by Brenda Novak
“Yeah.” A bead of sweat rolled from her temple as she smiled. “I’ve been getting some great shots.”
He indicated the camera. “This is your hobby?”
“My profession. I have a studio in town. Reflections by Callie. We do a lot of weddings. But lately I’ve been shooting nature.”
He recalled the impressive photograph hanging in the kitchen. “That spider by the table.”
“Is mine, yes.”
“It’s nice.”
She seemed gratified. “Thanks.”
“So how often do you go into your studio?”
“I used to go every day. But...I’m taking the summer off.”
“To photograph nature.”
“And to say goodbye.”
He studied her carefully. “To whom?”
Sitting up, she tilted her head so that the sun could hit her face. “To this place. It belonged to my grandparents before they died. I spent a lot of summer days and weekends here when I was growing up, have a lot of fond memories.”
“That’s why you’re living out here alone?”
“That’s right. Why?”
He hesitated to put what he was feeling into words. He sensed that something was wrong, something beyond having to sell a piece of property that had been in the family for years. But he didn’t really know Callie and could easily be mistaken. He hoped he was. As much as he was determined not to feel anything, he appreciated her kind heart. He’d never experienced much gentleness. Not until he met Behrukh.
Maybe that was why he’d been foolish enough to get involved with her. He’d returned to her father’s store again and again, to buy gum, candy, bottled water, anything he could think of. He’d never been with a woman before and his hormones were running rampant.
“Who’s taking care of the studio?” he asked. “Or did you close it for the summer?”
“We couldn’t miss bridal season. So I have an assistant—more like an apprentice, I guess—who’s handling things for me.”
“While you work out here, taking pictures of nature and getting the farm in shape.”
“Basically.”
She wasn’t wearing any makeup. He got the impression she’d climbed out of bed, pulled her hair up and headed outside. But he liked her this way. She looked fresh and dewy and soft.
Suddenly, he craved some of that softness. A moment of tenderness. A respite from the bitterness that had left his own heart so hard. It felt like forever since he’d lost himself inside a woman.
But the only woman he’d known in that way was dead because of him. So was the baby she carried—his baby.
He tried to steel himself against the memory he avoided more than any other, but nearly swooned beneath the vision that broke on his mind. Being around Callie made it almost impossible to forget what happened. Although she looked nothing like the woman he’d loved, the two had a similar spirit.
“Are you okay?” Callie’s voice was soft, practically a whisper.
He opened his eyes. He hadn’t even realized he’d closed them. This wasn’t Behrukh, he reminded himself. And what had happened in Kandahar? There was nothing he could do to change it.
“Fine,” he managed to say. He wanted to get away from Callie, needed to get away.
Soon, he promised himself. As soon as he fulfilled his obligation. “Where’s the paint?”
Although she didn’t look convinced that he was as fine as he said, she didn’t inquire further. She dusted off her knees and got to her feet. “I’ll get it for you. After we have breakfast.”
6
Callie turned on some music while she made fried potatoes, omelets and toast. She’d always enjoyed cooking, but having someone to fix a meal for was even more fulfilling. Had she been on her own, she would’ve settled for toast and juice, since she often felt nauseous after a big meal.
“You don’t have to go to so much trouble.” Levi spoke from where he was cleaning up his bedding in the other room.
She didn’t bother to come up with a response. She’d awakened this morning feeling inexplicably happy just to be alive. Part of it was the sunshine pouring into the old farmhouse. She loved it here, was glad she’d moved. But Levi was another reason she felt so good. Trying to help someone else gave fresh purpose to her own life. It also dragged her attention away from her various worries and complaints—and the inevitable, should she be unable to find a liver donor.
“Did you hear me?” he called.
“I heard you,” she replied.
“Why didn’t you answer?”
“Because I’m going to make what I’m going to make.”
“Okay, forget I said anything.”
She smiled at the pique in his voice. She had no idea what his story was, or if he’d tell her before he left. Most likely not. She didn’t care either way. He had a right to his privacy. She simply liked thinking that she’d made a positive impact on someone, if only in a small way—giving him a place to stay, some food to eat, a few days of peace.
“We need to go into town so I can get a new rod for your shower,” he said.
“Why not take the one from the other bathroom?” she suggested.
“We have to get parts for my bike, anyway.” Having folded his bedding, he was now standing in the doorway. She could tell by the sound of his voice, but she didn’t turn.
“Callie.”
She was pretty sure it was the first time he’d called her by name. She cast a glance over her shoulder. “Hmm?”
“What’s really going on with you?”
The gravity in his voice told her this wasn’t a casual question. He could sense that something wasn’t ideal. But she didn’t want him to know about her diagnosis any more than she wanted anyone else to know. She couldn’t say why. Maybe she was afraid he’d see her as flawed or defective. Why would he choose to spend even a few days with a woman who wouldn’t be around in a couple of weeks or months? And she didn’t want him to go. She was intrigued enough to hope he’d finish out the week.
“What’s really going on with you?” she asked, turning his own question back on him. “There’s got to be a reason a handsome, capable guy goes rambling around America.”
When he grunted, she took it to mean “Touché,” and chuckled to herself.
“You’re not like other women,” he said.
She got a plate out of the cupboard. “Are you like other men?”
“I like the same things they do.”
There seemed to be added significance to this statement, as if he was talking about liking women, liking sex, but she chose to ignore that—just as she chose to ignore the way he was looking at her. “Good. Then you should enjoy your breakfast.” She carried his omelet to the table before returning to the counter for his toast and hash browns.
“Where’s yours?” he asked when she sat down with only half a glass of juice.
She’d been so eager to see him eat that she hadn’t prepared anything for herself. “I’m not hungry.”
“You didn’t eat much last night.”
“I was too tired.”
“And now?”
“I ate earlier.”
He glanced around the kitchen, but said nothing about the lack of evidence.
She nodded toward his food. “Go ahead while it’s hot,” she said. Then she stood. “I’ll shower so we can drive to town when you’re finished.”
“I’d feel better if you’d eat.”
She couldn’t imagine why it would matter to him. “I’m fine,” she insisted, and felt his gaze follow her out.
* * *
Levi hadn’t felt much physical desire in the past year. He hadn’t cared whether he lived or died, let alone whether he satisfied his sexual appetite. After Behrukh, he’d figured he’d never want a woman again. He certainly didn’t deserve to go on without her, especially in that way.
But sitting in Callie’s house knowing she was standing naked under the shower, gave him his first erection—that wasn’t a dream—since Kandahar.
He kept picturing the spray running between her full breasts, cascading over her flat stomach to roll between her legs, where he wanted to touch her, to feel her slick, wet body close around him.
Listening to the whine of the pipes in the old house, he stopped chewing and put down his fork. His heart was pounding, and he was finding it difficult to breathe. Did such a sudden, unexpected rush of lust mean he was recovering? Or that he was an even worse person than he’d thought?
A phone rang. Callie’s cell phone. She’d left it on the kitchen counter.
To distract himself, he got up to see who it was. A picture of Kyle filled the screen. It was her boyfriend, or whatever she wanted to call him, no doubt checking in to see if she was okay.
Kyle’s intrusion reminded Levi that he had no business thinking about Callie in that way. He didn’t know her. And, other than her one throwaway statement about his being handsome and capable, she’d certainly given no indication that she’d welcome his advances. Why would she want to be touched by a vagrant? Someone who’d essentially abandoned any kind of normal life?
He couldn’t act on his desire, even if she extended an invitation. He’d feel far too guilty.
Taking a deep breath, he returned to the table, where he finished eating in slow, deliberate bites. From that moment on, he was extradiligent about keeping his mind blank, but it didn’t help. He was still rock-hard when the water went off, so he quickly cleaned up the kitchen and fled to the barn.
* * *
“Your boyfriend called while you were in the shower.”
Callie was driving. Levi sat in the passenger seat. She’d noticed the missed call when she’d picked up her phone, but she hadn’t wanted to speak to Kyle while she was with Levi. She knew he wouldn’t be happy about the encounter with Denny Seamans and Powell Barney. He’d say that Levi’s presence had compromised her safety. But it was Denny and Powell, and only Denny and Powell, who were to blame for what happened last night.
“You mean my friend,” she said. “I saw that.”
“You’re not going to call him back?”
“I will when I have a minute to focus.”
“You might want to do it sooner rather than later.”
She arched her eyebrows. “Because...”
“He’ll only come over if you don’t.”
“True.” He had an excellent point. Having these two men in the same room made her uncomfortable. She preferred to avoid that in future. But if she called Kyle while driving, she’d have to use her hands-free, which essentially put him on speakerphone, and she wasn’t about to let Levi hear their conversation. She had no idea what Kyle might say. So she waited until she pulled into the auto parts store.
“I’ll be right in,” she told Levi, and dialed Kyle’s number the second he got out.
“Hey,” she said when Kyle answered.
“Hey yourself,” he responded. “Where’ve you been?”
“Sorry I missed your call. I was in the shower.”
“All morning?”
“Levi and I were in a hurry to get to town.”
“So he’s with you?”
“Sort of. He’s in the auto parts store.”
“I see. And once he fixes that bike of his he’ll be leaving?”
She clenched her jaw. “After he’s painted the barn, Kyle. You know the deal.”
“That doesn’t mean I have to like it,” he grumbled. “But I’m relieved you’re okay. He didn’t hurt you or do anything weird?”
“No.”
“The owner of the dogs who attacked Levi brought them to the vet yesterday.”
She slipped her keys into her purse. She could see Levi heading down an aisle inside the store. He wasn’t at the register yet, but she’d have to go in soon so she could pay for the parts he needed. “How do you know?”
“Cheyenne was there. Her dog has a sore foot.”
“Why didn’t she call me?”
“Why would she? She didn’t know you had anything to do with some vagrant getting bitten by pit bulls—until I told her.”
Great. Now Cheyenne knew? She was part of the group Callie and Kyle had grown up with. It was only a matter of time before the whole gang found out, which meant Callie would be hearing from more and more of them. “I still don’t get why she called you.”
“She wanted to tell me that she’d seen Noelle with another guy on her way home.”
Noelle had to be the most hated ex in all of Whiskey Creek. She hadn’t been particularly popular before marrying Kyle. Everyone had known he was making a terrible mistake. But, at the time, there’d been a baby involved and his sense of decency demanded he see it through. “That’s good news, right?”
“If she marries him. Then I won’t have to continue paying spousal maintenance.” He cursed under his breath. “I still can’t believe how much that judge ordered me to pay. He saw a pretty woman weeping in front of him and it didn’t matter what I said after that.”
“You could’ve fought harder.”
“It wasn’t worth it to me to drag the damn thing out. Money is only money, I guess. At least I don’t have to live with her anymore.”
“So how badly were they hurt?”
“The dogs? One had a couple of broken ribs. The other a broken leg. And they each needed stitches. Cheyenne said she thinks they must’ve hurt each other in the fight, because one’s ear was cut.”
The attack must’ve been horrific. It was a wonder both dogs and Levi had come out of it basically okay. Callie doubted someone without Levi’s ability to defend himself would’ve been able to fend them off. “They would’ve killed a lesser man.”
“A lesser man?” Kyle repeated.
She straightened at the wry note in his voice. “Someone who can’t fight like he can.”
“How do you know he can fight?”
“Because I saw him. The owner of those dogs—Denny Seamans—brought his buddy Powell and showed up on my doorstep last night.”
“And you didn’t call me?”
The thought hadn’t even crossed her mind, but she didn’t want to admit that. “I wasn’t expecting it to go the way it did.”
“What happened?”
“Denny tried to convince me that his dogs weren’t at fault, that they only attacked because Levi trespassed on their property.”
“Maybe that’s really how it went down,” Kyle said. “You don’t know. You weren’t there.”
“Levi wasn’t in their garage.” She was so glad she’d had a chance to peek inside it. She suspected no one would believe the truth otherwise, not with Denny and Powell protesting to high heaven.
“You were looking for his bike when you checked, Cal.”
“Yeah, but if those dogs attacked Levi in the garage and not out on the street, there would’ve been blood.” Just look at the amount he’d gotten on her porch....
“Maybe Denny Whoever cleaned it up before we got there.”
“When they had two dogs who needed to see a vet right away? No. I’m guessing he and Powell woke up to find the dogs injured, loaded them up and took off. That’s why they weren’t home when we went by.” She shifted in the seat, trying to get comfortable. “They didn’t bother cleaning up the blood on the driveway, did they?”
“So what are you now? A forensics tech?”
She could tell her loyalty to Levi irritated him. He didn’t want to deal with some interloper, especially one who had nothing—no reputation, job or known background—to recommend him. Kyle had been through too much with his divorce. Not only that, but he’d been stressed out before Levi appeared. His sister was going through her own divorce. She and her kids had been staying with him for two months.
“It doesn’t take a forensics tech to realize there’d be a mess,” she said.
“I’m guessing you told Denny and Powell this.”
It was getting too hot to sit in the SUV. Once again checking the store to make sure Levi wasn’t waiting for her, she opened her door to catch the breeze. “More or
less. Then our exchange woke Levi and he—”
“Snapped,” Kyle broke in.
Why did he automatically assume it was Levi’s fault? “No, he didn’t snap. Not exactly. I think he would’ve done a lot more damage if he’d really let go.”
Kyle barked out an incredulous laugh. “Against two guys? Come on! Cheyenne said they were built like army tanks.”
“That’s true. They are—and last night they were itching for a fight. But when one of them went after Levi, Levi knocked him out with a single punch.”
Her recap sobered him. “What did the other guy do?”
“Fortunately, that discouraged Denny from getting involved. But he wasn’t happy. He helped his friend to the car, said it wasn’t over and drove off.”
Silence.
“So what do you think?” she asked.
“You should’ve listened to me and sent McCloud on his way when you had the chance.”
She slapped the steering wheel. “Levi hasn’t done anything wrong!”
“He caused Denny’s dogs to be impounded and knocked out his friend!”
“As much as I hate to say it, since I love dogs, those two are dangerous. So are their owner and his buddy! I have to stand up for the truth, Kyle. If I don’t, it’ll be my fault if those pit bulls are released and hurt someone else. Is that what you want?”
The question seemed to take the edge off his anger. “No. Of course not. I just... If Levi’s going to be moving on, it’s better if he does it sooner rather than later. That’s all.”
“Better for whom?” she demanded.
“Better for you.”
“No, better for you.” She hung up, then sat staring at her phone. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d gotten into an argument with Kyle. They could get a little irritated with each other, and at that point they usually parted company. But she’d never hung up on him before.
Was what she’d feared happening? Had sleeping together ruined their friendship? Doomed it to failure?
She hoped not. She’d only been trying to give him a shoulder to cry on, had never intended to end up in his bed.
She thought of their other friends—Gail, Cheyenne, Eve, Noah, Baxter, Ted, Sophia, Riley—and was embarrassed. A rift between two of them risked the enjoyment they all received from being part of the group.
