Now Derek sat on the bed while Gabrielle began packing up her things.
It shouldn’t feel final, but it did.
He shouldn’t be upset. But he was.
Neither one of them mentioned the words on the bathroom mirror or the mess she had to clean as she sorted through the clothes and papers that had been tossed around the room.
“I don’t have all that much to pack. I’ve been living out of a suitcase since I got here.”
He’d already taken all of her toiletries out of the bathroom and placed them on the edge of the bed so she wouldn’t have to go in there and see the bold words again.
She paused at the foot of the mattress and sealed each bottle in its own bag before placing everything in the female version of a dop kit and laying it on top of all her clothes.
She zipped the suitcase closed. “That’s it.” She turned back toward him.
“Let me help you to your car.”
To his surprise, she let him lift the suitcase off the chair and haul it out to the street. He wedged it into the back of the trunk and slammed the door closed.
“Thank you.” She treated him to one of her sweet smiles.
“I didn’t think you’d let me help.” She’d always prided herself on her ability to do things on her own.
“Do you want the truth?”
“Of course.”
“After last night, I’m a little sore in body parts I didn’t know I had.” She curled her hands around his shirt and pulled him closer. “Since you caused it, I figured it’s only fair that I let you do the heavy lifting for me today,” she said playfully.
Leaning forward, she planted a kiss on his lips.
He cupped his hands around her face and reciprocated, his tongue slipping easily inside her willing mouth. His heart kicked hard inside his chest and he tilted her head to the side, delving deeper into her sweetness.
She broke the kiss first. “I think you’re going to miss me,” she said, sounding extremely pleased.
She should be, Derek thought. Because he wasn’t just going to miss her, he was going to worry every second she wasn’t in sight. Which meant he’d be thinking about her.
Day.
And night.
DEREK ARRIVED BACK HOME in no mood for an inquisition, but resigned to answer Holly’s questions, anyway.
Sure enough, she greeted him as soon as he stepped in the front door. “How is Gabrielle?” his daughter asked. “What happened at her place? Did someone really break in? Did they take anything? Is she hurt?”
He slung an arm over his daughter’s shoulders and steered her toward the kitchen. “Gabrielle is fine. Someone ransacked her room, but the police don’t think they took anything of value. Does that cover all of your questions?” he asked, unable to contain a grin.
“Just the first few. Where is she? Is she scared to stay alone? I can’t imagine being by myself after something like that happened to me.”
He lowered himself into one of the kitchen chairs. “Gabrielle went back to Boston,” he told her.
“What? Why?”
“Because it’s safer there for her. Besides, that’s where her home is.” He glanced at Holly. “Would you mind getting me a Diet Coke?”
She shook her head and headed to the fridge, pulled out a plastic bottle and handed it to him.
“Thanks.” He twisted off the top and took a long, cold drink.
“Dad, why didn’t Gabrielle just come back here with you?” Holly looked up at him with her big, inquisitive eyes and asked the question he’d hoped she wouldn’t think about asking.
“I offered, but it seemed smarter for her to go home.”
Holly narrowed her gaze. “Smarter how?”
Sometimes he really wished she wasn’t so darned bright. “She didn’t want to bring trouble to our doorstep,” he said carefully, trying to find a way to phrase things without making her feel guilty.
“You mean, whoever broke into her place could break in here if she was staying with us?” Holly asked.
“That’s right.” He lifted the bottle for another drink.
“But you could handle anyone who broke in! So could Grandpa Hank,” she said, pride and certainty in her expression. Just as quickly, the light in her eyes dimmed. “She was worried about me, right? I’m the reason she didn’t come back to stay here?”
Derek ran a hand through his hair. “Baby, she lives in Boston. She belongs at her place. She was never going to stay here permanently, anyway.”
“But she never took me to Target like she promised.” Disappointment tugged at Holly’s lips. He hoped she wasn’t about to cry.
“Hey! Boston isn’t the other end of the world. Gabrielle has every intention of coming back here often. She’s working on a book and she has people to interview here. And I know she’ll take you shopping. She wouldn’t miss that.” He rose and ruffled Holly’s hair, hoping he was cheering her up.
It was difficult to force a smile when he was worried about Gabrielle going home alone. Still, whoever had a grudge against her obviously wanted her gone from Stewart. They’d have no reason to bother her in Boston.
“Uncle Mike can look after her in Boston, right? He kicks bad guys’ butts all the time!”
Derek shot her a warning look, but he let her get away with the comment. Because for an eleven-year-old, she was smarter than her dad. “Yeah. Uncle Mike can keep an eye on her.”
Derek might not like the distance between them, but he had to admit she was safer in Boston than she would have been here.
GABRIELLE PLANNED TO GO home, get some sleep, wake up and be back in Stewart the following morning. Life and routine got in the way.
She awoke, showered, made herself a cup of coffee and called her mother, just as she did every day. She’d spoken to Juliette while she was in Stewart, but now that she was home, her mother had plans for them.
“So I thought we’d have an early lunch at Le Petit Croissant and then we could go shopping at Neiman’s at Copley. Your father is teaching summer classes and so he won’t be joining us.”
“I won’t be able to make it, either, Maman. I have interviews I have to do back in Stewart.” Gabrielle tucked the phone between her ear and her shoulder, wrapping her hands around a big mug of coffee as she spoke.
“Then we can have breakfast early and you go do your interviews later in the day. I miss you,” her mother said.
Gabrielle smiled. “And I miss you, too. I’ll meet you in an hour.” Breakfast with her mother turned into a two-hour chat fest centered around Derek.
The small café was a favorite of her mother’s. Even when Gabrielle was a little girl, they’d often come into Boston and stop here on their shopping trips. Now that her parents lived in the city, her mother frequented the quaint café almost daily.
Juliette reached across the table and placed her hand over Gabrielle’s. “He hurt you badly,” her mother said, concerned.
She didn’t need the reminder. She’d lived it. “Not because he didn’t love me. I know what I’m dealing with now.” At least she hoped she did.
“Well, I always liked him. Derek was a nice boy. He treated you well while you were together. He made you happy and that is what counted then,” she mused. “But now? I want for you what your papa and I have.”
Gabrielle smiled. Her parents had a happy marriage. They understood each other. It was exactly what she wanted for her own life, Gabrielle thought.
Just as their brunch ended, her father called and invited his favorite women to dinner, which Gabrielle ended up accepting. She was an independent woman who lived her own life, but when her parents invited her, she always felt compelled to go. As if she didn’t want to miss out on any time with them.
But spending time with her parents didn’t mean she’d forget about Derek. And she certainly didn’t intend to let him forget about her.