Close To The Heart (Westen Series Book 5) Page 4

  “I already know what I want,” Lexie announced, then looked very seriously at Lorna. “Grilled cheese and Pete’s special tomato soup, please.”

  Melissa glanced at Lorna who was writing Lexie’s order on a pad. The corners of the older woman’s lips twitched as if she were hiding a grin.

  This was the second time Melissa had brought the little girl here for lunch. She’d ordered the same thing the first time, too. Melissa had learned that Lexie had eaten her first grilled cheese and tomato soup meal here the night Deputy Löwe had found her abandoned in her home during the blizzard.

  “And how about you, Miss Davis?” Lorna asked.

  Melissa blinked, realizing she hadn’t really perused the menu. “How about a club sandwich with a side salad? And please call me Melissa.”

  “Melissa.” Lorna nodded in acknowledgement and acceptance, making Melissa feel a little special. “Then what kind of dressing would you like on the salad? We have ranch, Italian, blue cheese and I think Pete whipped up some raspberry vinaigrette,” she said with a mischievous wink.

  Melissa looked at Lexie. “What do you think? Should I try a pink dressing?”

  Lexie grinned and nodded.

  “Raspberry it is.” She handed her menu back to Lorna. “I’ll have a sweet tea and a milk for Lexie, please.”

  After Lorna left the table, Lexie scrunched her face up as if pondering a great question.

  Melissa waited a minute. When Lexie still hadn’t said what was wrong, she asked, “Something bothering you?”

  “What’s the club?”

  “The club?” Melissa thought hard.

  “The one with the sandwich?” Lexie said, as if it made perfect sense to her.

  “Oh, my club sandwich?” Melissa laughed a little. “It’s a kind of sandwich. It has toast with bacon, ham, tomato, lettuce and mayonnaise on it. Then Pete cuts it into four triangles.”

  Lexie drew her brows down and tilted her head sideways. “Why do they call it a club sandwich?”

  Melissa thought about it a while. She could make something up, but she’d decided a long time ago to always be truthful with the kids left in her charge. “I don’t really know. I suspect, it may be because the first time someone made that sandwich they might have been in a club. What do you think?”

  Lexie considered this explanation a moment, then nodded her head. “I think it was a sandwich club.”

  Melissa returned her smile. “I think you might be right.”

  Lexie grinned, then turned to stare out the window at the activity on Main Street. Melissa did the same, watching people stroll up and down the main thoroughfare.

  Since the town had nearly blown up the year before from an underground Meth lab outside of town, the state had been pouring money into the area to help with rebuilding. Which, in turn, had brought new home construction and a revitalizing to the downtown business area. One new store doing a booming business was The Hopscotch Boutique for kids. The clothes were all made in America and the cost wasn’t too much higher than things Melissa had seen at the warehouse style stores on the edge of town. The owner, Regan Tennyson, was new to town and very friendly to not only the customers, but the children, too. Melissa hoped she’d be successful.

  “I guess they’ll let any kind of trash eat here,” a familiarly crass and nasty voice said behind Melissa.

  With a breath to steady her suddenly jumpy nerves, she slowly turned to face her former mother-in-law, Jolene. Seated next to her was her daughter, Nicole and her other son’s wife, Pamela. Three of the meanest women who lapped up gossip like cats at a bowl of cream.

  All the time she’d lived with Frank, she’d never received a kind word from any of them. They’d seen the faded bruises—Frank kept her hidden while the marks were various shades of blue, purple and green—on her face, arms and hands. Yet, none of the women thought to help her. Jolene had even accused her of harming herself and blaming Frank to get him in trouble with the final beating that nearly killed her.

  Like she’d break her own arm and several ribs, while somehow managing to beat her left eye until the socket was broken, spend weeks in the hospital healing, and go to court looking humiliatingly pitiful just to get precious Frank into trouble.

  It had been six months since she’d walked away from court a free woman. Six months since her abuser had gone to prison. Six months since she’d had to fear the women two tables over. Well, she wasn’t going to cower in front of them now—or ever again.

  Lifting her chin slightly, she let her gaze rake over each one of them, like a grocer sizing up produce and finding it rotten. With one brow raised, she gave a half-smile, the kind she’d learned from them. “Yes, I guess any trash is welcome,” she said, throwing their insult back.

  “How dare you!” Jolene said, shoving her chair back.

  Melissa braced for the confrontation. Remembering it wasn’t just her at this booth, but someone much more vulnerable and her duty to protect, she moved to stand beside the table, blocking Lexie from the wrath of the she-devil. Only, it wasn’t Jolene in front of her.

  “Deputy Löwe…” she hesitated, all her anger lost in confusion as she stared at the handsome deputy. Where did he come from? She didn’t remember seeing him when she entered. Of course she was busy listening to Lexie talk about Sylvie and her fairy costume at the time.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch,” he said, his gaze locking with hers.

  She swallowed hard, then glanced over his shoulder. Behind him, the waitress Glenna had moved to intercept her former in-laws with their check and escort them to the cash register, listening to the trio whine and complain all the way. She wasn’t quite sure what they were saying but got the impression it was as much about the food as it was her. Glenna seemed to let it slide right off her back as if she was used to it from them.

  “Miss Davis?”

  Melissa blinked, realizing Daniel was still standing inches from her with an expectant look on his face, and what she suspected was the effort to keep from grinning at her confusion. “Oh, I’m sorry, what were you saying?”

  He laid his hand on her elbow, turning her away from the scene behind him and towards Lexie. “I was saying that I have something I think your lunch partner will find interesting.” He reached into his coat pocket and pulled a paperback out of the pocket.

  “My book!” Lexie said with a grin, taking the paperback from him. “You found it. I wasn’t done with it, yet.”

  He smiled. “I could tell.”

  Her eyes got wide. “How did you know?”

  He toyed with the edge of a paper sticking out the top. “Your bookmark was only halfway through it.”

  “My Nana said you should never turn down the corners of the pages. You got to respect the writer’s words,” Lexie said with complete seriousness. “That’s why she gave it to me.”

  “The picture?” Daniel asked.

  “The book,” the little girl said, as if he should’ve known that. “I used the picture because it had Nana, Mama, and me in it.”

  Lorna returned at that moment with their drinks. “Gonna join the ladies for lunch, deputy?” she asked with one brow arched in question. “I can just bring your order here when it’s ready.”

  “I hadn’t meant to interrupt…” he said, looking from Lexie to Melissa.

  “Oh, please do. You were so kind to bring her the book,” Melissa said. “I can scoot onto the seat with her.” And she proceeded to do just that with Lexie moving to make room.

  “If you’re sure I won’t be intruding,” he said.

  “Get your butt in there and sit down,” Lorna said with a nudge of her hip. “I’m gonna need the counterspace anyways. Can’t have truckers taking up valuable table space with only one diner.”

  Daniel wiggled out of his coat and scooted into the booth, removing his sheriff’s department ball cap and setting it on the seat beside him. He ran his hand through his thick, short, dark brown hair, a small cowlick tipping the front crookedly to one side.

/>   Glad for his company, she wasn’t really sure what to talk about. Silence stretched between them.

  “Did my mama come back home?” Lexie finally asked, her eyes hopeful.

  Daniel’s almost panicked gaze shot to Melissa. He doesn’t know how to answer her. He wants my help. In her opinion, even children want the truth. You can never trust someone who lies to you. She stared straight into his blue eyes and nodded, hoping he would understand.

  Slowly he inhaled and returned the nod. Then he softened his face and looked at Lexie. “I’m sorry, Lexie, she wasn’t there when Deputy Cleetus and I went there this morning.”

  The little girl’s face fell, her lips pursed, and her eyes dulled. Melissa’s heart broke to see Lexie so disappointed. She wanted to reassure her that her mother was okay, but she wasn’t going to lie to her.

  “Tell me about your nana,” she said instead, putting her arm around the little girl’s shoulder. “She must love you a lot to buy you books.”

  Lexie nodded. “She used to send them in the mail. Sometimes she sent me clothes, too.”

  “Like the pink socks she knitted for you?” Daniel asked.

  Lexie giggled. “You made one pair into my thumbless gloves.”

  “I did. Kept your hands warm, didn’t they?”

  “Uh huh.”

  “Are those the pink socks you keep wearing?”

  “Nana made them for me.” Lexie took a drink of her milk.

  “And that makes them special, doesn’t it?”

  Lexie nodded again.

  “Do you get to see your nana much?” Daniel asked.

  “No, she used to live at the home.”

  “She has her own home?”

  “No. The home. It’s in Florida. Mama said we couldn’t go see her, coz only old people get to sleep there. Then she died. So, I can’t see her anymore.”

  “Do you have any aunts or uncles?”

  “Nope. Mama was a lonely child.”

  Daniel shifted his gaze back to Melissa again. He’d just gotten more information out of the little girl about her next of kin in one quick conversation than she’d been able to get out of her in a month of caring for her. Now they knew there was no one to take her if the courts successfully took away the mother’s custody. Which meant Lexie would end up in the foster program.

  Lorna arrived with their meals. “One grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of Pete’s special tomato soup. One club sandwich with side salad and pink dressing. And one cobb salad no avocado,” she said, dropped each meal in front of the correct patron then headed back to the kitchen.

  Melissa looked at Daniel, surprised. “I didn’t know men ordered salads for lunch.”

  He gave a little shrug. “Had a fast-food breakfast sandwich on my way out to…” he paused to glance at Lexie who was busy dunking her grilled cheese wedge into the bowl of soup. “Before meeting Cleetus. Thought salad would balance it out.”

  “And no avocados?”

  “Yeah, not a big fan.” He nodded at her plate. “Your salad looks pretty good. What kind of dressing is that?”

  “It’s pink!” Lexie said and leaned in close.

  He followed suit, going very serious, as if she were about to impart the secrets of the ages. “Why’s it pink?”

  “It’s raspberry,” she whispered then pointed to the salad. “Mr. Pete puts some raspberries in it, too. They look like red raisins. See?”

  “I think those are cranberries,” Daniel whispered back. “Maybe Miss Davis will let you try one?”

  Lexie tilted her head and peeked up at Melissa, her eyes wide and questioning beneath her freshly cut bangs.

  Inside, Melissa was dying at the cuteness of the little girl beside her. She so wanted to hug her and squeeze her for being so adorable, however she wasn’t going to reinforce the idea that Lexie could manipulate people by being cute to give her things. They might not have too much time together. The judge next week was more than likely going to give custody to the state and the little girl would be whisked off to a proper foster home, but in the time they were together, Melissa hoped she could instill some self-worth and self-confidence in her.

  She gave Lexie a steady gaze until the cute look faded away just slightly, then she smiled. “Would you like to taste the cranberry?”

  “Yes, please,” Lexie replied with more honest curiosity.

  “Since you asked politely,” Melissa said, picking out two cranberries, one with dressing and one without, and laying them on Lexie’s plate, “you may have two. Try the one without dressing first so you can see what they taste like all on their own.”

  Lexie followed instructions, her face beaming for both. “I like them.”

  “Good. Maybe we’ll put some cranberries in our salads back at the house.”

  “And pink dressing?” Lexie said, this time with mischief in her eyes.

  “We can try and make some. Why?”

  Lexie giggled. “Then the boys will have to eat pink dressing.”

  They both laughed and Daniel grinned at them. The meal continued with Lexie filling them in on everything she loved about the book she was reading. Daniel listened intently, occasionally asking questions. While she’d been at the Dye Right, Melissa had set up an appointment with the child psychologist to do Lexie’s diagnostic testing tomorrow, but after listening to her and Daniel converse, she already knew the little girl was brighter than other children her age.

  As they finished, Glenna approached the table.

  “Coach?” she addressed Daniel, who didn’t seem the least surprised.

  “Hey there, Glenna.”

  “I was wondering if I could give you Duncan’s permission slip now? I’m working until ten tonight, so I can’t make the player parents meeting at the school.” She held out an envelope. “It has his physical from Doc Clint. And I told him if he wants to be on the team again this year, he’d best keep his grades up. Best motivation to keep that boy of mine studying.”

  Daniel took the envelope and smiled up at the waitress. “That boy has a wicked slider starting to develop. And I’m one hundred percent with you. Grades come first, baseball second.”

  “Thanks, Coach. Lorna told me to give you your checks, too.” She slid two slips of paper on the table and headed to another table to take an order.

  Before Daniel could take the checks, Melissa slid them to her and studied them. She handed him his, noting the slight look of disappointment on his face. She’d guessed right. He’d meant to pay for her and Lexie’s lunch, too. The knowledge that he wanted to treat them warmed a spot in the center of her chest. She ignored it. It had taken all her courage to stand up to Frank and she’d worked too hard for her independence to just hand it over to another man on a whim. She didn’t know if this little spark between them would lead anywhere, wasn’t sure if she wanted it to, but she’d made a promise to herself—from now on any relationship she entered into would be on equal footing and respect.

  “So, you’re a baseball coach?” she asked as she took out her wallet.

  “I played in high school and college, so when the high school needed a coach a few years back, I volunteered.” He slid out of the booth and waited for her and Lexie to walk in front of him to the register.

  “Oh, like the sheriff is the football coach? And Fire Chief Reynolds is an assistant coach?”

  He shrugged. “Small town. Sometimes we have to wear lots of hats.”

  “And I’ve given Kyle the night off to go to the meeting with Deke and Libby,” Lorna said. “That boy’s busier than a bee in summer.”

  Daniel handed over his bill and cash. “No change, Lorna. And I’ll be glad to see that Kyle stays busy.”

  “Busy teens keep out of trouble,” she said, then fixed her gaze on Melissa. “Any of those boys at your place play ball?”

  She considered the question. “You know? I’ve never really asked them.”

  “Tryouts are next week,” Daniel said. “Might be a good time to ask.”

  A throat cleared
behind them. They turned to see a grizzled truck driver standing there with his thermos. “Thought I’d get a refill for the road, Ms. Lorna.”

  “I guess that’s our cue to move on,” Daniel said with a wink. He walked with them to the door, then held it for them. Melissa couldn’t remember a time when Frank had been so polite—even when they’d been dating.

  “Ladies, it was a very nice lunch. Thank you for sharing with me,” he said with a half bow.

  Lexie giggled. “You ate your own lunch. We didn’t share.”

  “You shared your time and your company,” he said. “I appreciate both.”

  “Then you are welcome,” the little girl said with a grin. “Oh, and thank you for bringing me my book. I’ve been wanting to know what happened to the girls.”

  “You are most welcome.” He paused a moment and studied Melissa. “If you need anything, or anyone suspicious comes round…”

  “I’ll call you,” she finished, knowing he meant Lexie’s mother. “I promise.”

  “Good. Oh, and check with your boys. If one of them, or more, want to try out, I’d be happy to have them,” he said, then stepped back, putting some distance between them.

  “I will. Maybe learning to be on a team would be good for them.” She wanted to stay and talk, but people were moving around them as they blocked the sidewalk. And it was a small town. Gossip spread faster than gasoline on a brush fire. So, she balanced the shopping bag full of girl’s clothes in one hand and took Lexie’s hand in her other and turned away. Time to get home and dinner started before her house was invaded by the horde of testosterone-fueled males looking for food.

  4

  What I need to know is exactly what happened, step-by-step the day you found Lexie in the house, Deputy Löwe,” Chloe Roberts said.

  She sat on the couch in the main room of Wes’s cabin, a large yellow legal pad in her hand and what looked to be a half-wolf, half-Husky curled up at her feet. A month earlier, Wöden had saved the lawyer’s life by jumping in front of a bullet. It had taken some time for him to heal completely, but now was Chloe’s constant companion since she’d moved from Cincinnati to live with Wes.