To Be With You

by Daphne Abbott

  Workers had stripped the siding on one side, and we were testing colors to find the exact shade of yellow that would look best. I pulled out my phone, snapped a picture to Callum, and circled my current favorite shade. He didn’t immediately respond, but that was par for the course this week. It was hard not to feel a little frustrated with the lack of communication.

  That didn’t mean I had deeper feelings.

  I tossed the phone in my purse and put the bulging bag on the passenger side footwell. While I circled to the driver’s side door, I considered ignoring my promise to Gavin about relaxation. There wasn’t a chance he would ever know what I’d done on my over the weekend. Would he?

  Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a movement near the front of the house. I spun on my heel, ready to confront an intruder or an animal, but there was nothing there. Muttering to myself, I turned back toward the open car door, only to hear a crash of metal from the carriage house.

  My heart jumped into my throat, and I dived into the car to dig out my phone. Fear clawed at my insides as I desperately dug through papers and other detritus. Finally, I found the device at the very bottom of the bag buried under a pile of resumes.

  Inch by inch, I sat up with my eyes glued to the carriage house behind me. Without looking, I slid the phone open to the emergency option and held my finger at the ready. Nothing. No movements or further noise came from the direction of the carriage house. Had I imagined it?

  When nothing else happened for several minutes, I moved out of the car and toward where I assumed the noise originated. My heart pounded in my chest, and my breath was coming in short pants that sounded loud in the silence of twilight. I made my way to the service door at the side of the building and used the flashlight feature on my phone. I shone the light through the window.

  We’d filled the interior of the building with my belongings and some materials for the job. The storefront construction wouldn’t start for weeks, so there was no logical reason someone would need to be inside the building.

  Seeing nothing from my vantage point, I reached out to open the door, only to find it locked. I sucked in a shocked breath because I could have sworn the noise originated from inside the carriage house. But now, I wasn’t so sure.

  Hand on the door, I tried to decide if my concern warranted a call to my brother or Gavin. I had nothing to show them. I had only seen the movement in my periphery, and the noise could have been an animal wandering the worksite.

  Instead of making a false call, I walked around both buildings to see if I could find any evidence of an intruder. Of course, the entire grounds had evidence of the workers on the renovation, so even as I walked the property, I knew it was probably a useless task.

  When I couldn’t find anything that seemed to indicate there had been a break-in, I walked back to the car and got in. It was Lucy’s fault I was so jumpy. Her wild ideas about creepy dudes wanting my underwear had made me see boogeymen where there was nothing. My skin felt clammy the entire drive back to the cottage, despite my best efforts to calm down.

  Distraction was my best bet, so after a quick rinse in the shower, I changed into a soft summer dress and some wedge sandals. I left my hair down to float around my shoulders after air drying, then I added a light spray of perfume. The grooming routine chased away the last of my apprehension, and by the time I was done, I was looking forward to a stiff drink and a good dinner.

  I pulled into the lot at The Loon’s Nest and recognized a few cars and trucks. I took a couple of calming breaths to center myself and banish the last bit of unease before opening the door and exiting the car.

  “Well, look who finally darkened my door,” Jake said as I sat down in between two couples at the bar. “How ya been, Liv?”

  “Better now that the week is over.”

  “Well then, let me buy you the first drink of the weekend.” He moved to the shelf at his back and started mixing me a Bloody Mary.

  I accepted the glass with a smile and took a long sip of the spicy drink. “You are possibly the best bartender ever, Jake.”

  “I’m amazing at everything I do,” he said with a roguish grin. “I’d be happy to show you what else I’m good at, Liv.”

  “It’s going to be a no for me, Jake. Even if I wasn’t involved with your brother, you’re too good of a friend to mess it up with sex.”

  Jake clapped a hand over his heart and rolled his expressive olive green eyes heavenward. “You wound me!”

  “I doubt it,” I replied. “You’ve never lacked companionship. And don’t pretend you have feelings for me beyond friendship. We both know it’s a lie.”

  He just laughed and walked away to see to the next customers. Jake’s harmless flirting felt normal and helped clear away the last of my unease. But I didn’t feel like interacting with anyone I knew yet, so I remained sitting at the bar sipping my drink, surrounded by a crop of tourists.

  After a few minutes, the couple to my left stood up and left for a table, and a new body slid into the seat next to me. I kept my eyes on the TV, hoping to avoid some awkward conversation with the newcomer. But luck wasn’t on my side because the new person kept shifting and clearing his throat in obvious attempts to get my attention.

  Resigned, I glanced up, surprised to see Kevin, my former co-worker, sitting next to me.

  “Strange meeting you here,” he said with a little smile.

  “Why is it strange?”

  “You used to join us for Friday drinks every week, but it’s been months since you’ve stepped foot in the Nest. I was wondering if you’d given up on fun.”

  I laughed a bit wryly and drank from my glass. “Not entirely, but some days I get close.”

  “Oh, come on now. All work and no play will make Olivia a dull girl,” Kevin said.

  The joke was cheesy, but I still laughed a little. Kevin was full of horrible one-liners and dad jokes, but he was a decent guy, so I put up with him.

  I turned in my seat to look at him. “So, now I’m dull?”

  He shrugged. “If the expensive shoe fits.”

  I rolled my eyes and waved at Ronnie, Jake’s second-in-command. “Hey, babe,” she said when she made it to my side of the bar. “Need a refill?”

  “I’m going to eat at the bar. Can you get me the perch special with roasted potatoes?” I said.

  “That sounds good. I’ll have the same,” said Kevin.

  I’d wanted to eat in peace and even considered changing my order to go. But Rose and Pris had drilled good manners into me from birth, so instead, I just smiled my thanks at Ronnie and turned my eyes back to the TV. I couldn’t bring myself to complain outright, but I could, at least, make conversation difficult.

  My plan was to keep my attention on ESPN and hope that Kevin got bored with bragging about his latest work accomplishments. He didn’t, of course.

  “I tell you those negotiations were some of the toughest of my career. But when the MacPhersons called and asked for me personally, of course, I jumped at the chance to work with them.”

  The mention of my ex-in-laws made ice run through my veins. I put down the fork I’d just raised to my mouth and turned to give Kevin my full attention. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I heard that first part. What kind of deal are you negotiating for the MacPhersons?”

  Kevin’s eyes were bright with excitement. “They’re buying up land around Kendall Lake.”

  That lake was one of the smaller ones in the area and wasn’t popular with tourists or locals.

  “What would they want with the land around Kendall? There’s nothing there except for a couple old fish camps and that old Boy Scout retreat.”

  “No one knows.” Kevin shrugged and bit into a piece of fish.

  My head buzzed with possibilities. My guess was they were capable of anything from another golf course to some underhanded price-gouging of land. All I knew was I was not
comfortable with how active the MacPhersons were becoming in Eagle Creek.

  They didn’t even live in town, for fuck’s sake.

  “I hope it’s a resort,” Kevin said after a few minutes of silence.

  “I don’t,” I muttered and shoved my plate to the side. My appetite ruined. “We don’t need more resorts in the area.”

  “More resorts would mean more tourists, and more tourists mean more money in the economy.”

  “I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree.” I pulled my purse from the hook at my side and dug out my wallet.

  Ronnie walked up and grabbed my plate from the bar. “Was everything okay?”

  “It was perfect as usual. I’m just not as hungry as I thought,” I said as I held out my credit card.

  “Put that away.” Kevin batted my hand away and held out his own car to Ronnie. “I’m buying the lady dinner.”

  Ronnie looked at me for confirmation. Any other day, I’d suck up my pride and let the man have his way, but it’d been a long week, and I was tired. I handed my card to Ronnie. “If you could hurry that along, too. I need to get going.”

  Ronnie must have understood the signals I was trying to silently communicate, because she took the card from my hand and walked away before Kevin could say anything more.

  “Well, that was uncalled for.”

  A headache was forming at the base of my skull, and the news about the MacPhersons buying up land was making my stomach roil. All I wanted to do was pay my bill and get the hell out of the bar. I did not want to cater to Kevin’s fragile ego.

  “I’ve had a long day,” I muttered as I pulled out my keys from my bag. The good girl in me wanted to apologize to him for the offense, but he was the one that had intruded on my dinner.

  “You look a little pinched.” He leaned in closer. “You know, I’m excellent at helping women relax.”

  “I’m not interested, Kevin.” I smiled at Ronnie when she handed me the credit card slip and signed my name as quickly as I could.

  “You good to drive?” Jake asked as he came to stand next to his employee.

  “Yup,” I agreed. “I had just the one Bloody. Thanks, Jake.”

  Both Ronnie and Jake looked at me with narrowed eyes, and I knew they were trying to assess if I was in danger from Kevin. I just smiled and shook my head once before hopping off the stool and pulling my bag over my shoulder.

  “I’ve got a comfy bed and a new book calling my name,” I said with a small wave. “Have a nice night, everyone.”

  I spun on my heel and headed for the door through the throng of people waiting for spots at the bar. Between the mass of humanity and the news Kevin had just dropped on me, I was ready to get back to the cottage and unwind.

  “Olivia!” Kevin’s voice made the burgeoning headache throb harder in my skull.

  “Fuck,” I muttered as I pushed the unlock button on my key fob.

  “Olivia.” Kevin sounded out of breath as he caught up with me at the hood of my car. “Didn’t you hear me?”

  He grabbed me by the bicep and forced me to turn and face him. Warning bells started ringing in my head when I noticed his grip was a little too firm to be polite.

  “Kev, I’m tired and want to go home.” I leveled a glare at him, one I hoped communicated my frustration.

  His smile looked weird in the harsh overhead lights. “I told you I’m good at relieving tension.”

  I backed up and tugged at my arm. But his hold was firm. “We’ve had this discussion before. I’m not interested.”

  “Come on, you don’t mean that.”

  He inched closer, and I started calculating what weapons I had in my bag. The keys in my hand seemed like the most obvious choice, but a swift kick to the balls was always a good option.

  “Let go of me,” I said through clenched teeth.

  A look crossed his face that had sticky fingers of dread sliding along my skin. Just as I opened my mouth to scream for help, his expression changed. It was like a different person was standing in front of me.

  “Hey, calm down,” Kevin said, and held his hands up.

  “Calm down?” I asked. “I’m not the–”

  “Liv!” Logan, the oldest Waite brother, called out as he jogged over to where I stood. “Thought that was you.”

  Logan was like a massive guardian angel, and I almost wept at the sight of him. “Hey, Logan. Yea, I was just about to go home.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad. I feel like we never get to see each other anymore.” He turned to look at Kevin, and he puffed his chest out like an attack dog. “Who are you?”

  I inched closer to Logan’s comforting bulk. “This is Kevin Drummond. We used to work for the same agency.”

  “Ah.”

  I could have laughed at the dismissal that one syllable conveyed but thought better of it. Kevin’s face was a mottled reddish-purple, and his mouth hung open. Then, in a flash, he composed himself and pasted on his smarmy businessman smile.

  “I’ve got an early meeting. Olivia, let’s do this again.”

  “Let’s not,” I muttered under my breath as Logan and I watched him walk away at a near jog.

  “What was up with that, dude?”

  I shrugged. “We had a couple of dates like two years ago. He sometimes forgets that I said no to anything more.”

  “You tell your brother or mine about this guy?” Logan asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah, Liam’s aware. I don’t think he’s dangerous. He’s just creepy.”

  Logan sighed and gave me an awkward side hug. “Just be careful, okay?”

  I was getting sick of people telling me that.

  Chapter 22

  Callum

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited to get back to Eagle Creek,” I muttered as I unlocked the cabin door and let Fab walk inside.

  “Hmm.” Fab grinned at me over his shoulder. “I wonder what could have changed your mind.”

  He’d been putting the screws to me for weeks about my fling with Olivia. At first, it was just Fabián’s standard ribbing, but lately, he’d gotten more and more pointed about the feelings he insisted I was hiding. I was holding firm to my statement that the arrangement was temporary—physical only.

  We both knew I was a liar.

  “Your attempt at subtlety leaves something to be desired,” I muttered.

  “You want to talk to me about being subtle with the subtext? You. The guy who squawked about coming back to his hometown and made a big show about how he would not fall back in love with the girl who broke his heart. Aren’t you also the guy that kissed her after three days of being here and slept with her—”

  “Enough.” I cut him off in case Olivia was still awake.

  Fab chuckled as we walked through the dark cabin and toward the bedrooms. With each step, my heartbeat increased. All day long, as we battled flight delays, missing luggage, and rental car issues, my anticipation at seeing Olivia had built until I felt nearly frantic with the need to have my eyes and hands on her again.

  We’d gotten stuck in a small northern Maine town for ten days while we consulted on an addition gone wrong. The client had been our first “celebrity,” and he’d contacted us to do the addition design, but our schedules didn’t work with his time frame. So, we’d passed on a name of a reputable local firm and forgot the whole thing. But the new architects made a mistake in their drawings, and a historical piece of the home was suddenly at risk.

  When Jo called and explained the situation, Fabián and I agreed to come out and help on-site. Provided this time, we could post our work in our portfolio. The notoriously private author hemmed and hawed for a bit before agreeing. It’d been hell to leave Olivia behind, especially after the RV incident. Still, it had been worth it to add that man’s name to my client list.

  I called my goodnights to Fabián and si
lently slipped into the bedroom. The overhead lights were off, and the curtains pulled closed, so the space was pitch black save for the small table lamp on my preferred side of the bed.

  Olivia lay sprawled facedown across the bed, surrounded by her laptop, tablet, phone, and a stack of papers and binders. The oversized t-shirt she wore rucked up around her waist, exposing her long runner’s legs and an incredibly tiny pair of blue shorts. Half of me wanted to pounce on the bed and slake the need that had been growing for ten days. The other, more rational part of me recognized how exhausted she must have been to fall asleep surrounded by her work.

  Before I could join her for the night, I needed to wash the funk of travel off my body, so I took my overnight bag into the master bathroom with me and turned the shower on as hot as it would go. I wasn’t a huge guy like my brother Logan, but my legs were stiff and sore from too many hours in coach seats.

  Steam filled the bathroom in seconds. I didn’t want to turn on the fan and wake Olivia, so I just left it off. As soon as I stepped under the hot spray, I felt the long hours melt away, and my muscles slowly unclenched.

  Just as I felt myself falling asleep standing under the spray, the shower door was pulled open with such force it rattled the entire fiberglass surround. I let out a noise that was somewhere between a gasp and a shout. I spun to face my intruder, but slipped and skidded on the floor, crashing against the back wall. Olivia stood in the open door, still dressed in her big t-shirt and tiny shorts. Her eyes were wide and wild, and in her hand was a metal baseball bat.

  “Jesus, fuck!” I pushed back against the wall to get out of striking distance. “What’s wrong with you?”

  Olivia continued to stand in the open door, but didn’t make a move to hit me. Her chest was heaving like she’d just run a marathon, and the wild look in her eyes was terrifying me. It was like Liv wasn’t seeing me, but something from her nightmares.

  “Liv, baby,” I whispered. “It’s me. It’s Cal.”