Rosa sat in Mickey’s office for fifteen or twenty minutes while Grant sat in the chair next to her, facing her and talking to her in a gentle tone. He told her that everything was okay. She was okay and nobody was going to hurt her. If he only knew, she thought. But he did have a calming effect on her and after a while, her hands had stopped shaking and her breathing was back under control. Her heart was still racing but she figured that had more to do with being in close quarters with Grant than what had happened earlier. His broad shoulders, sexy brown eyes and thick, perfectly styled dark brown hair were enough to get any straight, red-blooded, American woman’s heart pumping. She knew she had to get out of that room and away from him soon, or she might do something stupid like giving into her desire to kiss him. That would be a big mistake no matter how he reacted. Besides, she had to concentrate on getting her head out of her bad memories, off Grant, and back to her job. She had let her emotions get the best of her and that was wrong on all sorts of levels.
“I’m going to get back to work,” she told him finally.
“Mickey said it’s okay if you go home. Why don’t you call it a night and let me take you home?”
She would love to go home early and hug her baby, but if she was going on the run again, she was going to need money. She shook her head and smiled softly at him. “I can’t leave, but thank you. Even if Mickey didn’t need me, and he does, I can’t afford to lose the tips. Thank you for all your help and I’m sorry again for getting you involved in this. I’m so embarrassed.”
“Embarrassed? Are you crazy? You dumping chili on that old pervert’s head was one of the hottest things I’ve ever seen.”
She laughed and pushed up to her tired feet. She’d been on them for almost ten hours already, coming straight from cleaning rooms at the Wanda’s bed and breakfast into working her shift at the bar. “Well, the chili was hot,” she said. “Thank you, Grant.”
He stood up too. Rosa tried not to stare, but his broad chest was right in front of her and even covered with a long-sleeved cotton t-shirt, she could see the taut ripples of muscle and could almost feel the heat. “You’re welcome. I’m just sorry that happened to you.”
“Well, it would have gone a lot worse if you hadn’t been here.” She tucked a loose piece of black hair behind her ear. Her hair tie was doing its best to contain all her long, thick hair, but after about twelve hours, it was losing the battle. She was about to duck around Grant and reach for the door when he brought his own fingers up and tucked another strand back on the other side. The feeling of his fingers on her skin was electric and she shivered. She hoped that he didn’t notice, but she was sure by the way he was studying her with his sexy eyes that he did. “Um, I should get back.”
He nodded and stepped aside. As she opened the door he said, “Rosa.”
“Yeah?”
“Can I give you my number…just in case you need anything later?”
She turned back and looked at him. Surely he wasn’t hitting on her. In the first place, he could do a lot better and secondly, she’d seen him hit on more than his fair share of women in the bar, and he was a lot smoother than that. He was just being kind and her lonely brain was trying to read more into it. “I’m sure I’ll be fine,” she said.
“For my peace of mind? Just in case.”
She smiled up at him and nodded. Slipping the new burner phone that she’d just bought a few days before out of her pocket, she said, “Okay, what is it?” Before she could react, he took the phone out of her hand. She watched his face as he looked at the empty contacts.
“It’s a brand new phone,” she said, “I haven’t transferred anything yet. No time.”
“Oh.” He furrowed his brow like he wasn’t sure whether to believe her or not, but then he continued to type his name and number into it. “I knew you had to be more popular than that.” He winked at her as he handed the phone back. Her stomach did a somersault and she chastised herself for letting him get to her. She wasn’t a little girl. She had a little girl…and she needed to stop this silly flirting and go back to work to take care of her. She took the phone, tucked it into her pocket, and without another word, she went back to work. Molly seemed to have whipped the rowdy crowd into shape and the rest of the shift went smoothly. It was ten o’clock by the time Mickey stopped serving food and everything was cleaned up and all Rosa wanted was a hug from her baby and a hot shower. She didn’t have a car, but the bed and breakfast was only a couple of blocks away. Most days it was a cakewalk, but after the long, stressful day she’d had, the two blocks felt like ten.
When she got to the bed and breakfast, she was disappointed to see that the front porch was as full of cowboys as the bar had been. Thankfully, she didn’t see the old pervert or any of his friends and they were too involved in their game of dice to notice her. Rosa loved Blossom Hill mainly for its solitude. She and Ariana had just been passing through on the bus after fleeing Oklahoma and the terror that had caught up to them there. She’d been looking for a place for them to start over. As soon as she saw the little town that looked like it had grown out of the foothills, she knew this was it. She and her beautiful daughter had been there for just under a year and they had found the people as welcoming as the landscape. They rented a one-bedroom house from Wanda, the sweet lady that owned the bed and breakfast. It was just behind the Inn, and it was perfect for the two of them. Wanda had been a Godsend where Ariana was concerned too. She took care of her while Rosa worked most days, and other days, Sadie watched her when they didn’t work the same shift. Even more recently, a newcomer to town that Rosa was quickly becoming friends with named Angel had also been helping. She knew she was blessed to have these beautiful women in her life and the last thing she wanted to have to do was leave them. She knew that it was inevitable, but this time she’d be leaving the biggest part of herself behind when she ran and she almost couldn’t bear to think about it. She had to keep reminding herself that everything she did was for her daughter, even if Ariana might never know that.
Rosa had become almost too comfortable in the little town. Everyone knew everyone in Blossom Hill and she loved that they knew her by name when they saw her, even if Rosa was a name that she was still getting used to. People said good morning, good afternoon, and good evening when they passed her on the street and everyone always had a kind word for Ariana. She wanted her daughter to grow up with that, to know that she was loved and respected every day of her life. She’d almost forgotten that she might not be around to see that happen until she was reminded by the sight of the man at the grocery store that morning.
The man was tall and had light mocha colored skin. He was wearing an expensive suit, way too nice for shopping in Blossom Hill or even just passing through. A big, black SUV was parked directly in front of the store with no regard to legal parking spaces and as soon as Rosa spotted him, she knew that it had to be his and that he had to be one of Manuel’s guys. When she walked into the store, he was showing the young girl at the counter a picture. Rosa couldn’t see it, but she was sure right away that it was a picture of her. She knew that it had to be a security camera photo since there were no pictures of her other than that, and it had to be at least four years old. She hoped that because of the low quality of the photo and the fact that it was before she’d filled out a little in her face and breast area after having Ariana, that it didn’t look enough like her to be recognizable. The man also had no idea what name she was using. He’d be asking after “Elena,” not Rosa.
Those were the things she told herself as she slipped out without the items she’d gone to buy and headed back home that morning. But as the day wore on, she’d panicked a little more with each passing hour and she knew that she had to leave. She had to make sure Ariana was safe. She had done her best to put her anxiety aside while she was at work, but obviously considering the incident with the old cowboy, she hadn’t done a good job of that.
As she walked up the steps of the bed and breakfast to pick up her baby, the anxiety caused her chest to tighten and her head to throb. They were too close. She had to go. She knew what Manuel would do when he found them. He’d kill her and he’d take Ariana, but worst of all, she knew he’d kill her in front of her daughter and she couldn’t…she wouldn’t ever let that happen.
As she pushed through the front door, she thought about Grant once more. He was in security and he was ex-military. Maybe she could ask for help. Maybe he could help her and she wouldn’t have to leave the only place she’d ever felt at home…and most of all, her precious Ana. She’d been around Blossom Hill long enough to know that he was a good guy and the guys he worked with were all good people too. Her new friend Angel was dating one of them and her co-worker and friend Sadie was married to one. As a matter of fact, those were the two women she had her sights on to take care of her baby when she left…she trusted them both implicitly.
Cade Travers owned the security firm they all worked for and he came into Benny’s a lot when he was in town. She had come to trust and respect him as well. Maybe was time that she reached out for help. She hated the thought of Ariana growing up without a mother the way she had, but the alternative would be so much worse. Not only would she be without her mother, but she’d have to live with the memories of what the monster had done to her. That thought sent a chill down Rosa’s spine.
“Mama!” Suddenly all her anxiety, all her sadness and fears…everything was gone, just for a moment. Those feelings were replaced with a burst of joy that only her beautiful baby could bring to her heart.
“Mija! Why aren’t you sleeping?” She knelt and held out her arms and her baby ran into them, her footfalls silent in her warm, fleece-footed pajamas.
“Sorry,” Angel said, rounding the corner from the kitchen. “It was my fault. We started making cookies and decorating them and I didn’t realize how late it was getting.”
“That’s okay,” Rosa said with a smile. She was just glad Ana was safe and happy. “I have a day off tomorrow. Maybe we can sleep in together.” She knew that was a fantasy—rain or shine, Ariana was up with the sun. Besides, she had too much on her mind that she probably wouldn’t even sleep all night.
She looked back down at Ariana and said, “You made cookies, mija? What kind?”
“Spooky cookies.”
Rosa laughed. “Spooky, huh? For Halloween?”
“Uh huh.” Ariana had orange frosting on her lips and her fingers were stained with it.
“Did you make pumpkin cookies?”
“Yep.”
“And…kitties?”
“Uh huh!”
“And spiders?”
“No! No spiders.”
“She said no spiders,” Angel told Rosa, “because Mama is afraid of spiders.”
Rosa kissed her baby’s cheek. “Thank you, baby.” Rosa was deathly afraid of spiders. It was another scar left by the monster that raised her. She shuddered at the memory of how he used to love to torture her with them. With a sigh she said, “We should get going, baby. It’s late.”
Ariana nodded and put her head down on her mother’s shoulder. Rosa took a second to just hug her and breathe in her sweet, fresh baby scent. God, she loved this little girl and since everything she had to go through had led her to Ariana, she’d do it all over again. But how in God’s name would she ever leave her?
“Her bag is by the door. She had a really good day,” Angel said.
“Thank you so much,” Rosa told her friend.
“You’re very welcome. You look so tired, Rosa. Was it really busy?”
“Yeah, about as busy as Wanda’s front porch,” she said with an eye roll. “I did something terrible tonight, though, Angel. I’m so ashamed.”
“You? Something terrible? The two don’t compute together in my head.”
Rosa smiled. “Baby, will you go find your blanket and get your bag for Mama?” Ariana nodded and when Rosa put her down, she ran over to the front door to get her bag. As soon as she was out of earshot Rosa told Angel, “I poured chili on a man’s head. Hot chili.”
Angel started laughing. Rosa couldn’t help it; Angel’s laugh was contagious and she started laughing too. After a few minutes, she said, “Stop, it’s not funny! I’m really ashamed. I’m so lucky Mickey didn’t fire me.”
“I’m sure if you dumped chili on a guy’s head, he deserved it.”
“That’s what Mickey said.”
“See? He got what he deserved, you got to blow off a little steam, no harm done. You work too hard! I wouldn’t doubt that your patience was at the limit because you’re over-tired. If you want, Ariana can stay here tonight so that you can get some rest.”
“Thank you, but I missed her. She’s my energy and my strength. I’m going to get her home now and into bed. Thanks again, Angel.”
“No problem.”
Rosa picked the little girl back up and the two of them went out the back door. The back of the B&B was an open courtyard surrounded by a wrought-iron fence. Their little house was just through the gate. Once they were inside, Rosa got Ariana cleaned up and settled down, and read her a story until she fell asleep. She sat and just looked at her for the longest time. Her black curly hair framed her chubby little face and her long, black eyelashes lay across her cheekbones. Her lips were big and pouty like her own. Rosa grew up wondering if she looked like her mother. She never knew her mother. She vaguely remembered her father talking about how beautiful she was, and showing her a picture, but she was too young at the time to remember what she looked like, or even if she ever knew her. She shuddered at the thought of Ariana growing up that way.
She finally shook off those old, depressing thoughts and went in the bathroom to take a shower. She took a long, hot shower and when she got out, she almost felt like a new person. While she brushed her hair in front of the vanity mirror in the bathroom, her thoughts turned back to Grant. She hadn’t realized until tonight just how much she’d missed seeing him while he was out of town. She sighed. She had to forget about Grant. She couldn’t bring him into this. Even if he was a trained investigator and an ex-Navy SEAL, he would be no match for the dirty pool that Manuel and the rest of the men of the Mexican Cartel would play.