15. Cale #3
I let out a silent curse, hitting my fist against the counter with a soft thump.
I can’t wish my sister had never met her ex-husband, because then we wouldn’t have Lanie.
But, goddamn, I wish he’d get sucked into a black hole.
He doesn’t deserve my family, and I hate that he can just come along and devastate them with one phone call.
Lanie had finally started to settle in and was coming out of her shell. She was making friends at school, and this is going to set her right back to how she was when they first moved back.
“What can I do?” I ask gruffly.
“Lanie tried going to her room and I was worried she wouldn’t come back out, so I convinced her that we should go out for dinner,” Jaz says in a rush. “She asked if you’d come.”
Before she has even finished, I’ve picked my keys back up and started backtracking out of the house to my truck. “Pick you both up in five.”
The Blue Grill, Sterling Creek’s one and only steakhouse, is on the outskirts of town. We’re seated straight away, the place quiet, which isn’t a surprise considering it’s Monday night.
Jaz sits across from me, letting Lanie take the seat at my side. My niece leans into my arm when the friendly server approaches to take our order, not saying much. Jaz and I don’t push, keeping the conversation light as our dinner arrives and we start eating.
When I notice Lanie pushing around her loaded baked potato, a favorite of hers, I nudge her with my elbow. “How’s school, Birdie?”
She lifts a skinny shoulder, keeping her head down. I meet Jaz’s worried stare, both of us hating how Lanie’s shutting us out.
“If you don’t eat your potato, I might steal it,” I say casually. She looks up, eyeing the hot fries lying beside my steak.
“We’re doing this nutrition thing in health class. My teacher said eating too many potatoes can raise your blood pressure.” Her eyes, so like my sister’s, lift to mine, spearing me with a shrewd look. “You’re not exactly young, Uncle Cale.”
My mouth drops open, and I slump back, clutching my chest in a wounded motion. “Are you calling…” I swallow dramatically, and Lanie’s mouth twitches the tiniest bit. “Birdie, are you calling me old?”
Jaz snorts. “If the cane fits.”
I shoot her a glare before focusing back on Lanie. “My blood pressure is at a perfectly healthy level, thank you very much.” I stuff a fry in my mouth, just to prove a point, and this time, I do get a smile.
Lanie brightens up after that, her shoulders losing some of their tension as she joins in the conversation.
With each minute that passes, the darkness fades from her eyes, leaving her looking more like herself.
I want to ask what happened with Wyatt, and what he said…
But I won’t risk those shadows creeping back in.
We’ve just ordered dessert when Lanie asks, “Did you know there was a fire? Someone’s house burned down on Friday night.”
I sip my water, eyeing her carefully. “I heard about it.”
Jaz furrows her brows, eyes bouncing between us. “What fire?”
“Everyone was talking about it in school today,” Lanie tells her, eyes gleaming at knowing something her mother doesn’t. “Someone set a house on fire…on purpose!”
I sit back, swiping my thumb over my lower lip.
“How do you know someone did it on purpose, Birdie?” That wasn’t public knowledge.
The cops were doing everything in their power to keep it out of the media.
It wouldn’t take much for people to connect the dots with the other break-ins and send the town panicking.
“Apparently, a group of guys was actually there. They saw the whole thing happen. They even said that one of the firefighters, Harrison Greer, broke his leg.”
I freeze, surprise flowing through me because that was brand-new information.
“Harrison Greer…” Jaz tilts her head, looking at me. “We went to school with him, didn’t we?” There’s something in her eyes that I don’t like, and I squint at her.
“He was in the year below me.”
“That’s right!” Jaz clicks her fingers. “He moved away as soon as he graduated. He moved back here a couple of years ago, right? Such a small world.”
I’m saved from answering when the server reappears, setting our desserts down in front of us—hot fudge sundae for Lanie, crème br?lée for Jaz, and apple pie and ice cream for me.
When she’s gone again, I look at my sister. “He’s got a young kid. Coaches the baseball team over at the elementary school.”
She lifts her eyebrows, stating, “Interesting that you’d know that. I guess this explains why the game was canceled over the weekend, if they couldn’t find anyone else to fill in for Harrison.”
My heart hurts for Oakley, knowing how gutted he’ll be about missing a game. And then my eyes flare with surprise as her words finally land. “You went to the Sterling Sluggers game?” I demand, and she only smiles back at me. “Why would you be there?”
“Probably for the same reason you knew Harrison is the coach.”
Lanie’s eyes are bouncing between us with interest. I pull my irritation back in, gritting out, “We’ll talk later.”
Jaz sits back, looking smug. “I don’t really have anything else to tell you.” She shrugs, spooning a mouthful of her dessert into her mouth. “But sure. We’ll talk.”