After the Rain (The Callahans) (23 page)

“It’s not all him, Faye. We went into this relationship knowing that I was leaving after today. It’s not like it’s a shock to either one of us.”

“Love changes things,” Faye insisted. “He loves you too, Kyle. You have to see that.”

“He’s not ready to admit anything, Faye.”

“He wants you to stay. I can see it in his eyes.”

“Well he didn’t ask me to. And I’m not sure I would stay, even if he did. I have a job in Montana—friends. I have a house, Faye. I can’t just walk away from my life there permanently, without thinking things over.”

Faye frowned, her eyes filling again. “But I like having you here. I want you to be here when the baby is born.”

Kylie felt her eyes blurring too. “I’ll come back. I’m not turning my back on you.”

“Just Trey?” she asked, quietly.

“I’m not turning my back on him either. That’s not fair.”

“You’ve been good for him,” Faye said, smiling halfway. “He’s finally living again, after all that Shayna crap. It took years—and you—for that to happen.”

“We’ll play things by ear. Can you accept that for now?”

Faye wanted to protest, that was obvious. In the end, she didn’t. Instead, she sighed. “I’m going to miss you so much.”

“I’ll miss you too.” Kylie met her friend halfway in a hug.

Hearing music start outside, Kylie squeezed Faye’s hands tightly. “You’re marrying a great guy, Faye. I’m so happy for you.”

Faye swiped at her tears again and groaned. “Okay enough. I’m going to look terrible before I even get out there. I want you to do something for me, okay?”

“Anything,” Kylie said, solemnly.

“Be a little patient with Trey. Don’t just write him off. He’s going to do the right thing, Kylie. I know he is. But he’s a thinker. He has to mull things over for a really, long time before he gets down to business. He’s not Paul though. Just remember that.”

Kylie knew that was true. Moments later, as she walked down the aisle and her eye caught Trey’s, her heart seemed to break. She couldn’t read him. He was smiling, standing up there next to Dusty, looking stunning in his black tuxedo. Unfortunately, as usual, his feelings were closed off. His expression gave away literally nothing.

The ceremony was quick, but emotional. When Dusty kissed his bride, cheers erupted from around the room. Everyone moved on to the reception at Callahan’s. As Kylie had imagined, the restaurant was perfect for the event. They had all spent the night before decorating it in Faye’s colors, with flowers and balloons.

Time flew by and soon the newlyweds had danced their first dance and cut their cake. Before long, they headed off for a Hawaiian honeymoon.

Kylie watched their taillights disappear and sighed. It was really all over. She turned and looked over at the bar, where people were still dancing and having a good time.

She saw Trey coming toward her and her breath caught. He was a beautiful man, just like his brothers. The tuxedo he wore had been dismantled by this time. His crisp, white shirt was un-tucked and his tie had disappeared. His sleeves were missing the cufflinks and were rolled up now. He had a bottle of champagne in his hand. When he reached her, he nodded his head. “Come with me for a while.”

“Where?” she asked, curiously.

“Just come.”

He led her toward his truck. They both climbed inside and he started the engine. A moment later, they pulled up in front of the farm. He climbed from the vehicle and motioned for her to follow him around to the back of the guesthouse. When he reached the swing set, he indicated for her to sit.

She raised a brow, but sat. She heard him pop the cork on the champagne. Then he took a swig of it before sitting down on the swing next to hers and offering her the bottle.

She took it without question and swallowed some of the bubbly liquid.

“I talked to Danny.”

The words surprised her and she smiled. “You did?”

He took the champagne again. “I told him I was done with the grudge. I probably won’t ever trust him again but I won’t stand in the way of him seeing Mamaw. She likes him. He’s good to her.” He took a long drink and then shrugged his shoulders. “Hating him hasn’t helped me all that much. You’re right about that.”

“I’m proud of you.” She reached over and picked up his free hand. “I know it wasn’t easy for you to do that.”

“Yeah, well, I probably wasn’t quite gracious enough with him for you to be proud of me.” He grinned and she smiled too.

He let a breath out. “Hell, I’m going to miss you.”

Tears swarmed her eyes and she looked away from him. “I’m going to miss you too.”

“So, stay.”

The words surprised her. She looked at him but he was staring out into the darkness. “For how long,” she finally asked, knowing his answer wasn’t going to be the forever she was looking for.

“I don’t know,” he finally admitted.

Her heart cracked a little. “What does that mean?”

He offered her the champagne, but still didn’t look at her.

She ignored the bottle. “I can’t stay here, Trey. I have a life back home. I’ve avoided it for long enough.”

“I know there are probably words you want to hear right now, Kylie. I’m not sure I can say them.”

“I don’t want to hear anything you can’t say outright, Trey. For now, me leaving is probably the best thing. It will give us both time to think.”

“And then what?”

She thought her answer over, carefully. “And then I guess we’ll know what we want as individuals—what we need.”

“I care about you,” he finally managed to get out. “More than I ever planned on.”

Knowing how hard it was for him to get his feelings out, she smiled. “I care about you too. This isn’t goodbye. It’s just—”

“Goodnight?” he finished for her, with a smile on his face that never really reached his eyes.

“Something like that.”

They were both silent after that. They sat on the swings, quietly passing the champagne bottle back and forth between them until it was empty. The moon disappeared behind a large thicket of clouds and the only noise they heard was the sound of crickets chirping in the night.

“You could stay here tonight,” he said, finally breaking the silence.

“I could,” she managed to choke out. “But it would only be harder for me in the morning. My parents are up at the house. I should probably go up there.”

He nodded without a word.

It took every bit of strength she could muster, but she got up from the swing and reached over, running a hand through his short black hair. “I meant it when I said you’re a good man, Trey Callahan.”

He pulled her toward him and let his head fall against her stomach. They stayed like that until she couldn’t take it anymore. Then she turned and forced herself to walk away.

24

Trey stared at the clock on the wall of his office. It was ten AM. He’d been sitting there at his desk for two hours now, staring into space. It seemed to him he’d been doing that a lot lately. Fortunately, things had been quiet in Callahan so nothing vital needed his attention

It had been fourteen days since Dusty and Faye’s wedding—two long weeks since Kylie had left.

He frowned, much as he did every time he thought about her. They hadn’t talked. Every time he picked up the phone, he set it back down again. What did he really have to say to her? That he was a coward for letting her go in the first place?

Irritated, he leaned back in his chair. Mamaw had set him straight on that subject. Faye had backed her up. She and Dusty had called from Hawaii the night before and she’d let him have it when she’d learned he’d let Kylie go. Trey had let her have her say. What was the point in arguing at this point? He knew she was right. He
was
a coward. He’d vowed to keep his distance from women, after what had happened with Shayna. That’s what he’d been doing all these years, until Kylie had come along.

Why in the hell had she changed everything for him?

He ran a hand over his face in frustration, wishing he could get her out of his head for good. He supposed sitting here alone, day in and day out, wasn’t the answer.

Hearing his phone ring, he grimaced. He wasn’t really in the mood for another lecture from Faye. Checking the caller ID, he saw it was Beau.

“Hey,” he finally answered.

“What’s up, bro?”

“Same old thing,” Trey answered, absently. “What’s new with you?”

“We won last night. It was a good game. Did you see?”

“I haven’t been watching a lot of television.” He instantly felt guilty. “But I’ll catch the game tonight. Where you playing?”

“California. I guess Faye was right.”

Trey rolled his eyes. “About what?”

“About you lolling around feeling sorry for yourself. What gives?”

“I don’t feel sorry for myself.”

“I’m just quoting Faye.”

“Well quit quoting her. I’ve heard enough out of her for a while.”

“She can be overbearing,” Beau agreed. “So we’ve got a good line-up the next couple of nights. Oakland. You should come out and see us play. I’ve got a short break after that. We could hang out.”

“Now’s not the best time,” Trey replied, not giving the request much thought.

“Sure it is. You haven’t taken a vacation in ages. Hop on a plane and I’ll pick you up. I could use the company.”

Trey frowned at that. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Nothing’s going on. I get a little homesick every now and then. Be nice to see a friendly face.”

“You see a million friendly faces a day,” Trey reminded him. “Most of them female.”

Beau laughed at that. “I don’t mind sharing. That’s exactly what you need.”

“That’s exactly what I
don’t
need,” Trey argued, though the idea of getting away for a while was starting to hold some appeal to him. His brother was right; he hadn’t taken a vacation in years.

“Well, women or not, we could have a little fun. California has some great beaches and the weather’s still warm here.”

“Let me think about it and I’ll let you know.”

“It would do you good, Trey. Do more than think about it, huh? I’m at the Hilton near Anaheim.”

They disconnected and Trey went back to staring at the clock in his office.

Kylie sat on the couch mulling over paint samples. Kate Nyland sat across from her on the floor and Richard Melzo stood in the doorway to the kitchen, a pitcher of margaritas in his hand. It had been eight days since she’d been home from Arizona. The drive itself had taken five, mostly because she and her parents had made a stop or two along the way. Truth be told, she’d enjoyed her time with them. When she had finally dropped them off at their house, she had been a little sad to see them go. She was not excited to face her lonely home. Lucky for her, Kate and Richard had other ideas.

Richard lived next door and he’d been helping Kylie out with her fixer since she’d moved in. He was only too excited to get started on the work again—and even more excited to learn that Paul would no longer be around to breathe down his neck.

Richard and Kate tended to have a love/hate relationship. Richard was opinionated and carefree. Kate was opinionated and conservative. More often than not, they clashed.

“Green is too dark.” Kate said.

“Yellow is too bright,” Richard argued.

Kylie glanced at the samples before her. They were deciding on a scheme for the bedroom. “I kind of like beige.”

“Too boring,” they both said together and then grinned.

Richard walked over and poured them each a margarita. “I think you should go with something wild and crazy. Something eccentric.”

“Like what, orange?” Kate asked.

“I was thinking more like this one.” He held up a fancy green sample.

“That’s pea green,” Kate said. Kylie couldn’t argue with her. It was very green.

“You’re not into this right now, are you?” Richard sat down next to Kylie and took a sip of his drink.

“I’m into it,” she argued, though she knew she didn’t sound very convincing. The truth was, she wasn’t into looking at paint samples. In fact, she had lost interest in decorating the house. She wasn’t sure why. She’d been excited about it when she’d left for Arizona. Of course, that had been before Trey. Lately, he was all she thought about, no matter how hard she tried to push him out of her mind.

“Still no call, huh?” Kate smiled sympathetically, as she took a drink of margarita.

“I’ve only been home for a little over a week.”

“You’ve been gone from Arizona for two,” Richard pointed out.

“Shut up, Richard,” Kate said, giving him a dirty look. She turned back to Kylie. “He’s a man, Kyles. You know how men can be.”

“I don’t. So why don’t you tell me?” Richard said, frowning.

“If you insist,” Kate said, her dark eyes meeting his lighter ones. “Men are lazy when it comes to commitment. They move like turtles. It’s a known fact.”

“That’s not true,” Richard argued. “I do not move like a turtle.”

“You haven’t had a date in months, Richard. Please.” Kate turned back to Kylie, ignoring Richard’s scowl. “Give it a little time. It will all work itself out.”

“You can call him, you know,” Richard mused, setting his drink down on the coffee table. “In this day and age, it’s perfectly acceptable for a woman to pursue a man.”

Kate swore under her breath.

“It’s true,” Richard argued.

“That’s a great way to look desperate, if you ask me,” Kate said, rolling her eyes.

“I didn’t,” Richard said, shooting her an icy glare.

“Can we drop this?” Kylie asked, annoyed. The truth was, she had picked up the phone to call Trey a dozen times. Each time, she set the phone back down. He was in Arizona and she was here. Nothing was going to change that, even if she did call him.

“I think you need to go out and have some fun. We need to find you a date.” Kate appeared thoughtful. “What about that new sixth grade teacher? Mr. Waffle is his name I think. He was at the staff meeting you missed the other day. He’s pretty hot.”

“I don’t want a date,” Kylie snapped. “Will you go back to the paint colors? That’s something I can get into.”

“Who wants to date someone named after a breakfast food anyway?” Richard asked.

Kate glared at him and then smiled mischievously at Kylie. “You could get toasted and drunk dial him. I’d love to see that one.”