Just One Kiss (Whisper Lake #4) - Barbara Freethy Page 0,57
their lot had been right next door to her dad's hardware store. Donny and her father had been the best of friends during that period. Donny and his wife, Rose, had tried to support her mom after her dad's passing. Her mom hadn't made that easy, though, and after some embarrassing incident at one of Rose's birthday parties, their families had stopped getting together.
"I didn't think anyone in your family bought Christmas trees anymore," Donny said. "Or maybe you've been getting 'em from Ace's lot or chopping down your own at one of the farms outside of town."
"We just haven't been getting trees, but this year is different."
"Why is that?"
"My sister's son is staying with me. He's four, and he needs a tree that will light up his eyes with wonder and amazement."
"This one should do the trick. It's a seven-footer, good symmetry, and thick branches."
"It looks perfect," she agreed.
"I didn't realize your sister was back in town. When did that happen?" Donny asked.
"Actually, it's just her son right now."
His sharp eyes didn't miss a beat. "Well, that's good. Always nice to have little ones around at Christmas. How is your mother?"
"She's doing well."
"Happy to hear that."
"How's your family?"
"Rose is in charge of remodeling our kitchen, so she's keeping busy. Andrew is selling cars during the week and racing 'em on the weekends."
"He always liked fast cars."
"He did. Of course, Rose would like him to spend more time finding a wife and maybe producing some grandchildren, but he pays her no mind."
"I'm sure he'll find the right person when he's ready."
"What about you? You got someone special?"
"Right now, the only male I'm obsessed with is my four-year-old nephew."
"I wish your dad was alive to meet him."
"Me, too. Brett looks a lot like my father and also like Tyler. No red hair for him."
"That red is beautiful, and it's your fire," Donny said with a smile. "It gives you strength, and Lord knows you've needed it. I'm sorry we fell out of touch, Hannah. I let you and your siblings down. Rose and your mom got so angry with each other, and I was caught in the middle."
"You don't have to apologize, Donny. The only person at fault was my mother. She pushed everyone away. But she's sober now. It feels like she finally came out of the tunnel she went into after my dad died."
"I'm very happy to hear that. Now, what about this tree? Do you have some way to get it to your house? Otherwise, I can have Randy drop it off. However, he might not get it there until later tonight. He had to run a tree over to the west shore, to some fancy celebrity's house."
They'd been getting more and more celebrities staying at the large estates that had recently been built on the west shore, but they didn't seem to wander into town too often. "I should be able to get the tree home. Someone is coming to help me." She handed him her credit card. "Could you ring it up and then we'll figure it out?"
"Sounds good." As Donny ambled back to the cash register, she saw Jake drive into the parking lot, and she quickly moved in his direction.
He'd barely gotten out of the truck when she said, "What did you find out?"
He closed the door and gave her a reassuring smile. "It's not huge news, but it's something."
"Tell me."
"Kelly went to Trevor's cabin to ask if she could borrow his car. She said that hers had broken down. Trevor was drunk at the time, so he said yes, but on one condition—she had to drive him to the motel where he's staying now. Apparently, the cabin had too many memories of his ex-girlfriend, so he needed to move. Kelly agreed. She drove him to the motel Friday night, and he hasn't seen her or his car since then. He did say that on the drive, she kept murmuring to herself that her kid was going to be all right, that he was with her sister, and everything would be okay, like she was trying to give herself a pep talk."
"Did she look like she'd been hurt?"
"No, but he did confirm that she was pregnant. She also kept talking to the baby, saying everything would be all right, and she'd protect her."
She thought about Trevor's story. "It sounds like she was very stressed out. But where was her car? If it was broken down, why wasn't it in front of the cabin?"