Читать книгу Her Secret Sons - Tina Leonard - Страница 10

Luke McGarrett sat in a deck chair on the general’s yacht, anchored off an isle in Greece. The scenery, as always, was good, and he was, as usual, feeling lucky.

Except for the nagging sensation that something wasn’t quite right. The general and his daughters had gone into town—or the small fishing village that passed for a town—leaving Luke to his own devices. They’d acted a bit secretive, claiming they wanted to go by themselves, insisting they didn’t need a bodyguard.

This was unusual, as he was normally treated as part of the family. Maybe that’s what had his senses on edge. The general had insisted that he stay behind and watch the boat, when always before he’d insisted Luke watch his girls.

His neck prickled, a telltale warning that he was being watched. He knew it. That lucky feeling of warning had dug him out of investments just before they sank, and human relationships just before they got dramatic. Now it was sending shivers along his nerves. Rising, he scanned the horizon. Nothing at sea and nothing unusual from the dock into the quiet village, where fisherman worked their trade and women shopped and chatted.

A man suddenly leaped over the side of the yacht with a fluid flash of tanned skin. “Peace, brother,” he said, and Luke wondered where this American had come from. Luke reached for his gun, but the big man said, “No,” just as another figure appeared by his side to take it.

“Sorry,” the wiry accomplice said. “We don’t do guns. They’re dangerous.”

Luke thought he was perhaps looking danger in the face. The accomplice had long dark hair pulled tight into a ponytail and deep, serious eyes. These two wanted something, but if they wanted him dead, it would have happened without him having a chance to take a second breath. Damn, I’m slipping. “What’s up, fellows?”

“I’m Hawk,” the wiry stranger said, “and this is my buddy, Jellyfish. We know some of your people in Union Junction and Tulips, and we’ve had to come a long way to meet you, my friend.”

Luke raised his brows. “Friend?”

Hawk nodded. “In the loosest manner of speaking. Friend of a friend, perhaps.”

Jellyfish nodded solemnly. “Of course, we’re not sure yet if you’re really our friend.”

Luke sighed. “Okay. I’ll bite. What do I have to do to be your friend?”

Hawk seated himself while Jellyfish kept a lookout. Hawk ran admiring fingers over the yacht rail as he glanced speculatively at Luke. “You need to make a trip to Tulips part of your itinerary.”

“My father sent you?”

Hawk shook his head. “No. He doesn’t know we’re here. But it’s time to return to your birthplace.”

“No,” Luke said, frowning. “Not a chance in hell.”

Jellyfish dropped a hand to his shoulder, setting off alarms inside Luke. “It would be better if you did, friend.”

Jeez. “Look. Not that it’s any of your damn business, but my dad and me…we never got along. The old man pretty much thought I was a failure no matter what. Why he’s crying over me now is a mystery.”

“You should respect your elders,” Jellyfish said, and Hawk nodded.

“Not to mention that running away doesn’t solve anything.” Hawk eyed Luke pointedly. “But we weren’t sent by your father.”

“Speaking of that, how in the hell did you find me?” Luke demanded.

“Wasn’t hard,” Hawk said, and Jellyfish laughed.

“Ex-military connections,” he explained. “Sometimes it shaves a few weeks off a mission for us.”

Bingo. No wonder the general had scrammed with his precious trio. “Just great.” Luke shook his head. “So, do I even have employment anymore? Or did you tell the general what a bad guy I was just so I’d go home?”

Hawk grinned, leaning back against the rail. “Actually, you’re getting a paid leave of absence. At least until you make up your mind.”

Luke frowned, annoyed that his luck had finally run out. He also wasn’t thrilled with the breezy way in which his life was being decided for him. “And the general and his daughters?”

Jellyfish smiled. “We’ve agreed to take over here until a replacement for you can be found. The general said it shouldn’t be too hard.”

Luke stood. “Just great. A year of my life and I’m not that hard to replace.”

Hawk shrugged. “Depends upon whose opinion you’re interested in, I would imagine. Someone might think you’re worth a hell of a lot. Then again, maybe not. Guess only you know that.”

Jellyfish nodded. “The answer lies within.”

Luke gave each man a sharp look. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Jellyfish shook his head. “Would you like an escort to Tulips?”

“You mean a guard?” Luke snorted. “I think I can manage it. Thanks, pals.”

They grinned, setting themselves up on the deck. “You can borrow our little bicycle there,” Hawk offered. “You just ride up into town and a fishing boat can take you back to the big island to catch a plane. You can be home by this weekend. The sun is heavenly here, isn’t it, buddy?”

Luke ignored that, and went to pack his things. Boiling anger rolled through him. Of all the stinking tricks his old man had to pull, sending goons after him was the worst. He would have gone home eventually…one day.

No, I wouldn’t. I never want to see Tulips again, or anyone who lives there.

“Just peachy,” he muttered to himself, hopping out of the boat with his few belongings and giving his new “friends” a rude gesture. They laughed, and Luke privately cursed the general for so easily giving him up.

This was not his definition of being lucky.

ONCE PEPPER HAD introduced her children to the Triple F and let them settle in for a few days, she quietly—over Duke’s and Zach’s protests—moved them into the small home she’d bought. Pepper wanted to make the move together, she and the boys sleeping under one roof for the first time in Tulips as a family, so they would know that she’d bought the house for them. The house was made of red brick with white shutters, of a typical ranch style, and close to the clinic. She loved it, and so far, it seemed Toby and Josh did, too. There were bedrooms for all of them—even one for Aunt Jerry, once she came to stay—room to spread out and a huge backyard.

Either Duke or Zach stopped by every day, picking up the boys to run errands with them. They had a thousand excuses for spending time with their nephews. This gave Pepper time to clean the clinic and establish her practice, but most importantly, it gave her time to think about what she’d told the boys over the years about their father.

She’d been as honest about Luke as possible, deciding that the truth always came back to haunt a person. Carefully, she told the boys—when they asked—that their father hadn’t been ready for marriage, nor had she. She also admitted that she hadn’t told Luke about them. One day, when the time was right, she promised, they would find him and tell him.

Toby and Josh had been all right with that, somehow understanding that she was genuinely trying to act in their best interests to the utmost of her ability. As a doctor, she’d presented the facts gently; as a mother, she’d waited anxiously for tears, recriminations, bitterness.

The boys had simply taken the information into their hearts, knowing that one day they would meet their father.

Pepper glanced around the clinic. It was freshly painted and all her diplomas and certifications had been hung. She was proud of what she had accomplished. If she could make a go of this, she hoped to bring on a pediatric specialist in the future and maybe enlarge the clinic. Tulips deserved a good medical complex. That, as much as good schools, would bring people to their town, she figured. Moreover, she wanted to be able to take care of folks who had given her so much over the years.

Maybe she’d even have a door made for her clinic just like the beautiful one that welcomed visitors to the Tulips Saloon. People liked calming, pretty things when they visited a doctor, and a matching door would be symbolic. There were a lot of connected hearts in this town, and Pepper intended to honor them.

She locked the door and headed over to Holt’s salon.

“Hey,” he said, looking up from a magazine. “You’re right on time.”

“This time,” she said, sliding into the chair. “I love the clinic. The boys love the house. Thank you for helping me find them.”

Holt grinned, running a hand through Pepper’s tangled, auburn mop. “Let’s find something gorgeous here, okay? How long has it been since you’ve had a complete style?”

Pepper looked at herself in the mirror, smiling at the mess Holt was examining with somewhat concealed disdain. “Long enough. I’ve been busy.”

“Yes. Now that you’re back in town, you can slow down a bit. Your hair is telling on you.” He began combing out her locks, and Pepper sighed with pleasure. “If our hair is our nod to the day, I hear you may be needing a real brave new look.”

She looked at him in the mirror. “Are we going to share our little gossip?”

He smiled. “Perhaps. There was a council meeting the other night after you introduced your boys.”

“Oh? I’m not surprised.”

“All I’m saying is be on the lookout.” Holt flashed his scissors. “I can’t say more than that, but I do feel that a friendly heads-up is in order.”

“Could you clarify?”

He sighed. “Not really. You’re a Tulipian. You know how it works around here. Still, you’ve been gone long enough that you might have forgotten, so I’m just reminding you.”

“Should I be worried? Is it about the boys?”

“No.” Holt gave her a reassuring grin. “Not in the sense you’re thinking. Everyone here is glad you brought them home. But you know that, around here, love is equated with trying to be helpful.”

“Well, as long as it’s well-meaning….” She wondered what to make of Holt’s secretive expression.

“It always is, my dear.” He smiled. “It always is.”

She wasn’t sure that made her feel a whole lot better.

ON A CLEAR SUNDAY EVENING, at an hour when most people should be snuggled up in their beds or in front of their televisions, Luke McGarrett returned to Tulips. He was looking for zero fanfare and no welcoming committee.

Of course, he wouldn’t get one, anyway.

The taxi driver sped away, glad to get back to Dallas. Luke watched as the last vestige of up-to-date civilization left him. Feeling very much the pawn, he glanced around, deciding not much had changed. He hadn’t expected it to.

The Tulips Saloon was new. It had a pretty door, with lots of stained glass flowers worked into it. Quite inviting for a man who had come a long way and who’d dreaded every step. There was an Open sign in the window, and Luke felt as if he could use some fortification before he went to see his father, so he swung the door wide.

Four gray heads turned to stare at him, and one by one, their jaws dropped.

Not exactly an enthusiastic greeting, Luke thought. “Hi,” he said, “I’m Luke McGarrett.”

“We know who you are.” Helen Granger—he remembered her giving him a talking-to in church when he was a boy—stood to greet him. Pansy Trifle—he remembered her telling on him to his dad about how he didn’t eat his lunch in the cafeteria, preferring to play outside with the boys instead—stood, as well. “You got home quick.”

He nodded. “Howdy, Mr. Parsons. Mr. Carmine.”

Hiram and Bug stood in turn. They shook his hand solemnly.

“A couple of fellows happened to swing by the yacht I was on to let me know I was needed here.” Luke recalled how the grapevine worked in this small town. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”

They shook their heads. Luke sighed to himself, realizing that starting out on the defensive was going to make him no friends. Whatever was brewing in Tulips would be revealed to him eventually. “So, I guess some coffee might be on the menu? I could use some before I go home.”

Pansy went to get him a mug. Helen, Bug and Hiram just stared at him, making him more apprehensive. “It’s only me,” he said. “I probably haven’t changed all that much.”

They looked down at their own coffee mugs. Luke was struck by their closemouthed behavior. When Hiram had owned the pawn shop, he’d been active in the community, and one wouldn’t have called him quiet. Bug…well, Bug was Bug, and he could be given to long bouts of quiet—he liked to take off to think, and drink, solo—until Mrs. Carmine had him brought home from the fields.

“Long time no see,” Pansy finally said bravely, and then he understood that maybe their feelings were a little hurt.

“I guess so,” he said with a nod. “I deserve you pointing that out.”

“Maybe a Christmas card or two wouldn’t have killed you,” Helen complained. “Your dad didn’t often seem to know much about you.”

“Enough for someone to figure out how to find me,” he said. “Who sent the goons after me?”

“We had nothing to do with that,” Pansy said. “We don’t send goons, anyway.”

But they all looked away, and Luke knew he wasn’t getting the straightest answer. “So, do any of you want to tell me what’s on your minds?”

“No,” Hiram said, “we just sit at this table most of our days and drink tea. Sometimes we go to Pansy’s house and sit and sometimes we sit at Helen’s. But our lives are pretty much about tea and cookies these days.”

Somehow, Luke doubted that. “Thanks for the coffee, then.” He stood. “It was good to see you again. I’d best go see Dad.”

They stared at him.

“I suppose you’d tell me if he wasn’t all right,” Luke said slowly, beginning to worry.

“He’s fine,” Bug said. “Mostly lonely, which, I’ll be the first to admit, he tends to bring upon himself. Still, he misses you.”

“All right.” Luke tipped his hat. “I’ll head that way.”

They watched him leave, and at the door, he turned to look back, again catching them staring at him.

They definitely had something on their minds they weren’t sharing with him. He sighed. “How about a hint?”

“No,” Helen said, “we daren’t.”

“All right, then.” He appreciated the honesty. “I’ll find out on my own.”

He left, and started heading to his father’s.

“Oh,” Helen said, sticking her head out the door. “Would you mind dropping this batch of cookies off at the new clinic? It’s a grand-opening gift, you might say.”

“New clinic?”

“Yes. Off Cotton Blossom street, four blocks away. You remember. Short walk.”

He looked down into her eyes, searching for clues, but she gave nothing away except the cookies, which she pressed into his hand. “Thank you,” Helen said primly.

“No problem.”

In fact, it gave him a reason not to hurry home. One more delay before seeing his father wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

PEPPER LOOKED AROUND her clinic, feeling proud of it, proud of her new home and of her boys. Holt had made her hair pretty and she had a new dress Liberty had sewed for her. Tomorrow was the big day. The grand opening. The day she started giving back to Tulips.

“I’m so excited,” she said to herself, glad that she had one last moment to herself to enjoy her brand-new surroundings. The boys were off with her brothers, but they’d be here tomorrow to help her celebrate.

They had so much to celebrate together.

The door swung open, and Pepper turned with a welcoming smile. But the face in the doorway was the last one she’d expected to see.