The Pancake Club Anthology Read online

  Inside the tow shop, it looked as though the walls and the windows hadn’t been cleaned for at least a decade. A calendar on the wall read 1993. A large man sat behind the dusty glass topped counter and read the newspaper.

  “Afternoon, Hank,” Dolan said.

  “Afternoon to you, officer.” Hank dropped his feet off the edge of the desk and stood. “That was quite a storm last night. Did you come to survey the damage to your cruiser? It’s out back.”

  “Not really. I don’t think there’s anything left that I need to take out.” Dolan tapped a finger on the counter. “I stopped by for another reason. The woman from the stranded car last night. I didn’t get a chance to complete her report, since she’s not the one who had the accident. Do you happen to know where she lives or works?”

  “You mean Tessa? She just moved back here a few weeks ago.”

  “No kidding.” Dolan picked up a magazine, scanned the front cover, and then dropped it back on the counter.

  “She told me that she was happy she found the job at the radio station.”

  “Here? She works at KBJM?” Dolan asked.

  “Sure does. Tessa has that talk radio show I listen to every afternoon. I kinda felt like I was driving home a celebrity or something, and that maybe I should ask for her autograph.” Hank let out a deep laugh and then coughed.

  “Wait... she’s the host of Relationships Matter on KBJM? But, the host of that show is Kaylee Bailey.”

  “Yeah... well.” Hank shook his head. “I found out that’s her ‘on-the-air’ name. She had some job in a big city before she moved back here and decided to create a new on-air persona. Why on earth would she move to a small town like this? She’s really good.”

  Dolan couldn’t stop his cop brain from kicking in, as a million questions popped into his head. Kaylee...Tessa, was very talented. Why would someone move back here from a big city to take over the open airway time slot from what had been Bob’s Cattle and Livestock Update Hour?

  There was only one way to find out. When he finished all his accident paperwork, he would swing by the radio station. Tessa’s talk show should just be ending.

  ****

  “Why do you think you keep returning to men and repeating the pattern for relationships that you just told me you want to stop?” Tessa asked her first caller. She tried not to breathe too deep. The microphone smelled like onions and garlic from Ted, the DJ who had the show right before her.

  “I don’t know...” The caller sounded exasperated. “’Cause he sweet talks me and then I forgive him for going out and cheating on me like he did last night.”

  “Why don’t you stand up to him?” Tessa asked. She closed her eyes after she asked the question. God, she felt like such a fake. How could she possibly give out relationship information that she didn’t follow herself?

  “You think I should tell him I deserve better than this? But what if he leaves me?” The caller sniffed.

  “There is a better man out there who will treat you the way you deserve to be treated.”

  “You think so?” Caller one blew her nose.

  “I know so.” Again, how did she know? Ugh...Tessa swallowed as she thought of Bradley. The man she thought she loved. The man who double-crossed her, ruined her life, and then her career. There were no men out there worth that kind of pain. But it was her job to convince caller number one otherwise. “If you choose to give your boyfriend another chance, then make it on your terms and not his. If he leaves, oh well. You’ll only stay heartbroken for a while.” Or eleven months to be exact. Oh yeah, they weren’t talking about her.

  “Thanks Kaylee. You always have the best advice. I listen to you every afternoon.”

  “You’re welcome. Happy I could help. Now go out there and find a man who returns the love you give to him.”

  The line went dead. Tessa looked over her shoulder at the clock on the wall. Warren stood outside the booth. He was a nice man and reminded her of her grandpa. He smiled and waved a wrinkled hand at her.

  “Looks like my time is up for today. The Golden Oldies Radio Show is up next with Warren VanDeberk.” She searched the desk for the slip of paper with the day’s schedule. “Looks like everyone is in for a treat. Warren will play The Adventures of Sam Spade. See you all tomorrow.”

  Tessa hit the button to start the transition music between shows. She pulled the headphones off over her hair and hooked them over the microphone. Tessa wished she had a can of Lysol to spray the mic down before Warren’s show. No one deserved to smell onions and garlic breath for two hours.

  She opened the door to the booth and grabbed her purse and coat off the hook.

  “Have a good show, Warren. Can’t wait to hear it today.” She waved to Warren as he pulled the glass door closed to the booth and slid into the chair. He sniffed the microphone and frowned as he put on the headphones.

  Tessa opened the door to the small radio station and blinked as her eyes adjusted to the blinding sunlight. The temperature was already warm and she was happy she wore a sleeveless blouse.

  She paused in mid-step as the officer who stopped to help her in the storm stood next to her car.

  “Hi,” he said. “With all the commotion last night, I didn’t get a chance to finish talking with you.”

  “Did you have some questions about the tree falling? I didn’t really see it, I only heard it happen.”

  “No... No more questions. I was just hoping to have a chance to talk with you again.”

  “How did you know where I work?”

  “I asked Hank at the tow company. I hope that’s okay.”

  “I can’t believe that you want to talk to me again after what happened. You stopped to help me and your car got squished. I’m bad news.” She looked down at the ground. “Bad luck follows me. You better not get too close.”

  “I’m willing to take a chance. My name’s Dolan, if you forgot.” The sun shone off his one-way cop glasses. He pulled them off and kept them in his hand. “I had no idea you were the person I listen to every day.” His lips curved into a crooked, charming grin.

  “You listen to my show?” Tessa felt surprised.

  “I spend a lot of time in my squad car.”

  “So... You’re having relationship problems with a girlfriend or wife?”

  “No relationship problems. You have to be in a relationship before you can have problems. But, I still love your show.”

  Why did she think this was the best news she’d heard all day?

  “I hoped I could take you, or you and your significant other, out for dinner as a thank you.”

  “There still isn’t anything to thank me for.” She paused for a long moment. “And there is no ‘significant other.’ ” Tessa felt like slapping her hands over her mouth. Why did she tell him that?

  “So, dinner? Are you free tonight?”

  Forty-nine percent of her wanted to say no. “Sure. I’d like that.” Damn that fifty-one percent.

  He pulled a notepad from the front pocket of his uniform. “If you want to write down your address, I’ll pick you up at seven?”

  “You can’t look up my address on your police computer or ask Hank?”

  “I could.” He raised an eyebrow. “But, I would rather you gave it to me. It’s less creepy that way.”

  He was putting it on her terms. Making the fact of giving out her personal address her choice. Wow... What a nice change.

  Tessa jotted down her address and handed the pad of paper and pen back to him.

  “It’s not an easy address to find,” she said. “It’s down a dirt road, then right past a row of red mailboxes and then a half-mile long gravel road.”

  “Tell you what, since you’ve given it to me now, I’ll use my ‘cop computer’ to find your address.” He grinned. “See you at seven, Tessa.”

  When he said her name, his voice melted down her spine and turned her bones to liquid calcium. He was really cute. Less than fifteen minutes ago, she’d mentally sworn off men, but it had been ele
ven months. Was it time to take the advice she’d given caller number one and move on?

  “See you then.” She opened her car door, put her purse and the flowers on the front seat, and closed the door.

  As she drove off, his large frame filled her rear view mirror. Tall, handsome...and wearing that uniform, wow... Tessa looked up in time to swerve from hitting a parked car.

  No. No. No matter how cute Dolan was, she wouldn’t get involved with another man.

  End of story.

  Chapter Three

  Tessa finished brushing her hair, ran a mascara brush over her eyelashes, and added a swipe of blush on her cheeks. She dabbed a little perfume on her wrist. Why did she care so much about the way she looked? This wasn’t a date, the guy was just happy the tree hadn’t fallen on him. But he didn’t need to thank her for it, so was it that he wanted an excuse to spend more time with her?

  Not such a bad thought.

  She heard a knock on her door. She wove her way through the house and opened it.

  “Evening,” Dolan said. “I picked some flowers for you from my backyard.” He handed her a bouquet.

  She accepted the flowers, pleasantly surprised that this tough looking cop had a flower garden in his backyard. “Do guys still bring girls flowers?”

  “I do. What a great cabin. Do you own this place?” he asked, as he followed her into the living room.

  “It’s my mom and dad’s. They don’t come out here anymore, but decided to keep it in the family. This was our vacation cabin. We came over in the summer from Idaho to spend time at the lake.”

  “Lake?” he asked.

  “I take it you’re not from around here?”

  “I don’t know this area well. I moved up here from L.A. about six months ago. I’m still learning the lay of the land. I noticed that there are a few hidden lakes, but I didn’t realize that one was so close.” He chuckled. “But this might work out to be a great plan. If you have a lake, I have the food. Maybe we can eat there? I planned to take you to a restaurant, but the town’s limited in its dining choices. My favorite place, the diner, is only open for breakfast and lunch. I ran home and barbequed up some chicken and then swung by the Memories Diner for some of their top shelf side dishes, and then packed it all up.”

  “You packed us a picnic dinner?”

  “Yeah...” he paused, watching her face to see if he’d screwed up. “It’s such a beautiful night, I thought we could eat outside. Your choice. We can stay here, or we can go into town and try and find a place that’s open.”

  “Staying here would be perfect.” That was the truth. “It’s been a long day. I still felt so shaken up about what happened in the storm last night, I didn’t sleep well.”

  “After that terrible weather, how can today be so nice? It changes from day to day, that’s for sure. I’ll get the basket out of the car.” She followed him out the door. He stopped halfway down the front porch steps and pointed. “Looks like you had a tree come down next to your cabin.”

  Tessa leaned out and peered over to where he pointed. A large alder tree lay across the yard. “You’re right. I didn’t even see it earlier. That was close. It’s just one more thing that needs to be done around here. The porch roof leaks and there are mice under the sink in the kitchen. I have the day off tomorrow, so I’ll see if I can drag off some of the branches and attempt some of the chores I’ve put off.”

  “Do you have a chainsaw?”

  “No.” She paused. “Maybe I can borrow one in town.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I have the day off too. I’ll bring my chainsaw.”

  “That’s okay. I don’t want to take up your day off with the stuff I need to do. I can do it.”

  He narrowed his gaze. “You’re not going to be able to haul off that tree on your own and as I said, I have a chainsaw. Unless you have already decided that I’m really creepy and you truly don’t want to see me past tonight, I’ll be here in the morning with my chainsaw.”

  “That didn’t come out right, did it? Sure, I’ll take the help.” She smiled up at him. Tessa thought his cop uniform looked good on his tall, lean frame. In jeans, a faded grey T-shirt, and LA Dodgers ball cap, he looked even better.

  When she pulled her gaze from his broad chest to meet his eyes, he smiled. Heat flushed her face. He’d caught her in the act of checking him out.

  Dolan followed her down the wooded path to the lake. The early evening sun shone in tiny flecks of diamonds across the surface of the water. Ducks quacked and dipped their heads under the water by the dock and birds tweeted in the trees.

  “Wow...” he said, as he looked around. “It’s beautiful down here. You were lucky if you spent a chunk of your childhood here. I grew up in South Central L.A. Other than the sun of California, it’s kind of a crummy area.”

  “Is that why you became a cop? You wanted to make it a better place?”

  He didn’t answer for a long moment, and then said, “Yeah... I thought I could change things.”

  “It’s an honorable profession to want to help others.” She bent and pulled off a few fallen branches by the shore’s edge. “There hasn’t been a picnic table down here for many years. I keep telling myself that I’m going to get one, but haven’t done it yet.”

  “We don’t need a table, I brought a blanket.” He dropped the basket at the edge of the dock, opened the lid, and took out a plaid wool blanket. He flipped it to settle back on the smooth pine needle covered area at the edge of the shore. He motioned for her to sit, as he dropped to his knees and began to take out the food.

  Tessa took a take-out plastic carton from his hands and opened the lid. “Yum, potato salad, my favorite.”

  “Hey, mine too.” He grinned. “I guessed right. It was a toss-up between that or macaroni. ”

  They served each other food and then settled to eat the chicken and fixings. “I haven’t had a meal like this for a while.”

  “You don’t like to cook?” he asked. “Or are you just always busy like I am ?”

  “I get home from work and eat whatever I grab on the way home. My choice usually consists of convenience, so a lo-cal frozen dinner.”

  “Almost every night, I fix steak on the barbeque. It’s not so much the steak, I just love to barbeque. I did it in California all year round. I still do, but this past winter I stood out in my backyard in the snow, wearing my parka. I’m sure my neighbors thought I was nuts. They used to look out their kitchen window at me and shake their heads. It’s taken a bit of adjustment to the cold winter here after living in So-Cal my whole life.”

  He popped the caps off two beers and offered her one. She accepted and took a drink. On such a nice night, the cool malty liquid tasted perfect.

  “So, what brings you to nowheresville, Mercy Ridge?” she asked.

  Dolan ran a finger around the glass rim of the bottle. “I left LAPD and took the test for the Washington State Police to get a job here. They were looking for troopers so it was easy to get hired.”

  “Was it a promotion?” she asked.

  “No...” He took a drink. “It was a life change.”

  When he didn’t add more, she didn’t ask. They spent the next few minutes in silence, listening to nature around them, before he finally asked, “What about you ? Have you always lived here in Mercy Ridge?”

  “No.” It was her turn to answer with a short, vague answer. “I came back from the L.A. area, too.”

  “Life change?” he asked.

  “Yeah...a life change, whether I wanted it or not.” She didn’t elaborate.

  “I love your radio show. I haven’t been here that long, but I knew that you were too good to have started here in Mercy Ridge.”

  “Thanks, but I did start here, fresh out of high school. I was snapped up by an affiliate out of college. It didn’t work out, so I just felt thankful there was a job still here at the station.”

  “I can’t imagine working here pays top dollar.”

  “No, more like bottom dollar.”
She laughed. “But, living out here at the cabin I can keep my living costs to a minimum.”

  “As long as you don’t have to rent a chainsaw. Those things are expensive for the day ” He finished his last piece of chicken and then stood. “There was a pond at the park by my house growing up. I used to be a champion rock skipper. What about you? What’s your record?”

  She looked out at the water and then back to him. “We used to swim here, but I don’t think I ever skipped rocks.”

  “Never?” He looked shocked. “Well, I’ll have to teach you. If I spend any more time at your lake, I’ll expect some competition. I’m a pretty competitive guy. Find the flattest rock you can.”

  They both scoured the shore. She spotted one and scooped it up. “How’s this?”

  “Good,” he said. “ Here’s how you do it, Throw it flat so it can skim over the top of the water.” Dolan drew his arm back and demonstrated. His rock skipped three times. “Good for warming up. Now let’s try yours.” He stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her. He felt warm and solid.

  “Like this?” she asked, demonstrating with a flick of her wrist.

  He took her arm again. “Make the motion three times, and then throw.” She did, with his help. The rock sailed across the water and skipped three times, like his.

  “Darn, we tried,” he said.

  “What do we do now?”

  “Find more rocks.”

  They ran down the shore each making a pile of their ‘ammunition.’ They threw one rock at a time and then called out the score. Dolan’s always seemed to skip more times—until the last throw. Then Tessa’s went farther.

  “Whoo hoo!” Tessa cried out. “Ha! I am the champ!”

  She hadn’t had this much fun in a year. Playing with rocks...who would have thought? She began to sing, We are the Champions, as she walked toward Dolan doing a victory dance and waving her arms.