He glanced back over his shoulder. He knew his younger brother wouldn’t go away until he got some answers. And a part of Rafe wanted to say it all out loud anyway, so he blurted, “Found out which King hurt Katie.”
“Yeah? Who?”
“Cordell.”
“Should have thought of him,” Sean mused with a nod. “He goes through women faster than Jesse used to.”
At mention of their now-married cousin, Rafe almost smiled. As a former professional surfer, Jesse King’s reputation with the ladies had been staggering. Of course, that was before he married Bella and became a father.
“How’d you find out who it was?”
Rafe muttered an oath and looked at Sean. “Ran into Cordell when I took Katie to dinner.”
“Ouch.” Sean nodded thoughtfully, clearly understanding the situation.
“Yeah. That about covers it.” Pushing one hand through his hair, Rafe looked back at the ocean and said, “It all happened pretty fast. I punched him. Then he told Katie who I was. Then she left.”
“And you let her go.”
Swiveling his head around, he glared at Sean again. “What was I supposed to do? Hold her captive?”
“Or talk to her?”
“She was through talking,” Rafe assured him, remembering the look in her eyes as she faced him down. He’d seen the pain glittering brightly in tears she hadn’t let fall. He’d heard the betrayal in her voice and felt the sharp sting of his own lies catching up with him.
“So that’s it?” Sean asked.
“That’s it.” Deliberately, Rafe turned his back on the view, ignored his brother and took a seat behind his desk again. Picking up his pen, he stared blindly at the supply sheets.
“Can’t believe you’re going to let her get away.”
“I didn’t let her do anything,” Rafe muttered, still not looking up at Sean. “Katie makes her own decisions. And now she has more reason than ever to hate the Kings. Most especially, me.”
Blowing out a breath, Sean stood up but didn’t leave. “And you’re okay with that?”
“Of course I am,” Rafe lied and mentally congratulated himself on just how good he was getting at it. “I always intended to walk away from her, Sean. It just happened a little faster than I’d planned.”
God, that was a lie, too.
“Right.” Sean slapped one hand down on top of the papers, forcing Rafe to look up at him.
“Butt out, Sean,” he ground out.
“Hell no,” his brother said, frustration simmering in the air between them. “You’re not usually a stupid guy, Rafe. But this time, you’re being an idiot.”
No, he wasn’t. Katie didn’t want to see him and he couldn’t blame her. Besides, it was better this way. If she was mad at him, she wouldn’t stay hurt for long. She’d get over it. So would he. He was no good at love and he knew it. Better he hurt her now than destroy her later.
“Thanks for the input.” Rafe peeled Sean’s hand off the papers. “Now go away.”
“If you don’t go after her,” Sean said quietly, “you’ll regret it.”
Rafe already regretted it. Enough that his soul felt as if it was withering and his heart could barely summon the energy to beat.
“I’ve had regrets before,” he finally said. “Let’s remember Leslie.”
“Uh-huh. Speaking of your ex…I hear you hired her husband.”
Rafe sighed. Yes, he had hired John. And he was forced to admit that he might not have if he hadn’t met Katie. Being with her had allowed him to face his own past. And the talk with Leslie had been eye-opening enough that he’d been able to reach out to an old friend. Maybe he and John would actually be close again someday.
If they were, that too would be laid at Katie’s feet. Her optimism and rosy outlook on life had affected him more than he would have thought possible. Rafe shifted in his chair. He didn’t want to talk about any of this. Hell, he didn’t want to talk at all.
“So the question is,” Sean continued, oblivious to the fact that Rafe wanted him gone, “why is it you can make peace with John and Leslie, but you won’t go see the woman you’re crazy about?”
Several silent, tense seconds passed before Rafe finally asked, “Are you going to leave? Or do I have to?”
“I’ll go,” Sean said amiably. “But that won’t solve your problem for you.”
“Yeah?” Rafe countered. “What will?”
Sean laughed at him and shook his head as he opened the door. “You already know the answer to that, Rafe. You just don’t want to admit it.”
Twelve
“It’s really gorgeous, honey,” Emily O’Hara said as she walked through the completely remodeled kitchen. “I love the floor and the counters are just beautiful.”
Katie should have been cooing over her finished kitchen too, but somehow she couldn’t muster up the enthusiasm for it. Heck, in the two days since the crew left, she hadn’t even made a single batch of cookies in her shiny new stove.
Her gaze swept the remodeled room, trying to see it as Nana was, from the slate gray tiles to the pearlized blue granite counters to the dark blue walls and she felt…nothing. It was all perfect and it meant…nothing.
“All right, sweetie,” her grandmother said, coming up to give her a brief, comforting hug. “You’ve got the kitchen of your dreams, but you’re standing there looking as if you just found out cookies had been banned. Tell me what’s wrong.”
The tears that Katie had been holding at bay for days crested again and before she could stop them, one or two trailed down her cheeks. Her heart ached and it felt as though there were a boulder sitting on her chest. She could hardly draw a breath without wheezing. “Oh, Nana, everything’s wrong.”
“Honey…” The older woman sighed and steered Katie across the room. An ancient, round pedestal table and captain chairs sat before the wide window where sunlight splashed and curtains danced in a soft wind. Emily pushed her granddaughter into one of the chairs, then sat down beside her. “Talk to me.”
Where to start? Katie wondered. With the fact that she was in love with a man she didn’t really know? That she’d allowed herself to get bamboozled by the King family? Again? Or should she just admit that she wasn’t getting over it this time? That she would never get over it? That she couldn’t sleep, she couldn’t eat, she didn’t even want to bake anymore. And that was saying something. She just couldn’t bring herself to care about anything but the gaping hole in her own heart.