Page 12 of Tough Justice
“Were there any signs of violence or a bad temper?” Suzy wasn’t exactly sure what to ask, but she wanted Heather to know she was there for whatever she needed.
Heather shrugged. “He’d gotten a new job recently. Said it was more stressful, longer hours. Made him crabby. Especially when he complained I wasn’t pulling my weight.”
Suzy cringed. The guy sounded like a grade-A asshat, but she kept that to herself.
“At first I thought the reason things shifted between us was because of the stress of the new position, but when it became clear it was more than that, I knew it was time to end things. When he hit me…” she touched the tip of her fingers to the edge of her jawline. Tears dripped down her cheeks.
Leaning over, Suzy took hold of Heather’s free hand and squeezed. “Threatening to castrate the guy was genius. If I ever see him, I’ll make sure to follow through on that threat. We won’t let him hurt you again.”
Heather drew in a shuddering breath and stared out over the yard, the red barns dotting the landscape before the meadow beyond gave way to the mountains. “I understand why Duke loves it here so much.” She turned and stared at Suzy, a glint of something sparking in her eyes.
Suzy swallowed hard, hating the punch of excitement Heather’s words elicited. Duke’s sister was talking about the sense of community, the helpful neighbors, hell, even the beautiful view from her brother’s porch. Duke staying in Hillmore had nothing to do with Suzy, and however much she enjoyed getting to know Heather and finding out about Duke’s past, she had to keep that at the forefront of her mind.
Duke was off limits. No matter how much she wished he wasn’t.
5
After the last screw was in place, Duke lowered his arm and circled his shoulder. He hated leaving Heather at Lane’s, but he had to get the security camera installed for Mr. and Mrs. Gurly. Every nerve in his body was set on high alert, and he fought the instinct to drive all the way to Texas and beat the crap out of his sister’s ex-boyfriend.
He stepped off the ladder and tightened his grip on the screwdriver. Anger flowed through him like a flash flood.
He should have been there. Should have been around to step in the second things got bad. Heather shouldn’t have been forced to drive fifteen hours to put distance between her and trouble.
And damn it, if he hadn’t done the exact same thing—run from his own problems—he would’ve been around to help.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Mr. Gurly asked. “Or better yet, some homemade fudge?”
Folding the ladder back to its smallest size, he remembered Suzy’s request for her favorite candy earlier. “Not sure anything in my head is worth much, but I’ll take some chocolate covered peanuts.”
“Good choice,” Mr. Gurly said and stepped behind the glass counter. “If I recall correctly, those are Lane’s sister’s favorite as well.”
He grunted a response, not willing to confirm anything before putting the ladder back in the storage closet and double checking to make sure everything was installed properly. Once he was satisfied his job was done right, he returned to the main salesfloor of the candy store.
“I’m all set. Your wife is back in the office, and I went over how to work the system with her.”
Mr. Gurly snorted. “I’m sure that was fun.”
Duke bit back a grin. He’d lost his grandmother years ago, but he couldn’t help but imagine that teaching his own grandma would have been similar to explaining how to use technology with Mrs. Gurly—swearing and all. “It was an experience.”
“Then you more than earned this.” Mr. Gurly reached across the counter with a white paper bag. “I made sure to add extra, just in case.” He added a wink as he handed over the treat.
“Appreciate that, but I insist on paying.” He dipped his hand into his back pocket for his wallet.
Mr. Gurly clicked his tongue. “Wouldn’t hear of it. You and Lane did more than necessary to help us out this morning. Besides, if you taught my wife how to use that equipment, I owe you a great deal more.”
Laughing, Duke tucked his wallet back in its place and accepted the offering. “Good point. Is there anything else I can help you with?” He glanced around the tidy shop, happy to see everything was back in place.
Except the window. Ugly, brown carboard covered the hole left behind by the busted glass.
“Nah, you’ve done plenty.” The bell chimed above the door, announcing a trio of customers. “Looks like I’ve got some mouths to feed.”
Duke dipped his chin in gratitude then sidestepped the young mother with her two children as he retreated to the sidewalk. The punch of fresh air filled his lungs. A quick flick of his wrist told him he’d finished his work in good time. He’d head back to the office, see what else needed done for the day, then take Heather back to his place. Maybe then she’d open up to him about what’d been going on in her life.
With his hands shoved in the pockets of his jacket, he made a beeline for his truck, parked in an angled spot on the street. He could kick his own ass for not keeping in better touch with Heather—with the rest of his sisters and parents. Hell, he hadn’t seen his nieces and nephews in years. Yes, he video chatted with all of them as often as possible, but even that wasn’t often enough.
He’d failed. Ran from his problems and let that same problem keep him away from people he loved. And as much as he’d tried, he’d lost touch with the people who cared about him. Time to change that. He’d noted how Heather and Suzy had stopped their conversation the second he’d stepped onto the porch before heading into town. He was glad his sister found someone to confide in, but he wanted her to know he was there too. He wouldn’t push, wouldn’t pry, but he’d make it known he cared.
He cracked a smile for the first time in hours as an idea took hold. When they were younger, he and Heather would buy as much junk food as they wanted and challenge each other to video games. They’d sit for hours, laughing and talking trash, but the occasional deep conversation would sneak in. He still had his old gaming console somewhere in an unpacked box with all their favorite games. All he had to do was stop into the market and pack up enough snacks to give them both diabetes.
