“I hate this.” She threw items into her bag
without considering whether they were weather appropriate or even if they
matched. “I hate this house. I hate living in fear. I hate loving a man who
lies to me.”
“You lied to him too.”
“And I hate you for reminding me of that!”
Elle’s dam broke when Drake pulled her against his chest.
He stroked her hair as she sobbed. “Honey,
everyone has their breaking point, and you’ve clearly reached yours. Maybe you
should try to pull out of this tour. Stay here. Work things out with Caleb.
Work with the police to put Ricky behind bars.”
“I don’t even want to see Caleb right now,
much less work on our relationship. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over.”
“You can’t mean that,” Drake said, holding
her at arm’s length. “He told me he proposed to you. He wants to spend the rest
of his life with you. You can’t tell me you’re willing to turn your back on
what may be your best shot at happiness.”
Elle reached for a tissue on the
nightstand. She dried her eyes and nose before tossing it in the wastebasket.
“Why do you think he kept it from me?”
Her rage resurfaced when she thought of
that uppity woman getting the last laugh at her expense. She knew too many
women like Vana. They wouldn’t stop until they’d gotten what they wanted, and
Caleb was only human. Judging by the photos Elle had seen of the woman at
Caleb’s beach house, she was stunning, and clearly still in love with him. How
could any man resist that kind of temptation?
“I don’t know. My guess is he knew how you
would react.” Drake led her to the bench at the foot of her king-sized bed and
forced her to sit down. He put his arm around her shoulders. “Vana has been an
integral part of his business for the past couple of years. When they broke up,
they maintained a cordial working relationship. He couldn’t afford to make this
trip without her. He needed her, and I’m sure he didn’t want to give you any
more to worry about, with the tour coming up and all. He was just trying to do
what he thought was right for you and his business.”
He needed her.
Those three little words ricocheted within Elle like a lancing
pain. “I can’t deal with this right now. I just need to get back out on the
road and do what I do best—make music.” She pinched her eyes closed when she
thought of Caleb sharing a hotel room with his former lover. Of course they
would start out in separate rooms, but how long would that last? “This is why I
don’t do relationships, Drake. They’re too complicated. They distract me from
what’s really important. My career.”
“I don’t believe you mean that.” He kissed
her forehead. “I know you’ve been to hell and back this year, but I really feel
like things can turn around for you if you just give him a chance. At the very
least talk to him before you write him off.”
If she did as Drake suggested, Caleb would
convince her that Vana meant nothing to him and they could continue to work
together. He would ask her to trust him, and she would feel as though she had
no choice for the sake of his business, but she would fall asleep every night
on her tour bus wondering whether Vana had wormed her way into his bed. Elle
refused to live that way. She’d already invited enough drama into her life by
trusting the wrong man. That wouldn’t happen again.
“Too late, Drake.” She stood, wiping her
damp face with her hands. “You know what they say. The show must go on, and
that’s exactly what I intend to focus on.”
***
Caleb squinted, trying to view the time on
the hotel alarm clock with his eyes half closed. It was after midnight. Who
would be calling him now? Unless Elle had gotten his messages… He didn’t bother
to check the call display. “Hello?”
“Uh, Caleb, it’s me, Drake. Did I wake you?”
Caleb sat up. Drake wouldn’t call so late
unless he had a good reason. “It’s okay. What’s up?”
Drake groaned. “I don’t know how to tell
you this, so I’m just gonna say it. I think I really screwed things up for you
and Elle.”
Caleb’s heart sped up. Drake wasn’t the
type to overdramatize for effect. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I thought she knew Vana worked for you,
that she was going away with you on this trip.”
“Oh shit, you didn’t.” Caleb knew it was
his fault for not telling Elle before he left, but after the way she’d reacted
to Vana’s call, he was afraid she would pitch a fit when he told her Vana
worked for him.
“I did. I’m sorry, man. I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s not your fault.” Caleb swiped a hand
over his face, wiping the sleep from his eyes. “Where is Elle now? I tried
calling her, but she didn’t answer. I guess now I know why, huh?”
“She left.”
“What?” Caleb threw his legs over the edge
of the bed, silently cursing when he felt light-headed from getting up too
quickly. “Where did she go?”
“She just said she needed to get away. I
guess she didn’t want to be here when you got back.”
“Son of a bitch.” Caleb had to talk to her,
to explain, but how? If she refused to answer his calls, his hands were tied.
“She didn’t say where she was going?”
“No, just that she’d meet her crew in North
Carolina in a couple of days.”
“Fine. If she won’t take my calls, I’ll
meet up with her there.”
Drake sighed, sounding tired. “I don’t know
if that plan’s gonna work, buddy. Security is pretty tight at these things. If
she doesn’t want to see you, she’ll make sure security doesn’t let you within
ten feet of her.”
“Drake, this is crazy,” Caleb said, feeling
desperation wash over him. “She can’t just shut me out of her life because I
made one stupid mistake. I love her. Hell, I asked her to marry me.”
“I know how you feel, man, but in my
experience, it’s sometimes better to just wait it out. If she loves you, she’ll
come back to you.”
“What if she doesn’t?” All of the plans
he’d been making for their future had slipped away in the span of a heartbeat.
“I don’t want to think about the future without her. It took me damn near forty
years to find a woman I want to spend my life with. For me, there’s no going
back. It’s Elle or no one.”
“I feel your pain, Caleb. I felt the same
way when Cassidy moved away, but I had to let her go. Those were the toughest
few months of my life, but in hindsight, I’m glad I let her go. She came back
to me a better, stronger person, and I loved her even more.”
“I don’t see how I could love Elle more
than I already do.”
Drake chuckled. “You say that now. Wait
‘til you see her walk down the aisle looking like she’s just stepped out of
your life-long fantasy or the first time you see her holding your baby.”
“What if I never get that opportunity?”
Caleb whispered.
“You will. Elle loves you. You have to
believe that. Just give her some time. Let her come back to you when she’s
ready. Going after her will only put more distance between you.”
Everything Drake said made sense, but it
didn’t make it what Caleb wanted to hear. “I’ll think about it. Thanks for
calling to let me know what’s going on.”
“I’m just sorry it had to go down this
way.”
“Like I said, it’s not your fault. I’ll
touch base with you when I get back, okay?”
“You got it.”
Caleb hung up and stared at his phone,
debating what to do. In spite of Drake’s advice, he couldn’t let her leave
without knowing he’d do anything to make things right. Hitting the first number
on his speed dial, he said a little prayer that she’d pick up. When he got her
machine, he listened to the familiar message and hoped it wouldn’t be the last
time he heard her voice.
“Hey, baby, I just talked to Drake. I’m
sorry I didn’t tell you that Vana works for me. I should have. I wanted to,
but…” He had to relinquish his pride and tell the truth if he wanted any hope
of getting her back. “I was afraid of losing you. Elle, you’ve got to believe
me when I tell you that you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I
don’t care about Vana or any other woman. You’re the only one I want… for the
rest of my life.” Before he could say more, the loud beep rang in his ear
before cutting him off.
Sinking back into the pillows, he tossed
his cell phone on the other side of the bed.
It can’t end this way.
Elle looked up at the familiar red
door, wondering if she had the right house. For all she knew, her parents could
have moved. Seven years had passed since they spoke.
She rang the doorbell, turning around when
a jogger gave her a curious look. She was wearing dark sunglasses and had her
hair in a ponytail, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t recognized her. The last
thing she needed was a fan trying to draw her into a conversation about her
music or ask for an autograph. She couldn’t think about her career today. The
red door opened.
“What can I—” Tina Morgan stared at her as
if she’d seen a ghost. “Elle? Is that really you?”
“Yes, Mama.” She slipped the oversized
sunglasses up on her head. She was revealing her red-rimmed eyes, but she was
past the point of caring. “Mind if I come in?”
“Of course.” Tina stepped back, opening the
door wider. “Well, this is a surprise. I thought you’d forgotten all about us
when you became a big star.”
Elle couldn’t miss the trace of bitterness.
Apparently she wasn’t the only one licking old wounds. “I didn’t think you were
sitting by the phone waiting for me to call.”
“It’s probably a good thing we weren’t,”
Tina said, pursing her thin lips. “Since that call never came.” Her eyes
softened for a fraction of a second. “I tried to get in touch with you a few
years ago, but that assistant of yours said you didn’t want anything to do with
any of us.”
Elle could imagine Ricky saying that.
Whether it was to protect her or his own place in her life, she had no idea,
and it didn’t even matter anymore. She was done trying to figure out what made
that man tick. “I’m sorry he said that to you. It wasn’t true.”
“It wasn’t?” Tina looked skeptical but
hopeful.
“No, it wasn’t.” Elle looked around the
small house. Not much had changed since she was a kid, but she recognized now
how difficult it must have been for her parents to make ends meet. A wave of
guilt washed over her. She’d been living like royalty for years while the
people who’d kept a roof over her head struggled. “Where’s Dad? Is he here?”
Pain crossed Tina’s face, the wrinkles
around her soft blue eyes becoming more pronounced as she fought back tears.
“He died a few years ago. That’s why I was trying to reach you. I thought you’d
want to know. I know how busy you are. You probably wouldn’t have been able to
make it to the funeral—”
“I would have made the time.” Elle felt
numb. While she’d never been close to the man, she owed him a debt of
gratitude. That was why she’d come, to thank the Morgans for giving her a home
and a name.
“I know you may not believe this,” Tina
said quietly, “but he spoke of you often to our friends. He was proud of you.”
Elle thought of the strong, silent man.
He’d barely said a word to her unless she asked a question. The idea of him
being proud of her accomplishments, or even noticing, seemed almost
inconceivable.
“Can I get you a cup of tea?” Tina asked
when Elle didn’t respond.
“Um, sure.” Elle didn’t want a cup of tea,
she wanted answers, but she knew they wouldn’t come freely or easily. Too many
years had passed, and their relationship had always been strained. She watched
Tina prepare the tea, their meeting as awkward as she’d feared it would be.
Tina had always felt like a stranger, never family.
Elle had been naïve to expect much of this
meeting. Still, when she’d jumped in her car and driven through the night, her
mind wandering as she checked her rearview for cars following her, her thoughts
kept returning to her conversation with Tori. And Caleb. Always Caleb.
“How’s Renee?” she asked, referring to her
sister.
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Tina
winced as she set the tray down on the table and rubbed her hands. “Damn
arthritis. Makes it hard to carry much of anything anymore.”
For the first time, Elle noticed her
gnarled hands. The knuckles protruded, her thin, pale skin stretched tight over
the bones. She tried not to pity the woman who’d never shown her much
compassion, but empathy was a part of Elle’s make-up.
Tina eased into an old steel chair next to
Elle at the small kitchen table. “I haven’t seen or talked to your sister in
quite a while. Not since before her daddy died. She ran off with some low-life
on a motorcycle. I’m pretty sure he sold drugs, but she’d never admit to it.”
Tina rolled her eyes. “Said she was in love with him, and if we couldn’t accept
him, she didn’t want anything more to do with us.”
Elle processed that news. Tina was all
alone in the world. Alone to bury the man she’d loved, no one there to stand
beside her or support her. “I’m sorry. That must have been difficult for you.”