Digitalis (6 page)

As if Bapa forgot about the Song of Solomon, the ultimate love letters.

Piper paid for her items and hurried from the store, her mind still on the charming stranger. She’d hoped that he’d come into the store to see her, but he’d always had a ready explanation for each purchase. Yet he’d given himself away at the mall. She sighed, her breath swirling in the chilly night air.

The last few feet to her apartment sent fear racing up her spine. She swallowed as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Hesitation pushed her gaze around the street, stabbing the corners where the shadows hid from the light. She spotted her elderly neighbor sitting in her rocking chair. Somehow, the three steps up to her door and the yellow hue of the porch light gave the woman a creepy appearance, almost as if she were glowing.

Piper waved as she passed the woman’s section of the building. “Evening, Mrs. Calhoun.”

“Out late, aren’t you, dear?”

“A little.” Unable to shake the unease, Piper quickened her pace and rushed to her door. “Have a good evening.” She scanned the jamb, spotted the twine stretched over the lower corner, and jabbed the key into the lock. Inside, she spun the locks and whipped the chain into place before she blew out a breath.

Once she dumped her books and bag on the small, cedar table, she withdrew her small flashlight-mace combo and walked the tiny apartment—but her gaze quickly pounced on the answering machine. Disappointment sagged within her. Would Colton ever call to ask her out?

She refocused on her apartment. The sliding glass door. The kitchen window. Her bedroom door. No need to worry about the bed since there was no “underneath” to conceal a predator. She eased into the room and spotted the blinking sensor sitting on the windowsill. Checked the closet.

Satisfied, she flipped on the light and grabbed a pair of shorts and a shirt from the dresser. She sat at the kitchen table minutes later and opened the energy drink. Over the next four hours, she studied case law and procedures pertinent to economics. Despite the sugar overload, seconds took on the weight of hours, and by midnight, the sharp claws of sleep scratched at her resolve for an all-nighter. With a long day of work ahead, she headed to the bathroom.

Bent over the sink, she washed her face and groped for the hand towel on the counter … but it wasn’t there. She blinked through the water.
Where did it go?
Finally, she saw it on the vinyl floor.

Piper froze, her mind whipping through her walk-through protocol. Nothing had been out of place. Had it? No. It hadn’t. With a huff, she snatched a clean towel and dried off.

She grabbed her flashlight-mace from the table—and the poodle keychain caught her eye. She picked it up and placed it on her nightstand. Alarm set, she slid under the sheets and reached for the light and turned it off. Would she have the chance to give the poodle to McKenna? Why hadn’t he called yet? Maybe he’d changed his mind.

She groaned and rolled over. Good things didn’t come to her. They never had. Only pain and the opportunity, as her father said, to be longsuffering. She shouldn’t expect anything different. Besides, relationships were only entanglements that endangered lives. No way would she do that to the beautiful blond girl and her handsome father. She wanted a happy ending. Not a nightmare. And the people hunting her father would stop at nothing to kill him.

“Showers’re out,” Max growled as he pushed through the front doors of the base.

Colton glanced down at his muddied duds, considered the stench that seemed to lift like steam from the caked-on earth, and huffed. He got to be Swamp Thing for the next hour—and pray hard his truck didn’t soak up too much of the odor.

The trip home carried him down the highway—the one that passed the mall, the mall with Hastings, where Piper worked. For two seconds, he entertained rushing in and just buying … towels. His mom needed some new towels. Hastings had new towels.

“No!” He wrapped his fingers tightly around the steering wheel and kept driving. Even with the vents open, the unique swamp odor wafted around him. He twitched his nose and rolled down the window. Good thing he’d opted to head home. If he hadn’t already scared Piper off a month ago during the impromptu lunch with Mickey, he would with his Eau de Jungle.

When he pulled into the drive, he slowed at the sight of a blue sedan. Whose car was that? Was his mother having company? Finally resuming her ladies’ afternoon tea?

He eased his truck around the vehicle and parked in his usual spot at the back. Although his parents loved entertaining, they’d done little since moving to Virginia two years ago. Hard to do when living forty-minutes outside city limits. From his truck bed, he grabbed his gear, then stomped up the side porch, thanking the good Lord he’d built the addition at the
back
of the house. If Mama did have company, she’d light into him for coming home like this.

He stepped onto the hardwood floor and paused to ease the screen door shut. Spicy smells embraced him as he dropped his gear. The taunting aroma of lasagna and bread drifted down the hall from the kitchen, making his stomach grumble and his mouth water.

He frowned. Must be really special guests. Had the pastor come to call?

“Daddy! Daddy!” Mickey sprinted around the corner, her face beaming.

Yeah. This is what kept him going, made him feel like life was worth living. “Hey, darlin’.” He knelt and swept the sweet-smelling bundle into his arm. “I sure missed you.”

She threw her arms around him—and jerked back.
“Ew!”
She pinched her nose. “You stink.”

Colton snorted. “What’s wrong? You don’t like my new cologne?” He tickled her, eliciting peals of laughter that did his soul good. That helped him remember that no matter how bad it got out there, he had
this
to come home to.

“What are you doing here looking and smelling like a sewer rat?” His mother’s words assailed him with their intensity and pitch.

“Didn’t have a choice. Showers were broke.” He stood and moved toward his mother. “Come here. I’ll give you a hug you’ll never forget.”

She flapped a towel at him. “Get lost, Colton Benjamin!”

He grinned—then froze, a full view of the kitchen. And another person. A woman. A tall, beautiful woman. Chest tight, he cleared his throat and nodded at her. “Piper.”

H
e looked wonderful. He looked terrible.

Piper let a tremulous smile into her lips. “Hello, Colton.” She thought of the moment he’d asked her to use his first name, and how comforting it felt as she’d said it.

Slowly, he backed up, his gaze still riveted to hers. “If you’ll excuse me.” He looked at his mom. “Can I speak to you for a minute?”

Hesitation crept over Mrs. Neeley’s face for a second, then twitched away beneath her always-present smile. “McKenna, why don’t you show Piper your princess dishes in the kitchen?”

Piper felt the little girl’s fingers wrap around her own, but the expression in Colton’s face pinched her stomach together, making it impossible to look away. He wasn’t happy about her presence. Disappointment clogged the thrill of seeing him.

“What’s wrong with you?” His mom’s terse voice darted out, just above a whisper.

“I’ve told you before, don’t bring anyone here unless you clear it with me first. There are …”

His words faded, but not the rebuke. He’d aimed it at his mother, but the words had stabbed Piper right through the heart. So. His not calling her had been intentional. He didn’t want a date with her.

“C’mon, Piper!” McKenna tugged on her.

When she took one last glance down the hall, her gaze collided with Colton’s. His crystal blues held hers as if sending a silent message. What that message was, she couldn’t decipher. But his words had left no doubt. He didn’t want her here. With a shake of his head, he turned and clomped down the hall, his broad shoulders drooped.

McKenna jerked hard, pulling Piper into the kitchen, where she opened a cabinet. “Look, we got them at the princess palace!”

Piper tried to redirect her focus onto the pink, sparkly dishes. “They’re so pretty.” But her attention was still hung up on the horrible mistake she’d made in letting Mrs. Neeley talk her into coming for dinner. It’d seemed like an answer to prayer. A hope so deep and desperate she’d ignored good, common sense.

His eyes had pervaded her thoughts last night, and the resounding bass of his laugh rumbled through her dreams. Anticipating a phone call or answering machine message had gotten her through the first week or ten days following their mall encounter. After that, she started losing hope, wondering if she’d misread the twinkle that had made her stomach queasy—and found herself stranded on Desperation Island.

She ran her fingers through her hair, frustrated with herself. What was wrong with her? Mooning over a man who didn’t reciprocate admiration and respect.
Oh just be honest—the attraction, too
. She had to hand it to him. Hands down, he was the most gorgeous man she’d met, with his barrel-thick chest and long legs, the trimmed-close hair.

And the dimples.
Yeshua
should never have done that to a woman. Adam probably had dimples—and that’s what made Eve lose her mind over a stupid piece of fruit. Probably concentrating so hard on the dimples she didn’t realize her folly.

If only the Fall could be explained so easily. Or her own stupidity.

Just leave. Make it easy on everyone
. Yes. Yes, she could grab food from Mr. Tang’s on the way home and wallow in her own pity. Just like every Saturday night.

“Honestly,” Mrs. Neeley said as she entered, her words weaker than before. “I don’t know what’s gotten into him. He’s never come home like that.”

Piper stole a glance at his mother as she went to the sink and washed her hands. In jeans and a short-sleeve sweater with appliqués, Mrs. Neeley stood several inches shorter than Piper’s own five-nine, but there wasn’t an ounce of average in the woman. Even though the cinnamon-colored hair was perfectly coiffed, Piper knew it was colored. But tastefully. Like everything the matriarch did. She had it together. A husband, a home, family, and everything else Piper didn’t have that she so earnestly wanted.

Ack! She had to get out of here before she became completely depressed. “I really appreciate your inviting me out. I’ve had a wonderful time.” She pushed to her feet. “But … uh … I have an assignment due soon.” And she did. In two weeks. “So, I’m just going to head back to town.”

“Oh, please—”

“No, really. I’m not sure I can find my way back without daylight, anyway.” It sounded good, but the more she convinced Mrs. Neeley she should leave, the more Piper wanted to cry. Why on earth were tears threatening?

Because she’d wanted this—all of this—so very badly. The family, the laughter, the handsome hero to save the day. But of course, she should’ve learned years ago that good things weren’t meant for her.

Mrs. Neeley’s eyes rounded. “But dinner—”

Piper lowered her head, mustering her courage and resolve … but found none.

Colton’s mom came to her and gently braced Piper’s arms. “Please, stay for dinner.”

Gazing down into the pretty brown eyes, Piper felt herself crumbling. “I don’t want to make him mad,” she whispered. Not when she’d been hoping for a first date. It was her turn to fake a smile as she patted the woman’s hand. “It’ll be okay. Thanks for a wonderful afternoon.” She grabbed her purse, heart racing as she forced herself to carry through with this. “Again, thank you.”

Out the side door, down the steps, and onto the gravel drive she rushed. Only as she rounded the big split oak did Piper realize she’d been holding her breath. She let it out and plunged her hand into her purse, digging for the keys and reminding herself that this was best—for both of them. Colton clearly didn’t want her here. And getting close to anyone risked exposure. Risked her big mouth getting the better of her and revealing all her secrets.

Where were her keys? She stomped to her car and dropped the bag on the hood, then rummaged through all the paraphernalia: Maxximum Girl cosmetics, pens, an address book, her phone, a hair elastic …

“No keys.” She huffed. Dug again. They had to be in there somewhere.