Vicki shrugged then went to the kitchen table. She folded her napkin on her lap and waited. He fixed himself a plate and followed her. As he sat, he said, "You're not what I expected, at all. You've become calmer. Want another beer, as you left yours outside?"
"Okay. I'll have a beer, unless you have white wine." She offered a tentative smile as she sat straighter.
He stood like he was marching to orders, went to the kitchen, and poured a glass. Then he returned next to her and handed her the wine. She nodded her thanks as he asked, "Did you go on some spiritual path to transform from high-class princess world?"
No one should know about of the few of the incidents in her past. "Without the House of Morgan title, I discovered what I liked and didn't like. I had a few jobs, moved around, saw the country, but I always felt part of me was missing."
Colt bolted out of his chair and shook the table. Her wine spilled onto the tablecloth. His cheeks reddened again. "I'm sorry. I'll get you another glass."
She inhaled his woodsy scent, and cleaned as best she could with her napkin. "Please get a towel. I want to talk."
He nodded like he'd agreed to his own funeral.
A moment later, he returned with her wine and the towel. He handed the glass to her, and cleaned the mess he'd made. Without looking up, he said, "I'm glad you were here today, Vicki. You helped with Clara, and I don't know what I would have done without you."
The fire within her grew. "I should have been here with you both from the beginning. I should have listened to my heart then and now..."
"I wish you had been."
He folded the towel, placed it next to his seat, and then bit into his food. Her heart soared. He must feel it too. She opened her mouth, but couldn't say a word. Then he wiped his mouth, gazed at his plate, and said, "I don't want to talk about that tonight. I need calm and sweet right now more than anything else. Can we talk tomorrow morning, first thing?"
She nodded. "Of course."
He swallowed and met her gaze. "Today was rough."
She cut her food into smaller pieces. What could she say? She bit a piece and then swallowed. "So what do you want to talk about now?"
She ate another bite.
He swallowed another piece of his dinner, and then stared at his glass. "Last night, I dreamed about you."
She sucked in her breath, to tell him that it wasn't a dream. She raised an eyebrow. "What?"
With a pained expression, he met her gaze. "Visions keep flashing in my mind all day, and my lips tingled from your rose-water taste."
"My what?" She choked, then schooled her expression and tried to pretend it was the food. "Colt..."
His sexy, dark eyes had a flame in them, and he finished his dinner. She did the same. Then he wiped his mouth with the napkin and rubbed his five o'clock shadow on his chin. Her lips opened, and she waited for him to say something. Finally, he broke his stare. "I'm engaged. Belle's a good woman who deserves my respect and fidelity."
Vicki couldn't stop her chin from trembling. She stood with the plates to take them to the sink and called out, "Tell me about her."
"Belle was in the Marines. Stood next to me during a bad firefight." He stared at a wall, unfocused, like he was haunted about something. "She's a lobbyist for a weapons manufacturer up in D.C. now."
"You must be proud, as you've told me what she did now. And I've seen the pictures. Your Belle is gorgeous." She washed the dishes. Then she finished, and turned toward him. He seemed like he was in a trance. She fiddled with her shirt sleeve and came closer to him. She kept her voice soft as she placed her hands on the table next to him. "What are your nightmares about?"
His jaw slackened. He motioned for her to sit with him on the couch in the other room. She picked up both their drinks on her way and followed him. She handed him his beer and sat beside him. He swallowed, but his eyes were almost dead. She rubbed his arm. He acted so different from the bright-eyed Colt she knew. She squeezed his knee, but kept her mouth closed, and waited.
His voice started soft. "In war, I was prepared to be executed. My men had been shot with their hands tied behind their heads. The next bullet should have gone into me, but Belle and her unit blazed in, and pulled me out of there."
A gasp escaped her mouth, and she tugged on Colt's arm.
First, he stared at her, but she'd had enough. She hugged him. She had almost lost him, and she hadn't known. Her body trembled. He stared at her without another word for a few minutes, and his face turned red. He tugged at his collar and dropped his gaze. "Belle deserves my loyalty."
"And my gratitude," Vicki added as she took his hand in hers. "I don't know what would have happened if I heard you'd died. I couldn't have held together."
He flinched. "I thought you came here only for Clara."
"I'm not a home wrecker, Colt." His hard features would scare her away, if she didn't know him. Then she brushed her wet eyes to not cry, and scooted her knees over to touch his. She kept her voice low. "In my heart, Colt, you were always the hero."
Without a word, he stood, like he was recoiling from her touch. "Night, Vicki."
Her eyes followed his departing hurry. A lump formed in her throat. If she had been honest from the beginning, everything would be different. She'd have been a mother to her daughter, and her tingling lips that ached for his kiss wouldn't be tender. There was nothing she could do about any of this.
She sipped her wine and stared out the window. The pitter-patter of the soft rain and her drink soothed her hardened stomach. After she finished, she cleaned, turned all the lights off and went to bed. Tonight, she'd dream of the life she'd almost had but lost.
CHAPTER NINE
Vicki woke up as her phone vibrated and rang. Without opening her eyes, she reached out, and answered, "Hello?"
Alice squealed like they were still in school. "Peter and Jennifer broke up last night."
The real world was out there. Vicki blinked to get the sleep out of her eyes. "What?"
In one breath, Alice then reported, "Jennifer dumped him at the $25,000-a-plate fundraiser for the dramatic arts that she dragged him to, and publicly stated he didn't love her so he didn't deserve her."
Jennifer had seemed nice enough a long time ago, but Peter deserved a wife that would love him unconditionally. Vicki opened her eyes fully and held her breath. "I'll call him today."
"Perfect." Alice spoke like Vicki had the answers to her prayers, though she had no idea how.
Without missing a beat, Alice then changed the conversation. "How are you and my brother holding up?"
The last person Vicki should talk to was Colt's sister. Her face heated and she closed her eyes. "We're good. Talk to you soon?"
With a huff in her voice, Alice said, "In person. I want more details than 'we're good.'"
Vicki would not admit that she had a huge crush on Colt to anyone. Her skin felt jittery as she said, "Bye."
Alice sighed. "Bye."