“I don’t know. She thinks the worst of me about everything. I just didn’t feel like defending myself to someone who wouldn’t believe me anyway.”
“So now she thinks you did it and feels justified in pushing you away?”
Lyle stood up and walked through the den to the doors that led to the deck. He opened the door and went outside. The cool fall air brushed over his skin while the river rumbled just below. He felt his mom’s hand rub along his back as he leaned against the rail. “I’m just another in the long list of men who’ve let her down. How do I fix this?”
“The truth will come out eventually. When you decided not to tell her the truth, were you hoping she’d find out and have to come back and apologize?”
“Probably.” He let out a breath. “I screwed up.”
“Maybe not. You said she wouldn’t have believed you. If she finds out the truth from someone else, she’ll have to believe you had nothing to do with it.”
“How is she going to find out the truth? Erica doesn’t even know Tommy and certainly not Garrity.”
“I suppose, on this particular issue, you let it go. But, honey, if you really like this girl, and I know we wouldn’t be having this conversation if you didn’t, from now on just be yourself. Be who you are, do what you do. Be nice to her. Talk if she wants to talk. Smile when you see her. It’s her issue; don’t make it yours.”
“I don’t feel like myself anymore.”
“Love changes a person.”
Lyle whipped his head around to stare at his mom. “I never said anything about love.”
“The seed of love. Lyle, if you didn’t care about this girl—really care—you’d chalk it up to the crazy ways of women and move on like you have a dozen other times. This isn’t like the other times.”
“No.” About that, at least, he could be honest. “It’s not.”
“Tread lightly, but not too light. Don’t avoid her, don’t push her. This is a small town. She can’t avoid you forever.”
Chapter 40
Olivia’s hands shook as she tried to put her phone back in her pocket. She gave up, walked inside the Tap, and tossed it in her purse. She ran her hands through her hair and took deep breaths, in and out, in and out.
“What’s wrong?” Tommy asked when he found her minutes later doing the same breathing routine.
“I just got off the phone with the investigator. Dr. Hell’s requested a hearing.”
“What does that mean?” Tommy had his hands full of papers, but he dropped them on the bar and grabbed Olivia’s shoulders.
“It means I need a lawyer. Oh, God, Tommy. This nightmare will never end. I actually thought she was calling to tell me the investigation was over.”
“How long do we have?” he asked as he yanked his phone from his back pocket. “I’m calling Garrity. I should have done this from the start.”
“They have to select a hearing officer and then conduct the hearing. She said it would likely be next week.”
“Regina?” Tommy barked into the phone. “I need to speak to Garrity.” Tommy’s brow furrowed. “When will he be back? Tomorrow? Can I reach him on his cell? No, no. Just have him call me as soon as he gets in. Thanks.” Tommy rubbed his forehead. “Garrity had a case go to trial in Westmoreland. He won’t be back in the office until tomorrow. Regina said I could call him tonight, but his wife’s still recovering from surgery. I’ll touch base with him first thing in the morning.” He pulled Olivia into a hug. “Don’t worry. We’ll get Garrity up to speed and make sure you’ve got representation before the hearing.”
“I’m scared, Tommy. This is starting to sound more like a legal issue. Could I get in trouble with the law?”
“I doubt it. If there was any evidence of child abuse or sexual abuse, you’d have heard from the law already.”
“This makes my stomach turn. That woman’s out for blood. I don’t understand why she’d ask for a hearing when the investigation is almost complete.”
“We’ll get to the bottom of this. Don’t worry, Olivia, I won’t let you become the scapegoat for some out of control kid.”
“Okay.” She wasn’t so sure, but Tommy looked as worried as she felt. He needed to see her be strong. “Thanks for calling Garrity. I’ll pay you back for whatever this ends up costing you.”
“It doesn’t matter. I don’t care what it costs. You’re my sister. This is what we do.”
She kissed his cheek. “I love you, Tommy. I don’t say it enough, but I count on you being here for me.”
“I know you do. I’m happy to do it. You’d do the same for me.”
Olivia snorted. “Like you’d ever run into something you can’t handle.”
“You never know,” Tommy said and put his arm around her shoulder. “I could have a shopping emergency or need advice on an outfit.”
“You had to ruin the moment,” she said but felt eternally grateful for his love and support.
“Go on home.” He looked around at the post-lunch mess. “I’ll clean this up.”
“No. I need the distraction. I’ll be fine.” She snagged the bus bin from the kitchen and cleaned the tables she was in the middle of bussing when she got the phone call. Amazingly, the investigator had sounded almost sympathetic. She’d obviously been on the receiving end of Dr. Hell’s wrath.
Don’t think about it
, she told herself as she tossed plates and trash into the bin. Garrity would handle it. He was a competent lawyer, even if he was, like, a hundred years old. He had wisdom and experience. He’d lived in the valley his whole life. He’d been friends with Olivia’s father. That had to count for something.
But later, over Erica’s excellent pork chops and roasted fingerling potatoes, when Olivia moved the food around her plate instead of eating, Jack demanded she tell him what was wrong. Olivia calmly explained that Dr. Hell had requested a hearing and Tommy had called in a favor with Mitchell Garrity.
“When did this happen?” he asked after dropping his fork.
“Today. Around three, I guess.”
“Three?” He pressed a button on his watch and they all listened as the male voice announced the time as seven-twenty-eight. “Four and a half hours ago? And you’re just telling me now?”
“It’s under control,” she said. “Tommy was there, he called Garrity’s office, and they’re going to confer in the morning.”
“With a local attorney? What’s his specialty?”
Olivia didn’t know where the anger had come from or why he was speaking so harshly to her when he should have known how upset she was about having to face a hearing. “I don’t know that he has one.”
“Call your brother and cancel with this Garrity person. I’m calling in an expert.”
“Who?” she asked. “What kind of expert?”
“Someone with experience in education, with…” He closed his eyes as she’d seen him do when he was listening to his talking computer. “Administrative or regulatory law.” He pushed back from the table and headed toward his office.
“Where are you going?” Olivia asked.
“To make some calls.”
When his office door slammed, Olivia and Erica shared one long, wary glance. “I don’t think Garrity’s going to have your case for long,” Erica offered.
Olivia blew out a breath. “I’m not sure if I should feel grateful or afraid.”
Erica shrugged. “Both for now. He’ll get the best, Olivia. He won’t stop until you have the best.”
Olivia set her fork down and gave up any pretense of eating. “I’m thankful for his help, Erica, I really am.”
“But?”
“But what’s that going to look like when some big city lawyer comes strutting into Westmoreland to defend me? Are the hearing officer and everyone else going to feel like nothing more than a bunch of country bumpkins? Because that’s how I feel right now, and I haven’t even met whomever he lassos into helping.”
“It’s business. They won’t come down because Jack asked; they’ll come down because Jack pays them a lot of money to be at his beck and call. You should have seen him when I got a speeding ticket in Denver. You’d have thought I was falsely accused of murder.”
“You’re not making me feel better, Erica.”
“You can’t stop him, and in the end, you’ll thank him. Trust me. Call your brother and let Jack work his magic. This is what he does.”
***
Jack heard the tentative knock as he typed some notes on his computer. “Come in.”
Olivia’s blond hair lit up the small space like a sunrise when she stepped into the room. “Can I talk to you for a second?”
He swiveled around and held his arms open for her to have a seat on his lap. She’d huff and puff whenever he yanked her into a chair, but he liked the way she felt in his arms. He’d craved holding her the whole time he was on the phone with his lawyer.
“I’m not a child, Jack.” But she eased down onto his legs anyway and draped her arms over his shoulders.
He drew his hand around her back and cupped her breast. “Nope. Definitely not a child.”
“What have you done?” she asked.
The fact that she didn’t push his hand away or playfully continue the banter meant she was as worried as he was. “Douglas Napster is flying down from Denver tomorrow. He’s an administrative lawyer with a specialty in school regulation.”
“He’s flying in? Tomorrow? Don’t you think that’s a little extreme? The hearing date hasn’t even been set.”
“No, I think it’s prudent. I think it’s what I should have done from the very beginning.” He kissed her on the neck and let her scent ease the furious pounding of his blood. He hated that some small town superintendent and no good parent could make her feel so low. “Did you call your brother?”
“No. I wanted to talk to you first. Are you calm enough to talk about this?”
“What’s to talk about? You need help from a competent attorney. I’ve secured that for you and I’m not taking no for an answer.”
“I’m not sure parading a corporate attorney from Denver is the best way to go. This isn’t the big city. I’ll probably be deemed guilty for calling in the big guns.”
“First of all, Napster explained that the hearing doesn’t determine guilt or innocence. It simply gives each party another chance to tell their side of the story, including the investigator, who can present evidence from her written report.” He wouldn’t tell her he’d had to threaten the man into coming himself when he’d suggested his most capable associate. Jack didn’t even want to examine the panic that had taken hold of him since Olivia had dropped the bomb at dinner. “Napster thinks the super got wind of the investigator’s recommendation and didn’t like it. A hearing is her last shot at administrative action against you.”
“So he thinks the investigation was in my favor?”
“Either that or there wasn’t enough evidence to support the claim.”
“That’s good, right?”
“If that’s the reason for the hearing. Either way, it doesn’t matter. He’s good and he’ll be here tomorrow. Sometimes the threat of a countersuit can stop the hearing before it gets started.”
“A countersuit? For what?”
“Defamation of character. A civil suit against her for your loss of income and the delay in your degree.”
“I would never do that, Jack. He’s a kid. He used incredibly poor judgment and I hope, after all this, he’s learned a valuable lesson, but I’m not going to countersue.”
“I don’t think you should take any option off the table right now.”
“It’s not up to you. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I appreciate your help, but I’m not sure about using Mr. Napster.”
“Olivia.” He cupped her cheeks and brought her face in line with his. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you. A lawyer is a lawyer, but they specialize for a reason. It’s not going to make you look guilty for having an experienced and well-prepared attorney on your side; it’s going to make you look innocent. You are innocent, and we’re going to make sure this is the end of the road.”
“You’re not going to budge on this, are you?” She dropped her forehead to rest on his. “This isn’t going to help with Tommy. He’s going to be pissed when you swoop in with your fancy out-of-town lawyer.”
“Do you really think I give a damn about anything but you?”
She leaned in and kissed him, just a brush of her lips against his. “Why are you doing this, Jack?”
The words were out of his mouth before he even had time to think. “I protect what’s mine.”
Chapter 41
Jill called Olivia as she hung up an apron on the peg in the kitchen. She figured they’d commiserate over their shared waitressing duties since the Pizza Den had a waitress call in sick. She didn’t expect to find Olivia huffing onthe other end of the line.
“Why are you breathing so hard?” Jill asked. “Is bussing tables really that taxing?”
“I’m not bussing tables,” Olivia explained. “I’m walking.”
“Walking where? Did your car break down?”
“I needed some air.”
“Wait,” Jill said. “You’re walking and no one is holding a gun to your head? What’s going on?”
“I know,” Olivia laughed. “Can you believe it? I’m walking around Jack’s property. He was supposed to come with me, but he got a stuck on a call. I was restless, so I went ahead without him.”
“What is going on?” Jill demanded. “You don’t get restless or take walks.”