Harmony Cabins (17 page)

Doreen pushed out of her chair and crossed the room. Sun poured into the living room through the sheer white curtains. The house was still fragrant with the scents of the pasta dinner they'd shared less than fifteen minutes before.

She stopped at the wall separating the living and dining rooms. “Suppose Simon wins? Then I would have lost Leo and the election.”

“Simon doesn't even have enough names to be added to the ballot.” Ean's voice carried from the sofa behind her.

“Yet.” Doreen turned to him. “Suppose he gets them?”

“How can you consider leaving the town to Simon Knight's mercy?” Ean seemed incredulous.

Her son had a good point. Could she bow out of the race and leave the mayor's office to Simon? Was her relationship with Leonard too high a price to pay?

Megan interrupted her thoughts. “Don't misunderstand. It's not a matter of your protecting us from having Simon for mayor. The fact is, you're the leader we need now.”

The added pressure terrified her. “But what if I'm not fully committed to the office?”

Megan scooted forward on the sofa. “Are you making this decision for you or Leo?”

“I can't put my career above the people I care about.”
Can I?

Megan shook her head. “But you shouldn't give up your dreams, either.”

Doreen gestured toward Ean. “You understand what I'm talking about, don't you? You came back from New York because you missed your friends and family.”

“My circumstances were different, Mom.” Ean spread his arms. “I left Trinity Falls to pursue my career, but it turned into a nightmare. That's when I came home. You're giving up your dream before it's even started.”

Doreen turned away from the truth of Ean's words. “I don't want to disappoint either of you, but maybe this isn't the right dream for me.”

Ean's voice followed her. “Why not? Because it's not what Leo wants?”

Doreen returned to her seat before meeting Ean's gaze. “You're criticizing Leo because he's trying to tell me what to do, but so are you.”

Megan rested her elbows on her thighs. Her voice was earnest. “That's not a fair comparison, Doreen. Leo's trying to talk you out of doing what you want to do. We want you to make your own decision.”

“Of course you want me to stay in the election.” Doreen frowned at Megan. “It was your idea that I run for mayor.”

Megan shook her head. “I asked you to consider it because I know how much Trinity Falls means to you. You've been active in the community since before I was born. And you've had great ideas on how to improve it.”

Doreen crossed her arms, fighting the persuasion of Megan's words. “But even Ean pointed out, I don't have to be mayor to continue to have an impact on Trinity Falls.”

Megan and Ean exchanged looks before he spoke. “No, you don't.”

Megan's gaze bore into Doreen again. “This is about what you want, Doreen. We'll support whatever you decide to do.”

Ean faced his mother again. “I understand how Leo feels. Remember, at first, I didn't want you to run for office, either. But I changed my mind when I realized this is what you want. I care about you, Mom. I want you to be happy.”

Doreen read the unspoken question in Ean's eyes.

CHAPTER 17

“I'm done.” Audra made the announcement into her cell phone Monday evening. She added a little happy dance.

“Hallelujah.” Benita's sarcasm wasn't welcome.

“Hey, I beat the producer's deadline by a week.” Audra tipped aside the sheer green curtains hanging in her front window.

July's evening sky was painted an achingly warm blue. The modest front lawn rolled like a carpet toward the spread of evergreen and poplar trees that circled the cabin like playful overgrown children. A gentle breeze tickled the leaves on their branches. In the distance, sunlight danced off the lake like diamonds on the water.

“Your medal's in the mail. What time is it over there?” Benita seemed distracted. Was her business manager reading e-mail or going through snail mail during their call?

“It's three o'clock, and I'd rather my check was in the mail.” Audra turned away from the window. “I'll e-mail the files to the producer tonight. I want to listen to them one more time before letting them go.”

“Good. Copy me on that e-mail.”

“I always do.” Audra rested her hip on the arm of the dark plaid sofa. “I wrote an extra song, too.”

“Since when do you give away work?”

“I'm not. This song is just for me.” And perhaps one other. Restlessness drove Audra to her feet again. Her bare feet crossed from the cool wood flooring to the gray Berber area rug as she toured the room. “My muse was flowing, just as it had when I first started my career. It was great. You were right about my getting out of my comfort zone.”

“Of course I was right,” Benita sniffed. “I'm always right. You should accept that in the future, instead of arguing with me.”

Audra ignored the other woman's interruption. “Or maybe it's Trinity Falls.”

“What's Trinity Falls?”

Audra hesitated before responding. “The songs I wrote here are different.”

“Not too different, I hope. The producer contracted you for Audra Lane songs. You weren't channeling someone weird, were you?”

“These songs are crisper, happier, more abandoned.” Audra only half listened to her business manager's grousing as she relived the adrenaline rush of breaking through her writer's block.

“OK, that should work.” Benita resumed clicking her keyboard.

“I can see myself coming back here.” Audra settled again on the sofa.

“Where? The cabins?”

“Yes. And Trinity Falls. I like it here.” Jack's image came to mind. “I like it here very much.”

“It's a nice place to visit. Can't see how people live there, though.”

“I can.” Audra shifted to lie across the sofa. Its thick cushions sighed around her. “The people are so warm and welcoming. The town's beautiful and charming.” She smiled as she thought of the quaint shops in the Trinity Falls Town Center and the characters who owned them.

Benita grunted. “You say that now. By the end of the week, those Pollyanna glasses will come off and you'll be screaming for L.A. There's nothing. To do. In Trinity Falls.”

“There's plenty for me.”

“Then you're boring, just like the town.”

“Maybe.” Audra was in too good a mood to be offended. She'd completed all three songs and intended to spend the remaining twelve days in Trinity Falls playing. Would Jack be able to play, too?

“So, does that mean you're not cutting your vacation short?” Benita clicked more keys. Audra thought a printer powered on in the background.

“Benita, if this had been a vacation, I wouldn't be speaking with you.”

“Good, because the three-hour time difference with these calls is driving me nuts.”

Audra thought of Jack. “I'm going to stay through Founders Day.”

“Suit yourself.” There was a shrug in Benita's voice. “Personally, I'd take my vacation somewhere else, like Paris, New York, London . . . but you paid for that cabin.”

Yes, she did. And she was definitely getting far more than her money's worth. Audra rolled into a sitting position. “Are you coming for the Founders Day Celebration?”

“Indeed, I am. I'm only staying for the day, though. Not a minute longer.” A stapler crunched on Benita's end of the line. “The only reason I'm coming is that my cousin's been hounding the whole family about it for more than a year.”

“Who's your cousin?”

“Dr. Helen Gaston. Have you met her? Everyone in town calls her Ms. Helen.”

Audra grinned, thinking about the charismatic older woman with whom Darius had spent the evening. “I like her. I'm surprised you're related. She seems so nice.”

“Ha-ha.” Benita rustled papers on the other end of the line. “Look, hon, as much as I'm enjoying your conversation, I've gotta run. Listen to those songs again. Copy me on the e-mail. Have fun on your well-deserved vacation. Look for me August ninth.”

After delivering her to-do list, Benita hung up. Audra shook her head in amusement. Had Benita ever waited for her to say good-bye before hanging up? She couldn't recall.

But now that she was done with her contract, there was someone else she wanted to say hello to. Audra punched in Jack's cell phone number.

“Hello, beautiful.” Jack's baritone was even sexier over the phone.

Audra savored the delicious shivers his greeting gave her. “I've finished all three songs.”

“Congratulations.” There was a smile in his voice.

“Thank you.” Completing her songs had never felt so wonderful. “Are you free for dinner?”

“It's already on the stove.”

Audra smiled. “I'll be right there.”

 

 

Doreen's doorbell chimed Monday evening. She turned from the refrigerator, where she'd been contemplating a lonely dinner. Was it Leonard? She shut the fridge and made her way to her front door. What if it was? How should she react? Should she offer him dinner or ask why he wasn't mooching a meal from Yvette? A glance at the security peephole only raised more questions.

“Alonzo?” Doreen stepped back, pulling the door wider. Leonard must be having dinner with Yvette. Her heart dropped.

“Evening, Doreen. Is this a bad time?” The sheriff's warm, slow drawl preceded him across her threshold.

“Not at all.” She found a smile. “I didn't think you knew where I lived.”

“I knew.”

Doreen locked the door before leading him to her living room. “Can I get you anything? I have iced tea, lemonade, and, of course, plenty of water.”

“Iced tea would be good.” Alonzo seemed awkward, standing in the center of her living room. His black T-shirt stretched wide across his broad chest. His cream khaki shorts hugged his hips before falling loosely to his knees.

Doreen excused herself. Within minutes, she'd returned to the living room with two glasses of iced tea and lemon. Alonzo hadn't moved from the center of the room.

She handed him one of the glasses, then settled onto the sofa behind her. “Have a seat. What brings you by tonight?”

Alonzo dropped onto the love seat to the right of the sofa. He took a long drink of iced tea. “Sorry to stop by uninvited. I should've called first.”

He seemed nervous. Doreen studied him closely. The smile lines bracketing his mouth and creasing the corners of his eyes, and the gray strands weaving through his raven hair, were his only signs of aging. Otherwise, Alonzo looked the same as he had in high school—tall, dark, and exotically handsome. At sixty-six years old, he had the physique of a man thirty years younger.

Doreen met his coffee brown eyes. “You don't need to check with me before you come over. You're always welcome. Although I'm surprised it's taken you this long to find me.”

Alonzo held his glass suspended by both palms. “I've known which house was yours, Doreen, ever since I moved back to Trinity Falls. But I didn't think it was right for me to come by.”

“Why not?” Doreen took one last sip of her iced tea before placing her glass on a coaster on the coffee table.

Alonzo's nervous laughter shook his shoulders. “I'm surprised you never realized this.”

“What?”

Alonzo met her puzzled gaze. “You really don't know?”

“Why are you being so myster—”

“I've been in love with you since high school.”

Doreen's jaw dropped. Had she heard him correctly? “What did you say?”

Alonzo rose from the love seat and crossed the room. He stood with his back to her. “You and Paul were right for each other. You made each other happy. That's the reason I never tried to come between you.”

Doreen struggled to keep up with Alonzo's words. He spoke so fast. “You and Paul were friends.”

His shoulders slumped. “We were best friends . . . before I fell in love with you.”

Doreen's hand pressed against her chest. A chill went through her. “Did he know how you felt?”

Alonzo faced her. “No. I never told him. But you're the reason I never returned to town after college. You're the reason I never married. How could I promise before God to love another woman when I was already in love with you?”

“Alonzo, I never knew.” Doreen's head was spinning.

“You weren't supposed to.”

“It's been more than forty years.”

“I know. It's been killing me.” His dark gaze burned her. “I've tried to love other women. But I realized there's no other woman like you.”

“But, Alonzo, I'm with Leo now.”

“Leo isn't right for you.”

Doreen stood, wiping her damp palms on her brown walking shorts. “Leo and I are having a disagreement. We'll work it out.”

Alonzo pulled his right hand through his thick dark hair. “I'm sorry Paul died. He was a good person. The community misses him, and I know his death broke your heart. I wanted to give you time to grieve him before making a case for myself. But Leo dove in like a vulture.”

“That's not fair. Leo was a good friend and support through Paul's illness.”

Alonzo shook his head. “Think what you like. I don't mean to upset you. But I'm not hiding my feelings any longer.”

There was a buzzing in Doreen's ears. Was this really happening? Alonzo closed the distance between them. She took an instinctive step back.

“I'm with Leo now, Alonzo. I can't . . .” Her voice trailed off as Alonzo lifted her left hand, rubbing its bare third finger.

“You're not wearing a ring.” His voice was low, soft, and persuasive, causing the muscles in her lower abdomen to flutter like hummingbirds.

Doreen tugged her hand free. “He
has
asked me to marry him.”

“Is that the reason he brought Yvette to Quincy and Ramona's going-away party?” Alonzo used his right index finger to lift Doreen's chin when she lowered her gaze. “Leo realized he was a fool to try to make you jealous with Yvette. But I'm not going to quietly step aside this time. I'm taking a page from Quincy's book and fighting for what I want.”

Alonzo lowered his head and settled his mouth on hers. Doreen gasped her surprise. Alonzo moved in, slipping his tongue between her lips.

His kiss was a dark, demanding drug. This wasn't the tentative caress of a secret admirer making his plea. It was the impatient seduction of a would-be lover taking a stand. Doreen's world tipped off its axis. But instead of pushing him away to set things back to order, she clutched Alonzo's muscled shoulders to keep from slipping away. He wrapped his arms around her waist, tucking her more tightly against him. Alonzo finally released her, allowing her to catch her breath.

“I won't hide my feelings anymore, Doreen. Will you?” His voice was husky. His brown eyes had darkened almost to black.

Alonzo didn't wait for her response. Instead, he walked past her and out her front door. Doreen watched him leave. They'd been friends since childhood. But now, after that kiss, she was seeing him as something more.

How could she not have known Alonzo had such strong feelings for her? Had anyone else known? Should she tell Leonard?

But one question would keep her up all night:
Why did I wait for Alonzo to end that kiss rather than pulling away myself ?

 

 

Jack gathered his courage and his dishes before he rose to clear the table after dinner. “Now that you've finished your songs, how much longer are you staying?”

Audra preceded him into the kitchen. “I'm staying for Founders Day, remember?”

Jack swallowed his sigh of relief, but couldn't contain his smile. “What are you going to do for the next twelve days?”

Audra bent to load the dishwasher. “Do you have any suggestions?”

“A few.” Jack handed her his plate and silverware.

“Fishing, hiking, canoeing?”

“Those too.” He rested a hip against the laminate counter, and, with his gaze, traced the curve of her hips in the powder blue shorts. “For a big-city woman, you've connected well with our town. It's like you've been here for years, instead of only three weeks. I'm impressed.”

Audra straightened, closing the dishwasher. “That says more about the people of Trinity Falls than me. Everyone has made me feel like a part of the community, as though I were home. It'll be hard to say good-bye.”

Jack didn't want to talk about Audra's leaving. “Trinity Falls has always been a friendly town. It's trite, but it's true.”

“Before we get too far sidetracked, have you spoken with Doreen?”

“About what?” Jack knew what she was asking, just as she knew he hadn't made up with Doreen.