Chapter Thirty-Two
Sniffing Out Lies
Dale
“Darned woman,” he muttered when the last of the dust settled from Willow’s tires. Something was seriously wrong, and she wouldn’t tell him what it was. He had half a mind to follow her and see what the hell was going on.
But what if she really was going to a movie with Sofia? It had taken time to build the trust he and Willow had. Their long visits in prison had been one thing; her asking him to move onto the property and into her home, another.
Her grandmother had been an ornery woman, and he saw Joan in Willow more and more. That made him smile. There was no one better that Willow could take after. He missed Joan, and Willow needed her, not an old man who brought on memories of prison.
He thought their relationship had progressed more, and maybe that’s what bothered him the most. His years as a deputy had taught him to sniff out lies.
With Willow, it was different. He wanted her to turn to him if she was in trouble.
Tomorrow, he would sit her down and get to the bottom of what was wrong. He’d waited long enough.
He walked back to the line of large boulders that were half-buried in dirt.
The spring winds that seemed to stay at forty miles plus almost buried the rocks that were the barrier for the driveway that led onto the property.
The spring had turned hot too soon, and he’d delayed digging them up and reseating them.
Now it was slightly cooler, and with his current level of agitation, it was the perfect time for physical labor.
He worked for two hours before taking a break in the shade of a large shaggy bark tree. He put the water bottle to his mouth and took a long pull. He couldn’t help worrying about Willow. She needed someone to care for her, or maybe care about her was a better way to put it.
His life had changed for the better when she came into it.
If he died today, he regretted nothing. She was the child and grandchild he’d never had.
He loved her, but he hadn’t said the words.
He wasn’t a man who talked a lot, and she drew more conversation out of him than anyone previously.
He didn’t just love her; he was damned proud of her.
He’d never seen anyone so interested in learning about everything. Her years in prison had denied her so much. It still angered him that she was shafted by the justice system, and not even her grandmother could save her. How hard it must have been for Joan to see Willow in prison for ten years.
The two hadn’t known each other because Willow’s mother kept Joan out of their lives. But that didn’t stop her from wanting a relationship with her granddaughter. If only Joan had lived to guide Willow through the hard times.
Max, who had been sulking in the barn since Willow told him he couldn’t go with her, walked over and whined at his side. Daisy, who had laid down in the same shade where Dale stood, lifted her head and looked toward the east. Max turned at the same time.
Something caught their attention.