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“Deputy Night Hawk comes in every morning for breakfast,” she replied.
“The way I hear it, he always sits at one of your booths. He never did that before.”
“Do you need my room so badly you’d throw me to any man who drives by and acknowledges me?” Caroline joked, trying to keep the conversation light. She was still feeling that strange sensation in the pit of her stomach when he looked at her. Nothing she’d want Anna to know about.
“Didn’t you know? Matchmaking is our largest source of entertainment here in Tyler. My mother would say that you ended up here for a good reason.”
“Or maybe I ended up here because I liked the looks of the town, you had a spare room and Marge needed a waitress,” she said, moving the chair back so she could prop her feet up on the railing. “I really like this.”
Anna shot Caroline a look of amusement. “Changing the subject?”
“No, just talking about something more interesting.” She waved her hand to indicate the street in front of them. “You can sit out here all day and everyone passing by is someone you know. I lived in a city that was considered small by some standards, but it was nothing like this.”
“For a city girl, you’ve settled into small town life like a fish takes to water.” She smiled. “As if you were meant to be here all along.”
“Long lost daughter returning to the fold,” Caroline sang out, holding her arms out wide. She froze. “Listen to me. I sound like someone in a soap opera. Next thing you know I’ll suffer a debilitating disease and lapse into a coma.”
“Brady will be your doctor. He’ll tell us he has no idea what caused your illness.” Anna continued the fiction. “We could have Cooper ordering Brady to do whatever he can to cure you.”
“I thought comas were an automatic death sentence for the actress,” Caroline said, going along with the script Anna was happily writing.
“Not in our show, dear. Tyler’s Own will be an Emmy-winning show,” she insisted. “That’s why we need you in a coma.”
“The coma might be a good idea, since it was strongly suggested I drop out of drama class in high school,” Caroline confessed.
“Honey, every woman has a bit of actress in her,” the older woman soothed. “That’s how we take those men and wind them around our fingers.”
“So that’s how it was done.” Johnny Kelsey walked out of the house and kissed his wife’s cheek. “Don’t listen to her, Caroline. If you want to catch a man, you need a man’s advice. So who are you plotting against? And does he have any idea his days are numbered?”
“No one,” Caroline firmly stated, at the same time Anna offered, “Cooper Night Hawk.”
Johnny raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t you just throw her to the wolves, Anna? Couldn’t you have started her out with someone easier?”
“You didn’t see the look Cooper gave her when he drove by a few minutes ago,” she replied.
“He was just being polite,” Caroline explained. “Nothing more.”
Anna smiled knowingly. “Yes, dear. And that’s why you’re blushing right now.”
Caroline pushed herself out of her chair and headed for the front door. “I am not blushing,” she declared haughtily as she made an escape worthy of a dramatic actress.
Husband and wife exchanged looks that said it all.
“You’re really going to try to match her up with Cooper?” he asked.
“I don’t think I’ll have anything to say about it. You know how romance works in this town. It’s all up to the quilting circle,” she answered, thinking of the brightly colored quilt that had been presented to them at their wedding, and since then had adorned their bed.
Johnny shook his head in fatalistic agreement. More than one single man cringed when they learned the Tyler Quilting Circle was beginning work on another quilt. Their success with the wedding quilts was the stuff legends were made of.
“God help them both.”
CAROLINE WAS INDULGING in her favorite form of relaxation: a bubble bath.
At the moment, she was the only boarder in the house, so she didn’t need to worry about anyone else needing the bathroom. She could take all the time she wanted.
She set her towel by the tub next to her CD player, stepped into the large, old-fashioned claw foot tub filled with hot water and floral-scented bubble bath, and slid down until her neck was resting against the edge of the tub, where she’d set a rolled-up towel. She turned on her CD player, slipped the headphones on and adjusted them to her ears.
Now she could truly relax. She closed her eyes, waiting for the music to flow through her body and complete the mood.
Except her body didn’t calm down. And her eyes refused to remain closed. If she didn’t know any different, she’d swear the music that usually soothed her now sounded downright annoying.
“Take deep calming breaths,” she directed herself. “Your body can’t relax if your mind won’t relax.”
Caroline wished her body would listen to her, but she could tell this time of relaxation wasn’t soothing her as it usually did.
But how could she, when Cooper Night Hawk was firmly planted in her thoughts?
Why now? She’d been waiting on him since that first day she worked at Marge’s. She’d even managed to serve him his breakfast without dropping it into his lap or scalding him with coffee.
From that first day she was aware of the intensity that surrounded him like a blanket. She didn’t need to see his badge to know he was in law enforcement. He had that air about him. He was a man dedicated to protecting the people.
She sensed a dedication like his would not hesitate in protecting the Spencer men from her if he felt she posed any kind of threat to them.
There was another, more elemental reason why he unnerved her; he was the most attractive man she’d ever met.
Coal-black hair pulled back and tied with a leather thong. Eyes so dark a brown they were almost black. Copper skin stretched tightly over a face that could have been carved from granite. And a body that could inspire many a fantasy.
Caroline recalled she and friends in high school reading popular historical romances where the hero was a Native American. They’d giggled over the descriptions of men she always thought came strictly from the author’s imagination. After meeting Cooper she was positive the books were nothing compared to the cold hard reality of the man.
“Caroline, dear, dinner in half an hour.” Anna’s voice filtered through the door.
“Thank you,” she called back. Instead of waiting another twenty minutes before climbing out of the tub, she leaned forward and pulled the plug. She grabbed her towel and wrapped it around herself as she stepped out.
So much for relaxation.
“THIS IS WHEN I HATE CARS,” Caroline muttered between clenched teeth as she turned the ignition key one more time. As before, the engine refused to turn over. She slapped the steering wheel with the flat of her hand as she leaned back in the seat.
It was clear she wouldn’t be going any farther. She grabbed her small backpack, which doubled as her purse, and climbed out of the car. After locking the door, she walked down the road in the direction of town. With luck, someone might drive by and pick her up.
Caroline hadn’t gotten far before she realized the sandals she’d put on that morning weren’t meant for walking along a dusty road covered with gravel. Not to mention it was starting to get dark, and sounds she hadn’t noticed before, coming from among the trees on either side of the road, seemed to grow louder.
“Lions and tigers and…” she whispered, looking left to right. She tried to pick up her pace, but the rocky road hampered her steps. “Oh, boy. Okay, no lions here. Wrong country. Tigers, no. Bears, could be. Bigfoot is in the Pacific Northwest. And I’m not.”
She stopped to empty pebbles from her sandal for what felt like the twentieth time. Her balance was precarious as she stood on one foot, slipped off one shoe and brushed off the dirt. She wobbled when a truck slowed down and stopped by her.
“I heard Californians liked to walk, but I thought you’d be wearing something a bit more…sporty,” Cooper said, eyeing her black tank top, which skimmed the waistline of her white-and-black-print capri pants molded to slim, tanned legs. Black thong sandals displayed feet gray from road dust. He could smell a light floral scent coming off her skin, sweeter than that of the colorful flowers growing alongside the road.
Caroline just stared at him. “You know, right now I would love nothing more than to come up with some witty little comeback, but I’m too tired to think of one,” she admitted. “My car died down the road.”
He leaned over and pushed open the passenger door. “Get in. I’ve got a tow hook in the back, so I can tow your car to the garage if it’s something that isn’t a quick fix, like a loose wire or you ran out of gas.”
“Unfortunately, I know from personal experience what happens when you run out of gas, and that wasn’t it. I have no idea about a dead battery.”
She climbed up into the cab and dropped onto the seat. She noticed the earthy aromas of horse and man mingling companionably in the small interior. Instead of his black deputy’s uniform, Cooper wore a denim shirt with the cuffs rolled back to reveal dark forearms, and jeans that had seen better days. His boots were scuffed and dusty. His aviator-style sunglasses hid the eyes she sensed never displayed any emotion. An equally battered hat perched low on his forehead.
He looked as imposing as he did in uniform. Now she understood about a man with presence. Cooper Night Hawk had it in spades.
“I was beginning to think I wouldn’t run into anyone,” she admitted. “I heard that country roads are quiet. They’re more than quiet. They’re downright empty. I guess I should feel lucky my car didn’t break down after dark. Who knows what I might have run into?”
“The only critters you’d find around here after dark are horny teenagers,” Cooper said. He glanced at her lap. “Put your seat belt on.”
She secured the harness and sat back against the door so she could face him. She slipped her sandals off and rubbed her feet. “What were you doing out here? Planning to pick off the teenagers when they show up?”
“We only come out here every so often,” he replied. “That way they don’t know when to expect us. We look around, see which car has the most steamed-up windows and tap on them. The area usually clears out within five minutes.”
“What a spoilsport you are, Deputy.” She grinned.
“That’s my job.”
“Right now you look more like a cowboy who’s been out on the range.”
He shook his head. “More like helping my grandfather with his garden. Which means he stands there and directs while I do the heavy work. He claims he’s the one doing the work through my hands. Yet I always seem to be the one with the blisters and muscle aches.”
“It sounds as if your grandfather knows how to delegate,” Caroline pointed out. “It’s considered a highly prized skill in the corporate world.”
“I don’t know if the corporate world could handle Grandfather and his insistence of consulting his spirit guides before making important decisions.”
“I’m afraid I don’t know very much about Native American culture,” she confessed. “But I have heard of spirit guides. Are your spirit guides your ancestors or just someone who appears in your life?”
He drove with lazy confidence, one hand on the steering wheel, the other arm braced on the open window. A glance in her direction showed him she was genuinely interested. “Everyone has different guides. Your guides can be an ancestor or someone from your tribe. Animals are also spirit guides.”
She studied him closely. “But you don’t believe in them.”
Cooper took his time answering. For a while she wasn’t sure he was going to say anything. “My grandfather clings to the old ways. He uses herbs for healing, asks for guidance before planting, goes off to commune with his guides before making any important decisions. I believe in antibiotics, I check the almanac, and usually just flip a coin before making important decisions.”
“I have a friend who visits her psychic once a month,” Caroline said. “The woman isn’t always right, but Sheila never minded. She said she only sees Rena for a second opinion. Perhaps that’s what your grandfather is doing. Looking for a second opinion.”
Cooper quickly glanced her way. “Sounds as if you saw that psychic once in a while for those second opinions.”
“I went to Rena once. She told me my life would take some surprising turns and I should just go along with the ride.” Caroline thought of the turns her life had taken in the past months. “ I guess she was right,” she murmured.
“So that’s how you ended up in Tyler? This psychic sent you here?” he asked.
She lifted her shoulder in a shrug. “She didn’t exactly give me a map.”
“Funny, I would have thought someone would have directed you to come this way,” Cooper said casually. “It’s not as if we’re on all the major maps. Tyler isn’t a typical destination for just anyone.”
“I guess the reason I ended up here was because I decided to go off the highway and do some exploring. I drove into town and liked what I saw,” she replied.
“It’s not always a good idea to go off the main road. It’s been known to be hazardous to a single young woman’s health. More than one woman has disappeared because she wanted to see more of the countryside,” he said. “Not all small communities are friendly.”
“Now you sound like one of those true crime programs. I try not to watch them. They give me nightmares.” She leaned her head back, resting it against the partially open window. She twitched her nose in a way that reminded Cooper of a puppy sniffing the wind.
He doubted she’d appreciate being compared to a puppy. Even a cute one. He mentally kicked himself and returned to his lecture.
“They’re meant to scare you,” Cooper said flatly. “All it takes—”
“I’m careful, Deputy,” she interrupted. “But I refuse to live my life under a cloud of fear.”
He nodded. “Admittedly, our crime rate in Tyler is low, but you still have to be careful. People lock their doors now, when ten, fifteen years ago, they didn’t. Still, Tyler is a small community where people look out for each other. Maybe everyone knows your business, but when the chips are down, it’s nice to know there’s people around who will care.”
“That’s quite a switch—from a warning to an advertisement on reasons to move to Tyler,” she told him.
“I don’t know. It seems they both cover you.” He favored her with a sideways glance. “Any other surprises in store for us where you’re concerned?”
She turned her head to look out the window, as if she was afraid he’d read something in her expression. “I’m not really the surprise type. I’m known as a very up-front person.”
Now why did he have the feeling she was lying? She had the face of a Madonna. He didn’t want to think she might have the soul of a devil. But he also felt she wasn’t telling the complete truth.
“It seems a lot of the families in Tyler have lived here for many years,” Caroline said.
“Some go back to the founding of the town. Others arrived later. It’s been said you’re not considered a true local resident unless you can count back at least five generations,” he explained. “My family can count back even further.”
“So your family still lives around here?”
He shook his head. “Most live out of the area. My grandfather has a small cabin on my land. He claims it’s so he can keep an eye on me.”
“You’re close to him, aren’t you?” she guessed.
“Yeah, I am. He’s an old coot but I guess I have to say he’s my old coot.” His voice was warm with affection. “What about you?”
“No one,” she murmured. She wasn’t aware of the wistful longing in her voice, nor did she see the quick look he flashed her.
Cooper steered the truck off to the side of the road and stopped behind Caroline’s car. He silently held out his hand. “Keys?” he prompted when she looked at him blankly.
“Oh!” She dug into her bag and pulled out the key ring. She grasped the correct key and held it out to him. “I locked it up before I left.”
He opened the door and climbed out. “I had an idea you would. Stay here. No need for you to get out.”
Cooper unlocked the little sports car and lifted the hood to check the engine. After making sure the radiator was filled and she had oil, he returned to the driver’s seat and tried the ignition. Just as Caroline had said, the engine refused to turn over.
He walked back to his truck and leaned on the open window.
“You’ve got a dead battery,” he told her. “I can jump-start the engine, which should get you back to town okay. I’ll follow you to make sure it doesn’t die on you before you get to Carl’s Garage. You’ll need a new battery right away.”
“This is when I hate cars,” she confessed.
“That’s a sweet little car you have. You need to take good care of her if you don’t want to end up stranded again,” he told her.
