Then Came You

by Susan May Warren

  Did what? Except, there was nothing rational left in Ravil’s face. His bloodshot eyes were wide, unfocused. His usually well-groomed waves stood in all different directions and several days of growth covered his face. Feral…

  Okay, maybe it was time to shift gears. Use some of her theatrics. God, please, buy me some time.

  She relaxed enough that he loosened his grip on her hair. “I care about you, Ravie. And I care about your mom. How are her treatments going?”

  He swallowed, shook his head. “Stop talking.”

  “That’s expensive, isn’t it?”

  “Stop talking!” He turned back to her, slamming his fist into the building, exploding right beside her ear.

  She flinched.

  “But if you tell me about it, maybe I can understand…maybe I can help you.”

  He grabbed her around the back of the neck, dragging her toward the parking lot, muttering to himself.

  She stumbled backward against a trash can along the sidewalk. He caught her, his eyes narrowed like she had fallen on purpose. For a moment, she thought he might hit her again.

  “Let’s try to work something out,” she said softly.

  He stared at her. Her heart hurt for him, just a little, as she seized the opportunity to reach behind her and wrap her fingers around the metal handle of the can lid. Because she felt bad for him.

  And this was definitely going to hurt.

  With one swift jerk, she swung the can lid, clocking Ravil like a real Charlie’s Angel.

  Ravil let out a foul word and grabbed his head with one hand while reaching to regain his grip on her.

  She ran, tripped, screamed.

  Ravil shouted, called her a name, closed in on her.

  “Hey!” Yelling. Footsteps.

  She scrambled to her feet in front of Ravil. “Help!”

  And just as Ravil stretched out his hand to snag her, a body flew through the air. Tackled him onto the grass edging the parking lot like an MVP linebacker.

  Boone, of course.

  Ravil threw punches at Boone, landing one square on his jaw and temple while swearing.

  Kyle ran toward the scuffle in the lawn where Boone had trapped one of Ravil’s wrists, was rolling him over into an arm bar. But Ravil had gotten in a couple good licks, bloodying Boone’s nose and slicing a gash above his right eye.

  Kyle joined in the fray and the two of them were able to pin Ravil to the dewy grass.

  “Cuffs?” Boone looked at Kyle. Blood dripped from his forehead and swelling started to morph the right side of his face.

  Kyle held out his empty hands. “I’m off duty. I don’t have cuffs.”

  “I have cuffs.” Cole stepped forward. Kyle gave him a funny look and Cole shrugged. “Hey—you never know.”

  Boone wiped the blood from his brow. “This man assaulted Vivie and tried to kidnap her.”

  Ravil had something to say about that and about Vivien—and maybe they should make sure the children were inside because it was definitely not G-rated.

  Cole locked the cuffs.

  Kyle gave Boone a nod. “You good?”

  “Yeah. I’m good.”

  Ravil tried to pull away from Cole. “Don’t even think about it or we’ll add to your charges.”

  “What charges?” The words spat from Ravil’s lips.

  Boone leveled a look at him. “We’ll start with Minnesota Criminal Codes 609.25, 609.224, 609.748, and 609.595.”

  Kyle tilted his head. “Wow, that’s impressive.”

  Yeah, that was her guy. Very impressive.

  She turned into Boone’s open arms and sank against him, letting the strength of his embrace cradle her against his chest. Safe.

  “Are you okay?” Emotion thickened his voice.

  She nodded, blinking away the flash of all that might have been. All the ugly possibilities. “You?” She tried to shake away the adrenaline flooding her veins. “He came at you like a wild animal.”

  “I’m fine. I just need you to be okay.” He brushed his fingertips down her face and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

  Oh, Boone. “You do know you’re bleeding, right?”

  “I’m fine,” he answered again, giving her a crooked smile before releasing her.

  A patrol car pulled up, the red and blue lights casting a glow across the parking lot, and Ravil was read his Miranda rights and placed inside.

  Vivien finally let out a long breath when the car drove away and Megan approached them, first aid kit in hand.

  “You really know how to put on a show,” Cole said to Vivien, sliding his hand around his wife’s.

  Vivien wanted to laugh, but she still shook. “You know me. I go for the dramatic.” She looked at Boone. His eye was swelling shut and he had gauze from Megan pressed against the cut on his forehead. But he did give her a crooked, if bloody, smile.

  Kyle came to stand next to them. “You showed a lot of restraint.” He drew his hand across his jawline in thought. “I’m not sure I would have stood by and taken hits like that.”

  Boone planted his feet. “I knew he wasn’t getting away.”

  Vivien wove her arm around Boone’s. “I think this tough-guy leading man and I are heading to the hospital to get some stitches.”

  “Me? Stitches?” He pulled the gauze away to check the bleeding, a rivulet dripping down his cheek.

  Cole raised his brows. “Oh, yeah. You need stitches.”

  Megan looked away and Kyle grimaced.

  Vivien pressed his hand and gauze back against his brow. “You’d better leave that for now.”

  “I’ll send a deputy to meet you there,” Kyle said. “We’ll need to get statements and photographs of both of you.”

  “Come on. I’ll drive.” Vivien held out her hand for the car keys and Boone tugged them from his pocket. “Just don’t bleed on the upholstery.”

  Epilogue

  The twist of fall—the oranges, yellows, and reds, with a wisp of wood smoke to chase the early chill away—poured over Boone when he stepped from his travel trailer. It hadn’t taken Nathan Decker long to find him the perfect piece of ground to build on, one sold by a family from the Cities eager to offload the land in an estate liquidation.

  Just outside of town. Lake view. Quiet. Already cleared for the home site.

  When he’d stopped to pack up his own house in Kellogg, even his dad had shown up to help. Maybe it had been regret deepening the creases around his eyes. And, regardless of DNA, Boone still longed to connect to the only man he’d ever known as his father.

  His mom had asked him incessant questions about the property he was buying outside of Deep Haven. Five acres of birch, pine, and spruce. Plenty of room to park his new travel trailer—his home until Seth could finish his build.

  He’d had two days on the job in his new position with the Crisis Management Team. He’d expected to feel a sense of loss when he turned in his badge before leaving Kellogg two weeks prior. Instead, he felt ready.

  Redeemed. Not by the work of his own hands.

  Like the autumn air was signifying the end of something old, the readiness for something new.

  He picked up Imperturbability from his camp chair near the door, yesterday’s mail still sitting beneath it. He thumbed through the mailers, his fingers stopping on a crisp white envelope with his dad’s handwriting. He tore it open and unfolded the letter, snagging the enclosed photograph before it fell to the ground.

  Your mom found this while cleaning the back closet. I think it answers the question you didn’t ask.

  Boone looked at the photo of his parents leaning against a new 1984 Oldsmobile, the faintest curve of his mother’s abdomen. The color was faded but, no, there was no doubt. He was looking at an image of himself. He blinked. Swallowed.

  He looked exactly like his dad. His dad.

  He turned back to the letter.

  Don’t say it. I’m older, wiser, and wider now—but, back in the day, that was me. Pretty good-looking guy.

  Boone
shook his head. Laughed and swiped a stupid tear from his eye.

  You’ve never had anything to prove to anyone. Certainly not to me. I’m sorry.

  Ree’s car pulled up and Vivien stepped out of the passenger side. She wore jeans and hiking boots and the only thing on her face was a big smile. Oh, she still wore her fancy lashes some days and he enjoyed seeing her all dressed up too. But all on her own, she was a knockout.

  She carried two to-go cups in her hands and used her hip to swing the car door shut behind her.

  Ree waved before driving away.

  “Are you ready to commit to buying your own car?”

  She laughed. Her soft, pretty laugh. “Actually, Ree and I were just talking about that. Wanna do some shopping with me?”

  “Definitely.”

  She stood facing him, the morning light casting a glow over her hair.

  “I brought you something.” She lifted a cup.

  “Tell me it isn’t coffee.”

  “It is.” She raised a brow, her smile spreading into a grin.

  “We’ve talked about this before.” He reached out and tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear.

  She held the cup out to him, batted her big blue eyes at him. “Trust me.”

  He took the cup. “This isn’t a healthified version, is it?”

  “Nope.”

  “It’s not a Vivien, is it? Because, I’ll take the real thing over the drink. Any day. And, I’m not sure I have enough water in my trailer tank for that.”

  “Trust me.”

  He took a sip. Chocolate. Caramel. Sweet.

  She giggled. “It’s a Megan.”

  “That’s a relief.”

  “I think one of me is enough.”

  He laughed. “I think you’re right.” Boone snagged her hand, pulled her close. “And that’s just perfect.” He tucked his head against the soft curve of her neck, inhaled her jasmine scent before releasing her.

  He took her cup and set it down on the truck bed with his own. Then he reached for her hand and led her across the cleared site. It sat just above Highway 61 with the open waters of Lake Superior stretched out to the horizon. An invitation to all things possible.

  “What do you think?”

  “I think the place needs some work.”

  He laughed. “Yeah. I think it does. When Nathan said he knew of just the right property, I couldn’t pass it up.”

  She walked out across the home site, the wind lifting her hair from her shoulders. “So, you’re finally going to build that house of yours with a lake view.”

  “I am. Seth is coming by to show me the final design after a few changes I requested. He plans to break ground tomorrow. Said he wanted to fast-track what they could before the weather puts everything on hold.”

  “Wow. Amazing.”

  His gaze settled on her. “Yes, amazing.”

  She turned, an uncharacteristically shy smile curving up one side of her face as she walked back to him, wrapped her arms around him, and kissed him.

  Oh, her kisses. She tasted like caramel and fresh air and everything he’d longed for his entire adult life. He drank in the delight of it, as only she could quench his thirst. And when he deepened his kiss, she clung to him, like she felt it too.

  The electricity between them lit a fire. He ran his fingers through her hair, holding her in his embrace. Because with Vivien, he was completely undone.

  He slowed their kisses, catching his breath. She leaned away, a slow smile on her lips.

  “You are amazing,” he said, his lips against her ear.

  She giggled. “Thank you. I find you rather incredible too.”

  He tugged his car keys from his pocket. “Want to take her for one last spin before she heads into storage for winter?”

  Vivien walked over to the red convertible. “I’m going to miss her.”

  Boone laughed. “She’ll be back out in spring.”

  “Oh, I forgot! I have something else for you.” She dug through her bag, held up a copy of the Deep Haven Herald.

  Curtains for former Broadway director when Deep Haven hero tackles him post-show

  “Nice, huh? Ree saved you an extra copy to frame.”

  He ran his hand across his cheek. The yellowing had faded and the stitches had finally been removed. “I gotta say, I’m not sad to see that show close.”

  “Me either.” She toed the ground with her boot. “I actually called Joslyn in LA.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah.” She folded the newspaper back up. “I wanted to close that door. Let her know I forgive her and thank her for trying to warn me.” She let out a deep sigh and looked out at the lake for a moment before turning back to him. “It felt good to come to peace with it—with her.”

  “So, you’re like BFFs now?”

  She laughed, a cute kind of snort. “Let’s not get carried away.” She swatted him with the paper and nodded toward the car. “I think it’s a Funfetti Cake Batter ice cream kind of day. What do you say?”

  “Something to celebrate?”

  She grabbed her coffee from the truck. “I think so. You drive.”

  He raised a brow, surprised she didn’t want to get behind the wheel. “Okay. Top up or down?”

  “Down. Definitely down.”

  She winked and slid into the passenger seat and he started the engine. He never got tired of that rumble. They pulled out onto Highway 61 for town.

  Vivien stretched her arms over her head and let out a robust “Woohoo!” The breeze tugged the laughter from her lips and the leaves rained down on them like confetti.

  And, as the wind lifted Vivien’s hair and she turned up country music star Benjamin King on the stereo, Boone looked to the open road, ready for whatever God wanted to put in front of him.

  Connect With Sunrise

  Thank you so much for reading Then Came You. We hope you enjoyed the story. If you did, would you be willing to do us a favor and leave a review? It doesn’t have to be long—just a few words to help other readers know what they’re getting. (But no spoilers! We don’t want to wreck the fun!) Thank you again for reading!

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  As a treat for signing up, we’ll send you a free novella written by Susan May Warren that kicks off the new Deep Haven Collection! Sign up at www.sunrisepublishing.com/free-prequel.

  Other Deep Haven Novels

  Deep Haven Collection

  Only You

  Still the One

  Can’t Buy Me Love

  Crazy for You

  Then Came You

  Hangin’ by a Moment

  Right Here Waiting

  * * *

  Deep Haven Series

  Happily Ever After

  Tying the Knot

  The Perfect Match

  My Foolish Heart

  Hook, Line, & Sinker

  You Don’t Know Me

  The Shadow of Your Smile

  * * *

  Christiansen Family Series

  Evergreen

  Take a Chance on Me

  It Had to Be You

  When I Fall in Love

  Always on My Mind

  The Wonder of You

  You’re the One That I Want

  * * *

  For other books by Susan May Warren, visit her website at http://www.susanmaywarren.com.

  * * *

  Turn the page for a sneak peek of the next Deep Haven novel, Hangin’ By a Moment …

  Sneak Peek

  Hangin’ By a Moment

  It was a little thing. Stupid really.

  Colleen Decker had already made it through six hours of her ER shift at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis without any problems. Sure, there had been t
hat kid who kicked her, but she wouldn’t blame him—it hurt to have gravel cleaned out of a road rash from a bicycle incident. And then there’d been the psych patient who thought he was Genghis Kahn and ran around the ER shouting about taking over the world before finally being subdued by a few of her larger nurse colleagues. And don’t even ask about the woman who came in with stage 4 lung cancer. These patients didn’t faze her. All in a day’s work at HCMC.

  No, it had to be something small. Embarrassing.

  A flash of a frat boy’s bicep tattoo, a crash of an instrument tray falling to the ground, and suddenly Colleen had jumped for the nearest space she could cram herself into.

  Clearly, she hadn’t licked the past. In fact, it had found her in this 12x12 foot storage closet. She curled herself into a smaller ball under the shelf full of cleaning products and rubbed her hands up and down her arms, the scrubs she wore making a swish with each pass.

  “Get a grip.” She spoke into the silence. A dim beam of light shone under the door, illuminating a stack of sheets, folded hospital tight. She closed her eyes. Concentrated on her breathing. “You have to go back out there.”

  Without warning, the door flew open. Colleen shot up. Julie Brage filled the open space, the light from the outer hallway shining around her.

  “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” Julie crossed the few steps, crouched down, put her hands on Colleen’s knees and looked into her eyes. “It’s okay to be freaked out.”

  “I’m not freaked out.” Maybe if she repeated the mantra often enough she would believe it. She reached up and adjusted her strawberry-blonde ponytail, pulling the elastic tighter around her hair.

  Julie sighed. “Colleen, you have been missing from your unit for fifteen minutes, are sitting in the supply closet next to a wet mop, and you jumped a foot in the air when I came in. That says freaked out.”

  “I just didn’t expect anyone to find me here. That’s all. I needed a minute to myself.”

  Julie speared her with a look.