She hadn’t mentioned much about her past relationships, but Wade picked up on the pained tone in her voice. The darkness couldn’t veil that. “What did he do?”
Tori sighed and shrugged. “Like I said, I was too trusting. He took advantage of the fact that I was always moving. I wasn’t going to pressure him for marriage or a commitment, even after years together, because I wasn’t in that place.”
Wade could tell where this was going. “He was married.”
“With three kids. Living happily outside Boston. When I told him I was thinking of buying land in Connecticut, he came unglued.”
“And that was the last man you dated?”
Tori nodded.
Wade already felt like crap for the way things had gone down between him and Tori. Knowing she was trying to recover her trust in men when he showed up, scheming to manipulate her, made it that much worse. She deserved more than just a luxurious weekend in Manhattan. She deserved a week in Paris. Or better yet, for him to go away and leave her life and her plans alone.
“Tori,” he started, not quite sure at first what he was going to say. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
Wade swallowed the lump in his throat. He had so many feelings swirling in his gut. So many things he wanted to say to her. But he couldn’t put them into words. Wouldn’t. At least not until after he’d dealt with the situation that had brought him here in the first place. Whether he intended it or not, Tori could get hurt. And he didn’t want to say or do anything now that might make the pain that much sharper.
“For everything,” he whispered.
Nine
Tori strolled into Daisy’s Diner a few days later with a bounce in her step and a smile on her face that wouldn’t fade away. Her trip to New York with Wade had been wonderful. Magical. Romantic. Everything she’d hoped for and more than she’d dreamed it could be. They’d strolled through the city, window-shopping and sightseeing. They went to a show. They talked and spent hours in each other’s arms. And then it was time to come home.
Back to Connecticut—and reality. She hadn’t seen Wade since they’d returned to Cornwall. They both had things to do. She was certain he would have to return to his life in Manhattan soon, although he hadn’t mentioned it and she hadn’t asked. He had a business to run. And she had a house to build. But they’d opted to meet here tonight for dinner.
“Hey, there,” Rose said as Tori walked past her usual seat. “No counter service today?”
“No.” She smiled. “I have a date tonight, so I thought a booth might be better.”
“Oh, really.” Rose poured a mug of hot water for Tori’s tea and came out from behind the counter with two menus tucked under her arm. She sat across from Tori in the corner booth she’d selected. “Spill it,” she demanded, pushing the hot water over to her customer.
Tori began fidgeting with the mug, knowing her cheeks were probably as red as her hair now. “Wade is meeting me here.”
“Wade Mitchell? The man who was making you crazy a week ago?”
“The same.”
Rose flung her dark ponytail back over her shoulder and leaned in closer. “So, you wanna tell me what happened between then and now?”
Tori could barely explain it. Everything had changed. Even the past, if that were possible. “It feels like the world has shifted.”
Rose sat back against the padded pleather of the booth, her brown eyes wide. “You’re in love with him.”
“What?” Tori perked up at her friend’s bold assessment. “No, no. That’s silly. It’s only been a few days.”
Rose crossed her arms over her chest and refused to budge on the subject. “I can assure you, with the Eden boys, a few days is all it takes.”
The words were like a fist to her gut. The truth barreling into her at fifty miles an hour. She was in love with him.
“I…I like him a lot,” she countered, even as her mind raced with a different version of the facts. “We have a good time together. But it’s nothing more than that. He’s leaving to go home shortly, so it would be stupid of me to go and fall in love with him.”
Rose nodded mechanically, clearly disbelieving every word of Tori’s argument. Tori understood. She didn’t believe her own words, either. And they were sensible. She shouldn’t be in love with Wade. He was leaving. They weren’t serious. She couldn’t trust him because he still wanted her land. None of that added up to a fairy-tale romance. Just another disaster waiting to happen like before.
She wished someone would tell her heart that.
The heart in question started pounding madly in her chest when she looked up and spied Wade coming in the entrance. “He’s here,” she whispered.
Rose dutifully got up and flashed a smile to Wade on her way back to the counter. “What can I get you to drink tonight?”
“Coffee, thanks,” Wade said. “It’s freezing out there.” He slipped out of his jacket and tossed it into the booth before sliding in where Rose had been sitting.
Wade looked so handsome tonight. He was wearing a dark blue collared shirt with thin gray pinstripes. His skin was freshly shaved and slightly pink from the sting of the icy wind outside. Tori wanted to reach out and touch his face. She wanted to breathe in his cologne. Some of her clothing had come home smelling like him after their trip. She hadn’t been able to make herself go to the Laundromat to wash them yet.
Tori suddenly felt like a shy, smitten teenager sitting with him. Her realization of love only a minute before left her feeling vulnerable even though there was no way he could know how she felt. She certainly wasn’t about to tell him. She had barely come to terms with it herself, although sitting on the edge of her bed sniffing a sweater should’ve been her first clue.
“How are you?” he asked.
Tori smiled, although it felt nervous and forced to her. She hoped it didn’t look that way. “Good. You?”
“Good,” he said. Wade looked down at the menu and began thoroughly studying it without elaborating.
Tori winced and hid her face with her own menu. Did he notice? Things felt weird when they’d never felt weird before. It was all her doing. She needed to act normal. This was the same man she’d spent a good part of the past week with. Naked. After that, dinner in the local restaurant should be no big deal. She just had to relax.
Rose came back with the coffee; she took their orders and the menus. Now neither of them had anything to hide behind. Once Rose disappeared into the kitchen, Tori took a deep breath. “I had a nice time in New York. Thank you for taking me. You know you didn’t have to go to that much trouble.”
“No trouble at all. I had a great time, too. I’m glad we were able to go. It was certainly more exciting than spending New Year’s Eve here with my folks. They never even make it up to midnight. As kids, we used to stay up in the bunkhouse and watch Dick Clark on television after they went to bed.”
“It must be strange to stay up here this long without the others. Are you heading back to New York soon?” Tori almost didn’t want to know how much time she had left, but she had to ask.
Wade nodded. “In a couple days. I still have a few things to take care of before I go back.”
“That’s right. You still haven’t bought my land,” she said with a weak smile. She’d enjoyed the past few days without the topic coming up. “Time is a-ticking on that.”
He glanced down at his mug and took a sip. “I guess I’m not going to worry too much about that anymore.”
Tori’s brow shot up in surprise. She didn’t hide it well at all. “What?”
“You don’t want to sell it to me. I can’t make you. I don’t know what I could offer to change your mind, so there’s no point in fighting over it anymore.”
What should’ve been a victorious moment didn’t feel quite how she’d expected. Going up against Wade, she’d always secretly thought she would lose. One way or another he would wear her down. And now, although he’d named her the victor, it didn’t seem as if she’d won.
After the past few days, a part of her didn’t want to beat him. The thought had crossed Tori’s mind that if he’d stay, she’d consider selling it to him. She wanted to build a home, not just a house. Somehow having Wade there with her was an integral piece of her design.
Selling him the land would make him happy. She wanted him to be happy. She could find another piece of land, but replacing Wade’s place in her heart felt nearly impossible.
And yet, she felt a tug of hope deep inside. If he no longer wanted her property, maybe she could have both him and the land. She’d known trusting Wade would be an issue as long as he had this ulterior motive. If that was gone, what could that mean? Had he really given up wanting the land or did he care too much about her to hurt her like that? He hadn’t said anything about how he felt for her. If he was going back to New York and life as usual, he probably felt nothing at all but had just run out of time.
She’d be left with no reason to hate him when it was all over.
“I’d like to spend the last few days with you before I go.”
She hadn’t expected that at all. If he wasn’t just romancing the property away from her, maybe there was more here than she’d thought. With a sigh of dismay, Tori shook her head. Wade always seemed to want the things she couldn’t give. “I have to leave tomorrow. I’m going to Philadelphia for a few days. They’re having the ribbon-cutting ceremony on my building down there on Saturday afternoon. I’ve got to wrap up all the loose ends. I probably won’t be back until the seventh or eighth.”
“Oh.” Wade’s expression was curious. A hint of disappointment mixed in with something else she couldn’t put her finger on. She could almost see his mind spinning. She remembered that expression from watching him at his desk when she worked with him.
“You could come with me,” she suggested.
He looked at her and shook his head. “I can’t. I’ll need to be back in Manhattan before that.”
“I guess I’ll have to catch up with you in the city sometime. Or the next time you’re up this way.”
Wade nodded, his expression guarded. He must’ve realized, as she had, that this would be their last date. Their last night together. “Do you have another project coming up that you’ll be traveling to soon?”
“Not for a few months. I’m going to Vermont for a while this summer to design a ski lodge. Until then, I’ll be here, working on building my house.”
“Do you have the final plans drawn up yet?”
Yes and no. She had twenty plans completed, but for some reason her clarity about what she wanted had become muddled over the holidays. “I have to make a few final decisions. That’s all. I should be able to get the contractors in place to break ground in the next few weeks.”
Wade’s green eyes widened just a touch at her words, but Rose brought their plates and the expression vanished. “I should give you Troy Caldwell’s number. He’s got a great building team that does excellent work.”
Tori nodded and tried to focus on her food. She’d heard Caldwell was the guy to work with around here. She just hadn’t gotten around to speaking with him before the holidays. It seemed that once she got back from Philadelphia, she’d have plenty of time. Wade would be long gone.
The rest of the meal was spent discussing the neutral topics of local electricians and concrete companies. Every now and again Tori would look up to find Wade watching her. There was a hesitation in his voice, a touch of worry lining his eyes. She wasn’t certain she was the cause of it, though. He seemed a million miles away tonight. Maybe the stresses of being away from work were distracting him.
Tori was absentmindedly drawing the design for the front of her home across her plate with her fork and leftover ketchup when Wade’s voice startled her. It seemed he wasn’t the only one distracted this evening.
“Would you like to come back to the bunkhouse for some dessert? Molly baked a really nice chocolate cream cheese Bundt cake this morning.”
His words were asking her if she’d like to join him for dessert, but the intensity of his gaze promised more than that. He wanted to have her in his arms one last time before they parted ways.
Tori knew she should say no. It would be so much easier if she just walked away now. She could take her land, her dignity and what was left of her heart back to her Airstream.
Instead, she found herself meeting his gaze and nodding yes. She wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye to Wade.
Yet.
* * *
They’d spent another incredible night together. He hated to wake her up that morning but knew she had a schedule to keep. He would rather have lain in bed all day with her ear pressed to his heart and her hair strewed across his chest. He had to admit he’d gotten used to having her there when he woke up—grumpy face, wild hair and all.
But he had to.
After they’d reluctantly gotten out of bed, Wade made his way downstairs. Molly hadn’t sneaked in with breakfast today, so Wade made coffee and toasted bagels while Tori showered.
They ate quietly together. There was an awkwardness in the air. For all intents and purposes, their relationship was over. They’d had their last date, their last chance to make love and this was their final breakfast.
Unlike other relationships that ended in angry fireworks or bitter barbs, their relationship would die quietly, because it was the practical thing to do. Neither of them really wanted to say goodbye, but neither was willing to say or do anything to change it. This needed to be the end.
When they were finished, he walked her out to her truck. They loitered at the door, so many unspoken things lingering between them. But Wade wouldn’t say what he wanted to. Not until he’d finished what he came here for. And to do that, Tori needed to go to Philadelphia. If he was successful, maybe he’d call her. Or maybe he’d be smart and just let this whole thing go. If she ever found out the truth about his past, it would be over anyway.
But that didn’t mean he didn’t want one last embrace. He wrapped his arms around Tori, hugging her tight to his chest. She clung just as fiercely to him, letting go only when he pulled away for their last kiss. He pressed his lips to hers, losing himself in the soft feel of her. There was no heat in the kiss. Just…goodbye.
When he stepped back, Tori quickly slipped on her sunglasses and climbed into the truck. He thought he saw the glint of tears in her eyes for a moment, but it could’ve been the morning sun blinding her.
“Goodbye, Wade,” she said, slamming the truck door closed before he could respond. The engine roared to life, and he watched the truck disappear down the road to the highway.
It was over. And he didn’t like it at all. But now it was time to put his plan into action.
If there was one thing Wade knew for certain, it was that he could call Heath at any hour, with any number of crazy requests, and his younger brother would be up for it. Brody second-guessed everything. Xander worried about how things might look. But Heath… He was the impulsive brother, and that was exactly what Wade needed. He headed back inside the bunkhouse to get his phone.
“Hey there, big brother,” Heath answered. “What’s happening?”
“You busy tomorrow?” Wade cut to the chase. His brother knew him well enough not to take offense. Neither of them usually had the time to waste on pleasantries.
“I don’t have to be. What do you need?”
“You, a high-quality metal detector and a large plastic tarp.”
“What, no shovels?” Heath joked.
“Dad has those. And the backhoe if we need it.”
He’d been using the backhoe that day fifteen years ago as part of his chores on the farm. When he needed to bury the body, it seemed like the quickest and easiest thing to use, since he was working alone. No one would think twice about him driving it around the property. But the grave wasn’t really that deep. He hadn’t taken the time to bury the body seven or eight feet as he should have.
With Heath’s help they could probably skip it this time. “We’ll definitely ne
ed the metal detector. The snow has mostly melted, so it should be easier, but I still have fifteen years working against me on this. You up for an unorthodox treasure hunt?”
“Sure, yeah,” Heath said without hesitation. “Whatever we have to do. I mean, hell, it’s my ass if this all goes down wrong. You bet I’ll help however I can to keep this a secret. I take it the plan to buy the land didn’t work out.”
“Nope. This is plan B.”
Brody would’ve lectured him about the failure of plan A, but Heath always rolled with the punches. “What’s plan B, exactly?”
“Find the body and move it back onto the family land while she’s out of town. Can you come up tomorrow?”
“I can. I’ll make some calls and dig up a good metal detector tonight, then leave in the morning.”
* * *
Tori should have felt excited. There were hundreds of people gathered around the new arts-and-sciences center she’d designed. The press was there, snapping pictures and filming pieces for the nightly news. The mayor had personally shaken her hand and told her she’d done a beautiful job. This was huge exposure for her business.
But she wasn’t excited. She was…lonely. This was a big moment for her, and she had no one to share it with. She pasted the smile back on her face for the photos and fought the tears that threatened to ruin the moment.
She wanted to share all of this with Wade. She wanted him standing next to her, beaming with pride. And yet he wasn’t there. Why? Because of a stupid piece of land.
That’s what it had become to her. She had imagined that it would be a magical thing to own a piece of the earth and make her mark on it by building her dream house. But the reality was much different. Even before Wade had shown up and started throwing money around, she’d begun to have her doubts. She’d dug in her heels only because he wanted something she had.
But he’d changed his mind. Wade wasn’t going to fight her for it anymore. Why? Maybe for the same reason she no longer wanted to keep it. If this land was the only thing standing between them, he could have it.
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