No One But You (Silver Springs #2)(93)

“Because I’m older than I look. Perspective comes with age,” she said with a wink. “So how are you really—on the inside? Coping okay?”

He sobered. “Managing. How are things out at the ranch?”

She tossed her braid, which had come around front, over her shoulder. “Busy as ever. That’s why it took me so long to pay you a visit—that and I didn’t want to descend on you before you were ready for company. Sometimes it’s easier to deal with pain when we have a little space. At least I’m that way. But I hope you know I’ve been thinking about you, pulling for you—and I’m always available if you need me.”

“I do know that. It means a lot. Thank you.” He gestured toward the porch. “Should we sit for a minute? Can I get you something to drink?”

“I’ll take a chair, but I don’t need a drink. I won’t interrupt you for long. I just had to see you with my own eyes—needed the reassurance.”

“I’m glad you’re here.”

She chose the old rocker where his mother used to read on long summer evenings while waiting for his father to come in from the fields. Dawson felt a tinge of nostalgia at the sight of her sitting there. His mother should still be alive to enjoy those quiet hours before dusk. Why would anyone harm such a fine person?

It didn’t make sense, especially the way it happened, so randomly. But after getting to know the men he’d served time with, Dawson understood that senseless crimes were perpetrated far too often. Some of the things the men he’d met liked to talk about turned his stomach. He wouldn’t let someone just like them get away with murdering his folks. He’d made himself that promise. But it would help if he could hear from Oscar Hunt at Safety First. There’d been no word since Dawson had spoken to Big Red on Monday.

Was the man who installed Alex’s bunker still at a remote location with no cell service? Or had Big Red either forgotten or not bothered to pass along the message?

Dawson decided he’d let one more day go by and then call again. “Are you sure I can’t get you something to drink?” he asked Aiyana.

“I might not be here long enough.” A wry grin claimed her lips. “I’m afraid you’ll send me away the moment you hear what I’d like to talk about.”

Dawson tensed for the first time since realizing he had a visitor. “Something wrong?”

“Not wrong, exactly. It’s just that...I don’t want to see you get into any more trouble.”

He sank into the seat not far from her. “You think I’m headed for trouble?”

She glanced around. “Sadie isn’t here, is she? I didn’t see her car in the drive...”

“No. She left a couple of hours ago. She had to drop Jayden off at the babysitter’s so she could meet the arson investigator at the house she was renting. You heard about the fire...”

“I did. How upsetting.”

“No kidding.”

She peered closer at him. “Sounds like you and Sadie are close.”

“I’ve hired her to be Angela’s caregiver.”

“Eli mentioned that. I also heard she’s been staying here since the fire.”

“She is.”

“How’s that working out?”

“Great. She’s doing a fine job helping me get this place ready.”

“I like Sadie, Dawson. She seems like a nice girl.” She shifted uncomfortably. “But that ex-husband of hers. I felt a niggle of concern when Eli first mentioned that she was here, but that niggle turned into something much more akin to panic when I ran into Lolita, who happens to be a friend of mine, at the grocery store yesterday.”

“Lolita from the diner.”

“Yes. She told me that Sly had to be dragged from the restaurant on Sunday, that he nearly attacked Sadie.”

Dawson grimaced. “He’s an asshole. There’s no way he should be on the force.”

“I agree. He’s too volatile to be a police officer. But that isn’t up to either of us. We have to deal with what is.”

“Meaning...”

“You should keep your distance from Sly Harris, even if you have to keep your distance from Sadie to accomplish it. I know it’s none of my business, but when I imagine all the heartache you’ve already endured, I can’t bear the thought of you finding more trouble. That’s why I’m here.” She gave him a sheepish look. “Now...do you still want to offer me a drink?”

“Of course. But I should warn you that it’s too late to stop anything where Sadie’s involved. I’ve already bought in.”

“You can always let her go. There’s got to be someone else who can help you out here, and with Angela.”

“The point is...I don’t want anyone else.”

She reared back in apparent surprise. “You’re saying you care about her.”

He stared out across the fields, at his tractor sitting in the middle of the section he’d been getting ready for planting, and the tree, in the distance, by which he’d buried his folks. He loved this farm. Loved the land, the area. He had a lot of good memories here. This was where he’d finally found home. He felt that same sense of having found something important, something he both needed and wanted, in Sadie. And he, of all people, knew better than to think that was an easy thing to come by. “I do.”