Cranberry Point (Cedar Cove #4)(25)
"Did she mention Ben Rhodes?"
"Her latest boyfriend?" Olivia teased. Her mother had spoken about Ben a number of times, but she'd never said anything out of the ordinary. Ben was retired navy, a widower, and Olivia had assumed he was simply a new addition to her crowd of friends. Charlotte had a way of collecting lost souls.
"Exactly what do you know about Ben?" her brother pressed.
"Not a lot. Why do you ask?" Olivia mulled over what she'd heard about him and realized she didn't really know all that much. "I understand he moved to the area a couple of years ago. I remember Mom saying that Ben's a great bridge player. He apparently spends most days at the SeniorCenter."
"What about his claims to be a retired navy admiral?"
Claims? Interesting choice of word. Their mother had brought this up a number of times. "I gather Ben served in the navy."
"So he says. Has anyone checked into that?"
"Of course not." Olivia was astonished by the suspicion in her brother's voice. "Why should we?"
"Because, my naive little sister, I don't think either of us has fully grasped what's happening to our mother."
Olivia frowned. "Why do you say that?"
Will sighed heavily. "I phoned Mom twice while you were in Hawaii and all she could talk about was Ben this and Ben that. She hardly mentioned anything or anyone else. It got me thinking that we need to find out what we can about this man who's taking up so much of our mother's time."
Now that her brother had alerted her, it occurred to Olivia that their mother had been seeing a great deal of Ben, especially lately. "I don't think that's a bad thing," she felt obliged to say. Ben and her mother had become good friends. Over the years, Charlotte had grown fond of a number of men, including one retired actor in the local nursing home. Because of a stroke, Tom Harding had been unable to speak, but her mother had managed to carry on long conversations with him. Meeting Tom had led to the advent of Cliff Harding in their lives, and Charlotte was friendly with him, too. And now Ben. He was new to Cedar Cove and obviously feeling a bit lost. Frankly, Olivia couldn't see any harm in the friendship.
"I don't think there's any need for alarm...yet," Will agreed with a certain reluctance, "but as I said, how much do we really know about this man?"
"Well..."
"Just what he tells us, right?"
"Well.. .yes." The doubts Will raised made Olivia's suspicions begin to mount. Caught up in the events of her own life, she hadn't paid nearly enough attention to their mother.
"No one's heard of Ben until the last year or two, am I right?"
"Yes," she murmured. "He moved into the area and started showing up at the SeniorCenter."
"No family."
"Not here." Olivia briefly recalled Ben talking about children in other parts of the country, but nowhere in WashingtonState.
"Don't you find that mildly suspicious?"
Olivia considered the question. "Not really."
"Then maybe you should."
She was feeling worried now but not ready to acknowledge it to Will.
"A strange man, without any connection to Cedar Cove, moves into the area. Then he seeks out our mother and before we know it, the two of them are thick as thieves."
"I've met Ben," Olivia inserted. "He's a perfect gentleman."
"Wasn't it Ben who talked Mom into this ridiculous protest rally? The man's responsible for getting our mother arrested and you think he's a good influence?"
That gave Olivia pause. "I think Mom was as much to blame for what happened as Ben."
"I wouldn't be too sure of that."
"Why not?"
"You've been on your honeymoon, Olivia. You're in love and that's great—I couldn't be more pleased for you—but you're looking at the world through rose-colored glasses."
What he said was true.. .to a point. "What's that got to do with anything?"
"I'm afraid," her brother said slowly, "that Mom might be at risk. How would you feel if some man swindled her out of her life savings?"
"Ben wouldn't do that!"
"Are you sure, Olivia? Would you stake our mother's financial future on your feelings?"
She hesitated. Sitting on the judge's bench, she'd seen far too much of the pain one person could inflict on another. Her hand tightened around the receiver at the idea of anyone taking advantage of her mother.
"You're confident Ben's a stand-up kind of guy?" her brother said, his voice edged with suspicion. "Enough to risk Mom's future?"
"No," Olivia admitted reluctantly.
Will leaped on her answer. 'That's what I thought. It's up to you, little sister."
"What's up to me?"
"To check out this Ben Rhodes. I've heard about men like him who prey on widows. I'm sure you've seen the same TV shows I have. We can't be too careful. I'm not there to protect Mom, but you are—and you must. We wouldn't forgive ourselves if we'd stood by and did nothing while a stranger ripped her off."
Olivia didn't know what to say. Will had read so much more into this relationship than she had. He was correct about one thing, though; she'd been preoccupied with her own life.