The 5-Year Plan (Friends to Lovers Romance Book 1) (9 page)

He nodded. “Yeah—that was kinda scary.”

She laughed and shook her head. “Fine. Let’s do the pirate ship first. It’s my favorite.”

She grabbed his hand and dragged him over to something that looked like a giant, swinging boat. This had definitely been a good idea. Sometimes he amazed himself. He followed her, pretending he didn’t want to get on any the rides, making her coax him and drag her with him. After the pirate ship, she pulled him over to the Ferris wheel, her face glowing and her eyes sparkling.

He held up his hands. “Uh, I’m not sure I’m all that happy about these kind of heights.”

“Don’t be a sissy! I’ll hold your hand.”

“You better,” he said. Holding onto her, he kept his eyes shut, opening them only to moan and close them again.

She laughed and threw her arms around him. “I won’t let you fall.”

Opening his eyes, she stared at her. “Afraid it’s too late.”

Catching her breath, she stared back. And then the Ferris wheel spun, making her laugh and forcing a groan from him.

Back on the ground, he pretended to stumble and sway. Tori caught him around the waist to steady him. He threw his arm over her shoulders, enjoying the flash of happiness in her eyes. She looked relaxed and carefree. Resentment flashed through him—whoever was putting her through so much misery was going to get more than they’d bargained for. Victoria deserved only good things.

Grabbing his arm, she dragged him to the photo booth. “I should comb my hair first.”

“Oh, don’t be vain.”

She pulled a face and pushed him inside, plopping down next to him. The flash went off. “Pout! Strike a pose!”

He resisted the urge to grab and kiss her. But that wouldn’t go down well and he didn’t want to spoil the mood. Putting her arm around his neck, she pressed her cheek to his. He wrinkled his nose. “You smell like flowers.”

“A girl’s supposed to smell like that. What do you want? Me all sweaty?”
              An image hit him of her naked and sweaty in a very good way. He could see the sheen on her pale skin, he could almost feel it under his palm. He gave a groan and pulled back. She was just torturing him. Frowning at her, he shook his head. She grabbed him and kissed his cheek. The flash went off again.

“Come on—strike a pose, will you?” With a giggle, she poked his side.

“Oh, yeah—want to play?” He grabbed her and started wrestling, aiming for the ticklish spot on her ribs. She wiggled in his arms, rubbing all the wrong spots in the right way.

Gasping for breath, giggling still, she got free and darted out of the booth.

The pictures that came out were hilariously funny. His hair stuck out and the collar of his shirt stood up. She looked like a million dollars—her smile lit up her face, and the world. He slipped his copy of photos into his wallet and glanced at her. Why didn’t they do stuff like this more often? He’d been stuck in a rut of just hanging out—had he forgotten the things that gave him real pleasure? Like spending time with Victoria.

She started eyeing the rollercoaster and hopped on one foot. The lights flashed as the coaster whizzed by on high rails. He put a hand on his chest. “Oh, no. My heart won’t take that stress. How about a hot dog?”

Grinning, she nodded. “Sure.”

After they ate, he bought her a huge, fluffy-pink cotton candy. They strolled through the fair, looking for another exciting adventure. Children ran from stall to stall followed by worried parents. Loud squeals echoed from the jumping castle. The colors, sounds, and mayhem were enough to drive any man insane, but it was also joyous and full of energy.

Turning a lane, they came upon another lane of stalls. Tori stopped and pointed. “Oh, the shooting range!” Trent winced. Last time he’d missed all five shots, but she’d hit bull’s-eye every time. Of course, his luck could have changed. Paying for two chances, Trent picked up the air gun and tried to win a stuffed teddy bear. He hit everything but the target. “Damn it! This gun isn’t working right.”

She picked up a gun. “Step aside and let a pro take a turn.” She landed four out of five shots, won the bear, and frowned at Trent. “If you hadn’t sneezed, I would have gotten all five. And you’re right—the aim is off.”

The guy running the booth handed Tori a green teddy. She shook the bear at him with a cocky grin. “So who’s the ace now, ace?”

Seeing the excited gleam in her eyes, something tightened in his chest and caught in his throat. Bringing her here had been a terrific idea. She plopped the bear in the crook of his arm. “Here you go. A reminder of my superiority.”

Holding onto the bear, he walked with her to the exit. “What am I going to do with it?”

“You could keep it for the baby.” Just like that, the shadow that had lurked over them for the last few days fell again. Trent forced a smile. Tori put a hand on his arm. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“You didn’t say anything wrong.” He adjusted his grip on the teddy and they headed back to her apartment. “But I still don’t know what I’m going to do. Cynthia’s been playing hide and seek with me—her hiding and me calling.”

“I thought she wanted to figure things out.”

“How am I supposed to know? Maybe she’s changed her mind. I…well, being a dad, it might not be such a bad thing. In fact, it might be exciting. The kid part is easy, but I don’t know how I’m going to handle any kind of relationship with Cynthia.”

“Do you love her?”

He looked at Tori. Hair windblown and coming out of the bun, no makeup, her face still flushed from the fair, she looked better than any girl he’d ever known. He shook his head. “The idea of being tied to any woman is depressing.”

Victoria looked away and Trent could have kicked himself. “It’s just that I wanted to be there for my kid. I really, really do. But I thought it was going to be a package—me, someone I care for, and a child. My dad—he was great. Even after the divorce, he really took care of me. I know he sacrificed a lot for me—and…I just want to be as inspiring a dad to my own baby. I just don’t want to do it with Cynthia.”

He let out a breath. The more he thought about it, the only person he could envision in his life, as the mother of his child, as a life partner, was Victoria. He wanted to tell her that, but he didn’t want to add to her problems. She had enough to deal with right now. He didn’t need a guy who was having a baby with another woman.

What was wrong with him?

“I’m not sure what’s going on in Cynthia’s head,” he admitted. “But don’t worry. I am going to chase her down and sit to have a serious talk soon enough. Do you want to grab some dinner?”

She rubbed a hand over her belly. “That hotdog and cotton candy are sitting a little heavy right now. But…” She smiled and reached a hand out to touch his arm. “I had a lovely time, Trent. It was just what I needed.”

He took her hand and kissed her fingers. He knew it wasn’t easy for Tori to speak from the heart, but knowing that she made the effort was enough for him. “Told you. I’m a genius.”

“A vain one.”

“Takes one to know one.” They stopped in front of her building. He pushed the teddy into her arms. “Keep him for now. It will remind you of the good times we had together. And I still have your work bear hanging out in my office. A reminder that you are going to be back at TerraDyn. I also have to get back. I’m running some extra checks that may turn up something.”

She clutched the teddy. “Thanks. Thank you for everything.”

He wanted to say something more—do something more. Kiss her. Just hold her. Sweep her off her feet and up to her bedroom and make her forget everything except how could make her feel. But she turned and hurried inside.

Just like that, the fun came to an end.

As she rode the elevator up to her apartment, Victoria kept smiling. She clutched her bear and thought about what a good time she’d had at the fair. Trent’s spontaneity had taken her by surprise. The carnival had been an amazing idea. She felt relaxed, happy. If only…

No, she didn’t want to go down that road. Trent was great if you wanted fun and not much else. But she was found herself battling the urge to tell him she wanted more with him. She wanted…what? Her mind stalled out.

Did she really want to jeopardize their friendship? What happened if they became lovers and then their differences lead to a break up? Besides, he had an ex-girlfriend to think about and a child on the way. Maybe. And she had a really shaky future. What if she couldn’t find another job—did she want to end up sponging off Trent?

She let out a breath. She’d be stupid to start something when Trent had to be on the brink of making a commitment to another woman. Shocking as it was, he seemed prepared to be with someone for the sake of his child. She was touched by his sense of responsibility. Maybe this was going to be really good for him. And how wrong she’d been in her estimation that he would never really grow up. His actions had proven he was determined to be there for his child. And she really needed to be happy for him. And to straighten out her own life.

Stepping out of the elevator, she put her hand in her purse to dig out her keys.

A hand clutched her waist and pulled her back. She screamed.

Another hand grabbed her and Bob’s deep voice washed over her. “It’s just me, babe.” He gave her a shake and let go.

Victoria put a hand on her racing heart. “You scared the life out of me! Is this any way to greet someone?”

Bending down, he picked up a box of luxury chocolate. “Got a little gift for you.”

She eyed him and the chocolates. “Why?”

“Do I need a reason to bring something for my girl?”

“I’m not—”

Her neighbor’s door opened. Mrs. Armstrong and Tinkles, her mini-Dobie, walked out. Mrs. Armstrong stared at Victoria.

Not wanting to make a scene, Victoria dug out her key, opened her door and stepped in. She resisted the urge to slam the door on Bob. Maybe meeting him for coffee hadn’t been such a good idea, after all. Did he really think she was still interested in him?

Her time with him at Delight had made her realize that not only was he not as attractive as she’d once believed, but also he was pushy, possessive, and a show off. She didn’t want to be with a man like him. Maybe Sue was right. She had been looking for men who reminded her of her dad—strong guys who had rules and lived by a code of honor. Instead, she kept finding egotistic caricatures.

Staring at Bob, her arms crossed, she knew that letting him down wasn’t going to be so easy. He wasn’t just persistent man, he was also capable of making trouble if things didn’t go his way. Tossing the bear onto a chair, she took the chocolates from Bob. “You really shouldn’t have.”

“Maybe you’ll like this better.” He pulled out a slim jewelry box from his leather jacket pocket.

“Oh no!” She stepped back

“Just a little something I picked up for you.”

She put up a hand. “Bob—I can’t. We’re over.”

Opening the box, he showed her a gold chair and golden butterfly. Rubies studded its wings, glinting and bright. Utterly gaudy and so not her style. “You like it, don’t you.” He grinned. It wasn’t a question.

She gulped. “It’s lovely. But I told you. I can’t accept it.”

His thick brows pulled tight. “Of course you can. I bought it for you.”

“Yes, I know, but we’re not together anymore as a couple.”

“Think of it as a late birthday gift.”

Her birthday had come a week after they’d broken up. She shook her head. “No. I’m just not comfortable with the idea of accepting something so…expensive from you.” She put her hand on the chocolate box. “This is good, though.” She’d thought accepting the chocolates would at least partially pacify him.

Instead he snapped the jewelry box closed and stepped closer so he loomed over her. “Looking at this reminded me of your beauty…your spirit.”

All that from a gold butterfly?
She was tempted to ask him that, but she didn’t want this conversation to go on any longer than it already had. “Listen, Bob…”

“I’m taking you out to dinner tomorrow. You and me. This time, don’t tell Trent about it. I don’t like that geek.”

Bossy, commanding, and blunt. He definitely had some of her father’s traits, but in the worst possible way. Maybe she needed to sort out her daddy issues and not look for men who reminded her of him.

She pulled in a breath and let it out. But she didn’t step back. “Yeah, well, you know Trent. He just showed up. But about the dinner? I don’t think we should go down that road again.”

“I’ve missed you, Victoria. A lot. You’re the one. You made a big mistake when we broke it up.”

“I did?” She stared at him.

She’d told him he was being too dominating and interfering—and he’d walked out. That had been the end of things. But this didn’t seem a good time to argue over who’d done what. She searched for a different tactic, something that wouldn’t piss him off but would get her off the hook.

The perfect idea snuck into her mind. She put a hand on his chest. “I know. That is exactly why I don’t want to indulge in another reckless act by getting back together with you. It was
so hard
to get over you, Bob. I can’t go through the heartbreak again.”

“Baby, don’t you see it’d be different this time? I’ve got money now. Anything’s possible!”

That hadn’t exactly worked right. She frowned at him—and started to wonder what was up.

This new Bob seemed a little too forgiving and kind.

Bob had never been this polite and pleasant unless he wanted something. Why was he going to all this trouble to woo her? Had he really come back to win her back? Or was it possible he wanted something else—like more access to TerraDyn files.

She realized she was getting paranoid. Easing around Bob, she headed into her living room. “We did have valid reasons to break up. You and I, we’re just too different.”

He came over to her, hands spread wide. “Come on, one dinner. We will see how it goes. If I can’t convince you to be with me, I won’t pester you again.”

This was a bad move. She knew it. Nothing good would come out of this decision. But she wanted him gone and she didn’t know how else to say it. She knew he had a vicious temper. She’d never been the recipient of it, but she’d seen it. She didn’t want it unleashed on her. And if they went out she could walk out from the restaurant—or at least call the cops to the restaurant if she needed them.

“One dinner.” She held up one finger.

“Great. I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow.”

“Why don’t I meet you at the restaurant?”

His mouth pulled down and his eyes lit up, but then he nodded. “Okay. Oliver’s at seven.” He smiled and leaned close enough that the spice of his aftershave washed over her. “I’ll see you then, babe. Wear something sexy for me. Short and sexy. We’ll have a great time.”

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. She held perfectly still until he walked out the door.

She breathed a sigh of relief and ran to the door to lock it. Leaning on the door, she rested her forehead on the cool wood. What had she landed herself into? Getting out of it would take all her energy, and it wasn’t as if she had a lot of it to spare.

Since she didn’t have anything else to do, she picked up Trent’s tablet and began reviewing the login times again. It was a slow, tedious process. After identifying each entry, she spent a lot of time pondering over its authenticity. Had she been in office that day? Had she worked from home that night? She shook her head. Work really had become her entire life. That was just wrong.

She at least had learned a valuable lesson. If she ever got her job back, she’d spend time on herself and with people who mattered. She’d take vacations and lunches and she’d fit in more time for fun. Maybe she could even devote more time to her friendship with Trent—he might need a babysitter, after all. He was doing so much to help her, and she felt like she’d only given him comments on his habits and attitude. It made her feel ashamed.

Staring at the login times she wondered if this was really about someone who held a grudge against her and wanted to punish her. She’d always made an effort to be nice, but she also knew she was demanding at work. It wasn’t just Trent that she’d been mean to at times. She might have stepped on a few toes. Victoria wasn’t proud of those moments.

But did someone hate her enough to target her? It was hard to believe her login had been chosen at random. As she read through the entries, she came back to the same thought she’d started with—the person most likely to get away with planning and executing this scheme was Trent.

He was a wizard with computers. And telling her he was helping her was the perfect way to cover his tracks. But could Trent really secretly hate her? Sometimes they snapped at each other, and sometimes she’d snubbed him. What if this was his way of taking revenge?

Putting down the tablet, she put a hand over her eyes. She really was getting paranoid. Trent wasn’t capable of such a thing—he’d never do such a thing to anyone, let alone to her, his best friend.

Victoria tossed the tablet onto the couch. She was tired and it was time to get to bed. The more exhausted she was, the more she came up with possibilities that couldn’t be real. She trusted Trent. She wasn’t going to insult him by indulging in such wrong thoughts. After changing into her nightgown, she went to bed.

She tried sleeping on her back, then on her side, on her other side. She thumped her pillow and put another pillow under her head. Sleep eluded her. She was just getting up to get warm milk when her cell phone rang.

She recognized Trent’s number. What did he want so late? Shoving her hair back, she answered. “Trent—what’s up?” Her pulse quickened—maybe he’d found out who was framing her?

“Sorry to call you so late at night.” He sounded breathless, his voice shaky. Victoria sat up and switched on the light. “I’m at the hospital.”

“Trent—I’ll be there—”

“No, it’s not me. Tom was out walking his dog.”

“Your brother?”

“Yeah. A car hit him. Tom, not Digger. Digger’s fine. Tom’s neighbor’s looking after that mutt…he didn’t get hit. But the driver fled. A neighbor saw it all and called it in. Tom’s in surgery, and he…he’s in a bad shape, Tori. I may be here for some time so I wanted you to know if you can’t reach me, that’s why.”

She jumped out of bed. “Which hospital?”

“You don’t need to come. It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay. Which hospital—is it Memorial General? Stay there. I’ll be there soon as I can.”

Voice still shaky, he gave her the address and hung up. She threw on some clothes and bolted out the door. Hailing a cab, she promise the driver an extra twenty if he got there as fast as he could. She closed her eyes after he ran the second red light.

She knew Trent actually looked up to his younger brother, Tom. While Trent was the kid who loved fun, Tom had been the stable, steady one. He had been only a little kid when Trent’s parents had divorced, but Victoria didn’t think she’d ever known anyone as unshakable as Tom. He’d been the real rock of that family.

Giving her credit card to the taxi driver, Victoria waited for him to run it. She climbed out of the cab and ran into the emergency waiting room. The place stank of disinfectant and the bright lights stung her eyes. Trent sat near an aquarium, his head bent and his hands clasped tight and held between his knees.

She’d never seen him look so devastated. Pale, hair rumbled, and red eyed, he looked more than shaken. He was close to his brother. Ever since their parents’ divorce he’d always looked out for Tom. Even though Tom was more responsible, had a better job, and was generally more settled it had been Trent who always wanted to make sure his brother never wanted for anything. It wasn’t just that Trent was three years older, but because Trent genuinely loved his family. Heading over to him, she took his hand. “How is he?”

He rubbed a hand across his eyes. “I haven’t seen him yet, but the nurse said there’s been some internal damage. They won’t know how much until they finish putting him back together.” He took a deep breath and gave her a shaky smile. “Sorry to get you out of bed. I shouldn’t have called.”

“I’d have killed you if you hadn’t!” She cupped his cheek. “He’ll get through his. Tom’s a fighter. He won’t go down easy.”

“You’re right.” He wiped his hand across his eyes. “He’ll make it.”

“Don’t you remember the time when he fell off that camel in Muscat? He climbed right back up.”

Trent’s smile steadied. “You were the one who squealed every time the camel so much as sneezed.”

She smiled. “It didn’t sneeze, it spit. I think it hated girls. Plus the smell.” She wrinkled her nose. “Took me three baths to get the smell off me.”

“You add a bath every time you tell that story.” She could guess he knew she was trying to distract him, but he was playing along—he probably didn’t want to think about the surgery that Tom was undergoing either. He leaned back in his chair. “That was nothing. The worst smell was from that guy, Kareem.”