Сьюзен Мэллери: Summer Days

He supposed in some ways they had been, but getting out of Fool’s Gold had been a goal that consumed him. Which wasn’t a conversation he was going to have with his mother, he reminded himself.

“You can be happy again, once you have your ranch,” he told her, taking her suitcase and escorting her into the hotel.

The lobby was large and three stories tall. There were carved panels on the wall and a chandelier made of imported Irish crystal. He wasn’t sure where that small fact had come from or why he’d remembered it, but there it was.

Even as May paused to press both hands to her chest and gaze around in wonder, Rafe walked to the reception desk and gave his last name.

“There should be two rooms,” he said, knowing his ever-efficient assistant would have handled things.

“Yes, Mr. Stryker. Of course. We have you and your mother each in a suite on our third floor.” The young woman in a blue suit gave him paperwork to sign, then told him about the restaurant hours and that room service was available around the clock.

He was more interested in getting a drink. Make that several. After glancing briefly toward the bar, he collected his mother and herded her toward the elevator.

“I only need a very small room,” she said as they rode to the third floor.

“Uh-huh.”

“I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out with Glen and Heidi, and then I won’t be in the hotel at all.”

He stopped in front of the first door and inserted a key card. “Mom, even when you own the ranch, do you really think you’ll want to live there? You’ll be out in the middle of nowhere.” While his mother was only in her fifties, he wasn’t sure he was comfortable with her being alone on a ranch. “The house is old and I doubt it’s been updated.” He thought about the roof and the fading paint, and felt the beginnings of a headache.

May patted his arm. “You’re sweet to worry, Rafe, but I’ll be fine. I’ve wanted to return to the ranch ever since we lost it nearly twenty years ago. I belong there. Seeing it was magical. I want to make it into a home. Everything is going to work out. You’ll see.”

He didn’t doubt he would win in court. Dante would see to that. But there was a long, dusty road between winning and everything working out. His mother had a way of complicating a situation.

“I want to go visit Glen in jail,” she announced as he took her suitcase into the suite’s bedroom.

“Exhibit A,” he murmured, watching the first of the complications manifest.

“I feel badly that he’s there.” Her warm gaze cooled. “You didn’t have to call the police.”

“He was breaking the law.”

“I know and I appreciate that you were also looking out for me, but I think we should find another way.”

With luck, his room would have a minibar, he thought grimly. Then he wouldn’t even have to go downstairs.

“Glen is fine.”

“You don’t know that. I’m going to see him.”

He recognized stubborn, mostly because he’d inherited it from her. “Give me a half hour to check in with the office and I’ll come get you. We’ll go together.”

The smile returned. “Thank you.”

Sure, now that she was getting her way she smiled. He promised to be back in thirty minutes, then escaped to his own room at the end of the hall.

He used the card key and stepped into the quiet, mother-free space. The room faced the mountains, and the drapes were parted enough for him to see the Sierra Nevada peaks aiming for the heavens.

He walked into the bedroom, tossed his duffel on the king-size bed, then returned to the living room of the suite and removed his tie. Instead of searching for the minibar, he grabbed his cell phone and called his office.

“Mr. Stryker’s office,” his businesslike assistant answered on the first ring.

“Hello, Ms. Jennings.”

“Mr. Stryker. You’re in Fool’s Gold with your mother?”

“Yes, and it looks like I’m going to be here awhile.”

“I gathered that when Mr. Jefferson mentioned he would be joining you. It’s a lovely town.”

Rafe felt his eyebrows rise. Ms. Jennings never mentioned anything personal. He wasn’t sure if the woman was married, a grandmother or living with a rock band.

“You’ve visited?”

“Several times. They have wonderful festivals.”

There was no accounting for taste, he thought. “I’ll have to check them out.”

“I can send you a schedule. It’s on the city’s website, www.FoolsGoldCA.com.”

“Uh, not right now, but thanks for the offer. I’m going to need you to rearrange my calendar. Cancel what isn’t important and reschedule everything else.”

There was a pause when Rafe knew she was taking notes.

“Not a problem,” she told him. “I’m checking the next two weeks now, and it’s all things I can handle. Except for your meeting with Nina Blanchard.”

Rafe sank onto the sofa and held in a curse. “I’ll call her myself.”

“Of course.”

They finished the rest of their business, then hung up. Rafe returned to the bedroom, quickly changed out of his suit, into jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, then shrugged on his leather jacket.

He couldn’t avoid Nina Blanchard forever, he thought. After all, he was the one who had hired her. But there was no way he could take advantage of her services while he was in Fool’s Gold. She was going to have to wait until he’d solved the problem that was his mother.

* * *

AFTER LEAVING FOOL’S GOLD, Rafe had been determined to experience what the world had to offer. He’d gone to Harvard on a scholarship, had toured Europe and made friends with the rich and powerful. But he’d never been to jail before.

While he was sure they all looked somewhat similar, he had a feeling the Fool’s Gold jail was considered one of the better places to be incarcerated.

For one thing, instead of industrial colors, the walls were a warm yellow, trimmed in cream. Bright posters advertised the festivals his assistant so adored. Rather than inhaling the scent of cleaning supplies or something less pleasant, Rafe smelled chili and fresh-baked bread. The woman who signed them in to visit Glen was young and friendly, not the grim-faced officer usually found in the movies.

“We’ve been busy tonight,” Officer Rodriguez said. Her shiny, dark hair was pulled back into a bouncy ponytail.

Rafe studied the hairstyle. Weren’t ponytails a bad idea in law enforcement? Didn’t they give criminals something to grab on to, thereby giving them physical control of the situation? Or was Fool’s Gold so close to nirvana that they didn’t deal with serious crime here?

“Glen Simpson is a very popular man.” Officer Rodriquez grinned. “The town’s averages are getting better, but there’s still a shortage for our ladies of a certain age, and Glen’s a charmer.”

May signed the clipboard. “What averages?”

“We had a man shortage. The news about that all came out last year, and it was a mess. The media came crawling in, and there was a reality show here and everything.”

“I think I remember that,” his mother said thoughtfully. “ True Love or Fool’s Gold. It went off the air before it was finished.”

“No one was watching, which is too bad. I thought it was good. Anyway, since word got out about our man shortage, we’ve been getting plenty of them moving in. Which has made my life more interesting.” Her brown eyes sparkled. “But most of them have been younger. So when Glen came, he was considered hot stuff. He’s only been in jail a few hours, and we’ve already had six…” She glanced at the clipboard.

“…make that seven visitors for him.”

May looked uneasy. “I assure you, I’m not here on any romantic mission. I wanted to make sure Glen, ah, Mr. Simpson, was all right.” She leaned toward the officer and lowered her voice. “My son’s the one who put him in jail.”