I let you down, too, Granddad. I didn’t protect Gram.
Ginny patted his arm. “Something’s wrong. What is it?”
“I had AJ check into McKenna’s background,” he blurted out.
“Why’d you do that?”
Because I thought she was a thief.He swallowed hard. “That doesn’t matter. What does is AJ found something.”
“Are you talking about her being fired after cash went missing from her previous job?”
“You knew?”
She swatted his arm. Her stern gaze of disapproval drilled into him. “I didn’t fall off the turnip truck yesterday. I created a successful business from nothing. Could I have done that hiring people without checking references and calling previous employers?”
“No, ma’am.” Zane cleared his throat, feeling as if he was sixteen again, being chewed out for breaking curfew. “If you knew, why did you hire her?”
“I almost didn’t, but I was so impressed with McKenna in the interview. She had such enthusiasm, a fresh attitude, and an energy I wish I still had. She reminded me of myself in my younger years.”
“You went with your gut?”
Ginny shook her head. “Of course not. My instincts got me thinking about the odd feeling I had when I met McKenna’s boss, Darby Sotzen at an industry trade show. Since we use many of the same suppliers and vendors, I contacted a few. They said Darby’s not always aboveboard. Word is she wouldn’t know an honest person from a hole in the ground.”
“What about the police considering McKenna the prime suspect in the theft? Did you consider that?”
“Pish, posh, pooh.” Ginny waved her hand through the air in dismissal. “Without evidence, they were guessing based on information and suspicions from Darby and other employees.”
“What exactly did Darby say when you asked about McKenna?”
“She said while McKenna didn’t confess to stealing the money, she took responsibility because she was the senior staff person when the theft happened. That means there were other employees around who could’ve taken the money. Pair that with my instincts when I met McKenna, and I took a chance on her.”
But now Ginny’s shadow box had been stolen and McKenna was his prime suspect. Zane gripped the rocking chair arms to keep his hands from shaking. He stared at the Angus cows grazing in the far pasture trying to decide where to go from here. One incident was problematic, but two hinted at a developing pattern.
“I know McKenna hasn’t worked for me long, but a million little things have shown me her character.”
His rested his sweaty hands on his thighs. Before today, he’d have said the same thing. Small actions like returning the extra dollar she’d received in change. Then there was her not giving his grandmother an earful about what an ass he’d been when they’d started working together. Instead, McKenna had refused to be responsible for damaging his relationship with his grandmother.
Zane resisted the urge to jump out of the rocker and start pacing because he didn’t want to scare his grandma Had he made a mistake? Thinking back, McKenna’s insistence Erin stole the money hadn’t sounded outrageous. Erin, who last night had confirmed she and McKenna worked together. Erin, who’d shown her lack of character by hitting on her sister’s boyfriend.
Could McKenna’s scenario be true? Would Erin steal the money to get out of a pinch and let blame fall on her sister? The woman he’d met would do anything to get her butt out of trouble.
A vein throbbed in his forehead and his right eye twitched at a frantic rate. Damn. He didn’t know what happened to his grandma’s pin but be believed McKenna’s version about the theft. He’d been a complete ass and destroyed whatever future he could’ve had with the woman he loved.
He turned to his grandmother. “I screwed up, Gram.”
“What did you do?”
“When AJ told me about the theft and McKenna’s firing, I confronted her.”
Her gaze remained judgment and disappointment free. Instead, her eyes shined with the same love he’d seen there all his life. “Then you need to do whatever’s necessary to make amends the way your granddad and I taught you.”
“There’s no fixing this.” His accusations, the vile words he’d hurled at McKenna, rang in his ears. The image of her with her shoulders rounded, her pretty face clouded with defeat and anguish haunted him. Even if he apologized, those vicious words would be with her forever. “Not after what I said and how cruel I was.”
“It’s never too late. You wouldn’t believe the arguments your grandfather and I had.”
Zane’s brows furrowed. He remembered them holding hands and dancing. Their disagreements when they happened were small, calm discussions. Hardly a brawl like his and McKenna’s. “I don’t remember you fighting.”
“By the time you moved here, we’d learned to let little stuff go. For bigger issues, we kept them private. But our marriage wasn’t easy at first. Living with another person, being that close emotionally, is hard. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, especially for two strong-willed people.” Ginny chuckled and her eyes twinkled, making her look years younger. “But, goodness, the making up was delicious.”
