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Lee pulls up and parks behind me in the driveway. I notice a second driveway that must lead to the garage, but I’m too busy trying to process everything to check. He pulls out a key and unlocks the big ornate door with frosted glass. It opens into a foyer with a chandelier hanging overhead. I step into the home and instantly smell my mother’s favorite flowers and the stupid air freshener scents she loved. There are open doors to my right and left, and a large wooden circular staircase in front of me. Everything is styled as if my mother had done it herself. I stop in what must be the den. A large painting hangs over the marble fireplace. It was one of my mom’s favorites. Tears clog my throat as the memories overtake me. I sit down on the light gray leather side chair.
“What is this place?” I choke on the words.
“Your father had it built five years ago. He moved out of your old home shortly after you left. Had it demolished and lived at one of the cabins at the campground until this place was done. He said the least he could do was give you a home your mother would be proud of.” He smiles as he looks around, and I can see his eyes are misty too.
“What aren’t you telling me, Lee?”
“After you left, he got the results of your mother’s autopsy. He knew you blamed him for her death; he blamed himself too. But there is so much you don’t know, Coal. You judged him for things your mother told him to do.”
My eyes flare wide and I stand up and pace the room. “She was okay with her husband sleeping with whomever he wanted, even her friends?”
“Yes.” I can’t believe that. I need to get out of here. “Coal,” he says as I turn to leave. “They had arrangements. Including the fact he could sleep with others. She had the one thing she wanted from him—you. They were friends, not lovers. He left you a letter explaining all of this. When you’re ready, you should read it. But the thing you need to know is your mother was dead before her body hit the floor. She had an aneurysm.”
His words stun me.
“Come on. I’ll buy you a drink. But know this house is yours. Earl slept in a guest bedroom. He wanted you to move into this home and never think it was his. He never cheated on your mother after her death. He was faithful to his best friend. He regretted, just like you, that he wasn’t home when she died.”
He leads me out of the home, locking it behind him, and then to his car after he gives me the key to the house.
Chapter 2
Kiera
Ipull the bike I found sitting waiting for me after I got off my shift cleaning cabins. It was Mr. Bridger’s last gift to me. He died yesterday. After I got the news, I sat in the cabin he used to live in and cried. He was the only person in this awful town that was nice to me. He had helped me get the job at the country club dining room after I worked for him a bit. He was always mean to everyone but me. Everyone in town called him Mr. Bah Humbug; I called him Mr. Bridger. He would always take the time to talk to me, and he never called me names. He had once told me about his wife’s old art gallery. When I road past it today, there was a man sitting on the porch. I’m wondering if now that Mr. Bridger is gone if it’s for sale.
As I enter the women’s locker room, I make my way to my locker and notice the lock has been broken again. I take a big breath and look around. I don’t know why they insist on doing this, but I learned not to hide anything in my locker. The manager has been trying to fire me since she had to hire me. She’s one of the townspeople that calls me names behind my back and to my face. Her latest is to call me a criminal, and that’s why she keeps busting into my locker. I grab my clothes and step into one of the stalls to change. I never change in front of people; they don’t need to know how much their words hurt me. As I slide my jeans down my legs, my fingers brush the scars on the outside of my thighs, and I calm instantly just touching them. I haven’t harmed myself in a long time, not since I’ve learned techniques to better deal with my emotions, like my body art. The beautiful flowers lining my thighs down to my calves comfort me. Some of the artwork faded today when I took a shower, but I’ll do more tonight to get over the nerves from today. Losing Mr. Bridger is just another reason I have to get out of this godforsaken town.
I slide my pressed black slacks up my legs and slip my black shirt on over my bra, then I step out of the stall. I free my dark hair from the ponytail it has been in since my shower. My hair is so thick it’s still damp. I brush it out before styling it into a low bun at the back of my neck. I line my eyes with black eyeliner and put on a little blush and mascara. My fair skin is flawless, and I don’t need powder or foundation like several of the other girls that work here. My aunt always told me I had skin like my mother’s. I sit on the bench and slip on the required black low heel dress shoes, then I put on the dark gray tie and matching sleeve armbands. The armbands make us look like dealers at a casino. Rounding out my work uniform is the long, black waist apron with the country club logo in the center.
“Hey, freak, you have the window section. A two top just walked in,” my manager barks at me.
“Yes, ma’am.” I nod as I step through the swinging doors and pull out my notepad.
As I approach the table of two men, one turns to look at me, and I recognize him as the man that was standing outside Eloise’s gallery. His blue eyes zero in on me and trace me from my shoes to the top of my head. I try not to trip and embarrass myself when it feels like a caress to my skin. As I get closer to him, he leans back, and his white button-down pulls tight across his muscular arms. The cuffs are rolled up, exposing a tattoo on his right arm that runs from his wrist up under the sleeve of his shirt. I step up to the table and he stands; I’m a tall girl at five foot seven, but I need to tip my head back to look up at his over six-foot height.
“Hello, Kiera, did you get the gift left for you this morning?” a voice says, intruding on the staring contest I have going with the tall stranger. His body is so big, and the smell of his cologne is just faint enough that I want to lean in and smell him more. “Kiera?” the voice says again, and I turn to look at the stranger’s companion.
My fears about Eloise’s place being for sale are confirmed when I see Mr. Bridger’s attorney sitting there.
“Oh, hello, Mr. Rumble. I’m sorry, what did you say?” I stutter as the large man steps closer to me. I slip my notepad into my pocket as I turn back to him. His dark hair is cut close to his head on the sides and a bit longer on the top. His cheeks fill as he smiles down at me, revealing a dimple on his left side. Holy shit, this guy is seriously hot.
“I asked if you got the gift I left for you.” At Mr. Rumble’s comment, something clouds over the hot guy’s eyes. He swings around to look at him and then back to me. A growl escapes his throat, and with that sound, my instincts kick in and I step back, protecting myself. The hot guy starts to step toward me.
“Coal, have a seat, let Kiera do her job.”
“What is she to you?” The hot guy’s voice is rough sounding but husky, causing parts of my body to quaver and my heart to slam into my chest.
“She is a friend.”
Coal looks between us again.
“You said you left her a gift?” He reaches out and grabs my forearm. His grip isn’t tight or bruising, but the contact is causing my heart to beat even faster.
“Is there a problem over here?” My manager approaches us.
“Oh, no, Barbie. No problem. Coal just wanted me to introduce him to Kiera.” Mr. Rumble stands up.
My heart is completely beating out of my chest now. Both men are taller than me, and the little voice in my head is demanding I run. That I get away and protect myself.
