No Love Allowed (Dodge Cove Trilogy #1) (22 page)

“Please,” she pleaded, breathing hard from her sprint. Her body was still weak from being in bed for so long. “You have to at least let me check his flight schedule.”

They pointed at the large digital board to their right. Didi thanked them and jogged toward it. Her gaze frantically searched for his flight number, which she had gotten after giving Natasha a
call to reschedule their posing appointment. There were so many flights arriving and departing and delayed and canceled that it took her forever to locate the one she was looking for.

In big bold letters, the board declared the flight
DEPARTED
.

It sure felt like someone had died.

Her heart sank like a concrete block thrown into the ocean. It didn’t matter how sorry she felt for pushing him away when she needed him most. It didn’t matter that she loved him.
That she had fallen in love with him when he’d kissed her on the lakeshore. All of that was as useless as the countless paintings she had painted of their time together.

Strong hands pulled her into a tight embrace before she could drop to the floor. She buried her face in her mother’s chest as the first tears fell.

She was too late.

Caleb was gone.

BRINGING IN THE
mail after coming home from her new job at the art store two weeks later, Didi kicked the front door closed
with her heel. “Mom!” she called as she sifted through bills and junk mail. She headed straight to the kitchen, then stopped. “Are you actually cooking?”

“What?” Her mom waved a wooden spoon coated with sauce as she spoke, cheeky grin in place. “Can’t a mother do something nice for her daughter for a change?”

A genuine smile tugged on Didi’s lips. Ever since she had come home from the airport a mess, her mother had cut back on her work hours. She could be found at home more often. With
Didi’s job at the art store, they would be able to make ends meet. Her boss even knew some gallery owners who might be interested in looking at her paintings. Everything seemed to be looking
up in her life—except for one part.

She must have frowned, because her mother lowered the flame on the stove with a deft flick of her wrist and wrapped Didi in her arms in seconds. She sank into the hug.

“Thanks, Mom,” she said.

“For what?”

“For everything.”

“Oh, Didi. . . .” Her mother loved saying her name like a sigh. “You are the best thing that’s ever happened in my life. Always remember that.”

Heart warm, she hugged her mother tighter. Cutting back at work looked good on her. “You better get back to your cooking before you burn the house down.”

Leaving the mail on the kitchen table, she moved toward her room and froze at the doorway. A white box and a note on top of it lay on the bed. Her heart punched the wall of her chest. Her throat
closed. It couldn’t be what she thought it was. It just couldn’t.

Swallowing, she asked, “Mom? What’s that on my bed?”

“Oh! It completely slipped my mind. That came for you today.”

Slowly, like she was approaching something wild and dangerous, Didi moved closer. She was afraid to blink; if she did, the package might disappear. Once she reached it, she ran a shaking hand
over the edge of the box. The smooth texture of the lid seemed real enough beneath her fingertips. She refused to smile. To hope. For all she knew, this was someone’s idea of a sick joke.

Drawing a squiggly line over the lid toward the note with her fingertip, she picked up the envelope and set it aside. Not yet. She couldn’t bring herself to read what was written on the
high-quality paper. Placing a hand on each side, she took a deep breath and lifted the lid. Delicate white tissue covered the contents. But beneath the translucent paper something pink stood out.
Her heartbeat reached her ears, and she couldn’t seem to get enough air into her lungs.

With just her thumb and index finger, she lifted the tissue—first the one on top to the right then the one beneath to the left. Her breath hitched as she placed a hand against the frantic
beating in her chest.

A dress the color of a sunset greeted her. She ran her fingers over the silk—so soft, so smooth. When she lifted it out of the box, the strapless bodice had a sweetheart neckline and the
skirt overflowed with tulle.

Her mother gasped, causing her to whirl around.

“Didi, that’s gorgeous. Who would send you . . .” She trailed off when she realized the answer to her question.

Hugging the dress against her, Didi picked up the envelope and slipped out the note. The familiar curling scrawl simply said:
Be ready by six.

She practically jumped out of her skin. “Mom!”

“Didi, no.” Her mother shook her head. “Don’t do this to yourself again. Please.”

Placing the note with the dress neatly on the bed, she went to her trembling mother and hugged her. “I don’t know what this means, but I think I owe it to myself to see this through,
like you said that day we drove to the airport.” She drew back and looked into her mother’s eyes. Worry was etched in the lines of the older woman’s face. “You just have to
trust me, Mom.”

At exactly six, the doorbell rang. Didi jerked in surprise, dropping the gold hoop earring she had been in the process of putting on. She straightened and took a deep breath,
then picked up the earring again, looking at herself in the mirror. Her hair had grown out a little, so she used clips to keep the strands away from her face.

“Didi!” her mother called from the living room.

“Coming!” she called back, adding the final touches to her makeup. She added one more swipe of gloss on her lips, then rubbed them together with a
smack
. She fussed with the
skirt of her dress. Did one last check. This was it. Nothing more she could do but actually show up.

That night, no matter what happened, she wouldn’t let him leave without telling him how she felt.

Picking up the matching clutch, her knees shaking so hard she was afraid she would stumble, she strode out of her room and made her way to the living room with all the fake confidence she could
muster. Her heart lurched when she spotted Nathan sitting on the couch in a white suit and blue tie.

“Honey, you should hide your disappointment better,” he said, getting up and grinning.

Fingers shaking like when she’d first spotted the box on her bed, she patted her hair, making sure the clips stayed in place. “I’m sorry.” She hated how dejected she
sounded. “I just thought—”

“That I was someone else?”

She nodded, dropping her gaze to the cute ballet flats that had come with the dress. The light in the living room brought out the sparkle in the gold tips. A hand reached out for hers. Nathan
placed a soft kiss on her knuckles as she locked gazes with him.

“I think it’s time for some fun,” he said, squeezing her hand.

She shook her head. “That sounds nice, but I don’t think I’m up for it.”

“You?” He graced her with that open smile of his. “Not up for fun? Where did the girl who wasn’t afraid to jump in, no questions asked, go?”

“Straight to the deepest pits of depression,” she muttered.

“Remember what you said, Didi,” her mom encouraged, hands clasped. “You have to see this through.”

“Thank you, Angela,” Nathan said over his shoulder, treating her mother to his devastating smile. “I promise to take care of her.”

“Nathan,” Didi pleaded with both her tone and eyes.

He wasn’t having any of it, tugging her to the open front door. “Your carriage awaits, my lady.”

There on the street waited a black stretch limo. She looked up at him as they neared it. “What’s going on here?”

“Just get in, Didi,” he said, opening the door for her.

Gathering her skirt, she slid onto the low bench and made room for Nathan as he entered with her. Closing the door seemed to be some sort of signal, because seconds later the limo pulled out
onto the street.

“Where are we going?” She narrowed her eyes at her too-calm kidnapper.

“Isn’t it obvious?” He gestured at her clothes, then his. “We’re going to a party.”

“Nathan, I’m really not up for this.” Her heart shrank to the size of a pea. “Turn the car back around. I want to go home.”

“Let’s make a bet.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re not listening to me?”

His grin was her answer. “If you don’t enjoy yourself tonight, then I will leave you alone. What do you say?”

She reached out and shook his hand. “Prepare to lose.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “I missed you, Didi.”

Some warmth returned to her chest. “I missed you too.”

It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination. When the limo eased to a stop, Nathan opened the door and stepped out. Then he held out his hand for her. Sliding
to the open door, she took his hand and swung her legs out to the pavement. When she straightened, she moved to resettle her skirt, but Nathan beat her to it. He plumped up the tulle and readjusted
the neckline.

“I should really be saying ‘Hey’ right now,” she grumbled when his fingers got a little too cozy with her boobs, but she endured the attention anyway.

“Honey, will you just let me do my thing? I came back from Europe for this.” He arched an eyebrow at her. She conceded with a laugh. “What the hell did you do to your hair? I
didn’t want to say anything with your mother there, but . . .” With expert hands, he removed the clips and threw them inside the limo. Before she could protest, he ran his fingers
through the strands and shook them out. “You’re due for a trim. You’ve got to do it every six weeks so your hair stays healthy.”

She rolled her eyes. “Remind me to put it on my calendar.”

His handsome face contorted in a mock grimace. “I should smack you.”

The familiarity tore at her insides.

“Nathan,” she said, reaching up and taking his hands in hers so he would stop mother-henning her. “You know that this will be just for tonight, right? I don’t belong in
your world. . . .” She almost said “Without him,” but she mentally congratulated herself for keeping it in.

Hooking her hand over the inside of his elbow, he said, “If that’s how you still feel after tonight, then I’ll honor the bet and leave you alone.”

“Then lead the way.” She waved her free hand toward the stone steps she guessed they would have to climb.

Bright lights illuminated the front of the Dodge Cove Museum of Art. Its imposing facade boasted massive columns. Large banners depicting one of van Gogh’s more prominent self-portraits
with his name in big white letters running down the side, hung from each one. The sight made her breath catch. She had only been once, during a school field trip, but she still remembered the
pristine marble floors, the cream walls, and the cushioned benches. And the art. The wonderful, gorgeous art. She should have visited more, but life took over.

“What event is being held at the museum?” she asked.

At the top of the steps, Nathan pointed toward the entrance where the guy she thought she would never see again stood. He looked devastating in a dove-gray suit and pink tie. It matched her
dress.

CALEB RESISTED THE
urge to run and take her into his arms. From the surprise on her face, he could tell she hadn’t been
expecting him to be there. That might be a good thing. It might be bad. The terrible thundering in his chest told him he knew nothing for certain. His hands clasping the bouquet of yellow roses
were damp with sweat. He was pretty sure he was soaking through his shirt beneath his jacket. All this had been a gamble. She had rejected him once before. Her being there didn’t mean she
wouldn’t reject him again.

When Nathan had suggested he be the one to pick her up, Caleb was a hundred percent against the idea. But Nathan had convinced him in that maddeningly persuasive way of his that if he was the
one to pick her up, then he could still coax Didi into coming if she was hesitant. This had done Caleb no favors, though, because if he had been the one to pick her up, at least he would have had
the opportunity to gauge her feelings. All this for her, and he had come into it blinder than a bat in daylight.

His grip tightened around the flowers’ stems as Nathan ushered a speechless Didi closer. This wasn’t the time to falter. He knew how he felt about her, and this night was designed
for her to both see and feel it.

Unable to take not being near her any longer, he met them halfway. Everyone stopped. His eyes took her all in. The pink dress brought out the cream in her skin, and in the lamplight she was the
most beautiful girl he had ever seen. The thought of missing her crippled him.

“Caleb,” she whispered.

He swallowed. The sound of his name from her lips snapped him out of his paralysis. With shaking hands, he handed her the bouquet—the color of which reminded him of the dress she’d
worn at the garden party. Nathan quietly observed from his side.

Didi didn’t make a move to reach her hands out. She just stared at the roses. His heart stopped, disabling him. Then Nathan took her left hand and tugged it toward Caleb. The move
encouraged him. He slipped the flowers into her grasp. His fingers touched the back of her hand, sending tingles up his arm.

“Oh,” she gasped, then pressed her nose against the blooms. “They’re beautiful.”

Nathan chuckled. “Mission accomplished.”

Caleb endured the shoulder squeeze from his cousin before he left them. As much as possible he wanted to maintain a poker face. He wanted to show her that he was in control, because one word
from her could shatter his world. He couldn’t allow that to happen. For both their sakes.

He held out the crook of his elbow to her. Every second it took for her to wrap her arm around his was a second he died a little inside. Only when her hand was firmly on his forearm did he start
breathing again.

“The museum?” she asked, a twinkle in her eye.

“You said van Gogh was your favorite, so . . .” He faced her with renewed confidence and said, “Diana Alexander, will you go on a date with me?”

A soft flush turned her cheeks as pink as her dress. “Why, Caleb Parker, I believe this is a first for us.”