Atonement: The Lonely Ridge Collection

by Lyz Kelley

  Tony’s shrug made her muscles tighten. “The order was anonymous, and Blooms doesn’t share billing information.”

  Her nerves began to twitch. Her father always sent her flowers, especially when he’d forced her to do something she didn’t want to do.

  She inhaled the glorious scent of fresh flowers. “These are pretty. Did Gina make the arrangement?”

  “Yep.” The pride in his voice was unmistaken. “This arrangement is my wife’s favorite.”

  “Thank you for coming all this way to deliver them.”

  Tony tucked a clipboard under his arm. “You’re welcome.” He turned, then hesitated, then turned back. “You know, there’s been a lot of talk around town about you lately.”

  Rachelle grabbed the back of her chair. “I suppose there has.”

  His forehead creased and his mouth settled into a frown. “People say you’ve changed. I didn’t believe them. You’ve always been a snotty bitch…” he shifted the clipboard, “…but I can admit when I’ve been wrong. I’m sorry for dumping you into the hamper and rolling you into the guys’ locker room.”

  In my cheerleading uniform, no less. “If my brother hadn’t been spreading those false rumors about me trying to get Gina kicked off the cheerleading squad, you wouldn’t have done it.”

  “You weren’t trying to push her out of the squad?”

  Rachelle chuckled. “Why would I do that? We wanted to win the state cheerleading competition, and she was the only one small enough to toss in the air who could also land safely.”

  “Your brother is a jackass.”

  Her protective heart closed ranks. “Growing up with our father wasn’t easy. Let’s just say my father didn’t like my brother’s rebellious streak, so he made sure Brad was raised to be ‘a proper man.’”

  Her former high school classmate looked as thoughtful as she’d ever seen him. “For what it’s worth, I am sorry.”

  “Me too,” she murmured.

  Tony took a step back, turned, and then was gone. The silence expanded into suffocating.

  “Sounds like your life hadn’t been easy.”

  Her head snapped up. “Jacob! Wha-what are you doing here?”

  “I’m looking for a real estate agent. I have a property to sell.”

  He’s leaving. The hope in her heart did a kerplunk. “I see.”

  “I’m not sure you do.”

  She reached for her sketchpad and closed the book. “Then why don’t you explain?”

  His broadening smile entranced. “You see,” he paused by the edge of the desk, “I’ve recently discovered the house holds bad memories, and I want to sell it.”

  She took a deep breath and swallowed the devastation. “Well…the market is strong. As a real estate professional, I must advise you, though, that you might not get your full value, since you’ve only held the property a few months.”

  “I don’t care about the money. Only my girlfriend’s happiness.”

  Girlfriend? What girlfriend? He’d moved on. She felt like the ground beneath her feet had shifted and dumped a mountain of rocks on her. “You’re not coming back?”

  “I didn’t say that. I also want to find a new place that meets my girlfriend’s needs. She’s a designer, and she’ll need a studio to create her art. In the master bedroom, there needs to be two closets. One for her and one for me.”

  A designer. Was Jacob dating Sketch? She couldn’t see him dating Etch. Another notch was sliced out of her heart.

  His oversized smile expanded. “Maybe a couple of kids’ rooms, and a game room.”

  “Of course. A game room complete with surround sound and a movie theatre screen.” Did he know he was ripping her heart out? “I have a concern.”

  “Only one?” Why was he smiling? This wasn’t funny.

  “You wanted a quiet life. With all those people living in the house, you might not get the quiet life you wanted.”

  He pressed his palms flat on the desk and leaned in. “I believe my needs have changed.”

  “I see.”

  “You could still do the magazine spread I promised.” He straightened.

  “Magazine?” she asked. Hope flared.

  “I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I can’t write. I want you in my life.”

  “Wait. Are you trying to say you need me?”

  “No. I said I want you in my life. I’ve learned I need to be less codependent, less enabling, and more supportive. Both you and Larson taught me that.”

  Me? Does he mean me? He couldn’t mean me. “I’ve missed you.”

  “I’ve missed you too, Goldilocks.” He took his time walking around her desk, then picked up a strand of her hair. “Sweet Goldilocks.”

  His eyes mesmerized her until her righteous conscience gave her a good kick. “But you shouldn’t have come.”

  “Why, because you think you might put my life in danger?”

  Rachelle stared at Jacob, not sure whether she should breathe or exhale. Should she hope? With each passing second, her soul filled with anticipation.

  “You really shouldn’t be getting involved with a person like me—I’m afraid I’ll always be dealing with my past and father’s indiscretions.”

  A slow smile creased the corners of his eyes. “Are you still trying to protect me, Rachelle?”

  She nodded slowly, finally understanding his smile. “How did you figure it out?”

  “Ben figured it out.”

  “Ben.” She picked up a pencil and rolled it between her fingers. She fought the urge to close the distance between them and jump into his arms. Instead, she let him come a little closer...until the scent of the ocean suffused her with a sense of calm. She tugged the flower arrangement closer. “Are these from you?”

  “Please tell me there are no other guys in your life sending you flowers,” he whispered. His breath brushed across her skin. His lips hovered over her mouth.

  “There’s no one but you.”

  His mouth gently touched hers, and she desperately wanted to indulge, but she had to stop him from making a mistake. He didn’t need her past dragging him down. She placed a hand on his chest and pressed.

  “Jacob, we shouldn’t be doing this.”

  “By this, do you mean kissing?”

  “Are you selling the house because of me? You like that house. I can tell. You’re talented and wealthy and have plans. You need to focus on your future, and I need to focus on mine, which is a bit unstable at the moment.”

  “I don’t want a future without you.”

  She tried to swallow, and when that didn’t work, she tried to exhale past the knot in her throat. “Yes, but you have such a promising future. I can see the headlines now, fans are raving about the latest video game released by Jacob Reyes. There’s nothing like it on the market. It’s a must have on every kid’s Christmas list.”

  “There’s just one problem with that headline.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You didn’t include your name along with mine.”

  An agonizingly slow tickle of awareness sneaked up her spine. She studied his face. “You want me to work for you?”

  “No, love.”

  She squeezed her eyes shut, disappointment shutting her down.

  “Rachelle. Look at me.”

  She slowly opened her eyes to see an intent and beautiful face.

  “I don’t need another employee. Nor do I need an assistant. I need a partner—a life partner.” His eyes softened. “Scratch that. I need you. Your love, wit, charm, support. Only you. I need you.” His raw honesty filled the room to the point there was nothing else he could say.

  He’d opened the door to her heart. Years of barricading her feelings and ideas and thoughts fell way. He pulled her in and held her close. Safe. He reached in his pocket, and took a step back, lowering to one knee.

  “What are you doing?” She reached for his arm, but he moved it out of reach.

  He turned her hand over and placed a tiny spaceship on her palm. “Rachelle Claire
mont, I want to explore together. Create together. Would you be willing to come aboard?”

  She lifted her hand to get a closer look at the tiny spaceship.

  “I want us to reach for the stars,” he tugged on her hand. “What do you say?”

  The look on Rachelle’s face was transparent, and the openness was all Jacob needed to know for absolute certain he’d made the right decision.

  His mom had been right. He had money and homes and friends, but nothing compared to the pure joy and love blooming in her eyes.

  She reached for him, clamping her fingers around his shirtsleeve, dragging him closer.

  “You gave me a starship,” she whispered against his lips.

  He nodded, nuzzling her neck, then her collarbone. “What do you say?”

  Her violet eyes were glistening with glory and melted his heart.

  “Are you sure you want a co-captain? Not a first officer?”

  He leaned in and kissed her nose. “Don’t you think you’ve spent enough time hiding your talents? How do you know what you can truly accomplish if you’re not free to explore?”

  “You want me to create?”

  “I want you to do whatever your heart wants to do, as long as it’s with me.”

  Her hand trembled when she touched his cheek. “You are the most amazing man, Jacob Reyes.”

  “You’re pretty incredible yourself, Rachelle Clairemont. Now, is that a yes?”

  “Yes,” she responded without the hesitation or doubt or negative feelings that usually surfaced when she said yes to a man.

  When the office door opened, she groaned. “My appointment’s here.”

  “You don’t like this job?”

  “Hate it.”

  He caressed her cheek, then cupped her cheek. “Then quit.”

  “I still need to pay rent this month. I can’t quit.”

  “Yes, you can. You can do anything you set your mind to.”

  She stifled a laugh. “Now?”

  “Right now. This second.”

  The joy from the early moment rebounded. This man, this kind and gentle and wonderful man, made her incredibly happy. She was free. Free to choose. To make decisions. She blinked back a tear.

  “Miss?” The couple waited in the doorway. “Sorry we’re late. We’re here for our appointment.”

  She looked at the couple, who were in their late sixties, and wearing tennis shoes, jeans, her with a sun visor, him with a baseball cap. Both were a little tentative. They definitely were there only for the free snack.

  “Tell you what. You don’t look like you want to spend twelve hundred dollars a year in timeshare property taxes and fees, so why don’t we skip the tour and I give you your certificate for a 3-day, 4-night stay at one of our exclusive resorts? It will save you an hour and a half of time you can use to poke around Elkridge, possibly stop at the bakery for a nice treat and latte.”

  The wife looked at her husband, slack-jawed. He wasted no time. “We’ll take it.”

  Rachelle opened her top drawer and pulled out a packet and signed the bottom line. “Here you go. Have a great vacation.”

  The couple grabbed the packet and hit the door faster than a kid racing out the door for recess. Jacob looked at the closing door, and then her. “Well done.”

  She edged around the desk, a bit hesitant. “Thank you for forgiving me…about the arrest thing, I—”

  “It’s okay. We’re good. As long as you promise never to lie to me again.”

  “Never, ever again. I promise.”

  “Do you respect me, Rachelle?”

  “Of course I do,” she said, and then felt her face heat with delayed understanding.

  “I respect you too. You once told me trust can easily be broken and love can fade, but respect always survives.” He wrapped his arm around her. “I respect you, but I also love you.”

  “I love you too, but I never dared hope you would love me back.”

  “As you’ll soon find out, when I commit to something, I’m all in. Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  She inched back, her eyes darkening. “Where are we going?”

  “Wherever you want to go.”

  The sensual spark in his eyes caused a blanket of goose bumps to spread across her body.

  “If you don’t want to go back to the house here, we could fly to San Diego, or—”

  She pressed her fingers over his lips. “Let’s go back to the house. I want to check out some rumors I heard around town.”

  “Rumors? What type of rumors?”

  She opened her desk drawers, shoved the few personal items she had into her purse, and walked around her desk.

  He leaned in to kiss her as he settled the vase and bouquet in the crook of one arm.

  “If the rumors are correct,” she said demurely, “your new bed arrived. Are you interested in taking it for a test drive?”

  His eyes darkened. “Several.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Rachelle inspected her updo in the floor length mirror and adjusted the crystal pins holding the long strands in place. The wedding dress would come next, but she asked Jenna and Etch for a few minutes alone to decompress from the morning’s activities, and to reflect.

  Her hands shook with anticipation.

  Everything from Jacob serving her breakfast in bed, to the makeup artist and stylist doing their thing on the back deck while surrounded by all the women she was coming to know, to the delivery of her flowers.

  All perfect. All precious.

  Never did she allow herself to dream this big before.

  Jacob loved her, the woman she was on the inside. The person she wanted to be.

  A noise made the reverie stall. The guest bedroom window slid up, and she turned just in time to see a body nosedive and roll into the room.

  “Jacob?”

  Panic welled, and she whipped around to make sure her wedding dress was still hidden inside her closet. She crossed her arms over the lace underwear that was supposed to be a wedding day surprise.

  Her fiancé jumped up from the floor and closed the window.

  “What are you wearing?” she asked, letting the shocking image sink in.

  His tux jacket barely covered his Spiderman boxers, but his matching socks… The laughter started slowly and spread until she was holding her stomach and doubled over. “Where are your pants?”

  “Ben took them. I wanted to make sure you are all right, but he started ranting some bullshit about omens and not being good luck to see the bride, so he took them and wouldn’t give them back.”

  “I must say, Mr. Reyes, your socks are mighty fine.”

  “If Dempsey gets to wear a Spiderman outfit for the wedding,” he altered his stance and jutted out a foot with a perfect toe point, “I get to wear matching socks and undies.”

  “And they both go so well with your black patent leather shoes, but they are not as fine as my shoes.”

  She slid her four-inch heels out from under her floor-length slip to show him her red-crystal-covered shoes decorated with black crystal spider webs and two-inch spiders.

  His eyes flared with lust. “Oh, woman. There’s a reason I’m marrying you.”

  And that sexy I’m-in-love look was the reason she loved this man. Every day would be full of adventure, laughter, and more love than she could have imagined.

  “Stop. Don’t come any closer.” She thrust her hands in front of her. “I know what you’re thinking, and you’re going to ruin my hairdo or makeup. The photographer still needs to take pictures.”

  “The hairdresser is still here. She can fix any damage.”

  She laughed at his playful grin. “No.” She pointed toward the window. “You need to leave. I need to finish getting dressed.”

  “About that.” His face grew serious. “I realized as I was getting ready I may have rushed you a bit on this wedding thing.”

  The first warning of trouble gripped her stomach. “Four weeks wasn’t a lot of time, especially with a house
remodel thrown in. Are you having second thoughts?”

  “About you, absolutely not. About the wedding, maybe.”

  A jubilant sigh flicked off the warning light.

  He reached for her hand. “I know you said you wanted to keep this house.” His gaze travelled over the guest room with new furniture, paint, and décor. “But the house does hold some bad memories.”

  “That’s why having a wedding here is perfect. We get to create new, happy memories. I designed this house from the door pulls to the bathroom tile. I got to pick every element of the design. Plus the back deck at sunset will be the perfect backdrop for the wedding pictures.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She grabbed ahold of his lapel and tugged him closer, taking in a whiff of his breezy scent. “Always worrying about others, aren’t you?”

  “I want today to be special.”

  “It will be special. I’m just sorry your dad and stepmom can’t be here.” She straightened his boutonniere and then stroked her hand down his white pleated shirt.

  “Ben’s not. He’s pissed about dad cheating on his mom. Neither want to be in the same room, and neither of us need the drama. Our friends are here. That’s what is important.” He tenderly ran a finger down her arm. “Love the silver sparkles on your skin. You smell good enough to eat.”

  “Slow down, mister. I’m looking forward to standing at the altar with you in your Spiderman briefs and matching socks.”

  He leaned in and kissed her nose. “I love you, Mrs. Reyes.”

  “Oh, yeah?” She slipped a wide smile into place to soften the mood. “How much do you love me?”

  After a millisecond pause, a smile matching hers stole across his face. “You are worth more to me than my entire comic book collection.”

  A warm thrill ran all the way up from her toes. “That much, huh?” She kissed his cheek, and then smudged in the Spiderman red lipstick she’d searched hard to find. “That’s a lot, but I love you all the way to the Milky Way and back.”

  “And back?” His brows lifted. “Stellar. I feel like I’ve just found the Holy Grail.”

  She leaned in just as the door to the room crashed open.

  “I knew it.” Ben stood in the doorway with Jacob’s pants slung over his forearm. “Out! Now!” He pointed toward the hall.