The Girl He Left Behind (6 page)

Eve returned the smile. She was pleased, too. A year ago, when Joan had first approached her about blogging, Eve had thought she would do something geared to working mothers. But after doing some research, she'd seen that there were tons of blogs on that subject, but no one seemed to be blogging about small-town life. And so “The Front Porch” was born. Twice a week Eve wrote about small-town living as seen from her front porch. And for some reason, the blog had found an audience. She had lots of steady readers, more and more all the time. Some had suggested she even turn past blogs into a book, and she'd been seriously considering it.

“Does Penny know she's being let go?” Eve asked after a moment.

“I'm calling her in next,” Joan said. “I hate doing this, but I don't have a choice.”

“I know.”

“So later, after I talk to her, maybe you can go over things with her. Find out if there's anything hanging fire that you'll need to complete.”

Eve nodded, dreading the meeting with Penny, who was a friend, and who was bound to be upset. She needed her paycheck, too. “Okay.”

“And one more thing before you go... I know Penny was planning to try to get an interview with Adam Crenshaw while he's in town. Since according to the grapevine, you seem to know him, that'll be your assignment now.”

Eve hoped her expression didn't reveal the instant turmoil Joan's words had caused. She'd promised Bill she would not see Adam again. And although she resented having to do so, she knew, given her circumstances, not seeing him again was her wisest course.

What was she going to do now?

The rest of the morning turned out to be even more stressful than her interview with Joan had been. Penny wasn't the only staffer to get bad news that day. The classified-advertising manager's job was cut and her duties were given to the display-advertising manager. Neither woman was happy. In addition, the circulation manager's hours were cut to half time and the front desk person was given her walking papers, which meant her duties would now be covered by the office manager/bookkeeper, who already had a full load.

Eve wished she could avoid seeing the crestfallen faces, but she couldn't leave before talking with Penny. The talk did not go well. Penny was so close to tears, she had a hard time discussing the status of various stories in progress. But at least she didn't blame Eve.

“Don't feel bad,” she finally said. “You've been here longer than anyone. I'm not surprised she's keeping you. Plus, there's your blog. It—it's going so well... I'm...I'm glad for you.”

But no matter what Penny said, Eve
did
feel bad. The women at the paper were like one big family, always had been. They celebrated every victory with a covered dish get-together, and every defeat with hugs and support. Now everything would change. But at least Joan hadn't sold the paper. Eve knew her boss had had offers. Good ones, too. But the paper was Joan's baby. She'd started it as a weekly and it had grown to a daily within five years. Joan was as proud of the
Courier
as she was of her two children. Eve knew it was really hard for her to do what she'd had to do today.

Finally, at three o'clock, Eve made her escape. She needed to stop by City Hall and check the calendar, see if there was anything going on this week that she'd need to cover, then she had to pick up the twins at four o'clock. And tonight, after they were settled, she had to try to figure out what she was going to do about the rest of the summer.

She purposely didn't think about Adam and the interview Joan wanted her to get. Like Scarlett O'Hara, she would shelve the problem of Adam until tomorrow.

* * *

The
Rolling Stone
reporter, Ross Edwards, called Adam Monday afternoon. “I could come there,” he offered when Adam tried to stall him.

“I'd prefer to wait until I'm back home,” Adam said.

“When will that be?”

“Possibly next week.”

“Okay, not a problem,” Edwards said. “I'll call you on Friday and we'll set a date.”

Adam wasn't sure he
would
be back in Nashville next week—he was actually thinking about going straight out to LA where he had his second home—but he'd deal with that question when the time came. For now, he just wanted to focus on writing new music and figuring out his mother's future.

They got Lucy moved to rehab late that afternoon, and Adam and his brothers met with her doctor, who assured them she would probably be going home by the end of the week. “As soon as she's settled into her new routine and used to the change in her diet,” the doctor clarified. Adam made a mental note to talk to both Austin and Aaron about his idea of moving her to Nashville in the near future.

Because Lucy was tired and fell asleep shortly after having her evening meal, Adam left for his hotel by six o'clock. Austin had suggested the three brothers have dinner together, but Adam had begged off, saying he needed to work. Yet when he got to his room, he didn't feel like working, nor did he feel like ordering room service. He paced around for a few minutes and tried to decide what he
did
feel like doing.

You want to call Eve. You want to see her again.

He knew there was probably no point in calling her. From the way she'd acted after they'd kissed the night before, he knew she probably regretted it and didn't want to see him again. Hell, he'd known it last night. But what he knew and what he wanted were two different things. And Adam was used to getting what he wanted.

He called her home number, which was listed, because he'd neglected to get her cell number.

She answered on the second ring. Just the sound of her voice made him want her. “Hello, Eve. It's Adam.”

“Hello, Adam.”

“I wanted to thank you for last night. It was great seeing you.” He would not mention the kiss unless she did.

“I enjoyed it, too.”

Okay, so she's going to play it cool and pretend nothing happened.
“I was hoping we could do it again. Maybe have dinner sometime this week?”

“That would be difficult. I have the children this week.”

“Well, how about this? Instead of going out, I'll bring over a couple of pizzas. I'd like to meet your kids.”

“I'm sorry. They're doing Y camp this week and they came home tired and cranky. They'd just get too overexcited if you were to come.”

Adam's celebrity was a problem at times, but that wasn't why Eve was putting him off. “How about this—”

“I was going to call you, though,” she said, interrupting. “I, um, wondered if you'd let me interview you for the paper.”

“Interview me?”

“Yes, um, my boss heard about last night...you know...at the shelter...so she asked me to interview you...since I, uh, know you.”

If this was the only way he was going to get to see Eve again, Adam would take it. “Okay. Sure. I'll be glad to give you an interview. When did you want to do it?”

“How about tomorrow afternoon?”

“Why don't we just meet for lunch tomorrow?”

She didn't answer immediately and Adam figured she was searching for a way to avoid lunch. Did she not want to be seen in public with him again? Was that part of her reluctance? “Lunch is the best time for me,” he said more firmly. He sensed rather than heard her sigh.

“Well, okay,” she said. “Um, where?”

“Why don't you come here, to the Crandall Lake Inn? The food's great and it's quiet. Let's say about twelve thirty?”

She only hesitated a few seconds. “Okay. That sounds good. Thanks, Adam.”

“Before you hang up, how about giving me your cell number? Just in case...”

After disconnecting the call, Adam smiled. Knowing he would see Eve again tomorrow, he might even be able to get some work done now. He decided ordering a pizza was a good idea, even if he'd be eating it alone. And tomorrow, when he saw Eve, he'd deal with whatever doubts she had, because no matter what she thought, he wasn't ready to let her disappear from his life again.

Chapter Six

O
n Tuesday morning, Eve worked from home. She'd just finished getting ready to meet Adam for the lunch interview when her cell rang, and she saw it was Olivia. “Hey, what's up?” she said, answering. Olivia rarely called during working hours.

“I just had to vent to somebody,” Olivia said.

Eve knew what was coming.

“Vivienne's at it again.” Vivienne Britton was Olivia's mother-in-law, and the two women were not fans of one another.

“What's she done now?” Eve glanced at her watch. She still had twenty minutes before she had to leave for the inn.

“She caused a scene at the day care center. Jessie just called me to tell me.”

Jessie was the director of the small day care facility where Olivia left Thea while she was working.

“What was she even doing there?”

“That's a good question! She just showed up. Said she was taking Thea to San Marcos for the day. When Jessie said I hadn't given them written permission and she'd have to call me first, Vivienne blew her stack. You know how she is. She thinks when she says ‘jump,' people should jump.”

“So what happened?”

“She took Thea anyway. Dared Jessie to try to stop her. The woman is impossible, Eve.”

Eve sighed. “I know.”

“I should call the police. I should have her arrested.”

“Olivia...”

“Oh, I know I can't do that. But I
should
! She has no right to act this way. If Mark were alive...”

Eve could hear the tears threatening. “Hon, calm down. I don't blame you for being upset, but she
is
Thea's grandmother and she wields an awful lot of influence in this town. I doubt the police would have done anything even if you had called them.”

“I hate her,” Olivia said.

“I know.” Eve couldn't stand the woman, either, because Olivia was a good mother yet Vivienne gave her no respect. In fact, she seemed to delight in causing Olivia problems. You'd think she'd worship the ground Olivia walked on. After all, Olivia had given Vivienne her only grandchild so far.

“I'm sorry,” Olivia said after a few seconds. “I know you're busy. I shouldn't have bothered you.”

“You didn't
bother
me. But I do have to go now. I have an appointment.”

“Okay.”

“Call me tonight. We can talk more. I want to tell you about everything that happened at the paper yesterday anyway.”

Eve thought about her cousin and her situation as she drove to meet Adam, and once again thanked the Lord that she'd had such a wonderful mother-in-law in Ellen Ruth Kelly. If anything, she had bent over backward to be good to Eve. She'd once laughingly told Bill in Eve's presence that if he and Eve were ever to split up—which of course, she knew would never happen!—she was keeping Eve. Ellen Ruth had died two years ago from cancer, and not a day went by that Eve didn't think of her and miss her. She often wondered how Missy felt about their convoluted relationships.

Olivia's problems and everything else faded from Eve's mind as she drove her Prius into the wide, curving driveway of the inn and surrendered her keys to the valet parking attendant. She'd dressed carefully for today's interview in a lemon-yellow dress and matching low-heeled pumps. Today, since she was representing the paper, she'd put her long hair into a neat up twist. She knew she looked good as she entered the marble-floored lobby. Her foolish heart skipped when she saw Adam sitting there waiting for her.

He stood as she approached. Dear heaven, he was gorgeous! Today he wore casual gray linen pants with an open-necked white shirt, and he'd tied his shining hair back from his face. When he smiled, his dimple, so like Nathan's, and his eyes, so like Natalie's, reminded her of everything she stood to lose if she wasn't careful.

“You look beautiful,” he said, smiling into her eyes.

“Thank you.” She told herself to calm down. But her heart refused to listen.

“Our table's ready for us.” Her took her elbow and guided her toward the dining room.

Clutching her purse, telling herself she was a professional reporter and that she could handle anything, Eve allowed herself to be led.

The dining room was only about one-third full. The maître d' showed them to a table by the windows, with a view of the river. The grounds sported jewel-bright flower beds and leafy oak trees, with the sparkling ribbon of water beyond. A couple of fat squirrels chased each other up the trunk of the nearest tree, and Eve couldn't help smiling as she watched them.

“It's a great view, isn't it?” Adam said as they were seated.

“Yes. Crandall Lake may be small, but it's got just about everything,” Eve said.

“So you've never been sorry you stayed here.”

Eve's eyes met his. “No. Never.”
What a liar you are. You're sorry for just about everything.

He held her gaze steadily. “So why
did
you call me twelve years ago, then?”

Eve sighed. He wasn't going to let go of that question. “I—I wanted to see if you were okay. I wanted to tell you I was sorry.”

“You just said you weren't sorry you stayed here.”

“But I
was
sorry I'd hurt you.”

His face closed up a bit at her words, and she knew she was right. She
had
hurt him. And she finally had a chance to apologize.

She leaned forward, speaking softly. “I was hurt, too, Adam. Even though I couldn't go with you, I cried every day for weeks after you left.”

“Why
couldn't
you go?”

“You know why. I told you. My parents... It would have destroyed them. I just...I couldn't do that to them.” Oh, God. Why were they talking about this now? Here? Where they had no privacy? This was supposed to be an interview. A business interview. She was supposed to be working. She looked around the room, relieved to see there was no one there she knew personally. Her gaze met Adam's again. “I'm sorry.”

Just then, sparing her from further conversation, their waiter approached with water and a basket of warm rolls and herb butter. Eve hurriedly looked at the luncheon menu and made a quick decision to order the lobster bisque. Adam ordered the shrimp étouffée, and the waiter left.

“Shall we begin the interview?” Eve asked once he was gone.

“Why don't we wait till after we eat?” In the sunlit dining room, Adam's eyes looked darker than normal.

Eve wanted to disagree, but decided maybe it was better to concede this point. There was enough tension between them as it was.

So for the next hour, while they ate, they only talked casually about the things he'd been doing since coming home, and she filled him in on the changes at the paper and what they would mean to her future. Neither wanted coffee or dessert, and once Adam had signed for the bill, he suggested they conduct the interview upstairs, in his suite.

“I don't think that's a good idea,” Eve said.

“I'm not going to try to seduce you, Eve.”

Eve knew she was blushing. “I didn't think you would, but it's still not very professional to go to your room.”

“Suite,” he corrected. “I'll keep the door to the bedroom closed. I promise.”

She sighed. She knew she was going to lose this argument. “Okay, fine.” Picking up her purse, she stood.

Eve looked around as they entered the lobby and waited by the elevators. Again, she saw no one she knew. Thank God, she thought. The last thing she needed was for someone to tell her mother or Bill that she'd been seen going up to Adam's room. Actually, she was kind of surprised that no one even seemed interested in the fact that Adam was there. She said as much as they entered the elevator.

“That's one of the things I really like about this place,” he said. “No one has bothered me. It's a nice change.”

When they reached his suite, she was relieved to see it really was a full-fledged suite with a separate living area filled with comfortable chairs and a sofa. There was even a small dining table with four chairs. She suggested they sit there so she could turn her small recorder on and keep it on the table between them as they talked.

He agreed readily, asked if she'd like anything to drink, and when she said no, sat down kitty-corner from her. Once the recorder was switched on, she asked him to tell her about his first weeks in Nashville.

“They were rough,” he admitted. “I ran out of money pretty fast. Like I told you before, I even had to pitch my phone 'cause I couldn't afford it. Just got one of those disposables that were cheaper so I could keep calling producers and they'd have a way of contacting me.”

He described how he'd rented the cheapest possible room at a boardinghouse, how he'd made dozens of demos and how just as he was about to give up and try to find a job as a waiter or something, one of the producers he'd contacted called him and signed him.

“I owe everything to Duke,” he said. “He's still one of my best friends.”

“He recognized your talent,” Eve said.

They went on to talk about his first record and how it had shot to the top of
Billboard
's country charts, then surprised everyone by crossing over to the pop charts when DJs around the country began giving it airtime on pop stations.

“That was a big deal, wasn't it?” Eve asked.

“Yeah. I had no idea. It's a good thing I had Duke, because I was a babe in the woods. People could've taken big advantage of me if not for him. I owe him a lot.”

“I'm sure he's made a lot of money off you.”

“Doesn't matter. I don't forget my friends, people who're straight and loyal.”

Eve nodded. “So what's next? There's a rumor that you've been asked to judge one of the reality singing shows.”

Adam gave her a self-deprecating grin. “Yeah, and my agent's hot to trot. Thinks I should do it. I don't know. That kind of thing doesn't really interest me. I'd rather just spend that time writing more music.”

Eve smiled. She could've predicted that would be his answer. “How about if I take a couple of pictures? I know my boss will want at least one to accompany the article.”

When he agreed, she turned off the recorder, then got out her phone and with its camera, took several candid shots. Once that was done, she said, “I forgot to ask. How does it feel to be home again after all these years?”

“You know how it feels,” he said, meeting her eyes.

“No, I don't.”

“It feels surreal.” When she frowned, he quickly said, “But that's off-the-record. Say it feels good. I like seeing everyone and like seeing that Crandall Lake is still as nice as it always was. Say I'm happy to be here for my mother and I like seeing old friends again. Say I'm looking forward to visiting more often in the future.”

“Do you really feel that way? Are you planning on coming back more often?”

“I don't know. Depends.”

“On what?”

His eyes pinned hers. “On you.”

“On me?” Eve said faintly.

“I've never forgotten you, Eve,” he said softly. “That kiss last night, it wasn't an impulse. I wanted to kiss you from the minute I saw you at the shelter. My big hit, ‘Impossible to Forget'... I wrote that song because of you.”

Eve swallowed. She wanted to look away, but she couldn't. Even when he reached for her hand, her gaze remained glued to his. When he gently pulled her toward him, her stupid heart began to race, and even though her brain screamed,
Danger! Danger! No! Stop! Don't do it!
she didn't resist when he drew her into his arms.

“I want you, Eve.”

She closed her eyes as his lips grazed her cheek, and drifted down to her neck.

“I've always wanted you,” he whispered.

Every nerve ending in her body seemed to be alive with sensation. And when he raised his head to capture her mouth, she moaned, and instead of stopping him, she kissed him back as if her very life depended upon it.

The kiss went on and on and on. Became two. Then three. But when his hands roamed lower, cupping her bottom, then reached up to unzip her dress, she finally came to her senses.

Breathing heavily, she pushed at his chest. “No, Adam. No! I can't.”

“Eve...” He tried to kiss her again.

She turned her face away, and the kiss landed on her cheek. “Please, Adam, don't. This is a mistake. A terrible mistake.”

“Why is it a mistake? I want you, Eve. And I know you want me.”

She couldn't deny that. She did want him. She wanted him more now than she had all those years ago. She wanted him so much she could hardly stand it. Fighting tears, she said, “What we want is not important. What will happen tomorrow and the next day is what matters.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Adam, think about it. Your life is not here, but mine is. If we...if we make love now, everything will become more complicated and messy than it is already. There's...there's no point to it. No future for us. There never was.”

“So that's it?” he said. “We're both free, you want me as much as I want you, but we're not going to do anything about it?”

“Yes, that's it.” Straightening her dress, she picked up her recorder and phone and put them in her purse. Then, avoiding his eyes, she said, “I'm going to go now, Adam. Thank you for the interview.”

Then she turned and, without looking back, walked out of the suite.

* * *

Adam wanted to go after her. He couldn't believe how little had changed. How much he still wanted her. It had been hard enough to leave her Saturday when everything in him had told him to open that door and follow her inside her little house, to then pick her up and carry her straight to her bedroom, where they could make love the entire night. If anything, the longing he'd felt then had only gotten stronger.