He spun on his heel and left her alone with the wind whipping up the loose snow around her. And another man she’d thought she could trust walking out on her.
Guess that’s what she got for falling hard for a grinch.
CHAPTER 9
THURSDAY, 5:51 P.M.
Duke braced himself as he walked over to Boone. Vivien left her fiancé’s side and chased down Zuri, but not before giving Duke a long glare of disapproval.
He deserved it. And more. But it was better for Zuri in the long run that he stop any of the romantic nonsense before things got worse.
Now to face his other failure.
Boone was talking to one of the firefighters. He turned back toward the fire as Duke approached. They stood side by side. “What happened?”
“I left the car in the Evergreen shed yesterday as planned. I should’ve kept the keys, but I didn’t. This is my fault.”
“And the rest of the story?” Boone crossed his arms.
“Near as we can tell, an older guy with memory issues also staying at the resort took the car for joy ride. Drove it to town and left it at a lookout on the highway. I haven’t been able to track it from there.”
“Any suspects?”
“There’s a broken-down Corolla at the lookout now. Trying to find the owners, but nothing so far.”
Boone finally turned his dark stare on Duke. “And why in the world would you not tell me about this as soon as it went missing?”
“I thought I could handle this on my own and not have to worry you.” Obviously not. Duke braced himself for what was coming. “It won’t be the same, but I’ll pay you back for the car and the ring.”
“The ring? What about the ring?” Boone’s voice roared over the fire.
Oh yeah. He didn’t know about that part. “I…uh…the ring was in the car.”
If ever Duke deserved a cussing out by his former partner, it was now. Instead, Boone walked away a few paces, muttering into the night. He spun back around and got right in Duke’s face. “You’ve got some nerve, you know.”
“I know. You trusted me and I failed. I’ll head out tonight and contact you as soon as I have the—”
“You’re gonna bail on me now? Leave me an even bigger mess?”
“I’m trying to make things right. What more do you want?”
“I want you to be the best man. That means you don’t leave me hanging high and dry. I want to get through that thick skull of yours that your Lone Ranger act isn’t getting you anywhere.”
What?
“But…the car. And ring. I completely screwed up. Surely you don’t want that kind of guy standing up for you at your wedding.”
“The car and ring are insured. I can replace those. Am I angry about them right now? Oh yeah. But I’m baffled by you. Why in the world would you leave me in the dark? I could’ve helped.”
“You shouldn’t have to. You have Vivien now. She’s your priority.”
“But that doesn’t mean I don’t need my friends too. Or that I won’t be there when they need me. Seriously, Duke, I thought you’d know that by now.” Boone shook his head. “Ever since Nichole left you and your mom died, I’ve watched you push everyone else away. But I still thought we were good. Until this year. Now you’ve shoved me off too.”
“That’s not—”
“It is true. How many times have I asked to get together over the last year and you’ve turned me down?”
“You know how crazy work is—”
“And I also know how much PTO you have saved up. Face it. You’ve checked out of our friendship. I thought we were more than work buddies. Guess I was wrong.”
Wait a minute. Boone wasn’t kicking him out of his wedding or out of his life? And yeah, maybe Duke had pulled away a bit since his partner moved away.
Or more than a bit.
Because the office wasn’t the same without Boone behind the desk across from him. And Duke had gotten used to going at it alone. No girlfriend. No mother. No partner. God had left him alone, and there must be a reason.
Or maybe Duke chose to be alone because it was easier than being eviscerated when the next person he cared about walked out of his life. Even God.
Boone’s tightened lips eased a bit. “Zuri was right. You’ve forgotten all the things your mom loved about Christmas. It’s not the lights and gifts and tacky sweaters. It’s about Emmanuel. God with us. That is the miracle of Christmas. That God the Son came down in the flesh to be with us. And I think your mom would want you to remember that.”
It was true. Duke had never had much for family, but Gladys Lowry had brought the joy of Christmas wherever she’d gone. She’d collected people around their dinner table and made them feel loved. Remembered. Cherished. And until now, he’d thought all of that died with her.
But Boone and Zuri were two big in-his-face manifestations of good still left in the world. Evidence of God’s presence.
A friend that forgave and invited him to be a part of the biggest day of his life.
A stranger who sang songs, handed out candy and made people smile, and went out of her way to cheer up grumpy scrooges like him.
Yeah, there was a lot Duke had pushed away. Maybe it was time to engage again.
Shouts interrupted Duke’s thoughts. The fire crew was finally getting the upper hand on the beast. Through the dying flames, Duke could see the shape of the car.
Something wasn’t right.
“Wait. That’s not a Mustang. Look at the grill, and that ridge down the middle of the hood.”
Boone peered into the fire. “You’re right. It’s not. But Kyle had my license plate.”
“That’s a Camaro. Someone must’ve stolen the plates off the Mustang and replaced them. Which means your car is still out there.”
Boone blew into his bare hands, something lighting his eyes. “What do you say, partner? Back on the case?”
“I did say I was at your disposal this week. But there’s someone else I want to bring in on this one. And I might’ve messed that up big-time too. Maybe you can help?”
“It’s about time you asked.”
THURSDAY, 6:09 P.M.
Thank goodness Vivien had offered to take Zuri back to the Evergreen and didn’t press her for anything. She was just glad to get away from the fire, the shouting of the crew, the rush of hose water, and the acrid smell of smoke and gasoline that was probably embedded deep in her pores at this point.
But even in the silence of Vivien’s car, she couldn’t get Duke’s words out of her head.
I need to stop playing make-believe with you.
I don’t have your knack at making ugly things look pretty.
Right. Because underneath all the decorations and bows, despite the cosmetics and hair products she used to help others, overwhelming ugliness remained.
Like her scars.
She could cover them with clothes and concealer, but they were still there. The only thing she was really good at was hiding them for a little while.
Pretty stupid of her to think Duke was the kind of guy that could see beyond them. In the end, he wasn’t any better than her father.