by Nicki Day
“Well, dear, most people may not. But here in Dove Creek we look after our own. You should know that. You grew up here after all.
“Yea, I know. I guess being away all of these years made me forget what made our little corner of Colorado work so well.”
“You’ve been away far too long, my dear.” Connie crossed the kitchen to where Vicky sat and kissed the top of her daughter's head. “Far too long indeed.”
Looking up, she grinned. “Mom, are you going to get all mushy on me?”
“Oh, you hush now.” Connie wiped at her misty eyes. “Why don’t you do your dear old mother a favor and take a couple of these pies over to the Pottingers’ ranch? I still have a few more pies to finish up before I have to get ready for the church dinner tonight.”
“What church dinner?” she asked, trying her best to hide her annoyance.
Coming home to visit with her mother had been great so far, but seeing people that she hadn’t seen in years, ones that were at her wedding and were very aware of her failed marriage, were not the type of people she wished to spend her evening with. No matter how nice the people of Dove Creek were, they had a tendency to be nosy. She didn’t wish to be the target of their latest gossip.
“Did I forget to mention that?”
Her mother may have played innocent, but she knew that sparkle in Connie Browning’s eye all too well. She hadn’t forgotten a thing. She had purposely not told her daughter, knowing that it might have given her the excuse to stay in Denver.
“Yeah, you did.”
“Are you sure? I could’ve sworn I said something about it.”
“Nice try, Mom. When do we have to leave?”
Connie smiled. “We have to be there at six o’clock.”
Rolling her eyes, she stood up and went to retrieve her coat. She returned a minute later, buttoning it up and smirking at her mother. “You’re a sneaky one, Mom.”
“Moi?”
“Yeah, so innocent. Which pies do I need to take to the Pottingers’ place?”
“One of those pumpkins and a pecan.”
Connie helped her daughter load the cooled pies into a paper sack. “Now, if they don’t answer right away, go around to the back door. Dorothy will probably be cooking for the potluck tonight and be in the kitchen.”
She nodded and kissed her mother’s cheek. “Alright. I’ll be back soon.”
“No hurry. Take your time. I’ll just be here baking away.”
As she made her way out of the house and into the crisp and cool winter air, Vicky couldn’t help but smile at her mother’s sneakiness. She made it no secret that she’d missed her daughter a great deal. Now that she was back home, Vicky was realizing that she had missed her just as much. Probably more than she’d even realized.
She was glad to be home. More than that, she was bound and determined to enjoy herself.
Chapter Six
Michael gathered some of the firewood stored in their family shed and brought a few out to the stump that his father used for so many years. After retrieving the axe from the garage he placed the log upright. Then with a hearty blow he swung the axe over his shoulder and sliced down through the center of the wood with such force that it split into two.
The chilly winter air wasn’t nearly as cold as he swept through one log after another. A dozen logs later produced a good little stockpile for him to take into the house, as well as a good old fashioned sweat. Being stateside these past few weeks he hadn’t so much as picked up a weight, or even gone on a run. His achy muscles told him he’d waited a little too long. Being a Marine while deployed meant there was no such thing as down time. Even if he wasn’t on patrol there was always something to be done to keep that adrenaline moving and blood pumping. The last thing any Marine wanted was to be caught with their guard down.
He decided to get in a run tomorrow morning before any of the townsfolk woke up on Christmas Eve. An early riser by habit, he always enjoyed having the solitude of the dusk hours to himself when starting his day. It would be damn cold, but with all the fixings he was sure to be eating in the next few days, he figured he might as well keep in shape while stuffing his face.
A half an hour later he had closed up the shed, taken the broken down wood to the house and locked up the garage. He had just been about to step back inside when something just on the outside of his vision caught his attention.
He turned to look and down the driveway, across the street and on the other side of the city park he saw a woman carrying a package of some kind. He stared for a moment, watching how she moved, the way she stepped through the snow and jumped over puddles in the street.
Only moments passed before he realized who she was. Only one woman could move that way, and manage to look graceful in the most awkward of situations.
Vicky.
Damn. Last night he’d gone to bed with thoughts of her. Memories of their times together flooded his mind. They had been so young back then. They were wild and untamed. Together they believed anything was possible.
A smile quirked up the corner of his lips He couldn’t help but wonder if she was still like that wild teenager he once knew. The one who was sweet and polite in public, but would buck with pleasure underneath his touch. His body stiffened and he balled his hands into a fist when he felt himself react to what she used to do to him. He needed to get a hold of himself.
“Hey, little brother. What’re you doing out here?”
Michael turned to the back porch and saw his older brother, Jack Jr. standing by the door way.
He nodded his head in his brother’s direction. “What’s up loser?”
“Aww… I’m happy to see you too, man.”
He grinned. “I’ll be right in. Tell Ma I want some of her famous hot cocoa.”
“Will do.” Jack stepped back inside the house.
Michael turned back to where Vicky had been walking. She was gone, and not a soul stood on the quiet road. Wherever she had gone he was sure he’d see her again. Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow, but sometime soon he would find a reason to talk to her.
He stepped inside the house and stomped the snow off of his boots. He could already smell the inviting aroma of his mother’s hot cocoa when he walked into the kitchen.
“There he is,” Jack said. He had his arm around a sweet looking woman with blonde hair and the brightest green eyes he’d ever seen. “This here is Kaylee, the luckiest woman in the world.”
Kaylee punched Jack in his side. “Wanna try that again, big guy?”
He smiled. He could already tell he was going to like this woman. He hadn’t met many of his brother’s girlfriends, but this one had spunk and he liked that.
“Careful there, big brother. It looks like she means business.”
He held out his hand to her. “I’m Michael. The younger, stronger and much more good looking one of the Barnett clan.”
She took his hand and shook it. “Nice to meet you.”
“Isn’t she adorable?” their mom chimed in, causing Kaylee to blush.
“That she is, Ma. Much too good looking for Jack here. That’s for sure.”
“You shut your mouth,” Jack replied while putting his arm back around Kaylee. “I got a good thing going here. I don’t need you trying to swoop in and steal this one.”
The room quieted a little, and their mother turned to get some mugs from the cabinet.
Kaylee must have sensed the change in mood. “Has that happened before?”
He offered her a polite smile. “Just once.”
“Hey, I was only joking.” Jack walked over to his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Everything happens for a reason, right, little brother?”
He nodded. “Yeah.”
“So, who wants hot cocoa?” their mother asked.
She set coffee mugs down on the table and began to pour from the tea kettle as they all gathered around. All of them except Michael.
“You gonna have some?” Jack asked.
His need for the s
weet drink had subsided and all he wanted now was to be alone. “Actually, I think I’m going to take a hot shower. Worked up quite a sweat out there cutting the wood. I’ll be back down in a little bit.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. You guys enjoy. And it was nice meeting you, Kaylee.”
She smiled before taking a sip, and he left the room. So much time had passed he had almost forgotten that it was his brother who had first set eyes on the sweet and vivacious Vicky Browning. After several failed attempts of trying to get her to go on a date with him she’d eventually ended up in Michael’s arms. How different his life might have been if he hadn’t known and loved Vicky the way that he did.
He no sooner had the thought when he looked out the front living room window and saw her walking past their house. She no longer carried a bag and her hands were tucked neatly in her pockets. He watched her slow strides and wondered what she was thinking about. Did she have regrets about their final night together? Did she ever wonder what might have happened if they hadn’t said goodbye in anger? Did she ever think of him? Or even miss him?
He felt so conflicted whenever she was near. He was a Marine for crying out loud. In the thirteen years since the last time he’d seen her he had been with more women than he could remember. Each of them paled in comparison to Vicky.
It had been so long ago when they’d had their last and final fight. There was so much he wished he could undo. So much he wanted to say to take away the horrible things he’d said to her that night. Still despite all this she stood mere yards away from him and he didn’t do a thing but stand there.
He was just… frozen.
Chapter Seven
Vicky stepped into the town hall banquet room with two of her mother’s pies in hand. She’d been dreading coming to this dinner the entire afternoon. Especially since she went out earlier that day and passed Michael’s home. She hadn’t turned her head to look at his house, but she had the eerie sense that someone’s eyes were following her. The hairs stood up on the back of her neck and a heat flooded her body.
She hadn’t seen him since yesterday, but she had a strong belief that he’d be at this dinner tonight. There was no rational reason to want to avoid him other than whenever he was near she felt like she was eighteen years old all over again. It was a vulnerability she didn’t wish to place herself in again. He had broken her heart that night when he’d walked out on her. In some ways, despite growing up, being married, getting divorced and living an entirely different life without him, she never fully got over the betrayal and hurt she’d felt from that single moment in her life.
“Don’t just stand there, sweetie. Come on in.” Connie ushered her daughter into the room with the help of her nudging shoulder.
“Geez, mom. Alright.” She rolled her eyes like she was a teenager again.
With the way her mother had been acting all afternoon, she wouldn’t be surprised if she had a blind date set up for her this evening. She had been beaming with excitement to show off ‘her baby’, apparently forgetting that her baby was over thirty years old and far from tiny. Even her body had changed quite a bit since high school.
Her days of being able to eat whatever she wanted as long as she worked out were long gone. Now every bit of fat and sweets that crossed her lips decided to take of residence in her thighs and ass no matter how long she spent on the stair master.
“Connie, is this your lovely daughter you’ve been telling me about?”
She smiled at the woman coming toward them. She was a short and stout woman with a mouth as loud as a megaphone. She struck Vicky as someone she should probably be running in the opposite direction from, but her manners kept her firmly in place.
“Clarice.” Connie beamed. “Indeed it is. This is my baby. Vicky say hello to Clarice Henning. She moved here about…oh what’s it been now, Clarice?”
“Going on about six years now.”
She held up her hands. “Sorry, I’d shake your hands, but…”
“Oh here. Let me help you with that.” Clarice took the pies from her hands and motioned for them to follow behind her.
They walked over to a table filled with different types of desserts and Clarice set the two pie plates down. “Now. Let me look at you.”
She smiled, feeling like she was underneath a microscope from the way this woman was looking her over, but she couldn’t ignore her charm. She did seem quite sweet.
“My goodness. If you aren’t just the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen. Far prettier than even your mother described you to be. I bet you have all the men just beating down your door back in Denver, don’t you?”
She giggled. She was warming up to the boisterous woman quickly. “Hardly. But thank you.”
“I find that very hard to believe,” a voice said from behind her.
She froze as soon as she heard the voice. She knew it all too well. Swallowing against the lump that built in her throat and trying to keep her feet from spinning in circles just like the roadrunner did before exiting the screen in those Looney Tunes cartoons, she calmly turned around.
He was mere inches away from her as he stood there with that sexy grin she remembered oh so well. It was the same grin that had managed to talk her out of her virginity and countless other things when she was younger.
His short dark hair matched the slight stubble, which was beginning to show on his face. The young face of the boy she once knew had replaced with that of a man. He had a scar about an inch long above his right brow and little lines that worked out from the sides of his eyes. He was beginning to age, but not badly.
She wondered what things those eyes had seen while serving in the Marines. What sights had caused his boyish good looks to turn into a man who looked wise beyond his years? Seeing him out in front of the city tree last night, she hadn’t gotten a really good look at him. Now she could see how much he had changed. This wasn’t the same boy who had walked out on her. He was a man now. A man who made her melt with nothing but a smile.
“Michael?” Connie beamed. “Michael Barnett, oh my goodness I can’t believe it’s really you.”
“Hi, Miss Connie.”
“Always so sweet. You haven’t stopped calling me that since I taught you in Sunday school.” She turned to Clarice. “Clarice, this here is Michael Barnett, Jack and Gloria’s youngest son.”
“Why hello there, Michael. Look at you. If you aren’t a spitting image of your father I don’t know who is.”
“You knew my dad?” he asked.
“Moved here about six years ago and your mother and father were one of the first people to befriend me. You come from good people, Michael.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
Vicky hadn’t taken her eyes off of him for a second. While he was engaged in small talk with the others, it gave her time to really study him. Even his green eyes seemed to have changed. They were no longer bright and vibrant. There seemed to be a darkness there. She couldn’t help but wonder if that was another side effect of the war.
“Well, I think Clarice and I are going to help with the set up. Maybe you two should get reacquainted,” Connie offered while shuffling away with her arm around Clarice.
And there it was. The glint in her mother’s eye gave her away. All afternoon she had the nagging feeling like her dear old mom might be up to something. Now as she watched her scurry away it became painfully obvious to her that her mother had known he was going to be here. Not that she hadn’t suspected the same, but something told her if he hadn’t come up to talk with them her mother would have found a way to get the two together one way or another.
The question was why. She had always liked him, and was happy that she had chosen him as a boyfriend rather than some of the other wild boys that she’d gone to school with. Little did her mother know just how wild Michael Barnett could be when he wanted to be. Still, even in his angsty teenage years, he still treated her well. Well, except for that one night.
Damn it. Why couldn’t she get that mem
ory out of her mind?
“So.” He broke the silence between them. “How have you been?”
“Since last night? Fine. Youself?”
“Come on, Vicky. You know what I mean.”
“I’ve been okay, Michael. Really.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go—”
He grabbed onto her forearm before she could escape. “Don’t go.”
She looked down at her arm, then back up to him again. “Why?”
“Because I want to talk to you. There’s things…things that I want to say.”
She pulled her arm away. “Michael, it’s not necessary. That was a long time ago.”
“So what if it was? I’d still like to say my piece.”
She pursed her lips together while considering his offer. She didn’t really want to talk to him. Seeing him drummed up far too many emotions that she wasn’t prepared or willing to deal with. Especially not her first time coming home.
“I don’t know,” she answered, knowing full well their lighthearted conversation was about to take a turn into an uncomfortable subject.
“Please? Give me ten minutes. If you don’t want to talk to me after that then you don’t have to.”
“Ten minutes?”
“I promise.” He held up his hands and made an invisible mark across his chest. “Cross my heart.”
Looking around the room, she saw the rush of people that were flooding into the banquet room. She caught her mom spying on them from across the room and knew that she could either stay here and get lectured by her mother or go with him and get their talk over with. As much as she didn’t want to be around him, she had to admit that another lecture from her loving but meddlesome mom sounded even less appealing.
“Okay. Ten minutes.”
“Great. Let’s go out back.” He motioned for her to step in front of him.
She walked toward the back of the room and to the exit doors. She could feel his warmth crowding her. His breath was washing across the back of her neck as they stepped outside and a familiar, almost long forgotten tingle worked its way down her spine.