Second Time Sweeter

  Amari and Preston turned to her. That she had issues with her mom was no secret. “She staying at your house?” Preston asked.

  “Dad said no. Hoping she doesn’t make him change his mind.”

  Amari looked over at Tiff. She met his eyes briefly then turned her attention to the front table without showing any reaction to her sister’s comment. Tiffany was changing. Lately, she seemed less focused on being a brat, which was fine with him. She was no longer easy to read, though, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

  His dad continued, “That’s the last thing on the formal agenda. Anybody have—”

  Tamar stood and cut him off. “How much does Mal still owe?”

  Amari tensed. Her face was icy as it had been earlier. Everyone sent furtive looks Mal’s way.

  In response he pushed off the wall. “I’ve paid back almost half.”

  His scowl showed he didn’t appreciate being called out, but Amari was pretty sure Tamar didn’t care. Stealing the money had been stupid, and she didn’t do stupid, especially from family.

  “So you still owe thirty-five thousand?” she challenged.

  His chin rose angrily. “Yes. And I want to apologize to you, Bernadine, and everyone else.”

  Amari waited for him to continue the apology, to let the town know he owned what he’d done, sincerely and humbly like the great man he, Brain, and the rest of their crew looked up to and loved. But he didn’t continue. He resumed his position against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. He was done apparently. By the quizzical looks on faces around the room, others had been expecting more, too. Amari was embarrassed, angry, and hurt. He had no name for the myriad conflicting emotions roiling his insides, but tears burned the corners of his eyes. “I have to go,” he told Brain.

  “Where?”

  But he was already out of the booth. Crossing the now silent room with everyone watching him was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. There was concern on the faces of his parents, especially his mom’s, but he kept going. Reaching the exit, he pushed open the door and stepped outside into the cool night air. Hot tears slid free and trailed down his cheeks. Furiously dashing them away, he walked home.

  An hour later, he was in his pajamas brooding while propped up in bed, when a soft knock sounded on the door. “Come in.” He figured it was one of his parents returning. They’d checked on him after the meeting, making sure he was okay, and reassuring him that his reasons for leaving were legit. Instead, when the door opened, there stood Tamar. Surprise made him sit straight up.

  “Hey there, Amari.”

  “Hey, Tamar.”

  “Can we talk for a minute or two?”

  Wondering why she’d come, he nodded. She came in and sat on the edge of his bed. For a moment, the deep concern in her eyes almost made his tears start again.

  She asked, “Was worried when you left the meeting. What happened?”

  Being truthful was always best when answering her questions, so he tried to explain. “I—I just expected him to give a real apology. And when he didn’t . . . I had to go.”

  “Understood. Everyone expected more, but be that as it may, his stealing was wrong. I know it. You know it. The whole town knows it. Mal does, too.”

  “Then why didn’t he act like it?”

  She shrugged. “Pride maybe? You’ll have to ask him.”

  Amari had no intention of asking him anything.

  “Heroes can have feet of clay,” she said.

  “Dad’s a hero. He’d never steal.”

  “You’re probably right. Your dad is principled and very special. I wish his father was more like him,” she noted wistfully. “But we all walk our own paths. Mal is Mal. Trent is Trent.”

  “So what do I do with how mad I am?”

  “When you figure that out, let me know.”

  He’d expected her to have an answer that would make him feel better.

  “Sometimes all we can do is wait and let the game play out.”

  “I guess.”

  “It’s hard for me, too. Patience is not one of my virtues, which is why I called him out at the meeting. I probably owe him an apology for that, but I’m so angry.”

  “Is it wrong that I don’t want to be around him until things get fixed?”

  “No.”

  “Dad said the same thing, but I just wanted to check with you, too.”

  She gave him a soft smile. “You’re very special also, Amari. You shine with truth, honesty, and life.”

  He felt better.

  “You’re not perfect.”

  He gave her a look.

  “None of us are, but you’re special in the way that your dad is, and that’s perfect enough for me.”

  “Thanks, Tamar.”

  “You’re welcome. Your grandfather will get himself together, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let him off the hook until he does, and neither should you. He hurt us all. Particularly Bernadine, and there’s no getting around the consequences.”

  “Devon thinks he should paint the fence.”

  “Has he told Mal?”

  Amari nodded.

  “That’s not a bad idea. Don’t tell Devon I agree, though. I love him, but his ‘insufferable quotient’ is already high enough.”

  Amari grinned.

  The concern returned to her eyes. “If you need to distance yourself from Mal, that’s okay. Just don’t stop loving him. He’ll get it together.”

  “Okay.”

  She stood.

  Amari said sincerely, “Thanks for checking on me.”

  “You’re welcome. Bye now.”

  After her exit, Amari thought back on all she’d said. It was okay to be mad at Mal, but he could still love him. He wasn’t sure how to separate the two, but he’d give it time. He had patience. It was one of the first things you learned as a car thief.

  Out at the motel on 183, the woman known as school custodian Lisa Stockton carefully pulled off the ugly latex mask that disguised her true features and studied herself in the mirror. Where Stockton had pocked brown skin, hers was brown too, inherited from her African American father and Hawaiian mother, both of whom had passed away decades ago. Due to her ancestry, she looked years younger than her true age of forty and her features were still supermodel gorgeous. She next drew off the wig with its mass of small twists and the cap beneath to let her dark short-cut hair breathe. After zipping herself out of the lightweight body suit that made her thin frame more corpulent, she donned a robe and sat down to eat the burger and fries she’d picked up for dinner.

  At the town meeting she’d seen the targets in real life for the first time. They impressed her as nice people, but that didn’t matter. One of the targets’ federal grand jury testimony cost two powerful Russian mob bosses their freedom, and no good deed goes unpunished. The meeting also added to her concerns about getting the job done. Was the town’s security system more advanced than her tech’s ability to shut it down long enough to make the hit and successfully get the hell out of town? She wished the government had set the Millers up in a more cosmopolitan place. She was being paid well, but not enough to get caught and jailed because of a cutting-edge bumpkins’ town in the middle of nowhere. Certain she’d find a solution, she finished her meal.

  After the meeting, the Dog was all but deserted as Mal sat in a back booth nursing a cup of coffee. The caffeine would keep him awake longer than he wanted, but he didn’t much care.

  “I’m getting ready to lock up.”

  He glanced up to see Rocky and acknowledged her statement. “I need to be getting out of here, anyway. We haven’t had a chance to talk to you since you and Jack came back. How was the honeymoon?”

  “We had fun. Seeing his mother was less fun, but his dad always balances out her drama. I hear you got laid off.”

  “Yeah. Applied to be a janitor over at the school. Trent’s waiting for approval from Marie. She’s up in Alaska with Gen and TC.” Rocky had always been the daughter he’d never
had, and before the theft, their relationship had been one he’d treasured. Now he wasn’t sure where they stood. “How mad are you at me?”

  “No more or less than everyone else you know. Pitiful apology, by the way.”

  He shot her a look of irritation.

  She wasn’t intimidated. “Friends should always tell friends the truth. Right?”

  He didn’t reply.

  “The answer is ‘right,’ Mal.”

  Lips tight, he replied, “Here’s another truth. I’m getting real tired of folks dogging me about what I did.”

  “Then how about owning it like you should? You keep acting like it wasn’t a big deal and we should all move on. Not going to happen.”

  “I’m not the first person around here who’s screwed up.”

  “No, you aren’t. But you’re the only person who helped themselves to seventy thousand dollars that wasn’t yours.”

  He was tired of hearing that also. “It’ll take me years to pay it back on what I may be making.”

  “Probably, but that doesn’t mean you get a pass on doing it.”

  He kept seeing Amari walking out of the town meeting. Although he told himself the exit had nothing to do with him, in his heart he knew it was just wishful thinking. “Any idea why Amari took off?”

  Rocky sighed. “Knowing him, I’d say he was as disappointed by your feeble apology as the rest of us were, but I could be wrong. Have you talked to him or any of the other kids about this?”

  He shook his head, adding, “Truthfully, I haven’t figured out how yet, or what to say.” He didn’t share Devon’s recommendation about the fence because, like Trent, she’d probably agree. He also kept to himself that Devon and Amari left the table at Trent and Lily’s rather than continue dinner. The memory still made him hurt.

  “What about Tamar?”

  “No.” Her calling him out at the meeting had been infuriating and embarrassing. He’d felt like a six-year-old. He’d have to speak to her at some point, but he wasn’t ready, and if her performance tonight was any indication, she wasn’t, either.

  Rocky said gently, “Go home.” She took his coffee cup. “Get this mess figured out so you can find some peace, and we who love you can do the same.”

  He wanted to tell her how hard this was on him, but didn’t know how to do that, either. Instead, he slid from the booth and said, “See you tomorrow.”

  “Night, Mal.”

  Rocky watched him leave. Shaking her head at the mess he’d made of his life, she went to the kitchen to grab her things and head home.

  Chapter 6

  The following morning at six o’clock sharp, Mayor Trent July cut the big blue ribbon in front of Miller’s Coffee and Things and declared it officially open. Bernadine and Tina were among the many people at the short ceremony and added their applause to Trent’s announcement.

  Bernadine was pleased by the large crowd. She had no worries that the coffee shop would negatively impact the Dog’s bottom line. Residents who bought coffee would still walk down the street to sit down and have breakfast there. She was a bit concerned with how the shop would do once the novelty wore off. A drop-off in traffic was inevitable, but if the service was good and the pastries lived up to the hype, there was no reason the business couldn’t succeed. The only competition they had was from a shop in Franklin. It offered prepackaged pastries. She didn’t see plastic-wrapped products winning out over the fresh-baked breads whose scents were now wafting through the air.

  As they lined up to enter, Tina said to her, “My parents owned a bakery when I was growing up in Minnesota.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “Spent my teen years covered in flour. Hated the place at the time. I’ll have to ask the Millers if they’d be a supplier for my B&B. Nothing like fresh pastries to kick off your morning.”

  The line moved slowly so there was time for her and Tina to chat with friends like Doc Reg and his wife, Roni, the Paynes, and Trent’s assistant, Bobby Douglas. New custodian Lisa Stockton exited the shop carrying a cup of coffee and a small white bag bearing the shop’s logo. Passing Bernadine, she nodded before heading off.

  “Morning, Bernadine.”

  Bernadine turned and was surprised to see Kyle Dalton, the tall, fit, sandy-haired son of local county sheriff Will Dalton. Her sympathies rose immediately. “Hey, Kyle. How’s your dad?” Vicky, his mom and Will’s wife, had recently passed away after losing a long hard-fought battle with breast cancer. It had been a week or so since Bernadine had seen Will.

  “Doing his best under the circumstances. I finally convinced him that Mom wouldn’t want him working twenty-four/seven to cover his grief, so he and I just got back from a trip to Wyoming. We did some fishing, rode some trails. Talked.”

  The sadness in his sky-blue eyes pulled at her heart. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I want you to meet my friend Tina Craig. She’ll be opening a B&B here soon.”

  They nodded in greeting.

  Bernadine told Tina, “Kyle is an agent with the Bureau.”

  Tina appeared impressed.

  Bernadine asked him, “Are you heading back to Topeka?” He worked out of a small government office there.

  “No, going to hang here with Dad for a week or two. Make sure he’s okay.”

  “And how are you doing?”

  “My heart’s broken, too. Miss her so much.” His grief was palpable. “Probably always will.”

  Having lost her own mom early in life, Bernadine knew that to be truth. “We’re here if you or your dad need anything.”

  “I know, and it’s appreciated. How are things going in town? Any issues?”

  “No. It’s been pretty quiet.”

  “Dad told me about the embezzlement. You sure you don’t want law enforcement to intervene?”

  “No. We’ll handle it our way.”

  “Okay,” he replied skeptically. “I hope Mal knows how lucky he is.”

  “I hope so, too.” Although she did wonder.

  “I should get going. I’m here if you need me, too. Nice meeting you, Ms. Craig.”

  “Same here and my condolences on your loss.”

  “Thank you.”

  Carrying his coffee and white bag, he walked away.

  Bernadine and Tina finally entered the shop. Sam and his wife, Brenda, were working the counter along with two new staff members hastily introduced as Erin Gordon and Mike Dere. Erin was a tall, brown-skinned woman with glasses and back-brushing locs, while Mike, with his earring, blond man-bun, and flirty green eyes, drew Tina’s immediate interest. “You think I could hire him away as my personal towel holder after a long soak at the B&B?”

  Bernadine laughed. “Stop.”

  “It’s a reasonable question.”

  “You have shoes in your closet older than him.”

  “Probably, but a girl can dream. And besides, it’s our duty to support the younger generation.”

  Bernadine paid for their purchases and led the way out before Tina could put Mike in the bag with her croissants.

  Outside was a small cleared area where a few benches, tables, and chairs had been placed. She and Tina picked a table and sat. It was a windy fall day.

  Tina said, “I like this little spot.”

  “Trent’s idea. We’re thinking of installing a few more. He thought it might be nice to have spaces where people could sit outside and sip their coffee, read, or just stop and catch their breath.” The area directly across the street from the church offered an unobstructed view of Main Street, the rec center, and the school.

  “Henry Adams is lovely, Bernadine.”

  “I agree.”

  “I can’t wait to move here. It’s so quiet and peaceful. No drama, no craziness.”

  “We’ve had our share of both over the years.” She told Tina about the madness tied to Riley, Cletus, and the death of crooked banker Morton Prell, then added the story of the deadly fire set by Odessa Stillwell that took the lives
of Mike and Peggy Sanderson. She finished up detailing all the damage set off by the riot tied to Zoey’s gold. “It’s not always quiet and peaceful.”

  “I guess not,” Tina said after hearing everything.

  “But I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else,” Bernadine confessed. “This place gets in your blood.” Her attachment had taken root almost from the moment she arrived. Back then, the town was void of modern-day perks like Wi-Fi, cell phones, and air conditioning, a luxury she’d enjoyed most of her adult life, but it hadn’t deterred her. The welcoming spirit of residents like Tamar, Trent, and Bing Shepard had offset the wrongheaded protestations of Riley Curry, who had been convinced her wealth was acquired illegally. Another draw had been the town’s devotion to its past. She liked being a part of an historic place steeped in the race’s struggle to chart its own destiny. Her roots were now sunk deep, and she planned to be a resident until she drew her last breath.

  “Bernadine?” Tina’s voice broke her reverie.

  “Sorry. Was just thinking about how far this place has come and how attached I am to it.”

  “Nothing wrong with that.”

  Across the street at the school, the kids were arriving to begin their day, and Bernadine checked the time on her watch. She was enjoying Tina’s company, but it was time to get her day moving, too. “I’m going to head to the office. Do you want to come with me? Or I can drive you back to the house if you want.”

  “It’s such a nice day, I think I’ll sit here for a while, if that’s okay with you.”

  “Sure. We can hook up for lunch later.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Leaving Tina, Bernadine struck out for her office. Noticing Reverend Paula’s truck in the church’s driveway, she crossed the street to see how her trip to Oklahoma had gone.

  She found the good reverend in her office. “Hey, Paula. Welcome home. When did you get back?”

  “Last night. I meant to text you, but I was so worn out I went straight to bed.”

  “That’s okay.”

  “Sit,” Paula said, gesturing to a chair. “How’s the new coffee shop?”

  “Great.”

  “I’ll run over there in a few. How are you?”