by Loraine, Kim
Blake chose that moment to call everyone’s attention to him as he rose and struck his glass with a fork.
“I’d like to propose a toast to the Peters family. Thank you for raising such a wonderful woman and welcoming me into your home, and I hope, your family.” He walked around the table to her side and took her free hand. “Valerie, I let you get away from me years ago. I don’t want to do that again. You’re the perfect woman for me.” He dropped to one knee and produced a ridiculously ostentatious engagement ring, causing everyone at the table to gasp. “Marry me?”
There she stood, literally pulled in different directions by two men. Donovan’s grip on her arm tightened as he hissed in a sharp breath, while Blake stared at her and slipped the heavy ring onto her finger. Her heart hammered against her ribcage like a trapped bird.
“Valerie?” Blake let out a nervous laugh. “An answer would be good here.”
“I . . . I need a minute.” She pulled free of the grasp of both men and bolted for the front porch.
She couldn’t breathe. The cold air hit her as she slammed the front door behind her. Sucking in great gulps of the frigid, late autumn air, she worked to calm herself. The quiet snick of the door opening and closing made her jump. She whirled around, not knowing who to expect, or who she wanted to see.
“Don’t do this, sweetheart.” Donovan’s voice was broken, thick with emotion.
“What do you want from me, Donovan? Seriously?” Exasperation got the better of her, stealing all control over her emotions. “You can’t just crash my family’s Thanksgiving and throw your hat back in the ring. I’m trying to move on. I’m healing. You broke me. Can’t you see that?”
He closed the distance between them and cupped her face in his warm hands. His moss-green eyes searched hers. “I know. I don’t deserve you, or another chance, but you can’t marry him.”
“I can do what I want. I’m certainly not marrying you.”
He winced and she instantly regretted her words. “I’m not going to beg you. Just know he’s not right for you. Maybe I’m not either, but that . . .” He gestured into the house. “. . . That man is completely wrong for you.”
“Says the man who’s just as wrong.”
With that, he dropped a kiss on the top of her head and walked to his jeep. He turned back to look at her once, halfway down the porch steps, and said sorrowfully, “I do love you.”
The front door opened and Blake popped his head outside. “Everything okay out here?” He cast a sidelong glance at the departing Donovan.
“Yes, it’s fine.”
“So, do you have an answer for me?”
“I’m going to need some time, Blake. It’s all just so fast.”
His lips turned down in a pout. “Don’t take too long. I don’t like being kept waiting.”
He took her hand and twisted the ring fondly as he led her into the house. Before the door closed, she took one last look at Donovan, standing dejectedly at his jeep, watching her.
Chapter 35
Why did he do this to himself? Donovan had spent the better part of the last two weeks punishing himself, swimming until his arms ached, just so he could have an excuse to see Valerie. Valerie, who was still wearing that ice rink on her left hand. He could only imagine what Dr. Zeman would say to him. Probably something along the lines of, you’re turning into a stalker.
Today, he had to force himself to go for a run, instead of going to the pool. He had duty—his first shift after being cleared by Dr. Zeman. He needed to be at his best, and seeing Valerie would not be good for his headspace. The good doctor had been impressed with his assertive attitude after he told her everything, except for the part about hiring a private investigator to dig for dirt on Blake. Somehow, he didn’t think she’d be supportive of that move.
His feet pounded the pavement, mile after mile, until he was drenched in sweat and his lungs burned. And there she fucking was, again. She sat outside a coffee shop in the morning sunlight, her breath visible in the cold. She twirled the engagement ring on her finger, took it off and put it back on again. Her face distorted by confusion.
She was really confused? Was she reconsidering? Please, God, let her be reconsidering.
He watched her from across the street, praying she wouldn’t notice him, as she stood and started pacing, carrying on a conversation with herself. The streets were empty, save for a few early morning coffee addicts. He leaned against the facade of the post office and pretended to be inspecting his phone while watching the woman he loved act like a crazy person.
His phone rang loudly, startling him and grabbing her attention.
“Shit, shit,” he muttered under his breath. He pulled his baseball cap down low and jogged away while answering his phone.
“Hello?”
“Donovan, it’s Colin.”
His stomach turned. “Did you find something?”
“You’d better sit down for this, man. Were you hoping to destroy this guy’s life, because that’s what’s about to happen if you open this can of worms.”
Valerie sat in the passenger side of Blake’s little red Mercedes. The weather was clear and cold, but he insisted on taking a drive with the top down before the rain set in for the rest of the week. The engagement ring sat like a lead balloon on her finger as they sped along the coast.
“I think you should move in with me. We can practice before the wedding, get used to sharing space.”
“Hmm,” she said absently as she stared at the coast. There were dozens of sailboats on the water, enjoying the clear air and steady breeze. She wondered fleetingly if Donovan was out there in his boat.
“You’ll need to put aside your school plans until after the wedding, of course. Mother has you booked solid, what with the dress shopping, planning, brunches, and society luncheons.”
That caught her attention. “I’m sorry?”
“Well, you’ll need to be introduced to society before the wedding. You’ve got a lot to learn about social graces.”
She didn’t want to put aside school for him, again, or to be introduced to society. And she hadn’t exactly said yes yet.
“Blake, this isn’t going to work.”
“Sure it will. If you insist on finishing school, we can get you into a better one after we’re married.”
“No. That’s not what I mean.”
He clenched his jaw, gripping the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white.
“I can’t marry you. It’s not what I want.”
He revved the engine and sped around a sharp curve. “What the fuck is your problem, Valerie?”
Her mouth dropped open in shock.
“I can give you everything. You’d never want for anything. I am a catch. You’ll never do as good as me again, ever.”
“I’m . . . I—”
“You’re what? In love with that ridiculous fireman?”
He swerved sharply, but regained control of the car.
“Blake, slow down. Let’s stop the car and we can talk.”
“Don’t fucking tell me what to do!” His foot pushed the pedal harder and the car careened along the curvy coastal highway.
“I. Am. In. Charge.” He annunciated each word clearly, making sure she knew her place.
They raced around another curve, all the while Blake’s eyes were on hers rather than the road. She shrieked at him to stop, to watch out, as a truck came into view, stalled across both lanes of traffic. He swerved in an attempt to avoid a collision, but it was too late. With a deafening crunch, the beautiful vintage car crashed into the truck. Her forehead smacked hard into the windshield, but her seatbelt kept her from flying through the glass.
All she knew was blinding pain and Donovan’s face before she slipped into oblivion.
First day ba
ck and he was being called out to a high-speed, head-on collision. Fucking hell. The engine pulled up to the scene and his stomach turned. A sporty little ostentatious convertible wrapped around an old beast of a farm truck.
“Klipper, what do we know about the scene?” He practically screamed the words over the roar of blood in his ears.
“Driver and passenger are unconscious according to the 9-1-1 call. Aide car is en route.”
Fuck. He stepped off the rig and assessed the area before heading over to the wreckage. His heart stopped when he saw the occupants of the car, both bloodied and unconscious. One male—one a blond female.
“Fuck,” he breathed, his heart hammering as he sent up a prayer for the woman in Blake’s car to be anyone, but Valerie. The driver of the truck was walking around on his cell phone. He was more than likely the one who’d called 9-1-1. Klipper attended to cell phone man, while Donovan rushed to the passenger side of the ruined sports car.
Blake moved and groaned as he pushed the deflated airbag away. “Valerie? Oh, my God, Valerie?” His voice was panicked as Donovan approached.
Donovan’s heart kicked into overdrive when he heard Blake call her name. Ignoring Blake’s needs entirely, he focused on the love of his life, bleeding and broken in front of him.
“Sweetheart? Sweetheart, can you hear me? It’s Donovan, baby. Can you move?” His voice trembled as he spoke to her, willing her to answer him.
Valerie stirred, her hair a matted and bloody mess. “Oh, God. My head.”
“Where do you hurt?”
“I told you, my fucking head.”
“Anywhere else? Can you move?”
She opened her beautiful aqua eyes and peered at him. “What happened?”
“You’ve been in a car accident. The ambulance is on its way. Let’s get you out of here, okay, sweetheart?”
“Don’t call me sweetheart,” she managed to say as she winced. The wail of a siren pierced the air around them and Donovan breathed a sigh of relief as the paramedics jumped out of the aid car.
“Female, twenty-five, laceration to the scalp. She was unconscious when we arrived on scene, but regained consciousness a moment ago. She’s complaining of pain in her head.” He looked down at her, a grin spreading across his lips. “We’ve got to stop meeting like this.”
The paramedics began assessing her, putting her on a spine board and checking her vitals. He watched with his heart in his throat.
“Is she going to be all right?” Blake’s voice wobbled as he stepped out of the car, unscathed, save a bad case of whiplash.
Donovan rounded on him. “What the fuck did you do? She could have died. From the tire tracks out here, it looks as if you were swerving like a crazy fucker.”
Blake sat on the grass at the side of the road, head hanging down.
“I didn’t want to hurt her.”
“You’re going to stay the fuck away from her and her family. Do you understand me?”
A vile and angry look twisted Blake’s features. “No one tells me what to do. I’ll see who I want.”
“You almost killed her today. Don’t you think you’ve taken away enough from them already?”
Blake’s face paled. “What are you talking about?”
“Simon.”
“How . . . how do you know about that?”
“I hired a private detective while I was in Annapolis. I didn’t trust you, but I didn’t think you had this in you.”
“You, you can’t tell her.”
“I won’t have to. You’re going to turn yourself in.”
Blake shook his head. “I’ll be ruined. There’s no statute of limitations in Virginia for hit and runs.”
“I’ve got information that can put you and your parents away for a long time, Blake. I’m pretty sure the police would be interested to find out that the Monroe family paid a lot of money to some pretty terrible people to get you out of trouble. Better for you to confess and leave them out of it.”
“You can’t.”
He lowered his face to mere inches from Blake’s. “You killed her little brother before you even met her. Then you what, felt guilty? Needed to make her love you so you’d feel better about what you’d done?”
“I . . .”
Valerie’s soft gasp pulled his attention from Blake. “Blake? You killed Simon?”
A pitiful look passed over Blake’s face as he tried to come up with something to say to her.
“The car accident you were in, was that it? You left right after your parents met me. It’s because they knew who I was, isn’t it?”
“They said it’d be too risky. I love you, Valerie. I’m so sorry.” Blake reached for her, but she slapped his hands away.
“Get away from me. You’re a murderer!” she screamed, startling the paramedics, police, and rubberneckers who’d gathered at the scene.
Donovan wrapped her in his arms, placing gentle kisses on her temple.
“Shh, sweetheart. It’ll be okay.” He threw a disdainful look at Blake and walked Valerie back to the aid car. “I’ll be right back.”
He walked to the nearest police officer and got her attention with a quick tap on the shoulder. “Excuse me, Officer Yeager. That man over there, he’d like to confess to a pretty serious crime. I think he’s ready to give a statement.”
He left Blake with Officer Yeager and headed straight for Valerie. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she fought with her cell phone. He reached out and took the phone from her with a gentle hand.
“Who do you need to call, sweetheart?”
She turned watery eyes to him. “My mom.”
He scrolled through her contacts and dialed her mom’s cell number. Once it began ringing, he handed it back to her and walked away, giving her the privacy he knew she would want.
Chapter 36
“I can’t believe Blake is the one responsible for Simon.” Angela sat next to Valerie in the all-too-familiar hospital bed.
She felt sick, violated, humiliated. How could she have been in love with the man responsible for her baby brother’s death?
“I think I’m going to be sick.” She lurched for the ugly kidney-shaped pan and emptied the contents of her stomach.
“Nice.” Angela held back her hair as she continued to retch and cough. “Are you okay?”
She wiped her mouth with the tissue Angela offered. “No. How could I not know?”
“Umm, because the asshole is a liar. A rich liar. What a terrible combination.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be in the studio?”
Angela looked down at her, a sweet smile on her face. “Valerie, you were just in a terrible car accident and found out your almost-fiancée is the person who killed our little brother in a hit and run. I’m pretty sure the studio can wait.”
“Where’s Mom and Dad?”
“They were here earlier, when you were having your CT scan. The police needed to talk to them about Simon.”
Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks, but she pushed them away, grabbing her sister’s hand instead.
“Donovan was there.”
“Yeah, I know. He called me when you were being transported.”
“Really?” She hated the desperation in her voice.
“He loves you. You love him.”
“It’s not that simple. He won’t tell me things, he’s got serious issues.”
Angela let out an annoyed sigh. “God, you’re making it too complicated. He’ll tell you everything if you just give him a chance.”
“I have!”
Her head hurt, her stomach roiled, and she really just wanted to sleep for a hundred years. “Can we go home?”
Angela pressed the Nurse Call button on the bed and waited, “I’ll see wh
at I can do.”
Donovan was waiting for her in Angela’s living room. Of course he had a key. Those two were thick as thieves. They’d given her a cocktail of medications to manage the pain and her anxiety. They were magical, giving her a light and relaxed feeling.
“Hi, sweetheart.” He stood, moving toward her, covering her in his scent as his arms wrapped around her.
Drunkenly, she pushed away from him. “Stop it. I’m still supposed to be mad at you.”
The crestfallen look on his face broke her heart.
“Valerie, I need to hold you.” He moved to take her in his arms again and this time she let him. He smelled so good.
“Donovan, I love you so much. So much more than I thought,” she said, swaying on her feet as she looked up at his beautiful face. “I want to marry you.”
He smiled down at her. It was the kind of look you would give a small, sleepy child. “You do, huh?”
“Mmm-hmm. And we can spend our lives making babies.”
He choked on a laugh. “And just how many babies are we going to make?”
She leaned into him, brushing her lips over his jaw. “I don’t know, five or six. We’ll have to practice a lot.”
“It would seem like it.”
She gave him her best, come hither glance and whispered, “Should we start now?”
His eyebrows shot up and she watched him fight with himself momentarily. “Not today, sweetheart.”
He scooped her up in his arms and took her back to her bed.
“Don’t leave me. I’m not as good when you’re gone,” she mumbled.
He nodded. “I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart. I’ll be here when you’re ready.”
