How to Handle a Heartbreaker

by Marie Harte

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, I’m trying to help Flynn out with Maddie’s gift. It’s a diamond necklace, or is it earrings? Right, earrings. That jeweler down in Green Lake. Can you run and grab it for me?”

  “Me? I have groceries in the car.”

  “It’s cold enough they’ll keep. You know that place with the blue banner facing the lake? Mortel’s or Mormon’s or something like that?”

  “Yeah, I know it.” She’d once gone in to get some information on jewelry sizing and repair research for a book. The guys there had been most helpful.

  “Right. Your research.” Vanessa was great at reading minds. “Anyway, go in and pick up the earrings. Or earbobs, as you fancy writers say.”

  Abby grinned, despite the hassle. “Fine. I’ll pick them up. He paid, I take it?”

  “Yeah. I called them and let them know you’d be picking it up instead of me. Joaquin remembers you. Thanks!”

  Before Abby could think to ask why Vanessa couldn’t get the earrings, or Flynn for that matter, Vanessa had disconnected.

  Another hour and a half later, after slugging through snow, around an accident, and up the driveway, she returned home, tired. She managed not to drop everything as she made her way awkwardly to the door.

  With Maddie going out of town this weekend with Flynn, and Vanessa off to God knew where, she wouldn’t get a better chance at downtime than now. A nap seemed in good order. Maybe after a cup of hot peppermint cocoa—her one extravagance at the market.

  She unlocked the front door and froze at what sounded like a…bark? After a moment, when nothing materialized in the entryway, she told herself she’d been hearing things. She closed the door behind her and locked it, then dropped everything to strip down to her jeans, sweater, and fuzzy socks. Lugging the bags and Maddie’s gorgeous diamond earrings—that Abby had been salivating over forever, since she’d first spotted them while doing her research—she walked down the hallway past the open living room, backtracked, and then froze.

  She stared in awe at a gorgeously decorated Christmas tree. Gold ribbons and red and gold balls draped the fir, lending it a majestic air. No kid tree festooned with paper ornaments and cutesy crap. A few gifts had been planted around it, dressed in sparkling bows and ribbons. The entire living room and hallway, now that she took a good hard look, had been tastefully decorated in a red, gold, and green rustic Christmas theme. And there. She cocked her head, bemused to hear the growing hum of Christmas music near a…

  “Crackling fire?” She gaped at the fire blazing in a hearth she hadn’t realized actually worked.

  She wondered if she’d mistakenly interrupted a romantic date between Maddie and Flynn. But she could have sworn the pair had gone out of town. Hurrying to the kitchen, she shoved the cold things in the fridge, put the rest of the groceries away, then took the bright blue foil box of jewelry and set it under the tree.

  When she straightened, she turned around…and shrieked.

  “Well, not exactly the welcome I was expecting.” Brody stood near the couch with a fresh haircut, a navy blue sweater that did wonderful things for his coloring, and a pair of black jeans.

  God, he was swoon-worthy. She cleared her throat and tried to calm her racing heart. “Oh, hey Brody.” Confused, she glanced around. “Are you looking for Flynn?”

  He smiled, and the warmth in his expression turned her inside out. “Actually, I was looking for you.”

  “Huh?”

  He closed the distance between them. “I’ve really been missing you, Abby. I’m so sorry.”

  Yeah, she’d heard that before. He placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned down to kiss her. She hated herself for doing it, but she put a hand on his chest to stop him. “Hold on. What the heck are you doing here?”

  He sighed and pulled back. “Think we could sit and talk?”

  She glanced around, and seeing no one else, figured why not. “Sure.”

  They sat, but before she could speak, he rose and held up a finger. “Hold on. Be right back.” He left, headed toward the kitchen, and returned moments later with one of those cocoa makers she’d been wanting. It sat on a tray with two mugs and a small bowl of marshmallows. “Would you like some hot chocolate?”

  She blinked. “Er, yeah.”

  He poured her a cup and gave her two marshmallows. Just the way she took it. To her astonishment, he’d used her favorite, the peppermint cocoa. Then he poured some for himself.

  “This is terrific.” She sipped and sighed, in heaven. Snow outside, a toasty fire, cocoa, and a smokin’ hot man by her side. Too unreal. “I just bought more of this. I was almost out.”

  He drank some and licked the excess from his mouth, making her wish she’d thought to kiss the chocolate off first. “You have good taste.”

  Easy, girl. Down, libido. She drank some more to give herself time to concentrate. “So you had something to say?”

  “Yeah. Seth’s passing hit me hard. Right on top of dealing with Jeremy, it was too much for me to take.”

  “So you ran away,” she had to say and wished she hadn’t.

  “You aren’t going to make this easy, are you?” he asked wryly.

  She flushed. “I’m sorry.”

  “You’re right, though. I don’t seem to do well with drama. I can’t process it without stressing, so I shut down. I always have.”

  She remained quiet, letting him talk. She sensed he needed to say it as much as she needed to hear it.

  He stared at the mug in his hands. “I had a really hard time growing up. I mean, I loved Bitsy and Pop and the guys, and they’ve never been anything but good to me. But I think maybe I felt like I never really belonged.” He glanced at her. “It took me a long time to trust Bitsy, and an even longer time with Pop. I loved them, but letting them comfort me wasn’t easy. I laughed and joked, was easygoing, to hide… This isn’t easy.”

  She put the mug down, placed her hands over his, and squeezed. “I know. You can stop anytime you like. I appreciate you telling me.”

  “But you’re still pissed.”

  She shrugged, uncomfortable at being honest because he’d bared a part of himself and no doubt felt raw. “You hurt me, Brody. I put it all on the line for you and you rejected me.”

  “I know.” He let out a heavy breath. “Wait a minute.” He set his mug down on the coffee table and circled around behind her. His hands settled on her shoulders, and she tensed.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I thought about strangling you, but people saw me enter the house. And you know, I left prints everywhere.”

  “Ha ha.” She moaned when he started rubbing her shoulders, easing her tension. “Oh, that’s nice.”

  “Good. You relax and I’ll finish what I came to say.”

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  He chuckled, then cleared his throat. “I’m sorry I blamed you for anything. I know Seth was at his end. I just… The guy was a friend. A good one. He acted all tough, but inside he was alone, like me. He never had real family, you know. He made that up so I wouldn’t feel sorry for him.” He snorted. “Old bastard was just like me. I used to pretend a lot too. That I was happy being alone all the time, dating and skating. That I had no problem adjusting to being part of the clan. Sometimes it was overwhelming.”

  His fingers eased up her neck and he started massaging her scalp. Besides soothing her, he was arousing her just by being near. When he shifted, she caught a faint whiff of cologne that went straight to her head. God, could she possibly be dreaming this? Brody not only apologizing, but explaining himself to her?

  “I didn’t go into too much detail with you before, but my older brother did a real number on me. He hurt me bad growing up. A lot of it was screwing with my head as much as pounding on me. I didn’t want anyone to know. I was ashamed, like it was my fault. I know.” He squeezed her shoulder in warning, and she stopped her autom
atic denial. “Stupid to think that, but I was a kid at the time. And as I grew older, the shame and fear grew with me. But Flynn knew anyway, he just never said anything. Asshole.”

  He rubbed her head again. Small circles that pressed into the base of her skull and relieved pressure she hadn’t been aware she was holding. “Oh my God. I’m totally listening to you, but this massage is just… I’m a limp noodle.”

  “Good. You had a lot going on. You had to handle my drama, then your mom’s visit. I heard that went well though, huh?”

  She smiled and closed her eyes. “Yeah. She came to apologize and tell me how sorry she was. You two have a lot in common.”

  He paused on her shoulders. Then he circled around to her front and sat next to her on the couch again. “You’re right. She and I both love her daughter,” he said softly.

  She blinked at him. “What’s that?” No. He hadn’t really just said he loved her, had he?

  “Scoot back and put your feet in my lap.”

  She stared.

  “Offer expires in three-two-one—”

  She nearly gelded him.

  “Oomph.”

  “Well, you started the countdown.”

  “So I did.” He chuckled, pulled off her socks, and started rubbing her feet with large, warm hands. “I also hear you’re going to be filthy rich since your books are being fought over in a bidding war. Congrats, baby.”

  She flushed. “Well, filthy rich is a relative term. For a writer, it’s like moving a step beyond welfare. But I’m happy to say my agent expects good numbers, enough to keep me in rent and food money through next year.”

  “Merry Christmas to you.”

  “Yeah.” She smiled, extraordinarily happy just to be with him. But… “Did you say you loved me?”

  “No.”

  Her hopes dashed.

  “I said love. As in, present tense. You writers need to pay attention to that shit.”

  “Nice mouth.” Her pulse pounded. “All this decoration, the hot cocoa, the massage. Flynn and Maddie aren’t coming home, are they?”

  “Nope.” He grinned, and the wicked look he shot her had her taking a sharp breath. “They’re in Snoqualmie for the weekend. Vanessa’s with friends. It’s just you and me.” He paused. “Well, you and me and Mutt.”

  “Oh?”

  “I’ll get to that in a bit. You just relax and enjoy this foot rub.”

  She was touched he had gone to so much trouble for her. But she didn’t trust his turnaround. “Brody, you don’t have to tell me what you think I want to hear. I want you to be happy. And I’ll miss you, but you need to be—”

  “I saw Jeremy the other day. Went for a walk with him and talked.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah. He’s changed a lot. He’s not a bad guy. I mean, he was a dickhead for doing what he did to me. But a lot of it was drugs and Alan.” He continued to rub her feet but maintained eye contact. “I told him I’d never forget what he did.”

  Her heart sank.

  “But I forgave him. And I felt lighter for it.”

  She smiled. “I’m proud of you.” When he flushed, she fell deeper in love with him.

  “Thanks. But you’re the one I’m proud of. You didn’t take my bullshit excuses. You kept going even when your family dissed you. And you live with Vanessa, which is some scary, scary shit to deal with on a daily basis. I think she might have made Cam cry the other week.”

  She laughed. “Brody, stop. No, not the foot rub. I mean, you’re kidding me.”

  “Maybe. With Cam, who knows?” He put one foot back and attended to her other one. “So tell me. Are you busy today? What were you planning?”

  “I was thinking about a nap and hot chocolate, but this foot rub is so much better. And the hot chocolate was superb.”

  “You didn’t finish it all.” He nudged her cup. “Drink up.”

  “Why? Is it drugged?”

  “For God’s sake.”

  She crossed her eyes at him and drank the cocoa as he moved from the couch and neared the tree.

  She glanced at it in appreciation. “The tree is gorgeous.”

  “It should be. Maddie oversaw the decorations while General Vanessa ordered Flynn, me, and Cam around like monkeys.”

  “You did all this for me?” She still couldn’t believe it.

  “Well, mostly. I think Maddie did a lot of it for herself as well, because she made sure only the prettiest, classiest decorations were used. We took the good stuff, like the big blinky lights, to Mike’s. Colin’s in heaven.”

  She grinned, so happy she wanted to burst. But she couldn’t let him off the hook that easily. “This is so nice. Really special. But—”

  “Hold that thought.” He dug behind the tree and pulled out Maddie’s earrings. “This is for you.”

  She snorted. “That’s really sweet of you, but I don’t think Flynn’s going to appreciate you giving me Maddie’s gift.”

  “Just open it, smart ass.”

  “But we haven’t talked about you ditching me. Again.”

  “I’m getting to that. Stop being difficult, woman. Open the damn box,” he growled.

  She rolled her eyes. “Fine.” Smiling at his anxious face, she unwrapped the package, lifted the lid, and stared down at the glittery diamond studs she’d coveted for some time.

  “Put them on.”

  She bit her lip and looked into his eyes. “But…”

  “Abby, please.”

  Not sure she liked this game anymore, she put the earrings on and felt like a million dollars.

  Brody whistled. “They sure do sparkle, don’t they?”

  “I want to see them.”

  “First, read the card.”

  Her heart racing, she reached into the box and pulled out the card, one she hadn’t seen when she’d picked up the already wrapped package.

  “Read it out loud,” he murmured and moved next to her on the couch.

  “Dear Abby.” Her eyes widened. “I’m sure you could write this much better than me. But I wanted you to have this apology along with the earbobs. (Your word, not mine.) I love you, Abby. I have for a while, but I was too scared to tell you. I still think you’re too good for me, but I’m nothing without you. I miss you so damn much, and the thought of not having you in my life makes everything dry as dust. So gray. So blah without you. I see these diamonds, all the color and sparkle, and I think of you. Because you bring this to my life. I may be a cheat, a liar, and a bunch of other things I’m never going to tell you about, but I’ll always be true to you. I love you. And I really, really want you to come live with me. If you play your cards right, you could be the lucky Mrs. Brody Singer. Unless, of course, you strike it rich. Then I’m okay to take your last name. Brody Dunn has a nice ring to it too. Love, Brody.”

  She stared at the note, unable to believe what she’d just read.

  “You okay? You look pale.”

  She glanced at him to see him looking worried.

  “What? Was it my grammar? I had Cam help with the wording a little, but he’s better with numbers, you want my opinion.”

  “Do you mean this?” she whispered and clutched the note to her heart, the box forgotten.

  He pulled her into his arms and smiled. “Every word. Especially the part about you striking it rich. I want it known I’m marrying you for your money and your body, but not in that order.”

  He kissed her before she could blink, and she settled into his arms with a long, satisfied sigh.

  He broke away, breathing hard, and cleared his throat. “There’s just one or two more things we need to clarify.”

  “Yeah?”

  “I come with baggage. It’s me and the dog. You take me, you take Mutt. Which leads me to my last gift. It’s upstairs.”

  She followed him up,
holding his hand, and saw a trail of rose petals at the top of the stairway.

  “Oh Brody.” He remembered. All her talk of what she wanted in a romantic gesture. A massage, making her cocoa, the rose petals. She had to blink back tears.

  She walked along the trail into her bedroom, where Mutt sat with a bright red bow around his neck. He’d been scrubbed and groomed and looked like a brand-new dog. Almost. He had a sock hanging out of his mouth, which the candles all over the place draped in romantic doggie shadow.

  “Damn. Sorry. Thought I’d scrubbed the room for potential disaster. Mutt, drop.” The dog spat out the sock but didn’t look the slightest bit sorry. His tail thumped so hard on the floor she feared he’d damage himself. “Okay, Abby. It’s time. Give him his name.”

  She smiled at the dog and the man. “Don’t you want to know if I’ll say yes to everything?”

  “I’m not asking. That way you can’t say no.”

  She heard the teasing, as well as the anxiety he tried to hide.

  “Hmm. How about if I don’t say anything? I’ll name the dog, keep him and you, and after our long engagement, to make sure you know what you’re getting into, then I’ll say yes. On our honeymoon.”

  He scratched his chin. “That’s not how I’d planned this. But you throw in a few orgasms and it’s a done deal.”

  She laughed and threw herself at him. He caught her and twirled her around, and Mutt danced beside them.

  “God, Abby. Don’t do that to me. You can’t say no. I need you like crazy. I’m out of cookies.”

  “Big baby.” She kissed him, but before she got lost in the kiss, she pulled away. “I have his name. I’ve had it for a while, actually. It suits his personality.”

  “Terrific. But you’ll have to tell me after. Now for the last part of the evening.”

  She arched a brow in question.

  “Go into your bathroom across the hall. There’s something waiting for you. Put it on.”

  She left him and the dog behind, both watching her with love in their eyes, and found a sheer rose-colored nightie on a hanger over the shower bar. It had spaghetti straps and a plunging neckline. And to her delight, it fit her like a glove. Had to be Maddie’s doing.