Redemption (6 page)

Miranda sat up in bed, breathing heavy, heart pounding in her ears. There hadn’t been any dreams in months. Since Derek and Bryan had stopped Jerry’s attack, she’d slept peacefully, albeit alone. Now, for some reason, she was dreaming again. Her hair stuck to her face, damp with sweat. With two hands, she pushed it back and leaned against her headboard. A makeover made her room tolerable; at least she could sleep in it again.

The dream. It was vivid, so painfully clear that she was sure it had actually happened. She rubbed the Celestite she wore around her neck at all times now and closed her eyes.

Help me out here, Vizuhn. And God, please make sure Bryan’s safe.

Bryan.

It had shown her, in terrifying detail, that Bryan was in danger. Horrible, life-ending kinds of danger. They hadn’t spoken in half a year, and his absence from her life caused a part of her to feel the way she imagined an amputee felt upon awakening from surgery. The limb still felt a part of the body, but it was only a phantom, seeming real, but not truly existing.

That’s what he’d become to her - a phantom part of her body.

Derek had possession of her heart, her love, her very being. He was all she’d ever need, all she’d ever love. Yet, part of her longed for the friend she’d lost. Bryan. She’d trusted him more than anyone else with her secrets, with the parts of herself that she tried to forget, yet was forced to face every day. Bryan. The man who had been her best friend. The man who had loved her when no one else could. The man she’d caused so much pain through the years. He left, preventing her from doing anything to make it right. When he’d asked for time and distance, she’d agreed. She just hoped that it wouldn’t take as long as last time. These six months had been hard, having to go years would be devastating.

And now she was dreaming of awful things that could happen to him. Snow swirled around him in the dream, and someone with glistening black hair followed him in the shadows. Redness glowed around everything. He wandered, lost. An eerie glow encased his body, imprisoning him, slowly draining and destroying him. It would kill him if it wasn’t stopped. She pulled out her journal and wrote every detail, asking for guidance and wisdom in interpretation.

She’d tell Derek. He’d hate having to hear about Bryan again, but he’d listen anyway, for her. In the beginning, she’d sobbed almost daily over losing him and his friendship. Derek had been comforting, understanding of her grief. He was hardly an insecure man; still, she knew he’d been glad to see Bryan go.

At least he was way out in sunny California, not in snowy New Jersey.

C
assidy pulled into her aunt and uncle’s driveway and smiled. Relief washed over her as she looked at the familiar Colonial. So many of her most treasured memories had taken place here, with her family. Momentary sadness hit her when she remembered the memories that had included her parents.

Miss you, Mom and Dad.

Until the wedding, Carrie was staying at home with her parents again, having already moved out of her apartment. Her cousin was always more like a sister, and while growing up, they’d looked so much alike that they often passed for such. Carrie the beautiful, older one and Cassidy always the younger, cuter version.

Losing both of her parents in a fire five years ago had been devastating. It had left her alone in Vermont, no family at all. Her friends had filled a bit of the void that she felt, but she needed family. When Carrie called to tell her about the engagement, she’d been thrilled and asked if she could stay with her for a while. Move to New Jersey. Start fresh.

She was still looking for the right guy, rapidly nearing thirty (less than one week remained until the demise of her twenties), and sensing the pull toward a new, better life. She wasn’t sure if New Jersey would fulfill the call she was feeling, but it was a start.

Carrie had, as Cassidy expected, said yes. She even offered her part-time hours at her store until she found something more permanent.

So, she quit the local retail job she’d had since college, packed up everything important to her, jammed it in her Chevy Equinox, and set her GPS to her aunt and uncle’s home address. Now, after a wearisome number of hours driving, she’d arrived.

Home.

Family.

She breathed a sigh in relief. Everything would fall into place now.

Carrie erupted from the front door, coat open despite the freezing temperatures, and ran to greet her as Cassidy tiredly climbed out of her car. Just seeing her cousin gave her a burst of renewed strength and energy. Not quite the same as a second wind; she’d had that somewhere around Upstate New York. They hugged one another, and the two quickly found themselves laughing deliriously over just being together again.

“How was the trip?” Carrie asked, once she composed herself.

“Long and tiring, but I’m so glad to be here!” Cassidy answered. “Where are Uncle Bill and Aunt Jess?” She looked toward the house.

“Oh, they’re out with friends from church. They’re always going somewhere, doing something. Now that they’ve retired, I think they’re busier than ever before.” Carrie ushered her cousin to the front door. “Leave the bags; Nick can grab them when he gets here.”

Exhausted and not wanting to argue that she was fine with carrying her own things, Cassidy nodded and allowed herself to be tugged into the house. When she crossed the threshold, her senses were assaulted with so many familiar sights and smells that she momentarily felt displaced in time. Very little had changed over the years. The same scented candle permeated everything - cinnamon, sage, and cloves. The furnishings were the exact ones she remembered. The pictures had simply been added to over the years.

Only the paint on the walls had changed.

Cassidy smiled and wrapped her arms around her cousin. “Thank you so, so much!”

“We’re family, Cass. Family is there for each other,” Carrie said, squeezing her younger cousin tightly.

“So, tell me about the wedding. What can I help with?” she asked, sinking onto the couch, enjoying the soft, comfy feel of the cushions after her drive.

“Well, we’re pretty set. All I need to do is go through what I want with our photographer.”

“You haven’t done that yet?” Cassidy was shocked. “You know you have less than two weeks, right? Who did you get?”

“Who we’ve gotten is precisely the reason I still need to go over what I want,” Carrie said, frowning slightly. “He’s an old friend, Bryan Roemer. You remember him, right? He was the guy with the blonde hair.”

Cassidy’s heart skipped a beat. Did she remember him? Of course she remembered him. Bryan Roemer. Blonde hair, gray eyes, perfect from head to toe. And the subject of every teenage fantasy she’d ever had.

“I remember,” she answered cooly. “Liked to tease me, used to date your friend Miranda?”

“Dated Miranda. That’s one way to put it, yes.”

“I sense a story.”

Her cousin sighed.

“A few months back, there was some excitement. Miranda was being stalked by our ex-landlord, Jerry. Ex as in we’ve-got-a-new-completely-sane landlord now, so don’t worry about those part-time hours. I guess it began to get really crazy when our store was broken into. This part is great; the love of her life, Derek, was the police officer who responded to the call. He also happens to be a good friend of Nick and the same guy I thought was perfect for her all along.”

“Convenient.”

“Yes, very.” Carrie leaned in, like she was sharing top-secret information. “Anyway, about the same time that Miranda met Derek, Bryan flew back from California for her. You know, like in some movie. He came back to tell her he loved her, to win her back, only to find her already involved with someone else.”

“Oh,” Cassidy said quietly. Her eyebrows pinched together. “Poor guy.”

“Yeah, it gets worse. So, he confesses his feelings for her, but it’s too late. She’s already fallen for Derek. Fallen, like never-getting-back-up fallen. It tore her apart to hurt him that way; Bryan was probably her closest friend, closer than even me.”

Cassidy’s heart broke for Bryan.

Carrie continued, “Jerry was still after Miranda, so Bryan put aside his personal feelings and teamed up with Derek to stop him,” she paused. “Sounds pretty unbelievable, doesn’t it?”

“I’m guessing they’re the ones who caught the guy.” Cassidy leaned forward on her knees, propping her head up with one arm.

“They did, and then Bryan split again. Well, while we were looking for a photographer, Nick got this brilliant idea to use him for our wedding - he’s a professional photographer now - and managed to persuade him to come back. Nick’s been obsessed with the idea since it popped into his head months ago.” She waved a hand in the air. “He thinks Bryan belongs back here, even with the Miranda drama. The guy’s basically a total mess; just wait until you see him. I know he’ll do a great job with the pictures, but...” her voice trailed off.

“But you’re worried about him,” Cassidy said quietly. Her brain was reeling. Bryan Roemer. She hadn’t anticipated him. She wasn’t sure if she was prepared for him. For seeing him. A little tingle began in her body, spreading from its center to all of her limbs. Yep, she’d have some difficulty with this. Those stupid fantasies were already replaying in her mind. As a reflex, she rubbed the stone around her neck.

“You’ll see why soon enough. Nick’s picking him up and bringing him here in,” Carrie paused to look at her watch, “about forty-five minutes.”

She gulped, suddenly at a loss for air. “He’s...he’s coming
here
, then?”

Carrie gave her a look of suspicion. “Yes, I have to go over what I’d like for the wedding. Are you okay?”

“Sure, sure. I’m fine,” Cassidy answered quickly. “I’m just tired and didn’t expect to really see anyone today. At least, not until I was presentable again.”

There was a brief pause. One of those revealing kinds of pauses.

Carrie began laughing. It started out small and quiet; then it grew into a doubled-over, gasping for air, completely out of control hysteria.

“Oh. My. Goodness. How could I have forgotten? You always had a thing for him! Look at you! You’re blushing like you’re thirteen again!”

“I am not! I haven’t seen him in years, and I’m just a mess is all. It’s just,” another pause, “okay, fine. I do seem to remember that whenever he was around my ability to form coherent statements left me. Maybe now that we’re older, and you said he doesn’t look as great as he used to...maybe...”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong. Under all that scruff, he’s still the same irresistible Bryan he always was. He’s just so messed up over Miranda. Don’t...you know.” Carrie grimaced.

She knew. Don’t get in too deep. Don’t look at him as anything other than her cousin’s friend.

Don’t try to rescue him.

“I’m not sure what you’re even talking about,” Cassidy said flippantly. “I bet he’s not anywhere as cute as he used to be.”

“Cass, he was never
cute
. Sexy, charming, tempting...but never
cute
.” She laughed again and put a hand on her cousin’s shoulder. “You’ll be fine.”

Famous last words,
Cassidy thought. Her stomach felt a little ill. Instead of saying anything more, she just smiled and nodded.

 

Bryan had been sitting in the hotel lobby for nearly twenty minutes, feet up, dark sunglasses concealing a bit of the damage he’d done the night before. Nick was on his way. The lobby was buzzing with people scurrying to and fro, some talking way too loudly, couples tangled in each others’ arms, hotel personnel attending to their every need. He tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

Just as he was beginning to feel a bit comfortable, his feet were promptly kicked from the chair to the floor. As they landed and he sat upright, scowling and ready for a fight, he met Nick’s grin.

“Hey! Ready?” he asked.

The guy was perpetually grinning.

“Ready,” Bryan answered. “Where are we meeting Carrie?”

“Her parents’ house. C’mon. We’re late, and you know how she hates that.”

Bryan smirked. “Let’s stop for coffee on the way. Late is late. A few more minutes won’t make a difference.”

“It’s your head.” Nick laughed and shrugged.

“Eh, Carrie loves to forgive me for the stupid things I do,” Bryan began. “Our friendship has a long, torrid history of her forgiving me for doing dumb things.”

For a brief moment, a spark of the old Bryan appeared. Then, the stone hummed again, Miranda’s image flashed before his eyes, and he was quiet. The pain that he drank so hard to dull the night before throbbed again. He narrowed his eyes.

“It’s just Carrie, right?” he asked.

“She won’t be there, man. You can’t get around seeing her, but it won’t be today,” Nick told him. “I would’ve warned you.”

“Thanks. It’s -”

“No explanation necessary. Really. She messed you up, but you’ll get better. I love the girl, love her like family; but I get you not wanting to be around her. It’s okay.”

Bryan forced a smile. “Thanks.”