- -
- 100%
- +
The thought sent shivers down her back, but not entirely uncomfortable shivers for once. Her brain stopped calculating impact against the ground and started plotting impact of a totally different type, and the first thought—very improper and probably physically impossible—was potent enough to turn her knees weak. She had to sit down.
She hadn’t counted on Eddie sitting down next to her, tenderly putting his arm around her and saying reassuring things.
He was assuming she was scared out of her wits right now, not overcome with lustful thoughts, but, whatever the reason, she was quite enjoying her present predicament.
Hannah Bernard always knew what she wanted to be when she grew up—a psychologist. After spending an eternity in university studying toward that goal, she took one look at her hard-earned diploma and thought, “Nah. I’d rather be a writer.” She has no kids to brag about, no pets to complain about, and only one husband, who any day now will break down and agree to adopt a kitten.
Recent titles by the same author
HARLEQUIN ROMANCE®
3792—MISSION: MARRIAGE
3814—THE HONEYMOON PROPOSAL
3829—THE DATING RESOLUTION
The Marriage Adventure
Hannah Bernard
CONTENTS
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
PROLOGUE
THE river roared past, hissing and foaming.
Maria sat on a rock and tossed pebbles into the stream, an endless collection of smooth gray stones that had seen an eon of wear and tear. They sank without a trace.
When she’d exhausted all the stones within reach, she started pulling up straws, weaving them together in a vague semblance of a kayak. As she tossed them in, they were quickly engulfed and vanished, even in the relative calmness of the water flowing next to the riverbank. This was one angry river. Why did her parents have to insist that riding these monsters was fun?
In a few hours she might be the one engulfed, vanishing forever under the dark turbulent waters where there was no air to breathe, where up and down lost meaning.
She shuddered. There were still two weeks until she’d start high school. Two long weeks of adventure after terrifying adventure.
“Hey.”
Maria twisted around and squinted against the sun. Eddie was a tall shadow, hands in his pockets and his head tilted to the side as he looked down at her. She looked at him carefully, hoping she wasn’t wearing her crush on her face.
Eddie was cute.
But he was much too old for her. And by the time she got to his age, he’d be twenty-four. Ancient.
She’d never catch up with him.
It was a shame because he’d make a really cool boyfriend. “Oh. Hi.”
“Your mom and dad are looking for you.”
“Oh.” Maria looked down and rubbed her hands against the grass to clean them. She hadn’t brought her watch and had lost track of time. Now her nervous stomach reminded her she needed something to eat. On the other hand, eating something just before the nauseating trip down the river might not be a good idea.
Which was better, to eat and get some energy, or stay hungry and avoid embarrassing herself by throwing up out there? “Right. Thanks. I’ll get back.”
She stood up, and looked out over the river once more. Wild water, dark and deep. Again fear tightened in her chest. She swallowed and turned around to follow Eddie back to the cottage. The paralyzing fear followed her. But there was no choice. She had to do it. She had to climb into that stupid kayak and practice being an adventurer.
What was wrong with her? This was supposed to be fun. Everybody else thought it was fun.
They’d walked in silence for several minutes when she noticed Eddie glancing at her. She turned her face away, because a couple of tears had escaped, and slowed her steps, hoping to fall behind, but he just slowed down, too, matching her speed. Then finally he stopped altogether and crossed his arms on his chest, staring at her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Nothing’s wrong.”
Eddie shifted his weight from foot to foot. She was looking down and saw only his sneakers, but he still looked uncomfortable. Not uncomfortable enough to let her off the hook, though. “Bull. You’re crying. Should I run ahead and get your mom?”
Maria wiped the back of her hand over her eyes and shook her head hard. “No. Don’t tell them I was crying. You can’t tell them.”
“Oh, damn. Are you in some sort of trouble?”
“No! I’m okay. It’s nothing.”
“Nothing?” He sounded skeptical, and then bored. “Oh. You’re crying over a boy.”
“No!”
“Hey, no offence, but that’s what girls your age do.”
“I’m not crying. Not really. It’s just minor…leakage.”
Eddie grinned. And then he scowled. “Well, stop leaking, kid.”
“Don’t call me kid!”
“You are a kid. Look at you, crying like a baby.”
“Oh, shut up!”
“I bet it’s boy trouble,” he said, giving her a teasing look.
“It’s not boy trouble,” she snapped at him. “It’s that stupid, ugly river.”
Eddie glanced back toward the river. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m scared,” she confessed. And it felt so good to confess that the rest came spilling out, like the lid on her feelings had finally burst open. “I hate adventures. All kinds of adventures. I even hate roller coasters. I don’t like being scared like you all do. And I’m really afraid of the river. I hate it when I’m underwater and can’t breathe…” She knelt down and pulled at the grass. “I’m a coward,” she mumbled. It was out. Someone knew her big dark secret.
“It’s not that dangerous, you know,” Eddie said, sounding bored. “Your parents wouldn’t bring you along if they thought you were in danger.”
“I know.”
“This will be fun. You’ve rafted before. You’ve done easier rivers before, and you’ve been through training.”
“I know.”
“And you know all of us would jump after you if you got in trouble.”
“I know. And I’m still so scared I can hardly breathe.”
Eddie sank in the grass beside her and joined her in ripping up tufts and shredding them between her fingers. “Well, if you really don’t want to do it, just tell your parents you’re scared. They wouldn’t make you.”
“No!” Her heart almost stopped at the thought of them finding out. “I’m not telling them. I’m never telling them. You can’t tell them, either, Eddie, you can’t! Promise?”
“What the hell do you want to do then?”
“Nothing.” She pursed her lips and ripped harder at the grass. She couldn’t do anything. There was no way out.
“Kids,” he muttered, but Maria felt he hardly had the right to. He’d been a “kid”, too, until very recently. “Well, okay, in that case, we should get back before everybody starts to worry.”
Two hours later they were at the landing site. Her parents and Eddie unloaded the kayaks and carried them to the river. Maria carried the oars. As they approached the river her feet got more and more heavy. A lump lodged in her throat and her heart sped up, even while she cursed herself for being such a coward.
“The water is high,” her father said, looking at the furious river with a smile. “Excellent. It’ll be a great ride.”
Maria tossed the oars on the ground and busied herself with her shoelaces. She was starting to tremble. Stop it, she told herself fiercely. You’ll be fine. This is fun!
A muffled curse and a yell had them pausing. Maria turned around to find Eddie leaning against a rock, cursing and pounding his fist against the cliff while cradling his foot with the other.
“You okay?” Mom asked.
“I think I twisted my damn ankle,” Eddie bit out, grimacing. “Damn. I think it’s swelling up already.”
“How in the world could you twist your ankle here?” Maria’s dad asked. “You climb mountains without trouble, but twist your ankle on a simple gravel path?”
Eddie grimaced in pain, but managed a crooked smile. “Yeah, well, Harlan, I try my best.”
“Let me take a look,” her mother said, but he waved her off.
“No need, Kara. Really, I’m fine. It’s not like this has never happened before. I know the drill. I’ll go back to the cottage and wrap it in ice. Go on without me.”
“Can you drive?”
“Sure. Only need one foot for that.” Eddie’s gaze shifted to Maria. “I might need some help…”
Relief flooded Maria when she spotted the way out. “I’ll stay behind with you, Eddie. No problem.”
“I don’t know,” Mom said doubtfully. “It’s not fair that you miss out on the ride, Maria. I’ll stay with Eddie.”
“No!” Maria said. “You need to make the trip. It’s on our list of adventures for next year. Go on. I’ll take care of Eddie.”
She saw the adults exchange a smile at the thought of the fourteen-year-old taking care of nineteen-year-old Eddie, but they eventually agreed. The extra kayaks were carried back to the truck, and then their parents waved goodbye.
Eddie and Maria started toward the truck, Eddie leaning slightly on Maria for assistance as he hobbled along.
A few minutes later they were out of sight, and Eddie took his hand off Maria’s shoulder. He started striding toward the truck and she stared after him, not understanding. “Eddie, your ankle!”
He glanced back with a smirk. “Don’t tell me you bought it, too?”
Maria still didn’t get it. “Bought what?”
“My act?”
Her brain seemed to be functioning in slow motion. “There’s nothing wrong with your foot?”
Eddie rolled his eyes as he yanked the door of the truck open. “No. It’s fine.”
“But you…you love rafting. You love crazy rivers. You’re not scared of them.”
“Right.”
“Did you pretend you hurt your ankle so I wouldn’t have to go?” It seemed unbelievable. Why would he do something like that for her?
“Get in, Maria. Let’s go to the cottage and you can play with your crayons.”
“I brought charcoal,” she corrected dignified as she got into the truck. “Crayons are for children.”
Eddie winked at her through the open window. “And you’re not one?”
Maria grunted, and stared out the side window when he got in on the driver’s side. Eddie had grown up quickly. They’d played together once, even though she’d always been much younger, of course. Last year he’d gone off to college, and when she saw him again, he’d crossed completely over into the world of adults.
She missed the old Eddie.
They pulled up to the cottage and went inside, sitting for a while in complete silence, Eddie on the couch staring up at the ceiling, Maria at the table with her art supplies.
“Hey, no need to thank me,” Eddie muttered at last.
“Thank you,” she said grudgingly.
“You’re going to have to tell them, kiddo. They think you like this stuff. Heck, I always thought you did. You’re good at pretending. They’ll keep dragging you along unless you put your foot down.”
“My foot is fine where it is, thank you.”
“Why are you pretending?”
“Because I will be an adventurer like…” You, she’d almost said. “Like Mom and Dad. I’ll get there. I’ll get over this. I just need to discover my adventurer’s spirit.”
He grinned, making her feel silly and childish. “Discover your adventurer’s spirit, huh?”
“Yes.”
“Did you read that in a book?”
“No. I made it up myself.”
He chuckled and sat up, reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. “Okay, kid. Now, run off and play, will you? Go discover your adventurer’s spirit. I need to phone my girlfriend.” He winked at her. “We’d like privacy.”
Maria stomped off, angry and disgruntled at the world in general and Eddie in particular.
She just bet his girlfriend had plenty of adventurer’s spirit.
CHAPTER ONE
THERE he was—her mother’s dream son-in-law.
He hadn’t noticed her yet, and Maria paused in the hallway, looking him over as he sat there on the living room sofa.
It had been a while.
He’d been wandering the world, while she’d been living a quiet life just a few blocks away from her childhood home. He’d been rafting down glacial rivers and hang gliding from mountain tops while she’d gradually removed herself from her parents’ adventures and settled down to a calm, quiet life, taking art classes and spending her evenings with a good book or a movie, a cat or two by her side. There was much to be said for living vicariously.
But now Eddie was back.
He was sitting alone in the living room, which probably meant her mother had excused herself to help her father resolve a crisis in the kitchen. His profile was to her as he stared into the fire.
He was looking good. He hadn’t changed much. He was a few years older, but his hair was still thick and dark, long enough to brush his shoulders. That was how it usually had been. Once in a while Eddie would get his hair cut really short—and then he didn’t bother with it for months and months. She didn’t like long hair on men. She always thought it made them look feminine, sissy and pretentious.
Except Eddie. Anything looked good on Eddie.
Not that she should notice. She should be looking at him as a brother figure. Nothing more—but it hadn’t been that simple for a long time. Not since her hormones came out of hiding and started playing tricks on her.
In the determined spirit of playing a mischievous little sister, she sneaked into the room and came up behind him, intending to cover his eyes with her hands in an old childish game. But before she got that far, Eddie had twisted around and grabbed her wrists—and somehow she was flying through the air.
She landed on her back across the sofa, her head resting on his arm. She blinked up at him and worked on catching her breath. “Hello, Eddie. Long time no see. Welcome home.”
“Hello, Maria. Did you really think you could sneak up on me?”
His voice was like she remembered. Rough velvet, if there was such a thing. Sandpaper wrapped in silk.
Sexy.
Oh, damn it. So much for the brother figure.
She struggled to sit up, but his arm was across her middle, holding her in place. She grinned up at him. “Hey, I had to try. The way you always bragged about your honed reflexes…”
“Ah. So you wanted to see if I was getting old and decrepit yet?”
His eyes were dark. From a distance they seemed brown, but up close their color was revealed as a deep blue. It was an illusion she never got used to. “Age never crossed my mind. You may be over the hill, but it’s quite a long way down. Don’t worry.”
A smile hovered on his lips. “You’re rolling with me, remember?”
“Happy birthday, Eddie.”
“Happy birthday, Maria.”
They shared a birthday—five years apart. For a while, their parents had celebrated their birthdays together. Until, of course, Eddie became too old to share his birthday with a little girl.
The little girl had sulked quite a bit on that first birthday alone.
“You should let me go,” Maria said, pushing at his arm. “Mom and Dad still wouldn’t mind seeing us get married and live happily ever after, you know. Not a good idea to raise their hopes.”
Eddie grinned and tangled his fingers in a strand of her long hair. He seemed in no hurry to let her go, and well, she probably could escape if she wanted to, but she really was quite comfortable where she was. He pulled gently on her hair. “I’ve always liked to live dangerously.”
“I know you do. But I don’t, remember?”
“Still haven’t found your adventurer’s spirit, kiddo?”
Kiddo. Damn. She wasn’t twelve years old anymore. Couldn’t he see that? “I’m not a kid anymore. And I’m no longer searching for my adventurer’s spirit.”
An eyebrow lifted. An interesting view from this angle. “Really?”
“Yup.”
“Come clean with the folks and all?”
“Yup.”
“Brave of you.”
“Wisdom comes with maturity. Ouch! Stop pulling on my hair!”
“Sorry. Just checking for gray.”
Eddie teasing her. She was on familiar turf now. Still, she should probably get her head away from his chest.
Soonish.
“Oh, damn. You found it?”
“Found what?”
“That gray hair.”
His eyes warmed in amusement. He had tiny laughter lines, and the curve of his lips as he smiled was close to irresistible. She was in trouble.
Why hadn’t he stayed away for a few more years? She still hadn’t found her stable, calm, boring, stamp-collecting dream husband.
“You have one gray hair?” he asked.
She nodded. “Yes. It was there this morning. I thought about pulling it out, but Mom’s superstitious. She always claimed seven new gray hairs grew in its place. So I decided to let it live.”
Eddie’s chest shook as he laughed. As she was pressed against it she couldn’t help but notice. His fingers brushed through the hair at her temple, sifting through it, as if in search for that lone gray ranger. “You could always get a magic marker and color it. I’m sure they make one in auburn.”
“Nah. I’ll let it live and grow old gracefully.”
“It’s your birthday, kiddo. Gray hair or not, why aren’t you out on the town with a hot date?”
“Why aren’t you?” she countered. She really should sit up now.
“I am,” he assured her. “Your mother told me I would be having dinner with the most beautiful girl in the world.”
Oh, jeez. “I see. Did she tell you the most beautiful girl was already married?”
Eddie’s gorgeous eyes went wide in shock. “You got married?”
She giggled as she used the opportunity and slid away from him. She moved to the other side of the sofa and smirked at him. “No. I’m not married. Yet. But Mom is. She’s the one who invited you to dinner, isn’t she?”
He glowered at her. “Tease. You had me worried there for a minute.”
“Aw, Eddie, no need. You know you’ve ruined me for all other men. No one else has ever thrown me over his shoulder and carried me down a mountain almost comatose after sunstroke.”
Eddie winked at her. Maria looked away and grimaced at herself. They should turn to good old-fashioned adult conversation. No more flirting. Not that she’d anything against flirting. It was all fine and well, but not with Eddie. Definitely not since he could make her insides flutter like that.
Sneaking up on him had been stupid. Now her face was flushed, her breathing was off, and the way he felt against her was imprinted on her memory.
Not good. Not good at all. Time to act like a serious grown-up.
“It’s been forever,” she said. “How’ve you been? Where have you been?”
He put an arm across the back of the sofa and shrugged, flicking his hair away from his face. “Here and there. Mostly there.”
“Imagine that,” she said dryly. “When did you get back? Been in town long?”
“Almost a week.”
Maria smiled ruefully. “For you, that’s quite a long stay.”
“I’m staying for a while, this time,” Eddie told her. “My nephew needs me. He’s my godson, remember?”
Maria nodded, surprised—and skeptical. Jenny’s beautiful little son had been diagnosed autistic last year. He was a challenging little boy—didn’t need much sleep and was on the go around the clock, getting bigger and stronger by the day. Jenny was starting a behavioral program at home, one that required a lot of time and effort. She had high hopes—but it would take a lot of work.
Yes—Jenny and Samuel desperately needed help, especially now that her husband had jumped ship, but for Eddie to settle down and become a professional uncle—it seemed almost absurd.
“I haven’t seen Jenny forever,” she said. “We speak on the phone occasionally, but we sort of lost touch after she got married. It’s a shame. I should give her a call this week.”
“Next week is better. She’s out of town with Samuel, doing some sort of a workshop to prepare for the new treatment program.”
Maria nodded. “I’ll call her next week, then. So, you might be here all summer?”
Eddie shrugged. “I’m staying a while. For now, your parents have hired me as a consultant for Intrepid Adventurers—and we’re approaching an agreement on things.”
Agreement? What kind of an agreement?
Before she could ask, Eddie was pointing at her. “Enough about me. Let’s talk about you. How’ve you been?”
“Fine. Great. I quite like life without adventurer’s spirit. Life is pretty good. Tell me—how are your parents doing? I haven’t seen them in years.”
Their parents had spent many vacations together—doing something exciting and thrilling. Maria had hated those vacations, everything from skiing to bungee-jumping.
Later, when she’d finally gotten up the nerve to tell her parents her true feelings about adventuring, they’d allowed her to stay behind, and she’d gotten to hang around at the cabin or the ski lodge or whatever lodgings were available. Life had become lovely. Finally, vacations she didn’t have to fear. She could curl up in an armchair with a book and hot chocolate, or sketch the scenery, or bundle up to build a snow army outside, or go for quiet walks and just let her mind wander.
She liked excitement to stay put inside her head. It was just the way she was, and she didn’t apologize for it any longer.
Eddie, on the other hand, had loved every minute of it. He’d come along on every single trip, and bit by bit Maria had become more and more irritated by the way her parents would look at him and then at her, as if thinking “why can’t she be more like Eddie?”
Almost unaware of what she was doing, Maria frowned. Eddie had always been perfect. The perfect son—only he wasn’t theirs. He was the boy next door, always brave and competent, laughing through danger when she was holding back tears, singing his way up a mountain while she was sweating and panting and wishing she’d been born to a pair of couch potatoes.
Her emotions had gone through a regular roller-coaster ride where Eddie was concerned. As a child she’d adored him when they were at home, when things were calm. She’d resented him during summer vacations when he’d been her parents’ surrogate son, the perfect one. She’d developed a huge crush on him in her teens, culminating in a mortifying incident when she was eighteen.
Since then she’d rarely seen him. He’d been away, adventuring all over the world. Her parents got regular postcards—always with a PS she’d come to depend on as one of the constants in life: Say hi to Maria for me.
“Mom and Dad are fine,” Eddie was saying. “They’re still in Egypt, no talk of returning anytime soon.” He tapped her shoulder. “But weren’t we talking about you?”
Maria crinkled her nose. “I’m boring, Eddie. Remember? Nothing remotely interesting about my life.”
Eddie was nice enough to chuckle, as if she’d made a joke instead of stated a fact. “Your mother tells me you’re working as an artist and a writer now.”
Maria felt like snorting. She could imagine just what her mother had said, and Eddie had probably done some heavy editing on her precise words. She glanced toward the kitchen, where she could now hear voices. “Did she actually tell you that? Did she say working?”
Eddie chuckled. “Not exactly. She might have phrased it a bit differently.”
“Yeah, I thought she might have. Well it is a job. Not a very well paid one, unfortunately, but I’ll get there. Meanwhile I work full-time at the library, too, and call it research.”