My Sister's Boyfriend (The Trouble With Twins 1) (21 page)

Loud music began to play from a cell phone strapped to the belt of his pants. He glanced down at the number and frowned. "Excuse me."

He answered the phone. "Dr. Moulton." He paused and turned his back to Jennifer. "Hi Charlotte."

Jennifer tried not to listen, but it was impossible in the small room.

"No, I'm not going to be home."

Jennifer could only hear one side of the conversation.

"I understand. You have a key; go by the house and do what you need to do."

He'd given this woman, Charlotte, a key? Who was she and why did she have a key to his house?

"Make a list of things that you think need to be done around the house and I'll hire a man to do the repairs. I don't have time to do them myself," he said, his voice all business.

Repairs?

"Sure, bring them by to look at the house tomorrow, I won't be home." He turned and glanced at Jennifer, obviously noting her confused expression.

"I'll drop by your office in the morning to sign the contract," he said and then paused, a concerned look on his face. "No, I don't start for a month, which will give me time to move."

A cold chill seized Jennifer. Needing the support, she sank down in her office chair.

Move? He was moving?

"All right, I'll see you tomorrow," he said and ended the call.

He stared at her, not saying anything. "I guess you heard. I accepted a position in Denver. I start in a month.”

She nodded, still unable to say anything, feeling like such a fool.

Her behavior could only be described as incredibly stupid and naïve, though he had never promised her anything. From the very beginning she had known that having sex with Brent was a huge risk, yet she’d taken the chance.

She opened her mouth to speak and nothing came out. How could she lie and congratulate him when she had just tonight realized she loved him? His commitment issues no longer mattered. He was leaving.

He stared at her, a peculiar look on his face. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

Brent was departing Tyler, but more importantly, he was leaving her behind. Stunned, she sat and stared at him.

What about them? What about the amazing sex they were both experiencing? Anger rolled through her, hot and insidious. God, she was a fool, and she had to get out of here now. She needed time to deal with his news.

“Congratulations,” she managed to get out. “You’ll be missed.” She glanced at her watch, trying to hide her emotions. “Look, I’ve got to get home.”

“What about your plumbing. Why don’t I meet you at the house?”

She felt overwhelmed by the bomb he’d just dropped and needed space and time away from him. In the last hour, she’d realized she loved him and learned he was moving to Colorado.

“Not tonight.” She glanced around the office, tears threatening. To hell with closing down her computer and putting her paperwork away. She had to escape before what little composure she had crumbled.

Calmly she walked over to the drawer where she kept her personal belongings, yanked it open, and pulled out her purse.

“I’ve got to run. I’ll see you tomorrow. Shut the door on your way out,” she managed before she fled down the hall, all but running from Brent.

Chapter Fourteen

Jennifer dashed out of the hospital through the employee parking lot to her car. He didn't care enough to stay or even want to deal with his commitment issues. He didn’t love her, and it didn’t matter if she was Julia or Jennifer, their time together had meant nothing to him and he was leaving.

She’d taken a chance on Brent and now would face the heartache that she had known was probable. If only she’d realized before this moment that she was falling in love with him. If only she hadn’t made love to him tonight.

Tears flowed down her cheeks as she started her car. She just needed to get home, where she could relax her guard and let all the hurt and anguish bottled inside consume her.

Blindly, she put the car in drive and pulled out of the hospital driveway. Obviously when she thought they were making love tonight, he’d only been interested in a great sexual relationship. And the worst part was she’d stupidly agreed that she was just in this relationship for the sex. If she’d been honest with herself, she would have realized that her feelings had been involved almost from the very beginning.

She couldn’t blame Brent, because she’d known all along that he was only interested in the sex, nothing permanent. She had no one to fault but herself for allowing her emotions to blind her. And now alone, she would face the heartache his leaving would bring.

She drove in a haze of tears and anguish, her mind dazed at her culpability, her heart broken.

Jennifer pulled into the driveway, relieved at being home. How many red lights had she run between here and the hospital? As she opened her car door, a blue sedan pull into her driveway, and blocked her in.

Brent stepped out of the rental car, and she groaned. She didn’t want to face him again tonight.

Quickly she wiped the tears from her cheeks so he wouldn’t see. There was no way she would let him into the lighted house.

He walked over to her. “Are you okay?”

“Sure,” she said, her voice quivering. “I’m fine.”

He frowned at her in the darkness. “You ran out of there so quickly after I told you that I was leaving.”

"Sorry, I'm a little stunned," she said, trying to buy herself some time. She wasn’t prepared for his following her home. "Congratulations on the job," she managed, though her tone didn't match her words.

He stopped within inches of her, his eyes searching her face. He reached out and touched her cheek with his fingers. “You’ve been crying.”

She licked her lips, unable to deny her tears and knowing any second she would start to cry again. There was no going forward from this point. They’d reached a dead end with only one solution.

Suddenly she knew she had to be honest with him or regret this day for the rest of her life.

"Tonight while we made love, I realized that I've been lying to myself about you. When you came through that door with that bag of parts for my toilet, blowing soap bubbles, a feeling came over me that I've never known before. I felt so happy to see you.” She swallowed the tears, suddenly feeling stronger. “With you I have fun. We laugh and tease one another. With you I abandon myself and try new things."

She wiped a tear away that escaped from her eye and then continued. "Tonight, I realized I was deceiving myself if I thought that I was just having sex with you. Yes, it’s great sex, but it's so much more for me."

Brent didn't say anything, but stared at her, his eyes reflecting his usual flight syndrome.

"And now you're telling me that you're moving to Denver. You've accepted another position." Jennifer paused. "Did you decide to take this job because of us?"

He stared at her for a moment, not saying anything. "It's a better opportunity for me."

"You didn't answer me, Brent. Are you running from me? From us?" she asked, already knowing the answer, but needing to hear it from him.

"We could still see each other occasionally," he said reluctantly, refusing to be direct.

Like a kick to her heart, she realized he didn't have a clue as to what he'd done. So set on not committing to anyone, he didn't realize that when she comprehended she loved him, she could no longer see him without the same level of involvement. She had way too much pride to wait for him to decide he wanted her in his life.

She shook her head. "No. If you're moving to Denver, it’s best for me that I end this relationship right here, right now."

For a moment he looked stunned. "Why?"

"Because you're not going to be here. I'm not going to sit by and wait, hoping that you'll change your mind and decide you want to commit to be in the same city, much less a relationship with me," she said honestly. "I knew when we became involved that you didn’t want a relationship, but I never intended to become serious with you. But now I am, and I have to protect my heart. It’s over."

"But I thought we were just having a good time," he said, his expression surprised.

She laughed sadly. "I was, but tonight I realized I want more. I want it all, the ring, the wedding, and the happily ever after. I want the home, the hearth, and the 2.5 kids. And with you, that's not possible. I love you, but I'm not willing to give up my dreams or wait on you to come to your senses."

He appeared shocked. "You love me?"

She nodded.

"I told you I could not give you forever after."

"That's true, and I take full responsibility for my emotions. I thought I was okay with us just having sex. But I'm not. I need a man who wants to spend more than his nights with me. I need someone who wants to spend every day with me, who loves me in return."

He stuck his hands in his pockets and looked at her. In the streetlight that shined over the driveway, he appeared like a lost little boy. "So we're through?"

Jennifer nodded, for a moment unable to speak, her throat clogged with tears. Finally she recovered. "Yes, it's over. Have a great life in Denver."

She turned her back to him and walked the longest five yards of her life, her heart shattering with each step. Tears blinded her as she took the steps that led into the house. Quickly she opened the door and went inside, great sobs coming from her as she closed the door on Brent and any hopes she had of a life with him.

Later she realized she never told him about that night in high school. And maybe, after so many years, the secret from their past was best carried to the grave.

Brent watched his father instruct his latest girlfriend, a young blonde in her thirties, on the golf course. His father wrapped his arms around the woman and lined up her body in the right position to swing a golf club. He whispered something in her ear and she giggled and snuggled into his embrace.

"I’ve never played before. Would you help me with my golf swing,” Leslie mimicked the blonde.

Brent glanced over at Leslie, who occupied the other seat in the golf cart, and realized she was making fun of the golfers.

"I don't think he's giving her lessons. I think he's copping a feel," Brent said, thinking no one should ever have to witness his parent in a dating situation.

“Duh, that’s obvious,” Leslie said, leaning her chin on her elbows and looking bored. "And she’s very willing to give him what he wants. Do you think he’s told her he has money or something?"

Brent shrugged. “Who knows?”

He gazed out at the spectacle his aging father was making with his much younger girlfriend. What a poignant reminder of his reasons for never marrying. At the moment he didn't even like women.

After the break-up with Jennifer, he had spent the last week giving his notice at the hospital and notifying his patients. All in all, it had been a long, terrible week during which he had begun to doubt his every decision.

His father's girlfriend swung the club, connecting with the ball and sending it flying close to one hundred feet. She jumped up and down squealing, her voice grating against Brent’s last nerve.

The woman must sound awful in bed. God, he was such a grump. Nothing and nobody made him happy since Jennifer ended their…

Their what? You couldn’t call it a relationship. Was she just a bonking buddy? Was Jennifer right to never see him again? And wasn’t that what he wanted?

"So how’s Jennifer?” Leslie asked him.

He frowned. "I told her about the job in Denver, and she ended our whatever-it-was we had.”

“Hmmm…I like this girl,” Leslie answered, shocking Brent. “Now I understand the reason for the long face.”

“I’m fine.”

“Yeah, right. The last time you were this glum was right before you took your finals to get into medical school.”

“There will be other women.”

“True, there will be,” his sister agreed. “Just like our dad has other women. Pretty soon, the two of you can compare numbers as to how many women you’ve both had.”

Brent glanced at his sister. Her words wounded him. “That was mean and nasty.”

“You’re right,” she said, softening her tone. “But often times the truth is. I apologize.”

“Don’t compare my situation to our father’s. Mine is different,” Brent insisted.

Leslie raised her brows at him. “Explain to me the differences, because I’m not seeing them.”

“It’s obvious. I don’t marry and divorce over and over. I’m forthright with the women I date. They know right up front that I’m not interested in anything permanent.”

Leslie nodded. “You’re right. But why do you see that as being better than Dad?” Leslie asked. “Seems to me that you’re both alike, only he at least thinks he’s made an honorable commitment to his wives. Your idea of an intimate relationship is a trip to the bedroom with the latest Barbie you’re dating.”

Brent fumed. He’d always been honest with every woman he’d dated, never leading them on. And when things became too complicated, he moved on, leaving them before they wanted rings and flowers.

“What’s wrong with that?”

Leslie looked at him as if he’d grown an extra head. “Nothing, if that’s what you want in life. Maybe I should just accept the fact that my brother is going to be like my Dad.”

Her words stunned him, leaving him feeling even more cold and lonely than he already felt.

Could Leslie be right? Certainly he never let anyone get close to him. Except Jennifer.

They’d shared confidences and so much more.

He watched the couple on the golf course who had progressed from petting to kissing. These two needed a hotel room. Watching them made him queasy. Not to mention the fact that Leslie was frustrating him as well.

"I don’t cheat on the women I’m with. I’m good to them,” he defended.

She laughed. “You’re not with them long enough to cheat on them.”

A surge of intense anger rippled through him. He didn’t like being compared to his father. He
was
different. “I never tell a woman I love them.”

“Great. You’ve never gotten to know someone enough to fall in love either.”