Grave Risk

He kept so busy, she didn’t know how he even found time to breathe. She was busy, too, but as Bertie would say, a body had to take some time to just sit every once in a while, or what was the use of living?

“Maybe he’s come back here to live,” Blaze said. “He owns a house in town, and he’s been renting it out. Maybe he’s decided to pick up where he left off before the mess with Ramsay.”

“But why come back here?” Fawn asked. “Everybody knows about Ramsay here. Why not go where no one knows his past?”

Blaze shrugged. “It’s home. Austin was born and raised here. Maybe he’s just decided to come back home.”

“How do you feel about that?”

“It’s not for me to say what he does.”

“I didn’t ask you to say, I asked how you felt.”

He picked up his paddle and started to steer the canoe again. “Stop ‘shrinking’ and stick to wedding plans, or Karah Lee’s going to send you back where you came from.”

“Where are you taking us?” she asked.

“I’ve got chores at the ranch. I’m taking you back to the dock.”

She sighed and stuck her paddle in the water again. “I can help with chores.”

“You told Bertie you’d help feed the family. Don’t let her down.”

“I know I told her that, but all the ladies from the church are coming over. There won’t be room for me.”

“She’ll want you there,” Blaze said. “She’s hurtin’ enough right now.”

Fawn sighed. Good old Blaze, always thinking of his own responsibilities…and hers. “Okay, fine. Dump me at the dock.” She gave him a dark stare. “I guess when you’re a man in demand, you don’t have a lot of time to spend with old friends.”

He chuckled. “You don’t, either. You’re as bad as I am, what with the wedding to plan, and you’ll probably be needed more at the bed and breakfast now that Edith’s not there to help Bertie. And you know, you do still have school work to keep up with.”

“And after the wedding, I might be looking for a new place to stay.”

“Why would that be?”

“No newlywed couple wants to start their married life with a teenaged kid in the house.”

“That what you needed to talk about?”

“Part of it.” She just wasn’t sure she wanted to talk about anything more right now. Blaze was in too much of a rush.

His movements slowed. “You really worried about what’s going to happen to you after the wedding?”

“I guess so.”

“Well, don’t. You know Karah Lee and Taylor better than that. They’re good folks. They’re not going to dump you out in the cold.”

She gave a one-shoulder shrug. She’d been dumped out in the cold before.

“Karah Lee’s nothing like your mother,” Blaze said, reading her mind. “And Taylor’d be mortified if he knew you were comparing him to your wicked stepfather.”

“Eeww.”

“Sorry. You just don’t have anything to worry about. I thought you and Karah Lee were both all set to move into that house Taylor bought up on the hill near Jill’s place.”

She paddled in silence as they drew near to the dock once more. “Yeah, well, I’ve been doing some thinking, too, and I just don’t think it’ll work. I may have other options, though.”

“What other options?” He maneuvered the canoe against the dock and reached out to steady her.

She took his hand and climbed out, managing to retain some dignity as she did so. “I’m still thinking on it. Better get to your chores.”

Chapter Nine

Rex stood at the edge of the cemetery as the crowd slowly dispersed. Funerals had high attendance here in the rural areas, and folks lingered after the interment, as if their lingering might set the memories of their loved one more completely in their hearts.

There was going to be a special evening meal back at the bed and breakfast, hosted by the women from Edith’s church. Half the town would probably be there, maybe more. Last night, during the visitation at the funeral home, the line of people paying their respects had filled the building and spilled out onto the front lawn.

It had been a beautiful testament to the love this town held for the former high-school principal.

Now, watching the crowd mingle in conversation groups among the tombstones, Rex saw one lone figure separate from the rest. Jill.

During the funeral, she had remained detached from Edith’s family, sitting with her sister and brother-in-law, Noelle and Nathan Trask. Edith’s extended family had filled the front half of the small church, and other mourners had overflowed the little sanctuary.

Surprising himself, Rex strolled toward that lonely looking figure in the dark gray dress. Her brown hair had been pulled back into a knot at the nape of her neck, though some strands had refused to behave and fell in tendrils to her shoulders. Her eyes, devoid of makeup, were red-rimmed, her nose pinched.

He hadn’t seen her since the afternoon of Edith’s death; the tragedy had thrown the clinic—indeed, the whole town—into turmoil, and Jill wasn’t working at the clinic this week.

As he studied that grieving face, he remembered how beautiful Jill had always been to him. She had a mouth that was slightly wide for a classic beauty, but could spill into a smile that could dazzle the sun. Her blue eyes, often sober and serious, could suddenly soften with warmth.

She had walked to within ten feet of him before she looked up and saw him. He could see the conflict in her expression. She was too close to turn away and avoid him without being obvious about it, but she just as clearly didn’t want to talk to him right now. He could tell her emotions were too close to the surface.

“Jill,” he said quietly, “I’m not going to bite, and I don’t want to make things difficult for you.”

Her eyes darted up in a quick glance at him, then away again. “I’m just embarrassed, is all. I was rude to you the other day, and I apologize.”

“You’ve done nothing wrong, and I wasn’t offended. It was a horrible time for you.”

“Thank you, but I’m still sorry. You must have thought I was still upset with you after all this time, which would be childish.”

“Edith’s death struck you a nasty blow. It was a blow for everyone, but I know how much she meant to you.”

Another glance shot his way, this time a little longer. She was feeling awkward, he could tell.

“Did Cheyenne tell you why I came to Hideaway?” he asked.

She nodded, glancing back toward the crowd around the grave. “After I jumped her about it. Karah Lee said you didn’t want me to know you were here until you had a chance to talk to me.”

“That’s right.”