Keeping Secrets in Seattle

by Brooke Moss

  Landon’s face wrinkled up. “What the heck does that mean?”

  “It means…” My mind whirled. “…it was kid stuff. And, it ended. Then we stayed friends. Well, we weren’t friends for a while, but then gradually repaired our friendship, and now here we are.”

  “And Alicia is jealous of this for no reason?” He looked unconvinced.

  “Guess so.” I decided to leave out the fact that Gabe and I were three seconds from having our tongues down each other’s throats when she let herself into his apartment the other day. That might have been contributing to her jealousy issues as well.

  Landon thought for a moment. Then, as if a lightbulb went off above his head, he scowled. “So you’re going to be his best man, even though you’ve slept together?”

  “What?” My voice came out entirely too loud, and a couple at a neighboring table frowned at me. I dropped my voice. “Geez, no, we never slept together.”

  “Well, that’s a relief.” He picked up his fork and speared a piece of chicken. “I can see how Alicia would have been sort of uncomfortable with that. So, why did you two break up?”

  Now we were treading into dangerous territory. This was a subject I was not prepared to discuss over beers and Indian food. I took a long pull of my ice water before I could speak.

  “It got weird.” My voice came out flat.

  Landon looked up from his chicken curiously. “Well, you’re over it now, though.”

  I nodded, praying I was acting convincingly enough for him.

  No such luck.

  “You are over him, right?” His deep-brown eyes pleaded with me, and he reached over to lace his fingers through mine.

  “Of course I am.” My throat tightened. “Gabe’s my friend. Nothing more.”

  “I wish you would have told me about this earlier.” Landon slid across the booth so that he was closer to me. “I feel like you kept this from me for some reason. That makes it seem wrong.”

  I nodded stiffly. “I know. I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to be uncomfortable around Gabe.”

  “Why would I be uncomfortable?” Landon’s all-too-familiar grin returned to his face, and he slid his plate in front of him. “It’s not like you guys were making out while you were at his apartment the other day. I think Gabe’s fiancée should just chill out.”

  Oh, good Lord, I was going to Hell.

  “Right.” I faked a laugh, which came out slightly squeaky and maniacal sounding, causing the woman at the next table to jump.

  “I think we just need to do a double date sometime soon.” He stopped his munching for just a second to place a warm kiss on the top of my head. “Maybe we can get you and Alicia to be friends after all.”

  I grimaced. “Well…okay. I mean, I’ve got good reason not to like her, but I’ll try anything at least once.”

  “What’s your reason?” Landon motioned to the waitress for our check.

  “Well, for starters, she’s a liar.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  “Well, one of her bridesmaids told me some questionable things about Alicia at the dress fitting. When I did some snooping, I found out—”

  “Wait, wait, wait.” Landon took his hand off mine. “You did what?”

  “Kim, Betsy, and I went on an undercover mission.” I looked at him sheepishly. “We went to Portland to dig up some dirt on Alicia.”

  He threw his napkin down. “You’re telling me that you drove clear to Portland to stalk this poor girl?”

  “Alicia is no poor girl, she’s a monster. And I didn’t stalk her. She lives in Seattle.”

  “But you went to Portland to find out information about her?”

  “I went to Portland for a job interview. But yeah. That’s where she grew up.”

  “A job interview?”

  I bit my lip. “Yeah.”

  The corners of Landon’s mouth pulled down. “You didn’t tell me that you were interviewing. I just thought you were thinking about it.”

  I tried to smile brightly. “I am just thinking about it. Besides, I mostly went to dig up some dirt on Alicia. Listen to what we found out—”

  “Tell me you’re joking.”

  “Of course I’m not joking. She’s a liar. And a gold digger. Listen—”

  “That’s crazy. Who does stuff like that?”

  My face went hot. “It’s not crazy. I was doing Gabe a favor.”

  “Did he ask you to do that?”

  “No, but—”

  Landon slid out of the booth and stood up. “You want me to believe that you’re not still hung up on this guy, and yet you’re drudging up garbage about his fiancée? What did you plan to do with this information once you got it?”

  I looked up at him pitifully. “Tell Gabe what I know.”

  Landon’s face was void of any amusement. “Why?”

  Irritation boiled up in my chest. Why was Landon treating me like I’d done something wrong? I was only watching out for my best friend.

  “Are you kidding? My best friend is marrying a woman who has openly admitted that she wants to marry a rich guy, and when he isn’t cutting it anymore, she’s going to upgrade. Did you hear me? She’s planning on upgrading. This isn’t a computer she’s talking about. It’s my best friend. And she uses a fake name. What kind of a person uses a fake name? I can’t let Gabe marry someone like this.”

  His mouth turned down. “What are you going to do if you tell him all of this, and he still marries Alicia? Are you going to be okay with that?”

  “I…of course I am. I just want him to make an informed decision.”

  “Right.” He dropped some money onto the table. “So what is going to happen if you tell Gabe what all of your so-called research turned up, and he decides not to marry Alicia? What then?”

  He stared down at me. “Are you going to dump me so you can have him?”

  I paused. I shouldn’t have paused, but I did.

  Without a word, he scooped his coat off the bench and walked out, his shoulders slumping as he wove his way toward the door.

  “Hey, wait.” I squirmed my way out of the booth after him.

  I followed his trail through the restaurant, but a voice called from behind me right as I grabbed the handle. “Miss. You forgot your purse.”

  I looked down at my empty hands and groaned. Sure enough, I left my purse sitting on the table, where a bus boy was waiting for me. I went back to get it, thanking the young man, then charged out to the parking lot where Landon was leaning against the side of his bike, waiting for me with a frown set deep on his face.

  I drew a long, ragged breath as I walked, releasing it slowly. Sure, I could have stomped away mad, called a cab, and headed home by myself, but the truth was, I didn’t want to. I enjoyed being with Landon. He made me laugh and was sexy as hell. It’d been a long time since I found anyone who made me do that…besides Gabe.

  I walked up to him with my arms out defensively. “You left without letting me answer.”

  “You paused,” he grunted. “That seemed like enough of an answer to me.”

  I walked right up close to Landon, so that we were just inches apart. “You’re reading too much into all of this. What you didn’t hear me say, was: no. I am not going to be with Gabe. Not now, not ever. We’re done. We’re friends. Period.”

  Those words gave me a stomachache.

  He looked down at me sadly. “I don’t want you to be with me just because Gabe is taken. I want you to be with me because you love me.”

  “I’m with you because…” I bit my lip. “I care about you.”

  His face dropped. “I’m such a fool when I’m with you. I fell so hard and fast for you, and you don’t even love me back. This is nuts.”

  I rested my purse on the seat of his bike and looped my arms around his waist underneath his leather coat. “I am with you because you make me happy. I am with you because you are handsome and kind and wonderful. Just because I am slow to use that word doesn’t mean I don’t feel it.�
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  “Do you really mean that?” The mood shifted as he brushed my hair back, and his brown eyes began to shine.

  I nodded. “Of course I mean it. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.”

  Landon leaned down and kissed me, his lips pulling into a smile against mine. “You just admitted that you love me.”

  I squeezed my eyes shut. This is not a lie. I do love Landon.

  I let him deepen the kiss, allowing myself to escape in the moment. This was what was supposed to happen. This was my chance at happiness. Gabe was taken, promised to another. Landon was here and completely devoted to me. Landon was the smart choice. I was supposed to be in the parking lot of an Indian food joint making out with him next to his Harley. This was exactly the life I was meant to have. Landon and I were the perfect couple. We matched, for heaven’s sake. We looked the part.

  Landon nuzzled into my hair a bit. This was it. He needed to hear it. He needed to know where I stood.

  “I love you.” I closed my eyes and turned my face away from his.

  My head buzzed as Landon pulled me back a few inches and looked at me like I just announced that he’d won the lottery. His eyes were moist, and his grin was wider than ever.

  “You love me.” He yanked me into a hug so tight it felt like my ribs were going to crack. Another couple emerged from the restaurant, and Landon called out to them. “Hey. Check it out. She loves me.”

  Oh, good Lord, I thought, as the couple waved at us and called, “Mazel tov.”

  Again, Landon kissed me, his mouth opening mine, sending swirls of excitement through my body. I returned his affection, holding him by the back of his neck and tilting my face to his. After a few heated moments against his bike, Landon pulled away, offering me a crooked smile with his swollen lips. “Where to now?”

  Shoving all thoughts of Gabe to the back of my mind, I looked at Landon through heavy eyelids and purred, “Your place.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  September 15, 2003

  Gabe took me to the movies before we went to Cameron’s party. We bought popcorn and sat in the back of the theater. Every time his fingers brushed mine in the popcorn bucket, my heart would race. When we pulled apart, he brushed my hair back from my face and told me playing ball with his friends at Safeco Field was the only thing that could come close to kissing me. I miss that. I wish so badly we could go back to those times…

  I heard back from Gabe the morning after I professed my love to Landon. Gabe seemed to have a knack for that. Showing back up whenever things were starting to go really well with my new boyfriend. And then…

  Whammo. An e-mail like this from Gabe:

  “Hey, Vi,

  Sorry I’ve been so busy lately. I’m swamped at work. You know how it is.

  I got your message(s) and want you to know that I will make sure we have some time to talk this Saturday. We really left our conversation open-ended, and it’s sort of driving me nuts. I wish Alicia hadn’t walked into the apartment when she did.

  I hope you’ve got something really cool planned for my bachelor party. All of my other friends are worried that since my best man isn’t a dude, we’ll be sitting around eating finger sandwiches and crap like that. I’ve defended your taste for weeks now and promised that they’ll have fun. What I’m saying is: We need strippers. Lots of them.

  Don’t let me down. Miss you, Vi. Can’t wait to see you.

  Later, Gabe.”

  Once I found out—through Nora—that Cameron wouldn’t be flying to Seattle until the week of the wedding, thus missing the bachelor party, I’d set out to plan the best night of Gabe’s life. The fact that he was acting as wishy-washy as a teenage girl didn’t take away from the fact that I wanted to give him the best party ever, even if he did call the whole thing off after I told him what a liar his fiancée was, and what a sick bastard Cameron was. And, boy, oh, boy did I plan on telling him both of those things.

  So I set out to be the greatest best man I could be. I wanted to create an event that he would never forget. After much thought, I came up with the perfect plan. I had to call in a few favors. Well, actually, more than a few…try a boatload of favors. I made call after call, promising my hairdressing skills to everyone from my mother’s wealthiest client all the way down to her niece’s poodle. I’d created the fulfillment of a dream Gabe had told me about in a darkened theater years ago.

  On the evening of the party, Nora greeted me at her door, grinning widely. “Come here and hug me. I haven’t seen you in ages. How are you doing? Are you eating? Is your job going well?”

  I set down my box of supplies on the porch and melted against Nora’s softness, letting her cradle me for a few moments. I’d almost forgotten how good it felt to be in her arms. “I’m good. Everything’s great.”

  She held me at arm’s length, glanced at my long raincoat, and gave me a toothy grin. “The boys are going to love this.”

  “Are they all here?” I asked in a hushed voice.

  “There were a few stragglers, but they’re all here now.”

  “Vi.” Gabe came around the corner and eyeballed my overcoat. “What are you wearing? It’s sunny out.”

  I grinned smartly. “Are all of your friends here?”

  He nodded. “Yup. And they’re pissed there won’t be strippers.”

  He laced his fingers through mine and squeezed my hand. I stopped and looked down at our hands for a second, our fingers bound together like the laces of a shoe. Feeling my skin tingle, I let go reluctantly, and Gabe sighed quietly.

  Nora swept between us with a sly wink. “There better not be, young man.”

  We entered the family room where there were eleven men, including Guthrie, Curtis, and Uncle Roy, waiting anxiously. As soon as I walked in the room, Uncle Roy hoisted himself off the couch. “Let’s get this party started.”

  “I don’t know.” A young man I recognized as Gabe’s coworker, Max, scoffed. “A girl organizing a bachelor party?”

  “Lame,” Gabe’s college friend, Dan, shouted.

  The other groomsman, Lyle, snickered. “We better not be scrapbooking.”

  I put my hands up defensively. “I realize that having a chick involved in a bachelor party, especially one who’s fully dressed, is a bit unorthodox. However, this is going to be the fulfillment of one of Gabe’s biggest dreams.”

  “So then there will be strippers.” Greg whooped.

  “Sorry, no strippers.” I hoped they weren’t disappointed that there would be no thongs and clear stilettos present tonight.

  “Take your clothes off, then,” Dan yelled.

  Gabe stepped up to my side and offered him a steely gaze. “Watch it.”

  Every single set of eyes rolled to where Gabe’s hand was resting on the small of my back, so I jumped away from his touch. “Okay, boys. Go line up by the front door. Nora and I have a few things for each of you.”

  Nora pulled a large cooler out of the kitchen. “Ready?”

  I nodded, laughing. The cooler was the size of a small coffin. The group of men eyeballed the cooler with ravenous expressions. “No peeking.”

  My stepfather, Curtis, came up beside me and gave a one-armed hug. “Haven’t seen you around for a while. Your mother misses you.”

  “Sorry.” I shrugged. “I’ve been busy.” I didn’t want to add that I’d been avoiding my mother since Christmas because I was dating Landon, and every time I dated someone new, she would drag out her four wedding dresses for me to pick from.

  He nodded knowingly. “I’ll tell her hello.”

  As soon as they were lined up, Nora began tying strips of thick black fabric over each of their eyes, stopping only to plant a tender kiss on Guthrie’s chin and remind him to have fun. I noticed Gabe staring at me from the end of the line, his gaze nostalgic, so I offered him a wry smile.

  “Okay, okay, you two.” Gabe peeled his eyes from me and pushed his dad’s shoulders gently. “You’re holding up the line.”

  Once they were all blindfold
ed, and Nora had them all lined up on the front porch, I started pulling T-shirts out of the box. “Take off your shirts, and put this on instead. But still no peeking. All right, boys?”

  Greg shook his head. “What? No way.”

  “We don’t know what these look like. You could be putting us in pink.” Dan squeezed the T-shirt.

  I walked past him, poking his chest. “You need to trust me. In an hour or so, you’ll be thanking me, I promise.”

  “Watch how you talk to Dan,” Gabe warned me, adjusting his blindfold. “He gets the wrong idea from the girls who make his coffee at Starbucks.”

  Several of the other guys chuckled, but Dan scoffed. “Hey. Maybe she likes me.”

  Gabe’s lips pursed. “All right.”

  “Are you hitting on the best man, Dan?” Gabe’s coworker, Jake, asked.

  “Well, did you see her?” Dan’s head swiveled blindly in the direction of the last voice.

  I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Gabe’s jaw had tightened.

  “We all saw her, dude,” Gabe’s cousin, Trevor, added quietly. Flattered, I bit my lip and shrugged at Nora.

  “Enough chitchat. Change your shirts,” Nora demanded.

  Grumbling, each of the men peeled their shirts off. “Seriously,” Gabe called from his end of the line. “You do realize that the neighbors must think we’re freaks, right?”

  “You shush.” I poked him in the abs. “You’ll thank me soon enough.”

  Gabe grabbed my hand and held it against his chest. “Don’t mess with me, Vi. Where are we going?”

  I had to catch my breath as a white stretch limo pulled up in front of the house. “I’m not telling.”

  I reluctantly tugged my hand back and stalked away from him. “Okay, boys, our ride is here. Everyone stay in line, and Nora and I will help you to the car. Watch your step—we don’t want any injuries…yet.”

  Nora’s mouth was hanging open as she watched the driver cross around and open the door into the neon-lit interior. “Violet, a limo?” she hissed, her brown eyes wide.

  “I did the hair and makeup for this guy’s commercials last summer. Free of charge.” I winked at the driver. “He owed me a favor.”