The Orchard at the Edge of Town by Shirlee McCoy Read Free Book Online Page B

diminished, that she was physically healthier than she’d been in years.
    She’d seemed so happy after the birth, so content, Simon had allowed himself to believe that the pain she’d been dealing with had been forgotten.
    He’d been wrong.
    She’d been becoming more and more reliant on prescription drugs to dull her pain and get her through the day. That addiction had cost Megan her life, the bottle that he’d assumed was always full because she wasn’t using it, refilled by constant supplies of painkillers prescribed by a half-dozen different doctors. She’d lied to them and to him. More than once, he’d asked her why she didn’t just toss the old bottle of medication. Each time she’d told him she wanted to keep it—just in case. He wasn’t sure he’d forgiven her for that.
    He sure as hell hadn’t forgiven himself for not realizing how many lies she’d told.
    He’d done what she’d wanted, though. Buried her near her parents’ graves in the cemetery at Apple Valley Community Church. He’d planned to go back to Houston after that, raise his girls there, but Apple Valley had an almost magical appeal, the quiet a balm to his soul. He’d spent a week there, then two, staying with Daisy because there wasn’t a hotel nearby. She’d made meals for him and for the girls, showed them around town, told him how much help she could be to him if only he’d move to Apple Valley.
    His home had been in Houston, and he’d told her that.
    She’d planted a seed, though, and it had grown when he’d returned to the house he’d shared with Megan. He’d hired a nanny, tried to fill the girls’ life with love and security, but he hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that they’d be better off living close to their aunt in a community where everyone had known and loved their mother.
    It hadn’t been long before he’d made the decision to move.
    He’d been in Apple Valley ever since.
    Megan would have liked that. She’d have enjoyed knowing that the girls were growing up in the same little town she had.
    He knocked on Cade’s door, stepped into the small office. Max Stanford was still there, perfectly pressed uniform and overly shined shoes a little out of place in the functional room.
    â€œSpeak of the devil,” Max drawled sardonically, his blue eyes flashing with amusement. “And he appears.”
    â€œI was thinking the same thing when you walked in my office, Stanford,” Cade Cunningham said with a smile. Unlike Stanford, he had an easygoing, approachable personality. He might be sheriff, but he treated all his deputies like peers, seldom exerting his authority over anyone.
    Of course, with a force the size of Apple Valley’s, it was seldom necessary.
    â€œI heard Dusty called,” Simon said. No sense beating around the bush. Especially when he was under a time crunch.
    â€œYou heard right,” Cade responded, tapping a pen on his desk. “He said you didn’t take his trespassing call seriously.”
    â€œI took it seriously enough to follow protocol,” Simon responded.
    â€œI know, but I needed to mention the complaint before I filed it.” He lifted a sheet of paper from his desk, slid it into a folder, and opened a file cabinet. “Which I am now going to do.” He dropped the folder into the cabinet and closed the door. “So, how is Apricot doing? I haven’t seen her in years.”
    â€œAside from the fact that Dusty held her at gunpoint until I arrived, I’d say she was doing pretty well.”
    â€œShe want to file a complaint?” Cade asked.
    â€œNot that she mentioned.”
    â€œIf she does, let’s try to talk a little neighborly grace into her. I don’t know how long she plans to stick around town, but I’d be really happy if she and Dusty could get along while she does.” Cade rubbed the bridge