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Nate’s reasoning squashed down the fear that he’d come back too late and reestablished his resolve. He’d been an idiot once and let Lauren go. Since that day, he’d never stopped regretting it. Now, with the change in his military status, he planned to do everything in his power to rectify that mistake.
Chapter 2
“I almost died when I saw Nate walk in the other night,” Kelly said.
Join the club. Lauren reached out and accepted the curtain rod her sister held. “At first I thought I was seeing things.”
“Well, if you have to see things, he wouldn’t be a bad vision to have.”
Lauren rolled her eyes. “And what are you doing noticing that, Kel?”
“I’m married, Lauren, not dead. Besides, it’d be hard not to notice him. Still, he had some nerve showing up.”
She agreed with Kelly one hundred percent on that one. “It would’ve been nice to know he was coming. Mom should have told me she invited him.” Lauren stepped off the stool and moved it over to the other bedroom window.
“Maybe she wanted to surprise you.”
“Mission accomplished if she did.” She’d nearly had a heart attack when she saw Nate walk in.
“So, what did he say to you? I saw him talking to you and Kevin.”
Lauren remembered every single word from their brief conversation, but rather than rehash it all she said, “Just hi and that maybe he’d see me around.”
“That’s it? I don’t believe you.”
Lauren’s shoulders slumped. Her sister knew her too well. Most of the time that was a good thing, but every once in a while it really sucked.
“Every time I saw him his eyes were locked on you. I think there’s something you’re not telling me, Lauren.”
Lauren sighed. “You’re right.” An image of Nate that night formed in her mind. “When I said maybe I’d see him around, he told me to plan on it.” A shiver went through her body, although whether from anticipation or unease she wasn’t sure.
Kelly’s hand stilled, only half of the pastel yellow curtain on the rod. “Interesting.”
It took some self-control, but Lauren held back a groan. She recognized her sister’s tone. Kelly was formulating some crazy plan or idea.
“He might be back for you, although I hope not. He’s the last person you need back in your life.”
“Please. I haven’t heard from Nate in fifteen years. If he’s moved back to Massachusetts it’s not because of me, Kelly. “ Lauren climbed up on the stool and waited.
“But what if it is?” Kelly handed her the curtain rod. “It’s possible. I saw an article on the Internet about a couple who reconnected after thirty years apart.”
Lauren hung the curtain in silence. Whatever plans Nate had, they didn’t involve her. And she was okay with that. She had her own life and didn’t need or want him back in it.
“Those are great stories, but they’re rare. And I’m sure Nate’s not looking to get back together. He’s had plenty of time to do that. He came to the party because of Mom, and he’s back here because his family is here.” At one time she’d dreamed of nothing else. For more than a year after their breakup, she’d hoped that he’d come to his senses and reach out to her. Hundreds of times she’d envisioned him showing up at her door, once again telling her he loved her and wanted to be with her. Such a visit never happened. Eventually the dream faded and reality set in. She got on with her life, just as he had done with his.
“But what if he is back because of you?” Kelly lowered herself into the padded rocking chair near the crib. “If he showed up at your house tonight and told you he wants another chance, what would you do?”
Lauren tried to block the vision from forming by thinking of Kevin instead. Despite her best effort, Kevin’s image disappeared and Nate’s took his place. “I’d tell him it’s nice to see him, but I’m with someone. Why would I want to risk what I have with Kevin for someone I haven’t seen or heard from since high school?” Grabbing the waterproof mattress cover and sheet off the changing table, Lauren crossed to the crib. When she’d agreed to help with the final preparations in the nursery, she hadn’t expected an interrogation as well. In retrospect, she should have expected it.
“Good. Nate doesn’t deserve you,” Kelly said curtly before switching gears. “I’m glad we got to meet Kevin. I liked him.”
“Mom and Dad liked him, too.” Lauren covered the mattress with the waterproof pad. “Do you think Mom had fun?”
Apparently not ready to talk about something else, Kelly ignored her sister’s question. “How are things with Kevin? Do you love him?”
She held back a groan. It was always about love with Kelly. “No, not yet. We’ve only been dating a few months, Kel.”
“And what about Neal, did you love him?” Kelly asked, referring to the pharmacist Lauren had dated the previous summer. “Or Marcus?”
Lauren tugged to get the sheet around the corner of the crib mattress. Maybe if she ignored her sister, Kelly would get the hint.
“What about Roger? Did you love him?” Kelly said, naming the last of the three men Lauren had dated in the last five years.
Annoyance and anger bubbled up inside Lauren. Dropping the mattress back into the crib, she spun on her heel. “I liked them all, you know that, but no, I didn’t love them. If I had, I’d still be with one of them. So what’s your point?”
Kelly rose from her chair, effort showing in her clumsy movement, and walked over to her. “Other than Nate, you’ve had one relationship that lasted more than nine months. And I think that’s because you don’t give any of them a chance. I think a part of you still loves Nate.”
“Or maybe I just haven’t met the right guy,” Lauren shot back, reaching for the sheet again. “Who knows? Kevin might be the one.”
With a sarcastic laugh, Kelly leaned her arm on the side of the crib.
“What’s that cackle supposed to mean?”
“I don’t think you’ll give him a chance, either.” Kelly shrugged. “He nice and I hope it works out, but . . .” Kelly’s voice trailed off.
“But what?” Prior to this conversation, they’d talked very little about Kevin, or her love life for that matter.
“I think you will find something you don’t like about him and end things.”
“You’re wrong.”
Kelly placed a hand on her arm. “No, I’m not, Lauren, and I get it. I know how you felt about Nate. A person cannot simply get rid of feelings like that.” Kelly’s voice changed from her big sister know-it-all tone to her soothing therapist tone. “I think your love for him has kept you from falling in love with anyone else. But it’s time to move past him. Really get on with your life.”
Another denial sat on the tip of her tongue, but what was the point? Kelly was right, but only in part. Her inability to find love had nothing to do with Nate. She refused to believe that. No, she simply had not met the right man. Maybe this time with Kevin it would happen.
“Not that he plans on it, but even if Nate Callahan showed up tonight and asked me out, I’d say no.” A tiny pain shot through Lauren’s chest. Ignoring it, she continued. “And you’re wrong. I am giving Kevin a chance.”
“For your sake, I hope so. I think he could be the one.”
Biting her lip, Lauren counted to five before speaking. She didn’t want to argue with Kelly. “How about on this one we agree to disagree, okay? Arguing won’t change whatever happens between Kevin and me.”
With a loud sigh, Kelly nodded. “Fair enough, I guess. At least for now.” She wrapped an arm around Lauren’s shoulders. “How about we take a break in here? I picked up double chocolate chip brownies from Rosie’s yesterday.”
“You’re just telling me this now? You should’ve brought those out the minute I walked in.”
Lauren followed her sister into the kitchen. As they sat enjoying the chocolaty desserts from the town’s best kept secret, they talked mostly about the upcoming birth of Kelly’s first baby and the baby shower Kelly’s co-workers had thrown for her. Despite the pleasant conversation, Lauren’s thoughts routinely drifted back to their conversation in the nursery. While what Kelly said was partially true, she’d never admit it aloud. On some level she’d never stopped loving Nate. She’d tried countless times to vanquish the feelings, but a tiny seed of love for him always remained. Eventually she’d assumed her residual feelings toward him were normal. They’d grown up together and he’d been her first love. Surely it was normal for your first love to always have a place in your heart. But regardless of what Kelly said, her inability to find love had nothing to do with Nate. It simply was a matter of not yet finding the right man. Just because Kelly had met and fallen in love with her husband while in college didn’t mean everyone did. People met in all kinds of ways and at different times in their lives. Who knew? A year from now she and Kevin may be madly in love with each other. So what if she was not in love with him yet. She enjoyed spending time with him, and they had fun together. That type of relationship could easily turn into love. Not all relationships started off with fireworks.
