He nodded. “We should wait for Gibb,” he said, hands on his hips as he looked around, “before we touch anything. He’s already aware of the problems.”
She tipped her head in dawning realization. “I suppose you are, too?”
“You’re one of us now, right? What affects you affects the rest of us.”
Despite the awful circumstances, his statement warmed her. Being part of Cooper’s Charm was a very nice feeling.
“Come on. We’ll meet Coop outside, then you head up to his house and wash your knees, maybe put some antiseptic on them or something.”
Phoenix looked at her legs and the superficial scratches. She’d done worse while working in brambles. “I’m fine. But this...” she said, indicating the building. Scattered bits of straw still smoldered on the floor. The doors hung open, one of them crooked on a loose hinge. “I need to clean this up after Officer Clark does...whatever he needs to do.”
“Hell, no,” Daron insisted. “I’ll do it.” Without waiting for her to argue—if she would have, given the way she still trembled—he led her outside, into the bright sun and fresh air.
Because the maintenance building was located at the end of a lane along the rustic tent camping area, few people were around. She considered that a blessing, saving her some discomfort, but it also lowered the chances that anyone would have seen anything.
Daron pulled the doors partially shut behind him, then led her over to a bench situated under a decorative copse of trees. “Let’s wait for Coop here.”
Knowing he’d closed the doors so she didn’t have to see inside, her mouth twisted. “Thanks.”
He patted her knee while watching for Cooper to arrive.
In preparation, she straightened her shirt and her glasses, doing her best to look unaffected, to look fine when she felt anything but.
When she finally saw Coop approaching in a golf cart—going faster than was allowed—she felt ridiculous tears sting her eyes. No, I will not do that. She sucked in several fast breaths and concentrated on looking serene.
Coop pulled to a halt next to them. He stared into her eyes, then climbed from the golf cart. Without a word, he handed Sugar to Daron and strode to Phoenix.
She opened her mouth to explain, but he tugged her close, his arms folding around her, and she found she couldn’t utter a single word.
*
Coop watched as Phoenix moved the spaghetti around her plate. She’d had only a few bites of it, less of her salad, none of her garlic bread.
He wanted to coddle her, but that wasn’t what she wanted, and he tried to be conscious of her preferences. Twice she’d been close to tears; he didn’t want to be the one who pushed her over the edge. It’d be tough for him to see her cry, but he knew it’d level her pride.
He glanced toward the door. When would Gibb finish? How long did it take to look around and question a few vacationers? There wasn’t that much to see, not many people he could talk to, especially since Daron said no one was around when he reached the building.
Phoenix picked up her garlic bread. “Shouldn’t Officer Clark be done by now?”
“Soon.” I hope. If a man could be in two places, Coop would be there now, listening in, getting info firsthand—and insisting that someone go check up on Harry and his goons. The waiting, the not knowing, was excruciating for him.
How bad must it be for her?
That was why he’d opted to take Phoenix to his house. She’d tried to insist she’d be fine alone, and she was strong enough that he believed her. But Ridley was off somewhere with Baxter and though Phoenix hid it well, she was shaken. For him, she was the priority. So here he sat, waiting.
“Cooper,” she said softly.
Finding her gaze on him, he forced away his frown and said, “Hmm?”
As if he’d done something to amuse her, she smiled. “You’re sure you don’t mind if I stay here tonight?”
If he had his way, she’d move in until...
His brain stalled. Until when? Until they found out who was harassing her? And then what?
Since he didn’t know, he shook off the deeper question and answered what she’d asked. “I want you to stay. I’ll feel better if you do.”
In a corner of the kitchen, Sugar snored, but the rapping of knuckles on wood brought her awake with a jerk.
Phoenix jumped too, scowled darkly, then composed herself.
“Gibb,” Cooper said, already up and striding for the door.
She nodded and, oddly enough, took a big bite of bread—maybe just to give herself something to do.
Sugar followed Coop to the door, and when she saw the officer, she sniffed his foot, gave him a look of dismissal and padded back to her bed to sleep again.
Not much of a watchdog after all, Coop thought.
Hat in his hands, Gibb gave Coop a brief nod before stepping inside. “Sorry that took so long.”
“Doesn’t matter if you found something.”
“Unfortunately, I didn’t.” He turned to Phoenix. “You’re okay?”
“It startled the heck out of me, but I wasn’t hurt.”
Coop would have disagreed, but once she’d cleaned her knees, the scrapes weren’t bad. Still infuriated him, though.
“I can imagine.” Gibb took a seat beside her. “You don’t recall anyone around when you went into the building?”
Her mouth twisted to the side. “I’m afraid I was daydreaming, not really paying attention to my surroundings. I was just about done for the day and trying to hurry so I wouldn’t be late for dinner.” She indicated the food.
Gibb smiled. “Understandable.”
Manners belatedly kicked in. “Hungry?” Coop asked, knowing his friend had likely missed dinner. “There’s plenty left.”
“If I’m not interrupting.?”
It was Phoenix who assured him, saying, “Not at all. You can eat while you tell us what we should do next.”
Putting his hat on his knee, Gibb sat back. “Other than being cautious, which I know you’re already doing, there’s not much I’d add.”
Coop set a plate of spaghetti in front of him along with a bowl of salad and a glass of tea, then took his own seat at the end of the table. “Will you go see Harry?”
“Already did.” He twined spaghetti around his fork. “That’s part of what took me so long. I didn’t want to give him a chance to cover his tracks.”
“And?” Coop’s patience was at an end.
Gibb finished the bite, wiped his mouth and explained, “He was at his grandma’s. She lives down the street, so I stopped in there.” With a shake of his head, Gibb said, “He wasn’t happy for me to interrupt. Neither was his grandma. She gave me all sorts of hell and said Harry had been with her for a few hours at least.” He smirked. “According to her, he’s a good boy.”
“Jesus,” Coop muttered, sitting back in his seat.
“I’m sorry, but there’s not much more I can do.” In between bites, Gibb promised he’d keep an eye on things, suggested Phoenix shouldn’t be alone, and lastly, mentioned that it could have been a simple prank by a kid.
Coop stewed in silence. He wanted to mention another possibility but wasn’t sure how Phoenix would react.
“Did you believe him?” she asked suddenly, her expression curious. “Harry, I mean. Did you believe that he’d been with his grandmother?”
Coop and Gibb both looked at her.
Gibb seemed to stall, taking a long drink of his tea. When he finished, he pushed back his plate and folded his arms on the table. “Honestly, I don’t know. Harry’s always been a troublemaker, and some trouble is bigger than others. He knows I’m watching him and he doesn’t like it, but is he stupid enough to keep up a harebrained campaign against you anyway?”
“Stupid enough?” Coop said. “Yes.”
Gibb grunted a laugh. “Yeah, I suppose he is. To be honest though...” Gibb glanced at Coop first, then at Phoenix. “This doesn’t really feel like him. I think he’s on his guard with Coop for one thing. He’d probably never admit it, but you scared him.”
“If others think that too,” Coop mused aloud, “maybe his friends, then he could be trying to prove something.”
Gibb turned thoughtful. “True.”
Phoenix cleared her throat. “I wonder if there could be another possibility.”