River's Return (River's End Series, #3) (7 page)

“How? How do you propose I go about this? Don’t think it doesn’t kill me too. Just knowing what I could do for her and that she most likely will never give me that chance, or the opportunity to change her life? Yes, of course, I want to do that.”

Shane stared at her. “How could you prove it to her? If she ever came to you, what could you do to convince her you can do that? And change her life?”

“Well… hell!” She ran her hands through her hair. “There are websites, videos, and seminars… there is proof everywhere of the successful treatments for what she’s got. If she’d give me a half hour, I could prove it to her.” Her face got red as she suddenly became worked up. She never swore, or nearly yelled like she was now at Shane.

“Then do it,” he prodded her, his tone softer and more encouraging to her heated anger.

“How? How do I possibly do that?”

“You barge in there and demand it. Nice won’t get the job done, teacher. Nice won’t get Erin shit out of life. She needs you. You can help her and you’re going to deny it to her because you’re too nice? Does that seem logical to you? It sure as hell doesn’t to me.”

She was breathing hard and her chest was rising and falling. He made her feel like Erin’s inability to read was somehow her fault. She didn’t refuse to teach Erin. She didn’t deny Erin help. Erin kept refusing her offers of help to teach her. It was Erin’s fault, not Allison’s.

But still, a nagging voice in the back of her head reminded her she had never again, pursued Erin about it. She guessed what her problem was, but never pushed her to remedy it. She often saw Erin around town, or coming to get Charlie, and even counted Erin as a close, friendly acquaintance. But not the kind of close friend with whom she could comfortably just talk, or express herself as openly and forcibly as she did with Shane. She glanced up at him. That was kind of weird. Why was she so much… herself with him? He was not someone she could even call a friend or an acquaintance. He was… what? The man who was doing her neighbor? She shook her head. That didn’t matter. Shane was just Shane. 

But Erin? She was always so polite and kind. Allison felt generic with her. She certainly couldn’t just start telling Erin what to do. That would be too controlling, too forward, and just freaking weird. They did not share that kind of relationship.

But the things Shane said resonated with her, and soon made her stomach kind of twist. Yeah. It was that big of a deal. She might have been able to help Erin learn how to read. No small thing, not in today’s world. But did she have the right? To convince Erin just to hear her out, she’d have to go beyond their relationship. Erin might think she was bitchy, rude, forward… but she gathered Shane’s point was: so what? So what if Erin thought that? What if it really worked? It didn’t matter at that point how much Erin liked her. It only mattered that she could be helped.

She stared at her fingers, which she laced together and then pulled apart. The bright red nails drew people’s eyes from the endless fabric of freckles that dotted her skin. Her skin underneath was ash white, never to be tanned. She finally sighed and licked her lips. “No, it doesn’t seem very logical. I’ve thought about it. I just don’t know what to do to get her to hear me out.”

He stood up suddenly. “I know how. Come on.”

Allison stared up at him, startled. “What? Now? What do you mean?”

“I mean we go take care of this now. Three years is ridiculously too long. And if Erin could hear what I just did, I’m sure she’ll follow your advice. She’ll do it. Nice, be damned. Being effective? Changing her life? That shit needs to happen; and it needs to happen now.”

She rose to her feet. “What did you hear?”

He stopped at her sliding door and turned back to her. “I heard you. Not formal, polite, educated Mrs. Gray, but caring, passionate, wants-to-change-the-world Allison speaking. That’s who she needs to hear, down and gritty. She needs to hear the truth and have reality slapped in her face because otherwise, she’ll never commit to trying. She needs you. I believe it now, more than anything. She’ll never respond to anyone else. I know she will to you. Now come on, before you think too hard about this and change your mind.”

Allison stood there, leaning her hands on the table and shaking her head. “That’s the thing, I need to think about this. I don’t just rush off and do that kind of thing. I need to think about how to approach it. I need—”

Stepping forward, Shane grabbed her hand as he yanked her around the small patio table. He spun her until her body was in front of his. She gasped at how quickly he moved and with an almost angry sharpness. She could feel all of his six-foot-five muscles, tendons, and body heat behind her. “She sits over there,
right there
in your own backyard. All that stuff you studied and know so well and spout at me, is needed right there. I can’t do that. I can’t affect anyone’s life. You can. You can do that, Allison. And you wouldn’t do it for fear of offending Erin? I find it much more offensive to let her wallow in self-hatred and shame for something she can’t help or understand. You might need to think on it, but she needs for you to act.
Now
.” Shane’s voice was right in her ear. The heat of his breath tickled her and something weird and warm traveled through her body before knotting in her stomach. Something not altogether unpleasant.

“If I could change someone’s life for the better, I’d do it in a heartbeat. Don’t waste your talent and intelligence, your gifts, by being polite. Proper courtesy never changed the world, or anything else.
You
can though. You can make all the difference for Erin.”

No one ever spoke to Allison like that. His passion was thrilling, intoxicating, and contagious. She suddenly felt like throwing her arms around him, or shouting in the air,
yes I can!
But instead, she kept her head level, dropped her gaze, and stepped away from him before answering, “Okay.”

He nodded and his huge grin of satisfaction released a wonderful feeling that flowed through her. She dashed the urge it inspired. Why did she care about pleasing Shane?

He kept her hand in his: a massive, giant, baseball mitt-sized hand that tugged her through her own house. She resisted and snatched her hand back. “I need shoes, Shane.”

He paused at her front door and waved at her impatiently, as though if she must, she could get her shoes, but hurry. Slipping her black flats on and grabbing a coat, Shane’s nervous energy inspired her as he shouted, “Come on, let’s go.” As if she were running late for an appointment. That was just crazy. Erin had already waited three years.

She stopped dead in her doorway as Shane started for his bike. “I’m not riding that,” she told him.

“You’re about to change a life and now you hesitate over my vehicle? Come on.”

Vehicle? Her life versus a gory death. “It’s freezing out. I’ll take my car.”

He shook his head. “Okay, so it’s cold. But someday, Allison, you’ll have to try things my way.”

Allison shivered when she heard that damned, deep timbre in his voice. It always felt like a long caress down her back when he said
Allison
like that.  Her name never seemed sexy until she heard Shane utter it. Clutching her purse and keys, she slipped into her car. Shane climbed into her four-door sedan that was definitely on the small, compact side. He made it feel like it might tip over onto his side. He tucked his legs in and she started to laugh. Glancing over at her, he asked, “What?”

“You make my car look like a toy,” she said before zipping backwards and accelerating onto the street. It was only a few minutes’ drive. Why didn’t Shane just ride his bike? It would have been the unspoken answer to their mild argument. But… somehow, strangely, it seemed like this was their
thing
. Their mission. Their goal. Allison was sure she’d chicken out without Shane’s empowering, almost goading insistence. Never mind he had ditched Celia without a word.

“Can I help it if your car can’t handle me?” he said suggestively. She caught his intention, and ignored it.

“How tall are you?”

“Six feet, five inches. Big enough for you?”

She rolled her eyes and he laughed. She also laughed before her stomach knotted when he guided her down the dirt road of the ranch driveway. It sure needed a new load of gravel. Potholes rattled her car. Shane must have noticed how often she winced. “We put all the usual repair money towards the new road for the resort guests. We usually redo our driveway after the winter snows. They’re always pretty hard on it. Hope to get to it soon.”

“That’s about ready to open, right?”

Shane was staring out the passenger window. She noticed how he ran his fingers idly up and down his thigh. Nerves? Something, it seemed. With her? No. It must be from discussing the recent ranch improvements. They subdivided the ranch and built several new small cabins along the river that were soon to open for guests to stay in. Rydell River Resort had a private road off the main highway and its own sign.

“Word is that it opens in the spring.”

“Yup. First weekend of May. It’s already booked.”

“Do you… do anything for it?”

“For what? The resort?”

“The ranch. The resort, your family’s legacy?”

“Nah. Horses aren’t my thing. I never cottoned to them. That whole farm animal dude ranch thing is not for me either. I lack the temperament for being polite to fussy city guests. So, no. I don’t do much on the ranch.”

“Who’s running it then?”

“Ian handles most of the paperwork and taxes, and he’ll be here when it opens. He and Kailynn plan to return for most weekends during the summer to help manage the summer season guests and keep it running. It’ll be the first one, so probably the hardest too. Jack and Erin, of course, will run it and… Ben and AJ do whatever they say. I think they hired Kailynn’s brothers also, you know, to do whatever else needs doing.”

She glanced at him. “Don’t you ever want a vote in it? Or some responsibility? It is yours too, correct?”

Shane shifted around uncomfortably before he shrugged. “Sure. I own a share, same as my brothers. But I trust them.”

“Maybe. But maybe they’d like your help once in a while.”

“What could I possibly do that they don’t have already covered?”

“How about PR? You’re quite a salesman. I can attest to that. Look at what I’m doing right now,” she grumbled as she parked in front of the house. She stared at the front of the house. He stared too, without making any motion to get out. Allison sometimes marveled at how much she knew about the Rydells. They were practically the founding fathers of the town and regularly gossiped about. Jack and Ian each were in the process of building their own houses on the ranch.

“When do Jack and Erin move out?”

“Soon. Before May.”

“Big change. Will the boys move into the new house?”

“Yeah.” There was a concise finality to his answer. Allison easily gathered that he didn’t like it. He seemed to have a strange attraction and repulsion: wanting the boys and his brothers around, but feeling unable to handle them long term. Shane seemed to expect, and in fact, wanted all of them to live together, always waiting for him, indefinitely.

“Sooo,” Shane said, drawing out his tone and raising his eyebrows expectantly.

“Okay. Fine,” she muttered as she got out of the car and slammed the door.

He paused on the porch. “You can do this. It’s the right thing to do. If she fights you, which she will, you just have to fight harder. If she blows you off, or goes all sweet and nice, go full speed ahead on her.
Make
her listen to you.”

She nodded, strangely touched by his faith in her as well as his devotion to Erin. As luck would have it, Jack and Erin were both in the house. Erin was finishing up dishes and Jack sat in the living room, watching TV in his recliner.

“Mrs. Gray?” Jack said when he noticed her behind Shane. He immediately put the recliner down and got to his feet. “Is everything all right with Charlie?”

“Oh, yes. Yes, it’s fine. I actually came to speak to Erin,” she said shifting her glance to Erin. Erin smiled and set the dishtowel down as she walked forward and shyly said, “Hi. How are you?”

Crap! There she goes. All polite and sweet again. Allison glanced at Shane and his eyes widened as if urging her to
do it.
Easy for him to say. He wasn’t the one who had to kick and squish and stomp a helpless puppy. That’s what it felt like to Allison.

She took a deep breath and hauled her tablet from her purse. “Will you just watch something for me?” She decided to skip a lengthy explanation.

“Is it about Charlie?” She still believed Allison came there to discuss her stepson.

“No,” she said quietly. “It’s about you. J—just watch this.”

Erin’s round eyes went from looking big and kind to wary and stormy. She stepped back as if Allison just threatened her and started shaking her head. “What are you doing?” she whispered as if Allison were hitting her. She was hurting her. No, betraying her.

She glanced at Shane and he nodded his support before scowling at Erin. “Watch it, Erin. Just try something for once, please fucking
try.
”

Jack bristled as he stepped forward. Allison shrank when she saw the brothers suddenly staring intently at each other. “What is this?”