Secret Hunger (The Harper Sisters)

by Satin Russell

  Melody had gotten in touch with her and asked if she was still interested in developing the restaurant by her bed and breakfast. It had been awkward for both of them at first, but they’d managed to come to an understanding. Melody stated that she thought her brother was being an idiot. Olivia couldn’t help but agree, but just smiled and said she hoped he was doing well. After that, they let the subject of Mason drop.

  Olivia was happy and relieved to find that she really liked Melody and could be friends with her, despite the weird way things had ended with her brother. She admired Melody’s sense of design and style, and relied heavily on her input as they made plans for the look and feel of the restaurant.

  Thankfully, the renovations at the café hadn’t taken very long, and Tom and Jackie were able to take over the business there. By the end of February, people were once again enjoying Tom’s famous hash browns. They had changed the name to “Abby’s” after Jackie’s daughter. Olivia had never seen her best friend so happy, and had been glad to hear the café was once again doing brisk business.

  Fiona padded down the stairs and stopped in the doorway to watch her sister wistfully staring out the window, a book of paint samples lying forgotten on the counter in front of her. She frowned. Ever since that day, Olivia had been much more quiet and pensive than usual. It was hard to tell whether it was due to her experiences with Robert, or the aftermath with Mason.

  Olivia sighed and turned around, and then started at finding her sister staring at her. “Fiona. How’d you sleep last night?” She moved to get up. “Would you like me to make you some breakfast?”

  “No, no, it’s fine.” Fiona took a good look at her sister, noticing the bags under her eyes. “I’m worried about you. Are you sure you won’t make an appointment to talk to somebody?”

  Laughing, her older sister shrugged it off. “Fi, I don’t want a therapist. I just want to get this restaurant up and running.”

  Fiona walked up and wrapped an arm around her, laying her head on Olivia’s shoulder. “You know I’m here for you, right? Liz and I both are, if you ever want to talk about it. Or about Mason…”

  Olivia shook her head. How many times in the last two months had she caught herself staring into space, thinking about him and wondering what he was doing? The other day, hearing The Black Keys on the radio, she had automatically been transported to that first day in his car. How was it possible to miss someone so much and still be so angry with him?

  Because, if she was being honest with herself, she was angry! Angry that he’d left her. Angry that he hadn’t even given her a chance to talk things out. Angry that he’d be willing to give up something so damn good — especially knowing how bad life could get.

  She shook her head again and forced herself away from that train of thought. No good could come of it, and she just didn’t have any more time or energy to spend on it. Instead, she squeezed her sister back. “I know. Thank you. Maybe in the future I’ll take you up on that offer, but for now, I think I just need to work some things out in my own mind. Does that make sense?”

  Reluctantly, Fiona nodded and released her, turning to make a fresh pot of coffee. “Okay, whatever you need, let me know.”

  Olivia looked at the clock and jumped. “Oh! What I need right now is to go. I have a meeting with the contractor. I’m hoping we can break ground soon.”

  “How exciting! I can’t wait when it’s all finished.”

  “Me too. It feels good to know at least one good thing came out of all the bad that has happened. It kind of feels like giving a big middle finger to the memory of Robert.” She shot her sister a wicked smile. “I don’t know, maybe it makes me a bad person, but I can’t help but feel satisfaction from that.”

  A short time later, Olivia pulled up to the large double doors of the barn and parked her car by the truck already waiting for her. As she climbed out of her car, she thought about how things would look completely different this time next year.

  As she walked in, she spotted a man already taking measurements. When he shifted, she grinned in recognition. “Alex? Alex Weston?”

  The tall, blond man turned at the sound of her approach and broke into a large smile. “Olivia, it’s so nice to see you.”

  She shook his hand. “What an unexpected surprise. I didn’t know you’re a contractor. When did you come back to town?”

  “Just recently. In fact, you’ll be my first job for this company.” He grew more somber. “I don’t know if you heard, but my dad isn’t doing so well. I came back to help him make final arrangements and figured I’d stick around for a while. How are your sisters doing? Is Eliza still a little grease monkey?”

  For some reason, he always referred to Liz as Eliza. Olivia suspected he did it to tease her. She smiled. Most of the time, it worked.

  Alex used to be the most popular guy in school; he’d been a couple of grades behind Olivia. He was the kind of guy they made high school movies about — a quintessential golden boy. The football captain who always had girls hanging over him. Until his father had suddenly decided, without warning, to ship him off to boarding school. He hadn’t been seen much since.

  “They’re both doing well. Liz took over partnership of the mechanic shop and spends most of her waking hours there. Fiona is going to school at Bowdoin College.”

  “And you want to convert this old barn into a restaurant, huh?” He turned to look at the shadowed interior of the huge barn.

  “I do. Think you can handle it?”

  He took a moment to consider. “I think it will turn out amazing, actually. Hell yeah, I can handle it.”

  Rustling through her bag, she pulled out the portfolio she’d been putting together and handed it to him. “Here’s kind of what I’m going for. You can see the atmosphere I want. High-end, but still warm and cozy. Maybe a little eclectic…” She walked over to the wall facing the cliff. “I was hoping we could change this wall into floor to ceiling windows to take advantage of the magnificent view.”

  Alex nodded and walked with her, taking notes as she talked. They spent a little more than an hour going over the site. Before leaving, he turned to her. “I think I have a pretty good idea of what you’re after. Why don’t I head back to my office and start working up some plans? We can talk about any changes in a week or so.”

  “I’d like that. I’m so happy we’ll have a chance to work together on this.”

  He looked down at his former schoolmate and grew serious. She’d grown up to be a beautiful woman, but he could see the shadows in her eyes, belying the calm exterior she presented. “I heard about the troubles you’ve had recently. I’ll do everything in my power to get you up and running as soon as possible.”

  Touched, she gave him a hug. “Thank you, I appreciate that.”

  He tucked her portfolio and his folder of notes under an arm and then gave her a brilliant smile. “Okay, I’ll give you a call after I’ve managed to draw something up. Give me a few days.”

  “Sounds good.” Already lost in her daydreams of what it would look like once it was finished, she turned to walk further back into the barn as Alex began to make his way to the double doors.

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Mason watched as Olivia embraced the other man, and felt the ache in his heart crack into a full-blown fissure. He was too late. What a fool he’d been to ever have left in the first place.

  Absently, he rubbed his chest as the feeling of loss deepened. His eyes followed the tall, blonde man as he made his way towards the door. Wariness and distrust entered the other man’s eyes. Well, at least he’s protective of her, Mason thought.

  “Can I help you?”

  “Looks like you’ve already helped yourself.” Mason couldn’t quite manage to keep the grumble of discontent out of his voice. It hurt knowing he could be replaced so easily, when he had been tossing and turning every night for nearly three months.

  Some small part of him realized he was being unfair. Olivia, of all people, deserved to be happy. Hoping to
make a better impression, he extended his hand. “Sorry, I’m Mason.”

  Mason looked the other man up and down, noting that he wasn’t much shorter than him. “I probably shouldn’t have come.”

  Alex cocked his head to the side. “Mason? The cop that saved her, right?” He laughed at the other man’s startled expression. Well, at least she’d mentioned him. Alex dispelled that comforting thought with his next statement. “Small town, news travels.”

  “Ah.” Mason looked glumly down at the floor.

  Finally, Alex took pity on him. “Well, I was just taking off. She’s hired me as the contractor for her new restaurant and there’s a lot to get started on. You should go see if you can do something about dispelling the shadows from her eyes.”

  Mason’s gaze shot up and met the other man’s. Alex just winked at him and kept walking toward his truck. Mason looked back toward Olivia, taking in the new information. She’d walked further into the shadows. Her head was tilted back, looking at one of the large rafters spanning the length of the barn.

  He had missed seeing her profile and that look of intensity she got when she was concentrating on something. Although the angle was wrong, he could practically see the furrow that she’d have across her brow and the way she was probably biting her bottom lip.

  Melody had informed him of her plans for the barn, of course. They had sounded great, but at the moment, Olivia concerned him more than construction plans. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her. Suddenly, as if sensing she was being watched, she turned to him.

  He watched as her eyes rounded in surprise and imagined that if they were in the light, they would look like two gold medallions. A shutter closed over her face, but not before he had seen the emotion there. A spark fluttered in him. There was still hope.

  He walked across the expanse of the barn and stopped just before her. He found himself staring into the very same honey-colored eyes that had been haunting him for the past few months. Every morning, he had woken with her face in his mind. He only hoped he hadn’t messed things up beyond repair.

  A look of confusion and hurt crossed her face before the curtain guarding her emotions fell back into place. Well, what did he expect? That she’d greet him with open arms after such a long absence?

  “I’ve missed you so much. You look good.”

  Her shoulders tensed. All the hurt and frustration that she had been harboring for nearly three months seemed to grow in her chest until it was hard to breathe. “You’ve missed me?”

  She let out a short bark of laughter. It was a bitter sound he didn’t recognize coming from her. “No. I’m sorry, Mason. You don’t get to say that to me. Not after all this time. After you left me like that. Broken, hurt, scared, and alone in the aftermath of everything that happened. Now you want to come here and tell me you ‘miss me?!’” Her voice cracked on the last word and she stopped, afraid if she went any further she’d burst into tears.

  Olivia clenched her hands down by her sides and fought for composure. “What are you doing here, Mason?”

  He took another step closer, but stopped again when she took a defiant step back. The foot of space between them was a chasm of regret. His hands lifted of their own volition, subconsciously reaching for her, pleading with her, before he let them drop back down to his sides again.

  “What am I doing here? The real question should be, why did I ever leave? How could I have possibly thought it would be better?” He raked his hands through his hair and let out an explosive sigh. “The fact is, there hasn’t been a single minute I haven’t thought about you. I see you everywhere I go.”

  Calmly, she kept her eyes trained on him, the look of suspicion still clearly evident. Was it just his own wishful thinking that he thought he saw something else flickering there, as well? She folded her arms across her chest. “Why did you? Leave, that is.”

  Again, he found his hands palms up in supplication. “I didn’t want my job, and the danger that surrounds me, to impact you again. Impact your life and dreams… You never signed up for the risks that I take on a daily basis. I had hoped, by leaving, I could keep you safe.”

  The tone of her voice softened. “That wasn’t only your choice to make. You never even asked me how I felt, or what I wanted.”

  He half-turned away from her, revealing the inner battle he was waging. “I know. You’re right. And, dammit, it’s selfish of me, but I can’t live without you.”

  Mason once again pinned her with his searing blue eyes, eyes that were raw, and open, and haunted. ”I love you, Olivia.”

  Olivia heard his words, but they hardly registered. It was what she saw in his eyes that really drove home the message. All the fantasies, all the fairy-tale endings she had barely let herself have, were coming true in this one, precious moment. It was as if the roof had opened up and the sun was shining down upon her.

  “Please.” He whispered, brokenly. “Please, say something. Tell me I’m not too late.”

  The odd sound of a half-sob bubbled up and caught on the lump in her throat. “I- I- thought maybe it was because I killed him. That somehow you felt I had been tainted by my actions.”

  His heart fractured and shattered at her feet at what she’d just said. That she would even think he could feel that way. That he’d allowed even the hint of that impression to enter her mind. “What? NO! Never! Olivia, you are so precious to me. You’re not tainted by what you had to do to survive.” His voice cracked with emotion. “You are the strongest, most beautiful person I know.”

  He couldn’t stand the space between them any longer. Taking that last step, his arms wrapped warmly around her shoulders and he pulled her tightly to his chest.

  Leaning down, he barely heard her mumble. “Well, it’s about time you figured it out, you foolish man.”

  Mason kissed the crown of her head. “I’m so sorry.”

  She looked up at him and managed to give him a tremulous grin through the tears.

  “Oh baby, don’t cry. Please, please, don’t cry.” Mason bent down and kissed her damp cheeks, her eyes, her temple, trying to ease all the places he had caused her pain.

  “You’re going to have to make it up to me, y’know.”

  “I will. I promise. If you’ll let me, I’d like to spend the rest of my life finding ways to make it up to you.” He felt her sigh and lean into him. Finally, her arms wrapped themselves around his waist. Gratified, his whole being filled with love, and the tight knot in his chest began to ease.

  It felt like coming home.

  Note from the Author

  I hope that you enjoyed reading my debut novel, Secret Hunger. If you did, please consider leaving a review on Amazon and Goodreads!

  Reviews are vital to me, especially as a new author. They increase my visibility and help to convince other people to take a chance on reading my book.

  Secret Need

  The Harper Sisters, #2

  by Satin Russell

  Coming August 22, 2017

  Click HERE

  Liz may be forced to entrust her life to Alex, but can she trust him with her heart?

  Liz Harper is a woman in control of her life. As the owner and mechanic of the best garage in town, she is strong, confident, and in demand. It’s a far cry from her high school days spent as the social outcast. Then she runs into the boy who harassed her as a kid, only now he’s the good-looking man who is showing interest in her. Despite the attraction, she’s determined to keep her distance.

  When Alex Weston returns to Bath, Maine to care for his ailing father, the place feels exactly the same. Everything except the awkward girl he used to tease. Liz Harper is all grown up and her transformation is the most intriguing thing about this place. If only he could convince her to give him the time of day.

  Then fate throws them together and they discover things are more complicated than they seem. Big secrets lurk in the shadows of this small town. Caught up in a world of drugs and murder and accused of crimes they did not commit, they�
�re now on the run. They must learn to rely on each other if they’re going to survive.

  Liz and Alex will return in Secret Need. Click here for info.

  Chapter One

  Peter’s palms were sweaty and trembled as he gripped the steering wheel. If only he had a hit to take the edge off, but his boss had insisted he make the drive sober. After all, the shipment of heroin was worth more than his life. Taking a deep breath, he reminded himself that the job was almost done. Once he’d completed it, he’d have enough money to stay high for at least a week. He just had to make it through the day and not do anything stupid.

  Determined to calm down, he flipped the radio on and scanned through the stations until he found one playing the Beastie Boys. Perfect. The familiar green trusses of the Piscataqua River Bridge rose before him and he started to feel a little embarrassed by how stressed he’d been earlier.

  Peter swung to the right and passed the car in front of him. Just as he pulled ahead, his stomach dropped at the sight of the police cruiser crouched on the side of the road. Dread clenched his throat and his heart pounded in his chest. With his breath suspended he kept one eye glued to the rearview mirror. If he could just crest the hill and make it out of sight…

  Lights flashed to life. All his fearful fantasies became reality in an instant. “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.” Each curse was punctuated by slamming his hand into the steering wheel. The last thin thread of hope that the cop was going after someone else was crushed when the cruiser rushed up behind him and began honking his horn.

  For one brief moment, Peter played with the idea of making a run for it. But who was he kidding? He was too chicken-shit to get involved in a police chase. He was just going to have to play his hand and hope nothing more happened.