One More Moment (The McCormicks Book 3)

by Elena Aitken

  Just thinking about him made her heart hurt. The hardest thing she’d ever done was turn away from him.

  But she didn’t have a choice.

  She wasn’t strong enough.

  She couldn’t do it.

  If being with him meant subjecting herself to such public scrutiny and embarrassment, she couldn’t do it.

  In a fog, Milena unlocked the front door and was halfway down the hall to her room when a voice calling her name stopped her.

  “Milena?”

  It was Estelle.

  The fact that Estelle was in her house only half registered. It had seemed like a million years ago when she’d seen her father and Estelle at the Springs together.

  “Come have a cup of tea,” Estelle said. It wasn’t a question, more of a command and her voice was kind.

  Milena nodded and dutifully followed her to the kitchen.

  “Hey, kiddo.” Her dad wrapped her in a hug the moment she walked into the room. Feeling his familiar arms around her, holding her the way he had when she was a small child, almost broke her again.

  It was Estelle who saved her from a complete breakdown by gently extracting her and putting her into a seat at the table. A moment later, a mug of tea was in front of her.

  “Do you want to talk?” Estelle asked.

  She shook her head.

  “We saw the article.”

  Milena dropped her head into her arms on the table. Her dad had seen the pictures? And read those terrible things?

  “You can’t call that trash an article,” her father said. “That website is nothing but trash. And anyone who reads it is—”

  “Everyone read it,” Milena said.

  “But it’s not true.” Estelle’s voice was gentle. She put her hand on Milena’s arm and squeezed until she looked up again. “That’s all that matters. And anyone who matters will know that. You and Cal don’t need the approval of anyone else,” she continued. “The two of you are strong and that’s all that matters.”

  “No.” She didn’t even bother checking the tears that streamed down her face. “We’re not. I can’t do it, Estelle.” Milena swiped at her eyes. “I’m not strong enough to be in front of the public eye like that. I shouldn’t be with—”

  “Bullshit.” Her dad slammed his fist against the table. “I won’t stand for anyone talking about my baby girl that way, least of all you.”

  “What?” Milena shook her head, confused. “But I’m not, Dad. I can’t do it. It’s too hard.”

  “When has that ever stopped you from getting what you want? My daughter doesn’t back away from anything hard. She goes after what she wants. Nothing can stop her.”

  More than anything, Milena wanted to believe what her dad was saying. “Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be this time.”

  “I don’t believe that.”

  Estelle patted her arm again. “I don’t believe it either, Milena. Not for a second.”

  Exhaustion overtook her. All she really wanted to do was sleep. She pushed the mug away, untouched, and put her head on the table. Her tears were all dried up; she only felt an overwhelming sadness. Both for the loss of Cal and what could have been and also for disappointing her dad.

  “I know what you need,” her dad declared after a moment of silence. “Yoga.”

  It was such an unexpected thing for him to say that Milena jerked her head up and stared at him. “Yoga?”

  “Yoga.” He nodded. “That’s what you do when you’re all worked up, don’t you? That bendy-pretzel stuff seems to make you feel better, right?”

  She nodded, somewhat reluctantly, and gave him a strange look, which he subsequently ignored.

  “Okay.” He slapped his hands on the table and stood. “Then it’s settled. I’ll get some towels or something.”

  Milena looked to Estelle for help in what was obviously a crisis situation. If her dad was losing his mind, she was going to need backup. But Estelle only shrugged, smiled and stood. “Sounds lovely.”

  “We might need you to lead a few moves,” her dad called from the other room. “Come on. Let’s do this.”

  She couldn’t help it. Curiosity got the best of her. Milena shucked her jacket and went to join them on the floor of the living room.

  Her muscles were reluctant at first, probably because her mind wasn’t in the right place, but after a few minutes of watching her father attempt downward dog followed by a very strange version of child’s pose, Milena was able to let go of her reservations and relax into some of the moves.

  Her dad and Estelle did their best to keep up, but soon Milena wasn’t even paying attention to what they were doing. She lost herself in the familiar flow.

  When she finally finished and sank into her shavasana, she was feeling remarkably better. She let her eyes stay closed for a few extra minutes before she exhaled and pulled herself up to a seated position.

  When she opened her eyes, she was alone.

  Milena smiled to herself and got up.

  She found her father alone in the kitchen.

  “Thank you,” she said as she sat across from him.

  “For what? I didn’t do anything.”

  She gave him a look, but didn’t push it. His little yoga stunt was exactly what she’d needed, and the fact that he knew that made him the very best father in the whole world.

  He poured her a fresh cup of tea and they sat in silence, sipping, for a few minutes.

  “Where’s Estelle?”

  Her father grinned, and if she wasn’t mistaken, he may have blushed a little, too. “She went to the office. We hadn’t intended to take today off as well, but it just kind of happened, and then…well, with everything, she thought maybe you’d want to be alone for a bit.”

  Milena nodded. She hadn’t even noticed that not only was Estelle and her father both not at work, but they were together. It was strange for sure, but at the same time it wasn’t.

  “Dad?”

  He looked up in question.

  “I’m really happy for you and Estelle,” she said. “You don’t have to hide it. I think the two of you are perfect. It’s a good thing, Dad.”

  “Thank you. It is a good thing.” He reached across the table and took her hand. “We were going to tell you, but—”

  “It doesn’t matter. I’m just happy to know you’re happy with someone. You were alone for too long, Dad.” She laughed a little at herself. “I guess it’s kind of like what you were saying a few days ago. You just want me to be happy. Just like I want that for you.”

  “Milena.” He sighed and shook his head. “What happened with Cal? You can’t condemn him for the—”

  They were interrupted by a loud banging on the front door.

  Milena looked at her father, but he only shrugged.

  The banging came again, followed by a rough voice yelling, “Milena!”

  Her stomach turned at the sound of the voice.

  “Is that—”

  “Michael?” Milena nodded. “I think so.”

  Her father immediately pushed up from the table. “I’ll handle this,” he said. “The last thing you need is to deal with that jackass right now.”

  “No, Dad.” Milena rose and put a hand on his arm to stay him. “I’ll go. I need to handle this myself.”

  “Milena. No. I want to—”

  “Dad.” She stared him in the eyes. “Please. I’m okay.”

  It was clear he wasn’t happy about it, but reluctantly he nodded and let Milena up to deal with her past.

  “I don’t know why they called you, Declan.”

  “I do,” his older brother said. “You’re a mess and I’m the only one who can get through to you when you’re like this.”

  “That’s not true.”

  Dec raised an eyebrow at him but didn’t bother responding. They both knew it was true. They were sitting in a quiet booth at the back of the Grizzly Paw. All Cal really wanted to do was go home and hide, but after hearing what had gone down with Milena, his brothers weren’t
going to let him be alone. Declan had shown up and dragged him to the bar. Which maybe wouldn’t be so bad, he’d reasoned. At least he could get drunk.

  He downed the beer in front of him and slammed it on the table before he waved at Chelsea, who was behind the bar. She shook her head in response.

  “What good is it to have a sister who works at the pub if she won’t bring you a beer when you need it most?” he complained to Declan.

  “The last thing you need right now is another beer.”

  “You’re right.” He slapped his hand on the table. “I need whiskey. Let’s do shots.” He stood again and waved in the direction of the bar. This time Samantha saw him, smiled and waved. “There.” Cal sat down, triumphant. “All you need to do is get the attention of the owner. That’s how to get things done around—”

  “Good afternoon, gentlemen.” Samantha appeared at their table and handed Cal a glass…of water.

  “What’s this?”

  “Chelsea said that’s what you were looking for.” Judging by Samantha’s smile, she knew that wasn’t at all what Cal was looking for. “She also told me a bit about what’s going on.”

  Cal didn’t have the energy to be upset with his little sister. Besides, what was the point? The whole world would know soon enough because why wouldn’t they? The tabloids were just part of his life.

  A part that Milena couldn’t accept.

  He squeezed his temple and chugged the water. “Now can I have a beer?”

  Sam shook her head. “No. But I have something better.”

  “Whiskey?”

  She laughed. “Better than booze. And that’s saying something, coming from a bar owner.”

  “No kidding.” Declan joined in the laughter and Cal wanted to punch him.

  “It’s nice to see the two of you think this is so funny.”

  “Sorry,” Sam said. “Really though, I want you to meet someone.”

  Cal’s head snapped up. Who did she think she was? She wanted to introduce him to someone as if he hadn’t just broken up with his girlfriend? What a—

  “Not like that,” Sam said quickly. Judging by the look on her face, she knew exactly where Cal’s mind had gone. “Just someone I think will be able to help you, is all.”

  “No one can help me.”

  “That’s enough of that.” Declan swiped at Cal’s hand and he only just barely caught himself before his head hit the table.

  “What the hell, Dec?”

  “This isn’t you.” Dec shook his head. “You’re really going to tell me that you’re going to sit here and let the woman you love slip away? That’s bullshit. I know a hundred men who would love to have what you have with Milena. You have no idea just how lucky you are.”

  “I do too! I know exactly how lucky I am.” Cal groaned. “I know how lucky I was. There’s nothing I can do, Dec. That’s the whole problem. This is who I am. This is my life. My livelihood. And if she doesn’t want to be part of that, there’s really nothing I can do.”

  “I call bullshit.” Declan sat back and crossed his arms. “You love her.” It wasn’t a question, but Cal nodded. “Then you should do everything you can to keep her. And that includes listening to what Samantha has to say.” Declan gestured to Samantha, who had been standing and listening quietly.

  The last thing Cal wanted to do was hear anybody’s advice. It wasn’t like him; he never did give up easily, but something about the way Milena had looked at him, the sadness in her eyes and the defeat on her face—it was just too much. He wanted to hide. He glanced at his brother. Hiding wasn’t an option.

  Dammit.

  “Okay.” He shrugged. “Who do you think can help me?”

  “I’m glad you asked.” Samantha smiled. “Cal, have you ever met Bria Sheridan? I mean, I know you’ve met her. But have you been introduced to her?”

  Cal shook his head. “Look, Samantha. The last thing I want is to meet a woman right now. I thought I made that clear.”

  Samantha laughed. “Get over yourself. Bria Sheridan is a photographer. She took the photos of the party the other night.” Sam held up her hand to ward off the objection Cal was about to fire off. “Before you say anything, she was hired to do that job. That’s all she was doing. And I already asked her—she had nothing to do with the photos that appeared in Stars Secrets, but she does have some photos you may be interested in.”

  Cal didn’t know Samantha well, but she couldn’t possibly be serious. Photos were exactly what got him in this mess. It was the whole reason Milena didn’t want anything to do with him anymore. There was no way photos would be able to save things between them. He told her as much, doing his best to leave out the sarcasm and bitterness he was feeling.

  “Samantha? Really?” Declan shook his head. “What kind of photos? Because I can’t imagine that—”

  “You boys really don’t have any imagination, do you?” Samantha laughed. “Maybe it’s your older brothers who got all the romance genes. Because the two of you…I can’t believe how close-minded you are.” She shook her head and turned to walk away.

  Cal reached out and grabbed her hand to stop her. “Wait. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

  “I’m glad you asked. I’ll tell you what, let me go get Bria. She’s over by the bar. She’ll be able to explain this better than I can. I’ll be right back.” Then she was gone before Cal could object again.

  He shook his head, resigned to the fact that not only was he not going to get a beer, he was going to have to listen to some crazy plan, when all he really wanted was to have Milena back in his arms.

  “You might as well hear her out,” Declan said. “I get a feeling she’s not going to stop until you do.”

  “It’s true,” Samantha said as she once again appeared at their table. “I’m not.” She slid into the booth next to Cal and gestured for the woman with her to sit next to Declan. “This is Bria. You met the other night but not really.”

  Cal nodded his greeting and waited while Declan was far more polite than he was before he said, “Okay. What’s the big idea?”

  “It’s not an idea so much as—”

  “What? Why are you—”

  “Cal!” Declan scolded him. “I get it, you’re hurting. But you don’t get to be an asshole.”

  “Sorry,” he muttered.

  Bria didn’t look fazed and she picked up right where she left off. “I met Milena the other day at the Springs and I told her about some pictures I took.”

  “I told you I—”

  “Hear me out.” Bria stopped him. “They’re pictures of the two of you. I was hired to do a job, and I did it. But for the rest of the night, I took pictures and captured something pretty special between the two of you. I know right now you’re thinking photographs are the worst thing in the world, but they’re not. At least they don’t have to be.”

  Cal sat up in his chair. “And you told Milena about them?”

  “I did. But I didn’t have a chance to show her any of them yet. Would you like to see them?”

  He nodded. Of course he wanted to see them. She handed him a tablet and a second later, Cal wished he hadn’t looked. An image of Milena smiling filled the screen.

  She was beautiful.

  It broke his heart.

  He hadn’t realized he was tracing the screen with his fingers until Declan reached over and swiped. “Keep looking. Seriously.”

  The next image was one of the two of them dancing and staring into each other’s eyes. In the next shot, he was dipping her. In the next, he was kissing her.

  Cal kept swiping through the pictures and as he did, his heart ached with need for the woman in them, but something else happened too.

  An idea started to percolate.

  He finished the pictures and started going through them again.

  “Cal?”

  “What do you think?”

  He ignored both Declan and Samantha and looked through the pictures one more time. His smile grew wider with every photo that flashed bef
ore him, and it wasn’t just because the subject of each photograph lit up his heart. It was because the more he looked at the shots of him and Milena, and the way they looked at each other, the more he was absolutely positive that no matter what else happened, he had to fix things with her because there was no way he could survive if he didn’t.

  Milena knew there would come a time when she’d have to see Michael Malone again. She just never thought it would be on the same day that her heart had shattered into a million pieces. There must be some sort of law against making a woman deal with her ex-boyfriend on the very same day that her heart had been crushed.

  Nonetheless, Milena straightened her shoulders, smoothed her hair back on her head and opened the door.

  “Well, damn.”

  She swallowed hard and bit her lip. “Michael. What can I do for you?”

  “I didn’t believe it,” Michael said. “I had to see it for myself.” He shook his head and tapped a finger against his teeth in that annoying way that had always made her crazy.

  Maybe it was the passage of time that had given her perspective. Maybe it was the fact that her self-confidence had tripled. Or more likely, maybe it was because she’d now had the experience of being with a man who treated her the way she should be treated. Whatever it was, the moment she opened the door, her stomach turned, simply from the sight of him.

  “Believe what?” She put her hand on her hip and tried her best to look even more uninterested in him than she already was.

  “You’re a total hottie now.”

  It wasn’t all that long ago that a compliment like that from him, no matter how weak it was, would have made her immeasurably happy. Things had changed.

  A lot.

  “It’s been awhile, Michael.”

  He took a step up toward the porch. “Too long,” he said. “I mean, I know you were working on things when I moved out.”

  “I kicked you out.”

  “Whatever.” He waved his hand in the air and she rolled her eyes. “But, damn, girl. I don’t care what that article said, you’re looking good.”

  So that was it. He’d seen the article.

  “Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?”

  “Take it however you want it.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.