Crossing Boundaries (Cape Falls) (13 page)

Laura smiled at his words and rubbed the tears from her eyes. “I do care about you, Peter.” She kissed his cheek and walked home.

* * * *

Laura stayed home and didn’t call Dean. Her brother was watching a film on the television and she sat on the floor reading a course book. Her mother had come in a few hours later with several bags. She didn’t know what was for dinner, but it looked like something special.

Like have an affair with a man older than you.

Laura chuckled and went back to her book. Her mother walked in twenty minutes after her dad came home.

“I invited Dean Riley over for dinner tonight. I want you all on your best behavior,” her mother announced before dinner was ready.

Laura panicked and rushed upstairs. No one in her family paid attention to her. This would be the first time she’d seen him since his trip. Is that why he didn’t arrange a meeting with her? Because he knew he’d be coming here for dinner? Did this have anything to do with him withdrawing from her? All sorts of questions ran through her mind and she couldn’t think of a single reason. Maybe she’d have time to talk with him.

She checked her hair and made sure her shirt wasn’t stained by any grease or anything. Satisfied with her appearance, she paced herself and when the doorbell rang she made her way slowly down the stairs.

He wore dark blue jeans and a crisp white shirt. His tan looked good and his grey streaked hair made him seem all the more mature. She couldn’t believe he was here in her parent’s house about to have dinner. Especially when she visualized his head licking her wet cunt between her spread thighs.

Dean moved out of the doorway and her heart stopped. What felt like a million punches hit her in her solar plexus.

“I’m sorry, Mrs Cox, but I brought a date with me. This is Kimmy,” he introduced the woman.

What the hell was happening?

“There you are. Come on down, Laura,” her mother called.

She moved past the guests and went straight to her seat in the dining room. Her dad was already seated and she took the seat to his right, hating her mum with every passing second as she sat Kimmy and Dean in front of her. Dean shook hands with her dad and she averted her gaze when he stared at her. She couldn’t do this.

Help me.

“At a conference. Dean was giving a talk on one of his books and he just snapped me up,” Kimmy, the blond beauty with the fake boobs and hot body, replied.

With every second, all the words and the loving he’d given her over the past month was reduced to nothing. His words had no meaning anymore.

As the dinner progressed, Laura pushed her food around her plate. She couldn’t stomach this. Her parent’s were constantly treating her like a child. Thoughts and ideas ran through her head. Was this Dean’s way of getting rid of her? Was Kimmy more than an acquaintance? She thought that with time Dean would learn to love her. He cared, she knew and understood that.

If she pulled out of college and worked full time at the library and took evening shifts at the diner she could make enough money to rent a small flat. As far as she was concerned, she wouldn’t be living with her parents for much longer.

You fucking traitor.

She’d told him to never say anything about her writing.

“You write, honey?” fake boobs asked.

Laura glanced down at her plate of pasta. The pain and heartache she was feeling was too much. This was worse than any rejection any woman could receive.

Laura closed her eyes as her parents began to argue. Every emotion for the past four weeks swamped her. The love she felt for Dean and the never-ending passion they’d shared. The secrets she’d kept from her parents and Peter’s sudden change in demands. She couldn’t handle it anymore.

“I didn’t ask for your fucking permission,” she screamed at her mum. Laura got up from her seat and blanked out what her parents were yelling. She grabbed her purse and coat and headed out into the night, slamming the door behind her.

The night air had a slight chill to it. Stars twinkled brightly in the sky and the tears she’d kept in for so long came out. There had never been any offering of anything more than sex. She knew that, she’d accepted it, but seeing how easily he’d moved on hurt more than she’d expected.

A hand on her arm stopped her. She glanced first at the hand and then at the owner of it. Dean stood in front of her. She hoped he saw the tears and the heartache she was going through. Although he had promised her nothing, the least he could have done was to treat her much better and told her he was moving on. Now she understood how quickly her life could change. She’d read so much in her short life and thought there must be time to assess every decision. The reality was it moved just as quickly as in the story.

Laura stopped. His voice dipped and she recalled with a quiver, what had happened the night he’d used the same tone. The dark hint of dominance and the call of submission he’d demanded. The dominance she’d asked for. That night not only had she given him everything her body had to offer, that very same night she’d given him her heart and her soul.

“You’re telling me what to do? she asked him. "You lost that right when you brought her back with you. Is this the way you end all your affairs? By breaking the women who love you? If you didn’t want me, all you had to do was say so.”

“Fuck you,” she screamed and then she did something that gave her little satisfaction. She slapped him across the face. “I don’t want to see you anymore. Peter was right. You were using me.”

Her friend pulled her into his apartment and held her through her heartache. Peter didn’t say any condescending words. He held her as she poured out her pain, telling him everything.

Chapter Sixteen

Laura didn’t return home. She refused his calls at the library and blanked him whenever he went into town. He saw her and didn’t want to create a scene. Instead he stayed at home and phoned her parents to see if they had received any news about her. He learned that she’d moved out and was living with Peter Miller in town.

Taking Kimmy to her house had been a big mistake. She was an old friend of his wife’s and they’d met at a party in the city. His editor and publishing company had loved his story and were going through the processes of getting a cover and edits done. The title still had to be decided.

Dean stood staring out of his study window. He couldn’t look at the room. So many memories of Laura surrounded him. He’d promised his wife he’d never love any woman the way he loved her. Spending so much time with Laura had started to break down the walls around his heart. He knew with every moment she was becoming more a part of him.

He saw a car pull up outside his house. Dean didn’t recognize the driver and making sure not to look at his desk or the sofa he went to the door.

“What do you want?” Dean asked, not seeing any point in prolonging the conversation. He was sure it wouldn’t go the way he wanted.

“I’m here about, Laura. I know all about you two.”

He folded his arms over his chest. He saw that Peter meant business. Dean didn’t know how he knew. He guessed that after the confrontation at the dinner he’d been invited to Laura must have told him. He should be angry, but he understood the need to talk to someone. That’s why he’d talked to Kimmy. She’d known who Laura was when they’d entered the house. Unlike many, she hadn’t been disgusted by the age gap. She’d warned him of the fragile heart in a young woman. He hadn’t believed her. He thought Laura was a strong woman. How wrong he’d been. Laura loved him and he’d shattered her world. Since that night, their life together had all but ceased to exist.

“You’d better come in.” Dean opened the door wider and Peter moved ahead of him. He took him to his study and was careful not to look where Laura used to sit.

“How is she?” he found himself asking. Not that he loved her. He cared. Even though Kimmy had told him that she thought he loved Laura, he denied it. He’d promised his wife he wouldn’t love another woman and he refused to believe he loved her.