The Summer House
Page 20
“What mess? If my brother had kept his big mouth shut and let nature take its course after he fixed us up, we wouldn’t have wasted so many years. In Phoenix, I wouldn’t have settled for a man who probably sensed I was settling and cheated on me with my friend. That mess.”
“I had a lot of time to think while I was walking from one end of Carpinteria to the other looking for you.”
Her heart swelled with hope. Would he have done that if he didn’t care just a little?
“Yes?” she asked, nudging him to go on. “What did you think about?”
“I think when Dan warned me away from you he did me a favor.”
“Why?” She could barely get the word out past the lump in her throat. So much for hope. She felt as if he’d stuck a pin in her heart, deflating it like a party balloon.
“I was in a bad place back then. Just a jerk who only wanted one thing. I was confused and sex was easy. But relationships scared the hell out of me. I didn’t want to do it wrong over and over like my folks, so I wouldn’t do it at all. I was too young and stupid to appreciate you. Eventually I’d have messed up and ruined any chance we might have had. That’s assuming I have any chance with you now.”
Her gaze snapped up to his. Suddenly hope was inflating her heart, which began to pound so hard it hurt. “Do you want a chance?” Before he could answer, she asked, “You don’t have to be like your folks. Patterns can be broken. I don’t believe this is a DNA thing. If two people love each other and commit to staying together, they make it work. Come hell or high water, they’ll do whatever it takes.”
“Okay. But there’s still the issue of kids—” His body tensed and he let out a long breath. “Oh, God.”
“What?”
“When we were in the shower, I didn’t use a condom.” He met her gaze and his was tortured. “I never, ever forget. I’m always careful. Always. It’s never happened to me before—losing control like that.”
Her heart inflated more, almost to bursting. “I’m going to take that as a compliment.”
“This is no time to joke, Cassie.”
“It wasn’t a joke. I made you forget about protection. Neither of us thought of it.”
“What if you’re pregnant? It only takes once.”
“If it happens we’ll deal with it.”
“But me with a kid?”
“Don’t even try to tell me you wouldn’t be a good father.” She walked around the bar and stood in front of him. She wanted to get in his face, but height had its limitations. “I saw you with Bayleigh. She adores you.”
“But that was a couple of hours, and I’m not responsible for her. She’s not mine.”
“So you don’t like her?”
“Of course I like her. She’s terrific. But I’ve got no training for fatherhood twenty-four seven. Weekends and holidays with my dad don’t seem like enough.”
“You spent summers with my family here at the beach. In between you hung out at my house with my dad. Something had to rub off.” She threw up her hands and turned away. “Do you think anyone automatically knows how to parent? I don’t know how to be a mom, but I want a shot at it. The most important thing is being willing to try. A good parent isn’t born or taught. A good parent just shows up through thick and thin, through good and bad—”
“In sickness and health till death do us part?” His hands curved around her upper arms.
The warmth of his fingers seeped through her T-shirt, heating her everywhere. “What are you saying?”
He turned her to face him. Instead of the dark intensity lurking in his eyes, she saw he was smiling and there was something in his expression she was afraid to name.
“I’m saying you’re right.”
She rested her palms against his chest, savoring the strength as she searched his face for a clue about what he was thinking. “What am I right about?”
“Yagottawanna.”
“Excuse me?”
“You have to want to stay together. Marriage isn’t easy and you don’t walk away the first time there’s a bump in the road.”
She blinked up at him. “I’m good, but I’m not that good. How come I got through to you so easily?”
“It’s common sense. And readiness. I’ve heard all this before. I was just never in the right frame of mind for the message to sink in.”
“Oh.” She lowered her gaze and focused on the neck of his shirt. “I thought it was me.”
“It is you. Someone else could have preached the same sermon to me and it wouldn’t have led me to the promised land. But you hit a nerve.” He touched his knuckle beneath her chin and nudged upward, urging her to meet his gaze. “Remind me to thank my mother for suggesting I come to the beach house.”
“Okay. Why?”
“Because you’re here. You are the only woman in the world who could have gotten through to me. From the first summer you followed me around until now, you made me see success in life isn’t about luck. It’s about showing up. I love you, Cass. I think I always have.”
Her heart was full and her eyes teared up. She couldn’t believe she wasn’t dreaming. He’d actually said the words she’d always longed to hear. “I guess I was wrong about wasted years.”
“Why?”
“I think we needed the time and experiences to know this is right. When you’ve been with the wrong man, it gives you the perfect perspective to recognize the right one. I love you, too. I always have. In fact, I told Dan as much.”
“You did?”
“You betcha. He said if you’re the guy I want, he’ll get behind it, and even though no one is good enough for me, you come pretty darn close.”
“He did?”
She nodded. “I know what his friendship means to you. I would never want to cost you that. He said he wouldn’t want to cost me happiness. He gave us his blessing.”
“He did?”
Cassie carefully watched his face and saw relief sweep into his expression. “Yeah. And he said if you don’t ask him to be best man at the wedding, he’s going to be really ticked off.”
“So in reality we have Dan to thank for getting us together.”
“And your mother for sending you here. Matchmaking is in the wind.”
“I think that’s the sea air, but okay. What does wind have to do with romance?”
“Mandy and Rick got back together because of his mother. Both of them were in the area and she suggested they meet for lunch. She thought they needed closure. In the years following their divorce, neither Mandy or Rick had found anyone else. Instead they found out no other person had worked out because they were still in love with each other.”
“And your point is?”
“There’s only one right someone for everyone. I know without a doubt that you are my someone.”
“And you’re mine. I know now it wasn’t my career I wanted more from. You’re the more I wanted in my life.” He bent and lightly touched his lips to hers, then straightened. “I can’t ask Dan to be my best man unless there’s a wedding. Marry me, Cassie.”
One corner of her mouth lifted. “To smooth things over with my brother, or because I might be pregnant?”
“Neither. Because I love you. I want to have children with you. I plan to show up—every day—and be the best husband and father I can. I want us to grow old together.”
“I love you, Kyle. There’s nothing I want more than to be with you and have your children. But about old age, I plan to beat it back with a whip and chair and as much cosmetic surgery as I can.”
“You will always be beautiful to me.” He traced her mouth. “I don’t want you for now—I want you forever.”
“You sweet-talker.” She sighed and rested her cheek on his chest while wrapping her arms around his waist. “You’ve got me. I would love to marry you. Even though this courtship took you forever.”
“Cassie, there’s no statute of limitation on courting.” He cupped her face in his hands and said, “But for the record, courting is adjourned.”<
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Before she could groan at his play on words, he kissed her. Cassie decided if this was her punishment for good deeds, she needed to sign up for more. Forever.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6781-1
THE SUMMER HOUSE
Copyright © 2002 by Harlequin Books S.A.
The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works
MARRYING MANDY
Copyright © 2002 by Susan Macias Redmond
COURTING CASSANDRA
Copyright © 2002 by Teresa Ann Southwick
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