Bennett’s mouth was inexplicably dry. “I can’t promise anything.”
Ben’s nod was so serious and adult-like, Bennett wanted to promise him anything to return his childlike joy. But he couldn’t. Resiliency was the hallmark of a five-year-old, right? He would be happy again by bedtime.
Ben leaned in and gave Bennett a hug with one arm, the ball tucked under the other. Bennett’s arms came up automatically and wrapped around the boy’s slight body, ball and all.
He didn’t want to drive away and never see Ben again. Noah had named his son after Bennett, and whether it was official or not, Bennett was his godfather. Now, when he was ready to accept the role, Harper didn’t want him around.
Bennett patted his slight, bony shoulder and pulled away. Ben ruffled Jack’s ruff and ran to the steps, a bounce already back. He would be fine without Bennett. And so would Harper. In fact, she’d be better off without him. He’d given her something easy—money. What she demanded was impossible. Their history intersected painfully through Noah and there was no getting over those fault lines.
He stuffed his hands into his pockets and walked away. At the gate, he stopped. Jack wasn’t at his heels or leading the way. The dog sat at the base of the stairs and stared where Ben had disappeared.
Bennett whistled. Jack sat up taller and let out a howl, then turned and trotted toward Bennett. He rubbed the dog’s head and ears and whispered, “I know, buddy. I’ll miss them, too.”
Chapter 17
Present Day
Spring was coming to the Outer Banks. Brave buttercups broke ground first, and like the flowers, Harper soaked up the warm sun on the back porch. Her concentration was shattered by real troubles, and she gave up pretending to read, closing her eyes. The sun danced behind her eyelids in a multicolored show.
Bennett hadn’t contacted her since their return from Fort Bragg. Things had been good between them. Why had she ruined it by bringing up Noah’s death and the mysterious promise? Why couldn’t she leave it alone? It had no bearing on the future. Except somehow it did.
If the burden was hers alone to bear, then perhaps happiness could coexist with the questions. But Bennett carried the burden as well. They would never work unless they could lay down their burdens together.
Even without Bennett’s support, her plans for the café moved forward at a rapid clip. Joyce had accompanied her to a restaurant equipment auction and Harper tried not to dwell on the fact that the auction represented someone else’s failed dreams.
The sliding glass door from the kitchen swished open and the deck planks creaked. Harper squinted. Haloed by bright sunlight, her mother took a chair and tilted her face toward the sky like one of the buttercups.
“How’s Bennett?” Although her mom’s voice was casual, Harper sensed the worry behind the question.
Harper hadn’t told her about their argument. Even thinking about it upset her. She missed him in ways she never thought possible. “I don’t know.”
“What happened?” Patience was in the question.
Maybe she’d sleep better if she excised the poison. “Bennett was there when Noah was killed.”
“Stands to reason since they were on the same SEAL team.”
Harper closed her eyes and followed the dancing light. “I mean he was with Noah when he died. When we were at Allison’s, I overheard him and Darren talking. He’s not telling me something. Something important. Not to mention, he accidently let drop a promise he made to Noah. One that involved me and maybe Ben too. I pushed the issue on the way home from Fort Bragg.”
“Wouldn’t budge?”
Harper shook her head. “He got mad. Basically told me not to worry my pretty little head over it. I don’t see how we can move on together with Noah between us. Got any sage advice?”
Her mom was silent for so long, Harper propped herself up. The expression on her mother’s face was part pity and part exasperation.
“Yeah. Cut him a break. How about you back off forcing him to talk to you and wait until he’s ready. I can only imagine Noah’s death was extremely traumatic and dating his widow must leave him confused and conflicted.”
Harper flopped to her back. Her mom had never been one to sugarcoat her opinions or throw her only daughter 100 percent support when it was undeserving. When she was a teenager, defensive anger would flare at her mom’s tough talk. Time and experience had proved that more often than not, she was right. Even if Harper didn’t want to admit it.
Tears clogged her throat and scratched at her eyes. She hadn’t cried this much since seeing the navy chaplain at her front door.
“Have you talked to him?” Her mom’s tone had softened.
“Not since we fought.”
“That’s where I would start.”
Her thinking needed to be readjusted. She had assumed the moral high ground—all she wanted was the truth after all—and put Bennett squarely in the wrong. Did she have it backward? Maybe they straddled right and wrong. Or perhaps right and wrong didn’t exist, only the complications of living.
She stood up so fast she saw sunbursts. Urgency thrummed now the fog had cleared. “I hate to ask, but could you pick Ben up from preschool so I can work things out with Bennett? If he doesn’t slam the door in my face, that is.”
“Ben and I will be fine. You go on.”
Harper dropped a quick kiss on her mom’s cheek and took off at a run to change into jeans and a T-shirt. Determined to set things right, she was on the road in ten minutes. Unfortunately, she had an hour and a half to second-guess herself, and by the time she pulled up to the survival school she was a tangled mass of insecurity and indecision.
It was his day off, but two SUVs were parked next to his truck. Was he with customers or friends or had he moved on with another woman? She couldn’t barge in and splatter her heart all over the place. After sitting in her car like a stalker for twenty minutes with no sign anyone was leaving anytime soon, a new issue presented itself.
She needed to pee. Dammit. It was either leave and find a gas station, use the woods, or pull up her big-girl panties and face Bennett.
Her boots crunched gravel on her walk to the door. The sound loud in her ears. The nerves ricocheting around her body only made her need to pee worse. Like last time, the Closed sign was displayed, but the door was unlocked.
She opened the door slowly. The chime echoed. She braced herself, but only Jack London was there to greet her. She rubbed him behind the ears with both hands and he sat, narrowing his eyes in enjoyment. If only his master were as easily won over.
A voice carried from the back, masculine but indistinct. She weaved her way around racks and displays on the shop floor to the slightly ajar storeroom door. The closer she got, the louder the voices grew. All male and deep and interspersed with laughter. Relief he wasn’t with a woman left her knees trembling.
Jack pushed the door farther open with his head and trotted inside. She peeked in. Three men stood with their backs to the door. Jack worked his way next to Bennett, who was in the middle, two inches taller than either man at his side. She would put money on the fact that all three were current or former military.
The man on Bennett’s left glanced over his shoulder. His gaze crossed hers and held, his confusion turning to surprise. Alex Ramirez. Another member of Bennett and Noah’s SEAL team. He had been to their house for cookouts and to watch football with Noah. Without taking his eyes off her, he turned and elbowed Bennett.
There was nowhere to hide. She forced herself forward, hoping her mouth was in something resembling a smile.
“Harper Wilcox?” There was enough of a question in Alex’s voice to indicate he wasn’t sure he believed his eyes.