Southern Exposure (Southern Desires Series Book 2)

by Jeannette Winters

  “I can deal with water.”

  “It caused your entire horsehair plastered ceiling to come crashing down. Surprisingly your shut-off valve was working so I was able to stop your entire apartment from being flooded.”

  There wasn’t that much water. What is he talking about? My entire apartment? “I could’ve soaked up the water with a towel.”

  “That may have been the case before the ceiling smashed your toilet and water was gushing everywhere. Or don’t you notice I’m a bit wetter than before I went in?”

  Hannah looked at him and only then noticed his pants were soaking wet. No toilet. And this has to happen when I have company? Why? Is there any other way besides the hard way?

  “How did this happen? I mean the water from upstairs in the first place?” If it was their fault, then no matter how bad she felt that they had no place to go, they were both out of there today. She might want to help them, and but she couldn’t afford any more repairs than she already had. Actually, I can’t afford any repairs never mind more.

  “Old houses. Things let go. We were lucky last night that Mark just happened along when the pipe broke. Otherwise, you’d be looking at much more damage than just one room down here.”

  Old rundown houses like this, you mean. Dad, why hadn’t you told me how bad things were here? You didn’t need to be sending me money at college when you needed it to take care of things at home. Maybe if you had, things wouldn’t be the way they are now.

  Tears started streaming down her face.

  “Look at what you did. You made her cry,” Bailey said to Don.

  “What did I say?” Don asked puzzled.

  Hannah just stood there, her face in her hands, crying and trying to block everyone out.

  “What the hell is going on here?” Mark barked from behind her and Bailey.

  “Your friend made Hannah cry!” Bailey shot at Mark. “And she doesn’t cry. She’s one of the toughest people I know. I didn’t see her cry when her dad died, so whatever he said, must have really hurt.”

  Mark shot Don a questioning look.

  “I didn’t say anything, trust me,” Don said seriously.

  “Everyone out,” Mark said.

  “I’m not leaving my friend,” Bailey said, wrapping her arms around Hannah’s shoulders. “As you can see, she needs me right now.”

  Don gently touched Baileys’ arm. “Let’s give them some privacy. If she doesn’t want Mark around, I’m sure she’ll let us know.”

  Bailey said firmly, “I’ll be on the porch if you need me, Hannah.” Then more softly Hannah heard her say to Mark, “If you hurt my friend, you’ll answer to me.”

  Hannah heard them arguing and wanted it to stop, but she couldn’t bring herself to speak. All she felt was weakness within her, and she didn’t want anyone to witness it. The room became quiet, and she hoped they’d all gone.

  But she wasn’t alone. The strong arms she’d come to know were being wrapped around her. She didn’t need to open her eyes. It was Mark’s touch. One she yearned for. Like he had when he’d held her on the bed, he simply held her, tenderly, and let her cry it all out. It didn’t matter if the others were there or not. Mark was there and holding her. For the first time in ages, she didn’t feel alone. Everything didn’t feel so overwhelming anymore. It was like the weight on her shoulders was lifted.

  She sniffled as the tears stopped. Hannah didn’t want him to let go. She felt safe, secure, and she didn’t want that feeling to end. But he did let go. His arms slowly loosened around her, and she knew she’d be facing the issues at hand once again, alone.

  But he didn’t leave. Instead, he reached for her hand, led her to the living room, and had her sit on the couch. He left the room, but she heard the faucet in the kitchen running, and he came back with a cold glass of water. Damn you, Mark. Why are you being so sweet?

  Mark hated seeing her cry, but hearing that Don was the cause shook him up more than he could justify to himself. Why? I’ve seen more women cry in my lifetime than I can count. So why is this one affecting me so much? She’s not hurt, not dying, so why do her tears feel like they are physically squeezing my heart?

  All he knew was she was upset, and he needed to be there. Not Bailey, but him. She might not want him there, but he didn’t care. As long as he was there, she was under his wing, his protection, and she was just going to need to deal with it.

  He sat down beside her and waited until she drank some of the water before he spoke. “Hannah. Bailey said Don made you cry. Tell me what happened. Tell me what he said.”

  Mark wasn’t sure if Don had let it slip about what went down last night. He normally was one he could trust, but there was so much he’d left out that it was possible Don hadn’t taken it as seriously as he should’ve.

  “It’s too hard to explain.”

  “Why don’t you give it a try?”

  She looked at him, her sweet green eyes still glistening from the tears. He wanted to kiss them away. Tell her that he was here and nothing would ever hurt her again. But the truth was, he was here now, and that was all he had to offer her. Sad, but true. Even if I wanted to be the man for her, I couldn’t be. I’d be gone so much and she’d cry for a whole other reason.

  He’d seen so many marriages end or suffer tremendous strain due to the husband’s or wife’s deployment. And the ones still married, they missed their kids’ birthdays, graduations, and hell one even missed his daughter’s wedding. They’d received the message about it, but they were so deep undercover on a mission they’d been working on for nine months that they couldn’t let him go. Oh, he could’ve gone but not without jeopardizing the mission and the other men. And when it came to the team, the mission and each other came first. It was how they survived out there. If something went wrong, all they had was each other. Help would come, but there was no guarantee it was going to make it in time.

  “Mark, you’re not here to listen to my problems.”

  “I’m here for many reasons, Hannah. So tell me.”

  “This place is getting to me that’s all.”

  He understood why. There was so much to do and no one there for her. All he could picture was what it would’ve been like for Casey if she had to face things all alone. Things might have ended so differently for her. Hannah didn’t have a big brother watching out for her, never mind any parents. He was glad she had Bailey, who stuck up for her, but she was only here for a short visit.

  “Is it the amount of work?”

  Hannah laughed, but he knew it wasn’t genuine. “You think? I mean every time I turn around you are telling me more bad news.”

  “What did Don tell you?”

  “He told me about the old pipe that broke last night.”

  Good job. Not true, but believable.

  “We got that fixed quickly.”

  “Obviously, not quick enough.”

  “Why?”

  “You don’t know?”

  I know more than you think, but not about whatever it is you know. Mark shook his head. “No.”

  “The water last night started leaking through my bathroom ceiling, and we didn’t know until this morning.”

  Shit, I should’ve thought about that before I decided to break that pipe. “We can fix that easily. Give us an hour and you’ll never notice a thing.”

  “You might want to take a look in there yourself before you talk anymore.”

  Mark knew a gallon of paint, and it would be even better than before. But the expression on her face said he better do as she said. Getting up from the couch, he walked to the bathroom. The door normally opened to the inside, but when he turned the knob and pushed, it only went a quarter of the way. He stuck his head inside to see what was blocking it. What the fuck!? The entire ceiling was on the floor, and he could also see the porcelain toilet broken in two. This entire fiasco was my doing. I’m trying to make her life better. Instead, I ruin the only nice bathroom in the place. And worse, when she has a friend visiting. Damn. I understand why
Don blamed it on old plumbing just giving way. It was better than the truth; this was no accident. But now she hates this place when she really should hate me.

  Mark closed the door and went back to Hannah.

  “Is it as bad as Don made it out to be?”

  Hasn’t she even seen it yet? Damn, Don. You’re not making this any easier on me, buddy. Nodding, Mark said, “Most likely worse. Don’s a good guy, and he doesn’t like to hurt anyone.”

  Hannah met his eyes as she asked, “Unlike you?”

  “Unlike me.” So unlike me. Don was likeable. I was someone men followed and that was about it. And Hannah can see clearly the difference. Still, he didn’t like the sorrow in her eyes, and he needed to fix that.

  He got up and said before he left, “Don and I can fix that real cheap. Your bathroom will look even better when we’re done. But for now, it looks like you ladies will need to share ours across the hall.”

  “That one is disgusting and barely works.”

  “Which is a step above yours. I can build you an outhouse if you’d rather, but the options are very limited at the moment.”

  She was quiet for a minute as though weighing her options. “Okay, but I have one request.”

  He’d give her the world if she asked. “What is it?”

  “We ladies would appreciate it very much if you please put the toilet seat down when you’re done.”

  Sweet Hannah. You won’t let life keep you down, will you? “We’ll do our best, but no promises.”

  The story of his life.

  Never promise.

  Chapter Nine

  Mark and Don were arguing about how they’d keep the remodeling of her bathroom a secret. It’s not like before when the supplies magically appeared while she was at work.

  “You’re going to have to tell her something. So why not try the truth?” Don asked while they hauled out the last bits of trash from the bathroom.

  “The truth? Have you ever heard me tell anyone that?” Mark asked, but knew Don couldn’t really answer. He always said something close to the truth, but unless he was being debriefed after a mission, he said his version of the truth only. Facts were not as important as telling the tale.

  “Good thing we’ve been friends so long that I can see your bullshit story coming a mile away. But you better think of something, because we can’t fix this without her noticing a major difference.”

  “I want you to call the hardware store again. I want you to tell your contact to say he has a tub shower unit and a toilet that got delivered to them by mistake, and the company won’t take them back. They gave it to him at cost, and they want to know if Hannah is interested in taking it off their hands. Make up something like not enough room in the showroom or something. I know you, Don, you dish the bullshit just as good as me. I have faith you’ll think of something.”

  “Brilliant. Yeah I know. I have to do all the labor, and come up with the plan. You’re really not making this easy on me. This is a small town. People are bound to start talking.”

  “Let them talk. We’ll be long gone before it makes it here.”

  “And if it slips out before then?”

  “Stop worrying about what might happen and get the stuff. I have to be out of here before the end of next week.”

  Don looked at him puzzled, “Heading overseas?”

  Mark shook his head. “Nope. Casey is getting married.”

  “Hell, no. Who approved this? No way our baby girl is getting married unless I give my okay.”

  Mark laughed. He’d had Don watch out for her anytime he wasn’t able to. Came in very handy to know he could trust him to treat her like a baby sister and not some girl he was trying to hook up with. If he had, their friendship would’ve ended very quickly.

  “I looked into him. Good guy. And he seems to be madly in love with her too.”

  “I didn’t doubt for a minute that you looked into him. I would’ve been shocked if you hadn’t. I mean your poor sister could hardly date in school without you scaring the boys away.”

  “I know what boys are like at fifteen. Do you think I wanted any of them around my sister? Just because my parents said she could date at that age, didn’t mean I wasn’t going to keep a very close eye.” Casey may have thought I kept too close of an eye, but that’s the job of a big brother.

  Don laughed. “You don’t have to explain it to me, but I’m not sure Casey appreciated it so much. The only time she had any fun was when you were deployed and left me in charge. If it weren’t for me, she probably wouldn’t have gotten her first kiss.”

  “Don’t remind me, Don. When I heard you let her and that kid go to the drive-in by themselves, I was going to beat your ass.”

  “Damn, you really do remember the details. I would’ve thought almost fifteen years later you’d forgotten that little incident.”

  That’s the problem, Don. I don’t forget anything. Even when I want to, I can’t. He was no longer thinking of Casey. His mind was wondering back to Hannah and how gentle her voice was and how sweet her lips tasted . . .

  “Mark, are you listening to me?”

  The answer is no. “Sorry. Got a lot on my mind.”

  Don leaned up against the door jamb and asked, “Tenant or landlord?”

  “Both.”

  “Hannah has had a real rough time these past few years.”

  Mark looked at Don puzzled. “What do you know?”

  Don wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to mess with Mark. “Oh, does Mr. Researcher need my help gathering information about his girl?”

  Mark didn’t find it amusing. He never mixed business with pleasure, well until now. Somehow they blended too closely, and it was becoming difficult to separate them. Once I’m gone, this feeling will fade.

  “Is there something you think I should know?” His patience was dwindling and for good reason.

  “While you were comforting Hannah, I had to hear about my lack of couth for delivering bad news from Bailey.”

  “I must be rubbing off on you.”

  “Exactly. I’m usually considered the nice one. Somehow Bailey thinks you’re a nice guy, and I’m a jerk.”

  He didn’t care what Bailey thought of him, but Mark found it humorous that she totally misread them both. No one has ever mistaken me for nice.

  “There goes your big teddy bear image you’ve been working on all these years,” Mark joked.

  “It has to be this place, because, in a matter of days, I went from teddy bear to grizzly bear.”

  Although Mark enjoyed watching his friend suffer from this new revelation, he didn’t see what this had to do with Hannah. “Was there a point you wanted to make about Hannah, or did you want me to listen to you whine a bit more?”

  “Oh yeah, Hannah. I almost forgot. Bailey said I had no right breaking the news to Hannah like that because she’d been through hell and back the last three years. It’s not only about losing her father either. From what Bailey said, she is carrying the weight of everything on her shoulders. That includes not just the house, which is bad enough, but all her father’s medical expenses and funeral cost too.”

  That explains why she took in a tenant. She’s desperate and now vulnerable. If that guy is what I think he is, he’s more dangerous to her than I thought.

  “How does Bailey know?”

  Don said, “Best friends talk to each other.”

  He knew that was a dig at him for not sharing what was going on about the guy upstairs, but he didn’t care. Some things he was unable to talk about, and other things, he just didn’t want to.

  “Didn’t he have medical insurance?”

  Don shook his head. “I asked the same thing. Guess he was self-employed as a carpenter, which makes sense with all the tools in that shed. But no health or life insurance. Hannah was at some university with Bailey in Rhode Island when she got the call from her father’s doctor telling her how serious it was. From what Bailey said, they had extended family in Texas, but they only had each oth
er in Savannah. So she left school, came home, and took care of him: financially, emotionally, and physically in this house until he died.”

  Amazing woman. She gave up chasing her dream for someone she loved. I always say I’d lay down my life for someone I love, but I guess that’s the easy part. She has to live with what could’ve been but isn’t. And yet she still has the smile of an angel and the strength of a lion. People underestimate my sweet Hannah. I wonder if she underestimates herself as well?

  “That explains the issues with the bank.”

  “Exactly. Mark, that woman of yours spent every cent she had to give her father the best quality of life she could. Bailey said she wouldn’t accept assistance from anyone then and never will. I’m only telling you this because when she finds out what you’re doing, that woman is going to hate you.”

  I know. But better Hannah hates me, and I know she has everything she needs for a good and happy future, than she loves me, and I leave her broken-hearted. Because, I will leave. There’s no doubt about that.

  Her strength reminded him of his mother. Even though his father had ALS, she refused help in any way. Even from her children. He knew his mother didn’t want to be in some Third World country during his father’s last years, but she, like Hannah, was a selfless woman who cared more about others than her own needs. And, like Hannah, he worried about his mother, but no matter how much he tried, he couldn’t save them. Some things aren’t in my power.

  “I know the risk.”

  “Bailey also said there is something else going on with Hannah, but she can’t figure it out. Hannah told Bailey she’s been suffering from recurring nightmares. When Bailey tried digging deeper, Hannah shut down.”

  It could be the loss of her father or the pending loss of the house, but I don’t think that’s it. What else is haunting you at night, my sweet Hannah? What is so troubling that you won’t confide in your best friend? He was going to add that to his list of things to research, but for now, he wanted to address the major one at hand. Her bathroom.

  “Don, get everything set at the hardware store for another delivery. Just remember, Don, this is her bathroom; I want the best, but not over-the-top because she won’t use it.”