8. Ghost

I was growing increasingly anxious.Three hours had passed since Allison and the others departed. Then, the sound of wheels crunching on the gravel driveway caught my attention, and I couldn't help but smile when I saw them arriving. Watching Spartan lift Amy out of the vehicle and gently place her on the ground, I noticed how he did a double-take when she flashed him a smile. I wondered if he had seen her dimple.

"Sweetheart, I missed you. How was Mr. Grover and Jolene?" I asked, leaning in and giving her a quick kiss.

"Mr. Grover is fine, but Flo has pneumonia, and Jolene is pregnant again. She's fifty-six; I hope everything works out for her."

I wrapped my arms around her because I could, now that she was mine again. "I missed you too," Allison said as I pulled her closer to me and kissed her in front of anyone looking.

Turning to Spartan, I asked about Joe. "How is Joe doing? I heard he's looking for work."

"Yeah, he's going to put a new porch in the front and back of Grover's place. I'm going to get some wood for them."

"In two weeks, we've got a job in California. They need two people to guard their children while they're away for two weeks. I'll take the job; I've been slacking on my end of the business. I was thinking Raider could accompany me," I suggested.

"Have you talked to him?" Spartan inquired.

"Not yet. His main issue is finding someone to look after the kids. But he can start looking if we call him now," I explained, thinking about Raider's situation with his boys.

"He and the boys have been through a lot. First, they witnessed Cheryl, his wife, and the boys' mother murdered in Afghanistan, and now his father passed away. At least he has moved back to the mountain. He won't have any problem finding someone the boys can stay with around here. I'll call and have him and the boys over tonight for dinner."

"Why don't we also have Viper, Bailey, Steel, and Charlie over? We need to talk to the guys about what jobs they want to take on. There are three of them coming up; it would be nice if we found out who was after you," I suggested.

Spartan glanced over at me for just a second. "I've been thinking maybe the guy wanted me to die because, for some reason, he thinks I'm in the way of him having Benni. He might be Amy's father. I don't know, but could you ask Benni if she has anyone who is wealthy and wants her?" I heard him growl as he said that last sentence.

Glancing at him, I asked, "Do you have a problem with someone wanting Benni?"

"To be honest, I do." He turned around and ran his fingers through his hair. "I've always had this thing for Benni. Actually, it's more than just a thing. I might have even married her if she hadn't become a millionaire overnight. I didn't want her to think I wanted her for her money. But I can't stand the thought of her being with anyone else. Not even Amy's father," Spartan confessed.

"Are you telling me you don't want Benni to have anyone?" I burst into laughter. "If you loved her, you would want her to be happy. At least that's how it should be."

"Why should I want that? Would you have been happy if Allison found someone and had a family?" Spartan retorted; his frustration evident. "And don't say you would have been. I would want to kill anyone I saw with Benni."

"But you're rich too," I pointed out.

"Now I am. I wasn't before," Spartan admitted.

"So, what's your plan?" I inquired.

"Hell, if I know. That's why I've been keeping my distance. Just being in the same room as her makes me want to take her to bed," Spartan admitted.

"I understand that feeling. I'm grateful Allison and I are together," I said, empathizing.

"What if she remembers everything and leaves?" Spartan said, grinning mischievously.

"You can wipe that grin off your face. I'm hoping we get pregnant, and when Allison does remember everything. She'll recall how much we love each other," I said, leading the way back inside.

"I'm sure she will one day remember everything. Allison's always loved you. I don't know why you are worried about her leaving when her memory returns."

"I'll just have to wait and see what happens," I said as we walked back inside. "That's strange about Carly's old house. I don't know why she doesn't sell it. It's just sitting there empty."

"I'm not so sure it's empty. Even Mr. Grover claimed to have seen someone there. Maybe Carly has rented it out or let someone stay there," Spartan suggested, shrugging.

Entering our room, I found Allison sitting at the desk I brought in for her. She looked up and smiled. "I'm making an appointment for Flo to get an X-ray. And I'm setting up an appointment for Jolene to see a gynecologist. It's heartbreaking to see her; she looks exhausted," Allison informed me.

"I'm glad you remember everything about being a doctor," I remarked, watching her write some stuff down.

"I'm blessed that my family and friends remember some of the people I've cared for. They are all my friends here on this mountain, and I'm glad I can help them. I don't understand why I started working at the hospital."

"Maybe you just wanted something new, I guess; I don't know why you did. I think it had something to do with us not being together."

"I'm sorry. Can you ever forgive me for being such a jerk," Allison said, wrapping her arms around me.

"How about we get in bed and we show each other how sorry we are?" I suggested with a grin.

"Yes, that sounds like the perfect way to say I'm sorry," She agreed. I pulled her up, but our moment was interrupted by a knock on the door. Opening it, Viper stood there grinning.

"We have a meeting right now," he announced.

"Really? We're having a meeting right now?" I exclaimed incredulously.

"I've received three calls in two hours. We need to create a new schedule and figure out who can go where and when," Viper explained.

I glanced at Allison, who was smiling. "I'll see you at dinner, sweetheart. We have some company coming over for a barbecue," I told her.

"Okay, I'll see you at dinner," Allison replied.

"Raider, we have a job in California in eleven days. That gives us some time before we need to leave. However, there's an urgent need for at least three men in Afghanistan. Believe it or not, there are still Americans over there. We'll all be occupied, so make sure not to commit to anything else," I informed Raider, emphasizing the importance of our upcoming assignments.

"Okay, sounds good to me,"Raider replied. "I just need to find someone to watch my boys before I can go anywhere," Raider said, looking at each of us. When Raider joined us, we knew his boys came first, as they should.

"Steel, can you accompany Viper and me tomorrow morning for Afghanistan? And I'll be back in time to go with Raider to California," We finished our business and returned to where everyone was.

During dinner, Carly turned to Raider, "If you need someone to watch the boys, Daisy Mae is back home. Why not ask her? She's staying in my old house, but you could ask her to stay at your place, and the boys can stay home."

So someone was at Carly's old house after all.

"Daisy Mae? I haven't seen her in fifteen years. Wasn't she a teacher? I thought she was married with a couple of kids. Doesn't she live in Tennessee?" Raider inquired, recalling his memories of Daisy Mae.

I had a feeling Carly didn't want to say anything about Daisy, but then she decided to tell us. It took her a while before she could speak. "Daisy's husband and her two little girls were killed in an auto accident. They were in that big pile-up last year in that freak ice storm."

"That's awful," Raider murmured, visibly affected by the tragic news.

We were all taken aback by the sad news. "So, Daisy Mae is living in your old house. She doesn't answer the door," Allison said. We went by there yesterday, but no one answered.

"She was probably in the garage, painting. That's what she's doing now. She sells them fast at a gallery in New York," Carly explained.

"Do you think it would be too emotional for her to look after the boys?" Raider wondered aloud. "Why would she want to take care of them? Keep in mind that they're pre-teens, so they'll keep her busy. She won't have much time to paint," he added.

"I think you should talk to her; then you'll understand. It's been over a year since the accident, and she said she finally decided to sell her home and leave Tennessee. She said the pain was so hard to endure with people coming over all the time to talk about her girls. She could paint on your deck or use that building on your property," Carly suggested.

"You've really given a lot of thought to this," Raider acknowledged. "I'll visit her tomorrow. It would be nice if she could stay with the boys while I'm gone, and they won't have to leave their home."

"I'll go with him," Allison offered.

"Thanks, Allison. So, you remember Daisy Mae?" Raider asked.

"I remember everyone, just not the last six years. I'm sure I'll remember everything soon. James and I are married now, so we'll still be married even when I regain my memory," Allison assured him.

"Yes, we will, sweetheart. We'll never be apart again," I said.