A Place To Call Home

“You handled that very well,” Jeremy commented when they had safely returned to the main camp. “Some people can’t take seeing the empty space below them. They freeze.”

“It wasn’t empty,” she muttered dryly. “There was a river moving at around sixty miles an hour a hundred feet below.”

That caused the workers who overheard them to laugh with far more enthusiasm than the remark deserved. Jeremy joined in.

She managed a weak smile and shook her head.

“It’s almost noon,” he said. “Ready for lunch?”

“Here?”

He nodded. “We have a mess tent.”

“I hope it’s on this side of the river.” She grinned as everyone again laughed and went with Jeremy to a metal-roofed building with canvas sides behind the office trailer. “Wow, air-conditioning.”

He explained the luxury to her. “It gets so hot in the summer, the workers need a break from the heat at times.”

The temperature was in the eighties now, but in July and August, the thermometer would climb into the mid-nineties on average during the day. At night, it could drop to around fifty, or even into the forties. Although usually dry during the summer, thunderstorms could bring flash floods. The high desert was not a place for careless people.

They went through a buffet line that offered several entrées of meat and vegetables, then sat at a long table where Tina and two women were already seated. Zia recognized one of them as the equipment operator she’d noticed when they first arrived. Jeremy introduced the three. “Paula and Marti, this is Zia.”

“How did you learn to handle that huge machine?” Zia asked Marti after they said hello.

“School,” Marti told her. “At heavy equipment schools, you learn to handle all kinds of machines. My dad had a road repair company, but he wouldn’t let me work for him. So I decided to show him women could handle dozers the same as men.”

“She’s one of the best,” Jeremy added. “She agreed to come here from the Salt Lake area after I showed her the article on the new education plans. In a way, you helped me hire her.”

“I have a boy and girl, sixth and fourth grades,” the woman continued the story. “I wasn’t sure the schools were as good here as in the city.”

“The curriculum planning is part of a new federal program being tried in several states. I’m excited about it,” Zia said.

She and Marti, who looked around forty, discussed the school situation in depth during most of the meal. Once when she glanced at Jeremy, he had a thoughtful smile on his handsome face as he observed them. She smiled back and returned to the conversation.

He, his assistant and the other woman, who kept up with expenses for the DOT, held their own discussion of site problems while they ate. Zia listened after the equipment operator left to go back to work.

Apparently cost was a big factor in Jeremy’s being moved from his former work site near Bryce Canyon to Uinta County. The bridge construction was way past schedule and over budget. He was to get things moving and under control.

Listening to him, she felt a totally unwarranted sense of pride at his masterful grasp of the situation. It was obvious the other two respected his decisions. She was glad things were working out so well for him in his new position.

Shortly after one, they were on the road again, heading north toward town. “Was that any fun for you at all?” he asked.

“Oh, yes. I enjoyed it a lot. The scenery was great, as promised, and the building site was very interesting. I feel like an expert on road construction now and will amaze my friends when I explain rainbow bridges to them.”

He laughed heartily at her claim, which pleased her.

As they passed the city limits sign, she became somber. She had enjoyed herself, perhaps too much. She couldn’t rely on Jeremy for companionship. It wouldn’t be fair. His time would be better spent finding the woman of his dreams.

Her mother had indicated she was worried about Jeremy and the fact that he’d never married. Caileen thought it was because of the unsettled life he’d lived during his youth. His father had died of a heart attack at a very young age, then his uncle—the middle Aquilon brother—rolled his truck one snowy night and died of exposure before being found. The problems with Family Services before being left in peace with his uncle Jeff had probably made him as cautious in love as her experience with Sammy had made her.

Besides, she didn’t think Jeremy liked her very much. She’d known, from the moment they’d first met, that he thought of her as a willful only child who’d given her mom grief for no good reason, not like Krista and Tony being beaten by a foster father or having a father drop dead like Jeremy. By contrast she’d had an easy life.

She’d just taken it hard, she admitted sardonically.

“You don’t have to pretend with me, you know,” he continued as they neared the hotel, his manner thoughtful.

She was astounded. “I’m not acting, Jeremy. I really did have a great time today. I liked the tour. It was interesting talking to your workers.” She paused. “I was tired last night, so I probably wasn’t very good company. I’m sorry if I disappointed you in some way.”

“I didn’t mean to give that impression. But, it occurs to me that you might have felt pressured to, uh, be friendly. I want you to know you don’t have to. We don’t have to see each other at all.”

She laid her head back on the seat and laughed softly. “We’re both fools,” she told him. “I thought you were being nice because you felt you had to take care of me. I can’t believe Mom called and asked you to check that I arrived safely. As if I were a ten-year-old off on my first trip alone. Honestly,” she ended in amused exasperation.

“Okay, I guess we understand each other then,” he said. “No more Mr. Nice Guy,” he added in the tough manner of an action-adventure hero.

“Right. We can check in on each other once in a while to keep the folks off our case, but otherwise we go our own ways.”

“Agreed.”

When he stopped at the hotel, she jumped down from the SUV before he could get out. “Thanks again for the tour. As soon as I find a place to live, I’ll invite you to dinner.”

He gave her a calculating glance. “A home-cooked meal would be nice, like the meat loaf your mom makes.”

“Can do,” she assured him. “I’ll get in touch when I’m settled. Okay?”

After he nodded, she closed the truck door and headed for her room. Standing on the porch, she watched him drive down the street. It made her feel good to be on solid footing with him, she realized. Maybe they could be friends.

Casual friends, she amended, going into her pleasant room. Occasional friends, the type you talk to whenever you run into each other on the street. Maybe they would have coffee once in a while, or lunch. Nothing that demanded a lot of fuss and bother, or that could be called a relationship.

Anything more would never work between them. The past would always be there, ready to spring up when least expected, reminding her of the reasons she didn’t want any connection to her misguided youth. He would probably prefer to avoid her, too.

However, when she’d danced with him at the wedding, she hadn’t been thinking of the past at all. Instead, her foolish heart had envisioned a future filled with all the good things that could exist between a couple who truly loved each other.

The intense longing returned. She wanted…she wanted something different from life. Maybe she would find it here.

She sighed as she settled into a chair and stared out the window at the sweeping vista of mountains. She would keep her word and invite Jeremy to dinner when she found a home, then…then her obligation to him would be done.

Chapter Three

Zia shook hands with the real estate agent. “Thanks for your help. If I see anything that looks interesting this weekend, I’ll call you on Monday.”

“Same here,” Jim Ramsey said.

She had contacted Tina Ramsey’s cousin on Monday. Jim was around her age, about two inches shorter and heavyset. He was outgoing and cheerful, also enthusiastic about her finding a place to live.

But after searching all week—today was Friday—the prospects didn’t look great, in her opinion.

“There are places coming on the market all the time,” he assured her in a hearty manner. “If you want to buy, I know of several cottages for sale, a couple of them in town or close in, more in the country.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Sure you don’t want a ride to the hotel?”

She shook her head. “I’ll walk. I like the exercise.”

She strolled down the street, leaving him in front of the real estate office, which was two blocks from the educational building. One thing about a small town—one was never far from anywhere in it.

When she passed the DOT facility, she quickly scanned the parking lot. She spotted Jeremy’s SUV near the side entrance.

“Hey,” he called to her, coming out the door at that moment.

His appearance startled her as it had last Friday when she’d arrived in town, as if an apparition had suddenly materialized.

“Jeremy, hello,” she said, breathless for no reason…no reason at all. He was dressed in dark slacks and a white shirt with a tie. A suit jacket was slung over his shoulder. With his summer Stetson, he looked, she thought, like a rugged Western hero on a photo shoot for some classy magazine.

He came over to the sidewalk. “How’s it going?”

“If you’re talking about the house search, it isn’t.” She managed a smile so he wouldn’t think she was whining.

“What’s the problem?”

“I’m not sure,” she said ruefully, “but I think my finances don’t match my tastes.”

When he laughed, his teeth were incredibly white against the tawny shades of his skin. He had a killer smile. It highlighted his whole face, forcing her to realize anew his natural good looks and masculine grace, both of which were reasons why her friends had always wanted to get acquainted with him.

“Have you had lunch?” he asked. “I’m going now and would be glad to have company.”

She hesitated, then nodded. “I just got back from house hunting with Jim Ramsey.”

“Tina’s cousin? I seem to recall her mentioning him.”

“She did. He seems to know the area really well. We’ve been over on the east side of town, out in the county, actually.”

“My place is out that way, too.” Jeremy took her arm and guided her down the street. He pointed out two restaurants. “Mexican or the soup and sandwich place?”

“Mexican,” she decided. “I ate at the sandwich place yesterday. The food was delicious. The owner there was the one who told me to check out the cottages east of town. She said people were selling their vacation homes or renting them since prices had started falling.”

After they were inside the restaurant and sipping from tall, frosty glasses of iced tea, they quickly made their selections and ordered.

“I like a woman who can make up her mind,” he said when they were alone again.

She had to smile at his rueful tone. “Is that something you’ve had a problem with in the past?”

“Just once. When I was stationed in Salt Lake City for six months, I dated a woman who managed a gift shop. I don’t know how she ever ordered merchandise because it took her a week to decide what she wanted for dinner.”

“Mmm, you must have had very long dates.”

He gave her a wry grimace. “Okay, maybe it only took her thirty minutes, but it seemed like a week.”

Their salads arrived, and they ate in silence for a few minutes. Zia tried to think of something to say, but her mind stayed stubbornly on the woman who had lost out on a relationship with him. “I assume you didn’t ask her out again?”

“Actually I did, but it was the same the second time. When she invited me to a cookout with friends, I had to decline because I’d been transferred to the Bryce Canyon project.”

“You were glad,” Zia said in slightly accusatory tones.

“I was. The move made it easier to break it off.”

She eyed him thoughtfully. “I think men still have the advantage in dating, especially if you made the first contact. You can simply not call again.”

“What if she calls you?”

“Screen your calls and let the answering machine pick up if you don’t want to talk.”

“And don’t call back?”

“Right. That’s what my friends do with a guy they don’t want to see again. Wouldn’t the same tactic work for men?”

“I suppose.”

“What?” she said when he frowned.

“It doesn’t seem quite fair to leave someone dangling.”

“So what do you do if you haven’t been transferred to a new location and you don’t want to see someone again?” she asked, then was annoyed at herself for the blatant curiosity about him and his dating life.

“I tell them that work is going to keep me busy for several weeks. Which is mostly true,” he added. “And I’m out of town at the construction sites a lot, too.”

“I have a friend who studied ethics. She said the truth told in an untruthful way is still a lie.” Zia grinned as she waited to see what he would say to that.

“What about you?” he asked, giving her a narrow-eyed scrutiny and ignoring her gibe. “What do you do to fend off unwanted men? You must get calls by the score.”

“Hardly. I don’t usually accept dates unless I’ve known the man for a while.” When he raised his eyebrows at this, she continued, “I like to get to know people and see how they respond in social situations before being alone with them. It makes things easier, don’t you think?”

“Yes,” he said softly, “I do.”

Something in his eyes made her wonder if she’d said too much. Being cautious was probably not the way he thought of her. She’d once acted rashly, impulsively and the consequences be damned.

“Well, back to the housing market,” she said brightly. “Do you have any advice? Should I think about buying?”

“How do you feel about your job?” he asked.

She was surprised. “Well, I don’t really know. I talked to the superintendent of schools on Monday, looked my office over on Tuesday and met the department secretary on Wednesday. She looks as if she moved in when the facility was built. I have no idea if I’ll last longer than my three-year contract.”

“You got a contract?”

“Yes. It’s an administrative position. Instead of tenure, we agree on a specified time to put my ideas into action and see results.” She shrugged. “If things don’t turn around as fast as the school board thinks it should, they have to buy out the contract to get rid of me.”

“Mmm, maybe you’d better wait before buying a house, at least until you have a few months under your belt.”

“That’s what I thought, too.” She sighed. “Finding a small house to rent is more difficult than I thought it would be.”

“That’s why I bought a place. I thought I’d be here for at least ten years, but then we ran into problems in the southwest region again. I’ve used a lot of vacation time to work on the cabin, though. It’s coming along. I’ll get a lot more done now that I’m stationed here.”

“How long do you think you’ll be in this district?”

“I plan to retire here.” His charming grin popped up. “Unless they want to put me in charge of the whole DOT. I don’t see that happening.”

“Why not?”

“There’s too much politics going on at the state level. I’d tell some big shot where to get off and probably be out the door in record time.”

“I’ve always found you to be very tactful,” she assured him.

He was silent for a minute, then his eyes met hers. “With some people, it’s easier to be gentle than with others.”

Gentle.

The word lingered in Zia’s mind at the grocery where she bought fruit, bread and peanut butter and at the Laundromat where she washed and dried the clothing she’d worn that week.

Later, as evening painted the sky in soft hues, she sat on the side porch of the hotel and ate a solitary meal, the word echoing in her head like thunder reverberating off distant mountain peaks, plangent and haunting.

Jeremy was referring to women, she decided. Actually he was gentle with all who were smaller, weaker than himself. Look how wonderful he’d been with his stepcousins, rescuing Tony and Krista from that horrible foster father when they were children. Both had grown up to be fine, decent citizens, thanks to his influence as well as his uncle’s.

Whoever caught his heart would be loved and cherished forever. A lucky woman.

She tried to put the luncheon conversation out of mind, but words and phrases kept popping up like new bits of scenery with each curve in a winding road.

She suddenly wished Jeremy was with her. She wanted to ask him about…about life and love and what it all meant…

“Miss Peters?”

She jerked at the sound of her name. A young man stood at the corner of the porch. The night clerk, she realized.

“Yes, that’s me.”

“You have a call. Shall I transfer it to your room phone?”

“Yes, please. Thank you,” she added, hurrying inside.

A second later, the phone rang. She sat on the bed and picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Zia?”

“Yes. Who’s this?”

“Heather. I tried to get you on your cell phone but couldn’t get an answer.”

“It’s on the charger,” Zia explained, her mind racing.

Heather. Her mother’s longtime friend. There was only one reason she would be calling.

“What’s happened?” Zia asked, steeling herself for bad news.

“Your mother is ill. An infection of some kind. The ambulance is taking her to the hospital in Boise. Jeff is with her. He asked me to call.”

“An infection?” Zia questioned. “Where?”

“It’s in her gall bladder and liver. Apparently it caused the bile duct to close and destroy most of her liver before they realized what the problem was.”

Zia tried to take in the information, but a sense of panic was setting in fast. “What are they going to do at the Boise hospital?” The city was an hour away, and there was a small county hospital in their hometown.

Heather hesitated before saying, “Stop the infection, first of all. There’s internal bleeding. They’ll have to take care of that, too. The liver damage is pretty serious. I, uh, I think you’d better consider coming home.”

Zia had already determined that. “I’ll be there by morning,” she said. “Have you called anyone else?”

“No, you’re the first one who came to mind. Do you want me to call your dad?”

“I—I don’t know. No. I’ll call him tomorrow…when we know more.” She pressed a hand to her forehead. “Jeremy. I can contact him. We need to call Tony and Julianne. Krista and Lance are still on their honeymoon. They’re someplace in Europe. Let’s wait on them.”

“Right. Jeff gave me Caileen’s address book. That’s where I got your cell number. When I didn’t get an answer, I remembered you were staying at the hotel. Caileen had mentioned the name at lunch the other day.”

Heather, a paralegal from juvenile court, and her mother had been having lunch once a week for as long as Zia could remember.

“When I called the hotel, the clerk said he’d seen you outside when he came on duty,” Heather finished.

“Thank God,” Zia murmured. “I’ll call Jeremy and start packing. Is there anything else I need to do?”

“Not that I can think of. I’ll call your cell number if anything changes. Jeff asked if I could be the message hub in case you guys have trouble getting through at the hospital.”

“Thanks, Heather. I’ll be there as soon as possible.”

“Drive carefully. We don’t need you in an accident.”

“Yes, I’ll be careful.”

After hanging up, Zia clicked on Jeremy’s number, but either his cell phone was off or he was out of range. She left a voice mail for him to call her right away. Then she grabbed her largest case and tossed the contents of the bureau into it, mostly jeans, T-shirts and underwear. Since her overnight case held her makeup and toiletries, she closed it and set it next to the larger piece.

In less than fifteen minutes, with jacket and purse in hand, she was ready to go. Dusk had deepened to twilight as she tried Jeremy again.

Still no answer.

After putting her luggage in her car, she went to the hotel desk and explained to the night clerk about the family emergency and left her cell number with him in case anyone needed to get in touch.

“You’re keeping your room?” he asked.

“Yes. I still have some things in it.”

“Very good. Be careful on the road. People drive too fast since there’s not much traffic.”

“Thanks, I will.”

After trying Jeremy once more, she located his address on the county map and headed out. It didn’t occur to her until she was well on her way that he might not consider it necessary to go to Idaho. He might prefer to wait until they knew the situation.

Whatever his decision, she was definitely going home.

She found his mailbox on the county road, the numbers reflecting in her headlights so they were easy to read. She turned onto the gravel drive.

In a couple of minutes she came upon the house tucked into a clearing among the pines and cedars. It wasn’t the rustic cabin she’d expected. Instead it looked more like a small, elegant lodge with stones in desert hues of ocher and terra-cotta covering the bottom half and a very soft terra-cotta stucco on the upper part. A window in the gable indicated an attic room under the eaves.

His SUV was under the attached carport, and a light was on inside. Relieved, she parked and hurried to the door.

The oak door was open, but a screen door kept out intruders. Hearing footsteps, she leaned close and peered in.

“Jeremy?” she called upon spotting movement in the dim hall.

The figure paused. “Zia?”

“Yes.” Without waiting for an invitation, she opened the screen door and went inside. “I’m so glad you’re home—”

That’s when it hit her that he’d just come out of the shower. In the soft light of the living room lamp, she caught only an impression of a muscular male body before he disappeared.

She went totally still for a second. “I’m sorry,” she called out, impatient with the unexpected rise in temperature and heartbeat his naked presence engendered. This was no time for niceties. “I didn’t mean to barge in, but there’s an emergency.”

He stepped back into view, a towel secured around his lean hips. “What kind of emergency?”

“My mother is very ill. Jeff is taking her to Boise in an ambulance.”

“What’s wrong?”

She told him what she knew.

He nodded, then brushed the lock of damp hair off his forehead. “That sounds serious,” he said, taking a couple of steps into the room.

“I’m on my way to the hospital. I thought, if you wanted to go, we could travel together. Mom…” Her throat closed up.

“Are you packed and ready?”

She nodded.

“Give me ten minutes.”

He disappeared into another room farther down the hall. She sank into a deep leather chair that faced the hearth. Her heart steadied. She exhaled a somewhat shaky breath and gazed around the room. The walls had a plaster finish, Tuscan-style, with pale golden paint glazed with sienna. It was very attractive.

The kitchen was small and tucked into an alcove behind the right-hand side of the great room. The cabinets were cedar, the appliances new and modern. An island with a cooktop separated it from the living area, which spanned the width of the house. The sofa was rich, brown leather that matched the chair she sat in. Another chair, also a recliner, was smaller and upholstered in a deep terra-cotta and tan chenille.

A long hassock with a tray on it served as a coffee table. Attractive floor lamps anchored each end of the sofa. A low chest of drawers with two buffet lamps nestled under a side window that framed a view of woods and a creek.

A round table of oak with six chairs and a breakfront cabinet occupied the other end of the broad living space.

She wondered who had picked out the furnishings. A woman, she concluded. She couldn’t imagine Jeremy giving much thought to interior design.