“A flying disc game. Throw the Frisbee through the mouth of a beaver.”
Just then two guys carrying a wood two-by-four with a beaver painted on one side and a wide cut out for the mouth passed by.
“Follow that beaver!” Mrs. Witt said.
Shane chuckled. “Why so many Frisbees?” They transitioned from the parking lot to the park’s main walkway. The large pentagon shaped park with plenty of grass, stamped concrete paths, wood benches, and a white gazebo in the center, was filling up with canopies and umbrellas. This was the Fall Fling’s twenty-fifth anniversary, and tomorrow the entire park would be overflowing with food and games, arts and crafts booths, and local entertainment.
“You know kids. They’ll take off running with ’em and we’ll be left in a jam. We’re raising money for the humane society, and our goal is to exceed what we made last year by twenty percent.”
They caught up with the beaver and Shane deposited the Frisbees at their booth. “Good luck tomorrow,” he said kissing Mrs. Witt on the cheek. No doubt her pet pig would be on hand to help.
He scanned the area for his dad, but in the sea of colored tents and people moving boxes or tables and chairs, his field of vision was limited. The sun also cut a glare across the landscape and a breeze rustled the branches and leaves on the trees, distracting him. He walked east with the sun at his back.
The wind also carried a voice. Her voice. His body immediately rippled with warm sensation, his scalp prickled. He followed the rich, melodious sound until he rounded the park’s two-hundred-year-old oak tree and found her pitching a light blue canopy.
He stayed partially out of sight behind the tree trunk and looked his fill. She wore a brown cotton skirt that hugged her hips and fell straight to her ankles and a white T-shirt that left a scrap of her smooth, tanned stomach exposed. He gulped.
“You good over there?” she asked her friend—his gaze moved to the other person—Charlotte.
Charlotte? Maybe that’s why he hadn’t heard from Kagan all week. His wounded pride recovered some.
“You just worry about your own side, Jelly Belly. I’ve got this.”
Shane fought the urge to help. Kagan was perfectly capable. And more gorgeous than the last time he saw her.
The two of them got the tent up and high-fived. Kagan’s smile wrenched him from his hiding spot. He needed to be closer to it, wanted to be the reason behind it.
He’d told himself every day since Sunday that he would not be the one to make the first move, but this didn’t count as a move. This counted as a bumping into. He pretended he hadn’t noticed them as he meandered across the grass.
“Shane?” the wrong girl said.
He turned and, hoping he looked surprised, said, “It’s Charlotte, right?”
Her eyes narrowed. He wasn’t fooling anyone. His mom had always told him he was the worst liar. That he had a half dozen tells. “Right.” She glanced at Kagan, so he did too.
Thank you, Charlotte. “Hey.” He stepped closer.
“Hi,” Kagan said, her eyes meeting his like a force field that couldn’t be broken.
“How are you?” Shane asked. Closer now, her lavender scent made his knees weak. God, he’d missed her.
He noticed her put a hand on the folding table at her waist as if to steady herself. “I’m good. You?”
“Same. Slammed with work. We’re breaking ground on the restaurant Monday.” He really wanted to quit the small talk, lay her down on the grass, and kiss her senseless for the entire town to see. He wanted to whisper he loved her in her ear.
“That’s great. How’s your dad?”
“Good. He’s around here somewhere. The station’s putting up a dunking booth, and I’m here to help. You want to tag along? I know he’d love to see you.” And I want to keep you with me.
“Umm…”
Charlotte cleared her throat. “When you say station do you mean fire station? Because I could so tag along to say hello to some firemen.”
“Kay?” Shane said, so mesmerized by the sparkle in her green eyes that the Frisbee that beamed him in the side of the head didn’t even faze him.
Kagan drew in a breath, though. “You okay?”
“Fine.”
“Sorry man!” some kid said as he raced past Shane.
“Okay,” Charlotte said, sounding impatient. “You two stay here and continue making out with your eyes, and I’ll go introduce myself to the station boys.”
“Wait!” Kagan looked away and Shane felt it like a wrecking ball to his chest. “We need to finish things here, Char. And you promised…”
Charlotte whispered something in Kagan’s ear. Shane suspected it was about him when Kagan shook her head, and Charlotte flashed him an apologetic half-smile.
“If Charlotte promised to run interference if we saw each other, it’s not going to work,” Shane said. He took Kagan’s hand and the usual spark shot up his arm. “I’m done being away from you.”
“Shane,” Kagan murmured.
Not letting go of her, he moved around the table until he stood a hairsbreadth away. He looked over her shoulder at Charlotte. “Can you give us a minute?”
Nodding, Charlotte stepped away. “I can give you two.” Then she mouthed good luck.
He traced his finger down Kagan’s cheek. “I should have told you this sooner. I thought to give you time to catch up. But seeing as I’m still waiting, I’m going to take the initiative because I’ve missed you so damn much.”
Kagan closed her eyes, and her breathing faltered. When she slowly lifted her lids and looked at him like she mirrored that sentiment, the knotted bundle of nerves at the base of his spine relaxed.
“I love you.” Saying the words out loud scared the crap out of him, but at the same time made him feel like he could conquer anything.
She blinked. He couldn’t swallow. “I love you too.”
Yes!
“I’m ashamed of how I treated you. I do trust you, Shane. I was just scared and let my insecurities get the best of me.”
He lifted her off the ground and spun them around. As soon as her feet touched the ground again he said, “Want to roll around in the grass and make-out for everyone to see?”
She giggled. “How about you come over later and we do more than just make-out?”
With his arms still around her waist, he touched his forehead to hers. If he kissed her like he really wanted to, he wouldn’t be able to stop. “You’re on.”
…
“I’m not answering the door naked.”
“Why not?” Charlotte said from the couch right before popping another grape into her mouth.
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” Kagan glanced down at her short heather gray cotton dress. It was soft, comfortable, and easy to lift over her head for when she was ready to get naked.
With Shane. She was going to get naked with Shane for the rest of her life if he wanted. She’d missed him so much this past week, letting her fear of attachment hold her back. Letting what she thought she saw outside his office give her pause when in truth she was scared. Scared that he didn’t love her back.
But he did.
A grape hit her between the eyes. “Knock that off, would you?” Charlotte teased.
“Knock what off?” Kagan stepped away from the window and sat beside her best friend.
“Looking all dreamy. It’s annoying.”
Kagan plucked a grape from the bunch in Charlotte’s hand. “I’m hoping it’s contagious, and you’ll find some cute guy who will keep you here in Cascade.”
“Small town boy? No thank you. But I’ve loved visiting you. Thanks for being my home away from home while I lick my wounds.”
“This is home,” Kagan breathed, falling back against the couch and trying not to look ridiculously happy. “You’ve been a big help to me this week too, you know.”
Charlotte put a hand on Kagan’s arm. “I’m so glad you’ve found where you want to be. Shane is a very lucky man.” She push
ed up. “I should probably get going to the movie so you guys can be alone as soon as he gets here.”
“Thanks, Char.” Kagan stood. “But you know you don’t have to go.”
“I may be down on my luck at the moment, but I am not a third wheel. Besides, I’m leaving so you can answer the door nay-ked.”
“I’m—” The doorbell rang and they both chuckled.
“I could go out the back,” Charlotte said, grabbing her purse and whipping her other arm up and over her head in a gesture that said Kagan should pull the dress off.
“I don’t have a back door, you goofball.”
“Oh. Right. Okay then.” Charlotte pressed her shoulders back and stepped toward the front door.
Flutters did their thing inside Kagan’s stomach. The back of her neck tingled. She absently rubbed a couple fingers across her forehead, remembering how Shane’s forehead had touched there just hours ago.
The second she let him in and Char took off, she so planned to be naked. They could talk after.
She swung the door wide and her body froze.
Charlotte choked.
“Dad?”
Chapter Fifteen
“What are you doing here?” Kagan managed to get out.
“Is that any way to greet your father?” He opened his arms and because it had been so long since her dad had hugged her, she stepped into his embrace.
She regretted it the moment he tightened his hold like a father who had really missed his daughter. He kept her close, in no rush to end the contact, almost as if he needed to make up for the past five months they’d been apart.
Staying angry with her father had been easy when he was back east, but having him here now, and squeezing her like he never wanted to let go, dwindled all the reasons she’d left.
After another few moments, they broke apart.
“Hi, Mr. Donaldson.” Charlotte gave him a quick hug hello. “Welcome to Cascade. You should’ve told us you were coming.”
“And ruin my surprise?” His voice resonated with the dog-eat-dog tone that Kagan was all too familiar with.
She blinked back tears. Just like that, her dad broke her heart again. He wasn’t here for a friendly visit and the hug she’d just gotten was only to lower her defenses. “Come in,” Kagan said, doing her best to sound neutral.
“Thank you.” He looked around her townhome with obvious disdain, his eyebrows caving in and his lips pursed.
“Kay, I think I’d better meet our friend who was coming over to go to the movies with us. Should we just meet you there?”
Kagan looked over her shoulder at Charlotte. Shane. Oh, God. She didn’t want Shane to meet her father like this. “That’s a great idea. Thanks.”
Charlotte nodded and mouthed you okay? Kagan nodded in return and Charlotte said good-bye.
When Kagan turned back around, her dad held the picture of her and her mom in his hands. “I remember this like it was yesterday,” he said, glancing up. “You looked so much like your mother then, even more so now.” He put the frame back on the mantle but continued to look at it until the silence in the room grew unbearable and Kagan had to say something.
“What are you doing here, Dad?” She kept her distance, her feet planted to the hardwood floor in her small entryway.
He moved to the couch and sat. “I’m here to take you back to New York where you belong.”
Her legs felt like jelly—one step forward and she’d collapse. “I’m not going back. I like it here just fine.”
“Just fine?” He narrowed his eyes. “That’s not good enough for a Donaldson. You’ve made your point, and now you need to come home.”
“What point have I made?”
“Brett told me you’re making jewelry. That you enjoy being creative. All you had to do was tell me you’d rather work with the philanthropic parts of my business, and I’d give you all the creative license you want.”
Kagan managed a few steps forward so she could hold on to the back of the living room chair. “Did you hear what you just said? You’re pretending to want me to be happy while keeping me under your thumb.” She tightened her grip on the chair. “I’ve made something of myself here, Dad, and I’m not going anywhere. I’m choosing this life, not the one in New York, and if you care about me even a little, you’ll support my decision.”
In his own way, she knew her father loved her. But caring was different. Caring meant relinquishing control, and if she and her dad had any hope of reconciling their differences, he had to get that through his thick skull.
“I care about you more than you know.”
“Then prove it. Let me stand on my own two feet.” She moved around the chair and sat.
“You’ve always earned your place.”
Had she? She dropped her gaze to the floor and thought back to how hard she’d always worked, how nothing had been handed to her. Her path had been set, yes, but how fast and how far she went had been up to her.
“You’ve always been an overachiever,” he added. “And this town isn’t going to meet your potential.”
She met his light green eyes, the one thing she’d gotten from him. Her mom’s had been brown. “You don’t know anything about this town.”
“Oh, but I do. I know the day it was founded. I know who owns the most land, the name of every building and business owner. I know how many men are on the police force and in the fire department. I know that the Chief of Staff at Cascade General is related to Bloomberg. I know your boss, Milt, has enough money to retire but won’t sell the Crown & Anchor even though he’s had offers. And I know whose handprints are in the concrete on the corner of Main and Seaward.”
Kagan swallowed the acrid taste in the back of her throat. Her dad had done his research. Of course he had. He’d use any ammunition he could exploit to convince her to return to New York.
“Your real friends are in New York, Kay. People who care about you and share the same values and way of thinking.”
“That’s not true. You’ve lost sight of what real is. And you have no idea what I think.”
“I know Cascade, and you don’t belong here.”
“What do you want?” She refused to hear any more digs about the people and place she’d come to adore.
“I told you. Come back to New York, back to the life you’ve built there. I need you close by. Brett does too.”
“I don’t want to.” She crossed her arms. “And I want nothing to do with Brett.” The idea that her dad hung onto the notion of her marrying someone she didn’t love still rankled.
And she loved Shane. She loved the beaches and the pub and her jewelry business and Crem’s and Sela and Erin, and had no desire to leave.
“Then you’ll force me to play my hand.”
Her heart nosedived. Fred Donaldson always got what he wanted and didn’t care about the methods. But to treat his own daughter that way? “Are you threatening me?”
A frown marred his earnest complexion. He leaned back. “I love you, Kagan. I know we don’t always agree, but goddamn it, I won’t have you across the country. I need to know you’re safe and blossoming. I need to see your face. A face that reminds me of your mom and how much I wish she was here. But she isn’t. You are.”
“That’s not fair and you know it. I wish every day that mom was here. Don’t you dare use her memory to manipulate me. I miss you, Dad. I do. But I also resent you. Maybe some of that is my fault. All I’ve wanted to do is please you. But I’m not coming with you.”
“Then you leave me no choice. Levi Roche is a friend of mine. I understand he’s building a restaurant in Portland and Burke & Associates is handling it. With plans to go global, it’s a huge account. I hear the young man in charge of the project is somewhat of a wonder boy,” he paused. “But you already know that.”
The air in the room blistered with tension. A chill swept over her ears and the back of her legs. “Shane has nothing to do with you and me.”
“I beg to differ. Brett says the two of you are
in love. If you really love him, you’ll come home with me.”
Shivers racked her body, like someone had shot a thousand ice shards into her.
“If you don’t, I’ll talk to Levi and strongly recommend another firm. I’ll tell him Shane Sullivan isn’t worth the hype on this restaurant or any other. That won’t only ruin Shane’s reputation, but his company’s as well. I’ve got the top architectural firm on the east coast on speed dial. One call from me and Levi won’t question the change.”
Every muscle inside her tensed. She wanted to fight back, but knew there was no way. She’d do anything to keep Shane happy, safe. She loved him enough to let him go.
Her father had used the one bargaining chip that would get her agreement.
“Fine. I’ll go with you.”
Chapter Sixteen
Shane hit the punching bag hanging in his garage for the hundredth time. The muscles in his arms and legs were taut to the max. Sweat trickled down the side of his face. Jab, uppercut, jab, uppercut. Fuck.
He stepped away from the bag and put his hands on his thighs to catch his breath. His skull pounded with sickening speed. He couldn’t get Kagan’s text out of his head no matter what he did.
I’m going back to New York with my father. Please don’t come by. Please don’t call. I need to do this on my own. Thanks for everything. Love, Kagan.
Fred Donaldson was in Cascade and messing with his daughter’s head, and Shane didn’t like it one bit.
Sure, he and Kagan hadn’t talked about her staying in Cascade, but now that he’d told her he loved her and she’d said it back, he assumed she’d be staying.
When Charlotte had hijacked him outside of Kagan’s house and told him Kagan’s father had shown up and they needed some time alone, he’d figured he would give them an hour, maybe two. Kagan definitely had things to say to her father and Shane respected that. He’d taken Charlotte to dinner where she’d told him her life story and made him laugh, her lively personality fun. But like a twisted joke, the minute they’d gotten back, Kagan’s text had chirped on his phone.
He’d wanted to storm up to her front door and tell her there was no way she was walking away from him like that. He needed to know what her father had said or done to make her change her mind about Cascade—about him.
Her Accidental Boyfriend: A Secret Wishes Novel (Entangled Bliss) Page 18
