Bestselling author Katherine Adams will be signing and talking about her newest book, Past Lives, on Sunday, November…
The rest didn’t matter. David picked up a copy of the book, the same one she’d showed him in her suite. It was a thick volume. He flipped it over in his hands a few times, absorbing its weight and texture. He wondered what it took to write something like this. He read the synopsis on the inside flap and then the short biography in the back.
‘Katherine Adams is the author of six novels in the bestselling Elliot Hunter series, including Fleeting Glance, Give Back, and Playing the Game. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and daughter.’
Her daughter. Her seventeen-year-old daughter. Christ. David focused on the picture on the book jacket. Kate was beautiful. Her face glowed, her eyes sparkled, and he thought about her after they’d made love. He could still feel her hands, her lips—he could feel everything, and he got crazy just thinking about her. He remembered the entire night with perfect clarity… and he’d been a dick and wrecked it.
David tucked the book under his arm and went to the café.
Never had he felt quite so empty. He wondered if they could have been something to each other, but just like always, he made sure he would never find out. There had been times in his life he’d been disappointed because something didn’t work out the way he expected. He’d suffered personal and professional losses. But this was different. Rather than feeling that life had blindsided him, David knew he had no one to blame but himself. And looking once again at Kate’s picture, he knew he was the only one who could fix the mess he’d made.
*
Three weeks.
Kate sat at the desk in her classroom staring at the playing fields in the distance. It was getting colder, and pretty soon she wouldn’t be able to look outside and see the activity, see the kids playing football or field hockey. Soon all she’d see would be a barren winter landscape.
It had been three weeks since she’d been in New York City and had seen David having brunch at Sarabeth’s. Kate wasn’t surprised she hadn’t heard from him, especially since he wasn’t alone in New York. She’d been working up the courage to actually call him, to take control of the situation. Now she was glad she’d never found the nerve. She’d watched his game on TV the night before, and a photograph of David, crushing an opposing player into the boards, dominated the back page of the newspaper she’d borrowed from the library. She stared at the picture and remembered the man who’d made love to her in California. The picture and the reality she’d experienced were in direct conflict. Did she want to take a risk on him?
Oh, yeah. She wanted him bad.
“Hey.”
Kate’s head shot up and she glanced toward the door where she saw her closest friend, Julie Higgins. Blonde and stunning, Julie was a French teacher and a few years younger than Kate. As silly as Kate was serious, as adventurous as Kate was cautious, Julie still didn’t know about David.
“Hi,” Kate said.
Julie walked in and glanced at the newspaper. “Following hockey?”
“A little.”
“Laura’s a big fan, isn’t she?”
“Yeah. Maybe it’ll give us something to talk about.”
“Maybe.” Julie sat in a student desk facing Kate. “One of the chaperones for the Honor Society trip backed out. I could use a hand. Are you available Friday night?”
“Sure.” Laura was with her father this weekend, going to his house right after school on Friday. Kate stood and walked toward the windowsill with a stack of papers. “Where are we going?”
“The Flyers game.”
Julie flinched as Kate spun toward her. “Flyers game?”
“Uh huh. The kids were invited because they adopted one of the team’s charities.”
Kate took three deep breaths to calm her racing heart before she spoke. “You know, I won’t be much fun. I’m not a big fan.”
A crease formed between Julie’s drawn brows. “You just said you want to learn about the team. This is the perfect opportunity.”
No, not perfect. She wanted to forget about David, not throw herself into his path. It was bad enough she was obsessing, watching his games on TV, reading about him in the newspaper, and staring at the poster on Laura’s wall. She couldn’t show up at one of his games. She drew in a deep breath and walked back to her desk.
“Kate, you’ve been acting weird since you got back from that conference. You want to tell me what’s going on?”
“There’s nothing going on,” she said quietly.
Julie looked away and Kate wondered what she should do. Her friend knew her better than almost anyone, so telling her nothing was wrong was insulting. And in reality, Kate hated keeping secrets. Maybe if she told her she’d feel better. Confession was good for the soul—right?
Walking to the classroom door and closing it, Kate faced Julie. “You really want to know?”
“I want to help if I can.”
“If I tell you, do you promise not to tell a soul? I mean no one.”
“Absolutely.” Julie leaned forward and folded her arms on the desktop. “This must be a pretty big deal. You’ve never sworn me to secrecy before.”
Bracing her hands on a desk behind her for support, Kate licked her lips. “I don’t know how to say this,” she began. “I had a—well, I sort of had a—fling when I was in California.”
Julie’s mouth hung open and then broke into a huge smile. “You did? Oh. My. God!”
“On my birthday, no less.”
“Happy Birthday to you! Was he amazing?”
“He was a god. Younger than me.”
“Really?” Julie squeaked. “How much younger?”
“Twenty-nine.”
Julie let out a long breath. “You’re killin’ me. What did he look like?”
Reaching out, Kate turned the newspaper and tapped the picture of David. “Like that.”
“Like David Burke! No way!”
Kate glanced at the picture, and the corner of her mouth twitched. “He didn’t just look like David Burke.” She bit her lip and blurted out the truth she still barely believed. “It was David Burke.”
Nothing.
There wasn’t a squeal, a gasp, nothing. Just a blank stare. Kate wasn’t sure, but she was afraid her friend was in shock. “Julie? Are you going to say anything?”
Julie blinked once, looked away and then looked at Kate straight on. “You are my hero,” she said quietly. “David Burke. Mon dieu.” Julie patted the desk next to the one she was sitting in and Kate obliged. “I want the whole story, and if you leave anything out I’ll never speak to you again.”
Thank God.
Kate drew a breath, smiled, and gave up her secret.
*
A little less than an hour later, Kate finished her tale, and this time, it was Julie who drew the breath and crossed her hands over her heart. “How did you keep it to yourself for so long?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t even tell my sister, and you know I tell her everything.”
Julie nodded. “That is, without a doubt, the most romantic story I’ve ever heard.”
“Yeah, well, it doesn’t mean much. I haven’t heard from him since I told him how old I am.”
“No?” she asked.
“I should have known. I mean, why would he want to be with someone my age?” Kate folded her arms on the desk and dropped her head.
“You liked him, didn’t you?”
Kate nodded. “It’s sad. The first man who pays attention to me after Richard and I’m like a lovesick fifteen-year-old. Deep down, I’m still hoping for something—a call, a text. Every time my phone so much as chirps, I hope it’s him.”
Julie reached over and patted her shoulder. “Maybe it will be.”