“I—I can’t.”
She reached around him, snagged her coat off the hook, and stormed out into the cold. Snowflakes touched her cheeks and melted like tears, as she ran up the path to her car. She drove to the end of his long driveway, before she slammed on the brakes and allowed herself to cry.
The snow collected in the valley of her windshield wipers and blurred her vision. She could only sit and stare into the swirling veil of white. Two weeks. Before the fundraiser. Before all the lies and omissions surfaced. He’d had the ring for two weeks.
She loved Gray. And he loved her. After all the years of not trusting anyone to stick by her, he stuck by her. She couldn’t keep running. After all they’d been through, Gray kept coming back. If she was ever going to believe in anything, Gray was the one she had to trust with her heart.
She turned on the wipers and backed the car around. By the time she reached the parking area and turned the key, her door was open. By the time she banged through his front door, he still stood right where she’d left him.
His signature, lazy grin widened into full-fledged dimple-mode.
“I’ve changed my mind. I want to open the box.”
Without a word, he knelt down in front of her, flipped the lid, and lifted out the oblong sapphire set in platinum. “Luke warned me to do right by you. I'm begging you to say yes, so I don't have to face his wrath."
She grinned. “You’re doing this for Luke?”
“Not on your life. I’m doing it for me. I don’t want to go through life without you.”
Lauralee dropped to her knees. She touched her lips to his—enough to allow his warmth to spread through her. "Yes."
"Yes?" Surprise etched his features, before he composed himself and slipped the ring on her finger. "I'll do right by you now and always. Believe me, Lee. I promise."
She stood, pulling him with her. Her arms circled his neck as she pressed into him. “I do believe you. Now I want to show you how much.”
In the cocooned silence, as the snow swirled outside, she led him down the hall to his bedroom. And shut the door behind them.
Epilogue
Gray stood at the front of the tiny, clapboard-covered church perched on his family's property for generations. The double wide doors stood open, with a view of the sea gently rolling upon the rocks. The strong, early summer sun shone through the stained glass window casting a kaleidoscope of color down the aisle
And then he saw her silhouetted against the azure sky. His bride—a vision of haloed red hair until she stepped from the sunshine into the dimly lit church. Her dress was ivory, slim fitting, the hemline ending above her knee. His breath caught. Lee showing off her curves and her confidence as she looked straight at him.
She walked the first few feet alone until a figure stepped from the shadows in the back and linked his arm with hers. For a moment, two red heads bent toward each other, and Gray could see Lee's eyes glisten. Her father stepped back again, and pulled forth the wheelchair carrying Auntie Mindi. Her aunt’s smile lit up the church. Mindi had to know deep down what was happening today.
With Lee’s arm through her father's, a bouquet of deep purple calla lilies nestled against their linked elbows, they each gripped a handle to wheel Mindi down past the seven rows to the first pew. After they settled Mindi’s chair in the aisle, Jim kissed Lee on the cheek and sat next to Mindi.
Lee glanced around the tiny church, before she turned to the altar and took the last few steps toward Gray.
He reached for her hands with both of his, the warmth of her touch coursing through him.
“God, you’re beautiful. I’ve waited for this day my entire life.” Her eyes clouded, as her lip quivered, finally lifting in a tentative smile. He leaned in and whispered, “How can you still not believe?”
He felt the shake begin in her hands as goosebumps snaked up her arms. “Gray, I love you. And I do believe. So much, it’s overwhelming.”
He squeezed her hands. “Let’s do it.”
As they faced the minister, the sunlight streaming into the small space seemed to dim again. A murmur spread through the church. Luke, Gray’s best man, nudged him. “Turn around.”
Luke’s parents stood in the doorway, clasping each other’s hand. As they edged toward seats in the back, two others stepped into the sunlight. Gray’s hand fisted round Luke’s bicep, as his other slipped from Lee’s.
Luke leaned in. “You did it, boss, ya’ did the impossible. Proud of you, man.”
Lee’s shoulder brushed his. “What’s wrong?”
“My parents.”
Lee pulled his hand back into hers. “Let’s go greet them.” She tugged him back down the aisle, as the murmurs turned into loud whispers. Gray tripped over his own feet trying to keep up with Lee. His heart plummeted to the pit of his stomach. He wasn’t so sure having his parents here today, of all days, was a good thing.
His mom stood still as a statue, tears shimmering and a tentative smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. His dad had the rigid, stoic look he carried around for every occasion.
Lee reached them first. She held out her left hand and grasped his mom’s. “Mrs. Mann. Oh my—I can’t believe you’re here. Come in.” When Lee dropped Gray’s hand and clasped his father’s in her right, reality hit him square in the jaw. His bride and his parents meeting for the first time. His mother with tears running down her cheeks, his father—well, it wasn’t a sight he saw often. Never thought he’d see again, as a slight tug at his mouth showed a smile working its way to his dad’s eyes.
“Come. Sit up front. Gray, bring Luke’s parents.”
Damn. He fought his own tears. Lee remembered him saying Luke’s folks were like his own.
She paraded all of them back down the aisle and introduced the two couples to Mindi and Jim. Snagging Gray’s hand, she turned to the gathering. “Everyone, this is Gray’s mom and dad and Luke’s parents. Now our celebration can begin.”
After she directed all four of Gray’s family into the front pew across the aisle, she dragged Gray back to the altar.
He snagged her around the waist, his heart roaring like thunderous waves against his beloved bluff. He and Lee were about to ensure the Parkers Point family legacy carried on. He glanced toward the vaulted ceiling and knew his grandfather winked down on them.
He drew Lee snug against his body. “To hell with pronouncing us man and wife first. Thank you for being you.” His kiss, deep and long, relayed his in it for the long haul commitment. “Will you be mine forever?”
“I will.” She leaned in and whispered I do. And then she kissed him back.
The minister harrumphed.
The crowd laughed.
And Gray—well, he kept right on kissing his wife to be. That is, until she murmured against his lips. “Now, this is lovely.”
The End
About Delsora Lowe
From Cabins to Cottages…Keep the Home Fires Burning
A transplanted big city girl, world-wide traveler, and foreign-service brat, who now lives in a coastal Maine town, Delsora Lowe loves to write about small town heroes from the cowboys and ranchers of Colorado to the game wardens and lobstermen of Maine. Her work in the hospitality industry, rape crisis, admissions, alumni relations, and women’s advocacy has allowed her to interact on a daily basis with real life heroines and heroes. Lowe’s family visits to Colorado are the inspiration for an upcoming contemporary western series.
www.DelsoraLowe.com
SEPTEMBER
Storm to Forever
April Canavan
Some things you can only learn in a storm
Brandi hasn’t had an easy go of it. After her best friend was attacked and almost killed in their home, she changed her life. Devoted to helping save others, fate decides to throw her a curveball in the form of Travis Masterson.
A man suffering from his own damaged past, Travis is determined to keep Brandi as far away from him as possible. But when a storm forces them together in order to
help the community they live in, their lives will never be the same again.
Dedication
To the love of my life, Ryan. I hope you always remember that there is no greater love than what I have for you, and that you are my happily ever after. Now to just make sure that you don’t forget it when you get to your teen years. If it wasn’t for your smile, I wouldn’t know what to do with myself.
To the men and women of my local Sheriff’s Department- I wouldn’t have the skill set I do without you.
Chapter 1
It went from sunny to rainy in under ten minutes. It started with the small patter of rain on the windows. Brandi Anderson looked outside and wished that she was at home rather than sitting in the fire department bay with about thirty other dispatchers, firefighters and police officers who were just as bored of the training that they had to undergo as she was. The storm wasn’t supposed to hit Serenity Harbor for over twelve hours, but apparently Mother Nature had other ideas. The storm looked nasty, and she couldn’t help but raise her hand and interrupt the speaker.
“Um, excuse me. But I think we should cut this off early and let people get headed off the island. It looks like the storm hit a little early.” She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice, but the tall blond guy at the front of the room was just asking for attitude from her.
Travis Masterson was an ass. Plain and simple. Since the day that she was hired in the Sheriff’s Department as a dispatcher, he had hated her guts. She had no idea why, because she hadn’t ever done anything to him. At just under five feet tall, she wasn’t especially imposing. And Travis was—he was six feet and three inches of pure man. The blue eyes that looked at her now filled with anger usually lit up his face. His cheeks were red too, something else that happened when he was in her company more often than not.
The man in question turned away from her and looked out the window at the growing storm. “Yeah, that’s actually a good idea, Brandi. Why don’t we call it, and everyone can head home before the storm gets any worse.”
As everyone turned to stand, there was a loud crack and the lights went out. There was a shuffling, and confusion as the generator that should have kicked on didn’t.
“Hey, I think someone should try and find the fire chief. See if we can get the generator on,” Travis said to no one in particular in the dim room.
Brandi pulled out her cell phone and called into dispatch. “Hey, David do you know what’s going on?”
“Yeah. You can probably tell all the guys to be prepared to stay for a while. There’s a jam up on the bridge. Looks like the power lines came down on a big truck. I have to go, 911 is ringing non-stop.”
“Shit. I’ll let them know.” David hung up on her before they could say anything else and she prepared herself mentally for the announcement.
Brandi looked around the room, and even though she didn’t like the idea of getting these people’s attention she stuck her thumb and middle finger in her mouth and let out the loudest whistle she could manage. Everyone in the room stopped talking and turned towards the noise.
“I just called my dispatch. They said there was an accident on the bridge and that you should all be prepared to stay for a while. Looks like we’re going to be stuck on the island for the time being. Just get settled in for now, and we’ll get more information for you as we can.” Simultaneously, the thirty people in the room took out their phones to call their respective agencies to give them an update, and to let their families know what was going on.
Brandi turned the flashlight on that was built into her phone and, after holding it above her head and at the crowd, found the man she needed to talk to. He couldn’t stand her, but that didn’t matter right now. She made her way through the room to his side. “Okay, what do you want me to do?” she asked him, knowing that she should defer to his experience as an officer in this situation.
“I think we need find out what’s going on for now and then wait and see what they need us to do. We’re not supposed to be on duty now, but if this is gets bad they’re gonna need all hands on deck.” He looked down at her, and she felt even smaller than normal.
It was hard for her to breathe sometimes when he was around, just because he was so much bigger than she was. She coughed, and looked away.
“Okay, I’ll go see what I can find out.” She walked away from him, and hoped they would be able to work together or she was sure she’d lose her sanity.
Chapter 2
Travis watched Brandi walk away and couldn’t help but want to punch something. He didn’t volunteer for this assignment, and hadn’t been prepared for her to be in the class with him. It was hard enough working with her, with the attitude that she seemed to only have for him. But now they were probably going to be stuck together for the rest of the night.
While he waited for her to come back, he remembered the day they were introduced. The Sheriff’s annual end of summer bash was in full swing when she walked into the back yard and Travis almost hit the ground.
She was small, shorter than the woman that she was standing next to. Maya, another dispatcher, was standing to her right and the two women looked like they were deep in conversation. Travis couldn’t take his eyes off the new woman. She had platinum blonde hair cut close to her head, but her skin had a deep tan. She was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, and was carrying a hoodie. There wasn’t anything remarkable about her, but he couldn’t look away. And then a football hit him in the side of the face.
“Come on, man. Pay attention. You should have caught that no problem. The girls are gonna kick our asses again.” Brian, another deputy, jogged to his side. “What’s got you distracted?” He turned to follow Travis’s eye-line and a smile hit his lips.
“Brian! There you are!” The brunette standing next to Brandi yelled.
They two women made their way across the lawn to where Travis and Brian were standing, but Travis was glued in place. When she got closer, he saw that her eyes were green. He felt something rising in the pit of his stomach, and he couldn’t help but turn away from her and walk away. He avoided her for the rest of the night.
But then she started working in dispatch and he couldn’t avoid her. He tried to keep it professional, but every time he was around her, he got the same feeling in the pit of his stomach and he said whatever he could to get away from her. Most of the time it meant that he was inexplicably an asshole, but he couldn’t help it. He needed to keep it together, and being nice to her made it impossible.
It wasn’t like he didn’t know what was going on as soon as he saw her. He was attracted to her, obviously. But he hadn’t had a relationship since his wife left him. And he didn’t want anything complicated. Complicated would be all that came from starting a relationship of any kind with a dispatcher. It wouldn’t end well for him, or for her. Dispatchers who dated deputies seemed to get a bad reputation to some of the guys.
Dragging himself back to the present, Travis prepared himself for the fact that his night was only beginning. By the time Brandi got back from checking in with dispatch, he knew what the plan was going to be.
“So, I need you to head over to the school with the rest of the dispatchers and get a temporary shelter set up for the people who have nowhere else to go.” He said to her, and noted that she wasn’t surprised with the turn of events.
“Okay, be safe out there tonight.” She looked up at him, and there was something in her eyes that he hadn’t ever noticed before. But he didn’t have time to think about it. He needed to get out and help the fire department with clearing the roads. “Oh, Travis?” Her question stopped him before he could turn away from her.
“What’s up?”
“Do you know when they’re going to open the island up for traffic?”
“Sheriff says that it’s probably not going to be until morning at the earliest.”
“Oh. Okay.” Disappointment laced her voice, and she turned away to find the group of dispatchers that were congregating and making plans of their own.
<
br /> Shrugging, he walked out into the storm to do what needed to be done.
* * *
It was easy for him to dismiss her, and it just made her more upset. It was stupid, but Brandi wanted Travis to like her. They worked together, and he couldn’t even be cordial to her. The day that they had met, he hadn’t even looked at her. Just walked away as soon as she and Maya had met up with him and Brian at the Sheriff’s barbeque, and that had been just the start of the hostility between them.
When she had started working for the county Sheriff’s Department in dispatch, he had made it his personal mission to make sure that she was miserable every day that he was there. He would come in and ignore her to the point that it made work difficult. He wouldn’t answer her on the radio until his supervisor stepped in and told him that he had to pull his head out of his ass. Life had been complicated in the past year as it was, and his actions only made it harder.
After Maya was attacked and almost killed in their house, Brandi had been the one to clean up the blood. She had replaced the bed, scrubbed the carpets, and had even painted the walls three times. But there was nothing that she could do. She had closed the door to the room after Maya moved out and hadn’t opened it again. Sleeping in the same house was bad enough, but the house had been the only thing she was left with after her grandparents died.
She watched as Maya recovered, and hid all the grief that she felt. She made sure that Maya had a safe place to come home to. A place to recover, but in the process of helping her friend she neglected herself. She wasn’t there when Maya was hurt, and she could have saved her friend the pain she had endured if she had been home. Of course she would never tell anyone how she felt. But it kept her up at night, and she had nightmares. Now, because of the storm, she was going to have to sleep in a gym with a bunch of other people who would hear any noise that she made.
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