Just a Little Surprise

by Tracie Puckett

  “I came by one night to speak to Charlie,” he said. “It was just before the town parade, just a few weeks after I’d come and talked to him about being with you. I wanted him to reconsider; I wanted him to give us a chance. But when I showed up, he wasn’t there. Derek, though, was. He’d come to tell you that he wanted to leave town. He wanted your opinion.

  “But I told him that you were in no place to make decisions for anyone but yourself. He needed someone to talk to, someone to hear him out. So, I sat with him. I listened to him talk about his father, mother, Hannah. The longer he talked, the more frustrated he became. I could feel the anger burning in his blood; there was so much pent-up rage that he hadn’t found an outlet for. He was hurt, and rightfully so; but I’d seen it far too many times, Julie. Men with that kind of pain… men that hold on to it for too long… one day they just wake up, and they snap.”

  “That’s not who Derek is—”

  “That’s exactly who Derek is,” he said. “I don’t know what drew you to him. Honest to God, I don’t. I don’t get it.”

  “He was my friend—”

  “The man’s family has destroyed everything you ever knew and loved, Julie. But you were attracted to his friendship like a moth to flame. He kept drawing you in, manipulating you. You were so convinced he wasn’t capable of hurting a fly—”

  “There’s not an ounce of evil in that man’s body,” I said. “You don’t know Derek the way I do—”

  “He already had it in his head to leave, Julie,” he said. “He’s the one who brought it up. I didn’t plant that seed; I just gave him a little nudge in the right direction.”

  “A little nudge?”

  Luke dropped his head. “I couldn’t stand by and wait for him to snap. The Milton family has no business around you—”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “If he’d stayed, he would’ve only ended up hurting you the same way his father hurt your parents.”

  “Derek is—”

  “A danger to society,” he said. “And one day, he’ll finally break. One day, he’ll hurt someone. He’ll end up behind bars. But when that day comes, it won’t be you that he’s hurt. And I made damn sure of it—”

  “What did you do?”

  “I told him he needed to go,” he said. “To find himself and discover who he truly was.”

  “I don’t believe that. He wouldn’t have listened to you—”

  “I told him to get the hell out of Oakland and never come back, okay? I told him I’d kill him if he ever stepped foot near you again,” he said. “And I meant it. Let’s face it, Julie. Look who you’re talking to. After what Hannah did, Derek doesn’t stand a chance in this town; if he turned up dead at my hand, I’d walk away scot-free. Let’s not pretend that’s not true.”

  “Ugh—”

  “He comes from a line of killers, Julie. I’m the freakin’ hero of this damn town. Who do you think a jury’s gonna believe?”

  He said it like it didn’t faze him, as if it didn’t bother him in the least that he’d just said something so heartless, so cold. He’d murder a completely innocent man over nothing? And he wouldn’t lose sleep over it?

  This wasn’t the Luke Reibeck I’d grown to love.

  “He knew my conditions,” he said. “No sticking around to say goodbye. No phone calls. No text messages. No visits. No—returning—to—Oakland. Period.”

  “You’re a monster,” I said. “How can you say those things?”

  “I love you, Julie,” he said. “And because I love you, I had to ensure you’re safety. Derek was a threat, so I took care of it.”

  “I’m capable of taking care of myself, thanks.”

  Luke looked at me with a look of disgust. He knew it, so did I. Any chance he might’ve had at rekindling our relationship had just gone down the drain after his simple revelation.

  “You know what makes me sick, Julie?”

  “Me, I’m guessing?”

  “No. The fact that he’s not even here, and I’m still fighting for your affection.”

  I scoffed and rolled my eyes, not even sure I could muster an argument. Obviously Luke hadn’t heard about Derek’s arrival, and I saw no point in adding fuel to the fire. Anyway, I couldn’t see where he was coming from. Luke had never had to fight for my affection. In fact, it was always the other way around. I was always the one fighting for him. And now he was trying to pretend that Derek had been a threat?

  “It’s true,” he said, almost as if he’d just read my mind. “From the moment he walked out, the moment he ran away… you’ve been distracted.”

  “That’s not true—”

  “You didn’t see it, and that’s fine,” he said, dropping his shoulders. “But you were too caught up in Derek. You felt more for him than you were willing to admit—maybe more than you really even knew. For God’s sake, you’re still wearing his key! You’re waiting on him to come back—”

  “He’s going to be part of my life whether you like it or not!”

  “He won’t. If he knows what’s good for him, he’ll stay away—”

  “Well guess what, Luke? You don’t have as much of an influence on people as you think.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “He called—”

  “He called you?”

  “He’s allowed to call—”

  “Like hell he is—”

  “Stop!” I yelled. “I never asked you to be my protector, Luke. I never asked for a hero. Quit assuming that I want you looming over my shoulder. I don’t need your guidance, your advice, or your macho-cop-greater-than-thou attitude making decisions for me. I’m an adult. I’m quite capable of making decisions for myself. If Derek wants to call, he’s welcome to call. If he wants to visit, I’d love it—which is exactly why I welcomed him with open arms when he stopped by the house last night.”

  Luke’s eyes widened at my outburst. It was the first time I’d ever truly stood up to him. I’d let him push me around for far too long; I’d let him walk all over me, making decisions that he had no right to make.

  “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into Julie,” he said, softly. He threw his hands in the air and surrendered. “But I’m done. You won’t hear from me again, not on this issue anyway. If I can’t make you see what kind of man Derek Milton really is, then I guess you’ll just have to wait and see it for yourself. I just hope that—when that time comes—you’ll be alive to realize that you were wrong.”

  He brushed past me and went about his way, never looking back.

  And for the first time in several weeks, I felt like I’d finally found some sense of closure with Luke.

  I wanted to be free to make my own decisions, and he was finally letting go of his control.

  Chapter Seven

  Saturday, March 09 8AM

  “You’re looking quite chipper this morning,” Charlie said, sipping a drink of coffee as he leaned against the counter. “Good night?”

  “I love you,” I said, rushing through the kitchen to wrap my arms around his plump center. “I had no idea—”

  “That was the point,” he said, pressing a kiss to the top of my head, much like Derek had done the night before. After a long, much-needed hug, Charlie took my hand and led me to a barstool at the center island. I sat down, and he took the stool next to mine. “He’s a good kid, that Milton boy.”

  I took a deep breath and nodded.

  I’d never expected any such thing to come out of Charlie’s mouth. While I’d known that my uncle hadn’t hated Derek quite as much as Matt seemed to, it was only natural for him to harbor some resentment toward the son of the man who’d killed his brother.

  “I know that it’s a complicated situation,” I said. “I’m not blind to that.” And I wasn’t. I was fully aware of what I was getting myself into with Derek. I hadn’t known it when I met him, but forming any kind of relationship—friendship or something more—with him would be hard to explain to anyone on the outside looking in. Our ties to one another
weren’t exactly normal, and no one would ever expect us to get along. But somehow we’d both managed to look beyond that.

  “It’s not easy to ignore the facts,” Charlie admitted. “There will always be a part of me that looks at that boy and sees his father. But I also look at him and see the way he looks at you, and I couldn’t ask for something more. I honestly believe that one’s a keeper.” He took my hand and squeezed it. “I don’t mean to hover; I’m not even sure my opinion matters at this point. I just hope that you’ll always remember that I’m here to support your decision, no matter which of those boys you choose. I may not like it, and I may wanna pull my hair out just thinking about it. Hell, if I had my way, you’d just stay a kid forever. But at the end of the day, Pumpkin, it’s your life. You’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do.”

  I smiled at Charlie, squeezing his hand just as tightly as he’d held mine. I couldn’t have asked for a better uncle; if there was any silver lining—any at all—that came from my parents’ death, it was getting the opportunity to find comfort in an unexpected confidant. Charlie had always been there for me, but never like this.

  “Now,” Charlie said, arching a brow. “Bruno tells me you were running your mouth about me. Talking smack, I believe he put it.”

  “Yeah?”

  “What’s this I hear about you saying I can’t keep a secret?”

  “Oh,” I said, trying not to laugh. “He told you that?”

  “Mmm-hmm—”

  “I can explain,” I said, holding my hands up defensively. “I just thought you were really bad at planning surprise parties, that’s all—”

  “I don’t know,” he said, shrugging one shoulder. His silly grin made me chuckle. “I thought I did a pretty good job keeping Matt’s secret.”

  “Matt’s secret?” I asked. “What secret was that?”

  “Bringing Derek back,” he said, scrunching his brow. “It was all his idea.”

  “It was Matt?” I asked, suddenly feeling like a complete jerk for how I’d treated him at the flower shop. He’d gone completely out of his way to do something nice for me—even though he hated Derek, and he’d always be Team Luke—and put his own selfish feelings aside to ensure my happiness. “I had no idea.”

  “He didn’t like doing it,” he said. “But he knew it’s what you’d want.”

  I looked down at Charlie’s hand as it cupped my own. “We had a fight,” I said, shamefully twisting my lips. “I need to apologize to him. He needs to know I’m sorry….”

  “He’ll be home from the flower shop later,” he said. “You can talk to him then.”

  I jerked my head up and looked at him with a twisted grin. “You know about his second job?”

  “I’ve known since day one, hon,” he said. “There’s nothing happening in this town that I don’t know about.”

  “And you haven’t said anything to him?” I asked. “You’re not mad at him for lying?”

  “No,” he said, shaking his head. “He means well. He has big plans, you know? And he’s working hard for his future. He needs to prove that he can be the kind of man Kara will need in the long-run. You have to respect that.”

  “You… you know about his plan, then?”

  “To propose?” he asked, shrugging. “There’s nothing happening—”

  “In this town that you don’t know about, I know,” I said, suddenly feeling stupid for thinking that anyone—especially someone in this house—could keep a secret from Charlie.

  “Hey,” I said, playfully shoving him. “You know I love you, right?”

  “You better,” he said, returning my shove. “And you know I love you too?”

  “I’ve never doubted it, Charlie. Never.”

  Saturday, March 09

  “Go to jail,” I said, flipping a small yellow card between my fingers. “Go directly to jail. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200.”

  “Hmm,” Derek mumbled with an exaggerated eye roll.

  “What?”

  “Nothing,” he said, moving his car token to the jailhouse in the corner of the board. I tucked the Community Chest card at the bottom of the pile. “I just find it funny that I’ve ended up in jail three times, and you’re over there sitting pretty with a hotel chain and a pile of money the size of Everest.”

  I don’t know what time our friendly game of Monopoly started, but it felt as though we’d been at it for hours. Derek had come over sometime after noon, and the hours seemed to fly by faster than we could even tell. Neither of us set out any ground rules for our conversations, but we’d kept the topics lighthearted and playful all day. He’d never mentioned his trip away, and I’d stayed away from any topic that got too close to discussing Luke.

  Somehow, though I wasn’t surprised, we’d managed to fall right back into the friendly nature we’d had once before.

  “So… what’s the problem?” I asked, trying not to laugh at his crimson face. “You’re mad that I’m winning, or mad that you’re losing? Because there has to be a loser.”

  He looked up from the board and smiled, but only lightly. The lamplight reflected off of his glasses as he watched me for a few long minutes. His eyes softened and he stared at me, giving me his best puppy dog pout.

  “Fine,” I said, giving into his pouted lip. I moved his piece from the jailhouse to the ‘just visiting’ half of the corner. “Free pass.”

  “Ah, how sweet that you’re willing to cheat for me—”

  “Well, I figured there are enough of you Miltons rotting in jail—”

  “Whoa!” he said, his smile so big that he could barely contain a laugh. “Low blow!”

  “You asked for it!”

  Derek gnawed on his lower lip, leaned back against the foot of my bed, and stretched his legs out in front of him. Elvis, who’d spent the evening ignoring everyone but himself, finally acknowledged his previous owner by plopping his head down on Derek’s lap. We shared a small laugh, and Derek yawned for the hundredth time in an hour. He pulled his glasses off, setting them aside on the floor next to him, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

  “You’re tired.”

  “No,” he said, yawning again. “Not even a little—”

  “Liar.”

  “Okay,” he said, squinting at me. “Maybe a little.”

  “Go home,” I said, pushing the game aside. “To be fair, I think I kicked your butt in this game. There’s no point in trying to redeem yourself.” I looked back at the clock and playfully smacked his leg. “It’s two o’clock. I think it’s safe to say we’ve both missed our bedtimes.”

  I thought I saw his hand flinch; for a second, I thought he was going to reach forward and grab mine. But he didn’t. He kept a reasonable distance—just as he’d done ever since the moment I pulled away from his welcome hug the night before.

  “Can I see you later? Maybe after we’ve both had a good night’s sleep?”

  “Only if you intend to live,” I said, leaning against the bed and nudging him. “No more of this abandoning Julie stuff, okay?” A light smirk crossed his lips. “I’ve missed you.”

  “Likewise,” he said, clenching his fist in his lap. I started to drop my head on his shoulder when he shimmied out from beneath me and pulled himself standing. I sat straighter and watched as he smoothed the wrinkles on his sweater. “Get some sleep.”

  I nodded.

  He headed for the door and turned back just as he reached the threshold. “It’s good to be back.”

  “It’s good to have you back,” I said, smiling. “Things are about to change for all of us, Derek. I can feel it.”

 

 

 
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