Chapter Twelve #2
Shauna showed up before seven, content to enjoy a few minutes of peace in a lovely location.
The Methodist church was small, and old, but very pretty, and clearly well loved.
White clapboard and stained-glass windows gleamed in the last rosy rays of the sun.
The cemetery beside it, protected from river erosion by trees, was carefully tended.
Most of the headstones were worn by weather and age, the inscriptions long gone, but they were erect, and free of lichen, mildew, and moss.
It was too cold to sit on one of the stone benches along the path that cut between the graves, so Shauna remained in her car.
She’d had a disagreement with Taryn over breakfast that morning.
“Can’t I have one thing in this town that you aren’t involved in?
What’s the big attraction? You enjoy seeing me land on my ass?
” Taryn demanded. “No one else’s sister shows up for practice.
Only the parents of the twelve-year-olds go and that’s only because the kids need a drive. I have my own car. I don’t need you.”
Shauna didn’t want to be needed. She wanted her sister to want her. And the bickering gave her a headache.
So, she backed down.
Then their mother had called to let her know when she and Taryn’s dad, Gunther, would be arriving in Grand for Thanksgiving. Their plans had already been made. They’d stay at the small boutique hotel on the waterfront, and everyone would have dinner at Freda and Ian McKillop’s house.
Taryn, who’d come home from practice still in a mood and unwilling to talk, perked up at the news.
Of course she would. Their parents would show up bearing gifts and no common sense.
Natalie would let Taryn skip school so that they could have added girl time together, and she’d be annoyed when Shauna reminded her that she had to work, because Shauna hadn’t been with the law firm long enough to earn extra vacation.
She’d already booked time off for Christmas.
The ancient ranch truck Nix drove rattled into the parking space next to her car.
Its engine gasped what could well be its last breath.
Nix hopped out and her anxiety eased. He never seemed to get too worked up about things, which made him easy to be around.
She didn’t know what his plans for the evening were, or even if he had any, but Taryn was home, gaming online with friends, so her house was out of the question.
Sitting and talking might not be such a bad thing.
He got in the car and passed her his phone. “I believe this is yours,” he said, his tone neutral.
“It was a gift.” She tried to hand it back, but he wouldn’t take it.
He eyed her for a long moment. “Why do you think I need a phone?”
“You told me not to call the bunkhouse number again.” It sounded silly when she said it out loud. Petulant. Childish. Very unlike her.
His forehead smoothed. “I thought that might be it—I didn’t know it was you.
Your timing was bad. Peg had called right before you did, wanting me to pick her up at the airport.
She didn’t like it when I told her to change her flight plans, and I assumed it was her calling back because she doesn’t hear no very often.
Although for the record, no, I don’t like you calling the bunkhouse.
Some of those guys are assholes, and I don’t want them talking about you the way they talk about other women. ”
The faint trace of possessiveness should have annoyed her but didn’t.
“And here I thought cowboys were gentlemen,” she said.
“They are. To your face.” A smile flickered, then disappeared. “I’m not going to get into how you giving me a phone makes me look, but you can find the type of guy willing to take one from you for sex-on-demand on Craigslist if that’s what you want.”
“It’s not for sex on demand.” Yes, it was. He had a right to be angry. She hadn’t meant to offend him with the phone, but that’s what she’d done, because she hadn’t taken how he might react to it into consideration. “You need a phone, Nix. Keep it and pay me back.”
His cheeks reddened. “I can’t afford a phone. Peg’s boyfriend ditched her, and she was stranded in Europe. She didn’t want to explain the situation to her parents, so she tracked me down and asked me for help. I gave her the last of my savings and took out an advance on my salary.”
“You gave your ex-wife money after she already took everything you had? And then she asked you to pick her up at the airport, fully expecting you to do it?” Shauna took a deep breath to calm down. She no longer felt bad about the phone. “I can’t decide if you’re a super nice guy or just stupid.”
“Why can’t I be both?”
“You do seem to be.” Shauna’s brain got busy, trying to figure him out. “You know how unhealthy your marriage was, right?”
“Yeah. I know.”
“When I gave you a phone, did you think you had two women trying to control you?”
He began to look wary. “Something like that.”
“So, it doesn’t bother you that I can afford a phone, and you can’t?”
Wariness shifted to outright discomfort. “I never said that.”
“Meaning it does. And now we have two issues to deal with—control and money.”
Nix’s eyes narrowed. “Why don’t we lump them into one big boundary issue? You’re fond of boundaries.”
“And I crossed one of those boundaries I’m fond of.”
“Not on purpose,” he conceded.
“It was on purpose.” He was being honest with her and deserved honesty from her in return.
“I was fairly sure you thought it was someone else when I called. But I wasn’t positive.
I was already aware that you didn’t like me calling the bunkhouse, and I knew I shouldn’t do it, but I didn’t have any other way to reach you to let you know Taryn was going to be out of town for the weekend.
I gave you the phone to prove a point and because I was disappointed about spending the weekend alone.
” She touched his arm. “Maybe it was a little passive aggressive of me. And I’m sorry. ”
“Look at us, being all mature and carrying on a polite disagreement,” Nix said.
“And with our clothes on,” she added, happy to keep matters light.
She could well imagine how similar discussions had gone for him in the past and wanted no part of it.
“I’ll say one thing for my mother. She never liked raised voices.
If I wanted her to see reason, I had to be polite and use my words. ”
“What if she wanted you to see reason?”
Shauna laughed at the thought. “You’d have to meet my mother to understand why that’s funny.”
“Never mind. I’ve met your sister, and I think I can figure it out. I also see why you make a good lawyer.”
“I don’t know how good I am, but I can guarantee I’m better than your divorce lawyer.
” Whoever that was deserved to lose his or her license, because they hadn’t done much of a job looking after his interests.
“Now that we’ve established our boundaries are no manipulation and no gifts we can’t both afford, can I offer to lend you the phone—one friend to another—until you get your finances turned around? ”
“Friends, are we? Nice try, Too Good. The answer’s still no. But I will check into getting a cell phone through work.” He rested his arm along the back of her seat. “There’s the small matter of the dinner you owe me, though.”
“I owe you dinner?” she echoed, trying to think.
“We had a bet, remember? Taryn got on a bull this morning.”
“Was it a real bull or one of those duds you and Levi were talking about? The ones without enough aggression to be athletes?”
“Are you trying to wiggle out of our bet?”
“Not at all. But there are terms to be met. Was this a bull used in competition or one my grandmother could ride?”
“We didn’t specify terms. It was a bull, it was alive, and she got on it, so out of curiosity, if I took you to court, which one of us would win?”
“You’d take me to court over dinner, but you won’t borrow a phone? What kind of logic is that?”
“The kind that makes me a winner. There’s a frilly apron involved, too.
Don’t forget that. But we can set dinner aside until we get our communication problems sorted out.
” He trailed a finger along the side of her throat, then rubbed his knuckle against the underside of her jaw.
Quiet settled over the inside of the car, and she leaned, cat-like, eyes half-closed and content, into his touch.
“Taryn and I had a bit of a dustup this morning.”
“Oh?” That explained Taryn’s foul mood. A bit of his earlier surliness, too, although she owned the majority of that. She waited, because there had to be more.
“Your sister’s mad because I put her on Ford’s team. I told her she couldn’t stay on mine because of a rumor she started. Remi’s mad at me over that same rumor.”
Shauna’s sympathy surged. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I feel almost as sorry for Remi as I do for you. It’s not his fault. But good for you for taking action. Why didn’t you ask her to leave the clinic?”
“Because she’s good at it. You should’ve seen her.” Nix grinned ear to ear for a second, then sobered. “And because she’s a seventeen-year-old girl trying to live in her big sister’s spotlight.”
“ My spotlight?” He had to be kidding. “She’s the baby of the family. Who do you think gets most of the attention?”
“Who do you think gets held up as the example she’s expected to follow?”
“She’s thirteen years younger than me. We’re nothing alike and no one expects us to be.”
“No? Not even your mother? Which one of you was easiest for her to raise?”
“I raised myself.” Nix’s eyebrows shot up. “Okay,” Shauna relented. “Point taken. It’s entirely possible that my mother sometimes mentions that she never had to pick me up from jail or find me a new school because I was expelled.”
“How much do you think Taryn is going to like you for that? Not love you. I’m sure she does love you. But liking you is something different.” She looked at him. He raised his hands. “Hey. I have siblings. I know what I’m talking about.”
“I know she resents me.” Shauna forced herself to admit it, although she didn’t like entertaining the thought. The thirteen-year age gap meant she’d never been a real sister to her. “She doesn’t like having a second mother.”
“Oh, sweetheart.” Nix looked at her with pity. “I don’t think it’s resentment. She’s well aware that you aren’t her mother. I think she’s full-blown jealous.”
Shauna blinked. “Of what?”
“You’re smart, you’re beautiful, you’re calm under pressure. Your mother values your opinion. You fight with reason. And you’re beautiful,” he said again, then dipped in for a slow kiss.
His hand slid from her throat and inside her blouse, cupping her breast. The heat from his hand melted through the lace of her bra to her skin.
He thought she was beautiful? Her brain scrambled together a plan.
They could lay one bucket seat down and get creative.
It was close quarters, but they could manage as long as—
Someone knocked on the driver’s side window. Shauna jolted forward, her head connecting with Nix’s cheek. He pulled his hand from her blouse, but not nearly as fast as she would have liked.
She rolled down the window.
“Evening,” Pastor Harm Addams said, a wide smile in place as he leaned on the hood of the car. He stooped so they were face-to-face and he could speak to Nix too.
“Evening.” Nix nodded.
“We installed security cameras at the back of the church.” Pastor Addams pointed to where the eaves troughing joined at the peak of the roof. “Too many teens hanging around late at night. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like though,” he added. “I just thought you should know.”
Shauna’s cheeks burned.
“Thank you,” she said, although Nix’s shaking shoulders didn’t help her composure. She didn’t find this as funny as he did, but getting caught was the downside of sneaking around, and since this had been her idea, she should have been better prepared.
“Enjoy your evening,” Pastor Addams said. “Don’t forget Jesus is watching, and likely the deacons.”
Shauna rolled up the window on that parting reminder. She glared at Nix, who couldn’t stop laughing. Two adults shouldn’t have this much trouble finding alone time together.
“This is your fault,” she said, poking him in the chest. “If you’d use the phone, we wouldn’t need to meet here to plan.”
He rubbed his chest. “I’ll get a phone.”