Honor Unraveled (14 page)

Kit walked Ivy to the passenger side of the SUV and waited while she dug out the keys to unlock it. She climbed inside. When he got in on the driver’s side, she asked, “Everything’s safe for her?”

He nodded. “Yeah. She’s good.”

“The new counselor was one of your guys, wasn’t he?”

“What gave it away?”

“His eyes.” She waited a minute, then asked another question that was burning to see daylight. “He wasn’t the only one, was he?”

“Nope.” Before she could drill into that, he sent a quick look at her and added, “Iv, our daughter is safe.”

Ivy nodded. “Thank you. I hope she enjoys herself as much this year as last.”

* * *

Casey arranged her meager belongings in the narrow locker assigned to her. The cabin was busy. Five girls would be bunking on her side; three of them had arrived, along with their parents and siblings. Some girls were weepy, worried about leaving their mothers. Some mothers were crying, reviewing and re-reviewing their daughter’s inventory of supplies and clothes, camp procedures, emergency procedures, yada, yada.

Casey dug through her pack, looking for one of the four books she’d brought to read in her downtime. Not that she expected to have much of it once things got started. She knew from years past that she’d have an hour or so in the evening to herself. Some of the girls used that time for writing letters. Others played games or did crafts or gossiped.
 

“Hey, you Casey?” a woman behind her asked.

Casey turned to see a tall woman standing at the foot of her bunk. From her T-shirt, Casey could tell she was one of the counselors, though not one she remembered from previous years.

“I am.”
 

The woman held her hand out. Casey shook it, feeling oddly grown up doing so. “I’m Selena, the counselor assigned to your group.” The woman had straight brown hair, warm, brown skin, and pale green eyes with thick, dark lashes. She was tall—taller than Casey’s mom, anyway. And she moved like an athlete. She looked tough. And not fussy. She’d be a great team leader. “Mind moving your stuff to the top bunk? It’s easier for me to do my job from the lower bunk.”
 

Casey shrugged. “Sure. You want the lower bunk, it’s yours.” She grabbed her backpack and sleeping bag, then tossed them up to the top bunk. Man, this was going to be a fun few weeks with Selena in charge. Casey could hardly wait for stuff to begin.

* * *

Kit and Owen followed one of the town board members into the meeting room. A special session had been convened for this particular conversation. The large space was filled beyond capacity with the board members and a few town citizens. Kit nodded at the sheriff, who stood across the room. One of the men closed the door, making the space instantly heat up from all the bodies inside.
 

“Sheriff, the floor’s yours. How about you handle introductions?”

Tate called out the board members and committee volunteers, then introduced Kit and Owen. “The others we have here are volunteers on our emergency response committee.” He called off their names. “Based on our conversation, Bolanger, I thought it best to have you speak to everyone at once.”

Kit ran down the situation, sharing the information cleared for release. Then he cautioned them. “In light of what we now expect’s going to happen, it isn’t safe for you to hold your festival as scheduled. I’d like to ask you to cancel or postpone your event.”

The mayor, Ralph Mitter, sent a look around the room, then shook his head. “We can cancel it, but we can’t postpone it. The logistics involved are a nightmare. Takes a whole year to put the event together. The vendors are likely already committed to other events later in the season. And I don’t want the risk of storing the fireworks for several more weeks.”

“We’re not canceling it,” Don, the head of the emergency response committee said. “We’re not going to let thugs dictate how we live, how we run our town. I say, if they want trouble, we give it to them.”

“This ain’t a game.” Kit tried to infuse some reality into the volunteer’s misplaced bravado. “You guys are civilians. You get between the two branches of the WKB, you’ll make yourselves living, breathing targets. People will die. There aren’t enough ambulances in this corner of the world to deal with the potential injured.”

“We’ve been running emergency scenario testing for years. We’re ready,” one of the committee members said.

“Sheriff Tate’s been training us up in case he needs a backup militia—for any type of emergency,” another committee member said.
 

“And we’ve got field medic experience. Two of us served as medics overseas. Three more of us are retired volunteer firemen,” Don added.

Kit looked at Owen, who frowned back at him. “You’re telling us you’re ready to accept the risk to yourselves and your citizens should you decide to go forward with your event?”

“That’s what we’re saying. You need men, we got ’em. Just tell us what the plan is.”

Ivy stood across the street from her diner. It felt strange being outside the restaurant during their lunch rush. Kit stood silently next to her. She’d just interviewed and selected her two new managers. They were eager to start. Tomorrow they’d both begin training, then one would take over the morning shift and the other the evening shift. They’d both overlap at midday.
 

“You sure we have to do this?” she asked Kit, still watching people enter her diner.

“I’m sure.”

“I’m going to buy you out in five years.” She looked at Kit, watching his reaction to that assertion. He smiled a little.

“I think you might be able to do it. Your place is busy. It’s been a hit with the locals.”

“And truckers on the interstate.”

He nodded. “You know what I think you should do next?”
 

“What?”

“Buy that empty lot across the highway. Give truckers an easy place to park so they can visit your diner. Word’s already getting out with the drivers how great your place is.”

Ivy’s jaw dropped as she considered his suggestion. “That’s brilliant! That lot’s an eyesore now. I could pave it, make it pretty with plantings, put some shade trees in, and set it up for big rigs.” She looked up at Kit, who was smiling at her. Her eyes narrowed. “You wouldn’t be suggesting that so I stay indebted to you, would you? You already own me.”

“Ivy, no one can own you. Being financially indebted to me isn’t the same as your voluntarily coming to me. I want you. All of you. Not just your gratitude. I know that you define yourself by your independence. It gives me joy to help you achieve that.”

Ivy blinked and looked away. He was killing her with kindness. And, holy hell, it hurt.

* * *

Ivy wandered outside to the paddocks off to the side of the house late the next morning. Mandy was working with one of her horses on a lunge line. Fiona came out of the stables with Zavi. She nodded to Ivy, then told Mandy, “We’re going to go wash up for lunch and then do naps.”

“Thanks, Fee. Zavi, if you have a good nap, we can go for a ride this afternoon.”

“Ok, Em. But I don’t like naps.”

“No, but you do like riding horses, right? You have to earn the ride. Nothing fun will happen while you’re sleeping. I promise.”

Rocco’s son made a face. Ivy bit her lips to keep from laughing. He looked like a grouchy four-year-old Rocco.

“He’ll take a good nap. You’ll see.” Fiona led the boy back to the house.

“He’s adorable,” Ivy said.

“And a handful.”

“Well, what kid isn’t?”

“True. How are you doing with Casey away at camp?”

“It’s so quiet. And now that I’ve hired the new managers, there’s not much for me to do at the diner. I really don’t know what to do with myself. I haven’t had downtime like this since Casey was born. And I don’t think you can count that as downtime.”

Mandy looked over at her and smiled. “Strange isn’t it?” She stopped the horse’s run and started him in the opposite direction. “How are things going with you and Kit?”

She studied her friend, wondering which side of the fence Mandy stood on when it came to the two of them. “He wants to get back together. But I don’t think I can.”

“Why not?”

There were a lot of good reasons she could list, but none of them were really why. She wrapped her arms around her waist. “I’m not over what happened before. It still hurts. I don’t want to go back to that place.”

Mandy looked over at Ivy. She stopped the trotting horse and released him back into his paddock. She crossed the circular pen and climbed up to sit next to Ivy, then hooked an arm through Ivy’s. For a long minute, neither spoke.

“Ivy—you’re my friend, and in my heart, you’re my sister. I want you to know that whatever you decide, we’re friends no matter what. I love you and I love my niece. But I love my brother, too. I know he still cares for you. And I can see from your reaction that you still care about him. I worry about you both. You’re so right for each other. Most people never find what you two have. And what you have has withstood the test of time, against some pretty big odds. The magic’s still there.”

“Is it? We aren’t the kids we once were.”

Mandy shrugged. “No, but it doesn’t mean your hearts are different.”

Ivy sighed. “He scares me, Em.”

“How so?” she asked, frowning.

“I don’t know. Being near him is like walking into an ocean with a tidal wave looming.”

“Yeah.” Mandy smiled and released her hold on Ivy’s arm. “I can see that would be a little overwhelming.” She looked at her boots as her heels tapped the wooden boards. “Maybe…maybe you could give him a chance. We’d talked before about your going on some dates while Casey’s gone. You still doing that?”

Ivy nodded.

“Well, what if you date him
and
the others?”

Ivy looked at Kit’s sister. “I did tell him I’d started dating again.”

Mandy winced. “How’d he take it?”

“Not so good. And now they all need to be background checked.”

Mandy sighed. “The guys do have to be careful.”

“It’s out of control. I feel like he owns me.”

“He doesn’t own you,” Mandy scoffed.

“I thought most of the funding for the diner came from an angel investor. He put up the money. He owns my building, my house. My business. Me.”

“I don’t think you know him anymore if you think he’s trying to control you through those things. He, Rocco, and Ty put up funds for my riding center. It’s how they help. He didn’t stop you from dating, did he?”

“No.”

“Nor would he. I’m sure he wants you to choose to be with him. But there’s nothing wrong with having him work for your affection, like Zavi earning his horseback ride. Things shouldn’t come too easily to our guys.”

“What if I don’t pick him, ultimately?”

She shrugged. “You’ll have given him a fair shot. You’ll have given both of you a chance. He can’t ask for more than that. So who’s your first date?”

“Dr. Beck Williams. This Friday.”

“Dr. Beck from the clinic? I didn’t know he was in the running.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, boy. Kit’s got to step up his game. He has some steep competition. Who are the others?”

“Your accountant. I see him next Friday.”

“Ohhh. You’re finally going out with Rick?” Mandy grinned at Ivy. “He’s a nice guy. I think you’ll like him.”

“And then Roy, from Denver. The following Friday.”

“The guy from the nightclub we went to last winter? You’re really seeing him?”

“We’ve been emailing for months now.”

“Huh. Well, that’s quite the schedule. You know, I hope this isn’t the case, but you may not hit it off with any of them. You take the time you need to find the right guy.” She smiled at Ivy. “You know, of course, that I think Kit’s the right one.”

Ivy did too. And that absolutely terrified her.

“I hate dating.”

“Think of it as a step forward. I’ll bring the girls to your room Friday to help you get ready. And you’ll give Kit a date or two while you’re seeing the others, right?”

“If he asks me, yes. I will.”

“He’ll ask you.”

* * *

Ivy paced the stifling confines of her room. Mandy, Eden, and Fiona waited with her, looking as nervous as she felt.

“This is ridiculous.” She stopped and glared at Mandy. “It’s unfair.”

“Is it?” Mandy countered. She pointed to a spot on her mouth. “You have a smudge.”

“I’m nearly thirty years old. I don’t need a gang of knuckle-draggers to vet my dates.”

“They aren’t all knuckle-draggers,” Fiona commented, winning a dark look from Ivy.

“You’re important to Kit, which makes you important to all of them,” Mandy commented, drawing Ivy’s attention from Fiona. “They want to be sure the oh-so-hunky Dr. Beck knows they have your back.”

“He’s one of the doctors at the clinic. He’s not going to throw away his practice, his livelihood, to do me harm.”