She also talked with a pseudo-British accent and hated anyone outside of her social circle, so not exactly Austin’s type. Heck, the woman wasn’t Carrie’s type. But Alesandra had taken a chance on Carrie despite her limited experience and lack of a graduate degree. Carrie didn’t understand why she got the chance but would always be grateful for the opportunity.
The fact Alesandra laughed at whatever Austin said would take longer to analyze. The older woman put her hand to her chest then her mouth. Giggled like a flirty schoolgirl.
Then she waved to Carrie. Actually, put up her hand and wiggled her fingers like she was the queen or something.
Carrie blinked but the picture didn’t change. “What the heck?”
Shawn let out a low whistle. “Don’t see that every day.”
“He charmed her.” Carrie watched it but didn’t believe it.
Oh, she knew Austin could win most people over. Her boss was just not a normal person. Alesandra moved in that realm of people blessed with power and prestige thanks to rich parents. Talking about anything other than art and horses didn’t suit her, and those happened to be two of Austin’s least favorite subjects.
“I guess we found someone who thinks he’s funny,” Shawn said.
“That is a terrifying thought.”
As she said the words, Austin looked up and snagged her gaze. He treated her to a half bow then leaned down to listen to whatever her boss whispered in his ear. After a few nods, he kissed the older woman’s hand and started down the steps, leaving her flushed and smiling.
Carrie waited to wake up. This had to be a dream.
“Good evening.” Shawn held out his hand to Austin and they shook.
But Austin’s gaze never left Carrie. “You look stunning. Like, I-can’t-find-the-words stunning.”
“Thank you.” She couldn’t really say much else over the dryness in her mouth, so she went with that.
“I especially like the color.”
If he wanted to think she dressed for him…well, she couldn’t really deny it with a clear conscience, so she let the comment drop. “Where did you find the tux on short notice? You could have worn a suit.”
“If you pay a high enough amount to the rental place, they’ll get it done same day.” Austin leaned in and kissed her cheek before turning back to Shawn. “I see you recovered from your date with Carrie.”
“It was the date with you that’s taking longer to overcome.”
Austin smiled. “Nicely done, Shawn.”
“I was about to say the same to you.” Shawn offered Austin a drink.
His smile faltered as he waved off the glass. “You lost me.”
“Mrs. Harper-Cunningham. The old crone isn’t known for small talk.”
They all glanced over at the woman in question. She now wore her usual puckered frown. With arms crossed over her thick stomach, she shook her head at some unsuspecting board member.
“Now, that’s the Alesandra I know,” Carrie said.
“I wouldn’t talk negatively about her. She loves you,” Austin said.
Carrie snorted.
“She told me how impressed she is with your work ethic and enthusiasm. She’s very satisfied she discovered you, and that’s a direct quote, by the way.” Pride filled Austin’s voice.
The fact he heard the compliments, that Alesandra even said them, stunned Carrie. When she crashed back to earth she had to concentrate to keep from jumping around.
She wasn’t the weepy type, but that almost did it. She put in long hours and did whatever anyone asked so she would be viewed as indispensable. If the museum needed to cut costs, she didn’t want to be considered extra overhead.
But praise? Alesandra didn’t give much of that and to know she said it to Austin made Carrie want to raise her fists and shout hooray. She was desperate for him to get it, see it. For him to want to share moments like these with her.
“She seems to think you were born for this career,” Austin said.
Something in his tone grabbed Carrie’s attention. “How did she know we even knew each other?”
“She asked who I was, demanded really, and I told her.”
“What exactly did you say?”
Austin didn’t hesitate. “I’m your boyfriend.”
Shawn laughed. “She’ll have engagement announcements out within the week.”
“Works for me.” Austin shrugged as Carrie frowned. “What? It does.”
The conversation around them buzzed as the room hummed with activity and music pumped through speakers hidden in plants. Still, Carrie didn’t move. Even her heartbeat slowed as she stood there and stared at Austin.
He sounded so serious, so ready to commit. Despite months apart and all the arguments about work and leaving, his voice didn’t waver and neither did his eye contact. She had no idea where that wealth of determination came from—a father who demanded excellence or maybe from a mother who didn’t bother to stick around through the uncertain times. Either way, Austin stood there now making what appeared to be a vow and it nearly drove her to her knees.
Shawn broke the silence. “Well, hold up your glasses and we’ll toast Carrie’s accomplishment.”
Austin dragged his gaze away from her and smiled at the other man. “Winning over the lady with multiple names?”
“No, this party. Carrie organized it. Did everything.”
“You did?”
The sudden flatness to Austin’s voice tugged at her. She downplayed her hard work until she knew the reason for the change. “It’s part of my job.”
“She’s making it sound easy, but it’s not. She works long hours, negotiates for big exhibits and has set up an artists’ workshop series for young women.” Shawn grabbed three glasses of champagne off the tray offered by the waiter and passed them out. “To Carrie.”
“To Carrie.” Austin held the glass, swirled the liquid around, but didn’t drink it.
“I’m off to mingle with board members.” Shawn waved to someone behind them. “Good to have you here tonight, Austin.”
“Thanks.” He put the glass on the edge of the bar.
They both watched Shawn light up as he talked with a group of men in matching tuxedos. Austin’s gaze stayed too long, as if he was looking but not seeing.
The hope drained right out of her again. For a second there she’d hovered on the edge of something spectacular but Austin’s sudden mood change brought her crashing back down. “You don’t have to pretend.”
Austin finally faced her again. “About what?”
“You couldn’t even toast my job, Austin. I know you hate it.”
Confusion fell over his bright eyes. “It’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
They stood there not talking. People passed and said hello. The music swelled as it reached the chorus. Just when she couldn’t take the blank stare, he opened his mouth. When he closed it again without saying a word she seriously considered walking away.
“Maybe we can talk about this later.” He nodded at the banner introducing the Cassatt exhibit and featuring one of her better known paintings. “I thought you’d show me her work.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am.”
She refused to be derailed, not even by a new chance to show him her world, not when the topic was so important. “Tell me.”
He didn’t pretend confusion. Instead, he leaned one elbow on the bar. The move brought his face even with hers. “I’m not drinking.”
After all that preparation she expected a different answer. “What?”
“No alcohol.”
Something nibbled at the edge of her conscience. She remembered emails with odd comments and her brother’s sharp insistence that everything was fine and she should stay in D.C. The minor accident with the tractor. The memory of the lack of beer at the trailer on the tree lot.
The pieces sat there just out of reach but she couldn’t bring them together. She needed Austin to trust her enough to do it
for her. “I don’t get it.”
“I’ve stopped drinking.”
No, that didn’t make sense. With three guys living alone without a woman’s influence the family always had beer in the fridge and a full bar. She couldn’t remember a time when Austin didn’t have alcohol available to him. It was normal to his father who thought the drinking age was a waste of time.
Austin didn’t drink to excess often, but he went out with friends and could throw back a lot of beer at a party, especially if a football game was on. He wasn’t a mean drunk, or really even a drunk at all. For him it was a social event and he got quiet and thoughtful, which is why it never bothered her.
“Since when?” she asked.
He looked at his hands, at the ground, at everything and everyone but her. “A few months.”
The pieces shifted in her mind and landed in a clearer picture. “Six?”
“That’s about right.” He cleared his throat and glanced up. “What’s upstairs?”
“Austin, please. Just say it.”
He pressed a hand to her elbow and steered her to the doorway on the far right side of the room. People came in and out of the exhibit hall, but he’d pulled her out of the main flow of traffic. “I don’t really want to do this now.”
“I think we have to.”
He sucked his bottom lip between his teeth then let it go. “I was drinking too much and stopped.”
“Six months ago.”
“Yes.”
“After I left.”
He hesitated before nodding.
The newly formed picture horrified her. “The accident on your property.”
His mouth dropped open. “How do you know about that? I swore Mitch and Dad and everyone else to secrecy. Even the police stayed out of it since I wasn’t driving a car and hadn’t gone on a public road.”
“And your cousin is a policeman.”
“I took the classes and stopped drinking. I’m not getting special treatment.” He shook his head. “I still don’t understand how it all got back to you. I’m not exactly the first guy in Holloway to get drunk and in trouble. It wasn’t big news or shouldn’t have been.”
“As you pointed out before, we come from a small town. News travels, even the type you want to hide. Especially that type.”
He swore under his breath. “Gotta love that.”
Memories flooded back to her. She’d paced her floor for hours as she waited for Mitch to call her back. The time between finding out about the accident and hearing Austin was uninjured except for a concussion stretched until she’d thought she’d scream.
She’d threatened to get in the car and drive home, but Mitch begged her not to. He convinced her it would send Austin the wrong message so soon after she left. Reluctantly, she’d agreed. Now she knew the people she loved had hidden the truth from her. Probably one of those for-her-own good things, but it sure didn’t feel like it.
“I got emails and that touched off a telephone chain. Mitch promised me it was minor and you were fine.” The explanation sounded so hollow. She knew if she’d been hurt, Austin would have walked barefoot to her across snow-filled fields if he had to.
“See, no problem.” Austin’s smile didn’t reach his eyes.
“You started drinking too much because of me.” Guilt overwhelmed her. It ran right over her until every muscle in her body ached from the weight of it.
“No.” His sharp response echoed off the marble. “I was drinking because of me. The blame is all mine.”
“You have to be furious with me for putting you in that place.” She tried to think of a way to work around this betrayal, to make it up to him, but she couldn’t come up with a thing. She was right to leave, but she would have rushed right back if she knew he strayed into danger territory. That’s what you did for someone you loved, and stubborn or not, she’d loved him for as long as she could remember.
“No, Carrie. Don’t take this on.”
“How can you not blame me?” She nearly choked from it.
“You were here and—” His voice dropped off. When he talked again a husky gruffness moved into his tone. “You clearly belong here.”
Panic whizzed through her, knocking the guilt into second place. “What are you saying?”
“I think we’ve had enough secret telling for one night. We’re here to party with people with hyphenated names. To celebrate what you created here tonight.”
“I don’t care about work right now.”
“Well, I do. This is your big night and we’re not missing it.” He slipped his hand down and grabbed hers. “Show me the museum.”
Chapter Eleven
Austin sat on the edge of Carrie’s bed wearing only his tux pants and his shirt open to his waist and hanging loose. With his elbows balanced on his knees, he rubbed her blue dress between his hands. Just remembering how he’d unzipped it hours ago after a night of partying had his gaze skipping to her head on the pillow.
Taking her to bed had been his only thought when they got back to the apartment. He’d blocked out the truth and flashes of common sense in the rush to get her naked. To make love to her one last time.
Now unwanted thoughts tumbled through his mind as he tried to deal with the memory of the huge smile on her face as she walked around the museum. He’d spent most of the night trying not to stare at his watch and hoping for a reason to cut out early. She thrived, talking and smiling and not caring if the person in front of her was an artist or a dignitary.
She fit there.
After trying to manipulate her and win her over, and doing a whole bunch of dumb male shit to get his way, he finally understood. She wanted to be in D.C. This wasn’t about him saying the right thing or about him at all. Her, the museum, it all made sense. He was the piece that didn’t fit.
Tonight’s crowd moved in a world very different from his own. Lots of money and strange concerns about what people did for a living. He shook his head, thinking the question “where do you vacation?” would stick with him for a long time. He “vacationed” for an hour before bed each night. Weeks in Europe didn’t appeal to him and who the hell had the time and money for that crap?
Even with all the questions about him tonight he’d never spent one minute wishing he had more money or a different life. He certainly didn’t see people with multiple names and their own tuxes as better than him. That didn’t mean he belonged here. But she did and that changed everything.
Carrie shifted her legs under the sheets and threw an arm over his empty side of the mattress. When her fingers hit only sheets, she sat up with the comforter pulled tight against her chest.
She brushed her hair off her face and blinked a few times, as if trying to adjust to the dark room. “Austin?”
“Right here.”
She reached over and clicked the light on low. “It’s the middle of the night.”
“Quarter to five.”
“Like I said.” She threw him a sexy smile as she tapped the ruffled pillow. “Come back to bed.”
“I have to get to the lot.” He had to pack up and end this.
He rubbed his hand against his chest to try to ease the burning underneath. No matter how hard he pressed, the stabbing pain under his ribs wouldn’t let up.
“Are you okay?” she asked with a voice filled with concern.
He heard the rustling of sheets and felt the mattress dip right before her arms wrapped around his neck. Her mouth landed on his ear and her hair fell over his shoulder.
His body jumped to life right before the pain ran down his arm and seeped into every bone. “I owe you an apology.”
She breathed in deep then bit down gently on his earlobe. “I like the sound of that.”
His hand smoothed over the soft skin of her arm. “I convinced myself working in a city museum was some sort of dream you’d get over.”
She froze for a second before caressing him again. “I know.”
He finally turned his head and brushed his lips over hers. “Really?”
“Subtlety is not your best attribute.”
“It was egotistical bullshit. Like you didn’t know what you wanted and I did.” He shook his head. “I should have seen it and not pushed.”
“Your scheme started out rocky, but I’m happy you’re here now.”
Her silky hair tickled his chest. He wove his fingers through it, loving the feel of the strands against his skin. “I was a dick. You should have kicked my sorry butt back to Holloway a week ago.”
“But it’s such a cute butt.” She gave him a loud, smacking kiss on the cheek. Then she grabbed his arm and swung in front of him and got a good look at his face. Her smile disappeared a second later. “Something really is wrong. What is it?”
“You love your job.”
She shifted to his lap, letting her legs fall over his and her hand rest against his bare stomach. “That’s a good thing.”
For her. Not so much for them. “You tried to tell me but I didn’t listen. I’m listening now. I’m not trying to con you or figure out how to get my way. I’m really listening.”
“I believe you.” She kissed him then, short and almost painful in its sweetness.
“Sorry it took so long for me to get it.”
She shook her head. “The timing doesn’t matter. What I’ve wanted is for you to understand that I have this professional side, these dreams that need nurturing. I didn’t want you to dismiss or minimize what was so important to me.”
“I did all those things.” Regret washed over him like a river. “I messed up in a big, stupid guy way.”
“That’s over now. You came here for me and went with me tonight. A woman likes that sort of dedication.” She tapped a finger against his nose.
Her light tone and happy mood made every word he uttered even harder. The syllables stuck in his throat as he tried to push them out.
She acted as if they’d made some breakthrough when they’d really reached the end. All he assumed about her motives and needs was wrong. She didn’t need Holloway or family or even him. She got by fine in D.C. on her own.
That reality kicked him in the gut and kept kicking. He’d always loved her independence and strength. She never backed down from a fight with him. She never hid and cried. She faced him head-on with a feistiness that made him hot.
It's Not Christmas Without You (The Holloway Series) Page 8