Coming Home

by Christine S. Feldman

  Coming Home

  Christine S. Feldman

  Avon, Massachusetts

  This edition published by

  Crimson Romance

  an imprint of F+W Media, Inc.

  10151 Carver Road, Suite 200

  Blue Ash, Ohio 45242

  www.crimsonromance.com

  Copyright © 2013 by Christine S. Feldman

  ISBN 10: 1-4405-6593-7

  ISBN 13: 978-1-4405-6593-9

  eISBN 10: 1-4405-6594-5

  eISBN 13: 978-1-4405-6594-6

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, corporations, institutions, organizations, events, or locales in this novel are either the product of the author’s imagination or, if real, used fictitiously. The resemblance of any character to actual persons (living or dead) is entirely coincidental.

  Cover art © 123rf.com

  To my husband Earl who has taught me what romance really means,

  To my very supportive family,

  and to Heather and Natalie who taught me the importance of Carpe Diem.

  Contents

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  A Sneak Peek from Crimson Romance

  Also Available

  Chapter One

  “Girl, you’re lookin’ better than a body has a right to.”

  Callie didn’t look up from the notepad she was scribbling in. “I’m all for recycling, Kalvin, but you’ve used that line one too many times within my earshot for it to work on me.”

  “Ah, baby, but you’re the only one I ever really meant it with.”

  “Mmm.” She kept writing and ignored the teenager’s insincere protests of love. He had wandered into the store a few weeks ago, spotted her, and then found an excuse to return almost every afternoon. Points for persistence, she thought.

  It was a lazy and very hot afternoon at Vintage Records Your Way, and Callie had little to do behind the counter except write, which was the main reason why she took the job in the first place four months ago. Other than Kalvin, the only other people in the store seemed to be browsing through the merchandise merely as an excuse to avoid the intense heat radiating off the New York City pavement, and that was fine with her. The job was enough to help her make rent, once it was split three ways among Callie and her two roommates. Her boss might be a jerk, but she’d managed to save up enough money to be moving along soon anyway. And the music was good, too. She cocked her head slightly to better hear the strains of Janis Joplin coming over the store sound system and closed her eyes, pencil poised above her paper as she waited for inspiration.

  She got more of Kalvin instead.

  “Come on, aren’t you ever going to go out with me?”

  She shook her head.

  “Why not?”

  “I wouldn’t want to ruin the friendship,” she said dryly, raising one eyebrow.

  “Well, it’s not like we’re close friends … ”

  Giving up on her writing for the moment, she looked at him with fond exasperation. He grinned at her hopefully. The expression was rather adorable on his gawky, young face, and she suspected that he knew it. “Kalvin, why don’t you go hit on that girl over there? The one in the pink skirt who’s trying to pretend she knows who Blue Oyster Cult is. She’s cute, and she’s your own age,” she added pointedly.

  He shrugged and leaned on the counter with his elbows. “Already tried. Struck out.”

  Callie let out an incredulous laugh. “So I’m your sloppy seconds?”

  “Technically,” he corrected her with one finger raised in the air, “I think the term ‘sloppy seconds’ would mean that you were passed on to me after some other guy had you. Which I’m fine with, by the way.”

  “That’s so open-minded of you. Go away now, please, so I can concentrate.” She bent over the notebook again.

  He strained to see what she was writing. “What are you working on this time? Politics? The environment? Sex and the single girl?”

  Suddenly self-conscious, she flipped the notebook over before he could read anything. “It’s personal this time, Kalvin.”

  “Oooh. Like a diary? Going to send it off to Cosmo when you’re finished?”

  But she only waved him off with one hand and scooted her stool back further from the counter so she could write in peace. Grumbling under his breath, Kalvin finally wandered away to give the girl in the pink skirt another try. When Callie was sure he was safely away, she turned her notebook over again and reread what she had already written:

  After a while, you start to doubt yourself, to wonder if — on some level — you’re looking for him in every man you meet. Looking for his approval. Looking for answers. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a passing acquaintance or someone who is more of a permanent fixture in your life. You begin to wonder if you’re hoping that this time, you’ll get it right. Or maybe that this time he’ll get it right.

  She frowned. It was more wistful than she’d originally intended, which she found vaguely unsettling. This was supposed to be a more clinical piece to submit to a particular journal, a reflection on the effects of absent fathers. They would never accept it this way. Flipping over to a fresh, empty page, she touched her pencil to the paper to try again.

  The phone rang then, interrupting her, and she reached absentmindedly for the receiver. “Vintage Records Your Way. What can I do for you?”

  “Callie? Oh, good, it’s you. This is Tina.”

  Callie blinked in surprise. It was the more unreliable one of her two roommates. She wasn’t very close to either one of them, really. They kept very different hours and rarely crossed paths, and the only other time Tina had called Callie at work was when a pipe had burst in their apartment. A prickle of dread crept down her neck, and she tried to keep the wariness out of her voice. “Tina? What’s up?”

  “You got a phone call a few minutes ago on the landline, and — look, is there someone else there who can finish your shift for you or something?”

  Callie’s tension grew. “Manager’s in the back. Why?”

  “There’s been an accident. Your mom’s in the hospital.”

  “What?” she asked sharply, jerking up from the stool and dropping her notebook on the floor. “What kind of accident? Is she all right?”

  Hospital. Memories came rushing back at the mere mention of the word. The cop on their doorstep, silhouetted in the night by his patrol car’s headlights. Liddy’s terror as they rushed into the ER. And Elliot …

  Eight years ago, and the loss of her brother still felt fresh. It seemed cruel, somehow, that fate would not allow the details of that night to dim from her memory.

  “She fell off a ladder or something and broke her leg, I think,” Tina said. “I’m not sure of all the details. Guy just said she fell, broke something, and she’s in the hospital. Said she should be okay, but asked if you could fly out there.”

  “That’s all you can tell me?”

  “Sorry. I’m going on about three hours of sleep here. I wasn’t at my sharpest.”

  Tina worked the night shift at a twenty-four hour bagel shop, which was one reason why she and Callie didn’t cross paths much.

  “But you’re sure he sa
id she was going to be okay, right?”

  “Sounded that way, yeah. But he did seem pretty serious, too.”

  Taking a deep breath, Callie bit back a frustrated response. “Who was it who called?”

  There was silence on the other end of the line as her sleep-deprived roommate struggled to remember. “Danny,” she said finally. “I think his name was Danny.”

  An image of him blossomed in her mind, and her pulse quickened. Sandy brown curls, damp as they so often were after a day spent on the river with Elliot. Skin tanned to a warm shade of caramel after a summer in the sun. Strong, lean. And eyes that had captured her then teenage heart the first time she looked into them …

  She closed her eyes and willed the image away before it could melt her any further.

  Danny. How long had it been since she’d heard that name? He must have gotten her phone number from her mother because the last time she’d spoken to him herself was long before she came to New York. And even her mother didn’t have her new cell phone number. She felt a twinge of guilt. “Did he leave a number?”

  “Sorry. Couldn’t find a pencil. Don’t worry, though, Cal. Caller ID.” Her roommate paused for a moment. Let’s see … McCutcheon. Is that him?”

  “Yes.” Amid the turmoil caused by the mention of his name, she felt at least some measure of relief. If Danny said Liddy would be okay, then Liddy would be okay. Then again, Tina’s recollection of his exact words couldn’t necessarily be counted on to be accurate. And she had said he sounded serious. Liddy was not exactly a young woman, and there could be complications with even the smallest of accidents. Callie bent to retrieve her notebook and quickly jotted down the number Tina read her. “I’ll be home as soon I can,” she said. “You can go back to sleep now.”

  “Okay.” There was a poorly stifled yawn on the other end of the line. “Sorry about your mom.”

  “Thanks.”

  Callie dropped the receiver in its place, snatched up her notebook, and grabbed her purse from where it lay behind the counter. Ignoring the curious looks of some of the customers, she pushed open a door marked “Employees Only” and met the startled gaze of her manager, Les. He was a balding skeleton of a man who wore his hair extra long on the sides to make up for the lack of it on top. He was also lazy, a grouch, and a bully.

  “What the — who’s manning the counter?” he demanded irritably, looking up from the pages of a skin magazine.

  “You are,” she informed him, looping her purse strap over her shoulder. “I’ve got a family emergency, and I’m going to need to leave town for a while.”

  Setting the magazine aside, he folded his long, skinny arms over his chest. “What kind of emergency?”

  “My mom had an accident.”

  “She going to be okay?”

  “Probably, but — ”

  Scowling, he picked up his magazine again. “Then what’s the emergency? Forget it. You can’t just walk out on such short notice. The schedule’s already made for next week. Maybe go the week after.”

  “I wasn’t asking your permission.”

  His eyes narrowed. “What did you just say to me?”

  “I said I’m going to see my mom. I thought a little time off would do it, but a permanent arrangement works just fine, too, you little pissant.”

  She tossed her copy of the store key at him and walked out as he scrambled to catch it. As she strode toward the front door, she nearly ran down Kalvin.

  “What happened?” he asked, wide-eyed.

  “A little managerial dispute. Long story short, there’s a job opening here if you’re interested, kiddo.” She gave his arm a quick, affectionate squeeze and let the front door swing shut behind her.

  Callie’s days there had been numbered anyway. At four months, it was one of the longer jobs she had held, and she was beginning to get that familiar flicker of restlessness that told her it was time to move on. She knew it wouldn’t be hard for Les to find a replacement for her. He just didn’t like to put down his magazines long enough to conduct any interviews.

  Pausing in the sweltering heat, she took a deep breath and dialed the number Tina had given her. It went to voicemail. She wasn’t sure if she was relieved or disappointed.

  “You’ve reached Danny McCutcheon’s voicemail. You know what to do.”

  It was a short recording, but it was enough to make her pulse speed up. His voice was casual in the message, warm and mellow. Very different from the last time she’d heard it. She stood there in the middle of the sidewalk with her mouth open, rattled and unable to think of anything to say. Abruptly, she ended the call. Forget it. She’d try again later.

  She used the walk home to search online for flights with her cell phone, and by the time she got to her apartment building, she already had a red-eye flight lined up for that evening. There was no boyfriend to say goodbye to and no pets to worry about, not even a potted plant that would need watering. That was the great thing about being a nomad, Callie thought as she threw some clothes into a bag. No strings to tie you down or hold you back.

  • • •

  Between packing and dealing with the usual chaos at the airport that happened with a last minute flight, Callie found plenty of excuses to put off trying to reach Danny again. At least for a few hours. But finally, as she settled into a seat near her gate of departure, she fingered the phone in her hand before slowly and reluctantly dialing his number.

  Voicemail again. She let out the breath she hadn’t realized she was holding and cleared her throat, determined to speak this time.

  “Danny? It’s Callie. I’m at JFK right now, and my flight leaves in about twenty minutes. I’ll have a few layovers, but I should be in Portland by about 10:30 tomorrow morning, coming in from San Francisco.” She glanced at her watch. It read 12:02. No wonder she was so tired. “I mean, 10:30 this morning, I guess. I’ll rent a car or get a cab; I haven’t figured that part out yet. Hopefully I’ll be at the hospital no later than noon.” She paused, feeling that she ought to say something more but struggling to think of the right words. He deserved more than simple pleasantries from her, but she couldn’t bring herself to say anything too personal without opening doors best left closed. “Thanks for calling me, Danny. And for being there with Mom. Tell her I’ll see her soon.”

  A woman’s voice came on over the intercom to announce that boarding for her flight had begun.

  “Gotta go. I’ll call you later.”

  It was a typical red-eye with few people on board, but even with the entire row to herself and the lateness of the hour, Callie remained wide awake and restless. Her mother would be fine, she told herself. Broken bones could heal, and modern medicine would take good care of her. And Danny would see that she was being cared for properly. He had always been good at that, doing his best to fill the hole Elliot’s death had left. The two of them had been more like brothers than best friends, and Danny’s loyalty ran deep.

  Callie leaned back against her headrest and stared out of the window beside her. There was nothing to see but darkness and her own reflection, so she turned away from it and closed her eyes, thinking about home. It would always be the only place she thought of as home, even though she had been in such a hurry to leave it. At eighteen, she had bypassed college and gone to LA for a while — much to her mother’s horror — and from there she’d traveled up and down the coast of California, popping back home now and then to reassure her mother that she was still in one piece. They’d argued about it quite a bit: college was too important to skip, life on the road was no life for a girl her age, anything could happen to her … Her mother never ceased to come up with a reason why everything Callie wanted to do was a bad idea, but it hadn’t stopped Callie from leaving.

  Then there was a stretch in Mexico, followed by some time in Louisiana and Georgia. After that she headed north, and the visits and phone calls
home had begun to grow fewer and farther between. The conversation was always the same, so it hardly seemed to matter if she called home less often. It only led to more frustration for both of them when she did, anyway.

  Liddy had accused her once of leaving just to punish her for her decision to cut everything having to do with Callie’s father out of their lives. That was not the reason why Callie had left, at least not consciously, but she knew Liddy didn’t believe her. For someone who loved words so much, Callie had a hard time making other people understand why she couldn’t bear to stay in one place for too long. Probably because she didn’t fully understand it herself. She had met some fascinating people in the process, though, and found plenty of things about which to write.

  She opened her eyes again. There was a man she had known in one of those places, one she’d allowed herself to get close to for a time, only to regret it. He had been hurt by the fact that she hadn’t wanted him as much as he’d wanted her. She couldn’t help it. Somehow, the men she met always fell short. Father issues? Or maybe it was something else. Maybe it was because none of them were Danny.

  The last time she had seen Danny had been nearly four years ago. Thanksgiving.

  She was in town to visit her mom for the holiday and to break the news that she was headed to the East Coast. Her mother was disappointed. So was Danny.

  “So far away?” He had frowned at her. “Why? You hardly see your mom as it is. Family is important, Callie. Don’t be so quick to take it for granted.”

  He disapproved, and she had resented that. So when she left, it was not under the happiest of circumstances, and she thought they both said things they regretted. She wasn’t sure how it had escalated but suspected that her part in it had at least something to do with pent-up frustration over the fact that he persisted in seeing her as a kid instead of as a woman. Remembering it now, she smiled humorlessly. For someone who had wanted so badly to be seen as an adult, she behaved rather childishly, and she had spoken to him more harshly than she had intended. Maybe that was why she’d stayed away for so long.