Heart & Soul: A Guitar Girl Contemporary Inspirational Romance (A Guitar Girl Romance Book 3)

by Hope Franke

  “You think it’s okay to eat these?” she asked.

  “The leaves?”

  “Yeah. I’m not familiar with English forests. A lot can be poisonous.”

  Callum’s eyes scoured the ground. “Look for clover.”

  He clearly meant the three-leaf variety and not Lennon’s ex.

  Gabriele crouched low. “Here’s some.”

  A batch grew at the base of a tree. She plucked a fist full for Callum, who accepted the offering with an outreached hand. Then she picked a few for herself and stuffed them in her mouth. It tasted like alfalfa grass.

  “Do you think they’re going to come looking for us again?” she asked.

  Callum nodded. “We should get going. We have to get help. Find a phone. If we don’t…”

  He didn’t have to finish. Gabriele knew. An assassination would take place that would greatly undermine the tenuous peace currently present in the Middle East. Possibly begin a war.

  Gabriele tucked herself in under his arm. She felt completely comfortable there, she acknowledged. She couldn’t deny her attraction to him. And not because of his resemblance to Lennon. He wasn’t Lennon in any way but looks. He was forceful and focused. He had strong opinions and approached life with a fierce fearlessness she admired.

  They could be good for each other.

  It felt counterintuitive to head back in the direction of the farm house but that was also the way to the road, and they had to find it if they hoped to flag anyone down.

  Except she couldn’t tell if they were going in the right direction. The forest was a repeating pattern of trees and fallen leaves. The low cloud cover distributed the morning light, and it wasn’t clear under the canopy of thick branches which way the sun was rising. And even if she could get her inner compass sorted, she didn’t actually know where the farmhouse was since they’d escaped in the dark.

  Gabriele’s mind was foggy with sleep deprivation and her throat burned from thirst. She listened for road noises and thought she heard a lorry rumble in the distance. She turned Callum towards the noise.

  She grunted under his weight. Her shoulders ached, and she strained her back and legs. Callum’s breathing was quick and shallow, and his face was covered in a sweaty sheen. His knees buckled and he almost pulled her to the ground.

  “Callum?” He was pale and the bandaging on his bare shoulder was blood soaked.

  “I’m slowing us down,” he said. “You need to go without me.”

  Anxiety lodged in her throat. She couldn’t bear to leave him, but he was right. She could cover ground and get help much more quickly on her own. She helped him settle in against the trunk of a tree and gathered brush around him to conceal him.

  She wished they had some water. She scoured the area and gathered up more clover. “Here. Eat these. I’ll be back as fast as I can.”

  She kissed him on the lips, lingering for just a moment before running off.

  Gabriele’s feet caught in the debris of the autumn forest floor, snagging in loose branches and stumbling on uneven terrain. Her lungs heaved until she had to stop, bend at the hips and suck in air. She ran her tongue along dry lips and folded her arms around her stomach. She couldn’t remember when she last ate. Spots swam in front of her eyes.

  The faint grumble of intermittent vehicle engines motivated her to keep going. She was almost at the road. The whoosh of her own loud breaths filled her ears as she broke through the forest into the tall grass of the field. Gabriele could see the road. She sprinted with her last bit of energy and then cried out as her body slammed onto the ground. Her ankle screamed with pain. She’d been so focused on the roadway ahead, she didn’t see the hole in the ground in front of her. She let out a groan as she lifted herself into a seated position to examine it. Already, the swelling was severe.

  Gabriele hopped onto her good leg and yelped when she tried to put weight on her injured foot. She hopped two steps before falling. Tears ran down her face. The pain was extreme but the thought that she was this close to the road but too far to flag for help was intolerable. She shifted her weight to her forearms and dragged herself through the grass, wincing with every drag of her bad ankle.

  The hard stalks of dry grass bit her flesh, but she forged on, nearing the ditch. She heard a car approach. If she could just get to the curb before it passed by.

  Then it stopped.

  A car wouldn’t stop without first being flagged down on this stretch of road unless it was driven by someone looking for something.

  She ducked into the grass, hoping it concealed her.

  Gabriele’s heart thudded in her ears. If they spotted her…

  She kept still, making herself as flat as she could. She had to let them look for Callum if she hoped at all to escape their notice and find help.

  She could only pray they wouldn’t find him first.

  A voice called out. “Callum?”

  Gabriele closed her eyes. Please don’t see me.

  “Agent Jones, it’s me, Rebani.”

  Rebani. Gabriele overheard something about an agent working on the inside of the terrorist cell. That was what they called him. Wasn’t it?

  Wasn’t it?

  If she revealed her position, and he wasn’t on their side, she and Callum were dead.

  Rebani started toward the forest, his back away from her. He held a phone to his ear and his voice carried. “I don’t see him. No, he’s not with the cell. I’m here without their knowledge. No sign of Gabriele Baumann yet, either. I was informed this morning that Agent Jones had been shot. I’m requesting a medic.”

  Gabriele blinked hard. Rebani was talking to the grid.

  “Agent Rebani!” she called, “Over here!”

  Rebani swiveled, and his eyes widened. “I found Ms. Baumann. I’ll call you back.”

  Agent Rebani approached. He had short black hair, brown skin and a determined look in his dark eyes.

  “Gabriele Baumann?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you injured?”

  “My ankle. I twisted it.”

  “Where is Agent Jones? Is he okay?”

  “He’s alive.” At least she hoped he still was. “I had to leave him in the forest to get help.” She gave him directions as best she could.

  “Oh, there’s something you need to know,” she said, holding Rebani’s gaze. “The Israeli jet is a target today.”

  “Today?”

  “Yes, the Prime Minister flies out on a private jet at 16:00, right?”

  Rebani nodded slowly.

  “Jabour knows.”

  “I’m going to ring headquarters. Will you be all right if I leave you? Help is on its way.”

  She nodded. “Yes. Go.”

  CALLUM’S EYES SNAPPED OPEN. He took in his foreign surroundings: the dimly lit florescent lighting, the white curtain pulled around his bed, the IV pole with a line running to the vein that bulged on the inside of his elbow.

  Memories from the last twenty-four hours flooded his mind. He and Gabriele had been chased, captured and tied up. He’d been shot. Twice.

  Gabriele. The fear etched on her face.

  A gun pointed at her head.

  He closed his eyes as his body felt the echo of his terror. He could’ve lost her.

  And he’d sent her off on her own to fetch help. A million horrible things could’ve gone wrong. He hated that he’d put her in so much danger and vowed never to do it again.

  A middle-aged nurse with flushed cheeks came with breakfast. She laid the tray on the table and swung it over the bed. Callum pushed a button that raised the back of the bed until he was in a sitting position.

  He thanked her and asked, “How is Gabriele Baumann? The girl who came in with me yesterday?”

  “She’s fine.” She grabbed his wrist to take his pulse. “Better than you. I suspect she’ll be released sometime later today.”

  Callum smiled at her, relieved to hear the news.

  Paula was the first to visit him, not long after he’
d eaten. She pulled up a chair next to the IV stand and sat straight-backed. She wore her standard blue suit, and her hair was tied back in a simple ponytail.

  “You look well, considering,” she said.

  “Thanks,” Callum muttered.

  He’d briefed her on the events the evening before, but she came with more clarifying questions, which he answered to the best of his ability. Then she surprised him with a comment and a question about Gabriele.

  “Normally, we’d approach her ourselves,” she continued, “but in light of your… relationship with her, we thought we’d give you a chance to submit an opinion.”

  His back stiffened. “No, I don’t like it. I don’t agree. My vote is no.”

  Paula jerked at the force of his words. “I see. Well, then, we’ll table the idea.” She pushed the chair back and, to Callum’s relief, changed the subject. “How are you feeling?”

  Like crap. He had a hole in his shoulder and a chunk of flesh missing from his thigh where the last bullet had clipped him. He’d arrived dehydrated with moderate hypothermia, which the IV and warm blankets had taken care of thankfully.

  “I’m fine. A little sore, but the painkillers are working. I had breakfast and kept it down. I’m on the mend.”

  “Good.” Paula stood to leave. “Take as much time as needed to recover. Ring me when you think you’re ready to come back to work.” She paused at the door. “You are coming back?”

  Callum grunted. “Yes.”

  The door swung shut behind Paula, and a moment later there was another knock. Gabriele poked in her head. “Are you up for a visitor?”

  Her green eyes latched onto his. She looked freshly showered and wore clothes he hadn’t seen before. Her face was scratched and bruised, and he noted the thin, red marks on her arms and hands.

  His heart flipped at the sight of her. She was something he wanted but couldn’t have. A beautiful torment.

  “Come in,” he said.

  Gabriele pulled up the chair that had recently been vacated by Paula to the side of his bed. She stared at him with an intensity that unnerved him. The way she felt about him was written all over her face, and he hated what he was about to do.

  “You look… better,” she said.

  “Doc says another couple days on my back here, then I should be good to go.”

  “Back to work?”

  “Eventually.”

  She took his hand and pressed it to her face, and he almost lost his resolve. Her skin was so soft, and she smelled like dew. Her dark hair fell over her eyes, and she pushed it behind her ears. She swallowed like she was trying to gain the courage to say something that frightened her.

  “Callum, I’m so glad you are okay. Yesterday, after the van had run us off the road and that man held you at gunpoint, I was terrified that I was about to watch you die. Everything happened so fast, but in that moment, in that millisecond, I knew I…”

  Callum’s chest tightened with dread. Please don’t say it. Please don’t say it.

  Their eyes locked and Gabriele whispered, “Ich liebe dich.”

  The oxygen whisked out of the room. Gabriele’s eyelids fluttered, growing glassy with her declaration. She squeezed his hand, waiting for him to respond.

  He inhaled deeply and forced himself to tear his eyes away from her. “You’re just caught up in the moment, Gabriele. We’ve lived through a very emotional crisis. Of course it will make us feel bonded.” He glanced back at her. “But that doesn’t mean you love me.”

  Her face fell, and she flushed red with embarrassment as if Callum had just slapped her. He felt like an ass.

  She clasped her hands on her lap. “I think I know my own mind, Mr. Leatherby or Mr. Jones or Mr. whoever-you-think-you-are. If you really want me to leave England, I’ll leave. Just say it.”

  Callum applied a blank, emotionless expression. He pushed against the desire threatening to take over his will. He almost reached for her, almost pulled her to his chest so he could breath in her hair. So he could kiss her deeply.

  Instead, he forced himself to do something he knew he’d hate himself for forever. He stared at her and said, “I want you to leave.”

  GABRIELE FELT LIKE SUCH AN IDIOT—duped twice by two brothers! She really thought Callum had shared the feelings she’d developed for him. The way he’d looked at her. Stroked her hair. Kissed her lips.

  Had it all been a put on?

  She ground her back teeth to subdue the anger that burned in her chest. She took the bar rag and cleaned the tables in Callahan’s Irish Pub. After Callum’s heartless dismissal, Gabriele had decided she would sell the cottage and go back to Dresden. She’d had enough of the Leatherby family and couldn’t wait to distance herself from them.

  But once she returned to Emsworth, she found she wasn’t so eager to go. The seascape soothed her nerves, and the truth was, she didn’t relish the idea of moving back in with her parents. She needed her independence, and the fastest way to obtain that was to sell the cottage. A quick trip to a nearby realty office got the ball rolling, and within a couple of days, a For Sale sign was hung on both the street side and ocean side of the little house. Gabriele decided it would be worth staying until it sold, that way she could make sure it was clean and presentable. Leaving it locked up and empty wasn’t a good idea.

  Except that it didn’t sell. Her realtor told her it was a bad time of year for selling seaside properties, but she was certain it would get snapped up in the spring.

  Which meant she would stay until spring. Which meant she needed a job. Fortunately, her EU passport allowed her to work in England and equally fortuitous was the sudden opening at Callahan’s when one of their waitresses quit suddenly, running off to Spain to elope with a guy she’d met on the internet.

  Gabriele had been working at Callahan’s for two of the five weeks she’d been back in Emsworth. She was grateful for the work and for the distraction. Ciara was becoming a friend, and Riley Callahan was a great boss.

  The days were manageable with hardly a tear shed. It was a different story in the evenings when she returned to her empty cottage alone. The nights were long and lonely and she’d gone through more than her fair share of tissue boxes. Every morning and every night she’d look over at the house next door and wonder if Callum had come back. The darkened house was a daily disappointment, and she finally kicked herself in the butt and told herself in no uncertain terms to get over him!

  “You’re going to rub a hole straight through that table.”

  Ciara’s voice pulled Gabriele out of her miry thoughts. “Oh, yeah.”

  “Is everything all right? You were somewhere else.”

  Gabriele glanced at Ciara. Her red hair was tied back in its usual messy knot. Her eyes were friendly, but she squinted with concern. Gabriele would’ve loved to tell Ciara everything. It would feel great to unburden herself.

  But everything about Lennon and Callum was secret or classified and her personal involvement with both brothers was embarrassing. She forced a smile and shook her head. “I’m fine. Just daydreaming.” She turned to Ciara, wanting to change the subject. “Are you going home for Christmas?”

  “Ey. Christmas is a big deal for the Callahan clan. I couldn’t opt out if I wanted to. You?”

  “Yes. For a few days.” Christmas was a special celebration for her family as well, and she wouldn’t want to miss it. Last year had been deeply painful, being the first one since Lennon passed away, and this one would prove to be tough as well, but not as tough. Gabriele hoped each one would continue to get easier. She did miss her family, and she loved the German traditions surrounding the holiday.

  “Ireland looks like such a beautiful place,” Gabriele said. “I’ve always wanted to go there.”

  “Ah, you should go,” Ciara said with a sparkle in her eye. “It’s wonderful.”

  Gabriele straightened the condiment tray. “Then why’d you leave?”

  Ciara paused and darted her eyes away from Gabriele. Gabriele could sense ther
e was a story coming and waited.

  “There was a lad I fancied. We were together for four years, and I really loved him. I believed he loved me. On the night I thought he was going to propose, he broke up with me instead. Turns out he’d found himself another girl in the next village and apparently I was the last to know. I was crushed and humiliated. It hurt too much to be there. So I left.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Gabriele said kindly. “If it’s any consolation. I know exactly how you feel.”

  Sorrow flashed behind Ciara’s eyes. “Is there a girl left on the earth that isn’t nursing a broken heart?”

  Gabriele pouted, then smiled, hoping to lighten the mood. The bell rang and Clover Swift entered with her on-again boyfriend Rupert. Gabriele took a deep breath. It was her job to take their orders. She returned to the bar to replace the cloth in the sink and grabbed her order pad. Riley was there, removing the tray from the cash register. He’d heard the bell as well and had paused in the middle of what he was doing to watch Clover and Rupert get seated. His gaze remained fixed on the blond until he realized that Gabriele was standing beside him, waiting to get through the narrow space.

  “Oh, sorry,” he said, looking like he got caught doing something he didn’t want anyone to know he was doing.

  Like pining for another guy’s girlfriend?

  He moved to the end of the bar, but he couldn’t keep his eyes from darting to the table across the room.

  Ciara returned with a tray of clean glasses.

  “Does your brother fancy her?” Gabriele asked, gesturing between Riley and Clover.

  Clover lowered her voice. “Another sad tale of unrequited love. My poor brother has had a thing for Clover Swift since he first moved to town. She’s always been involved with one bloke or another and never seems to notice Riley. It doesn’t help that he clams up and hides whenever she’s around. His nerves get the best of him, poor lad.” She arched a brow in warning. “You never heard it from me.”

  Gabriele grinned and patted her arm. “My lips are sealed.”