To Cherish Page 5

  “No time,” he said, forcing himself to stand. His right shoulder was a bit sore, but he ignored that, too. “I have to get home to change, then report to headquarters.”

  “I’ll create a breakfast sandwich you can eat on the road.” She disappeared, leaving him alone.

  He used the bathroom, noticing the fresh toothbrush and toothpaste sitting on the edge of the sink. He gladly used them both, wishing there was a razor as well, then headed down to the main level.

  “Hi, Policeman,” Trey said from his booster seat. The boy swung his legs back and forth, kicking beneath the table. “How come you’re not wearin’ your badge?”

  “I left it at home, but I am going to get it now.” He smiled at the boy and then turned to Jemma. “Sorry to leave so quickly like this.”

  “It’s fine, thanks again for staying. I made you breakfast to go.” Jemma shoved a napkin-wrapped breakfast sandwich into his hand. He glanced down at the makeshift meal: fried egg, cheese, and a slice of ham on an English muffin. “Check back with me later, okay?”

  “I will,” he rashly promised. “Bye, Trey, see you later.”

  Walking down the driveway, he scanned the area for any sign of Cunningham. There was nothing, other than his truck sitting right where he’d left it, apparently unharmed.

  Jemma’s sandwich tasted amazing, and he quickly ate as he drove back home. His stomach didn’t rebel, which he considered a good sign. Twenty minutes later, mostly because he’d decided against shaving, he walked into the sheriff’s department headquarters.

  “You!” Ahern’s eyes were still bloodshot as he glared at Garth. “I demand to be released right now!”

  “Okay.” Garth approached the cell door but didn’t unlock it. “But we need to talk before you leave.”

  Ahern’s gaze darted around the interior of the department as his lip curled. “About what?”

  “Jemma McNally.”

  Ahern flinched in response to the name and took a step back, his eyes dropping to stare at the floor. “What about her?”

  “Come on, Ahern, be straight with me. You came here to talk to her, didn’t you?”

  Ahern shook his head, but didn’t meet his gaze. “No, I didn’t know she was here.”

  “You didn’t know Jemma McNally lived in McNally Bay?” Garth’s tone reflected his disbelief. “You need a better answer than that if you want to get out of here.”

  There was a long pause, then Ahern sighed. “Okay, yeah. Maybe I considered talking to her. But she lives in that huge house that has guests staying there, so I chickened out.”

  “Did you drop a baseball card?”

  “Nope.” The guy avoided his gaze in a way that roused his suspicions. He wasn’t a very good liar.

  “You’re sure?” Garth wished he’d gotten fingerprints from the card.

  Ahern’s tone turned whiny. “Lemme go. I didn’t do nothing wrong.”

  “Randal Cunningham paid you to come here, didn’t he?”

  “Huh?” Ahern’s confusion looked real. “Who’s that?”

  Garth stared at Ahern, his thoughts whirling in tandem to his throbbing headache.

  Was it really possible this was just a coincidence? That Ahern hadn’t been sent by Cunningham after all?

  If that was the case, who was Cunningham working with? And how on earth would Garth find his mystery accomplice?

  5

  At the last minute, Jemma decided against telling Jazz and Dalton about the events from the previous night. The last thing they needed was to start worrying about her, more than they already were. Besides, she suspected that Garth’s attack had been Randal’s knee-jerk reaction to finding someone outside. Maybe now that he knew the cops were nearby he’d move on.

  She wished Randal would just leave her alone. Her ex didn’t really want to share custody of Trey. While they were married, Randal had avoided helping out with feeding and changing their son. It was all women’s work.

  Jazz and Dalton discussed the ongoing renovation project as they ate. Jemma didn’t say much, thinking about Garth’s head injury as she cleaned Trey’s face and hands before sending him off to play.

  She had set her alarm every two hours during the night to go up and check on him, worried that he’d end up going into some sort of coma. He’d always answered her questions accurately, but she could tell by the way he looked at her in confusion that he wasn’t himself.

  Why had he decided to go into work? Would it be so bad to take a day or two off so that he could fully recover?

  Men were stubborn pigheaded creatures, she decided as she scrubbed the counter. Never listening to basic common sense.

  “Jemma?”

  She belatedly glanced toward Jazz. “Sorry, what?”

  Her twin frowned. “Is something wrong? You seem preoccupied this morning. I asked about your plans for the day.”

  “I’m fine.” She pasted a smile on her face. “I was thinking about our grand opening in three days. I need to get up into the attic to go through a few things. I really want to find Grandma’s silver candlesticks for the mantle above the fireplace and then finalize the breakfast menu for both Saturday and Sunday.”

  “Your meals are great, nothing for you to worry about. Especially since our guests come for the view and the quaint atmosphere of the town as much as the meals. And I’ve been working on some new marketing strategies.”

  “I know.” She appreciated Jazz’s attempt to make her feel better. “I was thinking we could play up our Irish heritage by offering a full Irish breakfast.”

  Jazz’s eyes brightened. “That’s a great idea!”

  “I thought I’d offer something else too, something special each weekend, but wanted the main staple to be the full Irish.” Jemma grinned wryly. “Do you think that will go over with our guests?”

  “Absolutely. The full Irish along with a breakfast special sounds perfect,” Jazz said, nodding enthusiastically. “I love all your recipes.”

  “Grandma’s recipes,” Jemma corrected with a wry smile. “She was the genius in the kitchen. I’m a mere apprentice.”

  “Yeah, right,” Dalton chimed in. “I have to agree with Jazz on this one. You can cook for me any day, any time.”

  Her smile widened, secretly pleased how well her soon-to-be brother-in-law fit into their family. “Have you two decided on a wedding date yet?”

  Jazz and Dalton exchanged a long look. “Not yet, I’d really like to have Jonas attend, and so far, he hasn’t given us a specific date that he’ll be returning stateside, other than to say, soon.” Jazz shrugged. “I guess that’s the Army for you.”

  “Yeah, I understand.” Jemma missed her brother, too. They all did. She and Jazz had four older brothers: Jesse, Jeremy, Jake, and Jonas. Jonas had been stationed in Afghanistan for twelve months already, not even allowed to return for either of their grandparent’s funerals. And while they could video-chat and email, it wasn’t the same. “Hopefully, he’ll be able to give us details in the next week or so.”

  “I hope so.” Jazz’s expression was troubled for a moment, then cleared. “At least Jake agreed to come from Ireland, which is good news.” Her twin’s expression clouded. “I only wish our parents were still alive.”

  Jemma went over to give Jazz a quick hug. “I know, I wish the same thing.”

  Jazz returned her embrace, then subtly wiped her eyes and cleared her throat. “Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t you take a little time for yourself? Dalton and I will finish cleaning up here while keeping an eye on Trey.”

  Her sister’s offer was sweet and tempting. She loved Trey more than anything on this earth, but being a single parent wasn’t easy. “Thanks, Jazz.”

  “Go on.” Jazz made a shooing motion with her hand. “Leave the rest to us.”

  Jemma draped the dishcloth over the faucet and wiped her hands on a towel. “I’ll be quick,” she promised.

  “Take your time,” Jazz insisted.

  Jemma found herself relaxing in the hot shower, reveling
in having a few minutes of peace and quiet. She lingered longer than she should have, then took more time to rub lotion over her skin.

  When she realized she was doing all this to look and smell nice for Garth, she inwardly winced. Reminding herself she didn’t need additional complications in her life, she pulled on her oldest, most comfy pair of jeans and an old threadbare Chicago Blaze rugby shirt.

  Her first serious boyfriend, Clay Ryan, had played rugby. Personally, she’d thought the sport was ridiculously dangerous, but that didn’t stop her from rooting for Clay from the sidelines.

  Idly, she wondered where Clay was now. They’d gone their separate ways after a year-long relationship. If things had worked out for them, she never would have ended up with Randal.

  Then again, that would also mean not having Trey. And giving birth to her son was something she’d never regret.

  But still, the rugby shirt reminded her of happier times, which is why she’d hung onto it for all these years.

  Jemma returned to the kitchen in a better mood, stopping abruptly when she saw Garth seated at the kitchen table, holding Trey in his lap.

  “Jemma, we were just hearing about the events from last night,” Jazz said in a brittle tone that betrayed her disappointment. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

  “I should have,” Jemma admitted, wondering why she’d bothered to avoid the subject in the first place. She should have known the truth would come out eventually. “I didn’t want you to worry. I’m sure Garth being here last night took Randal by surprise and scared him off.”

  Garth sent her an apologetic look but shook his head. “I don’t think we should assume anything at this point. It may not have been Cunningham who assaulted me, but someone he hired. I don’t think it’s Ahern, though. He was locked up in jail overnight and didn’t recognize Cunningham’s name.”

  “Who’s Ahern?” Jazz asked.

  Jemma had almost forgotten about Stephan Ahern showing up in McNally Bay. “He’s the father of one of my students. I reported him to Child Protective Services for abuse.” She turned toward Garth, disconcerted to see how natural he looked holding her son. “Surely you don’t believe Ahern showed up here by accident?”

  “No, Ahern admitted he came on purpose. Apparently just seeing your new sign at the entrance of the driveway identifying this as McNallys’ B and B scared him off. He assumed you had guests staying here already.”

  “Is there anything else going on that I should know?” Jazz demanded, obviously upset.

  “That’s all of it,” Jemma assured her. The sense of peace and serenity evaporated, leaving a feeling of dull resignation behind. She absolutely needed to get back to yoga. Hadn’t she seen a sign offering yoga classes at the local gym the last time she’d gone to the grocery store? She made a mental note to see if they offered childcare services, too. “Thanks for letting me know about Ahern.”

  “I told him to get out of Clark County or face additional charges,” Garth said. “I waited and watched while he packed up his tent and drove away. I don’t think you need to worry about him any longer.”

  “That’s something, I guess.” She knew she owed it to Jazz and Trey to remain positive. “Well, thanks again for letting me know the outcome.”

  Garth didn’t appear inclined to leave. Trey got antsy and wiggled off the deputy’s lap and ran back to his mini car collection spread out between the tables she’d placed in the living room turned dining room. She believed their guests would appreciate having breakfast with a stunning view of the lake.

  “Jemma, could we talk for a minute, alone?” Garth shifted in his seat as if he were embarrassed.

  “Dalton and I were just leaving,” Jazz quickly interjected. “We have a lot of work to do.”

  “We were?” Dalton asked. Jazz scowled at him, and he looked abashed and nodded. “Oh, yeah. We were. Jemma, we’ll check in on you later.”

  “I’m fine, no need to keep popping over,” she said sternly.

  “You don’t want to feed us?” Dalton asked with a forlorn look on his face.

  She rolled her eyes and smiled, unable to hold a grudge against her twin’s fiancé. “Yes, I’ll feed you.”

  “Thanks, sis.” Dalton came over and gave her a quick hug. Jazz hugged her, too.

  “Next time, confide in me, please?” her twin whispered.

  “I will.” Jemma watched as Dalton ushered Jazz out through the great room toward the front door. Vowing to make up with her sister later, Jemma lifted the teapot, adding hot water to her lukewarm tea, then came over to sit across from Garth. “What is it? Did you learn something more about Randal?”

  “Yeah, I checked in with his lieutenant again, who claimed that Cunningham reported to work at seven thirty this morning. I know there was plenty of time to attack me at twelve-thirty and drive back to Bloomington, but Young is making noises about filing a harassment complaint against us, so I dropped the issue for now.”

  “Randal is slick enough to pull it off.”

  “Yeah, maybe. But I don’t think Cunningham is doing his own dirty work, which is why his lieutenant is so angry with me. Think about it, why would Cunningham take the risk of being up all night and reporting to duty in the morning as assigned? It seems like asking for trouble.”

  There wasn’t a good answer for that.

  “Listen, I think we need to consider the fact that he’s hired someone else to do all this. After all, the guy who came to pick up Trey from school didn’t fit Cunningham’s description, right?”

  “Right.” She nodded, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her gut.

  “Jemma, I want to do a criminal background check on your guests who are coming to stay this weekend.”

  Her gaze shot to his. “You really think he’d hire someone to stay here as a guest?”

  “I believe anything is possible,” Garth said somberly. “And I’d rather be safe than sorry.”

  She took a sip of her tea, then set it aside and reached for the laptop computer. She logged in and pulled up the guest list. There were four couples registered to stay in the B&B this weekend, three married couples and one engaged couple. She and Jazz had hoped to convince the engaged couple to consider booking one of their gazebo wedding packages. They’d even given them the blue room, the one they’d designed as the honeymoon suite, hoping to encourage a return visit sometime soon.

  Dutifully writing down their names, she handed the list to Garth. “I highly doubt any married or engaged couples registered to stay here are involved in something criminal.”

  “I know, but I still need to check them out.” Garth folded the paper and tucked it in his pocket. “I, um, was wondering if you’d mind if I stayed here in the yellow room again tonight.”

  She blinked and gaped. “You want to stay here?”

  “Yeah. If it’s not too much trouble.” He shrugged. “I’d rather be close by, in case there’s another attempt to break in or worse.”

  “Oh, sure. Of course.” Jemma told her traitorous heart to settle down. This wasn’t Garth wanting to get close to her personally.

  He only wanted to keep her safe.

  And that’s what she wanted, too. Right?

  Right.

  Although telling herself that was far easier than actually believing it.

  Garth rose to his feet, knowing he needed to get back to work. “I’ll see you later this evening, okay? I’ll stop by after dinner.”

  “You can join us if you’d like,” she offered. “I have to cook for everyone else, adding one more isn’t a problem.”

  He hesitated, knowing he should decline, but the thought of making something himself, or returning to Daisy’s Diner, wasn’t very appealing.

  “What if I brought dinner instead? Do you like Chinese? Chen Lee’s has great takeout.”

  Her eyes lit up. “That would be great. But don’t forget to bring enough for Jazz and Dalton, too.”

  “I won’t. Will Trey eat Chinese?”

  “I’m not sure he’s tried i
t, but generally he’s not a picky eater.”

  “I’ll make sure to get some honey chicken for him.” Glad to be contributing, he smiled. “See you around six?”

  “Sounds good.” She followed him to the door. “Thanks again, Garth. For everything.”

  He turned to look down at her deep brown eyes, fighting the need to kiss her. “Thank you for keeping an eye on me last night.”

  The corner of her mouth tipped up in a smile. “I wasn’t sure you remembered.”

  “I do, although at the time I thought I was dreaming.” The air between them shimmered with awareness, and he had to curl his fingers into fists to prevent himself from reaching for her and cuddling her close.

  For a long moment, neither of them moved. He wanted to believe he saw the same attraction he felt shimmering in her chocolate gaze.

  “Mommy! Come play wif me!” Trey’s voice was like a bucket of cold water splashing in his face.

  “Coming,” Jemma called, taking a small step back. Her smile seemed sad. “See you later, Garth.”

  “Six,” he repeated, then forced himself to turn away. He could feel the heat of her gaze on his back as he strode to his squad car.

  But when he looked back at the doorway, Jemma was gone.

  Inwardly grimacing at his foolish imagination, he made a Y-turn in the wide driveway and then headed out onto the highway. His head still hurt, but ignoring the pain was becoming second nature. He returned to the Pine Cone Campsite to make sure Ahern hadn’t doubled back and, after confirming the guy’s vehicle was nowhere to be found, went on to scope the place out for a sign of anyone who looked as if they fit the description of the guy who’d tried to pick up Trey from preschool.

  No luck.

  At lunchtime, he picked up a fish sandwich to go and returned to his desk at headquarters. While he ate, he ran background checks on the four couples who had registered to stay at The McNallys’ B&B.

  They all came out clean, aside of a few speeding tickets and one five-year-old DUI. He proceeded to run credit checks as well but found no obvious signs of financial difficulties either. In fact, all four couples appeared, at least on paper, to be nice people looking for a weekend away.