Saving Alyssa (Mills & Boon Heartwarming) (12 page)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

T
ROY
 
PADDED
 
INTO
 
the living room and immediately stretched out on the couch.

“So how's Bud?”

“Fine. Great, actually. Surgery went quicker than anyone expected. He was in and out of the O.R. in just a few hours. When I left him last night, he was sitting up and flirting with the nurses. I'm heading over to see him this afternoon. Want to come with me?”

Troy gave the thumbs-up sign. “That's a good sign. And yeah, I might just do that.”

“Men,” she said, clucking her tongue. “Where were you until all hours of the night?” She spun her desk chair to face him.

“At Noah's.”

She saved her file and went to sit across from him. “No way.”

“Why is that so hard to believe? He's a nice guy, I'm a nice guy.” Troy sat up. “Case closed. Besides, your wannabe boyfriend got me a job.”

“Wannabe...” Billie shook her head. “I barely know him. And neither does anyone else on the planet, if the information available about him online is any indicator. Which, as you know, is nothing
.
”

“I looked you up, just for fun. Except for your business stuff, there's nothing about you online, either. Same goes for mom. And Dani. And just about everyone else we know.”

Billie caught herself staring, and closed her mouth. “Why would you look up our mother? And our sister-in-law?”

“It was a test. To prove that not everyone has a paper trail. From everything I've seen, Noah is clean.”

“Well. That's good news, I suppose. Especially for Alyssa's sake.” Would have been better news, if Noah really was her boyfriend.... “But wait a minute. Did I hear you say just now that he got you a job?”

Nodding, Troy said, “Jeff Graham, a customer of his, owns Graham Security Systems. Has offices all up and down the East Coast, along with a couple dozen franchises. My job will be to visit the cities where the franchise owners are, helping the new ones get set up and troubleshooting the existing ones.”

“Sounds like you'll be on the road a lot.”

“Two, maybe three days a week. But everything is within driving distance. And Jeff will provide a car, a cell phone and a company credit card.”

“I can't believe it.”

“Why? I told you...Noah's a good guy.”

“That isn't what I meant. You came here, hat in hand, without a job or a home to speak of, and in just under a month you're a big shot? I don't get it.”

He stretched pretend suspenders. “That's what clean livin' will get you, little sister.”

“If clean living is the criteria,” Billie sniffed, “I should be queen of the world.”

“I don't want to hear it. Happiness is right around the corner. Literally. It's your choice to pass it by.”

She didn't want to justify her reasons for staying a safe distance from Noah Preston. Mostly, because Billie didn't understand them herself.

“Tell me more about your job.”

Troy explained that his first trip would include visits to Virginia Beach, Newark and Dover, where franchisees were installing surveillance equipment and alarm systems in beachfront condo lobbies, strip malls and office buildings.

“Basically,” he said, “they're introductory. Jeff is having business cards printed up, ordering the phone and lining up the credit card.”

His cell phone beeped, signaling a text message.

“Well, I'll be,” he said, reading it. “It's from my real estate agent in Philly.” He looked at Billie. “Victoria is going to buy the house, after all. And she's paying more than the asking price. Which means I'll have enough to put the down payment on that sweet little place up the street from you. See what clean living will get you?”

Billie sat beside him and wrapped him in a hug. “Congratulations, big brother. I'm happy for you.”

As if to punctuate her good wishes, his phone rang.

“Oh, good grief!” she said. “If that's more good news, I'll eat my hat!”

“You aren't wearing a hat,” he pointed out.

His teasing grin vanished when he read the caller ID window. “Oh, no,” he groaned. “Victoria. Here's hoping she hasn't changed her mind.”

While he took the call, Billie went back to her desk and made a note to thank Noah. She hadn't seen Troy this happy in years. Maybe she'd make lasagna. Or a pot roast. Steaks on the grill. And invite him and Alyssa—and the Grahams, of course—to help celebrate Troy's good news.

Her own phone rang, startling her so badly that she nearly upended her coffee. She didn't recognize the number, and said a coolly professional hello.

“Hey, Billie, it's Jeff Graham. The guy from the bike shop.”

Troy's new boss...

“Well, hi. Did you ever pick up your elbow pads?”

“As a matter of fact, I did. That's kind of why I'm calling.”

He told her that there was a two-day ride the following weekend, and he'd bought a block of tickets for some employees, but a few couldn't make it. He was calling, he explained, to invite her and Troy to join him and his family, along with Noah and Alyssa.

“Good way for us to get better acquainted,” he said, “and it's a great package, if you like camping. We'll ride some of the Appalachian Trail, and along the Lehigh River. Kelly—she's my wife—is looking forward to some photo ops, since we'll see some canal locks and waterfalls, and ride through a couple of covered bridges. Leave it to her to parlay this into an article assignment.”

A corporate mogul who wore Gucci and rode a Venge, plus did his own construction and liked camping.
What are the odds?
Billie thought.

“It sounds great,” she told him. “I never had the chance to ride in the Greenbrier event after the ankle healed up. One thing after another, you know?”

“Just so you know...we aren't doing the whole fancy bed-and-breakfast part of the trip, though, so if you're opposed to roughing it, this might not be your thing.” He hesitated. “Do you have a tent?”

“As a matter of fact, I do. Haven't had much occasion to use it lately, however.”

“Sleeping bag? Camp gear?”

“Yes.” She laughed quietly. “I have some freeze-dried trail food left from the last trip. And if I do say so myself, I make a mean campfire bean soup.”

“Great. Kelly's looking forward to meeting you. She's starting to make notes for her website, so hopefully, she won't monopolize your weekend, talking business.”

“No problem, even if she does. I like my job!”

Her excitement must have been palpable and visible, because when she joined Troy in the living room, he said, “Wow. Look at you. Who
was
that?”

“Believe it or not, it was Jeff Graham. You and I are invited to a trail ride next weekend.”

“Are you going?”

“Only if you are.”

“Don't have a bike. Can't afford a fancy schmantzy Cannondale, like yours. Don't have a tent or any other camping equipment, for that matter.”

“You know as well as I do that if my doctor hadn't been upgrading, I'd be riding something from Walmart instead of my fancy schmantzy Cannondale.”

Her brother laughed.

“Talk to your new best friend,” she continued. “If Noah can't make you a deal, maybe he'll rent you a bike. You won't need a tent. I have one that sleeps four. Two sleeping bags, too. All you'll need to worry about is getting a backpack and some all-weather clothes. You know, case it rains.” She did a little dance. “I'm kind of psyched. This will be my first time out since I messed up the Cannondale!”

“Communing with nature might be just what the doctor ordered.”

She sat beside him. “What did Victoria want?”

“Money.”

“Money? But the town house was yours. You bought it. You made the payments. She changed her mind? She doesn't want to buy it?”

“She wants me to reimburse her for the curtains she bought and hung in the family room. And the towels she put in the bathroom. Something about the bedding for the guest room....” He grimaced. “Considering what happened, I offered to send her a dollar check. And she cried. Said she can't believe it came to this.” He punctuated the statement with a heavy sigh. “Frankly, neither can I.”

Billie gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “I'm sorry, Troy. But look on the bright side. You have a new job, and soon you'll have a new home.”

His expression grew thoughtful, his voice softer as he said, “Yeah. True.” He faced her to add, “I have to admit, I didn't figure your wannabe boyfriend for the rugged outdoors type.”

She withdrew her hand. “Will you please stop calling him that!”

“What would you prefer I call him, then?”

“A client. A neighbor. Anything but boyfriend. It sounds so...so junior high. And inaccurate,” she quickly added. Because he hadn't shown the slightest interest in her as anything other than what came with their professional association.

“Okay,” Troy murmured, retreating to the kitchen, “whatever you say.”

She could hear him rummaging in the fridge as a strange question echoed in her head: What if Noah really
was
interested in something more?

* * *

T
HE
 
FLICKERING
 
OF
 
the campfire cast an eerie glow to the tent's interior. Troy, unaccustomed to cycling more than a few blocks, had fallen asleep almost before he finished zipping his sleeping bag. And since he'd turned in first, he'd chosen the space in back so Billie wouldn't have to crawl over him when she got tired.

She'd sat outside, listening to Jeff and Kelly talk about their months in Alaska before the kids came along. Jeff held them all spellbound with their grizzly bear encounter, and made her laugh with the story of life in an igloo. Eventually, though, even they had turned in, and Billie had followed, though she wasn't the least bit sleepy. Troy would be very happy, she knew, working with this warm, outgoing man.

She'd made sure to set up the tent so that the door faced downwind. Even so, the vent flaps rattled with every gust of the chilly October breeze. Troy's snoring, the creaking of the trees, even the pop and snap of the fire kept her from falling asleep. When had she last felt this keyed up? she wondered. And when no answer materialized, even
that
kept her awake.

Billie blamed her disquiet on the nature of the trip—slower paced and more crowded than she was accustomed to. Perhaps that's why it seemed as though every time she looked up, she'd caught Noah staring at her.

As if on cue, she heard his voice, deep as a DJ's, murmuring something to Alyssa from the tent beside hers. The child had never been camping before, so it was no surprise that she was afraid. Billie remembered her first night in the woods, when every cricket chirp and owl hoot had set her heart to hammering.

When Noah's quiet reassurances failed to soothe Alyssa, he began to sing. Billie had heard “Dream a Little Dream of Me” before, but it had never sounded like that.

Billie closed her eyes, imagined herself nestled in the crook of his arm as his breath puffed gently against her cheek, and felt herself relax.

He had the most perfectly shaped lips she'd ever seen. Would they feel as soft, pressed to hers, as they looked?

Billie's eyes snapped open and she stifled a gasp. Oh, she'd never get to sleep now!

Slowly, she unzipped the sleeping bag and turned it into a blanket. Dragging it behind her, she crawled out of the tent. Outside, she draped it around her shoulders. Grabbing a long stick, she poked at the fire, waking an explosion of sparks that winked at the darkness before disappearing. She jabbed it again, squinting as smoke rolled from the coals, rose up and twisted itself into an opalescent braid that spiraled toward the treetops.

Raw, blue-white heat radiated from the fire's core, pulsing and throbbing like a heartbeat. She put the stick down, closed her eyes and inhaled the musky-sweet scent of charred wood and heat.

“I thought I heard someone out here,” Noah whispered.

“Couldn't sleep,” she said, “and the fire always makes me drowsy.”

He sat down beside her.

Though Billie stared into the flames, she sensed that he was gazing at her. She pulled the sleeping bag tighter around her.

He picked up the stick. “It's freezing out here. Wonder what the temperature is?”

“Forty? Forty-five?”

“Maybe.” Noah scooted closer. “I'm cold.” He grabbed a corner of her sleeping bag and covered himself, too.

“Wow. You weren't exaggerating. You
are
cold.”

“Doesn't make much sense wasting a lie on something that trivial.”

“Ah. So you prefer to lie about big important things, then.”

He made a halfhearted attempt at a laugh, but he wasn't smiling when he looked over at her. “No one tells the truth all the time.”

She had to agree. Billie had stretched the truth plenty of times. Little things, like misrepresentations that saved her from childhood punishments, and flattering friends who'd survived horrible haircuts. And serious things, like letting her family think she'd recovered from losing the baby, long before she had. Telling Bud he looked wonderful, fresh off the ventilator. And then there were the big bold lies she told herself: that she didn't like kids and never wanted any of her own.

“Warm enough?” he asked.

She nodded. “And you?”

He nodded, too.

“Think Alyssa will want to do anything like this again?” Billie asked.

“Sure. She's having a ball.”

“Really? It didn't sound that way, a few minutes ago.”

“She'll get used to the night noises.”

“I suppose,” Billie said.