Unfinished Business - Nora Roberts Page 0,50
less depressing to come home to an empty house if the lights were on. He’d detoured into town on the way home and driven by Vanessa’s. But her lights had been out.
Probably for the best, he thought now. He was tired and edgy. Hardly the mood for patient, sensible talk. Maybe there was an advantage to letting her stew over the fact that he was in love with her.
And maybe there wasn’t. He hesitated, his hand on the door. What the hell was wrong with him, he wondered. He’d always been a decisive man. When he’d decided to become a doctor, he’d gone after his degree with a vengeance. When he’d decided to leave his hospital position in New York and come home to practice general medicine, he’d done so without a backward glance or a whisper of regret.
Life-altering decisions, certainly. So why the hell couldn’t he decide what to do about Vanessa?
He was going back to town. If she didn’t answer her door, he would climb up the damn rainspout and crawl in her bedroom window. One way or the other, they were going to straighten this mess out tonight.
He’d already turned away and started back to his car when the door to the house opened.
“Brady?” Vanessa stood in the doorway, the light at her back. “Aren’t you coming in?”
He stopped dead and stared at her. In a gesture of pure frustration, he dragged a hand through his hair. Was it any wonder he couldn’t decide what to do about her? She’d never been predictable. Kong raced out of the house, barking, and jumped on him.
“Jack and Joanie dropped us off.” Vanessa stood, twisting the doorknob back and forth. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“No.” With the dog racing in circles around him, he started back to the house. Vanessa stepped back, out of reach.
“I brought some leftovers from the picnic. I didn’t know if you’d have a chance to get any dinner.”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Mr. Benson?”
“Stabilized. It was shaky for a while, but he’s tough.”
“I’m glad. I’m so glad. Annie was frightened.” She rubbed her hands on her thighs, linked her fingers together, pulled them apart, then stuck them in the pockets of her skirt. “You must be exhausted—and hungry. There’s plenty of food in the fridge. The, ah, kitchen looks wonderful.” She gestured vaguely. “The new cabinets, the counters, everything.”
“It’s coming along.” But he made no move toward it. “How long have you been here?”
“Oh, just a couple of hours.” Five, to be exact. “You had some books, so I’ve been reading.”
“Why?”
“Well, to pass the time.”
“Why are you here, Van?”
She bent to stroke the dog. “That unfinished business you mentioned. It’s been a long day, and I’ve had plenty of time to think.”
“And?”
Why didn’t he just sweep her away, carry her upstairs? And shut her up. “And I … About what you said this afternoon.”
“That I’m in love with you.”
She cleared her throat as she straightened. “Yes, that. I’m not sure what I feel—how I feel. I’m not sure how you feel, either.”
“I told you how I feel.”
“Yes, but it’s very possible that you think you feel that way because you used to—and because falling back into the same routine, the same relationship—with me—is familiar, and comfortable.”
“The hell it is. I haven’t had a comfortable moment since I saw you sitting at the piano.”
“Familiar, then.” She began to twist the necklace at her throat. “But I’ve changed, Brady. I’m not the same person I was when I left here. We’ll never be able to pretend those years away. So, no matter how attracted we are to each other, it could be a mistake to take it any further.”
He crossed to her, slowly, until they were eye-to-eye. He was ready to make a mistake. More than ready. “Is that what you were waiting here to tell me?”
She moistened his lips. “Partly.”
“Then I’ll have my say.”
“I’d like to finish first.” She kept her eyes level. “I came here tonight because I’ve never been able to get you completely out of my mind. Or my…” Heart. She wanted to say it, but couldn’t. “My system,” she finished. “I’ve never stopped caring about you, or wondering. Because of something we had no control over, we were cheated out of growing up enough to make the decision to move apart or to become lovers.” She paused, but only for a moment. “I came here tonight because I realized I want what was taken away from us. I want you.” She stepped closer and put