“She likes me, but what if I can’t get her to admit that she does? That I’m worth fighting for?” He took a deep breath and blew it out. “I’m seriously considering giving up everything to try to make this work. What if she doesn’t feel the same? She’s in this situation to keep her mother from blowing her gasket. There’s no way we can tell Knickers the truth and come out unscathed.”
She didn’t respond.
In the end, it didn’t matter how Megan felt, not really. His original goal was honorable—saving his employees—but it wasn’t worth toying with Megan’s life. Maybe he could cash in his barely existent IRA and use it to make a comp package for the employees who’d have the most trouble finding new jobs.
It wasn’t the solution he wanted, but he could live with it. If he had to give it all up, though, he wanted to at least enjoy one more day with Megan—twenty-four hours—before he came clean. “Tomorrow night.” Saying it out loud helped cement the rightness of his decision. “I’m doing this tomorrow night.”
Noah returned and set a bottle of beer in front of him. “What are you doing tomorrow night?”
“Breaking up with Megan.”
Noah looked slightly panicked. “Whoa, slow down there, lover boy. What if we haven’t accomplished our mission?”
Libby turned a skeptical eye on him. “What mission?”
An oh shit look crossed Noah’s face and Josh groaned. He should have known Noah would screw it up.
Noah rolled his eyes. “Making Megan fall in love with Josh. What the hell else would I be talking about?”
But the seeds of doubt had been planted in Libby’s head and she turned her discerning eye on Josh.
Josh picked up his bottle. “Trust me, no one’s more surprised by this turn of events than I am.”
“So we agree no breaking up tonight, right?” Libby asked.
“I may not have a choice,” Josh said, glumly.
Noah was about to protest when Nicole, who was now standing by the edge of the deck, began screaming. “What have you done?”
Three big dogs burst through the back gate, racing for the food table. Everyone started shouting as the dogs jumped onto the deck, snarling over the pans of pork, brisket, baked beans, and coleslaw.
“What are they doing?” Nicole screamed. “Somebody stop them!”
But everyone either ran screaming or watched in silent horror as the dogs knocked over the table. The pans of food fell to the concrete, and the two candles rolled off, one of them setting the tablecloth on fire.
The black cat ran past the spilled food and burning tablecloth, hissing and screeching. One of the dogs looked up, a string of brisket hanging from its mouth, and took off running after the scared cat, which found its exit to the back yard blocked by the bar Kevin had set up the night before. The cat skidded around the corner, the dog gaining on it, while the two other dogs dragged the pans of food away from the now-raging fire.
“Fire!” Nicole shouted. “Bart! Do something!”
Bart ran toward the fire, grabbed a plastic cup off the table, then knelt by the pool and started scooping up some water and tossing it toward the fire.
The cat continued its race around the pool with the dog closing the distance. The fifty-pound lab crashed into one of Megan’s younger cousins, a girl who looked like she was around six years old. The girl fell sideways into the pool, creating a huge splash that drenched the people nearby.
One of the drenched women began screaming, while Megan—who was with them—watched the melee in horror. The little girl surfaced but began flailing in the deep end of the pool.
“I don’t think that little girl can swim,” Josh said to Libby, his voice panicked.
“Oh, God,” Libby shouted. “I think you’re right.” The black cat continued to circle the pool, the dog in hot pursuit. In its haste, the dog knocked over a small table, sending the cups and candle that had been on top skittering across the concrete.
The fire from the tablecloth spread to the nearby table.
“You’ve ruined everything!” Nicole yelled at Bart, who continued to douse the flames with scoops of water.
The back door flung open, bouncing off the house with a loud bang. Gram stood in the doorway, her feet spread apart, holding a fire extinguisher and wearing nothing but her birthday suit. “Did someone say fire?”
The girl was still in the pool, but now she was underwater.
Josh kicked off his shoes and dove in, finding the girl close to the bottom of the ten-foot-deep pool. He grabbed her waist with one arm and swam for the top. When they broke through the surface, the girl gasped for air and started crying. She flailed and kicked as Josh swam to the edge of the pool, dragging her with him.
Noah was kneeling at the edge, reaching toward them. “I’ll take her.”
Josh swam over to him and Noah grabbed her arms, lifting her out. As he set her on her feet, the little girl leaned over Noah’s arm. Crying out in surprise, he dropped his hold on her. “She bit me!”
Josh clung to the side of the pool, heart racing.
The other two dogs, having devoured the food, joined in the cat chase.
“Take care of those animals!” Nicole shouted over the confusion.
“What do you want me to do?” Bart shouted, still throwing water onto the now raging fire.
Gram stopped in front of the burning food table and fumbled with the fire extinguisher. One of Bart’s brothers moved toward her, trying to keep his gaze averted as he blindly reached for the extinguisher. “Maude, hand it to me and let me do it.”
“I’ve got it,” she said, exasperated.
Megan’s uncle moved closer, still not looking while he held his open hand out—a tactic that accidentally led to him grabbing Gram’s butt. The man shouted in horror, but a wide grin spread across Gram’s face. “I think I just got goosed.”
“For God’s sakes, Mother!” Megan’s mother shouted. “Put some clothes on!”
But Gram pulled a pin and tossed it on the ground, then shot foam onto the fire. Once the fire was out, she kept spraying, covering two of the dogs running past. They skidded to a halt, then turned the other way, barreling into Nicole and shoving her into the pool in the shallower end. She went under and came back up, mascara streaming down her face, looking more unkempt than Josh had ever seen her.
“Somebody get those dogs!”
A man in a khaki uniform stood in the open gate, his mouth hanging open as he took in the destruction of the back yard. “Did someone call animal control?”
Nicole climbed up the steps at the entrance to the pool, though part of her hair stayed floating in the water behind her.
“Josh.” Megan knelt next to him. “Are you okay?”
He looked up at her. “I think your mother just lost something.”
She grinned, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “I’ve suspected for years that she wore a head piece. This disaster was worth the proof.”
He couldn’t help but laugh.
“The ladder’s over there. We better get out of here while we can.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, swimming to the ladder on the other side. She picked up his shoes and walked around the edge of the pool, meeting him as he climbed out.
“I mean, Knickers is about to go ballistic and we need to be as far away from Ground Zero as possible. Trust me. I know this from first-hand experience.”
“I thought she was already there.”
“You’re cute.” She grabbed his hand, her fingers curling around his. “Let’s run upstairs and get you changed first.”
“What about Noah?” he asked, looking for his brother.
“I think Libby has him covered.”
She swung wide of her mother, who was giving the animal control officer an earful. They snuck in the back door and headed for the stairs, leaving a trail of water from Josh’s dripping clothes. “We have to hurry and leave before she notices we’re gone or we’ll be stuck.”
“Okay.” She pushed
him into the room and shut the door, standing back as he rummaged in his bag and pulled out a clean pair of jeans and a T-shirt. He went into the bathroom to change.
“We don’t have a car,” he said through the door, unbuttoning his top button and tugging his wet shirt over his head. “How are we going to leave?”
“My dad kept my old Explorer. I’m going to sneak down to the kitchen. Come downstairs to meet me when you’re done. But whatever you do, don’t let Knickers see you.”
“Okay.” His jeans stuck to his skin and he struggled to get them off. His cell phone was in his pocket and he tried to turn it on, not surprised to find it dead. He considered leaving his soaking-wet wallet, but worried someone would find it and discover his real identity. He kept it in his hand as he crept down the stairs, making sure Megan’s mother was nowhere to be seen.
Megan stood in the open doorway to the garage, motioning him to follow her. She skirted around the two cars and out a side door, Josh close on her heels. A dark blue Ford Explorer was parked on the gravel next to the house. “This was your car? Why didn’t I notice it before?”
“It was a hand-me-down from my dad. When you’re sixteen you’ll take whatever you can get.” She pointed to a tarp next to the house, shooting him a grin. “Mom won’t let it in the garage and Dad can’t stand the thought of leaving it to the elements. He keeps it covered.” She opened the driver’s door. “Get in.”
He climbed into the passenger seat, setting his damp wallet on the console. “How are you going to get out? There are cars parked in the driveway.”
She grinned, the Cheshire cat grin that told him she was up to no good. “Desperate times, Josh. Desperate times.” Shoving the car into reverse, she put her hand on the back of his seat and looked over her shoulder. “Knickers is going to have a fit over her lawn.” She backed up, driving through the grass, then angling the Explorer over the bottom half of the driveway and into the street.
Josh shook his head. “Good job.” He laughed as he looked back at the yard. “And you’re right. Your mother is going to have a fit over those tire ruts as soon as she finishes having a fit about the backyard.”
“All the more reason to never come back.” She rolled her window down and turned up the radio, driving through town and out into the farmland surrounding Blue Springs. Her hair blew around her face and she looked almost as peaceful as she did when sleeping.
“Do you have a destination in mind?”
She leaned her head toward him, grinning. “Yes, and you’ll love it.”
He leaned back in his seat, watching her. “I trust you.”
Her face turned serious. “Thank you.”
She made several turns and then she was on a back road, driving by a small lake. He almost asked her where they were going, but he’d told her he trusted her. He could ask her about it after they got there.
She drove for several more minutes, then turned down a gravel road and parked. “This is it.”
He opened the door and realized they were at an empty campsite. The crickets and cicadas filled the night with their loud calls and while it wasn’t too hot, the temperature felt several degrees cooler here.
She got out and went to the back of the car, lifting the hatch. “My dad used to take Kevin and me camping here when we were kids. Knickers didn’t go, of course.”
“Are we camping?” he asked, in surprise.
“I don’t know yet,” she answered, handing him a small cooler, then grabbing a stack of blankets. “Let’s decide that as we go.”
For once, Josh was happy to not have a plan.
Chapter Sixteen
Megan had driven here out of instinct. This was where she used to come when things got to be too much with her mother back in high school, which had happened a lot. While she hadn’t been here in years, it still felt familiar and safe. It felt even more right that Josh was here with her, which was surprising. She’d never taken anyone to her special spot before.
“Let’s go down this path.” She turned on the mini-flashlight attached to the car key.
“That’s handy,” Josh said.
“My dad. He was a bit overprotective when I was in high school.”
“Smart dad. He’s not going to come hunt us down like a couple of kids gone parking, is he?”
She laughed quietly. “No. He has no idea I used to come here on my own. We’re safe. Besides, I think he has his hands full.” She followed the dirt path, turning left onto another less used path, which ended in a small clearing. “This is it.”
He gasped from behind her and set the cooler down on the grass. “This is amazing.”
“Thanks.” She beamed with pride. They stood on top of a small bluff, overlooking the lake. A wooded shoreline was on the opposite side of the small lake, with no visible electric lights. But the real showstopper was the view of the sky. With few lights around the lake, the stars shone brighter than she usually saw them.
She handed him a blanket and two pillows. “Hold this for a minute,” she said as she spread out a sleeping bag and then a sheet.
“You came prepared,” he murmured, his husky voice sending a shiver down her spine.
“I used to like to lie out here and look at the stars.” She grabbed the pillows from him and tossed them onto the makeshift bed.
She knew how it looked, like she had purposely brought him out here to seduce him. And maybe that was partially true. What would he think of that? For once she didn’t care.
“I like stars.”
She sat in the middle of the bedding, and patted the spot next to her. “Bring the cooler with you.”
He picked it up and watched her with a wary face before sitting next to her and setting the cooler at the edge of the sleeping bag. “What’s in here?”
“Open it and see.”
Josh opened the lid and laughed. “I’ve already had three of these before the disaster from hell. I’m not sure if I should have another.”
“Suit yourself.” She leaned forward, resting her stomach across his thigh as she pulled a bottle out. She sat up and re-crossed her legs. The skirt of her dress had hitched up her thighs, and Josh’s gaze followed the hem. She almost rearranged the fabric, then decided the hell with it. She was tired of playing it safe. She wanted to live a little.
Holding the bottle toward him, she asked, “Will you open this for me?”
He stared at the bottle as though undecided, then took it from her and twisted off the cap. “You like beer?” he asked, sounding uncomfortable.
“Love it. Blair and Libby are more wine drinkers, but give me an IPA from Black Raven Brewery in Seattle any day of the week.”
He grinned. “You’re kidding.”
“That I like beer?” she asked in surprise as she took the bottle from him.
“No. That you like Black Raven Brewery. It’s one of my favorite places.”
She took a sip and leaned back on her elbows, her head above the pillow. “Who knows? We may have been there at the same time and never realized it.”
His gaze had returned to her legs before reaching into the cooler for a bottle, twisting off the cap and taking a long drink.
“You grew up in Seattle?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“Never thought about moving away?”
“No. My father’s business is there.”
She took another drink, scrutinizing him as she asked her next question. “Your father’s entrepreneurial business?”
His shoulders tightened and he took another drink. For a man who’d declined a beer, he was downing it pretty fast.
“Are you and Noah close?”
His gaze rose to her face and he seemed to hesitate before saying, “Not particularly.”
“But he came out here to find you anyway.”
He seemed to think over his response. “He was worried.”
“About you or something else?”
He looked startled and she laughed before taking another drink. She closed her eyes and let th
e cool liquid run down her throat. She hadn’t had a drink all evening, not wanting to lose more control over the situation than she already had. And with her stomach a ball of nerves, she’d hardly eaten either, so the beer was quickly going to her head. While part of her was screaming for her to remain on guard, the rest of her said screw it. She knew that Josh had some ulterior motive for helping her. But she knew he liked her too, and in this moment, it was all that mattered.
“Relax,” she said, her eyes still closed. “I don’t care.”
“Why wouldn’t you care?”
She turned her face toward him, her eyes searching his. “Because I trust you…after a fashion.”
“How do you know I’m worthy of your trust?”
She sat up and set the bottle in the grass next to the sleeping bag. Then she leaned toward him, her face hovering inches from his. “Because I can see your heart, Josh McMillan. You wouldn’t intentionally hurt me.”
He shook his head, pain in his eyes, confirming her suspicions. “How can you be so sure?”
Her fingertips rested on his cheek as she searched his eyes. “Will you intentionally hurt me?”
“Not if I can help it,” he whispered. “That’s the last thing I want.”
“I know.” Her lips brushed his softly and he remained still, not even breathing.
“Megan,” he finally whispered, sounding like he was in discomfort.
She leaned back and stared into his eyes. “I’ve coasted through most of my life, Josh, letting other people direct my path, but I’m tired of coasting. I want to take charge. I want to do what makes me happy.” She smiled at him. “I want you.”
His eyes clouded.
“Do you want me, Josh?”
“It’s not that easy, Megan.”
She laughed softly. “It’s a simple yes or no question, no reasoning or rationale allowed, at least not tonight.” Her hand cupped his neck and her thumb brushed his cheek. “Do you want me?”
His answer was to press his lips on hers and entwine one hand in her hair as he used the other to press her to his chest. They were a tangle of tongues and limbs as pulled her onto his lap, her legs straddling his waist.
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