by Cindy Kirk
Even dressed simply in black knit pants and a fluffy blue sweater, Mitzi was the most beautiful woman he’d ever known. Yet, it wasn’t simply her outer beauty that captivated him. She was just as lovely on the inside.
A woman like her deserved a successful man, not one without two nickels to rub together and a shaky future.
Once the flowers had been arranged to her apparent satisfaction, Mitzi turned to face him. She rested her back against the granite countertop and met his gaze. The blue eyes that had been stormy when she’d opened the door were now calm as glass. “We need to talk.”
He nodded, gathering his storming emotions close. He thought he’d been prepared. He hadn’t taken into account this intense desire—this need—for her and the life they’d begun to build together.
He’d known better than to let himself believe someone so wonderful could be his, yet he realized he’d let himself hope.
Now he had to convince her he didn’t care. A nearly impossible feat, considering he’d never wanted anyone as much as he wanted her.
It’s not about you, Keenan reminded himself. It was about what was best for her, for the woman he loved.
“I don’t understand,” she began, “why you didn’t return my calls. I was worried. Why did I have to learn from Kate that you were at Wally’s celebrating Joel’s birthday?”
Her tone was reasonable, but her imploring look sliced like a knife. Blood seeped from the fresh gash in his heart. Make it quick, he told himself. “Time got away from me.”
Her jaw lifted as her gaze skewered him. “Why didn’t you call?”
He lifted a shoulder in a careless shrug. “I got tied up with some things.”
She hissed out a breath.
“So tied up you couldn’t answer your phone?” The control on her voice snapped. “So tied up you couldn’t call me back?”
While he might yearn to rush to her, to gather her in his arms, to apologize for his thoughtless behavior, he couldn’t allow any crack to mar the insolent facade he’d affected. She must believe he didn’t care.
Keenan stayed seated and shrugged again.
“When you love someone, you owe them consideration, you—”
“Who said anything about love?” Though Keenan’s heart slammed against his ribs, his tone was slightly bored.
“I did.” Mitzi took a deep breath, lifted her chin, met his gaze. “I’m in love with you, Keenan. I’ve known it for some time, but wasn’t sure how to tell you.”
Joy leapt but he tamped it down and merely continued to stare.
Mitzi gave a little laugh. “Ah, this is your cue to say you love me, too.”
The words churned inside him, but Keenan kept his lips clamped tight. He would show her how much he loved her...by letting her go.
He rose on legs that trembled. “I enjoyed spending time with you but love wasn’t part of the deal. Only friendship. Remember?”
“Friends? That’s all I was to you? All I am to you?” Her voice rose and cracked.
“I never had a better friend than you.” The stampede of emotion welling up inside him clogged his voice. Kennan knew if he said more, he’d give himself away. Still, he leaned over and clumsily pressed his lips to her forehead. “Goodbye, Mitzi.”
Without looking back, he strode out the door and felt his heart split in two.
For Mitzi, the next few days were a blur. She worked hard, thankful for a busy surgery schedule and heavy patient load. She did her duty and showed Noah around town. He was a nice guy but when he asked if he could take her to dinner as a thank-you, she declined.
Her chest ached with a cold, dry pain that made her feel numb inside. Keenan hadn’t simply been a part of her life, he’d been her life. How would she go on without him?
For so many years she’d fought hard to get what she wanted. Her hard work and determination had paid off. She was a successful physician with a promising career. She had friends. But the life that had once seemed so rich and full, now felt hollow and empty.
She wanted more than a successful career and a comfortable life. She wanted love. Keenan’s love. She wanted to share her life with him, to have his babies, to grow old with him.
The only problem was he didn’t want her in the same way.
Mitzi glanced at the red dress lying across the bed. She’d purchased it weeks ago in anticipation of the awards ceremony at the Spring Gulch Country Club. When she’d tried it on, she’d envisioned accepting the award then going home and having the man she loved peel the sexy form-fitting cocktail dress off her, inch by inch.
He’d tease, she’d offer a scathing reply and they’d laugh, caught up in the conversational byplay they both enjoyed so much. They’d been perfectly matched. Or so she’d thought. Now he was out of her life.
She straightened her shoulders, thankful Keenan wouldn’t be at the event tonight. Mitzi knew it was going to take all the strength she possessed simply to get through the evening.
She would do it.
She had no other choice.
Chapter Twenty
Even when the walls of his boardinghouse room closed in around Keenan, he couldn’t summon the energy to leave. The past three days had been hell. He’d gone to work and come home. That was the best he could manage to do. Now it was the weekend and he didn’t have to go anywhere.
He hadn’t heard from Steve. The logical conclusion was that his conversation with Mrs. Van Ness had gone as expected. Keenan was out. Steve just hadn’t decided how to break the news to him.
Keenan had once thought flying was his whole world. He’d been wrong. Mitzi was his world.
Though he’d been physically alone in that motel room in Nebraska, Mitzi had still been with him. He’d known when he returned to Jackson Hole, she’d be waiting.
Not anymore.
He’d made the right choice. She deserved better than a mutt without a pot to pee in. A nobody. Though she hadn’t personally stomped on his heart, it had ended up bruised and battered all the same.
A knock sounded, followed quickly by another, more forceful one. Keenan frowned. He wasn’t expecting anyone.
He opened the door and found his sister standing in the hall, a garment bag slung over her arm.
Betsy brushed past him, not waiting for an invitation. “I don’t have much time. Ryan is down in the car with Nate. When I picked up Ry’s tuxedo, the clerk mentioned you hadn’t gotten yours yet, so I had her give it to me.”
Pushing newspaper pages aside, she laid the tux carefully on the bed then turned to face him.
“You look horrible.” Her brows pulled together in concern. “Have you been eating?”
“I’ve been eating just fine.” Keenan saw no need to tell her his appetite had vanished. “Sorry you went to the trouble to deliver the tux. Since I’m not going tonight, I don’t need it.”
“Why not?”
“There’s no reason for me to be there.”
He thought about mentioning Cassidy had asked him to go with her, but decided that didn’t matter.
Though she said she was short of time, Betsy suddenly didn’t appear in any hurry to leave.
“Kate mentioned you and Mitzi aren’t together.” His sister put a hand on his arm. “What happened, Keenan? I thought things were good.”
Keenan wished he could find out how Mitzi was holding up. The hurt he’d seen in her eyes, the knowledge that he’d put the pain there, haunted him. “Mitzi got it in her head she loved me. Have you ever heard anything so crazy?”
“Let’s make sure I got this straight.” Betsy brought a finger to her lips. “Mitzi confessed she loved you and you rabbited.”
“I did not rabbit. What kind of word is that, anyway?”
“Obviously you did, or you and Mitzi would be on your way to living happily ever after right now, instead of you being holed up in this tiny room looking like death warmed over. Give me the deets.”
“Deets? Sheesh, Bets, what are you, fifteen?”
His sister stared at him. �
��You might as well spill your guts. I’m not leaving until you do.”
Keenan strode to the small window that overlooked Main Street. He knew all too well his little sister’s stubborn streak. “It’s not rocket science. Mitzi wanted more. I wanted to stay friends. That’s all. Now, will you leave?”
“Bull. Pure bull.” Betsy crossed the room to him. “I’ll tell you how it really went down. You love Mitzi but decided she deserves someone better than you.”
He gave an unsteady laugh and kept his focus out the window and away from Betsy’s discerning gaze. “She does deserve better.”
“Did you know I turned Ryan down the first time he asked me to marry him?”
Keenan turned. Blinked. His sister loved Ryan, had always loved Ryan. He couldn’t imagine her turning down his proposal.
“I told myself his future would be hurt by me being involved in his life. I didn’t feel I was worth loving.” Tears sprang into Betsy’s eyes. She quickly blinked them back. “Mom did a number on you and me, Keenan. The only way I was able to push her permanently from my head was to realize I deserved to be happy. Being happy is the best revenge.”
Betsy wrapped her arms around him, rested her head against his shoulder. “Don’t let her hurt you anymore. You’re a wonderful man. You’ll make a fabulous husband. If you love Mitzi, tell her the truth then let her decide. You know you can make her happy in a way no other man can. And I believe she’ll make you happy, as well. The rest is just economics and pride.”
After his sister left, Keenan went to the closet and took out his work jacket. Inside the zippered pocket was the small velvet box he’d been carrying around for almost a week. Keenan snapped the lid open.
Mounted high in white gold, the topaz engagement ring caught the light. He traced a finger along a band that had a decidedly art deco feel with its scrollwork and milgrain edges. Diamonds were traditional, but they were also expensive. Neither he nor Mitzi would ever call themselves traditional.
Besides, wasn’t it the love and thought behind the ring that mattered? Mitzi had mentioned blue topaz was her favorite stone. And love, well he had that in abundance. Betsy was right. He’d be honest with Mitzi about his feelings and situation. She could decide where they went from here.
After tonight he’d either be the happiest man in Jackson Hole or—
Keenan shoved the negative thought from his head. Regardless of the outcome, it was long past time Gloria’s reign of terror came to an end.
He set the jeweler’s box on the dresser and picked up his phone.
“Cassidy,” he said when she answered. “Do you still need an escort for tonight?”
Keenan arrived at the small apartment Cassidy had over her shop precisely at six-thirty. As Cassidy was being honored for her promotion of the “Locks for Love” program and for her wig-fitting services for chemotherapy patients, she didn’t want to be late.
When the door swung open, Keenan released a low whistle.
Cassidy had pulled her blond hair up in some sort of twist, the style accentuating her large blue eyes. Her yellow cat-eye glasses with black polka dots provided a nice foil to the skintight black dress that showed her curvy figure to full advantage.
Though he wasn’t attracted to her, Keenan admitted she looked hot. Impulsively, he leaned over and kissed her cheek. “The men will be fighting over you tonight.”
“You’re a sweetie pie.” Cassidy patted his cheek and tossed a feathery red boa over her shoulder. She gave an exaggerated shiver. “I can feel it. Tonight’s going to be something special.”
“I’d say your intuition is spot on.” Keenan held out an arm. “It’s a big deal for you to receive one of the Medical Foundation awards. They don’t just give those out to anyone.”
She smiled and took his arm. “Like I said, something special is in the air tonight.”
Noah cornered Mitzi the second she’d strolled through the large double doors of the Spring Gulch Country Club. She realized she was one of the few people the man knew, but she wasn’t feeling particularly charitable and definitely not in the mood for small talk.
Still, she let him compliment her on her red cocktail dress and allowed him to fetch her a glass of champagne. They spent a few moments talking about the town and various residents. He brought up Clippety Do-Dah, which she thought odd, but she knew Cassidy was also receiving an award tonight and figured he must have seen the name of her salon in the brochure.
“Cassidy is very involved in the community,” she began, then smiled. “In fact, there she is with—”
Mitzi’s breath stuck in her throat.
“She’s with your friend Keenan.” Noah’s eyes turned sharp and assessing. “Are they dating?”
“I don’t know.” Mitzi’s mind went blank. She found herself stumbling over the words. “I don’t know.”
She’d always prided herself on her control, but at the moment whatever tenuous hold she had was close to snapping.
Keenan wore a tux. She’d never seen him in black tie before and it suited him. She waited for him to look her way but his gaze was firmly focused on Cassidy. His hair had been cut since she’d last seen him and the blue tips were history. The strands were still long and slightly wavy.
She pressed her lips together at the thought of Cassidy running her fingers through Keenan’s silky hair.
Keep your hands off my man, Mitzi wanted to call out. She resisted the almost overwhelming urge to get in Cassidy’s face and make her feelings perfectly clear.
She didn’t move a muscle. She wasn’t that streetwise girl from East L.A. anymore. And Keenan wasn’t her man.
But, oh, how she wished things could be different.
“Are you going to introduce me to her?”
Mitzi jerked her head back, caught the amused look in Noah’s eyes.
“Perhaps later.” She forced a breezy tone. “I have some other matter to see to right now.”
Mitzi pivoted on her skinny heels and sauntered in the opposite direction of Keenan and his “companion.” It certainly hadn’t taken long for him to jump back into the dating pool. Though her insides were tied in knots, as Mitzi crossed the large ballroom she smiled and made light conversation with anyone who stopped her. After all, she didn’t want to look as if she was running from...anyone.
She’d spent enough time in the building to know that the ladies’ lounge off the ballroom entrance would already be crowded. She needed quiet, a place to settle herself, to get her emotions in check, before the evening was in full swing.
Mitzi chose the lounge near the back veranda specifically because of its out-of-the way location. There she could relax in one of the comfortable chairs and enjoy her glass of champagne.
The second she stepped into the room, she came to an abrupt stop. Cassidy.
The woman looked amazing in black dress and sparkly heels. The red boa was a nice accent piece, as was the pencil-thin crimson streak running through her hair.
Cassidy twirled her boa in a motion that reminded Mitzi of Bitty’s tail. In someone less confident, the gesture might have been construed as nerves.
“I thought you might be headed in this direction,” Cassidy said.
“Did you?” Mitzi’s kept her tone cool.
“I saw how you looked at me when I walked through the door with Keenan.” A twinkle danced in Cassidy’s eyes. “Admit it. You wanted to punch me.”
Despite herself, Mitzi couldn’t stop her lips from quirking up. Trust Cass to give it straight.
“I may have considered giving you a jab or two,” Mitzi admitted, then offered an exaggerated sigh. “Yet, I let you live.”
“That’s because you haven’t yet decided how to best make me pay,” Cassidy said in a matter-of-fact tone. She gestured to a couple of upholstered barrel chairs and took a seat. “Let’s discuss it.”
Curious, Mitzi sat, crossed her legs and took a sip of champagne.
Almost immediately, Cassidy’s gaze narrowed on the glass. “How is it?”
> “Very good.”
“I take it you’re not into sharing?”
Mitzi gave a dry chuckle and passed the glass to her. “You might as well take that from me, too.”
“Keenan is miserable.” Cassidy merely took a sip of champagne. “Wow. This is good stuff.”
“What do you mean, he’s miserable?”
“He isn’t happy about whatever happened between the two of you.”
“It was his choice.” Emotion thickened Mitzi’s voice. “He’s the one who walked away.”
Cassidy leaned back in her chair, studied Mitzi as if seeing her for the first time. “And you’re going to just let him waltz away from you? Girlfriend, I thought you had more spunk.”
“I don’t run after a man who doesn’t want me. He doesn’t love me, Cass. He told me.”
Cassidy brayed a laugh and downed the rest of the liquid in her glass. “You bought that lie?”
Shards of hope rose inside Mitzi. She met Cassidy’s gaze.
“You know what you have to do.” Cassidy pulled to her feet. “While you’re getting in his face, I’m going to get some champagne.”
Mitzi found Keenan with Tripp and Cole. Cole gave her a welcoming smile. Tripp’s faded when he saw her. Keenan’s eyes turned watchful.
“If I could have a minute of your time...” Mitzi spoke directly to Keenan as if the others weren’t there and pretending not to gawk.
“I take it Kate told you I was looking for you,” Keenan said.
Mitzi frowned. “I haven’t seen her this evening.”
“Oh,” he said, looking suddenly perplexed.
“We need to talk.”
“Where?”
“This way.” She gestured vaguely with one hand. While crossing the room, she’d considered her options. “Let’s go out on the veranda. It might be a bit cool but it’ll be private.”
He walked beside her on their way to the patio doors, close enough that she could smell his familiar woodsy scent and feel the heat radiating from his body. When he made no move to touch her—or initiate a conversation—her heart sank.
