by Mari Carr
They were halfway to the airport when she realized she was still clutching her camera in her hand. She toyed with the small thing briefly then turned it on.
She clicked through the pictures, pulling the small view screen closer, amazed at what she was seeing.
She didn’t realize Ewan had been taking pictures of her the entire week.
There were a couple of her and Riley doing their hair and makeup in the bathroom last Saturday. Both of them laughing as Riley teased her blonde hair. Natalie grinned at the memory before clicking to the next shot. This one was taken by Aaron as she, Riley and Ewan all had shot glasses lifted to their lips. She laughed at the horrible wince on her face as the taste of the bitter liquor hit her tongue. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the tiny bottle of tequila Riley had given her. She smiled as she remembered the night, the dancing, the fun.
Clicking again, she discovered a photo of her with Pat and Moose, holding her first fish up as both men flanked her, looking as proud as if they’d caught it themselves. She laughed out loud and the cab driver glanced back at her as she flipped to the next photo and found Ewan had captured the exact moment she’d kissed the fish, Moose and Pat grinning like a couple of giddy fools over their prank.
There was another of her in her waitressing outfit, taking Mrs. Duvall’s order. It was a simple picture, and she wondered how he’d taken it without her noticing.
There was one of her asleep in the hotel bed the first night they’d had sex, bright red rose petals covering the pillow beside her. He’d captured just her face and she was surprised to find true peace there. She didn’t know she ever looked like that.
There was a shot of her singing karaoke, holding the microphone to her mouth, flirting with the cowboy in the purple shirt. She looked like someone else in that moment. Someone happy, someone special. Someone alive.
And then it hit her. She was the subject in every picture.
She was the focus, the center.
Ewan had done what he’d promised. He’d taught her how to live, given her a life—and he’d filled it with memories.
As they pulled up to the airport, Natalie knew she’d just made the biggest mistake of her life. Ewan was right. She’d let fear dictate her, rule her. She’d closed down after Yvonne’s death, refusing to let anyone in for fear of pain.
She sat in the cab for several moments. The driver had gotten out, had pulled her suitcase from the trunk and now waited patiently on the curb. She looked out at the hustle and bustle of the airport and knew if she got on that plane, she’d never make it to Palm Springs without dying a million deaths along the way.
She couldn’t leave. Couldn’t live without Ewan. She didn’t even want to try.
She rolled down the window. “Can you take me back?”
“Back?” the driver asked.
“To the pub where you picked me up. I want to go home.”
The man looked at her like she’d lost her mind and she giggled. Won’t be the first time, she thought, and she marveled that she could suddenly laugh about it. As the driver put her suitcase back in the trunk and pulled out, she closed her eyes and whispered to the only angel she knew.
“Help me, Yvonne. Help me. I love him. Please don’t let me be too late.”
* * * * *
Less than an hour had passed since she’d left but Ewan felt like it had been twenty years. He sat at the bar surrounded by his family and marveled over the fact they knew just what he needed. They left him in peace, but they stayed close. It was nearly ten and he knew he should move, knew he should get ready for the day, but his body felt too heavy.
Tris, Sean and Pop were hanging out behind the bar, putting bets on tomorrow’s football game. His sisters were sitting at one of the tables behind him, looking at some Bride magazines. None of them were talking to him, but he knew if he gave even the slightest inclination of needing them, they’d surround him in a heartbeat, hold him up until he found his feet again.
Tris came over, stood across the bar from him. “You all right, bro?”
“Yep. Just got kicked in the teeth. It’ll pass. In a couple hundred years.”
“For what it’s worth, I think she’ll come back.”
Ewan smiled mirthlessly and shook his head. “She’s not coming back.”
Tris bent toward him and held out his hand. “I’ll bet you twenty dollars.”
“Hate to take your money,” Ewan said, returning his brother’s clasp, appreciating Tristan’s attempts at cheering him up. In this family, wagers were as sacred as holidays and he couldn’t begin to list all the stupid things he’d bet over with his siblings in the past.
A feminine hand slapped a twenty dollar bill on the bar beside him and he turned, surprised, wondering how she’d come in without him noticing.
“Your brother’s a cheating bastard.” Natalie smiled at him. Though her tone was confident, wholly Nat, her face betrayed her nervousness. “Riley let me in on the restaurant side.”
“Miss your plane?” he asked, trying to still the voice in his head, screaming that she’d returned.
She shook her head. “Never got out of the cab.”
He grinned. “Damn.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’re gloating.”
“Yeah, I am. Just a heads up. I’m probably gonna be doing that for a while.”
She laughed, her eyes drifting down. He could sense she was bracing herself for something.
“I love you.” She blurted out the words and he was reminded of his own declaration the night before.
The devil in him prodded. She’d put him through hell the last two days. “What?”
She sighed, her eyes meeting his, proving she knew he was going to make her work for it. “I love you. I’m in love with you. Even though you are an annoying, perverted, cocky—”
He reached over as she spoke, halting her words with a kiss. As they broke apart, he rested his forehead against hers, loving the sweet smell of toothpaste still on her breath. “I love you too, Nat.”
“I’m not easy to be with, Ewan. I get in these moods sometimes. My world goes sort of dark and it’s hard for me to find my way back to the light.”
He knew it was also hard for her to admit her faults. “Then I guess it’ll just be my job to cheer you up.”
“I’m not exaggerating.”
He knew she was trying to stress how very real her problems were. She’d fought him too hard this week to walk into this without giving him a fair warning. Hell, she’d fought against this for three years and it was evident she wasn’t going to let him proceed unless his eyes were wide open.
“I know you aren’t, Nat. We’ll work through it. Together. I promise.”
“Yeah, well, I also live on the west coast.”
“That one’s gonna be tough.” He looked around, realized his family was pretending not to listen, though he knew they were hanging on every word.
“No,” she said. “It won’t be. I’ve been thinking about opening up a second studio. Sort of becoming a chain.”
His heart felt like it tripled in size at her words. “Baltimore could use a good photography studio.”
“Yeah, I was thinking that too.”
“You’d move here to be with me, Nat?”
“I’m tired of being alone. Tired of keeping people away. That may have worked in the beginning, after Yvonne died. I think isolating myself helped me survive. Helped me move on. But now,” she took a deep breath, “now it just hurts. I…I’d like to give this thing between us a chance. A real chance. We can’t do that on opposite coasts.”
He pulled her into his embrace, wondered how he’d lived his whole life never realizing this kind of intense love existed. He ran his fingers through her hair, tugged it gently until she looked at him. “I love you,” he said.
She grinned. “I was wondering…” She leaned closer, whispering the next part, letting him know she was aware of their audience too. “Do you think Keira would take the lunch shift? I was hoping we
could maybe…” She let him fill in the blanks as she gave him a wickedly sexy glance.
He pulled her closer, holding her head to his chest. “Hey, Keira. Think you can man the store today—both shifts? Nat can’t keep her hands off me. It’s gonna take me a little while to— Oof!” Natalie punched him in the stomach. “Hey, babydoll, that hurt.”
“Oh, I’m gonna show you hurt in a minute.”
Pop cut off their argument with a laugh. “You two get out of here. We can manage this place just fine. And Natalie…”
She turned to look at his pop.
“That’s a hell of a catch you made there.”
She laughed. “Think I should kiss him? Mark him as mine?”
Pop grinned. ”I think you should definitely do that. Welcome home.”
She smiled, tears gathering in her eyes as she reached out to hug Pop. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“Now,” Pop said, “go on. Do something special, something fun. It’s times like these when life’s meant to be celebrated.”
Epilogue
Natalie stood beside Sky, listening as he and Teagan said their wedding vows. They were getting married in the pub, since that was where they met. Besides the family, there was only a small crowd of fifty close friends. They’d closed the pub shortly before Christmas so they could prepare for the ceremony. It was only a few hours before midnight—a new year.
Natalie felt Ewan’s hand against her back and she smiled, glancing over her shoulder at him. It had taken her nearly two months of constant cross-country travel to get her ducks in a row, but by the beginning of December she’d managed to make her move to the east coast official and permanent. She and Ewan had decided to move in together. She’d suggested they were moving too fast, but Ewan pointed out he’d been patiently wooing her for three years, which, to his estimation, was too slow.
The past few weeks had been an exciting time, unpacking, watching their home begin to take shape as her things meshed with his. She still got a thrill out of seeing her laundry mixed up with his in the basket, their toothbrushes hanging side by side. She’d become as obnoxiously romantic as the couple standing in front of her—and she was loving every minute of it.
Natalie watched as her business partner, Christine, snapped pictures of the ceremony. Natalie figured the paparazzi would work their asses off to try to steal a few, but she knew these photos would never be shared with anyone but trusted family and friends. The press would probably get a kick out of discovering Sky had chosen a woman to stand up as his “best man”.
Ewan, Sean, Tris and Killian all stood behind her as groomsmen, while Keira as matron of honor held the flower girl, Catie, in her arms. Riley, as maid of honor, stood next to Tris and Killian’s ladies, Lane and Lily. The ceremony was truly a family affair as Pop sat in the front row, beaming, his smile stretching from ear to ear. Beside him they’d left an empty chair, save for the white rose lying there—Sunday’s seat.
Applause filled the pub as the minister pronounced them man and wife. Ewan snuck an arm around her waist, pulling her close. “Do you think it would be scandalous for a groomsman to kiss the best man?”
She turned in his arms. “Terribly scandalous,” she said as she offered her lips. They kissed until Sean elbowed Ewan. “Knock it off, you two. It’s not your turn.”
Natalie laughed and turned back to hug Sky then Teagan. Soon the music started and the champagne began flowing. Just before midnight she sat down, removing her shoes to rub her aching feet. She’d danced with every male member of the Collins family, including Aaron, Sean’s best friend Chad, and Justin, the third in Killian and Lily’s unconventional trio. She was exhausted, exhilarated and happy.
She glanced across the room where Ewan and Tris were talking to Aaron. Riley had clearly over-imbibed. She watched Aaron lead Riley toward the stairs to the apartment.
Ewan joined her. “Tired?” he asked.
She nodded. “Riley okay?”
“She always takes things right to the edge. Tonight I think she went overboard. Aaron’s gonna take her upstairs, get her bed. If I know him, he’ll stick around in case she gets sick. She put down way too much champagne. I worry about her sometimes.”
Natalie remembered Teagan making the same comment. “She’s lucky to have Aaron. He’s a good friend.”
“Amen to that. I don’t know where she’d be without his steadying influence in her life. As bad as she is now, I can’t begin to fathom what she’d be like without Aaron.”
Natalie moved closer, surprised when Ewan pulled her off her chair and into his lap. “Ewan.”
“It’s almost midnight. I want to make sure I’ve staked my claim. You’re going to be kissing me when that ball drops.”
“You know? I don’t think I’ve ever kissed anyone at midnight.”
He grinned. “I like being your first…and your last.”
The crowd started the countdown and Natalie felt a rush of excitement.
“Ten, nine, eight…!”
“I love you, hotshot,” she whispered as the count continued.
“Five, four, three…!”
“I love you too, babydoll.”
“Two, one! Happy New Year!”
Ewan pulled her face to his and she kissed him. She saw the flash of a camera out of the corner of her eye.
Another picture, she thought with glee. Another memory. Life was very, very good.
The End
About the Author
Some people fall apart on their 30th birthday, others on their 40th. For Mari Carr, 34 was the year that took her down. After she spent the day crying and saying, “I haven’t done anything I thought I would,” her husband finally asked what was left undone. Her answer was simple—she hadn’t written a book or decorated her house. “So do it,” he said.
Five years later, the house is sparkling with fresh paint and new furniture and her computer is jammed full of stories—novels, novellas, short stories and dead-ends. The lesson: It’s never too late to achieve a goal or two!
High school librarian and English teacher by day and mother of two busy teenagers, Mari Carr finds time for writing by squeezing it into the hours between 3 a.m. and daybreak when her family is asleep and the house is quiet.
With the publication of her first book, her latest goal—publishing before 40—has been achieved with a couple of years to spare. Phew!
Mari welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com .
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Also by Mari Carr
Cougar Challenge: Assume the Positions
Covert Lessons
Everything Nice
Kiss Me, Kate
Rekindled
Retreat
Scoring
Spitfire
Sugar and Spice
Wild Irish 1: Come Monday
Wild Irish 2: Ruby Tuesday
Wild Irish 3: Waiting for Wednesday
Wild Irish 4: Sweet Thursday
Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.
www.ellorascave.com