Falling Like Snowflakes (13 page)

She stopped when Beau did, trying to shake the dark feeling that had come over her.

“There's a sled right up here,” Beau said, reaching up on a high wooden ledge. He pulled something forward. Boxes tipped to the side as he worked to free the object.

“I guess it's been awhile. It's wedged under a bunch of crap. No telling what all's up there. My dad was kind of a pack rat.”

She reached up to help, catching hold of a red runner as he tried to clear the boxes away. It was almost free. She tugged on the runner, and it came loose easily. She stumbled backward. A large box fell with it, and Beau batted it away from his head, letting loose of the sled.

Its weight fell toward her, and she pushed it aside as she went down. Beau reached for her, but it was too late.

She landed with a hard thud on the wood floor, Beau following a millisecond later, sprawling over her, his hands landing beside her shoulders, his weight pressing down on her.

She blinked at the ceiling, her breaths ragged, as she assessed the damage. Her back had taken the brunt of the fall.

Beau leaned away, his sharpened gaze on her face. “You okay? Did you hit your head?”

His body felt like a thousand-pound weight pinning her down. Her arms were trapped against her body. Suddenly it was Antonio's body pressing against her. His greedy hands touching her in ways that turned her stomach.

Panic flooded through her, and hysteria built inside. She pushed against his weight. “Get off. Get off me!”

Beau rolled to the side.

Eden scrambled across the floor crab-style until she hit the sled. Her breaths plumed in the cold shed, her heart beating out a frantic rhythm. Beau's eyes fixed on hers, recognition dawning in the shadowed depths.

Beau didn't know exactly what he'd done wrong, but he felt like all kinds of jerk. The past few seconds rewound in his head to the panic that had burned in Kate's eyes in that instant before she'd pushed him away. Something had happened. Something more than a clumsy fall.

Her chest rose and fell quickly as she scrambled to her feet.

He rose, too, moving warily. “I'm sorry. Are you okay?”

She backed away, not meeting his gaze. “I-I'm fine. I have to go.”

“Kate . . .”

But she was already rushing toward the door and through the snow. He watched her go, wondering what the heck had just happened.

Chapter 13

E
den's heart sped up at the sound of the doorbell the next evening. She left Micah in their room drawing on an Etch A Sketch and went to answer Paige's door. After peeking through the sidelight, she opened the door.

Beau wore a striped button-down under his L.L.Bean jacket. His hair was wind tousled, and he smelled like heaven.

This morning she'd woken feeling like an idiot for her reaction in the barn. She'd planned on a full day before having to face him again.

“Come on in.” She moved aside, careful to give him a wide berth. “Paige got stuck at work. She'll be here in a few minutes. She tried to call.”

“Ah. I left my phone charging at home.”

They stood for a beat, awkwardness swirling around them like snow flurries caught in an updraft. She shifted her bare feet on the cold wood floor. She'd tuned Paige's TV to a station that played Christmas carols, and the playful melody of “Baby, It's Cold Outside” filtered through the room.

She felt stupid offering him a seat or a cup of coffee. He'd
probably spent more hours here than she. The sun had set, and only the hall light filtered into the living room.

She flipped on the light as he unzipped his jacket.

“Would you like—”

“About last night . . .”

They spoke at the same time.

Eden gave a wry huff. “That's starting to become our phrase.” Her smile wobbled on her lips when he failed to respond to her attempt at levity.

“Maybe it's just as well Paige is late. I think we should talk.”

“Listen.” Eden tried for a smile, dodging his knowing eyes. “I was just feeling spooked last night. I had a nightmare the night before, and the barn was all dark and creepy, and I got caught off guard when you—”

“Is it your husband?”

Her eyes darted to his, her fake smile falling away. She swallowed hard. “What?”

“I'm sorry to be so blunt, but after the way you reacted—” He straightened his shoulders, an action that made him even taller. He pinned her with a look, and she couldn't drag her eyes away.

“I have Paige, my family, to think about, and you haven't exactly been an open book.”

“I'm a private person.”

“You didn't answer my question. Are you running from your husband?”

She moved toward the divider between the living room and dining room, putting space between them. She had to allay his suspicions or he'd go snooping into her past. She leaned against the wall and saw that he had followed, seeming to shrink the space in half.

“You don't have to worry about my husband,” she said. “He's—he's dead.”

Beau's eyes sharpened even as his head tipped back a fraction of an inch.

“And no, I didn't do it.”

“That's not what I was—” He pressed his lips together. “Okay, maybe it was.” He gave her a sheepish look. “Blame my law enforcement background. I'm sorry for your loss.”

Truthfully, his death had only been a loss for her son, but she had a feeling Beau already knew that. “Thank you.”

She looked toward the stairs, wishing for the buffer of her son, needing to escape Beau's questions, his scrutiny.

She pushed off the wall. “I should go check on Jack. I'm sure Paige'll be here any—”

He caught her arm gently as she passed. “We're not finished with—”

The front door flew open. “Sorry I'm—” Paige's eyes toggled from Beau to Eden, then fell to his hand, still on Eden's arm.

Beau's hand fell away. “Hi, hon. Get caught up with an emergency?”

Paige's expression shifted. “Um, yeah. That and some paperwork. I tried to call.”

“I have to check on Jack.” Eden tried for a smile, relieved for the chance to escape. “You guys have a good time,” she said before beating it up the stairs.

They made it all the way to the corner booth of The Wharf before Paige broached the subject. They'd already covered her workday
and Beau's day off, which had consisted of restocking the cut trees and finishing some accounting for the farm he'd been putting off.

It had been at least a month since he'd taken her out. He'd been so busy getting the farm up and going, and she'd been so swamped at the pet shelter. They'd made do with suppers at the farmhouse and impromptu Roadhouse gatherings. Still . . . a month. He deserved the Worst Boyfriend Award.

“So,” Paige said, raising the menu. “It looked like you and Kate were in the middle of an intense conversation when I walked in.”

Paige perused the menu as if nothing was amiss, but he'd have to be stupid to miss the carefully casual expression on her face.

“I think you're right about her. Something's off. I asked Sheriff Colton to check her out. He has her soc number, so hopefully we'll know something soon.” He also suspected the sheriff would check her plates at the garage.

He didn't tell Paige that all three of Kate's references had been wrong numbers. Then he wondered why he withheld the information.

“That's good. Have you asked her point-blank if she's in some kind of trouble?”

“I have. Not that I've gotten much of an answer. She admitted that her husband passed, so that eliminates that theory.”

“If she's telling the truth.”

“I'm pretty sure she was.” Being a deputy had made him good at reading people. Or maybe he just wanted to believe her.

“But she's still evasive?”

“Very much so.”

The server returned and took their orders and their menus, leaving nothing but a flickering candle between them.

“It could take awhile for Sheriff Colton to work his magic,”
Paige said. “And even if she is hiding something, you may not learn anything relevant, not if there's nothing on the record.”

It wasn't a new thought. “I know.”

Her blue eyes softened in the candlelight. “Beau . . . maybe you should just let her go. Aunt Trudy's getting around pretty well now, and maybe we can work out some kind of ride arrangement for her therapy appointments.”

The thought of turning Kate and Jack loose with so little didn't sit well with him. He suspected now more than ever that she was in over her head with something, and it wasn't his nature to let her fend for herself. She didn't even have the money to get her car fixed yet.

But it wasn't fair to Paige to have a stranger potentially jeopardizing her safety. He wasn't crazy about that himself.

“Maybe we should move her out to the farmhouse. Aunt Trudy's room upstairs is—What?” he asked at the sudden shift of emotion on Paige's face.

“It's not your job to protect her, Beau.” Her voice was firm.

“I'm trying to protect
you
. Aunt Trudy's nowhere near ready to take over the house again, and her therapy takes time. Not just the appointments, but the stuff she does at home.”

She studied him until he felt as if he were under a microscope. He had no reason to feel guilty. He hadn't done anything wrong.

But if he were gut-level honest, he was more aware of Kate than he should be. And as much as he'd like to chalk that up to his investigative tendencies, he knew deep down it was more than that. He didn't have feelings for her—just an attraction. But that was normal, right? She was a pretty woman, and he was a healthy young male.

“What's your gut telling you?” she asked.

For a moment he thought Paige had read his mind. Then he realized she was talking about Kate's past.

“I think she's running from something. But that doesn't mean she's in danger. People run from all kinds of things.”

“But it doesn't mean she's
not
in danger. What did she say tonight? She seemed kind of frazzled.”

Beau leaned back in the booth. “Something happened last night. We were in the barn, and she got kind of spooked. We were trying to get the sled down, and I ended up falling on her. She freaked out and starting pushing me off, and then—”

“Wait. You were on
top
of her . . .?”

His gaze hardened. “You're missing the point.”

Was it just him, or did it seem like Paige was reading into things? Maybe his conscience was giving off guilty vibes. She wasn't the jealous type—at least he didn't think so. They hadn't been a couple all that long, and frankly, she'd had no reason to be jealous.

Not that she did now.

“There's nothing to be jealous about.”

“I'm not jealous.”

“You know how I feel about you.” Maybe they hadn't exchanged “I love yous” yet, but he'd come close to saying it. And he was pretty sure she was only waiting for him. He wasn't sure what held him back.

He didn't want Kate coming between them, even if it was only in Paige's mind. “I actually think Riley might like her.”

She scoffed. “She's totally wrong for him.”

Beau shrugged. “Well, he's pretty defensive of her. And I've walked in on them talking a couple times. They stopped when I came in like I'd interrupted something.”

She shook her head. “He was probably fishing for information, like you.”

“I don't think so.”

“Well . . . he's leaving soon anyway.” Sadness settled over her features at the acknowledgment. Her shoulders slumped as she picked at her napkin.

Awhile later their food arrived, a welcome interruption. Paige gave Beau a thin smile over the steaming seafood platters. So much for their night out. The date had been hijacked by people who weren't even in the room.

Chapter 14