by Marie Force
“That wasn’t my choice,” she reminded him with a small smile.
“Touché,” he said, grinning. “I need to let you go now so we can visit with our parents, but what I really want is to take you by the hand and get the hell out of here.”
“And go where?” The dashing and almost dangerous edge to him was new—and exciting.
He clutched her hands. “Anywhere.”
“I wondered if I would see you while you were home,” she confessed.
“Did you really think I’d be here and not see you?” he asked, incredulous.
“I didn’t know.”
“Yes, you did.”
She held his gaze. “It might’ve been better if we hadn’t.”
“Safer, maybe, but not better. Not better.”
In that moment, a zing of awareness passed between them—everything they had once felt for each other was still there. Perhaps even stronger than before.
“Brian . . .”
“Let’s go spend some time with the parents. I’ll walk you home later.”
“Just like old times?” she asked with a smile.
He returned her smile. “Only better.”
“I’d forgotten how quiet it is here,” Brian commented as they left his parents’ house two hours later.
“Anywhere must be quiet compared to New York City. How do you stand it?”
He shrugged. “I hardly notice it anymore. At first it was completely overwhelming—so many people, so much noise and chaos. But you do get used to it.”
Their hands bumped together, and he took advantage of the opportunity to lace his fingers through hers. The touch of his hand electrified her. To be walking through a quiet summer night holding hands with Brian Westbury, like fifteen years hadn’t passed since the last time she held his hand . . . What was left of her common sense compelled her to let go while she still could, but somehow she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Just a few weeks ago, she’d thought an hour with him would be enough. How foolish that seemed now.
“I was surprised to hear you were in New York.” She wanted to know everything about his life, every detail since she’d last seen him. “I never pictured you for the city.”
“It was the job that appealed to me more than the location. The D.A., Saul Stein, is a good guy to work for.”
“I followed the Gooding trial,” she confessed. “I was so proud of you, Brian.”
“That means a lot. Thank you.”
“Why didn’t you go to Harvard for law school?”
“Do you know everything about me?” he asked with a chuckle.
Embarrassed, she looked down at the sidewalk.
He stopped walking and turned to her. “It’s flattering to know you didn’t forget about me.”
“Forget about you?” She released a choppy laugh. “It’s safe to say I did not forget about you.”
With his hands on her face, he asked, “Has there been anyone else?”
She shook her head.
“Carly,” he whispered as he leaned in to kiss her.
His lips were soft and undemanding, and for a moment, she allowed herself to simply feel the sensations that spiraled through her. His kiss was familiar and yet new at the same time. Then reality came crashing down to remind her he was home for only a few days, and she couldn’t let him do this to her. She wouldn’t survive it a second time. With a hand on his chest, she gently pushed him away. “Don’t.”
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t resist. I’ve missed you so much. I don’t think I had any idea how much until I saw you tonight.”
“Please don’t do this,” she pleaded. “We can’t pick up where we left off like nothing ever happened. In a few days, you’ll be back in New York, and I’ll be left here again. I can’t go through that again. It was bad enough the first time.”
“Do you want to know why I didn’t go to Harvard?”
She nodded, grateful the conversation was headed in a less intense direction.
“Because I was such a mess after leaving you here that my freshman year was a bit of a disaster. I would’ve lost my scholarship, but my mother—in her infinite wisdom—had mentioned to my academic counselor that I’d lost my brother and asked her to keep an eye on me. So the counselor went to bat for me. I got my act together the second year, but my grade point average never recovered. I was very, very lucky to get into Northwestern Law.”
Overcome, she rested her head on his chest.
Putting his arms around her, he spoke softly and close to her ear. “By the time I got to Ann Arbor, it was too late to get out of the lease on the apartment. I had to live alone in the place we were supposed share. There were days when I was so paralyzed by grief and sadness I couldn’t even get out of bed, let alone go to class.”
“Brian,” she whispered.
“I was so sure I’d done the right thing, but leaving was easy compared to living without you.”
Carly broke free of his embrace and ran toward her parents’ house.
He chased after her. “Carly! Wait!”
She tugged her arm free of his grasp and kept running.
At her parents’ front gate, he caught up to her and pulled her into his arms.
“I can’t start this all up again and then watch you leave,” she said, breathless from running and the emotions he had reawakened in her.
“If we start this up again, I’ll never let you go. I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.” He captured her mouth in a hot, passionate kiss that was full of longing.
This time she reached for him, her arms tight around his neck as her tongue tangled with his in a fierce burst of desire that made her head spin. She hadn’t felt anything like it since the last time he held her.
With a gasp, he tore his lips free of hers and kissed her face, her jaw, and then her neck.
Carly’s knees were weak, and only the tight hold he had on her kept her from sliding into a puddle on the sidewalk.
“I looked for you everywhere I went,” he whispered. “I married one woman because she reminded me of you and another because she was nothing like you. But I discovered there’s only one you, Carly. I’m not going anywhere until this guy is caught and you’re safe. And when the time comes for me to leave, either you’ll go with me, or I won’t go at all.”
His lips brushed over her ear, making her tremble.
“Tonight, when you’re in bed, I want you to think about that, all right?”
Somehow she managed a small nod.
He kissed her again, long and deep, and when he pulled back from her, he looked down at her with his heart in his eyes. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” Opening the gate, he nudged her inside and waited until she was in the house.
She rested her forehead on the screen door.
With a wave, he turned and walked away.
Chapter Sixteen
Brian knocked on the front door at the Holbrooks’ house at noon the next day.
Carol came to the door.
“Hi, Mrs. Holbrook.”
“Hi, Brian. Come on in, and my name is Carol.”
Stepping into that house was like returning to his second home. “Is Carly around?” he asked, just like he used to.
“She’s at work.”
Surprised, he said, “She is? How’d she get there?”
“Steve walked her into town first thing this morning. She was determined to get back to normal and not to let this guy drive her back into seclusion in her parents’ house.”
Brian smiled. “Good for her.”
“How’s your dad doing today?”
“Chomping at the bit to get back to work. The doctor said he can go back on Monday, but I’m afraid he’s going to drive my mother nuts before then.”
Carol chuckled as she hugged him. “It’s just so good to see you.”
“You, too. It’s good to be home.”
“Is it? You’re feeling all right about . . . everything?”
“To be honest, I’m wondering why I stayed away for so long
. It seems kind of ridiculous now.”
“You did what you needed to do to survive a terrible thing. Life’s too short for regrets.”
“And yet, after just a few hours with Carly last night, I seem to be riddled with them.” He followed her into the kitchen and accepted the cola she poured for him.
“You two,” she said, shaking her head. “From the time you were what? Thirteen? You just had something so special.”
“Yes, and when I left here, I was under the misguided impression it would turn up again if I spent enough time looking for it.”
“And it didn’t?”
“Never even came close.”
“I love all my children,” Carol said. “But Carly . . . she’s special. I know I don’t have to tell you she’s a gentle soul. Her nieces and nephews adore her. I guess kids don’t need words to know a person’s heart.” She looked up at him. “If you get her hopes up, Brian, and then go back to your life, I don’t know if she’ll be able to bounce back again. It took such a long time before.”
He reached across the counter for her hand. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told her last night—if we’re able to get back even a shred of what we had before, I won’t walk away from it again. I promise you that.”
“I’m going to hold you to it.”
“Be my guest.” He took a long drink of the icy cola. “How’s she getting home after work?”
“I was going to meet her when her shift ends at two.”
“Do you mind if I do it?”
“Be my guest,” she said with a smile.
Brian left the Holbrook’s house and headed for Tucker Road, figuring he may as well get that over with if he was going to be sticking around a while. As he approached the accident site, his stomach clenched with anxiety. It didn’t take much, even after all this time, to recall the horror of that night . . . the sights, the sounds, the smells.
Thanks to the obvious effort Carly had expended, the site looked almost festive. The splash of color from the bank of wildflowers that framed the six crosses was eerily beautiful. Brian crouched down to pick a drooping cosmos and let it dangle between his fingers as he studied the names on the crosses. So many memories were attached to every one of those names, memories that had come to life again now that he was home.
Reaching out to run his hand over Sam’s cross, he felt the familiar cloud of sadness begin to settle over him, so he stood and shook it off. He didn’t want to be sad today, the first day in longer than he could remember that he had woken up thinking about something—or someone—other than work. He hadn’t seen her in fifteen years, and just then another fifteen minutes seemed too long.
If he were wise, he would hightail it back to New York while he still could. But he was tired of being wise, and he was tired of feeling like half of him was missing. So he set off toward town, toward the only person in the world who could fill his empty places.
The town was pretty much as he remembered it, except there were more stores and more traffic. The town common was packed with media, and the police patrolling Main Street were an omnipresent reminder that a madman was on the loose. As he walked along the street, he saw a few people he recognized, but they didn’t notice him.
Miss Molly’s was exactly the same. When he walked in, his eyes immediately sought out and found Carly, who was sharing a laugh with three guys in a corner booth. As if she’d been waiting for him, Carly turned, their eyes met, and his heart fluttered.
Brian wondered if everyone in the coffee shop felt the current that passed between them as he walked over and kissed her cheek. “Hello.”
Flustered, she murmured, “Hi.”
“Brian Westbury!” one of the guys in the booth said.
He took his eyes off Carly long enough to say hello to Tommy, Luke, and Tony, all of whom he had known since elementary school.
“Want to join us?” Luke asked, pulling his feet back from the other side of the booth to make room for Brian.
“Sure.”
“Can I get you something?” Carly asked.
Her cheeks flushed with color, which Brian found adorable. He liked knowing he had thrown her off just by walking in the door. “What’s good?” he asked the other guys.
“Molly’s burgers are still the best,” Tony said.
“Sold,” Brian said. “Medium, please.”
Without looking at him, Carly scurried away to place the order.
Brian chuckled softly to himself as he watched her go.
“So how long are you home?” Tommy asked.
Carly hung back as a parade of locals stopped by the booth to say hello to Brian. Eventually, the other guys left to go back to work.
Molly stepped away from the grill to bring Carly the burger she had ordered for Brian. “Go sit with your young man while he eats.”
“He’s not my young man,” Carly protested, despite the fact that she had floated through her day thinking only of him and what he had said to her the night before. “And my shift’s not over.”
“It is now.” Molly nudged her. “Grab yourself a drink and go.”
Carly did as she was told and slid into the booth across from Brian.
Raising an eyebrow in amusement, he asked, “Sitting down on the job?”
“Boss’s orders. Are you enjoying your moment in the sun?”
He gestured her closer to him.
She leaned across the table.
“Is it me, or did everyone get old and fat?”
Carly laughed.
“Except for your parents and mine, that is.”
“We come from good genes.”
“You surely do.” He shook ketchup onto his fries. “I can’t get over how you look exactly the same as you did at eighteen. That’s really not fair to other women.”
“If you look close, I’ve got crow’s feet starting.”
“I’ll have to look close,” he said, lowering his voice. “Later.”
Her cheeks turned bright red.
He laughed at her reaction and pushed his plate to the middle of the table so she could share his fries. “You still chew on your straw.”
She looked down, surprised to discover he was right. “I guess I do.”
“I’m assigned to your security detail this afternoon.”
The thought of spending the afternoon with him filled her with excitement and anticipation. She was still afraid she might be dreaming. Was Brian really sitting here talking to her like he always had, like nothing had ever come between them? And how long did they have before he had to leave again?
“What are you thinking right now?”
“That I can’t believe you’re really here.”
“And?”
“How do you know there’s more?”
“I can still see everything you’re feeling in your eyes. Just like always.”
“Brian . . .”
He finished the burger and pushed the plate aside. Reaching for her hands, he said, “Tell me.”
“I was wondering how long you’re going to be here.”
“I talked to my boss this morning and took a one-month leave of absence.”
She gasped. “How can you just do that?”
“How can I go back to work when you’re in danger and my father’s working himself into an early grave?”
“A whole month.” She settled back against the booth. “Can you afford that?”
He laughed. “Yes, I can afford it. Since I just recently took my first vacation in six years, I still have eight weeks on the books. Even if I didn’t have vacation time, all I do is work, so I have plenty of money sitting in the bank.”
Still trying to absorb that she had a whole month to spend with him, she asked, “Why do you work so much?”
“Because I don’t have anything better to do.” He squeezed her hand. “Or I didn’t, until now. Can we get out of here?”
She looked around and was surprised to see the shop had cleared out. “Sure.”
He paid the check and slipped
a ten-dollar bill into her apron pocket.
“What’s that for?”
“It’s for the lovely waitress who brought me the best burger I’ve had in years.”
“That’s more than the check!” she protested, trying to give it back to him.
“Don’t be silly.”
They left the shop and walked slowly along Main Street.
“Do you want to get changed?” he asked.
“I’d love to. What do you feel like doing?”
He shrugged. “What do you normally do on Thursday afternoons?”
“I go to my niece Zoë’s baseball game, but it’s cancelled today.”
“Your niece plays baseball?”
“She’s an incredible pitcher,” Carly said as she led him up the stairs to her apartment over Carson’s.
“This I need to see.”
“Hopefully, she’ll be up for playing by next week. Alicia Perry was her good friend. She’s taking it really hard.”
Brian shook his head. “Poor kid. You and I can relate, can’t we?”
“All too well, unfortunately.”
Carly unlocked the door and went in ahead of him.
“Oh, wow,” he said. “What a great place. It’s so . . . you.” He wandered into the living room and came to a stop when he saw the jukebox. When he turned back to her, the surprise showed on his face.
She pulled her hair free of the ponytail she had worn to work and shook it loose. “Toby’s parents were getting rid of it, so I asked Mr. Garrett if I could have it.”
Brian ran his hands reverently over the vintage jukebox. “I can still remember that last day. Every moment of it is etched permanently in my mind.”
“Mine, too. I’ve had the jukebox for about three years and was just recently able to bring myself to play ‘Tupelo Honey’ for the first time. I cried my eyes out.”
“I heard that song once, a few years back when I was with some of my coworkers having a drink after work. We were in a pub near the office, and I was actually having a pretty good time.”
The way he said it told her that didn’t happen very often, which made her sad for him.