LITMIR.BIZ

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and bought a chain of convenience stores. He’s one of the richest men in town these days.”

      “But does he still wear yellow work boots?”

      “No, he wears Italian-knit shirts and custom leather loafers and spends a lot of time on the golf course at the country club.”

      Mouth agape, Dixon dropped back against his chair. “They let Elmer into the country club?”

      “Well, his family can trace their roots in the area to the War Between the States. And all that money…” She shrugged. “There’s a lot of new blood coming into town. Nobody can afford to be a snob these days.”

      “Hey, Kate, how are you?” As if to prove the truth of her words, a woman with blue, buzz-cut hair and a row of silver rings curling around the rim of each ear stood beside them. “Nasty storm, isn’t it? What can I get you two?”

      “Hi, Daphne.” Kate tucked the laminated menu into its metal holder. “I’ll have a mocha latte with whipped cream and cinnamon.”

      The waitress didn’t have to switch her attention to Dixon—she’d been staring at him since she arrived at the table. “And for you, gorgeous?”

      Dixon grinned and gave her a wink. “How about a double regular coffee?”

      “I knew you were the strong silent type. Coming up.”

      When Daphne was out of earshot, he turned to Kate. “Definitely new blood.”

      Smiling, she shook her head. “So what have you been doing all this time, Mr. Bell? Where did you go when you left home?”

      “Well, let’s see…I hitched a ride out of town on an empty livestock truck and spent the first night on a picnic table in a state park in Greensboro.”

      Her jaw dropped. “You’re not serious.”

      “The second day, I rode to Knoxville on an oil truck.”

      “And where did you sleep that night?” When he hesitated, she gave him a stern look. “I don’t want the censored version.”

      “Yes, ma’am.” He sketched a salute, though he was a little surprised at her forthrightness. The Kate Bowdrey he remembered had been vitally concerned with appearances and propriety. “A very nice woman took pity on me as I stood on a downtown corner in the pouring rain and she let me sleep on the couch in her apartment.”

      “‘A very nice woman?’ Does that mean prostitute?”

      “Uh, yeah.”

      “You must have been so excited.”

      Dixon gave a hoot of laughter. “How would you know that?”

      “I have a teenage son. I can imagine how he and his friends would react.” She grinned mischievously. “How long did you stay in Knoxville?”

      There would be no fooling Mrs. LaRue, would there? “A few months. I got a job playing guitar in a bar, but the bar changed management, and music styles. Then my…roommate…and I had a disagreement and I decided to move on. At least this time I had a car, so I headed west on I–40 toward Nashville.”

      Daphne brought their drinks. She stood close enough that her hip brushed Dixon’s shoulder as she set down the mugs. “Anything else?” There was no mistaking the message underlying her simple question.

      “Don’t think so,” Dixon said without emphasis. Daphne pouted all the way back to the serving counter.

      Kate’s eyes twinkled as she sipped her latte. “That was quite adept of you.”

      Dixon shrugged. “She’s nice enough, but my hair’s longer than hers. I couldn’t handle it.”

      “So what happened in Nashville?”

      He took a long draw from his coffee. “Didn’t get there. At least, not right away.”

      “Why not?”

      “Well, this was a used car, see, and I was a dumb kid. ’Bout as soon as I got it up to seventy miles an hour on the interstate, parts started popping off. I left a fender in Knoxville and a couple of springs in Dobbin, about eight miles west. The muffler dropped off in Timothyville.”

      Kate shielded her face with her hand. Her shoulders were shaking.

      “Things got loud, then, but I was bound and determined to make Nashville. When the transmission dropped, though, I knew I was done for.”

      “Oh, goodness.” She gasped with laughter. “I imagine you might. What did you do?”

      “I walked to the nearest town—’bout five miles, I guess. The first gas station I came to had a Help Wanted sign in the window. I didn’t have much money and I had this seriously broken automobile. So—”

      “Kate LaRue, I haven’t seen you in weeks!” A willowy blonde wove through the tables, approaching like a ship at full sail. “Where have you been keeping yourself?”

      Kate got to her feet to return an enthusiastic hug. “The kids and I spent some time at the beach after Mary Rose’s wedding. How are you, Jessica?”

      “I’m just fine, except for being a bit damp.” Her glance took in Kate’s wrinkled clothes. “You must have gotten caught in the downpour, too.” Dixon thought her smile looked a little spiteful. Then her gaze turned to him and all the spite smoothed away into frank interest. “Hello there. I don’t think we’ve met.”

      “Oh, but you have.” Kate put a hand on the blonde’s arm. “Jessica, this is Dixon Bell. Dixon, you remember Jessica Allen? She married Jimmy Hyde, who’s now the district attorney.”

      Dixon put out his hand. “Sure, I remember. Good to see you again, Jessica.”

      “Dixon Bell?” Her voice went high with surprise, and then she was clutching him around the neck—not nearly the enjoyable experience Kate’s hug had been. Though she was a lovely lady, he felt absolutely no desire to hold Jessica Hyde in return, and he drew back as soon as possible.

      “Dixon Bell.” Jessica shook her head, resting her hands on his chest. “I would never have believed it. We wondered about you for simply years. You sit right down and tell me where you’ve been all this time.” She grabbed his wrist with one hand and turned a chair from a nearby table around with the other, then sat down, forcing him to sit, too. As an afterthought, she looked up at Kate. “Sit with us, Kate. I know you must be dying to hear about what Dixon’s been doing.”

      Kate stayed standing, and Dixon knew he was doomed. “I most certainly am. But I have a couple of errands I can’t put off any longer. So I’ll let you two talk and I’ll catch up later.”

      As she pulled the strap of her purse over her shoulder, Dixon rose to his feet again and moved so that he blocked Kate’s exit. He put a hand on her elbow. “It was great to run into you.” Leaning close, he brushed her soft cheek with his lips and got a whiff of the rose and spice scent that was her perfume. “I’m going to call you,” he promised in a whisper. “Soon.”

      When he straightened up, she was staring at him like a startled rabbit. “I—I…” She took a deep breath. “Thank you for the coffee.” As soon as he stepped out of her way, she hurried past him to the door of the shop. Dixon watched through the window as she braved the rain to unlock the door of the green Volvo she’d arrived in. In another second, she was gone.

      He took a deep breath of his own and prepared to face the ordeal ahead. “So, Jessica, you and Jimmy are married. Kids?”

      She put a hand on his arm as he sat down. “Well, of course. Three boys, all of them playing ball just like you and Jimmy did. But I’m not the one who disappeared for so long. Where have you been?”

      “Here and there.” The story lost a lot of its pizzazz with the wrong audience. “Spent some time in Texas…”

      KATE SHIVERED

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