“Daddy, I’m ready for pizza.”
Josie carefully folded the paper and pivoted when she saw Maisy standing at the office door. “Your dad will be done soon, honey.”
Maisy’s big eyes widened. “Are you coming with us, Miss Josie? Please?”
Josie didn’t know how to answer that. She didn’t want to disappoint Maisy but...she had no business going to eat pizza with these two. She knew to keep her professional life and her personal life separated. “I...uh...”
“I have an idea,” Dalton said, his eyes bright for Maisy’s sake. “How about we follow Miss Josie home and we can order pizza from her house.”
Josie sent him a shocked, questioning glare, her thoughts rolling over each other. “Really?”
“Really,” he said. “It never hurts to see where my daughter’s favorite after-school teacher lives. You know, to make sure things are okay?”
He wanted to check her home?
The dread Josie felt over the last few minutes increased twofold. Her stomach knotted, and her breath stopped cold. She rambled on, trying to recover. “It’s been a while since I’ve had any company besides my aunt and uncle. I moved in next to them after Whitney married David and moved to a bigger house.”
Whitney was also a K-9 officer and her husband, David, was a physician’s assistant planning to go back to med school to become a full-fledged doctor. They lived around the corner in a new subdivision and were raising Whitney’s little daughter, Shelby, a regular here at the day care.
“I’d heard that,” he responded, his tone neutral and calm. “I’d like to see where you live.”
He wasn’t leaving her room to say no. Maybe it was a good idea to have him do a sweep, in case. In case of what? She didn’t want to think about that.
“Of course,” she said. “Let me finish locking up.”
“And Luna’s coming, too,” Maisy said, her tone truly happy for a change. The young girl probably needed some motherly companionship.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Josie said, thinking this was an interesting turn of events. And a disturbing one. She worried about what had happened, and for some reason she didn’t want to examine too closely, she also fretted about being near Dalton West. The man cut an intimidating swath.
Just get home and think this through, she told herself. There had to be an explanation for that cryptic message.
And there had to be an explanation for the pitter-patter of her heart every time Dalton came to pick up Maisy.
Together she and Dalton double-checked the doors and windows. “All clear,” he said after she’d locked the main entry. “I need to bag this letter, and then we’ll be right behind you. I’ll dust it for prints later. Might find some on the tape if not the paper.”
After he’d settled Luna in her backseat kennel and Maisy in the front, seat belt secured, he turned to Josie. “I’m going to watch the streets between here and your house. And when the pizza comes, I’ll answer the door. Better to be cautious than careless,” he added. “I’m following you home and that’s that. And we can talk about what might have provoked this.”
“I’ll see you there, then.”
“Be careful,” he said. She felt him watching her until she was in her car.
What a bossy man! No, more than bossy. Serious and commanding. Trustworthy. Good at his job. Josie sent up a prayer of thanks. Dalton had probably saved her from a break-in or a possible robbery. She should be relieved. Someone had pinpointed the day care and left that note for her to find.
Knowing that a police officer with a highly trained K-9 partner was following her home and coming inside to check her house made her feel a lot better about things. Because if she thought too long and hard about that note, she’d fall to pieces and...Josie wasn’t going to give in to that notion.
She wasn’t that woman anymore.
* * *
Dalton eased the old patrol car against the curb in front of the little house where Josie lived next to her aunt and uncle. The Carters were good people. Marilyn loved children, and her husband, Jack, ran his own auto repair company and worked on keeping all the old patrol cars running smoothly.
Josie Callahan obviously had the same work ethic as her relatives. He’d heard the stories about the old rambling house that was now the day care. Whitney and David had recommended it to Dalton when he’d needed after-school care for Maisy. And not a moment too soon. They moved here not long after the day care had opened.
A good idea since everyone around here needed a safe place to leave their children. He especially considered the place an answer to his prayers since he didn’t like leaving Maisy alone in the house, even with a nanny or teenage sitter. Maisy still had nightmares about her mother’s death, so she needed to be in a safe and fun environment.
Up until now, he’d believed the Desert Valley Day care had been that place. But after Patrick Murphy’s close call a couple of weeks ago with a vindictive, unhinged grandmother who thought he should be with her instead of his dad, Sean, and now this situation, he needed to find out what was going on.
Why would someone target the day care? Or rather, why would someone target Josie Callahan?
“This is a cute house,” Maisy said, all smiles since they’d pulled into the neighborhood. “Look at the lights, Daddy.”
“I see,” Dalton responded. The lone fake Christmas tree he and Maisy had decorated a few weeks ago looked sad compared to this display.
The little beige stucco cottage was neat and clean. A small rock garden in front held a scrawny palm tree with top-heavy fronds and several varieties of cactus bushes, all of which were decorated with colorful Christmas lights. A pretty tree stood at the front window, and a palm-tree-embellished wreath hung on the front door. The woman must have a thing for desert palms.
But Dalton wasn’t focused on the decorations. He glanced around the neighborhood, checking the cul-de-sac and scanning the street. A few vehicles were parked here and there, but he couldn’t see anything that looked suspicious. Leashing Luna, he ordered her out, and they all headed up the drive to meet Josie at the door.
“Come in,” she said, her tone unsure. “I have some pizza coupons.”
Dalton scooted Maisy ahead of him, noting she had her favorite purple backpack. That thing seemed to be her security blanket these days. Luna followed, sniffing the new location with interest, her dark eyes full of curiosity.
Dalton scanned the tiny den and kitchen, making sure nothing was out of order. Neat and sparse with old but tidy wicker furniture and one big, comfortable-looking, puffy beige side chair. He watched as Josie moved around and fluffed pillows, her actions guarded.
“Make yourself comfortable,” she said, clearly uncomfortable.
Maybe he shouldn’t have forced the issue, but he couldn’t shake the wariness gnawing at the pit of his stomach.
Regardless, they were here now so he’d do his job.
“Thanks.” He motioned to Maisy. “Sit down, honey. You can put your pack on the coffee table.”
Maisy did as he told her, her big gray-blue eyes gazing around the room with delighted interest. At least his daughter was enjoying this diversion.
Now Dalton had to wonder what had really prompted him to insist on coming to dinner at Josie’s house. That threatening note, of course. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to plant that. What if a kid had found it? Depending on what the kid would do with the note, Josie might have never known about it or the whole day care could have gone into a panic.
Both dangerous concepts.
He needed to follow through and get that note to the lab, but Dalton doubted anything substantial would be found on the paper. He might be able to question Josie after dinner if they could find a distraction for Maisy and Luna.
“Your place looks nice,” he said when Josie came over with her cell phone and a handful of coupons. “Whitney loved it here, but she and David are happy in their new house from what I hear.”
“That’s good,” Josie said. “Whitney told me they went through the wringer when they first met.” Glancing at Maisy, she smiled. “But they made it through.”
Dalton nodded, glad she didn’t go into detail in front of his daughter about drug dealers and the town doctor who’d turned bad. “Yeah, they seem very happy.”
“Shelby is so cute,” Maisy said, clearly interested in the adult conversation. “She’s funny when she walks. She falls and then gets right back up.”
“She loves to run, but sometimes her feet get ahead of her,” Josie said. “Even at eighteen months, she’s a go-getter like her mama.”
The silence that followed seemed like an eternity. Dalton wished he’d thought this through a little better. He’d never been one for small talk. “Pizza time,” he finally said. “Want me to order?”
“No, I’ll do it.” Josie went through the various coupons, and they settled on toppings and a nearby restaurant that delivered. “One large pepperoni and sausage and one medium veggie,” she told the restaurant clerk.
After she’d given the address and placed her phone down, she turned to Maisy. “I have water and milk to drink.”
“Milk,” Maisy said, shy now.
“Do you have homework?” Dalton asked Maisy.
She bobbed her head. “Reading. Miss Josie helped me with the math.”
“But you might want to let your dad go over that with you since I’m a bit rusty,” Josie suggested. “She’s very smart in math,” she said to Dalton. “She even explained a few things to me.”
Proud to hear that, Dalton smiled at Maisy. “Okay, after we eat you can read for a while, and I’ll check the math when we get home.” But he doubted that would be necessary. Josie seemed like a capable woman. Pretty and smart. But what else was going on there?
Satisfied with his suggestion, Maisy became curious. “I like your house, Miss Josie. Our house is boring.”
Dalton gave her a mock-affronted frown. “Did you say boring? I beg your pardon. Our house is warm and safe and...boring.”
Maisy giggled and got up to walk around. “We don’t have all the pretty decorations.” She pointed to a picture of a grinning snowman. “Does it ever snow here?”
“Yes,” Josie said, smiling at Maisy. “It gets really cold here at times, too, like Flagstaff where you usually live. Do you like snow?”
Maisy glanced at Dalton. “Yes, sometimes. The day my mom died, it was snowing. But...we didn’t get to go out and play in it.”
Josie gave Dalton a sympathetic look, her green eyes full of understanding. “Maybe we’ll get snow for Christmas,” she said. “I’ll take you outside, and we’ll make snowballs.”
“And a snowman,” Maisy replied, content once more.
Dalton’s heart shattered all over again at the pain he heard in his daughter’s words. Would Maisy ever be able to forget that day over a year ago when her mom had been taken from them? He didn’t want to remember that day, and he only wished Maisy could wipe it out of her mind, too.
“I’m going to take Luna for a walk,” he said. Anything to get away from the pity in Josie’s eyes and the hurt in his little girl’s heart. Then he shot Josie a signal and mouthed, “We’ll check things outside.”
She nodded and got Maisy involved in helping her find plates and napkins. Their chatter echoed after him when Dalton shut the front door, Luna by his side.
Taking in the cold night air, he breathed deeply and closed his eyes. The dark memories threatened to overtake him, but Dalton had learned through counseling to work through the memories and to focus on seeing his daughter whole and happy again. Being with Josie did make Maisy laugh, at least.
And Lord, make me whole and happy again, too, he prayed.
Maybe the one prayer he asked for Maisy’s sake every day had led him to come to Josie’s home tonight. Truth be told, he had a slight crush on the pretty brunette with the shimmering green eyes. She had a knockout smile and a warm heart. She was a good person and, well, she was easy on the eye. He hadn’t noticed another woman since Eileen had died, but lately he’d noticed little things about Josie. Those little things added up to a whole package that he couldn’t ignore.
Was he ready for that kind of thing? Probably not. Besides, he’d be heading back to Flagstaff after Christmas. He and Maisy could start fresh in a new house, and he’d have a new position as an official K-9 officer.
Dalton cleared his head. He had work to do and a little girl to take care of. No time for such nonsense.
But he couldn’t get Josie’s sweet smile and the kind way she handled his daughter out of his mind. Someone had sent her what could be perceived as a threatening note. So he told Luna to search, and the slender dog took off like a rocket.
Doing her job without hesitation.
He needed to do the same.
They cleared the front and back yards and were headed back inside when Luna’s head went up and a soft growl emitted from her throat. She sniffed the air, and her body turned toward the left. Dalton listened and glanced to the far end of the street, but a shrub blocked his view. Urging Luna forward, he saw a car he didn’t remember from before. Too dark to see the make and model.
Dalton heard footsteps pounding, and then someone jumped into the car and took off in the other direction. Had that someone been watching Josie’s house?