Maybe We Will (Silver Harbor)

by Melissa Foster

  “I love that,” she said as troubling memories trickled in. “Wait, didn’t she have a stalker before she got married? Yes. I remember now. Some crazy guy tried to attack her at a cabin or something, right? That must have been terrifying.”

  The muscles in his jaw bunched, and he squeezed her hand. “Yes, she had two stalkers, actually, and one attempted to hurt her. Needless to say, I’m glad she’s out of the business now. I know the world sees her as Remi Divine, A-list actress and America’s sweetheart. But to me, acting was what she did for a living, not who she was. She will always be my little sister, and the only blood relative I have left.”

  “Oh, Aiden, I’m sorry for acting like a ridiculous fan,” she said, feeling horrible. “I had forgotten about the stalkers and everything you guys went through. I’m usually not that insensitive.”

  “That’s okay. I know you’re not. It was a natural reaction.” He turned onto the coastal road and said, “There are some things I want you to know, so you’ll understand why I kept it from you and what my life has been like since my parents died.” His serious eyes shadowed with grief. “The day the stalker found Remi was the second-worst day of my life. The first being the day we lost our parents.” He stared at the road, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. “Remember I told you that I was running the West Coast division of my father’s company when they were killed?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, Remi was taking ballet at the time, and she had a big recital that night. She’d always wanted to be an actress, and I’d pulled some strings to get backstage passes to a Broadway play so she could meet the actors. I’d come home to surprise her with the trip. Even though we were twelve years apart in age, we’ve always been close. Before my parents were killed, I tried to go home for all of her big events, and she’d call me every week with updates about her life. For a little girl with a typical existence, she never ran out of things to say. Every update included her latest achievement toward acting, which was usually something like she and her friends had held a mock audition and she’d nailed it.” He laughed softly. “I’ve never met a more determined, hardworking child.” He glanced at Abby and said, “Although from what you told me, you were just as remarkable.”

  She warmed with his praise. “Thank you.”

  “Anyway, that night when I arrived at our home in West Virginia, she was out with my parents. I called my father, and they were ten minutes from home. I got worried when they didn’t show up after half an hour, but my dad was known for stopping on a whim to show us things, so I gave them the benefit of the doubt. But after forty-five minutes, something felt wrong. I called him again, and there was no answer, so I went looking for them. The house where I grew up was down a winding mountain road. It was a rainy February day, freezing out. I couldn’t shake this heaviness all around me. I went up and down the road telling myself they were fine, but I swear I heard my father urging me to keep looking, to find Remi. And then I spotted the mangled shrubs and tire tracks where they’d gone over the embankment.”

  “Oh, Aiden.”

  He stared at the road as he drove, glassy-eyed, and said, “I threw the car into park and ran down the side of the mountain. I slipped and fell on my ass in the ruts from where the car must have rolled, and then I saw it.” His voice cracked. “My father’s car was on its side, mangled and crushed, partially twisted around a tree. I thought I lost them all.”

  He swallowed hard, squeezing her hand. Tears welled in her eyes as she imagined him coming upon the wreck.

  “My memory gets foggy there. All I could think of was finding Remi. You know how they say in those situations you find strength you never knew you had?” His eyes dampened. “I tore at the broken glass and saw Remi hanging there with the seat belt across her chest, shaking all over and crying out for our parents. I managed to get her out. She was in shock, but I checked her from head to toe, and it was like an angel had been looking out for her. She had no broken bones, no big lacerations. She kept begging me to save our parents. I couldn’t. They were . . .”

  Tears slipped down Abby’s cheeks.

  “My father used to drill into my head never to let any one event define my life, and that night I knew what I had to do. I took Remi home and then I called 911 and reported the accident. I told them only our parents had been in the car. We lived in a small town, and I didn’t want Remi to be known as the little girl who survived the accident that had killed her parents. I called in a favor with a guy I had grown up with who had become an EMT. His father was a doctor, and they checked out Remi and kept it quiet.”

  “Your instinct to protect her . . .” She wiped her tears. “Aiden, that’s remarkable.”

  He shrugged. “I was only following my father’s advice. There was nothing remarkable about it. I had nightmares for months, reliving all of it. But from that moment on, my life became about making sure Remi was okay. She’d lost the two most important people in her life at an age when her biggest worries should have been about cute boys and diaries. I wanted to keep our parents’ spirit alive for her and make sure she grew up knowing she was loved and that, while we had lost our parents, she still had me and I’d always be there for her. I got her into therapy, and once she’d had time to mourn, I tried to carry on all the traditions my parents had, reading to her like my dad used to, making big deals of her birthdays, making sure she had friends and continued with dance lessons. Eventually the memories in the West Virginia house became too much, and we moved to my place in California. I didn’t want her dreams of being an actress to die with our parents, so I got her an acting coach and made sure she had all the right opportunities.”

  “That must have been tumultuous for both of you, moving away from the comfort of the community and friends where you were raised.”

  “It was harder for Remi because she was so young. I did everything I could to help her make new friends and to nurture those relationships so she could regain a sense of community. And she did.”

  “What about you? That couldn’t have been an easy transition, losing your parents? Suddenly becoming mother and father to your younger sister?”

  “I got through it. I’m not going to pretend it was easy. I had no idea what I was doing.”

  “Did you have friends to turn to for help?”

  “Not really. Before our parents died, I was so focused on running the LA division of my father’s business, friends weren’t a priority. And after I moved Remi to LA, I was too young to be peers with the parents of her new friends, and with a twelve-year-old girl to care for, I didn’t fit in with other twentysomethings, either. My father’s business associates and our parents’ friends tried to help, that sort of thing, but I felt a need to shelter Remi from too much of that. As I said before, I didn’t want her to be defined by their deaths, so I figured things out as best I could.”

  “She’s really lucky she had you watching out for her.”

  “In some ways, yes. But I was overprotective, always afraid something would happen to her. If she went bowling or skating with friends, I went with them, even when she was a teenager. As you can imagine, she hated that.”

  “It’s hard to be a teenage girl. But who could blame you for wanting to protect her?”

  “That was my feeling. I may not have always made the popular decision, but I always made the decisions that I thought were best for her.” As he turned onto the road that led to the lighthouse, he said, “And I now realize that as she got older, I protected her too much. When she finally got her big break into acting, I was right there every step of the way, managing her career, living wherever she was filming. Not only was I overprotective, but I also did too much for her. That’s probably my biggest flaw, wanting to give her everything she deserved, everything she ever wanted. We were brought up with one general rule of thumb—if you have, you give to others, whether it’s money or just helping things happen for them. That carried into every aspect of my life. It still does. It’s a hard habit to break. But it was too much for Remi. When t
he stalker situation occurred, I had to travel for work, and I hired bodyguards for her. Unfortunately, Remi picked that exact time to rebel. She snuck out and outsmarted every bodyguard I hired, until I found Mason. She really met her match with him.”

  “Did that bother you? That you hired him to protect your sister and he fell in love with her?”

  “Hell yes, it bothered me. Not to mention that she kept their relationship a secret from me at first. But he loves her to the ends of the earth, and they’re good for each other. He’s very protective of her, but he allows her the space she needs in a way that keeps her safe, while I had wanted to shield her from everything. Anyway, after the stalker incident was resolved, Remi, Mason, and I had a goodbye ceremony for our parents, which dredged up feelings I had been keeping locked down for a long time. Remi and I cleared the air, and when I told her that I blamed myself for our parents’ accident, it broke her heart. The little sister I had raised put on my big-sibling hat and made me promise to see someone and deal with that guilt. For her, I got help.”

  Abby’s heart broke for him. “And for you? That’s a lot of guilt to carry around for so long.”

  “Like you when you were younger, I wasn’t used to putting myself first.” He turned into the parking lot and said, “But about a year and a half ago, when I started therapy, I realized I needed to let that guilt go. I’ll never know if my parents could have lived had I not come home. But the bottom line is that I did go home, and they died. But I didn’t cause the accident, and I’ve dealt with the guilt and grieving. I also realized how hard it was for me to step back and let Mason take over my role of protecting Remi. She didn’t need me the way she once had. Remi and our close friends thought I’d race out and sow my wild oats or celebrate my freedom. But I’d done my fair share of playing around and being irresponsible in college. I had no more oats to sow, and I’d never seen raising Remi as a burden, so I wasn’t looking to celebrate my freedom.”

  He’d given up his whole life for his sister, even more years than she’d given to her mother. And he was not only genuinely happy he’d done it, but he’d also helped Remi flourish and didn’t carry an ounce of resentment toward her for all he’d given up so he could be there for her. Could he and Abby be any more alike? She felt like she’d met her soul mate. She should know better than to let herself think like that, but it was hard not to.

  He parked the car and turned in his seat with a lighter expression. “My life had been completely defined by Remi’s happiness, and I don’t regret a second of it. But I needed to figure out who I was if I wasn’t taking care of her. I had my own career, but I had no clue what the rest of my life should look like without her as the center of it.”

  “It takes a lot of guts to admit that,” she said.

  “Babes, you’re involved with me, which means Remi will blab it all to you the first chance she gets.”

  “She sounds like a great sister. But I can only imagine how hard that transition must have been for both of you.”

  “For me, yes, but not for Remi. She’s a pistol. She had no trouble spreading her wings, and I’ve since accepted my new role in her life as more or less just her big brother. But with extra time on my hands now that she’s no longer acting and doesn’t need me to travel with her or manage her career other than a few endorsements, I pretty much buried myself in work twenty-four-seven, which was great for business.”

  “But not great for Aiden. I bet Remi felt guilty that you’d given up so much for her, even if from where you were sitting it looked easy for her to make the change. I know how hard it is to be the person who needs something from others. I felt guilty as a kid when Shelley would send her kids over to help with the Bistro. Remember, Shelley is the one who finally pushed me to leave the island. Remi is your Shelley. It’s no wonder she wanted you to get away, to get a life, and to learn how to relax. She knows you’re too great a guy to let life pass you by.”

  “Either that or I’m a pain in her ass,” he joked. “She was right. I hadn’t just forgotten who I was apart from work and her, but I also no longer have a home base. She’d been that for me because wherever she needed to be, I went. That’s why when you asked where I called home, I said I was trying to figure that out. The other thing you deserve to know is that while you had a friend with benefits, I was never that consistent. Relationships weren’t a priority, and with Remi’s career, I had to be extra careful about the women I let into my life. I trusted a few women who I’d hook up with from time to time. But I never told people about my relation to Remi. I had made that mistake at the beginning of her career, and women assumed Remi’s celebrity status rolled over to me, which it did not, and I wouldn’t have wanted it to. It’s a full-time job scouring newsfeeds and shutting down paparazzi.”

  “I’m glad you trust me. I won’t breach that confidence.” She couldn’t resist lightening the mood and said, “But now how will I ever see you as anything but actress Remi Divine’s brother?”

  He chuckled. “Since she’s no longer acting, she’s old news. You might want to end this date now and go track down another A-list actress’s brother.”

  Loving that they could joke with each other, she said, “I think I’ll stick around. You never know when she’ll make a comeback.”

  “Lucky me.” He leaned in and kissed her, his scruff tickling her skin. He took her hand and kissed the back of it, gazing so deeply into her eyes, it sparked a flutter in her chest. “I wasn’t looking to meet anyone here, Abs.”

  “Neither was I.”

  “Then maybe we’re meant to be, like you and the Bistro.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  JUST AS ABBY had remembered, the lighthouse stairs felt like they went on forever, but she didn’t mind. It wasn’t unusual that they were the only visitors this time of year, and Abby was glad no one else was there. She and Aiden held hands, talking and kissing as they made their way up the narrow, winding steps, their voices echoing in the dimly lit chamber. Aiden appeared lighter after sharing his secrets with her. After hearing how secretive he’d had to be about Remi’s identity, she couldn’t imagine being the sibling to someone famous, wondering if people liked him for who he was or because of his sister. Knowing he was Remi Divine’s brother didn’t change how she saw him, but the fact that he’d trusted her enough to tell her definitely made her trust him even more.

  “Does this bring back memories?” he asked.

  “Yes. My sister and I used to race everywhere we went, including the lighthouses and windmills. We’d run up the stairs, leaving our parents behind.”

  He swatted her ass and said, “Then let’s go. One. Two. Three! ”

  She ran up the stairs, squealing as he chased after her. When they neared the top, he took the steps two at a time, getting ahead of her, and turned, sweeping her into his arms. “Gotcha!” He backed her up against the cold concrete, showering her with kisses, her laughter echoing off the walls.

  “Cheater!” She giggled.

  “Aldridges don’t cheat.” He kissed her sweetly, but when he deepened the kiss, it quickly turned hungry and penetrating, and she melted against him, greedily enjoying every second of it.

  When their lips parted, she put her arms around his neck and said, “Then what do you call trapping me with your big, hard body and kissing me breathless?”

  He pressed his hips forward and said, “Careful, Abs. You keep looking at me like that and talking about my hard body and there’ll be a lot more than giggles echoing off these walls.” He lowered his lips to hers and scooped her off her feet.

  “Aiden!” she said as he carried her up the steps. Carried her!

  He pushed through the door at the landing, and a gust of salty sea air whipped around them. “What kind of a win would it be if I left you behind?”

  Her heart filled up. “In a world where everyone is out for themselves, you want to win with me?”

  “I’ve never craved intimacy with anyone, and with you, I can’t get enough.” He lowered his lips to hers, taking h
er in another sensual kiss.

  “You’re too romantic for your own good. I don’t even know how to handle that,” she said as he set her down.

  “I’ve been called a lot of things—bossy, stubborn, a workaholic—but never romantic.”

  “Then that’s another thing reserved especially for me on your work-free vacation. Just like your dirty comments,” she said sassily, pressing her lips to his. “I like sharing secrets with you.”

  “I like everything we do.” He took her hand, and they went to the railing.

  The island bled into the inky water, sunlight glittering off the surface like diamonds.

  “I had forgotten how pretty the view is from the lighthouses.” The wind whipped her hair across her face. She gathered it over one shoulder and said, “I should have brought a ponytail holder.”

  “You did.” Aiden put his arm around her, holding her hair for her.

  She studied his peaceful expression and realized how naturally the little things he did came to him. How had he stayed single all this time? She knew the answer, of course, but she didn’t know what he saw in her that made him want to share himself and the intimate details of his life with her. She thought she was pretty great, and she wasn’t one of those women who felt unworthy or hated her body. But surely he had far more beautiful, financially well off, interesting women at his disposal. She knew those types of questions could never really be answered, at least not any more clearly than she could figure out what it was about him that had made her want to throw caution to the wind and meet him for breakfast the first time he’d invited her. Because chemistry was the most elusive, and possibly the most powerful, connector of all.

  “I’ve never met anyone like you,” she said honestly. “You’re attentive and thoughtful, and you’re a thinker, like my dad was. Sometimes you look so focused, I wonder what you’re thinking about, and other times you’re so funny. But it’s like you see and hear everything, which I’m sure comes from raising your sister, because Lord knows girls are tough to figure out.”