Tonight Daniel was coming over to her place for dinner and a movie. Although it was a very casual evening, Lorelei felt a little nervous about cooking for Daniel. His parents owned the Silver Spoon diner and he was someone who enjoyed fine cuisine. Her culinary repertoire wasn’t very extensive. To keep things simple, Lorelei had decided on salmon, roasted potatoes and a nice Greek salad.
She’d decided on a simple summer dress—periwinkle blue with daisies imprinted on it. A nice pair of sandals complemented the outfit. She put her hair up in a high bun and left her face devoid of any makeup. All she had on was lip gloss. Daniel showed up in jeans and a polo shirt. In Lorelei’s opinion, he looked just as gorgeous as he did in a three-piece suit.
“Something smells good in here,” Daniel said as he entered her house.
“Why thank you. I’m trying out a new recipe,” Lorelei said, feeling jazzed about making Daniel a home-cooked meal. She had meticulously researched the recipe for salmon and asparagus with a light cream sauce. Knowing Daniel loved seafood gave her a measure of confidence. Lorelei led Daniel to the kitchen where they chatted as the meal cooked.
It felt so relaxing to be in her kitchen cooking for her boyfriend and finding out more about each other. It really was true that the moment you stopped thinking about love, it came into your life. Finding Daniel was proof positive.
**
Daniel watched Lorelei as she sneaked a peek through the glass oven window then came over to sit back in her chair.
“Hey! Faith tells me you haven’t responded yet to their wedding invitation. She’s wondering if you’re available to come.” It felt so natural for Lorelei to attend the wedding as his date, although he hadn’t officially asked her. He had only taken one woman to family functions before Lorelei—his ex, Patsy. Although his family had liked Patsy, their relationship had inevitably crashed and burned. Daniel had perspective on that failed relationship now. It hadn’t been meant to be with Patsy. God had known there was another lady waiting in the wings for him.
There was no doubt in Daniel’s mind that his family adored Lorelei almost as much as he did. And he knew with a deep certainty that God’s handiwork had placed Lorelei in his orbit.
Lorelei’s expression radiated uncertainty. “I would love to come, but are you sure it’s okay? Micah sent me an invitation a few weeks ago, but I think I missed the RSVP date due to traveling.” A sheepish expression crossed her face. “I feel badly about putting them out when they probably already have their numbers for catering.”
Daniel shook his head. “Micah and Faith are two of the most laid back people I’ve ever seen when it comes to getting married. They just want to spend the rest of their lives together and enjoy a fun, faith filled day with family and friends. Can I tell them you’re coming?” he asked, waiting with bated breath for her reply. A family wedding would be so much better if Lorelei were present.
Lorelei clapped her hands together. “Yes! I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“One more question,” Daniel said. “Will you be my date for the wedding?”
Lorelei playfully batted her eyelashes. “Why Mr. Donahue. I thought you’d never ask.”
“Really?” he asked. “I would have asked you before if I’d thought of it.”
Lorelei giggled. The sound of it was light and tinkling. It made his soul sour to the stratosphere. “Daniel, I was joking. You asked at the perfect time. You’re always so thoughtful.”
He shook his head and grinned at her. “Good. I think it will be a beautiful day. We need some joy after Parker’s accident. Micah and Faith are so in love. Being around them almost gives me a cavity.”
They both laughed at his corny joke.
Lorelei nodded, seemingly in full agreement with him. “It’s nice seeing love bloom right before our very eyes. Faith is perfect for Micah. She’s so humble and open. A match made in heaven. They’re quite different personality-wise, but it really works.”
“Yeah, my folks are thrilled. Four down, four to go,” he said with a chuckle.
“You’re giving me family envy. It sounds so wonderful to have this big, bustling family.” The dinging of the buzzer alerted Lorelei to the fish in the oven. She jumped up and went over to the stove. She let out a sigh as she pulled the pan out of the oven and saw a perfectly cooked salmon dish. Daniel’s stomach rumbled at the sight of the delectable dish. He couldn’t wait to taste the meal Lorelei had worked so hard to make for him.
Lorelei placed the fish on the stove and turned toward Daniel with a light hearted smile. “I hope you’re hungry because dinner is served!”
**
Daniel couldn’t stop raving about Lorelei’s dinner. Considering she had told him she wasn’t very experienced at cooking, he appreciated her rising to the occasion to make him a delicious meal. After dinner, Daniel suggested they drive to the pier and walk around the harbor.
The pier was lit up with twinkling lights and a brilliant moon hung in the velvety night sky. A cool breeze settled over them as they walked around the marina.
“Some of the boats are pretty magnificent,” Daniel said, a trace of admiration in his voice.
“Are you thinking of buying one?” she asked in a playful tone.
Daniel laughed. “I’m no sailor, although I wouldn’t mind chartering a yacht one day for my employees. I’ve been trying to think of some way to thank them for their tireless hours and dedication.”
“That’s a wonderful idea,” Lorelei said. “Working with them for these past few weeks has been incredible. They’ve been so supportive and helpful.”
“DD Studios wouldn’t be half as successful without my team. They’ve been such assets to the company. I can’t say it enough. I’ve been incredibly blessed.”
As they walked away from the pier Lorelei suddenly stopped and began looking over her shoulder. She raised her hand to her throat and looked at him with wide eyes.
“Lorelei. What is it? Is something wrong?” Daniel asked.
“I can’t breathe. My heart is pounding like crazy.” Lorelei bent over at the waist. Her face was flushed.
Fear skittered through Daniel. Lorelei looked really pale and sick. “Lorelei, do you need medicine? Do you have a heart condition?” He felt utterly helpless. He had no idea what was going on. One moment she’d been fine and the next she looked as if she was going to pass out. Should he call 911?
“I-I’m having a panic attack.” The words came out of her mouth with difficulty.
Panic attacks. He knew a little something about them. After his brother Heath had come back from serving in the military he’d had a few of them due to his PTSD. He knew from Heath it felt as if you were dying when in the midst of a panic attack. All he could do was to try and talk her through it in his most calm voice.
“Try to think of something that makes you smile. How about a place? Somewhere soothing. Maybe the beach in Barbados. Close your eyes and just breathe. I’m with you, Lorelei. There’s no place I’d rather be.”
**
She let out a sigh. Her eyes were tightly closed and she was picturing walking along Pelican Bay Beach with Daniel. The sky was the shade of a robin’s egg and the ocean was foamy and a beautiful shade of navy. He reached for her hand and they both dipped their feet in the water. She could feel her chest loosening up and her breathing becoming less ragged.
When she opened her eyes Daniel was standing there, his handsome features creased in concern. He was staring at her with a steady gaze.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Yes, thanks to you,” she said in a soft voice.
“Do you want to tell me what brought it on? I know sometimes panic attacks just happen, but was there a trigger?”
Lorelei knew exactly what had brought it on. Her fears regarding the parole hearing and the torment she’d endured as the result of James Ellis. All the letters she was receiving were making her a nervous wreck. But how could she tell Daniel about her past? She was certain Micah wouldn’t have brought
it up to him, so he had no clue. Micah knew all about it, but he also knew that as a victim, she had the right to tell her story on her own terms.
But Lorelei trusted Daniel and what they were building together. She took a deep breath and began telling him the whole story about being stalked by James Ellis.
It had started innocently enough. As a model on the rise, Lorelei had received many fan letters. They usually came via her agency and Olga would look at them first before handing them over to Lorelei. If anything offensive or vaguely threatening came in, Olga wouldn’t show it to Lorelei. Thankfully, nothing ever came that was onimous. At the most were some creepy letters from men. Everything changed when Lorelei began receiving letters sent directly to her condo. From the beginning Lorelei had been creeped out. How had this person found out where she lived? Her agency had never revealed that type of information and neither had she.
Lorelei had shrugged it off until more letters came, followed by calls to her landline phone, then her cell phone. She had ended up changing both those numbers. All she had known at first was his name. James. He told her how much he loved her and how she was sinful for posing in swimsuits. He would vaguely threaten her even after she’d moved and changed her phone numbers. She was being stalked. And it was terrifying.
One night Lorelei had come home to her darkened apartment and discovered a fuse had blown. The only light was the glow from her cell phone. Suddenly, she’d been grabbed from behind with gloved hands over her mouth. At that moment she had fought as hard as she’d fought in her entire life. But he had been strong and determined. Lorelei had been tied up, at which time she’d come face to face with James Ellis, her stalker.
She had been stunned to see his face. Average looks. Average dirty blonde hair. A very non-descript frame and physique. He didn’t look like a monster who would hold her at knife point and tie her up. He didn’t look like someone who might end her life.
For thirty-six hours he had held her hostage. Thirty-six hours during which Lorelei had been threatened and complimented and touched and kissed and made to feel as if she wouldn’t make it out of this nightmare alive. Over and over again he had told her how he was going to send her to be with God and that he would be joining her in heaven.
In the end, she had been rescued by Olga and Bethany, both of whom had alerted police when they hadn’t heard from her in twenty-four hours. James Ellis had been caught and placed in prison until his trial which had resulted in a guilty conviction and a sentence of ten years in prison. And until recently, Lorelei had believed he would stay in prison for ten long years. It was sickening to her how the justice system didn’t uphold their sentencing promises. Demons like James Ellis got leniency for ‘good behavior’ which meant he was up for parole consideration six years too early.
When she finished telling Daniel her story, he took her in his arms and held her. “I’m so sorry that you had to endure all of that. You’re a strong woman, Lorelei. You haven’t just endured it. You’ve thrived in your career and you’ve managed to put it all in the past and work toward your future. I admire that more than you’ll ever know.”
Daniel’s words went straight to her heart. He was embedded there like a permanent tattoo. Lorelei had never felt so completely loved and taken care of by anybody in her entire life. And if she hadn’t already been head over heels in love with Daniel, his kindness towards her would have sent her straight over the edge. The knowledge of how she felt about Daniel hit her like a sledgehammer. It frightened her. With love came responsibility. How in the world could she allow Daniel to get tangled up in the whole James Ellis debacle? If he was put on parole in a few days there was no doubt in Lorelei’s mind that he would once again find her. She was certain his obsession hadn’t abated. It would kill her if Daniel got caught up in Ellis’s evil. It wouldn’t be fair.
Loving Daniel meant protecting him. There was a good chance the parole board would grant James Ellis’s parole. She had known it when Olga had reached out to her about the individuals who were speaking on Ellis’s behalf. She had been trying to warn Lorelei.
She looked up at Daniel. He was a good man, through and through. Although it broke her heart to admit it, Lorelei knew what she had to do. Doing what was right felt agonizing, but she had no other choice. She had to let Daniel go.
“There are a lot of things worth fighting for in this world. Love is number one.”
Heath Donahue
Chapter Nine
All week Daniel had been scratching his head trying to figure out what he had done to alienate Lorelei. Perhaps it was just his imagination, but he was convinced she had been giving him the brush off. His calls went unreturned. Texting her wasn’t any better! She simply didn’t respond. The night she’d cooked for him had been filled with emotion. She had told him all about her stalker after suffering a panic attack at the marina. Although he had been horrified by the trauma she’d endured, Daniel had understood her pain and disillusionment. Did she think he hadn’t responded well to her story about being stalked?
Was she embarrassed about the panic attack? Surely Lorelei knew he didn’t hold it against her. Her vulnerability in that moment endeared her to him. But he was beginning to wonder if Lorelei wasn’t entirely comfortable at how she’d bared herself to him. She hadn’t spoken to him since that night.
Maybe he was being paranoid. He knew she had a busy work week, finishing up things on the Rhiannon video game as well as posing for the cover of Miami magazine. He prayed it was simply work issues rather than anything about their relationship. Up until this point Daniel hadn’t been any good at relationships. Maybe he still wasn’t. Was it possible he’d read things wrong? Perhaps Lorelei just wasn’t that into him. It was a heartbreaking notion, but one he had to face head-on.
That evening Daniel decided to grab the bull by the horns. Since Lorelei was still maintaining her wall of silence, he decided to stop by her place. He knew she might not buzz him in, but if that was the case, he would truly know something was very wrong.
On the way over to her place, Daniel took a moment to pray. Lord, grant me favor with Lorelei. I have no idea what I’m doing at the moment. It feels like I’m blindfolded and trying to find my way through a dark cave. I feel so selfish asking for all of these prayers for myself, but You are the one who gives me strength. I turn to You when I need clarity.
When he rode up to her gate, Daniel was holding his breath waiting to see if he would be buzzed in. Lorelei answered after a few rings and quickly buzzed him through. His hands were moist on the steering wheel. He could hear his own heart beating a wild rhythm inside his chest.
Calm down, he told himself. No need to freak out over a few unreturned phone calls. Although he didn’t want to get himself overly worked up, Daniel sensed something was amiss with Lorelei. Loving her allowed him the ability to truly know her, inside and out. He prayed he was wrong, but his every nerve ending was on fire standing at her doorstep.
When she opened the door, Daniel felt as if he was looking at a completely different Lorelei. It was in her body language and in her eyes. She wasn’t carrying herself regally the way she normally did. And her eyes looked dead, as if there was no life at all in them. Lorelei’s expression was shuttered so he had no way of reading her emotions.
“Hi, Daniel. Come on in.” Even her voice sounded lackluster.
“Hey there. I was beginning to get worried about you,” he said as she ushered him in. Although he would normally greet her with a hug and a kiss, Lorelei’s body language wasn’t inviting. “Where have you been hiding out?” Daniel tried to keep his voice casual. He didn’t want Lorelei to see how concerned he was about her silence.
“I’ve been working,” she said, her tone curt. “I’m pretty bushed.”
“I didn’t mean to intrude, but you had me worried. I’ve called and texted you a bunch of times. Is everything okay?”
She let out a sigh. “Daniel, I’m so sorry for not returning your calls, but I honestly didn’t know what to say to you. T
hinks have been going at a lightning fast speed between us. I think we should take a break.”
His heart seized up at her words. A break? Everyone knew what that word meant and it wasn’t good. She didn’t want to be with him? She wanted some distance? It all sounded so shocking to him. When had the tide turned?
“A break?” he asked, too stunned to say anything meaningful. He hadn’t been expecting this. Even though he had been concerned, Daniel hadn’t thought she would be ending things with him. It seemed so out of the blue.
“It just isn’t working for me.” She looked down at her fingers and twiddled them. “It’s not you, Daniel. Really it isn’t. It’s just that I wasn’t looking for a relationship and I’m beginning to feel pinned down.
“Lorelei, I-I know we’ve only been dating a few weeks now, but my feelings for you are pretty powerful. I’m in love with you.” He said the precious words that had been on the tip of his tongue for days now. Daniel had never said those words to another woman. In truth, he’d only wanted to say those sweet words to the woman who he was going to spend the rest of his days with. Deep in his heart, he believed that woman was Lorelei.
Tears pooled in her eyes and she vigorously shook her head. “Daniel, please don’t say that. I really don’t want to hurt you. Believe me, my main goal is to spare you from pain. I’m so sorry. Truly I am.”
He moved closer towards her, staring deeply into her grass green eyes. Whereas before he could see nothing but possibilities shining in her eyes, he now only saw a void. They were blank. She wasn’t giving him anything with her eyes or expression other than resignation.
Forever and a Day (Seven Brides Seven Brothers Pelican Bay Book 5) Page 11
