Chapter 5 #3
“I don’t remember him much at all. My brother, Shaw, was eight when he left, and he took it hard. He started getting in trouble at school, acting like a little brat. Mom married Ivan when I was seven. Sometimes I think she accepted his proposal because she couldn’t handle Shaw on her own.”
“Did Ivan help?” Manny was completely unaware how thrilled Theo and Edith were that Gretchen was giving them this look inside.
Gretchen shook her head, a faraway look in her eyes that concerned Theo, made him believe she was recalling unhappier times. “No.” She hesitated, seeming to remember where she was. “Ivan was a strict disciplinarian.”
Theo pinned her with a look because he could tell, once again, she was leaving too many things unsaid.
She grimaced under his steady gaze. “Okay,” she relented. “Ivan was an abusive asshole and a bully.”
“Oh, dear.” Edith reached over to place her hand on top of Gretchen’s. “I’m sorry to hear that. How did your mother handle it?”
Gretchen lifted one shoulder. “Mom wasn’t the strongest of women, so she always took his side, supported him.”
“Was he mean to her, too?” Manny had put his fork down, fully invested now in hearing Gretchen’s story.
“No. Shaw took the brunt of his anger.” Gretchen bit her lip. “It got bad. Some stuff happened, and we ended up in foster care.”
Theo frowned. She’d clearly breezed over a hell of a lot.
Edith’s fingers were pressed to her lips, upset by Gretchen’s admission. “How old were you when you went into foster care?”
Gretchen looked away. They were treading on dangerous ground here. It was obvious she regretted saying as much as she had, and he suspected before they could ask another question, she’d find a way to change the subject.
“I was thirteen. Is it okay if I pour myself another cup of tea?” Gretchen asked as she rose, halfway to the kitchen before she finished her question.
“Of course, my dear. This is your home now. You don’t even have to ask.” Edith sighed heavily the second Gretchen was out of earshot. “Poor girl.”
Theo nodded in agreement, though he didn’t add more, concerned Gretchen would overhear them. He might not know her well, but he’d seen enough to let him know she wouldn’t want their pity.
Mercifully, Manny recovered quickly, guiding them back to a safer topic. “Got any D.C. restaurant suggestions?”
Theo named a couple of places, his gaze drifting toward the kitchen. He sensed Gretchen was dawdling, uncomfortable with returning.
Three steps forward, two steps back.
She’d just stepped back into the dining room when there was a knock on the front door. Because he was looking at her, he caught the brief flash of panic that crossed Gretchen’s features before she managed to school them.
“That’ll be Jacob.” Edith rose from the table. “I invited him to stop by for a slice of cake after his shift.”
“You’re giving away more of my cake?” Manny asked, aghast.
Edith chuckled. “It’s Gretchen’s cake.”
Gretchen visibly relaxed, and even managed a weak smile.
Until Edith returned with Sheriff Jacob Anderson in tow.
Theo swore Gretchen’s pale complexion faded four shades, until she was ghostly white. She took a couple steps backward, clearly intent on going back to the kitchen. She was forced to halt when Edith called out to her.
“Gretchen, I want you to meet Jacob Anderson, Gracemont’s sheriff. Jacob, this is the young lady I was telling you about earlier. She’s starting work at Stormy Weather Farm on Monday.”
Gretchen hovered in the doorway between the kitchen and dining room, and Theo would bet every cent he had to his name that she wasn’t walking toward the sheriff because her legs wouldn’t carry her.
She wasn’t visibly trembling, but Theo had caught the previous glimpses of fear in some of Gretchen’s reactions—to his loud laughter, to him swiping at the bee. She’d flinched in fear, even whimpered.
But both of those times were nothing compared to this—what he was witnessing now was absolute terror.
“Nice to meet you, Gretchen.” Sheriff Anderson walked over to shake her hand.
Gretchen swallowed deeply, then—impressively—managed to put her hand out without it shaking…much. “You too.” Her voice was thin, but luckily, the sheriff and Edith didn’t notice.
Sheriff Anderson had a well-known sweet tooth, so Theo was under no illusion the man would have stopped by to meet a newcomer to town if the promise of cake hadn’t been included.
That was confirmed when he instantly turned away from Gretchen, rubbing his hands together excitedly when he caught sight of the three-layer chocolate cake sitting on the sideboard.
“I’ve been thinking about this cake ever since you invited me this morning, Edith.”
She sliced the sheriff a big hunk of cake, setting it in front of him at one of the open spaces at the table. Sheriff Anderson dug in with gusto, muttering what Theo assumed was “yes, please” when Edith asked if he’d like a cup of tea.
Gretchen stepped aside as Edith went into the kitchen. She remained there, her eyes darting toward the sheriff, then away.
Theo wondered what had her so spooked. He’d heard of people who were afraid of cops, but he’d never seen anyone have such a visceral reaction to someone in uniform.
Of course, Jacob Anderson had been the sheriff of Gracemont’s tiny law enforcement department since God was a baby, and the man was as gentle and jolly as they came.
He’d played Santa at the town’s annual holiday celebration for so long, even Theo had sat on his lap as a young kid and told him what he wanted for Christmas.
No one in Gracemont was afraid of Sheriff Anderson, because there wasn’t a single scary thing about the guy, except for the gun on his belt that Theo had never seen out of its holster.
Most folks in town liked to joke that it wasn’t even a real gun, just a prop for show, because it certainly hadn’t ever been used as intended.
“Gretchen.” Theo stepping close to her.
She startled at his voice, clearly so distracted by the sheriff she hadn’t seen him approach.
“I…” She licked her lips. “I have a bit of a headache coming on.” She watched Sheriff Anderson plow through his first slice of cake before he and Manny both went back for seconds. “I might go up to my room now. Will you tell Edith for me?”
She was determined to make a quick escape. Theo was tempted to tell her Sheriff Anderson was harmless, but he didn’t think it would matter if he did.
“I’ll tell her,” he promised.
She didn’t even say goodbye to Sheriff Anderson or Manny, who were too busy happily humming their way to chocolate bliss to realize she’d gone.
Edith frowned when she returned from the kitchen with a fresh pot of tea in her hands.
Theo stepped next to her. “Gretchen had a headache. She went upstairs.”
She glanced toward the staircase, confused. “She seemed fine a few minutes ago.”
Theo didn’t want to voice his opinion about her being afraid of the sheriff in case he was wrong, or in case Sheriff Anderson overheard him.
Edith put the teapot on the table. “Manny, pour the sheriff a cup of tea for me, will you?” She returned to the kitchen for a moment. When she came back, she handed Theo a bottle of water and some Tylenol. “Will you run those up to her?”
Theo nodded, climbing the stairs. Gretchen’s door was closed, but he could hear the opening and closing of drawers. He knocked, trying to catch her before she started undressing for bed.
She opened the door a crack, her gaze sliding over his shoulder to look behind him before she relaxed.
He held up the pills and water. “Edith wanted me to bring you these.”
“Oh.” Gretchen opened the door more fully, taking them from him. Theo noticed the suitcase on her bed, then the open dresser drawer.
“Just now unpacking?” He gestured toward the case, surprised, considering she’d already been in town a few days.
“Um…yeah.” She fidgeted with the pills in her hand nervously. Gone was the easygoing woman from dinner. This Gretchen was on edge, and he wished he knew what had set her off.
“I’m getting ready to head home,” he said.
“Okay.”
“I’ll pick you up Monday morning around eight-thirty.”
She nodded slowly. “Okay.”
“Good night.” He forced what he hoped passed for a normal smile, afraid he was too worried to pull it off.
“Goodbye.” Gretchen closed the door.
Shit. That goodbye sounded too damn final. It wasn’t a see you later sort of farewell, but more of a we’ll never meet again sort of goodbye.
Theo stood in the hall for a moment, fighting the instinct to knock on the door again and ask her what was wrong. Leaving her alone when she was upset was harder than he might have imagined.
Despite every internal admonishment he’d given himself about maintaining a professional relationship, he was failing to resist the pull.
If this kept up, he was going to have to call Levi to see how the hell he managed to keep from losing his mind once he realized Kasi was the woman for him, because now that he’d met Gretchen…
Jesus. He ran a hand through his hair.
Time to get a grip.