“Heh. You ever driven on the DC beltway?”
“Many times. Although trust me, it doesn’t even begin to compare with Mumbai. Besides, once we hit town, do you have any idea where we’re going?”
There was that. Because, again, she hadn’t driven when she’d been out before. Of course her plan had been to either rely on the car’s GPS or—probably better—on Dee or Josh. Which she could still do. But by now she realized she was beginning to slip across that fine line between independent and mule-headed. And she was whacked, too.
“Emily?”
Again with the gentleness. Jerk.
“Fine,” she said, climbing down from behind the wheel and marching around to the passenger side, huddling deeper into her sweater coat before strapping herself in. Rocks crunched and rattled as Colin pulled back onto the highway, and Emily felt her jangled nerves relax. A little.
Because for some reason this guy seemed a lot bigger awake than he had asleep. And she wasn’t exactly tiny. A fact that had apparently induced no small amount of angst in her petite mother—
“So where are we, exactly?” Colin asked.
“Just past Taos.”
He nodded. “You mind if I turn down the...music?”
“Turn it off, if you want. I don’t care.”
“You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
Except the silence that followed made her brain hurt. Strange how she didn’t mind the quiet when she was actually by herself. But when there was actually someone else in the space—
“So how come you didn’t tell anyone you were coming?”
He hesitated, then said, “Because I didn’t want to.”
“None of my business, in other words.”
His gaze veered to hers, then away.
“And you don’t think they might find it weird when we show up together?”
A single-note chuckle pushed through his nose. “Dog with a bone, aren’t cha?”
Her mouth pulled flat, Emily shoved her hair behind her ear. But after years of being the peacemaker, the One Most Likely to Back Down... “Guess I don’t have a whole lot of patience these days for secrets.”
“Even though this has nothing to do with you.”
“Me, no. My cousin, yes. And her husband. And his family. So...”
“And you’re nothing if not loyal.”
She waited out the stab to her heart before saying, “Out of fashion though that might be.”
That got a look. Probably accompanied by a frown, though she wasn’t about to check.
Another couple miles passed before he said, “And I’m guessing I’ve been the topic of conversation recently.”
“Your name does come up a lot,” she said quietly, then glanced over. “Since, you know, you’re the brother who’s not there. And hasn’t been there for years.”
Seconds passed. “I’ve been...on assignment.”
Exactly what Josh had said, after his and Dee’s wedding, his that’s-life shrug at complete odds with the disappointment in his eyes. And between the leftover shakiness from nearly taking out that deer back there and feeling like hornets had set up shop inside her brain, whatever filters Emily might have once had were blown to hell.
“From everything I can tell, Colin, your family’s great. In fact, most people would be grateful...” Tears biting at her eyes, she gave her head a sharp shake, rattling the hornets. “So what exactly did they do to tick you off so much?”
* * *
And to think, Colin mused, if he hadn’t agreed to this crazy woman’s suggestion to share the car, the worst that might’ve happened would have been his ending up in a ditch somewhere.
Of course, he didn’t owe her, or anyone, an explanation. Although she seemed like a nice enough kid—if pushy—and surprisingly playing the total bastard card wasn’t part of his skill set. Besides, in a half hour they’d be there, and he’d hole up in one of the cabins, and she’d stay with her cousin in the main house, and they probably wouldn’t even see each other again for the duration of her visit. Right?
Except right now she was watching him, waiting for an answer, those great, big, sad eyes pinned to the side of his face. Yeah, there was a story there, no doubt. Not that he was about to get sucked in. Because he’d come home to get his head on straight again, not get all snarled in someone else’s.
“They didn’t do anything, okay?” he finally mumbled. “Like you said, they’re great people. It’s just we don’t see a lot of things through the same lens.”
He sensed more than saw her frown before she leaned into the corner between the seat and the door—at least as much as the seat belt would let her—her arms folded over her stomach. Thinking, no doubt.
“So what’s different now?”
“Do you even consider what’s about to pop out of your mouth before it does?”
“Probably about as much as you’ve considered their reaction when you show up out of the blue. And with your dad’s heart condition—”
“First off, people keeling over from shock only happens in the movies—”
“Not only in the movies.”
“Mostly, then. And second, Dad’s not at death’s door. He never was, as far as I can tell—”
“And how would you know that if you haven’t been there?”
“Because that’s what he said, okay? For crying out loud, I did talk to him, or Mom, or both, every day at the time. I’m not totally out of the loop—”
“Even if you prefer to hover at its edge?”
If it hadn’t been for the gentle humor in her voice—and something more, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on—he would’ve been a lot more pissed than he was. “They told me not to come home, that it wasn’t necessary. And my reasons for returning now...” He briefly faced her, then looked away. “Are mine.”
“As are your reasons for not giving them a heads-up that you are. Got it.”
“You’re really aggravating, you know that?”
Her laugh startled him. “Then my work here is done,” she said, clearly pleased with herself. Because the chick was downright bonkers. Story of his life, apparently.
“Look,” he said, giving in or up or whatever. “If you’ve been around my family for more than thirty seconds you know they can be a mite...overwhelming en masse.”
Another laugh. “I noticed.”
“So if I’d called my brother and told him I was coming, you can bet your life the whole gang would be at the Vista to welcome me home.” His jaw clenched. “Maybe even the whole town. I know what I’m about to face, believe me. But I’d at least prefer to ease back into the bosom of the clan on my own terms. At least as much as possible.”
“I can understand that.”
“Really?”
“Like you’re the only person in the world who has issues with their family?” she said quietly, not looking at him. “Please.”
The sign for Whispering Pines flashed in the headlights, and Colin turned off the highway onto the smaller road leading to the tiny town. Emily shrugged more deeply into her coat; the higher