Chapter Twenty-Two
Monday, June 9
out in such a dirty town?” Mr. Binitari swiped crumbs off the table he and Adaleigh had commandeered in the corner of The Wharfside. That morning, her sister had been moved to an asylum in lieu of being tried for attempted murder. Her murder. The guilt weighed down Adaleigh’s shoulders.
“You don’t like it?” Adaleigh stared out at the bobbing boats and the glistening water. She found hope here. A place to start over. It wrestled against the darker feelings. She could understand Ashley’s anger; didn’t a biological daughter deserve more than an orphaned nobody like Adaleigh? Adaleigh had always thought so. But here, she wasn’t that nobody. She wasn’t a stranger any longer. She had found family, friends, people who cared about her.
“Before the tornado damage, it didn’t seem to have much.” Mr. Binitari huffed as he settled in his chair. “Now, it’s pitiful.”
The Wharfside had been open all night as people sought to recover from the storm. Electricity still hadn’t been restored, but the people of Crow’s Nest were resourceful, and the Wharfside provided the town with hot meals. It had also become the impromptu headquarters for the recovery effort. When Mr. Binitari insisted they talk somewhere other than the Martins’s home, especially since David and Kyle were working on cleaning up the mess, Adaleigh suggested coming here because she liked being in the middle of the town’s community.
“What can I get you?” Mindy appeared, ponytail swaying. Dark circles rimmed her eyes, but she had a bright smile. “We just brewed a fresh pot of coffee.”
Mr. Binitari handed her the menu with a sniff. “A salad. No onions. No tomatoes. Dressing on the side.”
“Breadstick?”
“No.”
“Something to drink?”
“Water.”
“Certainly, sir.” Mindy captured Adaleigh’s hand. “How are you feeling? David told me all about your scare. Golly, I can’t imagine—”
“You were going to order the salad as well, right, Miss Sirland?” Mr. Binitari cleaned his spectacles with a handkerchief.
Adaleigh squeezed Mindy’s fingers. “We’ll catch up later, how ’bout?”
Mindy leaned closer. “I want to hear everything.“ Her eyes widened as she emphasized the last word, and Adaleigh suspected she wanted to know about things between her and David. “Now, whatcha want? Soup? Muffin? Coffee?”
Adaleigh grinned, heart warming at how well Mindy could guess exactly what she needed. “Perfect.”
Mindy winked. “I’ll be back with your beverages.”
“So talkative.” Mr. Binitari rolled his eyes.
“She’s my friend.”
“How can you have friends in, what, three days?”
A week. More. “She was nice to me.”
“Fine. But now we’re going home, and you have an image to maintain.”
Adaleigh bristled. “I don’t want that life.”
“You don’t have an option, young lady. The will left you everything. You’re the face of the Sirlands now, especially with your sister—” He wiggled his fingers.
The guilt pressed in again. She was the reason for all of this, so of course she must follow … wait. A memory surfaced. One she’d forgotten since it had no relevance at the time. When Adaleigh decided on her degree, her father brought her into his office to talk about the business. He always said she had the head for it, but that he wouldn’t force her to take it over if that’s not what Adaleigh wanted. She had options, he’d said.
Adaleigh leaned forward to meet Mr. Binitari’s gaze, not unlike how she confronted David’s father the other day. “I can hire a manager. I don’t want to run it. Dad knew that.”
“Then why did he leave it to you?” He yanked his spectacles from his nose. “Your father told me Ashley wouldn’t handle it. He thought you could. Don’t disappoint him.”
Adaleigh clenched her fists, torn between expectation and the reminder of her father’s true wishes. He wanted her to dream, not be tied down in an office until a husband took it over.
“Just the woman I need to see.” Mr. Alistar pulled out a chair, joining them without so much as a by-your-leave.
“What do you want?” Adaleigh glared at him.
“You’ve been hard to reach, Miss Sirland.” He smirked. “Care to make a statement? Did Mark Hitchens have any last words before Joe Spelding killed him?”
Mr. Binitari rose, yanking Mr. Alistar to his feet with surprising strength for his age. “I suggest you move along, sir. If you continue harassing my client, I will pursue legal means to end your career.”
Alistar stared at Adaleigh.
“I hope you didn’t doubt that I had that power.” She gave just the barest of smiles. “I’m very ready to call your editor. Or should I go directly to the owner?”
Alistar stalked out, nearly crashing into Mindy.
“Where is he off to?” Mindy set down Adaleigh’s coffee and Mr. Binitari’s water. “I haven’t seen him that speechless since, well, ever.”
“It’s a good sight, isn’t it?” Adaleigh grinned.
Mr. Binitari grumbled, grimacing as he sipped his water.
“I heard Buck’s lawyers argued for Joe’s reduced sentence. They claimed he’s the victim in all of this.” Mindy’s face turned red. “He’s not an innocent party, but at least he didn’t kill Amy. I’m glad for Sean’s sake he knows the truth, and I heard Sean’s moving out east somewhere. I don’t blame him for wanting to disappear. Then there’s poor Lizzy Hitchens. She is mortified over the whole messy affair, pardon the word. I heard she’s glad Mr. Hitchens died at sea, so she doesn’t have to bury him. She’s already taken Matty and Sarah and left town.”
Adaleigh shuddered. Those poor children. Matthew’s tumble into the lake had started the whole mess, dragging her in unwittingly.
“Is there anyone upstanding in this whole town?” Mr. Binitari sighed as Mindy hurried off to get their food. “It will be good to get you home.”
Adaleigh swallowed. “I want to stay.”
“Here?” He blew out a little breath. “That’s the hypothermia talking.”
No. “I’ve made friends.”
“You mean that Mr. Wilson. He is a nice one.” One of his thin brows arched up.
“Buck Wilson?” She’d known Mr. Binitari would like him. “What about David?”
Mr. Binitari patted her hand as he had ever since she was a child. “He’s working class, my dear. Not good enough for you.”
Adaleigh pursed her lips. How did Mr. Binitari know David wasn’t good enough? He saved her life. Was more kind to her than anyone had ever been before. He even understood her quirks. Buck was handsome and had money, but that wasn’t everything.
“Stop muddling your little head.” Mr. Binitari tapped her right temple.
She withdrew from the gesture, somehow reduced to a floundering child. She firmed her mouth and added some sugar to her coffee. “How long will it take to get everything squared away at home?”
“A few days, some finalizing of paperwork, then we can get into the everyday matters. Plan for the future. And don’t worry, we’ll get you all cleaned up before you have to face the public. People have been quite concerned for you, you know.” He squinted at her yellowing bruises. “No one has to know this whole episode happened. Once you get back home, it will all seem like a bad dream.”
A bad dream. Yes, parts of it resembled a nightmare. But other parts … Mrs. Martins’s baking. Detective O’Connor’s kindness. Samantha’s discussions. David. Could she change her whole life without a promise of a future with him? She owed her family the time to at least settle matters back home. And then?
For goodness' sake, she held degrees in psychology and rhetoric. She would have broached the question last night had Patrick not interrupted. Tonight. Tonight, she’d ask David if he saw a future between them. She had to return home for a few days, but after that, she’d follow her dreams, just like her parents would have wanted.
She took a deep, shuddering breath. “I won’t leave until I say goodbye.”
“Whatever you say, my dear.” The water glass Mr. Binitari lifted to his lips failed to hide his smug smile.
“We need to talk.” Not the words David hoped to hear from his boss as soon as he entered the shop around midday.
“Yes, sir.” David followed Captain Mann into the back room, trepidation adding weight to his weary shoulders. He planned to see whether the man would fire him before he made the decision whether to quit. His family needed the money, but surely there were other ships that would hire him on.
Mann lowered himself to the chair behind his desk. Piles of papers, nets, and hooks littered the surface. The man himself looked as haggard as he did after they survived the storm. He leaned back and steepled his fingers. “I’ll come right to the point. I’m too old for this, David. I’ve decided to retire.”
Not what he expected. Not at all. David stared at his boss.
Mann pointed at him. “You’ve proved yourself, especially the last couple of weeks. You were willing to stand up to me, even if it cost your job, when lives were at stake—and I wished I had listened. Now I know you’ll stand up to the Conglomerate when it’s in the company’s best interest. You’ve reminded me that people come first. Not money. Not fish. Not the battle I have with the Conglomerate.”
“Thank you, sir?” Utterly confused, David could only mutter the words.
Captain Mann waved him off. “I’ve decided to make you my partner.”
What? “In the business?”
“I’ll remain a silent partner until you can buy me out. I know it will take time, especially with the loss of my boat, but I have faith in you, son. You’ll bring the business into its prime, and I know it will grow under your leadership. It already has.”
David gaped at his boss as the words and ramifications snuck in. He hadn’t lost his job. He’d received the ultimate promotion. There was only one person he wanted to tell, but it would have to wait until after he fulfilled his commitment to help his neighbors. Surely she would still be there when he arrived home.
Adaleigh helped Mrs. Martins clean up from supper. The kitchen had mostly been set to rights, though there was a chair or two to fix yet.
Mr. Binitari did not join them. Instead, he’d insisted on staying at a boarding house in Hawk’s River, unharmed by the storm. Detective O’Connor had wanted to be at supper but was getting Frank Martins settled into his cabin. Apparently, the good detective offered to help his nephew with his sobriety. After David went to meet his boss, he’d sent word he would be late. Rose Wittlebush’s seamstress shop was completely demolished and with Sean leaving town, she had no one to help her salvage her business. If Adaleigh’s ankle didn’t throb, she’d offer to help too.
Patrick disappeared as soon as the food was gone, but as he left, Kyle appeared in the hall. A light blush colored Samantha’s cheeks as he took her hand. A wave to Mrs. Martins and Adaleigh and the pair disappeared out the door. Adaleigh hid a smile. At least Samantha appeared no worse for all she’d gone through.
“I haven’t seen her that happy in a long time.” Mrs. Martins hung up the dish towel, the kitchen finally spotless. “David either. You’ve been a balm to our home, Leigh. And Leigh is what I’ll call you, no matter what your lawyer says.”
“He’s a stickler.” A pain ached in Adaleigh’s chest. She loved the older man who she’d known all her life, but she didn’t appreciate how he looked down on the people of Crow’s Nest. People she’d come to care about and call her friends.
Mrs. Martins lowered herself to the chair kitty-corner to Adaleigh, sliding over a cup of tea. “Are you happy to be going home after all of this?”
She grasped the cup’s warmth. “I wish I could be here to help Crow’s Nest rebuild.”
“Don’t you worry about Crow’s Nest. We always land on our feet. You have some rebuilding to do yourself.”
“That I do.” She hesitated, then asked, “If you found yourself in possession of an amount of wealth that survived last year’s market crash, what would you do with it?”
“Me?” Mrs. Martins fanned her face. “I can’t imagine that ever happening to me, child. What do you think I would do with it?”
“Give it away.” Adaleigh smiled. “Use it to help feed and house those who are out of work.” She ran her finger over the lip of her cup. “I learned that there are more and more people losing their jobs around the country. You took me in when I needed a home, maybe there’s a way I can help other women like me.”
“I know you will be a godsend to whomever you are able to help.” Mrs. Martins patted her hand. “And, don’t you forget, you always have a home here.”
That brought tears to Adaleigh’s eyes and Mrs. Martins pulled her into a hug.
David wiped his forehead as he surveyed the work he and Silas had accomplished over the last few hours. Dusk had arrived before they finished, but they’d managed to clear out Rose Whittlebush’s sewing machine, fabric, and baubles. It would be another day before they could assess what tables, shelves, and other materials could be salvaged from the destroyed shop.
“I’ll make sure her parlor is turned into a suitable space.” Silas slapped his cowboy hat against his thigh. “It’s the least we can do for a widow without any family.”
“Tell me how I can help when the time comes.” David’s heart rate quickened at the thought of finally being able to return home to Adaleigh. He caught Silas staring at him. “What?”
“You’ve been different today. I can’t put my finger on it. An extra strength in your work and a new glint in your eye.” Silas pushed David’s shoulder. “It’s that girl, isn’t it? Leigh.”
David knocked Silas’s hand away. “What if it is? I like her.” Maybe more than that.
“As your friend, I need to caution you on falling so fast for an out-of-towner. What do you really know about her?”
David bristled. “Enough.”
“I was at the Wharfside today when she and that older man came in. The way he treated Mindy was abhorrent.”
“Adaleigh and Mindy are friends.”
“Martins.” Silas rubbed his neck. “I heard her talking about leaving.”
David’s heart stuttered.
“She’s been given her father’s business and the older man wants her to return home to run it. I don’t know whether she agreed to it or not, I didn’t catch any more of the conversation.”
David knew she was meeting with Binitari this morning, knew about the will, so the information shouldn’t shake him as much as it did coming from Silas.
Silas scratched his beard. “Just think about what you’re asking of her. I left my job out west to return home after my brother died to take care of my family. It was a sacrifice I needed to make, but it wasn’t easy. She’s having to make a similar decision as a woman during an economic downturn. You’re asking her to give up her security to … get to know a fisherman? Are you offering to marry her?”
Marry her? It was definitely too fast to be considering that option. But he couldn’t ask her to give up her future without offering one with him. Then again, he couldn’t imagine his life without her in it.
“It’s been an intense few days, Martins.” Silas situated his hat on his head. “I wouldn’t be a good friend if I didn’t ask you to think about more than how good she makes you feel.”
“Thank you.” David managed to say. He had the walk home to decide what to do.
Night had completely fallen by the time David returned. Adaleigh waited up despite the fact that Mr. Binitari was determined to have an early start the following morning. She paged through a book at the kitchen table, not really reading it, a candle her only light.
“How was your meeting with your boss?” Adaleigh asked as David stoked the stove.
He moved the teakettle to a front burner. “He named me his partner and plans to sell me the company.”
“What?” Adaleigh’s smile hurt her cheeks. “That’s wonderful, David!”
David ran his hand over his mouth, but it didn’t hide his own smile. “From thinking I was about to lose my job to Captain.”
“I’m proud of you.” Such true words shouldn’t hurt to say, but if she didn’t stay in Crow’s Nest, she’d lose him.
David’s joy seeped from his face. He turned abruptly, setting the kettle back on the warmer. His action ignited a churning in Adaleigh’s stomach.
“And you, did you reach your decision?” David lowered himself next to her. Did water and wind have a smell? Adaleigh soaked in his presence. If this conversation didn’t go well … even if it did and she left for only a few days, she would miss him.
She set the book aside. “Mr. Binitari is insisting I go home.”
He bumped her shoulder with his. “Is that your decision?”
“There’s paperwork I have to deal with, so I must return for a few days. He wants me to stay after that and be hands on with the company. I think I’d like to use the money to help other women who need safe housing, like what your grandma offered me.”
“That sounds just like you. And you know you’re always welcome here.” David hesitated, putting distance between them as he ran his hands over his head with a sigh. “I need to say this.”
Adaleigh fought back the tears. She braced for what he would say. Could a girl like her hold out hope for a relationship? She was from a whole different world, whether she felt like she belonged to it or not.
He scooted out his chair so he could face her, though he rested his elbows on his knees, hands clasped, and kept his eyes down. “I think you should follow through on your dreams and your parents’ wishes. You have a responsibility, a legacy. Do what you know how to do, what you’ve been educated to do. You will be brilliant at it because that’s who you are.”
Adaleigh’s heart sank. His praise drifted past her as she wrestled with the meaning behind his words. Another rejection. Another place where she didn’t fit.
“Adaleigh, I can’t be the reason you stay in Crow’s Nest.” David’s jaw tightened, then released. He finally looked at her, heartache in his eyes. “You are an incredible woman who would make a great leader of any company. Think of all the women you could help. You are amazingly smart, so you’ll know what decisions you need to make. And with those psychology and rhetoric degrees, you’ll win the hearts of everyone you meet. Like you did mine.”
“I—”
He took her hand, but squeezed his eyes shut. “This is even harder than I thought.”
Her heart pounded in her ears, her brain tumbling through all the possible things he could say next.
When he finally looked back at her, tears glistened in his eyes. “It’s too selfish of me to ask you to stay. Before, you needed a home, but now … Be honest with yourself, would you really be happy here? I need to send you home, to the home you know, where you grew up. You claim not to be a Sirland, but the way you’ve handled yourself the past few days, you are more capable than you realize.”
Adaleigh blinked at the burn in her own eyes. “I thought you didn’t see me differently now that I have money again.”
“I don’t. I’m … I’m trying to think of what would be best for you.”
At his expense? What did David really mean, behind the words he spoke? Could she take a guess? Perhaps say what was on her own heart before David decided her life for her? “David, are you giving me permission to leave because you don’t want me here?”
“Heavens, no!” He shot up, desperation in his eyes. “I—”
“David.” She pulled his callused hand to her cheek, memorizing the feel of it. “I don’t need to return in order to manage my parents’ company or build a house for women. My life from before is gone. My home is now a large empty house made up of painful memories and loss. But here in Crow’s Nest, I’ve discovered new family and friends. Ones who like me for who I am, not for my bank account. If I stay in Crow’s Nest, I wouldn’t be staying here just because of you, but you are the one who brought life”—dare she say love? — “back into my heart.”
She held her breath in the silence, hoping for a future she never expected to have. He studied her for several long moments, his thumb brushing her cheekbone, then seemed to come to a decision.
“Come with me.” He helped her out the back door, and Adaleigh leaned heavily on his arm as he gently moved them to the center of the lawn. “Remember what we said about the stars?”
Adaleigh leaned her head back to stare at the expanse. The cloudless sky stretched above them, countless stars poking pinholes in a black canvas unhindered by electric light. “How we both l—”
“Love them?”
Adaleigh turned her eyes from the vast heavens and found David looking right at her, his face mere inches from her own. She caught her breath at what she saw there.
“Stay, Adaleigh,” he whispered. “No matter what I said, no matter what logistics we have to figure out, I love you, and I want you to stay.”
A hope unlike any before filled her chest. “I’d like nothing better because … I love you too.”
David’s eyes lit up like a shooting star, and he captured her lips in a kiss.
The series continues in
Refuge for the Archaeologist
Will uncovering the truth set them free or destroy what they hold most dear?
Wisconsin, 1930—With her health in shambles and her archaeological career on the line, Cora Davis retreats to Crow’s Nest and the home of her great aunt to heal. She doesn’t think much of the missing memories from between the earthquake that caused her dizzy spells and her trip home. Until she begins remembering the danger that sent her fleeing her last dig and the person responsible.
After a decade as a ranch hand, Silas Ward returned to Crow’s Nest to provide for the women in his life. That same protective instinct propels him to Cora’s aid. But when finances dwindle, the lies and greed of others threaten to ruin his family. Unless Silas can walk the thin line of compromise. A choice that might cost him Cora’s affection.
As winter’s chill threatens, will Crow’s Nest prove a refuge, or will both Cora and Silas have no choice but to sacrifice their chance at happiness to save those they love?
Lies, greed, and lost dreams chase an out-of-work archaeologist and an out-of-place cowboy in this amnesia historical romance.