Stay (3 page)

“That’s akin to extortion by a government official,” Lyn warned. “Tread lightly, Sheriff.”

“Maybe you should do the same since your husband works in my office,” Sheriff Layton snapped. “Don’t want him to be on call and not have backup.”

Crystal watched as a cold smile spread across her friend’s face. “Lucky for me, my husband can take care of himself and you’re not as powerful as you think. Your time is coming, Sheriff. Then my husband is going to take your job and clean up this department and this town.”

“You sure on that?” Sheriff Layton drawled.

Lyn nodded. “Very sure.”

Crystal took great satisfaction in watching his Adam’s apple bob nervously. He turned and strode through the motel front door without another word. She slumped into the closest chair behind the counter.

“What do I do? Something’s gotta give, Lyn.” Crystal covered her eyes with her hands. “All the decent people who used to stay here don’t come anymore and I can’t throw out the assholes who do because it’s Kaydee’s and my only income.”

“What about Liam’s death benefits from the military?” Lyn sat next to her and patted her shoulder consolingly.

“I put that away for Kaydee’s future, and I’m not touching it,” Crystal said firmly. “We were almost at the point of divorcing when he died and I can’t take his money now even if he’s dead. It doesn’t feel right. I have to take care of this family on my own. This is my problem and my dream. I can’t let anyone take it from me.”

“How regularly does Layton hit on you?” Lyn asked. “And why didn’t you tell me and Jim before?”

“Jim has enough on his plate working with that idiot and the rest of his deputies,” Crystal answered.

“Things are going to change, Crystal. I can’t tell you how or when, but just know that it’s going to happen,” Lyn said.

“Sounds like you guys have a little operation running that I don’t know about,” Crystal said.

“I’d tell you but it has to be hush-hush and you have Kaydee to worry about. I don’t want to say anything that can put you both in danger,” Lyn explained.

“You and Jim shouldn’t be the only ones taking any risks. We all live in this town and have had enough of Layton and the Deuces idiots who ride around here,” Crystal said. “Miss Emma said the next one who broke something in her restaurant would see the working end of the twelve gauge she keeps under the counter.”

“Lord, that woman is looking for any reason to shoot someone,” Lyn grinned. “I could get her off on an insanity defense.”

They both started laughing and Crystal looked at her friend with dark raven hair and alabaster skin. Even with glasses on, Lyn was a stunning beauty. Most of the time people thought she should be a model and not stuck in a stuffy office being a lawyer in a dead end town. But she loved her high school sweetheart, Jim, and the life they had in Honeywell.

They had all been friends since high school—Lyn, Jim, her and Liam. At least one of them found their happiness because while they all loved Honeywell, Liam had a rolling stone mentality. They tried to make it work for years until it just started to fall apart. After he told her he was reenlisting, she couldn’t be with a man who preferred to spend more time away from her and his daughter than to be home. They were thinking about a permanent separation while he was deployed and then deal with an amicable divorce when he came home, but Liam never got to come back because he was killed three months into his seven-month tour. She grieved for him and loved him even though their marriage had been practically over. They had made better friends and lovers than husband and wife. What was hardest for her was that her baby girl would never get to see the good side of her father, the side of him that had drawn Crystal in.

“So tell me about your new friend.”

“Guest,” Crystal amended

Lyn rolled her eyes. “Spill.”

“He’s a soldier and his bike broke down so he’s stuck here until the parts come in,” Crystal said.

“And he’s beating up guys from the biker gang,” Lyn said.

Crystal held up a finger. “Only one, and he helped Kaydee replant the flowers they kicked over.”

“Aww, that’s sweet!”

She shook her head. “No, it’s not. I know the type. Liam was the same way—not even a wife and child was enough of an anchor to keep him in one place. I won’t be a port in the storm for a good lay and a home cooked meal. The next guy has to stick and for a lifetime. Hart Temple is not that guy.”

“Hart…I like that name. And who said you’re a good lay?” Lyn teased.

Crystal winked. “Oh, honey, I’ve got references.”

That set them off laughing again and Crystal stood with a sigh. “I’d better get this cleaned up in case we have some actual decent guests check in.”

“I think one already has,” Lyn murmured.

Crystal ignored her words as her friend helped her clean up the broken glass, saving what they could. Crystal couldn’t help but let her mind wander toward Hart Temple. He was dashingly handsome. She instantly wrinkled her nose at the word she used to describe his looks. That was another clue she should stop reading romance novels from the library and the bookstores she frequented. His eyes were a very light hazel and his hair was black and cut in the usual high-and-tight military way. His lips curved in an easy smile when he talked to Kaydee.

But she could tell, under that smile, as soon as he felt exposed, he pulled that unreadable face and set lips mask on. He had to be maybe six one or two and under that T-shirt and blue jeans she could tell the man was fit as a fiddle. Crystal had to admit she’d checked out his biceps more than a few times. There hadn’t been a man in her life for a long time. Kaydee was five and the last time she and Liam had been together was when she was three.

She didn’t trust him after long deployments, especially when he was home for months before she’d actually see him come home. She wasn’t a cheat, so she took care of her own business when the mood hit. What woman didn’t know how to touch herself when her man was out whoring? When Liam died, she focused on raising her daughter and keeping her motel up and running. But, now, she could only imagine what it would be like to be in bed with a man like Hart.

“Oh, honey, I think you may be drooling a little bit. Whatcha thinking about?” Lyn smirked.

“None of your beeswax,” Crystal answered.

“You should hit that, Crys,” Lyn said.

“Hit that? I thought we discussed your use of slang?” Crystal teased.

As much as her libido kicked into high gear when Hart was around, there was much more to think about. She had a daughter who was impressionable and would easily become attached to Hart for something as simple as helping her plant flowers and listening to her talk.

She had listened to a report from Kaydee on everything they had done to fix the flowers, mentioning that he had even sprayed them with water to make sure they wouldn’t be thirsty later. Crystal knew she could never be with a man and not involve her heart. But it wasn’t only herself she had to think about. So Crystal put her own needs aside and focused on the cleanup. Hart was off limits and that was final.

****

Three days later, her night manager was on duty and she was upstairs making dinner for her and Kaydee. Because of the recent incident, she asked Joseph to start coming in at five instead of seven and didn’t mind shelling out the extra bucks. After what Sheriff Layton said, she was not letting Kaydee sit alone upstairs and watch TV until she came home to be with her. Joseph could manage himself. He was a body builder who was built like a block of marble.

Before the bikers came, it was okay and she felt pretty safe. It was only a few steps outside to the stairs that led to their apartment over the main building where the front office was located. But when the bikers started showing up in town, she had the place renovated so that the stairs ran to their apartment from the inside instead of the outside. But even so, someone could get to them if they were intent on hurting them. She didn’t want to admit it but she was terrified to fall asleep sometimes, wondering if her door would be kicked in, and she and her child hurt or killed.

She should be able to count on law enforcement to keep them safe but that was a farce in Honeywell. She hated the thought of guns, but maybe Miss Emma had the right idea with the shotgun she kept. But Crystal wasn’t stupid, either. She kept the bowie knife that Liam had given her under the mattress within hand’s reach and had a bat behind the door in her bedroom and one by the front door. She also made sure that Kaydee would be able to escape their apartment in an emergency even if Crystal couldn’t. She was on red alert until someone could get Layton out of the sheriff’s department and the bikers out of Honeywell. Lord, she hoped what Lyn and Jim were working on would come to fruition soon. She could not remember the last time she had a good night’s sleep. Her nerves were frayed.

“Mommy, when’s dinner done? I am starving.” Kaydee came out of their living room where she was coloring. She held up the front of her minion T-shirt to show Crystal her stomach. “Look, it’s so empty.”

Crystal smiled at her daughter’s antics to emphasize her hunger. “You had a snack at four thirty.”

“That was only apples, crackers and cheese,” Kaydee said solemnly.

“Well, dinner will be done soon, and before you ask the other questions, it’s four-cheese mac and cheese, roasted chicken and green beans,” she answered her daughter. Kaydee opened her mouth to speak and Crystal lifted a finger, “Ah-ah. Homemade ice cream sandwiches for dessert.”

“You’re the bestest mommy in the—”

Her words were cut off by a knock on the door and Crystal was instantly on alert. She doubted the Deuces gang was the kind to knock but they had dirty cops at their disposal. Anyone could be at her door.

“Honey, go into the bedroom and lock the door until I give you the safe word,” Crystal said as she wiped her hands on a dish towel.

Kaydee ran off without a word and it broke her heart. Her child shouldn’t have to live in fear. Crystal put the thought aside for now and grabbed the bat and held it behind her back with one hand.

“Who is it?” she asked sharply.

“Hart Temple,” the voice answered.

Her heart skipped a beat and it was not due to fear. It was because the man that was behind the door was sexy as hell and he was the last person she expected to be at her door.

“What do you want?” she called through the door.

“Come on, do we need to talk through the door?” Hart asked. “I won’t hurt you. I came to apologize.”

She sighed and unlocked the door, swinging it wide. “You don’t have to apologize. In a way you were looking out for us.”

He held out an envelope. “For the damages.”

She took it, opened the envelope and took out the check.. The amount boggled her mind and she handed it back to him. “This is way too much for a few ruined knick-knacks and some broken glass.”

“I’m paying for pain and suffering as well,” Hart explained.

“Then shouldn’t you take it to Skum?” she asked.

Hart grinned. “I doubt he knows how to cash a check.”

“Mommy, you didn’t call out the safe word,” Kaydee’s small voice came from her room. “I can hear Mr. Temple, so it’s safe.”

“Skibbles!” Crystal called out. “Come on in, so I can at least lock the door.”

“Why do you have a bat behind your back and a safe word?” Hart asked.

“Protection,” Crystal said simply, as she turned the deadbolt on the door and sat the bat back beside the door.

His questions were put aside when Kaydee came barreling out of her room and threw herself at Hart’s leg.

“Mr. Temple, you’re like a superhero!”

“No, I’m not. I’m just a big guy with no sense. I should have thought first and then acted.” Hart looked and Crystal and asked, “May I hug her?”

Crystal gave a stiff nod and Hart lifted the little girl and hugged her to him. Seeing her daughter be given affection from someone other than Liam made her emotional. Not that Kaydee ever really knew her father as he died when she was too young to remember most things about him, but she knew her baby would miss out on father-daughter dances and other events because Liam was gone. Kaydee deserved a father. Every little girl deserved a father.

“Mom tells me that all the time and to control my temper,” Kaydee said. “Can he stay for dinner, Mommy? He beat up the bad guy so he should get dinner.”

“But that was a few days ago,” Hart said gently.

“You’re still going to be hungry. Miss Emma says he only eats pizza,” Kaydee said, looking at Crystal.

“When did you have this discussion with Miss Emma?” Crystal asked.

“She was, umm, talking to someone.”

Crystal put her hand on her hips. “What did I tell you about being nosey and listening to grownup conversations?”

Hart still had Kaydee in his arms and she tried to give her mother the puppy dog eyes. Crystal was not falling for it.

“I wasn’t being nosey. I was having a sundae and Miss Emma was talking right there in front of me. I even tried humming so I couldn’t hear,” Kaydee said and popped a finger in her mouth.

“Finger out. Go wash up for dinner, and, yes, Mr. Temple can stay if he wants to,” Crystal said. She could never stay mad at Kaydee for long.

He put Kaydee down and she ran off skipping merrily to the bathroom.

“So what’s for dinner?” Hart asked.

“It’s a home cooked meal, so it’s whatever I made,” Crystal answered.

“That’s not being nice to an invited guest. I’ll tell Kaydee you were rude to me,” Hart teased. “She’s got my back.”

“Oh, I’m so scared,” Crystal retorted and started to pull dinner dishes from the cabinet.

“Hey, she’s pretty tough. Have you seen that mean face she does?” Hart replied. “She could put any interrogator to shame.”

“Good point.” She handed him plates, utensils and napkins. “Since you’re eating, you can set the table.”

“The last time I did this I was sixteen and rebelling against my parents,” Hart commented. “My mom used to give me a look that said if you don’t set this table I am going to wail on you.”

“I don’t know if I should ask if those were good or bad memories?” Crystal said. She was afraid maybe his childhood was hard and the question would cause him to be uncomfortable. She certainly didn’t want to pry but when he smiled it alleviated her worry.