If You Only Knew (Harper Falls #3)

by Mary J. Williams

  Tyler looked at the other women. Well, that was a surprise.

  “None of you have been there?”

  “No.”

  Dani and Lila shook their heads.

  “Any particular reason?”

  “I guess there hasn’t been any reason to go. We always seem to end up here or we go out.”

  “He’s just down the road. Drew never invited you and Jack over?”

  “I get the feeling he likes his fortress of solitude. But as I said, you can describe it to us in detail. Jack says he just finished putting in a pool. On the roof.”

  Tyler didn’t have to close her eyes to picture it. A pool on the roof. It was such a silly thing. Or so it seemed when she was sixteen and planning her dream house. She and Drew got a little silly at times. Then again, why not? The basic design was grounded in reality. After that, they threw in pure fantasy.

  That’s what the pool had been. Something Tyler had seen in a magazine. She never really imagined she would know someone who had one. She couldn’t wait to see it.

  “What is that little smile about?”

  “Just thinking about stuff.”

  Dani and Rose exchanged glances.

  “You’re thinking about having sex in that pool.”

  “Pool sex? Really?”

  They all turned to Lila, laughing at her wide-eyed amazement.

  “I mean, obviously I’ve read about that kind of stuff.”

  “Ah, do you remember when you were that young and innocent?”

  “Yes,” Dani said, her green eyes twinkling. “I was twenty-two and just out of college. Then I spent two sex-filled weeks with little Lila’s big brother. Talk about an eye opener. Innocent went out the window after the first day.”

  “Hey, there are some things a sister doesn’t need to hear.”

  “I agree.” Rose winked at Lila. “All you need to know is that Alex keeps Dani happy — in every room of the house.”

  “Enough,” Rose said, taking pity on Lila. “Look at her cheeks. We have a blusher, ladies. That’s a first for this group.”

  “That’s because, according to Father Malloy, we are shameless hussies.”

  “And proud of it.”

  Tyler, Dani, and Rose clinked their glasses together.

  Lila laughed with them. She took a sip of wine. It wasn’t easy to make new friends. She had come to Harper Falls on blind faith. Her business was booming, her brother was safe, in love and only a few minutes away. Lila could honestly say the women in this room were three of the best she had ever known. The day she decided to move across the country was a very good day indeed.

  “You still haven’t told me why Drew and Jack are fighting. Or not fighting. Was that point ever settled?”

  “It seems unlikely. Though Jack has a good reason to be pissed. You see, Drew had been lying to him for almost ten years.”

  “I DID NOT lie.”

  Drew didn’t know how many times he said that in the last ten hours. He did know Jack wasn’t buying it.

  “Did you let me believe you were borderline suicidal?”

  “Maybe, but—”

  “Then you lied.”

  As soon as he arrived at work that morning, Drew called Jack and Alex into his office. As his best friend for the past ten years, Jack had dealt with the racing issue much longer than Alex. Still, he didn’t think anyone would mind if he explained it all at once. It seemed silly to tell the same story twice.

  Jack didn’t mind Alex being present. His problem was with Drew. He listened in silence until the story was completely told. Then he let loose with a string of expletives. Drew gave him points for some creative combinations. Horse ass sucking ball licker? Really?

  “Somebody should be writing these down. I could have used some of them yesterday when I went off on you,” he said to Alex during a brief pause.

  “You think this is funny?”

  “No.”

  Drew tried to sound contrite — he failed. The fact was he did think it was a little funny. If not the situation, then Jack’s reaction to it. His normally laid-back partner was blowing a gasket. How could he not find that amusing?

  “Yes, you do. I know that smirk.”

  “I do not smirk.”

  Jack rounded on Alex. Up until now, he had kept wisely silent.

  “I ask you as an impartial observer. Is that or is that not a smirk?”

  “I’m Switzerland,” Drew said, holding up his hands “In fact, I don’t know why I’m here. This is between the two of you.”

  “You’re here because this twisted, shit-eating jerk pulled you into his lies.”

  “Wow. I hope you use some industrial strength antiseptic before you kiss Rose with that mouth.”

  “And that’s another thing. Do you have any idea how hard it was for Rose and Dani to keep your activities from Tyler?”

  “When did I ask them to do that?”

  “When you put them in the position of not wanting to cause her any more pain.”

  Jack held up his hands to mimic a scale.

  “Lie to her or hurt her?”

  The hand representing the lie sank.

  “Surprise, surprise. You picked the lie.”

  “All I can do is say I’m sorry, Jack. You took a few unrelated incidents and came up with a false conclusion. Maybe I should have set you straight. I didn’t. Water under the bridge.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Are you honestly telling me that after everything we’ve been through, this is going to break our friendship?”

  “What?” Jack gave him an are you crazy look. “I’m pissed, Drew. Seriously, bone-deep, pissed. I’ll get over it, eventually.”

  Drew sighed with relief. Pissed he could handle. Losing Jack? He didn’t ever want to go there.

  “What can I do? Name it.”

  Jack shook his head. “This is one I’m going to have to stew over, Drew. No quick fixes.”

  Drew sighed. He didn’t feel like laughing anymore. In essence, he had lied to his best friend. Letting him think the worst. Leaving him to worry without explanation. What Drew thought to be a minor omission was a much bigger deal to Jack. He would respect that and deal with the fallout. However long it took.

  “There might be a way.”

  Drew turned to Alex.

  “A way to what?”

  “To get Jack over his mad. Or at least speed up the process.”

  Hell yes, Drew wanted to shout. Whatever it took, he was on board. He looked at Jack. Ultimately, this was up to him.

  “What did you have in mind?”

  “In the Army, if a couple of my guys had a dispute, I would have them fight it out. In this case, since you’re the injured party, I’d say one shot. Hard as you want. Pick your spot.”

  “You want me to hit Drew? You think that will clear the air?” Jack sounded unconvinced, but he looked intrigued.

  “Not clear, exactly. More like lessen the toxic smoke he’s been blowing out of his ass.”

  “I thought you were Switzerland?”

  “Jack is right,” Drew said with a bit of twinkle in his eye.

  “When you pulled Dani into this, you pulled me in,” Alex told him.

  “Fine.”

  Drew didn’t have any room to grumble. Jack was as angry as he’d ever seen him. Alex needed to stand up for his woman. He wondered what Rose and Dani would have to say when he saw them? Not something he was looking forward to. Maybe if he showed up with a bruised face, they would cut him a little slack.

  “What do you think?”

  He could almost see the wheels turning in Jack’s brain. Drew knew from experience that his partner would weigh the pros and cons carefully before coming to a decision. It might take hours, even days before—”

  “Count me in.”

  Okay. So much for mulling things over.

  “Let’s do this.”

  Drew moved his jaw from side to side, making a memory of how it felt pre-punch. It might be hard to chew for a few
days.

  “Not now. We have a video conference at eleven-thirty. I’d rather not have to explain why one of us has a messed up face.”

  “One punch,” Drew called after the exiting Jack. “That was the agreement. Jack? Damn it, Jack. Answer me, you bastard. What are you laughing at?”

  Alex shook his head. He followed Jack out of Drew’s office without a word.

  “Brilliant,” he said when he was sure Drew was out of earshot. “Brilliant and evil. He’s going to spend the day thinking about that punch. When are you going to do it? What part of his body will you hit? Did you see him rotating his jaw?”

  “I did. He deserves to suffer a bit.”

  “Mission accomplished.”

  Alex slapped Jack on the back then left to take care of some paperwork. A necessary evil that could only be put off so long.

  Jack sat in his chair, swiveling until he faced the bank of windows that covered the west-facing wall. He was not a man easily angered. When he got mad, it didn’t last long. The rage he had vented at Drew was already gone. By the end of the day, he doubted he would be able to raise enough steam to make punching his friend at all satisfactory.

  With a weary sigh, Jack lifted his gaze. Harper House. One look at the imposing structure and he felt all his remaining anger fade away. Drew had grown up in that place. Not a home. A cold edifice dominated by an ice queen who wasn’t capable of even the smallest gesture of kindness or affection.

  Yet in spite of that, Drew had a big heart. He was loyal to a fault and when he loved, he did so with everything he had to give.

  Jack couldn’t imagine what it was like to give your heart to a woman and then live without her. Ten years. An eternity.

  It was a relief to find out Drew’s racing was never motivated by a death wish. Jack would have appreciated discovering that little bit of information sooner. Still, if it helped get him through, Jack wasn’t going to quibble.

  Thank God it was over. Drew and Tyler were on the road back to each other. The racing was a thing of the past. Hopefully, any bumps ahead would be mild ones.

  He didn’t need to hit Drew to get over his anger. Smiling, Jack formed his hand into a fist. His mad had fizzled. When he punched his buddy, it wasn’t going to be a chore. It was going to be pure, unadulterated pleasure.

  “FINALLY! I THOUGHT they would never get here.”

  Rose had spoken with Jack an hour earlier. Not to check up, she assured him. She needed to know when they would arrive for dinner. As ruses went, it wasn’t a very good one. Jack knew the real reason she called. He didn’t satisfy her curiosity. Instead of giving her an update, he told her they would be along soon.

  “They certainly took their sweet time.”

  Rose came to stand on Tyler’s left. Dani joined her on the right. Lila trailed behind, happy to observe from the doorway.

  “I’m not rushing down there. It isn’t like they’re returning from battle.”

  “Right,” Rose nodded. “Why do men think fighting is the only solution?”

  The three women exchanged grins.

  “Fine,” Rose conceded. “We’ve kicked some ass in our day. It isn’t our choice, is it? If one of you pissed me off, I wouldn’t challenge you to fist-a-cuffs at twenty paces.”

  “How would that work? Don’t you have to be next to someone to punch them out?”

  Rose snorted, bumping Tyler with her hip.

  “You know what I meant, smarty pants.”

  Jack’s SUV pulled to a stop. Alex followed right behind on his motorcycle. Drew was next, driving his car-of-the-day — an ice gray Porsche.

  A 1967… something. Nice. Tyler couldn’t remember the model. Not that it mattered. It was a car Drew used to covet. He would show her pictures, dreaming of the day that he would have one of his own. Looking at the sleek lines, she had to admit it was even better looking in person.

  “Do you realize we have six cars here? That isn’t counting the one in the garage that I drove earlier to do some errands. As environmentalists, we suck.”

  Tyler was only listening with half an ear. She waited for Drew to step out of his car. She swore that if Jack had messed up that gorgeous face, she would never talk to him again. Then she would give Drew the silent treatment. He deserved what Jack gave him.

  Wait. Did that make sense? The second she saw Drew she stopped worrying about it. As far as she could tell, he looked… perfect.

  It was after six, which meant the sun was down. Floodlights illuminated the driveway. The three men walked towards the house, each crouching in turn to pet Edgar. The dog knew his job. Fawn over Jack; he adored Jack. Then greet anyone lucky enough to be with Jack. You had to love a dog who had his priorities straight.

  “Are we late?”

  “Yes,” Rose answered. She stood with arms crossed over her chest. “Are you hurt?”

  “Not a scratch.”

  Jack waited where he was. Drew and Alex flanking him.

  “He looks like he did when he left this morning,” Rose whispered to her friends.

  “I don’t see a mark on Drew.”

  “I see three mouth-watering men waiting for us.” Dani looked at her friends. “Why are we up here when they are down there?”

  Not waiting for them to answer, Dani ran down the steps and into Alex’s waiting arms.

  “Looks good to me.”

  Rose skipped the steps, jumping to the ground.

  Jack didn’t wait for her to come the rest of the way.

  “There’s my girl,” he said before taking her mouth with his.

  Drew walked past the two couples, his eyes on Tyler. He jogged up the steps stopping a few inches from her.

  “You came to me.”

  “Someday, when I’ve earned the right, I’ll stand and wait for you. I figure that day is still a ways in the future. I have a lot to make up for, Ty.” He picked up her hand, lacing his fingers with hers.

  Neither of them noticed when their friends went in the house or heard the closing of the door. They were in their own world.

  “Someday,” Tyler agreed. Soon, she thought to herself.

  “After dinner.” He kissed the back of her hand. “Will you come home with me?”

  “Yes.”

  “I have a story to tell you. It won’t be easy to hear.”

  “I know. It won’t be easy to tell.”

  Drew gathered her close, swaying slightly to music that played only for them.

  Tyler pulled back just enough to examine his face.

  “How are you?”

  “Jack let me off easy. I’ll tell you about it later.”

  “Another story?”

  “This one has a happy ending.”

  Tyler took a deep breath. Her eyes were a hazy gray. A little worried, a little unsure. She lay her head on his shoulder.

  “I want one of those.”

  “Me too, Ty.” He wrapped his arms tight around her waist. “Me too.”

  Their own happy ending. What had seemed impossible only a few days ago was now right there for the taking. Drew was determined to finally have the woman of his dreams. Nothing, and especially no one would stop him. Not this time.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  TYLER FOLLOWED DREW in her car.

  Dinner had been relaxed, free of any lingering anger or tension. The story Drew promised to tell her entertained them through most of the meal. He and Jack trading off on the narration. Every now and then Alex would throw in a piece of colorful commentary. By the time dessert was served, they were laughing; hard feelings put behind them.

  Rose passed the bowl of fluffy, perfectly prepared mashed potatoes. The meal that she had agonized over was a hit. Roast chicken was crispy on the outside, juicy and succulent inside. Warm buttermilk biscuits disappeared in record time. The braised carrots and onions had just the right amount of bite left to them. Jack’s mother warned about the horrors of mushy vegetables. Rose followed her instructions like a pro. She beamed like a proud parent as her food was eaten with obvio
us enjoyment.

  “You had to wait all day?” Tyler asked between bites. “That couldn’t have been much fun.”

  “Not just wait. This guy,” Drew tipped his head toward Jack, “kept popping his head into my office. Tick, tock, he would say doing a fair Vincent Price. I am the voice of vengeance.”

  “Really, Jack? Melodramatic much?”

  “I thought it was effective,” he said, winking at Rose.

  She just shook her head. She loved the man, every sexy, goofy inch of him.

  “Effective? Hell, by the end of the day, I didn’t know what to expect. Was he going to hit me? Dip me in wax?”

  “Wax?” Lila looked around. Everyone was laughing except her.

  “Movie reference,” Alex explained.

  “Oh, right.”

  “We didn’t watch much TV when we were growing up,” Alex told their friends. “I had to do a lot of catching up when I started seeing Dani. I’m still clueless about half of the time.”

  “You’re getting better,” Dani assured him. “Though you would get a lot more out of our movie marathons if you would pay attention and keep your hands to yourself.”

  “I always took girls to the movies to neck. Old habits die hard. Besides, I don’t remember any complaints the other night when we missed the end of From Here to Eternity.”

  “True,” Dani smiled. “That beach scene gets me every time.”

  Preferring not to hear any more about her brother’s love life, Lila spoke up.

  “So what happened? Obviously, Jack didn’t clean your clock. How did you get out of it?”

  “Jack is so understanding and compassionate he decided to forgive and forget, right?”

  “I hate to disillusion you, my love. When I met Drew down in the gym, I had every intention of punching him out. My degree of mad diminished by the end of the day but not that much.”

  “Yet here he sits, unbruised and unbowed.”

  “Oh, he’s bowed,” Jack assured Dani. “I got my apology, a very sincere one. Then when I went to hit him, the bastard made me laugh.”

  “What did you say?” Tyler asked.

  Drew shrugged. “I just pointed out that since I’m such an idiot, it must be my good looks that attracted you. If Jack broke my nose or knocked out a tooth, you’d dump me in a heartbeat.”