Undertow (Dragonfly)

by Moore, Leigh Talbert

  “But what about Jack and Lucy?” I asked. “And Will. What happened was so awful. I don’t know if there’s a way back from it.”

  He didn’t speak. He turned to the mantle again, and I couldn’t help feeling a twinge of guilt. But it was the truth. And it was a truth I knew he was well-acquainted with.

  “I can never be forgiven for something that happened so long ago,” he said softly.

  His words made my stomach hurt, and I didn’t know how to respond.

  Then he glanced back. “Julian has an opening soon, right?”

  I nodded. “He has a statue being installed at the Sports Center. It’s kind of a big deal.”

  “Are you going?”

  “He asked me to be his date.”

  His lips pressed into a tight smile before he spoke. “I’ll be there. I’ll come over and speak to you about our feature for the paper. I’ll mention the possibility of using his art in some way at one of my developments.”

  “Ms. LaSalle would never—”

  “Lexy’s going to be the biggest obstacle.” He reached for the crystal glass. “I’ll talk to her, ease her into the idea.”

  “But you still haven’t answered my question,” I said, walking over to a wooden table standing beside the brushed, leather sofa. I placed the three books on it. “You didn’t have to show these to me to ask for my help. Now I know all of this, and I can never tell Julian. I can’t tell any of them!”

  “I needed you to understand.” Ice rattled as he tilted the glass. “Now you know why we can’t have you talking about it.”

  “But I was never going to talk about it! I just wanted you to… ” I shook my head. “Okay, maybe I did ask you to tell Julian the truth, but I meant you, not me. And if that’s your ultimate goal anyway, how? When?”

  “When Lexy says I can,” he said.

  “She’s never going to say that!” My voice rose as I started to see what this really meant. “Julian and I are getting close. I think we might get serious, and now you’ve put this huge thing between us.”

  “Lexy will come around,” he said, restoring the tumbler to the mantle as if he weren’t even listening to me. “And in the meantime, you can help me find ways to help Julian, to know him better. Then perhaps he won’t feel so—”

  “Shocked? Betrayed? He’s already angry that his dad’s never shown up once.”

  His eyes caught mine, and I saw his determination. “That’s why I need your help. I need to know these things about him. I won’t let you get hurt.”

  I turned away, my chest burning with what I knew. “You can’t promise that. And I don’t know if I can help you. I don’t know what the right thing is.”

  “The truth is always the right thing.”

  “I’ll have to think about it,” I said, picking up my purse and heading to the door. I needed to go.

  The sun was quickly disappearing, and the sky outside the patio windows was a blaze of orange, gold, pink, and blue. I wanted to get out to the water and breathe in the salt air and listen to the surf. I wanted to be with Julian. They were the two things that always helped me find calm, only now I didn’t know what I would find when I saw Julian again.

  * * *

  The whole drive back, I rubbed my lined forehead as I stared at the two-lane road. Everything Bill Kyser had said swirled in my brain. He wanted me to help him know Julian better, he was going to talk to Ms. LaSalle, he wouldn’t tell Julian until she said yes, and now I was right in the middle of it.

  I parked at the beach pavilion and ran out to the Gulf in front of the towering Phoenician I complex. Once there, I turned around to gaze at the massive high-rise, and my breath caught in my throat. He’d done it all right. He’d spent the last twenty years unfolding his big plan, and these monuments had withstood it all.

  The faintest glow still lit the horizon. I shivered in the chilly air and pulled out my phone, quickly texting Julian, letting him know I was here. The moon was rising over the dark water, and everything was changing to silver, black, and white. Further down the beach, the occasional firework pierced the night, but the show hadn’t started yet.

  I stared back up at the dark tower standing tall behind me. Tall, unmoving, and alone just like the man I’d left behind on Hammond Island. What was going to happen now? Could I make it out of this current without being drowned?

  My phone buzzed, and I looked down at the number Bill Kyser had given me with the books. I slid my finger across the face to answer.

  His voice was stiff. “A letter was in my journal. It’s missing.”

  “Oh my god!” I squeezed my eyes shut. “It’s under my pillow. It fell out, and I forgot to put it back.”

  The squeak of feet on sand caused me to jump around. A figure was jogging in my direction. Julian.

  “I’ll get it to you. I have to go,” I said, just barely hearing his father’s voice as I turned off my phone.

  Julian slowed down as he reached me, smiling curiously. “Important call?”

  I shrugged, smiling back. “Just checking in with the parents.”

  It wasn’t a total lie, but I still cringed inwardly. Lies were what had led to the end of their story, and I hated bringing lies into ours. My damaged emotions had been one problem, but what I knew now was a far bigger one.

  He stood in front of me, the wind pushing his dark hair around his handsome face. “It’s funny,” he said. “I was thinking about you, and right then you texted me.”

  “I was thinking about you, too.” I glanced back in the direction he’d come. His house wasn’t too far from where we stood, from Mr. Kyser’s offices. I’d never considered the proximity before. “It must be nice to live so close.”

  He shrugged. “Except when the storms come.”

  We were quiet again, listening to the noise of the surf. I thought of his father back on that island, in that huge house alone. My dilemma was heavy on my mind, but more than that, I didn’t want to wait anymore. I’d read too much about people in love being kept apart. I was terrified of us getting closer and him finding out what I knew, but in this moment, with him standing right here in front of me, I didn’t want to think about Bill Kyser anymore. I didn’t want to worry about the past. I wanted to think about my future.

  “School starts back Monday,” I said. “Are we still doing everything?”

  A little grin flickered across his lips. “Correction. Everything together.”

  I looked up at his blue eyes, and I couldn’t resist. I stepped to him and put my arms around his waist. He quickly wrapped me in an embrace, and soothing calm flooded my body. As if on cue, the fireworks show went off behind me, and I looked back at the green, red, and gold glittering lights illuminating the ocean.

  My cheek rested on Julian’s chest, and we didn’t say anything as we watched. I felt him gently stroke my hair, his chin on the top of my head. I listened to his heart beat during the pauses. His breath moving in and out, mixing with the sound of the waves roaring behind me. Before long the whole sky burst into a nonstop display of lights and explosions. It was the signal for midnight, and I tilted my head up.

  He looked down, and I lifted my chin higher, meeting his lips. My hold on his waist tightened as my mouth opened and I tasted his minty-sweet kiss. Delicious warmth flooded my body just like before, and I felt his lips curve into a smile. Mine did the same. It was exactly what we both wanted, our bodies close, this bond strengthening between us.

  His kiss moved to the corner of my mouth, then my cheek, and he looked deep in my eyes. “I know, you still want to go slow.”

  My face felt flushed with emotion. “I think we can pick up the pace.”

  The twinkle in his eye made me so happy. He gave me another little kiss, and we turned and started walking back in the direction he’d come. I was very aware of our fingers laced together. I never wanted to let him go.

  “Want me to drive you home?” I asked when we reached my car parked at the pavilion.

  He squeezed my hand. “I think I’ll
walk. It’s only a few blocks.”

  “It’s a great night.”

  “One of the best,” he said, pulling my hand to his lips and kissing my fingers. “You’ll wear my ring now?”

  I nodded, thinking how the minute I got home, I would unwrap it, put it on again, and never take it off.

  “Cool,” he smiled.

  I was a little breathless. He pulled me closer, pressing his warm lips to mine again, his exhale whispering across my cheek. It felt like we were glowing in the darkness.

  “Happy new year,” he said softly.

  “Happy new year,” I whispered back.

  He leaned in again for a longer, deeper kiss. Energy sparkled through me, just under my skin, and instinctively I held him tighter, pulled our bodies closer.

  It was a new year. Julian and I were starting something new, and I was sure we could face whatever was coming and make it through.

  My mind was on the future. Us together.

  It was going to be amazing.

  ~ ~ ~

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  Watercolor, Book 3 in the Dragonfly series, coming Oct. 2013!

  Watercolor

  by Leigh Talbert Moore

  Finishing senior year is supposed to be the best time in a person’s life.

  Finishing senior year as Julian’s girlfriend should’ve been the icing on the cake.

  Knowing the secret that could change his whole world is the only thing threatening to spoil it all.

  Until Jack returns.

  Anna and Julian are together at last, and it’s as hot and happy as they knew it would be. The only problem is the truth. And Jack.

  But while Anna is determined to fight for the guy she loves, she could still lose him when he discovers the secret she’s been helping to keep.

  Author’s Note

  Writing a book that includes large portions of journal entries, my goal was to find a way to bring the recorded events to life. With that in mind, I added dialogue and descriptions to make it feel like the reader was there, watching the events as they occurred.

  Obviously, most journals aren’t written this way, so I took some artistic license. I hope it enhanced your enjoyment of the story.

  As always, thanks so much for reading!

  Acknowledgments

  First, I have to thank my friend Kim Secord, who was the first person to read this book and say to me, “I read it in one sitting,” way back in 2010. I knew right then this dream of mine might actually happen.

  Thanks again to Magan, Jolene, Kim Barnes, Tracy, Sharon, and my sweet husband Richard for loving it from the start.

  Special thanks to Jolene for the gorgeous cover design.

  Thanks to Susan and Tami for challenging me.

  Thanks to KP for hanging with me through the down times and for saying you believed in me when I was so tired.

  Thanks to my sweet daughters for trying to understand why Mom is always typing on the computer and saying, “One more minute!”

  Thanks to my parents and my in-laws for tolerating my disappearing acts.

  Thanks to the writing community for your unfailing support and encouragement.

  Thanks to God for this blessing, and

  Thanks to YOU—all my dedicated readers who keep me motivated by saying you love it and by asking for more!

  Here’s to love conquering all. <3

  About the Author

  Leigh Talbert Moore is a wife and mom by day, a writer by day, a reader by day, a former journalist, a former editor, a chocoholic, a caffeine addict, a lover of great love stories, a beach bum, and occasionally she sleeps.

  Also by Leigh Talbert Moore:

  The Truth About Faking (2012)

  Rouge (2012)

  The Truth About Letting Go (2013)

  Dragonfly, Book 1 in the Dragonfly series (2013)

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