Читать книгу Single Dads Collection - Lynne Marshall - Страница 50

“This isn’t a sight I thought I’d see.”

Noah sat on the stool next to Sam as Gray handed over two bottles of a local brew.

“I didn’t plan on being here tonight,” Noah confessed. “Emma is at a sleepover, though, so I don’t have much else to do.”

That was a total lie. He’d planned on staying in Lucy’s bed all night. He’d planned on getting to know her more, opening up and explaining how much his feelings had grown. She’d shown him how it was to move on, to help others through grief. Lucy was fabulous with Emma, she was giving to him, and she was so damn sexy he ached knowing he’d never have her again.

Noah had been gone for an hour and he was already wondering if he’d made a colossal mistake. Should he have stayed and talked this out? Maybe, but knowing she didn’t want him in her bed, rather than some guest bed, was hurtful. He wasn’t a guest, damn it. Or maybe he was, but he thought they were so much more.

“Problems with Lucy?” Sam asked, still staring at his bottle.

“We’re just friends.”

A friend he could still taste on his lips. A friend who had worked her way into his heart, into his daughter’s heart.

“Is that so?” Gray asked with a cocky side grin. “She just walked in with Tara and Kate.”

Noah jerked his head over his shoulder, and Gray’s laughter mocked him. Lucy was nowhere in sight, and neither were her friends.

“That’s what I thought,” Gray said, leaning over and resting his forearms on the bar. “So what’s the deal?”

Noah turned back on his stool and reached for his beer. He took a hearty drink, welcoming the wheat flavor and the spices on the back end.

“We attempted more, but that didn’t work out,” he admitted. “That’s all.”

“That’s all.” Sam let out a low laugh. “Nothing with women is ever that simple. Even after a year apart, Tara and I still aren’t simple and, according to the courts, we should be because it’s over.”

Noah had honestly never seen a man so devastated. “Well, Lucy and I have only known each other a short time. We just had a whirlwind…relationship. Now it’s over.”

“Relationship,” Gray repeated. “Whatever you call it, you look like hell.”

Noah picked up his bottle and did a mock salute. “Ironically, I feel like hell.”

The two men tapped their beer bottles to his, then took a swallow. Before any of them could say anything, Gray got called away to a group of females at the other end of the bar. To Noah, they seemed flirty, and he already knew Gray had just enough charm to appease the group of giggling girls. From the looks of them, he surmised they were celebrating a twenty-first birthday.

Noah turned his attention back to Sam. “How long were you married?”

“Not long.” Sam started to peel the label from the bottle. “A couple of years. We married right before Marley was born, which was a mistake. Marrying because of a baby is never the solution.”

Noah wouldn’t know. He’d fallen in love, married, then had a baby. But he would never knock someone else’s life choices. Whatever worked for them.

“Not to pry, but have you told her how you feel?”

Sam laughed. “She’s aware. We got married too soon, weren’t really in love…at least that’s what she says. I was—I am—in love with her.”

Noah’s heart clenched. He couldn’t deny that he was feeling something rather strong for Lucy, too. Love? Hell, he wasn’t sure, but what he felt was so much more than just friendship.

What should he do about it?

Did he wait on her? Did he wait around and see if she was truly ready? At what point did he move on himself?

Who the hell was he kidding? He didn’t want to move on. He’d lost his wife and he’d never thought he’d crawl out from that dark hole. Then he’d met Lucy and there’d been light in his life again. The light was still there, still shining, but he was still alone.

“Fight for her.”

Noah thought he heard Sam wrong. His voice was barely audible over the bass-heavy music pervading the bar.

“If you want Lucy, fight for her,” Sam stated. “She’s amazing. I don’t know your whole story, but… Hell, who am I to give advice on relationships?”

Noah took another pull of his beer. “I lost my wife and our ranch about eight months ago. I have a four-year-old daughter. She’s pretty taken with Lucy. Those two are… They’re so alike and get along like they’re long-lost friends. Lucy is so good with her.”

“Having kids makes things so much more complicated,” Sam stated. “They can also make things so clear, too.”

“I can’t imagine how you deal with an ex and a child.” Noah finished off his beer and set the bottle on the bar. “If you want Tara back, why don’t you just make her see why?”

Sam continued to toy with the label. “We’re pretty complicated. I was offered a job in Nashville. Thinking about taking it and leaving Stonerock.”

Noah leaned his elbows on the bar. “Does Tara know?”

“Not yet. Haven’t decided what I’m doing. Marley is the major factor. I don’t want to make things difficult for her, but staying here isn’t good for me, either.”

“I had to leave Texas, so I get where you’re coming from.” Noah caught Gray’s attention and motioned him over for another beer. “You have to do what’s best to keep moving forward.”

Sam let out a laugh. “I just hang here to talk with Gray. I’m not really some sappy drunk who’s lost all hope.”

“Didn’t think you were.”

“Others do,” he replied. “Not that I care. Gray is a good friend and I figure if I can hang here and give him my business, it’s a win-win.”

Gray slid another beer across to Noah. “You ladies done sharing life stories?”

“For now,” Noah told him.

“You want to know how to get to Lucy?” Gray asked. “She’s a simple person, really. Nobody has actually tried to do things for her. She’s always putting herself out there for everyone else.”

Noah nodded. That was the crux of the entire situation. She wanted to be the one person for everyone else, but couldn’t let one person be everything for her.

“I’ve already figured that out,” Noah replied. “Trying to get that woman to see that is like beating my head against the wall.”

Gray rested his palms on the bar top. “Don’t give up on her.”

Noah didn’t say anything. What could he say? He wasn’t the one who had given up. He’d just gotten to the point where he truly wanted to try a relationship and expose his most vulnerable side and Lucy hadn’t removed that steel barrier she’d had in place for the past two years.

At this point all he could do was move on with the life he’d started here with Emma. Seeing Lucy at work would hurt. Hearing her voice over the radio would be crushing. But he couldn’t make her see that they could heal each other. She had to find that resolution herself.

“We have a report of an armed robbery in progress at Stonerock Bank.”

He’d been right. Hearing Lucy’s voice over his radio was gut-wrenching. Noah had given her a brief hello when he’d come into work; that had been the extent of their conversation. For the past week they’d been cordial, just like coworkers should be. But now they weren’t even acting like coworkers. They had back-tracked to that awkward stage, almost like strangers.

They weren’t strangers, though. They had been lovers. They knew each other’s secrets, their fears.

Noah had to admit it. The woman had him tied up in knots. But right now, with her voice over his radio, he had a robbery to focus on.

“One report from a teller says there’s only one man, but she says he’s armed,” Lucy went on. “She was in the bathroom when she heard him come in and demand money, so she hasn’t seen a weapon. She’s locked herself in and her phone is still on. I can hear the suspect, but I can’t make out what he’s saying.”

Adrenaline pumping, Noah put on his lights and siren. If a perp was wielding a gun or any weapon, there were people in danger. Noah only hoped the perp wasn’t under the influence of something, because guns and drugs made for a dangerous combo. He’d only dealt with a handful of armed robberies in Texas, but thankfully they’d all ended peacefully.

Noah pulled into the lot at the same time McCoy pulled in. This was the early bank that opened at seven to get businesses started for the day. Noah’s shift only had an hour left, but he already knew this situation would take longer than sixty minutes.

“I’m on the scene,” McCoy checked in through the radio.

“I’m here, too,” Noah added. “The blinds are still closed.”

“The teller said she thinks he forced his way in with one of the workers,” Lucy informed them. “The lobby isn’t open yet.”

That would make sense. Get in when all of the nightly bank bags were waiting for the morning deposits.

Noah surveyed the parking lot, looking for an accomplice or a getaway car. The sun was barely on the horizon, but he didn’t see any unusual cars. Just a couple parked in the employee section. Still, he scanned the street. The rest of the nearby businesses were still closed, for which he was grateful. If this robber ran out with a gun, at least the streets were still bare.

Movement in the window caught Noah’s eye. “The suspect just shifted the blinds,” he said in his radio. “He is holding a gun.”

“I’ve got more units en route,” Lucy informed him. “Be careful.”

She’d never said those words before and Noah knew full well she was talking directly to him. He also knew McCoy and all the other units had heard her, but she’d let him know she cared. There might be hope.

Noah didn’t reply. He needed to stay in this moment and make sure all those inside got out unharmed.

While McCoy called the bank hoping to get an answer, Noah kept watch on the side of the building. From this angle he could see the back and front entrances and he’d know if either of the doors opened. No movement made him nervous. That meant the gunman was still in the bank. Hopefully the suspect wouldn’t catch the teller in the bathroom. They needed her eyes on the inside. She was their only lifeline between him and Lucy.

The back door eased slightly open and Noah remained behind the open door of his patrol car. His gun in hand and resting on the top of the door, he kept his eyes focused on the back. He could see McCoy get into position from the side, as well. Another unit pulled up by McCoy, instantly getting ready.

Noah knew Lucy was on the other end of that radio, but the line was completely silent. Right now, time seemed to stand still as he waited to see who had opened that door.

“Movement in the back,” McCoy stated into the radio.

The door opened farther at the same time that Captain St. John pulled in beside Noah. There were several officers on the scene, but right now they were still at the mercy of the suspect.

“I’ve lost contact with the teller,” Lucy stated.

Noah prayed whoever was on the other side of that door was a hostage trying to escape. Just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw an arm snake around the door, then he heard shots fired…and his world went black.