“Go, go, go!” another voice shouted, then it lowered into a professional tone. “We have three perps fleeing on foot heading north through the alley behind Main Street and Hudson. We need to cut them off.”
She knew that voice—it was Gabe, and he wasn’t alone. He’d come with backup. She almost sobbed with relief when his form darkened the doorway.
“Harper!” he barked, and she slid out of her hiding place, tears welling in her eyes.
Gabe didn’t say another word—he just strode across the room and gathered her up into his arms. He held her so close that her ribs ached under the pressure, but she didn’t care. He’d come just in time, and her heart was pounding hard in her chest. Seeing Gabe had flooded her heart with more emotion than she thought possible.
“You okay?” Gabe asked gruffly, pulling back to look at her.
“Just a scare,” she said with a shaky smile. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“You shouldn’t have come inside without me—” He stopped, closed his eyes. “But you know that. For crying out loud, Harper, if anything happened to you!”
“Quit yelling at me,” she said with a shaky smile.
He pushed her curls out of her face and cupped her cheeks in his hands. Then he lowered his lips, exhaling his own deep sigh as his mouth covered hers in a long kiss. His hand moved from her face to pull her close against his broad chest once more, and she sank into that embrace. She felt like she belonged there—right next to his beating heart.
“Officer Banks, have you secured the civilian?” a voice crackled over his radio, and Gabe released her with a rueful smile.
“Affirmative,” he said into the radio. “She’s fine.” Then he dialed down the volume on his radio to leave them undisturbed. “The other officers will be chasing down the robbers. We had them in our sights.”
Harper nodded. “So it’s going to be over... I won’t have to worry.”
Harper leaned back into his arms and he rested his cheek on her hair.
“That was stupid to come in without waiting for me.” His voice had lowered to a growl, but his grip as he held her didn’t loosen. “I’m trying to keep you safe. If something had happened to you—for crying out loud, I love you!”
Harper pulled back and stared up at him. “What?”
“Is that crazy?” He stared down at her miserably. “I’m in love with you, Harper. This isn’t just a crush or me wanting to take out the bad guy. I’ve been around long enough to know I’ve never felt this with any other woman before...and I tried not to feel it with you...I really did. I did everything I could to keep from falling for you, but when you sounded so scared, I couldn’t deny it anymore. I’m head over heels in love with you. Whatever that’s worth.”
Harper’s heart hammered in her throat, and she felt her eyes welling with tears. “I love you, too.”
“Yeah?” A smile tugged at one side of his mouth.
“Not that it matters...does it?” she whispered miserably.
“Matters to me,” he replied gruffly.
“But you don’t want this, Gabe,” she whispered. “This life—kids, a wife. And I can’t just hang on the line for you, loving you and knowing that we can never pull together and be husband and wife properly. You don’t want the package—”
“I want you,” he replied fiercely.
“I come with Zoey. I’m setting up a new business here in Comfort Creek. My family is here, my life is here...”
Gabe released her and scrubbed a hand through his tousled curls.
“Unless you’ve changed your mind about being a family?” she asked hopefully.
His answer was in the misery in his eyes. He shook his head slowly. “I promised God I wouldn’t jerk another woman around, and look at me. I shouldn’t have told you how I felt.”
“Of course, you should have!” she shot back, but sadness lowered onto Harper’s chest. “We both tried not to feel this, Gabe...”
He reached forward to touch her cheek gently. “I love you more than I thought was even possible for a man to feel... But love isn’t enough—”
This wasn’t Gabe’s fault; Harper couldn’t blame him. They’d both known this from the start. Loving each other wasn’t enough to make a life together. But respect might be enough to parent the little girl they both loved.
“What do we do?” Gabe asked at last, that dark gaze moving over her face searchingly, as if she held the answer somehow. But Harper wasn’t holding on to some secret wisdom. She was as lost as he was.
“We get over this,” Harper said woodenly, forcing the words out. “We go our separate ways, we lick our wounds, and we...get over it. For Zoey’s sake.”
“For Zoey...”
Footsteps could be heard outside, and Bryce appeared in the doorway.
“They’ve apprehended the perps—” Bryce stopped short. “Am I interrupting?”
“No,” Gabe said quickly, then he cleared his throat. “Glad to hear it. I’ve got a personal interest in these guys, so I’m going to go down to the station for their statements. You think you could see Miss Kemp home for me?”
Bryce nodded, glancing between the two of them. “Sure thing. Are you okay, Harper? You look pretty shaken up.”
Gabe looked over at Harper once last time, and he blinked back a mist in his eyes. “I’ll come back to say goodbye to Zoey. And then I’ll go home.”
Harper’s heart sank—this was it. He’d be going back to his life in the city, and she’d be the heartbroken wreck left behind. For all her warnings to her best friend, Harper hadn’t done any better. She’d lost her heart to this man against her better judgment.
“I’ll be in touch, though,” Gabe added.
Harper nodded, tears welling in her eyes. Not in front of the other cop! She didn’t want to cry—that was for later, when she was alone and she could vent this grief inside of her. Gabe strode from the room, and it took all of Harper’s strength not to run after him. Hot tears seared a trail down her cheeks.
“It’s been a rough night,” Bryce said, putting a hand on her elbow and handing over her coat. “Let me get you home, Harper. Some tea and a hug from your little girl will set you right. I can call your parents, if you want...”
Harper picked up her purse and allowed herself to be led from the room and through her store. The robbers hadn’t had the chance to do much damage, but there was a gown on the floor, trampled by muddy boots. And a rack of dresses had pitched onto one side.
Bryce talked to her the whole time, but she’d tuned him out. Gabe was gone, and when Bryce opened the car door for her, she realized that she didn’t even remember getting outside. She shivered, rubbing her hands together.
“It’s a blessing you weren’t hurt,” Bryce said as she sank into the warm depths of the police cruiser.
A blessing. So many blessings. And not one of them was the ability to be with the man she loved.
Chapter Fourteen
That night, Harper lay in bed and sobbed out her grief. Falling in love with Gabe had been a bad idea from the start, and she’d done her best to keep her emotions in check. When her tears were spent, she lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling.
Father, You’ve blessed me...she prayed silently. I have family, a daughter of my own, a chance to start a second store in the town where I was born. You’ve blessed me abundantly, and still my heart is broken. I love him, Lord. I do. I shouldn’t—I tried not to! But I love him, and I miss him already.
Fresh tears welled in her eyes. But I still trust You. I am still Yours. And if Gabe is not the man for me, then I leave my heart in Your hands to heal and make whole again.
That was when she felt a warmth wrap around her and her eyes grew heavy. She hadn’t thought she’d sleep tonight, but after a moment or two, she closed her eyes. It would hurt—there was no getting around that—but God still had a plan for her
. Maybe her life would never be traditional, but it would be meaningful. Maybe God had simply shown her that Gabe was a good man so that she could work together with him to raise Zoey. Maybe this hadn’t been about her, at all, and this was God working things out for her daughter’s best interest.
An image of Gabe rose up in her mind—strong, muscular, steel gray eyes pinning her to the spot. He’d been easier to fall for than she’d imagined. But it hadn’t changed anything—Gabe wasn’t a family man. And it wasn’t his fault, either.
Where was Gabe now? Maybe he was still working, tying up the loose ends of his case against these criminals. She could imagine him at a desk in the police station, angrily pounding out a report or two, and the thought made her smile. Or maybe he’d be back at the Camden bed and breakfast already, lying in his own bed, praying for his own peace.
Harper didn’t remember when, but her thoughts were overcome by a wave of tiredness and she fell into a fitful sleep.
She awoke the next morning to small hands tugging on her blanket, and Harper felt tired and dehydrated. She moaned.
“What time is it, Zoey?”
“Time for breakfast,” Zoey said. “Are you awake yet, Mommy? Maybe a little bit?”
Harper couldn’t help but smile. “A little bit,” she confirmed, and scooted over to make room for her daughter in her bed. She patted the mattress next to her, and Zoey squirmed up and wriggled under the covers.
“How did you sleep?” Harper murmured, rubbing her eyes. It was Saturday morning, and they had a routine together, which started with snuggles in “the big bed.”
“Good.” Zoey reached over and touched Harper’s face. “Did you cry, Mommy?”
Was it still so evident? Harper sighed. “Yes, sweetie. But I’m better now.”
“Sometimes I cry when I miss Mommy.” Andrea. She was talking about missing Andrea.
Harper’s eyes misted in spite of herself. “And it’s okay to cry when we miss people. Just make sure you come for hugs when you do, okay?”
Morning sunlight sparkled on a frost-laden lawn out the window, and Harper sent up a silent prayer of gratefulness. No one had everything, but she had Zoey, and Zoey was gift enough.
The phone rang from the bedside table, and Harper stretched to grab it, picking it up on the second ring. She recognized the number—her sister’s.
“Hi, Heidi,” Harper said, scooting up in bed to be able to sit up.
“Harper—I heard about the store! Are you okay? What happened? Did you see them?”
“Hold on.” Harper looked over at her daughter. Zoey’s eyes were pinned on her. “One second, Heidi.” Harper covered the mouthpiece. “Zoey, I’m going to let you have a juice box this morning.”
“Really?” Zoey looked impressed. “Those are for lunches.”
“Just once. A special treat. If you go and get it right now.”
Zoey didn’t need to be asked twice, and launched off the bed and out the door, her bare feet slapping against the hardwood floor as she careened toward the kitchen.
The next few minutes were spent filling her sister in on the latest break-in and the arrest of the robbers. Harper kept the part about her and Gabe to herself, though. That was private. She wasn’t sure she’d ever talk about it—not in full detail. She and Gabe might not be a match romantically, but the secrets he’d shared were still safe with her.
When she’d finished answering all her sister’s questions, they both fell silent for a moment.
“I have news...” Heidi’s voice quivered just a little.
“Oh, no... What’s the matter?” she asked.
“There won’t be a wedding.” There were tears in Heidi’s voice, and Harper felt a wave of pity. This was what she’d been afraid of—Heidi dumping yet another good guy. Why did she keep doing this?
“What happened?” Harper asked.
“I talked to Chris about lying to him...and we talked and talked and talked.” Heidi was silent for a moment. “In the end, he broke it off.”
“Him?” Harper gasped.
“Yeah. He said he wants more. He loves me, and he thought that commitment would make us closer, but...” Heidi’s voice trailed off. “He did it for me. I might have just gone through with it. I’ve broken too many hearts and the wedding plans had already gone so far... But as it turns out, he couldn’t go through with it.”
“Heidi, I’m so sorry,” Harper breathed. “I’m not in great shape this morning, either.”
“What’s going on? Is it Gabe?” Heidi asked.
“How did you know?”
“You aren’t as secretive as you think,” her sister replied. “So what happened between you two?”
“It’s a long story. We were getting to know each other, and he’s not the man I thought. Not anymore, at least. I don’t think he opens up to many people, but he did with me, and I could see the man he is deep down, under that tough-guy act he has going on all the time...”
“So he won you over?” Heidi asked.
“He said he loves me.”
“You poor dear,” her sister said flatly. “My heart bleeds for you.”
The very thing Harper had told her own sister a few days ago.
“Very funny. It won’t work, Heidi,” Harper said. “He can’t be a family man, and I have Zoey. It’s just—not meant to be. Feelings aren’t enough—they don’t change reality.”
“But you love him, too?” Heidi asked.
“Yeah.” Harper’s throat tightened, and she swallowed hard. “More than anything.”
The sisters were silent for a few beats, and then Heidi said, “I made you cut the dress.”
“It’s okay,” Harper said.
“I feel terrible about that,” Heidi said. “Grandma’s dress—it was an heirloom, Harper! I’m so selfish!”
“Look, it’s okay,” Harper said. “Maybe it’s even for the best in some twisted way. I had this image in my mind of the perfect life I wanted. My husband would be educated, well read, smart and a little athletic. He’d have it all together. I’d have three children, eighteen months apart each. I’d keep them home until kindergarten, and I’d have that white picket fence.”
“Nothing wrong with all that,” Heidi said.
“It’s not real, Heidi,” Harper replied. “It’s imaginary. And I wanted to start that perfect life by getting married in Grandma’s dress. So if Grandma’s dress will never be the same, maybe it’s for the best. Because I don’t need perfect, I just need the man I love.”
“Gabe,” her sister confirmed.
Her heart clenched hearing his name, and she wished that he could be part of her imperfect adventure. But he couldn’t.
“Not Gabe. Because while I could accept him, flaws and all, he doesn’t want a family. And not only do I have Zoey, but I’d really like a baby of my own one day. But if he’d been able to see himself as a dad, I would have been able to let my fantasy life go. I wouldn’t have held him to that. Because what’s a fantasy when faced with an actual life with a guy who makes your heart flutter?”
“I suppose so,” Heidi agreed.
“You’ll find a guy you want to be close to, Heidi,” Harper added. “You will.”
“I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself right now,” Heidi admitted. “I quit my job for the wedding...”
“I know you probably don’t want to work with wedding dresses,” Harper said. “But I’m going to need a manager for my new maternity shop.”
“Wait—it’s happening?” Heidi said.
“I just got the loan finalized. What do you say? We Kemp girls will pull together and build an empire.”
“I always thought I’d marry into one,” Heidi said, but there was a smile in her voice. “But you’re right—it might be easier to just build it ourselves.”
Harper shook her head. “I always thought so.�
�
“Thank you, Harper. I needed this.”
“You also need chocolate and a shoulder to cry on,” Harper said. “I know I do. Come over today. We’ll show Zoey how empires start—women working together.”
Maybe Harper’s business would be good for more than just Zoey—maybe Heidi could get a glimpse of what was possible for her, too. Life seldom turned out as expected, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t perfectly in the center of God’s will.
* * *
Gabe drove back to Fort Collins, his heart heavy. He’d expected to be exhilarated at the prospect of going home to his bachelor pad, his friends and his job...even his own church. He arrived home Saturday evening and was in his pew Sunday morning. But these last two weeks in Comfort Creek had changed everything. He was a father—that in itself was life-altering. And he’d fallen in love with a woman who wanted a family all over again.
He tried to pray about it, but God wasn’t bringing the comfort he normally gave. Was this punishment for how he’d treated Andrea? He wasn’t sure. But Gabe knew for a fact that he would never have God’s blessing while he toyed with a woman’s heart. God protected His daughters.
So Gabe went through the motions of his life in Fort Collins—working his shifts, cooking meals, heading out with friends for wings one evening... He even went to church and tried to find that peaceful sanctuary once more, but he was still left empty and aching. Why? He had done the right thing—he’d stepped back. He would not toy with another woman’s feelings! He was keeping his vow to his Maker. Why wouldn’t God give him some relief?
* * *
One evening, a week after he’d arrived back at home, Gabe stood in his living room holding that old, worn Bible his grandmother had left to him. It had taken him this long to take it out of the box, and looking down at it, he felt a wave of anger.
“Father, she claimed to love You,” Gabe murmured. “She said she put You first in everything, but she was the coldest, hardest, cruelest woman I’ve ever known.”
The fact that his grandmother had left him her Bible only rubbed in that ridiculous fact. Weren’t Christians supposed to be known by their love? His grandmother was dead now, and Gabe honestly had no idea if she’d been saved or not. All he knew was that she’d been a church goer and a Bible reader. Was it possible to read the Bible every day and careen right past the Author?
The Deputy's Unexpected Family Page 17
