by Mona Ingram
He turned to her as though becoming aware of her presence. “I didn’t think I’d hear this soon,” he said, his expression gentle. He touched her face, his fingers lingering there for a moment before he dropped his hand. “It couldn’t have come at a worse time.”
She forced a smile. “Maybe it’s just as well.”
A frown marred his brow. “Do you really mean that?” He leaned closer. “Leeza?”
She lifted her chin and looked him right in the eye. “We should get going. You’ll have to pack and check out.” She leaned over and checked the gas gauge. “Maybe get some gas.” If she kept thinking of practicalities, she might not break into in a million pieces.
He stared at her for a moment, nodded at her words and pulled out of the parking lot.
They were silent on the way back to the Lodge. What was there to talk about? How they’d almost done something they’d both regret? It had been a close call, she told herself. She was lucky it had turned out this way.
She watched him out of the corner of her eye. He hadn’t really changed. He was still the same outrageously appealing man she’d fallen in love with. But he was married to someone else, and he was leaving. It was better that he’d been called away now, before she drowned in those chocolate eyes. Better in every way.
Then why did she feel as though someone had reached into her chest and yanked out her heart?
* * *
Leeza jumped out of Matt’s vehicle the moment he pulled into the Lodge parking lot. He climbed out slowly, feeling like a failure and followed her into the Lodge.
Brooke looked up as he entered the great room.
“Hi,” she said. “How was the waterfall?”
Matt had almost forgotten. “Beautiful” he said, his tone flat. “I’m on my way up to my room to pack. I have to check out.”
“Is there something wrong?” Brooke searched his face for a clue.
He shook his head and made the universal telephone sign with his right hand. “I got called back to the Valley. They’re going to give me the results of the hearing tomorrow.”
She brightened. “Why that’s good, isn’t it?”
He seemed surprised at her question. “I suppose so. I just wasn’t expecting to hear so soon, that’s all.”
Brooke wondered if his odd behaviour had anything to do with the way Leeza had practically run past her a moment ago. “I was just about to head over to the campsite office, so perhaps you could leave the key in the room. There’s no bill to be paid, so if I don’t see you when you leave, good luck.”
“Thank you.” He moved toward the staircase.
“But I’ll see you later, right? When you help Jamie with the development.”
He paused for a moment. “I see the Beaver is gone. Maybe you could tell her I’ll call her when everything’s settled.” He shot a quick look toward the kitchen and then headed up the stairs.
* * *
“Excuse me, but is Leeza here?” Matt stuck his head into the kitchen a few minutes later.
The sous chef looked around as though she might pop up from behind the counter. “No, she just left. Sorry.”
“Right.” Matt’s gaze swept the room then he backed out. She was avoiding him and he couldn’t blame her. But he couldn’t afford to hang around any longer. He went outside and tossed his suitcase in the back of his SUV beside his camera bag. The waterfall seemed like a long time ago.
He slammed the hatchback and stood with one hand braced on the back of the vehicle, surveying the lake. Leeza was right; it had turned into a beautiful day. Small children played at the water’s edge, watched over by their mothers. Off to his left, the sound of a bat striking a ball echoed sweetly across the compound.
Odd, he thought, how the place had become so familiar in the few days since he’d arrived. He wasn’t sure how a city boy with limited outdoor experience had so quickly become attuned to life up here. He cleared his head with a quick shake and climbed into the driver’s seat. He had a long drive ahead of him.
* * *
“And he left? Just like that?” Leeza had just filled Jamie in. The three women were sitting in the dining room after lunch was finished. Leeza had tried to eat a salad, but the uneaten food remained on the plate.
Leeza shrugged. “He did come to look for me, but I just couldn’t face him. There wasn’t much left to say; I was right beside him when he was talking to his wife. He said he wanted to be there because it was about their future.” She made a grim face. “That’s pretty clear if you ask me.”
Brooke was looking thoughtful. “Not necessarily” she said in her usual deliberate manner. “After all, the call came as a surprise and he hadn’t had much time to think about it.” She narrowed her eyes. “It might not mean anything at all.”
Leeza gave a wry smile. “I’d like to think that, but I refuse to grasp at straws.”
Jamie was watching her curiously. “What happened with you two this morning?”
Leeza flushed and Jamie pounced. “Aha!” She turned to Brooke. “There’s more to this than meets the eye, evidently.”
“Nothing happened...yet.” Leeza took in a few shuddering breaths. “We were looking for somewhere private to go when the phone call came.”
Jamie and Brooke exchanged glances.
“So you see? It’s just as well he left.” Tears spilled down Leeza’s cheeks and she ran from the room.
* * *
“I wish I’d had a chance to say goodbye to Matt.” Billy watched the condensation roll down the side of the cold beer glass. “He’s a good guy.”
Craig looked out over the water. He never tired of watching Jamie land; he was waiting for her to bring back some guests from a distant lake. “I didn’t talk to him that much, but I liked what I saw.” He glanced into the Lodge and lowered his voice. “Jamie says that Leeza is taking it hard.”
“I heard that too. Brooke says she barely slept last night.” He looked at his watch. “Matt was supposed to get the results of the hearing today. I wonder if we’ll hear from him.”
Brooke hurried across the great room and motioned them to a grouping of chairs in front on a TV set. “I have the news on in the office and they’re going to do a report on Matt in the next segment.” She rushed off. “I have to find Leeza.”
She came back a moment later with the chef in tow. Dark smudges under Leeza’s eyes were evidence of her inner turmoil.
The commercial came to a close and Brooke pointed the remote to raise the sound.
“And in the Fraser Valley today, respected real estate entrepreneur Matthew Weber was found blameless in a recent mortgage fraud case.” The camera cut to a shot of Matt in front of a low building, his arm protecting a sleek blonde woman from the jostling crowds. Reporters shoved microphones in his face and he answered them with practiced ease. The newscaster continued. “Weber had been accused of wrongdoing by his former partner, Cole Jackson.” A photo popped up of a forty-ish man with tousled sandy hair and a pasted-on smile. “In a bizarre turn of events, Jackson himself has now been charged with mortgage fraud, and stands to spend up to ten years in jail if convicted.” The newscast cut back to the picture of Matt and his wife. She looked up at him with adoring eyes as he responded to another question. “And this is Tracy Kane, reporting from the Fraser Valley.”
A low moan broke the silence in the room and Leeza realized it had come from her. She turned without a word and went back into the kitchen
Brooke watched her go then turned to Billy. “I might not see you tonight,” she said quietly. “I have a feeling she’s going to need me.”
Billy gazed at her adoringly. “That’s why I love you, my sweet. You do what you need to do.” He brushed his lips against her cheek then turned to Craig. “Come on; let’s go watch for your lady.”
* * *
“That went well, wouldn’t you say?” Cassandra followed Matt to the parking lot. “I wasn’t even sure if you’d get here. Where did you stay last night?”
Matt paused, one h
and on the door of his SUV. “What do you want, Cassandra?”
She moved closer and trailed a finger suggestively down his arm. “I missed you, Matt, and I’m sorry about what happened.”
Her scent was almost overpowering. He wondered how he’d ever been able to stand it. “You’re sorry?”
She gave him that helpless look that he used to find so appealing. “You know. That business with Cole. It was all a mistake.”
He stared at her in disbelief. “A mistake.” He knew he was repeating her words, but he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Did she actually think they were going to get back together? He dropped his hand and turned to face her straight on. It was important that there be no misunderstanding about what he was going to say.
“It’s over between us Cassandra. Infidelity is not something you can brush aside as though it didn’t happen.” He stared into her eyes. “Besides, I’m still not convinced that you weren’t somehow involved in that mortgage fraud business.” He pulled open the vehicle door. “But that’s up to the Board to determine.” He got in and rolled down his window. “I’ll be filing for divorce right away.” He pulled out and didn’t even notice her in his rear view mirror. He was looking ahead now.
* * *
Matt walked into his office the next morning and was greeted with cheers from the assembled agents.
“No speech,” he said, holding up a hand. “I’m all talked out.” He looked at them with fresh eyes. They were a good bunch, and had worked hard to make his company the top real estate office on the lower mainland; no small feat. But he didn’t know them. Not really. His faith in his fellow man had been shaken this past month or so. Never again would he take things for granted.
He walked into his luxurious office and looked around. At least Cassie hadn’t moved his things out. He’d half expected that she might have taken over his desk. He sat down and opened his e-mail. He’d sent himself a picture of Leeza at the waterfall. She looked like a small woodland sprite against the sparkling mist. He set her as his background picture and leaned back to survey his office.
Awards and photographs lined the walls, each one silent testament to his steady rise up the ladder of success. He stared at them for a moment. What did they mean, when it came right down to it? He’d gained more satisfaction from setting up the ball diamond at the lake than any ten deals for condos, strip mall developments, or entirely new communities. He’d seen what touched people’s lives and it wasn’t this. He sat down and picked up the phone. Time to make some calls.
Chapter Thirteen
“I’m worried about her.” Jamie and Brooke huddled at their usual table, waiting for Leeza. “Her heart’s just not in it.” Brooke watched the kitchen door.
Jamie frowned. “It’s been ten days. I thought maybe she’d have come out of it by now.”
Brooke toyed with the papers on the table. “It must be hard for her, seeing the both of us so happy. I know it would bother me.”
“Do you think she needs a day off?” Jamie looked around helplessly. “I don’t know if that would help, but maybe we should ask.”
“Where would she go? Unless...”
“Unless what?” Jamie leaned forward eagerly.
“Well, she keeps talking about the waterfall. Maybe she’d like a day off to go there.”
“Go where?” They hadn’t noticed Leeza come up behind them. “Who are you talking about?”
“We were talking about you, actually.” Brooke winced when she saw her friend. Leeza’s hair was clean, but unstyled, and she still had dark circles under her eyes. “We were thinking that you need a day off and maybe you’d like to go back to the waterfall.”
Something shifted in Leeza’s eyes. “The waterfall,” she said softly. “Yes, I’d like that.”
A sudden thought struck Brooke. “You’re not going to do anything foolish, are you?”
It took a moment for the question to register. “No, you don’t need to worry. I may have a broken heart, but I’m not suicidal.” She looked at her two friends. “I’d love to have a day off though. When can I go?”
“How about tomorrow?”
Leeza smiled for the first time in days. It was a small smile, but it was a start. “Okay.”
* * *
Leeza woke up slowly and looked at the clock. There was something different about today but she couldn’t remember what it was.
Oh yes. She had the day off. She stretched luxuriously and thought about going back to sleep, but it was already ten o’clock. Last night was the best sleep she’d had for ages. Maybe things were starting to turn around.
She swung her feet onto the floor and raked her fingers through her spiky hair. It was time to start living again. She stood under the shower until the water turned cold, then looked at her reflection in the mirror. She’d always had pale skin, but this was going too far. And those bruised smudges below her eyes. What was up with that? She leaned closer and silently challenged herself to shape up.
Billy was re-chalking the lines on the ball diamond when she drove by. She waved at him and he waved back. He was unfailingly cheerful and it was obvious that he adored Brooke. It had been hard to watch the love fest going on between Brooke and Billy and Jamie and Craig, but she was happy for them. She really was.
She drove past the land that would eventually be divided into lots and sold off. She hadn’t been able to bring herself to talk to Jamie about it, because to do that she’d have to ask about Matt.
There! She’d thought about him without tears. That was progress, wasn’t it?
The time was getting on toward lunch, but she didn’t care. She wanted to retrace her steps from that day with Matt and decided to stop for coffee and a muffin. She sat at the same table and allowed the memories to flood in, even though it was painful.
He’d teased her about her ability to get him to spill his guts. Even now she could recall every word. But that closeness hadn’t been enough. In the end, he’d gone back to his wife. Back to his job as the...what had that newscaster called him? Oh yes, a respected real estate entrepreneur.
Had she ever really known him? She stared into her coffee. Yes, she knew him. They had connected on some level far beyond anything she’d ever experienced before. It had happened the first time they met, and they’d both recognized it. He’d been like one of those meteors they’d watched together; a bright shooting star in her life, but he was gone now. She would never forget him, but in spite of the way she felt now, the future looked promising. She was looking forward to the changes that would come when the Spa opened. Brooke was already deep into the plans, huddling with the designer and consulting with the contractor. As soon as the Labour Day weekend was over they’d start working on the footings for the new buildings which would be completed over the winter months. Yes, she was confident that the Lodge would be back on a sound financial footing after the Spa was established. If only she could feel the same about herself.
She tossed her cup into the garbage can, returned to her car and headed for the falls. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too crowded at this time of day.
* * *
It was two in the morning when Matt climbed into his car. He’d caught a couple of hours of sleep in preparation for the long drive. He’d been working flat out all week and this afternoon had signed the final batch of papers transferring ownership of his company.
Under normal conditions, the sale of his company would have taken much longer. He had his top salesmen to thank for getting him out from under so quickly. They had seen the writing on the wall and had put together an amazing offer and now he was on his way. He’d packed lightly. Just a few suits and he wasn’t even sure if he’d need those.
The highway would be relatively free of traffic. Mainly truckers at this time of night. Perhaps a few cars as well, but it should be an easy trip. He shoved his bags in the back of the SUV and looked up. The moon was full now. It seemed like only yesterday when he and Leeza had commented on the pale light thrown by the new moon. And yet in o
ther ways it was a lifetime ago.
He paused for a moment and considered what he was about to do. Was he doing the right thing? Absolutely. He’d never been surer of anything in his life. He got behind the wheel, drove through the quiet streets toward the freeway and headed toward his future.
* * *
“Hey Matt!” Billy greeted him with his usual broad smile when he pulled into the parking lot. “Good to see you, man!” He stuck his hand through the open window and the men shook.
Matt got out, stretched his legs and looked around. “Is she here?”
“Who?”
Matt’s head snapped around; it took him a moment to realize that Billy was joking.
“You can check with Brooke. She’s inside, but I think Leeza took the day off.”
Matt’s shoulders fell. “I guess I didn’t time that very well, did I?” He looked up to see Brooke standing on the verandah.
“Hello Matt, is that you?” Her welcoming smile was encouraging. “I suppose you’re looking for Leeza.”
He was almost overcome with emotion. It felt so good to be back here among these people. “Yes,” he said simply. “Can you tell me where she is?”
“She’s gone to the waterfall.” She looked down at him as though trying to read his intentions. “I think you know the way.”
“Sure do.” He turned to Billy. “Gotta go.”
“Matt.” Brooke leaned out over the railing. “Will you be staying? Jamie’s ready to move on selling that property.”
He grinned up at her. “I certainly hope so.” He gave her a jaunty salute then got back in his car.
* * *
There were two cars in the parking lot when he pulled in about an hour later. He recognized Leeza’s and his heart started to race.
He walked the short trail to the lookout point. As he approached, a couple came up from below and stopped to catch their breath.
“It’s beautiful down there,” they said together. Matt smiled and walked to the guardrail that rimmed the lookout. Mist boiled up and he didn’t see her at first. He leaned over and spotted her perched on a rock, very close to the spot she’d been standing when he took her picture. He couldn’t see the expression on her face but she appeared to be gazing into the distance, lost in thought.