“I appreciate it. It helps me understand you better.”
“Well, there you go. My life in a nutshell. I’m like an addict. I seem to be attracted to one asshole after another. I need to break that cycle. I don’t want to be like my mom and end up spending my entire life catering to a man. Dependent on him.”
“Totally makes sense. You’ve made a lot of progress, and I’m glad you’ve gotten your own apartment. I hope someday you’ll trust me enough to let me see it.”
She shrugged. “Don’t get your hopes up.”
He finally reached for her hand and gently held her fingers, stroking her knuckles. “I’m drawn to you. It would be a lie to tell you otherwise.”
“Maybe you have a savior complex,” she suggested, her voice joking but her eyes serious.
“I don’t think so. After all, I didn’t know any of that until just now. You’re cute and fun and sweet. When you smile, my heart rate picks up. I love that you’re a bit shy, but maybe it’s not so much that you’re shy and more that you don’t want to talk to me.”
“Nervous might be a better term. And I don’t talk to you because I’ve never wanted to give you some sort of false hope that I was interested.”
“Hmm, but you are interested,” he pointed out. Not asking. Noting.
She pursed her lips for a moment and then released them. “Doesn’t matter if I am or not.”
“Okay. Can we at least be friends?” He wanted to start somewhere. It would never be enough. If he had any doubts before she arrived at his home today, they’d been obliterated. He really liked her.
Hell, he had his own closet full of painful past experiences. Some of them embarrassingly similar to hers. He felt bad for not dragging them out and baring his soul to her the way she was doing for him. But today wasn’t about him. He didn’t want to turn it around. She needed him to focus on her and her needs today, not his own.
She flipped her hand over in his and stared at their connection. “The kind of friends who kiss and hold hands?” she teased.
“Maybe?”
Now she chuckled, which pleased him. “We’ll see. Go on your trip. We can discuss it another time.”
“Okay. But I’m going to start calling you.” He stood, still holding her hand, pulling her up with him.
“Mmm. I can probably live with that.”
He pulled her into his arms and held her against him, grateful that she let him and that she even wrapped her arms around him too. He didn’t want to freak her out and risk rocking this precarious boat, so his next kiss was to the top of her head. “I’ve gotta get to the airport.”
He wished he could stay, but he also felt like he’d made far more progress with Heather in the last hour than he’d expected. His vision had included a tour of his home while she said very little and rarely made eye contact.
The fact that he got a heartfelt conversation, an amazing kiss, and hand-holding were all icing on the cake. He would leave here elated.
He would also start calling her every night, getting to know her, luring her out of her self-induced nunhood. Because she was worth it. Every bone in his body told him she was worth it.
Chapter 3
“Soooo… How’s the house sitting going?” Raeann asked as soon as she and Heather had ordered lunch and received their drinks.
Heather drew in a deep breath. “It’s fine. I feel like I’ve finally caught up on my sleep. I’ve been so used to my next-door neighbors keeping me up that I didn’t remember what it would be like to sleep six hours in a row without disruption.”
“Apartments are pretty noisy anyway,” Raeann pointed out as she rubbed her hand over her huge belly.
“No kidding. Every time someone flushes the toilet or plays music or television… Hell, someone across the hall is learning a Slavic language using Duolingo. That makes me pull my hair out. But none of them are as bad as the dick next door. If only our bedrooms weren’t sharing a wall.”
Raeann cringed. “Do they also kiss and make up?”
Heather groaned. “Yes. It’s disgusting. I feel like I’ve had enough counseling to stomp over there when the guy isn’t home and give the woman a lecture about self-esteem. She needs to go to a shelter if she can’t make it on her own. He screams at her about every damn thing and then the bed bangs into my wall while he fucks her. He usually leaves afterward, and I’m left listening to her cry. It’s so sad.” Heather shuddered.
“I can’t imagine, but I know you have enough experience with abuse to know firsthand.” Raeann reached across the table and squeezed Heather’s hand. “Does she ever leave? I mean, you see her sometimes, right?”
Heather nods. “Not often. I don’t think she has a job, not outside the apartment anyway. She goes to the store occasionally, but usually, she has groceries delivered. I’ve seen her maybe a dozen times in a year. She never looks me in the eye. Probably can’t. I bet she has bruises on her face.”
Raeann nods slowly. “I guess calling the cops wouldn’t help.”
Heather shakes her head. “That nearly always makes things worse. Abusers lose their shit when the cops show up. She’d probably end up in the hospital.”
“Damn.”
Heather shook off the maudlin and grinned. “But I’ve had a week of good sleep. I’m going to be spoiled when I have to go back.”
“Why don’t you move out of that apartment? Surely you can find a different one. Or I bet Neil would let you stay with him for a while. Or…forever.” She lifted her brows and leaned forward, her palms around her water glass.
Heather chuckled. “I could move into another apartment, but would it be different? They’re all the same. At least at my price point. And no way am I going to stay with Neil or anyone else for that matter.”
“You and I lived together. I hope I never made you feel awkward. I know a lot more about you than I did then, so I feel bad if I ever said or did anything that triggered you.”
“God no. You never did a thing. No one has to do or say anything. I can chastise myself perfectly fine without any outside help. It’s taken me a long time to learn it’s okay to leave a rinsed plate in the sink and not worry that someone might come along and yell at me. It’s ingrained.”
“I hate that for you. I’m so sorry.”
Heather shrugged. “Eh, I’m getting over it slowly but surely, but you see why I don’t want a roommate or a man in my space?”
“I do. I get it.” Raeann leaned forward. “So, what’s going on at work? I heard there’s been a few crazy incidents.”
“Yeah. It’s been kind of wild. There have been at least three manifest problems. No one knows for sure if there’s a computer glitch or someone’s hacking into the system and fucking with the airline.”
“That’s scary.”
Heather chuckled. “Far scarier things have happened in the last few years. I keep hoping it’s all just a computer issue that will get resolved soon. There’ve been rumblings of other issues though. Ground equipment not working, jetway doors not opening, and don’t even get me started on the luggage issues.”
“Shit.”
“Tags have been wrong on several pieces, sending them to the wrong destination. It’s like the computer shows everything correct, but when the sticker comes out, it’s wrong.”
Raeann’s brows furrowed. “Sounds like the problem is growing.”
“I’m trying not to think about it, but I do wonder if there are other things we haven’t been informed of. Seems like the airline might be keeping things hushed.”
Heather’s phone buzzed on the table and she glanced at it, a smile forming.
“That’s Neil, isn’t it?” Raeann teased.
“What makes you think that?” Heather asked nonchalantly.
“Your face. You’re smiling now and your expression softened.” She pointed at the phone. “Go ahead and answer him. I don’t mind.”
Heather refrained, setting her elbows on the table. “He can wait.” Even if she wasn’t with Raeann for lunch today,
she wouldn’t answer him immediately. She didn’t want him to think she was too eager.
She didn’t want him to know how ridiculously eager she felt every time he called or texted.
Heather met Raeann’s gaze again. “So how are the kids? You said they’re with Deacon’s mom today?”
“Yep. They’re doing great. I doubt if I’ll ever get to sleep again as soon as this baby is born. It seems like it’s going to be overwhelming, but Deacon is amazing. The man never slows down. I think he actually feels bad that he has to go to work every day. As soon as he walks in the door, he jumps right into the fray.”
“He seems like a great dad every time I see him.” Especially considering the two kids were his niece and nephew and he wasn’t their biological father. But he was an amazing man who’d taken them in after his brother and his wife died. Heather couldn’t begin to imagine how stressful the last few years had been for Deacon.
Raeann smiled. “He is, and both kids have started calling us Mommy and Daddy now. It makes my chest tighten every time. Teddy started it. After all, he doesn’t even remember his parents. I think he saw it on TV. My poor heart leaped out of my chest when Katia wrapped her little fingers around mine the other day while I was putting her to bed and said, ‘Can I call you Mommy?’”
Heather put her hand over her heart. “Precious. But it was also adorable that she called you Raine, and even cuter that you chose to change your name to Raine. She’s going to love that story when she gets older.” Heather couldn't think of Raeann as Raine, but no one would ever notice.
Raeann swiped a tear away from her cheek.
“You’re an amazing mom and I know you’re so happy. Everyone can tell.” Heather squeezed Raeann’s hand and then released it as their food arrived.
“Do you think about being a mom?” Raeann asked after the waiter left.
Heather shook her head. “No. Mostly because I hated being a kid. I don’t have very many fond memories. Maybe a few of my mother reading to me or taking me to the park, but usually, she was sad and nervous. She walked on eggshells all of my childhood. I learned to do the same.”
“It doesn’t have to be like that,” Raeann pointed out gently.
“Yeah, I know, but it feels like it’s not in my control. What if I married a man and he was the kindest man alive for two years and then decided to start screaming at me and our kid? I would never forgive myself.” Heather’s heart beat faster just thinking about marriage and kids. Neither seemed feasible.
“Well, you don’t have to rush. That’s for sure. You’re only, what, twenty-seven?”
“Yep. And marriage is not on my radar. I’m not even willing to date anyone. Can’t really get married without that step.”
“Well, you’re at least finally talking to a man. Baby steps.”
Heather shuddered. “Let’s not get carried away.” No way in hell was she going to mention that she’d kissed him.
Luckily, not only was Heather off work today, but she’d also slept soundly in the night, which made her alert enough for lunch with Raeann. Fifteen minutes after she got back home, the doorbell rang. She hadn’t reset the alarm, and a quick glance indicated a woman in her thirties. She didn’t look like she was selling anything, so Heather answered the door.
The woman’s eyebrows lifted. “Oh, sorry. I was looking for my brother.”
“Uh… Neil?”
“Yeah… Is he home?”
“Not right now. Can I help you?” Heather asked.
“I’m his sister, Amy. I don’t mean to intrude. I should have called first. I figured he’d be home on a Sunday afternoon, and I’d just catch him. He borrowed my plant fertilizer a few weeks ago, and—”
Heather couldn’t help laughing.
Amy smiled.
Heather stepped back. “Sorry. Come on in.”
“You sure?” She looked skeptical. “I feel bad. I didn’t know Neil had a girlfriend. I’m going to give him so much shit later.”
Heather shook her head as she shut the door. “I’m not his girlfriend. We’re just friends. He’s out of town on business for a few weeks, so I’m house sitting.” She chuckled again. “It’s particularly comical that you would need some fertilizer because I know Neil doesn’t have any plants in the house.”
Amy continued to grin. “There must be an inside joke there, but this is for outside. He does have rose bushes along the side of the house.”
“Ah. That makes sense. He didn’t ask me to water them.”
“They’re probably fine on their own as long as it rains now and then. It rained hard last weekend, so I’m sure they’re okay.”
Did it ever… That torrential downpour was the reason Heather was in his house right now.
Amy glanced around. “I’ve never seen this house so clean. Please tell me you haven’t been cleaning while you stay here.”
Heather laughed again. “Please.” She pointed at the couch. “Sit. Tell me more. Neil’s been holding out on me. I didn’t know he had a sister. I didn’t know he had roses. And now I find out he doesn’t ordinarily keep his house this tidy?”
“Ha.” Amy plopped down on the couch. “I mean, the man is a bit anal, I’ll admit, left over from his Army days, but not this clean, no.”
Heather sat in one of the armchairs. “Well, I didn’t do it. It was like this when I arrived. I’ve been loath to even set a glass on the end table.”
Amy rolled her eyes. “Please… Don’t let that man con you into thinking he cares about a glass ring on his end table. Are you sure you’re not his girlfriend?” She narrowed her gaze, but her eyes were dancing.
“Nope,” Heather insisted.
“But he’d like you to be,” she surmised.
Heather chuckled again. “Perhaps.”
Amy nodded slowly, seeming to assess Heather. “Interesting. My brother doesn’t date, or he doesn’t admit it at least. I can see why he’d be interested in you though. You’re nothing like Lacey.”
“Uhhh, who’s Lacey?”
“His ex-wife… Oh, shit.” She cringed when Heather’s eyelids rose to the ceiling. “He hasn’t told you about her either I guess.”
“No. But, like I said, we’re just friends. Acquaintances really. Don’t feel bad. It’s not weird that I don’t know about his roses or his ex-wife.” It wasn’t really. Not really. Okay, maybe a little.
Amy rubbed her temples. “I’m pretty sure he’s going to kill me.”
“Hopefully not. He doesn’t seem like the violent type,” Heather teased. Sort of. Most people flippantly used the word “kill” without flinching. In Heather’s world, women really did get killed by men, so she tended to stiffen when people spoke so calmly about murder, albeit jokingly.
“You’re not wrong about that. I never did understand how he managed to serve in the Army. Neil Conlon, a man who would rather catch a spider and let it out than kill it in the house.”
Interesting.
Amy waved a dismissive hand through the air. “Of course, Neil specifically joined the Army to become a helicopter pilot, so his goal had always been to avoid hand-to-hand combat.”
Heather pulled her bare feet up and curled them under her, getting comfortable. “Keep talking. In thirty minutes I’m going to know Neil much better than I did before you arrived.”
Amy laughed. “Surely you knew he was in the Army?”
“Yes. That much I knew, but only because I’m friends with everyone he works with. They were all in the Army. I didn’t know he was a pilot. We’ve never discussed…well, obviously much of anything.”
“How long have you known him?”
“Over a year, but only peripherally. We have a dozen mutual friends.”
“Ah. Are you friends with all those women who work for Open Skies then?”
“Yes. I work for the airline too.” Heather liked Amy. She was friendly and kind, like her brother.
“Aha. You’re Heather, the woman his friends are always trying to set him up with.”
Heath
er laughed. “Yes, that’s me.”
Amy sighed. “He sure takes his time. His ex did a number on him, and I get that. Lacey was a bitch. But it’s been five years. I thought he would move on by now.”
Heather was shocked. It wasn’t overly surprising that she knew so little about Neil. They’d only started talking regularly this week while he was out of town, and though they had spoken at least once every day, most of their conversations had been mundane so far.
He didn’t owe her any information yet. They really were just friends getting to know each other. It’s not like they’d been sleeping together a month and she didn’t know he’d been married. Nevertheless, she’d had no idea he was divorced.
“In his defense, I’ve had my own bad relationships, so I’m not ready to move on either.”
Amy cringed. “I’m sorry. You seem so sweet. Maybe the two of you are both too nice to be a couple,” she joked. “Your conversations would be like, ‘where would you like to eat dinner?’ ‘I don’t care. You pick.’”
Heather chuckled. “You’re probably right.” She cocked her head to one side. “Why did Neil leave the military? He’s only thirty-one,” she mused.
Amy lifted both hands in the air, palms out. “I’ve said too much already. I’ll never be able to come by and visit him again after he finds out everything I’ve told you.”
Heather smiled. “You’re right. Don’t tell me more. I’ll ask him myself.”
Amy stood. “I should go before I stick my foot down my throat.”
Heather joined her. “I’m sure it’s all good. And I’m glad you came by. Now I know a lot more about Neil.” She pointed toward the garage. “Shall we find the fertilizer?”
“That would be helpful, if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all.”
Five minutes later, they had it loaded in the back of Amy’s car and Amy gave Heather a hug. “I’m going to call my brother right now and head off his wrath.” She laughed.
“The only problem I can foresee from my end would be if I talk to him later and he tells me he doesn’t even have a sister.” She chuckled.
Jetway Page 3
