Tempting Mr. Wrong (Wrong Man) (15 page)

“You’re back,” she said with a sloppy kiss to his cheek.

He took in her pretty green eyes, the curly red hair, and the smattering of freckles on her face, trying to commit them to memory. Instead of letting her down, he hugged her to him, closing his eyes to savor this moment.

“Lance?” Carly’s voice held concern and he could feel her walking toward him. But he didn’t let go of Mya just yet.

“Hey, buddy,” Adam said, and Lance finally opened his eyes.

“That was a long hug,” Mya said as he placed her on the deck. “You must have really missed me today.”

His throat tightened. He was going to miss her even more tomorrow.

Carly stepped forward, worry in her eyes. “Where ya been?” she asked, her voice sounding more flippant than she looked.

He lifted his head, gaze darting from Carly to Adam to Mya and then back to Carly. The words slipped out before he could stop them. “I’m leaving tomorrow morning.”

A shadow fell over Carly’s face. “We know,” she replied softly.

He met her eyes. Big mistake. He could get lost in there and part of him wanted to. Lance had no idea what to say. All he knew for certain was that he was filled with sadness. Luckily, he didn’t need to say anything because Adam jumped into action. “Hey, kiddo, why don’t you and I go to the movies tonight?”

“Can we, Aunt Carly? Can we?” Mya started jumping up and down. “Pleeeaaaasssseee.” She ran over to her aunt and pulled on her jeans.

Concentrating on Lance, Carly had gone mute, so Mya looked to him.

“Sure, kid. Make sure Uncle Adam buys you everything at the concession stand.”

Adam rolled his eyes. “How about we go get some dinner first. Then we’ll see whatever movie you want. It will be a date.”

“Yes!”

“Take my car, Adam. Mya’s car seat is all set up. Keys are on the table by the door,” Carly said.

“Thanks. Come on, Mya, I’ll help you get your jacket.” He grabbed Mya’s hand and quickly ushered her toward the house.

“I need my pink purse with the flowers. Oh, and two of my dolls will need to ride with us. Can I bring Moo-Moo?” Mya’s voice trailed off as Adam gave them a last look before closing the door behind them.

Then he was left alone with Carly in the backyard. Not knowing what to say or where to begin, he shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans instead. Carly was practicing her mime impression. It was very good.

After a minute or two of the most awkward silence he’d ever endured, he finally rolled back on his heels. “Listen, Carly—”

“We don’t have to do this.” She threw her hands into the air and the gesture was wrought with resignation. “Please don’t do this. I told you last night that I understand why you have to leave and I do.”

He ran a hand over his face. “You’re going to be okay,” he said.

Anger sprang to life in her eyes. “Excuse me?”

He took a step back. “I mean that once I leave, you and Mya will be okay.”

“I know we will,” she snapped. “We got along just fine for over a year before you graced us with your presence.”

Looking away, he took a deep breath. He was royally fucking this up. “I didn’t mean… Sorry. I don’t know what to say here.”

She threw her hands into the air. “Neither do I. That’s why I’d rather us not say anything.”

“Listen, Carly, I care about you. And Mya,” he quickly added. “A lot.”

“You care about us? That’s it? Well, how about this? I love you, Lance.”

He froze. She loved him? Holy shit.

She looked resigned, even as she studied her shoes. “I don’t know when it happened exactly. But somewhere in between the time when I was trying to stay away from you and when we finally threw caution to the wind, it happened. I’m in love with you. And that doesn’t change anything. You’re still going to leave.”

He was blown away. Lance couldn’t believe what he was hearing. But most of all he was sad. Sad that what she had just said was right.

Grimly, he nodded. “Yes, I’m still going to leave.”

…

Carly had done and said a lot of crazy things in her life. But admitting her true feelings for Lance just now definitely took the cake.

She couldn’t regret it, though. She’d never been one to hide her emotions and speaking her truth had empowered her. She did love Lance. She did want him to stay. Most importantly, she did know that he wasn’t going to.

“Lance, I didn’t tell you I loved you to get you to stay here. I…I just wanted you to know how I felt.”

“Oh, Carly, I know. If things were different…” He shook his head. “Maybe when I’m done doing all of this…”

It was her turn to shake her head. She stepped forward and placed a finger on his lips.

She didn’t want Lance to cut his dream short. He deserved to go out and explore.

He kissed her. He poured everything into that kiss, and Carly was helpless to do anything but accept all the feelings and all the apologies he was offering. Her knees buckled, but Lance’s strong arms were there to hold her steady. When they broke apart, she saw raw emotion in his eyes and she had to fight to hold tears back. “Thank you.”

“For what?” he asked with a strangled voice.

“For coming here and for helping these last few weeks. Thank you for showing me what I deserve.”

He hugged her to him, long and hard. For a moment, Carly didn’t think he would let go. And she didn’t want him to. But he finally did.

He cleared his throat and glanced around the backyard. “I think I’ll go pack my things.” He turned toward the door but suddenly flipped around to face her. “I forgot. I got us some dinner. I’m just…not feeling too hungry at the moment.”

All she could do was nod and watch his retreating form.

Devastated, she walked back into the house. She stopped when she saw the kitchen table. It was set and there were candles and flowers. She spotted bags from her favorite Italian restaurant on the counter.

Shit
.

This was way more than grabbing dinner. Lance had put real effort into this.

Carly leaned against the wall and finally sank down to the floor. Resting her head on her knees, she allowed the tears to fall.

Chapter Fourteen

Lance stood at the window and took in the view from his room at the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas. The water shot into the air as the famous fountains erupted into their precisely timed dance. The Eiffel Tower from the Paris hotel stood just beyond the crowds gathered to watch the spectacle.

He couldn’t help but think how much Carly would love seeing the French landmark. The same thought had crossed his mind when he’d walked through the Wynn hotel earlier that day and taken in all of the brightly colored flowers on display.

For the rest of his life, the scent of flowers and the sight of anything bright would remind him of Carly. Kind of the same way his head snapped around anytime a redhead bounded by him.

He ran a hand through his hair and crossed the room. Maybe he should order some room service or use the fitness center. Wide awake, he knew sleep wasn’t an option. Besides, in the five days since he’d been gone from North Carolina, sleep had evaded him. Thumbing through the stack of brochures he’d picked up at the concierge desk, he considered ordering tickets to a show. Of course, the idea of dancing and singing only reminded him of Mya. He wondered how her ballet class had gone this week. She would have a recital soon. Ever since her teacher had mentioned it, that’s all the kid had been able to talk about.

Picking up his phone, he pulled up Carly’s information. His finger hovered over her name. He shook his head. He couldn’t call. Even though he wanted to hear the sound of her voice more than he wanted to see a show, gamble in one of the casinos, walk down the Strip, or do pretty much anything else in this town.

Phone still firmly clenched in his hand, he returned to the window. The lights of the city beckoned him to let loose and have fun. Yet, he could barely make himself leave the room. Frustrated beyond belief, he reached for his phone and pulled up his friend John Campbell’s number. John had recently settled down in Virginia.

John answered on the second ring. “Hey, man.”

With only two little words, Lance heard more happiness than he ever had from his old friend.

“Campbell, how are you? How’s married life treating you?”

“No complaints. In fact, I can’t believe I didn’t take this plunge sooner.”

Lance’s eyebrows shot up at that. He’d served with John for four straight years and could honestly call him the most confirmed bachelor he’d ever met. They continued with some idle chitchat for a couple minutes. John filled him in on his suburban, yet blissfully happy, life in Crescent Falls, while Lance brought his friend up to speed on his situation. He told him about Chris’s letter, meeting Carly and Mya, the renovations, and finally his bucket list.

After a lengthy silence, John spoke. “First of all, should I be pissed you didn’t let me know you were stateside? And in North Carolina. That’s really fucking close, too.”

Lance chuckled. “Hardly. I told you I’ve been incredibly busy watching the Disney Channel and replacing a rotted old fence.”

Now it was John’s turn to laugh. “Fair enough. Now you’re in Vegas. Man, I love that city. Are you living it up?”

Nope. Lance was going through the motions, but he’d yet to really enjoy anything. Seeing the roller coaster at New York, New York made him think of how fun it would be to take Mya on it. He’d won five hundred bucks at the blackjack table last night and couldn’t help but wonder what he’d buy Carly if she’d been there to cheer him on. He could just see her wearing some bright, sparkly number, blowing on the dice at the craps table, and forcing him to dance with her at one of the thousand clubs on the Strip.

“Yo, did I lose you?” John asked.

“Sorry, no. Uh, yeah, it’s great here.”

“Wow, you’re really selling it,” John said with sarcasm dripping from his voice. “Lance, I gotta ask this. Not that I mind you calling. I love hearing from you. But why are you really calling?”

“What do you mean?”

“I get the feeling you need me to say something, but I’m not sure what that something is.”

He sighed. “I’ve wanted to take this trip almost my entire life.”

“I know. You’ve been planning it forever. What’s the problem?”

“I’m not as happy as I thought I would be.”

“Might that have something to do with Chris’s super-hot sister?”

Lance couldn’t help but think how Chris would go berserk if he heard John call his sister hot. Hell, his own fingers had curled into fists. “Dude.”

“I know, I know. Chris would kill me. But what am I, blind? Carly is beautiful. And from what you’ve just told me about your time with her—or maybe I should say, what you didn’t tell me but was clearly written between the lines—you fell for her. Big time.”

He wasn’t going to deny it. Not to his best friend. Not to himself. Not anymore.

Lance took a big gulp. “I never expected to fall in love with her.”

“Holy shit.” A whistle, low and deep, filtered across the phone line.

In spite of everything, Lance laughed. He felt relief saying the words out loud. He loved Carly. Of course he did. How could he not fall in love with her?

There was Mya to think of, too. The second love of his life.
And wasn’t that the shock of a lifetime?
he thought. Somewhere along the line, all that pink must have warped his brain. Like the Pepto-Bismol it resembled, it must have oozed through his head and down to his heart, coating it with the overwhelming feeling of pure love.

“Love?” John’s voice held a questioning tone. “I can’t believe you fell in love with Carly.” John’s booming laugh carried over the phone line so loudly that Lance had to hold the cell away from his ear.

“Shut up, ass.” It was a pathetic retort and Lance knew it.

After John laughed for another minute, he finally settled down. “Sorry, man. But now it all makes sense.”

“Really?” he asked drily. “Then please enlighten me, Obi-Wan. What sage advice do you have to offer? Because this is a shit situation.”

“You’re such a fuckwad.”

“Hey—”

“Shut up and listen to me. I’m speaking to you as a man in love. Let me tell you, it changes you.”

“I’ve noticed,” he said.

“Did you also notice that life is not black and white?”

Lance held his tongue because he had no idea what that comment meant.

“You are one of the best men I know, and I’d trust you with my life,” John said. Lance felt the exact same way about him. “But if I had to bring up one of your faults, it’s that you fail to see the gray area.”

Intrigued, Lance gripped the phone tighter. “Meaning?”

“You have a goal of completing your bucket list. You also want to be with Carly. Why do those two things have to be mutually exclusive?”

Lance was silent for a whole minute as his friend’s words sank in. He’d be damned.

John continued. “You are selling yourself way too short if you don’t think you can have it all. Especially if you love not only the woman, but the child, too? You don’t need my advice. You just need to take your head out of your ugly, hairy ass.”

Lance grinned. Holy shit. John was right.

How much better would this trip be with Carly and Mya? Every destination he planned to see would be better with his two girls.

“Hey, you still there?” John asked.

Shaking his head, he stood slowly. “Yep. You just gave me the kick in the pants I needed.”

And now he knew what he needed to do.

…

Carly thumbed through the new cookbook until she found the recipe she’d been searching for. She compared the ingredients and preparation to three different recipes she’d located on the internet.

This was definitely more complicated than the pasta she’d mastered, thank you very much. But she was feeling optimistic today, a nice change to the pity party she’d been having all week.

Lance had left almost a week ago. While she’d been busy getting ready to start her new job and helping Adam move into the guest room, she couldn’t block the thoughts of Lance from invading her mind. She could still smell him in her bedroom, still remember the way his touch started that fire in her belly.

She shook her head. It was Friday, and she was going to start work on Monday. Mya was happy. Mostly. She was going to enjoy the weekend and try to cheer up her niece.

A tiny sigh broke the silence. Carly lifted her head to take in Mya, who was sitting at the counter, pushing her cookie around the plate. Not eating sweets? Yep. Mya was definitely joining her aunt’s pity party.

“Hey, peanut. What’s the matter?”

“Nothing.”

Carly put her recipes down and joined Mya at the counter. After a quick hug, she pushed Mya’s hair back off her face.

“Do you miss Lance?”

Mya’s eyes lit up at his name. Just as quickly, her face fell. “Yeah, I do.”

“Me, too,” Carly said.

“How come he had to leave?”

Carly broke the cookie in half and took a bite. She was happy to see Mya follow suit with her half.

“Well, Lance had something to do. Something important. It might not make sense to us, but I know he really wanted to do it. And he hated leaving you.”

“I drew him a picture today in school.”

“You did? Can I see it?”

Mya smiled, then she jumped off the seat and ran to her book bag. When she returned she held up a drawing of a woman and a girl, both with bright red hair. It seemed as if the two were holding hands and smiling. Also, the woman appeared to have about twelve fingers on one hand. But all in all, a great drawing.

“Mya, this is amazing. I can’t believe you drew this.”

“Mrs. Gillman wanted us to draw a picture of our family. So that’s me and that’s you.”

Carly froze, her eyes locked onto the picture before her. Realization, sharp and bright, flooded her, and all because of the simple words of a child.

Family.

She didn’t need Lance, or any man, to give her a family, even though it would be nice—really nice—to have Lance around. Carly looked at Mya and knew she already had exactly what she wanted. A family of two was still a family.

Choked up, she could barely say
hi
when Adam walked in. Make that a family of three.

Who needed the traditional nuclear family? She and Chris hadn’t had a conventional upbringing, but they always stuck together. She grinned.

“What’s that smile for?” Adam asked curiously.

She held up Mya’s picture. “This amazing, phenomenal picture that Mya made today.”

Adam studied the drawing and ruffled Mya’s hair. “That is one of the best things I’ve ever seen. You are very talented, Mya.”

Mya swished back and forth in her chair. “Thank you, Uncle Adam.”

Adam held up a manila envelope. “I have something else to make you smile.”

“What’s that?” Carly asked, taking the envelope from him.

“I was moving the furniture in Chris and Gretch’s room. I think it’s a really great idea for us to clean it out and repaint it.”

Carly nodded. “It’s time.”

“Well, when I moved their desk away from the wall I saw that a ton of things had fallen back there because one of the drawers in the desk had a faulty back. I shoved what I found in that envelope for you. I saw some cards and letters you’d sent Chris when he’d been overseas. Thought you might like to see them.”

“You’re kidding.” Carly opened the envelope, anxious to see what Adam had found.

“While you go through that, I thought I’d take the princess here to…” He paused for dramatic effect. “McDonald’s.”

Mya leaped off the chair and threw her arms in the air. “Happy Meal time!”

Carly and Adam laughed.

“I thought Mya and I could eat there. Want me to bring you back something?” he asked.

“I wouldn’t say no to a burger and fries. It’ll give me time to go through this. Plus, I have this recipe I want to try.”

Adam cocked an eyebrow.

“Your lack of faith in me is fine. This recipe is tough. But it’s just something I gotta try.”

He offered her a curious expression but she shrugged. “Go, have fun with your Happy Meals.”

After they left, Carly started reading through different cards she’d sent Chris over the years. She couldn’t be more touched that he’d kept all of them. She thought she’d gone through the lot but a last look in the envelope showed a slip of paper stuck at the bottom. Interested, she pulled it out. Her pulse kicked up and her eyes widened.

“Holy crap,” she said out loud. She was holding a ripped-off piece of paper. A piece of paper that had the end of the letter Chris had written to Lance.

There wasn’t much on it, but her eyes scanned the words quickly. She couldn’t stop the grin from spreading.

“I’ll be damned.”

An hour later, Carly still had the house to herself. Adam had called from McDonald’s. Apparently, they’d run into some of Mya’s classmates and an impromptu playdate had commenced. Carly didn’t mind. It gave her time to continue with her recipe. Or time to continue messing up her recipe. Again, she read over the instructions. She was doing everything right. She thought she was anyway. Well, even if she was completely butchering this, at least it smelled good. The house was full of the aroma of garlic and ginger.

She riffled through the different internet recipes again as the doorbell rang. Wiping her hands on a kitchen towel, she turned the heat down on the stove and walked to the doorway.

Carly didn’t know what to expect when she pulled open the front door, but it certainly wasn’t a bright red suitcase with a large bow tied around it being held up at eye level.

“What the…”

The suitcase dropped and so did her heart. Lance was standing on the porch, a grin on his handsome face.

“Hi,” he said.

Carly was shocked. Beyond shocked. She could do nothing but stare at the man she loved. The man she’d missed more than anything. The man holding a really girly-looking suitcase.

“Carly,” he began. “I…I mean…well,” he stuttered.

“Why aren’t you in Vegas?”

He put the suitcase next to him on the porch. “Funny thing about Vegas. I wasn’t having fun there.”

She tilted her head. “You weren’t?”

Lance shook his head. Her stomach was twisting and turning, flipping and flopping. Just seeing him, being near him, was making her heartbeat go crazy. At the same time, he looked tired, like he hadn’t slept since he’d left last week. She knew the feeling. Her own nights had been spent tossing and turning.