All Autumn

by Sandra Owens

  “I’ll be there. I promise,” she whispered. “Right now, please go.”

  We went, but it took every bit of my willpower not to drag her with us out of that oppressive apartment.

  “I mean it, Jenn. If she doesn’t show up, I don’t care what kind of trouble it causes her, we’re going right back to her apartment and refusing to leave until she tells us what’s going on in her life.”

  Jenn lifted the silver cover to one of the plates. “Everything’s getting cold.”

  We’d ordered a girl feast. French toast, bacon, both banana nut and apple cinnamon muffins, strawberries, blackberries, and—Savannah’s favorite fruit—pineapples. Also on the cart was her favorite breakfast drink, chocolate milk. For Jenn and me, there was a pot of coffee that we’d already started on while waiting for Savannah.

  She was ten minutes late.

  Jenn glanced at her watch. “She’s not coming.”

  “She promised,” I said, although even as I said it, it sounded stupid since she wasn’t here. “So what do we do now? Spend today and tomorrow sightseeing until it’s time for our flight home? Or do we mount a rescue? She’s not happy, Jenn. You had to see that.”

  “I did.”

  Her voice sounded so sad that it brought tears to my eyes. “Do you remember when we swore that we’d be friends forever and that we’d always be there for each other? I think we were fifteen at the time. We promised that no matter what happened, if one of us was in trouble, we could count on each other to save us.” I’d been pacing the length of the room, but I stopped in front of Jenn. “She’s in trouble.”

  “I know, but she has to want us to help her.”

  That brought me up short. “Because if we kidnap her and take her home, the first chance she gets, she’ll just come back to this place that is killing her?”

  “Probably.”

  I hated the defeat I heard in Jenn’s voice, but I was feeling it, too. We couldn’t help Savannah unless she wanted us to. Before I could decide if I cared and kidnapped her anyway, we heard a knock on the door.

  “She’s here,” I whispered as if Savannah could hear me from the other side of a hotel door.

  “Don’t scare her away with your caped hero I-have-to-save-my-friend heroics,” Jenn said as she walked to the door of the suite we’d splurged on.

  I couldn’t guarantee that wasn’t exactly what I’d do, so I kept my mouth shut. Not an easy thing to do when I’d always been the one who’d done and said anything that was on my mind.

  Savannah came into the room, so obviously reluctant that I wondered if she felt like she was walking into an angry lion’s cage. My anger drained away, my only concern that she felt comfortable being with us. Yeah, I was raging mad, and so was Jenn, but if we didn’t hide our worry for her, she’d bolt like a scared rabbit.

  “Thank God you’re here,” I said. “I’m starving, but Jenn wouldn’t let me eat until you appeared.” I turned to Jenn, waving my hand at Savannah. “There she is. Can I stuff my face now?” From the corner of my eye, I saw Savannah’s shoulders relax.

  “How long do you have?” Jenn asked.

  “Two hours tops.” Savannah eyed the cart, then went to the chair farthest from the food.

  Two hours wasn’t good enough, but better than nothing. “I’m fixing you a plate.” And she was going to eat if I had to force-feed her. Her mother had watched her calorie intake like a hawk when Savannah was growing up, and I guessed that Jackson did the same. The sad thing about that was that Savannah liked to eat. As teens Jenn and I had snuck her food. Whether it was sandwiches and goodies from Mary or even a Georgia peach dripping with juice, she would devour them like someone starved.

  Because I didn’t want to overwhelm her with a plate piled high with food, I cut a slice of French toast and a banana nut muffin in half, and then added some fruit. I took the plate and the glass of chocolate milk, setting it down on the table next to her chair. Not saying a word, I returned to the cart and made myself a plate. Jenn did the same, and the two of us sat on the small sofa.

  “So what should we see while we’re in New York?” I asked. Savannah was no doubt expecting us to jump right in, giving her the third degree, and relief at my harmless question crossed her face.

  “I want to go to Ground Zero and see the museum and memorial,” Jenn said.

  “You should. It’s very moving.” Savannah picked up a slice of pineapple and nibbled on it.

  “I want to go to the New York Design Center.” I glanced at Jenn. “It’s this huge building that’s full of furniture showrooms.”

  “Why am I not surprised,” Jenn said. She and Savannah looked at each other and then laughed.

  Savannah tore off a tiny piece of French toast and popped it into her mouth. “Remember how as soon as she could drive, she would watch for open houses and then drag us to see them?”

  If we kept ignoring that she was eating, she’d finish off that plate. “Hey, y’all could’ve said no.” That made them laugh again, and just like that, we slid back into how we used to be.

  Jenn rolled her eyes. “Saying no to you, Autumn, is like standing in front of a steamroller you have no hope of stopping.”

  For an hour we reminisced, laughed, and ate. I don’t think Savannah even realized what she was doing when she walked over to the cart and picked up the second half of the banana nut muffin. Jenn apparently noticed, too, because she looked at me and smiled.

  “Your mother must be happy about your success,” I said. Mrs. Graham wouldn’t be happy to see what Savannah was eating, but I wasn’t going to mention that.

  Savannah’s gaze dropped to the floor. “She died last year.”

  I exchanged a shocked glance with Jenn. “And you’re just now telling us?”

  “What was the point? None of you liked her, and I can’t say I blame you.”

  “So we could have come to the funeral,” Jenn said. “So we could have been there for you.”

  “Damn it, Savannah,” I said. “That’s the kind of thing you tell your best friends.”

  She shrugged. “It wasn’t like she and I were close. Besides, Jackson handled the arrangements, and it was so over-the-top that it was embarrassing.”

  What she wasn’t saying was that Jackson wouldn’t have wanted us there. “Savannah, exactly what’s going on with you?”

  “How’s Adam?” She wrinkled her nose. “Ah, I mean, how are Adam and Connor?”

  Yeah, right. That wasn’t what she meant at all, and she was going to avoid answering me. “Same as always.” I took a deep breath, knowing I was going to ask an unwanted question. “Are you happy, Savannah?”

  She plastered her fake smile on. “Why wouldn’t I be? All my dreams have come true.” She held up her wrist, looking at her watch. “I have to go.”

  Jenn grabbed her hand. “We’re worried about you. Remember the promise we once made that we’d always be there for each other? It still holds true.”

  Tears gathered in her eyes. “I know. But I’m okay, and I really have to go.”

  She wasn’t okay. “Swear you’ll call us if you need us or when you’re ready to tell us what the hell is going on in your life.”

  “Autumn,” Jenn said, warning me that I was pushing too hard.

  I shut up, but it wasn’t easy. After a tight hug for both Jenn and me and telling us how much she loved us, she was gone. She might as well have been a ghost.

  “Did you notice how bitter she sounded when she said all her dreams had come true?”

  Jenn nodded, and the worry in her eyes reflected what I knew was in mine. “Yeah.”

  “At least we got to see her, but I’m more concerned for her than ever.”

  “Yeah, me, too.” Jenn sighed. “But I don’t know what to do about it if she won’t let us in.”

  Neither did I, and I didn’t like feeling helpless.

  44

  ~ Connor ~

  “No way am I letting anyone wax my chest.” I pointed the neck of my beer bottle at Dylan. “
And stop laughing. You, too,” I said to Adam. “And don’t try to claim that either one of you are going to do it.”

  Dylan laughed harder. “Full disclosure. Mary’s not getting near my chest.”

  The thick Angus steaks and the oversize baked potatoes with all the fixings Dylan had fed us had been great. Our stomachs full, we were chilling on the back deck of the log home Adam and I had built—well, Adam had built it, but I’d found the perfect piece of land—for Dylan and Jenn. The view looking down over the valley was spectacular. The lights of the town of Blue Ridge Valley glittered below us.

  “Amen to that. She’s not getting near mine either,” Adam said. “Although, I still think it would be fun to hear Connor scream when he got his hair torn off his chest.”

  The mere thought sent a shudder through me. I pushed up from the lounge chair and glared at my twin. “The hell, bro? I put my tiny little hands over your ears when we were still in Mom’s womb every time our dad put his mouth on Mom’s stomach and sang to us. Remember how much that hurt your ears? Where’s the loyalty, man?”

  Adam smirked back at me. “I also remember you kicking me every chance you got.”

  “You do not remember anything of the sort.”

  “I absolutely do. By the time we popped out, I was black-and-blue all over.”

  “And even after all these years, you’re still crying about it.”

  Dylan’s gaze swung between us as if he were watching a tennis match, his eyes filled with amusement. “You two are hilarious. Makes me wish—” His phone played “I Just Called to Say I Love You.”

  I grinned. “Dude, seriously?” And although I was razzing him, my heart beat faster knowing it was Jenn and that Autumn was with her.

  The smile on his face at hearing the song was that of a man in love. He put the phone to his ear. “Hey, Red.”

  Adam’s attention was as focused on Dylan’s conversation as mine, and I knew he was listening for Savannah’s name. I clamped my teeth together to keep from asking how Autumn was—or better yet, demanding to talk to her.

  “If she doesn’t want your help, Jenny, there’s nothing you and Autumn can do at this point.”

  I glanced at Adam, who was frozen in place, his gaze on the phone Dylan had pressed to his ear. I hated that after all this time, he was still in love with Savannah, still hurting. It was an unwelcome reminder that being in love sucked.

  “How was the rest of your day?” Dylan said into the phone.

  “Beer?” I asked Adam.

  He blinked as if coming out of a trance. “Yeah, sure.”

  I went inside and got three beers from the fridge. By the time I returned, Dylan was off the phone.

  “How’s their trip going?” I asked, handing him a beer, then giving one to Adam.

  “Good and bad. The good, they had a great time doing some sightseeing. The bad, they only got to see Savannah for an hour, and they’re more worried about her than ever.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “She wouldn’t open up to them, but they both think she’s extremely unhappy.”

  Adam had remained silent, but I could tell that every bone in his body wanted to get in his car and go get her. I knew the feeling. I wanted to do the same thing—get Autumn, bring her to my house, and never let her go.

  We were a pair, Adam and me, falling in love with women who were determined to break our hearts. Whoever said lucky in love didn’t have a clue. Never again. For me, anyway. I hoped Adam felt the same.

  “When are they coming home?”

  “They have a flight out in the morning.” Dylan studied me for a moment, then said, “Any idea why Autumn was crying last night?”

  I sat up and pointed at myself. “Me? How would I know?”

  Adam gave me one of his you’re-too-stupid-to-live looks. “You didn’t send that text, did you?”

  I shook my head. I’d lost count of how many times I’d put my finger on send but had chickened out, still afraid that telling her how I felt would backfire.

  “You’re an ass,” Adam said.

  “Thanks, bro. Love you, too.” Why was she crying, though?

  All three of our phones buzzed with an incoming text. That usually meant a call had gone out for the search and rescue team, and we each grabbed our cells. It was from Mary, however.

  Heroes of Blue Ridge Valley calendar meeting tomorrow Town Hall at 2:00

  The three of us groaned in unison.

  “If Mary’s doughnuts weren’t the best thing this side of the Mississippi, I’d run her out of town for this,” Dylan said.

  “We would’ve helped,” Adam and I said at the same time.

  Later that night, the urge to go down to the river came on strong. I slipped on a lightweight jacket and grabbed a flashlight. When I reached the water’s edge, I aimed the light on the other side, and sure enough, there was Adam. We’d each put benches down here, and Adam was sitting on his. I rested my crutches on my bench, sat, then turned off the flashlight. There was enough moonlight to see Adam’s outline.

  “Hey, brother,” I said. He didn’t answer, and I settled in to wait. When he was ready, he’d talk. I spread my arms along the back of the bench and looked up at the midnight sky, remembering the night I’d wished on a falling star. All I’d wanted was to kiss Autumn. Now I wanted a lifetime with her.

  Would she ever be able to learn to trust me? She had no reason to. I had a history of avoiding relationships, of which she was fully aware. Add to that the fact I hadn’t told her I was falling in love with her, and it wasn’t a surprise that she’d panicked if she was falling for me, too. As far as she knew, I was still on board with our having some fun together and nothing more.

  I knew in my heart that I would never cheat on her. For one, I understood what that would do to her, and I would never hurt my best friend like that. And although I’d sworn never to fall in love, I had, and it was with the most amazing woman I knew. But what to do about it?

  “I don’t want you to make the same mistake as me.”

  “He speaks.” I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. “And what mistake is that?” The river wasn’t wide at our place to talk, and in the quiet of the night, our voices carried without having to raise them.

  “I didn’t fight for Savannah when I should have.”

  “Exactly what did happen between you two?”

  Adam stood and walked to the water’s edge. “It doesn’t matter anymore. The time for Savannah and me has passed. But it doesn’t have to be like that for you. Autumn loves you, Connor, and she could be the best thing that happened to you. Don’t let that slip through your fingers.”

  He picked up some rocks and began skipping them across the water. “And don’t use me as your excuse. That’s not fair to you or Autumn, and frankly, it pisses me off.”

  “Stop reading my mind, bro.”

  He chuckled. “I’ll always be able to read your mind.”

  “Works both ways,” I grumbled.

  “My point is, you have a chance to be happy. I mean, really happy. Or you can go through life having meaningless relationships.” He threw another stone across the top of the water. “Like me.”

  After tossing that out there, he turned and walked away, and I felt his heavy retreating footsteps in my heart. But it was that very pain that told me I didn’t want to be like him. I didn’t want a life of regrets.

  It wasn’t something that I’d ever thought before, but sitting here in the dark, hurting for my brother, I believed that Adam and I were destined to only love one woman in our lifetime.

  Mary stood in front of us, glittery gold hair sparkling under the neon lights of Town Hall and looking a lot like Tinker Bell in a shimmering green dress and matching boots, smirking as her gaze roamed over us.

  My eyes hurt looking at her, and I wished I’d brought my sunglasses in with me. I glanced nervously at the door that had been locked behind us, the one that Sarah Griffin, captain of our police department, and Kim Payton, junior detective, stood
guard over, smirks matching Mary’s on both their faces.

  I was afraid. Very, very afraid.

  “Not a one of you made an appointment with Renee, so she’s here today to give you a chest that women all the way to Atlanta are going to drool over.”

  Thirteen men stared in horror at Mary, and then, as one, our gazes swung to Renee from Hair for All Seasons. Damn if she wasn’t smirking, too. Standing alongside her were three stylists I recognized from her salon, their expressions mimicking Renee’s.

  “I’m outta here,” Gene Lanier, Dylan’s lead detective, said, heading for the door.

  Kim crossed her arms over her chest, blocking his exit. “You might be my boss when we’re on duty, but in this I get to tell you what to do. Sit. Down.”

  “What she said,” Sarah said.

  Gene turned to Dylan. “You’re the chief of police. I demand you fire both of these traitors right now.”

  Sarah and Kim snorted.

  Dylan grinned at his detective. “Give it up, Gene. The ladies have outmaneuvered us.” He leaned back in his chair and winked at Mary. “Doesn’t mean we aren’t going to get our payback,” he said in a stage whisper, then shifted his gaze to Sarah and Kim, an evil smile on his face. “Carry on, ladies, at your own peril.”

  They both grinned. “Whatever you get up to, Chief, will be worth hearing all thirteen of you guys scream when all your chest hair is ripped off,” Kim said, sounding too cheerful.

  Us guys sucked in a painful breath, and Renee hadn’t even touched us yet. “We can make a break for it, since we outnumber them,” I muttered. “They can find some other twins for June.”

  “I’m on board with that plan,” Adam said from my left side.

  On my right Dylan chuckled. “Pretty sure they’ll shoot us if we tried.”

  “Shirts off, boys,” Renee said, way too much glee in her voice.

  A ton of grumbling accompanied the removal of our shirts. Once our chests were bared, every single one of us darted glances at each other to identify who had the most chest hair, and who was going to scream the loudest. I winced at seeing the thick pelt on Roger Cummings, one of our firefighters.