Where One Road Leads (8 page)

He had her in his arms so quickly she didn’t have time to avoid the embrace even if she wanted to. She sucked in her breath and stood stiffly for a moment, trying to process how he’d gone from being incredibly mad at her, to wanting to comfort her. The warmth and strength of his body both soothed and disturbed her senses more than her car chase.

His badge pressed into her even as his hands smoothed down her back.

“What are you doing?” Krista asked, her voice a whisper. Yet she rested her chin on his shoulder and leaned against him.

“I think I’m holding you.” His breath tickled her ear.

Krista chuckled weakly. “At the side of the road. A very strange place, Officer Burgess.”

He pulled back, his arms still wrapped around her. Their gazes met and held for a long moment. Her smile faded. She’d wondered off and on, since their time on the ridge, and on every single occasion they bumped into each other, what it would be like to kiss him.

It seemed she was about to find out, as he dipped his head and caught her lips with his.

God, she hadn’t been breathing those last few moments before the kiss. Now she inhaled against his mouth, tasting and smelling him. There was a bittersweet fervor in the way his lips moved over hers. She met it and returned it. His hands lingered on the small of her back and pressed her against his body. Exciting, daring, his touch sent her heart racing as it hadn’t done in years.

She pulled away first to get her bearings. No, it couldn’t be this easy. She didn’t want to fall into a relationship with him. Not so soon after he’d given up his contempt of her. These things would take time.

“Thank you for stopping me,” she told him, untangling herself from his arms.

He let her go without a fight, but some of the spark that had been in his eyes a moment ago died. His lips tightened briefly before he replied, “You’re welcome. I want you safe. Just keep away from him, Krista. Don’t encourage him. He’s got enough pull to make your life miserable.”

“I’ll remember that,” Krista assured him, arrested by the way his hazel eyes studied her; steady, probing, as if trying to read her thoughts.

She hoped she could hide her thoughts, her feelings, from him. If she couldn’t, her heart wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

The phone rang, shattering the quiet of the night. Krista opened her eyes a crack as the noise ripped up her sleep again. She wanted to ignore it, roll over and pull the blankets back over her head until the offensive sound stopped. But according to the soft red glow from her clock, it was nearly three-thirty in the morning. When phone calls came at that hour, it usually meant bad news.

She grabbed for the handset and pushed the talk button.

“Hello,” she muttered, pushing her hair from her face. She rolled over to her back and squeezed her eyes tightly shut.

“Have a nice drive today?”

The voice was soft but chilling. Krista bolted upright, her hand pressing against the thundering of her heart.

“Ricky?”

The line went dead, a low, monotone humming in her ear.

For a long moment, she held it to her ear, half expecting the caller to return, but he didn’t. He didn’t have to. He’d succeeded in his intentions. Icy discomfort wrapped around her.

She shoved the blankets away and got out of bed. The floor was cold and darkness pressed against the windows. She wondered what other things were outside those windows.

Wide awake now, Krista headed to the kitchen and grabbed her discarded pack of cigarettes and lighter; fumbled with the lighter twice before igniting the tip of the cigarette. In darkness, she sat at the table, the cigarette calming her frayed nerves.

Gus wandered into the kitchen and settled at Krista’s feet. She scratched the top of his head while taking another drag, staring out at the blackness beyond the window. The dog seemed restless and nervous as well. Usually he slept like the dead. She appreciated his company. With him she didn’t feel quite so alone.

Suddenly the whole backyard burst with light as the motion detector floodlight was activated.

Gus leapt to his feet, a low rumble in his throat.

Krista crunched out the remainder of her cigarette and scrambled from the chair. She really didn’t want to look out the window. She wanted to go back to bed, pull the covers over her head, and wait until the sun came up.

She didn’t own any kind of weapons, except for Patricia’s pepper spray and a few wicked sharp knives. Not ideal, but she withdrew a butcher knife and switched off the kitchen light.

Despite the fact she lived in a small town where people didn’t lock doors, Krista had plenty of big city mentality and every door and window in the place was secured.
Thank goodness
. It gave her some comfort. She’d take all the comforts she could get at the moment.

With Gus at her side and the knife gripped tightly in her fist, she peeked out the window into the whitewashed lawn.

Nothing moved within the reach of the light except for some leaves being pushed along by a breeze.

“Where are you, you bastard?” she whispered into the night. If nothing else moved within the range of the light sensor, it would go dark in a few moments. Would that be a good thing or bad? Maybe she’d be better off not knowing. The thought of danger lurking in the shadows made her shudder.

Just before the light went out, Krista caught a glimpse of a tawny bulk moving at the edge of the lawn, disappearing into the woods. Not the man she’d been expecting. Just a deer out for a late night snack.

The animal soon faded into the blanket of darkness that consumed the yard.

Gus grumbled once more.

“It was just a deer, big guy. We’re getting each other freaked out over Bambi.”

She backed away from the window and replaced the knife in its holder.

“Come on, let’s go to bed. I’ll even break the rules and let you sleep with me.”

She’d almost reached door when the shrill of her phone broke through the night again. Krista froze. It rang once, twice and once again. If it rang five times, the machine would get it.

She grabbed it on the fourth ring.

She didn’t say anything, just listened. She could hear a raspy breath on the other end before the caller hung up. Not a word, yet somehow that was worse than him saying anything at all.

In the morning she’d get caller ID. She didn’t think it would do much good, but a tiny sliver of peace of mind was better than nothing at all. Krista replaced the handset and headed toward her bedroom. Sitting up all night wasn’t going to help her.

If she had to be scared, she might as well do it in the comfort of her bed.

Chapter 7

“You look beat.”

Matt glanced up from his desk at his father who stood in the doorway. “I
am
beat.”

“You’re working too hard.” Ed walked in and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms, studying Matt steadily.

With a chuckle, Matt rubbed at his neck muscles which had tied themselves into knots at some point. “When have I ever complained about work? Besides, I just had a mini vacation. My batteries are recharged.”

“Then what’s going on?”

“Just worried about what’s happening with the center. We’re getting nowhere on it.” Matt leaned back in the chair and studied his father. He wasn’t sure he liked the careful way his dad examined him. As if he were searching hard for something.

“It’s a wonder you’re taking this so personally,” Ed commented. “Knowing how you feel about Krista.”

The ironic note in his father’s voice made Matt snort. There was a twinkle in his dad’s eyes and the hint of a smile.

“Well, we’re doing our best,” Ed continued. “We have a few leads, but until we get a big break, we’ll have to stay the course.”

“And hope it doesn’t happen again,” Matt muttered.

The thought of Ricky, sitting in his fancy house on the hill, laughing at everyone, brought a rush of anger coursing through his veins. Ricky might not have dirt under his nails over this, but he sure would have it on his conscience. If he even had one.

“Why don’t you get out of here? It’s late.” Ed straightened and walked to the desk.

“Is that why you’re here?” Matt glanced at the clock on the wall. It was nearly three-thirty in the morning. “Mom hates you working this shift.”

“We all have to pay our dues, Matt, even when we’re staring at retirement. I’ll be out of here in about half an hour too.”

“And you’ll have Mom home waiting for you,” Matt said, almost wistfully.

A grin spread over his father’s face. A smile of pure contentment. “It’s a nice feeling. You should try it.”

“I did once, remember? Not exactly the same thing.”

Ed’s smile remained in place. “No, not exactly. Rachel wasn’t that type of woman, Matt. You found out just in time.”

“She chucked
me
, Dad, not the other way around.”

“True, but you would’ve figured it out eventually. You need a woman who’ll wait up for you, who’ll be
home
for you. And it’s high time you started looking.”

Matt stood and stretched. “I’ll start tomorrow,” he joked, trying to keep it light. He really didn’t want to go home to an empty house, but didn’t want to admit a woman, a wife, was what he needed. “Or maybe I’ll just get a dog.”

“We want grandchildren.”

“You might have to wait for a bit.” Matt shrugged into his jacket and headed for the door.

“Not too long, I hope,” his father called after him.

“Take a look at this.” Patricia held up a piece of paper and waved it in the air with an agitated jerk.

“What do you have?” Krista pushed away from her desk and crossed the office. Patricia held the letter out, her lips pursed tightly and her eyes reflecting uncharacteristic anger.

Krista grimaced as she read the name at the top of the single cream sheet.
Richard A. Crowe
. “Now what?” She scanned the short letter, holding her breath.

And let it out with a whoosh.
I’ll be damned.

“He wants something,” she grumbled, taking the check from Patricia’s hand. “A person doesn’t make a one-eighty so quickly. Not Ricky, anyway. Donating money isn’t going to make things better.”

“You think he’s using it to clear his conscience?”

Krista studied the check, the donation Ricky said he wanted to contribute to ‘a wonderful cause,’ according to the accompanying letter. Three zeros followed the five. Was it that easy for him to write a check so large? She considered herself financially comfortable, yet she still couldn’t write that number so casually.
Of course, there’s nothing casual about this.

She shook her head. “No, I don’t. I think it’s a dig. He wants to get to me. I might pay him a visit. It’s probably long overdue.” She forced a smile. It didn’t come easily or even honestly.

“Honey, I’m not so sure that’s a good idea,” Patricia warned.

“I’m not going to hide from him.”

Patricia laid a staying hand on Krista’s arm. “Please, think about it first. He may be playing games with you, but he can get nasty.”

“Yeah, I’ve already had a taste of that. I’ll be careful, I promise.”

Krista tucked the letter and the check into her purse. Tonight she’d go over there after dinner, when he’d most likely be home. Maybe if they had this confrontation, he’d back off. She didn’t have any interest in revenge. That wouldn’t take away the years of pain she’d endured. She wanted him to leave her alone.

She wasn’t so confident when she stood at his door several hours later. A beautiful house, it must’ve cost a fortune. No wonder he wasn’t pleased to see her back in town. The tide could’ve easily turned against him all those years ago. This might never have been.

Krista steeled her nerves and pressed the doorbell. She waited for a minute or two, which seemed more like five, before someone opened the door.

As if he expected her to show up, Ricky leaned causally against the doorframe. It was the first time she’d seen him close up since they appeared in court together years ago. Regardless of his polished and confident appearance, she could still see the same cocky boy she remembered way back when.

He gave her a flashy white smile and his dark eyes gleamed. “I was wondering when you’d drop by and say hello. Come on in.”

Krista hesitated. She really didn’t want to go in, but the only way to win Ricky’s respect and make him understand he didn’t intimidate was to accept his invitation.

“Thank you,” she replied coldly and walked past him into the foyer, her back stiff.

“Come into the living room and meet Rachel.”

“I’ll only stay a moment.”

She followed him out of the foyer and into a large living room. A woman, as polished and elegant as Ricky, sat on the sofa, her legs tucked beneath her. She unfolded herself and stood, a sweet smile spreading slowly across her pretty face. Krista felt an immediate dislike.

“Rachel, this is an old friend of mine, Krista Faye. Krista, this is my fiancée, Rachel.” Ricky introduced them smoothly. “Krista is the mastermind behind the youth center.”

Like his woman didn’t know everything going on at the mill.

Rachel smiled as if she hadn’t heard. “Congratulations on a successful venture,” she said.

“Thank you.”

“You’re looking terrific, Krista.” Ricky took hold of her arms and turned her to the light. “You can barely see the scars at all.”

He sure knew how to put on a show. To toss out this ‘long lost friend’ crap with a grin on his face, as if he were giving her the biggest compliment of her life.

“It is incredible, isn’t it?” she replied dryly. “Now for why I came.” She pulled away, dug into her purse, and withdrew the check. “I wanted to return this to you. I appreciate your generosity, but we can’t accept this. The center is fully funded by a private company. I’m sure there are other organizations far more deserving, groups that would get much more use from it.”

She didn’t think she surprised him too much. Still, he managed an expression of vast disappointment, his dark brows raised, head cocked to the side. “There must be some good this money can do, Krista. Perhaps some equipment? Really, it’s not much to Rachel and me. I’m sure it could cover a child’s tuition. Listen, why don’t you keep the check and think on it for a while?”

Rachel slid up behind Ricky and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Please say you will. It would mean so much to us. We don’t want you thinking badly of Ricky.”

Krista narrowed her eyes. Just how much did Rachel know about Ricky’s activities? Enough, she supposed, to know her future husband was up to no good.

“Why don’t you keep it instead?” Krista suggested. “Consider donating it to a good cause that needs the money more than us.”

“But we want you to have it.” Ricky offered a frown as fake as his smile. “I prefer to keep the money in Quail Ridge, Krista. Besides, I get the distinct feeling you think I’ve somehow wronged you.” He reached out and put a hand on Krista’s shoulder, his fingers tightening slightly in a way that could be considered comforting, but Krista only found the contact threatening.

She took a step back from it and Ricky’s hand fell to his side.

If she’d pissed him off, he didn’t show it. “We used to be friends,” he added. “I’m sorry what happened that night put an end to it. I never wanted to see you go to prison.” He indicated the check Krista held. “I was hoping this would be a way to . . . well, to make things better.”

“Better?” Krista laughed shortly. “You think you can erase those years with a check?”

“Really, I’m sure Ricky’s intentions were good,” Rachel protested softly.

Krista’s attention flicked to the other woman. She really didn’t have a clue. Without bothering to answer, she glanced away and sent Ricky a narrow glare.

“I wanted to do this politely, Ricky, but you leave me no other choice. Apparently I have to be blunt and to the point. I know what you’re trying to do and it can stop right now. I didn’t come back here to Quail Ridge to clear my name, or attempt to convince people of what really happened that night. In fact, it didn’t even come to my mind until you made it an issue.” Krista glanced briefly at Rachel. “Does your girlfriend even know what happened that night and how you and your father threw me to the sharks?”

“This is ridiculous,” Rachel muttered, still partially behind Ricky. Irritation marred those otherwise pretty features, wrinkling her forehead, pulling her lips down in a grimace.

Krista regarded Ricky curiously. “She doesn’t know about what really happened, does she?”

Ricky’s smile transformed from smooth to steely. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’m not sure I like your accusations.”

Shrugging, Krista dropped the check on the end table. “It doesn’t matter. Just stay away from me.”

She strode from the room, her back straight and head held high. She expected either Ricky or his fiancée to follow her, yet she made it out to her Jeep without any further confrontations. Raw nerves had her rattled inside, but her confidence returned as a sense of pride washed through her.

Finally, Krista felt more like the person she used to be before returning to Quail Ridge.

Two more days remained until the opening and Krista had been running around like a headless chicken, rifling through a stack of papers in search of the caterer’s phone number. She shoved some bills aside with one hand and grumbled to herself. What sane person needed to go through this?

Saturday night would be the gala, as Cameron had called it, for the adults; a formal event, requiring a dress Krista hadn’t even started shopping for. If only she could have ducked out of the whole event for the night. But Cameron and Gretchen would’ve dragged her kicking and screaming to this thing, fancy dress or no.

Sunday would be more her speed, when the center opened to everyone. First, she had to get through the stuffy part.
No
, she thought as she shoved another stack aside, first she had to get through the damned party planning, wishing she had Gretchen at her side. Gretchen could’ve done a fast, flawless job with this.

“Just go to Nashua and get the dress,” Patricia ordered. “I’ll hold down the fort here.”

“First I’ve got to make sure the caterers are all set and O’Dell’s is delivering the tables at noon . . .”

“And I’ll be here. I know where the tables go, I know where the chairs go. Heck, I know where everything goes. And I can call the caterer and make sure everything is right on track.” Patricia pointed toward the door. “Now please go. Don’t put this off until the last minute.”

Krista shot her a tight grin. “I hate to break this to you, but this
is
the last minute. Fine, I’ll go. I can tell you won’t leave me be until I do.” She collected her jacket and purse.

“Before you do, I need to ask you something.”

Krista paused. “What is it?”

“John wants to come with me Saturday night. I wanted to make sure you’re okay with it.”

Her eyebrow rose. “Of course it’s all right. My goodness, he doesn’t need my permission. I thought we were all straight on that.”

“I know, but he’s still feeling badly.”

Krista smiled. As far as she knew, Patricia didn’t have any idea about the encounter on the ridge with John. A few days after, she’d gone over to their house and talked things out. While they weren’t back to the same comfortable relationship, they were at least on their way to repairing things.

“I want both of you there. This is for Liz as much as anyone else, after all.”

Patricia nodded, relief clear in her eyes. “I’ll let him know. I’m glad this is past us now.”

“Same here. Now I’m going to brave the Nashua traffic. I’m becoming so spoiled by the lack of traffic here in town, I’ve forgotten about city driving. I’ll manage and I won’t come home until I have a dress.” She gave Patricia a painful smile.

Although dress shopping was the last thing in the world she wanted to do, getting this trip out of the way had to be done.

She hit the mall first, figuring she’d have a better chance of finding something appropriate there. The stores were packed with holiday clothing. Finding something that would suit her needs wasn’t as easy as she hoped. Maybe she made it too difficult, being so picky. She’d gone through five stores before desperation set in.

She had to leave the mall and continue the search to another store before she hit her jackpot. The tiny boutique didn’t offer much selection, but when she found the velvet dress, in a gorgeous emerald green, she prayed it would fit.

It clung to her figure, with a neckline that gave a hint of cleavage. The sleeves reached her elbows. Enough to cover the scars that marred her shoulder and bicep. Perfect for the occasion. Even Gretchen would approve. To Krista, high fashion meant designer jeans and a new football jersey. She was amazed she was able to find anything on her own.