by Ava Miles
Her round face turned stern. “Barney isn’t my cat, Chase. Evan said you used to like them when you were a kid, so he asked me to find one for you. He even named it after a barn. Get it? Barn cat?”
“But how did he know?” Chase asked, shifting his weight. “I—”
“You might ask him,” she said, shaking her head.
Suddenly a light bulb went on. Chase suspected Evan had arranged for him to have a rental that looked like his old house. Thinking about his friend’s kindness, of the efforts Evan had gone to for him, made Chase wish they weren’t at odds at the moment.
Bonnie came over and patted him on the shoulder before turning away again. “I’m not one for goodbyes, so I’ll head out since you’re leaving too. I wish you all the love and happiness in the world, Chase. I’m just not sure you’ll accept it.”
“Wait!” he said as she walked to the door and opened it. “I can’t take Barney with me. I travel. I work—”
“Not my problem,” Bonnie said. “But if you give that cat away, you’ll discover I can live up to the fearsome name of Helga.”
He followed her onto the porch, but she wasn’t stopping. “This is ridiculous!”
“I couldn’t agree more,” she called out as she got into her car.
Looking down at Barney, he shook his head. “Evan got you for me? What in the hell was he thinking?”
He knew what his friend was thinking. This was another of the Pollyanna inventor’s crazy schemes. Checking his watch, he noted he had ten minutes to get ready before Rajan and Darren picked him up. Time to check his phone. Sure enough, it was fully operational.
Chase made his way through the house one last time, checking to make sure he had everything. He felt a tug of longing when he looked at the smoker on the back patio. It had been fun, exploring that hobby again. Maybe he could buy one for his house in Virginia.
Except he was never home.
He hated that house.
The last item he needed to make peace with was the Home Sweet Love pillow. He’d wanted to give it to Bonnie, but the damn woman had shocked him by leaving without taking Barney with her. He’d forgotten all about it. While he didn’t want to leave it, he couldn’t bear to take it either.
He’d give it to Moira. That was it. She liked homey things with sayings on them. Her whole house was full of them. He’d never given her anything, he realized. Well, maybe she could remember him fondly someday. And if he couldn’t give her his heart…
He wrote a quick note to her before he changed his mind.
Dear Moira,
You know the history of this pillow my mom made and everything it survived. I want you to have it. I hope one day the words will become your reality.
Chase
He looked at the letter. Reality? Isn’t that what Bonnie had just said? He picked it up to ball up the paper and start over, but couldn’t. He really did wish her Home Sweet Love.
It just couldn’t be with him.
He heard the crunch of tires on the snow and left the note next to the pillow. He’d text Evan about it getting it to her.
Looking around the house one last time, he had a moment of deja-vu. In one frame, he saw the home he’d grown up in, the one that had been taken away by fire. In another frame, he saw the home he’d enjoyed these past weeks, cozied up in front of the fireplace with Moira, Barney curled up on his lap.
Chase wasn’t meant for home and hearth, but this time he wasn’t being forced out by an act of nature. He was leaving it of his own accord.
A knock sounded on the door, and he crossed the living area to open it.
J.T. Merriam filled the doorway. “Hi! There’s been a change of plans. Rajan and Darren had to leave earlier. I have my plane in Denver, and I’m going to give you a ride to D.C.”
Chase wanted to punch him in the mouth for his interference—at Evan’s request, he expected. “You’re just going to give me a ride? I can wait for my own plane.”
“Look, I know you’re probably more than a little pissed at me, and Evan too. In your shoes, I might feel the same way. Hey, is that your cat? What a sweetheart. Is he coming with us?”
Barney took the opportunity to jump into the man’s open arms. Chase wanted to growl. “I need to focus on Quid-Atch business right now.”
J.T. scratched the kitten behind the ears, obviously a total pro. “I’d like you to hear me out. Plus, you need the ride. Why wait a few more hours when I’m offering my plane?”
“You aren’t going to change my mind about anything,” Chase said, giving him a pointed look. “Not that I completely understand what the hell Evan is thinking right now.”
A dimple appeared in J.T.’s cheek. “You might be surprised. We have a lot more in common than you realize. A few months ago I had a major gut check—like your accident seems to have been for you. It’s made me look at everything differently. Let me put your bags in the car. I’ll tell you everything on the way to Denver. If I haven’t convinced you to listen to more, you can take my plane without me. All I ask is that you send it back for me so I won’t be stranded here. Agreed?”
The man knew how to drive a hard bargain. “Agreed. And yes, we’re taking the cat.”
“Great! I love them. Been trying to decide if I want to get a dog or a cat. I might just get both because why the heck not?”
No wonder J.T. and Evan were chatting about working together—they were both off their rocker. He let the man grab his bags and turned to take one final look at the house.
As he closed the door, he felt like he was closing the door on two chapters, the past he’d loved and the future he’d dreamed about for only a moment.
Chapter 38
For the last two weeks, Moira had done nothing but run her brains out in her spare time. Saturdays had turned into extra-long burn fests. At exactly eight o’clock in the morning—weather permitting—she met her brother-in-law, Blake, and Andy and Matt for a ten-mile run.
Until Chase had broken her heart, leaving her with nothing but his Home Sweet Love pillow, she’d never been serious about workouts. In running, she’d found a new calling. It never failed her. Despite how busy her mind was or how hurt her heart felt, everything inside her calmed by mile two. She felt lighter, more focused. Less emotional.
She ran during the week by herself or with one of her running partners—depending on who had time—and being around a bunch of guys was refreshing. No one asked her to talk about her feelings. Well, except for Andy, but he didn’t press her about it. She’d told him she needed time to sort through things on her own, and he’d accepted that.
The rest of her family had been supportive, of course, with surprise visits punctuated with bread, chocolate, or wine—the three most important breakup foods on the planet, if you asked Jill.
Evan didn’t press her either. He’d taken Chase’s pillow back when she’d refused to accept it and hadn’t said another word about it. They saw each other at family events and when he came to Artemis, of course. But he’d relieved her mind by telling her she was solely reporting to him—not Chase.
Apparently Chase had nothing to do with Artemis anymore.
She wanted to know why, of course, but she managed not to ask.
As for what Chase was up to, she had no idea. Quid-Atch business, she expected. It didn’t matter. It was none of her concern now, and whenever she found herself missing him, she’d take a moment and breathe through it. Or eat a piece of chocolate and remind herself she was better off without some stupid man.
Gary was also a sweetheart, telling her he planned to do everything he could for the rest of his life to thank her for trying to give Maurie Wallins his resume when he’d turned into a sweaty, gurgly mess. Fortunately, Evan had shared his concerns about Maurie’s ethics with Gary, prompting the young man to exclaim, “Man, I really dodged a bullet there.” Perhaps sensing her occasional somber mood, Gary kept up the practical jokes, and she retaliated in kind. He’d never know how grateful she was for his easy, fun presence at the office.
Every day, she continued to implement the initial phases to make Artemis the most impressive center for invention and innovation on the planet. And she felt proud of that.
This Saturday morning, they were running in twenty-degree weather laced with a cold north wind. She made sure to watch for ice on the path that fanned out from The Park of Sunset Dreams, the park Matt had personally named after becoming the town’s mayor. He and his wife, Jane, had met here with their dogs and fallen in love.
“You’re on fire today,” Blake said, keeping to her pace, something he often did.
“I love running,” she told him. “Can’t believe it took me this long to discover it.”
She and Blake settled into a silent rhythm. He was always by her side, a comforting presence, which she knew was intentional. Matt and Andy were shooting the shit in the rear like usual.
It was another great day to be in the Hale family, she decided.
By the time she waved goodbye to her men—as she liked to think of them—she was feeling lighter. Not happy. She hadn’t felt that since she and Chase had quit each other. But it was a start.
There was a familiar red Ferrari FF in front of her house, and she had to smile. Caroline never knew when J.T. was going to pop up, and that mostly delighted her. He had revealed himself to be a real gentleman. He’d told Caroline, who’d in turn told Moira, that he didn’t want to move things forward until he could ensure there were no secrets between him and Caroline. Which meant he’d put the brakes on their physical relationship until he could reveal the full extent of his super-secret plans.
When Moira walked into the kitchen, she shook her head. “Please make yourself at home, J.T.”
He turned from his place at her stove and grinned. “I think your apron looks pretty good on me.”
Caroline gazed at him adoringly. “When you make me pancakes, you can wear anything you want.”
“I have bacon too,” he said to Moira with a wink. “Oh, and I brought you a treasure trove of goodies from Rome. Don’t tell Natalie. I’m afraid she might kill me for not sharing.”
He’d become reacquainted with everyone in the Hale family in the past two weeks, and there had been a lot of talk about the old times when the Merriams had been a force to be reckoned with in Dare Valley, working with the Hales. In fact, J.T. became downright nostalgic whenever the topic came up. He and Uncle Arthur were tight these days.
“I’m going to take a shower,” she told them. “Make sure there’s coffee for me when I return.”
J.T. winked. “Already planned.”
Moira gave in to the luxury of stretching her muscles in the steamy shower. By the time she finished dressing, her stomach was growling. She decided to forgo makeup for the moment but eyed her wet hair. Well, it wasn’t like she cared what J.T. thought.
Walking out of her bedroom, she headed into the kitchen. “My coffee had better be ready,” she called out, knowing to announce her presence to the lovebirds.
When she walked in, she stopped short. Chase sat at her kitchen table, Barney on his lap. J.T. and Caroline were nowhere in sight.
“What are—”
“Hello, Moira.” He set the kitten down and stood up, looking completely healed from his accident.
His gray eyes met hers, and she could feel every grain of hurt fill her, like sand filling an hourglass. There were deep grooves around his mouth, which seemed to be struggling to form a smile. He couldn’t quite pull it off. Had he decided to stop in and see her while in town to meet with Evan?
Barney jumped at her leg, and it jarred her out of her reverie. She bent down and picked the kitten up. “What are you doing here, Chase?”
He reached behind him and turned around with the Home Sweet Love pillow in his hands. “You wouldn’t accept it, Evan said.”
The sense of calm she’d felt after her run faded as hurt bubbled up inside her. “It was wrong of you to give me something so personal. Usually people ask for things back from each other when they stop seeing each other.”
He raised his brows in the equivalent of a shrug. “I don’t seem to do what normal people might do in similar situations.”
Well, wasn’t that a wordy entreaty? Suddenly, she felt deeply exhausted. “I don’t have much stomach for bullshit right now. If you’re here to ask me to accept your mom’s pillow because you can’t live with it yourself, don’t. The problems you have with that pillow and your past aren’t my concern anymore, Chase. I can’t imagine why you’d come here at all. Personally, I’m exhausted.”
“I am too,” he said, sitting back down in his chair. “I’ve been working like a maniac—against your brother’s orders, mind you—to try and get everything done so I could come and talk to you. Moira, there’s so much I want to tell you.”
The hopeful note in his voice put her back up. “I no longer want to listen. Look, I’m not your friend anymore.” It broke her heart to say it. “I don’t mean to be unkind, but I can’t be. I wish you well, Chase. Just… Please don’t come over here the next time you come to see Evan.”
“I didn’t come to see Evan,” he said, setting the pillow aside and reaching for a piece of paper. “I came to see you. To show you something.”
He held it out to her, and she eyed it suspiciously. She could see the Quid-Atch letterhead from where she was standing.
“Please, Moira,” he said. “I know you’re still hurting, and you have every right to be angry with me after what I did to you—to us—but this is my way of showing you… Well, read it, dammit. Sorry. Please, read it.”
Barney ran over to him, and Chase scooped him up onto his lap. She remembered how he’d sought comfort from the kitten before. Taking the paper from him, she started to read.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Quid-Atch Enterprises is proud to share the following announcement. Long-time chief financial officer, Chase Parker, is stepping down in his current capacity to work with Evan Michaels, Quid-Atch’s founder and president, on an exciting new venture in collaboration with reputed entrepreneur and visionary, J.T. Merriam. Parker will be taking the reins as president of a new company called Infinity Energy dedicated to creating renewable energy solutions. The company will be located in Dare Valley, Colorado.
She had to stop reading. Her hands were shaking so hard she couldn’t make out the rest of the press release. Chase was standing up, and he took the paper from her hands.
“You’re—”
“Starting a new job, here in Dare Valley,” he said, trying to smile. “You don’t have to forgive me now—or ever—but I hope you will.”
He took a step closer, and she watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed.
“I’ve bought the house I stayed in while I was injured,” he said, his voice hoarse. “I’ve spent the last two weeks ironing out a plan with Evan and J.T. and the rest of the executive team at Quid-Atch to make things right. I didn’t want to come to you until I had something solid to present to you, to offer you. Moira, the day I left you… It was the worst day of my life.”
She felt stupid tears fill her eyes and looked down at the floor. Barney was staring up at her, almost like he was entreating her to forgive his friend.
“I thought I had to save Quid-Atch, take care of everything and everybody, give the company my whole life. Again. Then J.T. showed up to fly me back to D.C., and he talked to me.” Chase ran a hand through his hair. “He understood what I was going through. He’d just gone through it himself.”
She shook her head. “What? I’m confused.”
He put his hands on her shoulders. “I wanted more, and I couldn’t see a way to have it. J.T. had found a way—for himself—and because of Evan’s…I’m calling it friendly support and not annoying interference…there was a way for me too. Moira, I’m sorry. For spouting off like an asshole about Maurie. For walking away from what we had. For everything.”
The heat of his hands was as scorching as the pleading look in his gray eyes.
“Can you forgive me? Will you
be with me again? Will you…make a home with me? I’m still a little scared to reach for it …”
His hands caressed her skin then, and her heart settled. There was no other way to describe it.
“But I want to make a home with you more than I want anything, and I won’t let my fears stop me.”
He looked her straight in the eye and she felt the punch of his emotion all the way down to her toes.
“I love you, Moira, and I don’t want to ever be without you again. Will you please—”
“Oh, shut up,” she said, hurling herself into his arms. “Shut up, shut up, shut up.” Cupping his face, she looked right back at him. “I’ll forgive you if you swear to me that you’ll never leave me again.”
His mouth turned up at the corners. “Moira, I plan on being buried here. Is that enough assurance for you?”
She kissed him hard on the lips. “We really need to find you a positive pill, don’t we? Oh, Chase, you’re leaving Quid-Atch. Are you sure? It’s such a big move.”
He smoothed his hands down her back, pulling her against him. “When I left you, I wasn’t sure Evan intended for there to still be a Quid-Atch, but we worked it out. Quid-Atch will remain, but we’re rethinking many of the ways we’ve been doing business. As chairman of the board, I’m still going to be involved in those decisions, but not the day-to-day running of the company. And yes, I’m sure. One hundred percent, headache-free sure.”
It was then that he smiled, and she knew. He was happy.
“I loved what I did for Quid-Atch,” he continued, “but I didn’t want to keep working like that for the rest of my life. J.T. pointed out that plenty of other executives do.”
She was going to kiss J.T. Merriam the minute she saw him. “He has a way about him, doesn’t he?”
Chase nodded. “But Moira, you were the first one who helped me believe I could have more. Want more. And I want you.”
She let out a slow breath. “I still don’t want to be the sole reason you gave it up.”
“Barney will remind you that you aren’t.”
She couldn’t help but laugh through her tears.