Hell Without You (20 page)

“No, it’s my fault for taking those pills,” Donovan said. “Besides, without the keys I probably would’ve ended up in the street on foot and been flattened by someone else’s vehicle.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ricardo said, “but you came down here in the first place because of me.”

“Stop beating yourself up or I’ll sing again.”

Ricardo stopped blaming himself out loud, though the smile Donovan’s threat incited faded quickly.

“Stop arguing, you two. And Ricardo, if you want to head home, I can take over here.”

Ricardo shook his head. “I’ll stay too. He’s been babysitting me for the past several days; the least I can do is be here now.”

“All right,” Clementine agreed. “Just thought I’d offer.”

Leaning in, she did what she’d been longing to do ever since she’d last seen Donovan – kissed him. His stubble tickled her lips as she pressed them against his jaw, relishing the feel of his warmth against her mouth. “I’m going to stay too, until you’re discharged. However long that takes. And whenever you’re feeling better, I’d like to talk to you about something – I think you’re going to like an idea I came up with on the plane.”

* * * * *

“Hello?” Clementine leaned against the counter in Ricardo’s kitchen, gripping the edge hard with one hand as she cradled the phone with the other. Though she tried to sound neutral, she knew exactly who was calling – she recognized the Kellogg-Hart number.

DC seemed a million miles away as she stood in jeans and a tank top, surrounded by colorful tile and aging Formica countertops, her hair frizzing in the sub-tropical humidity.

“Ms. Lettvin, this is Craig from Kellogg-Hart again.”

“Yes, how are you?” If she’d had an old-fashioned corded phone, she would’ve been twisting the cord around her finger. She’d arrived in Miami in a whirlwind the day before and had stayed overnight in the hospital with Donovan. They’d discharged him just that afternoon and she, Donovan and Ricardo had only arrived at the apartment above the garage twenty minutes ago. She was scheduled to start her new job tomorrow, and she hadn’t called Kellogg-Hart to let them know she’d be unable.

“I’m well, thank you. I’m calling because I forgot to mention which documents you’ll need tomorrow morning when you fill out your paperwork. You’ll want to bring…”

Clementine listened, her heart sinking a little further with each word as he reminded her of the two forms of ID she’d need to have with her. “Thank you Craig, but I’m afraid I have some bad news – I won’t be able to start tomorrow. I had to leave the state unexpectedly due to a medical emergency involving someone very important to me.”

Not wanting to stretch the truth, she resisted calling it a family emergency despite the fact that she was infinitely closer to Donovan than any of her family members. “I know this looks bad, and I’m sorry. If this changes things with the job offer, I understand.”

Several seconds of silence passed, and a faint rustling sounded from the archway between the kitchen and the living room, alerting Clementine to Donovan’s presence.  He leaned against the side of the arch, frowning, his injured arm bound in front of his body by a sling.

“We should be able to postpone your start date until, say, Monday? I’ll run it by your supervisor-to-be and get back to you before the day’s over. Will that work?”

Five days. Would Donovan be fit to travel home within five days? The hospital staff had given her a comprehensive list of symptoms to watch for, and if he exhibited any of them, it would be straight back to the emergency room. God willing, though, he wouldn’t. “I think it will,” she said. “I’d appreciate hearing back from you.”

When she ended the call, Donovan was still frowning, a line creasing the skin between his eyes. “You didn’t tell me you found a job.”

A ripple of guilt passed through her as she laid her phone down. “I didn’t want to stress you out – not after your accident.”

“Is it the one you interviewed for last week?”

“Yes.” Immediately, memories of Donovan waiting for her outside the Kellogg-Hart building flooded back to her in vivid detail – she could see everything, from the shadow of stubble that had graced his jaw to the tendrils of steam that had curled from his coffee cup, floating past his lips.

“And you’re missing your first day?”

Why did he seem so upset? It wasn’t like he’d been eager for her to find a job in DC, to have to move out.

“They gave me an extension. Originally, I was going to start tomorrow. Now I’ll start on Monday, if we’re back by then.”

“And if we’re not?”

She shrugged. “They may move on to another applicant.”

“We’ll be back by Monday.” He straightened, wincing almost imperceptively. “Won’t be a problem.”

“Listen, this reminds me – remember when I said there was something I wanted to talk to you about?” She’d put it off because he was supposed to rest, to avoid stress or strain. Now, watching him frown as he promised to have her back in time to start the job he’d dreaded her landing, she couldn’t help but think that it would ease his mind to know what she’d been thinking.

“Yeah.” He seemed wary – not that she could blame him.

“It has to do with my new job. I can’t stay in Willow Heights, but I don’t see why that means we can’t live together. Would you consider selling the house to Hugh Jeffries if it meant that we could move together to somewhere halfway between Willow Heights and DC? That way we could both commute to work and wouldn’t have to live apart. You could still run your garage – nothing would have to change with your business.”

Surprise lightened his features, momentarily erasing the frown that had become his signature expression since the accident.

“I know you said you didn’t want to sell, but think about it – it would mean us getting to live together. And what are the odds that anyone will come knocking wanting to buy the place again? You could even make a little bit of a profit, if Hugh meant what he said when he spoke to you.”

“You’d want me to do that?”

“Yes.” Her heart leapt. Was he mad? Why would he be if he’d really meant what he’d said about having bought the house in hopes that she’d return to it? They were together now … wasn’t staying that way more important than a piece of real estate?

“But it’s your grandmother’s house. You love that place.”

“I know.” A pang of sadness sailed through her chest. “And I always will. But I love you more than any house. I’m okay with only having memories of my grandmother, but I need more than that when it comes to you. I want to spend every night with you, not visit you on weekends.”

“Clementine…”

“Yeah?”

“You sure you mean it? You want me to sell, and you want us to find a new place together?”

“Absolutely sure. Will you do it?”

“Hell yes, I will.” A smile tugged at one side of his mouth, then the other, transforming his face completely. Even with the bandage at his hairline, he looked gorgeous.

Unable to resist, she went to him, placing her hands just below his chest, careful not to apply pressure that might hurt his fractured collarbone. “Why do you seem so surprised? I mean, I know it’s a brilliant idea, but still.”

“Sometimes I’m afraid you’ll leave again – decide you don’t want me. I was dreaming about it the other night, when I got in that wreck. Dreamed that you drove off and I went after you. Couldn’t shake the feeling, at first, even after I woke up. Couldn’t believe it, either, when Ricardo said you were on your way. Now here you are and you want to live with me – for good.”

“For good,” she repeated, raising one hand to touch his jaw, letting her fingertips rest against his freshly-shaven skin. “Leaving would be a nightmare for me, too.”

“Hey guys.” Ricardo’s bare feet slapped against the linoleum in the nearby hallway. “I was thinking…” He emerged dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, his short hair still wet from his recent shower. “Since you’re here and Donovan’s supposed to relax, wanna go to the beach?”

Donovan raised a brow, his gaze still locked with Clementine’s. “Do you?”

“Do
you
? You’re the one who’s supposed to be taking it easy.”

“Of course I do – it’s been years since I’ve seen you in a bikini.”

She dropped her hand, unable to suppress a smile. “I didn’t bring a bathing suit.”

“Nude beach it is, then.” Donovan grinned, turning to Ricardo. “There’s one not too far from here, isn’t there?”

“Yeah.” Ricardo grinned too. “You’ll be wearing more than anyone there with all those bandages.”

“Let’s just stick with a regular beach,” Clementine said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a real, Southern beach and I’m not so sure I’m ready to expose
everything
to the Florida sun. Since Ricardo knows so much about the local beaches, I’m sure he knows where I can buy a suit.”

* * * * *

“Maybe I’ve got it all wrong – maybe we need to relocate down here,” Clementine said as she and Donovan walked hand-in-hand along the shore, close enough to the water that the surf sprayed their ankles and lapped at their toes, so warm it was hard to believe it was October. The Florida heat that had scorched her when she’d stepped off the plane felt heavenly now, especially as it waned with evening, growing less intense.

“You like it here?” Donovan had borrowed a pair of shorts from Ricardo. Besides them, he wore only bandages.

“I spent the last seven years in New York. Cold, cold New York. I
love
it here.”

“A Southern girl at heart,” he said, “until you have your first run-in with a gator or water moccasin, I bet.”

“I’m a fan of the beach, anyway. Too bad we don’t have the ocean in Pennsylvania – I could definitely get used to these walks.”

“At least we’ve got our hikes in PA. The beach is nice, but it’s not very private, if you know what I mean.” The setting sun caught his eyes, making them gleam as he flashed her the slightest smile. “I can think of a few things I’d like to do with you if this beach wasn’t crawling with people.”

In truth, the beach wasn’t overcrowded – most swimmers and sunbathers had gone home or back to their hotels for the day – but it definitely wasn’t abandoned enough for what Donovan was talking about.

“That’s true,” she admitted. “I’d miss the hiking. This is nice though, too.” She tore her gaze away from shirtless Donovan long enough to admire the strip of sky visible above the sea, purple and dotted with hazy clouds that were striped with the orange light of the sinking sun. “Really romantic … even if all we can do is hold hands. Not that you need to be exerting yourself anyway.”

“Who says I’d be exerting myself? Look at you in that bikini – you’re in great shape. You could do all the exerting if we had the chance.” He grinned.

Ricardo splashed up to them before she could reply, jogging through shallow surf and kicking up water that smelled of salt and sunshine. “Hey, if you two can tear your eyes away from each other for five seconds, there’s something really cool to look at over there.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

“What – those girls playing volleyball?” Clementine asked. A dozen women, most of them bikini-clad, were enjoying an evening game on the beach, and Ricardo wore dark sunglasses that made it difficult to tell where he was looking.

“Besides that,” Ricardo said, pointing out to sea. “Dolphins.”

Clementine scanned the deep blue line of distant waters and was surprised when several leaping forms caught her eye, much closer to shore than she’d expected them to be. “Wow.” Sleek and steel grey, the creatures swam at the surface, triangular fins and bottle-nosed faces cutting through the whitecaps. “I’ve never seen a dolphin in the wild before.”