The Summer Escape

Chapter 6

This would no doubt go down as one of Owen’s most stupid ideas of all time, teaming up with the daughter of the man who’d stolen valuables from his great-aunt.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer...

After changing in his office, he came out to the front to find Ky and Braden in a paper airplane war against Sami and—to his utter shock—Ms. So-Uppity-She-Squeaked-When-She-Walked Anna Moore.

Andthe girls were winning.

Ky grinned at Owen. “She’s as badass as you are.”

Owen told himself he didn’t give a shit what she was. “You about ready?” he asked her dryly.

“What about Turbo?” she asked of the dog sitting obediently—obediently!—at her feet.

“Sami can watch him.”

Anna raised a brow. “Isn’t your girlfriend going to mind dog-sitting?”

“Oh, I’m not his girlfriend,” Sami said. “Not anymore anyway. We didn’t work. Mostly because he’s a terrible boyfriend, but the good news is that he’s a really great boss.”

Anna didn’t appear to know what to say to that. She was slightly taller than average, with a slender body that had enough curves to get Owen’s full attention. The first time he’d seen her, her hair had been wavy and uncontrolled, giving her a just-rolled-out-of-bed look that was sexy as hell.

Today her hair was silky smooth and shiny, giving her a polished, elegant look—until she threw the paper airplane in her hands. It flew with such perfectly aimed speed and accuracy toward Braden’s head that he had to hit the floor to avoid it.

“You should marry her,” Ky said in a stage whisper.

Owen held the front door open for Anna, flipping off Ky behind her back. As they headed through the parking lot, her phone buzzed, which it’d been doing on and off since she’d first found him on the beach, a fact she appeared to be studiously ignoring.

When he caught her glancing at him, he nudged his chin toward the phone lighting up her pocket. “Do you need to get that?”

“Nope.” She stopped beside a rather beat-up-looking Honda.

“If you’d rather,” he said, “I could drive.”

“I’m not getting into your car.”

“You’re right. Because it’s not a car. It’s a truck.”

She rolled her eyes so hard he was surprised they didn’t fall right out of their sockets. “You know what I mean,” she said. “You could be an ax murderer for all I know. After all, you sneaked into my office and yelled at me.”

“I never yell.”

“It was a tone.”

He could admit she had a point there. “Okay, how about this. You send your wingman my license plate and phone number.”

“Wingwoman. And I will.” She pulled out her phone and typed a text, glancing over at him, then typed some more. “Giving a description,” she said. “Short, chunky, with a comb-over.”

He laughed.

“Poor oral hygiene,” she added.

“Do you want to know how I’d describe you?”

“Definitely not.”

He was still smiling. “Sharp-tongued. Smart. Hot. Grumpy.”

“Well, the last one is true anyway,” she muttered.

It was all true and more, since he suspected that grumpiness hid a tender, soft heart that bled for the people she cared about. Since he liked breathing, he kept it to himself as he drove them out of the lot and toward the address she’d reluctantly given him.

And he thought he had trust issues. Nothing about this uptight woman in the tight skirt that was killing him slowly was his type, and yet... he found himself enjoying her. She went toe to toe with him and gave as good as she got. No one called him out on his shit—and yet she did, challenging him as well, something that hadn’t happened in far too long. “What can you tell me about the girlfriend?” he asked.

“Sonya? They dated for ten years, up until he died.”

He glanced over at her. She had the prettiest eyes he’d ever seen. Good thing he’d been deceived by pretty eyes before and could remain unmoved. “So how did you end up with the coin instead of her?”

“At the time he died, he lived with me.”

That surprised him. “Not with Sonya?”

“He had MS, and her town house is two stories. My condo is too, but he stayed in the downstairs bedroom. They dated for five years before his diagnosis. After, she visited him a lot, but I took care of him.”

“By yourself? No siblings?”

“I’ve got an older sister,” she said. “But Wendy was going through a rough patch at the time.” She shrugged.

And damn. He tangled with the fast judgment he’d made about her and lost. “I’m sorry about your dad,” he said quietly. “I know what it’s like to take care of someone you love and watch them fade away.”

He felt the weight of her stare. “Your dad too?” she finally asked.

“My mom. She died when I was a teenager. My great-aunt Ruby took me in. She’s got dementia now, which is why I need to get the necklace back for her, before I lose her entirely. My hope is that it will bring her back some good memories.”

She had her hand to her chest now, like she felt this to her core. “I’m so sorry about your aunt.” She was quiet a moment. “I’m guessing that you can understand why this is so important to me and my sister as well. Family is everything, and my dad really was a good guy.”

He knew she believed that, but she was either forgetting or ignoring that the guy had a record, not to mention the coin. Instead of reminding her and renewing their feud, he said, “Everyone makes mistakes. But that doesn’t mean my great-aunt has to suffer for those mistakes.”

She didn’t say anything to this, but the line of her mouth tightened as he parked in front of the town house she’d directed him to.

“I’ll be quick,” she said, and got out of the truck.

Oh hell no. When he got out with her, she shot him a glare that probably worked on most people, but not on him. He matched her brisk pace, impressed and a little turned on by how she could seriously move in those heels.

She said nothing, but it was crystal clear their momentary truce, if it’d ever been that, was over.

Anna slowed her pace the closer they got to Sonya’s front door, knowing just how hard this was going to be. In fact, it had all the makings of a disaster.

Her phone rang. Shocker, it was her “wingwoman” Wendy.

“You refuse to use the GoPro,” her sister said, “so at least put in your AirPods and slip the phone in your pocket so I can hear you. If you don’t, I’ll take a cab over there right now.”

“Shit. Fine.” She pulled her AirPods from her purse and put them into her ears, then pocketed her phone. That was when she realized she had an audience of two to this nightmare—her sister, and the guy who appeared to never have met Anna’s fun, old friend named Anxiety.

Even more annoying, Owen, who’d changed from those sexy board shorts and nothing else into faded jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt, looked like her own personal kryptonite. Shaking that off, she jogged up the three steps to the front porch and stared at the door, nerves hitting hard. She hadn’t seen Sonya in a long time.

Her own doing. She’d never resented her dad getting a second chance at love, that had nothing to do with it. Neither did her deep-down secret wish to get a first chance for herself.

Someday.

Maybe...

“You going to knock?” Owen asked at her side.

Okay, maybe not...

“Omigod,” Wendy said in her ear. “He’s got a great voice, doesn’t he?”

Anna sucked in a breath. Yes. Yes, he did. “No talking.”

When Wendy didn’t respond, she took that as a good sign and reached out to rap on the door—but it opened before she could.

“Anna, darling!” Sonya cried, arms already open.

Anna melted into the hug as all the memories she’d buried deep bombarded her. “I’m sorry it’s been so long—”

“Shh, it’s okay.” Sonya gave her another warm squeeze, her scent bringing Anna back to being in the kitchen and burning cookies with her, the two of them laughing at Sonya’s inability to bake, playing games, shopping, spending time long after it was cool to hang out at home.

“I’ve missed you,” Sonya whispered.

Anna closed her eyes. “Same.” She couldn’t have said why she hadn’t come sooner, except that in her experience, memories tended to be painful. “Thanks for seeing me.”

“Don’t start with that. I was so excited when you called, I made your favorite cookies.”

Anna smiled. “Burned?”

“Ha! Okay, so I lied about making them.” She eyed Anna’s new sidekick. “Who’s this?”

“Owen Harris. Owen, this is Sonya. Sonya, Owen.”

“I hope you like store-bought cookies,” Sonya said, shaking Owen’s hand.

He gave an easy smile. “I like any cookies.”

Sonya beamed at him, charmed. “And now I also hope that you’re dating him, A.”

Anna slid her gaze to Owen, who was looking pretty damned pleased with himself. “I’m not.”

“She never did have good taste in men,” Sonya said.

Owen lifted his hands, like What are you gonna do, ya know?

Sonya grinned at Anna. “You two have a vibe.”

“Like we want to smother each other with a pillow?” Anna asked.

“Like you should get married.” Sonya laughed at whatever look of horror Anna’s face had creased into. “Okay, okay, I’m getting the feeling this isn’t a social visit. What can I do for you two?”

Anna pulled out the coin and held it up.

Sonya’s smile faded. “You better come inside.”

Anna and Owen exchanged glances, and for the first time in her life, she dreaded stepping over the threshold. But step over it she did. Owen followed, respectfully quiet, though he did come up behind her with a light hand at her back, leaning in to whisper, “You okay?”

Her sarcastic “Like you care” was rude and uncalled for, but that was what she did when she was out of her comfort zone—sadly, not a rare occurrence. She used her razor-sharp tongue to keep people at a distance. It was her superpower.

His gaze held hers, and his warm hand at her back gave her a gentle pat, making her feel like a first-class jerk. They walked down a hallway that had pictures of her dad over the years lining the walls. She was there too. And Wendy. Lots of good memories, most of which caused a lump in her throat she couldn’t swallow away.

She and Owen sat on the couch in the living room. Sonya took the chair on the other side of the coffee table. Leaning in, she held out her hand. Anna dropped the coin into her palm, watching as Sonya drew a deep breath and stared at it. “You’re looking for information.”

“No,” Anna said, her mouth speaking without permission from her brain.

“Yes,” Owen said. He looked at Anna with a calm, almost gentle expression. “We need information.”

“I’m not sure I can help, but I’ll try.” Sonya looked at Anna. “I just need to know... are you sure?”

She knew Sonya would do only what Anna wanted, no matter how charming Owen might be. “Yes,” she said softly. “I’m sure.”

Sonya nodded. “First of all, your dad once told me that if you came asking, I should tell you everything I know.”

Oh boy.

“Which admittedly isn’t much,” Sonya warned. “But he was a troubled youth, and he made mistakes.”

“Illegal ones?” Anna asked.

“Second,” Sonya said, ignoring the question, “he did what he had to in order to take care of you girls. He always said he’d do anything to keep you from suffering poverty the way he did.”

Anna realized she was holding her breath and dragged in some desperately needed air. She wondered what Wendy was thinking, but for once her sister appeared to be listening to her directive and remained silent.

“When your mom died,” Sonya said, “he took on every menial job he could to take care of you both. But those jobs didn’t pay enough to cover medical insurance, keep a roof over your heads, and put food in your bellies. This was way before me, of course, but apparently you were on the verge of eviction when one of you ended up in the hospital with pneumonia.”

“Me,” Anna whispered, feeling the weight of Owen’s gaze but unable to look at him. “I’m the one who got pneumonia.” She’d been a sickly thing, and had never, not once, considered what that might’ve cost her dad.

Sonya nodded. “You have to understand, he needed to make sure you had your basic needs covered, that you were never left wanting for anything. Well, except maybe his time, since out of necessity, he was always working.”

Anna pressed a hand to her belly, which had begun to hurt. “Did he support us with... questionable jobs?” She could only imagine how Wendy would feel if he had. It’d destroy her, and she was already so vulnerable.

“No.” Sonya shook her head. “Take that worry off your plate right now, okay? He walked away from that life before you girls came along. After that, he needed to be legit, for the two of you. More than anything, he wanted that. The only thing he was guilty of after losing your mom was investing in some high-risk endeavors. He lost some, but then some other things paid off. Big. Once that happened, what you think of as his philanthropy? He thought of as restitution. In fact, he’d secretly managed to pay back everything he’d gotten in not so legal ways. He was incredibly proud of that, of parlaying his skills into one hundred percent legitimacy in order to make up for any bad choices he’d made when he’d been young.”

As hard as this all was to hear, Anna understood it. “What can you tell me about the time before he went legit?”

“Not too much, really. I do know that early on, he hung with some pretty unsavory people. He hooked up with a partner he shouldn’t have. They did a few... jobs together and were successful mostly because Louis was the brains of the operation and made sure any jobs were victimless.” She gave a small smile. “He had a code of honor that meant a lot to him. I don’t know who the partner was though, other than Louis always said the big difference between him and this guy was that while he’d done bad things to give you a better life, this partner had done bad things for a good time.”

“He never said a word about any of this,” Anna breathed. And her bigger worry—if once upon a time he’d done “bad stuff,” wasn’t it possible that ten years ago he’d stolen the coins and the Ruby Red, even if he’d supposedly been legit by then? “You recognized the coin I showed you. Did he do that job?”

“Sweetie, I believe he declined the job. But again, even back when he was doing things he shouldn’t have, he was Robin Hood. He’d never have taken from an innocent. Never.” She sat back. “As for why I recognized the coin, I’ve seen the news.”

Anna nodded, grateful to Owen and Wendy for remaining silent. “So you don’t know how he got the coin or how it is that it was in his things at Wendy’s?”

Sonya shook her head. “I don’t.”

“You mentioned some unsavory people that Dad had been acquainted with, including a possible partner. Did you ever see or meet any of them?”

“No. Honey, you’ve got to understand, he’d left that life behind long before I came into the picture. He wanted to be the kind of man you girls could respect and look up to. He’d honestly hoped and prayed none of this would ever come to light. I can’t imagine how he ended up with one of the coins. I suppose it’s possible he was still in contact with someone from his past, someone who did the job, but I never met them.”

“Even if you had, the coin was in his belongings, which wouldn’t connect any of those people to the theft,” Anna said quietly, more to herself than anyone else. But it attaches the theft to Dad... That lump still sat in her throat, as big as a regulation football. She’d always looked up to her dad and respected him. So, so much. But could she still do that now?

Sonya was watching her think and gently shaking her head back and forth. “He was still the amazing man you loved, Anna. No matter what.”

“No matter what,” Wendy whispered in her ear.

Anna wanted to believe that, she really did. And while Wendy and her dad had always been able to see all the colors of life, for Anna, life was black and white, right and wrong...

A little while later, as they were leaving, Sonya gave Anna a tight hug. “Please don’t wait another year to come by. You’re always welcome here, you know that, right?”

Anna squeezed her back, nodding.

Back inside his truck, Owen pulled on his seat belt but didn’t start the engine. She rested her head back and closed her eyes.

“You still okay?” he asked quietly.

“Yeah.”

“Liar.”

True story. She might be acting like she was okay, but deep down she needed a tub of ice cream all to herself. “If you could give me a moment for a badly needed breakdown, that’d be great.”

“Anna—”

Keeping her eyes closed, she held up a hand in his direction. “Listen, everything we just heard pretty much shattered the image I had of my dad. I need a second.”

He didn’t speak, and she concentrated on breathing. When she could talk without bursting into tears, she drew one last deep breath and opened her eyes to find Owen not on his phone, not playing with the radio, just quietly sitting, watching her with concern. “I’m better now,” she said.

He nodded. “Good.”

“And in case you didn’t notice, there’s still no real proof that my dad is your bad guy.”

“Maybe not yet,” he said. “But Robin Hood was still a thief. You know that, right?”

“He’s right,” Wendy said in her ear. “Don’t shoot the messenger.”

“There’s a reasonable explanation,” Anna said to them both. “And I’m going to find it.”

“We’re going to find it,” Owen said.

She turned in her seat to look at him. His eyes were steely with resolve but also still soft with that concern. He was worried about her. She really didn’t want to be moved by that, or by the respect he’d shown both her and Sonya inside, but she was.

“We’re in this together, Anna.”

“We are. You’ve got as much skin in the game as me and Wendy. But when it’s over, it’s over. This...” She gestured between them. “This ends.”

“Well, that sounds hasty,” Wendy said.

Anna ignored her while Owen gave her a half smile. “I didn’t know there was a this.”

She grimaced with embarrassment and annoyance at her loose tongue, and he laughed. “No take-backs. It’s out there now. There’s a this.”

She glared at him. “Just because I said it doesn’t mean I’m going to act on it. You’re as wrong for me as wrong can get.”

“Then why do you keep staring at my mouth all hungry-like?”

She really needed to teach her facial expressions how to use their inside voices. “Because it never stops moving?”

In her ear Wendy gasped. “You’re staring at his mouth? Introduce me!”

Anna sighed. “My sister wants me to introduce you. Wendy, Owen. Owen, Wendy, my very pregnant, nosy, interfering older sister.”

Owen leaned in close to Anna, his mouth near her ear, and without permission, her body disconnected from her brain, tilting her head to give him better access—

“Nice to meet you, Wendy,” he murmured, and, eyes laughing, sat back.

Anna was still waiting for her brain to reboot when Wendy said, “Now see, if you were using the GoPro, I’d be able to see him. Is he as big a thirst trap as he sounds?”

Yes. Yes, he was, dammit. “You’re married,” she grated out. “And please never say ‘thirst trap’ again.”

Owen grinned.

“Hey, being married doesn’t mean I can’t look,” Wendy said. “Does he have a six-pack? You know I love me a six-pack.”

“Eight,” she said, and when Owen laughed out loud, she realized he could actually hear everything her sister said. And that was why there’d be no this. He couldn’t take a damn thing seriously.

“So, what’s the next step?” he asked.

Okay, so maybe he could take some things seriously. “I want to hunt down the guy Sonya referred to as my dad’s partner.”

“Okay. How are we going to do that?”

She slid him a look at the “we.”

His return look dared to not even try to keep him out of the loop. A sigh escaped her. “I don’t know yet. But when I do, I’ll get in touch.”

“Looking forward to it.”

She was glad one of them was.