Arms of Promise (10 page)

A trace of disappointment touched her eyes. Blinking it away, she curled her wavy hair over her shoulder. “Thanks, but tomorrow’s Thanksgiving. I have to drive to my dad’s for his dinner party.”

“I’ll take you.”

“That’s sweet, but there’s no need—”

“It’s not up for discussion.”

Brows raised, she drew back her shoulders. “Excuse me?”

That obstinate expression got him every time. “Relax, Bells. I’m just looking out for you. It’s what friends do.” He leaned down to pet the stray. The second he extended a hand, the cat released a low growl and skittered away.

Anna smirked. “Your bossiness must’ve turned him off.”

Eyeing her impish grin, Evan stood up and fought one of his own. “Apparently, he must overlook your stubbornness.”

“Oh, really?” She inched forward in an adorable attempt at intimidation. But instead of backing him away, her penetrating gaze rooted him in place.

Megan let go of Anna’s hand and tugged his instead. “Can we go now?”

He broke eye contact with Anna and diverted his focus to Megan. “You got it.”

Good thing she was there. With how easily a single look from Anna could undo him, he definitely needed the distraction. He scooped Megan up, swung her onto his back, and headed toward his Accord.

After stopping for coffee, they parked on Randolph Street and strolled toward Michigan Avenue beside bright shop windows decked out in Christmas decorations.

It was hard to beat Millennium Park in the summer, but the winter months held their own perks. Fewer people being one of them. The lack of activity made it a heck of a lot easier to scan the area. So far, the place looked clean.

He’d lost the signal on the tracker the night after they’d almost cornered Anna in the park. Either Crater Face had gotten rid of his coat, or someone had gotten rid of him. Something gave Evan the feeling it was the latter. Chances were, Michelli would be sending in someone new for the job.

Anna sipped her latte and gave a contented sigh. “You know you’re spoiling me with these drinks, right? I don’t need the calories. But, man.” She lifted the cup. “Total guilty pleasure, right here. Why do the things we want most have to be the ones we shouldn’t have?”

If she only knew. Evan took a swig of his coffee, swallowed the painful truth, and toyed with his cup.

A soft laugh escaped beside him.

“What?”

Anna raised her drink to shield her smile. “Sorry. Your OCD-ness is really cute sometimes.”

“What are you talking about?”

Following a slow blink, she took his cup and waved a hand up and down it as if issuing evidence into a court case.

His gaze trailed over the lid and sleeve aligned perfectly with the cup’s logo. He snagged it back. “Hey, nothing wrong with a little symmetry.”

Another snort-laugh wrinkled her nose.

“Ooh.” Megan pointed at a playground. “Can we stop here?”

“You betcha.” Anna squatted to her level and set her coffee down. “You have gloves?”

When Megan shook her head, Anna pulled out a pair of knit ones from her own pockets. “Here.” She tugged the fingerless glove part on and flipped the monkey-patterned mitten part over them. “Now you’ll be the coolest kid out there.” With a wink, she sent Megan off to the miniature rock wall and Evan’s heart up his throat again.

He cradled his warm fingers around Anna’s cold ones. “Sure you don’t need those?”

She put on her game face. “I’m tough.”

More than she probably gave herself credit for. If he learned how to love half as selflessly as she did, maybe he’d find a way to make up for the pain he’d caused Mom.

He released Anna’s hands and started toward a bench on the border of the playground.

Anna’s arm grazed his as they ambled together. “Something on your mind?”

“You could say that.”

“Worried about your mom?”

Evan gaped at her. It was like she operated with night vision goggles on, nothing hindering her from seeing straight to the heart of things.

The bench’s cold slats met the back of his jeans. “I spoke to the doctor this morning. She’s doing okay, but it’s hard to know what her recovery will look like.”

“I’m sure having you home is a big encouragement to her.” Anna sat beside him.

He twisted the lid on his cup back and forth. “She doesn’t know I’m here.”

“What?” Her coat scratched against the bench. “What do you mean?”

“I haven’t spoken to her yet.” He’d stayed outside Mom’s hospital room. Went in only when she was asleep. He couldn’t face her any more than he could face the confusion in Anna’s expression right now. Layers of regret overlapped each other and propelled him back up from the bench and into a pace.

“Before I left, I opened a bank account for her. I’ve been wiring money ever since I got my first check from the army.” He rolled a twig on the ground with his Skecher. “I thought a few years of help would be enough to get her away from my dad.”

Comprehension tinted Anna’s eyes, questions welling up right behind it.

Please don’t ask
.

She stared at the turf and bit her lip. “Is that why you left?”

A long exhale expanded a puff of warm breath into the air. “Yes.” One part. He couldn’t look at her, or she’d see the rest. “I had promises to keep.”

“I thought it was because . . . I mean, it happened right after I . . .” The slight tremor in Anna’s voice drew his gaze back to her. “You could’ve told me, Evan. I would’ve understood.”

“It’s complicated.”

She looked at him like he’d dished out the lamest excuse in the book. Better lame than heartbreaking. Sometimes the truth hurt worse. His dad had taught him that much.

Reaching his side, Anna touched his sleeve with her signature tenderness. “Regardless, I don’t know why you’d be worried about seeing your mom. You’ve done nothing but provide for her. She got her own place—”

“
After
my dad died.” He withdrew his arm. “I should’ve gotten her out of there sooner. Now, she’s dying.” Because he couldn’t protect her. Didn’t she get that?

Anna drew closer. “She started a new life with your support, opened up her own pottery shop.”

Too little, too late.

Now where did things leave them? Would she depend on his monthly payments even more? Would she need him home to care for her? What was he supposed to do?

“My contract with the army is up in three months. I have until the end of next week to decide whether to reenlist.” Turning, he forked his fingers through his hair. “I honestly don’t know which is better for her.” Taking leave was supposed to give him time to think this through, not make it more muddled.

Anna’s warm green eyes embraced his with unmerited grace. “Serving your county may have made you a soldier, Evan. But serving your mom is what makes you a man of valor. You’re doing everything you can.” Her fingertips curled under his. “And it’s enough. It always has been. Don’t underestimate your strength or hers.”

Except she didn’t know the extent of his weaknesses. “Just because someone’s strong doesn’t mean he isn’t broken.”

“And just because he’s broken doesn’t mean he has nothing to offer.”

It didn’t matter how long he knew her. He didn’t have a single doubt she’d leave him undone every day of his life.

In the background, barking dogs joined kids squealing while chasing each other up the slide, but nothing could pull Evan’s focus away from Anna. Holding her gaze, he edged closer. The smallest breath parted her lips and reignited the war he’d fought before he left.

Same as that night at the burial—having her this close, seeing her vulnerability—his pulse thundered over shouts of warning until he almost surrendered to the question that’d consumed him most of his life. How would it feel to kiss the one girl he’d always loved?

Chapter Ten

Candid

Megan barreled into Evan’s legs from behind. One day, he might run out of interruptions keeping him from wrecking things between him and Anna. But for now, he thanked God for each one.

“Can we show Mr. Hulk our routine?”

Anna pressed her lips together and looked from Megan back to Evan.

“I’d love to see it.” He swung Megan around by her hands.

Anna’s smile swelled with affection. “Mind if Mr. Hulk takes a few pictures?”

Megan shook her head and beamed, as if the slightest interest in her made her whole world.

Anna set her coffee down again and stretched her arms, one at a time. “We might have to find somewhere out of this wind, though. The cold is hard on your muscles.” She bent at ninety degrees and hugged her nose to each knee.

Evan groaned. “What are you doing?”

Anna peeked up at him through the curtain of hair falling into her eyes. “Never seen someone stretch before?”

Sighing, he scanned the periphery. “You’re not just someone. Trust me. Every guy in this twenty-five acre park is looking at you right now.”

“Not
every
guy.” The somber pull in her quiet voice drew his gaze back to her. She stood tall, but something palpable weighed on her shoulders.

Megan pointed to the Jay Pritzker Pavilion. “Can we dance over there?”

Anna mussed the top of her hair. “I’m pretty sure that’s off limits.” A glance around brightened her eyes. “But I think I know the perfect place.”

Evan followed Anna’s line of sight to a distant structure on the outskirts of the park. Away from the beaten path.

Bad idea.

“You don’t want to eat first?” Evan tipped his cell out of his pocket. “We could stop at a food truck. How about The Fat Shallot?”

Anna’s blank stare ruled that out of the question. “If you want a sandwich, you should try the flatbread ones from Naansense. They have amazing salads, too.”

She had to be kidding. “I don’t do Indian food. And I definitely don’t do salads.”

“You’re missing out. I’m telling ya.” Anna started forward.

He reached for her hand. “Why don’t you let me take you to Hugos?” They needed to stay somewhere public.

She snorted. “Blackbird. Hugos. When did you start high-rolling?”

“Must’ve been around the same time you started sticking your nose up at people wanting to treat you well.”

Her feisty glare gained a chuckle out of him. Any attempt at looking riled-up made her even cuter than normal.

“I’m not hungry.” Megan wedged between them. “Can we dance first?”

Anna shifted her attention to Megan. “Sure, love.” Another spunky gaze flitted back to Evan. “Mr. Hulk could use a little lesson in culture.”

Before he could dish out a response, Anna raised her drink to her mouth, craned her head back, and tapped the bottom of the cup.

Relenting, Evan did the same and held out a hand.

A lopsided grin followed Anna’s glance from him to a city trash can. She surrendered the cup. “One more piece of cardboard saved from the fate of landing in a garbage dump.”

“Laugh it up.” He flattened their cups together and shoved them into his back pocket.

Anna grabbed a clementine from her bag, tore into it with her nails, and tossed a piece of the peel at him. “In case you want to start a compost pile while you’re at it.”

A trail of laughter circled around her as she spun out of reach.

Megan tugged on Anna’s coat, her brows pulled together in consternation. “Is he afraid of garbage?”

Anna stopped herself before fully doubling over.

“Real funny,” he muttered, catching up to them.

“No, sweetie.” Anna kept her eyes on his. “Some people just have weirder quirks than others.”

He cocked his chin. “Says the girl who has a frog toilet paper holder.”

“He’s cute.” Anna swatted Evan’s bicep.

“He stares at you when you pee. That’s not cute. It’s creepy.” He turned to Megan for a little support.

Nose scrunched, she gave a hesitant nod. “Sorry. Mr. Hulk’s kinda right.”

“Ohhh!” Evan raised his hands for a double high five. “Now who’s the smack talker?”

“You’re such a dork.” Still smiling, Anna shoved him off the path, curved an arm around Megan, and leaned down to her ear. “Boys.”

He didn’t have to see her face to know she’d just dramatized an eye roll as if she were Megan’s BFF, joking about the boys in homeroom. She’d always be a kid at heart. She made childhood innocence and joy seem so easy to keep, so within reach.

He adjusted his dog tags under his shirt. Only a few days with her, and Anna already had him remembering the way life could feel with her in it. If she understood what that did to him, she’d understand why he’d stayed away.

Evan brought up the rear as Anna led them to a long, courtyard-like area with huge brick arches bordering one side and a solid brick wall on the other. Its artsy flare fit Anna’s style to a T.

He stopped them at the entrance. “Stay put.” He had come to the park ahead of time to reorient himself with the layout and get a feel for any liabilities. This wasn’t part of the plan. Secluded from everything else, it made them vulnerable.

After a quick sweep through, he jogged back down the hall to find Anna and Megan unloading their coats beside the wall. “I told you to stay.”

Anna lowered her lip balm from her mouth and deadpanned him. “First of all, I’m not a dog. And you try standing out there with the wind flying up your shirt.” She tossed her bag on the floor. “Relax. No one comes around here.”

That was what worried him.

“Wow.” Megan spun in a circle. “This is so cool.” Her visible excitement gave way to a puzzled expression. “But what do we do for a barre? We can’t start without warm-ups.”

Anna chuckled. “Spoken like a true ballerina, if I’ve ever heard one.” She tucked her Blistex into her pocket and surveyed the wide corridor. “Guess we’ll just have to brace against the wall.” She prodded Megan toward the bricks, moved a few paces ahead, and faced opposite her. “Ready?”

Megan’s vibrant nod almost outshined her smile.

“Okay, first position. Tighter turn-out. There you go.” Both girls angled their feet at a hundred and eighty degrees, heels together. “Demi-plié, slow tendus, and stretch. Very nice. Now, fast.”

Seated on the ledge beneath one of the arches, Evan took out his camera and gauged the level of natural light casting a warm color over their skin.

“Slow dégagés.” They both lifted pointed toes several inches from the floor, slid them back into place, and repeated from different angles.

Ten feet away, Evan shot a handful of takes. A quick scroll through the underexposed images was enough to remind him how long he’d been away from this. He adjusted the ISO to four hundred and tried again. Much better.

Nailing the exposure sent his creative instincts into high gear. The backdrop, the lighting, their movement. Everything came to life, just as Anna had said it would.

“Now, balance in fifth position. Perfect.” She gave Megan an enthusiastic clap. “Awesome job.”

Megan twisted the tip of her sneaker on the ground, head tilted to her shoulder. “I think we should get Mr. Hulk to try it.”

He fumbled the camera. “Not happening.”

Anna sauntered up to him. “Oh, I think that’s an excellent idea. Big Ranger like you, doing an arabesque.” She winked. “C’mon, Strider. It’ll be fun.”

More like humiliating.

He turned, full-on ready to sprint if he had to, but she caught his belt and tugged him over to the wall.

Anna stole the camera, pulled the strap over her head, and squatted to adjust his feet. “You gotta turn out from the hips,” she said through a ridiculously sassy grin.

Heaven help him. He forced his attention straight ahead.

She moved beside him and set one hand on his lower back, the other on his stomach. He tensed, praying she didn’t detect his inside-the-waistband holster.

“Relax.”

Easy for her to say. His skin burned through his clothes against her cold hands.

“Draw those abs back, ribs in, and support from underneath.”

He slouched. “You can’t seriously expect me to do this.”

“Mm. More than expect. I’m thoroughly enjoying it.” She straightened his frame. “Chest up, release the neck. Now, extend your arm.” While holding his hand from behind him, she swayed his arm forward and out to the side in a grand sweeping motion.

He twisted toward her. “That’s good en—”

“Shh.” She rotated his neck forward and pressed closer. Soft breaths touched his neck and sparked every nerve ending. “Now, port de bra to fifth.”

“Port de what?” His gravelly voice barely got the question out.

Megan giggled. “I think we need to show him, Miss Madison.”

Evan stepped away from the dangerous currents surging in Anna’s graceful movement against him. “Never heard a better idea.” He extended a hand for his camera.

After reluctantly handing it over, she joined Megan in the middle of the hall and stared him down. “No falling asleep.”

“Me?” He aimed a finger at his chest.

“Says the guy who falls asleep in a dentist chair.”

He laughed. She had him there. Wild conditions on his deployments had only increased his natural ability to fall asleep anywhere. But she couldn’t really think her dancing bored him.

Anna angled her feet outward as she’d done before, rounded her arms in front of her, and nodded to Megan. “Five, six, seven, eight . . .”

A solid minute into the dance passed before he remembered to take photos. Anna’s elegance gripped him. The grace, the extensions, the sun’s soft glow highlighting her natural beauty.

Viewing it from behind the lens doubled the splendor. Once he started, creative drive took over and guided him around the floor to shoot the dance from different vantage points. Each take fanned his assurance that Anna belonged on stage. She always had.

At the end, she swayed with Megan, brimming with joy and radiance. Wisps of hair blew around her hat and against her cheeks. He’d always loved capturing candid moments best. Especially of her.

Recovering, he showered them with applause and made sure to give Megan extra praise.

“You really liked it?” she asked.

“You kidding? Loved it.” He tapped Megan’s chin. “I think you’ve got a big dance career ahead of you.”

Anna’s smile went straight for his heart.

Megan sprang toward her, grabbed her hand, and motioned for her to lean down. On her tiptoes, she cupped a hand around her mouth and whispered something into Anna’s ear.

Anna’s gaze drifted to him, the corner of her mouth crawling up her cheek. “Yeah,” she half-whispered back. “I think he’s pretty cute, too.”

Megan pinched her bottom lip between two fingers and giggled after confiding something else.

Heat singed the top of his ears.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Anna tunneled a look of mock seriousness toward Megan. “But I gotta warn you. He’s kind of a tough one to catch.”

Was that what she thought?

Megan tugged her down one more time.

Still clasping her hand, Anna straightened and glanced around until she spotted whatever she was looking for. Facing Evan, she tipped her head toward a sign for the ladies’ room. “Bathroom break.”

Girl time. “Say no more.” He raised his palms.

They disappeared into the women’s restroom a little ways down the hall.

Behind him, a damp breeze off the lake weaseled its way down his collar to his neck. He adjusted his coat. He’d been so caught up in the moment and Anna’s contagious love of life, the temperature hadn’t even fazed him.

A glance at his camera ended in a shake of his head. She’d even gotten him to remember how to be an artist. He scrolled through the takes until something in the background of one leapt off the image and grabbed him by the throat. A full-length black coat.

Evan shot a glance across the open fixture. No one was in sight, but they had been. Lurking in the distance. Watching.

And he’d missed it.

Evan dropped his fist to the bricks and swore.

Down the hall, the sign for the bathroom twisted a pang of dread in his stomach.
Bells
. Sig drawn, he sprinted across the brick floor and rammed through the door.

At the sink, Megan and Anna both swung their heads toward him, but instincts kept him moving. He kicked each stall door open.

“What are you doing?”

“Stay,” he ordered on his way past Anna. Teeth gritted, he stopped in front of the door, let out a breath, and peered behind him. “Please.”

Despite the question in her eyes, Anna held on to Megan and nodded her agreement.

Evan slipped back into the hall and slinked against the wall toward shadows flickering around the bend.

Battle mode kicked in. Same as on the field, the adrenaline coursing through him sharpened his focus. Deep breaths relaxed his muscles and slowed everything around him. An exhale brought him around the corner.