Читать книгу The Texan's Return - Karen Whiddon - Страница 13
ОглавлениеWhat had he expected, a miracle? Mac knew better, but when his father had asked to talk to Hailey, hope had risen in him so fast he nearly drowned in it.
But Hailey had emerged unchanged, at least as far as he could tell. She’d always been stubborn; in the old days he’d found it charming and amusing and often teased her about it.
Bless Eli for giving them this opportunity. Mac had been wracking his brain trying to figure out a way to get Hailey over here to talk to his dad. Now, thanks to one headstrong eleven-year-old, the chance had fallen into his lap. And while he wasn’t sure what his father had said to Hailey, at least he’d gotten the opportunity to say it.
He glanced at his watch. He might as well shower and call it a day. Too late to do much more. This morning he’d gotten started on repairing the roof. Luckily, in the ten years since graduating high school, he’d become a jack-of-all-trades. He’d gone to work for a local custom home builder in Huntsville and had learned a myriad of skills. Everything from carpentry to tile to roofing. In a pinch, he could also do basic electrical and plumbing, too, though he wasn’t licensed or certified. The skills would serve him well while he worked to fix up the old family house.
Since right now, with the need to look after his father, he wasn’t able to work, he knew he’d have to be thrifty. Luckily, he’d been socking away most of his money in the hopes of starting his own construction company. While he still wanted to do this someday, for now it was good to have a backup in a pinch. Most important, he would be there for his father. No amount of money could ever make him regret that. He’d missed out on ten years while his dad was in prison. Damned if he’d miss out on this.
While he took his second shower of the day, he replayed Eli’s words over and over in his mind. Hailey wasn’t happy. The family needed money.
And Mac needed help with his father.
It would be a win-win. He’d get to spend more time with Hailey, she’d get some financial assistance, and maybe she’d even come to accept the truth of his father’s innocence. Especially if he could help the police find the real killer.
And if he was hoping for the moon and the sun and the stars, maybe Hailey could find her way back to loving Mac again.
Feeling more positive than he had in days, he grabbed his phone and made the call. He couldn’t ask her on the phone—this was something he wanted to do in person. But he didn’t want to show up at her house unannounced either.
* * *
“I liked Mac. He was really nice,” Eli enthused on the way home from Mac’s. Either he didn’t understand he shouldn’t have done what he had, or his gushing was meant to hide it.
She shot him a quelling look, but since he bounced up and down in his seat, she doubted he saw it. “Eli, you know you aren’t supposed to go anywhere after school without discussing it with me first.”
His restless movements stilled. “I know,” he said quietly. Then he lifted his chin and met her gaze. “I had to, though. We talked about it, all three of us. I wanted to meet him.”
“Why?”
He looked down, then out the window, anywhere but directly at her. When he spoke again, he spoke in a voice so small she could barely hear him. “I wanted to see if he’d be your boyfriend again. We—Tom, Tara and me—decided that would be a good thing.”
Dumbfounded, she couldn’t figure out their logic. “And why would that be?” she asked.
His sigh sounded much too old for his eleven years. “Because we want you to be happy again. You know, like you were in those pictures from when you were young.”
Any other time, his choice of phrase would have made her smile. She guessed at his age, twenty-seven must seem old. “I am happy,” she told him. “I don’t understand why you’d think I’m not.”
He shrugged. “I dunno.” Which meant he was done trying to explain himself. Either way, she knew just how to fix this mess. She couldn’t have Eli going off to the other side of town and visiting with strangers.
When they pulled into her long drive and parked in front of the garage, she took a deep breath. “Don’t go far,” she ordered, the instant they stopped. With his hand already on the door handle, Eli froze.
“In fact, I want you to go and find your brother and sister. I need to see all three of you in the kitchen. It’s family meeting time.”
Waiting in the kitchen, Hailey saw no sign of her mother. If June had already made her normal afternoon raid for snacks, she saw no sign of it. Usually June would leave open cookie or chip bags scattered around on the counter and table. Despite Hailey’s attempts to get her to eat healthy, they could barely afford junk food. Healthy food was, unfortunately, often way too expensive for their meager budget.
As the kids shuffled in, she noticed them all looking around for signs of June. The relief she saw in their faces mirrored her own, which made her feel sad.
“Sit,” she ordered, pointing at the kitchen table. “We need to talk.”
Eli sat. A moment later the twins did the same.
“Now tell me who thought it would be a good idea to send an eleven-year-old over to a stranger’s house. Especially with everything that’s been going on.”
“I didn’t think he’d really do it,” Tara protested. “It was a dumb idea, and I thought we were all just talking.”
“Uh-huh. But you, Tom.” She speared him with a glance. “You knew, right?”
“No. Not really,” he protested. Then, as she continued to eye him, he swallowed and finally nodded. “As soon as he rode off on his bike, I knew it was the wrong thing to do. That’s why I told you.”
Eli crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out at his brother. “Tattletale.”
“Enough of that.” Hailey kept her voice sharp, though she wanted to smile. Including Tara in a look, she pulled out a chair. “Now I want to know where you got the idea that I’m not happy.”
Still silent, Tara began studying her hands, ignoring the way both her brothers looked in her direction.
“Tara?” Softening her voice, Hailey reached out and cupped her younger sister’s chin. “Honey? Why do you think I’m unhappy?”
Tara bit her lip as she raised her gaze. “Not unhappy, not really. It’s just...”
“You looked different then,” Eli put in.
“Yeah.” Even Tom had a comment.
“Different how?” Hailey looked from one to the other.
“I don’t know. Just...happier. Brighter, even. Like you glowed.” Having said that, Tara returned her attention back to her fingernails.
Brighter. Happier. In love. Hailey blinked. “I’m fine,” she said firmly. “And while I really appreciate everyone thinking of me, in the future, please, discuss with me any other schemes you might come up with, okay?”
All three of them nodded.
“Good. Now that you understand, wash up and get ready for dinner. After we eat, I want everyone to make sure their homework is done, okay?”
Again, the kids nodded in unison.
For the evening meal she made hamburger meat and pasta again. Not the healthiest choice, but an inexpensive one that all the kids liked. June didn’t put in an appearance at all, so they ate without her. Hailey resisted the urge to go check on her, aware that right now she couldn’t handle finding her mother passed out, drunk.
As a treat, she’d bought ice cream. Once they’d finished, she got each of them a single scoop and watched their young faces light up.
After, everyone brought their homework out to work on at the kitchen table, at Hailey’s insistence. Truth be told, she enjoyed this feeling of togetherness, of family. She only hoped their mother didn’t do something to ruin it.
Her cell phone rang. As she glanced at the number, her heart skipped a beat. Mac. She actually considered not answering, or sending the call to voice mail, but in the end she said hello.
“Would it be all right if I came over?” Mac asked. “I have something important I need to discuss with you.”
Nonplussed, she swallowed. Suddenly, she realized she badly wanted to see him. Not good. “When?”
“Now.”
She glanced over her shoulder at the three avid faces shamelessly attempting to eavesdrop. “Now isn’t a good time.”
“Then how about later? In an hour? I just need a few minutes of your time.”
There were several ways she could answer that. If June saw him, that alone might be enough to set her off and on a two-day bender. And of course the kids, playing at matchmaking, would have reason to think they’d been successful.
Yet despite all this, she realized she craved him, with an intensity so powerful, it hurt.
She had to be strong. Too much was at stake. “I don’t think today is good at all.”
Silence. Then he sighed. “I just need five minutes, Hailey. Five quick minutes. I can meet you somewhere, or come there, or you can stop by here. Please. This is important.”
It must be, for him to push so hard. “Fine,” she said, relenting. “Five minutes. Now. I’ll meet you at the end of my driveway.” That way there was zero chance that June would see him. And the kids, despite their attempts to listen in, wouldn’t be able to watch.
“Give me fifteen minutes to get there,” he said. “And, Hailey?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.” He ended the call.
Dropping her phone into her back pocket, Hailey looked up to find all three of her siblings openly staring at her.
“Well?” Tara demanded, barely able to contain her excitement. “Was that Mac? Do you have a date?”
The quelling look Hailey shot her should have been intimidating. Instead, Tara grinned. “You do, don’t you?”
“Not a date,” she clarified. “A meeting. He says it will take five minutes. He wants to talk to me about something. Probably about Eli showing up over there uninvited and unannounced.”
Eli shook his head. “No, I doubt it’s about me. If he wanted to say something about my visit, he could have done it over the phone. It’s got to be more personal than that if he needs to say it to your face.”
What? Now Hailey stared. How had Eli gotten to be eleven going on thirty? Sometimes he acted older and wiser than both of the fourteen-year-old twins combined.
“You’re right!” Tara jumped up. “He probably wants to ask you out on a date.”
“I doubt that.” Hailey was quick to respond. “And once again, that’s also something he could do over the phone.” She made a show out of checking her watch. “I’d better get going. He’s on his way over here right now.”
“Here?” Tara squeaked. “We get to actually see him, in person?”
Oh, geez. “No. Settle down. I’m meeting him at the end of the driveway. To talk. Alone.” She met each of their gazes. “Got that?”
One by one, each kid slowly nodded. Satisfied, Hailey headed to the bathroom to check her reflection in the mirror. She excused this little bit of vanity, refusing to think about it. Then, with one last warning glare at Tom, Tara and Eli, she headed out to walk down the driveway and meet Mac.
* * *
Unaccountably nervous, Mac made it to her place in record time. He considered himself lucky he hadn’t received a speeding ticket. She wasn’t there yet, which was good. Parking at the end of her driveway, he got out and sat on the tailgate of his truck. Though it had been a different pickup, he and Hailey had spent a lot of time sitting on tailgates. Football parties at school, summer bonfires out near the lake. Then, she’d nestled close to him, fitting so perfectly under his arm. He wished he’d been able to capture those moments somewhere other than his memory.
They’d been perfect for each other. He couldn’t help but believe they were meant to be together. All he needed to do was help Hailey see that.
Waiting, his heartbeat slowed, resuming its normal steady rhythm. The pine trees lining the curving drive formed a picturesque canopy while the setting sun sent golden fingers of light through their branches, dappling the pavement with flecks of gilt.
A moment later, he saw her, strolling down her driveway toward him, and his pulse picked up again. Hailey. Everything else ceased to exist as he focused on her.
She still walked with the loose-limbed saunter, her quiet confidence sexy, though she didn’t realize it. She wore her long blond hair in a ponytail, which swung jauntily with every step she took.
Longing had his entire body clenching. Breathing deeply, he forced himself to relax again, to appear expressionless. Because he knew if he gave away the depths of his need and longing, she’d be frightened.
“All right,” she drawled, by way of greeting. “What was so important that it couldn’t wait for another day?”
He cleared his throat, and then dove right in.
“I need to hire someone to help out with my dad.” His tone matter-of-fact, he held her gaze. “I need to work, at least part-time, and I can’t leave him alone. I was hoping you’d consider it.”
At first she didn’t respond, didn’t say anything, only continued to watch him from those bright blue eyes of hers.
“It’s a paying job,” he offered, deciding not to bother trying to pretend he wanted someone else to do it. “I thought I’d ask you first, since I know you could use the income.”
She looked down and heaved a sigh. “I do need the money, but I don’t think I’d be the right person for the job.”
He hadn’t expected her to decline. “Why not?” he pressed. “You used to want to become a nurse. You might still go to nursing school one day. This would be good practice.”
Hurt and disbelief flashed across her face. “That’s not likely to happen.”
“You’re not too old,” he argued. “In four years you’ll only be thirty-one. That’s not too old.”
“No, it’s not. But you’re forgetting a few things. Eli is only eleven. I can’t leave him alone with Mom. It’ll be a long while before I’d be able to go to school. Assuming I could even afford it, which I can’t.”
His heart hurt for her. All her dreams had been put on hold, her entire life shattered, because some murderous SOB had taken her sister’s life a decade ago.
His dad had paid, too. Paid for something he hadn’t done. So help him, the police had better catch the right person this time.
“I really need the help,” he reiterated. “I can’t be with him twenty-four hours a day.” He was telling the truth. If Hailey wouldn’t do it—and he prayed she would—he’d have to hire a stranger.
“What about hospice?” Hailey asked. “I thought they came out periodically and relieved you.”
“Two or three times a week. That’s not nearly enough.”
She wanted to say no, he could tell. But he knew how badly she needed money. “I’m willing to pay fifteen dollars an hour.” He threw that out there, hoping it would help her make up her mind.
Her sigh told him how much it cost her not to say yes. She tilted her head, considering, which sent a quick flare of hope through him.
“What are the hours? Because I have to take the kids to school in the morning, and pick them up after.”
“We can work around that.” He thought for a second. “Nine to two? That’s five hours a day. Would that be good for you?”
Still considering, she frowned. He could see her doing the math in her head. “That’s seventy-five dollars a day.” Shock rang in her voice. “And if I worked five days a week, that’d be three-hundred seventy-five a week. How could you afford that?”
“If it makes my father’s life easier, it’s worth it.” He meant his words. “And I make much more than that doing my work. But I should warn you, if you’re considering doing it, that it won’t be easy. My father is already very sick. Right now, his pain level is manageable. I’m not sure how long that will be the case.”
Clearly torn, she swallowed hard. “I can’t do any heavy lifting. You’d have to help me with that.”
“I would, of course.”
Again she went silent. He knew that kind of money would go a long way toward putting food on her table. And possibly more.
“Maybe Eli could finally join Little League,” he said. “That extra money might enable you to pay for that.”
“No.” Mouth set in a grim line, her chin came up. “Don’t you bring him into this. I don’t want him getting his hopes up. If I let him do Little League, Tara will want to be a cheerleader. And Tom’s been wanting to join the band and play trumpet. It wouldn’t be fair to give to one and not the others. So, no, the extra money will go to pay the bills and buy groceries.”
Stunned, he nodded, well aware he couldn’t let her see how badly he wanted to offer to pay for them all to do those things. “Sorry. I didn’t think.”
Her shrug was meant to make him feel better. “You’ve never had three kids. I think you learn this kind of stuff through experience.”
It obviously escaped her that she didn’t actually have three kids either. But he supposed in her mind, it was sort of the same thing. She also took care of her mother. Now he was asking her to add one more person.
Still, it was better than scrambling around town looking for odd jobs and part-time work, he thought.
“I’m going to have to refuse. I just don’t think it would work.”
Shocked, he swallowed hard, trying like hell not to let his disappointment show on his face. He hadn’t expected an outright refusal. “Do you mind telling me why?”
Her sideways look told him she thought he shouldn’t have to ask. “Because it’s your father. Because of what he did.”
Her words brought a wave of pain so intense he had to briefly close his eyes. “I could swear to you on a stack of bibles that he’s innocent, and you still wouldn’t believe him, would you?”
“I...I don’t know.” She hesitated. Once, she would have offered an instant confirmation. “But as long as I don’t know for sure, I don’t think I can be around him.”
Damn. “He’s dying, Hailey.” His voice broke. “He’s dying and I love him. That ought to be enough.” He wanted it to be. Oh, how he wanted it to be.
“I don’t know that I can care for the man who killed my sister.” She swallowed. “I’m sorry.”
“He didn’t.” Though he knew his defense would fall on deaf ears, he had to give it a shot. “There was no real evidence. He had an indifferent attorney, and the police just wanted to close the case.”
“Maybe so, but unless reopening the case shows me otherwise, I have no proof he didn’t do it.” She came closer, her earnest expression breaking his heart. “I’m sorry, Mac. If I think of anyone who could do the job, I’ll have them call you.”
He shouldn’t have been so shattered, but he was. And even so, as she turned and walked back the way she’d come, he struggled with the urge to call her back, to ask her to take the weekend and think it over.
Had the rift between them grown so deep that there would never be a way to bridge it?
Once she’d gone out of sight, he climbed into his truck and started the engine. He still needed help. He’d wanted it to be her, but if she wouldn’t do it, he’d have to find somebody else.
And figure out another way to get Hailey to give him a chance.
* * *
All the way back up her long, winding drive, Hailey berated herself. She didn’t have the luxury of turning down work, especially work that paid so much. And this was Mac, who’d once been her everything, asking for her help.
Yet Gus... She considered Mac’s words. What if the truth she’d believed for ten years wasn’t really factual? What if Mac was right, and Gus hadn’t committed the awful murder? Was there any sliver of reality in what Mac said, or had this just been a desperate attempt of a man to reconcile his love for his father with the possibility that Gus might be a monster?
She didn’t know. She wasn’t sure she’d ever know.
As she rounded the last corner and the house came into sight, her heart sank. June sat in the driver’s seat of their one car, vainly trying to start the engine. Instead of a motor coming to life, every time she turned the key there was a clicking sound.
“Hey.” June looked up as Hailey approached. “It’s Friday night and I’m ready to party. But the car won’t start. We either need a new battery or the alternator is gone.”
Hailey winced. She’d just bought groceries and paid the electric bill. She had maybe five dollars left to her name, at least until she found some other work. Maybe she could pick up a shift waitressing in the café. Sometimes Jed Rogers would take pity on her and let her fill in when one of his waitresses called in sick.
Except without a car, how would she get into town to work?
She eyed her mother. “I don’t suppose you have money to get that fixed?”
June started shaking her head before Hailey had even finished speaking. “My check doesn’t come until next week,” she drawled, not sounding the least bit concerned. “I don’t have a dime.”
Except somehow, from somewhere, she managed to come up with enough cash to buy a bottle or two. Hailey had searched numerous times, trying to find out where her mom hid her stash of cash, but so far the location eluded her.
“I don’t either.” Throat tight, Hailey refused to cry. This was the last straw. “I guess we’re going to have to do without a car until we can come up with some money.” Except she knew they couldn’t, not past the weekend. Not only did she take the kids to school, but she picked them up. Eli’s elementary school was close enough that he could ride his bike, but the twins’ middle school was several miles away. She dreaded informing them that they’d need to ride the bus. They’d steadfastly refused every time she’d tried to suggest it, hinting how much money they could save on gas. Apparently to a fourteen-year-old, riding the school bus was the height of dorkiness.
Ah, well. They wouldn’t have a choice if she didn’t have a vehicle.
For the first time, June appeared slightly concerned. After all, how could she hang out at her bar without a way to get there? Then, staring at Hailey, her expression smoothed out, and her frown disappeared. “You’ll figure something out,” she said. “You always do.”
Hailey shook her head and turned to go inside. Even though she was the daughter, she and her mother’s roles had become reversed. Hailey was the one who worried if they had enough food, if she’d be able to clothe the children and keep the electricity and water turned on.
Now this.
There was no way she could turn down Mac’s job offer now. More evidence of a hard truth she’d come to learn at an early age. Sometimes one had to swallow their pride in order to survive.
