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- Herausgeber: Valley Publishing Ltd.
- Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
- Sprache: Englisch
After losing two close friends three years ago in a snowboarding accident, Stacy Carter has become a loner and can’t seem to make peace with this loss, not when Death intrudes upon her personal life again and takes two more people she loves. Meeting new people and trying to make a normal life for herself proves to be harder than anything else she’s done. Meanwhile, in her career, being a forensic pathologist puts her in close contact with the dead. While fascinating and never dull, it isn’t exactly a cozy conversation starter. When her brother tries to coax her out for a mountain vacation to help her heal, she has reservations, even as she tells herself rationally that she needs to face this. Reservations and rationale, however, were in short supply the last time she saw Royce O’Connell at that mountain …
Royce is floored when Stacy finally returns to the spot where she lost her two best friends, intending to deal with the depression that she’s battled for some time. Royce and Stacy have been longtime friends, but Royce wants so much more between them. Yet he’s well aware that he blew their last time together. Stacy makes it clear she’s not looking for reconciliation. However, he can’t help seeing her reappearance in their tight-knit group as a second chance, maybe his only chance.
Out in their winter wonderland, the vacation atmosphere shifts from merry to mayhem in a hurry, when they come across a dead man. Then, not long afterward, Stacy’s brother goes missing. The nightmare is only just beginning, as the realization settles in that they can’t trust anyone.
Maybe not even each other …
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Books in This Series
About This Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Sneak Peek from Tuesday’s Child
About Simon Says… HIDE
Sneak Peek from Simon Says… HIDE
Complimentary Download
Author’s Note
Try a Free Cozy Mystery Now!
About the Author
Copyright Page
Books in This Series
By Death Series
Touched by Death
Haunted by Death
Chilled by Death
By Death Books 1–3
About This Book
After losing two close friends three years ago in a snowboarding accident, Stacy Carter has become a loner and can’t seem to make peace with this loss, not when Death intrudes upon her personal life again and takes two more people she loves. Meeting new people and trying to make a normal life for herself proves to be harder than anything else she’s done. Meanwhile, in her career, being a forensic pathologist puts her in close contact with the dead. While fascinating and never dull, it isn’t exactly a cozy conversation starter. When her brother tries to coax her out for a mountain vacation to help her heal, she has reservations, even as she tells herself rationally that she needs to face this. Reservations and rationale, however, were in short supply the last time she saw Royce O’Connell at that mountain …
Royce is floored when Stacy finally returns to the spot where she lost her two best friends, intending to deal with the depression that she’s battled for some time. Royce and Stacy have been longtime friends, but Royce wants so much more between them. Yet he’s well aware that he blew their last time together. Stacy makes it clear she’s not looking for reconciliation. However, he can’t help seeing her reappearance in their tight-knit group as a second chance, maybe his only chance.
Out in their winter wonderland, the vacation atmosphere shifts from merry to mayhem in a hurry, when they come across a dead man. Then, not long afterward, Stacy’s brother goes missing. The nightmare is only just beginning, as the realization settles in that they can’t trust anyone.
Maybe not even each other …
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Chapter 1
Three Years Ago
Stacy Carter slid across the fresh white powder to come to a rest on the top of the small rise. She smiled up at the stunning blue sky and tall evergreen trees dusted in white.
It was a gorgeous day at Blackcomb Ski Resort in BC. A place she and her brother and their friends considered their home away from home. Their winter and summer play home was close enough to Seattle to make it an easy drive and far enough away to make it a change.
They were staying at her brother’s friend’s cabin, one they’d come to many times over the years. It was perfect. The day. The mountains. The situation.
Her best friends—they were like sisters really—Francine and Janice were up ahead. Or they should be. They’d been boarding.
However, Stacy hadn’t been feeling well and had been in town all morning. Feeling better, she’d come out to meet them at the top of Gorman’s Peak. It was a well-known run that could take one farther into the backcountry, and, yes, out-of-bounds if they wanted to—and her friends often wanted to. Stacy wasn’t like that. She hated breaking the rules. But so many of the others loved to ski and to board the pure, untouched runs down the backside. They’d been doing it for years, and conforming to the new rules and regulations was difficult. And not appreciated in many cases. Areas that her friends had played in for years were carefully watched now.
Many of the tougher runs had been closed all week due to avalanche hazards. Although that disappointed several of her friends, Stacy didn’t mind. She’d been skiing this resort since forever. There were lots of runs to keep her interest.
Then she was calmer, more relaxed, when compared to the other two women. They were the play-hard-and-love-harder variety.
Stacy was much gentler. More safety conscious and much more laid-back. She would have been happy to grab a coffee and to sit at the top of the run to just enjoy the moment. She worked hard at her job and preferred to relax when on vacation. Life was about balance.
Her two friends were both dashing raise-a-little-hell modern women. Stacy had never understood just what drew the three of them together, but something had, and it worked. They were opposites who complemented each other. They’d been friends for close to a decade. They’d changed over the years that they had known each other, with Stacy becoming more laid-back over time, whereas her friends had gotten wilder, becoming even more daredevilish.
The men loved it. Loved them.
Stacy had watched in bemusement, as Janice ate up a lifetime quota of men before she was twenty-nine. With her long black hair, a slightly olive tint to her skin, and massive brown eyes with long lashes and pouty lips, all on top of long and lean physical perfection, yeah, she could have any man anytime. And she did. Often. She also never let her heart get involved.
Francine was a slightly curvier and shorter version, but just as much of a go-getter. She’d been following in Janice’s tracks since forever. Not quite as good as Janice in boarding, or with men, but Francine never seemed to care. She was content to take second place. However, she’d never slide to third. No, that was always Stacy’s spot.
Not that Stacy cared. She’d always felt slightly out of sync with the other two, but they all loved each other.
It was all good.
Her phone beeped.
She pulled it from her pocket and smiled. Janice. She read the text, and her smile fell away.
Damn it. Janice wanted to end the day with a splash on the long back trail and cut to the cabin at the right time. Only that run was out-of-bounds. According to the text, the two would meet Stacy in a few moments.
She quickly texted a reply. Back runs closed due to avalanche hazard.
And waited.
She didn’t have to wait long. The next text read Phooey.
That was it. Stacy stared down at it, chewing on her bottom lip, and wondered. Out loud, she murmured, “Phooey what, Janice? As in phooey that’s too bad, or phooey like that’ll matter?”
Stacy shifted positions, so she could see her friends ride up the lifts. They’d be about ten minutes, if there wasn’t much of a line at the bottom.
She sat back to relax.
Francine texted her next, asking where she was. She answered. Then deciding it was better to ask than worry, she texted Janice and asked, Which run do you want to take down? The face looks great.
She knew her attempt to convince Janice to go down the sheer drop in the front of the mountain wouldn’t likely work if she was set on going down the back to the bowl, but the face would be perfect. Usually no one was there, leaving them lots of space to take jumps, to weave through the trees, or to just cut a narrow strip, racing to the bottom.
Her phone beeped again. Janice. I want to take Gopher Run to the bowl.
Damn it. The bowl is closed too. The bowl was an inbounds area—as long as the weather cooperated. When it didn’t, it was a closed area. Like everything connected to the resort and winter sports, safety was paramount. They had a great medical center here, and the search and rescue teams were second to none. Thankfully Stacy hadn’t had any reason to use either.
She studied the chairs swinging in the gentle breeze, as the lifts toiled upward, carrying the many groups of happy winter enthusiasts.
“Stacy!”
Stacy turned in the direction of the yell, then smiled at Janice and Francine and waved.
Hearing her name again, she caught sight of her brother and two of his friends, who were also her coworkers, Mark and Stevie, several chairs below the women. “Hey,” she yelled back.
Within five minutes, they all stood in a group at the top of the runs, just out of the way of the others getting off the lift.
“We’re going for another run. See you in the cabin in an hour or so.” With a big wave and lots of hoots and laughter, the three men jumped over the steepest part of the face.
Stacy grinned at their antics. They were all incredibly skilled and a joy to watch. “Awesome! We’ll follow.” With a big grin still on her face, Stacy turned her skis, planning to follow the guys off the top edge. “Come on, women. Let’s go.” She slid forward slightly, then twisted to make sure Janice and Francine were following.
They weren’t.
Shit.
Awkwardly Stacy flipped her skis around, now facing the direction where the women stood, and Stacy struggled back the short distance to where she’d left them.
And reached only their trails, from where they’d plunged over the back of the mountain to the bowl. “Damn it, Janice. Why don’t you ever listen?” she cried out to the vast white expanse in front of her. “That whole area is a bad deal right now.”
Then Janice had always done as she pleased. Stacy wished she’d said more in her texts. Had she made it clear how dangerous the area was? It was closed. Avalanche warnings. Surely that spoke volumes about the snow conditions. She studied the pristine area in front of her, looking for their tracks. The women were already halfway down.
“Fine, then I’ll catch you on the upside again.” Although, as frustrated as she was right now, maybe she’d just head toward the cabin. She was in perfect alignment to cut across to a run that would take her back there.
She hated to see them do this. They were always taking unnecessary risks.
Like wild birds that had to be free to do their own thing.
Sure, Stacy had more understanding of the risks than most people, given her job. So many ended up on her table at the morgue because they made the wrong decision.
Given her experience with accidents and death, was it any wonder she worried about them?
Decision made.
She pushed off and glided along the ridge. She could see the women a long way down the slope. They should be turning right to head to the bowl and connect to several other runs lower down to bring them back around to the bottom of the chair lift they’d just gotten off of. Stacy debated waiting for the two to make their way back up again but decided she had already spent a lot of her time waiting for them.
She carried on for a few more feet, when she glanced down at the women, she saw them cut to the left.
Into the out-of-bounds area. And away from the chair that would bring them back up to where Stacy was. Would they turn left lower down and head toward the cabin? There was a run that cut off and would take them back home.
Her heart damn-near clogged up her throat, as she watched their devil-may-care attitude, while they raced across the mountain face and started the beautiful long zigzag pattern. “Damn it, Janice. Why do you always have to push it?”
She wanted to turn away and to ski her own path down to the cabin, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away from the two women. They were incredible boarders, so graceful they looked like birds floating in the sky, crossing the mountainscape below.
As Stacy watched, she thought she heard something. A muted, deep booming sound. And a gentle rumble. She glanced around, but no one else was close by, and those farther away were busy laughing with their own friends. Several groups came off the lift and never stopped, skiing right on down again.
She glanced back at her girlfriends. Her gaze struggled to catch sight of them racing far below. They should be wrapping around the mountain to the left to catch the run toward the cabin. Only they were still going straight down the mountain.
And then Stacy saw the reason for the rumble.
One of the hard crusted overhangs of snow at the top of the peak had finally let go of its tenuous hold on the rock and had pounded onto the snow below. The impact started the massive sheet of snow to shift in a slow-motion slide that picked up speed the lower it went.
Within seconds, an avalanche raced downhill.
Down to her friends.
“Janice, move it!” Stacy screamed, her hands cupped around her mouth, but they couldn’t hear her. Of course they couldn’t. No way her voice could be heard over the noise of the destruction racing toward them.
Neither could she stop screaming at them to move faster.
The women needed to turn left. Now. And, once again, they had to take it to the limit and go down even farther. Finally they started the curve to the left, away from the cliff edge ahead of them.
“Jesus.”
Stacy could only watch in terror as the two women suddenly noticed what was bearing down on them. Both women crouched down and raced as fast as they could out of the oncoming path of the avalanche.
“Faster,” Stacy screamed. “Faster.”
And faster it was.
The avalanche picked up speed …
And picked up the two women …
And tossed them into the white snowy melee.
As Stacy stood in horror and watched, the massive wall of snow and women slipped off the rock edge and out of her sight.
Forever.
Chapter 2
Three Years Later
Stacy stared at her brother and repeated, “You want me to go back? To Blackcomb Mountain? Tomorrow?” She shook her head, her long blond hair flying wildly around her head. “No way.”
“Yes,” George said to her. “It’s time.”
“It doesn’t matter if it’s time. I can’t go.” In a quiet voice, she added instinctively, “I’m not ready.”
And yet … she stared across the restaurant, almost blind to the steady stream of customers walking through the popular place. He’d pointed out a truth that Stacy had come to realize lately.
It was time. She shuddered. But that didn’t mean she was ready to face the grief, … the loss she’d been through. Or face the place where it had all happened. Yet she knew she would remain crippled until she did. “I’d rather go where it’s warmer,” she muttered.
“You might, but, since you won’t go on any vacation at all, that won’t happen either.” Calm, direct, and gentle, George leaned forward earnestly. “Look. You don’t even have to do any skiing. Bring some books and hang out in the cabin. Enjoy the break. Face a few memories and move on. This isn’t an all-out crazy sports event. It’ll be a gentle go-at-your-own-pace kind of thing. Yes, it’s the same cabin, so there will be a few ghosts. Face them.” He grinned, adding, “Then grab your camera and do what you do best. Well, besides, dead people …”
Trust him to get her to crack a smile. “Yeah, I do those all the time, so why would I want to go back and see more—at least in my head?”
“I think because you deal with bodies and because you can’t find your friends—to have their bodies to care for, a funeral to arrange—it makes it that much harder for you to find closure.”
Very insightful of him. She played with her coffee spoon, turning it over and over again in her hand. “I hadn’t considered that.” True. She saw death like most people never had a chance to. She was a forensic pathologist, after all. Bodies were her stock in trade. But the bodies on her table were strangers. Not her best friends. It was different when the losses were personal.
“We’re cooking the food ourselves—”
“Ha,” she broke in teasingly. “Now I know why you want me to come. You want me to be the chief cook and bottle washer.”
“No,” George protested, but not much heat filled his word. “If you wanted to do it, that would be great, but, no, we are all expected to do our parts.”
“Uh-huh. Sure.” She didn’t necessarily believe him, but finding out this tidbit made her feel better about going. She wouldn’t be expected to ski every day, like the others. She was an experienced skier and an intermediate snowboarder, but her first love during winter was her camera. The thought tugged at her, going back to some of those indescribably beautiful days with the brilliant icy scenes. She had been getting into it with her earlier travels, and that had stopped as her trips had stopped.
At the same time, she’d turned away from many aspects of her life. It was a move that had surprised many. She had retreated within—from everyone and everything. To heal. To adjust to the new reality of her life. It had changed her. When she’d recently picked up her camera again, she’d done so quietly. Privately. Before, she would have considered herself open and friendly. Now she kept to herself and shared little, even with those closest to her.
Her brother had called her secretive and had considered it part of her depression. Maybe he was right. Yet he didn’t know about all the issues—good and bad—in her world.
Life used to be simple. Then, when she was wide open and enjoying her day, fate took scissors and cut away the very steps she was standing on. As if to say, Comfortable, are you? Well then … Snip, snip, snip. How about now?
She wiped those thoughts from her mind and forced a smile at George’s hopeful look. She’d dealt with a lot of her issues. Most of them anyway. She just hadn’t shared how far she’d come with him. And that was too bad. He was still worried about her. In many ways, his concern was justified, but it wasn’t any longer. She was almost philosophical now.
Life was a bitch, and then you died. Sometimes you died earlier than planned. She’d seen a lot of death. Sometimes it was comforting. Everyone came to the same end. Just the routes people took were different.
It was time to let him know how well she was doing.
“If I can come and go at my own pace, do a couple day trips on nice sunny days, stay home when I want to be alone”—she chuckled at his rolling eyes and his bright, happy grin—“then I’ll come. I’ll help with the food, but I won’t be responsible for all of it.”
“No worries. I meant it when I said we’re all pitching in.” He stood and tossed money on the table to cover their bills. “Besides, Royce is a damn good cook.”
With that bombshell, George walked to the front door, as if to leave.
“Hey, you can’t just say, Royce is a good cook, and walk away,” she called out, racing over to stand in front of him. “You didn’t say he was coming.”
George raised his not-so-innocent gaze in a wide-eyed look of surprise and said, “Oh, didn’t I? Well, he’s part of the group. He always comes. Not to worry. We’re just looking to get away for a week, you know? Just a chance to relax and to hang out.”
She glared at him.
“Besides, what difference does it make if he does come?” He gave her a knowing grin. “You don’t even like him.”
For the life of her, she couldn’t hold back the wince or the flood of memories that took over her psyche. She’d known Royce since forever, as he was her brother’s best friend. But the hardest part of that history was the carnal knowledge she’d kept to herself. And, wow, had that been good. And hot. And so damn addictive that she’d walked away, afraid she could never let him go. He wasn’t long-term material. Certainly not marriageable material, likely not monogamous—whereas she couldn’t be anything but. But being with him had made her wonder for a little while if she could do it his way, … which was not likely, given what little they had.
A wild, crazy, all-out sexual weekend.
A weekend she’d loved. And hated. Because it had changed her. She’d gone to him hurt, in need. She’d taken everything he’d had to give and had wanted more. So much more that she’d been terrified.
And he’d been unaffected.
How fair was that?
Then she’d been grieving. She’d needed to reaffirm life. She’d needed to reaffirm that she wasn’t alone. She’d needed to reaffirm that she had a reason to get up in the morning. A reason that didn’t involve dealing with loss.
For the duration of that weekend, he’d given her what she needed. That she’d gotten so much more was a shock she hadn’t liked. But she’d been a big girl. And she’d known Royce, a bad boy, would never make a partner for life. He’d done the rounds. Even with Janice and Francine. Then that was hard to blame him for, considering the women’s own dating habits. Besides, how many wild animals mated for life? They made for a hot, unforgettable mating session, but after that? They were best left to go their own way.
She’d seen him a time or two since then in Seattle. From a distance.
She hadn’t spoken to him. Or been in the same room with him. She’d been too afraid. The sparks between them were obvious. And she was essentially private. At least now that she’d locked down her emotions.
That way was easier to deal with the blows that life dealt her.
And she had dealt with them. It just hadn’t been easy. There was one she was still working on.
Guilt.
Being a survivor sucked in many ways. She’d had nightmares for months and still wasn’t sure why her friends had to die that day. She knew she wasn’t responsible, but she couldn’t help but think she hadn’t done enough to stop her friends from going down that side of the mountain. Surely there’d been more Stacy could have done.
Maybe this trip would help release her from that heavy burden.
She watched her brother race out of the restaurant. He’d just set her up, darn him. She made a face at his retreating back, then shrugged. He was right. It was time. And, at least this way, it would be easier. She wouldn’t be alone. She’d be hanging out with people who understood her and what she was going through.
She wondered if several of the guys from work would be invited, Mark and Stevie in particular. They’d been part of her brother’s group for a long time. Rock climbing, snowboarding, hiking—their life was a big party. Stacy had been involved in the group for a long time, at least when her girlfriends had still been alive. They’d been party animals too. Maybe because everyone around Stacy was so extreme, she’d been the opposite. Quiet. Calm. Careful.
Now she was even more so.
Loss did that to someone.
Considering she hadn’t planned this trip, she wouldn’t mention it to her coworkers, not until she heard back from her brother. Maybe the group was full up. Maybe there was no room for Mark and Stevie to join in this time. A group would often run eight to ten people, cabin capacity. Maybe a couple more, but too many were a hardship to plan meals and activities and to keep track of where everyone was.
Given the hour, she didn’t waste any time in getting back to her office. She had no shortage of work ahead of her. It had been great to spend some time with her brother. He was a bit of an oddball himself. He didn’t do … anything. Yet he did everything. Though he had a degree in economics, he’d made it big-time doing sports action videos. He was now working for a large camera company, running around the world, taking videos of crazy stunts. He had a large group of buddies who set up crazy bungee jumps and skydiving formations. He and his buddies loved it.
She had to admit it sounded like a pretty fun way to get through the day. At least while George was young and in his prime. Maybe later he’d find something less dangerous. She couldn’t help worry about him. Especially now. They’d lost their parents a long time ago. George had been old enough to live on his own, but Stacy had gone to live with her aunt and uncle. She and George had stayed close. But losing her parents young had made her afraid something would happen to her beloved brother. For that reason, he usually didn’t share the details of some of the crazier stunts he was involved in. Thank heavens. She had enough nightmares to keep her awake at night.
Although outdoorsy, she wasn’t much of an extreme sports fan. She wasn’t into adrenaline. Too hard on the system. And she hated major shocks. Her brother thrived on them. He and his friends played punk-ass jokes on each other all the time. To her, they were horrible, but the group of guys he hung with thought they were hilarious. And, true enough, he played just as many on his friends as they did on him.
You had to be one of them to understand.
The double doors to her lab opened automatically, as she stepped on the entrance mat. She strode through and brought out her security card, sliding it down the key lock and heading inside to the morgue. When working with the dead, she liked to think she’d learned to appreciate life a little bit.
“Enjoy your lunch?” Mark asked, doing wheelies on his computer chair, when she walked through the lab. Some martial arts schedule was up on his monitor, like that was allowed. And likely why he had it up there. He was quite a pro himself and taught on the side.
“Yeah,” she said, grinning at his antics. He was the same age as her but acted a dozen years younger. Then so did her brother. Maybe that’s why she got on so well with Mark and Stevie. However, she preferred Mark more as a friend than a coworker, since he didn’t necessarily have the same work ethic, preferring to skip out early to meet the guys for the next adventure in progress. Still, he was good people, and that counted. “I had lunch with George.”
“Really?” He grabbed the desk to stop his wild ride. He stared up at her, shoving his long hair back off his face. “And?”
She raised an eyebrow at him. So he did know. She had wondered. Chances were good both men—or rather, overgrown boys—she worked with would be going on this weeklong fun adventure. She paused, considering that. How much of a real break would it be, if she went with guys she worked with?
Not by a stretch could she use that as an excuse to get out of this trip. No, she was going. … If she had a few last-minute qualms, well, that was to be expected. Besides, both men loved these trips and were huge board fanatics. They were also search and rescue volunteers. They deserved their fun on the slopes, like anyone else.
“He wants me to go on this ski trip to the cabin,” she tossed over her shoulder, as she carried on down the hallway to her office. “You know. … Go back and face my memories. A great idea in theory, but …”
“Wait, he did?”
“Yes.” She grinned as she heard his footsteps. She knew he couldn’t leave it alone.
“Well”—Mark popped his head around the corner—“what did you say?”
She waited a beat, then looked up at him, still smiling. “I said yes.”
*
George walked quickly away from his sister. He needed to get as far away as soon as he could, before she changed her mind. He half expected his phone to go off so she could do just that.
He walked with purpose. The sooner he could escape the crowd, the faster he could call his buddy. Royce owed him a beer for this one. George had hoped Stacy could be persuaded to come with them, but Royce had bet she wasn’t even close.
George didn’t understand what had happened between those two. Yet somehow the relationship had gone from the two of them being friendly, with lots of teasing and joking, to a cold silence. It was uncomfortable being in the same room with them. That was the only thing that bothered him about the two of them being together on this trip. Everyone was coming for a vacation—not to partake in a cold war.
He gave the street a quick look, then dashed across to the small park on the other side. He walked to the park bench, sat, and called his best friend. “Royce, you need to find a way to make peace with Stacy before this ski trip happens. I don’t want the week ruined with you two fighting.”
“What are you talking about?” Royce joked. “It’s not like Stacy will go. Besides, should that miracle happen, you’ll see. Nothing’s wrong between us.”
“Bullshit. You’ve been pushing for this as much as I have, and God knows Stacy needs to get back out there, but there must be peace between the two of you, before we go.”
“I promise. If she actually says yes, then I will make a point of speaking with her.”
The mocking note in Royce’s voice brought a savage grin to George’s face. He was so going to enjoy the next few moments.
“Then you’d better get ready to face that because”—he paused for dramatic effect, savoring the moment and his victory—“Stacy said yes!”
*
“She said what?” Royce sat back in his home office computer chair and stared blankly at a wall across from him. He didn’t dare breathe. He waited, hoping George would repeat his words.
“She said yes.”
The breath gushed out of him, and he closed his eyes. Oh thank God. He collected his thoughts quickly. George would razz him endlessly, if he understood how rattled the call had made Royce. “Good for you for getting her to finally agree.”
“Yeah, I’m hoping she won’t back out. She needs this,” George agreed.
“She’s still so pale,” Royce said. “She hasn’t fully recovered from that bout of flu a few months ago.”
“That’s because she didn’t take the time to recover.” George scowled. “Instead she worked herself to the bone.”
Royce nodded. “That completes our numbers then. Three women and five men to start and two more, one of each, coming for the weekend.” He stared across his tiny apartment. “I still can’t believe she’s coming.”
“I did have to promise that she could come and just read a book by the fire. Pick a day trip or two to do a couple runs, as she wishes. Along with not having total kitchen duty.”
“Good. She needs the rest. We all might take a day or two off and follow her lead. The weather is calling for cold and sunny, but that doesn’t mean it won’t change in an instant.”
“I’m just damn happy she’s coming.”
“Me too.” George rang off, leaving Royce staring at the phone in his hand, only one thought uppermost on his mind. Stacy was coming. He had one week to redeem himself. One week to show her that he deserved another chance.
He groaned. Why had he promised to fix the issue between Stacy and him before the weeklong vacation? And in such a manner that she didn’t cancel out on the trip? That would be a disaster for everyone involved.
But especially for him.
He knew George didn’t understand the problem Royce had with George’s sister, and it wasn’t exactly something Royce could share. And he had to do something quick, since they were leaving tomorrow. Feeling caught between a rock and a hard place, he realized one thing.
He’d better not screw this up. Or else.
Chapter 3
Stacy’s afternoon gave her plenty of reason to regret her decision. Sure enough, Mark and Stevie were both going. They’d both been in and out of her office so many times that afternoon that she was ready to scream.
They were so excited she was coming.
She was already sorry she’d said yes.
Still, she felt both chagrin and relief at having agreed. She couldn’t stay hidden forever. Besides, she didn’t have the heart to cancel on George now. He would be so disappointed—and especially in her. Although she’d cancel on Royce in a heartbeat.
She finally managed to close her office door and to get some work done. By the time she made it home at the end of the day, she was tired and irritable and still pissed. She’d worked herself back into thinking she should cancel the trip, but she felt locked in to her decision.
She unlocked her apartment door, walked inside, and threw her coat and purse on the counter. Her home phone rang, as she wandered into the kitchen. She picked it up. “Hello?”
There was silence on the other end of the phone.
She hung up. The call only pissed her off more. The caller was lucky. If he’d responded and tried to sell her something, she would most likely have given him an earful. She opened her fridge door and sighed. She hadn’t gone shopping yet. The last thing she wanted was takeout. But, if she wanted to eat—and she needed to—that looked to be the best option. She didn’t want to do too much shopping, as she was leaving soon. She planned on some major resting time, trying to regain some of her lost pizazz for life.
She stood in her kitchen and stared out the window.
The afternoon was cool and the sun still high, but it was cloudy. Kind of like her mood. Then she remembered the fish and chips on the boardwalk. Now that was a hell of a good idea. And the run there would be good for her. She’d been slacking off on her running lately. Time to pick it up. She was fit but always tired. That bout of pneumonia had damn-near killed her. She’d told George it had been the flu, as he would have worried all the more if he’d known the truth.
From the sheer number of times he’d called to check up on her, maybe he had known.
It only took a quick couple moments to get changed and to tie up her hair. Then she was out the door and running to the boardwalk. Ten minutes later, she found her rhythm. She stretched out her legs, the longer strides eating up the miles. She smiled as she breathed in deep fresh-air-hogging breaths.
It felt good. She ran a couple times a week, but she should do it more often to reduce her stress levels.
Light traffic was on the roads around her, but, with the evening soon upon them, most people were looking to get home. A breeze picked up, making her smile. She ran into the light wind, loving the cool feel on her face and chest.
She watched the birds swoop and dip, as they played in the wind, still hopeful for handouts from the people walking by. Sure enough, an old woman sat on one of the many benches and threw out chunks of bread. The birds were loving it. Stacy laughed, as several fought in the air, and both lost the tidbit to a third bird. Up ahead was the fish-and-chips van. She waved at him, as she jogged by. “I’ll catch you on the way back.”
“How long will you be?” he called out.
“Fifteen.”
“I’ll have it ready.”
She laughed and waved back at him and kept on running. She’d try to make it faster. She rounded the corner and picked up her pace. She raced around the loop and started running back the way she’d come. After another few moments, she slowed her pace again, until she was just walking. The breeze picked up, and she waved her arms around to cool down and to loosen her limbs. Before she knew it, the smell of fresh fish and chips wafted toward her.
The vendor was waiting for her. “Here it is. Two pieces and a large order of fries.”
“Do I look like I need a large order?” she joked, handing the man her money.
“No money required. The guy planning on helping you with those fries already took care of it.”
She glanced up at the vendor, startled. He motioned behind her. She turned, tray in hand, and froze. Damn it.
Royce.
Well, there was no help for it. She smiled at the cook, so he knew she was okay and walked over to sit across from the man she’d done her best to avoid for the last couple years. It was all she could do to act cool and composed, when she couldn’t stop staring. She wanted to eat him up—he looked so good. Dark wind-blown hair. A snug-fitting sports jacket over jeans that loved his body almost as much as she did. Then that had been part of the problem. The chemistry between them was combustible. Always had been. When she’d been a teen, she’d had no end of wild fantasies about this man.
Then she’d grown up.
“Why?” she asked coolly.
“I figured, if we could get past some of the awkwardness, it would make for a nicer week for everyone.”
She picked up a fry and dipped it in the ketchup before biting down. “Awkwardness?” she asked him straight out.
“Is there none?” One corner of his mouth tilted upward. “No? If not, that’s great.”
She blinked, not sure what to say. “I’m good. Sorry you aren’t.”
Royce leaned back and stared at her. “So you’ll be that way?”
She lowered her lashes. Inside, her stomach churned. Lord, she hadn’t expected this. “Be like what?”
“Whatever.” He snorted and stood. “I guess we’re good then.”
And he walked away.
Shit. She stared down at her fish and chips, which had lost their appeal. She felt sick. “Wait,” she called out.
He slowed his steps but didn’t stop.
“Royce,” she called out. “I’m sorry.” She hated saying that. Yet he’d caught her by surprise, triggering her defenses.
He continued to walk away.
*
Royce took two more steps before coming to a jarring stop. “Damn it.”
He wasn’t going to do this. The cold war was supposed to stop. That meant he had to stop this behavior too. Besides, he’d promised George. Shit. He stood, his back to her, his hands on his hips, hating this.
“I said I was sorry,” she repeated, and her small voice made him feel worse.
He spun around and looked at her, sitting there, her plate of food untouched and going cold. At the motion to the side, Royce noted the cook, encouraging him, gesturing for him to retake his seat and to work this out.
Royce felt like an idiot standing here. He walked back. “I’ll sit and talk, as long as we talk.” After her gaze slid away from his, he sat down and added, “And you eat. You’re even skinnier now.” Even as he said it, he winced. The reference to their history was like shining a spotlight on the big white elephant standing between them.
Still, it had the desired effect, as she picked up a piece of fish and took a bite. She closed her eyes in sheer joy. “Oh, I forgot how good this is.”
“All that fat and carbs, you mean?” he asked in a humorous voice, trying to ignore the tightening sensation in his groin at the sheer sensuality in her voice over the simple pleasure of fast food. “You’ve always been such a health nut.”
She shook her head. “Not really, but, in my line of work, nothing like seeing clogged arteries and abdominal fat choking the life out of people to remind me that I could make better food choices.”
“Absolutely. But there is a time to make choices for other reasons.” He motioned to the meal in front of her. “Like right now.”
She polished off the first piece of fish and picked up the second.
The cook showed up and gave her a takeout container full of hot fries and removed the cold ones. “Now you eat. I cook. You eat. That’s the way it’s supposed to work.” Then he returned with an extra piece of fish. “Here. You need one more.” Then he disappeared again, leaving them alone.
Royce grinned at the surprise on her face. “See? I’m not the only one who thinks you are too skinny.”
She rolled her eyes at him but dug in.
He let her eat, wanting to confirm she got a good meal down. She’d probably only had a few pieces of rabbit food and a yogurt or some such thing for lunch.
When she finally slowed down enough to breathe, she let out a happy sigh. “This is marvelous.”
“He does a great job.”
She nodded, popped a fry in her mouth, and chewed. Then, out of the blue, she said, “Maybe I should cancel after all. Be easier.”
“Oh no. You’re not using me as an excuse to get out of this.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I said yes, didn’t I?”
“Sure you did, but second thoughts and all that …” He grinned. “I’m sure your mind was reaching for excuses the minute your brother walked out of the restaurant.” With a knowing eye, he watched the color rush across her cheeks. “I thought so.”
“Whatever.” She shrugged. “I’m still looking for ways to get out of it. Of course I regret saying I’d go. But George has been working on me since forever. So I finally gave in.” She lifted her gaze to him. “Besides, maybe it’ll be fine.”
“That’s the attitude. You can do this.”
He hadn’t meant to sound patronizing, but obviously she thought he did, as he could see her temper building in those incredibly blue eyes. She’d been the best thing to happen to him, and he hadn’t a clue—not until she’d blown out of his life as fast as she’d blown in. She’d been a butterfly before, living life large.
Until that damned avalanche.
Then she’d gone quiet and dark. She’d been in so much pain, so needy that weekend, that he’d had no choice but to be everything she needed. The depths of emotions she’d pulled from him had surprised him as well. He’d always been a lighthearted love ’em and leave ’em type of guy.
She’d had a profound effect on him that weekend. Made him want something different for his future. Something he thought might be obtainable, after being with her.
And he’d changed. For the better.
He’d planned to show her that he’d turned over a new leaf, but she’d shut him out of her life. Completely. Now he hoped that his long wait was over. That she’d finally worked through whatever demons terrorized her. He understood to a certain extent. He’d gone a little crazy with his own demons, after he realized he couldn’t get around her locked doors. He’d played on an extreme edge of life, sports, drinking, driving race cars … Taking chances he wouldn’t normally take. George had pulled him to one side and had asked what the hell had happened that gave him such a death wish.
Now he wished he hadn’t said anything to him. In truth, all he’d said was one word, but it was enough. Stacy.
George had worked to keep them apart after that.
Now this week was coming.
Royce knew Stacy could handle it. She’d treat him like she treated everyone these days.
She’d just freeze him out.
He didn’t want that. He’d been on the receiving end of her moods already. Now it was time for that deep freeze to warm up—and hopefully let him back in.
After all, that was where he belonged.
*
Interesting. He stoodoff to one side, trying to stay out of the wind that had suddenly come down with a cutting edge to it. Pedestrians moved around him, as they headed home.
He couldn’t remember ever seeing either Stacy or Royce in this part of town. And never together. So what was going on? He almost felt left out. At that, he laughed. Of course he was left out. They didn’t know he was here.
And, if they did know, would it make a difference? It was hard to say.
Likely they’d ignore him, as they always did.
Or rather like she’d always ignored him before. Somehow he appeared to be invisible to all women. Until he stopped them in their tracks.
Then they had no choice but to see who he really was.
He smiled. And, if the pedestrians took a close look and scuttled past at top speed, all the better. He preferred his insular existence.
It made it easier to carry out his hobby—his buddy called it art—but one no one ever seemed to appreciate the skills required.
Especially not the women who played key roles in the final pieces—forever.
Chapter 4
Stacy felt like shit. She hadn’t meant to start off on the wrong foot. In fact, she’d pushed off the thought of seeing Royce, like a dose of medicine to be taken with a screwed-up face and loud complaining. That he’d caught her off guard with his unexpected presence said much about how he’d affected her already.
“Truce,” she said seriously. “I don’t know why you get my back up. I know we have a history, but we’ve both moved on. So no reason we can’t be friends.” She caught a downward movement of the corner of his mouth and quickly amended, “Or at least cordial enemies.” She looked at him hopefully.
He just gave her a flat stare.
“Fine.” She threw up her hands. “What do you want from me?”
“Cordial enemies would be at the bottom of the list. Friends would be dragging along down there too.” He glared at her and stood. “As to what I really want, I’ll leave that to you to figure out. It shouldn’t take a smarty pants like you too long.”
And he walked away.
Her mouth opened, but no words came out. She watched him leave. Who else could drop a bomb like that and walk away unscathed? He’d scored a direct hit, and she knew she would feel the bruising for days. Not to mention worry on his words.
Had he meant what she thought he’d meant? No, surely not.
