by Chloe Morgan
“Well, maybe just once,” I laughed.
“See? You’re changing your mind on shit already. I’ve still got a chance.”
I rolled my eyes as a taxi pulled up in front of us. We tossed our stuff into the back and got in, and then Stephen rattled off his home address.
“Mom and Dad know I’m headed home. She said she was making all of my favorites,” he said.
“I hope she’s got three tables. Because you have a lot of favorites,” I said, grinning.
“Hey, don’t hate because I’m going home to food and you’re headed home to a surprise with a toasted bagel.”
“My mother makes the best bagels, mind you. And she buys that whipped cream cheese that is sorely underrated.”
Stephen shook his head. “You’re insane, you know that?”
I gazed out the window, watching the mountains roll by.
“Did you ever think we’d be here?” I asked.
“We grew up here,” Stephen said.
“You know what I mean, asshole.”
Stephen sighed. “No. I never thought I’d be a Marine. I never thought I’d be a legal killer.”
“Stephen, come on.”
“No, I’m serious. Because I want you to know why I want to come back here when I’m out in three months,” he said.
I settled in for the story as we wound toward his house.
“It’s easy to forget the fact that this place can be beautiful. You know, after being shot at and blown up, given the runaround. It’s easy to forget that this world can be beautiful. That people can get along,” he said.
“Yeah. I know,” I said.
“Coming back here reminds me of all the good I fought for. It reminds me of all the good memories we made as kids. You know, like the time you tumbled down that hill and jammed a stick through your leg.”
“That’s not a good memory for me, thank you very much.”
“Well, it’s a hilarious one for me. Only time I’ve ever seen you cry,” he said, chuckling.
“I had a branch through my leg!” I exclaimed.
“It was a twig, and you didn’t even need stitches.”
I smiled and shook my head.
“I miss Colorado. It reminds me of the good I fought for. And it reminds me that I’m not a bad person for no longer wanting to fight,” Stephen said.
“Who the fuck thinks you’re a bad person for not wanting to fight anymore?” I asked.
Stephen shrugged. “That’s how I feel sometimes. With people that tell me to keep re-enlisting. Like the colonel. It makes me feel like I’m some shitty person for not even considering it. But I don’t want to. I’m ready to be done with it. With the bullets and the blood and the bombs.”
I sat back and considered his words. I missed Colorado, too. I missed the mountains. The view. The slower pace of life. But I’d gotten to see so much of the world because of the Marines. There were other beautiful places I could still end up if I stayed in.
“Anyway, this is my stop,” Stephen said.
I looked out the window at his childhood home and smiled.
“Leave some food for me. I’ll come over tomorrow,” I said.
“I’ll try. But I can’t make any promises. You know this stomach can fit two and a half tables of food.”
I laughed before I reached over and clapped him on the back with a hug.
I rattled off the address to my mother’s interior design business. I was proud of her for opening it, especially after Dad had died. It had taken some encouraging on my part, but I wanted her to follow her dreams. Dad had been the breadwinner for so long that she didn’t think she could do it. But I knew the passion she had for interior decorating and architecture. The cab pulled up and I got out. I watched as my mother locked up the shop, unaware of my presence. I dipped down and paid the driver, then pulled my shit out of the back.
And when I looked up across the parking lot, I saw a very beautiful woman getting into her car.
I’d never seen her before. Which was saying something, since this town was so small. She was slender, with wide hips and a deep sway that mesmerized me while she walked. Her hair sat in this sort of bob thing at her chin. Jet-black. And when she turned and looked out over the shop before she got into her car, I caught a glimpse of her light green eyes. The sun reflected off them, illuminating them with a beauty that dropped my jaw. Her skin was fair, her legs long.
I wanted to know her name.
“Dane?”
My mother’s voice caught my ear, and I turned around. The cab drove off, and I dropped my bags, watching my mother tear across the parking lot. She opened her arms to me, and I picked her up, swinging her around in my arms. She buried her face into the crook of my neck and cried as she clung to me, like she hadn’t seen me in years.
“Oh my gosh. It’s really you,” she whispered.
“You saw me seven months ago,” I said.
“Which is ages in this town.”
“I’m sorry I don’t have a bouquet of daisies for you. This was kind of last minute.”
I settled her down onto her feet before her hands started dusting me off.
“Don’t worry. I can’t stand daisies anyway,” she said.
I furrowed my brow. “Wait a second. You don’t like daisies?”
“Can’t stand them.”
“But Dad always brought them for you when he was gone on business trips.”
“Didn’t have the heart to tell them they smelled like bird shit,” she said, grinning.
“And you weren’t going to tell me they smelled like bird shit?” I asked.
“Hush that nonsense. Such a potty mouth.”
I chuckled and shook my head.
“You’re a piece of work, you know that?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t be your mother if I weren’t,” she said.
“You really weren’t going to tell me you hate daisies?”
“Old news now, son. And you know what your father always said about old news.”
I grinned. “Old news is worse than no news—”
“Because it makes you sound like an idiot,” my mother finished.
“What a welcome home. My flower bouquets smell like bird dung, and I’m an idiot.”
The two of us shared a laugh before my mother threw her arms around me again.
“I can’t believe you’re home,” she whispered.
“I love you too, Mom,” I said.
Chapter 4
Erin
“He just drove up in a cab! No phone call. No email. No letter. Nothing,” Miss Claire said.
“How long is he back in town?”
“He says a month. But there’s something he’s hiding,” she said.
“A bad something?”
“I don’t know. He won’t talk about it, and I never push him to,” she said.
“So, you’re filling him up with alcohol and good food to get him to talk. Right?”
I shook my head as I continued to work, listening to Miss Claire gossip with another employee. I shuffled some papers around and signed a few things, then heard her call me into her office. I knew it was to regale me about the story. I’d worked with Miss Claire long enough to know what was about to happen.
“Erin, you’ll never guess what happened yesterday,” Miss Claire said.
I closed her door behind me. “What?”
“Dane surprised me with coming home. Ah!”
She squealed and ran at me with her arms opened wide. I wasn’t much of a hugger. In fact, I hated it. She wrapped her arms around me, and I patted her back softly, plastering a smile on my face.
“Oh, it was wonderful. I took him home and got him some food. We sat and talked until, I don’t know, almost eleven last night,” she said.
“Sounds like you had a nice time,” I said.
I was relieved when she let go of me.
“I’m so glad my boy is home. For a whole month. He hasn’t been home that long since he enlisted all those years back. Oh, my b
oy is all grown up. I just looked into his eyes last night and saw a man, you know?”
“Isn’t he twenty-seven years old?” I asked.
“Twenty-eight. And you can mock me now. But one day, you’ll know what it feels like with Hailey.”
“Well, I’m glad he’s back in town to see you. I know you’ve been talking about how you miss him.”
“I told him to come by the shop today. I want you to meet him,” she said.
“I can’t. I’ve got a meeting with a client today,” I said.
“Oh, well. He’ll be around for an entire month. I’m sure you two will run into one another eventually.”
“I’m sure we will.”
I loathed client meetings. Human interaction, in general, was exhausting to me. But meeting new people at the drop of a hat? I would have rather thrown myself off one of the snowcapped mountains. But meeting my boss’s son sounded like an even worse choice. He was someone I’d have to fake liking in order to not piss her off.
At least I didn’t have to do that with clients. If they were dickheads, I could simply quote them out the ass for a final monetary total on their ideas and get Miss Claire’s business a nice payday.
This client meeting over lunch was with a lovely married couple that talked way too much.
“You must be Erin Sims,” the husband said.
I shook the client’s hand before we sat down for coffee.
“Miss Claire spoke highly of you,” the wife said.
“I hear you’re wanting to completely renovate for a nursery,” I said.
“Well, yes. But, we also figured Miss Claire could renovate the entire back half of our house. You know, make it into a sort of child haven for our little one,” the wife said.
“I’m sure we can make that happen,” I said.
“We know the color scheme is mint green, pastel blue, and cream colors. No white,” the husband said.
“Absolutely no white,” the wife said.
“No white. Got it,” I said.
Get me out of this meeting.
“We really like regal styles,” the husband said.
“But not too regal. Sharp corners and all,” the wife said.
“Regal doesn’t have sharp corners,” I said.
“Then, lots of regal!” the wife exclaimed.
“Do you have any ideas?” the husband asked.
Both of them stared at me, and I felt my palms sweating.
“Any animals… or anything?” I asked.
“Oh, that’s a good idea. We should have an animal for our child, too,” the wife said.
“I like horses,” the husband said.
“Those are regal. But so are dogs. You know, the dogs with long flowing hair?” the wife asked.
“Oh, and dolphins,” the husband said.
“Dolphins aren’t regal, sweetheart.”
“I think they are. Graceful. Poised. What do you think, Erin?”
“Hmm?” I asked.
“Are dolphins regal or not?” the wife asked.
I looked between the two of them and tried to keep my cool.
“Um… yes?” I asked.
“See! I told you. Regal,” the husband said.
I was so glad when that meeting finally wrapped up. I had a color scheme, dolphins, regal with lots of question marks, and a very intricate layout of how they wanted the back half of their home to flow. I walked out of there as quickly as I could and got into my car, breathing a sigh of relief.
I smiled as I pulled into the parking lot of Miss Claire’s business. But my smile faded when I saw someone walking to her car.
A big someone.
With etched muscles, short brown hair, and tattoos that peeked out from underneath his T-shirt.
Was that Dane?
I slipped down into my seat, hoping Claire wouldn’t see my car. I drew in a few deep breaths, trying to calm my nervous energy. I didn’t want to be seen by them. I didn’t want to have to shake another stranger’s hand today. His grip would probably be strong, given those rippling muscles. I’d probably stare too much at his tattoos. I’d look like a fucking idiot. Did he have Claire’s hazel eyes? Because if he did, I’d stare too long at those as well.
“Please don’t see me. Please don’t see me. Please don’t see me.”
I peeked out the window as I heard a truck pass by me. I took a look at the driver and watched him turn his head, looking both ways. Yes. He did. He did have hazel eyes. And when they connected with mine, I felt something strike me in my gut.
Before I ducked back down and hid myself from view again.
Chapter 5
Dane
I stood there looking through the office door, watching as she worked. I didn’t know her name. I didn’t know where she’d come from. But I couldn’t stop thinking about her. A grin slid across my cheeks. My mind rushed back to yesterday, seeing her in her car before she ducked down. She had been so cute, trying to stay out of view and give my mother and myself some privacy in the parking lot. I hadn’t been able to get her off my mind. So, I resolved myself to something bold.
Something to get her attention.
I pushed through the doorway and heard the bell sound over my head.
“Welcome to Claire Design, how may I help—”
Her statement cut off as she looked up at me with a pair of light green eyes that took my breath away.
“I’m sorry, your mother isn’t here right now,” she said.
My eyes dropped to her desk.
“Erin,” I said.
I watched her nod.
“I know she’s not here right now. She never comes in until after lunch on Fridays,” I said.
Another nod, but no sound.
“I actually came to meet you,” I said.
Her eyes widened, and the look was endearing on her. The jet-black hair she donned against her creamy skin framed her face in a way that made her cheeks look full. It gave her skin an innocent texture, one I wanted to brush my fingers against.
“Me?” she asked.
“Yes. I’d like to take you to lunch,” I said.
“Lunch.”
“Yes. Lunch. You know, that thing most people eat around this time.”
She snickered before clearing her throat.
“I’m not sure if that’s…”
I waited for her to finish her sentence.
“I’m just busy right now,” she said.
“I know my mother’s schedule and how she formats things like the back of my hand. And I know she’d never let you work through your lunch break. She’d have your head for it,” I said.
Another snicker from her. “Yes. Miss Claire would.”
“So, join me for lunch.”
Someone started coming down the back hallway, and Erin whipped her head around. The pencil dropped from her hand as another one of my mother’s employees came around the corner.
“Oh, hey there, Dane! Your mom’s not here right now.”
“I know. I’m here to see Erin, actually,” I said.
She shot me a look that told me to shut up, and it only served to fuel my fire.
“I was wanting to know if she’d—”
“Yes, okay?” Erin asked quickly.
“Yes?” I asked.
“Just… shush,” she said quietly.
My grin turned into a full-blown smile. “I’ll be outside, then. Ten minutes.”
I nodded to my mother’s employee, then made my way out the door. I stood there, waiting for Erin to emerge and her beauty to grace my presence again. I drew in a deep breath as a small breeze kicked up—a smell from my childhood I’d never grow tired of.
The door beside me opened and out she came. Short. Curvy. Proud. She had her shoulders rolled back and her head held high, but there was a tentativeness in her stare that didn’t match her posture. Even for her height, she had long legs. It was hard not to stare at them. I pushed off the wall and smiled at her, then ushered for her to start walking down the covered walkway.
There was a pizza joint at the end of it I never could drive past without salivating.
“So, how was work this morning?” I asked.
“Thought you knew your mother’s schedule,” Erin said.
“So, slow, then.”
She nodded but didn’t say anything.
“Do you work on the weekends for her?” I asked.
She shook her head.
“Do you help her with some of her client meetings and such?” I asked.
She nodded.
“Do you speak at all with these clients?”
Erin grinned. “When I have to.”
I nodded as we continued on our journey. It was quiet, and she was short on her answers. But I was confident I’d get her to hold a conversation with me over lunch. We came to the end of the covered walkway, and I opened the door for her. It was a little hole-in-the-wall joint that had the best possible pizza anyone could imagine.
But Erin stopped as her eyes took in the pretty beat-up facade.
“Here?” she asked.
“Where else?” I asked.
She furrowed her brow as her eyes raked along the dented and dinged door.
“There’s a sandwich place around the corner back that way,” she said.
“Or you could treat this restaurant like myself,” I said.
Erin cocked her head.
“You could give it a chance to prove to you that it isn’t going to kill you,” I said coyly.
Erin giggled softly, and the sound tightened my gut.
“You’ll be surprised once you give it a chance. Come on. What do you have to lose?” I asked.
She looked up at me, and there was something in her eyes that flashed. Something that twisted the knife that dug into my gut. There was a pain there, a sadness. An emptiness that surprised me.
“Okay,” she said softly.
Then, she walked through the door as I held it open for her.
Chapter 6
Erin
I wasn’t impressed when we got inside. Nor was I impressed when we sat down. The place looked run-down from the outside, and I had to brush off my seat of crumbs before I sat down. I settled my hands in my lap. I was afraid to touch the surface of the table. Dane plucked some napkins from the holder on the table, then folded them up to perfection. I watched him get all the angles right, folding and unfolding until the square was to his liking.