Page 21 of Dangerous December (Northern Pines Suspense #8)

Beth hugged her mother tight. For all of her worries beforehand, the visit had flown by. They had reconnected over lattes and treasure hunts throughout the local consignment stores whenever Beth had an afternoon free.

“I’m sorry you have to leave,” Beth whispered, giving her mother another hug. “Can you come back at Christmas?”

“I’ll try, if only for a few days. I’ll start checking on flights when I get home.” Again, a weary look crossed Maura’s expression...one of many over the past few weeks, yet she’d refused to say anything about it.

“Please, I need to know. Is something wrong? I’ve been worrying about you since you arrived.”

Maura stepped back and adjusted the colorful scarf around her neck. “Nothing of importance. Worries over my gallery, of course. It’s hard to be away, especially through the busy fall season.”

Beth rested a hand on her forearm in silent appeal. Maura stilled, then her shoulders sagged.

“I...I had a bit of a scare, before I left home. Some lab tests didn’t look quite right, plus I had an inconclusive CT scan. So they did a few biopsies.”

“Mom. Why didn’t you say anything?”

She smiled wearily. “All this time, I’ve been waiting for the results. Turns out the clinic staff sent the report to my home address, and never thought to call my cell phone. I’d been thinking that I needed to settle a lot of things in my life, but I’ve been worried over mostly nothing.”

“Mostly?”

“I need to be seen again in three months, but my doc says not to worry. She just wants to be sure that nothing changes.”

Relief flooded through Beth as she stepped forward to give her mother another fierce hug. “I’m so glad.”

“I should have trusted more and worried less.” Maura’s smile turned rueful. “It’s hard trying to fix the world when you fear you might only have a short time. I might have been just a little hard on Devlin one day. I haven’t seen him lately, but extend my apologies if you happen to see him.”

After closing up the bookstore at five, Beth found Dev working on the cottage, the windows and doors open to the crisp October breeze.

“Stan Murdock came to see me.”

“What did he want?”

“He wants us to give up, since we’re going to fail anyway. He offered me ten grand to walk out on the clause in your mother’s will. He...um...said he was coming to talk to you next.”

“He should know better.” Dev looked down at his clenched fists and relaxed them, flexing his fingers.

“My aunt was a successful stockbroker, and when he married her, it was all about the money for him. I wonder if he ever really loved her. The last thing I want is for him to inherit a square inch of Sloane property.”

“So you won’t make a deal with him.”

“I’d be surprised if he dared to walk in this door. And if he promised you money under the table, you’d want to see it in cash and counted before believing anything he says. Not that I’d ever take a penny of it.”

“Neither would I, but then he said there was no way we could succeed with the residents at Sloane House. Could he...would he do anything to cause trouble?”

“From what I remember, he’s a guy willing to mow right over anyone who stands in his way. Even as a kid, I couldn’t see what my aunt saw in him.”

“So he’s harmless?”

“ No one is completely harmless.” Dev thought a moment. “I met him just a few times when I was a kid. He can be a personable guy if it suits him, but I know he’s avaricious, and he was underhanded to make that offer. Dangerous? I hope he’s more hot air than anything else.”

“One other thing. Did you happen to have any...um...awkward conversations with my mother while she was here?”

He laughed at that. “Beth, that would describe every conversation she and I ever had, bar none.”

“Well, if there was anything in particular that transpired during her stay here, she wants me to tell you that she’s very sorry—though I have absolutely no idea what she meant.”

Beth started for her car, then Olivia’s words came back to her and she returned to the cottage, where she found Dev peeling off the last of the blue painter’s masking tape from around the frames of the mullioned windows in the living area. “How are you doing?”

He looked over at her. “Fine. Why?”

“Just wondering. I know your shoulder must be killing you when you work like this. And with everything else you must have to deal with.”

He wadded up the ball of tape and tossed it into a trash can. “Everything else?”

“Well...your hearing. And with all you had to do in the Marines.”

His eyes narrowed on hers, but at least he didn’t stalk away.

“It must be hard sometimes.” Flustered by his silence, she stumbled on. “I mean, thinking about some of the bad things that must have happened. If you ever need to talk to anyone, I’m here.”

His gaze still lasered on hers, several seconds ticked by before he finally shook his head. “Thanks. But there’s no need.”

Yes, there is, if Frank and Olivia are right and you’re jumping at shadows.

What would it be like to be living in a nightmare part of the time—and never know when a flashback could strike?

But she couldn’t make him talk, and even if he did, what could she say except offer comforting words or bland, useless reassurances that things would get better?

Maybe they wouldn’t.

Maybe he would never really get over the raw experiences he’d had—experiences she couldn’t even imagine.

At the thought of the burden he was carrying in his heart, she wanted to go over to him and put her arms around him to give him comfort and support and...

She imagined herself wrapped in his powerful yet gentle embrace, feeling the beat of his heart when she leaned against his hard, muscled chest.

Feeling protected and loved and warm, the way she had a lifetime ago, before everything went wrong. But there was no point in foolish thoughts.

He had changed, and so had she. And there would be no going back.