RaeAnne Thayne Hope's Crossings Series Volume One: Blackberry Summer\Woodrose Mountain\Sweet Laurel Falls (63 page)

Great waves of pain seemed to radiate off Maura, and Evie wanted to reach across the table and squeeze her fingers, to whisper that she understood but she hadn't told any of her friends about Cassie. When she had first come to Hope's Crossing, the pain had seemed too raw to talk about with anyone else. Katherine knew and that had seemed enough. Later, the moment never seemed right. It wasn't something she could just blurt out in conversation.
Oh, by the way, I adopted a daughter with disabilities and loved her for two years before she died. So silly I never mentioned it before.

So why, when she had held Cassie's memory so close to her, had she told Brodie? She didn't quite know the answer to that herself.

“Ruth is working for us this afternoon,” Sage answered when Maura didn't respond. Maura's older daughter smiled, looking almost fey with her curly brown hair and the big, long-lashed green eyes that marked her as a McKnight. “She's been such a lifesaver this summer.”

“Who ever would have guessed it?” Katherine murmured. “I think it's wonderful Ruth enjoys working at the bookstore so much.”

Ruth Tatum was Claire's mother, a difficult woman who, until a few months ago, had seemed discontent with life, complaining and finding fault and basically doing her best to infect everyone around her with her own unhappiness.

That snowy April night had changed many lives in unexpected ways, Evie thought. Ruth had stepped in to help a grieving and lost Maura at Dog-Eared Books & Brew—and apparently was thriving there.

“She seems like a different person when she comes into the bead store these days,” Evie said. She found it endlessly fascinating to watch people remake their lives, adapting and adjusting to new circumstances. Ruth was the perfect example.

“She hasn't changed completely.” Maura's smile didn't quite reach her eyes but at least it wasn't despair. “This morning I heard her answer a customer's question by saying that since Ruth had never met his mother, she had no idea whatsoever whether she would like the thirty-dollar coffee-table book he was considering buying. I had to pull her aside and gently remind her that when a customer asked whether his mother/sister/wife would like a book, the answer was always yes.”

Katherine, Sage and Evie laughed. Maura smiled that not-quite smile again, but Taryn still seemed upset and distracted.

“So when does school start, my dear?” Katherine asked Sage.

The girl gave her mother a quick look. “I'm thinking about taking another semester off.”

“No, you're not,” Maura said. The determined glint in her eyes crowded out the pain there for a moment. “We've talked about this. You're going back to school.”

“I plan to.” Sage looked just as determined. “But I think it would be better if I stick around this semester and start up again in January.”

“And do what? Make lattes? I can hire people to do that. You need to go back to school.”

“I will, when things are more settled here.”

“Things here are fine,” Maura retorted. Evie had the impression this wasn't the first time these two had had this particular argument. “Between Ruth and me, we've got Dog-Eared covered. Your place is at school.”

“Wrong. If you need me here, that comes first, Mom.”

“Let's take a vote,” Maura said to the table at large. “All in favor of Sage going back to school, raise your hand. Taryn, you too.”

Taryn raised her hand, unsmiling. Katherine lifted hers way up and Evie did, too, though she was sympathetic to both points of view. She had been the grieving mother and she had been the dutiful daughter, wanting to take care of her mother after her sister died.

She had taken one semester off from school right after the fire and then the next after her sister died from her injuries. By the time fall semester was to start, her mother had convinced her she should return—and two weeks into the new semester, while Evie was just beginning to try to get back into the routine of her studies, her mother had overdosed on pain pills.

She knew she had done the right thing, returning to school. Her mother had insisted, much as Maura was insisting now. But Evie would always wonder what might have happened if she had taken another semester off.

If she had been home, would her mother have been so very despondent and in such grave physical and emotional pain that she would see no other choice than to take such drastic, irrevocable actions?

The circumstances were not the same, of course. Maura was surrounded by a warm, supportive family. The McKnights had rallied around her after Layla's death and they would continue to do so as long as she needed them. Mary Ella, her mother. Sisters Angie and Alex. After years of working as an undercover police officer in Northern California, even Riley lived back in Hope's Crossing and would be settling here with Claire.

“You need to go back to school,” Maura insisted. “You can't afford to get off track with your undergraduate work if you want to get into architectural school.”

Sage looked as if she wanted to argue the point further but she was interrupted by the server, a young man with blond dreadlocks who looked like he should be catching waves instead of slinging hash—and whom Evie was almost positive she'd seen working at the ski resort over the winter.

“Hey, ladies. I'm Logan and I'll be your server this afternoon. Sorry for the delay. Afraid we had a bit of a mix-up in station assignments. I've been given strict instructions to take good care of you all or Dermot will have my hide—and I really need my hide, you know? Want to order drinks first or have you had enough time to look at the menu?”

Evie hadn't even looked at the menu but since the turkey wrap was one of her favorites anyway, she decided to go with Dermot's suggestion. Katherine and Maura did the same, while Sage ordered the veggie burger.

“Taryn?” Evie asked. “What about you?”

“Fries,” she said. “And…a cheese sandwich.”

After they'd placed their beverage orders, the apologetic surfer-dude waiter hurried away. Katherine, ever the diplomat, quickly spoke up to change the subject before Maura and Sage could begin arguing about college again.

“The Angel has been hard at work again. Have you heard?”

“No. What's happened?” Evie asked.

“You know how Gretchen Kirk has been struggling since her jerk of a husband took off with that waitress from Breckenridge? Well, apparently she woke up one day this week to find boxes and boxes of brand-new school supplies from the Angel for her three boys and Hannah. Clothes, shoes, backpacks, notebooks. The whole thing. And when she went to take care of their school fees, they were already paid.”

“What a great idea,” Claire exclaimed. “I wish I'd thought of that.”

Evie looked at Taryn and found her frowning. Hannah hadn't said anything about it during her visits, but then she didn't talk much about how things were at home, now that her father was gone.

“What's the latest rumor about the Angel's identity?” Evie asked. Between the art shows she'd been attending all summer and the last few weeks working with Taryn in virtual isolation, she felt completely out of the loop about the goings-on in town. “Is Claire still determined it's a quorum of angels rather than a solitary individual?”

“Oh, the speculation runs rampant, depending on the source,” Katherine said. “I even heard one rumor that the Angel is a movie star who moved into a house up in Silver Strike Canyon.”

“I got something from the Angel.” Taryn had been sitting so quietly, apparently just listening to the conversation, that her unexpected contribution to the conversation seemed to take them all by surprise. Sage smiled at her but Maura looked down at her water glass, her features tight.

“What did the Angel give you?” Sage asked.

“A game system for exercising. We have…f-fun on it.”

Evie gave an inward cringe, hoping the girl didn't mention that her favorite opponent was Charlie Beaumont. She didn't want to hurt Maura by bringing up what was bound to be a touchy subject, considering Charlie had been responsible for her daughter's death. To her guilty relief, Taryn subsided into silence once more and the conversation eddied around her.

The service was quick, even for the Center of Hope Café. Logan brought their meals out barely a few moments after he'd taken the order back to the grill, complete with a few garnishes Evie was sure were specially added for their table.

“Remind me to bring you here for lunch more often, if this is the kind of treatment we can expect,” she teased Katherine and was amused when the older woman seemed to grow flustered. Dermot Caine had been a widower for years, just as Katherine had been a widow. Interesting that they'd never dated. Maybe they simply needed a push….

That pleasant speculation was interrupted by another person coming into their section as if he owned the place—one of Evie's least favorite people in town, Harry Lange.

“Oh. That man,” Katherine exclaimed when Harry plopped down into a booth at the other end of the otherwise empty section and immediately opened a newspaper. “He thinks he owns the whole blasted town.”

“It's a good thing Mary Ella's not here,” Evie said. “She'd probably go dump her water glass on his head.” Mary Ella, Maura's mother, had a longstanding feud of unknown origin with Harry Lange.

Lange was about the only person who had more money than the Beaumonts. Evie knew he had sold the land up in Silver Strike Canyon that had eventually been turned into the ski resort and had been on the ground floor of the project. Maybe because he was richer than anyone else, he seemed to think that gave him the right to treat people in town like dirt. He was abrasive and annoying and raised her hackles every time she was forced to interact with him, which—blessedly—was rarely.

The man seemed to bring a big rain cloud with him. Katherine glowered a few times at Harry, Sage seemed to be studying him with interest, while Maura spent the rest of lunch moving her plate around and deliberately
not
looking at him.

The only time the mood lightened was when Dermot Caine himself delivered slices of his delicious blackberry pie. Nobody could stay in a bad mood while eating Dermot's pie, with its flaky, buttery golden crust and the juicy, lemony berry filling.

“I guess we'd better get back before Ruth alienates all our customers,” Maura said when they were finished, still not looking at Harry, tucked behind his newspaper. “Happy birthday, Kat. Thanks for letting us share it. Evie, thank
you
for offering to buy lunch. I owe you next time.”

“My pleasure. I'm thrilled you could join us.” Evie smiled and stood up to hug her friend, vowing she would still find a moment to have a private visit. Maura turned and pressed her cheek to Katherine's for a moment and Sage did the same, then the two of them left the diner.

“I should go as well,” Katherine said with regret, picking up the boxed meal they had ordered for Claire. “Claire's been alone too long at the store and she really does need to go home and pack. Thank you so much for inviting me. You've made my birthday a lovely one.”

“It was all Taryn's idea,” Evie insisted, winking at the girl.

Katherine squeezed her granddaughter's hand. “That makes it even more lovely.”

They walked together back down Main Street toward String Fever since Brodie's minivan was parked behind the store.

Evie already thought the summer crowds were beginning to thin. Traffic seemed more manageable and the crowds on the sidewalk a little more sparse. This weekend was Labor Day and after that, Hope's Crossing would enjoy about two months of quiet before the winter ski crowds descended. Though she'd only been in town a year, Evie had learned she loved the shoulder seasons, when the year-round residents had the town to themselves, for the most part.

After saying goodbye to Katherine, Evie quickly helped Taryn into the van and began the short drive up the hill toward Brodie's house. Taryn didn't say much as they drove, she merely continued gazing out the window of the van.

Had lunch pushed her too much? She had seemed fine at the bead store but when they'd gone to the café, she had grown withdrawn and had barely spoken.

Evie tried a few more times to make conversation but Taryn didn't seem to want to talk. At the house, Evie pushed the wheelchair out of the van, trying her best to remain cheerful in the face of this brick wall. “Talking about the game system at lunch today reminded me we haven't played tennis for a while. Feel like a game?”

“I'm too tired,” Taryn said, the words clipped.

“Okay.” Evie worked to keep her tone agreeable. “I don't blame you. It's been a big day already and you've worked very hard. Why don't you rest for a while and we'll see how you feel a little later?”

“I don't want to play. You should go home.”

Evie blinked. This was more like the Taryn of a few weeks ago. “Not yet. I still have plenty to do, writing out my treatment notes and making sure everything will be organized next week for Stephanie.”

“Just go home,” Taryn said. “I don't want to work more today.”

“Are you sure?” She frowned. “I've only got a partial day tomorrow, remember?”

“Yes, I remember. I'm not…retarded!”

Evie straightened. “I know you're not. Which means you should remember I don't like that particular word.”

“I…don't care…what you like.”

Taryn's features suddenly seemed florid, unhealthy. Perhaps Evie had pushed her too hard today. A quiet afternoon wasn't necessarily a bad idea, she decided.

“I guess it's good you're only stuck with me for a few more days then, isn't it?”

“Yes!”

Taryn struggled to wheel herself through her doorway and then she slammed the door behind her. If she hadn't glimpsed the misery in the girl's eyes or felt such sympathy for her that she couldn't stomp off in the middle of an argument like a normal teenage girl, Evie might have been upset and angry herself.