Page 76 of So Right
Chapter Fifteen
Kelsey practically floated into the library on Thursday. Being Luke’s girlfriend was amazing. He was kind, considerate, sexy as hell, and even cooked. She’d gone back to her apartment to pick things up a couple of times, but had now spent a week living with Luke.
Living with him? They hadn’t discussed the situation long-term, but yeah, for now, they were living together.
Part of her said they needed to have that conversation, that it was important to make sure they were both on the same page. But another part of her said to shut up and just enjoy what was happening in the moment. For now, she was listening to that part. As well as to her therapist, whom she’d finally seen a few days ago. She’d been supportive of Kelsey’s take-it-slow approach with Luke and had helped her work through some of her lingering fear.
As Kelsey opened up the library, her assistant, Marci, arrived. Marci was a grad student at nearby Williver College, studying education. She planned to teach elementary school. “Morning, Kelsey! What’s going on today?”
“The usual,” Kelsey said. “Can you handle story time today? I have a few things I’d like to work on upstairs.”
Marci nodded as she locked her purse in a cabinet behind the counter. “Sure thing. How are plans coming for the Halloween event?”
Earlier in the week, Kelsey and Luke had come up with an idea to host a library event at West Arch Estate next weekend. Luke and his partners would open the pumpkin patch, offer hayrides, and, of course, pour wine for the adults. Meanwhile, Kelsey would host a cookie-decorating area and story time with a craft. She and Marci had brainstormed what to do on Tuesday.
“Good. Barley and Bran said they’d donate the cookies for the decorating. We just need to get the decorating supplies.”
Marci flipped her shoulder-length brown hair over her shoulder. “Sounds great. I hit the craft store yesterday and picked up a bunch of stuff. Today I was planning to print off coloring sheets.”
Kelsey grinned. “We will be more than ready come next Saturday. Would you shelve books while I check my e-mail?”
“Sure thing.” Marci took off while Kelsey sat at the desk to the left of the counter and pulled up her e-mail. She scanned it quickly and saw a message from Darryl Gray, the historian.
Kelsey’s pulse sped as she read. He’d found some information about Bird’s Nest Ranch. They were still waiting for the results from the testing the archaeologist had done in the hope of finding out when the house had burned down. But Darryl’s findings had nothing to do with the fire.
She reread what he’d written: “I’ve found evidence from 1894 that the Bird’s Nest Ranch was a brothel.”
Marci appeared at the desk. “Everything all right?”
Kelsey realized she’d gasped and that she was staring, wide-eyed, at the monitor. She shook her head to clear away the surprise. “Yes. It’s fine.” She pulled out her phone and texted the others—Crystal, Brooke, and Alaina—to tell them the news.
Their responses were almost immediate. To a person, they were shocked and dismayed.
Crystal asked if Dorinda still owned the ranch at that time. Kelsey couldn’t tell from Darryl’s e-mail, so she dashed off a response asking for more information.
He got back to her within a few minutes saying that he didn’t know. He’d found a newspaper article with a line mentioning the “Bird’s Nest Brothel above Ribbon Ridge.” He said he would continue to research it because his interest was piqued. He’d no idea there’d been a bordello in the area.
Kelsey sent the information to her friends along with her disappointment at learning that Dorinda’s homestead had become a house of ill repute. Everyone shared her chagrin and looked forward to finding the truth. Crystal was particularly passionate, texting that she was more committed than ever to finding out Dorinda’s story. They all wanted to know if she’d somehow been driven to open a brothel or if something else had happened to oust her from the home she’d built.
Kelsey set her phone aside to respond to a few other e-mails. A few minutes later, it rang. She expected it to be one of the girls, so she didn’t look at the screen before picking it up and saying hello.
“Kelsey?” The feminine voice was a bit familiar, but it wasn’t Brooke or Crystal or Alaina.
“Yes? Who is this?”
“It’s Lisa Putnam.”
Shit.Noah’s mother. Kelsey’s stomach dropped to the floor, and her mouth went dry. “Um, hi.”
“I know you must be surprised to hear from me. How are you?”
Kelsey had always liked Lisa. She’d often wondered if she’d been aware of her son’s violent nature, but nothing the woman had ever said or done had led Kelsey to think that she was. That made Kelsey ponder whether Lisa had been abused by Noah’s father. But they’d divorced when Noah was twelve, and he’d simply vanished from Noah’s life. In retrospect, that should’ve been a huge red flag.
“I’m fine.” Kelsey didn’t ask how Lisa was. She didn’t care. She didn’t want these people—Noah’s family—in her life.
“I’m so glad to hear it. I’m sure you know that Noah got out of jail.”
“Yes.”And I already have a restraining order.The judge had granted it for a period of one year. It had been easy to get, and renewing it wouldn’t be difficult.
