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“To talk about the case,” she surmised.
“Among other things.”
She blinked and searched his face. “What other things, Jimmy?”
“Last night, while we were in the hospital waiting room, Chief Wheatly told me how impressed he’d been with my work out there. My observations about the tire marks, the duct tape residue, all of that.” He shrugged. “He offered me a spot on the Tucker Lake-Big Falls Police Department.”
The fork she’d been holding fell to the floor. “Are you serious?”
“I’m very serious.” He drew a breath, sighed deeply, slid his arms around her waist. “To be honest I’ve been thinking about getting Tyler out of Chicago for a while now. My job there is too demanding. I’m away from him too much of the time, and there’s always a fair chance I might not make it home to him.” He looked toward the bedroom. “The change in him since we’ve been here in Big Falls is amazing. He’s happy, Kara. It’s the first time I’ve been able to look at my son and see that he’s truly, honest-to-God happy. I can’t take that away from him.”
She nodded slowly. “You’d do anything for him, wouldn’t you?” She asked the question softly, already knowing the answer.
“Of course I would. Wouldn’t you if he were yours?”
A smile tugged at her lips. “I would, even though he’s not mine.”
His eyes moved over her face, and she wasn’t sure if they were searching or caressing. It felt like a little of both. Out of the blue, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers for a long, slow, wonderful kiss that left her head spinning and her heart pounding.
She lowered her eyes, wishing to heaven she could ease her doubts. But she felt as if she had more of them than she’d had before.
He reached past her to flick off the burners, and she realized she’d been so distracted the food had been in danger of burning.
“And as an added bonus, I’m going to get that fence put up for you today.” He said it quickly, releasing her and turning to a cupboard to take down a handful of plates.
She arched her brows. “All in one day?”
“I thought I’d see if Wade wanted to come over and help out. Our State Police guard is only going to be outside by night, so the more sets of eyes on Ty by day, the better.” He set the table while she scooped the last of the pancakes onto the platter nearby. She brought the platter and a smaller one holding the golden-brown sausage links to the table while Jimmy opened the fridge for margarine, maple syrup and orange juice.
“Maybe Tyler should spend the day with me,” Kara said.
She saw the way Jimmy stiffened just a little bit, halfway through filling a juice glass. He didn’t look at her, just seemed to shake himself before finishing the task. “He won’t be a problem with me this morning.”
“You’re going to take him with you to the hospital, to your meeting with Chief Wheatly?” she asked, watching him carefully now. “Have you even talked to him about this mother of his, Jimmy?”
“No. He... he only knows she left us. Nothing more.”
“Then you don’t really want him around, maybe overhearing your conversation do you?” She shrugged. “Besides, I’m going to be at the Corral most of the day. We’re doing inventory. Maya and the twins will be there. And Edie and Sally. Ty can ride the mechanical bull and play with the kids and the dog. The place will be closed to the public. He’ll have a blast.”
Jim drew a breath, lifted his head.
“You do trust me to take care of him, don’t you?” she said.
“Sure I do.” He turned and met her eyes. “I really do, Kara.”
“It’s okay to be honest with me, you know I understand. After what a woman you loved and trusted did to your baby, it’s no wonder you have a few scars. But Jimmy, I’m not a drug addict. And I don’t lie. Especially not to you. And besides all that, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do to protect that little angel.”
“I know that. I know. And any other woman would have been insulted and angry at me for even hesitating.” He ran a hand through her hair. “It’s been a long time since I’ve trusted anyone with Tyler’s well-being.”
“You trusted him with Maya the other night.”
“That was before I knew Vinnie and Ang were in town.” He gave his head a shake. “But even with that, it’s different with you. I do trust you. It’s just a little tough to get used to the idea, you know? My knee jerk reactions need revising. I’ll get there.”
“I know.”
“Okay, how about this?” he said. “Take him with you to the Corral this morning while I go into town. I’ll meet you there around lunch-time. I’ll bring pizza, enough for everyone. Then I’ll head back here to work on that fence and bring him with me.”
“Sounds great,” she said.
