Home Before Dark (Christian Romantic Suspense) (Carolina Moon Book 1) Page 11

  “We should get going,” Ryan started.

  Daleigh put her guitar back into its case and stood. “I’m so glad I had the chance to meet you.”

  Trevor took her hand and kissed it, the little Casanova. “No, the pleasure was mine.”

  Daleigh actually giggled as she stepped back. She shook her finger in the air at the boy. “You’re a little charmer.”

  “I only speak the truth.”

  Daleigh giggled again. “Maybe I’ll see you again before I leave town. You never know.”

  “You would make my dreams come true, Daleigh McDermott.” Trevor brought his hand over his heart, a look of sweet amour sweeping his features.

  They told Willa goodbye and then stepped into the early evening. Ryan again took the guitar from Daleigh’s hands. He could see himself being by Daleigh’s side for a long time. They just seemed to fit together and, whenever she was near, he felt . . . complete. He hadn’t felt that way in a long time. Probably since the early stages of his relationship with Jennifer.

  He glanced over at her, and Daleigh caught him staring. She tucked a hair behind her ear and her angelic, cover girl face smiled up at him. “What?” she asked.

  He shook his head, wishing he’d contained his thoughts better. Too late now. “Nothing really. I’m just marveling over your talent and humility. You’re really amazing, Daleigh.”

  Her cheeks reddened, and she waved her hand in the air flippantly. “Oh, stop it. You’re too sweet. You’ve seen me at my worst, yet you still find a way to compliment me.”

  “If I’ve seen you at your worst, then your best has got to be spectacular.”

  Her blush deepened, and she swatted his arm. They fell into step beside each other, comfortable silence between them for a moment.

  “Your nephew is a sweet boy. He oozes charm and confidence. I loved every moment of being there with him.”

  “He is one smart, funny kid. No doubt about that.” His heart warmed at how easily Daleigh had fit in with his family. He chose to ignore the doubts clamoring for his attention and instead decided to enjoy the moment.

  Daleigh glanced up at him. “Do you mind if I ask what happened?”

  Those dark days flooded back into his mind. His heart still twisted at the memories. “Trevor and his father were in an auto accident. His dad died on impact, and Trevor was left paralyzed.”

  “That’s awful.”

  He nodded. “My sister was a stay-at-home mom. They had a life insurance policy, but it only went so far. She needs a new house, one that’s easier to get around in. We’ve been fundraising to help her out. We’ll get there eventually. Until then, we’re making the best out of what we’ve got.”

  “That’s great that you’re so involved.”

  Trevor was one of the reasons he would never leave Hertford. He’d promised his sister that he’d help her out, and he intended on keeping his word. “My father passed away when I was a boy, and my mom died several years back. Willa and I are all that’s left in our little family. We have to be there for each other.”

  “You’re a good man, Ryan Shields.”

  He started to object.

  She raised a finger in the air and waved it at him. “And before you deny it, I want to do something to help. What do you think about a benefit concert in Trevor’s honor?”

  Gratitude swelled inside him, the enormity of the emotion nearly making his steps falter. “You would do that?”

  “Would I ever! I’d be honored to do whatever I could to help. Bake sales and car washes can only go so far.”

  He couldn’t deny her words. They’d worked hard, yet the results felt miniscule at times. His arm brushed against hers, causing tingles to dance through his nerves. Could his feelings for her really be developing this quickly? It didn’t seem possible.

  “You’re amazing, you know.”

  She shook her head. “I’m just like everyone else. Just because people might recognize my name and my music doesn’t mean I’m any different.”

  Ryan shook his head this time. “No, you are different, Daleigh. But it’s because of who you are on the inside, not the success you’ve had.”

  She glanced up at him, a heavy emotion swirling in her gaze. The thought fluttered through his mind that maybe he should ask her to dinner. He should take the chance and just do it. Just as he opened his mouth, he saw a figure standing in front of Daleigh’s house.

  It couldn’t be.

  It was.

  Vince Torres.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Ryan’s voice brought her out of her state of shock. “Daleigh?”

  She turned away from Vince’s approaching frame and met Ryan’s gaze, one filled with a depth of questions that made her heart ache. “I have to go, Ryan. I’ll explain later, okay?”

  His eyes flickered to the side and he nodded. Understanding, and maybe something else—disappointment?—rolled over his features.

  “No problem.” He set her guitar on the sidewalk, his face taut. “I appreciate everything. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.”

  “Ryan—” She wanted to explain, to make things right.

  He paused. “Yes?”

  Her heart sank. She just didn’t have the time to say everything she needed to say now. Instead, she settled for, “I’ll talk to you tomorrow?”

  He nodded and waved goodbye. Her heart thudded in disappointment. She felt like she needed to explain; like she needed to tell him that she hadn’t led him on, but that she and Vince had broken up. Why hadn’t she told him earlier?

  “I told you I’d be here for you if you needed me.” Vince’s unmistakable voice, tinged with a northeastern accent, sounded behind her. She turned and found herself tangled in his arms. “All you had to do was say the word and I’d come.”

  “A little late,” she mumbled into his chest.

  “I wanted to surprise you.”

  Vince finally pulled back. Every time Daleigh saw Vince, even after five years, his size stunned her. He’d been a quarterback for the University of Tennessee until an injury benched him for good. That’s when he’d turned to music.

  “Well, it worked. I’m surprised.” She studied his face, his black hair, tanned skin, his bold Italian features. She’d felt so lucky at one time to have Vince fall for her. She looked away and cleared her throat, trying to regroup her thoughts. “Did you drive in?”

  Daleigh picked up her guitar, wondering if Vince would offer to take it from her. He didn’t. They started down the sidewalk toward Daleigh’s cottage. “No, I flew into Norfolk then rented a car. You know how much I hate being on the road.”

  Yeah, and he knew how much Daleigh hated being on the road, yet that never discouraged him from pushing her to line up uncountable tour dates across the country. The strain of the last year of being on the road had nearly sucked her soul out of her. She’d thought she had to do it to break in. But she was exhausted on all levels.

  His gaze surveyed the town. “So this is Hertford, huh? It’s smaller than I thought. What do people do around here for fun?”

  “They sit on their porches and talk, or go to the soda fountain to catch up with neighbors. They go to the park or take their boats out for an afternoon on the water.”

  “That would get old quick, huh?”

  She dropped her head to conceal the smile that feathered across her lips. “No, not really.”

  “You seem different.” He stopped and turned her to face him. “The time off been good for you?”

  She propped up her guitar and casually draped her elbow across it as she’d done so many times in the past. This guitar practically felt like an appendage. “I think so. I’ve been going full-speed ahead for so long, I started to forget about the things that were important to me, starting with who I am.”

  He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. “I knew you’d be okay. You seem happier than I’ve seen you in a long time.”

  “Vince—”

  His lips covered hers. She struggled to get aw
ay when abruptly, Vince stepped back. His piercing gaze bore a hole through her.

  “Is that any way to greet your boyfriend that you haven’t seen in almost a week?” he muttered, his lips pulling into a frown.

  “Vince—”

  “I feel like I don’t even know you sometimes.” He sighed and stepped back, shaking his head in what appeared to be frustration.

  Daleigh looked down at her hands, trying to gather her thoughts, before bobbing her head back up. “Why don’t we go inside for a minute? Somewhere private where we can talk?”

  “Let’s do that.” He grabbed her arm and, she almost didn’t have time to grab her guitar again before he started pulling her toward the cottage.

  A million thoughts she’d love to spit out circled in her mind. She kept them quiet, knowing most of them were unnecessary, words that would only be slung out of hurt.

  Daleigh opened the door, shrugged out of Vince’s grasp, and quickly walked inside. She deposited her guitar by the kitchen table before sitting on the couch. Vince’s heavy footsteps followed behind her.

  Daleigh crossed her arms as Vince dropped into the chair across from her. Her gut twisted as she wished she could simply fast-forward through this conversation and come out on the other side—the other side where Vince was gone already. “What would you like to talk about, Vince?”

  He leaned with his elbows on his knees, his dark, heavy gaze on her. “How are you, Daleigh?”

  “I’m hanging in. Hard times can show you what you’re made of.”

  Half his lip curled up. “Sounds like a song in the making.”

  Daleigh shrugged. “Maybe. You never know.”

  “Anything else new?”

  “Same old, same old. Dealing with my father’s untimely death. Arguing with my sister. Trying to figure out who wanted my father dead.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”

  Should she even bother going into this? Maybe the subject change would be good for them. In fact, it beat talking about their relationship . . . at least for the moment. “I think he was murdered.”

  “Why?”

  “I found a journal entry that indicated he saw something he shouldn’t have.”

  Vince grabbed a walnut from the coffee table and cracked it. “Sounds like hocus-pocus to me. Your dad had the same imagination that you have. He was probably just playing with an idea, never thinking the journal would see the light of day.”

  Daleigh leaned back, his statement hitting her between the eyeballs. “So, I have an overactive imagination now. You used to call it creative.”

  He sighed and shoved a walnut in his mouth. “You know what I mean, Daleigh. Don’t try to turn things around on me.”

  “I’m just telling you what I heard.”

  Vince let part of the shell float down to the rug below as he grabbed another nut. “What’s gotten into you since you came to this hick town anyway? What happened to my sweet little Daleigh?”

  “Sweet little Daleigh is developing some backbone. Sweet little Daleigh is tired of being walked on, of other people making decisions for her, telling her what to wear and how to act and what to sing and how to spend her time.”

  His eyebrows flickered up. “You just need some sleep. You’re not thinking clearly.”

  “I’m thinking more clearly than I have in a long time.” She shook her head, knowing exactly where the conversation would head next. “I’m not going back to Nashville with you.”

  He froze. “You don’t mean that.”

  Did she mean it? It was the first she heard of the idea, also. She lowered her voice. “I mean, I don’t know what I’m doing. But I don’t plan on leaving Hertford any time soon. I need to be here with . . .” Ryan’s words about the importance of family came back to her, and Hannah’s picture fluttered through her mind. “With my family. I need to figure things out. I can’t keep on going the way I was before my dad died.”

  “You’re making a huge mistake.”

  She rubbed her lips together, reminding herself to be strong. “That’s not what my heart is telling me.”

  “Have you even worked on your music at all?”

  “I’ve played a couple of times. I’ve decided to do a benefit concert in a couple of weeks for a little boy here in town who was injured in a car accident.”

  He sighed, any of his cordialness fading. “Daleigh, you really don’t have time to do stuff like that. I can’t get the PR people to crank out the press we need for—”

  Daleigh ran a hand through her hair, fighting rising frustration. “This isn’t a PR stunt, Vince. I want to do it out of the goodness of my heart. I’m more excited about this concert than most of the ones I’ve done in the past year.”

  “Your emotions are just causing you to make bad choices. Like breaking up with me. I understand that emotions can jerk us around. I knew when you saw me that you’d come to your senses.”

  She grimaced and took a deep breath. “You’re wrong, Vince. I’m feeling more sensible now than I have in years.”

  He stood, his jaw jutting out. “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe this town is messing with your head, putting strange ideas in your mind. We were meant to be together, Daleigh. You and I both know it.”

  “We’re done, Vince. That’s all there is to it.” She lifted her chin, not willing to back down.

  Vince stared at her, fire flashing in his eyes. “No, you don’t mean it. I made you, Daleigh.”

  “No, you didn’t make me. My talent made me. But you have controlled me. Not anymore.”

  “You’re nothing without me.”

  Daleigh rushed to her feet, her hands going to her hips as her heart pounded with adrenaline. “Is that really what you think? Or are you afraid that you’ll be nothing without me?” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, their truth hit her. Vince had a lot to lose, too. Why didn’t she realize that before?

  He stared at her a moment before finally shaking his head. His voice sounded eerily still as he said, “You don’t know what you’re doing. You’ll watch your career sink to even more despair than it has now.”

  “Just because I’m not on every magazine cover or hosting the Grammy Awards doesn’t mean my career is garbage. I still have loyal fans. I still have talent.”

  “You’ve lost your momentum. You’re going down fast, Daleigh. You need me to help you salvage what’s left. Otherwise, you’re going to become a nobody. A has-been.”

  “Oh, go talk to Piper about it.”

  “What’s Piper have to do with this?”

  She refused to blink as their gazes locked. “Why don’t you tell me?”

  He looked away and chuckled. Breaking eye contact? Wasn’t that the first sign of a lie? “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Look me in the eye and tell me you’ve been faithful.”

  He seemed to drag his gaze back to hers. “You know I love you, Daleigh.”

  “You didn’t answer my question.”

  He stared at her a moment but remained quiet. Finally, he shifted. He started to reach for her, but his hand dropped midway. “Maybe this upset was just what we needed for a fresh start.”

  She shook her head. “That’s not happening.”

  Vince’s jaw was set in a hard line, and his shoulders looked tense. Not many people stood up to Vince. Daleigh still couldn’t believe she had. But she’d been carried along with the breeze for far too long now. It was time to stand her ground.

  He blinked. “You’re serious?”

  She pictured the future without Vince and felt a jolt of fear and excitement. He could be right—leaving him behind could be a disaster. But it could also be the best thing that ever happened to her career. Maybe she would actually enjoy singing again now.

  “We’ve been over for a long time, Vince. It’s just that neither of us wanted to admit it.” The words caused a surprising ache to throb in her chest. She never was one to embrace change, even if it was for the best.

  He starte
d toward the door. “I guess I should go then.”

  Her temples pounded. “Where are you going to go?”

  “To a hotel.”

  “There are no hotels in Hertford.”

  “Then I’ll drive until I find one. I don’t want to stay where I’m not wanted.”

  “I do want to be friends, Vince. We’re just all wrong for each other romantically. You need someone who’s feisty, who has a stronger personality to keep you in line.”

  His gaze bore into hers. “And what do you need?”

  She licked her lips as Ryan’s face flashed into her mind. “I need someone who appreciates me for who I am.”

  “I apprec—”

  Daleigh shook her head. “Let’s not go there, Vince.”

  His jaw clenched. “What about your music?”

  “I don’t have any answers for you, Vince. I guess I just need to lay everything before God and see what he wants to do with it.” The statement shouldn’t have sounded like such an epiphany to her own ears, but it did. Why hadn’t she realized that earlier?

  He half frowned, half scowled. “I guess I can’t argue with God.”

  “You can, but it won’t do any good.” She laid a hand on his arm. “Come on, I’ll get you a room at my sister’s house.”

  ***

  The next morning, Daleigh walked into the Have a Nice Day Café where she and Ryan had shared coffee and saw Henry sitting in a corner booth reading the newspaper. He lowered the newspaper as she approached. He’d left a message last night, saying he’d remembered something she might be interested in and wondering if they could meet this morning.

  He grinned when he spotted her. “If it isn’t Daleigh McDermott, looking as beautiful as always.”

  She slid into the booth across from him, glad he picked a table by the window. “Thanks, Henry.”

  He looked across the restaurant and raised his voice to anyone listening. “Y’all take note that this beautiful young lady is having breakfast with me. I’ve still got that magic touch.”

  “She just feels sorry for you, old timer,” a wrinkled gentleman shouted from another booth.