Afterward, he rested his forehead against hers as he caught his breath. Her hands swept up and down his back and her legs were still around him as they clung together, basking in the moment. He rolled to his side and pulled her into the curve of his body, holding her there and looking down at her.

  “You okay?”

  “More than okay,” she admitted. “I had no idea my body could feel like that... I don’t think you can understand how much I’ve been frustrated by how hard it’s been to relearn everything. But today...helps me believe it’s all been worth it.”

  He shook his head and kissed the tip of her chin. “I’m glad. I love your body. You should be proud of the strength you’ve regained.”

  “I know,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “But everyone else—”

  “Isn’t you. Which I’m very glad for,” Kit insisted. “Be glad that you’re not like everyone else.”

  She tipped her head to the side. “I hadn’t thought of it that way. Just saw all the things I couldn’t do or didn’t know. But with you that doesn’t seem to matter, Kit.”

  She put her hand on his jaw as she said that and the smile on her face went straight to that part of his soul that he thought had died the same night his brother had. It felt like caring and it scared him.

  He had started something when he’d come here and thought about using her to get revenge against Dash. Begun something that was wicked—or maybe the real evil had started that night of the crash that had killed his brother and left Rory in a coma.

  Kit had no idea what everything meant, but deep down in his gut he knew bringing down the Gilbert family was no longer the most important thing to him.

  This woman was becoming that. But a Gilbert had cost his family once and he knew that if he was wrong about this, it would cost his family again.

  Nine

  Rory had a girls’ night with Indy and Elle, the women who were engaged to Conrad and Dash, so Kit left her at Indy’s bookstore. His mind was a mess. Normally focus was the one thing he fell back on, but not now. He drove back to Boston with one clear mission. He had to find out what exactly had happened the night of the ball.

  Had his brother attacked Rory? Or had it been another man? He knew that Rory wasn’t lying about what had happened to her. She had always been honest with him, and besides, lying wouldn’t gain her anything since she didn’t know he was related to Declan.

  He didn’t even allow himself to dwell on what had happened on his sofa or how much he wanted to keep her in his life. But the half-truths he’d told her when they’d been strangers loomed, and Kit knew he had to come clean. But he needed more facts before that happened.

  He called his Aunt Mallory as he was driving.

  “Hello, Rory. What’s up?”

  “Do you know if Declan went to the winter ball with Rory Gilbert?” he asked her. His aunt had been living in Boston back then but she’d talked to his father and brother weekly.

  “I believe he did. Why are you inquiring?”

  “Well, she remembers her date...” God, why was it so uncomfortable to say this out loud and to his aunt? He wasn’t the one who’d been attacked, Rory was, and she’d been able to just say it. “Her date assaulted her and almost raped her. Could that be Declan?”

  There was just silence and then he heard his aunt’s ragged exhale. “I hope not.”

  That wasn’t a no.

  “Was he violent around women?”

  “Not to my knowledge,” she said. “But he and your father were very angry about the factory closing... So much so that your dad decided not to go to the party and I invited him up here for the evening,” she said. “But I have no idea if Declan was the one to attack the Gilbert girl. Your father never said anything to me about it either, but you know what he was like after the accident.”

  Which told him nothing. His brother and father had been angry because the Gilberts went back on their word. And Kit hadn’t ever gone out with his brother, so he didn’t know how he had treated women. Plus there was a part of Kit that knew his father would have lied to protect Declan. But even if his sibling had been a gentleman to every other woman he dated, it didn’t change anything. Anyone could commit assault.

  If only the person in question wasn’t his dead brother.

  “Are you going to be home tonight?” Kit asked his aunt. “I want to look through some of dad’s old papers.”

  “I’m playing bridge with my friends but I’ll tell the housekeeper to let you in,” she said. “Kit? Do you think the Gilberts have made up this story about Declan to make themselves feel better about him dying in the car crash?”

  Kit didn’t know what to think. “I’m not sure. I just want to see if Dad has anything in his belongings that I missed.”

  “That makes sense. I hope...well I hope Declan didn’t do that to the girl,” Aunt Mallory said quietly.

  “Me, too.”

  He ended the call after saying goodbye. He wasn’t sure that he would ever really know what had happened that night. But he still needed more information.

  Rory deserved the truth from him. He couldn’t just say, “Oh, hey, that guy who attacked you was my brother and sorry I didn’t say it before.” He needed to make sure he knew what had happened so he didn’t hurt Rory. Knowing her the way he did, he knew that she was going to be upset that he had...lied. You lied, dude. There were no two ways about it. But he wasn’t going to be the one to traumatize her again.

  He was beginning to think he was going to have to come clean with both Rory and Dash. Dash might be the only one who could provide the answers he needed.

  He called his office and checked in and then went to work for the rest of the day, not leaving to head to his aunt’s house until almost eight. When he got there the housekeeper let him in and Kit went to what Aunt Mal called “the library,” where she kept all of his father’s journals and records.

  Kit grabbed a beer from the fridge before he sat down at the large writing desk in the corner and started opening the files that had been stored in an old, ornate-looking, leather-covered wooden chest. He pulled out some journals and notebooks as well as a bunch of business records.

  Flipping through the pages, he found a few notes in Dec’s handwriting. He ran his finger over the writing. There were so many questions he had for his brother. He remembered playing in Gilbert Corners at the factory on Saturdays while their dad was working. Running up and down the stairs that led from the floor to his father’s office.

  Smiling when he thought of his father draping his arms over their shoulders and telling them one day they’d run the factory. Those had been good times—before his mom had gotten sick and died, before Dec had left for college and his father had started drinking.

  He rubbed the back of his neck, not really sure he wanted to keep digging. Then he saw the Gilbert International logo on a letter. He pulled it out of the stack and saw it was addressed to both his father and brother.

  Dear Will and Declan:

  I’m sorry to lead with bad news but the factory in Gilbert Corners in no longer viable. We’ve been losing money there for months and many of the local workers we relied on are leaving the town. The decision has been made to close the factory effective December 31.

  The jobs offered to you both to buy a controlling share of the factory and take over running it is no longer an option. I’d like to offer you both new roles at our offices in Boston. Your salaries will have a fifteen percent increase and we will cover the relocation costs.

  I know this isn’t the news you’d hoped to hear, but I think this will be a good opportunity for both of you.

  Looking forward to seeing you at the winter gala.

  Sincerely,

  Lance Gilbert

  Kit let the paper fall from his hands, leaning back in his chair and locking his fingers behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. What the actual fuck? Did Aunt Mal know about this? Kit figured she didn’t, as she’d been the one encouraging him to make the Gilberts pay.

  But his father had. Why hadn’t the old man ever mentioned this?

  He still wasn’t sure that his brother had done anything wrong the night of the gala. But this clearly showed that his father and brother knew they weren’t going to buy and run the factory. More than that, they still would have had jobs even when the factory closed—their family wouldn’t have been ruined like he’d been led to believe.

  What else had his father been hiding?

  * * *

  Rory was having fun drinking white zinfandel and sitting in the cozy corner of Indy’s Treasures. Elle was getting ready for her wedding to Dash. So she had been showing them pictures of potential wedding dresses. She had her mother’s veil, which she intended to wear.

  “Though Dash has seen that,” Elle said.

  “He has? How exactly?” Indy asked, picking up a pretzel bite that her friend Lulu had made and popping it in her mouth.

  “On our first date I had gone to pick up my parents’ stuff from my stepmom’s house. It was in there and I put it on.”

  Rory had long gotten over her feelings of upset at Dash and Elle for lying to her about being married when she’d first gotten out of the coma. “I love this. So you guys were going on dates behind my back?”

  Elle flushed. “Yes. I was trying to be professional and all and just help you get your memories back.”

  Rory shifted on the couch and hugged the other woman. “I know you were but there was something between the two of you. Something that I saw before you two did.”

  “Well, I’m glad you did,” Elle said, hugging her back. “But enough about me. What’s up with you and Kit?”

  Rory tried not to flush when she thought about what it had been like to make love with him on his couch. She’d felt different since he’d left and she’d gone back home. Awake but in a different way than she’d been before.

  “Wow. That good?” Indy asked with a soft smile. “I saw you two drive by the shop earlier today.”

  “He took me for a driving lesson,” she said.

  “Oh, is that all?” Indy teased. “I mean you’re blushing pretty hard for someone who just learned how to steer and brake.”

  “Not just driving,” she said. “I think I’m falling for him.”

  “Really?” Elle asked, her eyes widening.

  Rory thought she heard a note of concern in her friend’s voice. “Why? Is it too soon?”

  “There’s no clock on emotions,” Indy said. “I mean with Con... I think I fell the first time I saw him on the promo for his show. I mean I got hot all over when he looked into the camera and the voiceover guy asked, ‘Who is willing to challenge the beast?’”

  “Hot and bothered isn’t falling,” Elle pointed out. “Is it lust, Rory? You’re not on the pill—”

  “Elle, be my sister, not my doctor,” Rory said. “And yes, it’s lust but it’s also so much more. He just sees me. Not someone who’s been in a coma for ten years like Dash, Con and you two do. Or that freaky Gilbert girl like the town does. And through his eyes, I’m starting to see who I want to be.”

  “Sorry, Rory, just looking out for you. I’m glad he sees you. Just make sure you keep being Rory and not Kit’s version of Rory,” Elle murmured.

  Rory smiled at Elle, knowing the other woman had her best interests at heart. “I will.” She turned to Indy. “So how’s Con...?”

  Indy chewed her lower lip and then rolled her eyes. “A diva as always. Ever since we decided to share a studio and build it here in Gilbert Corners, I’ve been seeing another side to the man.”

  Rory let the conversation flow around her as the other women talked about the two men who’d always been so influential in her life. But she was only half listening. She knew that Elle was just being protective, sort of like Dash was, but the other woman had raised some concerns for her.

  She knew she’d been struggling to find herself since she’d woken, and moving out on her own had been step one. If that escort/life coach she’d hired had shown up...would she even have met Kit? Had she poured herself into being what he wanted because she didn’t want to be alone?

  She hoped not. But how could she know for sure?

  They chatted for a bit longer and then a push notification from the Gilbert Corners Chamber of Commerce came through announcing the clues for the speakeasy for that night. They were going Goth since Halloween was just around the corner and were having a My Chemical Romance tribute band.

  They were one of her favorite bands, and after tonight’s thoughts about being Rory or Kit’s version of Rory, she wanted a chance to test herself. She messaged Kit to remind him about their upcoming date. He texted back that he couldn’t wait.

  * * *

  Goth night sounded like just what he needed. All those angsty emotions he’d outgrown during his twenties were back swirling around inside. Kit pulled on his black jeans and old black biker boots, black tee and his favorite leather jacket. He put on kohl eyeliner that he’d picked up earlier and realized when he looked in the mirror that he missed this part of his life. Back before tragedy hit his family hard, leaving him with nothing but emptiness.

  Aunt Mal tried, but his father and brother and he had been a tight threesome before Declan’s death. She couldn’t fill the gap that his drunk father and dead brother had left.

  Pushing all of that back into the past, he locked his door and walked down to Rory’s house. He was going to pretend he was just Kit and she was just Rory. She was the woman he’d made love to that very afternoon and he hoped to do it again soon. He wanted more with her and that had nothing to do with her being a Gilbert.

  He knocked on her door, and when she opened it, his heartbeat pounded in his ears. She had on dark eyeliner, too. Her lips were bright red and she’d twisted her blond hair into two ponytails that she’d colored the ends of black. His eyes drifted over her appreciatively. She wore a pair of tight leather pants and a black see-through blouse with a black bra underneath.

  He got hard just looking at her. He loved it. Loved the fact that everything between them felt new and fresh. None of the past obligation or responsibility he had to his family could get in his way. The more they connected, the more Kit treasured getting to know who Rory was without the Gilbert name.

  She cocked her head to the side. “I like this side of you,” she said.

  “Same. Are you ready to go?” he asked.

  “In a rush?”

  “Not really, but I can’t help noticing you put a bench in your hallway and now I’m thinking about what we can do there,” he said with a smirk.

  She flushed. “Maybe later if you play your cards right.”

  “Oh, I intend to,” he assured her. He helped her get her black leather jacket on and then noticed she reached for her cane.

  “Everything okay?” he asked. She hadn’t used it earlier.

  “Yeah, my thighs got a bit of a workout earlier and feel weak,” she said. “Does it mess with my look?”

  “Did I hurt you when we had sex?” he asked hoarsely. Dammit, he should have been more careful with her.

  “No. I just don’t use my legs that way usually,” she said with a tinkling laugh. “We can practice and get them stronger. That’s what my physical therapist always says when I try something new.”

  “I don’t mind practicing. So where are we going?” he asked to distract himself of the images in his head of her naked underneath him.

  “The speakeasy.”

  “I don’t know what that is,” he admitted.

  She told him that the Main Street businesses had all gotten together with the Chamber of Commerce and helped fund and promote a pop-up bar that had been themed as a speakeasy. They sent out clues that took residents of Gilbert Corners around town, leading them to the bar.

  “Sounds fun. GC didn’t have anything like that when I lived here.”

  “No, they didn’t. There’s sort of a new energy to the town lately. Part of it is Indy and Lulu bringing their TV show here. For a while I think people were waiting for my family to come back and make things happen, but then decided they should just do it for themselves, sort of.”

  “Your family does have a lot of power here,” he remarked. “But what do you mean sort of?”

  “Well, Indy did break the curse when she got Conrad to come back and do his show, so it was like a combo of new ideas, new people and old superstitions.”

  He liked what she was saying and how she saw the town. Rory clearly loved it here despite the difficulties her family had faced over the years. He almost let himself get distracted and start thinking of business and how he could bring Palmer Industries into it. But he wanted tonight as a date. Not as an opportunity.

  And until he figured out more of what had happened the night his brother died, he didn’t want to push forward with anything involving either Rory or Dash.

  “So the speakeasy is doing a Goth night?” he asked, not sure how it fit in with the previous theming.

  “Yeah. I guess because it’s October and Halloween is just around the corner. Or maybe they wanted to try something new,” she said. “The tribute band is My Chemical Romance.”

  “You like them?”

  “Loved them. I mean as soon as I saw their name, ‘Helena’ started playing in my head. I hadn’t thought of them since I woke up but there the song was,” she said.

 

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