Page 8 of Keeping You
“Because my father died, and my family needs me.”
That simple, sad statement deflates most of my anger in a heartbeat. Mr. Caldwell was a good man, and I’m ashamed that I let my differences with Harper keep me away from his funeral. I told him so later that night when I visited his grave.
“I’m sorry about your dad.”
Luke nods, his throat working. “Thank you.”
We stand there in awkward silence for a moment. “Why are you really here? And don’t say it’s just to apologize for Harper. You could have done that in a text.”
“I don’t have your number.”
I cock my head and give him my side-eye.
He’s been quiet for so long, I think he’s not going to answer. “Because Mrs. Donovan cornered me outside the hardware store yesterday and told me I should talk to you.”
I can’t stop the laughter that bubbles up and spills from my lips. “Mrs. Donovan? She’s still meddling in people’s lives?” And here I thought I only had to worry about Marth and Gloria.
“Apparently.” A small smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “She said you could use a friendly face.”
The laughter dies. “I don’t need your pity.”
“It’s not pity. I don’t know what it is, but when I saw you across the street yesterday, it was like...” He trails off, shaking his head.
“Like what?”
“Like no time had passed at all.”
The admission hangs between us, loaded with memories and regret.
“Well, time did pass,” I whisper.
“I know.” He takes a step closer, and I can smell his cologne again—a pleasant masculine scent that wasn’t in his repertoire as a teenager. Back then, it was Axe, over-sprayed and overconfident, like every teenage boy who thought smelling like a spiced armpit counted as grooming.
I back away from him, needing space to think. “You can’t just walk back into my life and expect?—”
The front door squeaks loudly as it opens, reminding me that the hinges need grease. Rachel’s voice calls out, “Callie? You in the back?” She always comes through the main entrance. And most days, not long after she arrives, Martha and Gloria show up. I don’t know why those two like to be the first in line. They’re both retired, both widows, both gossips. Okay, I guess I understand why.
Which means they’ll be here soon. Thank you, Lord, for the well-timed interruption.
“Coming.” I’m grateful because this conversation is starting to go down a path that is too emotionally charged. I glance atLuke, who’s watching me with an unreadable expression. “I have to go to work.”
“Right.” He nods, already stepping toward the door he came through. “I should go anyway. I’m supposed to meet with the mayor about the sheriff’s position.”
“Sheriff? You?That’swhy you’re here?” I don’t know why I didn’t consider that. It’s not uncommon in small towns to pass the job down to a family member who works in the same field. And I don’t know why I’m experiencing such a stab of disappointment. It’s not like he’d come back because of me.
“Not sure yet.” He pauses before turning away. “For what it’s worth, I am sorry. About Harper, about Kirk, about... everything.”
And then he’s gone, leaving me standing in the middle of the library with my carefully constructed walls feeling dangerously unstable.
“Callie?” Rachel comes around a shelf just in time to catch sight of his back and stops in front of me, her eyebrows raised. “Who was that? It looked like the man we saw the day before. The sheriff’s son, right?”
The thing about small towns is that, regardless of whether a person knows somebody or not, they know the story. They may not have the names or the relationships memorized, but they know enough. And a new face in town doesn’t happen that often, meaning everyone hears about it. It’s like there’s this gossip bee that buzzes by every ear in the city and whispers the news. Rachel would know. She was the newbie a couple of years ago.
I sink into my desk chair, suddenly exhausted. “Unfortunately.”
“Unfortunately?” She comes closer, studying my face with those sharp eyes that miss nothing. “Honey, are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Something like that.” I rub my temples, feeling a headache beginning to build. “He came to apologize for Harper.”
