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“I ran into Hudsy today.”
She bit her tongue. Had to. Anything to keep those damn tears from falling. God, she needed to keep it together.
“Did you?” she managed to say.
“You never told me he was back. I heard it from Edwards.”
Rebecca was silent for a few moments. “Hudson has been out of my life for years, Mac. Why would I care that he’s back?”
Mackenzie watched her closely. “I know how much he hurt you, Becca.”
“Old news.” But the knot in her throat told her something else.
“Yeah, well, sometimes the past has a way of biting us in the ass. Just be careful with Blackwell. Don’t let him in again. I don’t trust him.”
Rebecca cleared her throat and set her wineglass down. If her brother knew what had transpired just a few days ago, he’d have a whole lot more to say. As it was, Liam appeared, and she was saved from further conversation.
“Uncle Mac. You gonna try my soup?”
Rebecca’s heart swelled, watching her son. His clear green eyes and flushed, healthy skin—his exuberance a
nd love of life—was something she cherished. He’d come a long way from the sullen, unhappy boy he’d been when they’d first come back to Crystal Lake.
“Can’t, buddy. Lily is taking me out on a date.”
Liam snorted. “Old people still date?”
“Hey. Who you calling old?” Mackenzie roughed up Liam’s thick blond waves and winked at Rebecca. “Better get my butt in gear, or there’ll be hell to pay.”
“Who’s watching the baby?” Rebecca smiled at the thought. Her niece was gorgeous and the sweetest little thing ever. And she’d had her father wrapped around her little hand from the get-go.
“Mom. I gotta swing by and pick her up.”
“Tell her I said hello.” It had been a few days since they’d talked, and a twinge of guilt made Rebecca squirm.
“Will do.” With another pat on Liam’s shoulders, Mackenzie headed for the front door. Before her brother made it there, however, the doorbell sounded, and Rebecca froze. Hudson hadn’t been serious…had he?
“Liam, are you expecting anyone? Michael?”
“Nope.” Her son was busy spooning out his cabbage roll creation into a soup bowl and didn’t bother to look up. “He’s grounded. He got caught looking at naked ladies on his dad’s computer, and now his dad’s computer has got a stupid virus. I told him it was dumb and that he’d get caught, but he didn’t listen.”
“Oh.” Great. Naked ladies and computers. Was she already there with Liam?
Rebecca got to her feet and made her way down the hall. Her brother had opened the door, and his tall frame blocked her view, but there was no mistaking the voice. The sound of it was like a punch to the gut, and she hung back a bit, sweat beading on her top lip, breaths falling rapidly.
Jesus. He’d meant everything he’d said the night before.
Mackenzie glanced over his shoulder, but the look in his eyes was unreadable. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” He gave a quick nod to Hudson and stepped around him.
That left Rebecca staring down the hallway at the one man she wasn’t sure she could handle right now. She ran a nervous hand through the loose hair at her nape and cleared her throat, not really knowing what to say.
Hudson closed the door behind him and stood there, his leather jacket damp from the rain that had been falling all day. He’d pulled on a black knit cap and hadn’t bothered to shave. She thought of what her brother had said, and her heart lurched. Mackenzie was right. She needed to be careful. Hudson was her past, and she’d buried him years ago. Yet the man in front of her was very much alive. He was so damn masculine. So damn sexy. So damn dangerous.
She hated him.
Except she didn’t.
“I told myself coming here wasn’t a good idea,” he said, that hint of rasp she’d always loved coloring his words. “I was headed home, but…”
