It was to this gate Jason led her. On the other side, she stepped into a small, enclosed yard with a steep slant. A neglected-looking orange tree in one corner provided the only shade. Dry, patchy grass was strewn with weeds and needed trimming. The house, perched at the top of the hill that comprised the yard, appeared to be in decent shape, at least from the outside. She followed Jason up the slope and into a screened-in patio with a white plastic table and a single chair that both looked as though they could use a good cleaning. Using his own keys he unlocked the back door and swung it open for her.
Kelli couldn’t maintain her silence any longer. “You have a key to my mother’s house?” Her voice rang with disapproval.
His eyelids narrowed, and he met her gaze without flinching. “I’ve been feeding her cat since she went to the hospital.”
“Oh.” Kelli dropped her head and slipped past him into the house. Lillian had a cat? She’d never mentioned it. Another thing her only daughter should have known.
The room in which she found herself was sparsely furnished, and immaculately clean. A squarish sofa rested against the back wall to the right of the front door and beneath a wide picture window with thick tan curtains. Beside it, a wing chair sat at a ninety-degree angle facing a small television set on top of a spindly cart that looked like it should hold a microwave oven instead. A curved laminate countertop separated the living room from a compact but fully appointed kitchen, and that was where Jason set the box.
He strode past her and placed her suitcase beside a doorway to the right. “This is the bedroom, and over there—” he pointed to a short hallway at the other end of the great room “—is her office. I’ve only glanced in, but I’m afraid you might have a mess to deal with. It looks about like her zoo office.”
Kelli’s gaze took in the room in which they stood. “This room is so clean.”
“I don’t think she spent much time in here.” An indulgent grin twisted his lips. “She was kind of a workaholic.”
He didn’t think. Did that mean he didn’t know, because he didn’t spend any time here either? The hint of a dimple in his chin became more noticeable when his smile cocked sideways. Looking at it, Kelli found herself hoping she was wrong about him. Maybe he was nothing more than what he appeared, a nice guy who shared Lillian’s love of zoo animals.
But what about that trust? How did he manage to get Lillian to name him as her successor at the zoo, and my boss?
A large yellow cat appeared from the bedroom behind him. It arched its back as it rubbed against Jason’s leg, meowing loudly. The sound cut off abruptly when the animal noticed Kelli. In an instant, it shot back into the bedroom.
Jason’s smile became apologetic. “Leo’s a little shy around strangers, but he’ll get used to you.” He paused and looked away. “That is, if you’re here long enough.”
He’s hoping I’ll leave. Kelli tightened her lips at the realization. If I walk out, what happens to my share of the trust? Does he get it, maybe?
The question that had hovered in her mind since Mr. Lewis told her the condition of the trust shot out of her mouth before she could reconsider asking. “Tell me something. Exactly what was your relationship with my mother?”
“My rela—” Confusion slowly drained from his face as he picked up the meaning behind her question. A flush colored the already-tanned cheeks. “She was my boss. And I like to think she counted me as a friend, too. She didn’t have many friends.” His eyes narrowed. “Or family, either, apparently.”
A jab at her. Okay, she probably deserved that. And it was certainly true. She hadn’t been a model daughter. She closed her eyes and rubbed them with a thumb and forefinger. It galled her to realize Jason knew more about her mother than she did. But that didn’t mean she had to be rude.
“I’m sorry. I’m not thinking very clearly right now.” She opened her eyes and forced a quick smile. “Today has been a shock, to say the least.”
His expression remained guarded as he stared at her. Then he nodded slowly. “I’m sure it has. I’ll leave you alone.” He pulled the key ring out of his pocket. When he had twisted off a key, he placed it on the empty countertop. “Now you have all the house keys.”
A glimmer of light caught his eyes and warmed his gaze. Kelli found herself wanting to return his smile.
Instead, she looked down at the beige carpet between them. “Thank you.”
“If you need anything, call the zoo office and ask for me. The number’s in the phone book.”
He hesitated as though he wanted to add something, but then changed his mind and left. Kelli crossed to the back door and lifted one of the mini blinds’ slats to watch as he strode across the weedy yard. When he’d disappeared through the back fence, she turned and leaned against the door. The room was sterile, eerily so.
She looked at the box. Its presence seemed to dominate the silent house. Here she was, alone at last with her mother.
“Lillian, why did you do this? Are you trying to punish me?”
Her questions fell flat. The polished wood swam in Kelli’s vision when the first tears since that terrible phone call three days ago filled her eyes. Impatiently, she brushed them away, much like she’d seen Jason do during the service. With a loud sigh, uttered more for its noise value than anything else, she lifted her laptop case to the counter and opened the front flap, where she’d placed her copy of the trust and her mother’s letter. Maybe she’d find some answers there.
Jason let himself through the gate and paused on the other side, his breath whooshing out as his lungs deflated. That girl was more like Lil than he’d originally thought. The direct way she had of fixing those gray eyes on him, of thrusting out her chin like she was ready to take on anyone who stood in her way. Just like Lil used to do when they were working on a problem with one of the animals. Only he’d caught a couple of emotions flickering across Kelli’s face that he’d never seen Lil display. Right before he left, for instance, she’d looked so tired, even a little vulnerable. Small. Lil was always larger than life, in control—of her emotions and of any situation that arose.
“Oh, Lil, we’re sure going to miss you around here.”
He crossed the trail to lean on the top rail of the fence surrounding Cali and Halil’s yard, and watched the kangaroos snooze in the shade. They’d been at Cougar Bay for a couple of years, compliments of a failed private zoo up in Kentucky. Lil had been ruthless in her determination to acquire them, their first large marsupials. They’d quickly become a favorite among zoo guests.
What had happened between Lil and her daughter? Jason’s conversations with his boss in the past few weeks had been frustratingly unenlightening. He hadn’t known what to expect from Kelli, but in some part of his mind he thought she’d be Lil’s total opposite. Flighty, maybe. Or perhaps openly rebellious, with purple hair or pierced eyebrows or something. What else besides rebellion could drive such a wedge between a mother and daughter? He certainly hadn’t expected an intelligent, beautiful woman with pain lurking in her eyes.
But he probably should have. Lil’s words, uttered in a raspy, shallow voice in her hospital bed the day before she died, rang in his memory.
“She won’t be happy about this, Jason. With good reason. It’s going to be painful, and she’ll probably hate you.” She’d paused to catch her breath. “Don’t go easy on her, though. Everybody needs to face their fears. And if she fails…” Lil’s voice had trailed off.
Jason heaved a sigh. He was getting accustomed to being hated by beautiful women. But after meeting Kelli Jackson,