Keeping Guard, page 18
Just as she zipped up her suitcase, a knock sounded from downstairs. Probably from the back door. As she opened her apartment door, she heard a familiar voice mingle with Nate’s downstairs. She stepped onto the landing and looked down.
“Larry?”
Her producer stood at the bottom of the staircase, dressed in his business suit with his hair perfectly combed as always. He stepped toward her when she came into view, but Nate grabbed his arm before he got any closer.
“Kylie! Do you know how worried I’ve been about you? No phone calls, no emails. You’re well past the vacation time you asked for. Some woman even impersonated you at a cooking demonstration at the mall today—at least that’s what four people have called to tell me. I’ve been worried sick.”
She slowly walked down the stairs, noting that Deanna stood close to Nate—too close for comfort—as all eyes were on Kylie.
She cleared her throat and remained where she was. “I emailed you to let you know that I needed to extend my time away. Didn’t you receive it?”
Larry put his hands on his hips, his always frantic appearance looking even more frantic and high-strung now. “You think I bought that? Something’s going on, Kylie. I thought maybe you’d gone into witness protection or something. Meanwhile, the boss is breathing down my neck about getting some new episodes taped. I told him we haven’t even come up with any new recipes lately!”
She sighed and lumbered down the stairs until she stood face-to-face with her producer. “Calm down, Larry. Everything will be fine.” Kylie glanced at Nate. “In fact, I was just packing my things so I could return to Kentucky. You can tell the boss not to worry anymore. I just needed some time away.”
He grabbed her arm. “Well, your time away is over. I’m taking you back to Kentucky today.”
Nate stepped forward. “Wait a minute, buddy. You can take your hand off her.” Nate stared Larry down until he released his grip on Kylie’s arm and held up his hands in surrender.
“I’m not trying to cause any trouble. I’m just trying to save my job and hers.” Larry’s gaze shot nervously from Nate to Kylie until curiosity replaced the anxiousness. “And just who are you, by the way?”
Nate looked at Kylie. Was he searching her gaze for a response, or was Kylie simply seeing what she wanted to see? “I’m her friend.”
Kylie’s heart crashed. That was all he was to her. How could she ever have thought there was more to their relationship? They were two people who’d simply let their emotions get the best of them. They’d gotten carried away with the moment and the situation at hand. But at the heart of each of them, their relationship was simply a temporary one.
Kylie cleared her throat, trying to push down her emotions as she turned to Larry. “How’d you know I was here?”
“The producer from Cuisine TV called and asked if I could talk you into taping a special from Yorktown. He said he ran into you at this restaurant where you were working as a waitress. A waitress, Kylie? Of all things I might I have expected, a waitress was not one of them. You’re a rising star. If anything, you should have a restaurant with your name on it.”
Nate stepped toward them. Kylie could feel his eyes on her, but refused to look up. “Listen, why don’t we all sit down for some coffee and talk for a minute. A lot has been going on over the past few days and I don’t want anyone making any rash decisions.” He paused. “Kylie?”
Against her better judgment, she glanced at him. Nate’s eyes implored her…but what he was imploring from her, she wasn’t sure.
Deanna stepped forward and looped her arm through Nate’s. “That sounds like a good idea. Why don’t we all talk?”
Kylie had to look away, afraid her resolve would crumble and her emotions would surface all too clearly if Nate saw her eyes again. Instead, she looked at Larry. “Maybe I should just go. Let everyone get on with their normal lives and I can get on with mine.”
“Kylie, you can’t go yet. We have things to talk about first.” Nate’s voice sounded gravelly, strained.
“I’ve heard you have some great new recipes for this place,” Deanna said, still touching Nate in a way that made Kylie jealous.
Recipes. Of course that was what Nate wanted to talk about. He probably didn’t want to talk about his relationship with Kylie at all. Why would he? He didn’t have to explain himself. He’d never made any promises.
“Besides, you need to eat before you get on the road,” Deanna said. “It’s dinnertime. I know I’m starving. Nate, do you have any of that Brunswick stew you make that I go crazy for?”
Kylie really wished Deanna would simply stop talking, especially since everything she said and did showed some kind of ownership of Nate and this restaurant. Kylie had never considered herself territorial until this moment. Would it be rude to ask Deanna when she was planning to leave?
“Brunswick stew? That could be a good recipe for your show, Kylie.” Larry nodded, as if all for staying a few minutes longer. Kylie knew he probably just wanted a glimpse of the life she’d lived during her absence from the show.
If she refused the meeting too adamantly, she would only look weak. Instead, she nodded. “Fine, let’s have dinner.” They never had eaten the steak Nate had prepared over at John’s place.
They all made their way down the hallway and into the kitchen. Awkwardness fluttered between them, and a knot formed in Kylie’s throat. She should have said no and simply gone home. This was not the way she wanted to remember her time here in Yorktown.
“Quaint place you have here.” Larry’s gaze roamed the kitchen.
“It’s ample.” Nate stopped by the refrigerator. “Kylie, would you mind helping me while Deanna and Larry go sit in the dining area?”
She shrugged. “Sure thing.”
Both Deanna and Larry stayed in the kitchen a moment longer, as if they didn’t want to leave. But the look Nate gave them soon sent them scurrying. As soon as they left the kitchen area, Nate turned to Kylie.
Kylie wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what he had to say. Instead, she walked to the refrigerator and pulled out some stew they’d made on Friday. As she went to the stove, ready to put it on the burner and warm it up, Nate touched her arm.
“Kylie, we need to talk.”
Just feeling his hand against her skin sent shivers up her spine. “There’s nothing to say, Nate. It was just…we were just…a mistake. Now normal life has to resume.”
“That’s what we were to you?” Anger clouded his eyes. “A mistake?”
“Isn’t that all we were to you?” The ache in her throat only got stronger, more painful.
His face softened, as did his voice. “Kylie, don’t go yet. Not like this. I want to sit down and talk to you. Really talk to you. More than I can do here in the kitchen with two people waiting for us only feet away.”
She grabbed a pot and set it on the stove—a little harder than she intended. “You need to start warming the stew up. It will take a while. I’ll put on the bread.”
Nate sighed and poured the stew into the pot. He turned the stove top on. “Kylie, Deanna—”
He didn’t finish his sentence. The stove exploded. Nate threw Kylie to the ground, his body absorbing the flames that licked the room. Panic squeezed Kylie’s heart. Was Nate okay? And was this another coincidence or was someone still trying to kill them?
TWENTY-THREE
“That restaurant is apparently one big safety violation.” Larry shifted again in the waiting-room chair at the hospital. “It’s a good thing you won’t be there anymore. Next it could be you who’s injured. I wonder what their inspection reports are? Probably failed every time. The place is probably just waiting for county inspectors to shut it down.”
Kylie pushed back tears, each opinion that Larry freely poured out only adding to her headache and her heartache. She rubbed her temples, wishing desperately that he’d never traveled to Virginia to find her. It was just like Larry to do so, though. “Larry, please stop talking. I just need some quiet right now.”
She had to see Nate, to make sure he was okay, but Deanna had insisted on staying with him and Nate hadn’t objected. So instead Kylie sat in the waiting room with a grumpy Larry, who more than anything wanted to get on the road and out of this “podunk” town as he’d called it. Kylie had told him he could leave, but assumed he stayed out of some kind of obligation.
“I just can’t understand what happened,” Kylie whispered, replaying the scene in her head. The stove exploded. A big gas ball hit the air. Nate pushed her out of the way, but the flames caught the bottom of his forearm.
“I thought you didn’t want to talk?” Larry said.
As she scowled, Larry chuckled and put his arm around her, pulling her into an awkward hug.
“You just care about everyone, don’t you, Kylie?” Larry muttered.
Kylie cared about Nate more than she wanted to admit. But Larry had never been one that she’d talked about her love life with. They had somewhat of a brother-sister relationship, but she’d learned not to mix business with pleasure, if at all possible.
“Even men who just want to rescue you so you can be obedient to them for the rest of their lives,” Larry finished.
Kylie pulled away from his embrace. “What does that mean?”
Larry tilted his head in what appeared to be sympathy. “Kylie, it’s no secret that you always fall for the control freaks. Seeing the way your family treats you, it’s no surprise. Nate sees you as someone who’s weak, who needs saving. You can’t blame him. He’s ex-Coast Guard, right? That’s what his old girlfriend was telling me, at least.”
Kylie tried to blink back her hurt as the truth crashed onto her, the truth that had been nagging at her since she arrived here but that she’d tried to ignore.
She thought about Nate’s career with the Coast Guard. Thought about how her brother talked about sometimes having to choose the people you’d save from a sinking vessel, knowing you wouldn’t have time to save them all. So you saved the ones who needed you the most. She thought about Nate’s revelation that he still felt guilty over the woman he couldn’t save, that he’d vowed to never let that happen again.
Was that what Nate was doing with her and Deanna? Was he simply trying to rescue the woman who needed to be saved the most? Was he still trying to make up for that fateful night when someone had died under his watch and a broken promise?
The realization caused her heart to drop into her stomach. A relationship built on penance for a past mistake would never last. No, she needed someone who’d love her for who she was. How could she have not seen it earlier?
The door into the E.R. clinical area opened and Kylie sat at attention. A red-eyed Deanna emerged. She barely gave Kylie or Larry a glance before hurrying down the hallway. Kylie stood, knowing she had to check on Nate. He’d saved her life—multiple times—and she at least had to say goodbye, tell him thank-you.
“I have to see if he’s okay.” Without looking back at Larry, she approached Nate’s door, knocking lightly as she did so. A surprisingly strong “Come in” sounded on the other side. She pushed into the room and saw Nate sitting up in bed, his gaze unexpectedly alert.
He smiled when he spotted her. “Kylie. I was hoping it was you and not that grumpy old nurse again.”
Kylie tried to smile, but every step she took toward his bed, she contemplated turning back. But she didn’t. Her breathing felt labored as she asked, “How are you?”
“First-degree burns. Could be worse.”
“Not much.” Her heart pounded in her throat as she remembered the moment.
“And the flames only got my arm.” He pointed to the bandage on his forearm.
A tear rolled down her cheek. She quickly wiped the moisture away, hoping Nate didn’t see it. He must have, because he grabbed her hand.
“Were you worried about me?” His voice sounded surprisingly tender.
Another tear escaped. She chuckled, self-conscious, before looking at him. “You could say that.”
“Thank you.” His voice sounded low, serious.
She wiped her eyes with her free hand. “Nate, I can’t do this anymore.”
His eyes widened. “Can’t do what?”
“I can’t let you play hero with me. You don’t really love me. You just love rescuing people.”
“Kylie, that’s not true—”
She held up her hand. “I’m sorry, Nate. I have to go. John knows you’re here and he can pick you up.”
Before he could say anything else, she retreated. Larry joined her on the brisk walk to the car. She had no desire to talk as tears spilled down her cheeks.
“You did the right thing, Kylie. You don’t want to find yourself in another bad relationship. You’ve had enough of those.” His hand rested awkwardly on her shoulder.
Kylie nodded and wiped at a tear. If she’d just done the right thing, then why did she feel so awful about it? Why couldn’t she ever just have a normal relationship?
Larry insisted on stopping for a bite to eat on the way home. Kylie wanted nothing more than to go back to her apartment and get her suitcase and leave this whole place behind. Forget about Nate, the restaurant, her new friends. Instead, she sat stoically through a meal at an Italian restaurant and listened to Larry go on and on about new ideas for her show.
She barely tasted her lasagna or heard Larry, for that matter. This was the right thing to do, right? She and Nate couldn’t base their relationship on the events of the past two weeks…could they?
When they pulled into the restaurant parking lot, John was there dropping off Nate. Kylie’s heart sank. She’d hoped to avoid him for the rest of her stay here.
“You want me to go with you?” Larry asked.
She shook her head. “No, I can handle this alone.” Not feeling equipped to handle it at all, she climbed from the car and started toward the back door of the restaurant. Nate waited for her there, his eyes shadowed, his shoulders tense.
“Can we talk?” His voice sounded strained, mellow.
She paused at the bottom step, looked up at him and pulled down in a frown. “I need to get my suitcase.”
He stepped down to meet her. “Don’t go, Kylie. Not like this. Remember what you said about the restaurant? That if I close it, I need to do it right, not to end on a bad note. I don’t want you and me to end like this.”
“Was there ever a you and me?” Her voice caught in her throat, the question barely escaping.
“I thought there was.” His voice was barely above a whisper. “Kylie, please.”
She closed her eyes, fighting exhaustion, weariness and a broken heart. “I can’t think right now, Nate. Let me get my bag. I’ll…I’ll talk to you before I leave.”
“I’ll be downstairs waiting.”
She unlocked her apartment and went inside. As she zipped her suitcase and lifted it off the dresser, a paper drifted to the floor. Where had that come from? She didn’t remember placing anything on her suitcase before she’d left. Kylie picked it up and stared at the picture on the other side. Realizing what the image was, she gasped.
How had someone gotten a picture of her and Nate at John’s house, standing on the balcony and smiling at each other? Who would have done this?
The blood drained from her face.
Her stalker. He’d been in Yorktown. Been in her apartment. The police in Kentucky had arrested the wrong man.
She had to get downstairs. Tell Nate. Call the sheriff.
She spun around and started to run toward the door, but someone wearing black stood in front of it.
TWENTY-FOUR
“Larry! You scared me to death.” Kylie grabbed her heart and noticed her hands trembled uncontrollably against her shirt. “What are you doing here? How’d you get in here?”
He didn’t smile, only shook his head. “I’ve been there for you through everything. Why don’t you ever see me?”
The serious tone of his voice caused a shudder to zip down her spine. She found her voice and tried to steady it. “What are you talking about, Larry? I see you at work all the time.”
He shook his head again, his eyes dull, solemn. “No, you never really see me. I’ve been waiting for you to run to me, but it’s always someone else.”
Kylie took a step back. “Larry, you’re starting to scare me. I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.”
Nate, please come up and check on me. Please!
Larry took a step toward her, suddenly seeming much more foreboding than before. The businessman had been replaced by someone…barbaric. “I’ve cared about you since before I was your producer.”
“I didn’t know you before that.”
He glowered down at her. “But I knew you. I used to come to all of your cooking demonstrations. You don’t think it was just by chance that you got your cooking show, do you? I fought for you. I fought for that show, just so I could work with you, Kylie Summers.”
His proclamation caused her heart to stutter. “I had no idea. That’s very…very flattering, Larry. Thank you for believing in me.”
“I wanted to be your hero, the one you turned to. But then you started dating Colin. He treated you like dirt, but you didn’t believe it until someone mysteriously sent you emails from the other woman he’d been in contact with. Finally you realized what a jerk he was.”
“That was you? You sent those emails?”
“You weren’t seeing Colin for who he really was. I had to do something to make you realize you could do better. I didn’t want to see you hurt.”
“And you wanted me to do better with you. I had no idea, Larry. You should have told me.” Larry was her stalker. How could she have not seen it earlier?
He scowled. “I tried to. Several times. I even asked you on a date before I knew you were dating Colin.”
She remembered the day he’d awkwardly come into her office and blurted out a dinner invitation. “I thought you were talking a business dinner. I didn’t know you were thinking of it as a date.” Keep him talking, Kylie. Keep him talking.
