About That Man

“Don’t let it go to your head,” she retorted.

“Maybe we ought to start over. I don’t think we understand each other’s point of view here.”

“Probably not,” she conceded with a sigh. “It’s just that Tommy means a lot to me. I don’t want to see him hurt.”

“Believe it or not, Ms. Spencer, neither do I.”

She finally turned to face him. “Since it looks like it’s going to be a long night, maybe you ought to call me Daisy.”

Walker chuckled. “I always prefer to be on a first-name basis when I’m spending the night with a woman.”

“Yes, I imagine you do.”

He was pretty sure he saw a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. It wouldn’t do to focus on that, though. He had the feeling that thinking about those lips could get him into a whole lot of trouble.

“How well do you know Tommy?” he asked instead.

“Better the last few days, but even before that, he and I had a certain rapport. He was in my Sunday school class. He has an irreverent attitude that reminds me of the way I always longed to be when I was his age. Because of that I let him get away with quite a lot.” A full-fledged smile spread across her face. “I suppose this is payback for that leniency.”

Walker seized on the hint of wistfulness in her voice when she talked about yearning to rebel. “Somehow I can’t envision you ever having a rebellious streak.”

“You’d have to talk to my brothers and my father, then. They could tell you. Especially Tucker. He knows exactly how many times I came really, really close to trying to break free of my father.”

“But you never did it?”

“Not until now,” she confessed with obvious regret. “Well, my moving into town put his nerves on edge, but he got over that.”

“And what have you done recently?”

“I took in Tommy. Believe me, it has my father in an uproar, though he hasn’t shown his face around here himself. He’s sent everybody else to do his dirty work. I’m sure Tucker and Bobby showing up tonight was no accident. That pie they were carrying came straight from my father’s kitchen. They were probably here with yet another lecture on how I’m trying to ruin my life.”

“By taking in a little boy?”

“A little boy who tried to steal my jewelry,” she said.

This was the first Walker had heard about any jewelry being taken. His gut clenched at the thought. “Tommy tried to steal your jewelry?”

Her expression fell. “Damn, me and my big mouth. Yes, he tried to take it. He intended to sell it to get money for food in case I wouldn’t let him stay.”

“But you caught him?”

“Actually, Tucker caught him. It was incredibly inconvenient since it only added fuel to the fire, but I managed to assure them both that it would not, under any circumstances, happen again. I think Tommy got the message.”

Walker sighed. “I hope you’re right,” he said, envisioning his nephew well on his way to a life of crime.

“Tommy is not a thief,” Daisy said, as if she’d read his mind.

“What would you call it?”

“He’s scared and he’s acting out.”

“Stealing is stealing, no matter the reason. Don’t make excuses for him.”

“Spoken like a true cop.”

“I am a cop.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t make allowances for circumstances.”

“Making allowances is the reason petty thieves turn into career criminals.”

“Tommy doesn’t need a hard-liner in his life. He needs someone with a little compassion.”

Walker shook his head. Daisy’s soft-hearted, do-gooder nature had just come out into the open. The woman was too naive for her own good. He’d met a hundred others just like her, always eager to defend the juvenile offender as being “just a kid.”

He was tempted to enlighten her with a few stories of kids who’d been let off too easy by the courts, only to turn right around and commit the kind of serious crimes that gave the justice system a bad name. She wouldn’t get it, though. She wouldn’t give a hoot about those kids, when they were talking about Tommy.

“Maybe we should just concentrate on finding my nephew,” he said finally. “And agree to disagree about the rest of it.”

“Maybe we should,” she concurred, though she looked oddly disappointed.

He studied her speculatively. “Unless you’d rather argue about it some more.”

She grinned. “And waste my breath? I don’t think so.”

“So, where do you think Tommy might be hiding?”

“Could be anywhere,” she said with a shrug. “Just about every house in this area has some kind of garage or toolshed in back. And a lot of them have docks on the river with boats tied up. Tommy’s fascinated with boats.”

“Would he steal one?”

She looked taken aback, but she considered the question before shaking her head. “I don’t think so. Not with night coming on, anyway.”

“Okay, then, what about those cliffs Mrs. Jackson mentioned? Are they dangerous?”

“They’re clay and they’re slippery, but I doubt Tommy would be anywhere near them. Frances just said that to get all of us moving.”

“Why don’t you think he’s headed in that direction?”

“Because the cliffs are at the state park miles away from here. Trinity Harbor has nice sandy beaches. The only danger to Tommy there would be catching a chill if he were foolish enough to go in the river.”

“You’re not really worried about him, are you?” he guessed.

“Not especially. Trinity Harbor is a safe place. Tucker sees to it.”

“Then why the ruckus back at your house?”

“I think my brothers and Frances just wanted to get us out from underfoot so they could decide what’s best for Tommy without our input.”