Redwood Bend

grandson and perhaps you know where I might find him. His name is Dylan Childress and I believe he was last seen around here.”
“I know Dylan,” Jack said. “I bet you’ll find him at his lady friend’s cabin. In fact, it’s my cabin which I lease to his lady friend and chances are—”
“Ah, yes, the lady friend,” she said with a tilt of her head. “I heard there was a lady friend, but we haven’t met.”
“He’s been seen around with Katie Malone,” Jack said. “She’s a newcomer here, but we love her already.”
“What a nice recommendation. Can you tell Randy how to get to that cabin?” And she nodded over her shoulder to her driver. On that signal alone, he stepped forward.
“Easy enough,” Jack said. “Go back out 36 almost exactly two miles. Right turn at a dirt road…not the best road, either. Go about two and a half miles back up the mountain until you come to a mailbox and newspaper drop. Take a left down the drive right up to the house. It’s a small A-frame in a large clearing. Dylan and Katie’s brother erected a jungle gym in the clearing for her kids and there are a couple of Adirondack chairs on the porch.”
Randy nodded but the lady looked surprised. “She has a family?”
“Twin boys, five years old. I didn’t catch the name, ma’am.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, how rude of me! Adele Childress and please, just call me Adele. It appears as if I’ll have to enjoy your public house another time, Jack. Right now I’d like to see Dylan.”
“But I want your promise that you’ll be back,” Jack said good-naturedly.
“Absolutely! It looks charming.”
And then she let Randy help her back into the car. In a moment, they were pulling out of town.
Luke whistled. “You don’t see that every day.”
“No shit,” Jack said.
“You aren’t going to call him, are you?”
“I should,” Jack said. “I have a feeling this will come as a surprise. If he’d been expecting her, Randy wouldn’t have needed directions.”
“Yeah, but don’t,” Luke said with a decidedly evil grin. “I mean, come on. Can’t we have a little fun?”
“Give it up—you won’t be there to see it. Think of Dylan!”
“Yeah, who is Dylan?” Luke asked.
“The grandson of Randy’s boss!” Jack said, heading back into the bar.
Dylan was just a little self-conscious about how easy it was to chill him out. A little romp in the sack with Katie and all his rough edges and worries were smooth and soft. But he was only a little embarrassed by that because he was cognizant of how simple it was to soothe him, and no one had ever soothed him like Katie could. Suddenly all the problems and complications of the earlier days seemed unimportant. As he sat on the porch watching the boys on the play set, feet up on the rail, hat tilted over his eyes, he thought, Nice—I have a woman with my bun in her oven, she loves me, she’s going to keep me on the right path.
He heard the phone in the cabin ring, heard Katie answer. Then she was at the door. “Dylan? It’s Jack Sheridan and he’d like to speak to you.”
“Keep an eye on things out here, will you?”
“Sure,” she said. “Oh, God, Dylan—the boys are upside down again!”
“They’re fine,” he said. “They prefer to be upside down. I’ll be right back.”
A few moments later he was back on the porch, but the expression he wore was odd. He looked puzzled and maybe unhappy. “I’m not sure there’s any way to prepare you for this…”
And just as he said that, a long and classy Lincoln town car pulled into the clearing. It looked like a modern version of Cinderella’s coach.
“Dylan?” she asked, standing from her chair.
The uniformed driver jumped out and went to open the back passenger door. Adele Childress stepped out. She was wearing cream-colored slacks that matched her car, low heels, a cinnamon blouse with a silk scarf under the collar and around her neck, the color of her slacks. She wore a gold chain belt and matching necklace. Her hair and makeup were perfect. Dylan smirked. This was her going-into-the-mountains attire.
Katie ran her hands down her pants, which were jeans with a short T-shirt that exposed her flat belly and navel.
“You look great,” Dylan said to Katie.
She ran her hands over her hair at her temples, patting it into place.
“You’re beautiful,” he told her. “Don’t be intimidated by flash.”
He crossed his arms over his chest as Adele approached the porch. Unlike Jack had done by stepping down from