The Billionaire's Best Friend (The Sherbrookes of Newport) (5 page)

Lauren tried to block the vision from forming by thinking of Kevin instead. Despite her best effort, Kevin
’s image disappeared and Nate’s took his place. “I’d tell him it’s nice to see him, but I’m with someone. Why would I want to risk what I have with Kevin for someone I haven’t seen or heard from since high school?” Grabbing the waterproof mattress cover and sheet off the changing table, Lauren crossed to the crib. When she’d agreed to help with the final preparations in the nursery, she hadn’t expected an interrogation as well. In retrospect, she should have expected it.

“
Good. Nate doesn’t deserve you,” Kelly said curtly before switching gears. “I’m glad we got to meet Kevin. I liked him.”

“
Mom and Dad liked him, too.” Lauren covered the mattress with the waterproof pad. “Do you think Mom had fun?”

Apparently not ready to talk about something else, Kelly ignored her sister
’s question. “How are things with Kevin? Do you love him?”

She held back a groan. It was always about love with Kelly.
“No, not yet. We’ve only been dating a few months, Kel.”

“
And what about Neal, did you love him?” Kelly asked, referring to the pharmacist Lauren had dated the previous summer. “Or Marcus?”

Lauren tugged to get the sheet around the corner of the crib mattress. Maybe if she ignored her sister, Kelly would get the hint.

“What about Roger? Did you love him?” Kelly said, naming the last of the three men Lauren had dated in the last five years.

Annoyance and anger bubbled up inside Lauren. Dropping the mattress back into the crib, she spun on her heel.
“I liked them all, you know that, but no, I didn’t love them. If I had, I’d still be with one of them. So what’s your point?”

Kelly rose from her chair, effort showing in her clumsy movement, and walked over to her.
“Other than Nate, you’ve had one relationship that lasted more than nine months. And I think that’s because you don’t give any of them a chance. I think a part of you still loves Nate.”

“
Or maybe I just haven’t met the right guy,” Lauren shot back, reaching for the sheet again. “Who knows? Kevin might be the one.”

With a sarcastic laugh, Kelly leaned her arm on the side of the crib.

“What’s that cackle supposed to mean?”

“
I don’t think you’ll give him a chance, either.” Kelly shrugged. “He nice and I hope it works out, but . . .” Kelly’s voice trailed off.

“
But what?” Prior to this conversation, they’d talked very little about Kevin, or her love life for that matter.

“
I think you will find something you don’t like about him and end things.”

“
You’re wrong.”

Kelly placed a hand on her arm.
“No, I’m not, Lauren, and I get it. I know how you felt about Nate. A person cannot simply get rid of feelings like that.” Kelly’s voice changed from her big sister know-it-all tone to her soothing therapist tone. “I think your love for him has kept you from falling in love with anyone else. But it’s time to move past him. Really get on with your life.”

Another denial sat on the tip of her tongue, but what was the point? Kelly was right, but only in part. Her inability to find love had nothing to do with Nate. She refused to believe that.
No, she simply had not met the right man. Maybe this time with Kevin it would happen.

“
Not that he plans on it, but even if Nate Callahan showed up tonight and asked me out, I’d say no.” A tiny pain shot through Lauren’s chest. Ignoring it, she continued. “And you’re wrong. I am giving Kevin a chance.”

“
For your sake, I hope so. I think he could be the one.”

Biting her lip, Lauren counted to five before speaking. She didn
’t want to argue with Kelly. “How about on this one we agree to disagree, okay? Arguing won’t change whatever happens between Kevin and me.”

With a loud sigh, Kelly nodded.
“Fair enough, I guess. At least for now.” She wrapped an arm around Lauren’s shoulders. “How about we take a break in here? I picked up double chocolate chip brownies from Rosie’s yesterday.”

“
You’re just telling me this now? You should’ve brought those out the minute I walked in.”

Lauren followed her sister into the kitchen. As they sat enjoying the chocolaty desserts from the town
’s best kept secret, they talked mostly about the upcoming birth of Kelly’s first baby and the baby shower Kelly’s co-workers had thrown for her. Despite the pleasant conversation, Lauren’s thoughts routinely drifted back to their conversation in the nursery. While what Kelly said was partially true, she’d never admit it aloud. On some level she’d never stopped loving Nate. She’d tried countless times to vanquish the feelings, but a tiny seed of love for him always remained. Eventually she’d assumed her residual feelings toward him were normal. They’d grown up together and he’d been her first love. Surely it was normal for your first love to always have a place in your heart. But regardless of what Kelly said, her inability to find love had nothing to do with Nate. It simply was a matter of not yet finding the right man. Just because Kelly had met and fallen in love with her husband while in college didn’t mean everyone did. People met in all kinds of ways and at different times in their lives. Who knew? A year from now she and Kevin may be madly in love with each other. So what if she was not in love with him yet. She enjoyed spending time with him, and they had fun together. That type of relationship could easily turn into love. Not all relationships started off with fireworks.

Biting into the rich brownie, Lauren tried to picture herself with Kevin ten years from now. No matter how hard she tried, the visual wouldn
’t form. While she could picture herself several years from now sitting in her living room watching a movie while cuddled up next to someone, Kevin’s face wasn’t the one sitting beside her. Instead, Nate sat on the sofa, his arm around her.

Without stopping to consider what her actions might tell her sister, Lauren popped the last bite of her brownie into her mouth and reached for a second. For years she
’d kept thoughts of Nate Callahan blocked out, safely stored away. Now, though, she couldn’t get him out of her head.

***

Nate pressed down on the accelerator of his Mustang as he hit the apex of the turn on Breakneck Hill and grinned. It’d been a long time since he’d driven the curvy road, but he still knew where each and every turn was. Man, it felt good to be home. Until the weekend before when he’d moved back into the apartment over his parents’ garage, he hadn’t realized just how much he’d missed Ridgefield.

Crossing over the town line into
Slatersville, he turned onto Milford Road toward the center of town and Elm Street. He’d gotten Lauren’s address from his mom the day after the retirement party. When he’d asked if she knew where Lauren lived, she hadn’t asked any questions. Instead she’d given him a small smile, pulled out her address book, and wished him luck. He’d wanted to stop by that afternoon, but an appointment with a realtor made that impossible.

Turning right onto Elm Street, he slowed the car so he could check house numbers. All the homes on the street were either small capes or ranches with small yards. A few homes had swing sets or pools in the backyard, but for the most part it was your typical cookie-cutter neighborhood.

A mailbox with flowers painted on the sides and a large number four told him he’d reached his destination. Turning into the driveway behind a red Mini Cooper with a bumper sticker that read “Love to Dance,” he killed the engine. Nervous energy shot through him as he studied the well-kept ranch before him. From the looks of it, the home had been recently painted, perhaps that past fall, and squat shrubs sat in a row in front of the farmer’s porch. Right now the shrubs were still bare, but in the summer he imagined they’d be alive with color. A flagpole with an American flag was attached to the home and a black lamppost sat at the end of the brick walkway.

Getting out of the car, he slammed the door shut. Beneath his boots the gravel crackled as he strolled up to the walkway. The sound of a nearby wind chime and children playing outside a few houses down faded away as the blood thundering in his ears increased. Polite but distant described her behavior at the party. While she
’d reacted much differently in his dreams, her initial reaction to his return didn’t shock him, but it did disappoint him. A lot of time had passed since their last summer together. How would she react today?

Despite the cool temperature, a trickle of sweat ran down his back as he pressed the doorbell. Immediately, he heard a dog bark inside. As he waited, the dog inside continued to bark, but Lauren still didn
’t appear. Was she out? Had her date from the party come by and picked her up? With all the noise the dog made, she had to know someone was outside if she was home.

Damn it
. He wanted to talk to her tonight. He’d already waited longer than he wanted. Inside, the dog became silent. Was it worth it to try the bell again? If his first attempt combined with the dog’s racket hadn’t told her she had a visitor, would a second attempt make a difference? On the other hand, he had nothing to lose by trying again.

Nate
’s finger zeroed in on the doorbell, but he stopped when Lauren opened the door. She was dressed in a long dark pink sweater with black leggings, and her ash blonde hair hung in a wet tangled mess around her shoulders. A black dog stood next to her, its tailing wagging back and forth. For a heartbeat or two, they both stared at each other, neither saying a word. Even with her uncombed wet hair and shell-shocked expression, she looked more beautiful today than she had when they’d dated.

“
Nate?” Lauren’s forehead creased. “What . . . why are you here?” She shook her head. “How did you know where I live?”

“
I asked my mother.” Starting with the simple questions seemed best.

“
Oh. Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

Did she plan to invite him in? Standing in front of the open door with wet hair, she had to be cold.
“Mind if I come in?” While he’d stand on the front step and talk all day if he had to, he figured they’d both be more comfortable inside.

Lauren blushed and took a step back.
“Sorry. You surprised me. Come on in.”

Although she let him, she didn
’t move from her new spot near the door or ask him to sit. “So, uh, what are you doing here?” Lauren pushed a clump of wet hair away from her face.

Nate glanced around the room briefly, searching for the right words before looking back at
Lauren. Confusion and unease radiated from her expression. “I hoped we could talk,” he said, wishing that he’d practiced what he wanted to say. “Catch up and stuff. I’ve missed you.” Okay, so he’d never get a job writing romantic greeting cards, but he’d been honest with her.

Lauren frowned up at him.
“Now isn’t a good time. I’m getting ready to go out. When you rang the bell I was in the shower. I still need to fix my hair and do my makeup.

Jealousy exploded around his heart.
“The snob from the party taking you out?” Nate tried to keep the anger from his voice, but the surprise on Lauren’s face told him he’d failed.

“
Kevin, my boyfriend, will be here soon.”

He didn
’t miss the slight pause before she said “boyfriend,” as if it was the first time she’d referred to him that way.

“
We’ll have to catch up some other time.” Lauren added, her arms crossing over her chest. She glared at him.

Nate wanted to kick himself. This visit wasn
’t going the way he’d intended. “Lauren, I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.” He took a step toward her, but stopped when her dog moved to sit directly in front of her. “I didn’t come by to argue. I came here to talk. I hoped we could go out and catch up.” Ignoring the dog standing guard, he took another step toward her. “I’ve missed you.” Reaching for her hand, he intended to pull her arms away from her chest, but the moment he reached for her, she took a step back.

“
You’ve missed me?” Lauren asked with disbelief. “How can you say that when not once in fifteen years did you contact me?”

Guilt slammed into him.
“It’s not that I didn’t think about it.”

“
Thinking and doing are two different things, Nate,” she said. Her light brown eyes narrowed and her voice turned cold.

Prepared to apologize, Nate opened his mouth but the doorbell rang, and he didn
’t get the opportunity to say anything. Once again the dog barked wildly as Lauren groaned and threw up her hands.

“
Great. Kevin’s here, and I’m not ready.” Without another glance in his direction, she walked around him to the door.

As if this visit weren
’t already going downhill fast, now he had her boyfriend, or whatever he was, to contend with too. Turning toward the door, he watched her welcome Kevin inside.

“
I’m running a little behind.” She closed the front door behind Kevin. “You remember Nate from the other night.” She nodded in his direction. “He stopped by to say hello.”