Page 38 of A Lonely Road (Spruce Hill #2)

Chapter Thirty-Two

Nora

I n the three glorious days that followed, I learned what it felt like to be welcomed into a loving family.

First, Sam, Casey, and Cheryl insisted on taking me shopping while “the boys,” as Cheryl lovingly referred to Jake and Dave, worked on my car.

Jake had even invited my dad over for the day, but he had a fishing trip planned with Chief Roberts.

When Jake told me that, I gave a mock scowl and accused my father of reconnoitering with his Spruce Hill spy.

The next day was family brunch at Jake’s childhood home—which, against my better judgment, included a brief but scorching makeout session in his old bedroom—followed by an impromptu trip to a family friend’s vacant beach house on the lake .

To my surprise, my dad actually accepted the invitation to join us and enjoyed the day talking about boats and world travel with Jake’s parents.

Meanwhile, Jake and Sam spent the afternoon trying to one-up each other with a mix of tragic town lore and ghostly tales about the Spruce Hill Lighthouse that stood proudly in the distance, supposedly home to a lost treasure.

Much as I enjoyed the stories, I had to beg them to stop before the competition came to blows.

By the end of those few beautiful days, I was left with a fully stocked wardrobe, a hint of a sunburn, and a heart so overflowing I almost teared up just thinking about it.

That unexpected degree of happiness was why, when Jake walked me out of the house so I could meet Sam for coffee the next morning, finding my closer-to-good-as-new Baby covered in spray painted graffiti almost brought me to my knees.

My blood turned to ice as I stumbled against Jake’s side, my fingers tensing into claws around his as he kept me standing. A harsh rasp filled my ears, but I couldn’t tear my gaze from the car to see if it was coming from Jake.

The realization that it was my own strangled breathing hit me a second later.

All of the work Jake had put in, all the repairs I'd cooed over the other day, all of my pride and pleasure was obliterated by the tragic sight of almost every inch of my beloved car covered in neon orange and green paint .

“SLUT” was the clearest of the graffiti, written right across the windshield, but I spotted half a dozen more filthy names amidst the chaotic scribbles.

“Oh my god,” I whispered, my grip on Jake’s arm tightening just to keep myself upright.

When I started to crumble, Jake wrapped his arms around me and swore under his breath, far more creatively than whoever had done this to my car. He tucked my head against his chest to keep me from looking back at the neon mess of words.

“Don’t touch anything,” Jake warned, already on the phone with the police.

I barely processed his side of the phone call, though I heard the sharp edge of fury in his voice as he spoke.

Even with my face hidden in his shirt and my eyes squeezed shut, the nasty words blinked like a fluorescent sign behind my eyelids.

When Jake ended the call, he squeezed me tight and started murmuring reassurances that barely registered.

“All your hard work,” I whispered into his shoulder. “All that effort.”

With his hands on my shoulders, Jake pulled back to look me in the eyes, his expression fierce. “Don’t even worry about that. Shh, it’s not worth crying over, Nora. I’ll fix her back up, good as new. Nothing to worry about, my love, I promise you I will fix everything.”

I hadn’t even realized I was crying, but silent tears streaked down my cheeks and soaked into Jake’s shirt when he hugged me close again .

“My dad. He’ll want to know, I have to call him.”

Jake shook his head. “I'll text him, but Roberts said he’d call him on the way. It’s okay. It’s okay, Nora. I’m so sorry. I should have parked Baby in the garage.”

A strangled laugh broke from my lips. “So he could spray dirty words on your beautiful truck instead? Or on the siding of poor Mr. Jenkin’s garage?”

The question made us both look toward the apartment and I lifted my head.

“Is it possible either of the cameras might have caught whoever did this?” I asked, wiping at my wet cheeks.

“Let’s check.”

Jake pulled up the app on his phone and gave a tense smile when he saw that the camera by the apartment door happened to capture the front half of my car.

He scrolled to the second feed, which covered the passenger side.

Before he could look too far into the stored video clips, the chief’s cruiser and my father’s Honda pulled up out front in swift succession.

Roberts gave a low whistle as he took a walk around my little blue car. My dad strode straight to me first, looked me over carefully as though checking that none of my wounds were external, then he gave me a quick squeeze before joining the chief.

“Safe to assume you two didn’t hear anything during the night?” Roberts asked.

Jake shook his head. “No, sir, but the cameras we installed at the apartment may have caught something. It looks like one camera angle shows the front of the car and the other one gets the front passenger door, at least. I didn’t go through any of the recorded footage yet.”

The chief nodded. “We’ll take whatever you’ve got. Give me a timeline here, Jake. John said you were all out at the beach yesterday—what time did you get home?”

“Just after eight, I think,” I said.

“What time did you head on to bed?”

Since I was sure my cheeks had gone fiercely pink and avoided looking toward my father, Jake answered for us. “Ah, just after eight, sir.”

The chief gave Jake a knowing smile while my dad kept his eyes on the car, his jaw tense. He knew how much Baby meant to me.

Jake added, “We had breakfast and watched some TV this morning. I didn’t even look out front. Nora had plans with my sister so I was just walking her out when we saw the damage. I called you first thing.”

“Oh, no. Sam,” I exclaimed. “I need to call her and cancel. I don’t want her to show up and see Baby like this.”

Jake kissed my temple. “Go on inside and give her a call, we’ll be right here.”

The three of them watched me walk back into Jake’s house, though when I glanced back through the window next to the door, I saw them all huddled together like they were planning out football plays rather than discussing a stalker who seemed to be getting bolder by the day .

In the end, I sent Sam a text and waited for a reply to be sure she saw it.

If I started relaying the details aloud, I had the distinct feeling that I would fall apart again.

I gave myself another minute to take a few deep breaths, then slipped back out the door in time to see Jake sigh heavily and rub a hand over his jaw.

He must have felt my presence, because he turned and held out one arm to tug me against his side again.

“This has gone far enough,” my father muttered.

Roberts held up a hand. “Cassidy, let me do my job, would you? I understand everybody is on edge. My team will be out here in a few minutes to take photos, dust for prints. I’m going to set an unmarked car cruising by here around the clock, Jake.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you to stick close to Nora and to let us know if you see anything even an inch out of place. ”

“Of course, Chief,” Jake said grimly.

Roberts turned his gaze to the garage apartment with a thoughtful expression on his face.

“You know, Cassidy, if Nora’s staying with Jake, you could take the apartment, stay close in case of an emergency.

Wouldn’t hurt to have another set of eyes on things, and I know you can handle whatever comes your way. ”

“You really think that’s necessary?” I asked softly.

My father didn’t answer right away, just looked straight at me and Jake before sighing.

“Under other circumstances, I wouldn’t even consider it.

I know neither one of you wants me hovering around while you’re finding your feet.

If you two would rather I not intrude like that, I’ll respect your privacy, but I’m not much help out at the cabin if an emergency arises. ”

“I think it’s a good idea,” Jake said, squeezing my hand. “This guy is a coward—a show of force might be enough to scare him off.”

I wasn’t sure that was true, but it wasn’t like Dad would be sleeping in the next room. With my father waiting for my agreement, I finally nodded. “Okay. I’ll go get my key for you and give you the grand tour, if the chief doesn’t mind?”

Roberts gave us the go ahead as Detective Hanson and her team arrived and got straight to work.

We left Jake and the chief conversing in low tones as they reviewed footage from the security cameras.

When I led my father up the sturdy stairs to the apartment, he paused to run his hand over the railing.

“Jake did all the work on this?” he asked.

I glanced over my shoulder and saw admiration written across his face. “Yes. Wait until you see inside, he did a beautiful job. His house is even more impressive, but it’s not quite finished. He’s been doing the renovations in his spare time.”

My father seemed suitably impressed, not only with Jake’s skill but with the fact that he had clearly poured his time and a great deal of love into something that wasn’t his own, in a field that wasn’t even his livelihood.

Though I knew my father wished he could whisk me away from danger, even after I'd hit thirty, I also knew he was comforted by knowing I had Jake in my corner.

“I have a box at the back of the bedroom closet,” I said, “and some clothes left in the drawers, but I can get that stuff out of here.”

At that, my father turned and raised an eyebrow. “You sure travel light these days, Bear.”

I shrugged, offering a rueful smile as I countered, “I can’t really fit too much in Baby, so I’ve learned to declutter. It’s very trendy these days, you know. Capsule wardrobe, minimalism.”

“Oh, Nora,” he said gently, squeezing my shoulders. He looked like wanted to say more but hadn’t the faintest idea where to begin.

“It’s just stuff, Dad,” I whispered, then my hands covered my face as the tears slipped free again. “It’s just stuff,” I said again, sniffling. “Even Baby.”

He hugged me tight to his chest. “I know how you love that car, Bear. I’ll help Jake get her cleaned up. Everything’s going to be just fine. I’m sorry I haven’t been around for you as much as I should have.”

It took another minute or two for me to regain my composure, but I finally scrubbed my hands over my cheeks and stepped back. “I always knew how to reach you, Dad.”

He nodded, but he looked utterly unconvinced.

“It’s not the same. It was easier to just keep reminding myself that you’re a grown woman who can handle herself.

After your mother left . . . well. I should have been around more.

If I could redo one thing in my life, it would be that.

I’m sorry that I didn’t make more of an effort. ”

“You’re here now. I appreciate that.” I gave him a wobbly smile. After a deep, steadying breath, I added, “I should get back out there.”

“Nora,” my father said quietly, “I know you’ve been on your own a long time and gotten used to taking care of everything by yourself, but you and Jake make a good team. Try to let him help you. It’s okay to lean sometimes, especially when you’re in love with somebody.”

His gentle words almost spurred a fresh round of tears. I bit my lip hard until it passed, then nodded. “I really love him, Dad.”

My father’s smile was sweeter than I’d ever seen. “I know, Bear. I know.”