14. Rook

14

ROOK

“ I ’m going dress shopping with Mom,” Kitty sighed over the phone. “I think it’s her attempt to smooth things over between us, but it’s not going to stop me from being pissed at Dad.”

“Do you want me to come?” I rested against my car, tossing my keys back and forth as I debated what to do with my day off. They were rare but built into my contract, and that was the only reason I wasn’t with Kitty today.

“Nah, I’ll be fine,” Kitty sighed. “Besides, it’s your day off! You get to go and do… Well, whatever it is you do to unwind. Actually, what do you do to relax?”

“I work out,” I replied. “Go for a jog, do some weightlifting.”

“Does that count as a day off?”

“I mean, it makes me feel relaxed.”

“Are you sure?” Despite not being able to see her face, I could hear the way her mouth was twisting in teasing disbelief, the adorable way her lower lip would press into her upper lip and twist.

“Yes, I’m sure. I’m a simple guy, Kitty. There’s not a lot that keeps me entertained.”

“Is that a soldier thing?”

My chest pulled slightly. “You could say that.”

“You need to find something to do,” Kitty insisted. “I don’t care what it is, just don’t stay in your motel room all day, okay?”

I glanced over my shoulder toward that exact hotel room and bit back a smile.

“Rook, I mean it,” she scolded. “Do it for me?”

“For you?”

“Yes! I don’t care what you do, just don’t stay there all day. Go and do something fun. Buy something you enjoy. Pretend you’re a normal guy for once.” Kitty chuckled at her own comment, and then her voice became muffled as she spoke to someone away from the phone. “Alright, I gotta go. Talk to you later!”

There was a strange silence in Kitty’s absence. Spending all of my time with her, keeping her safe, meant that her liveliness was always around me. She was always either talking, humming, or getting up to some shenanigans that kept me on my toes. Suddenly being without her left a strange emptiness in my chest and the air around me.

I wished she’d asked me to come along. Protecting her will be a job for her mother’s security team today. While I trusted them to do their jobs, they weren’t me. They wouldn’t watch her as closely as I would.

I sighed and turned on my heel, about to head back to my motel room when Kitty’s words danced around my head again.

Do something today .

I’d always been a man of simple tastes, even when I was a kid. I didn’t party. I didn’t go clubbing. I preferred my own company and entertaining myself. But for Kitty, I would make an effort.

I climbed into my car, coaxed the thing to life, and started to drive. When I’d arrived here six months ago, I’d spent a lot of time driving around to get the lay of the town. Silver Hills was a quaint little town nestled right into a forest that was stunning at a glance. I hadn’t been able to imagine anything sinister happening in a place like this.

Then I met Samuel and saw that he was very different from the man I’d become friends with all those years ago. Being the mayor had changed him, and greed had corrupted him. Seeing the wreckage from the spring flood and hearing the tales from the townsfolk while wandering with Kitty had quickly removed the polish from this place.

Still, it had its charming spots and after driving around for an hour, I ended up back at The Anchor.

This counted as getting out of my room and doing something, so I was ticking off two boxes, Kitty’s request and my desire for a drink.

The Anchor was only just starting to fill up at this time in the afternoon. When I walked in, I was greeted with a wave from Melanie as she glanced up from dealing with two customers tucked in a booth. There were a couple of other patrons scattered around the place, but I paid them no mind as I headed straight toward the bar. Luckily, no one had clung to the drama that happened here the other night. Kitty had informed me that most people saw her being dragged away as a slight against her father and proof that she was on their side.

A silver lining to an overbearing parent trying to be too many things at once.

“Hey, darlin’, what can I get you?” Melanie brushed my shoulder on her way past. “Usual?”

“Please.”

“Coming right up.”

Kitty was a frequent visitor to this place, so I learned a lot about Melanie by association. She was a kind, deeply caring woman who had poured her heart and soul into this place. The events she used to host out back in the barn were sorely missed, but she didn’t have the funds to repair all the water damage. She often joked that the barn was one bad rainstorm away from complete collapse, and the sadness was clear in her eyes each time she laughed.

She, and so many like her, were being screwed over by Samuel. Time really did change people.

She set a glass of Scotch down in front of me with a wink, then moved on to serve another customer who had approached the bar. I toyed with the glass, watching the ice cubes tilt back and forth inside while some smooth jazz played from speakers buried behind too many bottles.

And my thoughts turned back to Kitty. I had given in to her. More than I should have. The imbalance with our age and my responsibilities played heavily on my mind. I liked her. I liked her a lot. More than I should. If I were a decent man, I would have handed in my resignation and walked away because she didn’t deserve someone like me hanging over her. Sure, she liked me back, but for how long? She was young. Feelings were fleeting. Me? I’d aged enough that once a feeling was concrete inside me, it stayed there. There was no escaping it.

I’d let her initiate most things to make sure I didn’t overstep, but did that really give her power? I couldn’t decide whether I was taking advantage of her or if I was just tricking myself because if I thought about it, if I really thought about it, what kind of life could I even give her?

If we wrapped up the threats against her life and everything turned out the way she wanted and she no longer needed me to protect her, would she still want me? Was my security part of the allure?

And if that were all true, would Kitty really want to spend her life with some old soldier? Surely, she would want the freedom of her youth rather than being attached to me.

Those thoughts and more wove around my mind like a sickness, and in the end, I tried to silence them by quickly draining my glass.

“Rough day?” Melanie appeared back in front of me as I set my glass firmly down on the coaster.

“Something like that.”

“Want to talk about it?”

“Wouldn’t help.”

“You sure about that?”

When I glanced up at Melanie, she was smirking. “I’m sure.”

“You know, a problem shared is a problem halved. You’d be surprised at how amazing I am at giving out advice.”

“Are you looking to give advice or just digging for gossip?” I quirked a brow.

Melanie laughed and turned away from me. When she turned back, she had the bottle of Scotch in her hand. “Honey, if I wanted to gossip, I wouldn’t be trying to pry it out of you. I’d be talking to Mrs. Simmons over there. She's been sleeping with the new delivery driver for the flower shop, and she thinks no one knows about it.”

I followed the direction of Melanie’s nod to a blonde woman who was seated at a table with an older man. The man was speaking, but the woman was clearly more interested—and excited—by whatever was on her phone.

“Damn. Poor guy.”

“Oh, no.” Melanie snorted. “He’s been fucking that young thing down at the motel for over a year. They’re both as bad as each other.”

“Damn.”

“See? I don’t need you for gossip. But I do know the look of someone when they’re hung up on something. Or someone.”

That caught my attention immediately. I turned back and watched Melanie pour me another drink. Then, she set the bottle aside and leaned on the bar with both elbows.

“I’m not hung up.”

“Oh, come on. Yes you are. You think I didn’t see how you and Kitty were looking at each other the other day you were here? You were both seconds away from tearing each other's clothes off and fucking right here on the bar.”

An unexpected heat warmed my cheeks. “Was it that obvious?” If Melanie had worked it out, how long until the wrong person did?

“To me, sure. Because I know Kitty and I know when she’s into someone. Of course, she’s been into you for months, so it’s nice to finally see that you did something about it.”

“Shit.” I picked up my glass.

“Don’t worry.” Melanie smiled. “Your secret is safe with me if you tell me why you look so down in the dumps. Surely, this is a good thing.”

“It is,” I agreed. “But I have some… reservations.”

“About her?”

“No, no. About me.”

“Ahh, men. You always make things more complicated than you need to.”

“Oh, really?” I drained about half my glass. “Okay, consider the facts. I’m employed by her father, who is also a friend. I’m in charge of her. I’m a lot older than her. She’s in the fun years of her life, and I’m in the quiet ones.”

“And?” Melanie shrugged. “Nothing you listed strikes me as a problem.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course! Look. Kitty is a smart woman. Don’t you think she’s also aware of these things? And she clearly doesn’t care. Or they’re part of the things that excite her. Who knows? Either way, she made her choice, and if you’re not careful, you’ll talk yourself out of making your own.”

“And what if, when we strip all of that away, she doesn’t like the me that’s underneath?”

“That’s part of the thrill, isn’t it?” Melanie tilted her head to the side. “Being vulnerable with someone. Peeling back the layers so that the real us is exposed. I promise you, Kitty has the same concerns. You just need to get out of your comfort zone a little and trust one another.”

“A little hard to do, given the circumstances,” I pointed out and drained the rest of my glass.

“Well, with that attitude, sure. Look, you have to do the most cliché, obvious thing. If you can survive that, then you’ll be fine.”

I set the glass down and eyed Melanie as she straightened up. “And what is that?”

“You don’t know?” Melanie took my glass and smiled. “Take her on a date, silly.”