Cold River - Carla Neggers [94]
She noticed a mountain-biking magazine Toby had left behind and a pair of old sneakers Devin had decided not to take with him at the last minute. She couldn’t pretend that her brothers were at work or on a hike or mountain biking for a few hours, or even at a friend’s house for a few days. They were in California—on the other side of the continent.
For now, she planned to leave everything of theirs in place and continue with her own life as normal. She’d work in the café, study for the bar and figure out options for her own future. She’d been locked into her routines for so long, and now they were changing, regardless of Devin and Toby’s departure.
Regardless, she thought of Sean Cameron and the attraction that had flared up between them. It had been a momentary thing, understandable given the high emotions of the past weeks, and best forgotten.
She ran downstairs, suddenly excited for her brothers even as she pushed back her own loneliness. Toby would be ensconced with his upper-middle-class host family and hitting the bike trails. Devin would be swimming in Sean Cameron’s heated pool and figuring out his new job.
She paused in the hall, peering out the narrow side window into the gray, drizzly January afternoon. There’d been nothing in terms of a lunch crowd at the café, and Dominique had shooed both her and Beth out early. The drizzle was expected to turn to snow showers later in the day, with colder temperatures back tomorrow. She and Beth and a few of their other friends planned to take the initiative and spend a day cross-country skiing. Just get away from everything.
“Can’t do that in Beverly Hills,” Hannah said under her breath with a quick smile.
She headed out through the mudroom and jumped in her car, driving up to Rose’s house on Cameron Mountain Road. It was nestled into a hillside, small and without any immediate neighbors, which Rose seemed to like.
Hannah was surprised when she passed Lowell Whittaker at the bottom of the plowed, sanded driveway. Rose’s golden retriever was bounding toward him. Hannah parked next to a BMW—presumably Lowell’s. Rose was standing in front of her open garage as she watched Ranger scoop up a stick in his mouth, pivot and race up the hill to her.
As she got out of her car, Hannah noticed fog swirling in the evergreens on the edge of the yard and rising up from the melting snow. There was a lull in the precipitation, but water dropped off pine needles and small puddles had formed in dips in the driveway.
“I’d rather have a clear, cold winter day than this wet weather,” she said as she approached Rose. “The dampness gets into my bones.”
Rose kept her eyes on her dog. She was dressed for the weather in a waterproof jacket, the hood pulled up over her tawny hair. “I feel closed-in on days like today, but it won’t last. All this water will freeze tonight and we’ll be in the cold again tomorrow.”
Hannah stood next to her friend and nodded toward Lowell Whittaker. “What’s he doing here?”
“He’s interested in getting a dog,” Rose said without inflection.
“Does he want to get into search-and-rescue?”
“I doubt it. He’s talking about adopting a failed or injured search dog. I think he’s more curious than anything else, or just looking for a distraction.” She put out a hand as Ranger sat in front of her, and he dropped his stick into her palm. “How’re you doing with your two brothers in California?”
“Different. I didn’t realize how little sleep I’ve gotten since November. I’d wake up several times a night and check on Devin, just listen in case he was pacing.”
“He went through hell. You all did. I wish…” Rose paused, throwing the stick back down the driveway. Ranger immediately charged after it, legs pumping, golden fur gleaming. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here.”
“You were on a job. You didn’t know what was happening.”
“That’s my point.” She went