That Thing You Do (Crystal Lake 2)

Tucker stepped away. “I guess the ball’s in your court. What are you going to do with it?”

What the hell am I going to do?

That question plagued Nate all the way home. Once inside his brownstone, he grabbed a beer and sat in the dark. For hours. Thinking about that question. About what he should do. About what he wanted to do. He thought about it until he couldn’t see straight, and when he fell onto his bed exhausted, it was the last thing on his mind.

He woke up at six and went for a run, thinking fresh air and exercise would do the trick to clear the fog and give him some answers. But he saw too many women with dogs, and that made him think of Molly, which led back to his dilemma, and by the time he got back to his place not only was he confused, he was kind of pissed off.

He had a plan. A life here that was leading to… But that was just it, wasn’t it? Where was it leading? And whenever he got to wherever the hell he was supposed to end up, would he be happy without Molly at his side?

“Hell no,” he muttered, scooping up his cell phone. The phone rang four times before it picked up.

“What’s up?” His brother sounded winded.

“You still planning on selling the Manchester place?”

“If I can find the right buyer. I won’t let it go to just anyone. Why? You got someone in mind?”

Nathan hesitated for all of two seconds. He was really going to do this.

“I do.”

“All right. Just put them in touch with me and—”

“You’re talking to the buyer.”

Silence greeted his words at first, but then Beck recovered. “And how soon are you planning on taking ownership?”

“Sooner than you’d imagine.”

“Your buddy Link is still living there.”

“I’ll deal with him.”

“That’ll make the folks happy to hear, as well as someone else I know.”

“Beck, I need you to keep this on the down low. Until I iron out the details. Probably a few weeks.”

“Okay,” Beck replied, his voice gruff. “I can do that. It’ll be good to have you back, brother.”

Nathan hung up the phone and then made a second call, and then a third. Within a few hours, not only did he know exactly where his path led and where he was supposed to be, he also knew when he was going to get there.

The next two weeks were going to be the longest of his life.

Chapter Twenty-Three

The last Sunday in October snuck up on Molly when she wasn’t looking, and it was something close to surprise that she felt when she walked out the front door of her house and headed for her truck. The vibrant fall colors, the reds, golds, and oranges that had painted the area for days were nearly gone, and soon those trees that had trumpeted the season would be completely bare.

The ground beneath her boots crunched as she walked, and early morning frost still clung to the earth and grass. The air was crisp, the sky a brilliant blue, and she swore she could smell a hint of snow on the breeze that kicked up her hair. She’d heard some of the old guys who gathered each morning at the coffee shop saying that it was going to be a long, cold winter.

She was fine with that. She was more inclined to stay in these days than anything else. Though she made a note to make sure the snow-removal guy was ready to go when the first snows came.

She pointed her truck toward town and, once there, marveled at the artistic champs who went all-out for Halloween decorations. It looked as if Halloween had vomited over most of Crystal Lake, and when she pulled up in front of the animal shelter, she saw someone had attempted to decorate, no doubt Jade, one of the volunteers. There was one bale of straw strung with black webbing and glittery spiders, along with what she supposed was a scarecrow or something close to it, wearing her dad’s old plaid shirt and a pair of ripped-up jeans. A couple of pumpkins and a stuffed black cat sat at its feet.

She slid from her truck and strode inside, excited because today, Petal, the last of her littermates still in the shelter, was being adopted. Jade was doing paperwork at the counter, and Molly said a quick hello before disappearing through the back door to the kennels, where she stopped dead in her tracks.

“What are you doing here?” Her brother, Zach, was playing with a small kitten, one of six up for adoption. He smiled widely and jumped down from the exam table.

“I was thinking of surprising Jess with this little guy.”