"I don't follow you...."
"You never really got a chance to adjust." Kyle had headed off to college just two years after the wedding, right after she and Brandon went to Brandon's junior prom, which was something that had always bugged Kyle-even though he and Olivia weren't dating back then. By the time he returned, Brandon was gone. Then they started their careers and, with Brandon out of town so much, it'd been easy for Kyle to forget he even had a stepbrother. Most of the time, he hadn't wanted to talk about Brandon.
"Actually I think we were both relieved about the separation," he said with a wry grin.
"If he finds out I'm here, you could be looking at another challenge to your relationship."
He winked at her. "I'm willing to take that risk."
She glanced around the room. "You're willing to take any risk."
His eyes never left her face. She could feel his close regard, even though she avoided eye contact. "Only if I want something badly enough."
Olivia's phone rang, saving her from a response. She was glad. Whether or not he'd meant what he'd said as a pickup line, she'd felt a tingle down to her toes. She prayed her reaction was because her self-esteem had hit an all-time low. She needed to heal before she involved herself in another relationship, especially with someone so likely to use her without a second thought.
She checked Caller ID. It was her mother. Nancy had been expecting her and must be getting worried. They were supposed to make the favors for the reception after dinner tonight. Olivia had the supplies in her trunk.
Sending Brandon a look asking his forbearance, she overcame her reluctance to take this call and answered, infusing as much lift into her voice as possible. "Hello?"
"Where are you? I was sure you'd be here by now."
Olivia allowed herself a grimace. "I, uh, had a little accident."
"With your car?"
"No. I tripped while loading up and hurt my hand. So I'm running late."
Brandon was watching her, but she continued to avoid his gaze.
"How bad is it? You didn't break any bones … "
"I doubt it," she said, removing the ice pack to take a look.
"Do you need Dr. Harris to x-ray it?"
"We'll see. I'll be there shortly."
"Dinner's at six."
She heard the subtle threat in that statement. They'd eat without her if she wasn't there. "I'll make it."
"Good. Kyle and Noelle are here waiting."
"I bet they are."
Her mother had to have heard the sour note in her voice, but, wisely, she didn't react to it. Since the news of Noelle's pregnancy, Nancy had done her best to minimize Olivia's previous relationship with Kyle. The way she told the story, Noelle was marrying an "old friend" of her other daughter's. Never mind that she and Kyle had slept together. Never mind that they'd talked about marriage themselves.
"Hurry. We have a lot to do."
"See you soon." After she hung up, she returned her attention to Brandon. "It was very gallant of you to rescue me from my imaginary bee attack, but I've got to go."
"You sure you're ready for what lies ahead?"
"No, but I never will be. It's like going in for a root canal. Better to get the pain over with." She rolled her eyes. "Noelle and Kyle are anxiously awaiting my arrival."
"Lucky you," he said dryly.
"Exactly."
"Where are you staying?"
"My parents'."
He made a face. "Isn't your sister living there?"
She drank the rest of her wine, put her glass on the coffee table and got up. "Until Saturday night, when her new husband whisks her off to wedded bliss."
"You're more forgiving than I am."
"I could pay for a hotel, but I'd be a hundred bucks poorer. How would that bother them?"
"Good point." He stood, too. "Just don't let loose on any inanimate objects again. You might break your other hand."
"I've learned my lesson," she responded, but just hearing her mother's voice had put a lump in her throat. She couldn't help feeling betrayed by her parents, too, because they were so eager to throw their support behind this wedding. She knew they had a grandchild at stake, but still …
After using his bathroom to fix her makeup, she found Brandon standing at the window, looking outside. "What do you think? Can you tell I've been crying?"
"I never would've guessed."
She suspected he might be placating her, but she didn't push. "Maybe I should change into something more conservative."
"Are you kidding?" He whistled. "Let Kyle eat his heart out."
That almost made her smile, until she imagined the reality of the next few hours. "I'll probably be the miserable one."
Although he continued to study her, she could tell he'd shifted gears. "If it gets too bad, you could always come back here."
She arched her eyebrows. "So we could … "
His grin turned her knees to water. "Sleep. Of course. And I won't charge you for the room."
"Maybe you'd let me check out your big telescope," she said, widening her eyes in feigned innocence.
"If you want to see the stars, I could give you a night to remember," he said, playing along.
She laughed. "The ultimate revenge?"
"No," he said, growing serious. "What I've wanted since prom."
"That's why you dropped me off at the end of the night and have avoided me ever since?"
"I knew I wasn't what you needed. You're too sensitive."
He was right. That had been true then, and it was true now. If someone as trustworthy and admired as Kyle could hurt her so terribly, how would she ever survive the kind of emotional damage someone like Brandon could wreak?
"But I'll go easy on you," he added with a grin. "My number's in your phone, in case you need it."
"Thanks." She was surprised he'd taken the liberty. She was a little flattered, too. But she had no intention of returning. She hadn't been with a man in three months. That wouldn't have seemed like a long time before her relationship with Kyle, but it felt like an eternity now that she knew what she was missing. She couldn't come back. She'd only get herself into trouble if she did, because it wasn't Brandon's telescope she wanted him to share.
Chapter 3
Kyle's work truck, a Ford F-150, sat in her parents' driveway. Olivia had expected to see it, but her heart sank all the same.
Taking a breath, trying to bolster herself, she got out of her Acura and started toward the front door, rolling her suitcase behind her with a sense of determination and purpose that belied the pain.
You can do this. Just keep your chin up and try to forget that this is Kyle and Noelle. Pretend they're are no different from any of the other couples you've worked with.
It was a wedding, a job, she told herself. But she hadn't been home since she'd moved away. Her only contact had been through her mother, who shared various details over the phone, like Kyle buying a new car because Noelle "hated" trucks.
Olivia felt strange marching up to her parents' front door knowing that nothing was as it used to be, that Kyle wasn't waiting for her in quite the same way as he'd waited for her in the past.
"I've entered The Twilight Zone," she muttered.
She spotted a flurry of movement at the window. Then the door flew open and her mother descended on her. "There you are! I've been worried. Let me see what you've done to your poor hand."
Grateful for the distraction, she displayed her injury.
"Oh, dear." Her mother's eyebrows knitted. "Look at that. Of all times for something like this to happen. Well, come on in. We'll get some ice. Maybe we'll be able to put you on the left side when we take the wedding pictures so the swelling doesn't show."
"I don't need to be in the pictures at all," she said before she could stop the words.
Nancy's smile faded. The expression on her face suggested she was about to respond, but whether she was going to warn her not to ruin the wedding, or say she was sorry about what Olivia must be feeling, Olivia never heard because Kyle strode out to greet her.
Olivia thanked God that Noelle wasn't with him. Seeing him was bad enough. He seemed reluctant yet eager to approach, which added more confusion to the emotions currently assaulting her.
"I'm glad you're safe," he said.
Their eyes met briefly before she jerked hers away, but he kept his smile stubbornly in place as he hurried to assist with her suitcase.
Obviously he'd been anticipating this moment and was prepared for it. Olivia had tried to prepare, too. Little good had it done her. Nausea threatened to ruin her calculated indifference.