Her Hometown Detective

by Elizabeth Mowers

  “—dating her?”

  “Marrying her. I’ve seen the way you look at her.”

  Tully gripped the steering wheel and pressed his foot harder on the gas pedal, hoping the open road might cure what ailed him. He knew he was only lying to himself. The only thing he wanted, the only thing he needed, was Faith.

  “It might be too late. I can’t show up to a woman like Faith with a measly bouquet of roses, asking her to give me a second chance. It doesn’t work like that with her.”

  “Why not?”

  Tully considered what it would take to convince Faith that he loved her, and that he wanted to be with her for a lifetime. Short of moving heaven and earth, he was fresh out of ideas.

  “It’s not good enough. She’s so much more than she realizes, and she deserves everything.”

  “You have big, bad detective skills. I’m sure you’ll come up with a brilliant plan.”

  “Is that right?” Samantha slugged him in the arm and laughed.

  “Yep. You always do.”

  * * *

  FAITH HAD FINISHED work for the day. She’d cleaned up her tools, carefully putting everything back where it belonged, then scrubbed the grease from under her fingernails and locked up for the night. The few days since she’d opened her shop had made her hesitantly optimistic. Business wasn’t booming by any stretch of the imagination, but she’d had several phone inquiries and had even detailed her first motorcycle. She’d spent a good hour polishing a little Harley-Davidson Softail and had enjoyed every minute of it.

  She’d already decided to take a cruise along the lake on her ride home when her cell phone rang. Her cousin’s voice sang cheerfully into the line.

  “I forgot to mention something when I saw you earlier today,” Caroline said. “You can’t come to dinner tonight.”

  “Uh, excuse me?”

  “In fact, you can’t come back to the house until I say so.”

  Faith frowned. “Is there something at the house you don’t want me to see?”

  “Not exactly,” Caroline said. “However, tonight is so beautiful, why don’t you hang out at your shop, catch the sunset from your rooftop. I really think you should.”

  “I’d rather watch the sunset from the road, on my motorcycle, but you are welcome to watch the sunset on my roof, if that’s what you’re after. You know how to climb the fire escape.”

  “I’m not talking about me, Faith. You should go up there.”

  “I just locked up for the night, Caroline, and I want to get out of here. Why are you acting strange?”

  Caroline whispered, “I’m trying to tell you something.”

  “You’re failing miserably.”

  “I’m trying to tell you to get your argumentative self to your roof.”

  “Why?”

  Caroline giggled. “Trust me on this one.” Before Faith could protest, her cousin ended the call. Faith stared up at the roof of her shop. She hoped her cousin hadn’t organized another mob to meet her up there. Being blindsided by a crowd of well-wishers had been touching but was something a person didn’t need twice in a lifetime.

  Reluctantly, she headed to the outside fire escape and climbed the two stories to her rooftop. She strode across the concrete landing, making her way to the opposite edge, which overlooked Main Street. In the distance the sun was straddling the water. She had just decided that a view this beautiful should be shared with another person when she heard someone climbing the fire escape. She knew who it would be, and it wasn’t Caroline.

  “John,” she said. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’ve been waiting for you to finish work for a while. I need to talk to you, and I wanted to do it here.”

  “I don’t understand. Why?”

  He crossed slowly enough that she could watch his every move with laser focus. She had missed him, missed the deep drawl of his voice and the way his hand fit snuggly around hers. She yearned to hold his hand again.

  “You said you loved me for a long time. The least I could do was wait for a few hours.” He stopped a pace away, though not far enough away for her to hide the blush of her cheek, recalling her embarrassing words. She’d told him about the feelings she’d harbored, because she thought things between them were over. As he’d meant so much to her over the years, she’d wanted him to know.

  “That’s what you remember from our conversation?” she said, her sarcasm doing little to mask her unease.

  “I remember everything about that conversation, but at the time I didn’t understand that piece. Did we know each other in high school?”

  “You didn’t know me.”

  “But you knew me?”

  She smiled.

  “Sort of. You were out of my league.”

  He considered this, then closed the distance between them. Her breath hitched.

  “What about now?” he asked.

  “You can’t be serious,” she whispered, shaking her head. “You’re still out of my league, though to be fair, I can’t think of a woman in this town good enough for you.”

  He took her hand, turning it over gently. He rubbed a thumb over her knuckles and fingernails that still carried stubborn grease stains.

  “You’ve been busy.”

  “I had my first customer.”

  “Delicate hands.” He pressed her fingertips to his lips, his kiss puckering a soft sound against them. “Strong heart.”

  “I’m trying.”

  “So am I.”

  “I know. Samantha said you saw your dad again.” She quickly clarified, “She stops by to chat sometimes. I think it’s good you’re talking to him. That you both are.”

  “I have a lot of baggage,” he said.

  “Everyone does.”

  “I didn’t want to saddle anyone else with it.”

  “That’s not how love works.”

  “No. Here’s the thing, Faith,” he said. “I don’t think I’m good enough for you.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  “No?” He brought her hand to his throat, pressing it to the place where his pulse fluttered under the skin. “Then why is my heart racing at the thought that this is my one chance to make you understand how much I love you? Why am I terrified you won’t believe me?”

  She pulled her hand away, thinking he must be mistaken. She’d had a man profess his love once before, but it hadn’t turned out to be true. No man had loved her enough to make her believe it. Her father had laid the groundwork of doubt, and Kyle had sealed the deal.

  “Men are all words. You say that now, but what about months down the road? Years?” She had her business now, and she’d been making friends. If that was all she had in her life, she could consider herself a happy woman, couldn’t she?

  Tully went serious. “I remember something else I said to you. I said I work alone. I convinced myself a long time ago that I didn’t need anyone and that I certainly didn’t want anyone. If I had never met you, I might have been quite content believing that. If you hadn’t come strutting into my life, I might have convinced myself that I was doing fine alone. But I’m not fine. I’m not okay. Not anymore.”

  “What does that mean? Does that mean you want to take me out on a date or something?”

  “A proper date, yes. I was hoping for a date tonight and tomorrow night and the night after that.”

  “And then what?”

  “Then a date to pick out an engagement ring—”

  “I don’t wear rings. Grease. See?” She held up her hand, hell-bent on setting things straight. He was getting ahead of himself. Maybe he missed her, but so did Kyle and she wasn’t about to go swooning into his arms again.

  “John, promises like that don’t...”

  “Don’t mean anything to you anymore.”

  “They sure don’t. They don’t stand up, nev
er have. At least, not for me. My father said he’d spend more time with me once work slowed down, once he’d closed the next deal, and you know how that turned out. Kyle promised to change...” She shook her head. “Heck, he didn’t even really promise that.”

  Tully traced a line down to her heart necklace.

  “This means something to you, doesn’t it? I noticed it one of the first times we talked. What does it mean?”

  She closed her eyes, savoring the tenderness of his hand on her skin.

  “I bought it to remind myself that I deserve everything I want. If I don’t follow my heart, what’s left for me?”

  “Have you followed your heart?”

  “I stayed, didn’t I?”

  “I’m glad you did. A lot of people want to be here for you, support you, if you let them.”

  As much as she had appreciated Miss Jenkins’s gathering folks to hear her apology and welcome Faith to town, trusting new friends went against all her old instincts. If she wanted a second chance, she needed to give everyone else a second chance too. She had to learn to trust them.

  “That’s easier said than done, but I’m trying.”

  “Faith.” She blinked, aware that he’d said her name intentionally. “Faith, I want you to try me. Stay with me.”

  His words were patient, delicate, like snowflakes melting against her skin. He pulled at the collar of his shirt, exposing the scar she’d kissed the night he’d told her about his mother leaving. She had wanted to kiss all his pain away, her lips drawing out the venom that had pooled there since childhood. From this same vantage point on the roof, she had thought that she could be his everything if he would only let her, because all she had wanted that night was him. All she’d ever wanted was him.

  As she stared at the spot where his scar had once been, she blinked furiously. Inked over where his mother’s abandonment had been logged was a small heart tattoo, identical to hers. It was the same design as the heart charm dangling around her neck, the same as the heart logo she’d painted on her shop window. He’d sealed a connection to her forever, permanently.

  When she searched his face for an explanation, she found an intensity she’d never seen on him before. He looked like he could swallow her up whole in one ravenous gulp. Her mouth parted to release an exasperated gasp, and she decided to let him try.

  “Stay with me, Faith,” he said, drawing her close. “Marry me, and I promise to never cause you a day of pain. I’ll protect your heart as I know you’ll protect mine.”

  She would, she thought. Every ounce of her being would protect him, cherish him, love him. She touched the whiskers around his mouth, then ran her fingers through his hair. When she kissed him, her body molded into his embrace, and she could think of no better way to say yes.

  EPILOGUE

  OCTOBER HAD FOUND its way to Little Lake Roseley faster than Faith’s Street Glide traveling an open road. When Tully had asked her what kind of wedding she’d always imagined, she’d told him she’d wanted to ride off into the sunset with him. It hadn’t been much detail to guide Caroline, who acted as both maid of honor and wedding planner, but it had been all she’d really wanted aside from him.

  Nearly every resident within a ten-mile radius was in attendance for the big day. News of John McTully’s wedding had traveled far and wide, leading folks to show up to celebrate their favorite hometown son and his new bride.

  Set against the foothill of Falcon’s Peak, the trees had had a two-week head start, leaves turning to fierce red, golden yellow and sunset orange. The ceremony was short, the receiving line was long and even Uncle Gus, who’d returned to town for the event, couldn’t remember a wedding in recent history where the bride and groom had looked more in love. Bonnie had once joked that Faith had given her whiplash with how often she looked at Tully and looked away again. But as Bonnie would fondly tell it later, Faith and Tully hadn’t seemed to see anything during the ceremony besides each other. Their unwavering dedication made Bonnie dab her eyes a few times. She was also sure that even Tully’s eyes misted when Faith walked down the aisle.

  Walter brought Duke and, as agreed, moved back to his house before the ceremony. Tully considered it a generous wedding gift. He also found it fitting that his dad wouldn’t wear a tie, while Duke didn’t mind his. To sweeten the pot, Tully bought the antique motorcycle and sidecar off the Callahan brothers, who hadn’t pressed charges against Miss Jenkins. Faith managed to repair it, and they surprised Walter with it on his first day home. Walter was so pleased, he rode it to the ceremony while his favorite copilot happily rode at his side.

  Samantha put together a wedding website for the couple and did such a fantastic job, Faith hired her to do the same for Heart Motorcycles. With Sam’s online strategy, Faith found herself with more work than she knew what to do with, drumming up business from neighboring towns too.

  Tully had wanted to buy Faith a diamond engagement ring, but after she refused for the last time, he bought her a diamond to add to her heart necklace. In lieu of gold wedding bands, they agreed to get matching tattoos on their ring fingers. CeCe had originally thought the act silly, but when she overheard folks at the ceremony admiring it, she was the loudest champion of the romantic gesture. Over the months, she had become the couple’s most passionate champion alltogether.

  After the couple exchanged vows and kissed for the first time as husband and wife, the crowd cheered but Tully couldn’t hear them. All he could see was Faith. When their reception was still going strong, Faith took his hand and gave him a pleading look. She was ready to ride into the sunset with him.

  “Are you sure you can ride in that dress?” he said as they sped for the two motorcycles Charlie and Caroline had decorated for them. Faith winked, kicked off her heels and stepped into her motorcycle boots. He’d known that Miss Jenkins had found Faith a vintage wedding dress, but it wasn’t until Faith unsnapped the skirt and slid it to the ground that he realized she had been wearing a pair of blue jeans under it the entire time. She hopped on her Sportster, looking quite pleased with herself. “What about your veil?” he asked.

  Faith removed her long veil and slid on her helmet. As he slid on his and they fired up their engines, he couldn’t help but stare. She was a sight: white lace bodice, blue jeans, motorcycle boots and the prettiest smile he’d ever seen.

  “Where to, Mrs. McTully?”

  “How about forever?” she called over the crackle of the engines. Tossing her veil to the wind, she carefully navigated the dirt path until she hit the pavement and accelerated. Tully gave her a short lead before chuckling to himself and giving chase.

  * * *

  For more enchanting romances set in quaint Roseley, Michigan, from Elizabeth Mowers and Harlequin Heartwarming, visit www.Harlequin.com today!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Second Chance Christmas by Rula Sinara.

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  Second Chance Christmas

  by Rula Sinara

  CHAPTER ONE

  ZURI HABIB USED to dream about jogging on a beach with windswept hair and Damon Woods—her high school friend and secret crush—running toward her with love in his eyes. It took a few years of brain development and maturity for her to realize that hormones and binging on the old seventies and eighties beach movies she’d found one summer in her grandmother’s stash were to blame for those ridiculously naive teen fantasies.

  Yet, here she was on Turtleback Beach more than a decade later, a few hundred yards from Damon with nothing but cool sand and a brisk breeze between them, failing miserably at squashing the unwelcomed butterflies in her stomach. You’re facing Damon of all people. They’re not butterflies. Don’t let
him mess with your head.

  She sucked in a lungful of ocean air and folded her arms. Damon Woods and all his mysterious broodiness was not going to get to her. She wasn’t a teenager anymore. Her brains had earned her a PhD and she was building name recognition in the environmental research community. She knew how to stand her ground and earn respect amongst men in her field. She could certainly face Damon again.

  For one thing, life had turned her into a realist. She’d given up long ago on ever looking like a hot ten from a beach flick. Those genes had gone to her older sister. But unlike young Zuri, the woman she was now had enough self-respect to not want to be anyone else. Which was why it bugged the heck out of her that she was suddenly feeling self-conscious for not changing out of her old jeans and her favorite sweatshirt with the recycling symbol on it and into something more...she wasn’t sure. Attractive? Secondly, the look in Damon’s eyes at the moment was dark and turbulent...but not in a good way. And lastly, it didn’t help that the twelve-year-old at her side, whom he’d never met, looked just like him.

  You’ve got this, Zuri. Everything will turn out fine. His email reply was nice enough. Yeah, but only because she hadn’t given him all the facts. Even from this distance, and with his moving through the surf, she could tell by the look in his eyes those facts were sinking in quickly. Unless he was merely struck by seeing her again after all these years. Bottom line was that some things warranted a face-to-face conversation. Coming down here in person also kept her in control of the situation. At least it made her feel like she was in control. After overhearing his mother mention where he was currently living and working, tracking down his work email online had been easy. The Turtleback Beach Ocean Rescue and Beach Patrol website had phone numbers, but she didn’t dare call. Back when they were kids, Damon used to tell her he could hear it in her voice when something was up. Email put her in charge of that, too.