Chapter 23
Savvy
The temperature is definitely a bit chillier than I anticipated.
Arriving with Auden in tow may have had something to do with that. For the record, that was not my idea.
He happened to pull in right behind me and was asking me about the case as we walked up to the front door.
When the CID took over the Watts Lake case, his captain put him back on regular duty, so I guess he’d been out of the loop.
I didn’t even think twice about the impression we’d make entering the house with his hand at the small of my back.
But apparently it was noticed.
By Nate, for one, but also Mrs. Dixon, who surprisingly is shooting daggers at Auden and sending disappointed looks in my direction.
I’m not even sure what the hell is happening here, but it’s annoying.
Especially Auden, who seems highly amused with the whole situation and is really testing my nerves by constantly touching me and leaning into my space.
I’ve already shifted out of his reach twice, but he doesn’t appear to get the message, or is willfully ignoring it. I think he’s purposely goading Nate.
The last thing I want or need is to say something and possibly create a situation that draws even more unwanted attention, but I’m afraid if I don’t step in, Nate may lose his shit and then we’ll have a real public spectacle.
Rather than trying to control Auden, I opt to grab Nate’s hand and pull him up with me.
“Would you excuse us please?”
I smile at Bess and Mrs. Dixon, and pointedly ignore Auden, as I drag Nate around the side of the house and toward the barn.
I welcome the familiar smell of warm hay and greased leather the moment we step inside; it settles me.
The only thing missing is the occasional whinny or a dull clomp of a hoof from one of the horses, but they’re still out in the field.
When I was young, this place was my refuge, a place to hide out.
“What’s going on?” Nate asks when I turn to face him.
“This.”
Placing my hands on his face, I lift on my toes to kiss him. His hands instantly find the curve of my hips to pull me closer.
“Mmm, you can drag me away from my dinner for this any time,” he mumbles against my lips.
“I’m so sorry,” I rush to apologize. “That was rude of me.”
But he grins and shakes his head at me. “I’m just teasing, and not complaining at all. I wasn’t sure you were going to make it.”
“Neither was I,” I confess.
I don’t want to admit it was a phone call from Phil half an hour ago to ask me where the hell I was that got me out of the office.
“We had a bit of a break in the case and I lost track of time.”
Close enough.
“Well, I’m glad you’re here now.”
A soft rustle from the direction of the goat’s stall in the corner draws my attention. I could’ve sworn I just saw Angus in his outdoor enclosure. Disentangling myself from Nate, I move closer to have a look.
The stall is empty, but a little trickle of dust falls down from between the boards of the overhead hayloft. Then I hear a soft shushing.
Someone is up there.
“What are you—”
I turn around to Nate, my finger pressed against my lips. Then I point up and motion for him to wait. I should’ve known Nate doesn’t follow instructions very well, he follows close behind me as I make my way to the ladder by the tack room.
My head barely clears the opening in the floorboards when I hear, “We were just looking at the view.”
Nate’s growl behind me indicates he recognizes Carson’s voice as well.
The kid is so flustered, he knocks his head on a low beam when he scrambles to his feet. Tatum is still sitting in the open hay door, which really has a great view of the creek and the mountains at the back of my dad’s property. I spent enough time up here myself enjoying it.
A quick scan tells me nothing too dramatic has gone on here. Their faces are a bit flushed, which could be from making out a little, or just from getting caught, but their clothes seem to be in place. Thank God for that.
“Tell me my daughter isn’t up there,” Nate grinds out, trying to push me farther up the ladder.
“I’m fine, Dad.”
“She is,” I quickly confirm over my shoulder. Then I turn back to the kids. “Why don’t you guys come down so we can talk?”
Then I turn around and motion for Nate to get down first.
“Listen first,” I hiss at him when I see him waiting at the bottom, glaring past me at what I think is Carson following me down.
“Mr. Gaines, I was just showing Tatum the mountains. The view from up here is the best in the valley.”
The kid is not wrong, but I’m not sure Nate is buying what he’s selling.
“And I guess your hands were in your pockets the entire time, right?” he sneers, but the anger melts from his eyes when he catches sight of his daughter coming down the ladder, unharmed. However, Tate herself looks pretty riled up.
“Yes, they were, Dad. He didn’t touch me, and you’re embarrassing me. Besides, you’re one to talk; you’re the one hiding in the barn, making out,” she spits out, stepping in front of her father with her fists on her hips.
The soft-spoken girl isn’t as meek as she might appear. She’s got the kind of spunk I can’t help admire. Still, I’m pretty sure her father wouldn’t appreciate the applause I’m tempted to give her, so I curb my enthusiasm and keep my own hands in my pockets.
“Tate, honey…”
“No, Dad. That was not cool.”
“Neither was not telling me you were coming out here,” Nate returns, also making a good point.
“I didn’t think it would be a big deal,” the girl mutters.
“Really, Tate?” he probes.
She shrugs in response, suggesting she did know better but chose to ignore it.
It’s almost funny how much this exchange reminds me of my childhood squabbles with my dad.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Gaines, we’ll be sure to ask your permission next time,” Carson wades in courageously, earning a hint of appreciation from Nate, but an annoyed look from the girl.
“Guys, have you eaten anything?” I change the subject, hopefully deflecting a different storm brewing between the two kids.
“You should grab some grub while you can. Dessert is pie from Strange Brew, courtesy of Bess, and I can guarantee you that won’t last but a minute before you’ll find nothing but crumbs. ”
The pie is a calculated guess, since that’s what Bess usually brings to potlucks by popular demand.
Carson flashes me a thankful grin, grabs Tatum’s hand, and pulls her along as he beelines it out of the barn.
“Nothing happened,” I reassure Nate, who stares after them from the doorway.
“How can you be so sure?”
“I’m a trained investigator, remember? The clothes were all on straight, other than Carson knocking his head into the beam there were no nervous movements, neither of them had hay stuck in their hair, and the dust is so thick up there it would’ve been obvious if they’d been messing around.”
He turns around when I touch his back, and takes me into his arms.
“She saw us.”
“I know.”
“I should probably have addressed that,” he grumbles.
“Better to let things cool off before you do,” I suggest with a smile. “To be honest, she seemed more upset with the double standard than she was with the fact you were kissing me.”
I catch a flash of humor in his eyes.
“Don’t you mean when you kissed me?” he teases with a smirk.
“Is that what that was?” I play along.
Smiling, he takes my mouth for a repeat, leaving me almost gasping before he lets me come up for air.
“That…was me kissing you.”
Nate
It’s an unseasonably warm morning.
Perhaps the last one before the temperatures drop. The forecast indicated we might get some snow up in the mountains toward the middle of next week.
Unfortunately, I’m enjoying the morning by myself on my back deck. I just heard the shower turn on in the bathroom upstairs, which means Tate is finally up, and Savvy opted to go home last night, suggesting some one-on-one time might be warranted, given the earlier confrontation in the barn.
Probably a wise suggestion, but as it turned out, Tate—who apparently can hang on to a snit longer than her old man can—froze me out on the way home and shot upstairs the moment we walked in the door.
So, I’m sitting out here on my own, sipping my second cup of java and absorbing as much vitamin D as I can before the sun disappears for the winter. But I am determined to have that one-on-one with Tate before she heads off to meet up with Naomi to check out the parade.
I keep half an eye on the sliding door, not putting it past my daughter to take off before I have a chance to talk to her. To my surprise, she voluntarily comes outside, carrying a banana and a glass of milk, and sits down across from me at the table.
“Nice out,” she comments, peeling her banana and taking a big bite.
“It is. Great weather for the Harvest Fest. I remember this one year we had an early overnight frost and there was a layer of ice on the water in the dunk tank. Mr. Gibbs was my math teacher at the time and he had first shift in the chair. Naomi’s dad, Roy, and I spent all our money for the day trying to dunk Mr. Gibbs in that freezing water before the ice melted. ”
I smile at the memory. In a generally miserable childhood, that’s one of the good moments that stands out in sharp contrast.
“Did you?” Tate wants to know.
“Last ball.”
I snicker and shake my head. I can still see the arrogant smirk on that guy’s face and the way his expression changed in an instant when the chair dropped out from under him.
The best part was the applause of the crowd that had gathered around the attraction.
Apparently, Roy and I weren’t the only ones with a healthy dislike for the man.
It’s good to see Tate hide a little smile behind the next bite of her banana. A good moment I don’t necessarily want to spoil by addressing something that might upset her.
Turns out, I don’t need to. It’s Tate who brings up the subject.
“She’s nice…the sheriff.”
“I’m pretty sure she’s okay with you calling her Savvy,” I suggest, following it up with, “and yes, she is nice.”
“You knew her from before, right?”
“Correct.”
“Was she more than just a friend?”
She studies me, her head tilted slightly to the side.
“She was much more than just a friend,” I admit.
It’s silent for a moment before she asks the question I knew would be inevitable.
“What happened?”
I’m not sure I want to get into the whole sordid story, so instead opt to keep things simple.
“I messed it up, and I’m incredibly lucky to get a second chance at doing it right this time around.”
She nods, her eyes fixed on her hands, picking at the banana peel.
“I like her,” she finally says. “I like her for you. Much better than some of those other women you used to hang out with.”
I wince at the reminder my judgment wasn’t always the best…obviously.
“I’m glad, because if I have my way, you’ll be seeing a lot more of her.
Now, about you and Carson,” I change direction, venturing into another potential danger zone.
“I know you like him, and I believe he’s a decent kid but, Tate, I need you to be smart.
Don’t put yourself in situations that could turn into something you’re not ready for. ”
“I know, Dad. Which is why I was going to ask you if it’s okay that Carson drives Naomi and me to the church hall this afternoon to practice the dance before the youth group meets tomorrow morning? There’s a whole group of us going, including the youth leader,” she quickly answers.
I chuckle. Clever girl, twisting the conversation to suit her own needs.
I take a moment to think about it, but there really is nothing to object to.
It’s not like she’ll be alone with him, and although I’m not a fan of church, I do like the fact Tate seems to have found a group of kids to connect with.
“Yeah, sure thing. But I expect you back by six at the latest, because you and I are going to have corndogs and funnel cake at the park for dinner.”
“Sweet. Thanks, Dad.”
She gets up and comes over to kiss my cheek, and then I watch as she skips off inside.