“I’ve never forgotten you, Eve,” Adam said softly.

“That kiss last night, it wasn’t an impulse. I wanted to kiss you from the minute I saw you at the shelter. My big hit, ‘Impossible to Forget,’ I wrote that song because of you.”

Eve swallowed. She wanted to look away, but she couldn’t. Even when he reached for her hand, her gaze remained glued to his. When he gently pulled her toward him, her stupid heart began to race, and even though her brain screamed Danger! Danger! No! Stop! Don’t do it! she didn’t resist when he drew her into his arms.

“I want you, Eve.”

She closed her eyes as his lips grazed her cheek and drifted down to her neck.

“I’ve always wanted you,” he whispered.

Every nerve ending in her body seemed to be alive with sensation. And when he raised his head to capture her mouth, she moaned, and instead of stopping him, she kissed him back as if her very life depended upon it …

* * *

The Crandall Lake Chronicles: Small town, big hearts

The Girl He

Left Behind

Patricia Kay

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Formerly writing as Trisha Alexander, PATRICIA KAY is a USA TODAY bestselling author of more than forty-eight novels of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She lives in Houston, Texas. To learn more about her, visit her website at www.patriciakay.com.

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This book is dedicated to Dick, with whom I shared fifty-three years of adventures. We all love and miss you!

Contents

Cover

Introduction

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Epigraph

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

ANNA CERMAK’S PIEROGIES

ANNA CERMAK’S STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS (HALUPKI)

Note from the Author

Extract

Copyright

“There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable.”

—Mark Twain

Prologue

The boy stands under the overhang, guitar case in hand, his backpack stuffed with his belongings. The bus will arrive any minute. Beyond the overhang the rain falls steadily. It has been raining for days here in the Texas Hill Country.

His gaze sweeps the station platform.

Is she coming?

He’d told her she had to be here no later than eight o’clock. The station clock now reads eight twelve. The bus is due to leave the station at eight fifteen. The boy looks at his phone again. Should he risk calling her house? But what if her father answers? For at least the hundredth time since they’d become a couple, he curses her father’s stupid rules. Eve is one of the few girls left in their senior class who doesn’t yet have a cell phone. He has no way of contacting her without alerting her parents.

He looks around slowly, hoping this time he’ll see her, that she’ll be out of breath from hurrying, saying how sorry she is that she made him wait, that she didn’t say yes when he first started talking about her coming with him, that she made him worry. But she’s not there. The only other person on the platform is an older man who was already there when the boy arrived.

She’s not coming.

His heart thuds painfully as the truth sinks in. Yet he isn’t really surprised. Down deep, hasn’t he always known she wouldn’t come? That he’s never been good enough for her? Hasn’t he been lying to himself all along, pretending she would change her mind and come because he didn’t want to think about the alternative?

You’re on your own. She doesn’t love you enough to defy her family. You knew she wouldn’t leave home. It was never gonna happen. Forget about her. The two of you together was always a fairy tale, and you’ve never believed in fairy tales.

He thinks about how he’d once told Aaron to grow up, saying, “There ain’t no Santa Claus, kid, and you might as well get used to it!”

He sighs. Yeah, there ain’t no Santa Claus. And there sure as hell wasn’t gonna be a happy ever after for him. Not with Eve anyhow. He’d have to make his own happy ever after by making his dream of a career in music come true.

The hiss of air brakes heralds the arrival of the bus, and the boy pulls his baseball cap more firmly on his head and darts through the rain toward the opening doors.

Two minutes later, as the bus pulls away from the station, heading east toward his future, the boy gives one last, long look at the town where he’s spent all eighteen years of his life so far.

Then he turns resolutely away. No more looking at the past. From now on, he will only look forward.

Chapter One

Twelve years later...

Eve Kelly stared at the headline.

Adam Crenshaw and Version II Launching Fall Tour in Austin

She could hardly believe her eyes.

Adam.

Adam was finally coming home. He would be performing in Austin. Which was less than an hour away. Eve swallowed while the enormity of what she’d just read in the online version of the Austin American-Statesman sank in.

Twelve years. It had been twelve years since the day Adam had ridden out of her life. Twelve years to wonder if she’d done the right thing or if her long-ago decision had been the worst one she’d ever made.

She sighed heavily. Read the accompanying story quickly. There wasn’t a whole lot of information, just the fact that Adam Crenshaw and his band would be opening their North American tour in Austin at the Frank Erwin Center the first week of September, and that tickets would go on sale next month. The reporter also mentioned that this would be the first time Adam’s band had performed in Texas even though he had grown up in Crandall Lake. There was a photo of the band with Adam front and center, but it had been taken from a distance, and his head was bent over his guitar, so she couldn’t see his face.

“Time to head out, Eve. You gonna come to Ernie’s, have a drink with us?”

Eve started. She hadn’t heard Penny Wallace, one of her coworkers, approach. She glanced up and smiled. “Thanks, but I can’t. I have to stop at the supermarket, then pick up the twins and take them over to Bill’s.”

“They spending the week with him?”

Eve nodded. “Yeah.”

“Okay. See you on Monday.”

After Penny walked off, Eve shut down her computer and gathered her things. Her head was still full of the startling news about Adam, but she couldn’t sit here and think about it, nor could she call her cousin Olivia to tell her the news. Not if she wanted to get the twins to her ex’s by six thirty, as promised.

Fifteen minutes later, she strode into her favorite supermarket and headed straight into the produce department. She was having Olivia for dinner the following night and needed fresh salad stuff. She also wanted to be sure to send some fruit with the twins tonight. Maybe she couldn’t compete with Missy, their stepmother, as far as baking cakes and pies from scratch, but she could make sure the twins had plenty of fresh fruit while they were there.

The market was crowded, but Eve knew exactly what she needed and where to find it, so within twenty minutes she was standing in the checkout line. She’d chosen the shortest line, but there were still two people ahead of her. Friday nights were always so busy. People stopped in after work rather than have to make a separate trip later or the following day. Idly, she glanced at the magazine rack to her left while she waited. And did a double take as she saw the newest issue of People magazine.

The cover screamed Sexiest Man Alive! Adam Crenshaw!

And there was a head shot of Adam, smiling out at her, taking up the entire cover, and looking even handsomer than normal. She swallowed painfully as she took in his shining, longish brown hair and unusual gray eyes. His face bore a fashionable stubble, and the dimple in his left cheek was prominently displayed by his sexy, crooked smile. For years, ever since Adam had become successful, people had compared his good looks to another country idol, Keith Urban, but Eve thought Adam was even better looking. She knew Nicole Kidman would probably disagree with her. But then, both of them had to be prejudiced.

Eve grabbed the top copy of the magazine and furtively put it into her shopping cart. She knew she was asking for heartache, but she couldn’t resist reading about Adam’s life. Reading about all the things she could have had and had rejected.

The two of you would probably have split up by now.

Eve closed her eyes, but the words in her head wouldn’t go away. It was stupid to speculate on what might have been if she’d made a different choice all those years ago, and yet she couldn’t seem to stop herself. Thankfully, before she’d had time to continue with her morose thoughts, it was her turn to check out, and she no longer had time to think about anything other than the task at hand—watching carefully to make sure she wasn’t overcharged for anything.

But when the checker scanned the magazine, she grinned, and with a twang that announced she’d probably grown up in East Texas said, “He sure is a hottie, isn’t he? And to think he grew up right here in Crandall Lake!”

“Mmm,” Eve said.

“So do you know him?” the checker persisted.

Eve frowned. “Me? Uh, no.” The last thing she wanted to do was discuss Adam Crenshaw.

“Oh. I thought maybe you were about his age.”

Eve shrugged, hoping she’d discouraged the girl.

“I sure would love to see him. He’s comin’ to Austin, him and his band. Did you know that?”

Eve forced a smile. “No, I didn’t.” Please just finish checking me out and stop talking!

Finally the girl ran out of steam and a few minutes later, Eve was out of the store and loading her groceries into her car. Resolutely, she pushed every last thought of Adam out of her mind. Time enough to think about him again after the twins were gone tonight. Until then, she would simply be Eve Kelly, mother of Natalie and Nathan, and nothing more.

* * *

Adam Crenshaw swore softly. He’d been working on a new song for days and was having problems with the bridge. Nothing he tried sounded right. “Dammit,” he said again, frowning and setting his guitar down with a tired sigh. He rubbed his forehead. A headache had been hovering for hours, and he was afraid it was finally going to come. He’d better take some Advil and head it off. His headaches were notorious and could lay him low for days once one took hold.

After gulping down the Advil and pouring himself a glass of iced tea, he picked up his phone and texted his brother.

That contract ready yet?

It only took a moment for Austin’s reply.

Yep. Sending in a few mins.

Adam smiled. The money he’d spent on his brother’s education hadn’t been wasted. Austin was a crackerjack lawyer and took care of every financial and legal aspect of Adam’s career. Adam trusted him more than anyone else in the world.

Turning back to his guitar, he strummed the last few chords before the bridge, hoping for inspiration. And, as happened sometimes, an idea struck, but before he’d had time to get it down on paper, his office door opened and his publicist, Bethany D’Angelo, walked in.

He looked up in annoyance. “Don’t you ever knock?” He didn’t try to hide his irritation.

She raised her eyebrows. “Aren’t we in a bad mood today?” Parking her backside on the corner of his desk, she crossed her legs and grinned at him. “Did we get up on the wrong side of the bed, sweetums?”

He gritted his teeth, hating the way she talked in the third person and called him various pet names. She was thirty-one years old, for God’s sake, and just because he’d stupidly become sexually involved with her a few months back didn’t give her the right to act as if she owned him. This wasn’t the first time he’d had the almost uncontrollable urge to fire her on the spot. But he stopped himself in time, and “I have a headache” was all he said.

“Oh, baby, I’m sorry. Did you take something for it?”

“Yes, I took something.”

“How about if I rub your shoulders and neck? That’ll help, too.” She dropped her voice to what she considered her sexy tone. “Then later, I could do something else for you, which I know would make you feel even better.”

“I’m having problems with this new song,” he said, just as if he hadn’t heard her, “and I was just about to have a breakthrough when you interrupted me.”

“Oh, you always say you’re having problems.”

There was something about her airy dismissal of his concerns that nearly pushed him over the edge, but once again, he managed to control himself. Maybe he was being unfair. Just because he was bored with their relationship and wanted out didn’t mean he was allowed to act like a total jerk and be nasty to her. After all, she hadn’t thrown herself into his bed. He’d made the first move. It wasn’t her fault he’d almost immediately known he’d made a huge mistake. So the right thing to do was tell her, straight-out, in a nice way, that from now on their dealings would be strictly business. Then, if she felt she couldn’t handle that change in their status, she would quit on her own. If not, they’d go forward as adults.

Forcing his voice into a more pleasant tone, he said, “Did you want something, Bethany?”

“As a matter of fact, I did. I wanted to remind you of your interview with Rolling Stone at seven tonight.”

“Oh, crap.” He had forgotten all about the interview.

“Now, Adam, landing the cover story of Rolling Stone is a remarkable coup for you. Coming on top of the People thing just a few months before the launch of your tour and a new album... Well, it’s fabulous!”

He sighed. “Yeah, yeah, I know. But I hate interviews.”

“You’ve told me that a hundred times. And as I’ve told you, Aaron can’t do everything for you. There are some things you simply must do yourself.” Gone was the seductress voice. Now Bethany was all business.

In mentioning Aaron, she was referring to the fact that his youngest brother now functioned as Adam’s alter ego in matters of publicity, especially his online presence. Aaron, who at twenty-five was five years younger than Adam, pretended to be Adam on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest, in responding to various blogs and fan sites, as well as interacting with his fan clubs.

Adam hated all that garbage. Always had. He didn’t hate his fans, of course—he liked meeting them, especially at concerts—but if he spent all his time online and doing interviews, when would he be able to write his music? All he’d ever wanted was to write and perform, not blow his own horn about how great he was. It still amazed him that anyone cared about all that stuff entertainers posted. Hell, Aaron even told Adam’s followers what he, Adam, had supposedly eaten for breakfast!

“Yeah, I know he can’t,” he finally said.

Bethany studied him steadily. “So you won’t try to blow off the interview, right?”

“I guess not,” he said reluctantly. “But I’ll never change my mind that it’s the music that counts. Not all this other stuff.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’m tired of this old argument, Adam. Yes, the music is important. Of course it is. But having your name and face out there, connecting with all those people who plunk down their money to buy your music and see your shows is equally important. In the long run, maybe even more important. And Rolling Stone! I mean, you’ve arrived. They hardly ever put a country star on their cover. The fact they want you means they consider you a crossover artist, and isn’t that what you wanted?”

Before he could answer, his cell rang and he saw it was Austin calling.

“Gotta take this,” he said, waving Bethany off.

Accepting the call, he said, “Hey, bro. What’s up? Thought you were gonna send over that contract.”

“I am. I will. But something’s happened,” Austin said.

“Oh?”

“Mom’s had a heart attack.”

“What?” Adam stood. “When?”

Bethany, alerted by his tone, frowned and got off his desk.

“Right after I texted you, she collapsed. I called 911 and I’m riding in the ambulance on the way to the hospital right now. They’ve got her stabilized but it’s pretty serious. I think you need to come.”

“Of course. You’re sure she’s gonna be okay?”

“They think so, but we’ll see what the docs say when we get there.”

“Okay. Keep me posted. I’ll try to get out on a flight tonight.”

“What?” Bethany said when he hung up. “What do you mean, get out on a flight tonight? You have that interview tonight, Adam!”

“This is more important.” He quickly explained what Austin had told him.

Bethany opened her mouth, probably to protest, but closed it again when she saw the look on his face. She sighed wearily. “Okay, I’ll call Rolling Stone and explain. Hopefully they can postpone the interview for a few days and still make their deadline.”

“Don’t make any promises. I have no idea how long I’ll be gone.” Adam was already packing up the stuff on his desk that he wanted to take with him.

“What do you mean? Surely you won’t be gone that long.”

His voice hardened. “I said, don’t make any promises. I’ll call you when I know my mother’s condition.”

“I could come with you...” she said hopefully. “I can take care of everything from—”

“It’s better if I go alone,” he said, cutting her off.

“But—”

Ignoring her, he strode out to the hallway where his secretary, Donna, had a desk. “Donna, get me on a flight to Austin tonight, however you can. And I’ll need a rental car when I get there.” Unfortunately, his personal plane was down for repairs.

“Okay.”

“I’ll be upstairs packing. Oh, and get me some cash, too, will you?”

Because he knew she expected it, and because he was in no mood for any kind of scene right now, he told Bethany goodbye, dropped a hasty kiss on her lips and said he’d be in touch.

Then he headed up to his bedroom to begin preparing for his first trip home to Crandall Lake since the day twelve years ago when he’d boarded the bus that had brought him here to Nashville—and success beyond his wildest dreams.

* * *

Eve drove slowly home after dropping the twins at Bill’s. It was always a wrench to see them leave. Sharing custody with him by alternating weeks was the fairest thing to do, she knew that, but just because it was fair didn’t mean she had to love it. She missed the twins when they were gone. Okay, so they were only fifteen minutes away, just on the other side of Crandall Lake, but the truth was, they might as well have been on the moon in comparison to where they lived with her.

After the divorce, Eve had stayed in the starter home she and Bill had bought a few months after they were married. Well, he’d bought it. She certainly hadn’t had any money to contribute. She was only eighteen and barely out of high school. He was twenty-two and had been working at a good job for almost a year, ever since his graduation from college. The house was a small ranch style with three bedrooms, two baths and an attached garage. The only thing that made it different from its neighbors was the front porch Bill had paid extra to have added because he knew how much she loved having a front porch with a swing. Although the neighborhood was quiet and nice, it wasn’t anything special, and it was on the wrong side of town in terms of prestige.

Bill and his new family, on the other hand, lived in the most fashionable part of Crandall Lake, right near the park and the river. Their home was a stately five-bedroom Colonial on a heavily wooded lot. There was a beautiful pool and they even had a tennis court. Bill was an avid tennis player.

Bill’s new wife, Melissa, had already given him a child. Will was eleven months old, and the twins were crazy about him. They were crazy about Melissa, too, whom they called Missy. For days, it was “Missy this” and “Missy that” after they’d spent a week with Bill. Their attachment to Bill’s new family was a continual source of disquiet to Eve. She worried that because she was a working mother with limited time, and Melissa was a stay-at-home mother who always had lots of time to bake and play with her two and their baby brother, that one day the twins would prefer to live with their father full-time.

How would she handle it if that happened? There was no way she’d agree, of course, but what good would refusing do her if the twins resented her for it? She didn’t want them by default. She wanted them to want to be with her.

Olivia was always telling her she worried way too much, that she borrowed trouble, but Eve couldn’t seem to help it. She was a worrier, always had been. “Anyway,” as she’d told Olivia just last week when they were discussing the scary possibility Eve might be laid off from the paper, “I don’t have to borrow anything. Trouble just seems to find me!”

Thinking about the twins and Bill and the whole rumored-layoff thing had pushed all thoughts of Adam Crenshaw out of her mind, but when she arrived home and saw the People magazine lying in the middle of her kitchen table, they came rushing back.

Did he ever think about her?

Wonder how she was doing?

Weigh those two little words—what if?

She doubted it. Because he had never, not once in all these years, tried to contact her. And unlike her failed attempts to call him in those early days, it would have been easy for him. After all, she had been here in Crandall Lake the entire time.

Quit torturing yourself. Throw the stupid magazine away. Adam Crenshaw lives in a different world, one you’ll never be a part of. And that’s the way it was always meant to be. You knew that at the time. You have built a good life here. You need to remember that and stop mooning over what might have been.

The magazine gave a satisfying thud as it hit the wastebasket.

Chapter Two

Donna had gotten him a seat on a red-eye arriving in Austin at one in the morning. As the plane banked, preparing to approach, Adam gazed down at the lights of the city. Although he was tired, he could never sleep while flying.

By the time they landed and Adam picked up his rental car, he knew it would be close to 3:00 a.m. before he arrived in Crandall Lake. Austin had wanted him to stay with him, but Adam didn’t like being in someone else’s home—he liked his privacy—so his brother had booked a room at the Crandall Lake Inn. Adam couldn’t help smiling wryly at the thought of him, a boy from the wrong side of the tracks, the eldest of the “wild Crenshaw boys,” actually staying at the posh inn. Of course, it might no longer be posh. He might find it had gone from its long-ago glory to a faded facsimile.

But as he pulled into the driveway of the three-story inn, he saw that it had retained much of its charm. In fact, it still looked elegant and the kind of place that attracted only the best. Adam wondered if he would be considered part of that elite circle now.

“Mr. Crenshaw? Welcome to the Crandall Lake Inn.” The young woman at the desk gave him a bright smile, and he could see the excitement in her eyes. “I hope you had a good trip.”

He nodded, returning her smile.

“We’re so happy you chose to stay with us,” she continued as she swiped his credit card and gave him his keys. “Your suite is on the second floor, with a river view.”

“Thank you.”

Because he had only brought one bag, plus his guitar, with him, Adam turned down the help of the bellman and went up to his suite on his own. When he opened the door, the first thing he saw was the grand piano in the far right corner of the living area, which was large and well lit, with a wide expanse of windows and French doors overlooking the river. He wondered if this was a special suite chosen especially for him. He doubted there’d be many grand pianos at the inn. He was happy to see it. If he ended up having to stay in Crandall Lake for a while, it would help him to have it there. When he was writing music, he preferred to sit at his own piano with his guitar nearby. He would have to remember to thank the manager in the morning.

To the left of the living area, an open door revealed the bedroom beyond. Setting his bag and guitar down, he walked over to the French doors, opened them and went out onto the wide balcony, where there were several wicker chairs and a table as well as potted plants. There was also another door leading into the bedroom beyond. The cool night air felt good, and the musical rush of the water below sounded soothing and perfect for sleeping.

He knew he should hit the sack immediately. He wanted to be at the hospital early in the morning, and he hadn’t slept much at all in the past twenty-four hours. But he was wound up and he also knew he wouldn’t fall asleep easily. Deciding a hot shower, followed by a glass of brandy from the minibar, might do the trick, he went into the bedroom and began shedding his clothes. First, though, he would text Austin, let him know he’d arrived and see if there was any change in their mother’s condition. Austin’s answer came within seconds.

Welcome home. Mom sleeping. No change. More tests tomorrow. See you in a.m.

Reassured, Adam headed for the shower. Ten minutes later, standing under the hot spray, he could already feel some of the tenseness leaving his muscles, and he slowly relaxed.

It was going to be interesting, being back in Crandall Lake. For the first time since he’d known he was coming, he allowed his mind to venture into the area he’d unsuccessfully attempted to banish from his thoughts many years ago.

Would he see her?

And if he did, what would he feel?

What did he feel?

He remembered how hurt he’d been by her decision. Her desertion. By the fact she had never tried to contact him afterward. When he’d discovered, a year or so later, that she’d gotten married scant months after he’d left for Nashville, he’d realized how right he’d been. She’d never really loved him. All she cared about was that family of hers. He’d been a fool to ever think otherwise.

Hell, he hoped he would see her.

And when he did, he would make it clear to her and anyone else in the vicinity that she meant absolutely nothing to him.

Less than nothing.

And when his mother was out of danger, he would persuade her to come and live with him, or at least to allow him to have a house built for her on his property in Tennessee. Then when he left Crandall Lake this time, he would not be back.

* * *

“I have something to tell you, Eve.”

Eve looked at Olivia, who sat at the kitchen table, a glass of red wine in front of her. Her tone seemed awfully serious. “Oh? Something happen?” Olivia constantly had problems with her mother-in-law, and lately the problems had seemed to be escalating.

Olivia nodded. “You could say that.”

Eve lowered the heat under her spaghetti sauce. “Cryptic doesn’t work with me, Liv. You know I suck at mysteries. I never know who dunnit.” Satisfied that her sauce would simmer while the pasta cooked, she poured herself some wine and turned to face her cousin and BFF, as the kids would say.

Olivia’s expressive brown eyes met Eve’s. “I almost called you yesterday, but decided this was something I had to tell you in person.”

Concern. That was what Eve was seeing. She frowned.

“Adam Crenshaw was at the hospital today,” Olivia said slowly.

The statement hit Eve like a blow to her stomach. Her mouth dropped open and she stared at Olivia. “A-Adam...is...is here? In Crandall Lake?” But he wasn’t supposed to be coming to Texas until September. In fact, Eve had planned to tell Olivia about his upcoming concert tour tonight.

Olivia’s eyes were soft with sympathy. She was the only one besides Bill who knew about Adam. Eve, in a low moment years ago, had finally told her cousin about him, but Olivia’d been sworn to secrecy. In fact, they never talked about him. Olivia, like Eve, understood it was better not to dwell on things that couldn’t be changed.

Eve, shaking inside, sank into the chair across from Olivia. Her cousin reached across the table and took Eve’s hand.

“Are you okay?” she said softly.

Eve swallowed. “I guess I have to be, don’t I?”

“Oh, hon, I know how you must feel. I’m sorry, but I knew you needed to know.”

Eve nodded. Olivia did know how she felt. Olivia had been through worse. She’d lost her beloved husband, Mark, four years ago when his helicopter crashed in Afghanistan. Thea, her little girl, had been born after he died. “Wh-what was Adam doing at the hospital?”

“He came because of his mother. She had a heart attack yesterday. Apparently, his brother called him, and Adam came home. He told me he got in late last night.”

“You talked to him?”

“Yes.” Olivia worked the day shift in Registration and Admissions at the Crandall Lake Hospital.

“I thought you said Adam’s brother brought her in.”

“Yes, she was brought in late yesterday afternoon, after I’d gone home for the day, but several things were left off the admission form, so I went searching for Austin—you know, the brother who’s the lawyer. He’s the one who filled out the forms. By the time I found him, Adam was there, too.”

Eve knew who Austin was. She’d even seen him a few times, but she didn’t really know him and had never spoken to him. Crandall Lake was a small town, but not that small. People pretty much knew everything of interest or importance that was happening, but not everyone was on speaking terms with everyone else. “Is Adam’s mother okay?”

“She will be, according to the doctors, although there are more tests to run. But even if she is, she’ll be recuperating for a while, and apparently Adam’s going to stay right here in Crandall Lake while she does. In fact, he told me he hopes to bring her back to Nashville when she’s well enough to travel. He said he wants her to live with him.”

Eve got up to check the pasta while Olivia kept talking. But each word her cousin uttered contributed to Eve’s sense of unreality. Was this really happening? Was Adam Crenshaw really here? In Crandall Lake? For the duration of his mother’s recuperation? As far as she knew, he had never come back here before. She also knew—courtesy of the very efficient gossip network in Crandall Lake—that he’d taken care of his mother financially once he’d begun to make money, so that she’d never had to work again. And Eve had also heard how Lucy Crenshaw visited her son often. People had speculated about why he never came to Crandall Lake, though, and what they could do to get him to come. His appearance now was bound to create a huge splash.

Oh, God. What if she should run into him? What would she say? Could she manage it and act normal? Or would she fall completely to pieces like that old Patsy Cline song?

“Do you want to know anything else?” Olivia asked after a minute. “Or do you want me to quit talking about this?”

Eve didn’t immediately answer. Instead, to give herself time to calm down, she tested a strand of pasta, then turned the burner off and poured the pasta into a waiting colander sitting in the sink. She didn’t look at Olivia.

“Eve? You okay?”

“Yes.” But she wasn’t. She was a mess.

“You sure?”

Eve sighed deeply. Turned away from the sink and met Olivia’s eyes again. “How does he look?”

“Want me to say he’s really ugly in person? Or do you want me to be honest?”

“Be honest.”

“He looks even better than in his photos. Sexy and handsome and charming. But nice. Awfully nice. I can see what you saw in him, Eve. He didn’t act like a big star at all. He just seems like a regular guy. A decent, regular guy worried about his mother.”

Yes, even at eighteen he’d been all of those things. He’d been many other things, too. Sweet. Reckless. Sensitive. And lonely. He’d always tried to hide his gentler qualities, though. It hurt Eve to think about him, about the way he’d been with her, about how much she’d loved him, and how much she’d wanted to go away with him. That was why she had tried to erase him from her mind, to not think about him. But that had always been impossible. And always would be.

“What are you going to do, Eve?” Olivia asked as Eve finally picked up the drained pasta and dumped it into the pasta bowl sitting on the countertop. Absently, she ladled sauce over the steaming spaghetti.

“I don’t know. I mean, I probably won’t even see him.” But her mind was whirling. If he stayed long enough, chances are she would run into him. Then what?

“What if he calls you?”

“He won’t.” Eve put the bowl of spaghetti on the table. Took the casserole dish filled with her signature turkey meatballs out of the microwave where they’d been staying warm and set them on the table, too.

“But what if he does?”

Good question. What if he did? Eve sighed heavily. Looked at Olivia. “He won’t call me. I’m sure he hates me.” She laughed derisively. “If he even remembers my name!”

“Oh, Eve, come on. You’re being melodramatic.”

“No, I’m not. Think about it, Olivia. I let him down terribly. He loved me. I know he did. He wanted me to go away with him. To share his dreams. He even said the M word. In his mind, I would be just one more person he was counting on who had abandoned him.” She fought the tears that threatened. “I’ve had a lot of years to think about this. At the time, I thought he didn’t love me enough to stay. But I think the truth is, I didn’t love him enough...to go.”

“And you paid the price,” Olivia said softly.

Eve, fighting to keep from crying, nodded. “Yes. I—I made a mistake. I—I was a coward. Afraid to leave my safe world for the unknown.”

“You were just a kid.”

“I know that.”

“So cut yourself some slack.” Olivia smiled crookedly. “In his shoes, I would call you. I would be curious. Plus I’d want you to see with your own eyes how successful I was.”

“Men don’t think that way,” Eve said, finally gaining control of her runaway emotions. She went to the refrigerator and removed the salad and cruet of dressing she’d prepared earlier.

“Sure they do.”

“No, he won’t call me. He won’t want to have anything to do with me.”

“Okay, have it your way. So he won’t call you. But what if you see him somewhere?”

“I don’t know.” Once all the food was on the table, Eve sat across from her cousin. “I just hope, if I do see him, I don’t make a fool of myself.”

Olivia reached for the spaghetti server. “I’m glad I’m not in your shoes, hon.”

Eve reached for her napkin. I wish I wasn’t in them. The only thing she did know right now was that she had a lot to think about, and that she probably wouldn’t get much sleep tonight.

Her sins had finally caught up with her.

Twelve years earlier...

Eve kept looking at the clock on her bedside table. It was almost five. Her dad would be home from work any second. The minutes seemed to be going by so fast. Eight o’clock would be here before she knew it. She looked at her closed closet door. Her duffel bag was inside, on the top shelf. If she did go, the only way she could get it outside without her parents seeing it and asking questions would be to throw it out the window.

I can’t go. He shouldn’t have asked me to. If he really loved me, he’d stay here. He can write his music here.

Eve had gotten home from school early because the graduation practice was over by two o’clock. When she’d left the auditorium, it was raining, and she was glad her dad had told her to drive today. He was so kind that way, always thinking of her well-being. That was the thing Adam didn’t understand, because he didn’t have that kind of love and concern in his family. Oh, his mother loved him, Eve was sure she did, but Lucy Crenshaw worked two jobs to support her three boys, because her husband had abandoned his family, then been killed a year later. She wasn’t home to take care of Adam or his younger brothers. They pretty much had to take care of themselves, and that meant they’d been running wild for years.

What should I do?

Would Adam go without her? Eve couldn’t bear to even think that way. He’d said he loved her. Surely he wouldn’t leave her. Not after... She abruptly broke off the thought. Her heartbeat quickened just thinking about what she’d let happen last week. Her parents would die if they knew. They would never, not in a million years, believe Eve could do the things she had. Especially not with a boy like Adam Crenshaw. They wouldn’t even be able to believe she’d been seeing him, lying to them. They thought she was perfect. But Eve hadn’t been able to help herself. She’d fallen hopelessly in love with Adam from the moment he first spoke to her.

He loves me, too. He won’t go without me.

But what if he does? No. That wouldn’t happen. Because she couldn’t bear it if he left her.

But he swore he was going. If she did go—just if—her parents would get over it, wouldn’t they? They wouldn’t hate her forever. It wouldn’t be the end of the world, would it?

Just then, breaking into her tormented thoughts, Eve’s mother called, “Eve, honey, come help me set the table for supper.” Her parents always called their evening meal supper instead of dinner.

“Okay, Mom, coming,” Eve called back. I don’t have to decide now. I can wait till after supper when Dad falls asleep in the recliner and Mom is lost in her book. If she did decide to go, it would be easy to sneak her packed bag out then, to pop her head into the living room and say she was going to Walmart to look at some stuff for her college dorm room.

All through supper Eve was on pins and needles, as her mom always said. She could hardly eat because she was now thinking she was going to go. She just couldn’t take the chance that Adam would go without her. She couldn’t. She loved him too much. She’d given herself to him. How could she let him leave her?

On and on her thoughts went until she’d finally persuaded herself that her parents would get over her leaving, especially after Adam became successful, and he and Eve were married, and everything in their life was wonderful—just the way it was supposed to be. Even their names proved they were meant to be together. Adam and Eve. It was destiny.

Finally supper was almost over. Eve pushed her chair back. “I’ll wash the dishes tonight, Mom.”

“Wait, honey,” her mother said, looking at Eve’s dad.

Eve turned to her father, who was smiling at her.

“We have something for you, honey,” her mom said. “We wanted you to have it tonight so you could wear it tomorrow.” She got up and opened a cabinet drawer, the one she called her junk drawer because she tossed in everything that didn’t have its own place. Taking out a small box wrapped in gold paper with a gold ribbon, her mother sang softly, “Sunday’s child is bonny and blithe and good and gay,” as she handed the package to Eve. It was the verse she’d sung to Eve her entire life, because Eve was their miracle child, the child a forty-year-old Anna had despaired of ever having, the wondrous child born on the Sabbath day, a true gift from God.

“Happy graduation, sweetheart,” her dad said.

Eve’s heart constricted as she slowly removed the paper and opened the box. Inside, nestled in cotton, was a stunning gold heart pendant studded with rubies. “Oh,” she said, nearly speechless. “It—it’s so beautiful.”

“We’re so proud of you,” her mom said. “And I know it’s not your birthstone, but rubies represent love and mean good fortune for the person who wears them. You have an amazing future ahead of you.” Her mother’s smile said everything she was feeling as she gazed at Eve.

“You’ll be the first Cermak to go to college,” her dad said. His voice trembled with emotion.

“And to think you won such a wonderful scholarship,” her mother said. She reached over and squeezed Eve’s hand.

“You’re the best daughter anyone could ever have,” her dad said. “Never given us one moment’s worry.”

“And we know you’ll keep on making us proud,” her mother added tremulously.

Eve’s heart felt like a brick in her chest. How could she leave them without a word? How could she disappear on the eve of her high school graduation, abandon them and all they’d done for her and go off with a boy they knew absolutely nothing about, one they didn’t even know she was seeing? The shock, the scandal, the disappointment, the unbearable pain would kill them.

Later, in her room, when the clock read 8:00 p.m. and then eight ten and finally eight fifteen and Eve knew the bus was leaving Crandall Lake, she told herself Adam had changed his mind. That he would call her. That the phone would ring any second, and she would snatch it up and call out to her parents that it was for her, and he would say he just couldn’t do it. He couldn’t leave without her.

Wouldn’t he?

* * *

Adam spent most of his time at the hospital for the remainder of the week. And late Saturday afternoon, eight days after his mother’s heart attack, when her doctor said she could probably move over to the rehab center on Monday, Adam took a relieved breath and grinned at her. “So, Ma, you’re going to live.”

“We Crenshaws are tough,” his mother said softly.

Adam nodded. They were tough. Well, hell, they’d had to be. His father, Frank, had been a gambler and a drunk, and he’d abandoned his family when Adam was six, then been killed in a freak amusement park accident a year later. The former Lucy Costa, his unlucky wife, had waited tables by day and cleaned an office building by night to support herself and her three boys. And even then, it was a struggle.

“Heart problems run in my family, though,” Lucy added.

“Yeah, I know.”

“So you’d better take care of yourself or you’ll find yourself in the same boat one of these days.”

Adam nodded again. He’d heard this same lecture many times before. In fact, Lucy had gotten on the “good health, take care of yourself” boat every time she’d visited him over recent years.

“I do take care of myself, Ma.”

“Really? Do you exercise every day? Do you eat right? I never see you eat anything except pizza.”

“I eat all kinds of healthy stuff,” Adam protested. “And I work out all the time.” But he was mentally crossing his fingers, because he’d been slacking off lately. On both counts.

A few minutes later, Austin, followed by Aaron, entered the room, and Adam, after greeting his brothers and giving his mother a goodbye kiss, told them he was leaving for the day. “I promised Sally I’d drop into the homeless shelter tonight, maybe play some music for the guys there.” Sally was a favorite nurse of his mother’s and they’d struck up a friendship.

“Need me to come along?” Aaron asked. In addition to all the social media and publicity stuff Aaron did for Adam, he was also Adam’s right-hand man and main gofer, both at home and on the road. Adam had initially put him to work because Aaron needed something to keep him on the straight and narrow, but in the past few years Aaron had made himself invaluable, and Adam depended upon him for just about everything he couldn’t do himself.

“Nah. I’ll be fine. It’s only Crandall Lake.”

Aaron shrugged. “Okay. But give me a buzz if you need me.”

Adam said he would and left. He wasn’t worried about needing Aaron. So far the paparazzi had been pretty respectful of his mother’s illness and left Adam alone. Except for a few pictures on Instagram and Twitter, they’d found bigger fish to follow. Adam knew all that would change when he returned to his normal life, so he might as well enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasted.

He was looking forward to talking to and singing for the homeless people in the shelter. Except for a really lucky break at the end of his first month in Nashville, he might have ended up in a shelter himself. Down to his last few dollars—he’d even had to chuck his cell phone because he could no longer afford to pay for it—he’d finally gotten a producer to listen to his demo and give him a chance. That same producer had made a ton of money off him in the intervening years, and they’d remained good friends.

As Adam drove to the shelter, he thought about the songs he’d sing. And afterward, he’d have an early night at the hotel and a good night’s sleep. No drama, no groupies, no photographers chasing him.

And absolutely nothing to worry about.

Chapter Three

Eve couldn’t sit still. The kids should’ve come home tonight, but Bill had called early that morning and asked if he could keep them over the weekend because the Kelly family reunion was taking place in San Antonio and he wanted the twins to be there with him. Eve hadn’t wanted to agree, but how could she say no?

That was the biggest problem she had with Bill. He was always so reasonable she could never refuse him when he wanted something. Even if he hadn’t been reasonable, she owed him. Not that he ever said so, but the knowledge was always there, unspoken, between them.

I rescued you. You owe me.

She knew that was what he was thinking. And why shouldn’t he? She was thinking it, too. He had rescued her, and she did owe him. Even now, after nearly twelve years, she still felt grateful. In fact, she couldn’t imagine what her mother would say if she knew. Even thinking about the problem made Eve’s heart beat a little faster.

Her mother would never know. That secret was safe. Bill would certainly never tell anyone—it would be the last thing he’d ever want people to know—nor would she. They both had a huge stake in keeping their secret safe.

So she’d said yes to this weekend, even though he could have given her more warning. Surely he’d known about the reunion for weeks now. Why hadn’t he told her earlier? She would have insisted on keeping the twins last weekend in exchange.

That’s probably exactly why he didn’t tell you.

Eve knew this wasn’t a big deal. It was just that she hated weekends on her own. It would be different if she, too, had remarried and had other children, or at least a partner to go places with her. But she hadn’t. And the way things looked, she probably wouldn’t. After all, to get married meant you needed to be seeing someone, and she had no prospects on the horizon. Crandall Lake wasn’t exactly a dating mecca. And even though, at one time, she’d dreamed about moving to Austin or Houston or somewhere with a bigger newspaper, her dream had turned out to be only a fantasy. Bill’s business was here. So here she’d have to stay. She could not take the twins from their father.

Olivia had once suggested Eve might sign up for an online dating service.

“I don’t see you doing that,” Eve had said.

“I’m not ready” had been Olivia’s quiet answer.

Eve had been immediately sorry for her retort. At the time, her cousin had been still mourning her husband’s death.

“But it would be good for you, Eve.”

Eve knew Olivia had been right. Eve should be proactive if she didn’t want to remain single her entire life. She would be thirty in just a couple of months, and even though thirty wasn’t exactly old-maid territory, and lots of women today married later in life, mostly those women had interesting and successful careers. That wasn’t true of her. She worked for a small daily paper struggling to keep afloat with dwindling subscriptions and fewer advertisers. In fact, she’d been hearing rumors of layoffs.

Eve sighed, remembering that conversation. What was she going to do with herself this weekend? She was already bored and it was only six o’clock Saturday evening. There was nothing good on television, Olivia and Thea were in Dallas for the weekend and no one else that Eve knew was free. Her own mother was probably busy with a bridge tournament or something. Ironically, Anna seemed to have more of a social life than Eve ever had—or would have.

After another half hour of yawning and attempting to knit—she had learned this past year—Eve shoved the knitting back into the tote that housed her supplies and got up. “I’m going to the shelter,” she announced aloud. She’d begun volunteering at Crandall Lake’s homeless shelter six months earlier, and she’d found it very satisfying work. She’d even made friends of some of the women there. “Going to the shelter is better than sitting around feeling sorry for myself,” she muttered as she prepared to leave, “or thinking about Adam Crenshaw.”

She hadn’t heard otherwise, so she figured he was still in town. Given the level of interest in their town’s biggest celebrity, who had surpassed former pro quarterback Dillon Burke’s position as its most famous alumnus, she knew she would have heard if Adam had returned to Nashville.

Thirty minutes later, as she approached the shelter, her spirits had already improved. It always did her good to come here, made her count her blessings and remind her that despite her problems she was extremely fortunate. She shouldn’t ever complain, even to herself. Life could always be so much worse—and was for many. She and her children—in fact, her entire family, everyone she loved—was healthy and had a roof over their heads. What more could she ask for?

Vowing to do better, she walked into the building and saw that she had arrived too late to help serve dinner, but not too late to help clean up. Donning an apron, she joined the other volunteers and in short order they’d cleared all the dirty plates and cutlery.

“I guess you heard who’s coming tonight,” said Julianne, one of the teen volunteers.

Eve frowned. “Um, no. What do you mean?”

Julianne grinned. “Adam Crenshaw! Oh, c’mon. You knew!”

Eve shook her head. Her stupid heart had already started to gallop, just at the sound of his name. “No, I—I didn’t. When will he be here?”

“Any minute,” Julianne said. “He’s going to sing!” Her eyes shone with excitement.

Eve looked around wildly. Any minute! Up to now, she’d managed to avoid going anywhere she thought he might be. Oh, God, she had to get out of here. She knew it would look crazy to leave just ten or fifteen minutes after arriving, but she couldn’t stay. So what if the other volunteers gossiped about her? They’d forget about her as soon as Adam started singing. She began to remove her apron, but it was already too late, for the entire room started to buzz with anticipation as Adam walked through the dining room doorway.

Eve could feel herself trembling. Olivia had been right. He did look better in person. In fact, he looked gorgeous. She took in the black T-shirt with his band’s logo on the front, the tight jeans, the worn biker boots, his shining hair, the dimple that appeared as he smiled at the crowd.

An interviewer had once asked why he never wore cowboy boots or cowboy hats. His answer had been that he’d never been a cowboy and refused to pretend he was. “I’m just a musician,” he’d said, “who, a lot of the time, likes to write and sing country music.”

Adam. His name felt like a prayer.

She couldn’t take her eyes off him. But he hadn’t seen her. Thank God, he hadn’t seen her. Eve knew she couldn’t leave without causing a bit of commotion because there were too many people crowded into the room now. It seemed as if everyone who worked there, plus every person who lived there, had jammed themselves into the room.

She watched as he worked the crowd, shaking hands, signing autographs, allowing people to take pictures of him and selfies with him. He’d come a long way from the insecure boy who covered up his loneliness with fierce privacy and a facade of boredom.

“Hello, y’all,” he said now. “Thanks for inviting me to come visit and sing for you.”

The crowd yelled out their welcome.

Eve managed to maneuver herself to the back of the room while Adam tuned his guitar from the piano near the doors leading to the kitchen. A few minutes later, among cheers of approval, he launched into his signature hit—the first of his records to go platinum—“Impossible to Forget.”

“I told myself I didn’t care our love was in the past.

I told myself our promises were never meant to last.

But every day, in every way,

I fought heartache and regret,

The truth was there for all to see,

You were impossible to forget.”

As he sang, he seemed to be looking straight at her. Eve wanted to look away, but no matter how she tried, she couldn’t. She wondered what he was thinking as he sang. She had always wondered if he’d written the song about her. As their eyes locked, she struggled to contain her emotions. When she couldn’t, when tears filled her eyes, she knew she had to get out of there. And fast. So as the song finished, she used the boisterous crowd, many of whom jumped to their feet to applaud and call out other song titles they wanted Adam to sing, to hide her exit.

She headed straight for the back door, but when she got there, safely out of sight of the people in the dining room, she discovered it was locked for the night. She was going to have to go out the front. She would have to pass by Adam.

He had begun another song. Best to go now, while he was busy singing. Maybe she could make her escape without too much disturbance. Taking a deep breath, she turned toward the dining room.

* * *

About halfway through “Impossible to Forget” Adam realized the attractive blonde he was singing to—he always picked one person in the crowd with whom to have eye contact—was Eve. He hadn’t realized it at first because, after all, it had been twelve years since he’d seen her. At seventeen going on eighteen, she’d been wide-eyed, pretty and sweet looking, a girl who wore hardly any makeup and her fair hair in a ponytail. Now, at nearly thirty, she was a beautiful woman, classy and elegant.

Somehow, though, she’d disappeared during the hubbub after he’d finished “Impossible to Forget” and he’d been surprised—and a little disturbed—by how disappointed he was. As he began his second song, “Trouble is My Middle Name,” he told himself to forget her. She’d obviously not wanted to see him. And you didn’t want to see her, either, remember?

Then halfway through the song, he spied her again. This time she was coming from somewhere off to his left and it was clear she intended to leave because she was heading straight for the door. He made an instant decision not to let that happen. He quickly ended the song after the first chorus and before the notes from the final chord had died away, spoke into the mic, saying, “Eve! Eve Cermak!”

She stopped in midflight and slowly turned as a hush fell over the room. She stared at him.

He grinned. “I thought that was you.” He could see she knew she was trapped. Whether she wanted to talk to him or not, now she would have to.

“Hello, Adam,” she finally said. “I—I was trying to sneak out without disturbing anyone.”

“Yeah, I saw that.”

By now some of the bystanders had begun to murmur, and Adam knew tongues would soon be wagging. “Sorry, y’all,” he said, “but Eve and I are old friends from our high school days, and I didn’t want her to leave without saying hello to her.” He smiled at Eve again. “You don’t really have to go, do you? Why don’t you stay awhile and talk to me when I’m done here?”

He could see the conflict in her eyes. He knew she wanted to bolt. He also knew she probably wouldn’t, because if she did, tongues really would wag. After all, this was a small town. And he was the small-town hero, at least for today.

“I—I guess I could stay awhile,” she said faintly.

Someone moved over on one of the benches to offer her a seat.

Satisfied, Adam grinned, thanked everyone for their patience and began his third song, this time choosing “My Stars.”

And all the while he was singing, he kept his eyes on Eve. And to her credit, she didn’t once look away.

* * *

Eve knew she was trapped. She couldn’t leave now, not until Adam was finished, because if she did, everyone would see her. And they’d wonder, especially after he’d singled her out, why she was leaving. After all, every one of them would probably have given their firstborn to spend time with him, to be able to say they knew Adam Crenshaw. God, even Steve Winthrop, the director of the shelter, and who had been asking her out for months and whom she’d been attempting to let down easy because even though he was a nice guy, he was almost twenty years older than her, and she was not attracted to him, had seen and heard everything Adam had said to her. And Steve was giving her an odd look.

And then there was Alice Fogarty, the nutritionist who volunteered in the shelter’s kitchen, and who was a notorious gossip and neighbor of Eve’s mother. Alice was standing not two feet away, staring at her, avid curiosity on her face. She’d seen and heard the entire exchange, too. Eve could just imagine what that busybody would have to say about all of this tomorrow, especially what she’d gleefully report to Eve’s mother.

Oh, God.

If Eve’s mother ever found out the truth—the fallout, the consequences, didn’t bear thinking about.

Oh, yes, Eve was definitely trapped. She would have to stand here and smile and act as if she was enjoying the entertainment until the very end. And then she would have to talk to Adam just as if he were merely an old classmate of hers. Could she do it? Whether she could or she couldn’t, she would have to. She had no choice.

So she stood there.

And she smiled.

And she pretended to be enjoying herself.

And all the while, inside, she was quaking.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was—in reality—only about thirty more minutes, Adam said he would be happy to take a few questions, and let people take more pictures if they wanted to, but then he needed to go.

Hands immediately flew up. Adam chuckled and called on a skinny young man sitting near the front of the room.

“Did you always know you wanted to be in the music business?” the young man asked.

Adam nodded. “Yep. From the moment I held my first guitar when I was twelve years old.”

Eve remembered how he’d once told her that guitar had changed his life. How he’d found a crumpled-up, dirty twenty-dollar bill near the sewer at the end of his street and how he’d hidden it and added to it doing every odd job he could find until he had enough money to buy the guitar from a local pawnshop. How he’d even taken it to bed with him because he was afraid one of his brothers would mess with it, maybe even break it, if he didn’t.

“Did you always write your own music?” the young man continued.

“Yeah, I did. Of course, the early attempts weren’t very good. I thought everything needed to rhyme and you can’t imagine the goofy stuff I came up with. I remember one song where I used dastard and bastard and mustard!”

The entire room burst into laughter. Even Eve had to laugh, although her insides were still trembling with nerves.

“I’d love to hear that one,” the young man said when the room quieted down.

“Oh, no,” Adam said. “I wouldn’t do that to anybody. That song was pretty awful.”

A middle-aged woman that Eve didn’t recognize called out, “We’re all proud of you, Adam. One of our own making it big.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” he said. “I’ve been lucky.”

“It ain’t luck, son,” an older man Eve knew by the name of Joshua said. “It’s pure grit and determination.”

“And talent!” said Marcy Winters, the choir director of St. Nicholas Catholic Church, where Eve was a member.

Adam answered a few more questions, allowed a couple dozen more pictures to be taken, then began to pack up his guitar while people milled around him. Finally he managed to extricate himself, and he headed in Eve’s direction. Eve knew all eyes in the room were on them as he reached her side and smiled down at her.

“Would you like to go have coffee with me or something?” he asked quietly.

What I want is to run out of here as fast as my legs can carry me and go home and hide. “Sure,” she said, hoping she looked calmer than she felt. “Sounds good.”

A few minutes later, outside in the balmy night air, she suggested they walk over to Dinah’s Diner on the town square.

“Dinah’s Diner is a new one on me,” Adam said.

“It only opened about three years ago. Dinah Campbell—you may have known her as Dinah Bloom—took over the old Burger Shack space.”

“I remember that place.”

Eve nodded. She knew he would. Burger Shack had been the hangout of choice for teenagers when they were in school. Not that Adam and Eve had ever gone there. No way they could have kept their relationship secret if they had.

Of course, Adam hadn’t been the one who’d wanted to keep it secret. That was all her doing. She hadn’t wanted to tell him, but she’d been forced to, that her parents would never permit her to see him.

“Do you always do everything your parents tell you to do?” he’d asked.

It had embarrassed her to admit it, but she’d been honest and said, “Yes, I do.”

“Yet you’re lying to them now,” had been his rejoinder, “so you don’t always do what they say, do you?”

She still remembered the way he’d looked at her when he’d said it. Even then, as inexperienced and naive as she was, she’d known it was going to be very hard to ever say no to him.

Dinah’s was only about half-full when they got there, but the low buzz when they entered the place told Eve every single person there knew exactly who Adam was and, before long, they’d know who she was, too, if they didn’t already.

One of the booths that lined the windows facing the street was empty and Adam suggested they take it. As the waitress—a cute teenager named Liz whom Eve knew from church—approached, he said, “I’m starving, so I’m gonna order food. How ’bout you?”

Eve had only picked at the chicken salad she’d had for dinner. “I could eat a cheeseburger. They’re really good here.”

“Let’s go for it,” he said, smiling.

That dimple of his would be her undoing. Or maybe she was already undone. After all, she was here with him, wasn’t she?

They both ordered the cheeseburgers and a basket of rosemary fries to share. “Rosemary fries?” he said in mock disbelief.

“Just because we’re a small town doesn’t mean we’re hicks,” Eve said, grinning.

“They’re really good,” the waitress, who was obviously starstruck, said.

Once she was gone, he leaned back and smiled at Eve. “You’ve grown into a beautiful woman, Eve,” he said softly.

Eve knew she was blushing. She could feel the heat warming her cheeks. “Thank you.” She ducked her head. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

He made a face. “Yeah, sexiest man alive. Did you hear?”

“I did.”

He shook his head. “What bull.”

“I don’t think it is.”

“Really? You think I’m sexy?” He struck a pose. “I could do that old Rod Stewart song.”

But she didn’t rise to the bait. Instead, she said quietly, “I always did.”

The words seemed to float between them in air that was suddenly charged with emotions struggling to surface. For a long moment, neither of them spoke, then both spoke at the same time.

“Eve, why didn’t you—?”

“Adam, I’m sorry I—”

They stopped, and he said, “You go first.”

Eve took a deep breath. “I just wanted you to know I’m sorry I never got to say goodbye.”

His eyes locked with hers. They were a shade of gray that always made her think of rainy streets. “I wasn’t surprised you didn’t show up that night.”

Because she didn’t know what to say to that statement, she said nothing. Out of the corner of her eye, she spied their waitress coming with their food anyway, so it was better to stay quiet, at least for now.

As if he knew they’d neared territory better left alone, he began to eat, and for a while, they didn’t talk at all. Then someone fed the jukebox and “Love Me Tender” began to play.

“One of my all-time favorite songs,” Adam said between bites.

“Mine, too,” Eve said. Their eyes once again met. The expression in his made her heart trip. She couldn’t believe he still had the power to make her feel this way. It was almost as if twelve years had gone up in smoke. Or had never been.

Just as Adam opened his mouth to say something, Eve sensed someone standing nearby. She looked up and saw Joe Ferguson, the mayor of Crandall Lake.

“Just thought I’d stop by and say hello,” Ferguson said. “I’ve been hoping I’d have the chance to welcome one of our most famous sons back to town.” He stuck out his hand. “Joe Ferguson, mayor of our fair city.”

Adam wiped his hand on his napkin and shook Ferguson’s. “Nice to meet you.”

“I hear you were over at the shelter tonight, entertaining the troops,” Ferguson said. His florid face looked even redder under the bright lights of the diner.

“Yes, I stopped by.”

“I was hopin’ maybe I could persuade you to come to the Rotary Club meetin’ on Tuesday, give us a little concert there.”

“Um, I’m not sure I can. I’ll have to see how my mother’s doing,” Adam hedged.

Eve couldn’t stand Joe Ferguson. He was one of those politicians who’d been in office way too long but seemed impossible to unseat. He had a vastly inflated opinion of himself and seemed oblivious to the fact a lot of people didn’t share that view.

“Sure, I understand. Well, you can let me know on Monday. And if Tuesday doesn’t work out, we can find another date.”

All this time Ferguson had acted as if Eve wasn’t there, not that she minded. But Adam noticed, for he said, “I don’t know if you’ve met Eve Cermak—”

“Eve Kelly,” Eve corrected. “And Mayor Ferguson and I know each other from church.”

“Yeah, of course,” Ferguson said. “I see you at St. Nick’s all the time.”

Now Eve noticed someone else approaching their table. She looked at Adam, telegraphing her wish to leave, and it worked, for he immediately said, “You know, we really need to get going. I’m planning on going back to the hospital tonight and it’s getting late.”

“Oh, sure. No problem,” Ferguson said. He fished in his shirt pocket and pulled out a card. “My cell number is on that. You can call me about Tuesday night either tomorrow or Monday. Try to come, okay? All the guys are wantin’ to meet you.”

“Is it just me or is he kind of obnoxious?” Adam said after they’d made their escape.

“He’s definitely obnoxious,” Eve said, laughing. “I couldn’t wait to get away from him.”

They were outside on the sidewalk now. Adam looked around. “Where’s your car?”

“I walked to the shelter.”

“Really? Where do you live?”

“Over on Maple Avenue, just off Center Street. It’s not far.”

“It’s far enough. I’ll walk you home.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“Eve, it’s nine o’clock. It’s dark. I’m not letting you walk by yourself.”

“It’s perfectly safe. I walk at night all the time. You’ve been living in the big city too long, Adam. You’ve forgotten what small-town life is like.”

“I don’t care. I’m still walking you home.”

“But you said you have to go back to the hospital.”

“I lied. I just wanted to get away from your esteemed mayor.”

“He’s not my esteemed mayor. I haven’t voted for him in either of the past two elections.”

“Whatever. I don’t have to go to the hospital, and I am walking you home.”

Because it was obvious nothing she could say was going to change his mind, and she didn’t want to argue with him, Eve shrugged and said, “Okay, fine.” But down deep, she knew these weren’t the only reasons she was letting him have his way.

Whether it was wise or not, she wasn’t ready to say goodbye.

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