Harvest Moon Page 3

  “Come here,” Dawn hissed as she pulled Courtney back into the kitchen by her elbow.

  “What?” Courtney snapped at her, wrenching her arm away once they were out of view of the diners. “Stop being a grump!”

  “Me?” Dawn snapped back at her in a hushed voice. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Someone’s dead, and you’re acting like the president came to town.”

  “Wait, someone’s dead?” Courtney asked as her mouth fell open. “No, you’re joking!”

  “No joke,” Gabe cut in while he flipped a burger and let it sizzle on the flat-top. “Some hiker ate it sometime last night.”

  “No!” Courtney said as she slapped her hand over her mouth. “Oh my God.”

  “How did you not know?” Dawn whispered, trying to keep their conversation quiet. “Everyone in town knows. Didn’t you see the crowd?”

  Courtney shook her head. “No. I mean, I guess I noticed some people hanging out more toward your way, but I didn’t see anything.”

  That much was at least plausible. Courtney lived with her folks in a house in the opposite direction from Jim’s. She didn’t have to walk by the scene to get to work like Dawn did.

  “Some hiker was attacked by an animal,” Dawn explained. “In town. There are cops and FBI checking it out now.”

  “Wow,” Courtney said, but there was still excitement in her eyes. Even the news of a dead hiker found so close to home wasn’t enough to kill the energy that was bursting from her. “Okay, that sucks, but can I tell you the good news now?”

  “Sure,” Dawn relented. It better be good, she thought to herself. It wasn’t like Courtney to be so uncouth about a situation like this.

  “Okay, this is crazy,” Courtney gushed. “You know that cabin off of highway seventy-nine?”

  “Um, no?” Dawn said. She wasn’t much for doing any exploring outside of town, and she definitely didn’t go looking at other houses. She was lucky enough to be renting the place she had.

  “Well, someone bought it!” she said, but Dawn already assumed that’s where she was headed with her train of thought.

  “Is it someone you know?” Dawn asked, feeling like she was playing twenty questions.

  “Yes!” Courtney gushed. “Well, not know know, but he’s totally famous.”

  “Okay,” Dawn said. “Spill the beans. Who is it?”

  “Gavin Mosley!” she shrieked. “He moved in last week, my brother Andy saw him at the hardware store and they were chatting. He told Andy that after his shoulder injury forced him to retire last season, he had been thinking about moving to a small town, and he chose Goosemont!”

  “Who’s Gavin Mosley?” was all Dawn could reply with.

  “Are you kidding me?” Courtney laughed. “He’s only one of the greatest first basemen ever! In his first season, he broke the record for most stolen bases by a rookie player, and he was on track to becoming one of the greats before he wrecked his shoulder sliding into third base last year.”

  Dawn shrugged. “Sorry. Never heard of him.”

  “Whatever,” Courtney said. “He’s famous, and I’ve heard he’s really nice and he’s totally hot. Oh my God, I’m so excited, I can’t even see straight.”

  “Well, tell you what,” Dawn said as she listened to Gabe chuckling at Courtney’s hyperactive rambling. “It’s not busy, and you are way too energetic for today’s crowd. Hang back here with Gabe and calm down for a bit. I’ll take care of the tables.”

  Courtney stuck out her tongue at Dawn’s instructions, but her eyes were playful and excited and Dawn knew her friend wasn’t really mad. How could she be? Her mind was probably too wrapped up in some baseball player to remember Dawn even confining her to the kitchen for a spell.

  It wasn’t like Dawn needed the help on the floor. Only a few tables were occupied come six, and most of them were only grabbing a couple beers.

  “Damn,” Jim said as he stepped out of his office and into the dining room. “Figured those FBI guys might at least come by for dinner, get a few more mouths through the door.”

  Just the thought of the FBI agents coming into the bar made Dawn’s stomach flutter. She didn’t need them coming to her bar, seeing her name on their tab, or getting a good look at her face.

  “Do you think they’re staying at the Mountain Lodge?” she asked Jim.

  The Mountain Lodge was a small motel near the edge of town. Originally built in the fifties to house hikers and tourists, the place hadn’t seen much upkeep since it opened. Over the years, it had fallen into disrepair, but the elderly couple who ran it refused to close up shop. By comparison, the Mountain Lodge made Jim’s bar look like a five-star Manhattan gastro pub.

  “Ha!” was the answer Jim offered. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I guess not.” Dawn had to laugh at that. She was still pretty new in town, but everyone knew about the Mountain Lodge and how rundown it was.

  “They all probably stayed over in Chester. Their motel is at least free of bugs,” Jim said. “Which means they’re all probably drinking over there.”

  Jim had a good point. The bar was nearly dead, save the few diehards that came almost every night for their beers.

  As the sun set, Courtney finally came out of the kitchen, having calmed down enough that she could handle pouring some beers while Dawn went to the kitchen to grab one of Gabe’s amazing cheeseburgers.

  “So what do you make of this dead hiker thing?” Gabe asked while Dawn began to munch on the juicy, if incredibly greasy, food.

  “I dunno,” Dawn mumbled between bites. “I mean, it’s pretty scary, but if we don’t go wandering off alone at night, we should be fine, right?”

  “Oh, totally,” Gabe said as he grabbed one of the fries right out of the basket and began to nibble on it. “And don’t worry, I’m happy to walk you and Courtney home after work, just to be safe.”

  “Thanks Gabe,” Dawn said with a smile. Gabe could be a bit of a blowhard at times, but he was genuinely a nice guy. A bit crass, but he was the first one to step up when someone needed him.

  “What do you think about this baseball player nonsense?” he asked while they both munched on their food.

  Dawn laughed, thinking about Courtney’s reaction to even the idea that some famous player was in town. “That I’ll believe when I see it. I mean, why would some baseball player move to Goosemont?”

  “Privacy,” Gabe offered. “I mean, why did you move here?”

  That stopped Dawn mid-bite as she forced herself to swallow. It wasn’t the first time she’d been asked that question, but she hated answering it every time.

  “Just tired of city living, if you can call Cleveland that,” she lied as usual. “I knew college wasn’t for me, and my parents refused to listen. I guess I wanted to prove to them that I could make it on my own, and what better place than Goosemont?”

  “I guess,” Gabe said. “But don’t people go to New York City when they want to ‘make it on their own?’ ”

  Dawn immediately shot the idea down. “New York isn’t for me. Too big, too many phonies, too much corruption. Goosemont barely even has cellphone service. Can’t expect a town this size to be too corrupt.”

  “I guess not,” Gabe relented. “I mean, Mayor Higgins is ninety-two years old, and there are only about three hundred folks of voting age. Doesn’t seem like there would be much point in back alley dealing.”

  “Exactly,” Dawn agreed. “Plus, I figured the mountain air would be good for me.”

  “No denying that,” Gabe said.

  Dawn was about to change the subject toward anything that wasn’t about why people moved to Goosemont, or worse, where she’d lived before, when Courtney burst through the galley door separating the kitchen from the bar.

  “Oh my God,” she half whispered, half hissed. “Oh my God!”

  “Courtney,” Dawn said as she pulled her away from the door so their few customers wouldn’t hear her outburst. “What? Spit it out!”

  “He’s
here,” she panted as she squeezed Dawn’s hands in her own. “Oh my God, Dawn, he’s here!”

  “Who’s here?” Dawn asked, though she was pretty certain of the answer.

  “Gavin Mosley. He’s here right now sitting at a table!”

  “So go take his order,” Dawn instructed, finding it hard to share her friend’s enthusiasm for the situation.

  “I can’t!” Courtney said. “Come on, come with me. I can’t go alone.”

  Dawn couldn’t hide the roll of her eyes at that. Courtney did have a bit of a flare for the dramatic, but this was bordering on ridiculous. The girl was dancing in place like some kid who had to pee.

  “He’s just a guy,” Dawn said, trying to calm her down. “Just like any other guy who walks in through those doors. Take his order, bring it back here, and that’s it. Easy.”

  “Please,” Courtney begged. “Just come out there with me. Please, please, please!”

  “Fine,” Dawn relented. “But take a breath first and calm down.”

  In truth, helping Courtney wasn’t the only reason that Dawn let her friend lead her back out to the bar. She also wanted to see what all the fuss was about. She was curious whether or not Gavin Mosley was as impressive as Courtney was insisting he was.

  The bar was still mostly deserted when Dawn walked back out. There were a couple regulars sitting at their usual tables, but at a table in the center of the room sat a man Dawn had never seen before.

  It had to be him. Even sitting down, he was taller than anyone else in at Jim’s and he had broad, square shoulders. His brown hair fell to his ears in silky waves, and even from across the room, Dawn could make out his big brown eyes.

  There was no denying he was attractive, and Dawn could finally understand why Courtney was making such a fuss over him. There was an easy confidence about him as he leaned back in his chair and let his long legs spill out from under the table. It was obvious he’d taken the time to dress like he belonged in town, but rather than a Costco jacket and second-hand jeans, his clothes were well made, high-end versions of the styles seen around the small town she was calling home.

  “Come on,” Courtney whispered to her as she gave Dawn’s hand a tug.

  “No,” Dawn said as she watched Gavin play with the condiments sitting on the table. “You go, do your thing. Maybe he’s single.”

  Courtney’s eyes lit up at that, and she began to strut for the table where the baseball player sat. He might have been handsome, but he’d attract more attention than he was worth. Courtney could have him, if he wanted her, of course. Dawn was better off avoiding someone that recognizable.

  From the safety of the bar, she watched Courtney strike up a conversation with the famous player. She was content to watch as her friend flashed a winning smile at him, and Dawn was about to make her exit for the kitchen again when the door swung open once more.

  She expected to see another regular, but the man who walked in wasn’t someone from town. In an instant, Dawn recognized their latest diner as the FBI agent from before, the one with striking green eyes and an ill-fitting suit.

  And he was looking right at her.

  Chapter Three

  It didn’t take long for Courtney to forget that she’d begged Dawn for backup when it came time to take the former pro-baseball player’s order. She’d instantly dropped the shy and timid act the moment Gavin Mosley locked eyes with her. Courtney flipped the switch and now she was acting like the vivacious redhead that everyone in town knew she was.

  Dawn was more than fine with the fact that Courtney was just about in Gavin Mosley’s lap as she took his order, but that meant that it was up to her to approach the FBI agent to see what he wanted to drink. She almost would have preferred to take on Mosley.

  Cops had never been Dawn’s forte. Even though the few in town were more Barney Fife than they were Vic Mackey, they still gave her cause for concern. One wrong move, and the next thing she knew, someone could be looking into who Dawn Garrett really was.

  Even though the agent had changed out of his ill-fitting suit, he was still instantly recognizable. That same dirty blond hair, those same green eyes, and that same five o’clock shadow he’d yet to shave.

  Instead of the suit, he had changed into something that seemed to fit him better. The man was more at ease as he sat at the table, his long legs outstretched as he picked at the pretzels in a bowl in front of him. With his faded plaid shirt, scuffed jeans, and an olive green jacket, he looked like any other lumberjack or hunter that came through town over the fall. If Dawn hadn’t have seen him earlier, she would have never guessed he was FBI, a cop, or anything more than someone looking for work or game.

  Come on, she pushed herself. Just get it done and over with. The longer you stand here staring, the more suspicious you look.

  That was when it hit her. She’d been staring at him for at least a minute, and he was looking right back at her. There was no way to deny it, and now she had to scramble to come up with an excuse that didn’t sound suspicious.

  “Hi, sorry,” she finally forced herself to stutter as she approached the table where the federal agent sat. He’d picked a spot along the wall, far enough from the other diners to go unnoticed by almost everyone except for Dawn.

  “It’s fine,” the man said as he picked up the placemat that doubled as a menu. The look he was giving her didn’t agree with his sentiment, but he didn’t seem angry, either. More than anything, he appeared to be curious as his eyes met Dawn’s again.

  “It’s just…” Dawn struggled, looking for something to say. “Didn’t I see you earlier today? Down at, well, whatever that was up the street?”

  In the end, honesty was her best bet. There was nothing inherently suspicious about a young woman walking by a crowd of people on her way to work. She was no one but a face in the crowd that just so happened to catch the eye of one of the officers. Nothing more, nothing less.

  “I think so, yeah,” he said. A smile began to touch the corners of his full lips.

  “Bit of a mess, I guess,” Dawn said, trying to keep the conversation on what had happened in town so that he didn’t direct any of his interest toward her.

  “I’d say,” the agent replied with a soft shake of his head.

  “People are saying it was a bear attack,” Dawn said, suddenly realizing she was just as curious about what had happened as the rest of town. Despite her internal arguments to the contrary, there was no denying that a vicious animal attack just off Main Street was interesting.

  “Could be,” the man said with a thoughtful look. “We’re looking in to it.” That was when he stuck out his right hand for her, and on some ingrained instinct, Dawn offered her own. “Kevin Nash, FBI,” he said as he gave her hand a firm shake.

  “Dawn Garrett,” she introduced herself, the name so familiar that it was more her own than any of the ones she’d gone by before. “Wait,” she said as he released her hand. “Really, Kevin Nash? Like the wrestler?”

  “You watch wrestling?” Agent Nash asked with an impressed smile. “You don’t really look like the type.”

  “Well,” she said, feeling just a little more comfortable now, “my dad and I watched it when I was a kid. Kevin Nash was one of his favorites from the nineties.”

  “That’s pretty cool,” Agent Nash said as he smiled at her, a real smile this time, and it sent a jolt of electricity through Dawn as they locked eyes again. “Your dad the owner of this place?”

  “Nah,” Dawn said, forcing herself to stay casual even when being asked about her family life. “My dad passed away when I was little.”

  “Sorry to hear that,” Agent Nash said. “Mine did, too. I know that pain too well.”

  “Thanks,” Dawn said as she awkwardly shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “So, um,” she struggled, forcing herself back on track. “What can I get you?”

  “Let’s see,” he said as he turned his attention back to his menu. “I’ll go with one of your cheeseburgers, and some fries, and wha
tever you have on tap.”

  “We’ve got Bud, Blue, Coors, Molson, and Blue Moon,” Dawn told him, reading off the draft beer selections from memory.

  “Bud’s fine,” Agent Nash said as he offered her another smile.

  For a second, Dawn’s feet were glued to the floor. There was something about his smile that drew her in. Sure, there was no denying he was attractive, and he held her gaze better than the famous baseball player, that was for sure, but his smile, Dawn could lose herself in that smile and be happy forever.

  No. Her mind snapped free as she forced her feet to move. He could be playing you, forcing you to drop your guard. Just go place his order and stay away.

  She intended to do just that as she made her way across the bar. As she passed the table where Gavin Mosley sat, she realized that Courtney wasn’t just practically in his lap, but all the way in it as he fed her one of the pretzels from the bar. If Dawn hadn’t have known any better, she would have just assumed they were two lovesick teens, not a waitress and a customer who had literally just met.

  Whatever, Dawn said as she forced herself not to laugh at the silly scene. Good for her.

  Courtney had been, despite her best efforts to hide it, of course, morose since the end of summer. Her last boyfriend, Chuck, had left at the end of August to find work in one of the coal mines further south. Courtney had been heartbroken and spent the first few September shifts taking orders with tears in her eyes until Jim sat her down and told her she needed to pull herself together.

  Since then, Courtney had done well to pretend she was fine, but there was always a little bit of pain hiding in the corners of her eyes, even when Dawn insisted she was better off without Chuck, a lazy, chronically unemployed slob who had flunked out of college after a couple months and came back to Goosemont with only tales of sexual conquest and drinking prowess.

  Still, Courtney had loved the big idiot. Dawn was more than glad to see him go, and she knew that eventually Courtney would get over him, but she hated him for breaking her heart. He’d promised to write, like most of the town, Courtney’s family didn’t have a computer—but he never did. Not even a phone call. Nothing.