“The media is all over this and we need to get Teague and his parents away somewhere so that they can have some time to themselves without the press hounding them. We’re flying to Maine tonight, but I have no food in the house or anything really. Would you be able to stock up for me?”
“Yes, of course. “
“I know you’ve already got a full plate, but I didn’t know who else to call and Cooper’s never met anyone from town. I’m probably overstepping--”
A heartbeat passed and in that moment she knew that Ava’s words earlier had never been truer. This could be Charlie’s moment. Was she going to be brave enough to grab it?
“It’s good, Rick. I’ve got you covered.”
“I miss you, Charlie.”
Those four little words nearly undid her. Which was insane. Wasn’t it?
“Same,” she whispered. “There’s a storm coming in again. A lot more snow. Please be safe.”
“I know. It’s why we’re heading out now from a private airstrip not far from here. We want to get out ahead of it. I’ll call you when we land in Maine but Charlie, can we keep this on the down low? If possible?”
“Of course, I’ll do what I can.”
“Okay. I’ve got to run. I…”
Her heart was still beating hard, and she held her breath when he continued.
“I can’t wait to see you. I…we’ll talk, okay? This means more to me than you can know.”
“Okay,” she whispered.
Charlie pocketed her cell and walked back to the office. Ava was still hunched over the desk, her eyes on the television. “God, these Simon men are something else.”
“Ava.”
“Like they won the gene lottery or something.”
“Ava.”
“Huh?” her friend replied, obviously distracted by the coverage. Charlie grabbed the remote and the screen went blank.
“Hey,” Ava said, turning around.
There weren’t too many people that Charlie knew she could trust with a secret this big, but luckily Ava was among the few. “I need for you to call Danielle back and tell her that the guy she saw on television isn’t my Rick.”
“Oh, I…and why? Why do you care what Danielle thinks if it isn’t true?”
“Because it was Rick.”
“Okay.” She could see that Ava wasn’t understanding her at all.
“It was Rick and he’s bringing his cousin, the one who was kidnapped, and his Aunt and Uncle and I think his brother is coming to.”
“Coming here.” Ava’s eyes widened. “To Fisherman’s Landing.” The look on Ava’s face was comical.
“Yes. Here. And no one can know or at least we have to do our best to make sure that no one finds out.”
“Okay,” Ava said slowly. “You can count on me. Do you need me to do anything else?”
“If I give you a grocery list, would you be able to do that? Are you working this afternoon?” Ava was an assistant in the pharmacy and her hours were all over the place.
“I haven’t worked a Saturday in ages. I’m off.”