Mitch checked his watch. Then his phone. Where were they?
He’d started the movie and served the cocoa. He’d even smiled and asked a few of the guests if they needed anything. There were only two couples downstairs tonight because the Nelsons had also gone shopping and the Amabiles had gone to dinner. Even with only four people to entertain, he was counting down the seconds until the real innkeeper returned.
He heard the front door open and took off down the hall toward the women’s laughter.
“Oh, hi, Mitch.” Kaitlyn removed her coat and hung it on the rack beside the door. “Everything okay?”
Her brow wrinkled with concern as she looked at him. He supposed if he looked in a mirror right now he’d have a strained look on his face. Put him in charge of a few hardened criminals and he’d be A-okay. Leave him with two bubbly, chatty couples who expected him to mirror their enthusiasm, and he felt like he was going to come out of his skin.
“Of course,” he said, feeling relief wash over him at just the sight of her. “Looks like you guys had a good time.”
Kaitlyn looked down at the assorted bags in her hand. “I might’ve gotten a little carried away,” she admitted.
“Nonsense,” his mom said, waving a hand. Then she stepped up to kiss Mitch’s cheek before removing her coat as well.
“Staying?” he asked.
“Nettie and I thought we’d watch the last of the movie, if you don’t mind.”
“And Kaitlyn promised us that you’d make hot chocolate,” his aunt Nettie said, also removing her coat. “Plus, I thought I’d catch you in action as a B and B host.” She winked at him playfully. Then his three favorite women headed to the ballroom together, taking the couch that lined the back wall.
A little jealousy flared up inside him as he leaned in the doorway, where he’d stood most of the night. Kaitlyn was his, not theirs.
“Cheer up, lad,” one of the guests said, stepping up beside him. Mr. Peters was in his midfifties and had come here for an anniversary retreat with his wife. “You’re supposed to be happy that your girlfriend is getting along with your family. Trust me—it’s rare,” he said in passing and headed back to his seat beside his wife.
Mitch had wanted to tell Mr. Peters, She’s not my girlfriend, but couldn’t. Because by all definitions, that’s exactly what Kaitlyn had become. They were long past a fling and very much exclusive. He even felt possessive of her with his own family members. And the fact that she was sitting beside his mom and aunt and having such a good time was kind of attractive in its own odd way.
Ever since this morning when he and Alex had talked to Kyle, something had been niggling around in the corner of his mind. This community supported each other. That’s what he’d told Ms. Martin. People deserved second chances. That’s what Alex had told Kyle. So why couldn’t that be true for him too? Despite his best efforts not to, he loved this community. Everyone here had supported him after the accident. Well, except for the Everson family, but who could blame them? They loved Brian.
Mitch had been thinking about his own past since he’d left Kyle at the juvenile detention center. He’d never apologized to Brian in person. There’d been a civil lawsuit against Mitch at the time, and his lawyer had advised him to stay as far away from the Everson family as possible. Mitch had won the case because it was just an unfortunate accident. The facts supported him. But he’d never gone to face Brian like a man afterward. He should have. He’d never apologized for what had happened and the part he’d played in it. Maybe if Mitch’s father had been alive, he’d have told him to man up and do just that.
Mitch swallowed thickly. It was finally time to pay Brian a visit. It wouldn’t be easy but it was the right thing to do. He was tired of running from his past. Tired of being ashamed for something that happened a long time ago. He’d been just a kid, like Kyle, and he was ready to make things right.
The sound of Kaitlyn’s laughter drew him in. Glancing over, he saw the three women looking at him. It was obvious whatever they thought was funny pertained to him. He straightened from where he leaned in the doorway and headed to the couch. “Okay, I give up. What’s the joke?”
His mother had a hand to her chest, and he thought she looked happier than he’d seen her in a long time. Family, friends, and laughter were a salve to the body and soul. “I was telling Kaitlyn about the girl across the street when you were growing up.”
Mitch groaned. “Mom.”
“You had such a huge crush on her, even though she was two years older than you.”
Mitch rubbed his forehead. “All the guys on our street had a crush on Alison Winters.”
“Aw, how sweet,” Kaitlyn said. “You still remember her name.”
“Oh, it was sweet. He would even leave little notes and special trinkets on her doorstep,” his mother continued, much to his chagrin.
Mitch groaned again. “That’s it. I’m supervising the rest of your conversations tonight.”
“But I was just about to tell Kaitlyn about the time you ran away from home.”
“She doesn’t need to know that story, Mom. Let’s just say I was seven years old and I didn’t make it very far.”
That time, he thought. When he’d run away from home at the age of eighteen and joined the marines, he’d gone across the world. And the things he was running from had come along with him every step of the way.
Tomorrow, he decided. He’d stop running from his ghosts tomorrow.
After the guests had gone back upstairs and his mom and aunt Nettie had gone home, Mitch joined Kaitlyn in the kitchen. He watched as she loaded the hot chocolate mugs into the dishwasher. “I think my mom really likes you.”
She turned to face him. “Well, I really like your mom. She reminds me a lot of my friend Josie back home.”
“So Josie is a fifty-year-old woman who is a workaholic and likes to cook and tell embarrassing stories about her son?”
Kaitlyn closed the dishwasher door and pressed the On button. The motor groaned in the background as she straightened and stepped over to him. “Not exactly. They’re both feisty though. And they make me laugh. Your aunt Nettie is pretty awesome too.”
“Well, I love to see you laugh,” he said. “Even if it’s at my expense.”
Tilting her head to the side, her eyes hooded sexily. And he knew exactly what she was in the mood for. He was in the mood for the exact same thing.
Her cell phone rang on the counter, which made her smile fall away.
“What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “I’m sure that’s yet another call from my mom.”
“You can’t avoid her forever.”
“I know. I’ll talk to her later. All that shopping wore me out.”
As if on cue, she yawned, and the hooded look in her eyes was gone. She really did look tired now.
“You go on to bed,” he said. “I’ll finish cleaning up the kitchen.”
“Really?” Her eyes widened a little bit.
“Yeah. I’m still partial owner here, at least until next week.”
That was supposed to make her smile but instead her frown deepened. Did she wish he would stay as much as he was starting to wish the same?
That was crazy though. Impossible.
“Good night,” he said, urging her to bed. “I’ll see you in the morning.” If he could manage to keep his hands off of her until then.
* * *
Kaitlyn had told Mitch she was tired, and that was true, but she didn’t feel like sleeping. Her mind was on overdrive suddenly. Her cell phone dinged with an incoming text. She reached for it, read the screen, and considered throwing the phone against the wall, not for the first time today.
Kaitlyn, you’re acting like a child. Call me back and let’s discuss the situation.
“The situation?” Kaitlyn said on a scoff, fury funneling in her belly. She stared at her mother’s words in disbelief.
Another two points go to Bradley Foster. He’d groped her, cost her a job, and now he might cost her the relationship with her own mother.
Kaitlyn plopped back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. There was a time when her mom had been her best friend. She would take Kaitlyn to the park every weekend, and her mom would make a huge deal over finding the perfect picnic spot to lay their huge, red-checked blanket. Then they’d eat, talk, and laugh so hard that Kaitlyn sometimes wondered if her food would come bubbling back up. Once they were done eating, her mom always loved to lie back and stare up at the clouds.
It was Kaitlyn’s favorite game back then as well. “That’s a dinosaur,” she’d chirp, pointing at a puff of cloud.
“I see an elephant over there.”
Kaitlyn blinked up at the high wood-paneled ceiling of her room now, considering the memory. In the markings of the wood, she could almost make out designs in the same way she had with the clouds as a little girl. She wasn’t a child anymore though. That was the point and the thing that her mom didn’t quite get. Kaitlyn could make her own decisions and live her own life.
And she knew when a man crossed the line with her.
The bedroom door opened, and Mitch stepped in, his eyes trained on her. “Thought you were going to sleep.”
Kaitlyn sat up in bed. She was still dressed and held her cell phone in her hand. “I guess I’m not tired after all.”
He nodded, not moving for a moment.
“Thank you, by the way.” Her anger was starting to fade now that he was here. Her breathing smoothed out just a little bit. “For the flowers and tonight, for washing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen. And for being here.”
“It was nothing, really,” he said.
She’d seen his panicked look when she’d asked him to host the guests for movie night. He could have refused. There was no way she could make a strong man like him stay downstairs and play nice. He’d done it of his own volition because she’d asked him to. At his core, he was one of the good guys just as he’d claimed several weeks ago as they’d fought in the front room.
He hooked a thumb behind him. “Want me to give you some space? I can sleep on the couch or—”
“No. I only need space from the world right now, not you. You can stay.” In fact, Mitch had a way of making the entire world fall away once that door was closed. “Why don’t you hang the DO NOT DISTURB sign?” she suggested.
His left brow lifted just slightly, and she found herself smiling. He was wrong. He was good with people. Good with her. “Yeah?” he asked.
She lifted her hands and started to unbutton her top. It wasn’t fury funneling in her belly anymore. No, it was desire, and it threatened—promised—to sweep them both up in its cyclone. “Better turn that lock,” she said, as her fingers popped the third button down.
He did as she asked and then flipped off the lights. The night-light came on automatically, filling the room with just enough light so they could find each other. Even without the light’s help, she’d have tracked down the woodsy, highly sensual scent of him. In just a few short weeks, her body knew this man. Craved him.
His arms locked around her, and then they made love like it was the most natural thing in the world. When he held her, it felt like a promise that everything was going to be all right, and she believed it. She believed what she saw when his eyes bore into hers, even though she wasn’t quite sure what they said. Something wonderful though.
At some point in the night, she fell asleep in Mitch’s embrace. Her eyes flickered open to read the clock on the nightstand. One a.m. The inn was quiet, and Mitch’s breathing was steady on her shoulder as he hugged the back of her.
Smiling softly, she returned to sleep.
When her eyes fluttered open again at five a.m., the weight of his arm was gone. She turned to find his side of the bed empty except for a note on the pillow. She rolled forward and grabbed it.
You’re beautiful when you sleep. See you tonight.
Mitch
It wasn’t the warmest or the fuzziest, but even so, her insides buzzed happily. She could get used to this, she thought again, shuffling across the room toward the bathroom.
Except no, she couldn’t.
* * *
There was a piano sitting on Mitch’s chest.
At least that’s what it had felt like since he’d walked into the Everson Printing Company and asked to speak to Brian more than thirty minutes ago. Brian wasn’t there yet because Mitch had arrived as soon as the store had opened this morning. The young employee behind the counter said he expected Mr. Everson to arrive anytime.
Mitch’s gaze flicked to the door that led to the back room. He’d hid like a coward when Brian had come into Dawanda’s Fudge Shop on his night downtown with Kaitlyn. He was ashamed of that behavior. For one, he was a marine, a cop, and he wasn’t supposed to duck or hide from anything. He was supposed to face his challenges head-on. That’s exactly what he planned to do today. And whether Brian accepted his apology or not, this was a step in the right direction.
Brian had always been a nice guy in high school. Mitch had looked up to him and his three brothers. Everyone had, it seemed. Brian Everson was the star athlete of the Everson clan. By all predictions, he was going to bring a gold medal home for long-distance running in the Olympics the following year after he graduated. But no one had predicted the accident on that icy mountain road.
Mitch pulled out his phone and texted Alex.
I’m coming in late today. I have an errand.
Alex’s response was quick.
I told you to take the day off. People are going to think I’m taking advantage of my newest officer if you don’t.
Mitch frowned. What was he supposed to do with a day off? And he was a new officer at SSPD but also temporary. Alex should work him while he could.
Before Mitch could argue, the door to the back room finally opened, and a female clerk came out. She spoke briefly to the younger male clerk whom Mitch had talked to earlier. Then their gazes flitted over, and Mitch knew they were talking about him. The male clerk nodded and headed in his direction.
“I’m sorry, sir,” he said, looking apologetic and not meeting Mitch’s eyes directly. “Mr. Everson is really busy this morning and is unable to meet with you.”
That piano on Mitch’s chest turned into a baby grand. “Did you tell him who I was? That Mitch Hargrove wants to speak to him?”
“Yes, sir,” the clerk said.
“I see.” With a sigh, Mitch stood. “I’d like to leave my phone number and where I’m staying, in case he wants to get in touch later.” Mitch knew Brian wasn’t too busy to talk to him right now. There weren’t even any customers yet. Part of Mitch wanted to go behind that counter, open the door to the back room, and find Brian anyway. Brian needed to hear his apology. And Mitch had things he needed to get off his chest, like this baby grand piano, for one.
Mitch left his contact information with the clerk and walked out into the parking lot. Now what? Alex had insisted he take today off, and Mitch suspected if he ignored that order and showed up anyway, Alex might just shove him in one of those jail cells in the back.
Sliding behind the steering wheel, Mitch stared out at the open road. The mountains could be seen clearly today, almost purple in the bending sunlight. The first thing that came to mind for how to spend the day was being with Kaitlyn. But he needed to collect his thoughts when it came to her. He’d known there was a possibility that Brian wouldn’t forgive him but he hadn’t considered that Brian might not even talk to him.
He could go to the juvenile detention center to visit Kyle Martin. The court was trying to figure out what to do next in that situation but Cassie was pleading to have her son home for the holidays.
Kyle probably needed some time with his jumbled thoughts too. Not some older know-it-all who thought he had any good advice to give. Obviously, looking at the way Mitch had twisted up his own life, he didn’t.
So instead, Mitch drove his truck to Evergreen Park. He was dressed in a T-shirt and loose-fit jeans along with a pair of sneakers. Just right to go for a short hike up the foothills to see the springs. Hopefully Brian would contact him later, once he’d had time to think. Something told Mitch that wasn’t going to happen though.
It’d been wishful thinking that had brought him to the Everson’s Printing Company this morning. Now it was back to reality.