by L. B. Dunbar
27
The Chase
[Dolores]
“What the hell is going on?” I bellow in stunned surprise as I stand inside my diner. Inside what used to be my diner. Inside my ripped apart diner. The booths are gone. The checkered tile floor torn apart. The ceiling dangles with wires. Griffin Duncan stills with a power tool in his hand.
“Dolores?” He questions like he doesn’t recognize me. Griffin Duncan and his brothers own a construction company. Their other brother, Kent, owns the local hardware store. Somehow, they are distance cousins, and it reminds me of the connection to Ivy Everly. I shake my head. I don’t have time to think about the past twenty-four hours. I took a midnight flight to Atlanta and hardly slept on the plane. Once I got home, I removed my dress and changed into my old, familiar clothing which feels scratchy and uncomfortable against my skin compared to what I wore in LA. I glare back at the burly man with a thick beard before me. If we weren’t distantly related, I might be attracted to him, but that’s what gets small-town people those backward ass reputations about inbreeding.
“What do you think?” he asks cheerfully, almost with pride, taking in my demolished diner.
“I think I want a fucking explanation.” The tone of my voice lets Griffin know I have no idea what is going on. My nerves are shot. My emotions frayed. I’m exhausted. His face falls.
“Denton wanted to surprise you,” he says sheepishly, nervous eyes darting everywhere they can but to look at me.
“And what does Denton know about a diner?”
Silence falls between us.
“Exactly.”
I’m lifting my phone to call said brother when russet locks and patchy facial hair catches my attention. Rusty Miller never could grow a full beard or develop the sexy scruff popular nowadays. He has tufts of stubble here and there, blending with acne scars. Because of those marks, he isn’t able to grow hair on his jaw. The hair on his head, however, is thick, and wild, giving him his nickname. Russell is his real name.
“Rusty?” I swallow as I take in his appearance, shocked to see him working an honest job. He’s a member of Devil’s Edge, the local MC where James Harrington is now second in command. Rusty mainly works for them, or so I thought. I’ve never asked what he did for the MC, as he’d never tell me anyway. But working with Griffin seems on the up-and-up despite the fact my brother hasn’t informed me he’s destroying my diner.
“Dolores?” His voice rings in question like Griffin’s, as if the man I’ve slept with for ten years doesn’t know me. Then I remember my hair. My fingers swipe over the smoothness. It took a while to wash out all the spray, and my scalp still aches in parts from the hairpins from the previous night’s updo. I ignore the pain in my head and my heart.
I shouldn’t have run away.
“You look different,” Rusty says, still taking in my hair and then roaming my body. I shiver under his appraisal and not in a good way. I can’t believe I slept with this man. I can’t believe I gave ten years of my life to him while holding my emotions in check and ignoring his carousing with others. I have no emotion for him. “You look older.”
My breath hitches, and my gut clenches like I’ve been socked. I shouldn’t care what he thinks. I don’t care, actually. His opinion of me no longer matters. I shudder with irritation, and then I feel it.
A presence behind me.
My eyes close.
I must be imagining him.
“She looks fucking stunning,” an angry, rough male voice speaks.
“Who the fuck are you?” Rusty asks, dropping the electrical circuit tester in his hand and stalking closer to me.
“None of your business,” Garrett states, and then his hand presses against my lower back. Rusty’s eyes fall to the motion, and I want to lean into Garrett. I want to melt against him and beg him to forgive me, but I’m too awed and extra raw at finding my diner in shambles.
Griffin steps in front of Rusty, holding him back with a large paw on his chest. “No trouble,” Griffin warns Rusty, and then he glances over his shoulder at me. “I’ll give Denton a call and let him know we’re on hold.” There’s a question in his voice, and I look around the room.
On hold? We are long past holding on this mess.
As Griffin lifts his phone, he forces Rusty—who isn’t taking his eyes off me—backward. They disappear into what I assume is still my kitchen, but anything is possible at this point. Still aware of Garret behind me, I spin for him. Without thinking, my arms wrap around his neck, and I hold him to me.
“I was so worried. How could you leave me like that?” he mutters into my neck, squeezing me like he never wants to let me go. I melt into this body, relishing the feel of it against mine. It has only been a few hours, but I missed him. I shouldn’t have run.
The comment stops my thoughts, and I lean back, pushing him arm’s length away from me.
“How did you know I was here?”
“I called Denton.”
My head shakes. “You called my brother?”
“You sent me a text and then didn’t answer any of mine.”
I’m going home. I didn’t say more. I didn’t know what else to say. I’d turned my phone off the moment I purchased a plane ticket.
His eyes narrow. “Imagine my surprise when I looked over to see you talking to Ingrid and then notice you’d disappeared. Ingrid said you went to the restroom, but after ten minutes, I stormed the room myself. A maître d' at the hotel told me he saw a woman fitting your description leave while talking on the phone.” He pauses, cupping my face. “Why did you leave?”
I simply shake my head, feeling off-kilter with him standing before me. One minute, this man looks amazing in a suit; another, he’s impeccable in a tux. But he doesn’t wear anything better than these jeans and a puffy winter jacket. He’s casual, but something else is unusual about his outfit. The boots on his feet look like old work boots, scuffed and worn, and he wears only a white T-shirt under the open coat.
“I went back to the condo after you didn’t answer your phone or text messages. I didn’t think you’d be anywhere else. When you weren’t at my place, I banged on the door of Denton’s. At first, I thought you were just pissed off at me and punishing me for some reason by not answering. I waited half an hour before the neighbor below complained. Then I called your brother.”
“I’m sorry I made you worry.” Maybe leaving a quick note or sending a good-bye text would have been more appropriate.
“Mati…isn’t that her name…answered Denton’s phone,” he continues, ignoring my apology. “She told me she spoke to you, and you were on your way home. To Georgia.”
Mati. That little busybody. I need to hug her after I throttle her for not telling me about this mess.
“Why are you here?” I question, still holding him by his biceps away from me.
“Because you promised me you wouldn’t leave, and you did.” His tone softens. “I trusted you.”
“I’m sorry.” The words fall from my mouth, vomiting on the floor at his feet. Guilt ripples through me for leaving in the manner I did, and I’m about to step into him when the rustle of miniblinds collide with an opening door as Denton walks into the diner.
“Dolores?” he says in the same questioning voice as Griffin and Rusty.
“Why the hell does everyone keep saying my name like they don’t recognize me?”
“Because you look different,” Denton clarifies. “You look good. Healthy.” The final comment floats between us as if he’s surprised. “Well, despite the fact you look pissed off.” My hands fall from Garrett’s biceps, and Garrett shifts to stand next to me.
“Garrett?” Denton questions, stepping forward. “What are you doing here?” His eyes travel from Garrett to me and back. They widen, and a hint of panic fills them. “Are you here to sign the contracts?”
I experience a sensation of the world spinning into a vortex and sucking me down, down, down as I slowly twist to watch Garrett turn his face from my brother to m
e and then avoid my eyes.
“What contract?”
“I…” Denton closes his eyes and wipes a hand down his face. “I wanted to surprise you. I wanted to make things better. Make up for not being here.”
I’m outside myself, floating around the demolition of the diner and dreaming all of this, I think. I don’t understand what he’s saying to me. It’s as if I’m underwater, and nothing is clear. “What does this have to do with Garrett…” I pause a beat as my eyes shift to the man next to me, his head lowered. “…and contracts?”
Denton exhales, his eyes trying to hold mine. “I couldn’t just gift you the money. I have the money, but the amount needed is too large. It would be a tax issue for both you and me. I spoke with Garrett, and he suggested a low-interest loan, one he could foot, to make it look like an investment instead of a gift. This works better for both of us.”
“How is this better for me?” I snap, waving a hand at the demolition around me. Another thought occurs. “How are you covering Magnolia’s renovations? Are you gifting her?”
The two men fall silent, and my head swivels from one to the other.
“He didn’t tell you?” Denton asks, staring at Garrett in wonder, and out of the corner of my eye, I see Garrett scrub at the back of his neck.
“I was going to,” Garrett mutters.
“Tell me what?” I snap, glaring at the side of Garrett’s head. He inhales deeply and looks over at me, his eyes troubled as he speaks.
“A vineyard.”
I don’t understand. What is happening? I want to scream, but instead, I wait out his explanation.
“Your brother…” Garrett stops and shakes his head. “I met your brother when I came to Atlanta. We got to chatting about my idea, and he hinted at the land around your grandmother’s house. I didn’t give it a second thought, but then we went to Napa and…” The weekend rushes through my memory. The things he did to me. The talks we had about his future, his dream, his plan. He wants to own a vineyard, and he needs land.
My eyes jump to Denton, glaring at my younger brother. Hatred simmers beneath my skin. “What were you planning to do with Magnolia’s?”
“I don’t know yet.” A bed and breakfast flits through my head, but that had been my idea. For years from now! “I just thought I would fix it up and make it nice for her. We could discuss its potential later.” The hint of Magnolia’s age and eventual death lingers in his words. Then again, he’s lying. For twenty-seven years, I’ve hardly seen my brother, yet I know when he’s lying as if we were seven and five again.
“We?” I snap at my younger brother, who suddenly looks like a sheepish child. “There is no we here, Denton.” I flick my fingers between us. “You seem to be making all the decisions without consulting me.” A pointed finger jabs at my own chest. I stammer, willing myself not to cry, steeling myself to be the woman I was before I left Blue Ridge. In hindsight, I hate that woman, and I deflect the emotion back on my brother.
“This is my diner, Denton, and Magnolia’s house is my home.” I wait for him to argue. I own a small house just outside of town, but Magnolia’s house is my future. I’m in no rush for her to pass, but it’s mine. A moment of fear ripples up my spine. “Where is Magnolia?”
So help me if he says he put her in a home like he wanted. I’ll kill him with my bare hands.
“She’s at the house. She loves the changes.”
A small glimpse of gratitude fills me, but only the smallest of small sparks. I turn back to Garrett.
“I still don’t understand what you have to do with this.”
A vineyard. The land around your grandmother’s.
My head turns back to Denton. “You can’t sell Magnolia’s land. It’s landlocked.”
Denton nods once. “But we can use the land for whatever purpose we want.”
“How?” I bark, my heart racing, the pulse at my neck throbbing.
“With a silent investor, we could run our own business from the land like the farm it once was.”
With an investor?
“You knew about this?” I turn on Garrett, my anger shifting to him instead of my brother. I can’t wrap my head around what he’s telling me. The plans he’s made—without me.
Garrett opens his mouth, but there’s nothing to defend.
“Did you play me? Was this part of the plan taking me to Napa? Did you…did we…” I can hardly find my voice. I can’t catch my breath. “Was I a project like those women said?”
“No,” Garrett cries out, turning to face me and gripping my arms.
At the same time, Denton steps forward, and questions, “Wait?” My brother stares wide-eyed between Garrett and me, taking in the position of his friend’s hands and the hurt in my expression. “Did you fuck my sister?”
The crass question spit from Denton has Garrett rounding on him and blocking my body behind his. “Watch your fucking mouth.”
I wrap my arms around my middle, uncertain how to feel or what to do.
“Dolores,” Denton begs over Garrett’s shoulder, “tell me you did not sleep with him.”
I can’t answer him. In fact, I don’t even want to look at my brother. I don’t want to look at Garrett either. They’re equally part of this betrayal. Garrett knew I owned a diner before I told him, and he knew my brother was demolishing it. He knew. And now, he’s somehow involved in wanting Magnolia’s land? I can’t think.
“You bastard,” Denton snarls at Garrett, but I’ve had enough.
“Both of you, get out.”
“What?” they say in unison, focusing their attention on me.
“This is my diner, and I want you both out.” My voice shakes, but I try to stand taller despite the arms wrapped around my center.
“Dolores,” Denton begins, stepping closer to me. “I wanted to surprise you. I wanted it to be nice for you.”
“You have not been here in twenty-seven years, Denton. Twenty-seven! I’m the one who took care of everything. Me, Denton. You know nothing about what I want. You don’t get to waltz back in here and make decisions for me about my business.” Tears well, hot, agitated drops of liquid that sizzle down my cheeks in my anger. I hate that I’m crying in front of him. “Leave my diner alone. Get. Out.”
Denton’s expression widens in surprise and then slowly collapses. It’s a low blow, but he deserves it at the moment. Garrett reaches for my back, but I twist my body away from him before he can touch me.
“And you,” I say quietly, hissing through clenched teeth. “You wasted a trip to Kansas.”
“Georgia,” he corrects until his eyes meet mine and understanding blossoms.
“Go home, Tin Man. The fantasy is over.”
“No,” he demands, stepping into my space, but I hug myself tighter, stepping away from him. “You said you wouldn’t leave.”
“Why do you care? I’m sure Alicia is next in line.” The words sting, his expression crestfallen while his eyes harden.
“Why would you say such a thing? I care about you.”
“You care about an investment.”
“Screw the investment. I’ll just gift you the money.”
“I don’t want your money,” I spit. “I’ve never wanted that from you.” More burning tears spill as my eyes shift to my brother, who is keeping audience over our argument. I never wanted his money either. I just wanted my brother back. I just wanted Garrett to feel the way I feel about him.
You’re such a fucking idiot, Dolores.
“Go home, Denton. I’ll call you later.” I can’t deal with both men collectively.
Garrett keeps his eyes on me as I watch my brother spin and walk out the door. When the diner door clicks shut, Garrett speaks again.
“Sweetheart, not wanting my money is one of the reasons I like you so much. You’re refreshing and unassuming.”
“I’m naïve and stupid.” So stupid to think he slept with me because he was attracted to me when it sounds like all he wanted was a business arrangement…with my brother.
My stomach roils. “Was I a part of the contract?”
“Stop it,” he barks in my face, and I flinch. “Stop right there.” His tone sharpens, and he reaches for my cheeks, pressing me until my back hits a wall where a booth used to be. His voice begs, “Don’t do this.”
“I’m not doing anything,” I growl. “That’s my problem. I let things happen around me, over me.” This is the story of my life. “I’ve been doing nothing for nearly two months, and now I’ve got the fucking mess of a lifetime on my hands.” The reality of the diner socks me in the stomach, and my body trembles like a shock victim. The truth slowly sinks in. I don’t have the financial means to fix this mess, and this mess means I don’t have finances period. I sob once and then suck back the sound, blinking away the blur of Garrett’s face before me. I force the pain inward, caging in my heart. I’m good at this. It’s who I am. My heart races within my chest as a lump clogs my throat. The old me is back, and she’s choking me inside.
“Let me help,” Garrett says, his head lowering to mine as if he’s going to kiss me.
“Don’t kiss me.” I don’t trust my emotions. His lips on mine will shatter me. I’ll be a wreck like the diner.
“What?” He freezes midway to my lips.
“Stop using sex to distract me.” My skin prickles with thoughts of him touching me, licking me, making love to me. Was it all a game?
Take me against this wall and make me believe it was real and not a dream.
I shake the thought.
“I am not using sex to distract you. Don’t make me into him.” His finger points in the general direction of my kitchen where Rusty and Griffin have mysteriously disappeared and not returned. “I want to connect with you. I need to be close to you.” His voice grows deeper with each word he speaks, sounding desperate and hurt and confused, which are all the ways I’m feeling.
Images flash in my head.
His mouth on mine. His hands in my hair. His body joined with mine. He’d look me in the eyes, and I could feel him peering into my soul, stealing my heart with his.
His heart. He said he didn’t have one, yet at every turn, there it was, or so I thought.