Читать книгу To Protect Her Son - Stella MacLean - Страница 12
ОглавлениеNATE PARKED HIS car in front of Gayle Sawyer’s house and started up the walk toward the bright blue door, his cane supporting his damaged hip as always. He’d been with Sherri at Anna’s house for dinner the other night, and was impressed with his cousin’s continued praise for Gayle. He’d liked the woman despite the fact that he’d been sent packing from Ted Marston’s office without an explanation. She certainly hadn’t behaved the way he’d expected, throwing him off guard. And the hand holding thing. He’d never, ever had to be reminded to let go of someone’s fingers. When he was asked to rejoin the conversation it was clear from Gayle’s body language that she was uncomfortable with him being there.
She was beautiful and sexy, yet her eyes were guarded, wary. He’d caught her staring at him, and couldn’t help but wonder if she was deciding whether or not his use of a cane would affect his ability to help her son. Was Gayle Sawyer the kind of person that saw his disability first, and made a judgment based on that?
Whatever his feelings, whatever judgment she had made about him, none of it mattered, because behind this brightly painted door lived a teenager who was on the edge of serious trouble. Officer Andrew Edwards was a caring young man who was doing night classes in Bangor in order to get his degree in psychology. From what he’d described of the fight that night, there was a great deal of pressure for Adam to join this gang of high school dropouts.
A tap of the brass knocker on the solid wood door resulted in the door swinging open immediately. Gayle stood there, her mass of black curls swaying around her shoulders.
She’d been waiting for him. The thought pleased him more than he was willing to admit to anyone but himself.
“Please come in,” she said just as her son appeared. Adam Sawyer was tall for his age with a smattering of acne on his cheeks. His dark hair was cut short, and his green eyes radiated distrust. They both stared at Nate as if he were bringing bad news.
Once inside, they moved to the living room, where Adam sank onto the sofa, leaving Gayle and him facing each other in chairs near the fireplace. Nate placed his cane discreetly by the fireplace, but not before he became aware of the sympathy in Gayle’s expression. He’d become accustomed to the concerned glances of those he met, the sympathy that followed, and even the pity he’d seen in others. Such behavior was now part of his life, nothing more.
To give everyone time to settle in, he checked out the room’s interior. It was small and cozy with pastel blues and yellows accenting the dark woodwork typical of many homes in Eden Harbor.
Gayle’s hands smoothed the fabric of her well-worn jeans as she sized him up. “I made the curtains and the slipcovers. I love decorating, and this house offers plenty of opportunity.” Her smile was genuine as she spoke, a smile that Nate found very attractive.
“We’ll start off today talking a little bit about the two of you, and I can answer any questions you might have.”
“That sounds okay...” Her anxious glance swerved to Adam and back to Nate. “What do you need me to do?”
“Just be here for your son. Although the focus is on him, there will be times when you and I will talk about how you feel, your concerns as his mother, what your family life was like. Things like that. Occasionally the three of us will talk about how things are going.” He looked at Adam. “But mostly Adam and I will be getting to know each other.”
“So what’s next?” She twisted her fingers in her lap as she eyed him from under thick lashes.
Anxiety was usual in these situations, but Gayle Sawyer seemed a little too anxious. Clearly she was worried about her son. But was that all? Single parents often lived with myriad concerns that were heightened during a crisis: the result of having to make all the adult decisions alone.
“How this works is that Adam and I will get together once a week to shoot pool, go to a sporting event, maybe a basketball game, talk about things that are bothering him. It won’t be about the fight he was involved in necessarily, but we’ll cover what’s going on in his life.”
“You don’t have to talk as if I’m not here,” Adam said in a sullen tone.
“Adam! Mr. Garrison is trying to help!”
Nate watched the troubled teen as he slouched farther into the sofa. Did he feel unnoticed, maybe unwelcome, in his new home? He’d lived here about a year, and making friends was sometimes difficult.
Nate smiled encouragingly as he directed all his attention to the teenager. “You’re absolutely right. And I guess I should tell you a little bit about myself. I was eleven when my father died. I missed him every day of my life. Then I met up with a police officer in circumstances similar to yours. Luckily I had family and friends who were willing to vouch for me, and I got my life turned around. I know what it’s like to feel so alone you want to lash out at people, especially as you get older and realize how important it is to have a dad’s influence in your life. And of course your move here probably wasn’t easy.”
Adam pressed his fists into the cushions of the sofa but said nothing.
“I suspect that you came here knowing no one, and had to start over finding friends. You felt like you didn’t fit in anywhere.”
Adam began picking at his nails. “I should have made the basketball team. I was on the team back in Anaheim. The school I went to there was awesome.”
“Why didn’t you make the team here?”
Adam shook his head, burying his chin in his chest. “Dunno.”
Nate made a note to call Coach Cassidy and see what he had to say about Adam.
“What’s your favorite subject in school?” Nate asked.
Adam lifted his head. “Computer science. I want to work in computers when I...when I get out of this place.”
“Adam, I didn’t know you were so unhappy in Eden Harbor,” Gayle said, her voice tight with worry.
“That’s because you work all the time at the hospital, and we don’t talk anymore like we used to when...” He rubbed his hands through his short hair, looking at neither of them.
Clearly there was a lot going on emotionally with Adam. Nate changed the subject. “Adam, do you like living in this house?”
“Yeah, it’s nicer than the apartment we had in Anaheim. Mom likes working in the garden. I never had fresh vegetables until we moved into this place.”
“I like this house, too,” Nate said. “I had a summer job mowing lawns, and one of them was across the street. I would watch Mrs. Cooper working in her flower beds and wish I had her talent with plants.”
Gayle’s face brightened. “Susan was my aunt. She left this house to me in her will.”
Adam sat up straighter and leaned forward, resting his forearms on his thighs, his eyes bright with interest. “You cut grass, too? How many lawns did you do?”
“I had five. Two during the week, and three on the weekend.”
* * *
GAYLE LISTENED AS Adam talked to Nate about his lawn work and began to feel the tension ease from her shoulders. Nate had found something he and Adam had in common. She could have hugged the man on the spot. She had no idea how a mentor worked, but if Nate’s behavior so far was any indication, this could prove to be so much easier than she’d expected. Quietly she slipped from the room and went to the kitchen, putting the kettle on for tea. She took morning-glory cookies she’d made earlier from the jar and placed them on a plate.
When the tea was ready, she put everything on a tray, including a glass of milk for Adam and headed back to the living room. Adam was laughing out loud, a sound she had rarely heard in the past few weeks. Clearly her son was very happy with the attention Nate was giving him. Delighted to be part of this new development, she put the tray on the coffee table in front of Adam.
“I thought we could enjoy a cup of tea and Adam’s favorite cookies while we talk,” Gayle said, being careful not to spill anything as she poured tea for Nate and herself. She was proud to see that Adam had waited until she’d served Nate before taking his usual four cookies and the glass of milk.
Nate and Adam continued their discussion of which mowers worked best, how Adam had managed to fix his machine the last time it broke down. Gayle was pleased to see a look of accomplishment on her son’s face, and hoped this was the beginning of a return to sharing their daily lives.
When the plate of cookies was empty, Adam finished the last of his milk and stood up. “If no one minds, I’m meeting a friend to go skateboarding.”
Forcing her shoulders down, Gayle drew in a deep breath to ease her instant anxiety. “When will you be back?”
“A bunch of us are heading over to the skateboard park. I’ll be back for dinner.”
Gayle followed him out to the back door. Once out of earshot of Nate, she asked, “What did you think of Mr. Garrison?”
“He’s okay, Mom.” He patted her shoulder the way he often did. “Stop worrying. You heard him. He said we’d hang out once a week, and that’s fine.” Scooping his skateboard off the bench, he skipped down the steps, following the cobbled path to the front of the house before disappearing from sight.
Gayle went back into the house, expecting to find Nate where she’d left him in the living room. Instead, he was standing in the kitchen, the tray on the marble counter. “Was the move from Anaheim relatively easy?”
“Yes. I was ready for a change. When I learned that my aunt had left this house to me, I couldn’t wait to move here. I’d never been to the East Coast before. It’s been a wonderful experience. I’ve made friends with several people at work, and I love my job.” Hoping that would end his questions, she started to put the dishes in the dishwasher.
“Most people don’t pick up and move that easily. Leaving friends and relatives behind is usually difficult. Why didn’t you sell this house and just stay in Anaheim?”
Gayle glanced around the sunny kitchen with its cream walls and blue/green accents, all of which she’d done herself. “Because I had never owned a home before, and I loved the photos my aunt’s executor sent me.”
“What was your life in Anaheim like? Did you work in a medical clinic there?”
Was this how it worked? He would gain background information on her before he began working with Adam? “I did. It was okay, but not nearly as friendly as the Eagle Mountain Medical Center.”
“That’s good to hear.” He paused. They exchanged half smiles. “You and Sherri have become close friends.”
“She’s the best friend I’ve ever had.” She’d never admit to him that Sherri was her first real friend. Growing up, she couldn’t take anyone to the shabby home she shared with her parents for fear of what state they’d be in, which had left her feeling isolated from her classmates.
She wanted Adam to have friends, and a place he was proud to bring them to. He had done that until about a month ago. She probably should tell Nate about that, but it might be better to wait and see how he made out with Adam before volunteering any information.
“Do you miss your friends in Anaheim?”
“With a child to raise, and very little money, I didn’t have many friends.”
“Had you moved there from somewhere else?”
“I lived in Riverside for a short time, but Anaheim mostly.”
A frown line formed between his eyes. “I can understand that you’d be busy with a child and a career, but why was it easier to make friends here in Eden Harbor than in Anaheim?”
He was asking questions she couldn’t answer without exposing the truth she’d vowed to keep to herself. She’d moved out of the neighborhood she’d been living in with Harry as soon as she could. With the grudging help of her parents, she’d taken a medical receptionist course, after which she’d moved to another part of town. There she’d intentionally avoided making friends who might connect her to the sensational coverage of Harry’s trial. Having Adam in her life was everything she’d ever wanted, and the one good thing to come out of her past. “I...I’m not sure.”
“What about Adam’s father?”
Gayle nearly dropped the plate she was placing in the dishwasher. “His father died in a fishing trawler accident off Alaska just a few months after Adam was born.”
“I’m sorry. It must have made your life very difficult. Did you have family to support you while you raised Adam?”
“My parents passed away a few years ago.” In Anaheim, her mother and father hadn’t bothered to stay in touch with her, and she didn’t mind because they were always expecting her to do things for them—from housework to grocery shopping. She guessed that making demands on her was their version of being involved in her life.
She finished cleaning up the kitchen while Nate watched, as if assessing her. She was exhausted from the past hour, and needed to get this man to leave before he asked any more questions. He would do what he could to help get Adam’s life back on track, of that much she was certain. Once that was done, and it would be, she’d concentrate on the future, her work and her friends.
The man standing just a few feet from her would not play any role in her life after that for a couple of very good reasons. She couldn’t trust herself not to be drawn to him, or worse, to end up wanting him. If she allowed him into her life beyond his involvement with Adam, he would certainly learn things about her he wouldn’t like, thus putting an end to any further relationship.
She wanted Nate to leave, but from the way he’d positioned himself along the edge of her counter, he didn’t intend to do that any time soon. To stop his deluge of questions, she decided to learn what she could about his relationship with Anna. She and Gayle had had coffee several times, but Anna had never really talked about her brother.
* * *
NATE FOUND IT hard to take his eyes off this woman, while she seemed to be totally unaware of him. Gayle Sawyer was gorgeous, worried and hiding something.
All Nate’s police training told him, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the woman before him was protecting a secret so big that she would do anything to keep it from him. Given that his sole purpose in being here was to mentor her son, that secret almost certainly involved Adam. As he stood there watching her, he wondered what would make a mother hide the truth if her son’s happiness stood to suffer.
Furthermore, if he was completely honest himself, he wanted to know more about this woman out of a personal interest. He’d liked her from the first moment they’d exchanged glances.
Not that he wanted to date her. He didn’t. She wasn’t his type. He’d made it a practice to choose women who wouldn’t make any emotional demands on him, who were out to enjoy life. Such relationships suited his lifestyle.
He’d once had a different outlook, and was drawn to a different type of woman... Until that disastrous day after he’d been shot when he’d learned that the woman he’d planned to spend the rest of his life with wasn’t into a man with a disability.
That moment of truth had nearly been his undoing. Never again would he kid himself into thinking that a woman would want him just as he was, disability and all. Maybe in the short-term, but not the long. Because of that, he would never again allow a woman to get close enough to hurt him.
From what he could tell by being around her, Gayle Sawyer was the kind of woman who took life seriously. Something he wasn’t into. He couldn’t be.
“Gayle, I understand how you must be feeling right now. Having someone walk into your life under such difficult circumstances and then start asking personal questions would cause anyone anxiety.”
She didn’t flinch, nor did she offer up any information, as so many people did when they were offered a sympathetic response. This lady had the kind of focused determination he usually experienced with his law enforcement friends and colleagues. Not a woman who was worried about her son.
He hadn’t expected her to be so self-contained, so in control. She wasn’t the typical mother of a son on the verge of trouble with the law.
There was something going on here...
Or was he simply feeling the effects of her total lack of interest in him as a man?
* * *
GAYLE GRUDGINGLY ADMITTED she liked this man, despite his questions. After all, he was only doing his job, and she had to believe that he would help her son, that his questions would lead to a better life for Adam. “I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but I know your sister, Anna. We belong to the same single-parents support group.”
“No, I didn’t. She’s been busy and so have I.” He crossed his arms over his chest as he met her questioning gaze.
“She’s really great. So brave to be raising her boys alone after losing her husband in Afghanistan. She’s amazing.”
“She is. When Kevin was killed we were afraid that she might not be able to cope. Sherri was really supportive, and her mother, Colleen, moved Anna and her family into her house for those awful first weeks after we’d learned about Kevin’s death.”
“Were you living here at the time?”
“No. I was still in Boston recovering from my injuries.”
She couldn’t look at his leg or the cane leaning against the counter without wondering about the officer Harry had shot. “I’m sorry you were shot. It must have been really awful.” She desperately wished she could change the subject without appearing heartless.
“It was, and there are days when it still is. But life goes on. The one good thing that came out of it was that I made the decision to move back here where I have family and friends.”
He didn’t say anything for a few minutes, leaving Gayle to wonder if the memories of the shooting still haunted him. Yet she didn’t want to know more about that day. She didn’t want to know his story. That would only heighten her guilt about what Harry had done fourteen years ago. “Yes, friends and family can be so supportive,” she said to comfort him and to keep the conversation moving away from her.
Many times she wished that she’d gone to see Officer Perry and apologized for what Harry had done. But back then she was too afraid that she would be seen as an accomplice. She had been almost eighteen at the time and had lived in fear that somehow she would be implicated. Her ignorance of the law had held her back from acting on her need to somehow make it right with the officer, and then time passed until it was too late for her to say anything.
“How easily a single event can change everything for so many people,” she said, feeling an odd attachment to this man—and an even more unusual curiosity about him. “Was it difficult to pick up and move home, leaving your life in Boston?”
His eyes were kind as he spoke. “I had been thinking about making a change. After my injury I wasn’t really happy sitting at a desk all day. When Kevin died I was needed here. Anna’s two boys had lost their father, and that was something I felt I could help them deal with. When I suggested it to Anna, she tried to dissuade me, but I convinced her that it was what I wanted.”
This man cared deeply about his family, a trait she admired very much. A caring family was something she’d never experienced. She envied the family life Nate, Sherri and Anna shared. She longed for the same thing for herself and Adam. How different their life might have been if they’d had a supportive family.
But there was no going back, no wishing for what could never be. This was her new life, and this man had come here to provide support to Adam. With his professional experience and family history, he might make a big difference in her son’s life.
* * *
GAYLE SAWYER SEEMED so understanding. Yet it was more than that. She seemed to genuinely care about people, and that included Anna. He’d seen the look in her eyes as he talked about his sister. Gayle was a friend Anna could count on, and it made him feel...pleased. Yeah, that was it. He was pleased that his sister had found a friend she could rely on—not that Anna didn’t have friends in Eden Harbor. After all, she’d lived here her entire life. But something made him realize Gayle would be special.
And that realization increased his desire to do everything he could for Adam. Not that he hadn’t been committed to this case when he’d come here. But Gayle was a friend of both his sister and his cousin. That gave him a whole other reason for wanting to see Adam a happy, well-adjusted teenager.
Although he was fascinated by this woman, that was as far as it could go. His life was just fine the way it was. He wouldn’t allow himself to see Gayle as anything other than a client and a friend of the family.
Returning his focus to the present and what he needed to do, he glanced at his watch. How had he lost track of the time? That never happened to him. “I have to get out of here if I’m going to make my next appointment. Thanks for the tea and cookies.”
“Of course.” She walked with him to the door, her expression warmed by the sudden smile on her face. “Have a nice day,” she said as she opened the door.
He could have sworn she was about to say, “Have a nice life.”
Was Gayle hoping she wouldn’t have to see him again? Did she find his presence in her life an unwelcome necessity? He hadn’t considered the possibility until this moment. Yet she had to have serious reservations about the whole process they were involved in. Could her private chat with Ted Marston have been about him? He smiled to himself. Necessity had forced her to accept him into her life. Professional responsibility had guaranteed that he would act in her son’s best interests. In other words, the relationship between them was all business.
He had started out expecting that to be the case—counting on it, actually. Yet now as his eyes met hers, he was struck by an idea. She welcomed his leaving. She wanted her space back, free of his interference. The thought made him feel off balance, shaken and for some reason more than a little disappointed.
