92 Pacific Boulevard - Debbie Macomber [64]
Faith made a couple of other complimentary remarks about the blanket while Troy waited patiently.
“I should be going,” he said pointedly when Megan brought out the new yarn she’d purchased. It was obvious that she and Faith had become good friends and shared an easy camaraderie.
Faith turned and her gaze immediately found his. “I should go, too. Oh, look at the time,” she said. “Craig will be home soon, won’t he? You two will want to have dinner.”
“Okay,” Megan said. Troy supposed she figured her work was done.
Troy held the door for Faith and was about to follow her when Megan placed her hand on his arm, stopping him. “You’re not upset with me, are you?”
Troy looked over at Faith and saw that she stood next to her car, waiting for him.
“Not in the least.”
“Someone had to do something, and I could see you were too stubborn.”
“Me? Stubborn?” Troy protested. “What about Faith? She’s the stubborn one.”
“Maybe so, but I doubt it.” Megan rose up on the tips of her toes and kissed his cheek. “Don’t let her get away, Dad.”
“I won’t,” he promised.
“Good.” She gave him a gentle shove. “Now what are you doing standing here? Go talk to Faith.”
“That’s exactly what I plan to do.” He bounded down the steps and met Faith in the driveway.
The words he’d planned to say were trapped in his throat.
“Would you like to stop by the house for a little while?” Faith asked when he reached her.
By some miracle he managed to nod.
“Shall we say in fifteen minutes?”
“Ten?” he suggested instead.
Faith laughed. “Five?”
“Why don’t I just follow you home?”
She nodded.
Troy started toward his own car. “I’ll see you there.”
“Troy?” Faith stopped him, sounding uncertain.
“Yes?” He turned to face her again.
She paused. “I want to settle these…these differences between us.”
“I do, too.”
“It’s just that…Oh, I don’t know…”
“Faith,” he said softly, walking back to stand in front of her. “Let’s not make any decisions yet. Let’s talk honestly and openly, and if we both decide a relationship is wrong, we’ll lay it to rest once and for all. Does that seem fair to you?”
She looked up at him, her eyes vulnerable, exposing what was in her heart. “It does,” she whispered.
He touched her cheek, then hurried to his car.
On the short drive, Troy felt almost drunk. Drunk on love and hope…For no real reason he burst into laughter.
They were finally going to resolve this situation between them.
It wasn’t until Troy made the turn onto Rosewood Lane that he saw the twirling lights of two patrol cars. Both were parked outside Faith’s house.
Troy was out of his vehicle before Faith had even pulled into her driveway.
“What’s going on here?” he asked Deputy Weaver, who met him halfway up the walk.
“The alarm company phoned in a breach.”
Faith hurried toward him, eyes wide and frightened. “Troy, what’s happened?”
“It appears someone broke into the house.” In an effort to calm her, he slipped his arm around her shoulders. “The alarm company alerted my office.”
“A 9-1-1 call came in from a neighbor, as well,” Deputy Weaver added.
Faith covered her mouth with both hands. “Is this ever going to stop?” she cried. “What do these people want from me?”
Unfortunately, Troy didn’t have any answers.
After conferring with his deputies, he entered the house with Faith. The destruction was minor—a broken window, a lamp on the floor and a toppled vase. Still, it was bad enough. Faith gasped and he put out a hand to steady her.
Troy stayed while his deputies finished their report. After they’d left and the house was quiet again, he turned to her.
“I’ll help you straighten up.”
“No,” she said and shook her head. “I can’t deal with this now. I’m going to spend the night with Scott and his family.”
Troy could understand how upset she must be. He’d give just about anything to solve this and to find out why Faith, of all people, was being targeted.
“It seems to me,” she said, her voice quavering, “that while you’d like me to remain in Cedar Cove, someone else wants me to leave.”
Chapter Nineteen
It was the first Tuesday of March and Christie had driven