hand, was serious.
My insides twisted in knots as I climbed back into my truck and headed toward the airport.
Chapter 3
Leah
God, I need a drink.
“That was intense,” Felicity said as she slid into the booth across from me.
“If you need to reschedule, we can meet later,” I said.
“No, Allison came in to work the front, and John’s in back now. It’s all good,” she said, glancing around the diner, which was still packed with guests.
Smothered in Love Diner was Felicity’s baby. After studying at some of the top cooking schools in the country, it was hard to believe she’d wanted to return home to Liberty, Utah, but that’s exactly what she did. Her diner had even been talked about in major publications and featured on some Travel channel show once-upon-a-time. A hidden gem, as they called it, tucked away in the mountains in a small town in Utah. Her specialty wasn’t even breakfast, yet the place was packed from the moment the doors opened until late into the evening. Felicity was almost always there, working hard and making sure her guests felt like they were dining in a Michelin star restaurant. Maybe one day she’d get her own star, not that she needed it.
“Alright, so here’s the final count for the gala,” I said, passing my notes to her. “Is this something we can work with?”
“Of course,” Felicity said, not even flinching at the number on the paper. “I’ve trained a new chef, Marlena, and she’s ready to help out.”
This would be my biggest charity gala to date, and I knew Felicity was a wonder woman, but I didn’t want to put her under any stress. She was doing me a favor, donating her time, employees, and ingredients to the cause. Her family had always had money, so I knew it wasn’t a big deal for her, but it still felt huge to me.
Too huge, if you asked me.
“I’ll cover the cost of the food—”
“Like hell you are,” Felicity said, chuckling. “I’m donating my time and services. Everything comes with it. Deal with it, sweetie.”
I bit my lip. I knew it would be a very expensive endeavor, but Felicity was stubborn as an ox.
“I’ll find some way to repay you,” I said.
“Sugar, you don’t have to do that,” Felicity said. “This is charity. All your energy should go toward helping those kids.”
“You have no idea how much this means to me,” I said, a lump forming in my throat.
Felicity reached across and took my hands in hers. Her blue eyes were bright and full of life, and even though she was covered in sweat, she was still one of the prettiest women I’d known. With silky, natural blonde hair that never seemed to frizz, even on the most humid of days, she was one of those girls you wanted to hate so badly in high school but couldn’t because she was just too damn nice.
“I have an idea,” she said. “I loved Caroline too.”
Caroline was my baby sister, five years my junior. Even with the age difference, we had been very close. I always felt the need to look out for her because she was smaller and weaker than most kids her age. When she got sick, my big sister instincts had gone into high gear - and when she died, well, I was utterly devastated.
“Hard to believe she’d be twenty-one this year, huh?” I said, wiping the tears from my eyes. “Wonder what she’d be doing if she was still here.”
“Probably being a ballerina-doctor-animal rescuer, just as she always said she’d be,” Felicity added with a sweet smile. Her eyes were wet with tears as well. “Because God knows, she did whatever the hell she wanted.”
“You can say that again,” I laughed, wiping at my eyes. I hated crying in public, so I composed myself as quickly as possible, focusing on the task at hand. “I’ve also included food preferences and allergens in my list. Hopefully that helps you prepare the menu.”
Felicity nodded. “It’s perfect. I already have an idea what I’m going to do, I just need to make a few adjustments for those with restrictions, but that shouldn’t be too hard.”
“Great,” I said. “I should probably let you get back to work—”
“Hey, before you leave, I had a quick question,” Felicity said, her eyes falling to the table. From the looks of it, she wasn’t looking forward to whatever she was about to ask.
“Go for it,” I said.
Before she could open her mouth, my best friend, Piper, called out my name from the entrance to the diner. Both Felicity and I turned toward her, and Piper rushed over to us with a gleeful grin on her adorable face.
Piper and I had known each other longer than I had known Felicity. While Felicity’s family in
itially sent her to private school throughout elementary and middle school, Piper and I both attended the local public school since kindergarten. We’d known each other from the first day of kindergarten, and our friendship only grew stronger over the years.
Piper hugged both Felicity and me, and Felicity invited her to join us.
“Good thing you’re here, I wanted to talk to both of you about something,” she said. She looked at me with a strange look on her face. “Have either of you been approached by a developer looking to buy your property?”
I glanced at Piper, who was shaking her head. She’d recently gotten a haircut, a cute little pixie that was fitting for her petite features and delicate bone structure. Her hair, like mine, was brown, but where mine was almost black, hers was more red. Like autumn leaves, I used to say.
“No, not at all,” she said, her green eyes wide with disbelief. “Have you, Leah?”
“No, thankfully not. Hopefully they’re smart enough to not approach me,” I said, crossing my arms in front of my chest. “My family has owned that property for generations. There’s no way I’m selling.”
“Me neither,” Piper said softly. “I mean, my family hasn’t owned the property for as long as you have, but you know what I mean. Liberty is my home.”
Felicity nodded. “I agree. I told them I have no intention of selling.”
Not that I had any doubt, but it was a relief to hear that. Maybe the developer would take the hint and get lost.
“What does anyone want in Liberty anyway? Not like we’re a booming tourist trap or anything,” I said.
“I don’t know, probably some hipsters looking to move in and ruin this place too,” Felicity said dryly. “I just wanted to let you girls know what was happening.”
“I appreciate it,” I said.
“Me too,” Piper said. “It’s not like I’m making a killing with the daycare, but I couldn’t imagine closing down.”
Piper and I were similar in one regard - we both loved children. Caroline’s death impacted us in different ways, and it sent Piper into the world of Early Childhood Education, while I focused more heavily on taking over the family business and giving to organizations that would help find cures for childhood cancers, like the one that took my sister.