Chapter 4
Florence reached her front door and opened the wooden speakeasy door to look out, and was shocked to see that it was Frank Everest, Lacy’s grandfather. She was still on the phone with Dan and said, “It’s just Lacy’s grandfather. We’re good.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I worked with him in the FBI.”
“All right. If you have any trouble, just let me know.”
“I will. Thanks.” Mrs. Fitz closed the speakeasy window and opened the door. “Come in, and I’ll make us some cocoa. Lacy’s sleeping upstairs. Do you have a place to stay?”
“I’m staying at the motel in Yuma Town. I’m good, but cocoa sounds great.”
She hadn’t seen Frank in twenty years, but he looked so distinguished with his silver hair, blue eyes, and his kindly features.
He gave her a warm smile, though their relationship while working together on cases in the FBI had often been contentious.
They both had their own way of doing things and never agreed.
But somehow, they always solved their cases.
He removed his hat, scarf, and coat, then joined her in the kitchen.
He smelled of snow and fresh air, and she recognized his cougar’s scent right away.
“Has Lacy’s ex been spotted in town?”
“Not yet. I was afraid you might have been him.” Florence pulled her gun out of her pocket and put it on the kitchen counter.
He chuckled. “That’s the Florence I remember.”
“Yeah, I’m always prepared.” She poured the cocoa into snowman mugs, topped them with whipped cream and peppermint pieces, and then handed one to Frank.
They moved into the living room to get comfortable.
“Okay, so the situation is that the sheriff’s department found tracking devices on Lacy’s car and bag, and they arranged to have them taken to Denver, and left the trackers in a truck heading out of state.”
“Well, hell, no wonder he kept locating her. Did she tell you why we were estranged?”
“Yeah. I think I convinced her that you really had no choice with regard to your wife, her grandmother’s death.”
“Thanks. I couldn’t seem to get through to her about it.”
“I think she was just in denial that you could have done more for your wife.”
“I agree.”
“In any case, I’m sorry to hear that she died. If you hadn’t guessed, Yuma Town is cougar run. We take care of our own. So everyone in town has been alerted about her ex-boyfriend and is on the lookout for him.”
“That’s a relief,” Frank said. “I smelled a man had been at the house.”
“Oh, Rory Baker. He’s a ranch hand at Hal Haverton’s horse ranch. Hal’s also a part-time deputy sheriff. Rory took Lacy out to dinner tonight. He’s a good guy. You don’t have to worry about him being like her ex-boyfriend.”
“Good. How are you doing?”
“Wonderfully. I retired and ended up in Yuma Town, started my coffee shop, and love it here. You?”
“Like you, I retired, lost my wife to hunters, and lost Lacy over that. But when she began having issues with the ex-boyfriend, I had tried to protect her, but she wasn’t having anything to do with it.
You can’t know how worried I have been about her safety.
I had looked into Timothy and discovered he’d done the same thing with two previous girlfriends until he ended up with another girlfriend. ”
“And you couldn’t have him arrested if he hurt Lacy because he’s a shifter.”
“Exactly.”
“How long do you plan to stay?”
“For a couple of weeks to see how Lacy is doing and try to rekindle our relationship.”
“That sounds like a great idea.” She was going to offer her home to him if he would be more comfortable there, but she would wait to see if things worked out between him and his granddaughter in a few days.
“When does she go to work in the morning?”
“Five. But you can come by any time to see her. You can take her out to lunch. She has a dinner date with Rory again tomorrow night and for a cougar run. So she might be in late like she was tonight.”
“Okay, well, I’ll let you get some sleep. I’ll drop by the shop for breakfast in the morning.”
“All right. We’ll see you then.”
He took his snowman mug into the kitchen, and she deposited both in the dishwasher. Then he said good night, and she locked up afterwards. She was glad the visitor at her door had been Lacy’s grandfather and hoped Lacy and her grandfather would resolve their differences.
And she hoped Lacy wouldn’t be annoyed with her for telling her grandfather she was dating Rory!
Then she had a weird thought. If Lacy’s grandfather was going to be here for the holidays, would he want to go to the Christmas dance with her? Not to dance, but just as company? The same with Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day meals.
No way would she let him stay in the motel for the holidays while he was trying to make up to Lacy to change her view of him.
Florence returned to bed, and it wasn’t long before it was time to get up and make breakfast, but Lacy was already working on it. “Is French toast all right?” she asked Florence with a cheerful smile.
“Oh, sure, that’s great. You probably smelled your grandfather’s scent in the house.”
“I did. I knew he would be here before long.”
“He’s staying at the motel. I told him you were sleeping, and he said he would be here for a couple of weeks.”
Lacy nodded. “It’s probably a good thing that we iron things out.”
“Especially before the holidays. About that, since you’re both here, how do you feel about him coming to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meals?”
“That would be great. Maybe Rory can join us.”
“I did tell Frank that you and Rory are going out to dinner tonight, but that he can come to the shop at any time to talk to you.” Florence poured cups of coffee for both of them and brought the cream and sugar to the table.
Lacy didn’t say anything for the moment, then served up their French toast and a side of bacon.
When they sat down to eat, Lacy asked, “Are you going to the Christmas dance?”
“Sure. I go every year. There’s always someone to dance with, even if they are much, much younger than me.”
Lacy laughed. “Okay. I was afraid to ask you about it.”
“Yeah, and we have a girls-only fundraiser with a sexy Santa tea party.”
“Oh, how fun.”
“It is. One of the bachelors dresses up as Santa. We’ll be making the desserts for the fundraiser, and we'll take pictures with Santa.”
“What about my grandfather? Can he go to the dance?”
“Absolutely. While he’s staying here, he can join in all the holiday events.”
They started eating their breakfast.
“This is really good. Thanks for making it,” Florence said.
“Thanks. I never make it for myself. But for a couple of us, I thought it would be fun to make it. So, are you considering letting my grandfather stay at your house also?”
“It’s something that could happen, if both of you would like. I have another spare guest room. It’s up to the two of you.”
Lacy sighed. “I could spend more time with him at your house, if it would be all right with you, and he might not feel as lonely, if we’re all watching a movie together or spending time having dinner together.”
“But you’re going out with Rory.” Florence assumed Lacy would continue dating Rory at night, taking breaks occasionally.
But Florence would end up being the one to have dinner with Frank instead.
Otherwise, he would have to go out every night to get something to eat, since the motel didn’t have a restaurant.
“I’ll ask him if he drops by the coffee shop today.” Lacy finished her breakfast and carried her plate into the kitchen. Then she cleaned up the pots and pans.
Florence soon joined her and put the dishes away. “Are you ready to go to the shop?”
“Yep. Thanks for talking me into letting my grandfather know where I was. I’m eager to work things out between us.”
“Good. It’s hard when it’s the holidays, and you don’t have any family to connect with.”
Lacy looked regretful that she had treated her grandfather with disdain when he had been so adamant about protecting her from her ex-boyfriend, even though she had not really been ready to admit she had an issue with Timothy.
Then they headed to the shop. Before they even entered it, Frank was at the door, waiting for them to open up shop. Florence smiled at him. “Are you hungry? Come in and Lacy can get you something.”
Just then, Ava arrived, greeted them, and headed back to the kitchen. Florence joined her.
Then Mrs. Fitz and Ava began baking, and Lacy handed her grandfather a menu and got him a cup of coffee.
“Uhm, Mrs. Fitz said you could stay with us at the house, if you would like. I would love it if you would. I could visit with you at night, when I’m not out on dates with Rory.
Mrs. Fitz has another spare bedroom.” Then she leaned over and whispered, “When I’m not at home, you can keep Mrs. Fitz company. She’s lonely.”
Her grandfather smiled. She didn’t know how it would go between her grandfather and Mrs. Fitz since they had been adversaries when they worked on cases together. But maybe they would like the companionship.
“That would be nice.”
“And you can ask her to the Christmas dance.”
He raised his brows, his lips smiling.
“Rory and I are going together. I asked him. Mrs. Fitz said she always goes. But I thought if you stayed with us, you could take her.”
Again, he smiled. “Sure, Lacy. I’ll ask her.”
“Okay. Do you know what you want?”
“The cinnamon roll.”
“Coming right up.” Then she whipped around, went into the kitchen, and found Ava working on cinnamon rolls.
“One of our best sellers,” Ava said.
“That’s what my grandfather wants,” Lacy said.
“I’m glad he has come for the holidays,” Ava said.
“I agree.” Lacy turned to Mrs. Fitz. “Granddad agreed to stay with us.”
“Wonderful. That would be great.”
Lacy didn’t tell her that he would ask her to go to the dance. That was between her grandfather and Mrs. Fitz.