Genny's Ballad: The Sisters, Texas Mystery Series, Book 5 Read online

  Thinking a spoiled little birthday princess would be preferable to a grumpy old man who clearly did not understand children, Genny comped the elderly couple’s meal, assured the young family they were welcomed to stay despite the man’s insistence that they leave, and gladly turned her attentions to the birthday girl.

  The honoree’s back was to her, but one glance told Genny this was not a party for an eight-year-old. The princess in the gold-caped chair was more of a woman than a girl. Her long brown hair was piled high upon her head to reveal a slender, elegant neck and nicely tanned shoulders. Diamonds twinkled in her tiara. Yep, definitely real.

  “Welcome to New Beginnings. And happy birthday!” Genny smiled enthusiastically as she rounded the table to properly face the guest of honor.

  “Oh, Miss Genny, this is just perfect! And such a surprise!”

  Callie Beth Irwin squealed with delight, squeezing the arm of the man seated at her side. He occupied the other seat of royalty, playing king to her queen.

  Cutter.

  Genny struggled to keep her expression neutral. Her smile never slipped, but her eyes could not quite meet his. She concentrated on the young woman.

  “I had no idea you were our birthday girl this evening, Callie Beth.” She hoped her words did not sound as stilted as they felt. It was hard to push them out between clenched teeth.

  “It was a surprise!” She clapped her hands in glee, fairly bouncing in her seat. “Cutter and my mom surprised me with this entire party!”

  Cutter’s low voice was like a growl. “I tried to call you. I even texted.”

  Genesis glanced at him just long enough to note the misery in his eyes.

  “I’ve been away most of the summer,” Callie Beth rattled on. “I wasn’t even sure this little stinker here even remembered my birthday!” She hugged Cutter’s arm. “At the auction the other night, I thought maybe that was my birthday gift. But then he shows up on my doorstep with a big gift-wrapped box and his killer smile. The party hasn’t even started, and it’s already the best one I’ve ever had! And it’s all thanks to this man right here.” She leaned over and kissed Cutter, square on the mouth.

  To his credit, Cutter did not respond. Over the sparkling tips of the tiara, he stared at Genesis with a caught-in-the-headlights expression. Had her world not been spinning, Genny might have laughed at the look of horrified panic seeping into his eyes.

  Genny managed a strangled reply. “I hope the rest of the evening lives up to your expectations. I’ll bring you your menus.” When she turned to go, Cutter’s voice stopped her.

  “Genny, wait!”

  She turned around and gave him a cool, quizzical look.

  “I-I need to speak with you,” he stuttered, knowing Callie Beth and the others looked at him strangely.

  “I’m sure it can wait. After all, you’re king for the evening.” She was pleased to see how steady her hand appeared as she waved it in his direction, indicating the crown on his plate. “Put your crown on, Cutter. You’re part of this power couple.”

  He frowned at her use of the term. Ignorant to the heartache brewing, the other partygoers urged Cutter to try on the crown. As Callie Beth leaned close to murmur her own sultry encouragement, Genny whirled around and came face to face with her worst nightmare of all.

  ***

  She had hoped never to see that face again.

  Intellectually, she had known this day might come. It was unrealistic to think she could live in a tiny town like Naomi and not cross paths with her arch nemesis from high school. Yet she had managed to do so for the year she had been back in town, and she had foolishly hoped that her luck would hold. Another twenty years or so without seeing Kayla Sorenson would have been fine with her.

  Kayla had not changed much through the years. She was still pouring herself into her jeans. Her blouse was still too tight and her makeup still too heavy. She had a fashionable haircut now, with a new color to go along with it. At least it was not the cliqued bleached blond most middle-aged women were so fond of. Naturally blond herself, Genny hated to admit that the new soft red tint looked good on her old enemy. So did the added pounds. The extra weight plumped her cheeks and smoothed out potential wrinkles. From a distance, Kayla could pass as ten years younger. But too much chunky jewelry and an overkill of bling cheapened her look, giving her the appearance of trying too hard.

  For a moment, they each stared at the other. Bitter memories floated on the air between them. Genesis was the first to catch her breath and manage a tight acknowledgment. “Kayla.”

  “Genesis.” Virtually the same height, Kayla still managed to look down her nose at her old rival. The disdain in her voice was hard to miss.

  Rooted to the spot, Genny could not make her feet move. She stood there until Kayla crinkled her nose and said, “You’re in my way.”

  Genny knew the retirement party was waiting on one last guest. Snapping out of her trance, she swiftly moved aside and swept her arm in the direction of the other group. “I believe they’re waiting on you,” she said, using her most professional and inviting voice.

  “Yes, they are. Right here.” Her voice was pointed. Kayla jerked on the empty chair behind Genny, bumping it into her rumpus as she drug it away from the table. Seeing Genny’s confused frown as she continued to stand there, Kayla hissed, “Again. You are in my way.”

  “Here, Mom, why don’t you sit by me?” It sounded like Callie Beth’s voice, but it couldn’t be. Genny turned in confusion, staring at the young woman as she patted the chair beside her.

  Genesis felt the next few moments play out in slow motion. Kayla huffed as she brushed past Genny, blatantly bumping against her shoulder without an apology. Genny never noticed. Kayla made her way to the other side of the table and took the chair beside the birthday girl, brushing a kiss onto her cheek.

  Genny felt the blood drain from her face. Was it possible? Had Kayla been telling the truth all those years ago? Was Callie Beth...?

  No. She couldn’t be.

  Genny’s eyes drug toward the birthday girl. Light brown hair, not black. Blue eyes, not mischievous green. And she was clearly older than twenty years old.

  Relief rallied through Genesis, but it was fleeting.

  A vague memory surfaced, as sluggish as the thoughts sloshing through her brain. A cute little brown-haired toddler that tagged behind Kayla to sports events and street dances. The child Kayla Sorensen had at fifteen and left behind for her parents to raise. The one they called Beth.

  Genny’s stomach rolled. She felt sick, but her eyes were still on a trajectory path to heartache. They traveled to Kayla. The woman who had set a living hell into motion.

  Swallowing down the bile in her throat, Genny’s eyes traced back across Callie Beth, to land on Cutter. His crown lay discarded at the top of his plate, but she could see where the plastic ring had circled his head. Cutter had worn the crown, however briefly, playing king to Callie Beth’s queen. A matched set of royalty.

  Her eyes traveled on. Seated next to Cutter was an elderly couple. It had been years since she had seen them, but Genny still recognized Kayla’s parents. Just past them was Ellen McDaniel, Kayla’s older sister.

  Heartache came crashing back in real time.

  “Y-You-You’re Callie Beth’s... mother?” she finally managed to croak.

  Kayla smirked. “Yes, that’s right. This young, beautiful woman is my daughter.” She drew out each adjective for emphasis. “Her father and I are so proud of her and the successful business woman she has become. We wanted to throw her a surprise party for her twenty-fifth birthday. And of course we had help from her long-time boyfriend.” Her eyes took on a shrewd, calculated gleam. It matched the tone of her voice. “You know Cutter Montgomery, don’t you, Genesis?”

  She flashed Cutter an obligatory glance. She attempted a smile. “Yes, of course.”

  “He’s raved about your little place here, so we thought we’d offer you some business.” She veiled the insult behind a thin smile
as a balding man took the seat beside her. “Do you know my husband, Scott Irwin?”

  “No, I don’t believe so. It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Irwin.”

  “And this is Genesis Baker. You’re still single, right, Genesis?” She cut her eyes at Genny as she pretended to smile up at her.

  “Yes, that is correct.” Using her best and brightest smile, Genesis was determined to sound happy about the fact.

  “Well, maybe one day you’ll find a man.”

  Cutter did not understand the tension between the two women, but he was quick to speak in Genny’s defense. “Genny has a fascinating past, Miss K. She studied in Paris to be a pastry chef. When there was nothing else left for her to master, she came back and worked in some of the finest restaurants in the States. She opened her own highly successful catering business in Boston. You should hear who some of her customers were. Famous actors and politicians, to name a few. She was chef and personal assistant to a very prominent couple there in Bean Town before she came back here and opened New Beginnings.”

  His glowing endorsement left Genny frosty eyed and Callie Beth flushed and confused. Kayla’s bark of laughter lacked amusement. “My, aren’t you a walking billboard! You should go into advertisement, Cutter.”

  “Just telling it like it is,” he said evenly, his hazel eyes begging Genny to look at him. “Genny is the best cook and the most amazing woman I have ever known.”

  Trying to break the tension that floated heavy on the air, Callie Beth cleared her throat and laughed nervously. “Uhm, excuse me. This is my day here. What about me?” She made light of the words, but her eyes were worried as they darted back and forth between Cutter and Genesis.

  “Of course he didn’t mean more amazing than you, sweetheart!” Kayla was quick to hug her daughter. She glared at Cutter as she patted the birthday girl’s back. “He was referring to our generation. Mine and Genny’s.” Her eyes slid maliciously to the café proprietor. “Why, Genesis is almost old enough to be his mother.”

  Genesis had endured enough. “Oh, no, you’re forgetting, Kayla. I’m younger than you.” She effectively turned away from the glaring woman, smiling at the other guests at the table. “I’ll be right back with your menus and your waitress.”

  Genny quickly retreated. Once she hit the kitchen, she kept right on going.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Genny knew she behaved irrationally. Worse, she behaved unprofessionally. But it had been a stressful day. A stressful week.

  Seeing Pembrook again was bad enough.

  Seeing Kayla again was the last straw.

  She thought she had buried the heartache. She thought the past was behind her and she had dealt with Tommy’s memory. But seeing Kayla again proved it had all been a lie. A lie she told herself, because facing the truth would be too painful.

  She set off walking. She knew it was foolish. Someone stalked her. Here she was walking down a dark street with nothing to defend herself with, even though someone most likely watched her every move, even now, wishing to do her harm. It was as foolish as one of those teenage slasher movies, when the heroine knows someone was out there, yet she walks outside anyway.

  Genny didn’t care. She walked outside anyway.

  She started for home. It was a five-mile hike, but all she knew was that she could not stay here. Not with Kayla inside her restaurant.

  With only the moon to use for navigation, Genny kept to the thin ribbon of pavement that stretched between Naomi and her little house on the outskirts of town. It was a farm-to-market road, and not heavily traveled on a Wednesday night. Not when most of the community was at area churches, enjoying one of the special programs of the night.

  Only two other vehicles traveled along the road tonight, one headed in either direction. Both times, Genny stepped off the road when she heard their approach, not wanting the offer of a ride. She was already well out of town, walking dead center down the road, when the third vehicle sneaked up on her. By now, her mind was lost in its own world. She never heard the approaching vehicle until its headlights caught her in their beam, and by then it was too late.

  Cutter rolled slowly alongside her, his window down. “What are you doing, Genny?”

  She did not look his way. “Walking,” she replied.

  “I’ve been all over town, looking for you.”

  She trudged along, her eyes steady ahead. “Been right here, walking down the road.”

  “Want a ride?”

  “Nope.”

  He rolled alongside her, his engine in idle. “What’s going on, Genny darlin’?”

  “Just out for a stroll.”

  “Pretty night for it,” he allowed.

  “Yep.”

  “I tried to call you, Genny. Tried to warn you that the party had been moved.”

  “They booked it a week ago, Cutter.”

  “It was her mother’s doings,” he complained. “She’s always pushing the two of us together. I thought it was at Montelongo’s, right up until the last minute.”

  “Doesn’t matter.”

  She continued along the road, determined not to slow down, determined not to look at him. She was short of breath and her feet ached. But nothing hurt as badly as her heart. And now Cutter was here, making it ten times worse.

  He let her get a few paces ahead. Then he was rolling alongside her again, his arm hanging out of the window. His next words, spoken in a matter-of-fact manner, took her by surprise. Caused her feet to stumble. Blurred her vision, until she blinked the foolishness away.

  “I’m in love with you, Genny,” he told her.

  Her breath caught in her lungs, but she pushed it out. “No you’re not. You’re infatuated with me.”

  “So… what?” he asked irritably. “You think I’m too young to know my own heart?”

  “I was in junior high when you started Kindergarten, Cutter. Do you know how messed up that is?”

  “And when you’re eighty, I’ll only be seventy-two. Do you really think we’ll care about that then?”

  Her jaw was set with stubbornness. “Won’t matter. You won’t even remember me by then.”

  “Unless I completely lose my mind, I’m pretty sure I’ll remember my wife. By then, we should have about a half dozen or so grandchildren.”

  She threw him a sharp look, but her feet kept moving. “You’ve lost it now!” she retorted. She trudged on down the highway, even when her body begged her to stop.

  “Why are you doing this, Genny? Why are you running away?”

  “Not running,” she puffed. “Walking.”

  “You wanna walk? Fine. I’ll walk with you.” He stopped in the middle of the road and killed the engine.

  When he started to get out of the truck, she finally looked his way. “You can’t leave your truck in the middle of the road!”

  “Why not? You’re walking down the middle of it.”

  “Get back in the truck, Cutter,” she practically growled.

  “Get in it with me.”

  Realizing he had tricked her, she sniffed dispassionately and continued on her way. She was not completely surprised when he started the truck back up, pulled it off the road, and killed the engine again.

  He caught up with her in a few long strides.

  “Where we headed?” he asked, as if it were perfectly normal to be out for an evening stroll, leaving everyone and everything behind.

  “Home.”

  “You don’t have your purse with you,” Cutter pointed out. “Unless you have a hidden key, how are you going to get in?”

  For the first time, she paused, looking at him in confusion. Then she lifted her shoulder with nonchalance and continued on her way. “I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.”

  “It’s still three miles, Genny. Come back and get in the truck. Let me drive you.”

  “You can’t fight all my battles for me, Cutter. I don’t need a knight in shiny armor.”

  “But maybe you need a shoulder,” he said.

  He h
ad a point, so Genny steadfastly ignored him.

  They walked for quite a way without speaking. There were few sounds in the quiet night. Here and there, a dog barked, or a cow bellowed for her calf. In the far distance, they heard traffic racing along the highway. Wind rustled the trees around them, playing nature’s melody. Genny’s rubber soled shoes made barely a squeak on the blacktopped road. Cutter’s cowboy boots pumped out a steady rhythm as he walked beside her, silently supporting her on her journey.

  He finally asked a quiet question. “Who is he, Genny?”

  “I already told you. Nobody.”

  “Not the dandy. Who’s Tommy?”

  She blinked in surprise. “Tommy?” It hurt to say his name. Tonight, after all these years, it still hurt to say his name aloud.

  “Who is he, Genesis?”

  He had the same tone in his voice as when he first asked about Pembrook. She had wondered then if it were jealousy; this time, there was no doubt. The thought of Cutter Montgomery being jealous over her was mind-boggling. Even when he claimed he loved her, it was impossible to believe that he could be jealous.

  When she did not immediately answer, he prodded her. “Genny?”

  Her only answer was an escaped sigh.

  “It was him, wasn’t it? He’s the guy you were married to.” Now Cutter stared ahead, same as her. The inky darkness was easier to stare into than the other’s eyes.

  She finally answered, her voice rusty. “There was a ceremony, yes. But there was never a marriage.”

  There was another long silence. Cutter finally ventured another comment. “I just told you I loved you, Genny. I need to know what kind of competition I’m up against.”

  “There’s no competition, Cutter.” Sadness slipped into her voice. “Tommy died twenty years ago.”

  Surprise tangled his feet. When he forgot how to straighten them and move forward, Genny kept moving, but her pace had slowed considerably. The weight of her heartache made her legs leaden.

  Twenty feet down the road, she started talking. Cutter had caught up to her by now, but he had no idea what to say. So he remained silent, waiting until she was ready to speak.