Page 29 of In the Arms of a Hero

They sat in silence for another moment, and then suddenly, he blurted, “I wanted to apologize to you for the evening we met at the Sunset Restaurant.”

Of all the things he could’ve said, that was unexpected. She had no idea what to say because she had no idea what he was apologizing for. “Oh… I…” Snapping her mouth closed, she waited again.

“My… the woman I was with was rude?—”

She waved her hand dismissively, not really wanting to hear about his girlfriend. “No, I shouldn’t have approached when you were with someone. I saw you and had heard you made detective and just wanted to congratulate you. I should’ve picked a better opportunity.”

“No!” he rushed, his eyes as imploring as his voice.

She jumped at his vehemence, her body now rigid again.

“Shit,” he murmured. “I mean that you shouldn’t be the one to apologize. You were being very polite and very sweet to offer congratulations, and the… well, I thought she was rude, and I let her know how I felt about it.”

Even more surprised, she chewed on the corner of her bottom lip for a few seconds, her mind going blank. His eyes momentarily then dropped to the uneaten pastry still on his plate. Finally, she said, “I’m not sure what to say. I hope I didn’t cause a rift between you two.”

His gaze lifted to hers. “No, you didn’t. She was someone who I went out with for a while, but we were never exclusively serious. In truth, we had only dated about a month by the time we saw you at the restaurant. And weeks later, I knew that she wasn’t right for me, so I… we parted ways.”

Belinda’s stomach churned as she tried to take in Aaron’s blurted words. She still couldn’t understand why he was there. The woman had made it obvious that they were dating, and while she knew it made sense for him to continue to look for relationships, she had to admit the woman’s rudeness had hurt. Finally, she sighed heavily, now wanting the conversation to end. “If you’re here to apologize for her behavior, you don’t have to do that. If someone is rude, that behavior is on them. Not you.”

The bell over the door rang, and she looked up, glad for the excuse to move back to the counter. She stood and smiled down at him. “I truly hope you find what you’re looking for, Aaron.”

She served the next customers and then said goodbye to Bess. Aaron was still sitting at the table, drinking his coffee, and she tossed an awkward goodbye wave to him as she walked out the door. Feeling his eyes on her, she continued to her car before she glanced over. Through the bakery window, he was still staring at her, a small smile curving his lips as he lifted his hand and waved.

Watching Belinda drive away, Aaron sighed heavily, rubbing his forehead.

“I realize it’s none of my business, but can I ask why you’re here?”

He looked up to see Bess standing nearby, her expression closed off. “I wanted to apologize to your sister. The night we were at the restaurant, the woman I was with was rude, and that was unacceptable to me.”

“It seems that you should take that up with the woman who was rude if it was so unacceptable.”

“I did. She’s no longer in the picture.”

Bess’s lips were pressed tightly together. “So you’ve apologized. I assume that’s the last we’ll see of you again.”

“You’ve got the best coffee, Bess?—”

“You can’t sweet-talk me, Aaron. My loyalty will always belong to my sister. And she’s moved on with her life. I don’t want to see her hurt again.”

He nodded slowly. “I know she’s moved on. I saw her with the man she’s dating.”

Bess’s brows snapped together. “She’s not dating anyone. What are you talking about?”

Just then, the door opened, and the man Aaron had seen with Belinda popped his head in. “Bess! Has Belinda left already?”

“Yeah, she headed out a few minutes ago. She’s on her way to the club and will meet you there.”

“Thanks!” He grinned widely as he left, and Aaron instantly hated him.

As Bess turned back to Aaron, he lifted his brow. “Club? Where the hell is a club on the shore?”

Bess stared at him, then glanced out the window at the man hurrying back to his car. Her lips curved slowly before she burst into laughter. “Club. Oh my God! You’re jealous!”

Now, Aaron’s lips were tightly pressed together. He waited until Bess’s laughter had finally died down. She pulled out the chair that Belinda had sat in and faced him.

“I have no idea why I’m telling you this. It certainly isn’t for you. But the club I was referring to is the photography club at the community college. Belinda is one of the sponsors and teaches a photography class there.”

Eyes wide, he stared at Bess. “Photography club?”

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