The Bride Takes a Powder

by Jane Leopold Quinn

  She couldn't look at him. "I don't know why I would have. It never occurred to me." A tear trickled down along the side of her nose. She refused to acknowledge it or her vulnerability.

  But he reached for her, catching the drop and brushing his fingertip along her lower lip. She struggled to contain her tears.

  "It sounds like you needed to be in control."

  She shrugged his hand away. "Maybe." She stretched out the word. "Control isn't such a bad thing, is it?"

  "We don't have it in every situation."

  "Well, duh. I guess I learned that the hard way," she snapped, not disguising the bitterness in her voice. "I'm sorry. You're in the midst of your own out-of-control problems." He slid his big hand over her closest shoulder, comforting her with its warm weight. Before she realized what she was doing, she dipped her head and brushed her cheek over his fingers. Tears fell unheeded now. "And now I have to worry whether or not he gave me a disgusting disease."

  "Good God! Norah, I didn't think of that. I hope…"

  Meeting his gaze, she said, "I had some blood tests done. I'm supposed to find out tomorrow."

  "Oh, baby, talk about feeling out of control. Look Norah, I'll help you whichever way it goes."

  She waved her hand. "Oh no. I'm not your responsibility."

  "That's not the point. I'm your friend. I'm here for you."

  She chuckled drily. "That sounds like one of the Seinfeld shows. Re-runs of that show are my guilty pleasure. Jerry and Elaine each comforting a married couple breaking up with an 'I'm there for you' crap."

  "Yeah, I heard myself say that too. But I mean it." He cupped her cheek.

  She felt his fingers slide along her nape. Lord, he had big hands. If he would just hold her, put his arms around her, maybe she could…

  As if reading her mind, he met her over the center console, guiding her head to his shoulder, and resting his cheek on top. "It'll be all right, Nor."

  "You don't know that," she murmured.

  "Yes, I do."

  Well, how could you argue with that? Mike was the most confident man she'd ever met. She smiled suddenly. He made her feel happy even while her life was collapsing. "Who's there for you, Mike?" Lifting her hand, she covered his heart, thudding beneath her palm. The chest hair she'd imagined felt like a thick cushion over hard muscle.

  He growled sexily and, leather creaking, shifted in the seat. But before they could become any more intimately entangled, she said, "Why don't we get out and take advantage of the beautiful weather. There's a picnic table." Sneaking a peek at him, she saw the confusion cross his face. She didn't want to hurt him, but they needed to de-escalate things.

  Clambering quickly out, she headed for the weathered wooden picnic table. He followed and sat at the other end of the table, their feet on the bench. "What about you, Mike. Why haven't you married yet?" No one in town had mentioned a wife for him, but he could be divorced. "Or have you?"

  He hunched over, balanced his forearms on spread knees, and dangled his clasped hands between them. Shaking his head, he replied, "Nope, not married."

  "I would have thought between college and teaching…"

  "Nope," he repeated. "I never met a woman I could see myself living with for the rest of my life. I know my folks worry a little. But this is a small town. I don't want to get too serious, have it not work out, then have to live in the same place."

  "Don't you get lonely?"

  "Sure, sometimes. But I love teaching and love working with my folks at the bar. I keep busy, and time just seems to go by."

  "Well, the years do go by fast."

  "Yeah." He shifted off the table to pace to the crest of a hill overlooking farm fields neatly sectioned off with tree lines and roads and fences.

  "I'm sorry. We both sound kind of depressed, don't we?" she said.

  Standing, feet braced stiffly apart, arms crossed over his chest, he shook his head. "I just can't figure this out. Why did someone include my name in the cheating. What did I ever do to them?"

  "Mike, it's not necessarily personal." When he started to speak, she quickly added, "Yes, it's personal to you, but people point the finger at others to get the spotlight off themselves. It happens all the time."

  "I guess. I'm afraid I'm going to be suspended. There's been talk of that. Once it happens, it'll be harder to prove my innocence. Once you're accused of something, does the question of guilt ever go away?"

  She touched him and felt the muscles in his forearm tense. "Listen, I don't know what'll happen, but I believe you. And I'll be there for you." She smiled. It was like a little joke between them. "And that isn't crap."

  Suddenly, he turned, wrapped his arms around her, crushing her to his chest. "Oh, Norah, we're a pair, aren't we?

  Sliding her arms around his waist, she massaged his back. Damn, he was so nicely muscled. All over. And the erection behind the zipper placket of his jeans pressed determinedly against her belly. Searing desire flushed her skin, her breasts felt swollen, and her nipples contracted painfully. She kept her cheek against his chest, not knowing what the hell else she should do.

  This was all beyond her experience with Garrett. Sex with him had been routine even in the beginning. Mike made her want things she'd never felt before. He scared her. Beneath her ear, she heard his heart race and knew hers was beating just as hard. Was she feeling all this because she hadn't had sex in a while? She hadn't realized how long it had been because of the wedding preparations.

  "Norah?"

  She let him lift her chin with his finger until she was gazing into his brilliant blue eyes. Their contrast with the black-as-midnight hair was so sexy. The first time she'd seen him in the bar, his smile had been all happy with the world. He wasn't smiling now. His lips parted and his wounded, sad eyes focused on her mouth. He was going to kiss her, and it actually felt like the exact right thing to do at this moment.

  There was no tender lead-up. She groaned at the hungry explosion of need and want. On both their parts. She tightened her grip on his back and felt his big palms cover her bottom. Their bodies collided—from their knees, their thighs, hips and chests. They kissed, if that's what you could call the intoxicating, crazed way he devoured her mouth. Nothing lay between them but heat and clothing. His tongue thrust deeply into every corner of her mouth. She bit, scraping her teeth along its living slippery length. His hand captured her head to secure his hold.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and gripped the thick muscles on his shoulders. Gasping, she dug her nails into him as she strained upward wanting to crawl inside him.

  He lifted his head and attacked her mouth from another angle with frenzied kisses, hungry and noisy. She'd never felt this kind of desire before. And she should have with Garr— Damn. Just the thought of him sapped her passion. She started shaking, couldn't control her knees as they threatened to give out.

  Wrestling her hands between them, she put pressure on his chest. They had to stop and, oh boy, she didn't want to, but this was going in a direction she didn't think she could handle. Or control. Turning her head to the side, she felt his lips drag a trail of wet kisses across her cheek to her ear.

  "No, Norah. Don't turn away. God, you taste so good."

  "I'm sorry," she cried. "We have to stop."

  "Why, Nor?"

  Chapter Six

  "Because my life is a fucked-up mess. Because I was going to marry another guy just a few days ago. Because I could have…have a…" Damn! That was what Norah should have said instead of walking away. Instead of silence on the drive back to town.

  His "Why?" threaded through her mind all night. She was every bit as attracted to Mike, wanted him every bit as much as he wanted her. Somehow in the last few years with Garrett, passion had died. Was that why he cheated? He'd never acted like he wanted more sex with her than they had. The way she felt now proved that the once every couple of weeks with Garrett wouldn't be nearly enough with Mike.

  She'd had no cogent answer for him except there was no
way she would have sex with anyone, condom or not, until she knew the results of the tests. Her whole future hinged on them. She couldn't think beyond that. And continuing to kiss Mike was just playing with the proverbial fire.

  The silence between them had been palpable on the drive back, and the moment she'd entered her apartment after Mike dropped her off she collapsed on the soft flower-upholstered sofa. She'd never fallen asleep on her modern, sleek designer couch but this one beckoned to her, wrapping her in its cozy comfort. Sad and with worries churning her stomach, the couch and an old movie channel on TV was all she could manage that night. The sound of pouring rain outside her windows also insulated her from reality. This wasn't like her. She'd always been an in-the-moment woman. Tonight though, she wanted escape. Just for a short while.

  The sound of the TV awakened her early Monday morning. She felt stiff and a little lost after the restless night on the sofa. Dragging herself up, she went to the bathroom, then hobbled into the kitchen to make coffee. Grabbing the newspaper from in front of her door, she took it to the window seat to sip coffee and check out the street below. Still more rain pelted the roadway, big drops bouncing off the hard blacktop and soaking the already waterlogged grass. Rivulets of mud flowed across the sidewalk from the flower beds. She could hear the loudly rushing river even from her second story vantage point. An article in the newspaper warned about flooding. Mike had mentioned the possibility. Business owners were worried. There was talk about citizens making sand bags as well as letting the high school kids out to help with that.

  The other main headline in the Herald was that several teachers had been suspended, Mike among them. They'd made that decision Sunday night, not wasting any time in handling the situation. He'd predicted it. Her heart ached for him. Convinced of his innocence, she knew he'd be devastated. She couldn't get Mike out of her mind. You have your own problems, girl.

  Yeah. I desperately needed to hear from the doctor.

  The article added that Mike was quoted as saying he had not been involved with the cheating and was positive he'd be vindicated and back on the job soon. None of the other teachers had been quoted about the suspensions. He must have been told the news last night, and she hadn't been there for him, if she even would have been of any comfort. He probably hated her after her actions yesterday.

  She was still mulling that over when her cell rang. It was the doctor's office. Her heart skipped a beat, but she told herself this was another in the long list of things she was discovering she had no control over. "Hello."

  The doctor didn't waste a minute. "Ms. Ballard, I have good news for you. No STDs were found in your blood test."

  She leaned her head on the window frame, closed her eyes, and took what felt like the first real deep breath in days, releasing the built-up tension. "Thank you, Doctor. I'm so relieved."

  "I know you wanted the results as soon as possible. I'm happy for you."

  "Thanks so much. Now I can move on without that problem hanging over my head."

  "Yes, well, good luck, Ms. Ballard. Call me if you need to. Goodbye."

  She took another shaky breath. Damn. Her heart still raced with leftover dread, but the truth was she was now free and, even better, finally finished with Garrett. She'd mourn her beautiful wedding and glamorous honeymoon but was grateful to have discovered the real Garrett before marrying him. Yes, she could have divorced him, but avoiding that trauma to begin with was better.

  She dialed her mother at home to tell her about the clean bill of health.

  "Oh, thank God, honey. I didn't even think of that."

  "Yeah, well, who knows what he was doing all this time." She had no intention of hiding her bitterness. "I also want to let you know where I am, but you have to promise not to tell Garrett."

  "I won't, honey, but he's spitting mad."

  "You know, that's just tough. I don't give a damn what he thinks. Was there any more on the news or the papers about his little debacle at the strip club?"

  "It's off the front page, but we've been getting a lot of phone calls. You know, you'll have to come back sometime and deal with returning gifts and writing notes. And what are you going to do about the law firm? They've been calling too."

  "I plan to come back, of course, but not just yet. I had a month vacation scheduled. I like this town and want to stay here a while."

  "Where are you? I wish you'd tell me."

  "Mom, I'll tell you, but you have to promise on a stack of Bibles you won't tell Garrett," she repeated.

  "I can tell your dad, can't I?"

  "As long as he keeps his mouth shut. I know he likes Garrett a lot…"

  "Not anymore," her mom interrupted. "Dad's not too happy with the scandal Garrett caused."

  "Well, he shouldn't be," Norah fumed.

  "I'm just glad you're okay. Dad and I are worried about you."

  "I caught a train, fell asleep, and woke up in Birchwood Falls, Iowa. It's the quintessential small town, lovely and with lovely people."

  "Where are you staying? Do they have a hotel?"

  "Yes, but I have the top floor apartment of a gorgeous English bungalow right downtown, close to the river and the action, what little there is of it." She chuckled.

  "Sounds nice. I miss you, honey. I understand why you did what you did and am so sorry it happened that way."

  "I appreciate your support, Mom."

  "Do you think you'll ever get back together with Garrett? He's sorry for what he did."

  "Oh my God, don't even talk like that," Norah exclaimed. "No, I'm through with him. I'm not sure I ever really loved him." She rubbed her forehead, thoughts spinning. "I just thought I'd be able to control our lives."

  "Life has a way of changing things."

  "I was so sure of everything."

  "Well, sweetie, your dad and I liked him well enough, but we sensed it wasn't a true romance. We wanted more for you, but you seemed to be happy with him. Thank God you learned the truth about him before the wedding."

  "Yeah. Too bad it was right before the wedding. Like minutes before," she muttered after hanging up. "Okay, that's done."

  Celebrate! How should she celebrate? The rain still poured heavily, and even the rolling thunder didn't alarm her. Now decidedly famished and needing to savor her freedom in the great wide outdoors, she put on a warm sweater and took her coffee, muffin, and book down to the front porch. But she couldn't read.

  Mike. What was he doing? How was he faring? Her mind spun with thoughts and more questions. Being free of disease was the best news, but now what should she do with her life? Of course she'd go back to Chicago and pick up her career. That wasn't in question. Was it? Every morning she'd awakened excited to go to work, but now she was strangely indifferent.

  Mike. What was he doing? Back to that, huh?

  The Herald had mentioned there'd be a school board meeting at noon. This was none of her business, but it seemed to have become her business. So she took a seat at the back of the room. You could take the woman out of the legal field but apparently couldn't take interest in the law out of the woman.

  Mike sat between his parents looking very handsome and very tense. Her heart went out to him. She knew it had to be killing him to have this hanging over his head. Being falsely accused of something was, at the very least, frustrating and at the most, devastating.

  The meeting was called to order, and the prosecuting attorney's office was asked to begin. Moira Logan opened with a recitation of what would likely become the text of an indictment. She didn't name names, though, saying that no individuals had been charged yet.

  Then why had teachers been suspended?

  Ollie Banning stood up and posed that very question. "Why was my son suspended then if no one has been formally charged with anything? He's not involved in this, and it's not right to heap suspicion on him!"

  Moira nodded toward the principal. "Mr. Franks can answer that."

  "Why hasn't he been suspended?" Ollie continued. "His name was mentioned as a pa
rticipant."

  Franks scowled and muttered, "Something had to be done to keep control of the school."

  "But suspending teachers without any kind of a hearing is wrong. You should have suspended yourself!"

  There was a smattering of applause but an equal number of dark looks aimed at Ollie.

  Sheriff Marc Rahn came to his feet and addressed Moira. "Ms. Logan, what evidence do you have against an individual teacher?"

  "There's a whistleblower," she said quietly.

  That got everyone's attention. The accused have a right to face their accuser. The whistleblower's name would have to come out. People whispered to one another and suddenly turned their heads to look at Norah. She didn't know, other than Mike, if any other teachers were even at this meeting.

  "I have a list of dates where teachers got together in cheating parties. I'll individually interview each teacher about their whereabouts on those dates. So, if any of you—" Moira gazed around the room. "—can provide witnesses putting you somewhere else, I'd appreciate knowing that."

  Various cries went up. "What're the dates?"

  "I didn't do anything wrong."

  And the most important one, "Who's the whistleblower?" That got a lot of people out of their chairs onto their feet with fists raised.

  "Our children were cheated."

  "We want answers."

  Mike Banning just sat there, impassive. Norah gave a slight smile. That's the way to play it. Don't show your anxiety. Well, good for him. Along with his parents, she believed in him.

  Moira interrupted the outpouring of questions. "Tomorrow morning I'll start my interviews. I'd like the suspended teachers to arrive at my office by nine."

  "What're the dates you're looking for?" someone shouted.

  "I'll talk to the teachers about that tomorrow. This is still an open investigation. People are innocent until proven guilty. Suspensions were unfortunate—" She snared the principal with a pointed look. "But the rest of you should not rush to judgment. The truth will come out."

  "Norah." Mike caught up with her as she headed down the front steps of City Hall. "What are you doing here?"