Ill take that as a compliment. Up close, his eyes were the truest blue she had ever seen. The tight grip in her stomach eased, the one that had been there since that fateful night when her world changed. For the first time in a long while she felt her muscles relax.
She looked at Max as if shed never seen him before. In the shadowy light he looked surreal, more dream than flesh and blood. His essence shone through, with a noble heart and trustworthy goodness even she could believe in. If youre a detective, then you must see a lot of the bad stuff. The dark side of humanity.
I have. His hand on hers felt like a lifeline. Sometimes, now and then, I see the bright side, too.
His smile made it seem as if he thought she was one of those bright sides. Warmth filled her until the cold, bad pieces lodged in her memories faded and she felt like the girl she used to be, full of wishes for the future without shadows. She breathed in the sweet evening air, made sweeter for the scent of his aftershave, and savored the sun on her face. It was good to be herself again before tragedy changed who she was.
She managed a carefree smile. Mister, you are trying to charm the wrong woman.
Hey, Im not trying to charm you. He was pure innocence with a dash of trouble crooking his grin.
Youre just naturally charming? she joked, but she was serious, too. Thanks for coming to my rescue, but you should return to waiting for your date. Im fine. I can take it from here.
Im sure you can, but the truth is my date isnt coming.
Shes not?
Ive been officially stood up. He shrugged casually, as if it were no big deal. She called my cell a few minutes ago. Thats why Im on my way home.
Im sorry.
No biggie. I get rejected a lot. He winked.
Me, too. It felt okay to confess it and even better that they had this in common. Dating is hard. Thats what no one tells you.
And it doesnt seem to get easier. I try not to take it personally.
How can you not? Thats exactly what she wanted to know. Her entire identity didnt revolve around getting married. No, that wasnt it at all. She had been evaluating her life lately, and she realized there was a lot that she wanted but didnt have. Closeness, connection, her own family, security. She had a heart full of love to give. Why not try to find love and change her life for the better?
She tugged his coat more closely around her, glad the shivering was easing. When a date doesnt want to see you again, even if you dont like them, it feels personal.
Tonight is the perfect example. Alice sounded nice enough, but she didnt want to know me. That would take more than a thirty-second conversation. She rejected me because of what she wanted. She has no idea who I really am.
No, but I have an idea. Bree looked down at his capable hand covering hers. Her heart gave a little flutter. He was a nice guy. Who wouldnt be looking for that? Next youre going to say Billy ditched meeting me because of his own shortcomings.
Thats right. Everyone has them. Its part of being human. I say its best to accept your own, that makes it a lot easier to accept other peoples. His smile was part dream, part impossibility. Now, tell me the truth. Are you feeling better?
Much. The quaking deep inside had calmed. The past was safely where it belonged and the memories buried. She withdrew her hand reluctantly from his and hopped to the ground. Im over the shock of seeing my car gone.
What do you think youre doing?
Im getting out of your truck so you can go on your way.
If you think Im going to leave you standing in the parking lot by yourself, youre wrong. He closed the door and leaned against it. Theres a cruiser on its way. Theyll take your statement, youll sign the report and thats it.
Nothing scary about that. Ill be fine. She smiled shakily. Great. Now you think Im emotionally challenged.
No, I dont like to leave a lady by herself when its getting dark.
My sister is five yards away. Im not by myself. She set her chin. She was fragile, but strong.
At least that was his guess. She would have to be, to come back from the trauma she had. He had seen others who had gone through similar experiences and they had never found themselves again. He ached for them and likely for what lovely Brianna had gone through. The specifics were sketchy in his mind, since hed gone on to other cases, but he remembered the string of burglaries that had grown more violent with each occurrence until three victims had been left dead and two others gravely injured. Violence happened, even in Montana.
Ill stick around. He couldnt stop the pull of concern in his chest. I want to make sure you have moral support if you need it.
Thanks, but I dont want to be a burden. Ive got my sister, if I need her.
He remembered. The waitress who had served his dessert had been a duplicate of Brianna. Twins. He studied the woman standing in front of him, framed by the rosy light of the setting sun. The cinch of emotion in his chest tugged harder. Odd, since she was all wrong for him. Way too wrong for a broken-down soul like him.
Besides, she was saying in a gentle alto, you dont want to hang around waiting for me to talk to the police. Im sure a guy like you has a lot more exciting things to do.
Sure. Thats me. Excitement. Not. He got enough of that on the job. His pager buzzed, vibrating in his jeans pocket. He tugged it out not surprised to see that it was work calling. There was no rest for the weary and never for a detective. He would call in a little bit. He fastened his gaze on the woman with the wind scattering her long hair and with shadows on her face. First things first. He wasnt going to leave until
A short burst of a siren shot out, and he looked up. It sure looked like trouble coming. Dobbs and Paulson, two buddies of his, pulled into the lot in an unmarked cruiser. He held up a hand, signaling them over.
The cavalry has arrived. He wanted to stay, but she was no damsel in distress. She stood on her own feet, looking determined and only a little shaky.
The cruiser pulled to a stop and the window zipped down, revealing Dobbs and his know-it-all grin. Max shook his head. He knew what his good buddy was thinking, so he spoke first. This is Brianna. Her car turned up missing.
The door swung open. Is that so? Well, Brianna, lets take a report and see what we can do. Weve had a lot of this kind of thing lately.
Max watched Brianna nod shyly at the officers. Her chin was set, but she was pale. She was struggling, but she didnt want it to show, that was his guess. She looked achingly vulnerable as she wrapped her arms around her middle and went to answer Dobbss questions. Hed pulled his clipboard out of the car and was taking information. Max wasnt surprised to learn she worked at the bakery, since she was sugar and sweetness.
Remembering his page, he called in. Standing in the crisp March wind as the sun slid ever downward, he shivered. Maybe it was the damp air, or maybe it was something else. Something he didnt want to think about too hard. The call connected, the line rang and he waited, unable to rip his attention away from Brianna. The wind ruffled the rich light gold of her hair, gently tossing it against her silken face. With the light shimmering over her in the last long moments before the sun vanished, she looked like a fairy-tale princess, something too good to be real and impossible to believe in.
A voice came on the lineFredericks. There was a shooting at the far end of town. Probably drug related. He pocketed the phone, conflicted. He had to leave. He didnt want to. Wasnt that always the way? The job came first. He liked what he did, and he had never found himself hesitating on answering a call. He had work, but what was he doing? Strolling toward the woman who took the pen Dobbs had offered her and signed her name with a flourish on the bottom of the clipboard.
He jammed his hands into his pockets and closed the short distance between them. Do you need a ride, Brianna? Id be happy to take you home.
Out of the corner of his eye he caught Dobbss wide grin and a wink as he backed away to the cruiser. Apparently both uniforms were taking interest in the interaction. Great. Just what he needed, more ribbing from a bunch of married guys.
Ill have my sister take me home. She gets off in a little while. She padded toward him, moving like poetry with the last of the days light pearling her perfect face.
He didnt like that this was ending. He couldnt begin to explain why. He took a step toward her, just one step, that was all. Maybe it was best that he held his ground. I guess this is goodbye.
Yes. She shrugged out of his jacket with graceful movements and handed him the garment. Heres hoping we both have better luck on our next blind dates.
Sure. It was all he could think to say. Max Decker, the man who had a comeback for any occasion, stood speechless as she cast him one last look. Her gaze met his like a bolt of electricity and it jarred through his system, leaving him rooted to the spot.
Amazing. He watched as she glided away, unaware of what shed done to him with one single glance. His heart had stopped beating. The blood stalled in his veins. He struggled for air as she walked away with her gentle, easy gait, her sleek straight hair brushing her shoulder blades with each step.
Why was he captivated? Was it sympathy for her or something more? She opened the door without looking back. He watched her sister look up and spot the patrol car, and dismay crossed her face. The sisters hugged, and from half a parking lot away, Max turned, tangled up with too many emotions to name.
Was that your date? Paulson had retreated to the drivers side of the car and was leaning on the edge of the roof, grinning knowingly. Shes real pretty. Too bad it had to end like that.
Max shook his head, but he didnt need to say a word. Dobbs was already answering.
She wasnt Alice. It was my idea to set him up with Alice. So, what gives?
The same old thing. The lady wasnt looking to be a cops wife. Who could blame her? He didnt. I gotta go. Got a shooting across town. You jokers try not to get into trouble out there tonight.
You know us. Were nothing but trouble. Dobbs winked, but there was no smile in his eyes. Their work was like that. They could kid around all they wanted, what they did was serious. See ya, Decker.
Max nodded once, waiting until the cruiser had rolled before he took one last look at the bakery. Brianna was at a table toward the back, and all he could see of her was the cascading length of her blond hair and the curve of her back. Emotion tugged within him and he closed it down.
Time to go. He yanked open his truck door, realizing his coat was fisted in one hand. Brianna. He smelled her soft, sweet perfume on the garment, something gentle and innocent. Tenderness swept over him, tenderness he didnt want to feel.
Chapter Three
Are you sure youre okay, Bree?
Fine. Sweat streaked down her spine, but other than that she was perfectly okay.
As she waited for her sister to take one look around the bakerys kitchen and make sure everything was in order and all appliances turned off, she reminded herself of how this night was different.
The moon was big and round, casting plenty of light to chase away the shadows around the back door. They werent aloneall the other workers were waiting outside the door in the comforting glare of the security lights. It was March, not a hot summer night. Most of all, there was no gunman, no ricochet of bullets firing and no terror. She breathed in the fresh air, let the peace of the evening roll over her and faith reassure her.
Then lets roll. Brandi gave the door a tug.
Glad to be leaving, Bree stepped into the back lot. There were goodbyes as the other two workers broke apart, heading off to their nearby cars. Everything was fine. There would be a day when she didnt worry so much, or feel as if the other shoe was about to drop.
So that hunky guy is a detective, huh? Brandi asked with just a tad too much of a smile.
Oh, she so knew what her twin was up to. She was trying to distract her from the memories. Really. Dont start jumping to conclusions.
Why not? He and that gorgeous woman he talked with never did wind up at the same table together. I happened to notice. Brandi grinned as she sorted through her keys to unlock the passenger door of her battered little pickup. The poor thing had seen much better days ten years ago. He could like you.
You are a meddler, sister dear.
I know. Cheerfully, she opened the door and circled around to the drivers side. He seemed awfully nice. Manly, you know, as in solid, strong, mature.
Oh, I know. Did she! She could still feel the weight of his leather coat on her shoulders, warm from him and faintly pine scented. Nice. He wasnt interested in me.
How can you tell?
Uh, he didnt ask for my last name or my number. Not that shed expected him to. She dropped onto the seat, slid her bag on the floor and banged the door shut. This is the last time Im going on a blind date.
Be careful. Youve said those words before. Brandi turned over the ignition and gave the truck gas, hoping the engine would catch. It rolled over and over. Blind dates arent so bad.
How can you say that? Theyre terrible. Look at tonight. Disaster.
Sure, but it could have been worse.
How, exactly?
Uh, the building could have caught fire? The engine finally caught and roughly idled. Brandi twisted in her seat to back out of the spot with a squeak of brakes and a whine from the transmission. At least you met a nice guy. Okay, so he didnt want to date you, but at least you know nice guys are out there.
As rare as hens teeth, but they exist. Bree frowned, remembering how Max had made her feel. Small and dainty and utterly feminine, and incredibly, wonderfully safe. That was exactly how the right man ought to affect her.
Now, she simply had to find the right man for her. No easy task. I mean it, Im done with blind dates. Notice how you dont go on any?
Sure, because Im not looking for Mr. Right. Believe me, Im in no hurry to find out he doesnt exist.
Yikes, that was exactly what she was afraid of down deep. Beneath her optimistic thinking and her stubborn faith, that in the end, there would be no Mr. Right and no happiness. She sighed, pushing away the dark shadows from her childhood. Although a girl has to have hope.
Yes, and you keep holding on to it, her sister agreed. And I will try to somehow. Despite my totally pessimistic attitude.
Hey, careful. Thats an attitude Im trying not to catch.