Chapter 5
“It’s a long story.”
Tommy looked like he never wanted to tell that story again. “Greg and I went to school together. He was a good kid before all this. He was always popular with the ladies, but I don”t know what got into him after high school. He just flipped a switch and went astray.”
He paused and let out another deep sigh. Willow could tell be the look on his face that it was hard to talk about.
“When he came back to Sanibel, it was after Charlene lost her baby. That was the only reason he came back. We got together and started drinking, hanging out. I introduced him to my fiancé, trying to be a good friend, you know? I was excited about my future and what plans I had for myself. Turns out, they had plans of their own behind my back.”
Willow automatically knew what that meant. She read it all over his face. He was disgusted and angry about what happened. But most of all, he was hurt.
“Greg was supposed to be my best friend. I know our friendship was distant for a while but when he came back, I thought for sure we would mend things and be how we were. That wasn’t the case though.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said. “I can’t believe he would do something like that to you. Well, I mean, I guess I can if he’s done this to me and countless other women.”
*
Willow was nervous about staying alone that night. Brandi was still out of town handling court stuff for the week, so her sleep pattern was all the way off. She didn’t sleep much at all. The detectives were off doing whatever detective work they had to do, and Tommy was busy in his office doing the same.
She spent most of the week on the beach, where there were crowds of people to keep watch. But when night fell, she was a nervous wreck again. She thought about asking Richy to break his father’s rules and come over to keep her company, but that was out of the question. She didn’t want to get him into any more trouble than he already was.
Willow called Monica one evening to see if she was free. She secretly hoped Monica would offer her to stay in one of her guest rooms after telling her what had happened, but she had already gone back to Spain.
“Well,” Willow sighed. “I guess it’s just me here. All alone.”
Although she was thinking of ways to set up Mark and Charlene, and bring Charlie out of hiding, she was terrified to stay home alone. If he broke in and tore the place apart the first time, what would stop him from doing it again and tearing Willow apart the next time?
When she got too scared, she decided to drive over to the police station and see if Tommy was still in his office. His squad car was there and his light was on, but she didn”t immediately go inside. Instead, she sat in her car and watched him through his office window.
He was hard at work. Taking notes, going back and forth from his notepad to his computer. She caught herself smiling a few times at how focused he was. He looked good while he was working hard at his desk. It wasn’t until she saw him take a break from his writing that she decided to get out and go inside.
“Can I help you?” The same rude woman officer greeted her the same way she did when they first met.
“I’m here to see the sheriff,” Willow snarled. “Let him know Willow’s here. I’m sure he won”t mind.”
“I’m sure he won’t mind either.”
The woman mocked Willow under her breath as she got up from her desk. If Willow wanted to be as rude as she was, she would have said something in response, but she didn”t. The woman was miserable enough as it was; there was no need for Willow to make her life any worse.
“Hey Willow.” Sheriff Tommy looked concerned about seeing her at the station. “Is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine,” she said. “It’s just a little nerve wracking being home alone after, you know. Brandi’s out of town until next week. So…”
Willow saw the tension ease from his shoulders as a light smile crossed his face. He was happy to know that she was all right and didn’t need any assistance, and Willow was glad to hear that he cared about her safety and well-being.
“Well, come into my office for a minute. I’m just finishing up some paperwork for the night.”
She followed him into his office and took a seat on the couch near the window. It was an old leather couch that looked years older than she was, but it was comfortable. His office was comfortable. Cozy and full of everything that made Tommy who he was. She liked it.
“Creeped out, huh?” he said, taking a seat at his desk. “I can imagine you’d be afraid to be by yourself after what happened. Are the detectives not outside?”
“No,” she said. “I’m not sure where they are tonight. I haven”t seen them outside in a couple of nights. I figure they must have gotten everything they needed from me.”
That was a harsh reality for Willow to take in that night. Knowing that once the detectives got what they needed from her, they weren’t around to protect her, even though she was innocent. She felt used. Betrayed even. Willow thought they had a good conversation when they came to ask about Mark, and maybe their relationship would change because they knew she was innocent. But that was wishful thinking. At least, that was the way she felt at the time.
“Unfortunately,” Tommy said, “It’s like that sometimes. I know it sounds cruel, but they have an even bigger job to do than I do. They have to fight the bigger crimes, you know?”
“Yeah. I guess,” she shrugged.
She watched as he typed up the last of whatever he had to type on his computer, and he was just as focused as he was while she was outside his window. But to see him in action up close and personal gave Willow a different feeling of interest for him.
She took a long look at his lips and the way his brows furrowed as he concentrated. The way his jawline clenched and the way he held his pen while he stroked each line with letters to make up the words he needed to say.
She’d never been so intrigued by watching someone work before. Not even Charlie, and she was head over heels for him at one point. Tommy was different. She couldn’t pinpoint why he was so different; he just was. Everything about him made her realize that she was never truly in love. Not until she met him.
“Earth to Willow.” She heard him speak after a long lapse of daydreaming about him.
“Huh?” she said. “What?”
“Are you okay?” he chuckled. “I’ve been talking to you and you haven”t said anything. Just staring off into space. Are you sure everything”s all right?”
Willow wasn’t sure at all. Her mind was everywhere. Mostly on him, but she had to also think about what she wanted to do with her life. There was a lot going on for her then, but at that moment, she could only focus on Tommy.
“I could use a drink,” she said. “Tiki hut?”
He smiled wide and shut down his computer. “I was thinking the same,” he said. “I could go for a drink and some tacos after today. Shall we?”
“We shall.”
That night, things felt more like a date than they ever did. Willow figured they were more comfortable with each other because they started to spend more time together. She enjoyed her time with him. It was evident he enjoyed her company, too; otherwise, he wouldn”t have spent so much time with Willow.
They took seats outside near the water, as they did the first night they went to the tiki hut. It was a nice, calm night—not too warm out and not as busy as it normally was. In other words, it was a very intimate night for them. Maybe it was because they were so wrapped up in each other that they didn’t notice all the noise outside.
After ordering their drinks and tacos, the real conversation started. Willow was a lot quieter than she normally was, but Tommy brought her out of her shell and made her open up to him about the way she felt about their friendship.
“Do you think I should get back on the dating scene?” he asked. “It’s been a long time since I”ve dated anyone. I don’t know how to do it anymore.”
“What?” she chuckled. “What do you mean you don’t know how to do it anymore? Dating isn’t hard. You just show your interest and be honest. Mostly.”
“It sounds easy,” he said. “But there’s a lot more to it than that. At least, that’s how women make it seem now. I’m used to subtle dating. The easy stuff, like you said. But now? It’s a lot different.”
She knew what he meant. Dating was harder than it was years before. Everyone felt the need to be so established and upper class; they worried more about their status in life rather than focusing on expressing their love for one another.
When Willow thought about a relationship, it was more of what Tommy mentioned. Subtle and easy. She wanted love to be at the forefront of it all, and most importantly, she wanted her love life to be fun.
“I guess I see what you mean,” she said. “If you’re not ready to date, then you shouldn’t. There should be no rush with love. When the time is right, you’ll know.”
Tommy gave Willow a sweet look that made her tense up. She felt like he would say the time was right then and force her to swallow her pride and reveal how she felt for him. She wasn’t even sure how to explain what she felt for him. Willow just knew she liked him.
“What about you?” he asked. “Will you be dating again? I know it probably won’t be anytime soon, but this thing with Greg… it hasn’t steered you clear of love completely?”
“At first, I thought about never falling in love again. I said I would live out the rest of my days as some lonely cat woman. But I can”t be that way. I can’t let one bad apple ruin the rest of my fruit. You know? I want to be in love. Real love, at some point. I still want to start a family and build a real life with someone who appreciates me and loves me for the woman I am.”
Tommy smiled at her and nodded his head to agree. He said he felt the same way at one point. Like he’d never fall in love again because it was a complete waste of his time. But the older he got and the more couples he saw, things started to change for him.
“I was closed off to the thought of love for a long time,” he said. “I hated the thought of it. When I saw other men with their wives and children, I would get angry and steer clear. I can honestly say now that was terrible,” he laughed.
“I understand what you mean,” Willow laughed too. “You can’t help how you feel and as long as you’re not hurting anyone, you shouldn”t have to. All feelings pass. You just have to feel them, and work through them.”
They sat and talked for a while that night. The waiters actually had to come over and tell them they were closing up for the night before they were ready to leave. When it was time to go, that old creepy feeling of being alone crept back into Willow’s spine and made her silent again.
“Well, I guess this is goodnight,” she said. “I’ll probably be up until the sun comes up again.”
“Really?” he frowned. “Why?”
“I can’t sleep alone since the break-in. I get so nervous that someone will come back to finish the job, I guess. I don’t know… maybe I”m just overreacting.”
“You don’t have to stay at that place alone, Willow. You can come to my place.”
She wanted to leap at his offer. She was so happy he offered for her to stay with him that she nearly bawled her eyes out. But she held her composure and said she didn”t want to intrude into his personal space.
“It’s fine,” he said. “I’ve got that big old house all to myself. There are a few guest rooms that are empty. You can stay if you need to. Really, it’s no trouble at all.”
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“Sure,” he nodded. “I’m positive. We can go and grab you an overnight bag and be on our way. I’ll follow you home. You can stay as long as you want.”