Page 7 of Call It Love

“To be direct, I was wondering if he could do some work at Silver Creek Farm.”

To mimic Reid,Bingo.

“He’d get paid from a fund our department has through a grant we applied for to help struggling kids. Then he’d take the money and pay back the stores and the community. This wasn’t exactly how I was thinking of using the money first, but it’s the need I currently have.” Reid sighed. “Look, I know it’s asking a lot, but I figured it’s good labor, and maybe he’ll learn something useful. Or at least, burn off some energy so he’s nothing but too ass-tired to get into trouble. He just needs some direction. A firm hand. You were the first person I thought of. I really don’t want to call Juvenile Services. It won’t help the overall problem.”

I scrubbed a hand down my face and tried to process Reid’s request. He knew I always took on more help this time of year, but I wasn’t sure how muchhelpa teenager, a young one at that, would be. But I knew Reid wouldn’t ask if he didn’t think it might help. I didn’t know Reid’s entire background, but Bristol, Reid’s wife, had shared just enough with me to know that someone had given Reid a second chance when he was young. And he was one of the bestguys I knew. What might have happened to him had someone not believed in him? Sometimes, belief in someone was all it took.

Thunder rumbled nearby, and the odd feeling of something in the air raised the hair on the back of my head.

“I’ll do it,” I told Reid.

I could hear the relief in his voice when he said, “Thank you. If any issues turn up, be sure to let me know. I’ll present this option to him and his guardians and get back to you to work out the details.”

He signed off as another flash of lightning lit up my small office space for several seconds.

I rubbed my eyes tiredly just as my phone chimed again.

Em

Looks like I’ll be pulling extra dish duty ;)

I chuckled.

You should listen to your elders. Sometimes, those folks knew what they were doing long before modern technology

Outside, the storm gathered in intensity. We rarely got storms like this until later in the summer, but some kind of front was coming through. Normally, I loved thunderstorms, but tonight, it made me restless. I shook my head and chalked it up to worrying about whether this storm would bring hail. I didn’t want anything to happen to any of my plants.

I wandered out to the living room and built a fire, just in case the power went out, as it was prone to do higher up on the mountain. After making some popcorn, I found a sitcom and settled in to watch it, hoping it would help me relax andthrow off the odd vibe I felt. I guessed it worked because a loud noise suddenly startled me awake. It was dark in the room. A quick glance around the room proved the power was off.

The wind blew sheets of rain against the windows, and lightning streaked so frequently it reminded me of the strobe light above the dance floor at Ferg’s. Booms of thunder vibrated the pictures on the walls. With nothing else to do, I figured I might as well head to bed. But then I heard another noise, something like athudon my front porch, followed by a fast rap on the door. Thinking one of my guys needed help, I hurried to open it.

I’d been right about some kind of change coming, some form of chaos about to happen.

Because, sure enough, someone unexpected stood in front of me, clothes soaked and rivulets of water streaming down pale cheeks.

If the storm outside was bad, it was nothing compared to the tempest of emotions that struck me now as my past, in the form of Anna Washington, stood at my door.

Chapter 3

Anna

Chase stared at me.His brow furrowed, and he gave a slight shake of his head as if he couldn’t believe what—or more likely,who—he was seeing.

I was sure I looked like a drowned rat, so maybe he didn’t recognize me, which might work in my favor, at least initially.

“Anna?”

So much for that. I guess I’d have to rely on the protective instinct I knew guided his actions and hope it still extended to me. But as he remained solidly inside the door frame, I wondered if he would close it on me just as my father had.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, not unkindly, but obviously, my presence came as a total surprise. Despite having once been a frequent guest here, I hadn’t been to this farm in years. That I was here now proved how desperate I was.

I wasn’t sure I had an answer for him, at least not a good one. “I…I had an accident just up the road. A deer jumped out, and I veered into a ditch. I recognized the fence along the road, and I didn’t know what else to do.” My teeth chattered, probably from a mixture of cold rain and shock.

A prolonged flash of lightning lit up shrewd eyes, assessing me before he seemed to snap out of it with a shake of his head. “Sorry. Come in.”

I started to take a step, then hesitated. “I, uh, have someone with me.”

His frown grew deeper as he squinted into the darkness. “Who? I don’t see anyone.”

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