Letters to Gabriella

by Patricia Paris

  Since moving back to Glebe Point and observing what his brother had with Delaney, Justin had to admit he’d thought more than a few times how nice it would be to have that kind of connection with someone. He’d always known he wanted to settle down some day, and even though he’d wanted to take things slow after Brin, he still wanted someone to go through life with, to grow old with. What Blake and Delaney had was special, though. Not everyone was that lucky.

  His folks had had the same kind of deep, committed love for one another. They would have loved Delaney. If they were still here, his mom would be making all kinds of plans right now for the new baby. He had no doubt she’d be spoiling Benjamin rotten, with every notion of doing the same to Kate. She would have been every kid’s dream grandma. It wasn’t right she’d never get the opportunity.

  His own kids, if he were fortunate enough to have some, would never have the chance to know his parents. Thanks to Landfred. The old anger rose anew, swiftly taking hold, like it always did when he allowed himself to think about the accident. If only that bastard hadn’t…

  He shook it off. If he dwelled on what happened, he’d just get pissed off about something he had no power to change. On one of his visits before moving back, Blake had mentioned that the guy had died. Good riddance. Justin knew his mom would tell him it wasn’t nice to think ill of the dead. As far as he was concerned, though, it meant one less opportunity for the guy to destroy someone else’s family.

  GAB STARED out at the marsh, her cheeks still damp. She swallowed against the building heat in her throat. She rolled her shoulders, hoping to relieve some of the tightness in her chest. She hadn’t planned on reading more of her father’s letters this morning, but on the drive back from dropping Chloe off at camp, she’d started thinking about him. What had he really been like? She’d read more than a dozen letters since finding the box in the attic, and there were dozens more she hadn’t. What kind of man poured out his thoughts and feelings into letters he would never send? Had he hoped she would one day find them and know that he loved her?

  When she’d first considered the move to Glebe Point, that she and Chloe would be living in her father’s old house, she hadn’t thought it would bother her. The man had been dead to her long before he actually died. She had been handed an opportunity for a fresh start for her and Chloe, and she’d grabbed it.

  Now she felt conflicted in a way she couldn’t have anticipated. What had happened between her parents? If she thought her mother would be straight with her, Gab might be willing to risk confronting her. But she knew her mom would only get angry and refuse to talk to her. That was how it had always been, and Gab didn’t expect it would ever change. The topic of her father was taboo. Sometimes she wondered if whatever happened between her parents hadn’t only been her father’s fault.

  From the letters she’d read so far, one thing stood out. Her dad had loved her. She had no doubt about that, or that he would have tried to see her if he’d had any idea where she was. But he hadn’t known, that too was obvious.

  Her eyes welled up again. After reading his words, his thoughts, how her father felt about her, she couldn’t help feeling an almost overwhelming sense of loss. It seemed so unfair he had to die for her to discover he’d loved her. And it broke her heart that the only way she could know him now was through his letters.

  Gab shook off her melancholy. She wanted to get a shower before going into town to meet Justin. She was glad she had their afternoon date to look forward to…glad she had him in her life right now.

  “HOW DO you like this one?” They had already picked out two pictures for Justin’s lobby, and he was trying to decide on one more. He held up a framed print for Gab to see. She angled her head as she studied it, hoping a new perspective would help. He couldn’t be serious. She snuck a peek at his expression to see if he was joking around. He looked serious. If he really liked it, she didn’t want to offend him by being too blunt.

  Perhaps she needed to ask what kind of atmosphere he wanted to create for his clients. Their first two selections had been lovely depictions of the marshes, one at sunset and one just before the dawn. This one however was… She looked up. He hiked a brow, expectantly.

  “Well…” Gab frowned. She cocked her head in the other direction. How could she put it politely? Maybe she could lie. It was his office. If he really liked it, who was she to say nay?

  Justin held the print higher in the air, as if she needed a better angle.

  She cleared her throat. “It’s unique. The important thing is whether you like it.” It was a copout, she knew that, but it was his office.

  Justin turned the print around and studied it.

  “Here.” He held it out to her. “You hold it so I can see it at a little more distance.”

  Gab grasped both sides of the frame and backed up, watching him, trying to read his reactions. He rubbed his chin as he studied the picture, looking at it from various angles. If he seriously liked this thing, she hoped his taste in art wasn’t reflective of his views on life in general.

  “Hmmm,” Justin mused, “I’m not sure.” He looked at her, all serious and thoughtful again. He had asked for her help. When she asked for someone’s opinion, she genuinely wanted the truth. It didn’t mean she always took what they said to heart, but it was good to have other perspectives. She should just tell him what she truly thought. He could still buy the atrocity if he really wanted it.

  “Do you really want my opinion?” Gab lowered the large frame to the floor.

  “Of course I do, that’s why I asked you to come along.”

  Okay, the truth then. It was just a picture. It wasn’t like she was advising him about plastic surgery or anything.

  “I’m not sure it’s appropriate for a lawyer’s office.” She offered a condoling smile.

  Justin frowned. “Perhaps you’re right…maybe something a little more, I don’t know…conservative.” His lips twitched and Gab detected a faint gleam in his eyes.

  “You’re joking.”

  He started to laugh, and she narrowed her eyes at him. “You’ve been joking with me, haven’t you?”

  “Gabriella.” He caught the tip of his tongue between his teeth. “It’s a purple pig wearing a clown hat.”

  She pretended to be mad for about five seconds, but her grin soon won out. “I’m so glad you’re not serious.” She looked down at the print. “Maybe if he was light blue, or green even. The purple’s just a little too in-your-face.”

  Justin started laughing and took the print from her, putting it back with the stack he’d taken it from. “There’s another picture over here I want you to see. You might like it a little better.” He leafed through another stack of landscapes further down the wall and pulled out one of a windswept beach with water birds.

  “This one’s by the same local artist who did the other two we picked out.” He grinned down at her, amusement lighting his golden gaze. Warmth spread through her as if she’d just drunk a glass of liquid sunshine. He did that to her.

  Less than an hour later they carried the newly purchased pictures into Justin’s office building. He decided to store them in the second floor apartment until all the remodeling had been completed downstairs.

  “I’ll be moving out of the cottage and into the apartment here in a couple of weeks,” Justin said, showing Gab around.

  She liked the space. The rooms were large and airy. An abundance of windows allowed lots of light to filter in, and the high ceilings made it seem even bigger than it was.

  “How do you think you’ll like living above where you work?”

  He shrugged. “It’ll be a hell of a lot better commute than I’m used to. Besides, it’ll only be temporary. I don’t expect to be here more than a year.”

  She looked up at him, her lips parting. He was going to be moving again? He couldn’t be planning to leave Glebe Point that soon after going to all the trouble to open a practice here. The thought of him leaving depressed her, because she had already begun to think
they might…that they…

  “What’s wrong?” Justin lifted her chin and gave her a questioning glance.

  “Oh…I was just surprised that…well, that you might be moving again.”

  His eyes searched hers. She glanced away, a little embarrassed she’d been thinking they might have a future together when he might not even be sticking around.

  Justin wrapped his other arm around her waist and eased her closer.

  “I won’t be going far, darling. I’d like to find a house outside of town, someplace on the water where I can have a boat if I want. Settle down with—” He didn’t finish the next thought. He was looking at her with an odd expression, one that made her breath slow and her heart rush. He licked his lips and lowered his head, his arm tightening as he molded her to him. Gab melted into him. Their kiss went from hot to sizzling in under ten seconds.

  His hands were restless over her back, roaming, up to her shoulders then down, over her hips, up again, along her rib cage, brushing the outside of her breasts. Gab could feel herself going under.

  They were in motion. Justin backed her up to a wall, probably a good thing since her legs felt like Jell-O. He started kissing her neck, nibbling along her collarbone, and then returned to devour her lips.

  “I need to get some furniture in here,” he said, his voice gravelly. “No place…to…” He eased his tongue into her mouth, and sizzling inched toward combustion. If she didn’t have to pick Chloe up soon, they might be making love in the sawdust. Chloe!

  “Oh…” Gab pushed away. “What time is it!” She looked at her watch and sagged in relief. She still had forty-five minutes before she had to pick her daughter up at camp, but she would have to leave soon.

  “I’ve got to pick Chloe up soon.” She thought she sounded breathless. And no wonder. When he kissed her, she almost forgot to breathe.

  Justin closed his eyes and pulled her back against him, resting his chin on the top of her head. His chest rose and fell against her cheek. She felt his heart beating behind it, strong and hard.

  “You make a good resting post,” he said, and she smiled.

  “Happy to accommodate.” She snuggled into him, enjoying the comfort and security of his strong arms. She could definitely get used to this.

  “What time are you getting back on Sunday?”

  “Late.” She eased away and let her head fall backwards, looking up at him. “I’ll probably start home sometime after lunch, so it’ll be late.”

  “You free Monday night?”

  She wanted to tell him she’d be free almost every night for two weeks, but she didn’t want to sound overanxious.

  “I think I might be.” She gave him a flirtatious smile, knowing perfectly well he wanted to get together.

  “And do you think I might be able to convince you to go out with me?”

  Her smile broadened. “I think you already did.”

  “That was easy.”

  “Yeah, I’m pretty easy.”

  “Good to know,” he said, his grin a crooked version of wicked.

  Gab backed away from him. “I gotta go,” she said with a laugh, happiness bubbling up inside of her.

  “Why don’t you let me cook dinner for you this time? I don’t usually invite men to the house, but with Chloe gone…” She shrugged her shoulders.

  He walked her out to the street and halfway down the block where she’d parked her car earlier.

  “I’ll give you a call Monday afternoon.” He hauled her against him for a quick kiss, apparently unconcerned if anyone noticed. It was over and done in an instant, but it left her wanting.

  “Think about me,” he said, and then jogged back down the block to his office.

  “Like I’ve got a choice,” she voiced aloud as she put the car in gear and pulled out of the spot.

  “I NEED some hookups upstairs, too,” Justin told the technician who was running the lines for his office.

  The guy checked his work order. “Yeah, I see that on here. You want to show me where you want things up there before I get all the lines run down here?”

  Justin took him upstairs and pointed out where he wanted television and phone hookups. He could just work off the office router when he was on his laptop so there was no need for another one in the apartment.

  “Hey, Jus, you up there?” Blake’s voice rolled up the stairway.

  Justin walked to the landing. “Yeah, be there in a minute.” He checked back with the technician to let him know he’d be downstairs if he had any questions.

  “Got it under control,” the guy said, and Justin left him to do his job.

  “How’s it going, bro?” he asked when he found Blake in the front room looking out the window.

  His brother turned around and hitched his head toward the street. “Just watching the Schaeffer’s kid try to parallel park in front of the hardware store.”

  “Who, Linna?”

  Blake nodded. “Can’t believe she’s old enough to be driving. Kinda scary, especially after watching her try to park.”

  Justin cracked a grin. “So what’s up?”

  “I’m going to take Ben to the slow-pitch games tonight. Thought I’d see if you wanted to join us and take a break from painting and sanding.”

  “Painting and sanding’s all done, but I’m going to have to pass tonight.”

  Blake smirked. “Got a hot date or something?”

  “Something.” Justin grinned over the prospect of spending the evening with Gabriella.

  “And would this something be about five-nine, short black hair, with a pair of mile long legs?”

  “Could be.”

  Blake chuckled. “Are you two going to know what to do on a date without Chloe or Ben along to keep things moving?”

  “I think we’ll be able to figure it out.” Justin stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets. “I picked out some furniture for the apartment. Think you could give me a hand picking it up and moving it in next week one day?”

  “Saturday is probably the best day for me. Can we pick it up in the truck?”

  Justin nodded. “We might have to make a couple of trips, but yeah.”

  “So where are you and Gab going on your big date tonight?”

  Justin leaned against the window frame. “She’s making dinner at her place.”

  Blake frowned. “Kind of ironic, isn’t it? I mean, when I went out there last week to see the place and talk about some of the changes she wanted to make to it…” Blake shook his head. “Well…I’m still not sure how I feel about it.”

  “I didn’t know she was looking to hire you to do some work for her.”

  “We haven’t agreed to anything yet. I was going to stop by to see her last Friday to go over some drawings and drop off the estimate, but she said she’d be leaving early that morning to drive to Connecticut. She’s coming over to the house tomorrow afternoon to see Delaney, though, so I’m just going to go over them with her then instead.”

  “Well, if she’s serious about doing some remodeling, it’ll be good to know you’re the one managing the job. It’ll be done right, and I won’t have to worry about a bunch of strange men hanging around her house all day trying to put the move on her.”

  “Oh yeah, what if one of my guys tries something?”

  “I know where to find your guys.” Justin pushed away from the window. “So you don’t have to feel awkward about working on my woman’s house. I’d rather it be you than anyone else.”

  Blake gave him a frown. “I didn’t feel awkward about it.”

  “You said you didn’t know how you felt about it.”

  Blake snorted. “I wasn’t talking about working with your woman, bro. I was talking about the house…how I felt about working on that house.”

  “Why, what’s wrong with it?”

  His brother smirked, as if the answer should be obvious. Justin looked at him, waiting for Blake’s response. After a few seconds, Blake’s eyes widened.

  “Oh Christ! Don’t tell me you don’
t know where she lives.”

  Justin didn’t like the vibes he was picking up. “She didn’t feel comfortable with me coming to the house when her daughter was there. Not until after she’d gotten to know me better.”

  Blake hung his head and cursed under his breath. “Shit, Jus. She bought Landfred’s old place. I assumed you knew.”

  Justin couldn’t believe it. Of all the… “Christ…how the hell…” He closed his eyes, his jaw tightening. “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah. Sorry, I really thought you knew.”

  Justin waved a hand in the air. “Forget it. At least I found out before going out there tonight.” He paced to the other side of the room then turned back to face his brother. “Did you say anything to her about it?”

  “No. What was I going to say?” Blake shoved his right hand into the pocket of his jeans. “I doubt she’ll feel good when she finds out the guy who used to own the house killed our parents.”

  Justin rolled his jaw. “Yeah, and I’d rather she didn’t find out…at least not until I can get my head wrapped around it anyway.”

  Blake walked over and put his hand on Justin’s shoulder. “You going to be able to deal?”

  Justin could see the concern in Blake’s eyes, as well as the support. He’d always be grateful for the kindness they’d received from friends and neighbors after their parents’ death, checking in on them, bringing them meals, looking out for them in so many ways. It had meant a lot, but it had been his brother who’d gotten Justin through those first few months…the same as he knew he’d done for Blake.

  He wrapped his arm around his twin and nodded. “Yeah, I’ll manage it.”