by Kyra Jacobs
Brittney’s gaze flashed to Liam, her brows drawn in a confused V. Rather than defend her, Liam slipped free of her grip and took a step forward.
“I have no idea what you’re up to, Steph, but if you said anything to hurt my—”
“Image? Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it.” She waved him off. “No, you do that quite well all on your own.”
Miles cleared his throat. “Uh, Steph? We really should go before the storm hits.”
Liam’s scowl deepened. “Brittney? Why don’t you go and freshen up before we head into the ballroom, hmm?”
She threw Liam a petulant look but complied. Stephanie waved farewell to her, and after a moment of indecision, Brittney waved back. The minute she was out of sight, Liam turned a furious look upon Miles.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“Supporting Stephanie and her new career,” Miles said. “Though, she didn’t really need me. Five minutes in, she had the whole room eating out of her hand.”
“And bashing me, no doubt.”
Stephanie snorted. “For your information, your name didn’t come up once. Why talk about you, when the sponsors were more interested in wooing me?”
“Wooing you?” Liam’s gaze flashed to Miles. “What is she talking about?”
“It seems the powers that be liked what your beautiful ex-wife did with the FITS program in Florida, and they’d like her help in building another one up here.”
“That was my program,” Liam said in a hiss. The scent of expensive scotch filled the space between them. “My name was what brought in the big sponsors, paid for the program.”
“Pfft. Wake up, Liam. They used your pretty face on their billboards, but it was my blood, sweat, and tears that got the program off the ground. Mine, not yours. And everyone but you seems to know that.”
“I don’t know what the hell’s gotten into you, Steph, but—”
Miles stepped forward. “Watch your tone, man. Stephanie didn’t do anything wrong.”
“So now you’re on her side?”
“You’re drunk, Fitzpatrick. Back off.”
Liam smirked. “Right, and what if I don’t, pretty boy? Your muscle head cousin isn’t around to protect you tonight.”
A movement flashed at Stephanie’s side. One moment Liam was standing before them with a sneer on his face, then next he was on the floor with one hand over his nose squealing like a little pig.
“You punched me?” Expletives followed in a nasally tone. “You bastard, I can’t believe you punched me!”
“Seems I don’t need my cousin here to defend me after all.” Miles turned his back on the drama king and offered Stephanie his arm. “Shall we?”
“Yes, let’s. I think we’ve both earned ourselves some dessert.” She took his arm and cast one last look at her pathetic ex, feeling a million times stronger than when they’d first walked in. “Maybe enough to last the whole night through.”
…
Miles pulled out of the parking lot then set about to loosening his bowtie. He couldn’t wait to peel off this monkey suit and let the victory celebrations begin. Stephanie had done it. She’d faced the ghosts of her past and sent them running. And popping Liam square in the nose had felt pretty good, too. He just hoped he hadn’t bruised his fist too much in the process. The last thing he wanted was anything to interfere with his time with Stephanie tonight.
“You didn’t have to punch him, you know. Though, it was rather sexy of you, defending my honor and all.”
Miles chuckled. “My pleasure. Of course, you can show me just how sexy you thought that was back at my place.”
“Oh, I fully intend to.”
Her hand lit on his knee, and Miles swallowed hard. If the weather wasn’t such a mess, he’d be tempted to pull off onto one of the back roads and lay the seats down now. But between the hard rain and swirling wind, he didn’t dare chance it. Besides, they had all night.
Though, just how many more nights like this they’d have together was left to be seen. Stephanie was due to check out on Saturday, and once she’d gone he would be off scouting for apartments in Columbus. If he got the job, that was. Though, sitting here now with Steph beside him, riding high from their latest adventure together, a new reality began to dawn on him. One where he didn’t leave town, and she moved back.
“You still have my cell?” he asked.
“Yep.” Stephanie dug into her purse. “Kept it safe and dry for you.”
“Thanks.”
“No problem.” She sighed. “We did it.”
He turned off the highway, squinting into the darkness ahead. Two more turns and they’d be home. To his surprise, whatever nasty weather had been predicted seemed to be dissipating. The rain was already beginning to lighten. This must be my lucky day.
“No, you did it. I was just there for the beer and free food.”
She batted a hand at him. “Oh, stop. If you hadn’t been there, I would have ended up hiding in the bathroom all night.”
“Or getting thrown out for punching that Tiffany chick.”
“Yeah, maybe so.” Stephanie laughed. “Thank you, for being there for me tonight. And, you know, agreeing to the whole fake engagement thing.”
“For you, Steph? I’d do just about anything.”
“Just about?”
“Hey, a guy’s got his limits.”
He forced a smile, guilt weighing heavy on his heart. He’d fallen for her all over again this week, though he’d told himself not to. A lost cause, since being around her always seemed to bring out the best in him. Which would only make leaving her that much harder.
But what if he didn’t go? What if he didn’t get the job, or turned down the job if he did, and chose to stay put? Would she stick around, take a chance on him?
He glanced her way, the faint glow from his dashboard casting an angelic glow on her beautiful face. Miles had missed his chance all those years ago to lay his heart on the line. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t still give it a try.
“Steph, can I ask you something?”
She met his gaze with a smile. “Sure, what’s that?”
Miles swallowed hard. He could do this. Heck, with her at his side, he could do anything. “I know this whole arrangement was supposed to be temp—”
The cell phone in her hands began to vibrate, its screen aglow from an incoming call.
“Freddie?” she said, pressing a button. “Freddie Boering from CMU? How the heck are you?”
Oh, no.
Miles reached for the phone, but she leaned out of reach, ignoring him.
“Yep, it’s me. Yeah, he’s here. Congratulate him? Oh, wait. Hang on, I’ll put you on speakerphone.”
Miles swiped for the phone a second time. “No, Steph, that’s not a good—”
“Miles? You there, man?”
Sweat formed at his hairline. “Uh, yeah. Hey, listen, now’s not exactly a good time to talk. Can I give you a call later?”
“Not a good time? Buddy, you only get job offers like this once in a lifetime. I just got off the phone with Rozario. You’re in.”
“Job…offer?” Stephanie’s gaze flashed to his, confusion on her face.
Miles looked away, feeling like the world’s biggest jerk. “Great, thanks for that.”
He reached for the phone, and met no resistance from her this time as he took it and switched off the speakerphone. “Look, I’ll have to call you later.”
“Sorry, man.” Freddie laughed. “Didn’t mean to interrupt anything. Call me when you’re finished, and we’ll discuss the offer. Congrats again.”
Miles ended the call and tossed his phone into the center console. Finished. Oh, yeah. When Steph found out where this job was, they’d be finished, all right.
“So…you’re leaving the Checkerberry?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?” she laughed. “According to Freddie, you’d be a fool not to with whatever job he’s helped you nab. So, where’s it at?”
/> Miles sighed. He owed her the truth, though he dreaded the reaction that would follow. “Techworks International.”
“Techworks? Never heard of them. Is that some new company in town?”
“No. It’s in Columbus. Ohio.”
“You’re taking a job in Ohio?” she asked, her voice rising.
“It’s not a done deal.”
“Not a done deal? They just made an offer! How long ago did you interview for it?”
Miles grimaced. “Monday.”
“This past Monday? Is that why you were late to mine?” She shook her head. “How could you? Y-you led me on all week, confessed your supposed feelings toward me, and all the while you were planning your exit strategy? Of all the low down—”
“I didn’t lie to you about my feelings.”
“No? Well, you sure as hell did about your intentions.”
“My intentions?” Miles raked a hand through his hair. “Look, none of this was planned, okay? And nothing’s been decided. And for the record, I tried to bring it up the other night but you—”
“Oh, no you don’t.” She thrust a finger in his direction, eyes narrowed to mere slits. “Don’t you dare try and blame any of this on me, Miles David Masterson. I am done being the excuse. Do you hear me? Never again. Now pull over.”
“Why, so you can storm off again?” He didn’t mean to shout, but damn it if she wasn’t fanning the flames of his temper with her own. “If I didn’t know any better, Steph, I’d say you were becoming quite the diva.”
“Sounds like you just did.”
Her voice went ice cold, and the temperature in the car dropped ten degrees along with it. Miles had been on the receiving end of that tone only a handful of times in his life, but enough to know what it meant. She’d shut down. Closed herself off and was done listening for tonight. Too bad he wasn’t done talking.
“I’m not pulling over.”
“Then take me back to the inn.”
She crossed her arms in silence, her face turned away. Panic laced around his chest as Miles couldn’t decide if he wanted to punch something or plead for forgiveness. Yes, he should have told her. Sure, he’d held back, thinking he was doing her a favor by sparing her from anything serious. But in truth he’d been too big a coward to bring it up and risk losing her.
Stomach in knots, he pulled onto the Checkerberry’s drive instead of his own and parked as close to the door as possible. Stephanie lurched for the door latch before the car had completely stopped, but Miles caught her arm.
“Wait. Just…hear me out, okay? What you do from there is up to you.”
She lowered her hand from the door but refused to meet his gaze. It was a start, anyway.
“Look, I’ve been stuck here for years. Not able to grow my career, spread my wings, because somehow I ended up inheriting the role of family patriarch. Every day I wake up worrying about Ruby, or the inn, or both. Up until a few months ago, Brent was a huge worry for me, too. But he’s good now. Great, actually, and he’s got Kayla. Ruby has them both, too.
“Freddie called just before you checked in, telling me about this great opportunity. And, well, for the first time in forever, I had a chance to chase after my dreams. My family doesn’t need me like they used to, so I jumped at Freddie’s offer. I never expected you to come back to town, or for us to have a second chance. At the time, you weren’t part of the equation. But now…”
“You don’t think your family needs you?”
“Not like they did, no. Brent’s getting ready to propose to Kayla any day now, which means they’ll be trying to start a family soon. And when the next generation of Mastersons arrives—”
“You’ll be gone. Gone, and miss all of it.”
“I know.” He dropped his head back on the headrest. Why? Why hadn’t this offer come when he was dying to leave town? Not now, when things were just starting to turn around for them all? “I can still turn down the offer, you know. Stay here with them. With you.”
“No.” Her voice was softer now, the fight in it having faded away. With a sigh she reached up to cup his cheek, a sad smile upon her beautiful face.
“Go on your adventure, Miles. Get it out of your system. This itch to leave you’re feeling? It’s wanderlust. I know—it consumed me, too, once upon a time. So go do your thing, try a new life on for size. But don’t ever think they don’t need you, because they always will. That’s what families do.”
She stretched to press a soft kiss to where her hand had been, then pushed the passenger door open. Outside, the rain had diminished to a steady drizzle. Miles’s heart lodged itself in his throat. He swallowed hard, hating to see her go but feeling like her departure now was inevitable.
“Where does that leave us?”
She paused with one foot out the door and looked back, a weary smile on her perfect lips. “I’ve always been terrible at geography, you know. But my guess is a few hundred miles apart.”
Stephanie’s gaze shifted to the inn’s broad porch rather than meet his again. “It seems we both have some work to do, figuring out who we are and who we’d like to be.”
Pain like Miles had never felt before seared him at her words and the finality of it all. He was scared. Terrified, really. Unsure of what to say or how to fix things. This wasn’t how endings happened in the movies, without the obligatory happily ever after.
Then again, since when had his life ever gone that way?
The image of his parents, miserably married for thirty-plus years came to mind, and whatever fight left in him crumbled. He couldn’t do that to Stephanie. She’d been through enough as it was already. This she could mend from—the small smile on her face said as much. But to beg her to stay, to tie her down in the midst of his own uncertainties, would only made the pain that much greater when things eventually did fall apart. Because that’s the way love worked—it always fell apart.
“I never meant to hurt you, Steph.”
“I know.” She turned to meet his gaze now, the anger gone. “And I don’t blame you for anything. I needed this week far more than you know. Maybe we both did.”
Miles nodded in silence, afraid that if he spoke now, he’d say something to ruin their amicable parting. Like beg her to stay, or to reconsider, or—
“See ya around, Masterson.” She winked and stepped out into the rainy night.
Miles sat there, dumbstruck, watching her go. She was leaving, walking away without a single look back…and taking his heart right along with her. He watched until she stepped inside, disappearing from view, certain that was the last he would see of Stephanie Fitzpatrick. His one true love.
“‘Bye, Steph,” he whispered.
Chapter Eighteen
Stephanie loaded the last of her bags into the rental car just before noon on Friday. It seemed like a lifetime ago since she’d arrived at the Checkerberry, confused about why on earth Livvy would have sent her here and wholly anxious about spending a week away from her Florida home alone. Leaving, though, she felt much more grounded, more certain.
Yes, she was broken. Yes, the road to healing stretched far and wide before her. But without the week she’d had here with the Mastersons, she’d still be hiding under a ball cap and behind those silly sunglasses. Today, she wore neither.
And yet she was still standing. Go figure.
Stephanie followed the drive toward the front of the inn, her pace unhurried. She had nothing to fear stepping back inside, no one to be awkward around or feel the need to avoid. Miles wasn’t here—she’d discovered as much in the dining room at breakfast, after Ruby insisted Stephanie join her and the other ladies on staff at their table.
And while she’d found herself instantly enamored with Kayla and Maddie, and ever-entertained by Ruby, Stephanie hadn’t been able to keep Miles off her mind. Apparently he’d taken her advice and hit the road to Columbus, to take a tour of his new workplace and start scouting for apartments. She wanted to feel happy for him, be encouraged that he was going after his dreams, bu
t her heart was still too raw from their severed ties yesterday.
Ties she herself had broken.
“I see you’re sticking with your decision to check out early, dear. I’m hoping we didn’t do anything to chase you away?”
Stephanie looked up to find Ruby on the nearest porch swing, a glass of lemonade perspiring on a small table beside her. “No, Ruby. You could never do that.”
“I know I couldn’t.” She patted the space beside her. “But I cannot say as much for the boys.”
“No, they didn’t chase me away, either.” Didn’t chase me at all, actually.
Which meant this truly was all for the best.
“Such a shame.”
Stephanie smiled and shook her head. “It’s for the best. Really.”
“I see. You’re heading back to Florida, then?”
“Sunday. Gonna spend some time with my nieces today. Go see my parents tomorrow. It’s time.”
Ruby placed a soft, age-spotted hand atop Stephanie’s hand. “Indeed it is. And I’m glad to see you facing the world again with your chin held high, dear.”
“Well, I don’t know about high. But yeah. Facing it instead of hiding from it.”
“That’s my girl.”
Stephanie reached over and drew the woman who would always be her surrogate grandmother into a gentle hug, fighting to hold back the tears that now threatened. “Thank you, Ruby. For everything.”
“Oh! Well, I’m not so sure I did anything special.” Her arms wrapped around Stephanie as well. “But you are welcome, dear. Always welcome to come back and visit. You know that.”
“I do.”
Stephanie drew back with a sniffle, then chuckled at her sappy behavior and bid both Ruby and the inn farewell once more. Halfway down the front steps, though, she turned back to the innkeeper. “Can I ask a favor of you?”
“Of course, dear,” said Ruby. “What is it?”
“Go easy on Miles. He might not be choosing a path you all like, or even the right path, but sometimes the prodigal sons and daughters need time to learn that on their own.”
A knowing smile stretched across the innkeeper’s lips. “Indeed they do.”
