Belonging

by Karen Ann Hopkins

  And that he’d be in one of those places for a very long time.

  Since he hadn’t died, no matter where he ended up, I would always be looking over my shoulder. I would forever worry that he’d sneak up on me some dark night after he’d escaped from wherever the powers-that-be stuck him.

  This was not the sort of stuff a seventeen-year-old should have to deal with. But here I was, the honoree for the get-well party Aunt Debbie was throwing, thinking about how I wished the guy I shot would have died. And, since he hadn’t, I decided I would have to get a permit to carry a concealed weapon when I turned eighteen. Next time, if there ever was a next time, I would aim higher.

  Aunt Debbie and Tina were busy in the kitchen whipping up my favorite, chicken and dumplings, to cheer me up. Their voices sounded so normal, which just added to the weirdness of the evening. How could they be talking about the weather after everything that had happened? Were they nuts?

  On the other end of the spectrum were Dad and Uncle Jason. They were sitting in the overstuffed recliners gazing at a news program in complete silence.

  I hadn’t talked to Dad much since I’d gotten out of the hospital. After the begging didn’t get me anywhere closer to seeing Noah, I just gave up and slunk into my own self-induced miserable trance.

  Would I really have to wait until November to see Noah again? And would Dad immediately write me out of the family when I jumped ship and headed to Meadowview?

  I let my eyes wander over to Dad for a split second before I looked away again quickly. He’d been watching me with that vague look of incredulity on his face.

  The ringing doorbell jolted me upright.

  Amanda was working and Brittany had other plans, so it wasn’t one of them. My mind began racing through the possibilities.

  “Why don’t you get the door, Rosie?” Dad said, all nonchalantly, triggering a warning alarm in my mind.

  Then the room became brighter, and I pictured Noah on the other side of the door. Jumping up, I ran and opened it.

  My eyes probably popped out. Instead of Noah, it was Hunter, smiling sheepishly on the porch.

  “Hey, aren’t you going to invite me in?” he said, with an air of confidence that I was immediately bugged by. Didn’t he get the memo—we were broken up!

  I was seriously thinking about shutting the door and walking away. I already had way too many complications in my life. I certainly didn’t need Hunter stirring up trouble. Especially when I’d finally stopped thinking about him every few minutes.

  Unfortunately, I wasn’t alone and didn’t have the option of being a rude B.

  “Hey, dude. Come on in,” Sam shouted out from the background.

  Hunter continued smiling as he waited for me to step aside. The lift of his eyebrow was the only indication that he might be getting annoyed. He was always such a good sport about my bad behavior.

  I stepped back. He purposely passed by me closely, his chest nearly rubbing my boobs. The near contact made my heart sputter a bit—not a good thing at all.

  I decided right then and there that I needed to talk to Hunter and explain to him in person, and in very thick detail, that I was with Noah now, even though I technically wasn’t with Noah, so that he’d back off and go away.

  If Hunter left me alone, then I could forget about him and focus on Noah. I was not going to fool around with two guys—even though it seemed as if that was exactly what my sick father wanted at the moment.

  Before Hunter was too many steps into the family room, I looked at Dad and asked, “Is it okay if I take Hunter upstairs to talk in private?”

  Unsurprisingly, Dad’s eyes perked up. “Of course you can. It’s good to see you, Hunter.”

  “Yeah, it’s nice to see you, too.”

  Before Hunter had the opportunity to make a great impression on my close family and friend, I grabbed his hand and pulled him up the stairs.

  On the way up, we passed Justin coming down. The poor kid’s mouth gaped when he saw us. I was definitely not setting a good example for his future dating practices.

  Once in my room, I shoved Hunter in and closed the door with a thud.

  Staring at him, I decided Dad was insane. That he was all for me and Hunter sequestering ourselves in a room alone together just proved how desperate Dad was to get Noah out of my life for good.

  Actually, it was a good plan, but Dad was not figuring how much I loved Noah into the equation.

  Hunter seated himself on the bed. He looked relaxed, resting against the backboard, his legs stretched out on my light green comforter. He also didn’t leave any room for me to sit down—unless I wanted to be real cozy with him.

  Nice try, Hunter.

  I remained standing with my hands folded under my breasts and said, “We have to talk.”

  A smile played at the corner of his mouth. The little twitter of his lips caused a warm flush to fill my face.

  Hunter drawled, “Why don’t you sit over here next to me and get comfortable? You’re wired like a hand grenade.”

  “No way—I don’t know what game you’re playing at, but your behavior has me on edge.” I narrowed my eyes, trying to make him mad at me. After all, it would be easier to get him to leave if he was pissed off.

  “Sorry that me being friendly has confused you. I just don’t see why you and I can’t still be friends and hang out, even with you dating Noah.” Then he smirked a little, really making me annoyed. “If you can even call it dating. From what I’ve heard, you won’t be seeing much of him for a long while.”

  I took the few steps needed to place me right beside him, and stared with the meanest face I could manage.

  “You and I have broken up, Hunter, so it doesn’t matter one iota how much time I spend with Noah. The fact that you’re clearly enjoying my restricted relationship shows that you don’t care for me at all.”

  Hunter was standing so fast it nearly made my head spin. One minute he was casually lounging in my bed, the next he was glowering down at me, his hands on the sides of my arms.

  He lowered his face to mine and growled, “The problem is, I care way too much. And as much as I’d like to walk away from you, and not have to deal with this infatuation you have with a guy from another lifetime—I can’t. And I won’t.”

  “You have to—you don’t have a choice in the matter,” I seethed back.

  “I most definitely do,” Hunter said, and in the blink of an eye, his mouth was on mine. He wasn’t being exactly forceful, just a little pushy with his mouth.

  I fought my response to him for a few seconds, with a very vivid image of Noah in my mind, but Hunter’s mouth softening and working against mine clouded the thoughts of Noah.

  Everything was so easy with Hunter.

  My family approved—heck, my Dad loved the guy. I could hang out with him whenever I wanted, pretty much do whatever I liked around him. Hunter was definitely the easy path—and his kisses were really nice.

  But after a few seconds, I got control of my senses and tore myself away.

  I stepped back, wiping him from my mouth.

  Hunter looked at me smugly and said, “See, there is something more between us than just friendship. I can give you what Noah can’t—everything.”

  I began to open my mouth with some kind of comeback, but he closed the distance again, only this time he didn’t touch me. His surge forward did shut me up.

  “I love you, Rose...I really do. And right now it’s enough for me to know that you do have feelings for me, because I’m sure that eventually I can wash Noah from your mind once and for all. I’m a patient sort of guy.”

  Feeling all torn up inside, I whispered, “No, you can’t. I’m sorry.”

  He smiled confidently and said, “I’m heading downstairs to hang out with your family. I’ll try not to distract you too much with my presence.”

  Before he walked by me, he softly cupped my face with his hand, his eyes piercing mine. Then he broke away from me.

  The click of the door made me
feel a little bit lonely.

  When it came to Hunter, I didn’t know what to think. There was no doubt that I liked the guy. But I didn’t think he was the love of my life.

  You could only have one of those, and Noah already had the job.

  But Hunter was going to make things more difficult than I originally thought.

  38

  Sam

  I rubbed my face vigorously with my hands. I was sitting uncomfortably on the floor outside of Aunt Debbie’s upstairs bathroom, but even this uncomfortable position was much better than the chaos in my head at the thought of what was going on behind the door at my back.

  Things could change a lot in one month.

  The last time I’d been in Cincinnati was for Rose’s party, and I’d come away that weekend feeling that she was on the way to getting back together with Hunter—and moving in the right direction with her life.

  Now this—damn it.

  The soft scurrying and conversation of the girls behind the door was too quiet for me to gauge how things were going.

  The whole day had a surreal feel, and I kept attempting to blink myself awake from the nightmare. Hell, a couple of hours ago I’d been getting ready to go for a run, when I’d gotten Summer’s frantic call that I needed to take her to the city to be with Rose.

  I didn’t hesitate. When your girlfriend, who you’ve finally admitted has your heart totally in her grip, begged you to do something, you did it.

  It had taken a full hour of the drive for me to pull the information out of Summer about what was going on.

  Now, I wish I didn’t know.

  Rage filled me at the knowledge that Noah would do this to my little sister. Was he an absolute moron?

  Then again, probably not—this was a calculated way to rip my sister away from her family and her goals to trap her with him. I was sure of it.

  When the door opened, I found myself falling backward into the bathroom, cool tiles against my back.

  Summer was beside me in a heartbeat, her eyes meeting mine. I didn’t need to even ask, the news was plain from her green stare.

  She held up the pregnancy test in front of my face, anyway, and I only glanced at it. Shit.

  Standing up, I made my way over to Rose who sat on the vanity, her head dropped into her hands. The bobbing of her head and the gurgling sniffs told me that she was crying.

  When my hands touched her shoulders, she looked up, and her light blue eyes were washed out with tears.

  “Sam...I’m...sorry. How stupid...stupid,” she sobbed out.

  I pulled her into my arms and hugged her more tightly than ever before while her body rocked against me.

  Summer leaned in, placing her head on Rose’s shoulder and her arms around the both of us.

  Maybe the three of us together could work this thing out.

  But I knew one thing for certain—I was going to kill Noah.

  * * * * *

  What’s next for Rose and Noah? Turn the page for a sneak peek at the stunning conclusion of the TEMPTATION series.

  Sarah

  Glancing sideways, I quickly looked back into the laundry basket and blushed. Micah had been watching me.

  Oh, goodness, what should I do?

  Trying to ignore what my eyes had just told me, I reached into the basket and pulled out a pair of pants heavy with dampness. Snapping them onto the line, I nearly jumped out of my skin when Micah spoke close behind me.

  “Would you like some help with that?”

  His words were fuzzy in my mind and his face blurred for a second. Did the brown-haired boy with the prettiest green eyes I’d ever seen just ask me if I needed help hanging the laundry? Surely, I must be dreaming.

  Coming to my senses as quickly as I could, I looked around for anyone watching, before facing Micah.

  “Uh, no...but it sure is nice of you to offer—none of my brothers ever have,” I said before turning back to the work.

  As much as I wanted his company, I wished he’d leave. If Father or Mother caught him talking to me, I’d be in trouble for sure. Especially with everything so mixed up with our families and all. Oh, if only Noah had never gotten involved with Constance. He hadn’t taken my advice, and now we all were paying the price—especially me.

  Micah chuckled softly and said, “My mother and sisters trained me well.” He paused and took a wet work shirt from the pile and began hanging it before saying, “Actually, I don’t mind helping you at all.”

  I turned quickly and grabbed the shirt from his hands and tugged. “You mustn’t do that. Someone might see and then questions will be raised.”

  Micah was strong and he wouldn’t let go. He pulled the material back and argued, “There is nothing wrong with me assisting you. I hardly see why anyone would complain.”

  Nearly frantic, I glanced around and yanked hard. The rip was loud and I didn’t need to see the shirt to know a seam had been broken. The material came loose from his hands and I stepped back.

  My cheeks felt warm when I said, “Now look what you’ve gone and done. You’re supposed to be helping Peter build the fence. And with all the trouble brewing, you should be happy that Father invited you to do so.”

  Micah must have lost his mind, I thought, when he came forward and whispered close to my face, “If you hadn’t refused my help, that wouldn’t have happened. Besides, the only reason my father allowed me to come over here was to spy on you all.”

  I suddenly felt light-headed and ignored the possibility of others watching us.

  “What are you talking about?”

  Micah did a quick scan of the area and said, “I shouldn’t have said anything, but I don’t guess you’ll tell anyone. You used to talk to me and smile sometimes and now you won’t even glance my way. Is it because of your brother and my sister?”

  Sighing with worry that he’d even asked, I said, “Of course, silly. I’m not sure why we became friends, but the things that your father has said about Noah and my family have made it impossible for it to continue. It wasn’t proper, anyway. I’m going to begin courting Edwin.”

  His hand shot out and grabbed my arm lightly. The heavy feel of it made the blood drain from my face. “What? Are you crazy, Sarah? You don’t even like him.”

  “Course I do. And who are you to say so?”

  Micah leaned in and said with a sureness that made me believe him, “’Cause you like me, that’s why. This thing will eventually settle down between our families. Don’t do something that we’ll both regret.”

  He left me and went back to the fence across the yard. A part of me wanted him to come back, but the other wanted him to stay far away. He was dead wrong about our families. When the bishop announced Noah and Constance’s separation on Sunday, it would get worse.

  Wiping the wetness from my eyes quickly, I went back to work. I had to get Micah Schwartz out of my mind.

  He was nothing but trouble.

  Acknowledgments

  Many thanks to the professional people who’ve been instrumental in bringing Rose and Noah’s story to the public: Christina Hogrebe, my wonderful agent from the Jane Rotrosen Agency, and T.S. Ferguson, Natashya Wilson and the rest of the spectacular editorial team at Harlequin Teen. I’m truly blessed to have the guidance of such an amazing group of people on this project.

  Special and heartwarming thanks to my five children, Luke, Cole, Lily, Owen and Cora, who made it possible for my frenzied days of writing by helping out with the cooking, cleaning and basic requirements of survival; my mother, Marilyn, who has been an avid promoter of all of my work and spent countless hours on the phone sharing her sound advice and suggestions; my father, Anthony, brother, Tony, and nephew, Jamey, who are always there to lend a helping hand. I love you all.

  I also want to thank a few of my friends who’ve been there for me during the strange journey that has been my life over the past few years: Jay, Carey, Opal, Devin, Kelsey, Kendra, Marian, Brooke, Tyler, Jackie and Eric. Everyone should have friends like these.

/>   The seasons in the sleepy Amish community I live in are measured by the planting and harvesting of crops, the spring and autumn schoolhouse benefit dinners, and the smell of wood smoke in the air during the wintertime. I’m thankful that I found this place of buggies, open fields and honest, hardworking people and for the inspiration it’s given me in my writing.

  Thanks dpgroup forum.

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  ISBN: 9781460312025

  Copyright © 2013 by Karen Ann Hopkins

  All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.