Hot Buttered Yum (31 page)

They worked
silently, cleaning themselves up and straightening their clothes, and when he picked
his shorts up, he realized his wallet and phone had somehow managed to slide
across the floor. Probably when he’d kicked his shorts off
like a crazed teenager.

But damn, he’d
missed her. Two nights was too long to go.

He stepped into
his shorts. “You really didn’t vote for me?” he asked. He’d been surprised to
hear her announce that morning that she hadn’t put a dime in for him over the
last eight days.

Wickedness lit
her face. “Not a one.”

“I could have
lost.”

“But you
didn’t.”

And, he
supposed, he could have walked away with the money unsure if he deserved it or
not. If she’d paid his way through, he wouldn’t have felt right about taking it.
“I think I should be offended,” he grumbled, teasing her. “You could have put
in at least one vote.”

“Nope,” she
said. “Just be impressed with yourself.” She shimmied into her dress and his blood
once again headed south. “I know I am,” she murmured.

She stepped over
to him and kissed him squarely on the mouth. Her tongue stroked leisurely against
his and he couldn’t help but think about her licking another part of him. Hell,
he had to get out of this room before he stripped her naked again.

He set her away
from him. “Behave or I’ll make you late to get back out front.”

“Late could be
okay.” She eyed him from beneath heavy lashes, and he had to concentrate hard
not to pull her dress back off her body.

“Aren’t you
looking forward to playing tonight?” he asked, groping for something else to talk
about. She’d admitted earlier today that she wanted her career back.

And just like
that, the wanton look disappeared and excitement filled her face. She nodded. “And tomorrow. Kayla has a float for me with a piano on it. She
even wrangled speakers to hang off each corner. I’m
going to play a mini concert during the parade, Lucas.”

Pride glowed
from her and Lucas found himself just standing there, staring at her. She came
alive at the piano, and she was doing the same at that very moment. Pure,
unadulterated pleasure glowed from her face. The concert pianist was back.

“I’m proud of
you,” he said. He pressed a hard kiss to her mouth, then
moved away before he could do more. He grabbed his wallet from the floor and
shoved it in his back pocket. Then he picked up his phone. He’d missed a text
from his mother.

We’re at the hospital with
Gracie. Will call after we see the doctor.

Fear spiked
through him and he whirled around. Roni looked up from the mirror, where she
was plucking at her hair. She froze.

“What’s wrong?”
she asked.

He jabbed the
number for his mother’s cell.

“Gracie.” Impatience
had him counting the number of times the phone rang on the other end. “A text. They’re at the hospital.”

Panic roared through
him as no one answered. He tried the house phone, and then his mother’s cell
again. His father didn’t have a mobile; he hated everything about them.

No one answered
anywhere.

He typed in a reply:
What’s wrong? Is she sick?

And then he
realized that Roni hadn’t said anything. He looked at her and saw that she
remained across the room. Her face had gone white and she was chewing on her bottom
lip.

Someone knocked on
the door and yelled, “Ten minutes.”

Roni’s eyes shot
toward the sound before bouncing back to him. “I can’t do this,” she whispered.
“I told you.”

Anger fueled
him. “She’s not sick,” he snapped out.

She couldn’t be.
It had almost killed her the first time.

It had almost killed
him.

He called his
mother’s phone again. Nothing. So he looked up the
number for the hospital closest to their house, but they couldn’t get him any
information either.

“Find someone
who can!” he shouted as the phone went dead. “Dammit,” he muttered. “I have to
go.” He shoved his phone in his pocket. “Is there any way off the island after
the ferry stops running?”

“No.” Roni shook
her head. Her eyes were too wide. “You’re leaving?”

She looked like
she was in shock.

“My daughter is
at the hospital,” he pointed out. “Yes. I’m leaving.” Then he forced himself to
slow down and take a deep breath. Panic would do no good. “Come with me,” he
said.

She pointed to
the door. “But I have to play.”

He tried his
mother’s phone again as his teeth ground together. As it rang in his ear, he
reached for Roni’s hand and rubbed his thumb over her clenched fist. “I
probably can’t get off the island tonight anyway. Or get a flight out until
tomorrow morning. Come with me in the morning.” He kissed her fingers and felt
better already knowing that whatever it was, he wouldn’t have to go through it
alone. They could do this. They could do whatever Gracie needed.

Roni had gone
quiet again.

And then he
noticed that her hand now lay limp in his.

He shoved the
phone back in his pocket and looked at the woman he loved. “Roni?”

She didn’t look
him in the eye.

“Roni?” His voice
hardened. He stepped directly in front of her and forced her to look at him.

She just shook
her head. “I told you,” she whispered.

“What? That
Gracie would get sick? It could be anything.” But he didn’t believe that it
was. He believed his worst fear was coming to life.

“I can’t do it,”
she said again.

And then he got
it. “You aren’t coming with me?”

Her no was a
tight shake of her head.

“Tomorrow?” he
asked slowly. He assumed Kayla would have put the word out about Roni playing
in the parade. Cancelling wouldn’t be good for anyone. “Or never?” he finished.

Roni pulled her
hand out of his and tucked it under her arm. Her gaze lowered to the ground.

“Are you kidding
me?” he barked.

She didn’t
reply.

“What a coward,”
he muttered. He couldn’t believe this was happening. “I thought you were
different, Roni. I thought you had a spine.” He’d thought she was strong enough
to be there for Gracie. For him. “When are you going
to quit hiding from your life?”

He should have
known better. Hadn’t this already happened to him once?

“Good thing I didn’t
expose you to my daughter.” He spat the words out. “She doesn’t need someone like
you in her life.”

Without another
word, he slammed out of the room and walked away.

He did not look
back.

Fury churned
with fear and guilt about being away when Gracie needed him.

He would go home
and take care of his daughter all by himself.

Just like he
always had.

A knock sounded at the hotel door as Lucas
packed the last of his clothes into his open suitcase. The only things left
were his laptop, and the clothes and shower essentials he’d need for tomorrow
morning. Then he’d be good to go. And he wouldn’t look back.

A wrenching pain
twisted in the middle of his chest but he ignored it. He didn’t have time to
think about what he was walking away from. It had been her choice. Plus, he and
Gracie were better off finding out who she was now
instead of later.

If she was no
better than that, he wouldn’t spare her two more minutes of his time.

Grabbing his
phone—in case his mother called with an update again—he headed to the door. It was
probably Kelly. Lucas had texted him as he’d left the convention center to let
him know he’d be leaving on the first ferry of the morning. Only
…

He stopped in
the middle of the room and eyed the locked door. It could be Roni.

It
should
be Roni.

He checked his
watch. She’d be off the stage by now.

He still
couldn’t believe she’d frozen up on him. Chances were high it wasn’t her. The
way she’d acted, he didn’t think she’d be changing her mind anytime soon. And
if she ever did, it would be too late.

With a pathetic amount
of lingering hope, he opened the door. A woman stood there. Average
height, blonde hair, green eyes. Pretty. With guilt weighing heavy on
her face. He thought he’d seen her around over the last couple of weeks, but he
couldn’t put a name to her.

She stuck out
her hand. “I’m Ginger,” she announced, before saying in an apologetic tone,
“Roni’s friend.”

Ah, the guilt of
association.

“What do you
want?” he asked. His tone was rude, but he was beyond caring. Surely Roni
hadn’t sent her over to make excuses for her. There was no excuse.

“Ummm …” Ginger
drew the word out, looking more than uncomfortable to be there. “I have a
boat.”

He was at a
loss. “And?”

“I own the ferry
business here on the island,” she explained, “but I also have fishing boats.
Roni asked me to ready one of my boats and take you over to the mainland
tonight.”

He stared. The
woman he’d thought he loved, who’d balked on him when he and his kid had needed
him, had sent her friend over. With a boat.

Well, he
supposed that was something.

“She’s not a bad
person, you know,” Ginger smiled a little too hopefully. “She just needs some
time.”

“Who? Your boat?”

A dry look came back
his way. “Your girlfriend.”

“She’s not my
girlfriend.”

“Can’t you just
give her a chance?”

He turned his
back to her and went to pack up his laptop. If he could get off the island
tonight, then he’d take it. There had been an earlier flight for Dallas in the
morning, but he hadn’t booked it since he didn’t think he’d be able to make it,
given the ferry schedule.

“I gave her a
chance,” he stated flatly. He didn’t look up as he worked. He shoved his laptop
in the padded section of the carry bag, then went for
his toiletries. “She made her choice.”

When he turned
back, he saw that Ginger had stepped across the threshold, but just barely. She
looked at a loss for words, but as Roni’s friend, she apparently felt she had
to try. “She’s had a rough time in the past.”

Seriously? This was her
reasoning?

He locked his
hands on his hips and stared at the blonde. “My daughter almost died while I
was holding her in my arms. She went through months of chemo. Twice. All her hair fell out. Her skin turned yellow. And
her mother left her the day after she was diagnosed. I know Roni’s been through
a lot herself. I get that. And she’s scared now. But I don’t have time for it.
Either she moves past it and is with me—through everything—or it’s over.”

He stopped
speaking and looked around the now barren room as if to make a point. Then he
refocused on Ginger.

“And since she’s
not here with me …”

He slung his carry
bag over one shoulder, zipped his luggage, and headed out the door, leaving
Ginger to follow.

But he stopped
abruptly on the other side. She slammed into him.

“
Damn
,” he muttered. He looked back. “I
have a rental that I brought onto the island. I can’t go tonight. I have to
take the car back on the ferry.”

Ginger shoved at
his back, moving him out of the doorway. “She took care of that too,” she informed
him. “Our other friend, Andie, is going home tomorrow. She’ll drive your car. I
just need the keys.”

He stared down
at the woman, noticing how her face was pulled tight and her eyes were avoiding
him.

“What?” she
finally bit out as he kept standing there.

“Seems she’s
thought of everything,” he said. A boat, his car.
Hell, by the time he got to the airport, maybe she’d have his flight rebooked for
him as well.

“Seems like.” Ginger agreed.
She stepped past him and headed down the hallway. But before she got too far,
he heard her mumble, “Except for you and Gracie.”

A crooked slash
lifted his lips. At least her friend thought Roni was an idiot too.

Not that it
helped.

The music wasn’t flowing today. Not like
it should.

Or maybe it was
just her.

Maybe she had no
music left in her.

It kind of felt
that way.

Roni pulled her
hands from the piano keys and stared out the window. No sun could be seen
rising up out of the water this morning. Just gray. Rumbling thunder. And blah. She
propped her chin in her hands and her elbows on the top of the piano and let
out a long, weary sigh. She felt the same inside as the weather. Yucky and gross.

What a setup for
the afternoon parade.

At least, if it
kept raining, she wouldn’t have to worry about sitting on the float and playing
in front of everyone. But it wasn’t nerves that were bothering her this morning;
she knew that. She’d been fine when she’d played with the band the night
before. Fine, but not happy. She’d actually been
pretty darn miserable during every minute of it.

But she’d played
beautifully. And no one had been able to tell that her heart was broken.

Nor could they
tell that she was as ashamed of herself as she’d ever been in her life.

She’d played and
smiled and entertained … while one of her best friends had been taking the
man she loved off the island. Away from her. But most importantly, to his daughter.

Roni glanced at
the phone on the bench beside her hip. No blinking lights.

She’d texted
Lucas in the early hours of the morning, as she’d been unable to sleep. She was
worried about Gracie. It wasn’t that she’d really expected him to reply, but
when he hadn’t, it had crumbled even more of her heart.

Yet she’d done
the right thing. She believed that.

She wasn’t what
Lucas and Gracie needed.

Hadn’t she
proven that by the way she’d frozen up when he’d gotten the news? She couldn’t
be a mother to that little girl.

But that didn’t
mean she didn’t care.

Worry gnawed at
her now, and she fought the urge to call the hospitals in Dallas. She had
Lucas’s address. Surely she could find the one nearest him. But she knew they
wouldn’t tell her anything.

Because she
wasn’t family.

By her choice.

She collapsed onto
the piano top and rested the side of her face over her forearms. She closed her
eyes. She missed him.

And her heart hurt.

Warm tears slid
from her eyes. She didn’t make a sound. No audible crying, not even a sniffle.
Just tears racing from beneath her closed eyelids to land softly on her arms.
Her cheek slid against the wetness on her skin.

She wanted to go
back and do it over again. She wanted to get it right this time.

Only, when she
replayed the moments from her dressing room through her mind, she feared she
would make the same decision again. Gracie could very well be lying in that
hospital for the last time. She could be dying.

Roni turned her
head to bury her face in her arms. She was so tired of being alone.

So tired of
letting people down.

She just wanted
to quit feeling anything for a while.

A hand touched
her back and she jerked her tear-dampened face up. Ginger stood beside her.

“How’d you get
in?” Roni asked. She sat up and wiped the backs of her hands across her cheeks.
It was time to quit feeling sorry for herself. She’d
made her decision. She had to lie in the bed she’d made.

“You didn’t
answer my knock so I came around and tried the back door.”

Roni glanced to
the sliding door in the living room. Then she noticed that her tree was dark.
She hadn’t turned it on this morning.

“You messed up,
you know.” Ginger said. She picked up Roni’s phone and sat her butt down on the
bench in its stead. “He’s a good man. You should have gone with him.”

“I never said he
wasn’t a good man.”

She’d called
Ginger the night before, right after Lucas had stormed out of the room. Ginger
had tried talking to her then, but Roni hadn’t wanted to hear it. She didn’t especially
want to hear it now either, but she didn’t have the energy to stop it.

Instead, she
tried to play the piano again.

Her fingers
struck a couple chords before they stopped. She sat there as if her mind and
her hands were disconnected.

“You two belong
together.”

“I don’t belong
with anyone.” That was the answer. She’d called her manager the day before and
told him she wanted to start slow, but why go that route? She’d never done
anything in her career slow. She’d call him back and tell him she wanted a full
tour. A new CD, multi-country stops. Anything he could line up. She’d come back
with a vengeance.

She’d be the
same Veronica Templeman that she’d always been.

Then she
wouldn’t have to drown in the sorrow of her own life.

Ginger put her
hands on top of Roni’s where her fingers lay lifeless against the black and
white keys. The simple action clutched at Roni’s chest. She jerked her hands out
from under her friend’s.

“You,” Ginger
began softly, “belong with Lucas.” She paused only for a second. “And with Gracie.”

“I don’t—”

“You’re scared,”
Ginger interrupted. “You opened yourself up before. And you lost. But that
doesn’t mean you will this time.”

Roni turned her
head to her friend. “Gracie is already back in the
hospital. I don’t see how that’s winning.”

“And Lucas is by
her side. Or heading that way. Where
you should be.”

“I don’t want
another kid to die on me.”

“Who says she
will? This might not even be about her cancer. Have you thought about that?”

Roni stared at
her. Ginger just didn’t get it. Roni wasn’t strong enough to be that person.

“Go home,
Ginger.” She rose from the piano and went to pour herself a cup of coffee. “I
appreciate you being here, you know that. I would do the same for you. But I
want to be alone now.”

Ginger stood.
She didn’t immediately leave.

Instead she said
what Roni least needed to hear. “He’s scared too.”

Roni stared at
her, her cup poised at her mouth, but unable to lift it any higher.

“And you left the
man you love to deal with this alone.”