Storm Warning

CHAPTER Fourteen





“Order up!”

Those words alone were enough to have Tory grinding her teeth. It was time for a new job. She had already changed so much, she reflected as she refilled coffee cups.

She’d had her hair whacked off until it stopped at her chin, bought a useless dog she’d dubbed Chaos, and was fixing up her parent’s house one board at a time.

She slept there as well. It was hard at first, being alone there. However, as time went on, three months to be exact, it got easier and easier. Now, with the kitchen in its final stages and one bathroom complete, she felt more at home there.

“Miss, I need a refill.”

She pasted on a sorry excuse for a smile and made her way over to the annoying local, obligingly holding his empty coffee cup up in the air. Tory recognized his face, but didn’t have the inclination to remember a name.

Without a word of thanks, he dismissed her after she filled his cup, continuing his meaningless conversation with his companion. She barely suppressed the urge to sigh and turned around to greet more customers when the bell above the door dinged.

“Have a seat anywhere and I’ll be right with you,” she told them and went to fetch her notepad and pencil from the counter.

“Should keep that in your apron,” was the cook’s clipped advice which she merely snarled at. She didn’t feel like explaining that the notebook bulged out of her pockets, making her look even more ridiculous.

She took orders methodically and served steaming coffee, all the while growing more and more irritable. Stopping for her break, she worked out a kink in her neck. She felt run down and exhausted and couldn’t blame it on sleepless nights or physically laboring days.

No, she laid the blame for her foul disposition squarely on the fact that her lover had walked out of her life in the middle of the night and had failed to contact her since. She didn’t often let herself think of Gabe—only every other minute or so. She frowned at her reflection in the bathroom mirror.

She had been used for temporary amusement. She’d sensed that all along, but it hurt to know that she had meant nothing more to him than a temporary affair. She wondered often if he ever thought of her now that he was back in his elegant, polished world.

On a muttered oath, Tory shut off the lights and walked back out into the lobby. When she saw Adam sitting at the bar, surprise came first followed by pleasure. It had been a week since they had spent time together and she badly missed the contact with her brother and team.

“Hey, Bro.” She slid onto the stool next to him. “What’s up?”

Adam pulled out a rolled up magazine and slapped it on the table in front of Tory. “You seen this?”

“No.” Tory unwrapped it and Adam directed her to the page he was referring too.

She could only gape at the picture of herself and Gabe dancing in the nightclub where they had first met. A smaller picture was clipped in the corner of Gabe and another woman sitting close together in a lavish restaurant booth. Several headlines screamed. ‘NOTORIOUS GABE WILLS AND STORM CHASER TORY FAIRCHILD AN ITEM’—‘GABE MOVES ON, TORY HEARTBROKEN.’

“Who the hell leaked this?” she wanted to know.

“Read it and take a guess.”

Tory read the story, not at all accurate about her and Gabe Will’s love affair gone bad and ground her teeth together when she read an interview with Vance Johnson.

“What a bastard,” Tory flicked the periodical away.

“I wanted to make sure you knew so we could deal with it.”

“As if being arrested for assault wasn’t enough for him. I’ll call Vance later and deal with it,” Tory swore. She hadn’t spoken with him either, but that would be a pure pleasure now.

“How do you feel about all this?” Adam gestured to the magazine.

Tory thought for a moment. She had felt a surge of betrayal, anger, and maybe even jealousy when she saw the picture of Gabe and another woman together. Didn’t take him long, she thought furiously.

“It’s basically true, anyway.” She stood up abruptly. “My break’s over. Call you tonight?”

“Yeah, call me tonight.” Adam hugged her before scooping up the article and leaving.

Tory re-tired her apron and brewed a fresh pot of coffee before making her table rounds. She refilled coffee cups, dumped out ash trays, and cleaned all her tables. By two in the afternoon—with one hour still to go—her feet were aching and her temper was sizzling.

She stopped in front of the window and stared out at the empty lot across the street. She couldn’t get the article off her mind. She didn’t care about the publicity. People had their opinions whether she worried about them or not. But what Vance had said, she reflected, was true and hurtful. Tory can’t keep a relationship for anything. It’s just not in her. I wonder, Vance had been quoted, what makes a person so unlovable?

Was she unlovable? she wondered. And what had made her that way?

“Lady, are you gonna refill my coffee or sit there and stare out the window?” a gruff voice came from behind her.

Tory turned around slowly and raised a dark brow at the customer.

“Would you like a refill?” she asked civilly.

“I thought I made that obvious.” He scooted his cup closer to the edge of the table. Tory took her time filling it, then drew out her pad.

“Are you ready to order?”

“Eggs and hash browns.”

“How would you like your eggs?”

“Cooked.”

Tory bit back her sigh and eyed the customer with obvious disdain. “Scrambled?”

“As long as they’re cooked all the way.” He handed her the menu and gave her a mocking smile. “You can handle that can’t you, sweetheart?”

Oh no, Tory thought, snatching the menu, he didn’t.

Pressure began to accumulate in her chest. What was she doing here? She couldn’t stand this job. She hated being spoken to as if she was lower than dirt. She’d felt that way when the love of her life had casually tossed her aside. She felt that way every time she scooped up a couple dollars from the tables she waited day after day. Enough, she thought, was enough.

She tossed her apron on the counter and picked up two eggs from the counter. Seeing red, she stalked out to the lobby and to the table the a*shole occupied.

“Raw,” she said.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re getting your eggs raw.” She cracked one over the table, pulled the shells apart and let the yoke drip right into his lap.

“What the hell!”

She did the same with the other egg and slapped the shells on the table. “Enjoy your breakfast.” With that, she turned and marched out the front door.





Gabe slowed his jeep down in front of the big white house in Ada. He’d driven a long way for this, he thought, scanning the trees and fields. His heart took several hard knocks in his chest.

He’d missed her so much, he could scarcely think of anything else. He’d spent the first week after leaving beside the phone, waiting like a lovesick fool for her call. It never came, much to his frustration. He’d called her cell phone, but it’d been disconnected. He assumed she’d had it changed to ward off some of the media from the added publicity the team had received.

He didn’t know what he was going to say. He’d thought about it, but that had only made it harder for him to keep driving. Every explanation, every accusation, and every plea came off as desperate. Hell, he was desperate.

And now he was here and all he could do was give it his best shot. He got out of the jeep and took the small box he’d brought from the back seat.

“Make a wrong turn, Wills?”

Her voice was the same, Gabe realized as he swallowed a thick lump in his throat. He turned and saw her. She walked toward him from the direction of one of the pastures. A big, silly dog trailed behind her. She was different. She’d cut her hair just below her chin and she’d lost weight. Close to ten pounds, he estimated with a silent oath.

Her eyes were the same chocolate brown that he loved, but they were cold and unyielding, staring unforgiving into his.

“I’ve made a few wrong turns before I ended up in the right place.”

“I’ll be more than willing to help you find your way back into town.” She folded her arms across her chest and cocked a hip. She was in what Adam had once deemed her warrior stance. His mouth watered.

“Tory, I’d like to talk to you.”

She laughed, but it was without humor. She turned on her heels and walked up the drive and into the house leaving the screen door flapping behind her. Gabe took a moment to control his breathing before he followed her.

When he entered the house, the memories swamped him. She had gotten new furniture, he noticed as he walked through the living room. The couches and chairs before had been old and a fun, floral print. She’d gone for leather this time around, which suited her perfectly. When he walked into the kitchen, she was pouring lemonade from a sliver pitcher and the look on her face was grim.

Her movements were a bit stiff. She shut the refrigerator door with a snap and carried the lemonade to the table.

“Have a seat,” she invited. She made herself busy by getting cool water for the dog.

Gabe sat down at the table and picked his glass up. He would start with the article, he decided. Then he’d work his way up. He gave himself a moment to just look at her. She was so much thinner, he thought again angrily. The hair suited her. She had it pulled back in a stubby tail just the way Adam always wore his. The diamond necklace he had given her hung on her neck. His heart jumped. Maybe it wasn’t over. Maybe he still had a chance. He set his glass down without drinking and met her gaze.

“Would you sit down, please?” he asked when she walked back to stand stiffly back to the counter.

“I’ll stand.”

Stubborn to the end, he mused. “Fine. Have you seen the article?”

She didn’t answer for a moment. She took her time sipping her lemonade, staring blankly ahead. Frustrated, he searched her face. What used to be so expressively clear was now closed off to him.

“Adam showed me today, actually. I’m impressed at the D-cups, Gabe. I always thought that was more like your type.”

“So you believe everything you read in the tabloids?” he asked, amused and annoyed at the same time.

Tory shrugged. “I couldn’t care less either way. You’re free to see whomever you’d like.”

“I brought the article up in reference to the things that were said about you.”

“I couldn’t care less about that either. You should know that about me.” She was looking at the ground now. Anywhere but at him.

“I know you pretend not to care just like I also know it tears you up.”

Tory pushed off the counter and sat her glass in the sink with a crack. “I was wrong. You obviously don’t know me very well.”

He got up and walked to her, but he didn’t touch her—not yet. He knew he wouldn’t be welcome. He leaned back against the counter opposite to her instead. “Tory, talk to me.”

“I am talking to you!” She grabbed a rag off the counter and folded it neatly. An excuse, he knew, for something to do with her hands.

“Really talk to me.”

“Oh, sure.” She gave a humorless laugh. “Let’s talk. You want to hear about the last time we were together? What I went through to wake up to you gone?”

Now, we’re getting somewhere. “If I had known a better way—”

“If you had known a better way,” she said slowly. “A better way?” She slapped the rag down and advanced on him. Sticking her finger into his chest, she fumed. “How about a word? A f*cking note! Anything. Anything would have been better than for me to wake up, still smell you on the sheets, and get up to see you crossing the parking lot without a backwards glance.”

Gabe’s stared at her, shocked. “I didn’t know you saw me—”

“Saw you walk away?” she finished for him. “I counted every step you took away from me. I made excuses for you the next morning to the crew when I was alone, confused, and heart broken.”

He snorted. “I didn’t break your heart.”

“What? Is it not capable of breaking? I guess I deserve that.” She jerked her shoulder and focused on a spot above his left shoulder. “Well, it did break, Gabe. It broke into a million little pieces and it was my own damned fault. And why am I telling you all this?”

“You told me you didn’t need me,” he accused desperately. “You wanted me to leave.” He was focusing all his energy into controlling the bitter rage and disgust he felt toward himself for how he handled it—how he didn’t handle it.

“That wasn’t true. You should have known that wasn’t true. And I shouldn’t have said the things I said to you that day. I was angry and scared of what I thought was happening between us.”

Past tense, Gabe thought brokenly. Well, he would have to change that. “And what did you think was happening between us, Tory?”

She was silent a moment before she answered. Gabe saw several things in her eyes while they bore, dark and brilliant into his. Fear, wariness, but the humiliation he saw gnawed at him.

“I thought that maybe you were falling in love with me.” She lifted her hands, palms up and let them drop.

Hope set like an anvil on his chest. But he wasn’t going to assume. He had to hear the words. “And what made you think that?”

She flared again. “I don’t have to take this. Why did you come here, Gabe? I was doing fine without you.” Her voice would have been strong if it didn’t hitch on every other word. “I was here, doing what I was supposed to be doing. And then you show up.” She jabbed her finger at him again. “What the hell do you mean popping in this way and ruining everything I’ve built?”

“I was worried.”

“Worried? You were worried about the jilted lover you left without a word three months ago because of some stupid article?” She snorted and shook her head. “I find that hard to believe.”

“And you’re right.”

“I make it a policy to be right, but what exactly am I right about?” She slipped her shaking hands into her pockets.

It was now or never, he thought, searching her face. She was so pale, and he just now noticed the purple smudges of exhaustion under her eyes.

“I was in love with you. Am. And I was afraid you didn’t love me back, so I left.” He came to her now when she only stared at him, her face drawn, her eyes dark. But he didn’t touch her. “I’m sorry I left the way I did. But when we had that fight before Vance took off with you, you said those things and I believed them. I should have seen through it, but I didn’t for a long time and that was my mistake.”

“Get out.” Her voice hitched so she covered her mouth with her hand and gave herself a minute. Gabe only continued to stare at her. “I want you to leave.”

“I’m sure you do.” He helped himself to more lemonade. The truth of it was—he was terrified it was too late for them. He thought of the diamond necklace she still wore. The necklace he gave her when words couldn’t say he loved her. And she still wore it. “You’re not comfortable with anything that’s out of your control. I just bared my soul to you. Now it’s your turn. How do you feel?”

“Tired,” she said achingly. “Please, go.”

“I’m not leaving.”

“Go back to your blond bimbo and take your stupid pictures, but do it out of Oklahoma and out of my sight. I can’t take this anymore. It hurts so much, Gabe, so damn much and I can’t do it.”

Undone, Gabe slammed his glass down and took her by the arms.

“No,” she sobbed, shoving at him.

“Tory, stop.” He kept his voice gentle when the storm was raging inside him. He hadn’t realized how badly he’d hurt her, but he knew the answer to his last question. “Please tell me how you feel about me. I need to know.”

“I love you!” she cried into his shoulder. Her arms had come around him and she held on tight. He felt like slime for making her cry, but it would be worth it. He promised himself it would be worth it for both of them. “You left me alone and I still love you and I hate myself for it.”

When she finally slumped against him, Gabe gathered her in his arms and held on. The joy that he felt in that moment was worth the weeks of emptiness he had endured in California.

When her tears subsided, she eased away. “I need a moment to pull myself together. Excuse me, please.” She walked out of the kitchen and he listened to the sounds of her footsteps fade away upstairs.





Upstairs, Tory flipped on the bathroom light, shut, and locked the door. She was shaken to the core, but she only blamed herself now.

A fresh round of tears erupted and Tory sank down to sit on the toilet lid. Oh, how could she be so stupid? She had confessed to being in love with him and had wept right on his shoulder. He had told her he was in love with her, too. Did she dare believe him?

It felt so good to be held in his arms again, she thought as she scrubbed her tear drenched face with cold water. She looked up and what she saw in the mirror astonished her.

She looked so broken. She looked how she felt, she knew but this… No, this wouldn’t do. Tory scrubbed her face until the red splotches of emotion were gone, ran a brush through her hair, and pulled it back again. She was toying with some blusher when she realized with a jolt she was wearing his necklace.

Oh, God.

Mortified, Tory’s first instinct was to tear it off, but she stopped. He had already seen it. The man was observant and she would only look more like an idiot if she took it off.

After a final appraisal, Tory left the bathroom and walked slowly back down the stairs. Her tennis shoes were soundless on the carpeted steps. She pasted on an indifferent expression and walked into the kitchen.

He was sitting at the table rummaging through a small cardboard box. She stopped at the doorway and folded her hands.

Gabe glanced over and stopped.

“I have some things for you. For the team,” he finally said.

“Oh?”

“Yeah.” He waited until she came to the table, then pulled out a book. “This is my nature portfolio. I thought you’d like to see it.”

She leafed through the pages idly and no expression crossed her face. In truth, she was enormously proud of Gabe. She could have told him she knew where each photo was taken, even without the subtitles.

And she was immensely grateful to him for giving her these few moments to get herself under control. She had told him she loved him only minutes ago and instead of high tailing it out the door—not that she would blame him if he did—he was letting her down easy this time.

“These are great,” she said after closing the book.

“Thanks.” He slid a manila envelope to her. “You guys can keep these.”

She opened the envelope silently and pulled a number of prints out. Some were of the clouds and of the twisters they had chased. There were a few of the equipment and of the team using the radars. Tory smiled at a posed picture of Adam looking all rugged and manly in his cargo pants and black boots, covered with mud. He had one booted foot propped up on a log and was scratching his chin.

“The team will love these. Thank you.” She replaced the pictures and sat the envelope aside.

“And here are the reviews for the show I did last month. They mentioned the Pirates a lot.” He handed her a framed newspaper clipping. “You can read them later,” he said absently and handed her the next framed photo.

“Oh my…” Tory trailed off as she stared at the picture of herself running in the field toward a tornado.

“I won an award for that one,” Gabe told her quietly.

An award? She realized with a jolt that she’d basically cut herself off from the outside world over the past few months. Who was this person who locked herself away from everyone? Who cried at the drop of a hat? Who only showed love and affection to her dog?

“It’s amazing.” Her gaze met his for the first time since she came back downstairs. His eyes were as dark as the clouds in the picture she held and they held hers. “You must have snapped it—”

“Right as I took off running after you. Yeah, I don’t even remember taking it. I just clicked it and ran.”

Tory handed him the frame but he pushed it back. “It’s yours. There’s one more thing I need to give you.” Before she could respond he pulled out a small black box and set it on the table in front of her. Her heart jerked roughly in her chest. Her knees went weak, but she forced herself to stay upright.

“Gabe—”

“Just listen. When I first met you, I hardly knew what to do with you.”

“As I recall, you tossed me over your shoulder and carried me like a brute to my room,” she said dryly and crossed her arms.

He smiled.

“Yeah, anyway.” He waved his hand dismissively. “You became very special to me very quickly. I’ve never felt that way before toward a woman and it didn’t sit well at first.”

“I don’t want to hear this, Gabe. I don’t need too,” she said frantically. “You should go. I’m not mad at you anymore and I’m sorry for falling apart earlier, but you don’t need to do this.”

His eyes hardened. “Tory. Please, listen to me. I’m trying to tell you that I’m in love with you. And I want you to marry me.” He pulled her into his arms again and crushed his mouth to hers. She shook in his arms. Gabe pulled back until he could see her face.

She closed her eyes, her breaths coming out in jerks. She would cry in a minute, she knew.

“Tory, tell me what’s wrong.”

“This can’t be real,” she managed to say.

Gabe kissed her again. This time, Tory kissed him back. He broke off and twisted around to grab the little black box. He flipped it open and the diamond ring sparkled.

Her breath caught again while she stared at it.

“Gabe,” she whispered.

“I fell in love with you when I was walking back to the hotel after that carwash we did in Nebraska. You were sitting by the window.”

“I remember. Oh, Gabe. That was it for me too.”

Gabe smiled and took the ring out, then tossed the box back on the table.

“I should have asked you sooner. I’m thinking it’s better late than never though. Marry me, Tory.”

She wanted to say yes. God, she wanted that more than anything.

“Gabe, there’s still things we need to discuss.”

He scowled. “That doesn’t sound like yes, Gabe. I’ll marry you.”

“No, it doesn’t. But where would we live? What about—”

“Where do you want to live?”

“I’m pretty comfortable here. And I would hate to uproot Chaos.” She bit her lower lip. “I want to keep chasing. But not for the same reasons I did.”

Gabe grinned. “Done. We’ll live here. We’ll chase in the summer. I’ll have to drag you around the world a couple times a year, but if you can tolerate L.A. and Paris, we’ll be okay.”

A watery laugh escaped. “There’s more to—”

“Whatever it is, we’ll work it out together. Now say yes, Gabe. I’ll marry you.”

Tory looked away while her emotions were warring so fiercely inside her. “I think I’ll make you suffer for a little longer.” She waited about five seconds then smiled. “Yes, Gabe. I’ll marry you.” The last word ended in a squeal as he hauled her up and spun her around.





Author, Kadi Dillon was born and raised in a small town in Oklahoma. She comes from a big family who made following her dream easy. As a writer, Kadi creates romance and romantic suspense stories with real and inspiring characters. She still lives close to home with her husband and two boys.





Novellas by Kadi Dillon

Storm Warning (2011)

Have a Little Faith (2011)





Excerpt from Have a Little Faith by



Kadi Dillon





“You may not be able to comprehend this, Mr. Tanner, but some people work for what they have. I’ve worked very hard to keep this ranch and I’m not letting you take it without a fight.”

“Oh, I can comprehend,” he said silkily. “What I don’t understand is why in the hell you’re blaming me.”

“You had to call her and put it in her head.” Alex’s fingers dug into her arms as she hugged them.

“It’s my job.”

“Nothing personal?” With her tone abruptly lighter, she turned around and dropped her arms.

Lane ignored the punch in his gut that he knew to be pure lust. That was something he would have to think about later.

“No, it’s nothing personal.” He raised a brow at the flash in her eyes.

“You’re an imprudent fool,” she hissed. “And that is personal.”

Pleased with her retort, Alex spun around to leave the room only to find her arm gripped in a vice-like hold before she was whirled around. She sucked in a breath and looked straight into the furious eyes of Lane Tanner.

“Now,” he said in a low, snarling voice, “it’s my turn to get personal.”

Her eyes widened in shock seconds before his mouth covered hers. Shock kept her from reacting. His lips were hot and firm as they bruised over hers. His arms wound around her back, keeping her arms prisoner in between their bodies.

By the time she thought to protest, protest became an afterthought. His tongue forced her lips apart so that he could deepen the kiss. New sensations exploded behind Alex’s closed eye lids.

An unfamiliar burning spread throughout her entire body all the way down to her toes. Her knee’s nearly buckled, but Lane held her up while he assaulted her senses with his mouth alone.

Oh no, she thought dizzily. This shouldn’t feel so wonderful. Not from a man she was supposed to hate. She shouldn’t be coming to life in his arms. She shouldn’t be praying this kiss would never end. It’d been so long since she’d been held, cherished, devoured. And even then…

He pulled her away so quickly it ripped another gasp from her and she stared into eyes that were almost black. All too quickly the quivering feelings in her body faded and desire became anxiety when he only continued to stare at her.

Fighting to keep his own needs in perspective, Lane held her at arm’s length. What did she do to him? Her taste had hit him like a freight train; sweet and pure. The desire he was beginning to feel for her was both unexpected and lethal. The nebulous feeling began to recede slowly as he brought air into his tortured lungs. His grip tightened on her arms when he noticed her breaths were coming out in jerks. Her eyes were no longer clouded with passion but glassy with panic.

“Alex.”

She jerked like a spring when he said her name. Puzzled, and not a little annoyed, Lane brought her closer to him wanting to soothe her.

“No,” she said fiercely. She put such conviction in that one word as if her life had depended on it.

“No?”

“Let me go. Don’t do this.” She was trembling now and hated herself for it.

For a moment, she had forgotten what a man’s hands could do when he was consumed by temper. She had a feeling she knew just what a man like this was capable of. And her fear had nothing to do with the physical this time. In a moment, he had unearthed feelings that she had never had before—never wanted to have again.

“It’s already been done, Alex.”

She jerked away. “You’re wrong.”

It infuriated him how she had gone from innocence to passionate to afraid in the blink of an eye. “I don’t like games.” His voice was low and deliberate.

“Game over, then.” She backed toward the door slowly as if waiting for him to spring. She backed up until she felt the wall at her back, then she turned and fled.