locked the prison down. Unfortunately, at the same time, one of the worst offenders had escaped custody in the medical ward.”
She put her spoon down. “That’s where you work, right? Were you there?”
He nodded and stirred his food. “I was. I witnessed this man do unspeakable things to two people I knew. He killed one, maimed the other. I was behind a locked glass door and couldn’t do a damn thing to help them.” He left out the graphic details, but by the way she was staring at him, he understood she was filling in the gaps. He put his spoon down and leaned back. “It was bad, Gen. The man had attacked me before, he wanted to get to me, and because he couldn’t do it––”
“He fucked with your mind,” she finished for him.
His eyes darted up to her. “Such words from a lady.” He repeated his mother’s admonishment and lifted a corner of his mouth in a half-smile.
She groaned, “We’ll get to that subject in a minute. You said you took a leave of absence?”
He nodded. “I tried to resign, but they wanted me to take time off before I made that decision.”
“You’re not considering going back, are you?” She reached her hand across the table and placed it on top of his.
“No. I’ll take the time they asked that I take, but I can’t see me going back inside.” The thought of being locked in that prison with Cyrus, no matter how well-guarded the murderer was, made him sick to his stomach.
“Then stay with me until you figure out what the next step for you is.” Gen dipped down to look at him.
He drew a breath and realized he was subconsciously worried that she wouldn’t want him to stay, but the offer slid that worry from his shoulder. “It will only be for a couple weeks, maybe a month.”
“You could stay forever, and I’d be ecstatic. Now that we have that settled, eat your lunch or you’ll hurt my feelings.”
He picked up his spoon, but before he continued, he caught her attention. “Thank you, Gen.”
She smiled at him and nodded. “We’ve always stood stronger together, haven’t we?”
“Ah, yes, dear Mother. Tell me what’s going on there?” He spooned another mouthful of the delicious food and rolled his eyes when the taste exploded on his tongue.
“Well, I told you that Avery and I broke up.” She shrugged. “I didn’t tell you I found him screwing Chelsea, in my condo and in my bed.”
He stopped chewing and swallowed hard. “I’ll kill that bastard.”
She raised her eyes. “You’re a doctor. I don’t think they authorize killing under that medical credo you swore.”
“The ‘do no harm’ vow will not keep this guy from getting a fist shoved through his face.” He grumbled the words. “Chelsea as in…?”
“My ex-best friend since second grade? Yes.” She nodded and took a bite of food. “It was an epic scene. Get me drunk sometime and I’ll give you all the sordid details.” She waved her spoon in the air. “So, at Dad’s suggestion, I got in my car and I drove. I ended up about three miles south of town when my radiator decided it was time to spring a leak. I limped it to Phil’s gas station. When I saw this cafe all boarded up and lonely, I knew I’d found a place to stop. I love it here. Nobody knows who we are. There are no expectations except being a good person. The weather is harsh, the land is unforgiving, the ranchers are stronger than you might imagine, and this little town serves a purpose.”
Jeremiah considered her words for a moment. “First, I don’t believe Dad would ever set you on a road trip with no destination, and that doesn’t explain the greeting I got today. So, explain.” He lifted his beer and drank, chasing the lingering heat of the meal.
“Well, he suggested I go on a holiday—the Med was his suggestion.” She smiled and winked at him and then her face fell. “Mother has been at me nonstop. I haven’t given her my number and she’s blowing up my email.”
He remembered that she’d changed her number when she started the business. He’d figured it was because of a carrier issue in the sparsely populated area. “You’ve banned our mother?”
“She has my email address. That’s it. Dad swore he’d never tell her where I’m at.”
Shit, things were worse than he’d imagined. “Because?”
“Because after I found out Avery had cheated on me, I called