The Last Bride (DiCarlo Brides #6)

by Heather Tullis

  “Yeah. I’d like that.” She picked up the clipboard. “Can you give me a few minutes to finish checking my supplies for tomorrow?”

  “Of course.”

  She headed to the large cooler and felt him follow her in.

  “Wow, this is a lot of flowers,” Gage said when he stepped inside.

  “It sure is. We have a conference this weekend and a big wedding in a few days. All of the VIP rooms are filled and they need fresh bouquets every day, plus we need the displays for the banquets and stuff. It all adds up.” She had a hard time focusing her attention on her tasks with him standing so close behind her, the strong scent of roses wafting around them. It made her heart race and she wondered if she’d never noticed how big of a presence he had before because he rarely stood that close before, or if it was the small quarters.

  “So how was work?” she asked him over the tightness in her throat.

  “It was fine. We got a fair amount done, despite the ringing telephone. You?”

  “Pretty good. The worst day of playing with flowers is better than the best day of sitting in an office. Unfortunately, I had to spend some time at my desk, but that’s sort of a given.” She double-checked the daisy count and smiled, marking it off of her list. She turned to Gage and realized he had moved up behind her, only inches away. “Oh, hi.”

  “Hi. Now I know why you always smell so sweet. This is amazing.” He set a hand on the box beside her, making her even more aware of his presence.

  “Thanks. I think so.” Jonquil’s heart started to speed as she looked into his eyes. She shivered a little as the compressor turned on, blowing cold air on her neck. “Angela told me what you said. I appreciate that you were kind to her and firm all at once.”

  “She’s your sister. I’ve seen you defend the other girls. I knew my life would be in danger if I wasn’t nice about it,” he teased, moving in on her slowly.

  “Oh yeah? Glad you’ve figured out that much.” She set aside the clipboard to free up her hands, then ran her palms up his arms, feeling the bunching muscles and warm skin. She knew she shouldn’t give in—he didn’t want a real relationship, but she had been dreaming of his kisses for so long, and the previous night had only whetted her interest further.

  “Besides, she’s a cute kid.” His head lowered toward hers.

  “Everyone thinks so. About her, anyway.”

  “You’re something else. Something more.” His lips touched hers in a soft, teasing taste. The kiss was gentle and warm in the chill that was sinking into her muscles. His arms circled her and pulled her closer and she leaned against him, soaking in his warmth. They ought to move out of the cooler, but she didn’t want to break off the kiss. He tipped his head and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss and taking it somewhere the first touch of lips hadn’t indicated.

  Jonquil didn’t realize he was moving them until her back hit one of the shelves. Her hands were in Gage’s hair, her heart was racing and she desperately wanted to keep kissing him, but the goosebumps on her arms and shelving cutting into her back drew her attention back to reality. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Gage grinned. “Sounds good.” He gestured her out the door, following with a hand at her back, and as soon as they exited the cooler, he had her back against the wall, kissing her again.

  “I thought we were going to do dinner?” Jonquil asked.

  “Just a couple more minutes first.” He plunged them both into the kiss again.

  Jonquil found herself caught up in the kiss as soon as his lips touched hers. She let it go for several long moments, enjoying every second, before pushing him back a few inches and sucking in a breath. “Wow. I think we ought to get that food now.”

  He breathed hard as well. “Yeah. We should do that. You want to eat here or go out somewhere?”

  “Let’s go to Wendel’s. I’m in the mood for a shake.” And people so she wouldn’t succumb to him again while her head spun.

  “They do have the best on the planet,” he agreed.

  Jonquil thought of her paperwork still sitting in the cooler and dismissed it. A little cold wouldn’t hurt anything. After months of admiring him from afar, she was definitely taking the chance to spend time with him. Even if he’d already declared it was going nowhere.

  Gage had known taking Jonquil for dinner would soothe the discomfort he’d been feeling since seeing Angela earlier and he was right. He enjoyed laughing with her over dinner. She was like a bright light shining on everyone around her.

  They had finished the burgers and were lingering over their shakes when she tipped her head and asked, “You know all about my family now, but I don’t know anything about yours. I didn’t even know you had a sister until a couple of weeks ago.”

  He’d known this was coming and he thought he was prepared, until she actually asked it. “Natalie is younger than me by a couple of years. She was the prom queen, cheerleader type, and I was all about hiking and skiing and stuff. We were friends when we were little. When Vince and Jeremy weren’t around, because you know, you can’t be friends with your sister in front of your friend when you’re eight. It’s so uncool.” He smiled a little, though he felt bad about it now. Natalie claimed it was no big deal, but he knew it had been at the time. Maybe if he’d been there for her things would be different now.

  “Just the two of you then? Did you grow up with both parents? I heard something about your mom, but no one mentioned your dad.” Jonquil’s hands wrapped around her shake, but her eyes were focused solely on him.

  “Just the two of us. My parents were married for twenty-seven years when my dad died in a car accident. He was in Denver for a business meeting. It took them several hours to find his ID and notify us.” He glanced away from her, not wanting to see the compassion in her eyes. He’d been sorry to see his father die, felt terrible for his mom, but hadn’t mourned for him as much as he knew he should have. Gage’s regrets were more that he wished he had been able to get his dad to understand him rather than trying to control him. They had never understood each other and Connor Mathews had been a man in charge. He ruled the house and ruled his business like someone who knew he was born to do so.

  Gage had managed not to hate him, but seeing the contrast with his friends’ dads had made him well aware of the deficiencies in their relationship. His father’s insistence that Gage should study architecture and move toward a “real” career instead of spending so much time working at ski resorts hadn’t helped. Gage hated sitting in an office all day—even when he knew it was to keep his own dream going. He had a balcony built onto his office so he could work out in the sun and fresh air on nice days—it was how he kept himself sane.

  “I’m sorry. It’s hard to lose a dad. I nearly lost the one I grew up with twice, and he’s not doing very well now.” Jonquil stared thoughtfully at her cup while a child in the booth next to them started to throw a tantrum about wanting tater tots, not fries.

  “And then there’s George.” Gage had met the man several times when George had tried to find out who owned the ski resort to buy it. Gage had referred him to the lawyer who acted as liaison so people didn’t know Gage owned it. Eventually George had quit pushing.

  “And then there was George.” Jonquil nodded. “He was as good to me as he could be, under the circumstances. Better than a lot of fathers, actually. It wasn’t always pretty, and definitely wasn’t easy, but he loved me and he always made time to talk to me at least twice a week, and any time I was in crisis mode—which was often enough as a messed-up teenager.” She paused and her eyes widened. “I just realized we were all teenagers at the same time. How did he ever survive that?” She shook her head. “He visited every couple of months for a long weekend and during those times he was fully focused on me.”

  “So not a lot of quantity time, but when you were together it was quality time.” Gage was jealous of that. His own father hadn’t seemed to care much one way or the other. “Considering what a jerk he was in other areas, I’m glad your dad was
there for you like that.”

  Jonquil stretched her hand across the table and brushed her fingers over his. “It wasn’t always easy, but I had three caring parents who made growing up a little less traumatic than it could have been.” She slid their fingers together. “Were you close to your mom? You seem to be now.”

  He wouldn’t say he was close to her now, not even remotely, but he tried to help where he could. Gage flipped her hand over and stared at it while he considered the best way to explain. The funny calluses and cuts on her hands had to be from her work. They were good, strong hands, not light and dainty, but a tribute to her efforts. He found he liked that better. “Mom and Dad were close. Closer than they were with Natalie or me. At least, that’s how it always seemed.”

  He tried to see it through the filter of adulthood, viewing the past more clearly, but wasn’t sure if he succeeded. “She was dependent on him for everything, doting on him and waiting at the door with her hair perfectly arranged and dinner on the table when he walked in. Not that she cooked, but she made sure there was something warm for him anyway.” He smiled to himself. “She’s a big believer in hiring people to do things you can’t do or don’t like to do.”

  “Not a bad philosophy on its own,” Jonquil agreed. “Though sometimes you have to take on dirty jobs because they need to be done.”

  “Agreed.”

  “It sounds like she was the perfect fifties housewife—minus the cooking and cleaning.” Jonquil said with a smile.

  “Yeah, she had the routine down. They seemed happy with it, so no complaints there.”

  “And where did that leave you?”

  “Hanging out a lot with Vince and Jeremy.” He smiled at the memory. “You’ve met Etta—she’s the perfect example of motherhood, in my opinion. She always let Vince invite us over for sleepovers and dinner. We hung at his place most of the time. They are my brothers.”

  Jonquil nodded. “I understand that exactly. Sometimes family is what you make of it.”

  He was surprised she got it when so many people didn’t.

  They left the restaurant soon after and he took her back to the hotel parking lot. He didn’t want to say goodnight, but he didn’t want to push things, either. They had agreed to stick to the friend zone only a few days earlier and that had been shot the second their lips met. He didn’t know what this was, but he wasn’t ready to call it a relationship yet.

  “Thanks for dinner. I had fun,” Jonquil said.

  “Me too.” He took her right hand and ran the pad of his thumb over her palm. “I checked my schedule. Next Wednesday will work great for me.”

  She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his mouth. “Perfect. What time do you want to leave?”

  “I’m flexible.” He moved in and kissed her, pulling her close and shutting out every thought but the sweetness of ice cream on her lips and the softness of her light frame in his arms. He was afraid he could become addicted to this woman, to having her in his arms and her shining light in his life. The thought had him pulling back, but she threaded her fingers through his hair and drew him close for another go. He was happy to oblige.

  It took Gage a moment to realize that the insistent buzzing he felt wasn’t just the thrumming of blood in his veins, but his phone vibrating in his pocket. He considered ignoring it, not wanting any interruptions, but knew he should at least see who it was. “Sorry. Let me check. It could be my mom.” She often called in the evening and their call earlier had been brief.

  He kept one arm around Jonquil so she wouldn’t go anywhere while he pulled out his phone and saw Natalie’s number on the other side. So she finally decided to call him back? “Hello.”

  A man’s voice responded. “I have your sister. She owes me fifty-grand. You want her back in one piece? Get me the money in three days’ time. Don’t call the cops or you’ll never see her again. I’ll call with details.” He hung up.

  Gage froze as he replayed the short message in his mind, then backed away from Jonquil. “I gotta go.”

  “What’s wrong? All of the color drained out of your face.”

  “My sister. And her issues. I gotta go. I’m sorry.” He turned away but she reached out and grabbed his arm.

  “What’s going on? Tell me.” Jonquil’s voice was low and anxious.

  “You can’t help.”

  “Maybe not, but I thought we were friends. Or something.”

  “I have to call for help. I need…” He couldn’t think straight, paralyzed by what he’d just heard. It had only been a few days. Couldn’t they have given him more time? And why didn’t they come to him directly before taking Natalie?

  Then he thought of his mom. Natalie was supposed to have been home with her that night. How long had it been since anyone saw her? Was she okay? “I have to get home. To my mom’s.”

  “Okay. Get into my car and I’ll take you there.” Jonquil led him around to the passenger seat and he climbed inside, only then realizing she had gotten him back into her tiny Rio again. He didn’t care at the moment.

  She got inside and backed out of the parking spot, heading for the street. “Which way?”

  He gave her directions and she badgered him until she got him to tell her about the conversation between Natalie and himself a few days earlier.

  “We have to call the cops.” Jonquil steered the car into his mom’s driveway.

  “He said not to.”

  “I know. I’ll have Joel act as go-between. We can keep them away from the house if you want, but you need backup. Do you have any way of getting fifty-thousand in three days?”

  “Not a prayer. Not even two-thousand unless I sold my car. Which I’d do if I had no other option, but even that’s not going to help much.”

  “Then leave it to me. I can make that happen.”

  Gage turned to stare at her. “You have that much cash in your back pocket?”

  “No, but I have sisters. We have resources. Give me a few hours and I’ll figure it out.”

  “Why?”

  “Why what?” she asked as she stopped in front of the house.

  “Why would you do that for me? We’ve been on a couple of not-really-a-date dates. That’s it.”

  She looked out the front window instead of at him and took a deep breath. “Because like it or not, you’re part of my life. You’re best buds with my brothers-in-law and the future one. I know Vince and Jeremy will stop at nothing to help you, and I think Joel, Blake and Harrison feel pretty much the same. Whatever you need. We’ll figure it out.” She looked him in the eye. “Now, let’s check on your mom and then I’ll call Joel and have him put things in motion.”

  Feeling slightly less panicked, Gage got out of the car, meeting her at the head of the car and taking her hand.

  They went inside and he called out to his mom. There was no response. He checked the sitting room she preferred and opened the fridge to see a note stuck to the gallon of milk from the housekeeper who had been there the previous evening.

  His brows furrowed. Usually his mom would have found that when she got up in the morning. He shut the fridge door and called her name again, heading for her bedroom suite on the second floor.

  “Could she be out visiting someone?” Jonquil asked. “We didn’t check the garage.”

  “I guess, she has good days and bad days. Yesterday wasn’t so good so I thought she would be home today.” He hoped he was wrong. The caller said his sister had been abducted. They didn’t say anything about his mom. And was Natalie at home when it happened? He didn’t see any indications that the place had been broken into. He hurried up the stairs and down the hall, Jonquil close on his heels.

  When he knocked on his mother’s door, it opened under the pressure of his knuckles and he entered, calling her name. He heard a groan from across the room and found his mother lying on the floor. She was in her robe, her arms askew, blood slowly seeping from a wound in her head and pooling beneath her. Gage fell to his knees beside her and checked her pulse.

 
When Gage looked up from his mother’s side, Jonquil already had the phone at her ear and was asking for an ambulance. She had him give her the address and then stayed on the phone answering questions for a few minutes before hanging up.

  “Hey, Mom, do you hear me? Come on, look up at me. It’s Gage.”

  She muttered something and he asked her to repeat it, not understanding.

  The wait for the ambulance to arrive seemed to take forever. Jonquil met the EMTs at the door and showed them up to the room, and two deputies came along.

  “Trent, I’m glad you’re here. We need to talk to you when this is over,” Jonquil said in a low voice after Gage joined her, stepping away from his mom so the EMTs would have room to work.

  “About this?”

  “No, something else. Maybe unrelated. Probably not.”

  His brows lifted, but he agreed.

  The EMTs got Diane on the backboard and into the ambulance. It seemed to take forever to Gage. Every minute stretching into the next, but finally he sat in the front seat of the ambulance and felt his heart pounding as fast as the quick scream of the ambulance siren. Watching through the side-view mirror, Gage saw Jonquil’s car pull out onto the road behind them. In that moment, he knew his whole life had changed that day. He wondered if he would ever recover.

  Jonquil arrived at the hospital less than a minute after the ambulance, the winding mountain roads didn’t lend themselves to speeding. She had called Joel and asked him to put out the word that they were at the hospital and that they needed a family meeting as soon as she knew if Gage’s mom was staying or going on to a larger facility in Denver. She was nearly done speaking when the mountain passes cut her off from the cell phone towers and she put the phone down for the rest of the drive.

  She wasn’t allowed in the ER, which she pretty much expected, so she asked the nurse to let Gage know she was there and settled in the waiting room for when he had something to tell her.

  Soon he joined her. “They don’t know what happened, I mean, how she is, yet, but the last time I know she was up and about this morning. I have no way of knowing how long Natalie has been gone.” Tears brimmed in his eyes. “My mom asked me to move back home, but I didn’t. I thought I needed my space.”