You, And No Other. Lynda Sandoval

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СКАЧАТЬ hosp—Oh! I’d forgotten that hoopla was today.” Mickie started fussing in the background, and Faith shushed her gently. “What’s up with the new wing anyway? Any insider info?”

      “None.” Cagney raised her chin to acknowledge the hand signal from the cop working traffic control at the entrance about fifty yards away from her, then waved a sleek, black limousine past the barricade she guarded. The mystery guest of honor, of course. Who else rode around in a stretch limo in Troublesome Freakin’ Gulch?

      She strained for a peek through the heavily tinted windows but saw nothing. Her hat brim and dark sunglasses didn’t help. “Cops don’t rate insider info. Not this cop, at least. Anyway, surprise benefactor, surprise wing, blah blah blah. Supposedly something that will put Troublesome Gulch on the map.”

      “Ooh,” Faith mocked. “I swear, they’re always trying to put Troublesome Gulch on one stupid map or the other, and yet our claim to fame remains being ‘that mountain town with the horrible prom night tragedy from way back when.’ Sorry for the ugly reminder,” she said quickly, “but really, all this municipal social climbing is futile and annoying.”

      “Believe me, I agree. But you know how old Walt loves his publicity,” Cagney added wryly, referring to the camera-loving city manager. “I’ll fill you in as soon as I get any kind of scoop whatsoever. It’ll probably be anticlimactic after all the buildup, though.”

      “I don’t know why they’ve been so secretive,” Faith said, her tone peevish. “Don’t they grasp the fact that this is a small town? We’re supposed to know everyone else’s business. It’s part of the benefits package.”

      Cagney snickered. “I guess the moneyman—or woman—wanted it this way.”

      “Yeah, but why?”

      “Who knows? Rich people can be freaky and demanding. And when you’re donating an entire wing to a hospital, you get whatever you ask for. We’re talking millions.”

      “I wonder how much, exactly?”

      “No clue. More than I’ll ever see in this lifetime, that’s for sure.” She paused to watch the tail end of the limo disappear into the underground garage that had been secured for its private use, as if the First Lady herself had donated the wing. “You have to admit, all talk of maps aside, this is the most exciting thing that’s happened in Troublesome Gulch in a while.”

      “But that’s not saying much.” Faith sighed again. “Well, call me as soon as you know something juicy. All I have on my agenda is laundry, laundry and more laundry. Who knew a baby would go through so many clothes?”

      “You have my sympathy. Just wait until she’s a teenager.”

      “Hush your mouth. She’ll always be my precious baby.”

      A pang of envy struck Cagney’s middle. “You know I’d switch places with you in a minute.”

      “I’ll call you at 3:00 a.m. and remind you of those words,” Faith said, her tone wry.

      “Okay, never mind.” Cagney chuckled. An electric excitement rippled through the press area, and at the same time her radio crackled with conversation. She tilted her ear to her shoulder mic to listen; the dog and pony show was about to get started. “Gotta go. Kiss that little sweetie for me.”

      She hung up without waiting for an answer, then slipped the phone back into its holder. After securing her barricades, she moved closer so she didn’t miss anything. Faith would kill her if she didn’t memorize every single detail for later.

      From the curtained-off area behind the outdoor dais, Jonas Eberhardt listened dispassionately as the city manager used every effusive suck-up phrase known to man during his blustery, prolonged introduction. Jonas shook his head with disgust. The man sure liked to hear himself talk.

      Tuning out the blowhard, Jonas tried to focus on this moment he’d been anticipating for more than a decade. He’d fantasized about it, dreamed it, visualized it, and yet so far, it fell short of what he’d expected. He’d begun orchestrating this revenge plot almost since he’d driven away, brokenhearted, from Cagney Bishop’s house all those years ago, and he’d always planned to revel in every single second. He had pictured spending this day lording over the Gulchers in repayment for having always passed unfair judgment on him and his mother.

      It wasn’t working that way.

      To his shock, everyone so far had been gracious.

      Genuinely, or so it seemed. Certainly it had something to do with the fact that he had money now, his inner cynic whispered. He should be happy they were welcoming, regardless of the reason, but he couldn’t seem to muster up the emotion. Wealthy or not, he still didn’t belong.

      With a yank on one diamond-and-platinum-cuff-linked sleeve, then the other, he frowned at his inner turmoil. Throughout all of his extensive planning, he hadn’t foreseen the strangeness of being back in the town he despised after so many years. It defied simple description. After all he’d accomplished in the computer world, he hadn’t banked on feeling like that same unwanted outsider, that shame-filled kid who’d tried so hard to blend in.

      Shoot, with the staggering amount of money he’d just handed over to the hospital board, they ought to give him the key to the damn city and rename the main road after him. And yet, a small part of him felt somehow … undeserving.

      Which was bull, of course. But the town stripped him of confidence, seemingly without trying.

      The hand-tailored suit he wore cost more than twelve months’ rent on that dilapidated trailer he’d spent his high-school years living in. So why did he still feel like the lonely, misjudged teenager from the bad side of town wearing secondhand jeans from the thrift shop?

      He flinched. Stop it.

      The surreal feelings churning inside him threatened to ruin everything. He clenched his jaw and fought to shake them off. The fact was, he’d more than succeeded in his life despite overwhelming odds, and no insular little Podunk town should be able to diminish that, not even Troublesome Gulch.

      Cagney’s town.

       Cagney.

      A familiar flash of pain, followed by a roar of self-preserving anger. He let his eyes drift shut for a moment. Okay, she was the problem, and the honest part of him knew it.

      He had loved her more than anything in this world, opened up to her like he hadn’t done with anyone before or since, and she’d ruthlessly trampled his heart. He never wanted to feel that kind of pain again.

      The merciless part of him hoped she still lived here, though he knew she’d hear about this spectacle either way. And when it was all over, he hoped she felt this precision cut all the way down to the bone. God knew, his wounds at her hand were still festering, and paybacks were … well, everyone knew exactly what they were.

      He had learned that her bastard of a father still ran his dictatorship in the Gulch, and knowing this whole thing would infuriate the old man provided some consolation. But mostly, he focused on Cagney.

      And yet, a twinge of … something … nagged at him.

      Regret? Conscience? Self-doubt? Whatever it was, the fact that it detracted СКАЧАТЬ