All I Need (Hearts of the South) Page 8

  “You know he’s married, right?”

  “I do.” She opened her mouth to say to my sister but the shrill ring of her phone forestalled her. She dug it out of her purse. Amy, probably to hurry her along. Fine. She didn’t want to be involved in this conversation anyway. Let him stew in it. She narrowed her eyes at Emmett. “I have to go.”

  “That’s it?” He pushed up from the chair. A scowl twisted his features. “That’s all you have to say to me?”

  “Trust me. You don’t want to hear what I have to say.” She spun and stalked to her car.

  “Savannah.” She wasn’t sure if that was an entreaty or a command, and she didn’t care.

  Screw that noise. Ignoring him, she sank behind the wheel and slammed the door harder than she should. She backed out of her spot and wheeled around to the entrance. She hooked the left, making sure the turn was smooth and easy. He wasn’t worth squealing tires.

  Somehow she managed to keep the fury under control through picking up her sister and listening to Amy chatter all the way to Valdosta. Maybe she looked normal, because beyond asking how she felt, Amy didn’t comment on the previous night’s events, and her little sister knew. Rob told her everything.

  Savannah seriously wanted to throw something.

  Being on I-75 for the ten miles from Valdosta to Lake Park let her open the throttle, and the speed gave her an outlet. The choked traffic that characterized the Lake Park exit forced her to slow down, and she stayed within the posted limits as they made their way home, through the subdivision full of sprawling ranch homes that fronted the lake or the golf course. Familiar oak trees curved over their parents’ brick ranch, the white shutters and large windows sparkling in the morning sun. She took the turn into the drive too fast, one tire bumping over the curb and her father’s precious cedar ground cover. On a deep inhale, she flexed her hands on the steering wheel and killed the engine.

  Amy glanced at her over the roof as they climbed out of the car. “Do you want to tell me what’s bothering you?”

  Really? She was asking now, when they had to go in that house and play perfect daughters? Savannah slung her bag higher on her shoulder and smiled. “Emmett thinks I’m fucking Rob.”

  “What?” Amy’s eyes widened, then mirth filled them. “That is hilarious. Hilarious, but totally eww.”

  “I’m glad you find it so entertaining.” Savannah, for one, didn’t see any humor in the situation. “And ‘totally eww’ is the best you can do? I hate when you turn into some Disney Channel preteen princess.”

  “Being mean to me isn’t going to solve your problems, Savannah.” Amy regarded her steadily.

  “I don’t have a problem.” Savannah walked up the path to the front door, her heels clicking against the spotless concrete. “Actually, I think I just got rid of one.”

  Amy’s silence behind her was worse than any reply. Savannah punched in the four-digit code on the deadbolt keypad and swung the door open. The immaculate living room was empty, the golf course an emerald oasis beyond the sliding glass doors and the glistening pool. She followed the quiet sound of voices through the formal dining room to the kitchen. Chairs close together, her parents sat at the breakfast table across from her grandmother. The aroma of fresh coffee hovered in the air.

  She pasted on the smile that had gotten her all the way to third-runner-up in the Miss Georgia pageant and had helped her win countless smaller pageants with scholarship money attached. “Good morning.”

  “Girls.” Her mother’s face lit up, as did her grandmother’s. That welcome lightened the tightness in her chest somewhat. “You’re early.”

  “Speeding again, Savannah?” Her father laid aside a medical journal and peered at her over the top of his wire-rims.

  “No.” She gripped the handle of her bag, then relaxed her fingers. “Only light traffic.”

  “That means we don’t have to rush on the way down to Jasper, then.” Her mother rose, an affectionate hand lingering a moment on their father’s shoulder. Savannah glanced away, the simple act of commitment hitting her the same way Rob’s casual arm around Amy’s shoulders sometimes did, out of nowhere. The emptiness had to go away sooner or later, right? “Mother, I’ll get our bags.”

  “How is the hospital takeover going?” Her father’s voice pulled her attention back, and she turned to find her grandmother’s insightful gaze on her. The love and concern in that expression made her want to weep, to climb in Grandmother’s lap like she was a little girl again.

  “Very well.” She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “The place is horribly short in terms of nursing staff, but the ones there are excellent.”

  “You know you always have a place with me.”

  She almost smiled. He never missed an opportunity to remind her of that, and truly, she knew it indicated his pride in her. But work with him every day?

  There wasn’t enough alcohol in the world.

  “James, leave the girl alone.” Grandmother shook her head at him. “You’d both be miserable, and she’s doing good work in that ER.”

  “Amy, how about Robert’s new position? You could have brought him along today, you know. We could have played a round or two.”

  Lord bless him, he did try.

  Her phone buzzed in her purse, and she let Amy’s bright voice wash over her. She tugged it free and glanced at the screen.

  Need to talk.

  Oh, hell no. They did not. She dropped the rectangle back in its slot. Emmett Beck had said quite enough to her for one day. ERs were hotbeds of gossip and intrigue. Her name had been linked, erroneously, more than once to this doctor, that nurse, those cops. Not once had Gates entertained not trusting her.

  “Here we go.” Her mother bustled in, carrying both purses as well as a couple of large, fancy gift bags. “Ready?”

  “Sure.” Savannah stepped forward. “Let me help you with those.”

  Soon, the gift bags were safely tucked in the trunk with her and Amy’s gifts. With everyone buckled in, Savannah navigated the curvy subdivision and headed west on Lakes Boulevard Highway toward I-75. The red light before the exit caught her, and her phone buzzed again. Tempted not to look, she checked it anyway.

  Be reasonable.

  Unbelievable heat flushed her neck. Reasonable? Was he kidding with that?

  The light flared green. She crossed the bridge and took the left onto the ramp to merge into traffic. The Mercedes easily caught up to road speed, and she signaled to shift into the fast lane. She could theoretically do ten over the limit without getting stopped.

  “Is there a reason we’re setting a new ground speed record?” Her mother’s gentle voice drifted from the back seat. God, Savannah hated that knowing note in it, too.

  She checked the speedometer and backed off a couple of miles per hour. Anger pulsed in her throat, and she wanted to cry. “Because men are stupid.”

  “No, one man was stupid,” Amy said quietly.

  “They can’t help it sometimes.” A wry tone colored Grandmother’s words. “It’s in their jeans.”

  A bark of bitter laughter burst from Savannah’s lips. “Their jeans or genes?”

  “Both.”

  Her mother laid a loving hand on her shoulder. “What happened, darling?”

  Blinking back tears, she let the whole story tumble out, from the shooting to Rob’s coming to check on her to Emmett’s crazy suspicions.

  Amy twisted sideways in her seat. “Why didn’t you just tell him who Rob was?”

  “You called me.”

  Amy’s mouth firmed. “The real reason, Savannah.”

  Why did Amy always do that? Savannah hated it. She flexed her hands on the wheel again and set her jaw, lips closed. She couldn’t very well say that having him angry meant an excuse to keep him at a distance.

  “Do you care about him?” Trust Grandmother to cut right to the point.

  Savannah glanced in the rearview mirror, meeting eyes identical to her own. Those eyes were lined with experience, and she coul
d trust that experience, trust the love warming that brown gaze. “As a friend? Maybe.”

  “If he’s only a friend,” her mother said, “you wouldn’t be this upset. You care what he thinks.”

  And why exactly had she thought talking to them was a good idea?

  “Maybe it’s time to move forward.” Amy covered Savannah’s hand on the gearshift.

  “Move forward?” Savannah moved her hand back to the wheel and shot a glare at her sister. Was there an anger deeper than fury? “You mean, forget Gates? Replace him?”

  “No. Nobody can do that, and we both know it.” Amy twisted her wedding rings around her finger. “I mean, allow yourself to be loved again, the way you deserve.”

  Savannah sketched a sharp gesture between them. “There is no love in this equation.”

  “Because you won’t allow it, if the possibility is there.”

  “Can we drop this, please?” She almost missed the Jasper exit and cut two lanes of traffic to make it.

  “No.” Her mother brooked no argument. “You need to hear these things, and you have never shied away from anything difficult. Moving forward is the hardest thing you’ll ever do because it requires you to take the last steps to heal. I am so sorry you lost Gates, darling. I know you loved him, but you cannot bury yourself with him, as badly as you want to.”

  “Mom, please.” Her voice cracked on the word. “I cannot do this. I cannot do this and walk into that shower and pretend to be perfect and whole and okay.”

  “Darling, no one expects you to be perfect and whole and okay. We all know a part of your heart is gone. We simply want to see you heal and live again.”

  Thankfully, silence settled on the remainder of the drive. She was near tears as it was, and anything further was going to push her back into those big ugly sobs from the night before.

  Their Aunt Mary’s yard overflowed with vehicles and blue balloons festooned the stately mailbox. Savannah parked along the curb and drew a steadying breath before joining her family on the walkway to the front door. Her mother wrapped an arm around her and rubbed a comforting hand between her shoulder blades. Savannah leaned into her.

  Inside, garlands of sky blue and pale brown announced the forthcoming arrival of Charles Adam, their cousin Jen’s first child. Savannah darted a glance at Amy, but if she felt anything other than happiness and enthusiasm for Jen’s impending motherhood, it didn’t show on her lovely face. And since Amy was usually an open book, maybe Rob was right and they’d be okay if the parenthood thing never panned out.

  Savannah avoided the array of goodies on the dining room table. Tension gripped her stomach and chest, and the idea of eating made her fear vomiting. She sipped at a cup of Tiffany blue punch with a pineapple bite to it and listened to the women chatting around her. The mundane conversations about family and hobbies soothed some of the stress.

  “Savannah, Amy! It’s good to see you!” Jen’s sister Cathy slipped into the chair across from them. Under the table, Amy gripped Savannah’s thigh in a brace-yourself-and-behave message.

  “Cathy.” Savannah flashed her best pageant smile and noted with amusement that Amy bore a similar expression. The other woman was family, but that didn’t negate the fact she was a shallow little witch. She and Savannah had done pageants together once upon a time, and Cathy still held grudges over losses that were more than a decade old. At least when Savannah nursed a grudge, it involved something that mattered.

  Like the guy she’d considered sleeping with implying she was the type of woman who’d screw a married man.

  “How are you?” Cathy popped a grape in her mouth.

  “Well, thank you.” Savannah lifted her cup in a salute. “You?”

  “Wonderful, thanks for asking.” Cathy clasped her hands and propped them under her chin, the better for them to see the new, improved, and much larger diamond paired with her wedding band. “Jeff got a promotion to VP of quality control, and the kids are so wonderful. Laurel is taking jazz and tap this year, and Grace is still doing gymnastics and swimming. I’m so busy I don’t know how I do it most days. How about you? Amy, did Rob ever find a new job?”

  At the clear jibe, Savannah tightened her fingers around her cup. Wonder how long it would take their mother to forgive them if Savannah stabbed her with Amy’s dessert fork?

  “He did.” Amy pleated her napkin with steady fingers. “He’s been with the Chandler Sheriff’s Department for a little over a year.”

  “That’s wonderful. What about the baby front? Mama said y’all were having some fertility issues. What’s going on with that? The issue’s with Rob, right?” At Cathy’s words, Amy’s strangled intake of breath rang in Savannah’s ears. Cathy turned her wide smile on Savannah. “And I want to hear all about you too, Savannah. Are you dating again yet? You know, you can’t hide from life forever.”

  She was going to kill her for real. Fighting down the murderous anger, she set her cup aside and mirrored Cathy’s pose, chin rested on her hands. She mimicked the avaricious smile, but pitched her voice low enough that no one near them would hear, which was more than she could say for Cathy. “How about your sex life, Cath? So how often are you and Jeff fucking? I mean, how satisfied are you?”

  Cathy reddened and slid back her chair. She snatched up her plate and moved on to sit with two of their male cousins’ wives.

  Amy puffed out a shaky laugh. “You know all those times I said I hated you?”

  “Yes.” Savannah sipped her punch, trying to cool the fury still tightening her throat. The nerve. The absolute nerve.

  “I take it all back.” Shoulders shaking with giggles, Amy grabbed Savannah’s hand. Savannah wound their fingers together and clung to Amy’s warmth. “You have no idea how much I love you right this moment.”

  “She picked the wrong day, Ames.” In the past, they’d simply laughed off Cathy and her veiled hatefulness, but not today. “I am not in the mood to play nice.”

  Chapter Six

  Emmett really needed to get out, to get away from the thoughts rattling around in his head. He’d never been so glad to get an invite to watch football in his life. Hopefully a few hours watching Georgia and Alabama play, cringing over Georgia losing, and unwinding with Clark would help him get his mind straight.

  Clark probably needed it too. After he’d picked Emmett up, he’d related the story of someone shooting at an ambulance again the night before. This time, two medics—a couple of really good guys—had been injured.

  Eyes closed, Emmett slumped in the passenger seat of Clark’s truck and tried to relax. Against his eyelids, the image of Savannah running into Bennett’s arms played over and over—Savannah clinging to Bennett, the other man lowering his head to murmur in her ear. Emmett kept his eyes closed, though. Might as well let it play out. Once he’d cooled down a little, he’d texted her but had gotten no response. She wasn’t talking to him, and maybe that was a good thing.

  The vehicle slowed, and he lifted his lashes, blinking against bright sunlight. He frowned at the cheerful yellow Craftsman before them as Clark pulled to a stop in the driveway. “Where are—”

  The question died in his throat. He recognized that white F-150. Renewed rage burned through him, heating his chest and the nape of his neck. Eyes narrowed, he glared at Clark. “Take me home.”

  “What?” Clark killed the engine and pulled his keys from the ignition.

  “I don’t know why we’re here, but take me home.”

  “We’re here to watch the game with Bennett and Troy Lee.” Clark frowned. “What is with you?”

  Emmett flicked a finger toward the house. “I am not watching anything with that cheating asshole.”

  “Bennett cheating?” Clark actually laughed, which only fueled Emmett’s ire. “Are you nuts?”

  “I saw him with my neighbor last night. I mean it, Clark. Take me home.” An engine rumbled behind them, and Troy Lee’s Jeep turned in. Emmett groaned.

  “Quit being stupid and get out of the truck.” Clark st
epped out.

  Emmett closed his eyes a moment then reached for the door handle. Troy Lee would have to move before they could back out anyway. Damn it. He slammed the truck door behind him.

  “Hey.” Troy Lee hefted his sleeping toddler from the baby seat in the Jeep. “What’s up?”

  Clark tucked his hands in his back pockets and rocked on his heels. “Emmett thinks Bennett is cheating with his neighbor.”

  “Your neighbor?” With a slight frown, Troy Lee grabbed a backpack with his free hand and nudged the door closed. “What makes you think that?”

  “I saw them together.” Emmett glowered at his friends. “Do we have to stand here and deconstruct this?”

  “The last one of your neighbors I met was the old lady next door who cussed me out for parking my patrol car in her spot. Somehow I don’t see Bennett screwing up his marriage for her.”

  Nice that Troy Lee thought this was funny. Emmett scowled. “I saw him with Savannah, all right? She moved in a couple weeks back and works over at the ER. It was pretty apparent they were close.”

  “Savannah Mills? Really?” Troy Lee quirked an eyebrow, completely unperturbed. He rubbed his hand up and down Christopher’s back. “Let’s go ask him.”

  Shit. Could this get worse? Reasoning with Troy Lee was impossible when he was on a mission. Besides, if Emmett refused to go in, he’d come off like a two-year-old who needed a nap.

  He was about as irritable as one anyway.

  Troy Lee rapped once on the side door and let himself in. “Hey, Rob.”

  “In the living room.”

  Miserable, mad, and completely at their mercy, Emmett followed Clark and Troy Lee through the small laundry room, through a bright, open kitchen and dining area to a living room that under other circumstances would be warm and welcoming.

  “Hey. Pregame just started.” In the process of hanging photos on one wall, Bennett glanced over his shoulder at them. His gaze tracked over them, and concern pulled his brows together. “What’s going on?”

  Troy Lee set his backpack next to the coffee table and settled into the plush leather chair. He adjusted a drowsy Christopher against his shoulder. “Apparently, Emmett’s pissed over your relationship with Savannah.”