The Lawman's Nanny Op

The Lawman’s Nanny Op

Carla Cassidy

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Cover

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Epilogue

Copyright

About the Author

CARLA CASSIDY is an award-winning author who has written over fifty books. Carla believes the only thing better than curling up with a good book to read is sitting down at the computer with a good story to write. She’s looking forward to writing many more books and bringing hours of pleasure to readers.

To Ann and Bruno,

for finding love again after all these years.

Chapter 1

Four cartons of crayons, a ream of construction paper, ten glue sticks and a dozen boxes of tissues. Portia Perez smiled to herself as she pulled up in front of the discount store.

Her best friend Layla West would think it was pathetic that Portia’s shopping list didn’t include a pair of three-inch red heels and something skimpy and sparkly, but Layla had never spent eight hours a day entertaining twelve little kids.

As the owner and operator of Portia’s Playpen, a day-care facility, Portia would much rather have enough crayons and glue sticks than shiny high heels any day.

As she got out of her car, the hot, early-morning August air felt like a slap in her face. There were times she didn’t think the sun shone any brighter in any other town on earth than it did in August in Black Rock, Kansas.

The concrete pavement beneath her sandals already radiated with heat and she reminded herself to add a couple of tubes of sunscreen to her shopping list.

She was almost to the store when she saw the first flyer. It hung on a light pole and as she glanced at it she froze. Her own face stared back at her.

“What the heck?” She moved closer to read it and as she did her heart banged hard in her chest and all her breath whooshed out of her body. Portia Perez—Baby Beater and Child Abuser. If You Love Your Kids, Don’t Use Her Day Care. The words swam before her eyes, for a moment making her nauseated.

She yanked it from the pole and then looked down Main Street, stunned to see more flyers on other poles. Shopping forgotten, she hurried down the street, taking down the flyers as she fought against the angry tears that threatened to erupt.

Who would do this to her? Who would be so cruel? This wasn’t just cruel; it was criminal. Somebody was trying to destroy her business, her very livelihood.

It took her fifteen minutes to take down all the flyers she saw in the immediate area. She held them in a trembling hand and stared across the street at the sheriff’s office.

She needed to report this. It was slander at its worst. Surely Sheriff Tom Grayson would do something, find the person responsible.

Who could be behind this? Her head whirled as she marched across the street and into the sheriff’s office. The minute she opened the door and stepped inside the tension that already coiled tightly in her stomach increased as she saw who sat behind one of the desks.

Deputy Caleb Grayson.

For almost ten years of her life Portia had gone out of her way to avoid any real interaction with the man. In a town the size of Black Rock they’d had occasions to run into each other, but any conversation had been polite and impersonal.

It amazed her that after all these years just the sight of him created a faint twinge in her heart. But she couldn’t think about that now. She had more important things on her mind than an old heartbreak.

“Portia,” he said in obvious surprise and stood from the desk.

“Is Tom in?” she asked.

“No, it’s his day off. What’s up?” He stepped closer to her, close enough that she could smell the scent of his cologne, a familiar scent that would always remind her of high school prom and things she’d never wanted to think about again.

“This is what’s up … up all over town.” She handed him one of the flyers.

He frowned as he read it aloud. “Portia Perez neglects and abuses your children that you put in her care. Portia’s Playpen is a place of pain for little ones without a voice. Don’t let this woman watch your kids.” He whistled low beneath his breath and looked at her once again. “You’ve apparently made somebody very mad.”

“You have to do something,” she exclaimed. “They’re everywhere, each one more slanderous than the next.”

“Did you see who posted them?” he asked.

“No, but it’s … it’s all lies.” Once again she felt the pressure of tears welling up, but the last person in the world she would cry in front of was Caleb Grayson. “I want whoever did this arrested.”

“Unfortunately this is more of a civil matter than a criminal one,” he replied. “I’ll ask around, see if anyone saw somebody putting them up, but there’s really nothing more I can do.”

It wasn’t what she wanted to hear. In fact his apparent lackadaisical attitude about the whole thing irritated her. She wanted him outraged on her behalf. She wanted him out beating the streets to find the guilty and she wanted that person lynched at high noon in the hot sun.

More than anything she wished Caleb wasn’t so darned handsome. She wished that his shirt didn’t stretch so neatly over his broad shoulders, that his slacks didn’t hug the length of his long legs and that that lock of his dark brown hair on his forehead didn’t look as if it were begging for female fingers to gently push it back into place.

“You’ll call me if you find out who did this?” she asked curtly.

“Yeah, but I wouldn’t wait by the phone if I were you. These were probably put up sometime in the middle of the night and I doubt that anyone saw who hung them.”

“So that’s it?” she asked, not attempting to mask her anger.

Caleb shrugged. “Sorry, there’s not much else I can give you.”

Portia whirled around on her heel and left the office without another word. Still stunned by the flyers, irritated that she had to have any dealings with Caleb Grayson, she stalked across the street and down the block to Black Rock Realty.

Even though it was early, Layla would be in and Portia needed to talk to somebody who would be properly outraged and lend support. Her best friend since childhood would do just that.

As she entered the office Layla looked up from her desk with a smile. “Hey, girl, what are you doing in town so early? Most Saturdays you aren’t even dressed until noon.”

“I came to pick up some supplies. Take a look at these.” Portia threw the flyers on the desk then flopped down in the chair facing her friend.

Layla scanned a flyer then looked up at Portia, her green eyes wide. “Where did you get these?”

“They were taped to light poles around the discount store.”

Layla looked back at the piece of paper in her hand. “But who would do something like this? Have you had a fight with any of the kids’ parents?”

“No, nothing like that. I can’t think of anyone who would have a reason to put them up.”

“What are you going to do about it?”

“I already did it. I marched myself into the sheriff’s office.”

“What did Tom say?” Layla twisted a strand of her long blond hair between two fingers.

Portia frowned. “Tom wasn’t in. I had to talk to Caleb.”

Layla raised a perfectly formed blond eyebrow. “And how did that go?”

“He told me it was a civil matter, not a criminal one. I think he just didn’t want to be bothered with the whole thing. He probably couldn’t work my crime into his busy schedule.”

Layla smiled at her knowingly. “Now that wouldn’t be a little ancient history aggression coming into play, would it?”

“Don’t be ridiculous, I don’t harbor any ill will toward Caleb. What happened between us happened a long time ago. I’ve certainly moved on since then.”

“Yeah, right, and I’m going to be six feet tall when I wake up in the morning,” Layla replied dryly. “Admit it, you’ve carried a torch for Caleb Grayson ever since high school.”

“That’s the most outrageous thing you’ve ever said,” Portia exclaimed.

“Really?” Layla dropped the strand of hair she’d been twisting. “You think it was more outrageous than that time I told you I had sex with Ralph Davidson in the front of his pickup and my hip bumped the shift knob so we ended up in his pond?”

Portia laughed, which she knew had been Layla’s intention all along. “You’re crazy,” she said.

“And that’s why you love me.” Layla leaned forward and covered one of Portia’s hands with hers. “Don’t worry about the flyer nonsense. Everyone in town knows those kids at your day care are your life and you’d never do anything bad to any of them.”

“I hope you’re right,” Portia said.

Layla grinned. “Of course I’m right. I’m always right. Now get out of here. Go buy your supplies. I have a client due to arrive any minute and I’m hoping to schmooze him into buying the old Miller property.”

“That old dump?” Portia said as she stood.

Layla grinned. “By the time I finish with my sales pitch my client will think it’s Buckingham Palace.”

Portia was still smiling as she left the realty. Layla was always good for cheering her up no matter what the circumstances.

Of course, that whole thing about Caleb and a torch was utterly ridiculous. If she had a torch and Caleb came too close to her, he’d definitely get burned. She’d given him not one, but two chances years ago, and he’d blown them both.

“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me,” she muttered as she headed to the store to pick up her supplies.

Caleb Grayson was as much a part of her past as teenage blemishes and pep rallies. She’d outgrown all of them, most of all the very hot, handsome Deputy Caleb Grayson.

He dreamed about her Sunday night. A wild, hot dream that combined part past and part fantasy and woke him with a yearning he hadn’t felt in years.

Caleb Grayson pulled himself out of bed Monday morning, irritated that Portia Perez had invaded his sleep in any way, shape or form. Minutes later, as he stepped into his shower, he tried to shove thoughts of her out of his head, but they kept coming.

She’d been his first love and he’d never loved like that again. A year ago he’d thought he’d finally found love with Laura Kincaid, but that had ended so badly he still felt a burn of anger when he thought of her. A swell of grief threatened to sweep over him, but he consciously shoved it away and instead focused back on Portia and her current problem.

The flyers had been a nasty piece of business, but he’d spent most of the morning on Saturday asking around to see if anyone had seen who’d posted them and as he’d suspected, nobody had a clue who might be responsible. There wasn’t much else he could do about the situation.

Stop thinking about her, he commanded himself as he got dressed in his khaki uniform. Besides, all the Grayson men had more important things on their minds than ugly flyers hung around town.

Their sister, Brittany, had been missing for almost five weeks. Caleb strapped on his gun and grabbed his keys from the kitchen table and tried to still the thundering in his chest that began whenever he thought of his younger sister.

She’d disappeared the week of the sixth anniversary of their parents’ death and for the first two weeks or so Caleb and his brothers Tom, Benjamin and Jacob had just assumed she’d gone off alone to get through the difficult anniversary. But too much time had gone by without any of them hearing from her.

His brother Tom, the sheriff of Black Rock, had been doing what he could to find some answers. He’d issued a BOLO alert on her vehicle and was monitoring her bank account and credit cards. There had been no sign of her car anywhere but what was more troubling was that her accounts hadn’t been touched since the day of her disappearance.

This wasn’t the first time Brittany had disappeared, but before it had always been only for a few days, a week at the most, then she’d turn up with explanations and apologies.

Caleb knew all his brothers felt the same as he did, that they didn’t care about apologies or explanations; they just wanted to know that she was okay.

He got into his car and headed for the office. Caleb lived in a small rental house in the heart of the small town of Black Rock. He’d moved there seven years ago from the family ranch when he’d gotten the job as deputy when he turned twenty-one.

Law enforcement in Black Rock was definitely a family affair. Tom was the sheriff, and Caleb, his brother Benjamin and his sister, Brittany, were deputies. His brother Jacob had been an FBI agent, but had returned home almost two months ago and shut himself up in a small cottage on the ranch property.

He refused to talk about what had brought him home and didn’t want anyone except family to know he was there. It was bad enough when Caleb just had Jacob to worry about, but now he had Brittany, as well.

No wonder he couldn’t get Portia out of his head.

She was the least of his worries. Despite the fact that they shared the same town, he rarely saw her.

Still, there had been a moment yesterday when she’d first stepped into the office when his heart had done a little dance in his chest.

“Indigestion,” he muttered as he pulled up in front of the two-story brick building that was his home away from home. Surely that was all that he’d felt when he’d seen Portia.

It was only a few minutes before seven in the morning but already the sun was warm on his shoulders as he got out of the car.

“Good morning, Sam,” he said as he entered the office.

Deputy Sam McCain gave him a sleepy smile and raised his coffee cup in greeting. “Coffee’s fresh and I brought in some homemade cinnamon rolls that Loretta baked this morning.”

“You’re a lucky man, Sam,” Caleb said. “Not only is your wife gorgeous, but she cooks, as well.”

Sam’s teeth flashed white against his cocoa-colored face as he grinned. “You stay away from my Loretta. You with your legendary charm might turn her head.”

Caleb laughed. “You know I save my charm for the single women in town. Besides, for reasons I can’t understand, Loretta seems to be madly, crazy in love with you.”

Sam chuckled. “Yeah, I can’t explain it, either.”

At that moment the phone rang and Sam answered. Instantly his broad forehead creased in a frown. “Okay, all right. We’ll get somebody right over there.”

He hung up the phone and looked at Caleb. “That was Portia Perez. Somebody broke into her day-care center last night.”

“I’ll go,” Caleb said. “First those flyers and now this. I wonder what’s going on?”

Minutes later he was in his car and headed to Portia’s place. She lived on the north edge of town, not far from the house where she had spent her childhood.

Caleb had spent many nights of his high school years visiting Portia and her mother. In fact, he and Portia had been inseparable all through high school.

On warm summer nights he’d sat on the porch swing with Portia and they’d talked about their future together, made plans for a lifetime of happiness. They’d been best friends, and on the night of their senior prom they had become lovers.

He thought of the dream of her he’d had the night before. It had been hot and wild and when he’d finally awakened he had imagined he could smell the scent of her still lingering in the sheets, on his skin.

Crazy, he thought. Crazy that after all these years she should invade his dreams. And just as crazy that the thought of her could still bring the taste of bitterness to the back of his throat.

Her house was a small ranch, painted the color of cinnamon and with gingerbread trim in beige that gave it a fairy-tale look. Colorful flowers lined the sidewalk leading up to the front door and baskets hanging from the porch ceiling spilled blossoms of red and purple.

He turned in to her driveway and followed it to the detached garage where he knew her day-care facility was housed.

As he pulled up he noticed several things. Melody Markfield, Portia’s assistant, was in a fenced play area next to the building with several toddlers, and Portia stood at the front door, her face unusually pale in the early-morning sunshine.

He parked the car and as he opened his door to get out, she approached him. He couldn’t help but notice the way the sun sparked on her copper-colored hair and that her legs beneath her denim shorts were just as shapely as they’d been when she’d been a cheerleader in high school.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“Somebody broke in.” Her voice trembled slightly and her hazel eyes appeared larger than usual. Her chin tilted upward. “And if you tell me this is a civil matter I might just punch you in the stomach.”

“Let’s take a look inside,” Caleb said. As he walked toward the door of the building he was conscious of her just behind him. The floral scent of her perfume eddied in the air and reminded him of his dream of her.

But all thoughts of dreams fled from his head the moment he stepped into the day care. Destruction and vandalism were everywhere.

The mattresses on two of the cribs had been slashed and the stuffing pulled out. Books had been thrown from shelves and toys had been smashed and littered the floor in colorful plastic shards.

“Not civil, definitely criminal,” Caleb murmured as he walked around the room and tried to take it all in.

He checked all the windows looking for a point of entry and finally found it in the small bathroom. The window had been broken inward and pieces of glass glittered on the floor in the sunlight.

He left the bathroom and returned to the main room. A laptop computer sat on the adult-size desk in the corner, along with a stereo system, letting him know that robbery hadn’t been the intent.

It was a malicious crime scene. Whoever had broken in had been hell-bent on causing damage and nothing else. Who would have done this and why?

He turned to look at Portia, who leaned against one wall with her arms wrapped around her waist. Her eyes held the hollow look of someone who had taken a hard hit to the head and wasn’t quite sure where she was or how she had gotten there.

“When was the last time you were out here?” he asked.

She raised a hand to her temple, as if she had a headache. “Last night. I came in around six to make sure everything was ready for this morning and then I went back into the house.” Her voice still held a faint tremor.

“And you didn’t hear anything out here?”

She shook her head. “Nothing.”

“Do you have any idea who might be responsible for this? Have you had a fight with somebody? Maybe one of the parents of one of the kids?”

She shook her head again, this time more forcefully. “No, nothing like that. Layla asked me the same thing Saturday morning when I found those flyers, but I can’t imagine who might do something like this.”

Caleb pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “I’ll get some of the boys over here to fingerprint the area around the broken window in the bathroom. Maybe they can lift some prints that will let us know who’s responsible.”

“I hope so,” she said. He turned his back to make the call and then when he had finished turned back around to face her. She looked small, and tears brimmed in her eyes.

He wanted to reach out to her, to take her in his arms and soothe the tears away, but he knew better. He knew he was the last man she’d want to hold her for any reason.

She wrapped her arms around her middle once again, as if trying to warm an insidious chill. “I know it sounds crazy, but I have this awful feeling that this is just the beginning.”

“The beginning of what?” he asked.

“Something terrible,” she replied, her voice a mere whisper.

Chapter 2

It was just after nine when the deputies Caleb had called in finished up what little they had been able to do. There had been no fingerprints around the window, although they’d found a black thread stuck on one of the shards of glass, a thread they assumed was from whatever the intruder had been wearing when he’d broken in.

Portia knew there was no way they’d be able to figure out who had smashed the window and crawled inside by a single thread of cotton.

As Caleb walked with the other men out of the day care, she looked around the room and wanted to weep. She’d worked so hard to make this a place of fun and love for the little ones who were in her care, and now it was all nothing but a big mess.

Melody had all the kids outside in the play area, but she needed to get them inside before the sun grew too hot and at the moment this was no place to bring children.

Caleb came back inside. “You have a broom?” he asked.

She looked at him in surprise. “Cleaning up a crime scene isn’t your job.”

He shrugged. “You’ve got a yard full of kids out there who are going to need to get inside pretty soon. Two sets of hands will make the cleanup go more quickly.”

“They aren’t coming back in here,” Portia exclaimed. “I’ll make arrangements for Melody to have them at her house until we figure out what’s going on.”

“You still need this mess cleaned up, now where’s the broom?”

As he began to sweep the floor Portia went outside to speak to Melody. All the children had arrived for the day and she gave Melody the keys to the minibus they used for field trips to transport the children to Melody’s house.

Melody assured her the children would be fine at her place for however long it was necessary and Portia knew she could trust her assistant with all the details.

By the time she returned to the garage, Caleb had finished sweeping up the floor. “You sure you can’t think of anyone who’s mad at you?” Caleb asked as he stopped pushing the broom and leaned on the handle.

She frowned and bent down to pick up the picture books that had been thrown off the toddler-size bookshelf. “I spent all day yesterday trying to figure out who might have hung those flyers, who might have such a big problem with me that they’d want to hurt me like that.”

She straightened and looked at Caleb. She’d spent most of her time since high school trying not to look at him, trying not to think about him, and most of the time she’d succeeded.

She’d finished college with a degree in early childhood development and had devoted herself to her business, but that didn’t mean she hadn’t had time to date.

“Joe Castle,” she said.

Caleb frowned. “What about him?”

“He’s the only one I can think of who might have an issue with me.”

“Why? What did you do to him?”

Portia felt the heat of a blush filling her cheeks. “It’s not what I did to him, it’s what I didn’t do with him.” She broke eye contact with Caleb to place the books on the shelf. “Joe and I have been seeing each other for the last month. You know, dinners out or an occasional movie, nothing serious. Last week at the end of one of our dates he tried to take things to the next level, but I told him I wasn’t interested. I told him I thought it best if we didn’t see each other anymore.”