Shadows from the Grave (26 page)

Chase cupped his hands around her face and pressed a hard, fast kiss to her lips. “No, absolutely not. No regrets,” he assured her. “I just need a little… I need to regroup.”

“You almost said you needed space,” Annie said, suspicious.

Chase nodded, and to her surprise, he smiled. “Yes, I almost did. And then I remembered that’s girl-speak for breaking up. That’s not what I mean. I just need a few hours.” Uncaring that they were in the middle of the parking lot at the courthouse, a very public location, Chase kissed her again. It was a very tender, poignant kiss that brought tears to Annie’s eyes.

“Would it be okay if I came over later this evening?” he asked. Annie nodded, and Chase felt her relax.

“That would be very okay,” she said. “You can even bring Murphy, if you’d like.”

When Chase realized she was inviting him to spend the night, he kissed her again. “Then let’s plan on that.” He walked her to the Beast and opened the door. When Beth turned toward them with a grin, Chase scowled.

“Not one word,” he warned.

“But—”

“No, not a word.”

She tried again. “Chase, come—”

“Annie, I’ll see you later. Ethan, try to keep your wife out of trouble.” Without waiting for a response, he closed the door. As Ethan pulled away with a quick beep of the horn, Beth rolled down her window and stuck her head out.

“You’re mean, Chase Hudson!” she called back to him, but her smile belied her words.

He waved at her and unlocked his car. As he got in, it occurred to him just how full his life had become. Less than a year ago, Beth had suffered a life-threatening injury, and the family’s relationship with Ethan, who Chase had been friends with since high school, had seemed all but over. It had been a very uneasy, trying time, to say the least.

Looking back, however, so much good had come out of that tragedy. Beth and Ethan were together, happily married by the looks of things. Jason had found Hannah and Paulo, thanks to Beth’s sabbatical, and Chase’s relationship with Annie had grown and changed into something precious, something he had never expected to find. Additionally, Murphy had found his way to Chase, and he and Gordon had reconnected after not having talked for several years. Despite the day’s events, Chase was fairly certain their friendship was intact.

Knowing how much he had to lose, Chase was more determined than ever to not let Kiely’s family get their wish to see him hang or rot in a jail cell for something he didn’t do. He was willing to do whatever it took to make sure that didn’t happen.

That evening, Annie tried to wait patiently for Chase’s arrival, but she wasn’t having a lot of luck. When she’d gotten home, she’d set about preparing for the evening, just in case. She had put clean sheets on the bed, set candles throughout the house at strategic points, and taken a long soak in the tub. It wasn’t that she was planning on seducing him, but more that she was opening the door to the possibility of intimacy.

She thought back to the night before, which she had spent at Chase’s. She had confessed everything about her relationship with Rafe, including the fact that she had briefly taken him back after the miscarriage, something of which she was deeply ashamed.

Afterward, there had been some kissing, some heated touches, but for the most part they had just held each other and talked. With a couple of exceptions, they’d avoided serious topics and just enjoyed being able to spend time in one another’s company. Annie had fallen asleep in Chase’s arms, Murphy snuggled up at her knees. It had been a revelatory experience. For the first time, she felt like the person she was mattered as much as the body she inhabited, and it was a feeling that she found slightly overwhelming.

As she fixed food for later, self-doubt started creeping back in. Annie admitted to herself that she was concerned Chase hadn’t put the moves on her. She knew he had been aroused. That had been blatantly obvious more than once during the night. She was just afraid Chase didn’t desire her
enough
.

She was putting the finishing touches on the chicken salad when she heard a vehicle in the driveway. Wiping her hands on a dish towel, she hurried to the door with a smile. When she saw the man standing on her porch, the smile vanished.

“Rafe. What are you doing here?” She didn’t bother to unlock the storm door.

Rafe’s face lit up with a smile. “Aren’t you going to invite me in, Annabel?”

“No, I’m not, and that is not my name. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do.” She started to close the inside door, but Rafe stopped her.

“Annie, please. Just hear me out. That’s all I want.”

With a heartfelt groan, she debated whether or not to let him speak, and then decided that if she did, maybe he would go away and leave her alone. “Fine,” she said, “but you aren’t coming in. Move off the porch.” She waited until he backed off before she came out onto the porch to stand, arms crossed. She glanced at her watch. “You have two minutes.”

Rafe’s smile was winsome. “Annie, sweetheart, I—” She held up a hand. Ducking his head, he apologized. “Okay, sorry. Too much. It’s just that, seeing you the other day, it brought everything back. I realized how much I’ve lost. How much I’ve missed you. Tell me you didn’t think of us, too, after we met again.”

Astonished, Annie gaped at him. Rafe had always been a stunningly handsome man, and age had only enhanced that appeal. If he had possessed the least bit of interest in modeling, Annie had no doubt he could have succeeded. However, she also knew from personal experience that he was as shallow as they came, and she wanted no part of anything he was offering.

“I remember you singing quite the different tune several years ago, Rafe,” she said. “Do you remember that?”

He had the grace to look ashamed. “Annie, I was a lot younger then. I had a lot to learn still.”

“Mmm-hmmm. You were. We both were,” Annie conceded. “But I have no reason to believe you’ve changed. What’s more, I have absolutely no desire to learn whether you’re the same or not. Time’s up, Rafe. Take care of yourself.”

To Annie’s surprise, when she turned to go back inside the house, he hurried up the steps and fell to his knees in front of her. He grabbed her hand and pulled it to his mouth.

“Please, Annie. I need to know you’ll forgive me, that you’ll give me a chance,” he cried. She tried to yank her hand loose, but he used both hands to keep hers in his.

“For crying out loud, Rafe! You’re being ridiculous,” she exclaimed. “Get up!”

He shook his head stubbornly. “No, Annie. Not until you forgive me.”

Closing her eyes, she slowly counted to ten. Through gritted teeth, she said, “Let go of my hand, Rafe, or I will kick your balls into the next county.” The words had an immediate effect. He let go but stayed on his knees in front of her.

She rubbed her forehead, where a tension headache was starting to build. “You know, if this was a romance novel, I’d be forgiving you and falling into your arms about now. But this isn’t a romance novel. This is the real world. You abandoned me when I was nineteen years old and pregnant with your child. Then, after I lost that baby, I let you back in again despite all of my misgivings. When you realized I would never be able to bear your children, you rejected me again. What happened, Rafe? Did you go have a family somewhere, and now you’re tired of playing house? You figure I’m a safe bet because you can’t knock me up again?” A flare of shock washed across his face, and Annie knew she had hit the nail on the head.

“That’s disgusting. I was naïve the first time around. I should have known better the second time, but I wanted to give you a chance. Now, though? I know you for who and what you are, and I pity you, Rafe Lewis. I even forgive you,” she said. “But I wouldn’t have you if you came gold-plated. I have no interest in anything you have to offer. Goodbye.” She started to step around him, but he threw his arms around her waist and stopped her.

“But, Annie, darling… I love you! Please, please, I’m begging here. I want to marry you. I love you!”

Annie just stood there, too stunned to move. Before she could respond, a low growl sounded from behind her.

“Well, now, isn’t this just cozy, Murphy? Aren’t you going to answer the man’s question, Annie?” Chase drawled.

Annie winced at the throbbing anger and hurt she could hear in his voice. She reached out to push Rafe away, and as she did, she saw the triumphant gleam in his eyes. Her temper flared and, without thinking about it, her foot shot out and connected with his groin. He immediately crumpled, releasing her as his hands moved to the injured area.

Furious, she turned to Chase, who was watching her with a guarded, stony look. He had Murphy’s carrier under his arm, and the low, steady growl she had heard was still coming from the cat.

Rafe let out a warbling moan. “Oh, shut up,” she told him. “I didn’t hit you that hard. I think you have your answer, don’t you?” He nodded as he gingerly sat up.

“Then I will thank you to take your mangy carcass away from me, and keep it away.” Hands on hips, she looked at Chase. “Any questions?”

Chase cleared his throat and gestured to Murphy. “I should probably get Murphy inside, don’t you think?” Annie moved aside so he could pass. He paused next to her on the porch. “Do you want me to come back out?”

Annie shook her head briefly without looking at him. “No, I’ve got this. Rafe is leaving. Thanks, though,” she added as Chase went inside. The door closed behind him, and Rafe slowly stood up, wincing.

“Go find yourself a sweet young thing who’ll salve your ego,” she told him quietly. “If you’re lucky, you won’t even remember my name in the morning.”

Rafe started down the steps. He turned in the growing dusk and looked up at Annie with a pained expression on his face. “You really think so little of me, then?”

She laughed. “I don’t think anything about you. I know who you are. Have a good life.” He left without another word, and Annie watched as he got in his truck and drove away. She turned to go back inside. Chase was leaning against the door frame, Murphy seated at his feet. When Annie opened the storm door and went in, the cat twitched his tail and gave one last growl in the direction of the driveway. She bent down and scooped him up for a quick hug before releasing him with a sigh.

“Regretting your decision?” Chase asked as he heard the sigh.

“Not hardly.” She started past him, but he grabbed her hand and tugged her back.

“I’m serious, Annie,” he said, his voice quiet. “There isn’t some part of you that wishes you were with him instead of here?”

Astonished, she just stared at him. Surely he didn’t think she would prefer to have Rafe? But as she watched him brace for her answer, she realized that he
did
expect her to choose the other man. You mean ‘here with you,’ right?”

Reluctantly, Chase nodded. Annie stepped closer to him until only an inch or two separated their bodies. She reached up and lightly touched his face, then let her hands fall to his shoulders.

“How is it that you are so strong and so self-possessed, but you have no idea how appealing you are, how loveable you are?” she mused as she touched him. “No, Chase. Not a single part of me wants to be with Rafe. I’m exactly where I want to be. With exactly the person I want to be with.” Murphy meowed, and Annie smiled as she felt his soft paws on her leg. “Sorry, with the people. I adore you two, you know. Any more questions?” she asked softly, not taking her gaze from Chase’s. He shook his head mutely and turned his face to kiss her hand.

A weight lifted from her shoulders that she hadn’t even been aware she was carrying. She bent down and picked up a purring Murphy; her eyes misted as he nuzzled her chin. When she realized that being with Chase and Murphy felt like home, she smiled, and then she laughed out loud.

~ * * * ~

When Chase had pulled up in the driveway earlier and seen Rafe on the porch with Annie, he had almost turned around and left. After everything that had happened, he was already on edge, and the stress of what he knew he had to do this evening had added to that edginess. Knowing who Rafe was and the past he shared with Annie, then seeing him there on Chase’s parents’ property was almost too much. He had gotten out of the car with a somewhat fatalistic mindset. If the day was going to go completely to hell, he told himself, he might as well get it over with. Thankfully, things hadn’t gone the way he had feared. Quite the opposite, in fact.