Wrong Side of Town

Chapter 5

Laney's hand still tingled as she watched Zach Shannon mingle with the upper echelon of Hawthorne society. She and Sarah had been joined by a few other mere mortals - Andrea Gleason who ran a diner on the outskirts of town, along with the library's custodian and Miss Mamie's ranch foreman and his wife. Miss Mamie always invited everyone who worked for her to attend her annual barbecue. In fact, she pretty much insisted on it. Laney owed the older woman far too much to even consider staying home, although she'd have been a lot more comfortable puttering in her tiny garden than standing here being scrutinized by the likes of Ysabel Shannon and the other Hawthorne movers and shakers.

"Close your mouth. You're starting to drool." Sarah's watchful gaze had apparently caught Laney's fascination with Zach.

"You know, they say he won all kinds of medals, but that most of his missions were classified," Andrea said. Working every day at the Dine-n-Dash, she always knew all the local gossip. Even though she had only moved to Hawthorne two years earlier, she'd quickly become part of the town landscape. "For all he was born with the proverbial silver spoon, I'd say that's a man who's seen his share of trouble."

Laney nodded. She knew what trouble did to a person, and she could see it in the deep-set lines etched around Zach's blue-gray eyes. She sighed and shook her head, turning to grin at Andrea and Sarah, her two closest friends. "He's way out of my league anyway. Trust me, I get that he's like a movie star - nice to look at, but totally unattainable. Still, there's no harm in looking, right?"

"Hell, no," Sarah said with a laugh. "I'm looking, and I've been happily married for twenty years."

"He's okay," Andrea allowed. Her eyes though, followed Quinn Shannon instead of Zach. When she realized her friends had caught her ogling the handsome rancher, she shrugged. "So I like 'em tall, blond and goofy instead of brooding and studly. Sue me."

"Nah, that would just encourage you." Sarah nudged Andrea with an elbow. "Come on, there's no line at the buffet, and I'm hungry."

Though Miss Mamie would have been horrified to admit it, there was a hierarchy in this town, even at her barbecue. Now that all the important guests and the kids had made their way through the line, the lesser mortals filled plates with succulent barbecued brisket, ribs and potato salad. Laney and her friends joined some others at the most outlying picnic table, chatting easily over the excellent meal. Laney never quite took her eye off her nephew and his friends, but so far, they seemed content to sit under the live oak and studiously ignore the popular kids in the pool.

She'd just gotten back to her feet to get dessert when Miss Mamie stood on the small bandstand at the far end of the terrace and tapped the microphone.

"Thank you all for accepting my invitation today, and thank you all for the generous donations to the summer reading program that you're going to leave in the wishing well before you leave this afternoon. I'm sure you're all aware of the importance of literacy education and its benefits, not just to the individuals but to the community as a whole."

With a fond smile, Laney tuned out the familiar speech. Miss Mamie had a gift. The older woman could coax blood from a stone or a charity donation from a die-hard miser. Laney's hand paused with a brownie halfway to her plate, though, when Miss Mamie continued. "Please join me in welcoming home our very own hero, Captain Zachariah Hawthorne Shannon."

Laney set down her plate to join in the thunderous applause. Zach stood and shook his head. "Only doing my job," he called. "But thanks, it's good to be home."

"And it's Major," his brother Quinn hollered out. "They gave him a promotion on his way out the door."

Zach nodded again. "Shut up, Quinn."

"Okay, boys." Miss Mamie gave them her best librarian glare, and they both quieted down. "Now, I believe Sheriff Walter Shannon has something to say."

The sheriff stood and beamed at the crowd. "I think most of y'all know that Ralph Findlay, my chief deputy is retiring next month. Though we'll all miss Ralph in the department, we wish him well on his travels with his wife, Nadine. I hear she's already picked out the curtains for their new RV."

The crowd chuckled as Nadine Findlay nodded. "Bedding, too."

"Which leaves me with a job opening for a senior deputy." The sheriff grinned broadly. "One that will be more than ably filled by my oldest son. Never mind the major or captain. He's now to be known as Deputy Zach Shannon."

Laney applauded, though she didn't know if it was a good thing or not. Zach had been away for a long time. Would that make him more objective than some of the other deputies or more likely to listen to gossip and innuendo? Her eyes darted to Zach, who sat there with his jaw hanging open and his eyes narrowed as he stared at his dad.

Holy crap, apparently he hadn't known about this either. Things were really about to hit the fan in sleepy little Hawthorne, Texas.