Chapter 6
Chapter Six
TESSA
“Hey, Tess.”
Looking up from the spreadsheet on my computer, I glanced toward the door where Reggie, one of the daytime volunteers, stood just inside my office. “Hey, Reg. What’s up?”
He gave me a sympathetic wince, and I knew whatever he was about to say next wasn’t going to be good. “Hate to do this to you; I know you already have a lot on your plate, but a call just came in from the police station.”
I’d been working at Hope House for a few weeks now, and I’d been surprised at how efficiently the place was running.
Rory and Cord, along with the residents of Hope Valley, had worked their asses off to make this place a true safe haven.
The volunteers and staff were incredible: caring, well trained, and extremely patient.
I knew all too well this job wasn’t for the faint-hearted.
I had an incredible team at my back, but that didn’t mean the job was without its fair share of difficulties.
Nothing messed with a kid’s head like feeling unwanted.
That led to them acting out for attention, whether that attention was good or bad.
And we currently had twelve kids under our care who were all suffering with loss or abandonment issues.
I flopped back in my chair with a weary sigh. “You’re kidding. About who?”
“Charity Winslow,” he said, his tone laced with exasperation. “She got picked up shoplifting with a couple other girls from her class.”
I was always mindful of watching my language when I was at the house, but in that moment, I wanted to throw out every word I could think of, and maybe make up a few for good measure.
“Diana and I were about to start dinner, but if you want, I can go pick her up.”
I gave Reggie a tired smile. “I appreciate the offer, but I’ve got this.
” I stood from my desk, collecting the necessary paperwork I’d need so Charity could be released into my care, and stuffed it all in my satchel.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Reggie gave me a wink before heading off to the kitchen while I moved toward the front doors.
As a caseworker back in Houston, I’d had to deal with the police on more than a handful of occasions, and each encounter had left a bad taste in my mouth, so I wasn’t looking forward to my first brush with the cops in Hope Valley.
Because these were foster children, there was already a stigma in place, and most of the time they were viewed as lost causes.
As far as a lot adults were concerned, these were troubled kids already headed down a dark path.
So most of the time they were written off without so much as a second glance.
Pulling into an empty parking spot in front of the large brick building, I killed the engine and stared out the windshield at the big white letters that spelled POLICE above the double glass doors.
With a fortifying breath, I steeled my spine and headed inside. The woman behind the front desk held a phone to her ear, and as I approached, she gave me a cursory glance before lifting a single finger in the universal sign for “Just a minute”.
Clasping my hands, I rested them on the ledge and waited for her to finish her phone call. Only, she didn’t finish. One minute ticked into two, and despite her efforts to keep her voice low, I’d been able to hear enough to know she was having a personal chat with a friend.
“Um, excuse me.”
She kept her face averted and acted as if she hadn’t heard me. “Yeah, I know,” she mumbled to the person across the line. “And did you see what she was wearing?”
“Excuse me,” I bit out, my agitation with the snooty receptionist having officially boiled over.
The woman let out a huff and rolled her eyes, giving me that same one-minute finger again, and with that, I snapped.
“No, I’m sorry. But I’m not going to wait so you can chat with your girlfriend. I need assistance now.”
“Hang up the phone, Sue Ellen.”
I spun around at the masculine voice. I hadn’t seen him approach while I was waiting on the rude woman behind the desk, but now that he had my attention, I felt my breath quicken.
I wasn’t sure what it was about this town, but in the weeks I’d been here, it had become obvious that Hope Valley was a mecca for some of the hottest men in the country, and this guy was no exception.
Standing a little over six feet, his solid build was covered by a pair of nice black slacks and a white button-down.
His shirt was open at the collar, the sleeves rolled up to reveal well defined forearms. Had it not been for the gun and badge clipped to his belt, he looked like he would have belonged on the cover of GQ, not standing in the middle of a small-town police station.
As it was, I could easily picture him in a calendar starring some the hottest men of Hope Valley.
At the thunk of the phone being put back into the cradle, the man spoke again. “That’s your last warnin’,” he said to the woman. “One more personal call while you’re mannin’ this desk, and you can find yourself another job.”
The color leeched from her face, and she began to sputter, but before she could say a word, the man turned his angry gaze from her and graced me with a smile that made my knees a bit wobbly.
“Sorry about that. I’m Leo Drake.”
“Tessa Day,” I replied, taking his offered hand for a quick shake.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Tessa Day. What can I help you with?”
“I’m here for Charity Winslow.”
Leo’s expression grew serious. “Ah. I see. You her mom?”
“No.” Reaching into my satchel, I pulled out the paperwork I needed. “I’m actually the director over at Hope House. Charity’s one of my kids. Everything you need to release her into my custody is right here.”
He took the documents and gave them a scan before looking back to me. “Heard Cord and Rory had hired someone. Welcome to Hope Valley, Ms. Day.”
“Tessa’s just fine. And thank you, officer.”
That grin returned, making my belly swoop. “Detective, actually. But feel free to call me Leo.”
“Oh, okay. Then, thank you, Leo.”
“Come on. I’ll show you where to go.”
Without looking back at the receptionist, he led me to a set of stairs. I followed him through a bustling bullpen to a closed conference room door where he rapped his knuckles against the wood before grabbing the knob and pushing it open.
I spotted Charity sitting on one side of the long table beside two other girls her age. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she wore that same pinched, sour expression that had graced her pretty face almost every day since I’d started at the home.
Every child at Hope House struggled with their own issues, but Charity in particular was more defiant than the rest. Thanks to her mom being a drug addict and no idea as to the identity of Charity’s father, the girl had spent the majority of her thirteen years bouncing in and out of the system.
Her mom would get her act together and clean herself up just long enough to regain custody, only to lose it again when she relapsed or got picked up by the police.
The woman’s latest arrest had been her third strike, and she’d lost custody of Charity for good. Now the only time she was allowed to see her daughter was during the few supervised visits a month the court had granted her.
The constant displacement had bred fear into Charity. Not knowing what would happen from one day to the next had taken its toll and she’d formed an impenetrable barrier around herself that was so thick it had made the poor girl hard as stone.
She acted out constantly, skipping school, failing her classes, picking fights with the other kids in the house, and breaking curfew.
“Tessa, this is Officer Duncan,” Leo said, pulling me from my thoughts. I turned my focus from the sullen girl to the uniformed officer standing in the room. “He’s the officer who picked the girls up, so he’ll be able to fill you in on everything.”
“Wonderful,” a woman snapped. I turned to look toward the back of the room and noticed for the first time three other people, two women and a man, who I assumed were the parents of the other two girls.
“I take it you’re the one responsible for this delinquent,” the woman with a short blonde bob hissed, throwing her finger in Charity’s direction.
“That’s quite enough, Mrs. Owens,” Leo said, his tone frigid as he directed it at the snobby woman. “While we’re in this room, you’ll remain civil.”
Lifting my chin, I pinned the woman with a hard stare. “I’m Charity’s guardian, yes. And I’ll ask that, from here on out, you refrain from name calling, especially when you’re referring to a thirteen-year-old girl.”
As the woman sputtered, I returned my attention to the uniformed officer and asked, “Can you fill me in on what happened?”
Officer Duncan’s expression was surprisingly gentle as he dove right in. “Well, the owner of the shop these three were in caught them stuffing cosmetics into their backpacks, and when she went to confront them, those two attempted to make a run for it.”
I looked back to the girls, noticing that the only one he wasn’t pointing at was Charity. At least that was something.
“A few other customers stopped them before they could make it out the door, which is fortunate, considering the trouble they’d have gotten into for running would’ve been a whole lot steeper than a slap on the wrist.”
“This is so stupid,” Charity clipped loudly. “It was just a couple tubes of lipstick. We weren’t hurting anybody.”
My head whipped around in her direction. “Not. Another. Word,” I warned. In return, she shot me a scathing look, but snapped her mouth shut.
“I’m sorry,” I said to the officer. “Please continue.”
“All the items they took were accounted for, and she’s not gonna press charges. The girls are free to go”—he gave them an admonishing look that made all three of them sink deeper into their seats—“this time.”
“Thank you,” I said, my shoulders sinking in relief. “I’m sure we all appreciate the leniency.”
“Speak for yourself,” Blonde Bob snapped. “My daughter wouldn’t be in this position in the first place if it wasn’t for her.” She curled her top lip up at Charity. “Kelsey didn’t have a single problem until she started hanging around that girl.”
“That girl’s name is Charity,” I cut in.
“And as far as I’m concerned, all three of them are at fault for what happened.
You must have selective hearing, because you seemed to have missed the part where Officer Duncan explained that it was your daughter and the other girl who attempted to flee the scene, but far be it for me to be the one to burst your bubble by pointing out that your Kelsey is far from innocent.
Now, if you feel you have more to say to me, I’m more than happy to speak with you .
. . in private. But I’m done allowing you to throw attitude and dirty looks at a child. Is that understood?”
The woman’s eyes went big, and she began to bluster. “Who do you think you ar—”
“Is. That. Understood?” I repeated, my tone leaving absolutely zero room for argument.
Finally growing some balls, the woman’s husband took her by the arms and admonished, “That’s enough, Gwen. Kelsey, get your things. We’re going.”
With that, the three of them headed out, followed only moments later by the other girl and her silent mother.
“Thank you for taking it easy on them,” I said to Officer Duncan once the door closed behind the others. “And if you happen to have the opportunity, please thank the shop owner for me as well.”
He offered a kind smile. “Don’t mention it. Kids make mistakes. Those mistakes shouldn’t define a person.” He turned his focus on Charity, surprising both of us by keeping his tone gentle as he spoke to her. “It’s how you learn from those mistakes that define you. You understand, sweetheart?”
She shocked me to my core when she lowered her head, looking properly shamefaced. “Yes, sir.”
“Glad to hear it. Now, you two ladies enjoy the rest of your day.” He gave us a tilt of his chin before disappearing from the conference room.
I exhaled slowly, closing my eyes, and pinched the bridge of my nose as the tension of the last hour or so seeped from my bones, leaving me utterly exhausted.
The feel of a hand on my arm made my eyelids pop open, and when I looked up, Leo was gazing down at me, concern etched into his handsome features. “You good, darlin’?”
I offered him a tired smile and nodded. “Yeah. I’m good. Thanks.” Shifting to face Charity, I made my voice stern as I ordered, “Go wait for me in the lobby. I’ll be there in just a second.”
She stood without argument, and Leo and I watched as she slunk out, ever the moody teenager.
“Thank you for your help,” I said once the two of us were alone. “You know, with the receptionist and Kelsey’s mom. You didn’t have to step in, but I appreciate that you did.”
“Not a problem.” He hit me with a sexy grin. “I don’t mind helpin’ out, especially if it means I get a chance to meet a beautiful woman.”
A blush hit my cheeks as they pulled into a shy smile. “Well, uh . . . I should probably, you know”—I hiked my thumb over my shoulder—“get going.”
His warm chuckle filled the room. “Probably. Circumstances aside, it was nice meeting you, Tessa.”
“You too, Leo.” I began backing toward the door. “I’ll, um, see you around.”
He gave me a wink, and promised, “Oh, you’ll definitely be seein’ me around.”
Oh . . . my.