Early service. Brown eyes. He was still drawing a blank.
“Strong faith, strong shoulders . . . what else could a girl want?” Lucy said.
Riley set his teeth, glaring at the TV screen.
“Doesn’t his mom own the Mangy Moose?” Eden asked. “I was in there this spring looking for a trinket for Micah and chatted with her awhile.”
“Yeah, that’s her.”
So they were talking about Dylan Moore. He was a lobsterman born and bred, just like Riley. Only he still had both legs. And dreamy brown eyes, apparently.
“You’ll have to let us know how the date goes.”
The conversation shifted to Eden and Beau’s upcoming wedding, and Riley’s thoughts drifted away. It had been hard enough watching Paige’s relationship with his brother get serious. Then they’d broken up on the eve of his departure, and he’d had to leave her for months on end, not knowing if he’d come home to find her involved with someone else. But in all of those scenarios there had been at least a sliver of hope for him.
Now he had to watch some moron take her out, wine and dine her, knowing there was no hope of a future for the two of them. Because even if her feelings did change—and that was about as likely as a midnight sunrise—he’d never saddle her with the man he’d become.
Somehow he was going to have to get used to the idea of her with someone else. Because if there was anyone who deserved the love of a good man, it was Paige.
Chapter 6
Riley’s head was practically spinning just watching Paige dart around the house in her yoga pants and T-shirt. In the kitchen, back with a glass of water he didn’t need, up the stairs.
She stopped in the middle of the staircase, frowning. “What was I doing? Oh yeah, my clothes! Oh my gosh, I’m losing it.” She dashed up the steps, calling over her shoulder, “You need a blanket? It’s a little cool in here. I’ll shut the windows. You can turn on the heat later if you need to.”
It was pointless to respond. She’d been like the Energizer Bunny since she’d gotten home from work. Her date was due to arrive in—he checked his watch—five minutes. His hands tightened on the sofa cushions. This really blew.
The floor creaked overhead with her hurried movements. A few minutes later she reappeared, those tanned legs making quick work of the stairs. She wore a pale blue shirt that matched her eyes and shorts that revealed too much skin. Her hair flowed straight over her shoulders like a waterfall of spun gold. She was stunning. Breathtaking.
His heart ticked too quickly as the words teased at his lips. But he seasoned them with a hefty dose of friendship. “You look nice.”
“Thanks. Did I tell you Zac brought over some wings? And there’s pizza in the freezer, your favorite kind. Not to mention twelve varieties of casseroles from your fan club.”
“Got it.”
“I meant to put together a fresh fruit salad,” she called from the kitchen. “But I didn’t have time.”
“I’ll make it later.”
“The toilet keeps running when it’s flushed. You know how to fix it when that happens?”
“Of course I do. I’m not an idiot.” He failed to keep the edginess from his tone.
She stopped on the kitchen threshold, a frown tucked between her brows. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
She folded her arms and stared him down.
Fine, she wanted to get it out there, he’d get it out there. “You’re fussing over me like a mother hen. I don’t need a babysitter.”
“I’m not your babysitter, Callahan. I’m your friend.”
Yeah, she was his friend. And only his friend. He didn’t need the reminder. Or maybe he did. Maybe that’s what his mood was really about. This stupid date was stirring up a lot of crap.
He clamped his teeth to keep the verbal garbage inside. It was getting harder and harder.
Paige leaned against the doorframe and heaved a sigh. “I’m not doing anything for you that you wouldn’t do for me. In fact, this is the first time I can remember that you’ve been on the receiving end. It’s always been you taking care of me. You coddling me when Casper got hit by a car, you fixing my furnace and changing my oil. Remember that night when I was seventeen and got stupid after my dad died? You were there for me. You took care of me.”
His steeled himself against the memory of the night. Against the helpless weight of her in his arms, the pliable brush of her lips. Oh yeah. He’d taken care of her all right.
“Well, I don’t need you fussing over me. You’re going to be gone a few hours—I think I can manage that long.” A disturbing thought occurred. Was she planning to be gone longer? He tried to shove the thought down, but it kept bubbling to the surface. He tried for a casual tone. “Unless you’re going to make this an overnighter or something.”
Paige frowned at him from the doorway. “Of course not. What is up with you?”
He gawked at her. “Me? I’m not the one running around here like a chicken with its head cut off. You’re nervous as heck. Dylan Moore got you all hot and bothered or something?”
She narrowed her eyes. “No, I’m not hot and bothered, and you’re being a real jerk, you know that? Maybe you should just go back to avoiding me.”
Riley gave a wry laugh. “We live in the same house, Paige.”
“And yet you’ve barely spoken to me for twelve hours.”
The doorbell pealed as they stared each other down for a long beat, neither giving an inch.
When she finally moved toward the door, he suddenly wanted to wrap the quilted throw around her lower half. Instead he gathered his crutches. Dylan already had him by a couple inches. He wasn’t going to make it even worse.
He pulled to his feet and turned toward the door in time to see Dylan’s eyes sweep over Paige’s body with a flicker of male appreciation. He fought the urge to gouge out the man’s dreamy brown eyes with the blunt end of his crutch.
“Wow,” Dylan said. “You look beautiful. Gorgeous.”
Paige’s smile widened, her eyes lighting up like he’d just made her entire week. “Why, thank you.”
You should’ve been the one to say it, idiot. He wanted to punch himself in the face.
Dylan finally tore his eyes away from Paige long enough to notice him. “Riley. Hey, dude. Heard you were back. Good to see you, man.”
Riley balanced on his crutches and shook Dylan’s hand, making his grasp good and firm. “Good to be back.”
Dylan winced slightly as he pulled away.
“Let me go grab a sweater,” Paige said. “I’ll be right back.”
She dashed up the stairs.
Dylan’s eyes followed her until she disappeared. Then he turned a congenial smile on Riley. The guy didn’t even see him as a threat. And why would he? Riley’s mood took a turn for the worse.
“So . . . ,” Dylan said after a long, uncomfortable moment. “How’s it going? You know, the therapy and everything?”
“Peachy. Where are you taking her tonight?”
Surprise flickered in Dylan’s eyes, and his mouth worked a minute.
Okay, maybe he wasn’t being very friendly. But he was digging deep just to keep from wrapping his hands around the guy’s thick neck.
“Ah . . . thought we’d take the ferry over to Folly Shoals and hit the Seafood Shack. It’s the perfect weather for a boat ride.”
“She gets motion sick.”
The sparkle in his eyes dimmed. “Oh. Well, I guess we’ll stop for some Dramamine on the way.”
“And she’s allergic to shellfish.” Didn’t this guy know anything about her?
A tinge of pink moved into Dylan’s face as his eyes narrowed. “Well . . . they have a varied menu. I’m sure she can handle herself.”
“I’m sure she can.” Riley continued to eye the man. And you’d better treat her right, Sparky, or I’ll be the one handling you.
Dylan shifted. His cheeks were mottled pink. “Listen, is there a problem here?”
Riley s
tood stock-still despite the growing ache in his stump. “Nope. No problem.”
“ ’Cause it seems like there’s a problem.”
“Long as you treat her right, there’s no problem at all.”
“Well, Dad, you don’t have to worry about—”
“All right,” Paige called as she descended the steps. “I’m ready to go.”
Riley held eye contact with Dylan, drilling his message in deep.
When Paige neared the guys her eyes toggled back and forth between them. She gave a nervous laugh. “Everything okay here?”
Riley aimed one last look of warning at Dylan. “Wicked awesome.”
As Dylan ushered her toward the door, she tossed Riley a What was that? look.
He gave her a tight smile. “You kids have a good night, now.”
Paige shot him a look, which he pointedly ignored.
By the time the door shut, Riley’s energy was spent, and his stump was a throbbing ache. He dropped onto the sofa, dreading the long evening that stretched ahead.
He turned on the TV to ESPN, but five minutes later his mind had wandered back to Paige. He wished he hadn’t asked where they were going. Now he could envision every second of their date, right down to the drugstore run.
He remembered the look that had come over her face at Dylan’s compliment. He wanted to be the one making her feel good, making her smile, making her eyes dance. He wanted to be the one holding her door and making sure the chef cooked her dinner with care.
Darkness flooded through him. He picked up the throw pillow and whipped it across the room. It landed against the wall with an unsatisfying soft whump.
Get a grip, Callahan. You can’t have her.
He punched his useless thigh. Is this Your idea of entertainment, God? Watching a cripple lose the woman he loves to another man?
Again.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could do this. He just had to focus on his recovery. Work his butt off, get his prosthesis, work his butt off some more, and then he could leave here and let Paige get on with her life. As would he.
He had a new life awaiting him. A new job in Georgia, where his platoon buddy Noah was just waiting on word from him.
The thought left a hollow ache in his middle. If only this had never happened. If only his feelings for her had never changed. His mind wandered back to that day. How many times had he wished he could somehow go back and make things different?
It had begun the second Paige returned from summer camp their seventeenth year. Her mom always sent her away to various camps during the summer. To enrich her life, she said. And Paige’s dad went blithely along like he did with all her mother’s decrees.
Paige had three back-to-back camps, one of them lasting a whole month, much to Riley’s dismay. He’d spent his summer mowing grass at the Christmas tree farm and helping his dad plant new seedlings. Some days, when his chores were caught up, he went out with his dad on the lobster boat. It had been the only good thing about the whole summer.
Paige arrived home only a week before school started. When her mom finally let her leave the house, she arranged to meet up with Riley at the inlet pier where the Warrens moored their rowboat.
He showed up early, eager to see her. He knew she’d want to go gliding up the inlet while they caught each other up on their summers. And afterward, he hoped she was up for a game of basketball. His brothers had been too busy to give him the time of day, and he wanted to be conditioned for tryouts when basketball season rolled around. He liked playing with Paige, especially since he’d shot up four inches over the last year.
His legs hung over the end of the pier, his feet dangling a few inches from the water’s smooth surface. The boat’s hull bumped rhythmically against the piling, making a scraping sound, and a seagull sailed overhead, giving a lonely cry. The sun was just low enough to dapple the sky with gold by the time he heard her footsteps on the wooden pier.
“ ’Bout time you got here.” He turned, and the smirk on his lips shriveled up and died.
The sun sparkled off her summery blond hair, and her tanned skin glowed as if it had been kissed by the sun. The slim, straight lines of her body had given way to subtle curves, highlighted by her snug T-shirt and shorts. Her legs . . . had they always stretched so long and shapely? And since when did she paint her toenails?
She tweaked a brow as she neared. “Cat got your tongue, Callahan?”
He blinked. Snap out of it, man. This is Warren. Your best pal. Your buddy.
“Hey, Warren,” he said as he got to his feet. Unfortunately the view was just as nice from up there. She reminded him of the gorgeous blond chick from that Sisterhood movie she’d made him watch twice the summer before.
Her smile widened as she approached, and she threw her arms around him. “I missed you!”
Her breath tickled the hair over his ears, making his heart kick into overtime. He sure hoped she couldn’t feel how hard it was pounding.
“You too.”
She even felt different—all soft against his chest. His mouth went dry. She smelled like sweet flowers—the really pretty kind. He fought the urge to bury his nose in her hair.
What the heck is wrong with you? If she knew what he was thinking she’d slug him in the arm. Hard.
Paige pulled away, leaving him teetering somewhere between relief and disappointment.
Her face had matured as well, he saw, now that he was up close and personal. The gentle curves had given way to refined planes and intriguing slopes. She had a fresh sprinkling of freckles on her nose, and her lips seemed fuller.
Or maybe he’d just never noticed them before.
Those lips curved in a saucy grin. “You’re staring.”
Heat crept into his face. He set his hand on the back of his neck. “Well, you changed. You—you got taller.” And lots of other -er words he didn’t even want to think, much less say.
She shrugged. “A couple inches.” She narrowed her eyes, studying his face hard, and it was everything he could do to stay still under her scrutiny.
“Are those whiskers? You trying to grow some facial hair, Callahan?”
He rubbed his stubbly jaw. “What do you mean, trying? This is a bona fide beard.” There. That sounded pretty normal.
She laughed. “I don’t know if I’d go that far, but it’s a valiant effort.” She stepped around him and climbed gracefully into the boat. “Let’s go. I’ve been looking forward to this for weeks.”
Riley was distracted the whole evening. He tried to act normal, but inside he felt anything but. When she suggested they pass on the basketball, he was all in favor. He needed time alone to dissect—and eradicate—these weird thoughts.
But time didn’t help. Something had shifted. He’d noticed the changes in her, and he couldn’t unnotice them. Over the coming days the observations somehow led to a shift in his feelings. Worse, Paige seemed just fine. He’d had enough interactions with girls that he’d notice if she was giving off vibes. But she treated him as she always had—as her best buddy, Callahan.
All that fall and leading into the winter, he wished for things to go back to normal. He begged God to make the new feelings disappear. But no matter how many times he beat himself up over it, they remained, stubborn and strong.
He hid them behind familiar jabs to the arm and high-fives and behind safe words like buddy and pal. Paige seemed oblivious, and thank God for that. Because if she found out, it would only make everything awkward. She’d probably put distance between them or feel sorry for him, and he couldn’t stand the thought of either of those things.
He had three choices, and he worked them endlessly until he wanted to bang his head against the wall. One: he could tell Paige how he felt and risk losing her forever. Two: he could distance himself from her and deprive them both of their relationship. Three: he could go on pretending nothing had changed and continue to suffer in silence.
He didn’t like any of the options, but there was only one that left hi
m any kind of relationship with her. And he didn’t even want to imagine his life without Paige.
Chapter 7
Are you feeling okay?” Dylan asked.
Paige glanced up from the salmon she was picking at with her fork, forcing a smile. “Of course. I’m fine. This is delicious.” She took a bite. “How’s your lobster?”
“Excellent.”
He wiped his mouth and took a swig of his Coke. “Anyone adopt an animal this week?”
“Just one. A cat.” She thought of all the homeless animals in the kennels and Dylan’s big empty yard. She should talk him into a dog. The brown Lab would be a good match for him, and he had the space for her. But somehow she couldn’t find the energy for the conversation.
“Are you sure you’re not feeling sick?” He eyed her. “You seem . . . kind of quiet tonight.”
“The Dramamine did the trick. This was a nice surprise. I love Folly Shoals. It feels like a world away from Summer Harbor.”
And yet her mind had remained onshore the entire time, all through their long walk along the harbor and their delicious dinner. She couldn’t get Riley out of her head.
As much as he tried to put on a smile for everyone else, it was clear he wasn’t doing all that great. He’d been on edge tonight, and truth was, she felt all kinds of guilty for leaving him alone when he was clearly struggling. Not only had she left him, but she’d been impatient with him.
He’d been like a wounded animal, guarded and snarling at her efforts to help. She’d treated so many animals with care and patience, giving them not only treatment, but comfort. Yet what had she done with her best friend in the world? She’d snapped at him, then left him to fend for himself.
Deep down she was still peeved at him for leaving her. It was stupid, she knew. But somehow that didn’t stop the feelings.
Guilt pricked hard. She set her fork down on her plate, her appetite completely gone.
Dylan planted his elbows on the table, clasping his hands at his jaw. “What’s wrong, Paige?”
She tried for a smile. “Sorry. Guess I am a little distracted.”
“Anything you want to talk about?”
Just a Kiss Page 4
