Page 85 of You Shouldn't Have Come Here

“The missing woman. The one the sheriff came here asking about.”

“I already told you and the sheriff. She never showed up. I didn’t lie about that.”

I chewed on my words, thinking of whether I should bring up the guest book or not. I saw it. I saw her name. I saw thecheck-indate and the blank checkout date. How would he explain that away? I took a deep breath and eyed him in a challenging way.

My jaw was so tight I thought I might grind my teeth into dust. “I saw your guest book.”

“What?” He cocked his head. His face was unreadable. I didn’t know if it was fear, anger, sadness, regret, or a mix of all.

“In the basement. Her name was in it.”

“That’s not true!” he nearly yelled. I couldn’t tell if he was being defensive because he was telling the truth or because he was lying.

Without another word, he stomped out of the living room. I heard the basement door creak open; his footsteps descended the stairs. Things shuffled around, and then there were footsteps again. This time they were coming up the stairs. He held the notebook out. The words Calvin’s Guest Book were on the cover.

“Here,” he said.

I flipped quickly to the last page that had writing on it. Dragging my finger down the list of names, I found the last one. The paper read, Kayla Whitehead. I remembered seeing her name, but Bri’s was last. I flipped several more pages. They were all blank. No, her name was here. Bri Becker with a heart over the letteri. It was here. I saw it with my own eyes.Check-indate. Checkout... never.

“She was here. Bri Becker was here.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Grace. I told you the truth about her. She was never here.” He rubbed his brow.

“But... but... I saw.” My words fell off. I saw it. Didn’t I? I scanned the page again. Her name was gone.

“I lied about Albert and liking brussels sprouts and even lied about enjoying reading.” He walked to the bookshelf and slid several books out, holding them up. “I’ve never read a damn one of these. I just bought them to make me look smart.” Calvin tossed the books onto a chair. “But I didn’t lie about Bri Becker.” He let out a pained breath and ran his hands down his face.

My mouth parted but no words came out. I didn’t know what to say.

Calvin walked toward the front door, stopped, and turn back to me. “I’m going to get your vehicle working and fix the lock on your door. And then I’m going to make sure you have a great last night on my ranch.” He sealed his promise with a heavy nod.

My stomach was in knots. I took a few small breaths, trying to keep my composure. I saw her name, didn’t I? It was dark in the basement, and I was on edge, had been since I arrived. Maybe I had imagined it. Maybe he wasn’t the one lying.

“Okay,” I said.

I didn’t know what else to say.

He let out a sigh and smiled. I forced the corners of my lips up. They quivered, but he didn’t notice. He smiled a little wider and then headed outside. I closed my eyes and tried to picture the guest book the way I had seen it the day before. It was clear as day. I had seen it. There were few things I trusted, but my eyes were one of them.

Calvin may have been telling the truth about Albert—or Uncle Albert, for that matter. But he wasn’t telling the truth about Bri. I saw her name. Checkout... never. She was still here. I could feel it.

44.

Calvin

I pulled off mysweat-soakedwifebeater and tossed it in the grass. It splatted against the ground. Wiping my brow, I bent over the hood of the car. The mechanic fixed most of the things wrong with Grace’s vehicle, but left me to finish the job. He’d given me pretty clear instructions on how to finish, but I wasn’t sure I was doing it right. However, I was determined, and determination could sometimes offset skills or talent. I had less thantwenty-fourhours with her and it terrified me. I wanted her to stay. No, I needed her to stay. Maybe not forever but just for a while—so she could see what we had. What Grace and I had most people wouldn’t experience in a lifetime. It was electric... no, it was magic. We had what everyone dreamed of.

“Hey, Calvin,” Betty called from behind me.

I was so deep in thought that I didn’t hear her drive up or get out of her vehicle. I turned around to find her standing there with a pile of new drapes slung over her shoulder.

“Let me grab some of those,” I said, taking them from her.

Betty raised her brows and surveyed my face. “How ya holding up?” She was always so concerned with how I was doing, almost too concerned at times.

I shrugged and blew out my cheeks. “I’ve been better.”

“Where’s your guest?” She looked toward the barn, then the pond, then the ranch.

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