He shrugged it off and was turning back to the table when a second cry joined the first.Even louder.
Thatset of pipes Tanner recognized.He immediately spun back toward the booth, marching all the way to the edge.Sure enough, there they were.Twins.
He didn’t know a lot about babies, but he was willing to bet these were Bree’s.He looked around but didn’t see her anywhere.
He crossed his arms over his chest.“What’s going on, Mrs.A?”
The older woman raised a single eyebrow.“I’ve got a couple of infants here crying.It happens.You cried quite a bit too when you were this age, if I recall.”
Tanner just studied her.Overfamiliarity was an issue from time to time, since he’d known most of the people in Risk Peak his entire life.Generally, Tanner used it to his advantage.
But today it wasn’t going to be so easy.
“I have no problem with babies crying,” he finally answered evenly.“I’m fairly certain they’re not doing anything against the law.Where is their mother?”
Because she, he wasn’t so certain about.
“To be honest, I’m not entirely sure right at this moment.”Mrs.A shifted the baby in her arms and wiggled a pacifier in its mouth until it latched on and stopped crying.Across from her, Glenda Manning, who had a couple of teenage children of her own, cooed at the baby she was bouncing.
“Whose children are these, Cheryl?”He didn’t take the use of her first name lightly.
Neither did she.“Why do you care,Tanner?”
One of the women sitting across from Mrs.Andrews looked like she might speak up, but was given the stink eye so quickly she abruptly looked away.
Why would Mrs.A be making such a big deal out of this if Bree wasn’t in more trouble?Why wouldn’t the older woman just say they were holding the babies while the mom was in the bathroom or at the gas station or wherever she was?Tanner would’ve believed that with no suspicion at all.The fact that Mrs.A refused to give any information was what made it suspicious.
A husky feminine voice spoke behind him.“I’m through for the day, Cheryl.Thank you again so much for watch—”
Tanner spun around to see the woman who hadn’t been far out of his thoughts since he’d watched her drive away over a week ago.His breath almost whistled through his teeth.She was definitely as beautiful as he remembered.The long brown hair falling around her shoulders made him want to reach out and touch it to see if it was as soft as it was in his dreams.
“You.”Her big green eyes widened, and the small smile faded from her face.Tension instantly ratcheted through her slim body.
He tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow.“Me.”
“You two know each other?”Mrs.Andrews asked.
Tanner nodded then looked back at Bree.“We met at the drugstore a few days ago, although I don’t think you got my name.Tanner Dempsey.”
“Bree,” she whispered.
“I remember.I was under the impression that you were in a hurry to get out of Risk Peak.”
“I, um...”She looked over at Mrs.A.“I, um...”
Mrs.Andrews stood with the now-quiet baby and walked over to stand beside her.“Bree was kind enough to come work for Dan and me.We needed some help around here.”
There was definitely more to this story than was being given, evidenced by the silence surrounding them.But no one seemed to want to provide any details.
“Tanner, got your dinner here,” Judy called out from behind him.“Mr.Andrews made country-fried steak just for you.”
The Andrewses never let anyone forget that they’d lived in Georgia before moving to Colorado.This was probably the only place in the whole state where you could find genuine Southern cooking.
Tanner studied the two women in front of him.Bree was reaching over to get the baby Mrs.Andrews was holding.This one was in pink.
“Thanks for watching them, Mrs.Andrews,” she whispered before kissing the child’s fuzzy head.
“Call me, Cheryl, sweetheart.We’ve already talked about that.”
