A Bridge to Dreams (11 page)

There were those two sad words again—
if only
.

The rattling of the doorknob warned her that the family onslaught was about to begin. There was no place to run, so she sat right where she was and waited. She refused to help by getting up and opening the door.

Fortunately, it was Tim who came in holding a copy of the paper.

“Hi,” she said in a flat tone.

“I take it you've seen this,” he said.

“I've seen it.”

“Frank is going to blow a fuse.”

“I don't doubt it.”

“And Mom. What is she going to think?”

At that moment the doorknob twisted again and Karyn's mother came in. If she'd worked to learn her cue, she couldn't have timed the entrance any more effectively. Only the worried furrow between her brows indicated that she was troubled. Her smile was as bright as ever as she sat next to Karyn and wrapped her arms around her.

“Are you okay, Karyn Marie?” she said, studying her intently.

“Fine, Mom. I assume you didn't just drop in. You've seen the paper.”

“Mrs. Murtaugh brought it by.”

“I'm sorry.”

“Don't you be sorry, baby. That old woman's nothing but a busybody. I'm not one bit concerned about what
she thinks. I'm just worried about you. Timmy, go make a pot of coffee while your sister and I talk.”

“But—”

“Go. And make it a big one. I expect the others will be here before long.”

When Tim had gone into the kitchen area, Karyn's mother laid a work-roughened hand against her cheek. “You in love with this man?”

“Yes,” she admitted, relieved to have it out in the open at last. “It doesn't make much sense, though, does it?”

“Whoever said anything about love making sense? The one thing I do know is that those special feelings aren't something you turn your back on.”

“But he's
exactly
like Frank and the others. He thinks I need looking after.”

“And that's so bad?”

“I want to be on my own, be my own woman, make my own decisions.”

“Don't you think he'd let you do that? There's a big difference between caring what happens to you and taking over your life. A man who cares too much, why, he might make a mistake every now and then and push too hard, but it's usually in the name of love. That's not control, Karyn Marie. Not by a long shot. Maybe the very first decision you ought to make to prove you're all grown-up is whether you really want this man enough to fight for him. Now why don't you tell me about him.”

Despite herself, Karyn found that she was eager to talk about Brad, anxious to say his name aloud, to pour out everything to a sympathetic ear. “Actually, we just met,” she began.

“When?”

“A couple of weeks ago,” she admitted sheepishly.

“Oh, my.”

“Exactly.”

She patted Karyn's hand. “Well, never you mind about that. Where is this Brad Willis now?”

“Back in Los Angeles, I guess.”

“Is he coming back?”

“I don't know. I haven't talked to him.”

“Oh, my.”

“No, it's not what you think. I told him I didn't want to talk to him. I told him I couldn't love a man who wanted to run my life the way my brothers always have.”

As if on cue again, the entire Chambers part of the world descended en masse, led by a scowling Frank. Before he could say a word, though, Tim asked, “Coffee, everyone?”

“Beer,” Frank corrected tersely, sitting down and eyeing Karyn as if she'd grown two heads.

“Don't you dare sit in judgment on me, Frank Chambers,” Karyn snapped. “Did I interfere in your life when you got involved with that two-timing little tramp from Oakland? Have I said one word about the fact that it's taken you five years to get around to proposing to Megan, even though she's head over heels in love with you and actually thinks you're the smartest, handsomest man on the face of the earth? Have I? And what about you, Jared? Do I tell you how to live your life?”

“It's not the same,” Frank grumbled.

“No, it's not,” Jared agreed. “You're our—”

“Don't you dare finish that,” she ordered. “I am no longer your
baby
sister. I am no longer a baby. I am a woman and I may make a few mistakes now and then, but they're mine to make.”

“You have to admit, sis, this one's a doozy,” Tim said gently as he handed her a cup.

“Et tu, Brute?”
she said, flashing him a hurt look.

“Sorry, but it's the truth. Maybe if I hadn't warned Brad—”

Shocked eyes turned on him. “
You
warned him?” Frank said, aghast.

“Warned him about what?” her mother asked.

“Yes,” Timmy said defiantly to Frank. “I told him you were playing outraged father of the year. I didn't see any need for Karyn to be embarrassed.”

“Well, maybe if she'd been a little more embarrassed last weekend, her picture wouldn't have been right up there beside Cher's today.” Frank looked ready to explode. “Good God, Timmy, what were you thinking of?”

“Will one of you explain?” their mother ordered.

Karyn shrugged. “They found out I was with Brad last weekend and they came charging over to rescue me. Only, Timmy called and warned us and Brad went down to meet them without telling me they were coming, which is why I got mad and left him.”

“He
lied
to us,” Jared interjected indignantly. “Let's not forget that the man told us a bald-faced lie. You were obviously upstairs when we were there. It wasn't an hour later when we found you running down the street.”

“I think whatever Brad told you was justified under the circumstances,” Karyn countered, just as the door opened and the man in question walked through. Her
heart did an untimely somersault in her chest. Despite everything, she was very glad to see him. She figured if she showed it, though, Brad would be lynched before he could cross the room to kiss her. That was really too bad, too. She could have used one of his kisses about now. They still had a lot of talking to do, a lot to work out, but this time she wasn't going to run away from it. This time she was going to behave like a woman who knew exactly what she wanted from life.

Frank and Jared were already on their feet. Her mother looked slightly dazed by the tall, handsome man who was regarding her daughter with a passionate gleam in his eyes. Timmy took a protective step closer to her.

“What do you want, Willis?” Frank demanded.

Brad met his gaze evenly. “To see your sister. We need to talk.”

“She doesn't want to see you,” Jared said.

“I can speak for myself,” Karyn interrupted firmly.

“Well, you don't want to see him, do you?” Daniel said, speaking out for the first time and taking a defiant step toward Brad. He balled his hands into fists at his sides.

“Yes, I do want to see him,” Karyn said. As she looked at the shocked faces turned toward her, her stomach rolled over, but she insisted, “Privately, please.”

Her mother regarded her intently, then nodded in satisfaction. Apparently she saw something that no one else in the room saw, including her daughter. Karyn just wanted to be alone with the man behind the chaos in her life.

“Come on, everyone,” her mother insisted. “It's time we get out and leave these two alone. They have things to talk about that are none of our concern.”

“I am not leaving her alone with him,” Frank said.

Her mother reached over and grabbed him by the ear, oblivious to the ridiculous picture it presented. “Out! Now!” she ordered. “The rest of you, too.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Karyn said, giving her a hug.

“Just remember what we talked about. Don't worry about what makes sense. Just worry about doing what feels right.”

“You can't be serious,” Jared blustered, just as his mother latched onto his arm and yanked him toward the door.

“Nice to meet you, young man,” Mrs. Chambers said politely. “Don't mind this troupe. Sometimes they just don't have sense enough to know when to butt out.”

“I appreciate your help,” Brad said.

“Don't be fooled,” she retorted. “Right now, I'm on your side. Hurt my girl, and I'll be the first one to load a shotgun.”

Brad grinned. “I'll keep that in mind.”

While everyone was getting out, Karyn went into the kitchen area and poured herself another cup of coffee. She held up the pot and gestured toward Brad.

“Please,” he said, then took the cup she held out for him. “Are you coming back in here or are you going to hide behind the counter?”

“I think I'll stay right here,” she said, refusing to be taunted.

“Coward.”

“I think I have every right to be a little cautious with a man who apparently changes women more often than he changes shirts.”

“That's overstating things a bit, don't you think?”

“I wouldn't know. All I know is what I read in the papers.”

“I may be a great defender of freedom of the press, but that doesn't mean those particular rags have much interest in accuracy. Besides, I never pretended to be a saint prior to our meeting.”

“But now you've gone and sprouted the wings of an angel?”

“No, sweetheart, I'm only a man. There have been a lot of times in my life when I've been a very lonely man. Relationships have helped to fill the empty hours.”

“And is that what I was doing, filling the empty hours? You had a few days off and didn't want to spend them alone?”

“You know better than that. I had to turn a few things upside down and backward to get that time off. I thought it was worth it to get to know you.”

“Was it?”

He smiled for the first time since he'd walked into the apartment and Karyn felt something shift inside her, making way for the first ray of hope that he wanted to work things out as badly as she did.

“You know it was,” he said. “I fell in love with you. I thought I was going to teach you a lesson, that I was going to bring a new perspective on living into your life. Instead, you're the one who taught me. I learned something about loyalty and loving that will make all the difference in the rest of my life.”

“Glad to be of service,” she said dryly. “Should I charge for this lesson?”

“You won't be giving it again, except to me. Marry me, Karyn. I swore I wasn't going to come back here
and pressure you, but I couldn't stand being apart another day.”

“If you hadn't come, I would have come after you,” she admitted.

“You would have?”

“I finally realized what I was thinking of giving up. I couldn't do it. Not without talking things out, at least.”

“You want to talk now?”

She nodded, never taking her eyes from his.

“Okay. I understand why you blew up at me for taking over and trying to handle things with your brothers. I promise it will never happen again. It's just that you're so much more innocent, so much less jaded than other women I've known, it brings out a protective streak in me. I guess I've always wanted to be a dragon slayer for someone.”

“I can slay my own dragons,” she said quietly. “And even when I can't, that doesn't mean I want you to step in and do it for me.”

“I'll try to remember that. I really will, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to sit by and let you be hurt, not if there's anything in my power that I can do to stop it.”

In a way Brad's promise seemed only to bring them to a stalemate. “I'm not sure I'll be able to recognize the difference,” Karyn admitted. “I'm so scared of becoming dependent on you for my happiness, of taking the easy way out and letting you do things for me.”

“I have a feeling you'll never hesitate to tell me when I'm getting out of line. You're stronger than you think. You walked out on me, didn't you? Even though you wanted to stay.”

The hint of masculine self-confidence grated. “You're awfully sure of yourself.”

“I'm sure of what we feel,” he corrected. “Even your mother could see it. That's the only reason she left you here alone with me.”

Karyn sighed. “Despite everything she's been through, my mother appears to be an incurable romantic.”

“So am I,” Brad said. “I believe with all my heart that we have the makings of a forever love. That's why I came back.” He grinned ruefully. “That and the fact that my father swore he'd wind up having another heart attack if he had to watch me pacing around the office much longer.”

“Your father's back at work?”

“Part-time. Long enough for us to go on a honeymoon, in fact.”

“But we've just had a vacation.” As soon as she uttered the mild protest, Karyn knew that what she'd really said was
yes
…to their love, to working on their problems together, to marriage, to a honeymoon filled with long, lazy hours in Brad's arms.

“Consider that practice,” he said, stepping closer until she could feel the whisper of his breath on her cheek. “This time we'll do it for real.”

“You could take me to Paris or Greece or Tahiti, but you will never give me a more romantic vacation than the one we just had,” she murmured as she found herself back in his arms, her head resting against his chest.

“Then we'll stay home for our honeymoon. I'm not choosy. As long as you marry me. Will you?”

“I will,” Karyn said with absolute certainty.

Her acceptance was captured and stolen by Brad's
kiss. As their breath mingled and their hearts pounded, Karyn had second thoughts.

“Maybe I spoke too soon,” she murmured against his marauding mouth.

“Oh?”

“I think Paris would be a fine idea.”

“No problem,” Brad said, nibbling on her lower lip.

“And maybe Greece.”

“Whatever you want.”