Broken Wings (The Broken Series Book 3) (26 page)

He
nodded, then motioned out the window. “Looks like we’re here.”

I
peered over the river at a small cluster of colonial-style buildings. The historic
town was nestled among vibrant green trees on what appeared to be an island in
the middle of a very wide river. Heavily treed mountains flanked the river on
the opposite banks. “Wow,” I breathed. “This place is beautiful!”

Rafael
reached for his cell phone. “Let’s see what kind of restaurants they have in
town.”

I
admired the quaint stone buildings and the cobblestone streets as we crossed
the bridge into town. A number of people stood frozen on the sidewalk. They
were gaping at Rafael’s car. “A horse drawn carriage would have blended in a
lot better than this Ferrari.”

Rafael
laughed. “Let’s try the Canal House Café. Their menu looks pretty good,
although we do have to bring our own bottle of wine.”

I
shook my head. “I don’t want wine, not if I’m driving your car back home.”

He
grinned. “Why don’t you pull over here? I’ll run inside the bar and grab a
bottle of wine.”

I
pulled onto a side street that ran alongside the bar. There was no way I was
going to parallel park Rafael’s car so I stopped in the middle of the street.
“I’m going to drive around the block so I don’t have to park.”

The
passenger door rose as Rafael jumped out of the car. We were already holding up
traffic, so I eased forward as soon as I got the door lowered. I made two trips
around the block.

Rafael
was waiting on the curb with a brown paper bag. I jumped out of the car and
motioned him toward the driver’s seat. I ran around the back of the car and slid
into the passenger side.

Rafael
lowered the doors. “Sorry that took so long. They actually had a pretty decent
selection of wine.”

I
relaxed into the soft leather seat. “I only gave up the car so I wouldn’t have
to park. I want to drive home, so you’re on your own with that bottle of wine.”

Rafael
laughed. Within minutes he was parking in front of an old masonry style building
that looked more like a house than a restaurant. The door and windows were
framed in a soft yellow color. The windows boasted shutters painted in Cape Cod
blue.

I
glanced at the time on my cell phone. It was just after five o’clock. “Do you
think they’re open for dinner this early?”

Rafael
grabbed the wine as we climbed out of the car. “I guess we’re about to find out.”
His hand settled on the small of my back as he joined me on the sidewalk.

He
opened the door and followed me inside the restaurant. The place was already
packed with patrons. We waited a few minutes while the waitress cleared a small
table nestled in front of a window. Rafael pulled my chair out for me. He
kissed me on the cheek before taking his seat.

I
quietly contemplated the narrow planked hardwood floors, antique furniture, and
massive stone fireplace. “This place reminds me of Montana,” I noted admiringly.

The
waitress recited the evening specials while she poured our water. She retrieved
two wine glasses from the kitchen and opened Rafael’s bottle of wine while we studied
the menu.

Rafael
set his menu down. “Ladies first,” he said with a smile.

I
handed the waitress my menu. “I’d like the honey ginger shrimp with a Caesar
salad, please.”

“I’ll
have the smoked salmon and a house salad with Italian dressing,” Rafael added.

The
waitress nodded, then walked away. She returned a few minutes later with a wooden
bowl full of warm, crusty rolls.

Rafael
poured our wine, then raised his glass. “
Saude.
”

“
Saude,
”
I responded softly. I took a small sip, then set the wine aside. No way was I
drinking if I was driving Rafael’s car.

“So
admit it...” he urged.

I
glanced at him questioningly. “Admit what?”

He
grinned. “You like driving the car.”

I
laughed. “Who wouldn’t like driving a Ferrari?”

“Don’t
worry about the wine,” he teased. “You’re not driving home tonight.”

I
couldn’t hide my disappointment. “I’m not?”

He
smiled. “Nope. We’re spending the night here.”

My
eyebrows shot up in surprise. “But I didn’t pack anything!”

He
shrugged. “We can pick up a couple of toothbrushes and anything else you might
need at the drug store down the street.”

I
reached for my wine glass. “You really are full of surprises aren’t you?”

Rafael
laughed. “You have no idea.”

The
waitress stopped by to deliver our salads. I thanked her before focusing my
attention on Rafael. “Have you already make a reservation?”

His
soft brown eyes sparkled. “Yes. We’re staying at the Stone Manor bed and
breakfast.” He leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially. “Just so you
know, our room has a two person Jacuzzi.”

I
leaned over the table and kissed him. “I guess I know what we’ll be doing tonight,”
I replied with a smile.

*
* * * * *

I
sat back and stared at my computer screen as I reviewed the e-mail I’d written
to Kadyn for the fifth or sixth time. I had already left two voice messages and
texted him multiple times to check on him over the past few weeks. He wasn’t
returning my calls or text messages. I didn’t want to push him for a response.
I knew he needed time to sort through his feelings and my decision to date
Rafael. Still, I wanted to see him before I left for Ukraine. I needed some
assurance that things were going to be okay between us… that we could still be
friends. My hand hovered over the mouse. I closed my eyes and clicked send.

Shae
popped her head inside my doorway. “Hey. What are you working on?”

I
turned from my computer screen and shrugged. “Nothing much. I just sent Rafael,
my parents, my cousin, Lexie, and Kadyn my itinerary for Ukraine. I don’t
suppose you’ve compiled a list with the names, addresses, and phone numbers for
the hotels we’ll be staying at?”

She
plopped down in the chair across from my desk. “Yes. I’ve already typed up that
list. I’ll e-mail it to you as soon as I return to my office.”

I
reached for my coffee. “Thanks.”

Shae
snatched a piece of chocolate from my candy bowl. “Are you free for lunch
tomorrow?”

I
eyed her suspiciously. “Yes. Why?”

She
popped the chocolate into her mouth and smiled. “The Human Resource Specialist
let it slip that your birthday is tomorrow. So Paul, Cory, Sammi, and I want to
take you out to lunch.”

I
had suspected as much. The same blabbermouth had informed me that Sammi and
Shae would be celebrating their birthdays while we were on our trip. “Okay,” I
conceded with a smile.

She
reached for another piece of candy. “If you don’t mind me asking, how old are
you going to be, anyway?”

“Thirty,”
I replied in disbelief.

Shae’s
eyes grew wide. “Wow. I didn’t realize you were
that
old.”

I
wadded up a sticky note and threw it at her. “Thirty is not old!”

Shae
laughed. “I thought you were closer to my age.”

My
eyes narrowed. “How old are you?”

“Twenty-five,”
she responded apologetically.

I
rolled my eyes. “
Now
I feel old.”

Shae
snickered. “You aren’t old. You’re just old…
er
than me! Does Rafael
know that your birthday is tomorrow?”

I
drank the last of my coffee. “No. I don’t think so. The subject of birthdays
hasn’t really come up.”

She
raised one eyebrow. “So, you don’t know when his birthday is?”

I
shook my head. “I don’t even know how old he is. I should ask.”

Her
head cocked to one side as she studied me. “Do you know how old Kadyn is?”

I
nodded. “He’s twenty-five. He turns twenty-six in September.”

“Has
he responded to any of your messages yet?” she asked softly.

I
sighed heavily. “No… and I really want to see him before we leave for Ukraine.”

Shae
frowned. “I’m sure Kadyn’s hurt that you chose Rafael, especially after only a
week of dating them both.”

I
pressed the heel of my hands against my eyes until stars appeared. “I don’t
blame him for being hurt. I just want to try to salvage our friendship.”

Shae
shook her head. “I don’t know. You’ve chosen Michael and now Rafael over Kadyn.
That’s got to be a huge blow to his ego. I don’t know many guys who would stick
around after that.”

I
sighed, thoroughly discouraged. “I don’t know that I
have
chosen Rafael
over Kadyn. I told Kadyn that I’m not comfortable choosing until I at least had
some time to date Rafael exclusively. I’ve had that opportunity with Kadyn. I
know how good things can be between us. I haven’t really had an opportunity to
see what a relationship with Rafael would be like. I know it sounds selfish,
but I don’t want to look back and question what could have been. If I walked
away from Rafael now, I think I would look back with regret.”

“But
if you end up losing Kadyn because you chose to date Rafael, then you’re still
going to look back with regret. You may not get another chance with Kadyn,”
Shae noted with some concern.

“I
know,” I replied miserably.

Shae’s
head tilted. “Do you think you might be finding it difficult to trust Kadyn?
Are you worried he’ll change his mind about the relationship and decide you
should just be friends again?”

I
pondered the possibility, then shook my head. “I don’t know. That could be part
of it. I just feel more comfortable with Rafael. He’s very easy to be around.”

Shae
rose from her chair. “Well, you let Kadyn down when you chose Michael. He let
you down when he decided he didn’t want to date you anymore. Rafael hasn’t let
you down... yet. He’s been your protector for the most part. So, I can see why
you would be more comfortable with him.”

I
nodded absently. I was already lost in my own thoughts.

Shae
turned in the doorway. “All relationships require work, Kri. You and Rafael
just haven’t hit that point in your relationship yet. So what if you and Kadyn
have some issues to work through? If the relationship is worth saving, then you
need to work through those issues.”

I
folded my arms across my chest. “You sound entirely too knowledgeable for
someone who’s only twenty-five years old.”

Shae
shrugged. “I’ve been through my fair share of failed relationships.”

I
offered a half-smile. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could
both
put an end
to that?”

*
* * * * *

My
colleagues and I celebrated my birthday over lunch at DC Coast. We accomplished
very little after that. It was our last day in the office before we left for
Ukraine. We had already mass produced all of our training materials in English
and Russian and compiled the material into training manuals that we’d be distributing
to our students. We had all agreed to limit ourselves to one suitcase for
clothes, so we could carry a second suitcase filled with training materials.

Sammi
discovered that it was customary to offer small gifts when visiting people in
Ukraine, so we purchased a variety of Ghirardelli chocolates to offer as gifts.
Since the training manuals would likely crush the chocolate, we were going to
have to stuff massive amounts of candy into the suitcases with our clothes. It
seemed our wardrobe options were getting more limited by the minute.

I
lugged my boxes of training manuals and chocolates home and set them on the
kitchen counter. I dug my phone out of my purse and texted Rafael to see what
he wanted to do for dinner. He had been noncommittal when I asked him this
morning.

He
rapped on my front door before responding to the text.

I
flung the door open and smiled. “I didn’t think you’d be home from work this
early.”

He
nudged the door closed behind him. “I was hoping we could catch an early dinner.”

My
toes curled as he pulled me in for a kiss. “You don’t want to stay home and
cook together?”

He
shook his head. “Nope. I thought I’d take my girlfriend out for dinner, since
she’s leaving tomorrow night.”

I
stepped back and motioned toward my outfit. I was wearing a white silk wrap
shirt and flowing black pants that tied on the side with a bow. “Will this
work?”

Rafael
fingered the bow on my pants. “Sure. You look great.”

I
studied him quizzically. I was a bit surprised he hadn’t tried untying the bow.
“Okay. I’m going upstairs to freshen up. I’ll be right back.”

He
tugged on my pants as he pulled me in for another scorching kiss. “Don’t take
too long. I’m already missing you.”

I
gave him a hug so he wouldn’t see the tears pricking at my eyes. As excited as
I was about the trip, I still didn’t want to leave. Rafael wandered down the
hall toward the kitchen when I walked upstairs. I brushed my teeth, swiped some
mascara over my lashes, and added a bit of lip gloss before walking back
downstairs.