Going to the Chapel (13 page)

He’d hardly slept at all
last night. Between his haunting thoughts of Caroline and the
troubling nudges his mind kept giving him concerning Rob, he’d done
nothing but toss and turn. Something just wasn’t right with Rob.
And nothing at all was right where Chase and Caroline were
concerned. He knew better than to feel this way—to let his emotions
get carried away like this. But he just couldn’t help himself. No
matter how hard he tried, “what could have been” kept playing in
his head.

Caroline could have been
his wife...Shane could have been
their
son. Though Chase did not regret
what he’d had to do, he did sincerely regret what it had cost him.
He could deny his feelings until the fat lady sang, but the truth
of the matter would remain—he still loved Caroline. He hadn’t
stopped. But she didn’t feel that way. Maybe she never had. After
all, she’d been a few years younger than he. Had been hell bent on
seeing the world. Maybe she hadn’t really known what love was. Any
feelings she felt for him at the moment might be nothing more than
rebound attraction.

And who was to say that
Caroline and her fancy fiancé weren’t going to get back together.
Chase’s gut twisted at the thought. He didn’t want Caroline to
marry anyone else. He...Chase sighed...had no clue what he
wanted.

Forcing his gaze from her,
he studied the fine decorating job Julie’s mother had done.
Balloons and streamers in pastel colors and angelic whites floated
above the crowd gathered in the wedding chapel. The red carpet that
ran the length of the chapel from the entry hall to the altar was
littered with white rose petals. The end of each pew, on either
side of the red carpet, was graced with a huge white satin
bow.

Chase supposed, as weddings
went, this one was one of the nicest he’d attended. The reception
would take place in the banquet hall at the Country Club shortly
after the nuptials were exchanged and pictures taken.

Studiously keeping his gaze
focused on anything but Caroline, Chase shifted his attention to
his two friends and the minister. Rob and Zac, both looked darned
elegant, and almost as stiff as Caroline. Chase’s brow furrowed. He
took that back. Rob looked stiff, a little too tense maybe. But Zac
looked down right pale and taut. Chase was pretty sure he’d never
seen his buddy look quite that bad. What the hell was Zac worried
about? He wasn’t the one tying the knot.

Melba Tarken settled
herself on the bench before the antiquated organ and hit a
preparatory note before beginning the wedding march. Those gathered
stood and turned to watch the bridesmaid’s and bride’s grand
entrance.

Sherry Woods, looking far
too ready to drop that kid, slowly sauntered up the aisle. Her pink
taffeta dress rustled with every step she took. Once Sherry was
settled on the side of the minister opposite Zac, all heads turned
back to see the bride. The wide entryway was empty save for the
sprawling ferns stationed atop white carved pedestals on either
side of the door.

Melba hit the bride’s
musical cue once more.

Still no sign of
Julie.

Once more, the cue from
Melba...

Julie’s father rushed
through the entryway, a stricken expression on his face. “Julie’s
gone!”

Chase was down the aisle,
crushing rose petals as he went, in three seconds. “What do you
mean she’s gone?” he demanded firmly in an effort to draw Mr.
McGill’s harried attention.

The older man shook his
head and extended the crumpled note he held in his right hand in
Chase’s direction. “I don’t know what it means.”

Caroline, Rob, Sherry, and
Zac had piled up behind Chase. Waves of murmurs washed over the
crowd still standing amid the pews, necks craned to see what was
taking place in the back. Chase opened the crumpled note and stared
down at the feminine handwriting.

Daddy,

Please tell Mom that I’m
sorry, but life is far too short to make a mistake

this monumental. I love
you both. Don’t worry, I’ll call and let you

know where I am. Tell Rob
I’m so sorry.

Love,

Julie

P.S. Please tell Caroline
she was right. She gave me the courage to do

the right
thing.

Outrage streaked through
Chase. He turned to glare down at Caroline. “
You
,” he accused. “What did you say to
her?”

Caroline staggered back a step from
the fury glittering in Chase’s eyes. “What are you talking
about?”

He shoved the note Julie’s
father had given him toward her. Her heart pounding, Caroline
accepted the note and read it. Oh, God. Julie was gone. She’d taken
Caroline and Sherry’s advice to heart and made a run for it.
It’s never too late. You do just like Caroline did
with Tristan, you run like hell
.

“
What does this mean?”
Julie’s mother wailed. She had rushed to her husband, and he had,
apparently, relayed the contents of the damning note.

“
It means,” Chase ground
out, “that Julie isn’t getting married today.” He glared at
Caroline. “Way to go,” he muttered. “It wasn’t enough that you
screwed up our lives, you had to screw up Julie’s too.”

His words slammed into
Caroline like a runaway logging truck. She almost wilted with the
hurt. How could he think? Caroline turned to look behind her,
seeking Sherry, who was attempting to console Rob. Zac had slumped
onto a pew, his face even paler than before. The whole crowd was
now staring at Caroline in mass confusion.

“
I should go,” she mumbled,
more to herself than anyone else. “Maybe I can find
her.”

“
Why don’t you?” Chase
demanded. “You’ve done nothing but cause trouble since you got
here.” He shook his head. “I don’t know why you bothered to come
back.”

With those hurtful words
still ringing in Caroline’s ears, he walked out.

“
Honey, it’s okay.” Sherry
was at her side now. “Mr. and Mrs. McGill, this isn’t Caroline’s
fault. She’s only guilty, just as I am, of hearing Julie out. She
was having second thoughts about getting married today. She’s
probably just trying to figure out her life. Give her time. She’ll
call and everything will be fine. You’ll see.”

Caroline simply stood there
in a kind of shock as the crowd slowly dissipated. Most hesitated
and told her not to worry that Chase hadn’t meant what he said that
he was only angry. Everything would be fine, they assured Caroline.
She could only nod, anything else she might have done or said would
have released the deluge of tears mounting.

Sherry eventually walked
Caroline to her car. “Let me take you home, girl, you look out of
it.”

Caroline nodded once more.
She didn’t want to talk. She didn’t want to think. She only wanted
to go home and cry where no one would see just how much Chase
Garrett could still hurt her.

It wasn’t enough that you
screwed up our lives
...Chase really
believed this was all her fault. A jolt of anger shook her. How
could he think that when he was the one who’d married someone else?
Of course, he only did that after she refused to say yes to his
proposal and then left him.

Caroline slumped into the
passenger seat of Sherry’s car. None of it mattered now. Caroline
knew she was not at fault for what Julie had decided to do...or not
to do as the case turned out. Julie would set him straight when she
came home. All Caroline had to do was make sure her grandmother’s
house looked its best for next Wednesday’s showing. Tristan’s car
would be ready on Saturday, one week from today. Then she could be
on her way. For good this time. She would never, ever set foot in
Lucy’s Branch again.

It was past time to get on
with her life once and for all.

~*~

“I just don’t understand,”
Rob fretted as he paced back and forth on the red carpet now matted
with crushed rose petals. “How could she do this to me?”

Chase looked to Zac who
merely shrugged. Something was definitely up with this guy. But
Rob’s was the more pressing issue at the moment. Chase had been so
angry that he’d had to take a walk to cool off, but he’d come back.
He knew Rob would need him.

“
Maybe she just got cold
feet,” Chase offered. “Don’t forget that you were suffering a few
reservations yourself last night.”

Rob braced his hands on his
hips. His suit remained unwrinkled, his bow tie still snug around
his neck. Did the guy never relax?

“
Having second thoughts is
one thing, but to leave me standing at the altar...” He pivoted and
paced a few feet in the other direction. “It’s unspeakable. How
will I ever face the people of this town again?”

Zac stood. He shoved his
hands deep into the pockets of his trousers. “Look, I’ve got to go.
I’ll talk to you guys later.”

“
Take it easy, buddy,”
Chase called after him.

Rob continued to pace
without so much as a goodbye.

“
Somehow Caroline did
this,” Rob suddenly announced. He whipped around and faced Chase.
“She blew off her own fiancé and poisoned my Julie’s mind against
me.”

“
I don’t know if I would go
that far.” Chase didn’t understand his need to jump to Caroline’s
defense. He’d certainly been madder than hell at her just a few
minutes ago.

Rob waved his arms. “You
said the same thing yourself.”

The ugly words he’d hurled
at Caroline echoed in Chase’s ears. “I know what I said,” he
confessed. “And I shouldn’t have accused Caroline without knowing
all the facts.”

Rob glared at him. “Now
you’re on her side.”

Chase shook his head. “It’s
not about sides. We don’t know what Julie or Caroline said.” Rob
rolled his eyes. Chase tried to understand how he felt, but his
patience was wearing thin...as much with himself as with Rob.
“You’re acting like this is over, Rob. Maybe you want it to be
over. Maybe this was just the excuse you were looking for to get
out of this wedding yourself.”

“
Don’t be absurd.” Rob
started pacing again. “If I’d wanted to delay the wedding I
would...simply have said so.”

Chase stood. “Let’s go have
a burger and a beer and think about something else for a
while.”

“
I think I just want to go
home and forget this day ever happened.”

“
Come on.” Chase slapped
him on the back. “I’ll drive you.”

“
Good idea,” Rob mused. “My
car has wedding decorations all over it. I sure don’t want to drive
it home.”

“
Zac and I’ll take care of
your car later.”

Rob shook his head as they
exited the wedding chapel. “I just don’t understand.”

Chase paused next to his
Jeep and stared back at the chapel. Neither did he. According to
local legend anyone who said their vows within those walls would be
together forever. How had he and Caroline fallen so very far apart?
Didn’t the promises they’d made on those steps all those years ago
mean anything?

He considered the way
Caroline had walked out on him, and then the life-altering events
that had followed. Events he’d had no control over. Then he thought
about the way he still cared about her...

But it was too late, wasn’t
it?

As if in answer to his
question a gust of wind sent the chapel doors flying inward.
Frowning, Chase strode back to the chapel and closed the doors. He
stood on the steps for a long moment and remembered the night he
and Caroline had pledged their love to each other...and then the
way they’d made love for the first time afterwards. His chest
tightened at the memories. But that’s all they
were...memories.

Maybe it wasn’t too late
for them to be friends. He didn’t want Caroline to leave feeling
like he’d made her feel today. This was her home. He wanted her to
feel welcome here. He wanted her to come back someday.

Hell...he wanted her to
stay.

~*~

Caroline tightened the sash on her
silk robe and padded to the kitchen. She was finally finished. A
sigh, half weariness, half satisfaction, whispered past her lips.
She’d worked like a maniac all afternoon and evening. Finally, as
dark settled around her, she’d taken a long, hot bubble bath using
some of the goodies she’d packed for her honeymoon.

She recited a few choice words in
regards to weddings and honeymoons, most especially where grooms
were concerned, to her reflection as she’d combed her hair. She was
sick to death of men and their attitudes. It was okay for them to
royally screw up but just let a woman make a mistake or hesitate
and she was pond scum.

Caroline poured herself a glass of
wine and headed for the parlor. The house was finished. All she had
to do now was sit back and relax until Tristan’s car was ready.
Maybe she could sweet talk Zac into working around the clock and
having it ready before Saturday. One thing was certain, she
intended to avoid Chase Garrett like the plague. No matter how
Henri insisted that he hadn’t meant the unkind things he said,
Caroline wasn’t forgiving him this time. She was through with
Chase.