Bring Me Back Read online

  The pencil point snapped. She pried her fingers off and set the pencil down deliberately. Ben was quitting?

  Racking her brain for coherent thought, she said, “You can’t just plan a wedding on the spur of the moment. I’d need at least six months.”

  He shook his head. “Won’t work. I’m going to Pennsylvania this afternoon. We can go to the courthouse and get hitched first, or I’ll go to PA alone. If I do, I’ll see my family, then I’m heading to Montana to start my own business.”

  “But your two-week notice?”

  “I’ll be using personal days. And Paul has agreed to cover for me.”

  She’d allowed them the ability to do that on occasion. Obviously he was taking advantage of it now.

  He stood in front of her, tall and dark and quiet. The idea of working without him had given her an empty feeling inside. She didn’t work side by side with him, but in the summer, she saw him every day through the open garage door. She caught occasional glimpses of him on security cameras, which were attached to her computer, and during meetings and such.

  They were a team, both of them pulling together. They’d been able to complement each other like no one else she’d ever been around.

  But marry him?

  Sure, there was this crazy attraction. But that wasn’t enough to build a marriage on. Wait...

  “You said you could have it headed in the right direction in six months.”

  “Yeah.”

  “What about after that?”

  “If it needs more help, I’m not opposed to staying longer.”

  “So you’ll only stay for six months or until it’s performing at the top?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Then what?”

  “That’s when I’ll leave to start my own business.”

  “So you’re leaving either way?”

  “Yep.”

  “What about me? Our...marriage?”

  A shadow flickered over his face, gone before she could examine it. “It’s not going to be a real marriage. We’ll get it annulled. I’m just not lying to my family while I’m there. Not any more than I have to.” He paused, and the word “again” seemed to whisper in the air around them. “If I have a woman standing beside me and I say she’s my wife, she’s going to be my wife.”

  It was crazy. She shouldn’t be considering it. Why was she even asking questions about it? But she knew. Because pleasing her dad and working for his company had been all she’d ever known.

  Maybe she was also giving in to the pull that Ben had always exerted on her. Not that their “marriage” was going to mean anything. Of course, there was still the problem that existed all those years ago when she’d walked away from him the first time. This time, though, her dad wouldn’t have anything to hold over her head. Nothing that would hurt Ben anyway.

  Before she could use rational sense. Before she could chicken out. She straightened. “I’ll do it.”

  ~~~

  Riley placed her phone on speaker as she packed the last of the things she was taking from her office. It rang. And rang.

  This was why she hardly ever called her mom. Her mom never answered. Seemed like she was always out doing something. She’d text later, apologizing for missing her call, saying she was out somewhere.

  Had Riley called her mom even twice this year?

  But marriage, even a fake one, was a big step, and Riley just felt like she needed to get her mother’s opinion on it. Not permission. Not even acceptance. Her mother wouldn’t know Ben. But she supposed there were certain times in a woman’s life when she needed her mom. Marriage was one of those times. Even if it wasn’t going to be real. Maybe especially if it wasn’t going to be real.

  Okay. Maybe she just wasn’t sure that what she was doing was a great idea, and she needed to talk to someone. Someone who lived life to the fullest and wasn’t afraid to take chances. She could hardly call friends she barely spoke to anymore for advice on a fake marriage.

  Her mom’s voicemail came on.

  Riley swiped off, not even considering leaving a message. Disappointment swirled in her chest. A familiar feeling when she was dealing with her mother.

  She tapped her finger on the edge of the box she’d filled with her personal items. Then she picked up her phone and found her dad’s contact.

  He picked up on the second ring. “What?”

  “I just wanted to tell you I’d be in Pennsylvania tonight. I’ve already arranged housing at the business-owned farmhouse. I’ll be in to work tomorrow.”

  “Good. I’ll see that your office is ready. The woman you’re replacing left last week.”

  “My replacement has been hired, and I’m taking over all employment decisions at the PA terminal.”

  “I’ll make sure the staff understands,” her dad said brusquely.

  Her dad hated Ben. That’s why she’d already taken care of his employment at the Brickley Springs terminal. It was something her dad would find out eventually, but that didn’t need to be today. Hopefully it would be after they’d started getting the shop to perform.

  She supposed moms and dads were different—she’d never really been around her mom much. Still, she wasn’t tempted to tell her dad about her marriage at all. Most of that was probably because he’d blow a gasket if he found out she was going to marry Ben, but also because he just wouldn’t be interested. The way she got his attention was by performing.

  Maybe she thought her mom would be different. She should have known her mom wouldn’t answer.

  She drew her attention back to their conversation. “Thanks. That’ll be helpful. I’ll be able to hit the ground running.”

  “I wouldn’t expect anything else.”

  “I haven’t met my replacement. She’s not arriving until Monday.” Ben hadn’t given her a choice about when she was leaving. She wanted to get moving, so she hadn’t put up a fight about it. Or maybe she’d just been too shell-shocked about the fact that she’d actually agreed to get married. To Ben. “Audrey will handle everything.”

  “That’s good. Hire yourself a secretary when you come down. Or two if you need. You know you have the freedom to make any and all changes you need.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “Sure. Whatever it takes to pull this terminal up. I want it to be the top-performing shop when the investors show up. I gotta go.” He hung up without saying goodbye.

  Riley sighed, looking down at her phone. She’d never done anything that had garnered her mother’s attention. But she knew what it took to impress her dad. She looked at the box and squared her shoulders. Maybe she was crazy, but getting married to someone she barely knew wasn’t too much to do if it meant she’d succeed in her dad’s eyes.

  Although she had to admit she wouldn’t have married just anyone. Ben had always been different than other men to her. She knew she could trust him, and she knew he had what it took to turn the terminal around.

  She was just putting the last of her things into the final box when Eve pushed her office door open and looked around. “Good morning, Riley. I know you’re probably busy, but do you have a minute?”

  “I sure do. Come on in.” She was packed and ready to go. She’d had a moving company come to her apartment earlier in the week, taking some things to storage and some to Pennsylvania. She just had a few suitcases. “Actually, I was just finishing up here, and I’m glad for something to pass the time.”

  Eve stepped in.

  “Come on in and sit down.” Riley indicated two comfortable chairs in the corner of her office that angled toward each other. “These are pretty comfortable. I’m going to miss them.”

  Eve smiled. “Ben’s already been in to see you?”

  “Yes.” Riley gave her a direct look.

  “And you said?”

  “I agreed.”

  Something that looked like relief went over Eve’s face. Then she looked at her lap, turning her phone over and over in her hands, like an alligator death roll. She looked very young when she fina
lly lifted her head and spoke. “I want to ask a question, but it’s personal.”

  Riley kept her expression clear, although a little chill ran down her spine. “Okay.”

  “You don’t have to answer.” She gave a half-smile.

  The chill reached out and wrapped around her ribs. “Okay.”

  “Something happened between you and Ben a long time ago. Eden and I have figured that much out. But Ben won’t talk. Will you tell me?”

  Riley blew a breath out. She hesitated because it was really Ben’s story to tell. Riley was the bad guy. But maybe Ben hadn’t wanted to talk bad about her. She could see Ben holding it in because of that; really, she could.

  So, it would fall to her to tell the story. But the twins might hate her, and she liked Eden and Eve a lot. She walked to the coffee maker that she was leaving for the next occupant and poured herself a cup. “Would you like some?”

  “No. Thank you.”

  Riley held the cup in her hand and started toward her chair. “I don’t want you to hate me.”

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  She smiled. “You’ll think less of me. I know. But I guess I deserve it.” She took a sip of her coffee then realized she hadn’t put any cream or sugar in it. “Ugh.” She got back up. “Back when we were in high school, well, even before that. I think Ben was around fourteen when he moved up to Maine.”

  “He actually ran away from his home.” Eve stated it like it was a fact everyone knew.

  Riley poured the creamer in her coffee. “I didn’t know that until recently.” Her heart clenched. She stood still, picturing Ben, determined and angry, making his way to his mother. Yes. She could see it. Nothing could have stopped him from going to be with her once he found out about her. Even at fourteen. Her heart pinched for the boy he’d been. “I just knew he showed up in school about ninth grade. He was gorgeous.”

  “He still is,” Eden said.

  “True.” Riley giggled. “I guess I’m getting married to him. I can admit that, right?”

  Eden laughed. “I won’t tell him you said so.”

  “He knows it.”

  “Actually, I don’t think he does.”

  Riley couldn’t imagine he didn’t. “Anyway, we had a class together, and when he learned that my dad owned a trucking company, he asked me if I could get him permission to hang around the garage.” She shrugged. “So I did.”

  They’d talked in class some and met once behind the bleachers, she couldn’t even remember what for...maybe for her to return the hat he’d left in class or something. Something innocent.

  But after that first time, they’d just kind of shown up there every morning, and for twenty minutes or so, they’d talked.

  Completely innocent. He’d never kissed her. It wasn’t like they made out behind the bleachers. Nothing like that. But one morning that spring, he’d asked her to go to the prom with him.

  She’d said yes. With fireworks shooting out of her heart and her entire being thrilled that the boy she was falling for had asked her out.

  They never walked the halls together. Except for that one history class, they were in completely different rooms and tracks. They’d never “gone steady” or any of the other things that her friends did. Ben was different. It was part of his attraction.

  “And he learned mechanical stuff from being around the mechanics at Coleman?” Eve asked, interrupting her thoughts.

  “Yes. He did. It was the best thing he could have done.”

  “And you helped him. How does that make you look bad?”

  “Oh, our story doesn’t end there.” If only.

  “No?” She sat a little straighter on the chair. “Keep going.”

  Riley tapped her cup. “So, your mom had you two, and also Ben, and of course, your dad didn’t do much in the way of support.”

  “I know Ben said Mom didn’t want to rock the boat and endanger Eden and me, so she didn’t insist on child support.”

  Riley nodded. “I think that’s the way lots of women feel.”

  “What was she like?” Eve asked softly.

  Riley barely remembered Ben’s mother. “She was beautiful. Gentle. Quiet. I remember her as a real lady.”

  “You didn’t have a mom?” Eve wrinkled her nose.

  “Not really. I mean, I do. She’s with her fifth husband and living in the Bahamas. She didn’t want me.” Riley took a drink of coffee to disguise the hurt in her heart.

  “That’s sad.”

  “Yeah. Anyway.” It was ancient history, and she just had to deal with it. “When her lupus started getting worse, Ben was beside himself. He was fifteen, and he wanted to work, to help provide since your mother had to quit her job—she was a waitress. But he was too young.”

  “And?”

  “So, I told you, I helped him get a job. Dad was already grooming me to work in his business. From the time I could walk, I followed him around the company. I knew the ins and outs—I’d worked there every summer since I could read. Anyway, I...falsified Ben’s birth certificate, made him older than he was, and I made sure he got hired for second shift. Back then, the Maine terminal was our only terminal. It wasn’t until I graduated from high school that Dad expanded and moved and Pennsylvania became our home base.”

  “So Ben was able to go to school and also work.” Eve pushed her hair back behind her ear. Her face was still open and friendly. They hadn’t gotten to the bad part of the story yet.

  “Yep.”

  “No one found out?”

  “People knew. But they also knew the situation with your mom and that she couldn’t work and she had you two...”

  “No one said anything.” Eve looked thoughtful.

  “Nope.”

  She shrugged. “I still don’t see how you’re the bad guy.”

  Riley swallowed. “It’s coming. Trust me.”

  “Okay.”

  “Like I said, people knew, but Ben was good at what he did. It wasn’t long until he had to turn down a promotion to day shift, even. But your mom got worse.”

  “She died.” Eve said it matter-of-factly with a lifted shoulder. Riley supposed it was just a fact of life to her. She’d been very young when it happened.

  “Eventually. But Ben and I...” How did she explain what they were? Friends, yeah, kind of. “We didn’t really date, but we liked each other. I knew he liked me, and I really liked him.” She smiled. She had really, really liked him. “But Ben had a lot of responsibility on his shoulders, and he was working all the time, and you don’t really know my dad, but he had plans for me that didn’t include me getting mixed up with a mechanic from the shop. And I knew that.”

  Eve’s brows drew down. “Ben wasn’t good enough for him?”

  “Yeah. That’s basically it.” And nothing had changed. At all.

  “Ben asked me to go to prom with him, and I said yes. He was coming to my house to pick me up. But my dad found out...I think it was the day before. He got one of his business friends to have their son come take me.” She fingered her cup. She couldn’t even remember the boy’s name. He’d just finished his second year of college, and her dad thought pretty highly of him.

  “My dad was furious that I’d been kind of seeing Ben, a mechanic. I didn’t usually buck him, but I was a little defiant about Ben.” She’d really, really liked him. “I was a teenager, and I was all like, ‘but I love him, Daddy.’ But Dad said if I ever spoke to him again, Dad would make sure he got fired and never worked for Coleman Trucking again. Furthermore, he said he would make sure that he never worked as a mechanic again.” She’d believed him at the time. “Looking back, I don’t know if he could have done that. But I do know that Ben needed that job. His mother was dying, and he had twin sisters to raise, and his dad was a deadbeat. I was scared that Ben would lose you two, and I knew he’d be devastated over that.”

  Eve nodded. She knew what was at stake for Ben.

  “Dad made sure that I understood that the break needed to be permanent. I wasn’t to
string him along or have him come to me asking if I’d change my mind or anything. Dad promised that he would keep his job. He promised that he’d even get a pay raise, but I could never have contact with him again. First time he caught Ben trying to talk to me, even if I didn’t answer him, he was terminated.”

  Eve’s eyes got big, and her knuckles whitened as she held her phone. “Wow. That’s harsh.”

  “I know he probably was trying to protect me and trying to do what was best for me.” Actually she really wasn’t sure, but she hoped it was true.

  “Maybe.”

  Riley shrugged. It didn’t make any difference at this point in time. “Dad insisted I go to the dance with that other boy. He insisted that I walk out the door on his arm, with all of my friends and their dates behind me. Man, there must have been twenty of us...” Her voice trailed off.

  She could still see Ben standing there, unable to afford to rent a tux, but looking better than anyone she’d ever seen in clean jeans and a nice white collared shirt. A bouquet of grocery store flowers in his hand. It’d been the hardest thing she’d ever done in her life to stop, with her hand holding onto the arm of another boy, and tell Ben all the things her dad had told her to. But when they’d met in the mornings, he’d talked with pride, affection, and deep love about his twin sisters and the promises he’d made to his mother to take care of them. She couldn’t be the reason he’d lost it all.

  It was one of the hardest things she’d ever done. “I told Ben he was a fool for thinking that I might actually go somewhere in public with him.” She took a breath. “I said he wasn’t good enough for me and never would be. I called him white trash and a scum ball and a bunch of other insults.”

  “He stood there?”

  “Yeah. He stood there. My dad stood at the door, smiling. My friends laughed behind me. I smiled back at my dad, so Ben would know that he wasn’t making me do it.”

  “Wow. That was harsh.” Eve repeated her earlier phrase, only with more heat this time. Her eyes narrowed at Riley.