About That Man (23 page)

He and Anna-Louise stared at her. Frances wasn't a woman prone to giggles.

“What?” Anna-Louise asked eventually.

“Walker's no more Yankee than you or I,” Frances said. “He was born in Richmond. I have it right in my report. Talk about appearances being deceiving. I guess this one's on you.” She erupted into laughter once again.

King took the ribbing in stride, but his thoughts turned speculative. If Walker wasn't a Yankee after all, then maybe he'd been handling this all wrong. There wasn't a Southern gentleman on earth who wouldn't come to a lady's rescue. He'd tried the marriage ploy on Walker once before to no avail, but that didn't mean it wasn't worth a second try, not with Daisy's reputation—her entire life's work—so plainly on the line.

He sat back down. “Forget the moving van,” he announced.

“Oh?” Anna-Louise asked, regarding him with suspicion.

“I think maybe it's time Walker and I had another talk.” He dialed the sheriff's office, only to be told that Walker was out of contact for the rest of the night.

“Then have him call me first thing in the morning,” he told the dispatcher. “Tell him it's urgent and that I expect him here for breakfast. Eight sharp.”

He leaned back and regarded the two women with satisfaction. “How about I take you two ladies out for a nice crab dinner at the marina? I'm feeling real good, all of a sudden.”

“Yes, I can see that,” Anna-Louise said. “What worries me is why? What do you have up your sleeve, King?”

“Nothing for you to trouble yourself about,” he assured her.

“Maybe I'd better say a little prayer, just the same,” she said, her tone wry.

“You do whatever you want. I've got things under control,” he replied. In fact, things just might be taking a real turn for the better.

 

“How come Uncle Walker's going fishing every night?” Tommy asked Daisy after Walker's brief visit. She hadn't had time to tell him anything at all about the dinner with Gary's family because he'd had to leave for another night on the river.

These quick, drop-in visits had been the pattern for a while now. Sometimes, when Walker could spare the time, they ate dinner, then Walker took off for work. She and Walker had agreed not to tell Tommy the full story about his surveillance since Tommy had a tendency to blab whatever he knew indiscriminately to his friends.

“Now that he's out of the city, I think he's just enjoying having some time to himself,” Daisy said evasively.

“Why can't I go with him?”

“Maybe one of these days he'll take you,” she said. “In the meantime, be glad he's on this kind of a schedule. He has more time during the day to coach your baseball team. It'll be great having him around during the day this summer, won't it?”

“Yeah,” Tommy said, after giving the idea some consideration. “That's pretty cool. I never had a dad to do stuff like this before.” He regarded her worriedly. “Uncle Walker's almost like a dad, isn't he?”

“Absolutely.”

At the time Tommy had seemed satisfied by her answers. But later that night when she stopped in Tommy's room to check on him on her way to bed, she realized she'd been lulled into a false sense of compla
cency. He was missing. She knew without a doubt where he had gone, and it made her blood run cold.

She was shaking like a leaf as she dialed Tucker, rousted him out of bed and explained what had happened. “He asked too many questions tonight. I just know he snuck on that boat. You have to get word to Walker.”

“Calm down, Sis. Walker's been out there night after night and nothing's happened. There's no reason to think tonight will be any different. I'll call Bobby, and we'll take his boat out to meet them and make sure everything's okay.”

“I'm coming with you,” she announced. “I'll meet you at the marina.”

When she showed up with her shotgun in tow, Tucker looked as if he might explode. “Put that damn thing back in the car. You are not bringing it along.”

“Tucker Spencer, I've been shooting every bit as long as you have. I have terrific aim.”

“Damn Daddy for ever teaching you,” he muttered. “Blast it, Daisy, you've been aiming at bottles on fence-posts, not human targets!”

“Then let's hope there are no human targets out there,” she said, taking Bobby's outstretched hand and stepping onto his boat without another glance at Tucker.

“What's going on?” King demanded, arriving out of the blue and surveying the scene. “Why are you all getting ready to go out on a boat at this ungodly hour? And why does Daisy have a shotgun, for Pete's sake?”

“I forgot to mention that Daddy was here when you called,” Bobby said. “Dining with Frances and Anna-Louise, as a matter of fact, and looking awfully damned smug. I tried to avoid him on my way out here, but obviously his eyes are sharper than I'd thought.”

“Great, just great,” Tucker muttered. “Go back to your dinner, Daddy. Everything's under control.”

Her father shot a look in her direction. “Yes, I can see that. The last person who told me things were under control almost lost her damned job.”

“And before the night's out, I could end up throwing her in jail,” Tucker declared ominously.

“For what?” Daisy demanded, tired of being discussed as if she weren't present or as if she weren't perfectly capable of running her own blasted life.

“Interfering with a police investigation, carrying a loaded weapon. I don't know, I'll work on the charges. I'll make them stick, too.”

“Daddy will love that, won't you, Daddy?”

“Will somebody please just tell me what in tarnation is going on?” King said. “Right now, I've got my whole family down here making a spectacle of themselves. If Richard gets wind of this, it'll be in this week's paper.”

“How would Richard find out?” Daisy asked reasonably.

“I did mention that Anna-Louise was dining with Daddy, didn't I? I'm sure I did,” Bobby said, sounding more and more amused.

Daisy scowled at him, then turned back to her father. “Okay, here's the deal in a nutshell. Walker's on a drug stakeout. We think Tommy snuck onto the boat to be with him. Now do you see why we can't just stand around here talking?”

Her father stared hard at Tucker. “Is this true? There are drugs in Trinity Harbor? Why wasn't I told about this?”

Daisy lost patience. “Could we dissect this later? Please, let's just get out there before something happens to Tommy.” She faced Tucker. “Did you reach Walker?”

“I did. And Tommy is with him. He found him hiding below deck. I think he was about to blister his nephew's butt.”

“If he doesn't, I might,” Daisy said grimly. She'd never been so terrified in her life.

At least that's what she thought until she heard the sound of shots ringing out across the river. That was when she started to pray.

B
etween the fog rising off the river and the well-deserved lecture he was giving Tommy on his irresponsible behavior, Walker didn't notice the suspicious boat easing past on his port side until it was less than a hundred yards away.

“Tommy, go below now!” he ordered tersely, focusing his binoculars on the deck of the expensive fiberglass fishing boat. Thankfully the boy scrambled to do as he was told without a lot of questions.

There were two men he didn't recognize on deck, neither of whom seemed to be holding fishing rods or showing the slightest interest in the crab pots bobbing on the water. Midnight was not a likely hour for a pleasure cruise or even a fishing trip. It was an hour when someone on the water could very well be up to no good.

He steered his boat closer, hoping for a clearer view. When only a few yards separated them, he called out, ordering them to drop anchor and prepare to be boarded. That was when the first shot came zinging straight at him, catching him in the arm. He hit the deck, reached for his rifle and took aim at the other boat's motor, hoping to disable it. He already knew that Tucker was en route. If he
could keep these jokers from running, he'd have backup in no time.

Unfortunately, drawn by the sound of gunfire, Tommy slipped onto the deck, shouting hysterically. “What's happening?” he cried, sliding on the slippery deck in his haste to get to Walker.

“Go back down!” Walker shouted, trying to get between his nephew and the shooters.

“What's happening? Are you shot?” Tommy asked, eyes wide as he noticed the blood soaking Walker's shirtsleeve.

Walker had never experienced such terror in his life. He hunkered down and gazed steadily into the boy's eyes, all too aware that he was putting his back directly into the line of fire.

“Listen to me,” he pleaded, expecting to hear the pop of another bullet at any second, anticipating the pain of it slamming through flesh. “Calm down. I want you to go back down below and stay there until I say you can come up again. Tucker will be here any minute, and everything is going to be just fine.”

“But—”

“Just do it, Tommy. Please. Right now. This is no time to argue with me.”

“But you're hurt,” he protested, his voice catching on a sob. “I don't want you to die like Mommy did. Please, Uncle Walker.” He dragged at Walker's arm. “Come with me. You've got to. Please.”

“I am not going to die.”

“How do you know? They shot you. People die when they get shot, like that little girl.”

Walker stared at him in shock. “How did you know about Keisha?”

“I heard you and Daisy talking. She was shot and she's dead, so you could die, too. Please don't make me go away. Please, just come with me.”

Walker heard the sound of the engine revving up on the other boat and cursed the missed opportunity. He had a split second to make a decision, a split second in which to choose duty over Tommy.

But he had heard the unmistakable hysteria in Tommy's voice, seen the panic in his eyes. Given the choice between catching a couple of two-bit drug traffickers and consoling a little boy who'd already been through way too much, there was no choice at all.

“Come here,” he said, opening his arms to his nephew as the sound of the other boat's engine slipped away into the fog.

Shuddering with sobs, Tommy collapsed in his arms, clinging to Walker with all his might.

“It's okay, son. I'm going to be fine. The wound's not serious. The bullet barely scraped me.”

“But you're bleeding,” Tommy protested.

“It doesn't matter. We're going to be just fine,” Walker reassured him.

For the first time since he'd learned of Tommy's existence, he actually believed it.

Of course, that was before Daisy arrived, took one look at the blood on both of them now and, after ascertaining that the blood was all Walker's and that his injury wasn't life-threatening, proceeded to deliver a fire-and-brimstone sermon that would have rivaled anything Anna-Louise could conjure up for Sunday morning.

“I'm sorry,” Tommy whispered.

He might as well have saved his breath. The apology
didn't make a dent in Daisy's tirade. She had more to say. A lot more, apparently.

Walker knew from experience there was no way to shut her up except to kiss her, which he did…quite thoroughly, if he did say so himself. Left him feeling downright faint, but maybe that had something to do with the loss of blood.

Daisy shoved and wriggled and opened her mouth to protest from time to time, but Walker was persistent. Eventually, it was as if all the starch drained out of her and she melted against him, pliable and willing and maybe even a little bit frantic. Walker was pretty sure he'd never been kissed with such a wild range of emotions in his life.

When they eventually came up for air—much too soon, to his way of thinking—four wide-eyed males were staring at them. He didn't like the stormy look in her brothers' eyes one bit. Even more worrisome was the speculative glint in King's eyes.

“Are you and Daisy gonna get married?” Tommy asked, his expression hopeful.

“It was a kiss, Tommy. It didn't mean a thing,” Daisy said emphatically, pushing away from Walker and dusting herself off as if she could wipe away what had happened as if it were nothing more than a sandy nuisance.

Walker studied her pink cheeks and dazed eyes. “Didn't it?” he asked mildly.

“Looked pretty official to me,” King observed. “Like sealing a deal.”

“Oh, stay out of it, Daddy,” Daisy snapped.

Walker felt something ease inside him as the idea of marrying Daisy took a firmer grip than it had in past days. Things had been working out okay since he'd arrived in town. His feelings for Daisy had grown, not diminished.
Why not just take a deep breath and go for it? For a man who prided himself on logical, careful thinking in his work, he'd been making a lot of impulsive personal decisions lately. What was one more? Especially one that felt as right as this one did.

He met Daisy's turbulent gaze and saw that despite the firm denials she'd uttered, she looked slightly nonplused by the entire discussion. He thought that was a good thing. She was always more agreeable when he caught her off-guard.

“Now that we've been found out by your family, I think maybe we'll have to,” Walker said, his steady gaze on King, Tucker and Bobby. Then he turned to Daisy. “What about it?”

She stared at him with a shocked expression that quickly turned to indignation. “Is that your idea of a proposal, Walker Ames?” she demanded.

“What's wrong? Not civilized enough for you?” he taunted, knowing he was going about this all wrong, but counting on family pressure to accomplish what he hadn't.

“Not by a long shot,” she said, scrambling away from him and back onto her brother's boat before Walker could think to stop her.

He glanced at Tucker and Bobby and saw that they were both grinning from ear to ear. King seemed mighty pleased with himself. He gave Tommy's shoulder a quick, approving squeeze, as if to thank him for getting the ball rolling with his innocently asked question.

“Looks as if you have your work cut out for you,” Bobby noted. As he followed Daisy back to the other boat, he called over his shoulder, “Come on, Daddy. Let's leave this in Tucker's capable hands.” His grin spread. “See you guys back at the marina.”

Walker watched the sheriff warily. “You're not going back with them?”

“Oh, no,” his boss said quietly. “Seems like there are a few things you and I need to talk about.”

“Think I'll stick around and put in my two cents, as well,” King said, waving a dismissal at Bobby and settling into a deck chair.

“I'm not leaving, Uncle Walker,” Tommy declared, his expression mulish.

Walker couldn't deny his nephew the right to stay, but the other two were a damned nuisance. “Am I the only one who noticed that there are two suspects out here on the river who are getting away, while we talk over what should be a personal matter?” Walker said, hoping to divert them.

“Long gone,” Tucker said, then asked with little more than mild curiosity, “Did you get a decent look at them?”

“Not really. I did see the boat, though. It wasn't the one we've been watching. This was a trawler, though I didn't see much evidence that the men on board were interested in fishing.”

Tucker nodded. “Then we'll get a description out when we get back to the office. In the meantime, let's talk about just how serious you are about marrying my sister.”

“Good question,” King said appreciatively. “Well, Walker, what do you have to say for yourself?”

Before responding, Walker glanced at Tommy, who was half in his lap, seemingly sound asleep. Satisfied, he tried to make his point to Daisy's father and brother clear. “I say that you two are not the ones I intend to have this conversation with.”

“Was it an impulse, one you're already regretting?” Tucker asked pointedly.

“I told you, I am not having this conversation.”

“Dammit, boy, you owe her,” King said. “Damned near cost her her job. If it weren't for me, she'd be out on the street right this minute.”

Walker stared at him. “What are you talking about? Has something more happened?”

“Had a talk with the school board president just tonight. He and the board were ready to fire her, till I made them see reason.”

“Bullied them, in other words,” Tucker said.

“Damned straight I did. She's my daughter. What would you have me do? Sit back and let them ruin her life? I don't give two figs if Daisy never sets foot in the classroom again, but
she
does. She loves teaching, loves those kids. The woman ought to have a whole passel of them at home.”

He glared at Walker. “When it comes to the school board, my influence will only go so far. An engagement ring—or better yet, a wedding ring—on her finger would do the rest.”

Walker thought about that, thought about Tucker's earlier question about whether his proposal had been nothing but an impulse, one he regretted. There was no denying the words had come out of his mouth before he'd had a chance to consider them, but he hadn't wanted to take them back. Not for a single second. He hadn't felt relieved when she'd thrown the proposal right back in his face. He'd felt let down.

“Can I say something?” Tommy piped up, startling all of them.

Walker gazed down at the boy who was curled snugly against his side.

“Everyone else has an opinion. I might as well hear yours, too,” he told him.

“I think you should send her flowers. Lots and lots of flowers. Girls like that,” he said confidently. “And candy. Mommy used to get all teary when I'd give her a box of candy, even when it was kinda squished.”

“And maybe a gallon of cherry vanilla ice cream, now and then,” Tucker chimed in.

Walker rolled his eyes. “I'm getting courting advice from a ten-year-old and a bachelor with no prospects in sight.” He gazed at King. “You have any advice you'd like to share?”

King's expression turned thoughtful before he finally nodded. “I might at that. I've got her mama's diamond ring at home. It was my mother's before that. Women like a sentimental touch like that.”

Walker stared at him in shock. “You'd give me that ring to offer Daisy?”

“It's hers by right and, yes, if it'll get the job done, I'll give it to you.”

Walker was more touched by the evidence of King's unspoken approval than he had been by anything in a long time. He knew it wasn't given lightly. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

“Nothing to thank me for,” King said gruffly. “For some reason you make her happy. That's all I want for any of my kids.” He grinned. “Doesn't hurt that I found out you're not a Yankee, after all. Why did you let me think you were?”

“You were enjoying it so much, why ruin your fun?” Walker said. “Besides, you wouldn't have been all that impressed by my Southern bloodlines, either.”

“No man born in Richmond, capital of the Confederacy, can be all bad.”

“Don't be so sure,” Walker retorted, thinking of the father who'd abandoned them before Tommy's mother had been out of diapers. Trent Ames might have been Southern, but he was no gentleman. He was scum to the core.

“Okay,” Tucker said, starting the boat's engine. “Now that Daisy's future has been settled—”

“With everyone except Daisy,” Walker pointed out, not nearly as confident of the outcome as they apparently were.

“You'll get the job done,” King reassured him. “But it might do to use a little more finesse the next time you pop the question.”

“Let's just get back to shore so Walker can have that arm looked at by the doctor and the two of us can sit down and go over what he learned about our suspects tonight,” Tucker said. “I'd like to try to salvage something from this, so the night's not a total loss.”

Walker felt Tommy's tug on his shirt. He looked down into the boy's sleepy eyes.

“Is Daisy going to be my mom?”

“I'm going to do my best to see that she is,” Walker promised.

“Will it be okay if I still miss my real mom?”

Tears stung Walker's eyes. “It will always be okay to miss your mother. I miss her, too.”

“She was the best, huh?”

Walker thought of the bright-eyed, beautiful, rebellious girl he'd loved, but hadn't been able to protect. “She was the best,” he echoed.

 

“Marry him, indeed,” Daisy blustered all the way back to the Trinity Harbor marina. “Is the man crazy?”

Bobby, to his credit, didn't utter a word until they were back at the dock, probably because he knew she would have tried to toss him overboard if he'd opened his mouth. She was livid enough to do it. Anger that deep was no doubt accompanied by a powerful adrenaline rush. She almost regretted Bobby's discretion, because she was itching for a fight, longing to do something physically violent. Shredding a handful of marina cocktail napkins that she'd grabbed to staunch Walker's bleeding wasn't getting the job done.