Chapter 4 #2
Frank was glad to have the offer to stay at Florence’s home for the holidays.
It would make it so much easier to visit with his granddaughter.
But also, he wanted to get to know Florence better—not as agents working cases, but maybe even dating.
He would be happy to take her to the Christmas dance if she wanted him to.
Once his wife had died, he hadn’t dated afterward. But he did know Florence, and he liked that they did have something in common. She was as beautiful as she had been when he had worked with her years ago.
Lacy brought her grandfather the cinnamon roll, then he got out of his chair and hugged her. “I’m glad we can work this out between us.”
“There is nothing to work out. You were right in the way you reacted when hunters killed Grandmother. I should have considered how devastated you were when it happened, and then I added to all the distress by not trusting that you had done what you had to do. You have Mrs. Fitz to thank for making me see the light.”
He appreciated that she had helped with Lacy’s turnabout regarding their disagreement. He ate his cinnamon roll and drank his coffee.
Lacy refilled his cup. “Do you want anything else?”
About then, some other customers arrived.
“No. I’m good. Thanks, Lacy.”
“What are you going to do for the rest of the day?”
“Go shopping. I need something to wear to a Christmas dance.”
She smiled. “I know. I was thinking the same. I didn’t expect to be going to anything like that when I arrived here.”
“You’ll save me a dance?”
“I sure will.” Then Lacy took orders from the customers at two other tables.
He drank the rest of his coffee, then left to check out of the motel. He needed to do it by ten, and then he would just keep his bags in his car and go shopping.
He was so glad Lacy had called him and let him know where she was and that she was safe. He respected Florence’s training and knew she would keep his granddaughter safe. He was glad she had taken her under her wing.
Once he checked out of the motel, he found a shop that was carrying formal and informal wear for women and men. He was really impressed that cougars seemed to run everything here.
“What are you looking for? Can I help? I’m the owner, Iris Hawthorn.”
“Frank Everest. I’m visiting my granddaughter, Lacy. I need something to wear to the Christmas dance. I have no idea what everyone wears to it. Is it formal? Casual?”
“Casual. Though some dress semi-formally. But everyone’s there to visit, enjoy the Christmas spirit, and have fun. Now, for the New Year’s party, that’s formal.”
“It must be nice to have so many cougars in town.”
“I love it. I came here a short while ago and opened my shop, and found everyone so welcoming and kind. Deputy Sheriff Chase Buchanan and his lovely wife, Shannon, opened their home to me for Thanksgiving, though several other families also offered. They invited me first, so I accepted their offer. I’ve heard Lacy is here because of the trouble she had with an abusive ex-boyfriend. ”
“She is.”
“Well, we have his picture, and if any of us see him, we will report him.”
“That’s great.” He was amazed at how the cougars stuck together like that. He’d never lived any place like it.
He was considering moving here, particularly if Lacy was staying here. He wanted to be part of her life and enjoy seeing her as she married and had kids, so he could spoil them. She was all he had left in the world.
“Will you be taking Lacy to the dance?”
“Uhm, no, she’s going with Rory.”
“Oh, he’s so cute, charming, a real nice guy.”
“I’m going with Florence Fitzgerald. We worked together in the FBI years ago.”
“Oh, my, how wonderful. Well, Mrs. Fitz wears wool skirts and sweaters, sometimes red or green sweater dresses for the dances, if that helps you to decide what to wear.”
He was glad Iris could help him decide what to wear. He hadn’t gone to anything like this since he’d lost his mate.
He ended up picking out a red wool sweater and dress pants. He decided to go whole hog and bought a pair of Western boots and a ten-gallon hat.
“Enjoy the dance.”
“Are you going?” he asked.
“I’ll be there. I might not have a date, but I’m going. From what I understand, others will dance with you, no matter your age, if you are alone. So I look forward to it.”
“That sounds good.” He paid for his clothes and then took them out to the car.
Then he dropped by the sheriff's office to speak to law enforcement about Lacy’s ex-boyfriend.
“Hi, I’m Frank Everest. My granddaughter, Lacy, is working for Florence Fitzgerald.
I’ve heard you are well aware of Lacy’s ex-boyfriend. ”
“I’m Dan Steinacker, sheriff of Yuma Town.” He shook Frank’s hand.
“Chase Buchanan, part-time deputy sheriff and owner of the Pinyon Pines Resort on Lake Buchanan.” Chase offered his hand in greeting, and Frank shook it.
“Stryker Hill, full-time deputy sheriff.” Stryker shook his hand.
“I’m Ricky Jones, also a deputy sheriff.”
“I’m a retired FBI agent. I worked with Florence Fitzgerald on cases and am moving in with Lacy and Florence for the time being.”
“Hell, that’s great news,” Dan said, brightening.
“Yeah, we can always use another law enforcement officer in our community,” Chase said.
“I agree. Florence has been instrumental in helping with cases in the past, despite being retired,” Stryker said.
“I would be glad to help with any cases that come up.” Being retired and having lost his mate, Frank had felt unsure about what to do with his life. This seemed like the perfect place to start over again.
Dan gave Frank the link that connected all the cougars so he could keep up with what was going on.
They all welcomed him to Yuma Town, and feeling really great that he was there, he headed over to the real estate office and walked into the brick building.
A woman immediately got up from her desk and said, “I’m Aya Noble. Are you looking for a rental or a home to buy?”
“Frank Everest.” He was thinking of buying a home, but then he had the crazy thought that if he and Florence really hit it off, it might be better just to rent a place and give them time to get to know each other and see where it went. “A rental. Apartment or condo?”
“We have both of which are furnished. And they’re available so you could move in right away.”
Then he reconsidered. “Let me think on that.” Frank was going to stay with Florence and Lacy first at Florence’s home, and see where it went. Then, if nothing worked out between him and Florence, he would buy a house.
“Okay, sure. I’ll be here if you ever need to buy or rent. Merry Christmas!”
“Merry Christmas.” It was time for lunch, and he didn’t want to overwhelm Lacy with constant visits to the coffee shop, so he decided to go to the pizza parlor. But then he thought he should ask Lacy if she wanted to join him.
Lacy answered her phone. “Yeah, Granddad?”
“I’m going to the Sizzling Slice for lunch. Do you want to join me?”
“I’m going there with Rory for dinner. Would you like to have lunch with Mrs. Fitz?”
“Uh, well, sure, if she wants to.”
“Let me ask. Would you like to have lunch with my grandfather at the Sizzling Slice?” Lacy asked Florence. “Ava and I have this.”
“Sure,” Florence said.
“Are you going now?” Lacy asked her grandfather.
“Yeah, I’ll come pick her up.” He was old school and believed the guy should pick up the gal to take her to lunch, but he knew Florence was headstrong and might prefer to drive herself.
“Okay, I’ll let her know.”
They ended the call, and he headed over to the coffee shop. When he arrived, he expected Florence to be working on some of her cakes or pastries, but she was grabbing her coat, looking eager to eat lunch out. She smiled broadly at him.
He was glad she wanted to share a meal with him. It was much more fun to have company. She smelled sweet, of sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg, and she was wearing a green sweater featuring a gingerbread girl and boy, holding red and green candy canes and a green wool skirt.
“Thanks for inviting me to lunch. Now that Lacy is helping Ava and me, I can take some me time, and they can too. It’s working out great.”
“That’s wonderful. I’m glad to enjoy lunch with you.”
They ended up ordering a pizza with red sauce, extra cheese, black olives, pepperoni, dried tomatoes, mushrooms, and bell peppers. Just the way he liked it, and he was glad she liked the same things as he did. They both asked for Italian lemonade.
“What made you come to Yuma Town?” he asked as they received their drinks.
Their pizza arrived, and they began eating slices.
“I was working a case. The woman had murdered her husband and fled before we could take her into custody. She told the police it was a case of suicide. By the time the autopsy came back a month later, proving it was murder, Willamina Caruso had fled the state. We split forces, and I ended up tracking her down to the outskirts of Yuma Town. I enlisted the local sheriff’s department, and we soon had her in custody.
Deputy Sheriff Stryker Hill took her in his patrol car, and I led the way back to Orlando, Florida.
“But once I had seen that cougars ran Yuma Town, I vowed to return there once I retired.”
Frank nodded. “I’ve been thinking about Lacy, and if she truly has found a home here, I want to settle here too.”
“It’s a great place to be. You’ll love it here.”
“Yeah. She’s all I have in this world, and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. If she and Rory end up mating and have children, I want to be there for the great-grandchildren.”
Florence smiled. “I can see you bouncing the kids on your knees.”
“Yeah. I love kids.”
“Me too. We’ll have dinner at my house tonight. Do you want to go for a cougar run after that?”
“Yeah, I haven’t done that in a long time,” he said.
“You’re all right with it?” She sounded worried, like she realized after losing his mate on a cougar run, he might be reluctant to do it.