A Home of Her Own (Dundee, Idaho #4)(68)
Author: Brenda Novak

Josh rocked forward. “Hey, slow down, big brother. I wouldn’t hold out on you. I told you I’d let you know if Lucky called. She hasn’t.”

Mike went back to pacing. He hadn’t had a good night’s sleep since she left, not that he’d been sleeping all that well before. She’d wreaked havoc on his orderly, peaceful life. But now that she was gone, he couldn’t get her out of his mind. He kept thinking he’d hear from her, have the chance to convince her to come back, deal with the house, take a more measured and thoughtful approach to the future. But she hadn’t contacted him or anyone else he knew of, and worry was quickly overtaking all other emotions.

“She has to be out of money by now,” he said. “Her monthly check is waiting in my office. I can’t mail it because I don’t have an address to send it to.”

“She’s probably fine. She arranged for an equity loan against the house, remember? She could be living on that.”

“Fred Sharp told me she left him a check in an envelope taped to the wall. He’s already been paid in full.”

“Maybe she borrowed more than she paid him.”

“According to Byron Reese down at the bank, she didn’t—at least not much more.”

“Byron Reese gave out that information?”

Mike scowled. “Come on, this is Dundee. Privacy in lending isn’t an issue when everyone already knows everyone else’s business. How’s she getting by?”

“I don’t know,” Josh said with a shrug. “You’ve been frantic ever since she took off and you’re only getting worse, but I can’t help you. She didn’t leave a forwarding address.”

Mike had tried searching Boise. It was the only place he knew to look, the closest “big” city in Idaho. In the first two days after she left, he’d called every hotel or motel in the area, but had come up empty. He’d even driven down there and prowled the streets and local hangouts. He’d known it was a hopeless endeavor, but it was better than sitting around Dundee doing nothing.

“What should I tell her if she does call?” Josh asked.

“Put her on hold and get me. Or jot down a number where I can reach her.”

“What if she just wants an offer on the house?”

“Don’t give her one. If she wants to sell that house, she’s going to have to deal with me.”

“She could always list it with Fred Winston and sell it to someone else.”

Mike didn’t like the fact that she could do any number of things besides come back. But he was betting she’d eventually contact him about the house. Despite what he’d originally believed, she cared as much about the Victorian as he did. And she cared about him.

“She’ll call,” he said, trying to keep his hopes up.

WAS THIS PHOENIX? If so, it wasn’t the better part of the city.

Lucky stared through a dirty motel window at the crumbling blacktop parking lot that was empty except for a few banged-up cars, including an old Oldsmobile that had a flat tire. Judging by the mobile-home park that served as a retirement community across the street, the flatness of the surrounding land, and the desert plants and pale rock below her window, it sure as hell wasn’t Oregon. She’d already been to Oregon. And Utah. And California. She couldn’t remember where else. The states were beginning to blur. Road signs didn’t matter much when you didn’t know where you were headed in the first place. She just kept driving and drinking coffee and blasting the stereo to drown out her thoughts, then driving some more, finally checking into little hole-in-the-wall motels. She could scarcely recall the past three weeks, except for the pain she felt every time she woke up and realized she’d never see Mike again.

The heater in the corner kicked on with a noisy rattle. Closing the drapes against the cloudy day, she fell back onto her bed and gazed up at the cottage-cheese ceiling. She tried to occupy her mind by asking herself how anyone had ever found the white, sparkling substance above her attractive enough to spray on almost every ceiling built in the seventies. But visions of Mike touching her, kissing her, crept in. As usual. Whenever she shut her eyes, she saw his face, felt his warm skin against her own—

Time to go. Shoving herself off the bed before the crushing pain could incapacitate her, she started stuffing her belongings into the backpack she’d brought in from the car. She couldn’t stay here anymore, couldn’t even stop long enough to volunteer for a few days. She had to keep moving, keep driving…forget.

Maybe New Mexico would feel more like home.

Somehow she doubted it.

“WHERE’S MIKE?” Barbara asked, pinning Josh with a searching look the moment he, his wife and baby Brian came into the house.

Josh glanced awkwardly at Rebecca before responding. “He told me to tell you he can’t make it for dinner today.”

Over the past few weeks, when Mike hadn’t shown up for their usual Sunday dinner, Barbara had put a brave face on her disappointment. Today she couldn’t seem to manage the effort. “Again? He hasn’t been here for weeks.”

“He’s pretty busy,” Josh said. “Breeding season’s nearly upon us and—”

“Breeding season has never interfered before.”

Normally Barbara took Brian the moment she laid eyes on him. She worshipped her grandson. But she was too upset and preoccupied right now. When the baby started to fuss, Josh handed him to Rebecca instead. “If you want to know the truth, Mom, I’m a little worried about Mike.”

“Why?”

“He’s miserable.”

“Miserable? He’s always been happy in the past.”

“Well, he’s miserable now.” Josh put the diaper bag on the floor, next to the wall. “I think he’s in love with Lucky.”

Barbara clutched her chest. She’d expected Josh to say something about Lucky. He’d been trying to talk to her about Red’s daughter ever since Lucky had left town. He’d said Mike wasn’t the same, that Mike cared about her, but Barbara couldn’t believe he cared too much. Mike would get over Lucky in a matter of weeks. He respected women, treated them well, but he never fell too hard.

“Love’s a strong word, Josh,” she said.

“I know, but there it is,” he replied. “I doubt Mike even realizes what’s wrong with him, but he can’t think of anything or anyone else. I’m sure that’s part of the reason he’s not here today. He’s hoping she’ll call and he doesn’t want to miss her if she does.”