Chasing Trust: A Small Town Steamy Romance (Harper Family series Book 3)

by Nancy Stopper

  They’d only been married a few months, but that didn’t seem to matter to the newlyweds.

  Serena’s gaze turned to her brother. Justin’s arm slipped around Maddie’s waist. Justin and Maddie had struggled for years to get pregnant after they had Aiden. They’d even separated earlier this year when the stress got to be too much. But by the looks of it, they were stronger than ever now.

  Izzy’s announcement couldn’t have been easy for Maddie. But Maddie leaned into Justin, a smile on her face. “I’m okay. I love my little family, just how it is.” She wrapped her arms around both Sofia and Aiden and squeezed them to her.

  Serena envied Justin and Izzy and the happiness they found.

  For a long time, Serena was happy by herself. After suffering through years of turmoil with her father, finding out he hadn’t been faithful to Mom had been bad enough, but added to David’s betrayal in high school, she’d made the decision to be happy alone. Her and her animals. It was safer that way. You could always trust a dog to be faithful and to always, always come home.

  But recently, being alone had lost its luster. Especially as Tanner rested his hand on Izzy’s belly while talking with Hayley, and Justin cut up Aiden’s cheeseburger so he could eat it easier with both of his front teeth missing. Shoot, even seeing Mom relaxed and happily chatting with Izzy about going shopping for baby clothes and outfitting the nursery made Serena realize that maybe she was missing out on something.

  Chase’s face flashed into her mind again. And then Edward’s, so much younger ten years ago. She kept connecting the two. It had to be the name… and the fantasy that she had built Edward up to in her mind. But neither Edward nor Chase had roots… and that’s what she needed. Someone who would stay put. That she could trust wouldn’t stray.

  It couldn’t be Chase, but maybe it was time she started looking for that man.

  Chapter Four

  Chase paced across the carpeted floor in Mitchell Bradlee’s office. The man who had given him his first assignment, and who Chase looked up to as a mentor and friend, studied the photos Chase dropped on his desk this morning. Chase was never comfortable having others review and critique his work. It never got any easier putting your emotions out for everyone to see and pick apart with a fine-toothed comb. Besides, that wasn’t why he’d started taking pictures in the first place. He loved being able to show a side of life that others rarely saw and bring attention to the plight of those that weren’t rolling in the wealth he’d grown up with.

  He wasn’t in it for the attention… or the accolades.

  His mind wandered to the photos of Serena he’d captured on this trip. Those images, as well as his first one, had filled his mind ever since he pulled away from the shelter a little more than a week ago. Running into her again, after all these years, had thrown him for a loop. She was a fantasy for him, the girl that he’d met a thousand years ago on the beach. Never expecting to see her again. But when she turned her bright blue eyes his way, the earth tilted on its axis.

  And had spurred him to reconsider some things about his life.

  “Chase, these are fantastic. Not that I should be surprised. Everything you’ve ever given me is impressive.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “How many times have I told you to call me “Mitchell”, or at least “Bradlee”, like the folks here around the office? You’re like a son to me.”

  Warmth washed through him. Mitchell had been more of a father figure to Chase since he met him almost eleven years ago than his own father had been for the first eighteen years of his life. Except, of course, when it involved the law firm. Only then did Father engage with Chase. It had infuriated the fourth-generation attorney when his only son had strapped on a camera, thrown a duffel over his shoulder, and walked out the front door the minute he turned eighteen. Chase had been making it on his own, working odd jobs and taking photos, until Mitchell took a chance on him.

  And changed his life.

  “I don’t know, sir, maybe half a dozen.” Chase grinned as he took the chair opposite Mitchell. They’d been having this same conversation for the entirety of their relationship, but Chase’s need to address him by ‘sir’ had been a deeply ingrained habit from his childhood that he couldn’t break.

  “I’m thrilled to get an idea of the animals this shelter supports. When Valerie told me about the shelter and how many animals they took care of, I knew I had to act. I figure I’ve got all this money and I can’t take it with me, so I might as well do something good with it.”

  Mitchell may joke but he was as much a philanthropist as he was a businessman. He was successful at both and generous with his employees, which had enabled Chase to do what he loved.

  Mitchell flipped a photo over and showed it to Chase. “Funniest looking dog I’ve ever seen.”

  Chase had debated including the photos of Serena in the stack when he presented them to Mitchell. That photo felt personal, intimate almost. Serena hadn’t been looking at him, but he had captured the moment that her pure love of the animals shone through, a huge smile on her face, her blonde hair flying back off her shoulders. He’d printed himself a copy and slipped it into his wallet beside the one of the younger Serena, but he also included one for Mitchell.

  “That’s the owner, Serena Harper. Your daughter is right. She is basically a one-woman operation. And it’s quite the shelter. She’s got a special affinity for the animals and they all love her. She rehabs them and finds them homes, almost completely by herself. I thought maybe if we included a photo of her at the back of the calendar, maybe even with an interview where she’s talking about the shelter, that it would help sales. It may even help solicit independent donations to the shelter. I can tell you for a fact, she can use them.”

  “I think that’s a great idea, Foster. I keep telling you, you have great business instincts. If you ever want to get out from behind that camera, come talk to me. I could really use a sharp mind like yours.” He held up his hand as Chase opened his mouth to object. “I know, I know. You aren’t interested in my business holdings. But perhaps on the charity front? Think about it. You can’t be roaming around the world for the rest of your life, can you?”

  He certainly couldn’t. His heart wasn’t up for the desolation and abject poverty that he faced right now. And if he became jaded to their plight, his photos wouldn’t show what they needed to show. That type of work was a young man’s game and Chase was nearly thirty.

  He’d been having those feelings even before he’d seen Serena again. The woman who had traveled by his side to each of his locations, who had shared a private moment with him each time the emotions became too much.

  He always came back to the girl with the huge smile that he’d met practically a lifetime ago. He’d decided early in his career that he was better off alone than stringing along a woman while he gallivanted around the world. But now that he’d found Serena again, he wasn’t sure he was ready to pass her by again.

  Michael stood and extended his hand. “Just give it some thought. In the meantime, finish up the calendar shoot next week and get back here. I expect a new assignment to cross my desk in the next few weeks and it’s perfect for you.”

  Chase’s heart kicked into overdrive at the thought of the job. It was a familiar feeling, the excitement, the fear, the gamut of emotions that he experienced when he planned for one of his photo excursions. He couldn’t help but remember the first time he’d felt that jolt—it was when he met Serena and talked about his first potential trip. He was young and stupid then, expecting adventure and glory from being an international photographer, but the reality was so much different.

  He wasn’t sure he was ready to take on another assignment after the calendar, but Mitchell would only ask if it was a situation where Chase could make a real impact, so he’d at least consider it.

  After he talked to Serena.

  He couldn’t keep up this pretense of not knowing her. He had to tell Serena that he was the Edward Foster that she’d met all t
hose years ago at the Steel Pier. He wasn’t even sure she remembered that one afternoon a million years ago, but it had such an impact on him, and she deserved to know that.

  Would it even matter? They lived different lives. She had her roots firmly planted in Cedar Hill and the closest he came to staying put was a storage locker across town where he kept the few possessions he couldn’t bear to part with. What good would it do to tell her who he was if he never saw her again?

  That was ridiculous. Now that he knew where she lived, he absolutely would not lose touch again.

  What the hell are you thinking, Chase? He was being ridiculous. He’d spent a little more than an hour with the woman and he was thinking about up-ending his entire life. That wasn’t who he was. He was the one that stayed detached. That didn’t get involved with his subjects.

  But he knew in his heart that wasn’t true. That’s who he wanted to be, but it wasn’t the reality. There was no way he could take the photos he took without becoming emotionally involved in the lives of the people he photographed. He’d been known to roll up his sleeves and dig a foundation for a school alongside the men of the villages and then pick up his camera and memorialize it along the way. He also made significant donations to organizations that were helping on the ground in some of the worst areas that he’d visited.

  He didn’t stay detached. He was all-in. And that was probably why he was so emotionally drained right now. He hadn’t had the time to refill his own well after being overseas for the last nine months.

  Mitchell’s phone rang while Chase was packing up his bag. His friend answered and then held up a finger. “Chase, hold on a minute.” He spoke a few more words into the phone and hung up. “Since you’re in the city for the next couple of days, waiting to get the calendar shoot set up, I have a quick job for you. Something easy, but Martin has come down with the flu and can’t take it."

  “Sure. Why not?” He didn’t have anything planned, and the shoot would take his mind off how to approach Serena.

  But three hours later, he hadn’t expected to find himself behind the scenes of New York Fashion week, documenting the newest designers to hit the red carpet. Shoot, even the words sounded ridiculous in his head. Is this what he’d trained for? He was a world-renowned photographer who had captured images of some of the worst places in the world and here he was taking photos of a group of overdressed, overly made-up, entitled people. And that was just the audience. They had no idea how good their lives were. How the majority of the world couldn’t even imagine living with a fraction of what they wasted away on lattes and personal trainers in a week.

  He snapped the photos Mitchell wanted, because he’d never let his mentor and friend down, but as soon as he was done, he headed out of Tribeca and up to the Bronx. It didn’t take him long to find the balance he was looking for among the residents who waited for the bus to take them to their minimum-wage jobs, where kids ran around with torn hand-me-downs on playgrounds that had seen better days.

  They looked happy, but he knew better. Behind those smiles, the kids knew of the exorbitant wealth that lived a few miles away. Of the great disparity between their lives and those who inhabited Manhattan.

  Chase approached a man who was sitting on a bench, throwing crumbs onto the ground for a flock of pigeons who had gathered. “Do you mind if I take your picture?”

  The man smiled up at him and nodded. Chase snapped a few photos of the older man, the creases in his face telling the story of a hard, but good life lived. Then he moved on to the group of kids climbing on the jungle gym and did the same. Their huge, often gap-toothed, grins warmed his heart. These kids appreciated what they had.

  He wandered around the streets of the Bronx for what felt like hours, chasing the peace that had been elusive in recent weeks. He shot photos of the buildings—some crumbling from disrepair and others appearing shiny and new—and of the people. But as the sun sank into the western sky, a whole different world emerged on the streets. Homeless men and women, sometimes dragging bags and baskets that contained their entire worlds and others thick with layers of every piece of clothing they owned piled on their backs roamed the streets, stopping to set up their camp for the night on a park bench or over a subway grate where the heat of the trains would help their chilled bones.

  This was the world he was looking for—a stark contrast from the one he’d originally been sent to photograph.

  A man leaning against the brick front of a store long since closed caught Chase’s eye. The man was thin. Rail thin. He placed a paper bag beside him on the sidewalk and pulled the tatters of a jacket across his body. But Chase saw pride in the man’s eye as he smiled at Chase while settling in for the night.

  How, in a city containing some of the wealthiest people, did someone fall so far? And why wasn’t there anyone standing by to help?

  At least Chase could do something to help the man for today. He hurried into the closest restaurant and ordered a burger, fries, salad and a huge piece of cake to go and carried it out to the man. “This is for you.”

  “For me?”

  “Just a little something to help you get through the night.”

  The man opened the bag and his face transformed into a huge smile. “Oh, thank you, sir. You have no idea how grateful I am.”

  “How long has it been?”

  “Oh, well, there are always a few crumbs that I can scrounge up when I’m really hungry, but I can’t remember the last time I had a burger. And oh, man, chocolate cake. I’m living high on the hog tonight.”

  “Do you mind if I sit with you while you eat?”

  “Only if you’ll share this meal with me. There’s no way I can eat all of this.”

  Chase certainly didn’t want to take food from a man who needed it so desperately, but he’d learned through his travels that it was important to allow a person to maintain his pride and his dignity. So Chase sat down and munched on fries.

  Chase stared up at the sky, the lingering lights of the city all but obliterating the stars that shined so bright over some of the worst places he’d been. “How long have you been on the street?”

  “Off and on for a few years now. Sometimes I get a room and a warm meal at the men’s shelter, but I figure that I’ll save those spots for someone who really needs ‘em. It ain’t raining so I can stay dry and I’m sittin’ out here, enjoying nature and being in the out of doors.”

  The similarities between the thankfulness of this man and many that Chase had met was astounding. It hadn’t taken him long overseas to realize that those who had the least often appreciated it the most.

  While the man took another bite of his burger, Chase stood and grabbed a few bills out of his wallet. “Well, listen. It’s been really nice talking to you. I hope you have a great evening.”

  Chase extended the bills to the man. He hesitated and then wrapped his hand around Chase’s and accepted the offering. “Thank you, sir. You take care of yourself, all right?”

  Chase nodded as he walked away. He wandered down the street for several blocks, his mind racing, before he hopped on the Five train to Manhattan. Travelling to New York this morning, he hadn’t expected quite the day he’d had.

  “Chase!” He heard his name being called as he stepped out of the subway station in Union Square. The high-pitched voice startled him and for one quick second, he hoped it was Serena. But he knew better than to expect to see her in the city. That didn’t stop his heart from leaping for a moment… and then sinking when he turned toward the source of the voice.

  “Ashley.” He plastered on a smile as she strutted toward him on her stiletto heels. He should have expected to see her today. Fashion Week was right in her wheelhouse. As a matter of fact, he’d met her at a similar event several years earlier. She’d been a convenient hook-up when he was in the city, but nothing more had ever come of their relationship. “Nice to see you.”

  When she rested her hands on his shoulders and leaned in to press her lips to his, he turned so she brushed his che
ek instead. “I didn’t know you were in town. Why didn’t you call me?”

  Had her questions always come out on a whine, or was he especially aware today? “I’ve been busy and I’m only in town for the day.”

  She ran her finger up his chest, a Cheshire cat smile on her lips. “And the night, I presume. I had plans but I can change them for you.”

  He wrapped his fingers around hers. What once had been exhilarating now did nothing for him. He thought about Ashley briefly on his way in to Mitchell’s office this morning but didn’t feel it was right to see her. Certainly not to hook up. Not now that he’d reconnected with Serena. It’s not like he and Serena had anything going. But the fact he was now rethinking his entire life after one day with her was interesting. “Not this time, Ashley. I’m headed out soon.”

  She pushed out her bottom lip. “But, Chaseey. It’s been so long.”

  “Sorry.” He pressed his lips to her cheek. After the day he’d had, he would have appreciated a few steamy hours between the sheets with a willing woman, but the only woman he wanted was a hundred miles away. “I have a lot going on right now. It’s not gonna happen tonight.”

  “Well, I guess I’ll go find someone who wants to spend time with me.” Ashley stared at him for another minute, as though waiting for him to change his mind, and then flipped her hair, spun on her heel and stomped away.

  He stared down the street long after she had turned the corner. A year ago, hell, even six months ago, he would have jumped at the chance to spend the night with Ashley. And often had. They were good together. Neither wanted a commitment, both willing to hook up when it was convenient. But not tonight. Not while he was trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life.

  And how to make Serena a part of those plans.

  Chapter Five