If We Never Met by Barbara Freethy

Chapter Two

Keira really shouldn't be chasingdown a man who had acted in a shady manner, not just once but twice, but she couldn't stop herself. She'd eaten her tacos in the car, hoping that Dante would come back. When he hadn't, she'd decided to drive across town to the Firefly Inn and talk to her friend Lizzie Cole.

But she was having second thoughts as she entered the inn. It really wasn't her business who he was. Dante had a girlfriend. And she had enough distractions in her life; she didn't need anymore. But she couldn't get him out of her head, and she knew she wasn't going to until she figured out who he was.

"Keira, what are you doing here?" Lizzie asked in surprise. Lizzie was an attractive woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a smile that warmed up a room. "I thought you had a big date tonight."

"That news traveled fast. I only decided to go this afternoon."

"I ran into Hannah earlier. She told me she'd finally convinced you to accept a date."

"Yes. She wants me to work on getting a plus one for her wedding."

"How was he? I'm guessing not so good, since it's…" Lizzie looked at the grandfather clock in the hallway. "Seven forty-five."

"He was very, very boring."

"Then you need some wine. Come into the living room."

"Do you have time?"

"Yes. Most of the guests are out for the evening and those who are in seem to be happy in their rooms. I could use a glass of wine, too. It's been a long week."

"Problems?" she asked, as she followed Lizzie into the living room of the inn, which had two seating areas, one with three couches in front of a large bay window and the other with two couches and two large chairs in front of a fireplace with tall bookshelves on either side. The inn had originally been a private estate and while it had been remodeled extensively over the years by several different owners, it still had a lot of old-fashioned charm.

"No big problems, just a million little ones," Lizzie replied, stepping behind a bar. "Red or white?"

"Red."

"Perfect. Because I still have almost a full bottle from our earlier cocktail hour." Lizzie poured them two glasses of wine, and then they sat down on a couch by the window. "Tell me about your date."

"There's not much to say. Danny seemed interesting enough when we were texting. He was a lawyer, but now he's writing a novel, which is why he moved to Whisper Lake."

"Not the first lawyer turned writer we've met."

"No, it's almost becoming a cliché. I like creative people who make things, so I thought I'd give it a shot. He was nice enough. A big talker, though."

"One of those who never asks you a question about yourself?"

"Exactly. He chatted on and on about himself. And he was so indecisive. We looked at the menu for like fifteen minutes and he could not make a decision. It's not rocket science. But maybe I was just being too impatient."

"You just didn't click."

"We definitely did not click."

"Well, just because he didn't work out doesn't mean someone else won't."

Dante's image ran through her head. "Actually, I did meet someone that I found myself clicking with right away."

"Now that sounds interesting," Lizzie said, with a gleam in her eyes. "Who and where? Give me the details."

"It happened at Micky's. When I first got there, I mistook another guy for my date. He had brown hair, and he was sitting alone. I was a little late, so I was rushing. I asked him if he was Danny, and he said yes, so I sat down and just started rambling like a crazy person. I thought he was a really good listener, because he didn't say much. But he was so attractive he made me nervous, and I couldn't shut up."

"What happened?"

"Joanne came over to the table and told me that my date was waiting for me by the door. I was so embarrassed. Then the guy told me his name was Dante, not Danny, and that he probably should have told me earlier."

"Wait a second. Dante? Dante DeAngelis?"

"He didn't say his last name, but he did say he was staying here."

"He arrived last night. I actually suggested he try Micky's for dinner."

"That's what he said. So, what's his deal, Lizzie?"

Lizzie hesitated, her body stiffening. "What do you mean?"

Her gaze narrowed at Lizzie's reaction. "Who is he? And why is someone with a camera chasing him?"

"There was someone with a camera chasing him?"

"Yes, we walked out of Micky's together, and this guy jumped out of a van with a camera, and Dante took off."

"Oh, that's too bad."

"Why is it too bad?"

"Because he came to Whisper Lake hoping for privacy."

"Why? Is he an actor? A reality TV star? A billionaire? What?"

"I'm sorry, Keira, I can't tell you. He's a guest, and my inn was recommended to him by my brother, Grayson, who said I could guarantee him privacy."

She needed to respect Lizzie's decision, but now she was even more insanely curious about him.

"I'm sure if you take out your phone, you can figure out who he is pretty quickly," Lizzie added. "I'm surprised you didn't already try that."

"I didn't have his last name."

"Oh, good point."

"He was really nice to me. He actually rescued me from the real Danny. He saw the boring time I was having, and he came over to the table and made up an excuse for me to leave, saying the alarm on my store was going off."

Lizzie raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Yes. And the story gets better. He ordered me fish tacos to go. I'd actually been raving about them when we were talking, and he remembered. It's so rare that someone would do something like that. He said he felt bad for not having told me he wasn't Danny as soon as he realized my mistake."

"I wonder why he didn't tell you."

"I don't think I gave him a chance. I couldn't stop talking. We just had this instant connection." She paused, licking her lips. "I think he felt it, too. That's why he didn't cut me off."

Concern moved across Lizzie's now serious expression.

"What?" Keira asked.

"You need to leave Dante alone, Keira."

"Why?"

"He has a girlfriend."

"He did mention he'd been seeing someone, but he didn't call her his girlfriend."

"Well, the media calls her that. There are a lot of pictures of them together online. That's all I can say."

"Fine. I'll either look him up, or I'll just forget about him."

"Somehow, I don't think you're going to forget about him," Lizzie said dryly. "I haven't seen you this excited about a guy in forever. I'm sorry he's taken. I'm also sorry that he's not someone who's going to be in town for more than a few weeks."

"I figured he was just passing through." She felt a wave of depression at Lizzie's words. It was stupid to feel such disappointment over a guy she'd spoken to for about fifteen minutes. She needed to change the subject. "What's new with you? Where's Justin tonight?"

"He and Zach are going over plans for Justin's new office building. I'm glad you stopped by, even if it was just to get dirt on Dante. Or maybe you thought you'd run into him?"

"He did leave me in an abrupt and mysterious way. If he'd just said goodbye and walked away, I wouldn't have thought twice about it. But he literally bolted out of sight. It made me curious. Not that I have time to be curious. I should be in the shop, working on Hannah's dress."

"I thought that was done, and you were down to the bridesmaids' dresses."

"No. Hannah's dress is not quite perfect yet. It needs something and I haven't been able to figure out what."

"Are you sure it's not perfect? Hannah said last week she loved it. Maybe you're being too hard on yourself."

"I just can't let her walk down the aisle in something that isn't the best it can be."

Lizzie gave her a thoughtful look. "You don't usually get stuck or blocked on design. You did Chelsea's wedding dress in a few weeks and her gown for the awards show in less than a week."

"I know. I'm not sure what's wrong with me."

"Maybe because it's Hannah. You two have been friends since you were kids."

"That might be part of it."

"Or you're burning out, trying to do too many things: selling real estate, running your shop, designing clothes... It's a lot, Keira."

"Says the woman who always does too many things."

"True. But I'm learning to delegate, mostly because Justin screams that word into my ear several times a day."

"How romantic."

Lizzie grinned. "He says other things, too. But seriously, he showed me how to prioritize the things that really matter. It may not always make the most practical business sense, but if it's part of my vision, my dream, then I just have to decide what else I can give up, because I can't do everything. And you can't, either."

"I know, but I can't let go of anything, at least not yet. It's not the right time."

"I get it. I wish I could help. You suddenly look exhausted. I'm tempted to tell you about Dante just to put the light back in your eyes."

She gave her a tired smile. "That was a fun distraction while it lasted. I should go."

"Why don't you just give yourself a night off? See how the dress looks in the morning."

"That's not the worst idea. I also need to go through the real-estate listings for a new client, an old friend of my mother's, although I had never heard of him until he showed up at our house last night. He said he's staying here at the inn, too. Mark Langley."

"Yes, he is. I didn't realize he knew your mother. He's moving here for his new job at the rehab center. He seems very nice."

"Does he? I thought it was weird that he dropped by our house without warning. I don't know how he got my mom's address. He didn't ask you for it?"

"No. If he had, I wouldn't have given it out. But he probably could have asked just about anyone in town." Lizzie paused. "What are you worried about? Do you think he's lying about their past? Did your mom recognize him? What does she have to say?"

"He's not lying. He came with a high school yearbook. My mom did not recognize him at first, but when he said his name, I could see the recognition run through her eyes. And then she smiled and gave him a big hug. She invited him in, and they talked for about a half hour. I didn't catch all of it, because I was on the phone with Brenda, walking her through some contract issues. But at the end of their conversation, my mom asked me to help him find a house."

"Surely you can pass that off to Brenda."

"I suggested it, but my mom was insistent I take care of it, since Mark is a personal friend. If he hadn't had the yearbook with him, I would have been more suspicious, but it was hard to argue when I saw them dressed up as a cowboy and a cowgirl at a high school Halloween dance. And when they started talking, they did seem to share the same memories."

"I thought your mom had trouble with her memory."

"She does, but she has been improving the last year. She has fewer and fewer lapses."

"Maybe Mark will be good for her. Remind her of things she has forgotten. He can fill in some blanks that no one else here in Whisper Lake can."

"That's true."

"But?"

"I don't know, Lizzie. My gut tells me there's something off about him."

"Well, I'm not going to argue with your gut."

As Lizzie finished speaking, the front door opened, and Keira heard voices. A moment later, she was shocked when her mom, Ruth Blake, walked into the room with the man she'd just been talking about. Mark Langley was a tall, silver-haired man wearing dark slacks and a button-down shirt. He was handsome, for an older man. Her mother looked unusually good, too. She had put on a floral shift dress that she had definitely not been wearing earlier in the day.

She got to her feet as her mother gave her a somewhat guilty smile.

"Keira, I thought you were on a date," her mom said.

"And I thought you were at home watching a movie."

"I was, but then Mark called. He said he'd pick me up and we could have some wine here at the inn. I just thought how lovely that would be. I haven't been here in so long. How are you, Lizzie?" Her mom gave Lizzie a warm smile.

"I'm good, Mrs. Blake."

"Oh, please call me Ruth."

"What kind of wine would you like?" Lizzie asked.

"What do you have open?"

"I have a nice pinot."

"That's perfect."

"That will be fine for me, too," Mark said. "And Lizzie, I'm happy to pay you for the bottle. I just thought we could talk better here than in a bar with all the young people."

"Sometimes it's hard for me to concentrate when there is a lot of noise," Ruth said.

"I hope you'll both join us," Mark added.

She wanted to join them, because she did not like anything that was going on. This Mark Langley seemed to be rather aggressive in his desire to get to know her mother again, and she didn't know what to think about that. In fact, the idea of her mother even having a drink with a man seemed completely foreign. Even before her accident, she'd rarely gone out on a date. She'd always said she was happy with her business, her friends, and her daughter.

But lately her mom had seemed at loose ends. She was well enough to feel bored, to want to do more than she'd been capable of doing even a year ago. That was a good thing. But Mark Langley didn't seem like a good thing. He seemed like a man with an agenda, and she needed to find out what that agenda was.