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Several customers came through, and Hallie sold a few high-ticket items, ensuring that her doors stayed open for at least one more month. She hated thinking like that, but with the economy the way it was, The Mystic Cow just wasn’t going to make it if people didn’t start spending their money here.
As it started to get dark outside, Hallie thought about closing early. There were no people on the street tonight so she didn’t think she’d get any more sales. She spotted a black car parked across the street in front of the now vacant building that used to be the laundromat. Her heart skipped a beat thinking maybe it was Caden. But after a closer look, it turned out to be just two guys she didn’t know.
Hallie sighed, turned the open sign to closed and locked the door. She needed to find a way to stop thinking about him. There was no question in her mind that Caden had long since forgotten about her, so why couldn’t she do the same?
Chapter 15
After Beeker’s death, Caden was forced to talk to a grief specialist, which had not gone well. Dr. Murphy determined he wasn’t fit to return back to work due to high levels of anxiety, likely brought on by witnessing the death of a colleague and the loss of a close personal relationship. Caden couldn’t believe the doctor said that last part since he hadn’t even told the man about Hallie, but he guessed that’s why the FBI paid the doctor the big bucks.
Nevertheless, Caden now had more time on his hands than he knew what to do with, and despite several attempts to get another appointment with Dr. Murphy, the receptionist refused to schedule anything for him before next week at Dr. Murphy’s insistence. What the doctor thought would change in Caden’s life between now and next week, he had no fucking idea, but Caden was stuck playing by the rules whether he liked it or not.
He filled the time with a twice daily workout regimen, interspersed with vegetating on the couch, watching too much television, and thinking about all kinds of shit just so he wouldn’t think about Hallie. Even thoughts of Beeker and his wife were preferable at this point over Hallie because they hurt just enough, but slightly less. He knew he was more than fucked up in the head and couldn’t blame the doc for telling him he needed a break. He just didn’t know what the hell he could do to get out of this funk.
After a few days of sitting in his apartment with nowhere to go, Caden was starting to really hate the place. It often smelled funny from his neighbors cooking weird foods, and somehow no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t keep the damn place clean. He dialed Garrett. “So, I’ve been thinking,” Caden said when the other man answered, “I want you to put me in touch with that real estate agent.”
“Absolutely. That property near me is still on the market. Should I tell her you want to see it?”
“Yeah, that sounds good, and give her my number. I want to set something up this week.”
“Will do,” Garrett said. “How are you doing otherwise? You seemed off when you came by the other day with Luke and Orly, but I figured it was because of what happened.”
“I’m fine,” Caden said.
“Why don’t I believe you?”
Caden sighed. “I’ll be fine. I’ve lost colleagues before. It’s rough as you know, but we get through it.” Left unsaid was that he’d never had a man die in his arms before. Never had to wash a colleague’s blood out of his suit. Never thought it could’ve been him instead.
“Do you think this might be about something more than that?” Garrett asked.
“No.” Because it couldn’t be about anything more than Beeker’s death. Hallie was lost to him. He hadn’t heard from her in over two weeks now, and he hadn’t made any attempts to contact her either. Whatever they had was long since over and done with. “Just have that real estate agent call me as soon as possible.”
“Done,” Garrett said.
Half an hour later, Darla Matthews called Caden and they talked for well over an hour, discussing what kind of house and property he was looking to buy. By the end of their conversation, he was more than ready to start looking at potential homes and Darla promised to be in touch in the next day or two. She just had to check the MLS for available homes and properties that fit his criteria, and either make appointments or ensure there was a lockbox so they could access the home if no one was there.
The next two days went by in a blur of running, weight lifting, drinking too much coffee, and trying to keep his mind on anything but the obvious triggers. He’d just finished his morning workout, when Darla called and asked if he was free that afternoon because she could arrange for him to see three homes between one and three o’clock.
Well shit, it’s not like he had anywhere else to be. “Absolutely,” he said. “Send me the address of where to meet you and I’ll be there at one.” He got her text message with the property near Garrett’s before getting in the shower. This was good. Now, he’d have something to think about that was neither upsetting nor tormenting. Maybe this was the kind of progress Dr. Murphy had been talking about when he insisted on waiting a week to see him again.
At exactly one o’clock, Caden pulled into the driveway of the eight-acreproperty near Garrett’s house. The grass was a burnt yellow, the trees were overgrown, and the house definitely needed some repairs on the outside, which meant the inside was likely even worse.
A silver Lexus sedan pulled into the driveway behind him, and a woman with short blonde hair, wearing a dark pants suit stepped out. “Hi, Caden?” She asked.
“That’s me,” he said, extending his hand. “You must be Darla.”
“I am,” she shook his hand. “It’s nice to meet you and thank you for coming out on such short notice. It can be hard to fit into a seller’s schedule, but two of the three properties I want to show you today are vacant, including this one, so that worked in our favor. The last one is still occupied, but their son has a soccer game this afternoon, so we’ll have the place to ourselves for about an hour. I hope that’s all right.”
“Sounds good,” Caden said, impressed with her efficiency. This place was probably going to be a no-go because he wasn’t looking to start a big renovation project, but since they were already here, he figured they may as well check it out.
As soon as they went inside, they found themselves in an unfinished mess. The hardwood floors needed to be refinished. One of the bathrooms was missing a sink and toilet, and one of the bedrooms had holes in the walls. Caden was about to say he’d seen enough when he looked out a window overlooking the expansive backyard and noticed a creek running through the back end of the property.
He opened the back door and was assailed with the relaxing sound of flowing water, the occasional chirps of birds, and a woodpecker in the distance. He stepped out and closed his eyes, wanting to mold himself to the softness of his surroundings. Thoughts of Halle immediately flooded his mind. Having picnics, drinking coffees, making love. All right here by the creek, in the shade of the massive Oak Tree..
“So, what do we think?” Darla asked, her voice suddenly irritating to his newly found bliss. He wanted to stay lost in the sounds of this hidden paradise.
“Are any of the other properties we’re seeing today waterfront?”
“Let me check,” she said and started ruffling through her papers. “No,” she said a few moments later. “It looks like this is the only one. I know it’s a bit run down so I totally understand if you’d like to keep looking. Is a waterfront property something you’d like me to add to your criteria list?”
