Starting Anew (Life Unexpected Book 3)

by Melanie D. Snitker

  Apparently, she’d been attending a wedding. He parked in a small lot across from the church where he could still watch without being noticed.

  The newlyweds climbed into a car to the cheering and clapping of friends and family. Bethany clapped as well, a big smile on her face.

  A smile he’d never once forgotten.

  Now that he knew where she was, he was confident that, one day, she’d offer that smile to him.

  After the newlyweds’ car pulled away from the church and disappeared, the small crowd out front made their way back into the church.

  That’s when Jeb saw Bethany holding hands with a man standing next to her. He squinted as jealousy coursed through his veins.

  Who did that man think he was? Who was the child the man was holding?

  Bethany must have forgotten her past. Forgotten about fame and the people like Jeb who’d made it possible.

  He’d remind her where she came from. Show her it was a mistake to walk away from it all. And then she’d understand how they belonged together.

  Chapter Ten

  Lynn read over her letter to Perry one last time before folding it and slipping it into an envelope. Once it was addressed and stamped, she put it on the table near the door so she’d remember to stick it in the mailbox on the way out.

  With any luck, Mom and Dad would give it to her this time.

  Satisfied and feeling hopeful, Lynn glanced at the clock. It was Monday morning, and she still had thirty minutes before she needed to leave for work. She’d awakened earlier than normal, excited about the week to come.

  Saturday still seemed like a dream. Everything about it was perfect: From how well she and Mia got along to the connection she and Nathan had made.

  Even now, thinking about the way it felt to be held in his arms had her knees feeling weak.

  She couldn’t wait to hear from him about when they could go out to dinner. At the same time, knowing she’d be telling him the truth about her past was a scary thing.

  It’d be good to get that out there. She just wished she knew how he’d react. Sharon assured her all would be well. If only Lynn could be as confident about that.

  Lynn’s attention focused on the keyboard against one wall of the living room. Remembering what it felt like to play at the church had her retrieving a towel from the kitchen. She gently dusted the neglected instrument before sitting on the small bench in front of it.

  At first, she just let her hands rest on the keys. It wasn’t long before she was playing something. Instead of the usual pain and regret she expected, memories of playing for Nathan floated to the forefront. It reminded her of why she used to live to make music. Of how it felt to be one with the notes, as though they controlled her fingers all on their own.

  The next time she looked up at the clock, she realized she was nearly late. She gave Thai a last pat, grabbed her stuff, and headed out the door.

  She didn’t want to miss Nathan dropping Mia off. Her lips tingled as she remembered his kisses.

  Yes, this was going to be a great week.

  ~*~

  That evening, Jeb hoped to catch some glimpses of Bethany in the little house she lived in. She didn’t seem to open the blinds, though. It was disappointing. Although hearing her play music that morning had been the highlight of his day.

  When she left the house, she immediately got in her car. No strolls down the sidewalk or hanging out in the backyard.

  It made it nearly impossible for him to find a casual way to bump in to her.

  He’d missed her for so long. It was hard to be this close, and yet so far away.

  What if she’d missed him that much, too? What if just knowing that he was there—that he cared—made her as happy as he was right now?

  Jeb realized then that he should’ve figured out a way to let her know he was back in her life. Much more subtly than last time.

  He opened the glove compartment and withdrew a large plastic bag full of the guitar picks he’d collected. Before Bethany quit singing, he’d left her a couple of them. Would she remember?

  One advantage to her not opening her blinds was that, once she was home that evening, he was free to walk up to her front door. He pressed a single guitar pick to his lips and then set it perfectly on the little welcome mat.

  It’d be the first thing she’d see when she left for work the following morning.

  ~*~

  Lynn had been a little disappointed when Nathan told her yesterday that they’d have to wait until Sunday afternoon for their first official date. At least she got to see him every morning and evening. That would make it easier to wait out the week.

  She’d managed to push some of her concerns from her mind as she got ready for work, gave Thai the attention he demanded, and then headed out of the house.

  As she crossed the front door threshold, something on the doormat caught her attention. She nearly ignored it and continued on her way except that it looked familiar. She bent down to pick it up and gasped.

  The guitar pick with “Bethany Truitt” written on it might as well have been a hot coal. She dropped it again and watched as it clattered to the concrete. With the exception of a guitar pick or two that she kept in her jewelry box as a reminder of the past, she hadn’t seen her name written anywhere since she left the music world behind.

  Where had this one come from? Someone must have figured out who she was, there was no other explanation.

  Her gaze ping-ponged from her car to the houses across the street and back. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but the hair still stood up on the back of her neck. She grabbed the pick, shoved it into her pocket, and made sure the front door was locked.

  By the time she got to work, her hands were shaking. Sharon noticed immediately and came forward, a baby in one arm. “What happened?”

  “Someone knows I’m Bethany.”

  Sharon’s eyes widened. “Someone at Little Lambs?”

  “No. Maybe. I’m not sure.” Lynn tried to slow her breathing. It felt as though the pick were burning a hole in her pocket. She took it out and showed it to Sharon. “This was on my front porch, and it’s not mine.”

  She suspected Sharon was going to argue against Lynn’s suspicions until she saw the pick. “I wonder who left it? No one here has ever acted as though they know something.”

  Lynn crossed her arms, suddenly chilled. “I should’ve known I wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever.”

  “Don’t go throwing your new life away just yet.” Sharon gave her a side hug. “Maybe your landlord’s granddaughter recognized you and just wanted you to know. Maybe she’s hoping you’ll sign the back and leave it there for her.”

  “I think you’re reaching.” If only it were something that simple and innocent. All she knew right now was that the pick in her hand was making her feel incredibly exposed. “I’ll be right back.” She went into the restroom, snapped the pick in half, wrapped it in a paper towel, and put it in the trash.

  It didn’t matter if some kid wanted an autograph. If that were the case, he or she could come and ask for one.

  By the time Lynn got back out to the nursery, she was starting to feel a little less shaky. Especially when she saw Nathan and Mia waiting at the counter. Just having the chance to talk to them both helped a little.

  Even though her interaction with Nathan was short, the slight brushing of his hand against hers had her heart singing. She went to work with Mia in her arms. Focusing on her little charges was exactly what she needed.

  She’d get through today, see Nathan again tonight, and everything would be fine. It was probably just her landlord’s granddaughter, like Sharon said. Lynn would mention it to her landlord tomorrow. That would probably clear everything up, and she’d feel silly for reacting so strongly.

  Later that evening, she called her landlord and ended up having to leave a message on the machine. There were no new guitar picks waiting for her at the front door. She’d watched traffic all the way home for signs of someone followi
ng her. No strange cars on the street.

  Even still, she moved a kitchen chair and put it in front of both the front and back doors. If someone was going to break in, he’d make a whole lot of noise doing it. Thai meowed as he looked up at her in curiosity.

  Lynn chuckled. “I know. I was a little crazy before I became the crazy cat lady.” She bent down and scooped him into her arms. “Come on, let’s go to bed.” She turned the kitchen light off, but flipped it back on again before leaving the room.

  The next morning, she was relieved to find no more guitar picks on her door mat. By the time she got to work, she wasn’t feeling nearly as vulnerable as she was before.

  That’s exactly why, when she went out to her car to get her lunch box later that day, she didn’t think anything about the piece of paper stuck under her windshield wiper. It wasn’t unusual to find advertisements for local restaurants offering lunch specials.

  Lynn pulled the paper out and was about to crumple it up when she noticed it was blank except for something taped to the other side. When she turned it over, another guitar pick stared back at her. She dropped the paper and pressed a hand to her mouth.

  She’d been kidding herself. It was happening again.

  What was she supposed to do? She didn’t want to touch the paper again, but if this turned into something more, she might need it as evidence. Lynn carefully retrieved it by one corner, took a picture with her phone, and went back inside the day care center.

  She found Sharon in the nursery and held the paper out, her hands shaking.

  “He knows where I work. This isn’t a coincidence. It’s him.”

  Sharon had been burping an infant who’d fallen asleep on her shoulder. She stood carefully and laid the baby down in one of the cribs.

  She took a closer look at the paper. “Call the police.”

  “And tell them what? That I’ve been living under a different name and someone is leaving guitar picks? The guy got away and was never arrested in the first place. They won’t be able to do a thing.” Lynn ran her fingers through her hair several times before letting her arms drop. “He hasn’t broken into anything. No scary messages. I can’t even give enough evidence to completely convince myself the guy’s back because they gave out a million of these stupid guitar picks back in the day.”

  “You could come stay with me and Walt for a few days.”

  Lynn shook her head. “I can’t do that. I can’t just come live with you forever.” She groaned. “I hate this. I should have known better than to move back to Texas. If I’d been smart, I would’ve moved to Nevada. Oh, or Alaska. I could have disappeared there.”

  “Right into the belly of a grizzly bear.” Sharon snagged Lynn’s arm and pulled her to one of the rocking chairs. “You need to take a few breaths.”

  Lynn tried to relax as she sank into the chair.

  Sharon dragged another one closer and sat down as well. “So far, we don’t know that this is the same guy who was stalking you before.”

  “True.” Sharon was the only person Lynn had told the whole story to. At the time, the stalker had not only broken into her bus to get to her, but had followed her from concert to concert for months before that, yelling that he was in love with her.

  Whoever this was, he seemed relatively hands-off. Maybe it would stay that way.

  She sighed and shook her head. “You’re right.”

  “So we keep on keeping on. We’ll go to Nathan’s class Saturday and learn how to beat the snot out of anyone who does mess with you, and hopefully this will all turn into a non-issue.” Sharon paused. “You need to tell Nathan. It can’t hurt to have a strong guy like him on your side.”

  That had one corner of Lynn’s mouth inching upward. “No, it certainly wouldn’t. We’re having dinner Sunday afternoon. I’ll tell him then.” Only she wished they didn’t have to meet somewhere in public. The thought that someone might be watching them sent shivers down her spine.

  She just had to keep her cool. If it was simply an anonymous fan, Lynn couldn’t let him mess with her life. She’d worked too hard to rebuild one to let it slip through her fingers.

  ~*~

  After everything that happened at the wedding, Nathan found seeing Lynn briefly at the Little Lambs each day wasn’t nearly long enough. He’d spoken with his family. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be able to take Lynn on a proper date until Sunday afternoon.

  Nathan wanted it to be just the two of them, and Saturday night would’ve meant inviting her to join them at family dinner. He took some solace in the fact that Lynn seemed just as disappointed in the delay as he was.

  So he’d wait. At least he’d see her at class on Saturday, which was something. But by Thursday evening, he decided he didn’t want to wait any longer.

  That evening he accepted the diaper bag from Lynn. Before leaving with Mia, he cupped Lynn’s elbow in his hand. “Will you meet us at the burger place for dinner tonight?” He didn’t expect the flash of hesitation in her eyes that triggered a burst of apprehension in himself. “No pressure at all. We were going there to eat and thought you might be in the mood for a burger, too.”

  Great job, Nathan. Nothing like being too pushy. He’d thought the offer was a good idea. Now he wasn’t sure after her unexpected reaction, and he wished he’d kept his mouth shut.

  Lynn shook her head. “It’s not that at all.” There was an almost unnoticeable pause. “I’d love to meet you over there.”

  They settled on a time, he squeezed her hand, and headed out with Mia.

  An hour later, he’d claimed a table for them, and they only had to wait a few minutes before Lynn walked through the door. She seemed to scan the room for several seconds and headed their way.

  She raised a hand in greeting and smiled. “Hey, guys. It’s busy in here tonight.” She glanced around the room again before sitting down with them.

  “We can order to go and eat at the park or something instead. It is a little noisy.”

  He thought she was going to agree before she finally shook her head. “No, this is fine. Thanks, though.”

  Lynn told him what she’d like, and he left the girls at the table to place their orders at the counter up front. When he returned with their drinks, Lynn was still looking nervous.

  He slid into the seat beside her. “You okay? Did something happen at work today?”

  “I’m sorry.” She took one of the cups he’d offered. “It’s just been one of those days. How about you? Did anything interesting happen with classes?”

  She was clearly deflecting. But if she didn’t want to talk about it now in a room full of noisy people, he was going to respect that. Nathan told her about one of his new students as they ate their dinner.

  The evening went by way too fast and before he knew it, they were walking back out to the parking lot together. He held her hand in his and noticed her grip tighten a little as they crossed the lot to her car. She pulled her keys out and quickly unlocked it.

  “Thanks for suggesting this. It was nice to see you for more than a few minutes at a time. It seems like forever since the wedding, doesn’t it?”

  “Yes, it does.” Nathan shifted a squirmy Mia from one hip to the other. His daughter wasn’t going to wait much longer to get down and run around. He placed a hand on Lynn’s shoulder and leaned in close. When she tipped her chin up a little, he kissed her, enjoying the way her soft, warm lips felt against his own. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning, and I’m looking forward to this weekend.”

  “I am, too.” She leaned in for one more brief kiss. “Thanks again for dinner.” She reached for Mia’s hand. “Bye, bug. Be good for your daddy tonight.”

  With one more wave, Lynn got into her car and soon disappeared from view.

  Nathan felt better after spending a little extra time with Lynn. But he couldn’t help but feel there was something going on. He could only hope she’d open up about it on Sunday.

  ~*~

  Anger coursed through Jeb’s veins as he watched Bethany ki
ss the man she’d been with at the church. How dare she? Especially after knowing that Jeb was back in her life again?

  Maybe he’d been too subtle in his attempts to reach her. There’s no way Bethany would be with that guy if she really knew he was there.

  Jeb needed to do something more obvious, but what?

  Several ideas presented themselves, but Jeb didn’t want to jump into things. He’d think it through. Formulate a plan.

  And find a way to win Bethany’s heart.

  ~*~

  Nathan was glad to see Lynn come into jiu-jitsu class with her friend, Sharon. While he’d seen Sharon at Little Lambs before, this was the first time they were officially introduced.

  Sharon shook his hand. “Lynn spoke highly of your class. I’m excited about it.”

  Nathan noted the wedding band on her left hand. “Your husband is always welcome to join us as well.”

  She laughed. “Oh, he’d probably enjoy it. But he was more than happy to take this opportunity to go to the gun range for a while. Maybe I can convince him to come next week.”

  “I hope he’ll give it a try. Though I can’t fault him for wanting to go to the range, either.” While Nathan didn’t do a lot of shooting, Chess did. Nathan found going with him was a great way to spend some quality brother time together.

  He turned his attention back to Lynn and found her watching the main door of the building. A handful of moments later, her gaze swiveled to him and a small blush crept into her cheeks.

  Nathan stepped closer and lowered his voice. “Is everything okay?”

  Lynn nodded once. “Sorry, just distracted this morning.”

  He wanted to ask her what was going on, but another student walked in, and it was time to get the class started.

  He was satisfied to see Lynn relax a little more with Sharon there. The two women partnered up during practice, and the sound of Lynn’s frequent laughter had his heart jumping in his chest.