Home on Apple Blossom Road (Life in Icicle Falls) (22 page)

Except that here in Icicle Falls, she’d found someone, the same someone who’d always been part of her life. What would the future hold if she stayed just a little longer? Was it worth the gamble? What if they hurt each other all over again? Colin seemed to have a habit of abruptly breaking up with women.

But...anything could happen. Mia made her decision. “No,” she said. “I need to abide by the stipulations of the will.”

He smiled and, oh, there went the tingles. “Okay, then.”

Mia called Andrea’s extension at the office and got her voice mail. There was the beep. She took a deep breath and plunged in.
Keep it vague
, she decided,
and hope you don’t get fired
. “Andrea, I’m afraid we’ve run into a snag with the will, and I’m going to be delayed getting back. I’m so sorry. I’ll check in with you on Monday. I’m sure I can be in the office by Wednesday.”

“You really didn’t have to do that,” Colin said.

“I know.” But she’d wanted to. And oh, dear, what did that say about her?

She hoped they could wrap this up quickly on Monday. If she could fly out by Tuesday, she’d probably be fine. Things happened. Life didn’t always go according to plan. Her boss was hardworking and driven and yes, she expected everyone else on her team to be the same, but she wasn’t like Miranda Priestly in
The Devil Wears Prada
. She had a heart, and surely she understood the importance of family. She had a...cat.

Oh, boy. There was a reason many of the executives at the company were young and single. Most of them were married to their jobs.

Well, there was nothing she could do about this. No sense worrying. When it came right down to it she was glad she had a couple more days in Icicle Falls, a little more time to hang out with the Wrights.

And one Wright in particular. Colin was like a magnet. Even though her brain kept worrying that this was a relationship best left in the past, her heart was hopelessly drawn to him.

* * *

“I guess we’ve got the weekend to kill,” Colin said as Mia put away her cell phone.

Her cheeks were pink, a sure sign she was feeling nervous. And attracted. What they’d once had was still there, like diamonds waiting to be dug up.

“What do you say we go to Zelda’s, sit out on the back patio and have one of those wild huckleberry martinis?”

Now she was nibbling her lip, something
he’d
like to do. “Okay,” she said and he felt he’d scored some kind of major victory. “Let’s stop by the house first so I can freshen up,” she added.

“Okay,” he agreed, but she looked perfectly fresh to him. In fact, she looked great. And he had her for another day. He didn’t want her to leave Icicle Falls until they’d sorted things out between them.

“So you’re stuck here for a little longer,” Aunt Beth said when they returned to the house and gave her their progress report. The smile on her face showed how bad she felt about that.

“Looks like it,” Mia said. Then to Colin, “Give me a minute to change and call the airline.”

“Since you two have the rest of the weekend free,” Aunt Beth said, “should I make dinner?”

“No. We’re going to grab something at Zelda’s.”

His aunt smiled approvingly. “Good idea.”

* * *

Beth had known it all along—those two were meant to be together. Something had shifted between them. She could see it in the way they looked at each other.

Mom, you’re a genius.

As soon as they left, she couldn’t resist calling Dylan. “Thought I’d report in on the treasure hunters.”

“I’m right in the middle of something, Beth.”

Curb your enthusiasm
. “Fine. Never mind.”

“You called. You may as well tell me.”

“They stalled out at the bookstore. Now they’re on their way to dinner.”

“Together.”

“Of course together.”

The silence on the other end stretched out so long, Beth thought she’d lost the connection. “You still there?”

“Yes, I’m here. Did
you
suggest they go out to eat?” he asked suspiciously.

“No. I didn’t need to. They came up with it all on their own.”

“With a little help from you, I’m sure.”

“I didn’t need to help. They want to be together. They always have.”

“If they had, they would’ve stayed together. I need to talk to him.”

Her brother was such a dope sometimes. “Don’t mess this up, Dylan.”

“It’s already messed up. Thanks to you and Mom.”

She could almost feel the anger sizzling through the phone. “No, it’s not. Let things run their course and it’ll all work out.”

“Beth, you live in a fairy tale. Things don’t always work out. People get hurt. I know you helped raise Colin, but he’s still my son. Maybe you could remember that.”

And then he was gone.

“And maybe you could remember that he’s a grown-up and gets to make his own decisions without any interference from you,” Beth muttered. Honestly, when it came to love, her brother suffered from terminal blindness.

* * *

It was only five thirty when Colin and Mia walked into the popular restaurant, but the place was already filling up. He asked to be seated on the huge patio. It was a relatively new addition to the restaurant and featured tables with umbrellas and a spectacular mountain view.

Rita Reyes brought them their drinks. “It’s about time you came back,” she said to them. “Nobody really leaves here for good, you know,” she teased.

“So I hear,” Colin said. And he understood the reason for that. Was there a better place on earth to replant your roots, regrow your life...climb right back into the pit of love you fell into when you were a teenager?

Mia sipped her drink and stared at the mountains. She hadn’t made eye contact with him since the bookstore.

“You have to look at me at some point,” he said.

She set down her glass, turned her head and met his gaze with those gorgeous big brown eyes. “I’m looking.”

“You seem nervous.”

“I
am
nervous. What are we doing?”

Starting again?
“You tell me.” He hoped she’d agreed to go out with him for the same reasons he’d asked her.

“I don’t know. You just broke up with someone.”

He took a slug of his drink. Too damned sweet. He set it down. “I told you why. It was all wrong. Every woman I’ve been with since you has been wrong.”

“Still...”

“Okay, let’s think of this as a dinner between old friends. Nothing wrong with wanting to be with an old friend.”

“No, there isn’t,” she said. “Why don’t you call Andy?”

“Because Andy doesn’t have breasts.”

Okay, that hadn’t gone over well. She scowled at him and stood.

He caught her arm. “Come on, Mia. Please. Stay. I was being a smart-ass. Let’s hang out like we used to.”
About a million years ago.

She gave a long-suffering sigh and dropped back into her chair. “We could get hurt all over again.”

“Maybe,” he acknowledged. “Or not. Maybe we, no, make that me—maybe I could grow up and not be so quick to jump to conclusions. I could change.”

She half smiled at that. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. And maybe you could forgive me for all the times I’ve been a shit.”

The smile was still there. “I’ll have to think about it.”

“Think about it over dinner.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

For dinner they enjoyed trout and truffle-baked potatoes, and memories of the fun they’d had in their childhood. They only basked in the good memories, leaving the door closed on the darker times and the misunderstandings. Conversation flowed easily, washed along by a nice Riesling. For dessert they split a piece of wild blackberry pie with ice cream.

There was something so intimate about digging forks into the same plate, and watching her lick her fork was torture. His biggest barrier—Lorelei—was gone and now he was ready for bed. With Mia. Totally inappropriate, considering the fact that he’d just broken up with someone. As she’d pointed out...

But what about going dancing? Was that inappropriate? They didn’t have much time before she flew back to Chicago. He needed to make the most of it. “You know, I was supposed to go to the Red Barn tonight.”

She stopped her licking and studied her fork. “You could still go.”

“I don’t want to go by myself.”

She set the fork down and looked at him. “You just broke up. Remember?”

Yes, and he wished she wouldn’t keep reminding him of that. “Which makes me a free man.”

“Which makes you a mess.”

“I told you, I’ve been a mess ever since we split, and that’s the truth.”

She leaned back in her chair and regarded him. “Do you know how different things could have been?”

If he hadn’t been such a fool. Oh, yeah, he had a pretty good idea. “Let’s go dancing.”

The Red Barn was actually an old barn, converted to a honky-tonk. It had a huge wooden dance floor, a long bar that served plenty of beer, whiskey and tequila, as well as soft drinks for the serious dancers. It also had a life-size plastic Jersey cow stationed inside the front entrance and framed photos of old barns hanging on the walls. If the name of the place hadn’t been enough of a clue, the cow sure was. No one came in here expecting anything but rockin’ country music.

Fortified with bottles of Hale’s Ale, they made their way to a corner table. The band wasn’t due to come on for another hour, but the place was packed, and the jukebox was cranked up. “Hey,” she said, “there’s Bill Will and Andy.”

Colin’s old pals sat on the far end of the dance floor, at a table for four. Bill Will was a pretty good-looking guy, and since he worked on a guest ranch, his jeans and Western shirt and boots were a perfect fit on all levels. Andy, not so much. He’d lost some weight since Colin last saw him, but he still looked like a nerd playing dress-up in his Western outfit. The little brunette with him didn’t seem to care. She laughed at something he said and gave him a playful swat on the arm.

Bill Will caught sight of Mia and Colin and waved, and next thing Colin knew, his old pal was on his way over, towing along a scrawny blonde wearing tight jeans and an even tighter top that really showed off the merchandise. Andy and his plump little brunette followed in their wake. Then it was greetings all around.

“Glad to see you guys made it,” Bill Will said to Colin, slapping him on the back. He leaned over and lowered his voice. “And sorry about, you know.”

“Not your fault,” Colin told him. “We broke up, so if you want her number...”

Bill Will frowned. “No, that’s okay.”

Colin nodded. Good call. Bill Will was even less of a match for Lorelei than he’d been. And he sure didn’t have any money to invest in a gym.

“Look at this. We’re all here just like old times,” Bill Will said. With that, he pulled up a chair, introduced his new friend, Cookie, and made himself at home. Andy followed suit and suddenly Colin’s cozy twosome was a sixsome.

The only time he was going to get Mia alone would be on the dance floor.

Still, it was good to see the guys. The last couple of times he’d been to town, he’d been too busy to call. At least that was what he’d told them. Really, he’d been too embarrassed to hang out with them and have to confess that he still didn’t know what the heck he was doing with his life. Bill Will was happy playing cowboy, and Andy was selling insurance and making a bundle.

“So, have you heard about Neal?” Andy asked as they guzzled beer. Colin shook his head and Andy continued. “Just made partner at that law firm down in California. The youngest one there. I guess he set some kind of record.”

“Cool,” Colin said and picked at the label on his bottle. Happiness for his old pal mixed with frustration over the fact that he’d accomplished nothing with his life so far, and that made for a cocktail that wasn’t pleasant to swallow.

“How’s it going in Seattle?” Bill Will asked. “And when are you coming back here?”

“Soon, I hope.” Maybe Gram was leaving him enough money for a down payment on a little house somewhere in town or a cabin in the woods. And if so, then he’d...what? Go to work in another warehouse?

Dad had expected more of him, he knew it. He’d hoped Colin would become a lawyer, but Colin had never wanted to draw up wills and power-of-attorney documents, or spend hours cooped up in some office, preparing legal briefs. Even Dad admitted that lawyers were a dime a dozen.

Still, he’d been disappointed to see Colin get a college degree and then go nowhere with it. “Son, you’re single and unencumbered. You could do anything you want. Don’t just settle.”

“I won’t,” Colin had assured him. “I won’t be working in a warehouse forever.”

He hoped he hadn’t been wrong about that.

The band was on stage now, plugging in their guitars and tuning up. Watching them, Colin couldn’t help thinking of Jake O’Brien, a hometown boy who’d stayed true to his dream of becoming a country music songwriter. Jake was rapidly working his way toward becoming a big name, touring with the likes of Dierks Bentley and Jason Aldean.

Meanwhile, Colin was waiting for life to throw open the door to success and say, “Come on in.” He needed to stop standing at the door and waiting for it to be opened. He needed to kick the damn thing down.

The band consisted of four guys—one on drums, one on bass and a couple playing guitars. They were a motley collection of locals who, when they weren’t playing, drove forklifts and swung hammers.

“Hey, there, everybody,” one of the guitar players said into his mike. “You all here for a good time?”

There was plenty of hooting and clapping. Bill Will stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled.

“Then let’s get this party started.” The drummer counted the others off, and the band broke into a fast country song.

“Hey, we can do the Kick-Ass to this,” Bill Will declared, jumping up from his seat and grabbing his date’s hand. “Come on, Mia. You can pick this one up right away.”

She, too, got to her feet. “Come on, Colin,” she said, and headed for the dance floor, assuming he’d follow.

He didn’t. He didn’t know very many line dances. Never was into them. After all, what was the point if you couldn’t hold the girl? He opted to nurse his beer and watch.