by Rachel Lyndhurst; Carmen Falcone; Ros Clarke; Annie Seaton; Christine Bell
She tossed the ruined fabric into the scrap pile she passed on her way to the kitchen. It was pie time. Those weeks with Owen might have ruined her for other men and two-hundred thread count sheets, but at least it hadn’t spoiled her love of crappy food.
The phone rang, startling her. She approached it slowly like she always did lately. Hoping it was Owen. Knowing it wasn’t. She peered down at the caller ID. Sarabeth. She considered picking up, but then let it go to voice mail. She wasn’t in the mood to talk right now. In the weeks since the incident, she’d kept in close contact with the young doctor. Sarabeth was still in shock about Nico and The Healing Place, and Lindy had certainly needed a shoulder to cry on after her blow up with Owen. They’d grown remarkably close during their nightly heart to hearts that often ended in tears but sometimes ended in laughter. If nothing else, in spite of her broken heart and Sarabeth’s decimated career, they’d each walked away from their experiences with a new friend. And God knew she needed one right now.
Resolving to call her back later, Lindy tiptoed into the kitchen, trying not to wake the sleeping puppies. Spying the pie on the counter, she winced when she saw that it was half gone already. She made a silent pledge to spend an extra thirty minutes on the treadmill, scooped up the box, and plucked a fork from the drawer. Why bother cutting a slice? She was alone and people who lived alone could eat straight out of the box if they wanted. Yay for perks.
Hot tears rushed to her eyes. She glanced at the clock and considered calling to check on Melba again. When Lindy had gotten back, the older woman had confided that she and Nate’s butcher, Russell, had fallen in love after a quarrel over the thickness of her olive loaf. He convinced her that they should discuss it over dinner, and three weeks later, he’d asked her to live in sin with him at his assisted living condo in Great Neck. In spite of Lindy’s concerns, Melba had said yes.
“I’ve been around a while, and I know what I know. Stanley is a good man and I’m not going to fool around playing coy while some other woman snatches him up. I don’t have all that much time left, and I want to enjoy every second of it.”
Lindy’s lips trembled into a watery smile at the memory. Melba was the best. She gave new meaning to the phrase “taking life by the balls,” and it wasn’t like they would never see each other again. They were meeting at the diner the following week for the early bird turkey-roll special. Everything was fine and this pity party had to stop.
As soon as she finished the pie.
She wiped the tears from her cheeks and let out a loud snuffle before shoveling a forkful of gooey pastry into her mouth. The sickly sweet and slightly tart gelatinous goo folded over her tongue, and she found herself wishing it could be used to spackle her shattered heart.
The rumble of what could only be a diesel engine interrupted her maudlin thoughts. Jeez, it sounded like an episode of Ice Road Truckers was setting up to film outside her house. What the heck was going on out there? She shuffled to the window and saw a giant flatbed truck sitting in her driveway covered by tarps. Must have the wrong house. She debated whether to go out and tell them so they didn’t ring her bell and wake the dogs, but then she glanced down at her cherry-stained Scooby Doo sweatshirt and decided against it. Hopefully they’d figured it out when they saw the house number on the door.
On her way back to the kitchen to put what was left of the pie away, an unsettling thought occurred to her. What if it wasn’t the wrong house? What if Mal had gotten involved in yet another far-fetched, get-rich-never scheme? All sorts of terrifying images ran through her mind and a frisson of fear skittered down her spine. What if he wanted them to open a mortuary and those tarps covered a dozen coffins? Or worse, a dozen customers…
She turned back and rushed out the door. Pie in hand, she ran down the stairs to the driveway in time to see a man leap down from the cab of the truck. “Hey, what’s all thi—” The words died on her lips as Owen turned to face her.
“Hey there.”
Her body went numb, but it had nothing to do with the frigid temperature. She clutched the pie closer to her chest, trying to alleviate the ache that had blown into a stabbing pain upon seeing his face. His gaze roamed over her from head to toe, and she resisted the urge to turn tail and run. Everyone knew that the first time you bumped into an ex you were supposed to make him regret losing out, and right now she looked like something the cat would’ve opted not to drag in. She’d made a karmic misstep along the way somewhere because the fickle wench had decided to pay her back in spades lately. To add insult to injury, he looked mouthwateringly gorgeous in his jeans and fisherman’s sweater, as always.
“Wh-what are you doing here?” she said when she was finally able to speak past the shock of seeing him again.
“I came to see you.”
“Is something wrong? I cashed the check. I hope that’s all right. I figured since we did catch Nic—”
“I’m not here about the check.”
“What then?”
Despite the fact that he looked gorgeous, something was different. The confidence he usually wore like a force field was nowhere to be found when he walked toward her.
His steps were hesitant, his body language unsure. “Is it too late?”
The question seemed like it was torn from him against his will. She tried to work out his meaning, but as he drew closer, she noted his face looked tired and drawn.
“Are you sick?” Dear God, what if it was something awful? Anxiety clawed at her and she reached out a hand to touch him before remembering that he wasn’t hers to touch. She snatched her hand back, and hurt clouded his eyes.
“No. Yes. No, not the way you mean. I just need to know the answer to the question. Is it too late?”
“Too late for what?” she asked dumbly, still searching his face for clues.
“For us? For me to have figured it out?” He dropped to one knee in front of her and her stomach followed.
Could this really be happening?
“Lindy, I screwed up. I screwed up bad. I didn’t know it, not really, until you were gone. Everything was gray. It was like what happened to my mother all over again. It terrified me until I realized something. I could live without you. I could throw myself into my work, socialize, and carve out some sort of life for myself. And, some day, when the memory of you faded a bit, I could be content with my lot.” His eyes beseeched her. “Then I realized that I don’t want to. I want to light up when you walk into a room. I want to fight with you, and be angry when you go down the mountain too fast. I want to risk it. Because I love you.”
He pulled a small velvet box from his pocket and held it out to her. “I know I’m not as brave as you are, but I’m willing to work at it every day. If you’ll have me, that is.” He flipped the lid up and looked her square in the eye. “Marry me, Lindy. Please.”
She stared sightlessly down at the box, tears obscuring her vision. “I’m holding a pie.”
Some color returned to his stark face at her inane declaration. “I see that.”
“Can I put it down?”
He gently plucked the box from her unresisting fingers and tossed it to the ground.
“Ask me again. Without the pie,” she demanded, knuckling the tears from her eyes and fluffing her hair.
A slow smile spread across his face. “Lindy, will you marry me?”
“I will. I absolutely will.” She sank to her knees and threw her arms around him on a sob. “I love you too. So much.”
“I’m sorry I’m so slowwitted. This week was hell, and I can only imagine how it went for you.” He directed a pointed glance to the now-smashed pie on the driveway between them.
“It doesn’t matter now. None of that matters.”
He leaned back and held out the jewelry box again. “Don’t you want to see the ring?”
She nodded and peered in to see a plain gold band. “It’s lovely, but it looks kind of big. I couldn’t care less, though. We can get it sized.” She snatched the ring and moved to slip it on, m
aking a mental note to take it off at bedtime until she had it fitted. Before she got it past the first knuckle, he took her hand to stop her.
“That one’s for me,” he murmured softly, tugging it from her finger. The weight of those words wasn’t lost on her and the tear factory started churning them out double-time.
“I l-love you s-so m-much.” Her sobs turned to semi-hysterical laughter as he removed the velvet padding from the box to reveal an oval diamond in an antique white gold setting. He slipped it on her finger and pressed a kiss to the spot right above it.
“Now come on, I’ve got a surprise for you.” He pulled her to her feet and led her toward the truck. “I couldn’t very well ask you to be the queen of my castle without making sure the royal mutts had a place to call their own.” He swept off the tarp with a flourish, revealing seven tiny doghouses, each hand-painted with the puppies’ names.
“We can keep them? All of them?” She’d been so sure she would be able to let them go when the time came. As she stared at the little red houses she realized that Owen had always known what she hadn’t. Giving even one of them away would have devastated her.
Her heart was so full. She patted her chest, muttering softy to herself as Owen pulled her close.
“Everything’s better than fine,” he whispered into her hair. “Everything is amazing.”
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Acknowledgments
Thanks to my Mom and Dad for having my back 100% of the time, still trying to give me gas money when I’m a spit away from my fortieth birthday, following me (and only me) on Twitter, and for being as excited about this journey as I am. You guys are the best.
Thanks to my family at home, Chip, Ryan, Allison, Justin, Sean and Spencer, for putting up with me when I’m in deadline-panic-flail mode and I make you clean the bathrooms and eat dinners from a box. You all rock and I love you dearly. (But you’re my favorite. You know who you are *wink*.)
Thanks to my awesome friend and tireless crit partner, Riley Murphy. Having you in my corner is an absolute privilege. Let’s take over the world.
Thanks to Alethea Spiridon Hopson, Editorial Director of the amazing Indulgence line, for your work on this book. I’m so pleased and proud to be part of this crew!
And last but not least, a million thanks to my amazing editor, Kerri-Leigh Grady. Your knack for finding the leaks amazes me, your trust in me to fix them humbles me, and your bawdy humor delights me. We’re having some serious frigging fun, aren’t we?
About the Author
Christine Bell is one half of the happiest couple in the world. She and her handsome hubby currently reside in Pennsylvania with a four-pack of teenage boys and their two dogs, Gimli and Pug. If she gets time off from her duties as maid, chef, chauffeur, or therapist, she can be found reading just about anything she can get her hands on, from young adult novels to books on poker theory. She doesn’t like root beer, clowns or bugs (except ladybugs, on account of their cute outfits), but lurrves chocolate, going to the movies, the New York Giants, and playing Texas Hold ’Em. Writing is her passion, but if she had to pick another occupation, she would be a pirate…or, like, a ninja maybe. She loves writing fun and adventure-filled romance stories, but also hopes to one day publish something her dad can read without wanting to dig his eyes out with rusty spoons.
Discover more category romance titles from Entangled Indulgence…
Southern Nights and Secrets
a Boys are Back in Town novel by Robin Covington
Being a doctor is everything to me, but I’m not going to let bureaucrats tell me how to practice medicine. It’s about saving lives no matter what, screw them and their paperwork. When the one woman I could never forget, Ginger Crawford, shows up as my boss all bets are off. The heat between us is tough to ignore but I have to if I want a future at this hospital. It isn’t easy. Every time we argue, I want her even more. But I’ve got secrets she can never know, and she’s always going to be way too good for me. So it’s best if she hates me…at least that’s what I keep telling myself.
Seducing the Tycoon
a novel by MK Meredith
Opening the family’s new hotel in Italy will mean heiress Chase Huntington gets to take over the hotel back in California, where she’s always felt was home. But tycoon Drago De Luca isn’t about to let that happen—the new American hotel will close down his beloved grandmother’s family inn. Getting close enough to the tempting, savvy heiress to convince her she needs to leave is his only way to save the inn. But as Chase falls head over Louboutins for Drago, and his true motive for spending so much time with her comes to light, it could destroy everything Chase built and everything she thought she found in Italy.
The Bachelor’s Promise
a Bachelor Auction novel by Naima Simone
Aiden Kent never expected to see Noelle Rana again. He’s determined to keep his distance from the beautiful enigma wrapped in denim and leather. He can’t trust anyone with the last name Rana. But he made a promise to his dying mother, and it isn’t long before Noelle invades his personal space. He can’t stop thinking about the exotic beauty’s alluring curves. He wants the daughter of his enemy, and he’s determined to have her…if only for one night.
The Prince’s Bride
a Modern Fairytale novel by Diane Alberts
Prince Leo can’t believe he’s finally found Alicia Forkes, the woman he’s loved for years. Unfortunately, she wants nothing to do with him. In fact, she’s cursing him to hell and back for breaking her heart when they were teens. But he’s determined to prove he’s her prince charming––even if that means letting her go.
Don’t miss the next book in the For Hire series…
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Also by Christine Bell
Reforming the Rock Star
Dare Me series
Down and Dirty
Down for the Count
Down the Aisle
Down on her Knees
Perfectly Matched series
Dirty Trick
Dirty Deal
Conned
Little White Lie
Holding Out for a Hero
