Playing the Part

by Kimberly Van Meter

  Heath chuckled at Lora’s wry comment, but Lindy didn’t find the humor at all.

  “We shouldn’t joke about medication or anything related to her disorder or disease, or whatever the hell is wrong with Lilah. Oh damn, I need to get the lingo right or that could be upsetting to her,” Lindy fretted, looking to Lora for help.

  Lora rolled her eyes and said, “Calm down and act normal. The worst that we could do is act like we have to treat her with kid gloves. She’s not an egg and she’s not going to break.”

  “You don’t know that,” Lindy countered sharply, then gasped when she heard a car come up the gravel driveway. “She’s here!”

  “I’ll alert the media,” Lora said drily.

  “Shhh,” Lindy said, scowling fiercely. “We need to be as supportive as possible. Okay?”

  “I will but—”

  Before Lora could finish, Lilah appeared at the door, carrying a small rolling travel bag. Lindy was hesitant at first but when she saw Lilah’s sweet, if tremulous, smile, she ran to her and clasped her to her chest.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” Lindy said, tears springing to her eyes. “Please don’t ever do that again. I’d die without you.”

  “I’m sorry,” Lilah whispered, clutching her tightly. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Can we get in on some of this action?” Heath teased, as he and Lora opened their arms for Lilah. Lindy reluctantly let go and wiped her eyes as Lilah gave her other sister and almost-brother a squeeze, too. “Good to have you back.”

  “Where’s Pops?” Lilah asked when all the hugging had ended.

  “We thought it would be best if he were off doing something else when you came home, so Celly took him to town for some supplies he thinks he needs. This way, when he sees you around, he’ll forget that you were gone for almost three weeks. His memory is getting worse,” Lora admitted sadly but then brightened. “But that’s neither here nor there. You’re home and that’s what we’re celebrating.”

  Heath grabbed Lilah’s bag and they headed for the terrace for fresh papaya and pineapple with omelets and thick-cut bacon. Lindy had wanted to make sure that all of Lilah’s favorites were on the table so there was

  really an obscene amount of food for just four people, but Lindy didn’t care.

  Lilah sat down with a smile, relishing all the food she saw and she didn’t wait to dig in.

  “Glad to see you’re hungry because we’re going to be eating leftovers for a while,” Lora joked.

  “I’m starved. When I was sick, I never wanted to eat but now that I’m feeling better, I feel as if I need to make up for lost time. I’ve already gained five pounds!”

  “You look wonderful,” Lindy said immediately, at which Lilah chuckled.

  “You don’t have to do that. I’m okay. Really.”

  Lindy peered at her sister and something broke inside her, washing over her in giant waves of equal parts grief and relief, and she couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. “I’m sorry, I’m trying to hold it together—I really am! But not being able to talk to you all this time has

  really messed with my head. I was so worried about you.”

  Lilah fell silent as if she were contemplating how to handle Lindy’s outburst, then she addressed them all. “What I did was an action borne out of extreme desperation and a hormonal imbalance. I am not the same person I was three weeks ago. I now understand that it’s okay to seek help when I hit the low spots. I don’t have to suffer alone. Dr. Veronica has been a godsend and I know I’m going to be okay. It’s not going to be easy all the time. Some days will be hard but I can get through it. I’m so sorry for putting you all through this. Especially you, Lindy. I promised you I wouldn’t hurt myself. I didn’t know how to tell you that I’d been thinking of it for a long time. I’m so, so sorry.” To Lora, she said, “I should’ve told you that I was struggling with something really big. Maybe if I had, none of this with Larimar would’ve happened but I was ashamed at being so weak when my sisters were so strong.”

  “You’re not weak,” Lora said fiercely. “It takes guts to go through what you did and come out the other side. I’m so proud of you.”

  Lilah blinked back tears and suddenly the entire table was crying until they realized how ridiculous they all looked and the tears turned to laughter.

  Lindy wiped at her tears with her napkin and then exhaled a long breath before saying, “Enough of all this stuff—let’s eat!”

  And so they did.

  Everything felt right and normal, even though there was so much that still needed work.

  Which left one last dilemma that needed solving.

  And Lindy knew exactly what to do.

  * * *

  GABE OPENED THE door and nearly fell over when he saw Lindy standing there, shivering on his stoop in a fuzzy wool scarf and a long coat wrapped tightly around her luscious body, muttering about the damn Bay Area fog. He didn’t have time to usher her inside or question what she was doing in the Bay when she launched herself into his arms, taking his mouth in a possessive kiss filled with pent-up longing and yearning that he immediately responded to because he felt the same.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she murmured against his mouth, as she quickly divested herself of her coat and it dropped at her feet. “It feels like forever since I’ve seen you even though I know it’s only been a few weeks.”

  His arms wound around her and he held her tightly against him, almost afraid to let go. “What are you doing here?” he asked in a pained, tortured voice. It seemed both a dream and a nightmare to have Lindy here in his arms.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” she asked, pausing to shut the door and unwind her scarf from her neck.

  He was speechless; afraid to ask. She smiled and kicked off her shoes.

  “Lindy...” he started, but she wasn’t interested in a deep, soul-searching conversation. Her mouth covered his again, hungry and needy, and her body pressed against his as if trying to blend them together. She groaned and pulled away. “Clothes off,” she demanded as she stripped.

  It was the middle of the day and Carys was at school. The house was empty except for him and a rapidly disrobing Lindy Bell.

  It was a dangerous combination.

  “Lindy...” he said, swallowing, finding it hard to believe that he was actually going to refuse her body. “I can’t do this....”

  She unclasped her bra and let her breasts come into view. His Adam’s apple bobbed painfully as the scrap of lace hit the floor, followed by her panties.

  She stalked him as he tried to keep his hands off her, until his knees hit the back of the sofa and he sat with an abrupt oompf. She didn’t waste time and straddled him. “You, my handsome executive, are wearing too many clothes for what I had in mind,” she teased, popping his shirt buttons.

  “What are you doing?” he asked in a tight voice. His erection had sprung and it was desperate to be inside her body again but he wasn’t about to embark on some pointless affair with the woman he wanted in his life every day, every hour and not just when it suited her schedule. He wasn’t a booty call, damn it! He groaned as her palms spread out across his chest, seeking and finding the flat nipples to pinch and tease. He caught her hands and held them. “I can’t do this!”

  She ignored her captured hands and bent down to nuzzle his neck, nipping at the skin. “I have a very high sex drive, Mr. Weston, and I have to know if I’m going to be Mrs. Gabe Weston that you can keep up with my needs.”

  He stilled, his heart nearly stopping at her words. She pulled away, all teasing gone from her expression. She swallowed and met his stare with one filled with uncertainty and vulnerability. He cupped her precious face with trembling hands. “Are you saying...?”

  “Yes,” she answered softly. “I will be your wife, but if I turn out to be the worst wife in the history of wiv
es, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  “Oh, my God,” he cried, kissing her again and again, unable to get enough of her. “I will make you the happiest woman on this planet. I will make it my life’s work to ensure you want for nothing. I—”

  She laughed and cut him off with her mouth, murmuring, “I just want you and Carys. Everything else is gravy.”

  “I love you, Lindy Bell, soon-to-be Lindy Weston!”

  “And I love you,” Lindy said, but she placed a hand against his chest with a somber expression. “First, I need to tell you right now, I’m a demanding person. I’m not going to be the trophy wife you prop up in the corner and forget about until it suits you. If I’m giving you the best of me, you sure as hell better be willing to give me the best of you.”

  He smiled. “I’ve already started delegating more at the office. Since returning from St. John, I’ve been implementing changes to my schedule. I’m a more hands-on dad. I’m ready to be a hands-on husband, too.” With that, he emphasized his point by sliding his hands under her rear and squeezing a handful of her flesh. “Starting with this right here,” he growled, and her pupils dilated with fresh arousal.

  “I like the sound of that,” she murmured, her expression morphing into pure sexual hunger as she plucked at his shirt with a sidelong glance. “Now that that’s out of the way...as I said earlier...someone is wearing way too much clothing for what I had in mind....”

  And with that, his restraint fled.

  She squealed as he ripped his shirt from his body, hardly noticing the sound of buttons flying and skidding across the mahogany hardwood, because he had Lindy and Carys and that’s all that mattered in this world.

  Everything else was just gravy.

  EPILOGUE

  “WHEN ARE WE going to get there?” Carys complained, as she glanced out the plane window. “I hate the long plane ride. It’s sooo boring.”

  Lindy smiled indulgently at her soon-to-be stepdaughter and said, “I know but before you know it we’ll be at Larimar eating boiled bananas and playing in the surf. Just keep that in mind and the time will go by faster.”

  “No, it won’t. It makes it worse,” Carys grumped, reaching into her backpack to grab her earbuds and iPod so she could at least listen to music while she watched the clouds go by.

  The sparkle from Lindy’s engagement ring caught her eye and she smiled on the inside, lighting up from the joy that continually cascaded through her at the knowledge that she was going to become Gabe’s wife and Carys’s stepmother.

  She couldn’t imagine loving Carys more than if she’d given birth to her. The kid was amazing and she was proud to be in her life.

  Lindy had relocated to the Bay Area but she still made frequent trips to Larimar to help her sisters. Gabe never winced at the expense and encouraged her to go whenever she felt the need. He said someone ought to be able to cash in on the frequent-flier miles he banked from business trips, and she was happy to take him up on his offer.

  Carys had insisted they all go to Larimar on this trip, saying she had to have her island fix if she was going to make it through the chilly Bay Area winters. And the kid was an island girl at heart. So much so that she scared the life out of Gabe but made Lindy laugh at her antics because they reminded her so much of herself.

  It was interesting; once she left L.A. and moved to the Bay Area with Gabe and Carys, she’d discovered an awesome theater group who recognized her talent and not just her pretty face. She’d landed a small role in their last production and she’d learned that she had a passion for theater. Now she wasn’t chasing the nightlife in the hopes of gaining a career; instead she was studying acting techniques and becoming versed in the debate over Method acting and classical acting. It was a change she realized should’ve happened a long time ago if she’d ever hoped to be taken seriously in the acting world.

  Lilah was doing well in her healing and Lindy was so grateful for the change. Lilah continued to see Dr. Veronica but the combination of art therapy and medication had lessened her need to see the doctor so frequently. For the first time in a long while, Lilah was in a great place and it warmed Lindy’s heart to know her twin was doing so well, though in a private place that she didn’t talk about she still worried that Lilah could relapse. Even thinking about the possibility gave Lindy the chills so she tried to banish the thought whenever it arose, but seeing Lilah’s sunny smile always helped allay her fears, too, which was another reason for the frequent trips home.

  With the help of her paycheck from Paul Hossiter they were able to make the quarterly installment payment to the IRS but there was one final large payment looming over their heads, which was why they were all traveling to St. John on this trip.

  It was time to put into place some sustainable practices to save Larimar.

  The only problem? Pops was getting worse by the day.

  Lora, Heath and Celly had their hands full with the day-to-day running of Larimar, not to mention the babysitting of Pops so he didn’t hurt himself.

  Heath had proposed to Lora and had fashioned symbolic rings out of fused glass. Some rich guest at Larimar had seen it and commissioned his own. Now, Heath was creating fused glass rings for a decent sum of cash, which was nice for the resort and for Heath because he’d begun to worry that he’d made a wager on his talent and come up short.

  But even as serious as everything was around her, Lindy couldn’t help the smile that constantly found her lips.

  She was happy.

  Blissfully, ridiculously happy.

  And she knew that whatever came their way, they’d handle it as a family.

  All of them.

  Just the way it should be.

  * * * * *

  Be sure to look for Kimberly Van Meter’s

  last book in her Family Paradise trilogy,

  SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN,

  available in January 2013.

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt of Unraveling the Past by Beth Andrews!

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  CHAPTER ONE

  WHEN JESSICA TAYLOR lost her virginity three months and six guys ago—after fiercely guarding it for fifteen years—she’d been stone-cold sober.

  She hadn’t made that mistake again.

  Her stomach rolled. From the Jack Daniel’s, she assured herself. She should’ve stuck with beer. It always gave her a nice, mellow buzz without making her want to puke. Mostly because she knew her limit. Whiskey was a new beast, one she hadn’t figured out her tolerance to yet.

  But Nate had been so sweet when she’d arrived at the party a few hours ago, teasing her
into trying J.D. and Diet Coke, making sure her glass was always full, adding more soda when she choked, her eyes watering at the first taste.

  Yeah, he was a real prince.

  A cold sweat broke out along her hairline. Her stomach churned again. Because of the alcohol. It had nothing to do with her being on her back in the middle of the freaking woods.

  She stared up at the moon peeking through the branches of the trees and pretended she was somewhere else, anywhere else, doing anything except what she was doing. That she wasn’t wasted—yet again. And that Nate Berry, with his floppy, pop-star hair and tight circle of friends, really liked her. Cared about her. That he wasn’t using her.

  That she wasn’t letting him use her.

  Her skin grew clammy. Prickled with the cold. Nate’s fingers clenched her hips, his face pressed against her neck. He was just another boy. And this was just another meaningless, drunken hookup in what was quickly becoming a long line of meaningless, drunken hookups.

  Tears stung the backs of her eyelids and she squeezed her eyes shut. No. No feeling sorry for herself. She had every right to have sex with whoever she wanted, whenever she wanted. It was her body after all. Her choice to give it to some guy or not.

  She was in control.

  Her back and butt scraped against the rough earth. Her neck was stretched back, her hair caught between the crown of her head and the ground, pulling painfully each time he moved. She just wanted it to be over. Wanted to pretend it had never happened in the first place. Just like all the other times.

  Clutching his arms, she lifted her hips to keep from getting the mother of all brush burns, to stop the contents of her stomach from sloshing. She inhaled deeply, breathed in the scent of Nate’s cologne and the pungent smell from the bonfire in the clearing outside the trees. His grip tightened, his nails digging into her skin as he groaned hoarsely and shuddered then finally—finally—stilled.