Forever Together (24 page)

“You could at least look interested.”

“I’d be more interested if you’d let me know
what you
were thinking
before
you told me I was a thief.”

“I’ve already told you I’m sorry. What more
do you want? Blood?”

“A ride back into town would be appreciated,”
Kate said sweetly as picked up the picnic basket.

Dan pulled his boots on and yanked the rug
off the grass. On the walk back to his
motorcycle,
he bent down and grabbed a fistful of
wildflowers. “Here.” He held the flowers out to Kate. “At least you
can’t say I haven’t got a romantic bone in my body.”

Kate glared at the flowers, then took them
out of his hand. “Romance is the least of your worries.” They were
a pretty bunch of flowers. On any other
day,
she would have thought it was kind of sweet that
he’d given them to her. It was a pity it wasn’t another day.

In a split second of
clarity,
she knew one thing. She’d never understand Dan,
no matter how kind or bad tempered he was. Or how much he thought
he trusted her.

***

Dan scribbled his signature on the end of a
report and closed the file. It had been six days since he’d last
seen Kate. The day after the disastrous picnic she’d packed her
bags and gone to live with Rachel McReedy, a school teacher at
Bozeman Elementary. The sign in the salon window had worked. Kate
had found an apartment and he’d lost his last chance to show her
how he felt about her.

Not that Kate had filled him in on her living
arrangements. Kaylee had been full of information, telling Dan
anything he wanted to know. He’d felt guilty asking his
eight-year-old niece about Kate, but he got over that fairly
quickly when she mentioned a date Kate had gone on. Kaylee told him
about the color of her shoes and the way Kate had curled her hair.
She was a lot less sure of the man she’d gone out with.

His phone rang and he answered it. “Dan
Carter. Can I help you?”

“I’ve got Logan Allen out here to see you,
boss.”

Colin must be rostered on the front desk. Dan
tapped his pen on his desk. He didn’t know what Logan wanted and he
wasn’t in the mood to walk around the edges of whatever issue he’d
uncovered. Logan had a habit of finding confidential sources that
filled his stories with legitimacy, even if they were wrong. For
that reason alone, Dan would sooner get his opinion in the story
than leave it out.

“Bring him in, Colin.”

Within minutes, Colin knocked on his door and
walked into his office with Logan. “Pete said to remind you about
the eleven-thirty appointment you’ve got with him.”

Colin left the office and Dan shook Logan’s
hand.

“I like what you’ve done with the decor.”

A reluctant smile pulled at Dan’s lips. Since
Logan had last been in his
office,
he’d taken the certificates and commendations off his wall. He’d
replaced them with a large framed photograph of his land. It had
been taken two years ago. There’d been more wildflowers that year,
more water in the stream, and a
lot
less to worry about.

“I thought the room could do with some color.
Have a seat.” Dan nodded toward the chairs sitting in front of his
desk. “What did you want to see me about?”

Logan folded his long frame into one of the
chairs and pulled out his notebook. “You know we’ve been following
Kaylee’s illness closely?”

Dan nodded. The Bozeman Chronicle had done
more than follow Kaylee’s illness. They’d helped promote the
fundraising events the community had organized and raised
everyone’s awareness of HLH. From Kaylee’s story had come others.
Good news
sto
ries of what was
happening at Bozeman Deaconess Hospital.

“Last
week,
I overheard you speaking with Tom outside the hospital. It sounded
as though someone had stolen the money raised from the fashion
show.”

Dan kept his face neutral, didn’t show any
reaction to the gut clenching acid that churned in his stomach.
“There’s no story, Logan. Tom deposited the check last Monday.”

“I did some research. What do you know about
Kate Jennings’ background?”

Dan’s temper began to rise. He knew where
Logan’s questions were going and he didn’t like it. “What Kate did
or didn’t do isn’t any of your concern.”

“Did you know she has a criminal record?
Burglary, theft and a few other misdemeanors?”

“That’s no one’s business except Kate’s.”

“I disagree. It’s on
public
record.”

Dan counted to ten before he opened his
mouth. Logan wasn’t letting go of whatever story he was building up
to. “Don’t go there, Logan. I knew about her convictions, but they
happened ten years ago. Kate’s turned her life around.”

“People are talking. They’re wondering if all
the money being raised for Kaylee will end up in her bank account.
How well do you actually know Kate?”

“Well enough to know she wouldn’t steal any
money. You need to be careful. Kate’s formed a close relationship
with Kaylee. If a story you wrote made it to the Chronicle it could
hurt more people than Kate. Kaylee would be devastated and she’s
too sick to deal with more than she’s got. I’d suggest you go back
to the people that are concerned and tell them to come and see
me.”

Logan scribbled something in his notebook,
then looked up at Dan. “You obviously had concerns about her past
or you wouldn’t have been talking with Tom.”

“What I might have said to Tom is no one
else’s business except mine. Do you have anything else you want to
discuss?”

Logan shook his head. “That about covers it
for now.”

Dan stood and walked over to the door of his
office. “Remember what I said. You’re dealing with my family. If
you write anything that upsets
them,
I won’t be happy.”

Logan looked Dan in the eye, getting the
measure of the thinly veiled threat he’d heard. He didn’t linger
any longer than was necessary.

When Logan left the office, Dan sank back
into his chair, thinking about what he should do next.

He needed to warn Tom and Anna. If his
instincts were right, Logan would be heading straight across to
their ranch to speak to them. Only they weren’t at the ranch. They
were staying in town and that might give him the extra time he
needed to find them.

Colin stuck his head around Dan’s office
door. “Everything okay, boss?”

“I’ve had better days. I need to go out
urgently. Can you ask Pete if we can delay our meeting for a couple
of hours?”

“Sure thing.”

“…and Colin? Thanks for everything. I
appreciate your help.”

“No problem. Is there anything else you need
me for?”

Dan wished there was. But unless Colin wanted
to be the one to tell Kate she was about to make the front page of
the newspaper, there was nothing anybody could do.

***

Kate stared
across
the dance floor at Charlie’s Bar and Grill,
watching Emily and Tess walk toward her. The worried frowns on
their faces matched the sinking feeling in her stomach. She’d rung
them, needed to talk to someone that could give her an idea of what
to do next.

Tess slid into the booth beside Kate. “What’s
wrong?”

“Try everything,” Kate said with a sigh. “Dan
came and saw me in the salon. He thinks I’m about to make the front
page of the newspaper for all the wrong reasons.”

“I knew it,” Tess whispered. “Logan Allen’s
caught up in all of this somewhere, isn’t he? That man is lower
than a worm on the feeding chain of humanity.”

“I don’t think he’s that bad,” Kate said
softly. “He’s only doing his job.”

Emily slid into the seat opposite Kate and
Tess. “And what part of his job involves you?”

“The part that’s looking for a story about
Kaylee.”

“But that’s good news,” Emily said. “The bone
marrow transplant went well and Kaylee’s happy. What more is there
to know?”

Kate looked at her glass of orange juice.
“Ten years ago I got
into
trouble
with the Police. I broke into people’s houses and stole money.
Logan found out about my past.”

“So what?” Tess shrugged her shoulders. “Lots
of people around here have got something they want to hide. He
can’t make a story out of something that happened ten years
ago.”

Emily looked
between
Tess and Kate. “What haven’t you told me?”

Kate took a deep breath and looked
around
Charlie’s Bar and Grill. It
was Monday night, there weren’t many people crowding the pool
tables or booths. Just the regulars and the desperate. Like
her.

The
jukebox
blasted out a song from the sixties. It shielded the sound of her
voice, made it nearly impossible for someone walking past to hear
what she had to say. “Last week, Dan thought I’d stolen the check
from the fashion show.”

Emily’s mouth dropped open. “He what? That’s
ridiculous. Tom and Anna took the check home. They would have told
me if it had gone missing.”

“Anna didn’t know Tom had already deposited
it when she asked Dan to bring it into town. It was a crazy
weekend. Kaylee got really sick and we weren’t at the ranch very
much. I guess one thing led to another and Dan assumed the
worst.”

“How did he know about your past?” Emily
frowned, then groaned. “Tell me he didn’t do a background check on
you?”

Kate nodded.

Tess sat back in her seat. “I don’t care how
good he looks in his uniform. The man’s got a serious problem if he
investigated you. What did he think you were in Bozeman to do?
Steal every cent we’d raised and then leave?”

“Pretty much,” Kate said.

Emily wiggled out of the booth. “I need a
drink. What would you like, Tess?”

“White wine for me, thanks. What about you,
Kate?”

“I’m fine with my juice.”

Emily picked up her wallet. “Don’t go
anywhere with this until I’m back. We’ve got some serious
strategizing to do.” She hot-footed it across the wooden floor
toward the bar.

“Strategizing?” Kate wasn’t sure she liked
the sound of that. It sounded too contrived, too much of what Logan
would probably be working on as they spoke.

Tess turned her back on the bar and frowned
at Kate. “Emily and her sister have been working in the same
building for a few weeks now. Some of Nicky’s business talk’s
rubbing off on her. But she could have a point, you know…about the
strategizing.”

Kate thought about what those strategies
might involve and came up with nothing.

Tess took a pen and a piece of paper out of
her bag and started drawing pictures.

“What are you doing?”

“Mind map,” Tess said. “It’s supposed to
unleash your creativity.”

“What have I missed?” Emily asked from behind
Tess’ back.

“Strategizing,” Tess said. “I think you’ve
got a point.”

“Of course I’ve got a point. None of us
have
gotten anywhere in life
without a plan. Am I right?”

Tess nodded and Kate felt confused. She’d
never had a plan, not until she’s met Mrs. Martin and started at
the beauty school. “Do we need a plan to deal with the
newspaper?”

“No, but we need one to deal with Logan and
Dan.” Tess took a sip of wine and tapped her pen against the wooden
table.

Kate saw the cogs in her mind spinning,
coming up with a solution only she could see.

Tess put a big tick inside one of the boxes
on her mind map. “I vote we march into Logan’s office tomorrow and
tell him what an idiot he is.”

Emily grinned. “I bet you do. The only
trouble with your plan is that he doesn’t have an office. He shares
a room with twenty-two other people. And he might be an idiot, but
he’s a smart idiot. He won’t publish anything that hasn’t got a
strong element of truth in it.”

“We’re not looking for elements of truth,”
Tess hissed. “We’re looking for the absolute truth. Logan Allen
would make his granny out to be a villain if it earned him another
award to go with the one’s he’s already got.”

“Who’s been listening to gossip now?” Emily
said with a smile on her face.

“It’s common knowledge,” Tess said with
authority. “A hotshot reporter from Seattle doesn’t decide to live
in Bozeman unless he’s got something to hide. If we find out what
he’s hiding, we’ll get his silence
on
Kate’s past.”

“Good grief, you’re almost as bad as he is.”
Emily twirled the red umbrella in her drink. “What you want to do
is called blackmail and it’s illegal.”

“Illegal,
schmegal
,” Tess scoffed. “Either way it gets his
attention.”

“And just say we were even the remotest bit
interested in this plan of yours, how would you get the information
out of him?” Emily asked.

“I’ve got no idea,” Tess said miserably.

“What if I ask him what he’s going to write?”
Kate suggested.

“Won’t work,” Tess said with an emphatic
shake of her head. “Logan wants a gritty story. He’s probably
making it up as he goes along.”

Emily popped a red cherry in her mouth. “Are
you sure you haven’t been on the receiving end of one of Logan’s
stories?”

“Not Logan, but I’ve dealt with reporters
like him before. Once bitten, twice shy.”

Kate nudged her empty glass with her hand.
“What about Dan? If Logan tells
everyone
that Dan doesn’t trust
me,
then no one’s going to donate money to Kaylee.”

“That’s easy,” Emily said. “All you have to
do is show a united front. Happy families make happy news. We’ll
ask Molly to take a few photos of Kaylee with you and Dan. We’ll
plaster them on our social media sites. We could even send them to
Logan. I’d like to be in the room when he sees those.”