“Actually I think we were both relieved by the separation,” he said with a wry grin.
“If he finds out I’m here, you could be looking at another challenge to your relationship.”
He winked at her. “I’m willing to take that risk.”
She glanced around the room. “You’re willing to take any risk.”
His eyes never left her face. She could feel his close regard, even though she avoided eye contact. “Only if I want something badly enough.”
Olivia’s phone rang, saving her from a response. She was glad. Whether or not he’d meant what he’d said as a pickup line, she’d felt a tingle down to her toes. She prayed her reaction was because her self-esteem had hit an all-time low. She needed to heal before she involved herself in another relationship, especially with someone so likely to use her without a second thought.
She checked caller ID. It was her mother. Nancy had been expecting her and must be getting worried. They were supposed to make the favors for the reception after dinner tonight. Olivia had the supplies in her trunk.
Sending Brandon a look asking his forbearance, she overcame her reluctance to take this call and answered, infusing as much lift into her voice as possible. “Hello?”
“Where are you? I was sure you’d be here by now.”
Olivia allowed herself a grimace. “I, uh, had a little accident.”
“With your car?”
“No. I tripped while loading up and hurt my hand. So I’m running late.”
Brandon was watching her, but she continued to avoid his gaze.
“How bad is it? You didn’t break any bones...”
“I doubt it,” she said, removing the ice pack to take a look.
“Do you need Dr. Harris to x-ray it?”
“We’ll see. I’ll be there shortly.”
“Dinner’s at six.”
She heard the subtle threat in that statement. They’d eat without her if she wasn’t there. “I’ll make it.”
“Good. Kyle and Noelle are here waiting.”
“I bet they are.”
Her mother had to have heard the sour note in her voice, but, wisely, she didn’t react to it. Since the news of Noelle’s pregnancy, Nancy had done her best to minimize Olivia’s previous relationship with Kyle. The way she told the story, Noelle was marrying an “old friend” of her other daughter’s. Never mind that she and Kyle had slept together. Never mind that they’d talked about marriage themselves.
“Hurry. We have a lot to do.”
“See you soon.” After she hung up, she returned her attention to Brandon. “It was very gallant of you to rescue me from my imaginary bee attack, but I’ve got to go.”
“You sure you’re ready for what lies ahead?”
“No, but I never will be. It’s like going in for a root canal. Better to get the pain over with.” She rolled her eyes. “Noelle and Kyle are anxiously awaiting my arrival.”
“Lucky you,” he said drily.
“Exactly.”
“Where are you staying?”
“My parents’.”
He made a face. “Isn’t your sister living there?”
She drank the rest of her wine, put her glass on the coffee table and got up. “Until Saturday night, when her new husband whisks her off to wedded bliss.”
“You’re more forgiving than I am.”
“I could pay for a hotel, but I’d be a hundred bucks poorer. How would that bother them?”
“Good point.” He stood, too. “Just don’t let loose on any inanimate objects again. You might break your other hand.”
“I’ve learned my lesson,” she responded, but just hearing her mother’s voice had put a lump in her throat. She couldn’t help feeling betrayed by her parents, too, because they were so eager to throw their support behind this wedding. She knew they had a grandchild at stake, but still...
After using his bathroom to fix her makeup, she found Brandon standing at the window, looking outside. “What do you think? Can you tell I’ve been crying?”
“I never would’ve guessed.”
She suspected he might be placating her, but she didn’t push. “Maybe I should change into something more conservative.”
“Are you kidding?” He whistled. “Let Kyle eat his heart out.”
That almost made her smile, until she imagined the reality of the next few hours. “I’ll probably be the miserable one.”
Although he continued to study her, she could tell he’d shifted gears. “If it gets too bad, you could always come back here.”
She raised her eyebrows. “So we could...”
His grin turned her knees to water. “Sleep. Of course. And I won’t charge you for the room.”
“Maybe you’d let me check out your big telescope,” she said, widening her eyes in feigned innocence.
“If you want to see the stars, I could give you a night to remember,” he said, playing along.
She laughed. “The ultimate revenge?”
“No,” he said, growing serious. “What I’ve wanted since prom.”
“That’s why you dropped me off at the end of the night and have avoided me ever since?”
“I knew I wasn’t what you needed. You’re too sensitive.”
He was right. That had been true then, and it was true now. If someone as trustworthy and admired as Kyle could hurt her so terribly, how would she ever survive the kind of emotional damage someone like Brandon could wreak?
“But I’ll go easy on you,” he added with a grin. “My number’s in your phone, in case you need it.”
“Thanks.” She was surprised he’d taken the liberty. She was a little flattered, too. But she had no intention of returning. She hadn’t been with a man in three months. That wouldn’t have seemed like a long time before her relationship with Kyle, but it felt like an eternity now that she knew what she was missing. She couldn’t come back. She’d only get herself into trouble if she did, because it wasn’t Brandon’s telescope she wanted him to share.
Three
KYLE’S WORK TRUCK, a Ford F-150, sat in her parents’ driveway. Olivia had expected to see it, but her heart sank all the same.
Taking a breath, trying to bolster herself, she got out of her Acura and started toward the front door, rolling her suitcase behind her with a sense of determination and purpose that belied the pain.
You can do this. Just keep your chin up and try to forget that this is Kyle and Noelle. Pretend they’re no different from any of the other couples you’ve worked with.
It was a wedding, a job, she told herself. But she hadn’t been home since she’d moved away. Her only contact had been through her mother, who shared various details over the phone, like Kyle buying a new car because Noelle “hated” trucks.
Olivia felt strange marching up to her parents’ front door knowing that nothing was as it used to be, that Kyle wasn’t waiting for her in quite the same way as he’d waited for her in the past.
“I’ve entered The Twilight Zone,” she muttered.
She spotted a flurry of movement at the window. Then the door flew open and her mother descended on her. “There you are! I’ve been worried. Let me see what you’ve done to your poor hand.”
Grateful for the distraction, she displayed her injury.
“Oh, dear.” Her mother’s eyebrows knitted. “Look at that. Of all times for something like this to happen. Well, come on in. We’ll get some ice. Maybe we’ll be able to put you on the left side when we take the wedding pictures so the swelling doesn’t show.”
“I don’t need to be in the pictures at all,” she said before she could stop the words.
Nancy’s smile faded. The expression on her face suggested she was about to respond, but whether she was going to warn her not to ruin the wedding, or say she was sorry about what Olivia must be fee
ling, Olivia never heard because Kyle strode out to greet her.
Olivia thanked God that Noelle wasn’t with him. Seeing him was bad enough. He seemed reluctant yet eager to approach, which added more confusion to the emotions currently assaulting her.
“I’m glad you’re safe,” he said.
Their eyes met briefly before she jerked hers away, but he kept his smile stubbornly in place as he hurried to assist with her suitcase.
Obviously he’d been anticipating this moment and was prepared for it. Olivia had tried to prepare, too. Little good it had done her. Nausea threatened to ruin her calculated indifference.
“I’ve got it.” She made an effort to keep the resentment from her voice, but it was impossible. No doubt he picked up on her tone. They were too familiar with each other for him to miss the slightest nuance. She knew the strength of his arms and how wonderful it felt to have them close around her, the rough texture of his jaw, the fullness of his lips and how soft yet demanding they could be when he kissed....
Why had this person she’d trusted so deeply betrayed her? There were moments, moments like now, when she couldn’t believe that their lives had taken such a dramatic turn.
He attempted to grab her case in spite of her refusal, but she hung on and kept walking, leaving him no choice but to fall back and follow.
“Where’s Dad?” she asked her mother as they reached the front patio, an attractive covelike entrance to her parents’ rambler.
“Out back, grilling some steaks.”
Olivia didn’t ask where Noelle was. She didn’t want to see her sister.
The smell of a home-cooked meal enveloped her as soon as she entered the house—evoking the only pleasant sensation Olivia had experienced since she’d left Brandon’s. Everything else cut like broken glass.
A buzzer went off in the kitchen, and her mother hurried to remove whatever she had on the stove. “We didn’t want to eat without you,” she said, raising her voice to be heard, “but it was getting late. I’m glad you arrived in time.”
Olivia didn’t comment. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t complain, wouldn’t wallow in self-pity, wouldn’t start a fight. But how she wished she could miss this meal. No aroma could be tempting enough to make her want to stay.
Sensing Kyle’s presence at her elbow, she left her suitcase and pivoted to go back outside, already eager for a reprieve from the tension twisting her stomach. “I’ve got the stuff for the wedding favors in my trunk. I’ll grab it.”
“Not with your hand hurt,” Kyle said. “Let me.”
“No, thanks. I can manage.” She had no intention of allowing him to do anything. But, to her chagrin, he joined her, anyway. So she tried to ignore him. She didn’t want to see him any more than she wanted to see her sister, didn’t want to hear him, either, or confront the reality of what they used to be and what they were now.
Once they were out of earshot of her mother, he caught her elbow to get her to face him and lowered his voice. “I’m so sorry, Olivia. I know... I know how hard this must be. It’s killing me that I’m causing you pain.”
He seemed sincere, but maybe he was just being arrogant. She’d begun to doubt everything she’d ever known about him, except the physical sensations that had been such a major part of their relationship. Looking at him made her crave the familiarity they’d enjoyed. Since Carly, her best friend, had moved to Phoenix to accept a job offer with Southwest Airlines, Kyle had become both friend and boyfriend. Losing his friendship hurt as much as all the rest.
Battling the threat of tears, she manufactured another smile. “You’re not causing me pain,” she said. “As a matter of fact, I’m already seeing someone else.”
Dropping his hand, he blinked in surprise. “Your mother said... I mean, she didn’t mention that.”
“I haven’t told her about him. There’s enough going on around here. This is your week, your wedding. I’ll save my announcements for later.”
Did he go pale? Or was that her imagination?
“Is it someone in Sac?” he asked.
She could’ve said yes and left it at that. She wasn’t entirely sure why she didn’t. Maybe it was because a mere name wouldn’t have the same effect. “No, actually. He’s from Whiskey Creek. Someone you know quite well.”
A muscle flexed in his cheek. “Who?”
She’d already gone too far. But the same desperate compulsion that had overtaken her in the car when she injured her hand seemed to goad her now, until the name that would hurt him most passed her lips. “Brandon.”
The color returned to his face, staining his cheeks a bright red. “My stepbrother?”
“You’re not really related,” she reminded him. “That happens to be important to me, even though it wasn’t to you.”
He seemed to struggle with words. “His mother is married to my father.”
“You lived together for two years. Sadly I’ve had to put up with Noelle my whole life.”
He shook his head as if she’d just coldcocked him. “Brandon?” he said again. “You’ve got to be joking.”
She lifted her chin. “Why?”
“Because he’d be terrible for you!”
“In what way?” she challenged.
“He...he doesn’t know what it means to really love anyone. The second he gets bored, or a skiing opportunity presents itself, he’ll be gone and you may never hear from him again.”
She sneered. “Funny you should say that.”
“I know I let you down.” He lowered his voice. “But...that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you.”
“Did you think I’d mope around indefinitely?”
“No, of course not. That isn’t what I want. I want you to be happy.”
She smiled broadly. “Brandon makes me happy.”
A scowl replaced his stunned expression. “Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face, Olivia. He hasn’t been able to maintain one serious relationship. He’ll only hurt you in the end.”
She popped the trunk. “I doubt it. Thanks to you, I’m older and wiser than I was.”
“You’re no match for him. He’ll take advantage of how innocent and trusting you are and how deeply you love—”
“I’m not planning to marry him.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll leave making the Big Commitment to you and my dear sister. Brandon’s good in bed. Right now, that’s all I need.”
When he sagged a little, her heart twisted so painfully she almost admitted the truth. She couldn’t hurt Kyle regardless of what he’d done to her. But Noelle’s voice, filled with suspicion, rang out from the patio. “What’s taking so long?”
Olivia raised the trunk lid, revealing the many boxes of wedding paraphernalia she’d borrowed from River City Resort Club & Spa. She’d been planning to tote it all in herself, regardless of her throbbing hand. She wanted to stay busy, focused. But if Kyle was going to dog her footsteps, she figured he could handle the job.
“Looks like there’s more here than I remembered. If you could bring it into the living room, we’ll get started on the wedding favors right after we eat. I have to leave soon. Brandon’s expecting me,” she said and walked past her sister without saying hello.
Four
WHEN HIS MOTHER showed up on his doorstep, Brandon was relieved Olivia was gone. He didn’t feel he owed it to his stepbrother to stay away from her or anything like that. After what Kyle had done, Brandon considered Olivia fair game for any guy, even him. But he knew his mother would get involved if she saw Olivia at his place—and if there was any way to keep his mother from getting involved, it was always best to go that route. Otherwise, she’d give him no peace.
“Hi, what are you doing here?” he asked as he swung the door wide. She rarely came over. But he’d let her past few calls go to voice mail. He’d heard enough about the wedding, hadn’t wanted to hear any more.
That had been a mistake. Instead of leaving him alone, she’d come to harangue him in person.
“I was on my way home and thought I’d stop by,” she said.
Sure, that made sense. Except his place wasn’t on the way to or from anywhere. Only teenagers and hikers bothered to visit the old mine or the trails he loved so much.
“Can I come in?” she asked, sounding slightly miffed that he hadn’t already offered.
Belatedly he realized he was still blocking the entrance. “Of course.” He stepped aside so she could move past him. Then he placed his arms around her in the obligatory hug.
“Have you picked up your tux for the wedding?” she asked as soon as he released her.
“Not yet.”
“Brandon!” Cocking her head, she gave him that searching look that said he was about to get a stern lecture. “You’re not going to do anything to ruin this wedding, are you? Because I’m counting on you. Just once I’d like you to go along with what we have planned and behave yourself. Can you do that? For me?”
“No problem.” He tried to play it straight, but it was difficult not to grimace. He hated the way she catered to Kyle and Kyle’s father. Maybe if she’d give them hell every once in a while, he wouldn’t have to establish their boundaries on his own.
“Good. I’m glad to hear it. I’ll grab your tux when I hit town. If you wait too long, they’ll be closed.”
“There’s always tomorrow, Mom.”
“The wedding rehearsal is tomorrow. There’ll be a lot to do as it is.”
“I can get my own tux!”
Obviously put out by his refusal to let her take control, she sniffed. “And you’ll make the rehearsal?”
“Of course.”
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