by Terri Osburn
Another woman might have walked away. Chosen sanity over constant dread. But not Abby. She’d not only stayed, she’d been there when he woke. A lifeline out of the darkness. An angel by his side. And he’d let her go. Let anger and pride ruin the best thing that ever happened to him.
“If she hadn’t hurt my boy, I’d almost feel sorry for her,” Mom added, dragging Justin from his thoughts.
“No,” he said. “The last thing Abby would want is your pity. She’s stronger than anyone gives her credit for, and heaven knows I never deserved her.”
Wadding the newspaper in her hand, his mother jumped to her son’s defense. “She accused you of cheating, Justin.”
“And if I’d told her the truth before Victoria got to her, things would be different now. Just like if I’d told you the truth, your reaction when Q called would have been different. To think,” Justin said, reaching for a Blackhawks mug, “all of this might have been avoided if I hadn’t been so determined to protect my ego.”
For once his mother didn’t argue, but his father’s words broke the silence and the tension.
“Welcome to manhood, son. We’re all idiots here.”
Chapter 26
Wednesday morning the deal was done. Or at least secured. Justin had submitted an official offer to Tanner Drury to buy fifteen acres of land for $250,000, and Tanner had accepted. By Wednesday afternoon, Q learned that his steal of a deal had indeed been stolen, Royce-Upton retracted their interest in the project thanks to a phone call from Justin’s lawyer back in Chicago stating his client was not and never would be in business with one Quintin Culpepper, and Justin had officially moved back in with his parents.
Temporarily, of course.
Thursday had been duty at the fire station, which made Friday the big day. Justin pulled the old pickup onto the premises of Cooper’s Total Auto Care and hoped the big man would let him talk before throwing a punch. On a good day he could hold his own in a fight, but his chances were greatly diminished with his concussion.
Stepping onto the pavement, Justin spotted Frankie first. Since they’d shared duty the night before and Justin had disclosed his recent activities, he had at least one ally in his corner. Which was good, since the next face he saw looked set on murder.
“You’ve got some fucking nerve,” Cooper growled, charging across the drive.
“Step off, brother,” said Frankie, standing his ground at the edge of the garage. “Hear him out before you do something stupid.”
Green eyes so much like Abby’s bored through Justin’s skull. “I’m not interested in anything this shithead has to say.”
“I don’t need to say anything,” Justin stated, squaring his stance. “I only came to deliver something.” He held the folded document in the air.
“What’s that?” Cooper spat. “My marching orders?”
Shaking his head, he kept his voice even. “Just read it. That’s all I ask.”
The mechanic snatched the papers from Justin’s hand, and flipping to the first page, he skimmed the contract. “What is this?” he asked, brows drawn. “You and your buddy are charging me rent?”
Taking the opening, Justin explained. “I was never involved in the original deal with Quintin Culpepper. We used to be friends and colleagues, and he used my name without my permission. I’d never heard of Tanner Drury until Monday morning, when the deal was already in motion.”
“But he sold to you,” Cooper said. “For your fancy development scheme.”
“Again, not my scheme. I was in on the legwork on the six acres for sale closer to the interstate, but that’s where my involvement ends.” Encouraged that he’d gotten this far without losing any teeth, Justin continued. “The only way I could stop Quintin’s deal was to buy the property myself. Your friend Mr. Drury needed the money, so I made sure he got it.”
Shuffling, Cooper returned his attention to the document. “So now you’re charging me rent?”
Knowing Ridgeway would never accept the land for free, Justin had devised the next-best solution.
“This garage and its outbuildings sit on a quarter acre, which is worth ten thousand dollars in the current market. At two hundred dollars a month, you’ll have the property paid off in less than five years.”
Slapping the contract against his leg, the man stared hard, as if uncertain whether to believe his sudden good fortune. “What are you going to do with the rest of the land?”
“Tanner has approved possible leasing for livestock, but otherwise, the rest of the parcel will remain untouched.” Justin left out the part about possibly building a house on it someday, as that remained a distant dream pending future developments, and not of the real estate kind.
With one simple word, Cooper cut to the heart of the matter. “Why?”
Justin cleared his throat. “I have my reasons.” Gesturing toward his new tenant, he said, “That’s your copy. You’re welcome to have it reviewed and under no obligation to sign, but if you do, my number is on the last page.”
Climbing into the truck, he heard the man closing in behind him.
“You’re doing this for Abby,” Cooper charged, as if he’d solved a puzzle. “You still care about her.”
“Like I said before.” Justin closed the truck door and started the engine. “Always have. Always will.”
The rehearsal dinner was only a week away, and Abby had yet to decide if she really wanted to take pasta salad. Something as special as her mother’s rehearsal dinner deserved a bit more effort on her part.
Lorelei would supply the desserts, which eliminated the need for a second attempt at a cake. Having just gotten her house back together, the idea of setting it on fire again did not appeal.
Nor did she want a certain fireman charging in to save her. Not that he would.
She’d been through four cookbooks so far—casseroles, Crock-Pot, five-ingredient, and quick and easy. As far as Abby was concerned, not a single recipe in the last one looked quick or easy. Though all included delicious-sounding meals, not one hit on the key element she needed.
A recipe she could actually pull off.
But positive Abby would not give up and moved on to cookbook number five, the classic Cooking for Dummies. Clearly this book was written with her in mind.
“Oh, shish kebabs,” she said aloud. “I bet I can do that. How hard could it be to slide meat and veggies onto a stick?”
“Abby, where are you?” hollered Haleigh from the front door. Before she could get out of her seat, her best friend sprinted into the kitchen. “What the hell, Abbs? Why aren’t you answering your phone?”
Checking her cell, she spotted six missed calls. As part of her new job, Abby had met with the shelter board that morning and must have forgotten to turn her ringer back on.
“I didn’t hear it,” she said, panic rising. “What’s the matter? Is something wrong?”
“Absolutely nothing,” Haleigh chimed, dragging Abby from her seat and twirling her around the kitchen. “It’s all fixed. And you aren’t ever going to believe how.”
More than a little confused, she twisted out of the crazy woman’s arms. “Did Cooper find another garage?”
Like a kid on a playground, Haleigh leaned forward and said, “Even better,” before jumping in place. “And the best part? It was all for you.” Fearing she’d fallen off the wagon, Abby leaned close enough to smell Haleigh’s breath and got her nose swatted. “Stop it, you dork. I haven’t been drinking. I’m just happy. For both of us.”
Confusion growing, Abby crossed her arms. “You aren’t making any sense. What is fixed, and what does it have to do with me?”
“You’d better sit down for this.” Haleigh pulled over a chair and placed it behind Abby’s knees. “Go ahead,” she said, waiting. “Sit.”
“Just tell me already.”
With a resigned sigh, she started at the beginning. “Justin showed up at the garage today.” Abby’s butt hit the chair. “I tried to warn you. Cooper, of course, was going to kill
him on sight, but Frankie made him stop and listen.”
“Lucky for Justin that Frankie was there.”
“Eh. That firefighter training isn’t for sissies. He might have survived with minor fractures.”
Brows up, Abby stared her back to the point.
“Right. He handed Cooper a rental agreement. Apparently that Culpepper guy used Justin’s name even though he wasn’t involved. He didn’t even know who Tanner Drury was until earlier this week.”
She was lost again. “If he wasn’t involved, then what was the rental agreement?”
“That’s the best part. Justin bought the land out from under Culpepper, and he’s going to let Cooper rent the property that the garage sits on until he’s bought it outright. A rent-to-own type of deal.”
“So he isn’t going to develop the land? Or is he letting Cooper stay and putting the outlet mall around him?”
“No development,” she answered. “There might be some cows on it eventually, but they’ll be far enough away not to bother the garage.”
Struggling to wrap her head around the story, Abby bounced back to her feet, walking and talking at the same time.
“Justin spent a quarter of a million dollars on a piece of land, and he intends to do nothing with it?”
Haleigh grabbed her by the shoulders. “Don’t you see? He did it for you. And for Cooper, but mostly for you.”
“You don’t know that,” Abby whispered, afraid to get her hopes up. “He just hates Q. Justin didn’t want him to win.”
“Uh-uh,” she corrected, wiggling a finger in the air. “To make sure this is all legit, Cooper called Tanner. He shared the whole story. After Justin promised that he’d never develop the land, Drury asked him why he wanted to buy it. He said as a gift.” Shaking the stuffing out of Abby, she added, “A gift for you, woman. He still loves you.”
“No,” she snapped, rejecting the possibility. “Maybe he felt bad and didn’t want Cooper to lose his business. Or maybe he wanted to get back at Culpepper for sleeping with his fiancée. Whatever reason Justin has for doing this can’t possibly have anything to do with me.”
Calming, Haleigh navigated Abby back to the chair and forced her to sit before cradling her cheeks. “Listen to me, Abby Lou. When Cooper accused Justin of doing this because he still cared about you, he said, ‘Always have. Always will.’ Honey, that boy has loved you for a long time. And nobody knows better than I do how much men like that are worth.”
“Do you really think he wants this to work?” she asked.
“I’d say dropping a quarter million dollars is a sure sign, yes.”
Pressing against her best friend’s palm, Abby said, “But what if you’re wrong?”
With a tender smile, Haleigh replied, “What if I’m not?”
An ember of hope glowed warm in Abby’s chest. “Should I try to talk to him?”
“I’ll never forgive you if you don’t.”
“Well, then,” she sighed. “I guess I’d better go.”
Slender arms pulled her up into a protective hug. “Go get your happy ending, Abby Lou. You definitely deserve it.”
Tucking her head into Haleigh’s shoulder, Abby let the smile shine through. “This is really scary.”
The taller woman pulled away. “You can do this. Love makes you stronger, remember?”
Abby took a deep breath. “Right. I can do this.”
“Yes, you can,” she cheered, waving invisible pom-poms.
Reaching for her purse and keys on the table, Abby shook her head. “Don’t do that.”
Haleigh followed her to the garage. “Too much?”
“Way too much.” She turned to place a wet kiss on the blonde’s cheek. “Wish me luck.”
“You don’t need luck. You have love.”
Hitting the button to open the garage door, Abby shook her head. “You should get a job writing greeting cards with that one. Don’t forget to lock that.”
As she climbed behind the wheel, Haleigh did as ordered, pulling the door shut behind her. “I didn’t have to come here, you know,” she snipped, sashaying past Abby’s car. Smacking the trunk, she yelled, “Pick up some condoms on the way.”
Laughing as she put the car in gear, Abby decided she would be making a stop on the way, but for something much less predictable.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve coming here, missy.”
This was how Justin’s mother answered the door. It seemed like an odd thing to say to a pizza delivery person.
“I just want to talk to him, Karen,” Abby replied, and Justin bounded off the couch before his mother did something crazy, like slam the door in her face.
“I’ve got this, Mom,” he cut in, catching the door before it closed. “Give us a minute, okay?”
Mom’s lip curled up in a snarl. “Don’t you hurt him again, girlie. He’s been through enough because of you.”
Stepping onto the porch, he closed the screen door behind him. “We should probably talk out here.”
“That seems best, yes,” Abby replied, taking a seat on the porch swing. Once he joined her, she held silent, staring at the envelope in her lap.
Justin took the opportunity to drink her in. The way her lashes created little shadows on her cheeks. And the lock of hair that tumbled over her right eye, hiding her expression. He assumed she’d talked to her brother by now, but he hadn’t made things right with the expectation that she’d come back to him. He wanted her to know that.
“About your brother’s garage—” he started, but Abby cut him off.
“I got a job,” she said, as if they were old friends catching up.
“That’s good,” he replied. “Are you going back to nursing?”
“Sort of.” The corner of the envelope bent beneath her nail. “I’ll be working at the Safe Haven Women’s Shelter as a sort of liaison with the residents, especially when they first arrive. Addressing medical needs or just helping them get settled.”
Off balance, Justin said, “You’ll be good at that.” Which she would. Abby was a natural caretaker. “I’m glad you found something you think you’ll like.”
“The thing is,” she continued, “I thought creative meant drawing or painting, but it really means making something that didn’t exist before. With the shelter, Carrie has created a safe place for women who desperately need one, and I’m looking forward to helping her bring her full vision to life.”
Justin started to worry. He hadn’t heard from Cooper yet. Maybe Abby had been sent to throw the rental agreement in his face.
“Is that what you came all the way out here to tell me?” he asked, cutting his eyes to the horizon because not touching her was driving him mad. “That you got a new job?”
She toed the swing into motion. “Not only that, no. I heard about what you did for Cooper.”
He hadn’t done anything for Cooper, but Justin didn’t correct her. “Are you here to give me his answer?”
The swing stopped. “What answer?”
“Whether or not he’s going to sign the agreement.”
“Of course he’s going to sign the agreement,” she said, as if this were a foregone conclusion, “but that’s not why I’m here.”
Justin met her gaze and nearly lost himself in her eyes. The green depths held no anger. No judgment or reproach. Only hope. An emotion he’d been fighting to contain all day.
Stretching his arm across the back of the swing, he repeated the question. “Why are you here, Abby?”
The seat swayed from side to side this time. “I thought there might be a reason to come. That there might be a chance.”
Giving in to temptation, Justin twirled a lock of hair between his fingers. “A chance for what?”
Eyes lowered again, she whispered, “Us.”
One word that allowed him to dream again.
“There is for me,” he murmured. “How about you?”
Abby took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I think so. But I need to say something first.” Sh
e traced circles on his denim-clad thigh with one warm fingertip. “I shouldn’t have accused you of cheating, and I don’t blame you for being angry with me.”
“I should have controlled my temper,” he admitted. “And told you the truth from the beginning. I didn’t realize the damage that keeping secrets could do.”
A sad smile curled her lips. “No more secrets, then?”
Justin nodded. “The whole story. Every time.”
“I guess we’ve both learned some hard lessons in the last few weeks.” Abby clasped her hands around the envelope in her lap. “Since we’ve been apart, I’ve learned another one.”
Praying for the right answer, he asked, “What’s that?”
“That I can be happy alone.”
Like a punch, Justin felt the declaration reverberate through his chest. Drawing his arm off the bench, he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees.
“I’ve been so busy being unhappy,” she went on, “that I forgot how to live. To enjoy the moment and stop wallowing in what I don’t have.” She tapped the envelope against her chest. “I mean, I’m enough all by myself, you know? I have dreams and ideas, and I don’t need a man in my life to be fulfilled.”
Why didn’t she set him on fire already?
“You are enough, Abby.” Justin rose from the swing. “Sounds like you’re all set to have a nice life.”
“Where are you going?” she asked, following him to the door. “Don’t you want to hear the rest?”
“What do you want from me here? My blessing? Do you want me to say ‘good for you’? Because I’ve got nothing. I don’t want to wish you well and wave good-bye. I want to be by your side to watch you chase those dreams, and listen to all of your ideas while you’re lying in my arms.” He swiped a hand through his hair. “I guess that’s not what you want.”
Taking his hand, she said, “You didn’t let me finish. I know now that I don’t need a man to be happy, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want one. That I don’t want you.”
If this was her idea of playing hard to get, Justin didn’t think he had the strength for it.