Luke found himself laughing along with Dan. They watched as Kelly strutted along the path, first glancing left and then glancing right, pulling down and peeking through her sunglasses like a celebrity on public display.
“I have no I idea where she gets that from,” Dan said dryly. “It must have something to do with those charity fashion shows, she and my other sisters participate in.”
Luke shook his head dazedly. The resilience of kids was kind of amazing. His little sister had behaved exactly the same way, too. “At least she seems okay.”
Dan silently nodded his agreement.
Kelly finally reached the park, and joined the other kids on the swing set, where she and Jeff remained clearly in view.
Dan suddenly turned grim, as he dropped down to the sand beside him. “Alright, Luke Bryant–I’m gonna stick to you like glue. I owe you, and I owe you big. I wanna know who’s responsible for knifing that nasty cut into the side of your face. The first thing you’re gonna do is tell me about yourself. I’ve been hearing some rumors. I wanna know why that scumbag, that you call your father, has been whipping you so hard, you’re probably gonna be disfigured for life...”
CHAPTER ONE
Fourteen years later
It was the magical wedding of Kelly Callahan’s dreams.
Too bad it actually wasn’t her wedding.
If the bride had had her way, the wedding would’ve taken place at sunrise–her most favorite time of the day. So she’d settled for dusk, instead. Luckily, the weather had decided to agree with Kelly’s sister and her sister’s fiancé today–the sun had been bright and the temperature warm.
Kelly stared out at the sunset overlooking the lake–the backdrop for the wedding was absolutely enchanting. As iridescent light spun down from the slowly descending sun, a shimmering purple haze danced across the lake like fire. Glancing down at the rosy-purple gown that she wore, she noticed that the beading sewn into the bodice glistened, as it was struck by the shimmering light from the sun.
Out where Kelly stood with the wedding party on the gazebo, pine tips were displayed in abundance–not only for their beauty and scent–but to disguise what had to be, literally, millions of tiny white lights, that’d been strung up and around the canopy.
And the flowers were stunning. Huge concrete urns held massive arrangements of lilies, roses, and greens, and had been positioned along the perimeter of the gazebo, so as not to obstruct the breathtaking view. Not only were there multitudes of lovely flower arrangements displayed both inside and outside of the Dragonfly Pointe Inn–but pots of annuals, planted with impatiens in brilliant shades of purples and pinks, bordered the bridal pathway for impact. Stargazer lilies, roses and ferns had been used in the bridal bouquets.
This wedding was incredible–like a fantasy–and planned with love to the smallest detail by Kelly’s oldest sister Lucy, who’d coordinated the entire event.
Kelly sighed, glancing over at the bright smiling face of her sister, Kate, as she stood before the priest with her soon-to-be-husband, Murphy. Her sister looked beautiful, in a shimmering, bridal gown of white, while Murphy looked ruggedly handsome in the traditional black tux that he’d insisted on. And, with its sweetheart neckline and slim fitting style, the gowns that matched Kelly’s looked lovely on the other bridesmaids and the maid of honor, too.
Kelly blinked, when music filled the air. Because just like that, it was done–Kate and Murphy were married, and introduced to the crowd as man and wife.
Turning about face, Kelly grinned, and began following the couple down the aisle, as she glanced around her at the smiling faces of the guests.
And then she saw him.
Kelly stopped in her tracks. Those cool gray eyes met hers as he gave her that old familiar smile. Why hadn’t anyone in her family warned her that Luke Bryant might be here today?
How long she stood and stared at him, she couldn’t say. Until she dimly became aware of being gently shoved forward, as a voice squeaked out from over her shoulder, “Kelly?”
“Oops, sorry, Jules,” Kelly whispered, to the maid-of-honor. Giving her escort a smile of apology, she resumed her stroll beside him down the aisle.
Once they reached the end of the walkway, the bride and groom were both laughing as they were swept away through the crowd.
Shaking her head in resignation, Kate turned to the groom’s youngest brother. He’d been coming on strong with her since the moment they’d met. As Kelly nudged Ethan along, so that they could stand beside the remaining members of the wedding party, she peeked over her shoulder nervously. What’d happened to Luke?
But when Julie began asking her a question, Kelly focused her attention on the maid-of-honor.
“What was it that they told us, Kelly? An hour–before they want us back at the reception for pictures?”
Julie’s boyfriend, Dylan, who’d also been a groomsman, glanced down at as his watch, as he stood silently beside Julie.
“Yep,” Kelly answered. “The photographer wanted thirty to forty-five minutes alone with Kate and Murphy, first.”
“Well – I know what we can do to waste away the time.” Dylan winked at Kelly, as he began to drag an, obviously, discomfited Julie away. “See ya’all in about an hour.”
Kelly grinned. After about a year of dragging their feet, apparently, Julie and Dylan had finally admitted their feelings for each other. And it was great to see Julie so happy.
Kelly glanced over at Ethan and sighed. He was a really nice guy. But his attention was getting to be a little bit stifling.
With white-blonde hair and deep-blue eyes, Kelly was tall and thin with a shapely figure. She’d always considered herself fortunate in the looks department.
Fortunate because of the numerous modeling jobs, that were helping her pay for her college education.
But unfortunate because of the number of men that seemed to be drawn to her only because of her looks. And her looks were deceiving. After graduating with honors as the valedictorian of her high school graduating class at Crystal Rock High, Kelly had enrolled at Wisconsin with a scholarship, and was focusing her studies on business.
As the remainder of the wedding party began to go their separate ways, Ethan stood waiting, wearing an inquisitive smile.
She hesitated. “I’ve got a couple of things I need to do first, Ethan. How about I meet back up with you once I’m finished?”
She could see that he was disappointed.
“Okay, Kelly.” He sighed. “You are gonna hang around with me later tonight–aren’t ya? Except for a couple of my brother’s friends, I don’t really recognize too many people here.
“Sure–I’d like that. I’d be glad to introduce you to a few of my sister’s single friends, too.” Despite their age difference, Kelly knew that there was interest on his side. It was always better to let guys down easily, she’d discovered, and she was getting to be very good at it. “You’re the only one in the wedding party to get stuck with someone who’s a whole, lot younger than you.” Ethan was in his late-twenties, and was an eighth grade science teacher.
Ethan snorted. “Ouch–talk about letting someone down easily.” He gave her a rueful smile. “Don’t worry–I’ve got the message. It’s just that I can’t help being interested in you, Kelly – and not just because you’re so hot.”
Startled, Kelly blinked, as she stared at Ethan.
“You’re one of the most mature college students that I’ve ever met. Although, how you can put aside, what could be, a very lucrative career in modeling, is beyond me.”
“Well, I’ve set a lot of goals for myself.” Kelly shrugged. “The money I’ve been making is great–and it’s allowed me to do a lot of traveling–I’ve seen a lot of places I wouldn’t have otherwise. But…” She grimaced.
Ethan grinned. “Your knack with numbers is pretty unusual, too–you know?”
Kelly smiled. “Yeah. I think Mom and Dad are still in shock about the fact that I’m considering becoming an accountant. But they also understand.
It took me less than six months to get Callahan Construction back on track, when they let me take over the books a few years ago.”
“Yep–like I said–you’re pretty damned amazing.” Ethan sighed, lifting a brow. “’Speaking of parents–I haven’t seen mine for a while. Maybe I’ll go check up on them during our break.” He didn’t appear to be very anxious to leave her side. “Are we meeting back up at the reception for pictures, then?”
Kelly nodded, as she pointed out the solarium of the Dragonfly Pointe Inn. “Your parents will probably be hanging out in there, along with mine.”
Reaching out, Ethan gave Kelly’s hand a squeeze. “Alright. I’ll see you back inside–in about an hour, then.”
Kelly kept her eyes on Ethan as he strolled along the cobblestone pathway. After reaching the entrance, he glanced back at her with a smile and a wave of his hand before stepping inside.
Turning her eyes out toward the lake, Kelly drew in a deep steadying breath. She felt a little guilty about brushing Ethan off. But it’d already been a really long day, and it promised to be an even longer night. What she really wanted right now was some time alone.
Frowning down at her heels, Kelly began strolling along the cobblestone pathway leading away from the inn. She sighed, easing down onto a bench. Slipping off her heels, Kelly peeked behind her—no one seemed to be hanging around nearby. “What the heck,” she muttered. After standing up, she lifted the hem of her gown and began slipping down her hose. She folded the hose and stuffed them discreetly into one of her shoes, before sliding the shoes underneath the bench.
She needed to take a walk–and to have a little get away time from the noise and confusion of the wedding.
“Ah, free at last,” she mumbled under her breath. She began to hurry, nearly skipping along the path that turned into a nature walk, as it led away from the inn.
Despite the darkness settling in, small beams of light lit up the path. Bird feeders hung from the lower branches of several of the trees, while squirrel feeders were mounted into the trunks of a few of the old solid oaks. Although the landscape along the trail was occasionally broken up by the placement of a bench, surrounded by plantings of coleus, impatiens and hostas, ferns and natural foliage lined the edges of the scenic walkway, that ran alongside the shoreline of Crystal Rock Lake.
It was crazy to think about how many times she’d actually followed this trail that led to the beach. As a kid, Kelly and her twin brother Jeff had tagged along with her father when he’d driven back and forth to Dragonfly Pointe. Mike Callahan had been the contractor in charge of renovating the Dragonfly Pointe Inn, and was still coordinating the additional construction projects taking place periodically along the point.
She knew it was silly, but even though the technics of the lighting had been explained to her a bunch of years before, Kelly still liked to think of it as magic. And that aura of enchantment was beginning to kick in for her, as she followed the old familiar path. She’d invented some pretty ridiculous stories here at Dragonfly Pointe when she’d been a kid. The festive atmosphere of the wedding today had reminded her of her favorite–about finding her prince, and living happily-ever-after.
Kelly snorted. Yeah, well–she’d had a pretty vivid imagination. And almost every little girl in the world had, most likely, had that same–kind of stupid, identical fantasy.
Her nickname of ‘Princess’ had been well-deserved, though. Nearly as far back as she could remember, Kelly had been interested in fashion–beginning first with her fascination in dressing-up, and then continuing on with the stylish details, she’d insisted on, in her every day look as she grew older.
She’d nearly driven her mom crazy.
But it was funny how, once her mom had become proficient with using a computer, that that pair of shoes that Kelly had asked for, or that lovely jean jacket had appeared under the tree at Christmas, or in a shiny gift bag on Kelly’s birthday. Kelly had a feeling that she was spoiled, compared to her older siblings. But it’d been different when her older sisters and brother had been growing up–their family hadn’t attained financial security until after the Dragonfly Pointe Inn had been renovated by her father’s company, Callahan Construction.
It’d been Kelly’s interest in fashion that’d drawn the attention of Danielle Loughlin, Jake Loughlin’s wife. The Loughlins were owners of the Dragonfly Pointe Inn. After Kelly had modeled in one of the inn’s yearly charity events, Danielle had referred Kelly to her former agency.
And the rest was history.
Or, as in her case, Kelly would’ve really liked for it to become history. Even now, she was still getting calls about additional work. But, occasionally, she still accepted a job because she couldn’t resist the exorbitant amount of money that the agency offered her.
Reaching the final curve of the pathway leading down to the beach, Kelly glanced over at the park and froze.
His eyes met hers as he drew on his lit cigarette, one last time. Letting the butt drop unconsciously to the ground, he stamped it out with his boot.
When Kelly, accusingly, held Luke Bryant’s gaze, mumbling unintelligibly, he quickly bent down, and snatched up the butt from the ground.
Hiking up her skirt, Kelly left the path determinedly to join him. “Damn it, Luke Bryant–you know better than to just drop a lit cigarette, out here in the woods. Besides—I thought you quit?”
“I did, Princess.” He sighed. “But sometimes, it helps steady my nerves.”
Kelly hesitated, taking a long, hard look at Luke. Even with his dark brown hair cropped short, and that shadow of stubble appearing along his chin, he was still the sexiest man alive. And tall and lean, but incredibly muscular, he had a body to die for. His facial features were ruggedly cut, and sometimes appeared severe and harsh, since he rarely smiled–which was probably the reason so many kids had been scared of him when they were growing up. Well, that nasty scar along the side of his face might’ve had something to do with it too. But he was thinner—and his face appeared to be incredibly pale—against the deep dark blue of his uniform. “This Air Force stuff looks like it’s taking its toll on you, Luke.”
Luke smiled sheepishly. “Ah, but the flying part is great. I wanted to be a pilot, and I’ve become a pretty damned good one, at that.”
That gravelly voice sent shivers down her spine. But there was something he still wasn’t telling her. She could see it in his eyes, as she continued to study him with concern. “But?”
He hesitated, staring her down, before seeming to come to a decision. He finally shrugged. “But, nothing. I’m here for the wedding–and to hook back up with a few of my friends.” He suddenly smiled and winked. “I wanted to enjoy the last couple days of my leave.”
Kelly nodded her understanding. “I’ve got about thirty-five minutes before I need to get back to the reception for pictures.” She hesitated. “How about taking a walk with me?”
He grinned, and her stomach did a flip-flop. “Sure, Princess.”
She gave him a rueful smile, and reached for his hand.
Kelly’s eyes shot to Luke’s, as the shock from his touch sent an electrifying jolt shooting straight through her entire body.
An Excerpt
TWO HEARTS UNSPOKEN
(TWO HEARTS WOUNDED WARRIOR ROMANCE 2)
#1 INTERNATIONAL BEST SELLER
#1 INTERNATIONAL HOT NEW RELEASE
2016 READERS’ FAVORITE
SILVER MEDAL WINNER
MILITARY FICTION
2016 IAN BOOK OF THE YEAR Finalist
AMAZON
PROLOGUE
“Marry me, Liz.”
Elizabeth’s jaw dropped. Just when she was ready to leave town, Jim was finally willing to make a commitment—now—after dating her for nearly five years? For a moment, Beth was tempted. She was so tired of being a single parent.
But then she remembered—being married to Jim probably wouldn’t be much of a help as far as that was concerned either. But she still found herself asking, “Wh
at about Kyle?”
Jim hesitated. “I’m sure we can find a place for him to live, as long as we both look hard enough?”
Oh, yeah, Beth thought, as her heart sank. Too little, too late. The offer had just been too good to be true. After all, there was a pretty good reason she’d decided to break it off with Jim, and start over somewhere new. She wouldn’t be leaving much behind. These last few years had been…well—interesting, would probably be about the closest word she could think of, for describing it. Her son, Kyle, would always be her number one concern, though, and she’d been telling Jim that from the beginning.
When the announcement had been made, that their plant would be shutting down within the next six months, Beth had been devastated. Diamont Motors had been operating for around twenty-five years in the Bloomington area, and Elizabeth Bowen had been the head accountant for the company for almost fifteen of those years. But the state of Illinois was going through a major budgetary crisis, and maybe it was time to take a chance, she’d decided, and follow her dreams. Despite the fact that Kyle was mentally impaired, and required regular medication to control his behavior problems, she’d managed to put away a tiny little nest egg for the future. And even the financial assistance she received, for Kyle’s home services and medication, was in jeopardy of being eliminated if the new governor got his way.
So she was taking the early retirement package, the company she worked for was offering. Now, hopefully, her house would sell—since she’d purchased a huge fixer-upper in the town of Crystal Rock, located in northwest Wisconsin. Wisconsin was in a little bit better shape financially than Illinois. But the factor that’d swayed her was the new vocational facility that’d been built in Crystal Rock for the mentally and physically impaired. Crystal Visions was getting rave reviews—and Beth had had some pull with the center’s founder. Her cousin, Mike Callahan, was Jake Loughlin’s best friend, and had done all the construction work for the privately owned facility. Jake’s wife, Danielle, had contacted Beth six months ago about beginning the application process for acquiring the funding Kyle needed to enter the program.
Two Hearts Find Christmas (Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Book 5) Page 17