The Guarded Widow (7 page)

“I’m trying to figure out who or what this guy could’ve been watching, based on the location of where the footprints were found in your back yard.”

His long strides carried him into her bedroom. He tried ignoring her bed and the fact that the scent in the room hinted faintly of her perfume and pushed the open the door to her master bathroom.

As he leaned over the garden tub to look further out the bathroom window, he asked her, “Do you always keep the blinds pulled up in your house?”

“Yes I do, I love the sunlight,” Olivia explained.

“Well, considering this guy had a perfect view to see into your bathroom windows, I’d at least keep these blinds closed,” he suggested, sounding impatient.

Olivia visibly flinched over the prospect of being watched within the privacy of her own bathroom.

“I will, I will close them from now on,” she murmured softly.

Although she again reiterated nothing was missing, Gavin still went on to inspect the entire house anyway. He agreed with Ron, nothing looked vandalized. That was what worried him.

“You need to get a security system,” he bluntly stated as he ignored his cell phone which was for the third time vibrating furiously against his hip, alerting him to another incoming call.

“Oh, I’m not going to ….” Her words trailed off as Gavin tilted her chin up with one finger, forcing her to look him directly in the eyes.

Once again, those all too familiar flip flops, which now progressed from fluttery butterfly wings to full blown acrobatics, were being performed within her stomach.

“You
need
a security system,” he repeated, again. “You live out here, in the middle of these woods and there’s not even a nearby neighbor, Olivia. You’ve got four kids to watch out for and you’re obviously too scared to sleep anywhere but on your living room couch.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “How do you ….?”

“I’m a cop.” Gavin reminded her again. “I’m also not blind.”

“Fine, I’ll get a security system,” she drawled out, slowly.

“Good!” Then he gave her a wide arrogant grin. “You can probably expect a call from your sister tonight.”

As Gavin strode out the front door, he expected to hear the front door violently slam shut behind him. Of course, Olivia didn’t fail to disappoint him.

By the time the boys arrived home from school, Olivia had baked a batch of homemade chocolate chip cookies and placed a call to Security Masters to inquire about when a security system could be installed. Jeff Masters had immediately returned her phone call, himself. And, considering her circumstances, he’d assured her that he could have the system installed within the next week. So now that all the boys were home, Olivia wanted to sit them down and explain why some things were going to change.

She smiled as each of her sons made their way down the hallway to the kitchen, exclaiming with delight over the warm chocolate chip cookies waiting on the counter.

“Hey guys, I need to talk to you,” she announced as Tommy swiped the plate of cookies off the counter with the intent of holding them hostage.

“Hmmm, these must be all mine!” Smiling widely, he taunted the younger boys by hulking over the plate, deliberately not allowing their hands to reach the cookies.

“Mom! Mom! Tommy won’t share,” Luke complained.

“He’s hogging them all,” James whined.

Of course, their responses thrilled Tommy.

Michael reached under his possessive wiry arms to retrieve two cookies. “He’s just yanking your chain,” he told his two younger brothers.

Tommy shoved the cookie laden plate towards Luke and James. “Crybabies!”

Their mother had heard enough.

“Boys, knock it off! I need to talk to all of you for just a few minutes,” she said, raising her voice above their arguing.

Since the squabbling only continued, she gave up and whistled through her fingers, finally silencing her kids. All four heads swiveled in her direction while four sets of eyes widened in shock.

“Cool, Mom!” Michael said appreciatively, biting into his third cookie.

“Look, I’m not going to sugar coat this. I’m going to tell you boys, straight up, what’s been going on,” Olivia stated.

Tommy and Michael exchanged glances; the frank tone she’d used sparking their curiosity.

“James and Luke, you really did see a stranger in our backyard on Saturday.” Olivia glanced at Tommy. “And I know you returned the key to the porch when I asked you too. I saw it under the flower pot before I left for work that morning.”

After standing up, she placed both hands palm down on the kitchen island and faced her children.

Tommy put two and two together first. “Someone broke into our house yesterday and last weekend they were probably scoping us out first.”

“They didn’t break in, they walked in, with a key,” Michael said, rolling his eyes at his brother’s erroneous conclusion. “Is that why you had the cops here last night?”

“Yes,” she conceded. “I spoke with Officer Rafferty this afternoon. He confirmed my suspicions and suggested we have a security system installed.”

“We’re getting one right, Mom?” James nervously asked.

Olivia managed a brave smile.

“Yes, we are. By the end of next week Jeff Masters will have put one in for us. Don’t be scared. We were perfectly fine last night. Besides, I’m sure whoever it was became bored or disappointed and moved on.”

Luke jumped off his stool, wearing his tough guy face. “If he ever comes back I’m going to clobber him with my base ball bat.”

James couldn’t let his brother out perform him; he needed to prove he could protect his mother. He flew off his stool so fast it fell over backwards.

“Oh yeah, I’m going to give him a punch in the face and a karate kick right in his…”

“Okay! I get the idea, Wonder Twins.” Olivia laughed out loud. “I feel safer already.”

After glancing at the clock on the kitchen wall, she realized Michael’s game would start in forty five minutes.

“Due to the extenuating circumstances, I don’t want to leave you home alone, Tommy.” As a means to soften the blow of him losing some of his new found independence, she added. “I’m going to spring for pizza after the game.”

“Basketball and pizza sound pretty good to me right now,” he murmured before running off to find his sweatshirt.

Amused by Luke and James still practicing their deadly Kung Fu moves against one another, Olivia widely grinned while trying to stifle a laugh. “Hey Wonder Twins, you need to go find your jackets too.”

I’m going to just ignore Gavin Rafferty tonight, Olivia decided on the way to the game. She intended to enjoy the pleasure of seeing her kids at ease and relish the fact, that for now, all her boys were safe and sound within her sights. It was difficult though, to push away the gnawing apprehension of wondering if someone was watching the house with the possible intent to harm one of her children or even her. Gavin Rafferty had opened up that can of worms when he’d suggested someone might be watching her. Now she couldn’t escape the reality of knowing a person had hidden and watched them go about their lives, undetected. It made her feel ill, sick to her stomach.

Tonight, I truly appreciate the familiar faces around us, she mused as she watched the time clock tick down the last few minutes of Michael’s game. For once, she hadn’t even been bothered by Jeff Masters gluing himself to her side, talking endlessly about the new security system.

When the buzzer went off, indicating the end of the game, Michael’s team members began cheering enthusiastically, giving each other high fives.

Olivia smiled at Jeff. “I’ll see you bright and early on Monday morning.”

Jeff’s grin spanned ear to ear. She’s finally coming to her senses, he thought. Delighted by her change of heart, he leaned over to help with her coat.

“See you on Monday morning, Olivia.”

Gavin had known the precise second Olivia entered the gymnasium, just by watching the quick snap of Jeff Masters’ head. She’d brought all her boys along with her, which seemed to him, like a wise move to make. He watched her deliver instructions to her sons, thinking, for some reason that woman just irritates the hell out of me. He was further annoyed by his own inability to stop glancing at her. And he couldn’t help but notice how she was sitting with Jeff Masters, who’d talked to her, continually, throughout the whole game.

She’s rather friendly with him tonight, Gavin decided as he made a call of “traveling” against the opposing team. Another quick look into the bleachers yielded Olivia smiling and nodding her head at Jeff. She seems really interested in what Masters is saying. Gavin rolled his shoulders in an attempt to disrupt his train of hostile thoughts. He just didn’t like how annoyed she constantly made him feel.

After the game Olivia visited with Coach Rathton and his wife while Michael changed in the locker room. The strong desire to be around familiar people still hadn’t dissipated so she’d just finished inviting the Rathton’s to dinner at The Pizza Parlor, when Gavin strolled over.

Grinning, he gave Bob a hearty thwack on the shoulder.

“Good game, Bob!” he said, then grinned at her. “How are you this evening, Olivia?”

“Good! How are you, Officer Rafferty?” she returned with forced congeniality.

“Hey, maybe Gavin would like to join you and the boys for pizza?” Bob offered up, trying not to grimace as his wife delivered a firm elbow jab to his rib cage.

Olivia had just opened her mouth to make an excuse for him but as luck would have it, Michael had overheard the exchange as he approached.

“Officer Rafferty, are you coming to eat with us? That would be so cool. You can tell us some cop stories.”

The idea of eating dinner with a real live cop was absolutely thrilling. So he began looking back and forth between Olivia and Gavin, searching for an answer, barely able to contain his excitement.

“Sure I will, if that’s alright with your Mom,” Gavin replied.

Olivia tried to sound cheerful but her eyes snapped furiously, betraying her words. “Of course, it sounds like fun.”

Gavin looked over Michael’s head and smiled directly at her. “Please feel free to drop the Officer Rafferty, just call me Gavin.”

All four boys truly enjoyed Officer Rafferty’s or Gavin’s company, leaving Olivia very surprised by just how much that pleased her. He laughed at their jokes, allowed them to win at air hockey, and even indulged them by spinning embellished police stories. She was feeling somewhat bewildered by the time he returned to join her at the table. Gavin folded his long frame into the booth across from her and laughed out loud as he pulled off another slice of pizza.

Why do I have to like his laugh? Olivia silently wondered, annoyed by it.

“Those boys are a lot of fun.”

And he doesn’t need to like my kids so much.

“Yes they are,” she responded, coldly.

Gavin raised an eyebrow while he chewed his pizza.

“I guess you would’ve preferred Jeff Masters to be here tonight,” he surmised as he poured himself another glass of soda. Then he refilled hers. “You seemed rather friendly with him during the game tonight.”

He was watching me, she realized with delight. Now she was baffled.

So she frowned at him.

“What are you talking about? He’s installing the new security system that YOU suggested I buy,” she snapped. “I felt compelled to listen to him. Not that I should have to explain myself to you.”

Gavin took another slice of pizza.

“I don’t think he should be the one to install it,” he said before taking a bite of his new slice.

Olivia glared at him.

“Officer Rafferty…,” she began, trying to control her temper.

“It’s Gavin now,” he said with an arrogant smile. “I just had dinner with you and your family.

“Gavin,” she began again, becoming increasingly more irritated with each passing second. “I tolerated you poking through my house without an invitation to do so. I’m buying a security system and having it installed, just as you’d demanded. And now you’ve got the nerve to sit here and tell me that you don’t like who’s scheduled to install it?”

She was furious. And it felt good, really good. She preferred to be mad rather than anxious or frightened.

He sat perfectly still, studying her, as she vented on him. Man, she’s even prettier when she’s all fired up, he decided as he leaned forward, lowering his voice.

“Here’s the deal. Its obvious Jeff Masters is interested in you, Olivia, not just your new security system. And I can’t help but wonder if the man, who’s installing the very security system meant to keep you safe, might be the same man who isn’t satisfied with only watching you through your bathroom window.”

Olivia simply sat there, staring at him, in disbelief. Then, just as she was about to throw her full glass of soda into his exceptionally good looking face, she heard Maddy clear her throat.

“I thought that was your SUV outside, Olivia,” she said, proceeding to slide into the empty booth seat directly beside her older sister. “I can see that you’re already pissed off,” Maddy stated, helping herself to one of the leftover slices of pizza. “That’s good, because you’re not going to like what I have to say to you!”