Last Chance Harbor (12 page)

Julianne drew in a quiet breath as she spun around in the luxurious room. She considered whether or not Scott had upset her. So far she couldn’t say that he had. Sure, she’d been annoyed because he hadn’t told her who he was that day at the house. But under the circumstances she probably wouldn’t have believed him anyway.

“I mean, what could you do? Tell me you were a ghost right off the bat?” she muttered aloud as she set out her makeup and toiletries on the bathroom counter. Was that why he hadn’t bothered with sticking around?

After unpacking her things, she threw open the French doors and walked out to the back deck, craned her neck to get a better look at the courtyard below. Even in winter the pathways burst with color. Orange lilies, yellow daisies, and lavender flounced in the breeze like models showing off on a Paris runway.

Was it silly to hope she could eat her bagel and jam out there tomorrow morning in the outdoor eating area among all the blossoms and fragrant petals?

The winding pathways led through forty-foot cypress, magnolias, and maples. Tall pines gave way to the majestic cliff. But it was the ocean in the distance that made her want to explore through the trails to reach the edge.

She slid out of her pumps, got rid of the blouse and skirt she’d worn to school. Changing into a pair of jeans and a sweater, she laced up her sneakers, threw on a jacket so she could take that walk around the grounds.

Making her way down the back staircase, she slipped out the door of the laundry room onto the travertine-paved terrace. There, she filled her lungs with the crisp air of late afternoon. She stopped to brush her hand over the tops of the slender red tulips before deciding which path to take to get to the bluffs. The grove of coniferous larch drew her toward the sea.

But first she had to navigate a narrow sliver of trail that led to underbrush and wild tangled vines full of ripe blackberries. She was by no means an expert at hiking through woods, but she knew enough to follow the ridgeline. As she passed through a field of Indian paintbrush that exploded with swatches of scarlet, on impulse, she dug out her camera phone to capture the vibrant wildflowers and started clicking.

When she took off walking again, she found herself among rows and rows of apple and cherry trees. The fields and rolling hills sprang to life with new blossoms and budding shrubs. She got a strong whiff of floral scent mingled with the smell of manure right before she actually spotted the fat black-and-white cows. The animals plodded along behind a solitary man who seemed so content with the chore he actually had a swagger about him.

Even as she watched Ryder McLachlan herd them into the barn, there was an aura of mystery about him. The man she’d met two days ago was an enigma, hoarding his past like a miser. He gave off vibes that said he had a stubborn streak a mile wide and twice as deep. But then what man didn’t. He’d made it clear he didn’t want to be attracted to her, or anyone for that matter.

She should leave it at that. With everything on her plate—the move, getting a house, a new job on the horizon—the last thing she needed was to add a stubborn persona into the mix of her chaotic life. But there was something about this particular guy she found intriguing. The way his eyes flared whenever they disagreed, like Wednesday night. The way he’d looked at her during their spat—as if with one deft stroke of a lean finger he could pluck out every secret she’d held since fourth grade.

Although Julianne didn’t have much mystery about her, or many secrets to reveal, she liked to think loyalty came first. Therefore even Ryder’s hotness couldn’t get her to so easily crack under his touch.

Before yanking the barn door open, she took a deep breath. For the first time in a long time, Julianne decided she wanted to dig deeper into what troubled the farmer. After all, they were both starting over in a new place. It seemed like the neighborly thing to do.

As soon as she threw back the door the unexpected sound of soft rock hit her. She realized the building wasn’t a barn at all but a milking station. While Starship’s Grace Slick and Mickey Thomas promised that nothing was gonna stop them now, across the sea of cows, Julianne caught the annoyed look on Ryder’s face at the interruption.

“Well, look at this ladies we have us a visitor.”

“Interesting taste in music.”

“The cows like it.”

“Really? I had no idea. Sorry to bother you, but I was out and about walking and saw your farm, thought I’d stop in to check the place out.”

“You have a way of popping up out of the blue. And it’s not my farm. As it was explained to me, it’s more of a co-op effort. That’s the way Nick and Jordan do things. But technically they own the place.”

“Ah, that makes sense being next door and all.”

“So let me get this straight, you were out walking around my turf all the way from Santa Cruz?”

“Of course not.” She gritted her teeth and wondered silently why the man always seemed to leap to such ridiculous assumptions.

“Then what on earth is a gorgeous female like you doing lurking around my cows on a Friday night? Shouldn’t you be somewhere else kicking up your heels? Or is that something schoolteachers aren’t allowed to do?”

“I’ve been known to kick up my heels a time or two.”

“Good to know. So you like to party?”

“Did I say that?” she snapped, irritation building with every tick of the clock.

“You look like a woman tied to a rigid job keeping people in line.”

“I keep six-year-olds in line. If that translates to rigid to you, then I make no apologies for it. I love teaching.”

“I can tell. I seem to always say the wrong thing around you.”

“What you do is push all the wrong buttons and frustrate me. You come across as someone as prickly as an old woman determined to keep the neighborhood kids off her lawn.”

Ryder let out a roar of laughter. “You aren’t that far off the mark. I like my solitude.”

“So I’ve noticed. Nothing wrong with that, so I’ll leave you to it. Thanks to the hospitality of Nick and Jordan, I’m staying at Promise Cove this weekend. For two whole days I’ll be your neighbor. I just wanted to—”

“Stop in and be sociable.” His lips curved up. “I got that. It’s always a good idea to spend time checking out the area around the B&B. It’s pretty country. Nick and Jordan offer first-rate amenities. In fact, I’m invited over there tomorrow night for your ‘welcome to town’ dinner. Oops, I hope I didn’t let the cat out of the bag with that.”

“Nope, I know all about it. Someone else warned me and this afternoon when I checked in, Nick confirmed it.”

“Hard to keep a secret in a little town like Pelican Pointe. You’ll realize it’s a bit different than Santa Cruz.”

“Oh, I don’t know. Is it really all that different from any other place, say Philadelphia? Besides, people usually have a tough time keeping things hidden for long. Secrets have a way of turning up when you least expect them.” She thought about the keepsake box Troy had found and the puzzle from the past it held. “After all, someone kept a big one for about two decades.” She told him about what she’d found underneath the lining of the chest and watched as his mouth dropped open.

“You found a what?”

“A piece of shirt saturated in what looked to me like blood. I gave it to Brent Cody. It’s obvious the person wearing it came to a violent end or was so gravely wounded they had to seek medical help.”

“The obvious question is why the box was hidden away at the school in the first place? The bloody article of clothing has to factor in. You wouldn’t think murder could ever touch a place like this.”

“You’re kidding? In Pelican Pointe you mean? They had a serial killer here for years.”

For a second time, his mouth gaped open. “Wow, I had no idea. No one mentioned that part to me.”

“The story made headlines for quite some time in Santa Cruz. I don’t know how they dealt with it here but I’m sure it’s something they’d like to put behind them.”

“The blood on the shirt could mean nothing at all. Maybe someone killed a deer or something.”

“I thought of that. It’s possible there’s a logical explanation. People around here go hunting all the time. But why hide a piece of fabric that has blood on it if it’s from an animal or from a hunting trip? There would be no need to conceal it like that.”

“True.”

“In the event it’s something more, like a cold case, if anyone’s up to the task of solving it, I’d say it’s Brent Cody.”

“What does Brent think?”

“I haven’t heard a thing from him. But I intend to ask him about it while I’m in town. Mind if I ask you a question. Think of it as more like a survey.” She saw him bristle at the notion of an inquisition.

“Sure.”

“Do you believe in ghosts?”

Their eyes lingered on each other for a split second before she saw him swallow hard, the color drain from his face. At that very moment, it seemed as if the former soldier had located the apparition in question hovering in the corner right along with the cows.

“Why would you ask me such a thing? Have you been talking to Cord?”

“Who’s Cord?”

Ryder dropped his guard. “A friend of mine who believes Scott Phillips haunts this town. Ridiculous notion, huh?”

She gnawed the inside of her jaw, thinking, considering the possibilities. “Interesting.”

“You’re kidding? Why? Tell me why you asked the question.”

“Because I talked to him. Scott, not your friend Cord. The day I stopped at the Jennings’ house. There was this guy. He looked real enough to me. Anyway, while I busied myself checking out the exterior, the foundation, the porch, all of a sudden I look up and see this guy standing at the corner of the house staring back at me. I just assumed that he was a neighbor. And before you ask, yes, I’m certain it was Scott Phillips. I saw his picture tonight when I checked into the B&B. Nick and Jordan verified it.”

Even before joining the military he’d always been a man prone to keeping his personal feelings closed off. Now was no different. He waged a mini-battle within. Should he risk disclosing details he’d told no one else but Cord? While he stood there conflicted, staring into her deep, dark chocolate eyes brimming with questions, those orbs tugged him into a decision. He told her about his own encounters with Scott. All of them.

“What do you think it means?”

“That we should probably stop drinking the water around here.”

Julianne snorted with laughter. “Besides that.”

He scratched his jaw. “Cord’s theory is that Scott hangs around to guide troubled people away from their problems.”

Julianne’s brows knit. “But I don’t have any problems that I know of and I’m not troubled about anything.”

“That’s what I said.”

She suddenly realized the waning light meant she’d stayed too long. “The sun’s going down.”

“Please don’t tell me you’re a fairy princess who turns into an ogre at dusk?”

“How’d you guess? But you have to promise not to tell anyone. It would ruin my rep as the rigid, spinster schoolteacher.”

“I never said you were a spinster.”

“No? I thought that was implied.” She glanced at her watch, realized she’d forgot to put it back on. “What time is it?”

“Almost six-thirty.”

“Oh crap, I
do
have to head back. I don’t want to be a no-show for dinner my first night at the inn.”

When she started to walk off in the opposite direction, he grabbed her hand. “Let me drive you back. If you’re worried about being late, it’s the fastest way.”

“That’ll work. Why don’t I drag you over there for supper, stay for the discussion about Scott. They promised me one.”

“No way.”

“So the former soldier is afraid to have a conversation about an imaginary ghost?”

“Calling me chicken won’t work.”

“Then come back with me and be there when we all sit down for a heart-to-heart. I’d say there’s no better time for us to ask the local experts all the questions we have spinning around in our minds. Get some answers. It’s the least they can do.”

“
L
ook who I found on my walk,” Julianne said as she sailed through the back door at the B&B. “I know Ryder wasn’t invited for dinner but… Turns out, he’s seen Scott, too.”