“We weren’t talking about me. And I made this all about me. I’m the worst.”
Sam smiled, changing his face from his signature intense gaze to a soft and tender affection. “You’re the best.”
“I’m sorry,” I said again.
“Truman, you’ve been pushing down this pain for so long. You’ve spent years trying not to make waves, trying not to expect much of anyone. It’s about time you realized you deserve better. You deserve better now, and you for damned sure deserved better then.”
“But what about you?” I said with a final sniffle.
Sam ran his hands into my hair again. “I deserved better then, too. And I deserve better now. That’s why I came back to Aster Valley. And now I think we need to shower off these tears and go face the day. I’m bound and determined to put my family out of my mind today as we tackle your to-do list.”
I thought of everything I needed to do today and groaned. “I don’t even know where to start.”
Sam met my eyes and held my face in his hands. His smile made me feel like I could conquer the world. “You start with your family.” My stomach dropped until he continued speaking. “Me, Tiller, Mikey, Chaya, and the rest of the Aster Valley crew who were here yesterday. Didn’t they offer to help?”
I thought back to Pim’s strong hug and Bill’s quiet reassurance. Solo’s offer to help with cleanup and Mia and Mindy’s suggestion they could make some phone calls when their shop was slow in the afternoons. Nina even offered for me to use one of her ranch pickup trucks to haul supplies.
Maybe Sam was onto something.
Family.
Was it possible? Had I finally created a community for myself I could count on? Just thinking about my Aster Valley friends made me realize Sam was right. I had people who cared about me, people who’d proven they were there for me when the chips were down. People who ran to check on me even before I knew I needed them.
It was an amazing feeling.
“But first,” Sam said, hopping out of bed and yanking me with him. “We scrub your naked body very carefully. Can’t exactly face the day without making sure every single part of you is… spit shined.”
I snorted at his waggling eyebrows and followed him into the bathroom. While we waited for the water to heat up, I thought about how much my life had changed in the span of less than a week.
A week ago, I was imagining losing my virginity in a quiet missionary encounter with Barney Balderson. I was trying my best to stay invisible and off the Stanners’ radar. My biggest goal was to plant some wildflower seeds on the side of the highway without getting into trouble with the county council.
I wondered what the county council would think when they realized meek little Truman Sweet had finally managed to pin something on their precious Stanner family. Patrick and Craig would go to jail for arson, and Sheriff Stanner would no longer be able to protect them from the law.
If only the world worked like that.
After we showered and made our way back to the kitchen where Mikey and Tiller were fixing breakfast, I received a call from Dirk Bromley.
“I just wanted to let you know the Stanner brothers have an alibi for the night of the fire,” he began. I opened my mouth to tell him they had to be lying when he continued. “The entire Stanner clan was at the hospital for the birth of Michelle Stanner’s baby. I understand she’s Craig’s wife. The baby was born a little after eleven, and one of the nurses on the maternity ward can place the sheriff, Barb, Gene, Kimber, Patrick, and Craig Stanner all there in the waiting room or the patient’s room until after one in the morning.”
“Oh,” I said stupidly. My high deflated into the lowest of lows.
“We will be investigating every lead, Mr. Sweet. I just wanted to update you to put your mind at ease that this family didn’t perpetrate a crime against you.”
As if that put my mind at ease. Better the devil you knew than the one you didn’t. Besides, it didn’t make any sense. The Stanners had been gunning for me for years now. There was no way it wasn’t them. If they had an alibi, it only meant they’d found someone else to start the fire.
“Let me know what else you find,” I said.
“Will do. I need to follow up with Mr. Rigby again today to ask him a few questions that have come up. I’ll be in touch.”
He hung up before I could ask him what he meant. I glanced over at Sam, who raised an eyebrow at me.
“Was that the investigator?”
“He wants to ask you more questions.”
Sam looked at the phone and back up at me. “Right now? Is he still on the phone?”
“What? Oh. No. Sorry. He mentioned wanting to ask you more questions based on something that’s come up. He’s going to call you, I guess. But why would he want to ask you questions?”
Sam and Tiller exchanged a look that didn’t make any sense to me.
“What?” I asked.
“He probably questioned the Stanners and got pointed in my direction. If they want to claim they didn’t do it, who better to pin the crime on than a stranger passing through town?”
Tiller added, “Someone who knows construction, no less.”
Mikey sighed from where he was working in the kitchen. “Assholes,” he muttered.
“The Stanners didn’t do it,” I said. “That’s why he was calling. They were all at the hospital for the birth of Craig’s baby.”
The three of them stared at me. I shrugged and felt like crying again. “If they didn’t do it, that means someone else hates me enough to burn down my shop.”
Sam pulled me over onto his lap. “No. It might mean it was a random act of vandalism. Or maybe it wasn’t really arson.”
“What if the investigator thinks you did it?” I asked.
“I don’t have any motive for that kind of crime. They’d have a hard time pinning it on me with no evidence.”
My phone rang again. This time it was Barney.
“There you are. I’ve been buzzing at your gate with no response.”
“I’m not at home,” I said, moving back over to my seat and taking a quick sip of coffee. The wine hangover wasn’t too bad, but I was still looking forward to drenching it in whatever the heck Mikey was making that smelled so good.
“Where are you? I found something important at the shop.”
“You went to my shop?”
Tiller and Sam exchanged another look. That was beginning to annoy me.
“Where are you?” Barney asked again.
“Rockley Lodge. I spent the night at Tiller and Mikey’s.”
Barney sighed. “I wish you’d called me. I would have come to stay with you. I told you that.”
I was tired of telling him no over and over again, so I didn’t. “Feel free to leave what you found. I’ll be home later.”
“No need. I’ll run it up to you at the lodge.”
I stared at my phone. “Why do people keep hanging up on me before I can respond?” I muttered.
Mikey slid a plate full of a steaming serving of egg casserole in front of me. Tiller vibrated with happiness. “Egg surprise! Truman, you need to stay over more often.”
If they fed me like this, maybe I’d consider it. I dug into the food without waiting.