Hearths of Fire (18 page)

“Phil, it’s good to see you again,” Neal commented with a nod. “Char and I are going to find some seats and enjoy the game.”

By the time they’d found a couple open spot at the thirty-yard line, Charlotte’s annoyance was on the border of anger. How dare Neal think it was okay to let others believe that something had changed between them? There was no way in hell he was staying at her house either. Gossip around these parts was as rampant as tics in the summer.

“You want to tell me what that was about?” Charlotte asked in a harsh whisper. Thelma Till was sitting three benches behind them and holding up a sign with her grandson’s jersey number planted on it. The old bitty had bat ears. “One, you’re not staying with us. Two, what’s with the hand on my back? You’re making it seem as if we are something we’re not.”

“I
am
staying with you. We’ll swing by the bed and breakfast before heading home. I’ll take the spare bedroom. The person who was standing on the corner watching us solidified that change and if we don’t show Mandy an expression of solidarity, then all of this doesn’t mean shit.” Neal had leaned in close when they had taken their seats. She could have sworn his warm lips touched her ear. The deep vibrations traveled across her skin and made her shiver at the sensual nature of the act. She clenched her fingers into fists and reminded herself of why he was here. “Now tell me what you were going to say when they showed up.”

Charlotte wasn’t done talking about the fact that he couldn’t stay with them and she felt her frustration mount at a situation that was growing beyond her control. That wasn’t even taking into account the public display of affection. She could just imagine what the two of them looked like with Neal leaning down and whispering into her ear.

“You’re leaving on Sunday,” Charlotte snapped back in a low voice. “I have to stay here and deal with the fallout of what Thelma’s already spinning in her mind. What you said earlier at the diner was fine and you should have left well enough alone. Everyone in Hearth knows you think of Mandy like a sister and they are also aware of how worried I am over the fact that she’s dating Garreth. But to stay with us and then touch me as if we were—”

“Were what, Char?” Neal asked, pulling away far enough that his green eyes practically glowed with intensity. “Let’s get something straight. If I actually touched you like
we were
back then, you’d damn well feel my hand on your skin. The fact that I’m even here is going to spark the chinwag wagon no matter where I stay. We do this my way. Now what were you going to say when I came back from the truck?”

Charlotte pressed her lips together at the knowledge that Neal wasn’t going to budge on his decisions. Her stomach felt as if a thousand butterflies had been let loose inside of her at the images that his words had provoked. They’d been together all through high school and had made love in the back of his Chevy when they’d been sixteen years old. By the time they were nineteen and engaged, the two of them had become inseparable—at least until her fated decision.

“A friend of Mandy’s told me that she’d overheard Garreth on the phone.”

Before Charlotte could finish the crowd erupted in cheers as Hearth High School had scored the first touchdown of the game. The noise didn’t lessen as the kicker came onto the field for the extra point. By the time they were leading seven to zero, a few old friends of theirs had stopped by to catch up with Neal and his new position in San Diego. The moments when they were by themselves had been few and far between, but it was enough time to let her know that Neal wasn’t happy that Sheriff Plinkton wasn’t at the game. A couple of deputies had shown their faces, but he hadn’t wanted to speak with them. Unfortunately that also meant that Becky hadn’t spoken to the sheriff either.

“The game’s about to end,” Neal said while he continued to scan the crowd. She’d expected him to say a lot of things, but not the words that made her catch her breath. “Let’s go home.”

‡

N
eal tossed his
bag on the floor as he sat on the edge of the bed. He leaned forward in frustration, placing his elbows on his knees as he continued to crack his knuckles. What the hell had he been thinking? The more he was around Charlotte the more he wanted her despite the residual anger that still resided in him. He would have thought his resentment would have kept the sexual tension from returning, but fuck if it only made him want her more.

“Son, I’ll tell the guests. Why don’t you go and try to find Charlotte?”

Neal looked over his father’s shoulder and saw the pity in everyone’s eyes. His mother’s hand was over her lips as if she wasn’t quite sure what to say. Red-hot anger that had replaced his initial worry burned in his gut and he wanted to ram his fists into the nearest wall to relieve some of the rage. He looked back and saw his best man, Jimmy Hubber, whispering with Charlotte’s maid of honor. She’d come to tell Neal that Charlotte couldn’t go through with the wedding. His world was crumbling around him and he just needed a minute to pick up what was left.

“Thanks, Dad,” Neal muttered before turning and ignoring everyone who called out his name. Jimmy tried to stop Neal as he walked past but he shoved open the door to the room off of the chapel, grateful to have some time to himself. He really should have brought Mandy with him, but his mother would make sure she was okay. He had just shut himself inside when the sight before him caused the dagger in his heart to slide a little deeper. Charlotte stood there wearing her wedding dress with an hourglass figure, blonde ringlets around her face, and mascara running down her cheeks. Fury engulfed him that she felt she had the right to cry when it was her doing they were dealing with this fallout to begin with. He could only get one word past the lump in his throat. “Why?”

“Neal, we can’t get married,” Charlotte whispered a little desperately, wiping away more tears. She took a step toward Neal but she stopped when he shook his head. “Don’t you see that this isn’t going to work? Mandy is my responsibility now. You said yourself I shouldn’t give up the bookstore. How am I going to go to college, raise Mandy, and keep the store open while you’re gone? It’s not like I can go with you.”

“Yes, you can,” Neal argued for what felt like the millionth time. All they ever did lately was argue over the future. He didn’t know what more he could say to get her to see things the way he did. “Mom said she would oversee the store. Once we figure out where I’ll be stationed you and Mandy will come live with me on base. You can finish up your business degree, and then once my time is up we’ll return home. Fuck, Char…how many times do we have to go over this?”

“And what about when you go on deployment? What then?” Charlotte lifted a hand and gestured to where everyone was now being escorted out of the church. “At least I have help here, Neal.”

“Which is why you’ll stay here until I’m done with boot camp.” Neal stayed where he was by the door, afraid that if he got any closer he would drag her in front of the pastor. “If I go on deployment I’m sure the other wives will help you out while you’re taking classes. Mandy will be in school during the days and—”

“There are too many things that could go wrong, Neal.” Charlotte looked down at her left hand and Neal felt a fear like he’d never known. He’d worked and saved every penny for her engagement ring and she was going to take it off as if it was a cheap Crackerjack toy. “I can’t marry you.”

“Then we’ll postpone it,” Neal suggested, his mind spinning with the various ways this could go. He loved her. They could still make this work. “I’ll go to boot camp and then once I graduate we’ll see where they station me. I’ll come back home during my leave and then once you’re done with college, we’ll get married then.”

“You aren’t coming back to Hearth, Neal,” Charlotte’s voice caught as she slid the ring off of her finger. Neal hadn’t known a heart could physically hurt over words. “You’ll travel the world and see exciting things. You’ll meet new people, make new friends, and meet new women. And I’ll be here. I’m so sorry, Neal…but this is the way it has to be.”

Neal opened his eyes, not even realizing that he’d closed them as the brutal memory of that day had washed over him. He’d never asked Char in that moment if she still loved him. Would it have made a difference? He’d been too immature back then to understand that some of what she’d said had made sense. Charlotte had been better off staying in Hearth with the town offering whatever help her friends and neighbors could give. Where she’d been wrong was giving up on them entirely.

Rubbing his hands over his face, Neal then stood and repositioned his side holster so that it didn’t catch on his sweater. He’d resigned himself a long time ago to the fact that Charlotte
had
moved on. Family and friends had kept him up on her and Mandy in those years that he’d been deployed. The first time he’d heard that she’d gone out to dinner with someone else he’d gone on a weekend bender. After that he’d stopped asking about her altogether.

Neal needed to focus on why he was here instead of the past. He’d changed his mind in regards to the cult after he’d caught sight of the person standing on the corner watching them as they’d made their way to the truck. That wasn’t an innocent action by any means, which was why Neal had decided it would be safer for Charlotte and Mandy if he were to stay with them. Why would his presence in town cause ATD to feel threatened? He had a hard time believing that Mandy was that important to them. What was the consequence if Neal and Charlotte talked Mandy out of dating Garreth?

“I made coffee.” Charlotte’s soft voice came from the doorway and when Neal turned his head, her beauty struck him. She’d removed the sweater, and the long sleeved red shirt she was wearing molded to her breasts. Her hair had been let down and the natural waves fell around her face. He remembered how soft the strands had been and his fingers itched to feel the silky texture once more. Staying here for the next two nights was going to be a hell of a lot harder than he’d originally thought. Her eyes dropped to his weapon. “You didn’t even wait for us to leave the stadium.”

“One can never be too cautious. Char, it’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Coffee sounds good, by the way.” Neal had a feeling that Charlotte stayed up for Mandy on the weekends and seeing as it was only twenty-two hundred, they still had two more hours before curfew. Considering that she’d yet to tell him what Mandy’s friend had said, that should take up at least fifteen minutes. After that he’d have to make some shit up to pass the time. “You wanted to tell me something back at the game.”

As they made their way down the hall and into the kitchen, Charlotte caught him up to date on what had transpired earlier that day. By the time she was done and asking for his opinion, they’d taken their mugs into the living room. He didn’t take offense when she chose the chair instead of the couch where he was now sitting. It was better for both of them.

“A
ritual
? How reliable is Becky?” Neal took a sip of the hot bitter liquid and then set it down in front of him on the coffee table. He zeroed his gaze in on Char, who’d tucked her legs underneath her. She looked like she did back when they’d been in high school. “We need to get her to speak with the sheriff.”

“I told her to do that but he wasn’t at the game.” Charlotte glanced at the clock on the wall, but it was so early he wasn’t sure how to reassure her over Mandy being out with Garreth after what Becky had said. He wasn’t sure he
could
reassure her. “Are you going to talk with Sheriff Plinkton tomorrow?”

“First thing on my agenda.”

“And what exactly
is
your agenda?” Char picked at what Neal thought was imaginary lint since he couldn’t see anything from where he was sitting. He figured it was due to her worry over her sister and not what had taken place at the game. He shouldn’t have said anything about touching her. He was here solely to help her sister and he’d do well to remember that. “Mandy is not going to be happy when you try and tell her that you’re not fond of Garreth either.”

“I’m going to speak with Sheriff Plinkton, the mayor, and then make an informal swing by Robert and Patricia Ashe’s land.” Neal could see the skepticism written across her beautiful features. He couldn’t remember a time that emotion
hadn’t
been there since her parents had passed. He’d tried his best to soothe it from her then and he fought the urge to do it now. He needed a breather. “I’m going to take a look around the property and see if I notice anything that stands out.”

Charlotte didn’t say anything to Neal’s declaration, so he stood up and walked toward the door. He could feel her blue eyes trailing him as he exited. The temperature had dropped but he didn’t bother with a jacket. It was still in the truck anyway, not that he’d retrieve it. He needed the cold to cool him off or otherwise he might make a move that both of them would regret. It wasn’t like anything was going to change. Hadn’t Daegan said that earlier this week?

The leaves were rustling in the light breeze and the sounds of music could be heard from the fall festival that had kicked off an hour ago after the football game. Neal stepped off the wrap-around covered porch, having noticed earlier that it had been repainted recently. Charlotte had kept up the property and it looked just as good as it did when he’d left town. She’d chosen a Navaho red for the wood along with matching shutters. The live oak tree out front had already changed colors, so the house and lawn looked like a Thomas Kincaid painting. At least it got his mind off of what was waiting for him inside.