Travis and Grady’s dad told her she should call him Uncle Jace, but she didn’t want to. He wasn’t even really her uncle, just a distant cousin. What did Sawyer call it? First cousin once removed. Whatever that was. She didn’t exactly know how she was related to Travis and Grady either. But they all kind of looked the same, except she was a girl and they had darker hair than hers. They were nice, though, even if Grady talked too much.
The whole time they were out on the boat, Grady made duck noises until Jace told him he was scaring away the fish. They all caught a fish, even her. But Jace said hers was too small to keep and threw it back in the water. She was sort of glad because a) it was gross, and b) the poor fish didn’t deserve to die.
Jace caught two big ones and Travis a medium-sized one, and they were going to eat them for dinner, which sounded disgusting.
“Tell Cash we’re eating at five,” Jace called out his truck window.
“Okay.” She started for the porch, then turned around and shouted, “Thank you for taking me fishing.” It’s what her mom would’ve wanted her to say, because it was bad manners not to. But she had had a good time on the lake.
It was something she could add to her bucket list before she went back to Boston. Fishing.
Tomorrow, if Travis and Grady’s babysitter said it was okay, they were going to ride horses. That was pretty much her favorite thing to do in the world. Her mother had worked an extra job doing off-duty security for some rich lady so she could afford Ellie’s stable and riding fees. Troubadour hadn’t been hers, but she’d gotten to ride him whenever she wanted, including in equestrian events. Now, someone else would get him.
“Hey.” Her father came out onto the front porch. “You have fun?”
“I guess. They want us to come over for dinner at five. Fish.” She made a face.
“That sounds nice, I mean, besides the fish part.” He grinned at her like he was the funniest guy in the world, which he wasn’t. “You want to see what Aubrey and I have been doing?”
Not really, but she followed him inside anyway. Aubrey was in the hovel, otherwise known as Ellie’s bedroom, painting the walls white.
Aubrey straightened up and stretched her back, and Ellie caught her father checking out Aubrey’s boobs. Ew.
“What do you think so far?” Aubrey asked.
Ellie looked around the room and had to admit it looked brighter. It smelled better too, like paint instead of moldy yuckiness. “It’s good.”
“I’ll just finish up and get out of your hair,” she said, and Ellie wished she’d stay.
But Aubrey finished the last section of wall, packed up her stuff, said she’d do the taping on Tuesday, and left.
“You want to shower and change before we head over to Jace’s?”
“I’m good.” The tub in the cabin gave Ellie the willies. There were spiders everywhere and the toilet didn’t flush right.
“Okay. I’ll wash up and we can go. On the way over, you can tell me all about the fishing trip.”
“There’s nothing to tell,” she said. If her mom was alive, she would’ve described to her the fish she caught and how Jace taught her how to bait a hook and cast a line. And how Travis had done a giant belly flop in the water.
“You catch anything?”
She hitched her shoulders. “We threw it back.”
“You caught one your first time out? That’s great, Ellie.”
God, he was such a phony. What did he care whether she caught a fish or not? She waited for him to leave her room and threw herself on the bed. It was hot and she was pretty sure she smelled like trout and lake water. Her mother would’ve made her bathe.
She got up and found her suitcase in the closet. In the front compartment, she pulled out the pictures. The framed ones were coming with the boxes. But Linda had printed Ellie a few from her computer. She traced her mother’s face in the first photo with her finger. “I miss you, Mom. I miss you so much.”
As soon as she heard the water shut off in the bathroom, Ellie shoved the pictures under her pillow and sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the new white walls.
“You ready to go?”
She scrambled to her feet and waited by the front door.
“You sure you want to wear that sweater?”
Could he just leave her alone about the sweater? He was so annoying. She nodded and hopped into the passenger side of his SUV.
“Did you guys go for ice cream?”
“Yes.” She’d gotten two scoops. Mint chip and strawberry.
“Did Jace feed you any real food?”
“We had sandwiches on the lake.”
“That’s good. Do you like fish?”
She scrunched up her nose. “Not really.”
On Fridays at her school, they had a fish fry. She liked the breading, but everything else she left on her plate, even though Father John said it was wasteful.
“Neither do Travis and Grady. Jace’ll make burgers on the grill. You like burgers?”
She nodded. She wasn’t that picky, not like Mary Margaret O’Malley who had to become a vegan because she hated everything under the sun, even chocolate milk.
When they pulled up to Travis and Grady’s house, the dogs started jumping on the truck, barking like crazy. She opened her door slowly, hoping they’d go away.
“They won’t hurt you, Ellie. They’re all bark and no bite.” He came around to her side and lifted her out of the passenger seat.
“I’m not a little kid.” She pulled away and went to the front door on her own.
Grady let them in. “Hey, Uncle Cash.”
“Hey, pardner. How was the fishing?”
“Great. Ellie caught a baby fish and we had to throw it back.”
“I heard. What about you?”
“I didn’t get anything. Dad said it’s because I talk too much. We’re in the backyard.”
They followed him through the house, to the kitchen, and out a side door to a big picnic table. There was a big rock fireplace and a built-in barbecue where Jace was cooking. Sawyer was there too. He waved and made room for them on the bench.
“How was the lake?”
“It was good,” she said.
Her father went off to talk to Jace and she wished she could go inside and watch TV or something. It’s not that she didn’t like Sawyer. He seemed nice, even if he was old. But she kind of wanted to be alone. She thought that once they started eating she could sneak away. It wasn’t like anyone would notice her absence anyway.
“Who wants burgers, who wants fish?” Jace was at the barbecue. He had on a funny apron that said, “Mr. Good Lookin’ Is Cookin’.”
“I’ll have both,” Sawyer said.
“Anything else I can get you, your royal highness?”
Travis and Grady laughed at their dad’s joke and Ellie hid a giggle. Jace was kind of funny. The men were always poking at one another. She didn’t think they were really trying to be mean, but her mom probably would’ve thought it was disrespectful.
“Ellie, what do you want?” Jace asked.
“I’ll have a burger, please.”
“Coming right up.”
She wanted desperately to look at her phone to see if Mary Margaret had texted her, but her father didn’t like it when she was on her cell. She could tell because whenever she got on it, his face scrunched up like he’d sucked on a lemon. Her mom used to take the phone away from her if she texted at the table.
He came back to where she and Sawyer were sitting. More than likely, he’d been checking up on her with Jace, making sure she hadn’t been a brat on the fishing trip. He probably hated having to be her dad and wished she didn’t exist. Ellie suspected that the only reason he wouldn’t let her return to Boston was because he was a grown-up and had to be responsible.
Jace served her a burger. Somehow, he’d known how to make it the way she liked it. Not too pink. Pink meat made her want to gag.
“That’s our beef. We raised it here on the ranch,” Travis said. He seemed proud of it, but Ellie thought it was sad for the cows and was seriously thinking of becoming a vegan like Mary Margaret.
She took a bite of her burger and decided to become a vegan later. Her father put some salad on her plate, and when he wasn’t looking, Sawyer passed her the bag of potato chips on the table. It was sort of nice eating outside. Even though it was hot, the trees were shady and she could see the horses in the distance. Grady sat by her but got up at least a million times to run around. He was sooooo hyperactive.
Ellie finished her burger, ate a few bites of the salad, and got up to head for the house.
“Where’re you going?” her father asked.
She had to go to the bathroom and now he wanted her to announce it in front of the whole group. Great. “I need to go inside for a second.” Hopefully, he’d get a clue and not embarrass her.
“Okay.”
At least he wasn’t a complete loser, she thought as she continued to the back door. Once inside the bathroom, she snuck a look at her phone. Mary Margaret hadn’t texted her back. She put the seat down on the toilet, sat on it, and rushed off a quick text.
“Where are you? I hate it here.”
She waited for a reply but was afraid if she waited too long, her father would come looking for her.
“Have to go,” she wrote to Mary Margaret. “But I have two hundred and seventy-four dollars and forty-five cents in my suitcase. Do you think that’s enough to buy a bus ticket home?”
She put her phone away, finished doing her business, and went back outside.
* * * *
Aubrey changed out of her painting clothes and headed for town. It was time to meet Mitch face-to-face to let him know his rumormongering was unacceptable. She couldn’t afford to lose any more clients.
On the drive over, she tried to decide how to play this. If she told him she was going to rat him out—tell everyone in Dry Creek what he’d done—he’d call her bluff. She had to come up with something more creative. The problem was, she didn’t have anything better than the truth, and the truth would devastate Brett.
Once she got there, she’d have to wing it.
Mitch was probably just getting home from work. She deliberated on whether to give him time to settle in. Her ex was more agreeable after a couple of beers. Then again, he deserved nothing more than to be ambushed.
At the only stoplight in town she pulled up to a red and caught Mitch’s sister Joanne’s Ford F-150 in her rearview. As soon as the light turned green, Joanne passed Aubrey on the right-hand shoulder, rolled down her window, and stuck her middle finger in the air.
“For crying out loud,” Aubrey muttered. Even Joanne, who knew her brother could be a real douchebag, believed his lies.
She drove by Reynolds Construction on the way to Mitch’s and considered breaking in again. Last time she’d forgotten a few things, including her favorite fringe jacket, which was still in the closet. She didn’t need it right now, but come fall she’d miss it. More than likely, though, Mercedes was still there. On most evenings she put in a couple of extra hours to suck up to Mitch and avoid her husband, who, on a scale from one to ten, ranked a nine in the asshole department. It wasn’t worth another run-in.
Aubrey didn’t see Mitch’s truck in the driveway when she pulled up. On rare occasions, though, he did park in the garage, probably to hide from an angry husband. Undeterred, she got out of the car and rang the bell.
Twice.
When Mitch didn’t answer, she peeked through the front window, working her way around the house. It didn’t appear that anyone was home. She continued to the back, peered inside the kitchen, and saw no sign of life there either.
Fine, she’d wait for him out by the pool. With all the lakes, creeks, and rivers in the area, she didn’t know why they needed a pool. But Mitch had insisted on it, arguing that it would make the house more marketable if they ever decided to sell. Admittedly, the pool was gorgeous; the whole backyard was. Mitch had spared no expense. Imported tile, dramatic lighting, a waterfall feature, a hot tub, brick decking, and enough exotic plants to open their own nursery. He’d also insisted on an outdoor kitchen with a four-thousand-dollar grill when they didn’t even use the range inside. With their busy lives, they’d either eaten at the coffee shop or takeout from nearby Grass Valley or Auburn.
She slipped off her sandals, walked to the pool’s edge, and dipped her foot in. The water was warm. Knowing Mitch, he heated it, even in summer. She heard a car pull up and prepared herself for a showdown. Putting her shoes back on, she headed to the front of the house, ready to let Mitch know in no uncertain terms that he’d better stop screwing with her livelihood.
But it wasn’t Mitch, it was Sally, his mother. She was rooting around in Mitch’s mailbox and glowered when she discovered she had company. “What are you doing here?”
“Looking for Mitch. Do you know where he is?” Aubrey wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Sally had a tracking device on her son. She wasn’t a bad person, just overbearing and possessive.
“He’s out of town, not that it’s any of your business. You lost the privilege of knowing where my son is the second you broke his heart.”
It would be fruitless to argue with her because unlike Joanne, who knew Mitch’s foibles, Sally thought her son walked on water. “He and I have things to discuss.” Aubrey wanted to add that it wasn’t any of Sally’s business, but why bother starting up with Mitch’s mother? Aubrey and Sally had never been what you would call close, but there was no reason to antagonize the woman.
“Things to discuss.” Sally slanted an imperious brow. “Like how you stuck him with all the wedding bills?”
“Sally, you know we went halves. I lost just as much money as Mitch did.”
“You’re the one who called it off. As far as I’m concerned, you should have paid for the whole thing.”
Aubrey prayed for patience. “There’s more going on here than Mitch has led on.”
“Like the fact that you ran off with Jace Dalton? Mitch didn’t have to tell me, I heard it all over town. You always did have eyes for that boy. I warned Mitch about you, and now you’ve gone and humiliated him.”
According to Sally, Aubrey had had eyes for every man in Dry Creek at one time or another. She probably thought Aubrey had the hots for Jimmy Ray too. “Stop being ridiculous; there’s nothing between Jace and me. When is Mitch coming home?”
“I have no idea.” Sally stuck her nose in the air.
Sally knew damned well when Mitch would be home. If Aubrey was laying odds in Reno, Mitch had gone on their Hawaii honeymoon trip early, the one Aubrey had paid for. And Sally knew his itinerary down to the second.
“Whatever, Sally. Just let him know I was here.”
“You can be sure I will.” Sally muttered something about Aubrey trespassing. “And tell your boyfriend Jace that if it was between him and the devil for sheriff, I’d vote for the devil.”
“I’ll be sure to let your son’s best friend know that.” Aubrey decided it was better to leave than argue any longer with Sally. She was going to believe the best of Mitch and the worst of Aubrey no matter what.
“Always a pleasure seeing you.” Aubrey got in her car and drove away.
Instead of going to Dry Creek Ranch, she went to Auburn to hit a drive-through. She hadn’t eaten since Cash had fixed them turkey sandwiches and was starved.
Cash. Now there was an enigma. He wasn’t at all what she’d expected. Originally, Aubrey had concluded that he was a curmudgeon with a drinking problem. But alcohol didn’t appear to be an issue. For good measure, she’d inhaled him while they’d worked on Ellie’s walls. Just soap and the clean outdoors, which smelled distractingly good.
He did have complications, however, starting with his daughter. Besides that, Aubrey had a sneaking suspicion leaving the FBI hadn’t been his idea. Even if he had quit, Aubrey sensed it wasn’t an amicable parting. She’d wanted to ask him about it but had gotten the distinct impression the topic was off the table. She was actually surprised he had shared as much as he had about Ellie’s mother. Cash didn’t exactly seem like an open book. He did, however, have a fantastic cover; she’d give him that. He was even better-looking than Jace, who was hard to beat. Objectively speaking, Sawyer was probably the most handsome of the three cousins, but too pretty for her taste. Cash had that rough-around-the-edges appearance. Rugged, chiseled, and square-jawed.
Aubrey got her food, parked under a shady tree, and ate. Her mother texted and Aubrey ignored it, knowing it would be all about Mitch and what a good “provider” he was and how Aubrey should take him back. Aubrey had had her fill of Mothers for Mitch today.
She threw away her wrappers in the garbage and headed for home. Maybe she’d take a dip in the creek and catch up on invoicing. So far, nothing had come of her new Houzz profile and she could use a few checks to tide her over. Her savings wouldn’t cover her forever. If she didn’t hear anything in a few days, she’d check in with her friend about the Vegas developer.
No one appeared to be around at Cash’s cabin, she noted as she drove up their shared driveway. Now, while she had relative privacy, would be a good time to take that swim. She rushed into the house, changed into a bathing suit, and waded waist deep into the water. Unlike Mitch’s pool, it was cold, making her teeth chatter. She stood there, waiting to get used to the frigid temperature, before dunking her head in. The creek was full, and in spots she couldn’t touch her toes to the bottom without the water going over her head.
When they were kids, they used to float in inner tubes they got from the Gas Stop in Dry Creek. The owner would sell the old tubes to them for a buck and they’d spend the bulk of the summer hanging out at the creek, tubing and swimming.
She was floating on her back, looking up at the sun, when she heard a truck engine. Cash’s SUV. Two doors slammed, and she heard the squeak of the cabin’s screen door swinging. She submerged her head again and when she came up with a splash, Cash was standing at the edge of the footbridge.
“How’s the water?” he called to her.
“Cold but refreshing.” She wondered if he wanted to join her, but before she could invite him in, he turned away and headed inside his cabin without saying a word.
Either he was back to being moody or not feeling particularly friendly this evening. Confounded, Aubrey went back to floating.