Unexpectedly Yours(20)

Had Derek left without saying good-bye to her? Her heart chilled.

"Hello? Anyone at home?" a male voice called from the hallway. "Hannah?"

The chill in her heart flooded her entire body. She couldn't move a muscle as her brother strode into the kitchen.

"Hey, Hannah." Caleb dumped a basket filled with clothes on the table.

"Caleb! Wh-what are you doing here? I-I thought you were only coming back tomorrow."

"We finished early, so I drove back last night. My washing machine's on the fritz, so I thought I'd come here to do my laundry."

"Uh, why don't you leave that and I'll put them in the washer for you."

Her brother eyed her quizzically. "Thanks, but I can do my own laundry, sis."

Hannah pulled her bathrobe closer, horribly aware that she was stark  naked underneath and that Derek was still upstairs. Oh God, Derek. What  would happen if the two men met?

"You just got out of bed?" Caleb studied her more closely before a red  tide swept over his face. "Jesus Christ. You've got a guy upstairs,  don't you?"

She twisted her fingers around the belt tie of her bathrobe, trying to  appear nonchalant. She was an adult and years older than Caleb. She  didn't need his permission to sleep with anyone.

"I, er, yes, as a matter of fact."

"Oh, shit." Caleb tugged at the back of his hair, looking poleaxed. "I didn't think you'd … you know … "

Indignation spurted in her. "What? You think I'm too old for sex?"

Her brother winced. "No, it's just that, well, I didn't think you'd jump in so soon after your breakup."

"It's been six months since the divorce."

"Yeah, but-" He heaved out a sigh as he swiped his hand over his face,  clearly still disturbed. "Hannah, I know how much that douche-bag hurt  you, and I kinda feel responsible."   





 

"How can you feel responsible for Rick being a lying cheat?"

"Because … " He hesitated before bursting out, "Because I saw him hitting  on some girl just before your wedding, and I sensed he was no good for  you, but somehow he convinced me it was nothing, so I kept my mouth  shut. But I should've known better. I should've told you."

Hannah gaped at her brother. "I don't know what to say," she muttered in shock.

"It's my fault," Caleb continued. "But I'm not making the same mistake  twice. I'm looking out for you, sis. I'm not letting you end up with  another player like Rick."

Feeling sick, Hannah groped for a chair and sank into it. She hoped and  prayed that Derek had heard Caleb and would stay out of sight. Derek  wasn't a lying cheat, but he was a player, and she didn't want to  imagine what would happen if Caleb found out he was the man she'd spent  the night with.

"It's sweet of you to care so much," she said weakly, "but it's not necessary. I'm an adult."

"I don't care if it's not necessary." A dogged look came over Caleb.  "I'm your brother, and I won't let you get hurt again." He jerked his  head toward the ceiling. "That guy you've got upstairs, anyone I know?"

"No!" She jumped at the sharpness of her tone. Her nerves screwed up. "It's … no one."

"So it's just a one-off? Nothing significant?"

"Yes." She couldn't take much more of this interrogation. The suspense  was hurting so much she wanted to scream. She pushed to her feet. "Look,  I hate to rush you off, but it's better if you don't meet … him."

"Yeah, I understand. Just as long as you're sure it's nothing serious."

"I'm sure." She was dying to shove her brother out the door. "Leave your laundry with me. I'll take care of it."

"Naw, that's okay." He hefted the basket under one arm and walked  through the hall. Hannah followed anxiously, hoping like crazy that  Derek was out of sight. Thank heavens Derek had left his car at his  granddad's. They made it to the front door without mishap, and she waved  her brother good-bye. Only when he had driven off did she allow herself  to shut the door and lean against it, exhaling a long sigh of relief.

Footsteps sounded on the staircase, and she stiffened again as Derek came into sight.

"Thank God Caleb didn't see you," she exclaimed, still in shock over the close call.

"I can see that scared the shit out of you." Derek's face was set, and  his mouth was grim. "Glad to know I'm just a nobody you picked up for  the night."

Her face flamed. "I couldn't exactly tell him it was you! You heard him.  He thinks somehow he's responsible for me ending up with Rick."

"Would you have canceled the wedding if Caleb had told you about Rick?"

"I don't know." She pushed her hands through her hair. A headache was  starting to pound in her temples. "Probably not. I was infatuated with  Rick and so eager to marry him. I would've believed any tale he spun for  me. I had a massive blind spot to him for years." She uttered a groan.  "But this isn't about Rick. It's about Caleb, and what he means to me,  and to you. Knowing his attitude, he'd be horrified if he found out  we've slept together twice."

Derek crossed his arms, his stance filled with tension. "Because I'm a player just like Rick?"

She swallowed. "Well, you and Marla Beaudry … "

"Are no longer an item."

"But there were other women before her, lots of women." It hurt to say it, but she couldn't avoid the truth.

His fingers dug into his arms. "I can't change the past."

"But there's no future for us, either. You have your business in L.A.,  your television career, and-and I promised myself that, when the time  was right and I was ready, I'd choose a completely different man from  Rick. Someone older, more mature, someone settled and stable."

"Jeez, you really want to end up with a boring old fart?"

She glared at him. "If the boring old fart will treasure me and love me, then yes! That's what I want."

"Well, good luck with that."

"I don't see why you're getting so mad. We both knew our fling was just that-a fling. And that it was secret."

He clenched and unclenched his jaw several times before slowly exhaling.  "I guess I was hoping for something more, but you've put me in my place  now. Don't worry. I won't tell Caleb. I don't want to hurt him either."   





 

His face was drawn and pale. She'd hurt Derek. The realization made her heart contract.

"I'm sorry if I belittled you. I couldn't think straight when Caleb was here. You know you're not a nobody to me."

She was almost pleading for understanding, but Derek's stony eyes were unrelenting.

"I'll see myself out."

Derek moved toward the front door, and Hannah stepped aside. He left without another word.





Chapter Eleven

Derek returned to his granddad's house, churned up and seething. He  couldn't remain in Otto's company for long without exploding, so he got  into his SUV. He drove out to the mountains like a man on the run and  got booked for speeding, by the same grizzled cop who'd stopped him his  first night back in Pine Falls.

"Keep this up, and you'll be going to traffic school," the police officer dourly predicted as he handed Derek the fine.

Bite me, Officer. Somehow Derek kept his mouth shut until Officer Grady  left before letting out a string of curses. When he ran out of  invectives, he hauled in a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He couldn't really blame Hannah for saying those things about him to  Caleb. Everything she said was true. He was going back to L.A. in a  week's time and wasn't planning to return anytime soon. And he did have a  history as a player. Marla was just the latest in a long line of women  who had drifted in and out of his life. But since he'd seen Hannah  again, his whole philosophy on women had undergone a seismic shift.  Hannah wasn't like the other women he'd fooled around with. Initially,  he'd wanted to sleep with her because of his enduring crush on her, but  since then his feelings had morphed into something more complex.

He liked being with her more than anyone else in the world. She was  sensitive, sweet, and unselfish, and when she let her hair down she was a  blast. He didn't just want to have sex with her, he wanted to be with  her all the time, share the good and the bad. But to her he was just a  fling and one she wanted to keep secret from everyone, especially Caleb.  And Caleb wasn't the sole issue, because even before he'd shown up,  Derek had stated he wanted more and she'd shot him down.

Derek uttered a deep sigh at the thought of Caleb. His oldest friend,  the one who had taken the rap for him so he could have a brighter  future.

One night, just before Hannah's wedding, Derek and Caleb had been  driving Caleb's dad's car. Derek had been behind the wheel. For weeks  his mood had soured as the reality of Hannah's wedding sunk in. He  couldn't think of anything besides the fact that Hannah was leaving.  He'd been distracted, which was probably why he crashed the car. They'd  emerged unhurt, but the car had been seriously damaged. Derek, already  on thin ice with the law, would have faced juvenile detention, so Caleb  had taken the blame for him because he had a clean record, and the most  he'd face was a suspended license. Derek had been able to graduate from  high school and go to L.A. He owed so much to his friend.