Chapter 2-1
1076 Words
Chapter 2
Autumn was lying.
That fact didn’t concern Judd nearly as much as the why behind it. She was a lot more upset about the flowers than she wanted to admit. He’d seen her face, seen that subtle loss of color in her cheeks as she’d accepted them. The poor bastard couldn’t have known the dark associations she had with yellow tulips. Caulfield had effectively killed any shot he might’ve had with Autumn—if he’d had a shot to begin with. She hadn’t looked thrilled to see him.
Was she having the nightmare again? And what the hell could Judd do about it if she was?
The question circled his brain as he stepped back out of Sanderson’s. Had she looked more anxious the last few weeks? Shown any signs of being less rested than usual? Had she seemed off somehow? He didn’t know and that pissed him off. He was her best friend. He ought to know these things. But he’d been working so damned much, he’d barely seen her. He’d seen Mary Alice even less—hence the apology bracelet he’d just picked up. He hoped Mitch was right and it would take him out of the running for world’s worst boyfriend. The fact was, his relationships had been taking a backseat to the job lately, and that needed to change.
Birthday shopping without Autumn held absolutely no appeal. Who else was going to help him find the most embarrassing gifts for his brothers? So he blew off the rest of his carefully constructed list and headed for the offices of The Wishful Observer. Maybe his mom knew what was going on.
She was just emerging from the conference room as Judd stepped into the newspaper. “Judd!”
“Hey Mom.” He gave her a squeeze.
“I wasn’t expecting to see you twice in two days. Where’s Autumn? Weren’t you two headed out to shop for the twins?”
“We were but she bailed on me.”
Patty frowned. “That’s not like her.”
“I know. We had a bit of an incident.”
Over another cup of coffee, Judd filled her in on Mark Caulfield and the flowers. “She tried to play it off like it was no big deal, but ten minutes later she outright lied to my face and left. She hasn’t missed this tradition in eighteen years.”
“It’s been a long time since she got that rattled. Is something else going on?”
“I was hoping you could tell me. I haven’t exactly been on the same wavelength as everybody else the last few weeks. Did something happen while I was working nights? Has she seemed off to you? Worried at all?”
“No. I mean, you saw her at brunch yesterday. She was completely herself—irreverent as ever, teasing Leo and Eli.”
“Not even concerned about being down to half hours at work?”
“Not at all. Although, I admit that worries me some. It’s not as if head librarian was ever a job that paid big bucks that would’ve given her the chance to save much. But she insists she’s fine financially every time your father and I ask if we can help.”
“You and I both know she won’t take financial help. We may all consider her part of the family, and she’ll accept everything that goes along with that until it comes to paying her own way.”
After her mother split town and her father went to prison, there’d been no question that Autumn was moving in with them. She’d finished the last year and a half of high school living as an honorary Hamilton. He’d never understood why his parents didn’t just adopt her and formally make her the daughter she’d always been.
“Do you think she’s really okay, money-wise?” his mom asked.
“She’s been cleaning up on all the pools at Dinner Belles. Got a fat envelope at breakfast this morning for Tucker and Corinne. But I have a hard time imagining she’s making so much there that it’s really alleviating the strain.” Which left him wondering if she’d cut everything back to bare bones without telling him. Was that what today had been about? Was she finally going to ask for help? “I wish she’d just move out to Hope Springs with me and save on the rent money until she’s in a better place financially.”
His mother arched a brow.
“What’s wrong with that? She loves being able to look out over the lake.”
“Well, apart from the fact that Autumn likes having her own space, I expect Mary Alice would take issue with it.”
“How is it any different from my making Leo or Eli the same offer?”
Even as she stared at him in disbelief, Judd told himself it wasn’t justified.
“Because as much as we love her, Autumn isn’t your sister. Nobody else can possibly understand the closeness you two share. That’s hard to compete with.”
He and Autumn were bound by blood in ways so much thicker than family. The truth was, he’d never had a girlfriend who wasn’t threatened by their relationship. But there was no reason for it. Things weren’t romantic between him and Autumn. They never had been and never could be.
“Mary Alice gets along with Autumn just fine.”
“Or she’s too hung up on you to say otherwise for fear you’ll dump her.”
Judd scowled. “I wouldn’t do that.”
She looked askance at him. “Really? If she put her foot down and gave you an ultimatum, her or Autumn, you’d be okay with that?”
“You know I don’t do ultimatums. But I could certainly have a discussion about it like a rational guy to explain how things are.”
The truth of it was that he had a responsibility to protect Autumn, so she’d always be a big part of his life. Any woman he was with had to be okay with that. And why shouldn’t she be? Autumn always went out of her way to be friendly and inclusive when he dated somebody. Well, except for one or two girls in college, but they’d been all wrong for him, so Judd wasn’t about to complain.
Patty was still looking at him like he had a few screws loose. Before he could open his mouth to explain—or dig that hole any deeper—his cell phone rang. Checking the screen, he recognized the number for dispatch. “Hamilton.”
“Judd, where are you?” Inez Barlow, who’d served as both dispatch and admin for the department for nearly twenty years before he’d joined it, sounded shaken. And she was never shaken.
Judd snapped into go mode. “At the paper. What’s wrong?”
“You need to come in. It’s Chief Curry. He’s had a heart attack.”
- Writer
