Sweet but Sexy Boxed Set Page 16

  The image of strangers living in her house ran through Hailey’s mind and she bristled. “But it’s our house.”

  “A house you rarely visit,” Jake said.

  “Do you think any of this is easier just because I’m not here day in and day out?”

  “Yes, I do. You’ve already made a break from here,” Kelly said.

  She’d had goals and done what was necessary to achieve them.

  The family didn’t need to know she was beginning to regret some of the things that ambition had cost her. “You’re wrong, you know. This is tearing me apart.”

  Jake pushed the chair back and found his feet. “Just do me a favor. Really watch Dad the next few days and keep in mind what we’ve said. We can talk again tomorrow.”

  Chapter Four

  Hailey stood at the back door watching until her brother’s SUV reached the end of the driveway and made the left turn onto the road.

  Even though she knew it wasn’t in either Kelly or Jake’s characters to exaggerate or abandon family, she still had a hard time coming to terms with the picture they painted for her.

  Jake was right, though. At the very least, she was here for the week. They could take a day or two for Hailey to really observe her father for herself.

  She traversed up the steps and down the hall to her bedroom, nearly tripping over three new totes. Jake—or maybe Kelly’s husband Larry—must have brought them down from the attic while she was out in the barn with Rhonda.

  Dropping down to the bed, she cursed aloud. Jake had said he’d give her time to come to terms, but his actions still screamed that the decision had been made, whether she liked it or not.

  Hailey pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to fend off the building stress headache. Was it too much to ask to not have to pack up her father’s house during the holidays?

  Living alone, so far away from the people she loved had left a hollow pit inside her. The emptiness had forced her to examine her life with a magnifying glass: why wasn’t she happy? How had her choices brought her here? Where had she gone wrong?

  She had been good at her job; only lost it because she’d stood up to her bosses in defense of a client. A client they had told her to drop because there was no money to be had.

  Looking back, she realized the work she’d done in the firm just hadn’t fulfilled her as she’d thought it would.

  It was far too early and she was much too conflicted to go to sleep. She retrieved the rubber tote from the top of the stack, took it back toward the bed, and placed it on the floor before making herself comfortable on the patchwork quilt that covered the twin mattress. As she pulled off the lid, the smell of mothballs hit her senses and she turned her face away, closing her eyes. No wonder moths avoided the clothes packed up with them, any one or thing with a sense of smell would.

  Her stomach twisted into a knot. Funny how something that smelled so awful could make her miss her mother so much. Every season, the clothes that wouldn’t be needed for several months were packed up and put in the attic. When they were brought back down, they’d need to be washed twice to get rid of the smell.

  Her cheerleading uniform was draped on the top. She pulled it aside, finding her track uniform. Memories flooded over her and a smile lifted the corners of her mouth.

  Accolades for academic achievement and a handful of debate trophies—the small ones, third place or lower—filled the rest of the tote. The big ones were probably still displayed in the glass cabinet in Mr. Tucker’s classroom. He’d been the first one to label her a star. A true mentor, he’d put the bug in her ear about the bigger world that lay beyond the boundaries of town.

  She made a mental note to look him up before she went home, and reached for her old backpack. Bright and bold in her high school’s colors of red and black with the eagle mascot screened on the back, it was a memory of high school she hadn’t wanted to take with her to college. She opened the zipper to the main pouch, frowning when there was no forgotten treasure to rediscover.

  I’ll give it to one of Kelly’s kids.

  She tossed it aside, and it made a funny crunchy noise when it hit the tote lid.

  Hailey picked it back up, examining the front pocket. She pulled out a greeting card size envelope. Once white, now yellowed by time, it bore a name written in blue balloon letters.

  Nate Jenkins.

  He was never really too far out of her mind or heart, but since crossing the city limits the day before, he’d been all she could think about.

  She opened the envelope and dumped the contents on the bed: about two dozen newspaper clippings recording Nate’s high school basketball career, and a handful of photographs.

  There was one from the putt-putt course across from the beach taken spring break of their junior year. Another was during the karaoke contest, part of the Cheeseburger Festival events that summer between junior and senior year. After that, the group of friends had all come back to her house—including Nate—and had a large bonfire, somewhat of an annual tradition among the Lambert kids.

  She carefully flipped through the frail pieces of paper, now remembering how she’d shoved the envelope into her backpack and then hid it in the closet before leaving.

  Her mother must have later packed everything into the totes and moved it to the attic.

  After that night in the back of Nate’s truck, she’d spent the next day avoiding his calls and convincing her mother to let her go spend the last month of her summer vacation with Rhonda in Saginaw before heading on to college in New York City.

  It’ll be easier to shop for school in the city.

  I won’t get another chance to see Rhonda for a long time.

  I just want to go.

  She’d used those arguments and dozens more, never once admitting the truth to her parents. How could she tell them that if she spent the next four weeks as she had the evening before—in Nate’s arms—leaving the small town would become impossible?

  Everyone was so proud of her for getting the full ride scholarship to New York University. Teachers had written letters of recommendation. Her parents had scraped together the money to pay for housing. Even newly married Jake had contributed some cash so she could buy the Ford Escort that had carried her out of town.

  Each of them had such big expectations for her future but none loftier than the goals she’d set for herself.

  Giving it all up for Nate would have disappointed so many, and when she entertained the thought of doing just that, Hailey knew she had to take action before the desires of her heart let down everyone around her.

  Her eyes locked on her favorite picture. One of her, Nate, and two of his friends all sitting on the tailgate of his truck. Looking at his easy smile and the way he leaned back on his elbows with his head tipped toward hers made her question those choices again.

  She slid off the bed and walked toward the door, sliding the picture into the corner of the mirror. Letting her fingers graze over his face, she remembered the way his cheek felt against her hand, the scent of the beach and his Axe cologne clouded her senses.

  If she could click her heels together and go back to that moment in time, would she make different choices?

  A loud slamming door pulled Hailey back from the recent past. She went into the hallway, calling her father’s name.

  “Diane!” he called out.

  Her mother. Panic froze Hailey’s feet to the floor for a split second. Was this one of those moments?

  She hit the bottom of the staircase as her father came around the corner from the kitchen. She touched his shoulders and looked into his eyes. “Are you okay?”

  He squinted at her like a lost child before despair took over his features.

  “Hailey! Where’s your mother? I don’t know where she’s at.”

  She swallowed hard and reached out, taking his hand. “She’s gone, Dad. Remember?”

  He tipped his chin. Confusion clouded his eyes. “Gone where? It’s the middle of the night.”

  “Dad,” H
ailey whispered, then took a deep breath and focused. She needed to do this without emotion. “She died. Last summer. Remember?”

  He shook his head and took a step back. The shock on his face was like a knife to her chest. “Of course I remember.” He spit his words before turning back toward the kitchen.

  She followed him, wanting to find a way to ease the tension and his confusion. “What do you say? Why don’t I make us some hot chocolate?”

  “Don’t go to the trouble.” Still belligerent. So foreign from the dad of her youth.

  “It’s not.”

  “I’d rather have you sit with me.” He took his regular seat at the head of the table. She answered his request and joined him. “I miss your mother.”

  “Me too.”

  “Never get old. It isn’t much fun.”

  She twisted her body toward him and painted on a smile, hoping she could lighten the mood. “It’s better than the alternative, don’t you think?”

  He chuckled. “Yeah, yeah, I guess you’re right.”

  It felt awkward to be silent in the same room with her father. Still, finding the right words proved impossible.

  Thankfully, he found words to fill the void. “I was looking at the old barn this afternoon. From the hayloft, I noticed a soft spot in the roof. I’m going to have to see if I can get your brother up there to have a look.”

  Trying to ignore the fact her elderly father had climbed up into the hayloft, she forced herself to concentrate on his concern. The barn hadn’t held animals since Hailey’s last 4-H project. Two of her uncles still farmed the land, but they used their own buildings for storage. The haven of her youth was now deserted and showing its age.

  “I was out there with Rhonda tonight. I didn’t notice a problem with the roof.”

  “I figured that’s where the two of you ran off to. Could never keep you girls out of there when you were young.”

  “We could have been doing a lot worse than playing in the hay or riding the gate.”

  “You’re absolutely right about that. That’s why we have to keep it up. Yes. I’m going have to climb up there tomorrow and see what I need to fix it.”

  Reaching across the table, she squeezed his hand. “Please. Promise me you won’t do that. I’ll talk to Jake. And we’ll make sure we get it fixed. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “All these years, I’ve always maintained the property on my own.” Sadness replaced the pride that had shown in his eyes. “It really stinks that I’ve gotten so damn old I can’t take care of things anymore.”

  “You shouldn’t have to. We kids are old enough now. Let us pick up the slack.”

  He leveled his hard gaze on her. “No matter what happens to me, I want that barn maintained. There’s too much development going on around here. Too much change.”

  The plea in her father’s voice nipped at her heart, but didn’t resemble the frail and forgetful father Jake and Kelly had warned her about. He wasn’t even the same man who stood before her like a confused child five minutes ago.

  Sure, he’d been looking for her mother, but she’d lost count of the number of times she’d reached for her phone and dialed home before remembering her mom was gone.

  Seeing the desperation in her father’s eyes, she knew any extra day she could give her father in this house would be worth it.

  “I promise, Dad.” She eased back into the chair. “Remember Polly?”

  Her father laughed. “Remember her? That stupid pony nipped at me last week. I swear the ol’ girl is more mule than horse.”

  “Aunt Iva and Uncle Ray still have her?”

  Bill nodded. “She carried you around the ring for how many years, and then your cousins, now Ray’s grandkids are showing her.”

  Her jaw dropped. “Really? Showing her?”

  “Absolutely. She shows her age, of course. We all do. They can’t jump her over fences anymore, but she still shines like a diamond in the showmanship classes.”

  “Amazing!” She leaned back in the chair, twisting a lock of hair around her finger. This moment had been repeated so many times over the years. Heart to hearts with her dad at the kitchen table had helped her through many a problem—both big and small. The idea that everything was going to change—that it might be someone else’s family sitting at this table next Christmas nipped at her heart like her pony used to bite at her hand.

  She’d always felt comfort in the knowledge that she could come home.

  Pioneer Senior Care wasn’t home.

  Chapter Five

  Nate slid the dollar bills and quarters that were scattered on the counter top together and then pulled them to the edge. When the extra cash was safely in the pocket of his apron, he picked up the now empty coffee cups and dropped them in the bus pan near the kitchen door.

  During the busier times he worked side-by-side with the other cook, but at this time of the morning he covered the counter while two waitresses handled the floor.

  “Need another refill, Jake?” He asked the last of his early-morning, regular customers.

  “No. Thanks anyway. I need to head out to Dad’s. Kelly and I made some progress convincing Hailey that Dad needs to move into Pioneer, but she’s still resistant.”

  “She doesn’t want you to rent me the property?”

  “I haven’t told her you were interested in it yet. She doesn’t even want to put Dad in a nursing home.”

  “Really?”

  “She just isn’t around enough to see how bad he’s become. His good days are really good.”

  “And the bad days are really bad?”

  Jake’s only response was to nod.

  Nate had seen the rapid decline in Bill Lambert’s health for himself. Just a few weeks ago, he’d come into the diner for lunch. After ordering, he became so disoriented that Nate had to call Jake’s wife to come pick him up. Nate suspected that the younger Lamberts and taken Bills keys that day, because he hadn’t been seen in town alone since.

  Nate knew it was unlikely but asked anyway. “Is she thinking about moving home to care for him?”

  Jake drummed his fingers against the counter. “I wouldn’t think so, but she did suggest it last night.” After a brief pause, he sat up a little straighter. “Don’t worry. Give her a few more days to see the situation for what it is and she’ll know we’re right. Then she’ll go back to New York, and we can move forward with leasing the farm.”

  “She really can’t see how far your dad has slipped away the past few months?”

  Jake shook his head. “She says we’re being unfair. Thinks we’re just trying to stuff him away somewhere.” Jake’s shoulders fell, his chest deflated. “You know, I wish Hailey was right. I hate seeing my father like this. The last thing I want to do is put him in a nursing home. I wouldn’t if I didn’t believe it was our only option.”

  “I know that.”

  “You wouldn’t want to talk to Hailey and tell her I’m right. Would you?”

  Good question. Could Nate have a conversation with her and not tumble back into their twisted past? The color must have drained from his face, because Jake laughed.

  “I’m kidding.”

  Maybe so, but Jake’s half-hearted request had forced Nate to realize that renting the Lambert farm might translate to having to deal with Hailey. She’d been avoiding him for eight years now. What made him think she would okay the deal he and Jake had hammered out? “I’m very interested in renting the house, but I don’t want to get in the middle of a family fight.”

  “It’s not a fight. Hailey just needs some time to get used to the idea. Dad’s moving into Pioneer right after the first of the year, then we’ll work out the details of our plan.” Jake stood and fished his wallet out of his back pocket.

  Nate looked over his shoulder to the street and then glanced back at his watch. It wasn’t unusual for there to be a lull in business between the early morning crowd and the late morning rush. The week between Christmas and New Year was typically slow, but Nate couldn’
t stop worrying.

  Ever since they had started negotiating about the house, Nate had been counting every customer and figuring the profit margin on every order.

  The columns of numbers he’d been studying way past midnight flashed in his mind again. No matter how he tried to arrange them or cut costs, it still didn’t make fiscal sense to do what his daughter needed him to do. Coming up with rent was going to be hard enough but—eventually—he hoped to buy the farm.

  If he wanted the bank to give him a mortgage on the house, it was imperative that he keep the restaurant in the black, something he had successfully done since taking it over two years before, but that was before the business had to support a lease on a farm.

  Jake threw a ten-dollar bill on the counter and folded up the newspaper, tucking it under his arm. “We’re good. I don’t need change. You should give the wife a call. My girls would love to have Lori over to play while they’re off school.”

  “Thanks. I’ll do that.” A polite response. Nate believed that Jake meant the offer. He’d always been a good friend and never seemed to be bothered or affected by all the rumors surrounding Nate and his daughter. Lori, however, wouldn’t be comfortable with a play date. The only ones she really communicated with were Anna, him, and the horses.

  Regular meetings with her principal, teachers, and counselors had resulted in all of them learning sign language, or at least enough that Lori could communicate with the adults.

  The kids were another story. They didn’t know, nor did they want to learn sign language, and Lori’s teachers often reported that she was introverted in class. No, he wouldn’t be putting undue stress on his daughter by forcing a play date, no matter how sincere Jake’s offer was.

  Jake turned toward the door but then leaned back against the stool. Nate followed his gaze and saw Hailey approaching. Her hand on her father’s elbow, she carefully guided him. Apparently Jake didn’t think she could handle the task. He tossed the newspaper to the counter behind him, crossing toward the door. “What in the world does she think she’s doing?”