Authors: Diana Duncan
"Mel, honey, you may be vertically challenged, but you could bulldoze a hungry grizzly bear into retreat." Gabe's easy chuckle spilled out, warming Tessa and taking the edge off her anxiety. "Unlike Lucille, I'm smart enough to know when I'm outgunned."
Mel grinned at him. "And don't you forget it."
Her nerves jitterbugging, Tessa looked at her friend. "Is Dale ready?"
"Not yet. Lucille is pitching a royal hissy fit, and he and the reverend are still reining her in. They nixed my suggestion of a muzzle. He said to tell you it shouldn't be too much longer."
Gabe smiled. "So she's still alive and kicking, huh? You're slipping,
Trixie
Tornado." He gently stroked Tessa's neck one last time. "I'm
outta
here. Holler if you need anything."
"I'm feeling better. Let's all wait in the sanctuary."
They returned to the sanctuary, where only Phillip, the somber best man, remained. The trio joined him on the front pew. Heavy silence hung over the empty room.
She stared at the stained glass windows. Blood red and stark cobalt blue.
C'mon, Dale, hurry up.
She was looking forward to the looming discussion about as much as gum surgery, but wanted the ordeal over with.
Mel glanced at her watch. "That man had better not keep you hanging."
She'd like to confide her change of heart to her friend, but she owed it to Dale to tell him first. She and Mel would have plenty of time later to hash over her decision.
Finally, the sanctuary doors opened, and she swiveled. Dale trudged up the aisle. The dread mixed with sympathy in his expression reminded her of the doctor who had delivered the news that her father had died. She went rigid.
He leaned down, his voice low. "Sorry about the wait. Ready when you are."
Mel squeezed her hand, and Tessa rose on shaky legs. As she passed Gabe, his eyes flashed a silent message of encouragement. She held his gaze, drawing strength from the jade depths, then raised her chin and marched down the dark blue carpet.
Dale escorted her to the pink-and-white bride's dressing room, and sat beside her on a pale pink
moire
love seat. "I'm listening."
Her hands were trembling, and Tessa pressed them together. This was going to be harder than she thought. Facing reality always was. "Since the robbery, my life has changed in so many ways. I've begun to see things in a new light, see clearly for the first time. I'm not the same woman."
She studied his strong, solid features. They'd had some good times. She was going to miss him. "You're a wonderful man, but we're just not right together. I'm so sorry, Dale, I can't marry you."
He looked away from her and studied the
ribboned
bouquets dotting the wallpaper. In light of her decision, the overtly bridal decor seemed like a cruel taunt. A long span of heartbeats ticked past. Oh, dear, she hoped she hadn't crushed him. For a man, he was pretty sensitive.
Finally, he spoke. "Perhaps … perhaps, in light of recent developments, that's for the best."
Well, that was certainly much easier than she'd expected. Too easy. She didn't want to hurt him, didn't want him to cause a scene, but geez, a slight objection wouldn't have been out of line. Or questions about her reasons. "Recent developments?"
He hesitated. "The reason why I was late today is because I got a phone call from a boy named Colin O'Shea."
"Colin O'Shea?" It took her a few seconds. "That's the boy who followed me in the park. You know him?"
"Yes. Five years ago, I gave him violin lessons at the community center. The minute he picked up the bow, I knew he had the special something that distinguishes
good
from genius."
"He was your student five years ago, and still keeps in touch? Why on earth was he following me around?"
He scrubbed a hand over his solemn face. "He was more than a student. I gave him free private instruction, which is how I met his mother, Maureen. She was funny and easy to talk to, and we became close. I grew to love Colin like he was my own." A tender smile softened his face.
She'd never seen him exhibit this much emotion. In their two years together, he'd never smiled at her like that. She couldn't help it. A niggle of jealousy stung her. His confession struck an all-too-familiar chord. She'd always come dead last in her mother's life—behind her brother, acting, and the man-of-the-moment. "I think I'm beginning to understand. And Maureen?"
"Yes. I eventually fell in love with her, as well." Unaware of her inner tumult, he continued. "At first, being attracted to a woman eight years my senior threw me, but eventually, it ceased to matter. I proposed to Maureen." Looking into the past, his unfocused blue eyes glowed with warmth and vitality.
Bewilderment picked up her scattered thoughts and whirled them through her mind like a stray funnel cloud. He'd proposed to another woman before her? Dale had never mentioned his past, and she'd never asked. "What happened?"
"I knew Mother would react badly, but I hoped…" He sighed. "I decided to marry Maureen anyway. Then Dad got lung cancer. We suffered eight months of hell, and when he died, Mother fell apart. After the funeral, Maureen broke down and confessed she couldn't handle the age difference after all. I tried everything to change her mind, but she wouldn't listen." Pain bracketed his mouth as he fell silent.
Tessa had plenty of experience with rejection. "I know how much that must have hurt."
"I was devastated. Not only had I lost the love of my life, but also Colin. I'm sure he thought I abandoned him. I quit caring about everything and started sleepwalking through life." He shook his head. "Six months later, Mother met you at the children's charity. She convinced me to ask you out."
She went cold. "You dated me to please your mother?"
"At first, yeah." He gave her an
embarrassed
smile. "But then we meshed, and I genuinely began to care for you. I hold you in such high regard, and we have a lot in common. You're the best friend I've got. Lots of successful marriages have been built on less."
She sucked in a shaky breath. "But your heart is elsewhere."
He fisted his hands in his lap. "I haven't seen or talked to Maureen in three years. But after I spoke to Colin today, I called her, and got her to spill the truth. Apparently, Mother had a 'discussion' with her at Dad's funeral. I knew Maureen had had
a hysterectomy years
ago, but I didn't care. Colin was enough for me. But Mother convinced her that carrying on the
Winter
name was important to both of us, especially with Dad gone. Mother offered to pay Colin's way through Juilliard if Maureen moved to
He leapt up to pace the small room, his rugged good looks incongruously masculine in the feminine environment. "She sacrificed her happiness for mine. If I'd only known, I would have walked away from everything for her." He turned to face Tessa. "I tried so hard to love you, Tessa. And I do love you, but like you said before, just not in the right way. I know now it's because I've never been able to forget Maureen."
Her stomach clenched on a sickening rush of realization. For two years, they'd both been trying to force their relationship into something it could never be. How unbearably sad, for both of them. The only thing sadder would be if they kept up the charade. She swallowed hard. Even if she'd known what to say, the aching lump in her throat blocked the words.
Thrusting his fingers through his hair, Dale dropped back onto the love seat. "Colin never lost hope. When he saw our wedding announcement, he started following you. He hoped if he explained, you'd step aside, and he could reunite his mom and me." He threw her a sharp glance. "He told me what happened in the park."
She found her voice. "Gabe wouldn't have hurt him."
"Val, Gabe, whatever his name is, he's not your cousin, is he? And if he's gay, I'll eat my violin case, buckles and all."
Her face warmed.
"I thought so. I saw the way he looks at you."
The image of sparkling green eyes warm with promise invaded her thoughts. "We merely have … a business arrangement. He's leaving town." She frowned. "And none too soon."
"I almost ruined four lives with my inability to act. If you have feelings for him, don't wait until it's too late. Not everyone gets a second chance."
How did she feel about Gabe? The memory of lying under him in his bed burned through her whirling thoughts. She'd come
this close
to turning her back on everything she believed in last night. Tessa stared into the full-length mirror across the room and saw
herself
sitting there with Dale by her side. So right. And yet all wrong. If Gabe hadn't blasted into her life, she would have been standing in front of that mirror next week wearing her wedding gown.
Icicles of fear stabbed into her. No-commitment, freewheeling Gabe was the opposite of her ideal man. And he had a marriage phobia, to boot. Self-preservation demanded she remain indifferent. She may have been short-sighted in the past, but she was no masochist.
Dale held her gaze, his eyes tender. "Will you be all right?"
She gave him a wobbly smile. "I'll be fine." As long as she didn't make the mistake of wanting something she could never have. She slid off her diamond solitaire and held it out to him. "I hope we can still be friends."
"I'd like that. And I'd like you to keep the ring as a memento."
She gently placed it in his palm and folded his fingers around it. "I don't need it to remind me. I'll never forget what we shared. Good times." Tears pressed behind her eyes, and she blinked them back. Though their relationship wasn't meant to be, letting go of him, letting go of all her hopes and dreams was so hard. "Like that concert we gave in Schubert Hall where the conductor's toupee kept slipping, and every time we looked at one another we almost couldn't stop giggling long enough to play."
"Good times." His own smile crooked, he tucked the ring in his pocket. "I'm sorry, Tessa. I've known for a long time that things weren't right between us, but unlike you, I didn't have the guts to say so. You wouldn't be out of line to call me a few choice names. Or slap me upside the head."
She forced out a chuckle. "Not my
style,
and you know it. Mel, on the other hand, just might take you up on that offer." She stood on legs that trembled. "I guess that's it, then."
"Right. Let's go face our friends, and the Dragon Lady."
She shook her head, her mouth wry. "You might have to buy bigger shirts to accommodate that new backbone of yours."
Dale smiled sheepishly. "She may be my mother, but I'm not blind. I allowed her to lead both of us around by the nose."
She rested her hand on his broad forearm. "Some of the responsibility rests on my shoulders. I should have tossed out the nose ring long ago."
He studied her thoughtfully. "You have changed since the bank robbery. I hope you find happiness, Tessa. You deserve it."
The choking lump in her throat returned with a vengeance. She cleared it away. "Thank you. Well … ready to get this over with?"
He placed his big hand on the small of her back and they walked to the sanctuary. Dale stepped in front of the altar. "I appreciate everyone's patience. We need to speak to you."
Mel, Phillip, and Lucille, who had apparently regained her chilly composure during their absence, gathered around them.
Tessa glanced at Gabe. He returned her look, a question in his eyes. She motioned for him to join the group. Holding her gaze reassuringly, he walked to her side.
Dale glanced at Gabe briefly, then her, before continuing. "Tessa and I have decided to call off the wedding."
Lucille's mouth opened and closed like a beached trout, but only a small squeak emerged.
Dale continued. "I'll refund everyone for expenses incurred, and I apologize. Tessa will explain to Melody and her … cousin." He turned to his best man. "I'll call you."
Two spots of hot color surged into Lucille's cheeks. She clutched her chest. "My heart," she moaned.
Dale flicked a resigned glance at the tiny woman. "Forget it, Mother. You've exploited that ploy for three years, and I'm not buying the act anymore. Go home. I'll join you shortly."
"But, Dale, darling—"
He held up his hand. "Nothing you say or do is going to change my decision. If you can't accept that, you're the one who will lose out, far more than you think. You'll spend the rest of your life alone, with nothing but your arrogance for company. Is that what you want?"
Lucille's shoulders slumped. Without another word, she turned and trudged down the aisle, a defeated dragon with her fire quenched.
With nothing more to be said, the solemn group trailed out behind her.
Dale walked Tessa to the door, together for the last time. Fighting a hard-won battle against tears, she turned to him. "The best of everything, Dale. For you, Maureen and Colin."
He placed a soft kiss on her cheek. "You're a real class act. Goodbye, Tessa."
The tears threatened to burst free. "Goodbye," she replied, relieved when her voice quavered only slightly.