B07D56N64C (F)

by Katlyn Duncan

  Shane nodded at her and then returned to his phone.

  She tried to busy herself with showing the trainees how to roll utensils in napkins and disinfecting the menus, remaining nearby in case Shane had changed his mind. She wasn’t sure how many times she looked at Shane, but his eyes never turned in her direction.

  The many ways in which she could help him fluttered through her mind. Her need to overstep boundaries pinched at her chest. She could help with the case if Shane allowed it. But Shane wasn’t in charge. Not yet.

  Chewing on her lip, she excused herself and went into the kitchen. Missy was busy inside the fridge and didn’t see Rose slip into the back office and into her purse to find her phone.

  Rose intended to check out some local homeless shelters to help Shane, but when she turned on her phone, there was a missed call from Reen. A million scenarios flurried through her mind as she pressed the number to call her back.

  ‘Hello?’ Reen said. Voices erupted on the other end of the line.

  ‘Reen, it’s Rose. Is everything okay?’

  ‘I need to talk to you,’ Reen said. There was a loud sound, and then the background noise disappeared.

  ‘What’s going on?’ She willed her racing pulse to calm down before her heart beat out of her chest.

  ‘Did you tell the nursing home to call me?’

  ‘No. Why?’

  ‘Someone left two messages today.’

  Rose pulled her phone away from her face and checked her missed calls. There weren’t any from the Whinding House. ‘I didn’t tell them to.’

  ‘She said something to the effect of Mom missing me. She calls out in her sleep for Syrene. Did you know about this?’

  ‘No, they hadn’t mentioned it.’ Why hadn’t they mentioned it? Was that why Mom said Reen’s name to her?

  ‘Don’t you go there?’

  Here we go. ‘Yes, of course I do. Every day. But they only call me for emergencies.’

  ‘It sounded like it was something you’d make them do.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  Reen raised her voice. ‘To make me feel guilty. You know I don’t want to come back there. And if Mom doesn’t remember me, then it shouldn’t matter.’

  Rose had a hefty bag of names she wanted to call her sister at that moment, but she kept her cool. ‘She’s still our mother.’

  ‘The mother who checked out once Dad died,’ Reen said, her voice fading into the background. ‘I don’t have time for this. I wanted to make sure you weren’t forcing them to call me.’

  ‘I’d never want to interrupt your busy life,’ Rose said.

  ‘You were never good at sarcasm.’

  A click echoed in Rose’s ears. She pulled the phone away from her face and glared at it. Reen always had a way of pissing her off with just a few words. So, what if the nurse called her? What was she doing that was more important than family?

  She pressed her thumbs against the corners of her eyes, trying to shove back her forming tears. Reen’s acidic words about Dad pressed against Rose’s chest. It was all true, but that didn’t mean it hurt any less.

  ‘How are you doing in there?’ Missy called from the kitchen.

  ‘Fine,’ Rose called back. She shoved her phone into her purse and stalked out of the office.

  ‘Why are you all hot and bothered? Is it because Shane’s here again?’ Missy asked with a smirk.

  ‘That was Reen,’ Rose said.

  Missy’s face fell. ‘I’m assuming from the scowl on your face that it wasn’t a pleasant conversation?’

  ‘Those don’t exist anymore. She doesn’t have a care in the world. While I’m here busting my ass to take care of Mom.’

  ‘Do you need a minute?’ She checked the clock on the wall. ‘I think it’s about time for your lunch.’

  Rose nodded. She rarely took more than a few minutes for a break, scarfing down whatever food she could grab, but fresh air would do her good.

  ‘I’ll see you in thirty,’ she said.

  ‘I’ll be back in –’

  ‘Thirty,’ Missy repeated. ‘The kids can handle it. Get your head together, okay?’

  ‘Thank you,’ Rose said and patted Missy’s arm.

  Missy reached over and pulled her close. ‘Love you.’

  ‘You too.’

  Rose grabbed her purse and headed out the back door to the parking lot. She sat in her car and turned the radio on, sinking into her seat as country music filtered out of the speakers. She thought of all the retorts she should have said to Reen instead of allowing her little sister to say those things about her mother.

  Reen had always been the selfish one, vying for everyone’s attention. The second someone paid attention to anyone else but her, she ran off to find it somewhere else.

  Of course, Mom mourned their father. She’d said so many times that he’d saved her from her past –one that she rarely spoke about. Half of Mom’s soul was buried six feet under, and Reen couldn’t handle it.

  A relationship like her parents had was something that Rose wanted for herself but she wondered if that was a fool’s errand.

  With Reen and Mom attached at the hip when they were kids, the devastation of Dad’s death crumbled their bond within weeks of the funeral. Mom’s refusal to be a member of society or the family had pressed hard on Reen, who was already grieving. Instead of supporting the family, she’d cut ties completely. It was a month after Reen’s high school graduation with a full scholarship for swimming at the University of Florida before she made her choice to turn down the money and leave The Burrow for good.

  The worst thing was that Mom barely noticed that Reen had left. Consumed with Dad’s death, even years later, Mom didn’t realize the damage she’d done. When she finally did, it was too late to fix the bonds after she’d cut them so severely.

  A cruiser drove by, and Shane waved to Rose. With a shake of her head, Rose came out of her memories. While she hated to dwell on them, they were vivid and easy to recall. Ever since Mom was diagnosed with dementia, she worried for herself often. Today, it wasn’t getting her.

  After the half hour, she turned the car off and headed inside, a little less angry than before.

  Chapter 11

  By the time she punched out later that night, Rose’s mood hadn’t improved by much. She’d pushed Reen out of her thoughts, but the twisted feeling in her gut remained. She thought she’d done the right thing by their mother, but with Reen’s anger so palpable, she wasn’t sure of much anymore.

  After closing, Rose had offered to stay behind to finish up since Missy was supposed to have a call with Jake.

  Rose locked the back door of the restaurant and headed for her car. There weren’t any streetlights nearby. The sky opened above her, filled with twinkling stars. When she and Reen were young and closer to each other, they used to sit on the beach near their house and point out the different constellations from one of their dad’s books. In times when Reen was impossible to speak to, she pulled out the few good memories of them getting along, and it sometimes worked to improve her mood.

  After getting in her car, she turned the key in the ignition, and nothing happened. She pulled the door closed and rolled down the window in the stuffy car. She tried three times before she gave up. The older model had been trusty and true since she got it three years ago when her clunker from high school died.

  It was after midnight. Who was around to help her? There wasn’t a tow company for miles, and she didn’t want to sit in the car all night.

  She dialed Missy, but the call went right to voicemail. She tapped the phone against the steering wheel wondering if she should try again. But if Missy had fallen asleep, she’d feel bad waking her friend. The only people she knew were awake were the police.

  It wasn’t an emergency, so she called into the precinct directly.

  A female voice chimed through her phone after the second ring. ‘Police department, how may I assist you?’

  ‘Hi,’ Rose said. ‘I�
�m at The Siren restaurant. My car isn’t starting. Would someone be able to give me a lift home? I can call for a tow truck in the morning.’ Her eyes were bleary and waiting for someone to come out that late wasn’t on her agenda.

  ‘One moment please,’ she said.

  The line clicked over, and there was silence on the other end. She tried the ignition a few more times, to be sure her car was completely dead before bothering any of the police officers in town. Though, she doubted she’d be too much of a bother. Even amid tourist season, there wasn’t much of a nightlife in The Burrow. People packed the quaint shops and stretches of beach during the day while nighttime offered a peaceful rest for the visitors.

  ‘I’ll have an officer over there right away,’ the voice said, coming back on the line.

  ‘Thank you,’ she said and hung up.

  It was a good thing the windows were manual instead of electric. Rose rolled the passenger side down and then settled in to wait.

  Only fifteen minutes passed before a pair of headlights cut through the darkness, moving toward the car. She shielded her eyes as the police cruiser parked nose to nose with Rose’s car. ‘Thanks so much for coming,’ she said to the officer walking toward the car.

  ‘It’s not a problem,’ Shane said.

  Rose balked. ‘Shane?’

  ‘You sound surprised.’

  ‘I am,’ she said.

  ‘Can you open the hood?’

  ‘Sure,’ she said and pulled the small lever.

  Shane lifted the hood and shined a flashlight into the compartment.

  ‘What do you think it is?’ Rose asked.

  ‘Probably a drained battery. That’s what happens when you sit in your car with the radio going for an extended period without starting the car,’ he said with a smirk.

  ‘It wasn’t that long,’ she muttered, but couldn’t help feeling like an idiot. In her anger, she hadn’t even thought of the repercussions of sitting there with the radio on during her break. She was surprised the car hadn’t turned itself off then. At least she could have had a jump from Missy before she left.

  He rounded his car and opened the trunk. She leaned against hers, letting him work. As he hooked the ends to her car, he said, ‘I wanted to talk to you about something before, but you seemed upset earlier. Is everything okay? I thought it might have been something I said.’

  ‘It’s not you,’ Rose said, not wanting to bog him down with talking about Reen.

  ‘Can you try and start it now?’ he asked.

  She sat in the driver’s seat and crossed her fingers before turning the key again. The car roared to life, and her heart soared. She stood up and leaned over the top of the door. ‘Thank you so much. You’re a lifesaver.’

  Shane unhooked the cables from her car and closed the hood. ‘I have an idea how you can make it up to me.’

  ‘Anything,’ she said.

  Shane walked over to her. He stopped inches from the door. ‘How about I take you out tomorrow night?’

  ‘What?’

  He chuckled.

  She shook her head. ‘I don’t understand. How would that be me making this up to you?’ She tried to stop herself from babbling. She wanted nothing more than to be alone with him on a date.

  ‘It was the best segue I could find,’ he said, massaging the back of his neck. ‘It’s been a while. My game is off.’

  Rose screwed up her lips, shaking her head, not believing that he’d asked her out on a date.

  ‘I saw this place on the way into town that I wanted to check out.’

  ‘Oh,’ she said, her cheeks flushing. ‘Yes. I’d love to.’

  Shane blew a breath out of his mouth. ‘Good. I’ll pick you up around six?’

  ‘Okay,’ she said, recalling her schedule. She had the early shift.

  ‘Missy said that you weren’t working tomorrow night.’

  ‘Missy?’

  ‘I asked her first before setting up a reservation.’

  There weren’t many places around that took reservations. Her mind wandered, wondering what he had in mind for the date.

  Before she could ask, he said, ‘You should get going.’

  Was he as nervous as she? ‘I’ll see you tomorrow.’

  ‘What’s your address?’ he asked.

  She grinned. ‘I thought you had access to town records.’

  He chuckled. ‘I do, but I’m a little old-fashioned.’

  She gave him the address and slipped into her car. He tapped the top of the roof before heading to the cruiser. Once he was inside, he backed out, giving her enough room to leave first.

  As if she’d drunk a shot of espresso, she became hyper-aware of her surroundings during the drive home. She hadn’t been on a date since last year when Dave, a tourist, took her to The Siren – knowing very well she worked there. He’d wanted to use her discount and Missy had stared at her the entire night making googly eyes while Dave droned on about his law firm in Hartford.

  But Shane. He was something else. He lived in town. The almost-Chief of Police. This was why she didn’t date locals. What if it didn’t work out? Would their relationship be any more awkward than it had been? She should have thought of that before saying yes.

  The tingling in her stomach rebelled against canceling. His nervousness brought a smile to her face and didn’t leave her lips until she wrapped her bedsheets around her body and fell asleep.

  Chapter 12

  The next morning, Rose woke refreshed and ready for the day. While the nightmares about the girl had come on strong, she was too tired to push out of them. Eventually, she’d allowed her subconscious to sink into the sea until she blacked out completely and rode through the rest of the night in a swirling darkness of dreams.

  Her phone rang as she finished spreading jelly over her toast.

  ‘Did he do it?’ Missy asked before she could even greet her friend.

  Rose smirked. Missy wasn’t getting information that easily. ‘Do what?’

  ‘Did Shane ask you out?’

  ‘How do you know he wanted to ask me out?’

  ‘Stop being a tease. He asked about your schedule for today. So, what happened?’

  ‘Like an idiot, my car battery stalled – wait, did you do something to my car?’ Rose thought it had been her lack of attention, but she wouldn’t put it past Missy to set up a meet-cute.

  ‘I did nothing to your car.’ Rose could almost feel Missy lifting her finger for a pinky swear, something they still did, even as adults. ‘So, tell me more. He came to your rescue?’

  ‘Something like that,’ Rose said.

  ‘I’m your boss, and I’m ordering you to tell me,’ Missy said.

  ‘Since when does that work?’

  ‘Spill or I’m docking your pay.’

  Rose laughed. For once, she had the upper hand. She tortured Missy for a few more seconds before she explained everything. As she did, tingles of pleasure rolled through her. He’d seemed nervous to ask her out. While she didn’t know much about his past, she knew he wasn’t married. She wanted to get to know more about him, but that wasn’t going to happen if she didn’t take a chance.

  ‘Where are you going?’

  ‘No idea.’

  ‘You don’t know? Is it casual? Fancy? How will you know what to wear?’

  Rose mulled over the inadequate clothing options in her closet. She hadn’t gone shopping in so long. ‘I don’t think I’m ready for this.’

  ‘You are so ready for this. But you can’t look desperate. I’ll help you out. I’ll have Brody open the restaurant, and I’ll be over with coffee and dresses.’

  ‘I have dresses.’

  ‘Yeah, okay,’ she said. ‘You’re more of a casual-style person. Don’t worry about it. I got you covered.’

  ‘Thanks a lot,’ Rose muttered.

  Missy arrived thirty minutes later with two large foam cups of coffee and a stack of dresses.

  ‘Did you bring your entire closet?’ Rose asked. ‘I could have come over
if I knew you were going to do that.’

  ‘No way,’ Missy said. ‘This is all about you. I don’t want you to lift anything except for those clothes off your body.’

  Rose narrowed her eyes. ‘Why are you avoiding your house?’

  Missy groaned and shoved through into Rose’s bedroom. ‘It’s nothing.’

  Rose followed her friend, knowing it was more than that. Missy sifted through the dresses, placing them in more manageable piles. ‘Sorry. Today’s not a good day.’

  ‘Do you want to talk about it?’

  Missy turned and shoved her hair away from her face. ‘I talked to Jake.’ Her eyes were red-rimmed and got glossier by the second.

  Rose opened her arms for her friend. Missy fell into them and sniffed against Rose’s shirt.

  ‘I hate this. As much as I’m proud of him serving our country, I always get to this point. We always do. Him going overseas never gets easier.’

  Rose felt like the worst friend in the world. How did she not know that Missy was dealing with all of this? She grabbed a box of tissues and handed it over. ‘What can I do for you?’

  Missy wiped her nose. ‘You can pick out a dress. Someone in this room needs to get some.’

  ‘On a first date?’ Rose snorted.

  ‘You’re an independent woman close to her thirties. You can do whatever the hell you want.’

  She supposed she could. The idea of sleeping with Shane created a buzzing sensation in her stomach. She tried to breathe through it and focus on Missy’s needs. ‘When are you going to talk to Jake again?’

  ‘I don’t know. But I’ll get over it, I swear.’

  ‘You don’t have to get over it with me.’

  Missy sighed. ‘I know. Thanks for listening. It will be fine when he gets home. I’m sure of it.’

  ‘Okay,’ Rose said eyeing her friend. Missy’s gaze fell to the pile of dresses and she knew the conversation was over. ‘What do we have here?’

  ‘Formal, semi-formal, and casual,’ Missy said. ‘Now strip down and let’s get started.’