Beyond Chance (24 page)

Stepping into the cathedral’s open space,
Aaron looked down as he held my hand. We both saw the elaborate
labyrinth at our feet with flickering candles outlining the
beautiful maze of spirit and soul as we followed the pattern and
found ourselves in the center. Aaron held me close as we continued
to take in the brilliance of the church setting. We walked slowly
out of the labyrinth and meandered through the cathedral. Before
leaving the church, I said a silent prayer that everything back
home would work as it was meant to and followed Aaron outside into
the chilly evening air.

The experience left me oddly numb but
somehow full of hope and determination. I couldn’t imagine my trip
to France without seeing this cathedral, and I’d never even known
about it until today.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

“Thank you,” he replied smiling, as he took
my hand, and we walked toward a restaurant that had caught our
attention earlier. The storm from the day before still lingered in
the air so we sat inside, and each of us ordered a glass of
wine.

“We’re so lucky,” I sighed, feeling a dopey
grin on my face, but there was nothing I could do about it. I felt
completely relaxed and optimistic.

“We are.”

“Can I ask you something?”

He nodded and grinned. “The answer to that
will always be yes. I learned my lesson the hard way in the middle
of Paris.”

“With all your life experience and
everything you’ve been through and seen in the world, why would you
want to be with someone like me? I don’t mean that in a
self-deprecating way, but I’ve got so much catching up to do. I
mean my idea of a good time is to unroll some party streamers and
put a keg in the backyard. Your life is begging to be more
glamorous and—”

“Brandy, don’t even go there,” he
interrupted, smiling.

“Oh, I went there,” I teased.

“Don’t you understand how much I love
spending time with you? Getting to experience these things with you
brings me more joy than I ever thought possible. There was a time
when all I could see for myself was working and working some more.
I never imagined finding someone that could make going to a church
fun or riding a Jet Ski exhilarating and oh…so much more.” He had a
devilish look in his eyes and grinned. “And there’s nothing better
than ice-cold beer and BBQ. Your brothers can attest to that.”

“Don’t forget the party streamers.” I smiled
and took a sip of wine that the server had brought over while I was
intently listening to Aaron.

“Definitely need the streamers for all
occasions.”

“With all the excitement about the impending
engagement with Lily and my brother, I forgot to mention I saw the
text from Elizabeth come over,” I said.

Aaron’s gaze hardened and he looked away.
“Yeah.”

“So I take it you haven’t reached out.”

He took a large swallow of wine and shook
his head. “Haven’t really cared to do so.”

While being partially relieved, I also felt
the best thing to do was to have a talk with Elizabeth. While I
wasn’t a fan of her friend, Cruella De Vil, I understood Tracy’s
loyalty. As long as I didn’t allow the untidy condition of my mind
to go into overdrive, things should be okay moving forward no
matter the outcome of Elizabeth and Aaron’s friendship. Of course,
that was contingent on our meeting going well, and I didn’t want to
believe it would go any other way than smooth without any
melodramatics.

“I kind of think it might be the best thing
to do. You’ve had a habit of fleeing and as much as I like the idea
of you never talking to them again, I know it’s not realistic, and
it’s better to end things on your terms, not theirs.”

“I see where you’re coming from,” he
admitted.

The server took our order and Aaron took out
his phone and stared at it for a few seconds. “And you’ll come with
me when I meet with her?” he asked.

I laughed. “I wouldn’t have it any other
way.”

He couldn’t help but crack a smile as he
slid the phone on. He quickly typed a text and sent it. He turned
off the phone and slid it back into his pocket, and it felt like a
weight had been lifted. I never liked being mean to people and even
in my own ended relationships wanted everyone to feel at ease.

“Now it’s my turn to ask you something,” he
said.

“Let me have it.” I took a sip of wine and
waited.

“How often are you having nightmares?”

I almost spit out my wine. I hadn’t expected
him to go there. I thought we were keeping things a little more
light.

“More than I expected. They’ve increased
since the trial started,” I admitted.

He nodded. “Those can take a bit of time to
get over.”

I stiffened slightly. “Do you get
nightmares?”

His eyes connected with mine and a charge
ran through me. “I did up until I met you. I think you saved me
from my own mind.”

“Really?” I croaked. I couldn’t ever imagine
Aaron suffering from nightmares.

He nodded. “Almost nightly. Some people have
a bad day and look forward to sleeping so their mind can
reset…”

I nodded.

“That wasn’t how my nights worked. I tried
everything and nothing worked. Until I met you.”

My cheeks warmed with his admission.

“Like you said, I’ve seen a lot. I’ve done a
lot. Not all of those things were pleasant, Brandy. It took having
someone as amazing as you to set me right again. You reset me.”

“It couldn’t be me,” I whispered.

His eyes stayed locked on mine, and it felt
like we were the only two in the restaurant.

“It was most definitely you, Brandy. You’re
like my medicine. The day you left me when you found out I was
going to China, the nightmares came back that very night. They
stayed with me until I came home to you. I’ll never make that
mistake again. I only wish I could do the same for you. I wish I
could destroy the monster who did this to you.” His jaw tensed, and
I reached out across the table for his hand.

“I had no idea,” I said, his hand squeezing
mine. “You never mentioned…”

“Yeah. There were a lot of things I’d failed
to mention. They were all connected.”

I nodded. “I see that now.”

The server delivered our dishes and asked if
anything else was needed. We ordered another glass of wine.

“You’ve helped more than you can imagine,
Aaron. I don’t know where I’d be without you. You helped in ways my
family and I will never be able to repay.”

He shook his head. “I did it because I love
you. Your family would’ve done it too.”

“They would’ve gone into so much debt
that—”

“I want to spend the rest of my life with
you, Brandy. I knew it then. I knew it before the accident.” His
eyes steadied on mine, and my heart fluttered. “I’d been
daydreaming about asking you to marry me before we even took that
ride that day. I hadn’t bought the ring yet because I wanted to ask
your father first, but I was on the verge. It kills me that you
thought you were a pity case and then to have Tracy try to throw
that in your face… I could never apologize enough. I never should
have talked with Elizabeth about such personal things.”

“It hurt to hear it again, but I knew it
wasn’t true. I’m too much work to be one of those pity cases,” I
chuckled.

“That is a valid point.” His gaze fell along
my body and he grinned.

“Hey now.” I tossed my napkin at him, and he
snatched it out of the air and gave it back to me.

“See what I mean?” he chided.

My heart raced as his gaze steadied on mine,
and I wondered how close we were to that next step. With me going
back to school and Aaron heading back to the corporate world would
priorities change and expectations shift? After this trip, it felt
like things could change on a dime.

“So what do you think about visiting the
catacombs when we get back?” Aaron asked, his eyes wide.

“I think that sounds beyond awesome.”

“It’s a date. That first day we get back.”
His phone buzzed, and he took it out of his pocket as I had my
first bite of filet mignon. It literally melted in my mouth and all
my worries drifted away.

“Did you just have an out-of-body
experience?” Aaron laughed.

“Possibly.”

“It’s Elizabeth. She’d be more than happy to
meet with us both.”

“How about the day we get back? Then we can
go to the catacombs after.”

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Totally. I might not feel like the living
after coffee with her.”

He flashed a wry smile and sent a text back
to Elizabeth as I took another bite. This trip to France had been
far more than I bargained for, but I’d grown as a person and our
relationship had elevated to another level, and I’m not sure any of
that would’ve happened if it hadn’t been for the chance encounter
with Elizabeth.

In all relationships, I’ve always had the
upper hand. That all changed once I met Aaron. He turned my world
upside by challenging beliefs I had and opening my eyes to a new
way of looking at life. I was no longer skeptical of reaching for
the stars or trying new things. In fact, I seemed to thrive in both
circumstances, and I had Aaron to thank for that.

“Well, I don’t know about you, but at least
I found what I was looking for in life.”

“And what was that?” I asked.

“You.”

I did my little happy dance inside and
pushed aside the fear that things were getting too good.

It was our first morning back in Paris, and
it felt like a new city. None of the negativity that had
infiltrated the first time hovered around us this time.

That was until I opened the email and saw a
new Google alert about myself with a picture of Aaron. I read the
article and groaned as the one thing Aaron tried to leave behind
was trumpeted on the front page of the Times, all because of the
trial. One of the journalists dug up the information about Aaron
and his time serving overseas as well as the shooting and ran with
it. The story explained how a national hero was by my side helping
me through the devastation and healing of the accident. I winced at
the thought of how Aaron would react as I read the last statement
about Aaron’s story that was now forever mingled with mine.

I let out a deep sigh and turned over in
bed. Facing Aaron, I slowly handed him my phone.

“Oh, no. What happened? Your face looks like
you saw a ghost.” His brows shot up as he read my phone and then
anger began tingeing his expression.

“Did you say something in one of your
interviews?” he asked.

I shook my head. “Absolutely not.”

“You’re sure?” His gaze darkened.

“A hundred and thirty percent,” I countered,
angered he’d even question my loyalties.

“Someone had to have tipped them off,” he
said.

I sat up in bed and grabbed my phone back.
“Well, you better get your facts straight because it sure as hell
wasn’t me, mister.”

Aaron reached for his cell and turned it on.
His phone was blanketed in messages and texts. If I hadn’t known
about his past life, other coworkers and friends certainly hadn’t
either, but now they did.

I watched as he shook his head slowly,
scanning message after message asking him if it were true. I walked
around to his side of the bed and rested my hand on his leg.

“I’m sorry for saying any of that. I know
it’s not you. I just—”

“I know. I can’t believe it either,” I
interrupted.

“You don’t think it was my sister, do
you?”

I shook my head. “No way. That’s not Gabby’s
style. She’s as protective as you are when it comes to privacy,
especially with Katie. Besides, can you imagine that going over
with Jason in the house?”

“Good point. I don’t even know what to say.
This shit’s messing with my mind.” He tossed his phone onto the
comforter and let out a sigh.

“It’s going to be okay. We’ll get through
it.”

“I don’t know who would’ve done this,” he
muttered, and it hit us both at the same time, except he muttered
Elizabeth and I muttered Tracy.

“Why would they do this?” I asked,
bewildered.

“I can’t even imagine.”

“Unless it’s only to hurt you…”

Aaron nodded. “Could be as simple as that.
Well, we’ll certainly get to the bottom of it soon.”

I glanced at the time on my phone. “We’ve
got thirty minutes to get to the café. Think we’ll make it?”

“Without a doubt.” He shoved off the covers
and stretched. “I can’t wait for coffee though. Not with this news.
I’ll go make some while you’re in the shower.”

I nodded and gave him a kiss before turning
to grab some clothes.

My anger at those two went through the roof,
but for some odd reason it helped me calm down because either today
or tomorrow a verdict was expected in the trial. At least, I could
focus on those two instead of my problems.