Page 11 of A Brambleberry Summer

She focused her attention somewhere over his shoulder, still not meeting his gaze.

“I like it here. The people are friendly, for the most part, and the scenery is amazing.”

“Rosa said you came from Utah. I’ve got friends there. What part?”

He wasn’t surprised when his innocent-seeming question made both Rosa and Jen tense. As he suspected, she was in some kind of trouble. Was she running from an abusive relationship or a custody problem? Or something else?

The two women looked at each other for a moment then Jen gave a smile that looked forced. “A small town in Utah, near the Idaho border. No one has ever heard of it.”

She answered in such an offhand manner, he knew she was being deliberately evasive.

He wanted to ask her what town in Utah, but suspected she would shut down fast if he asked.

He also didn’t want to raise the wrath of Rosa Galvez. Not when she was doing him a big favor by letting him stay here.

Anyway, Jen Ryan was only a neighbor. Not a suspect.

She probably had very legit reasons to be cautious of strangers.

Sometimes he needed to remind himself to separate the detective from the man. They would be sharing this house for the next month, but likely would not see much of each other, anyway. Did he really need to know the poor woman’s life story?

“Rosa says you are a police detective.”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

She didn’t sound thrilled at the confirmation. He couldn’t help feeling a little defensive. He was passionate about his job, protecting and serving, and tried to do it with compassion and dedication toward all.

“It was nice to meet you,” she said, though he suspected she was lying. “I hope you’re comfortable here.”

“Thank you.”

“Come on, Addie.”

The girl protested a little but still took her mother’s hand and the two of them went back up the stairs again. Addie sent a smile over her shoulder all the way up the stairs at Logan and Hank and her pretend dog, Fiona.

That one would be a little heartbreaker when she grew up. He could tell she already knew how to charm people.

He turned back to Rosa in time to see her watching Jen with a worried expression. When she felt his gaze, she quickly wiped it away.

“There. Now everyone knows everyone else living in the house.”

“Yes.” One big not-so-happy family. “We’ll just grab our things and settle in.”

She nodded. “Be sure to contact me if you have any questions.”

“Thank you.”

“Good night, then. Come on, Fiona. We have tools to put away.”

She walked outside in the fading sunlight and he and Logan followed her to grab their suitcases and the few boxes of belongings he had brought from his sister’s house.

When they returned from the last trip outside, Logan collapsed onto the comfortable-looking couch. “I like this place. It feels nice.”

Logan was the reason he was here. Wyatt was grateful for the reminder. He and his son needed their own place until the house was ready. It was only a short time, and then they could get back to their real life.

Yes, he might be uncomfortably attracted to Rosa Galvez, but he wasn’t about to make the mistake of acting on that attraction.

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