Page 16 of Crashing Into Me
LANA LAYIN bed on her back, her head staring at the door. The wine still burned in her stomach, but it wasn’t the only heat she felt tonight. Despite the deep and profound conversation they had, she still wanted to reach out to him for very different reasons. She imagined Kayden opening the door, grabbing her, and ravishing her like they do in the movies, but knew that was a childish thought. She had to keep as much distance between them as she could, as hard as it may be. The kind of relationship she wanted and the temperament of the man she needed…he wasn’t there yet. Not if he was behaving recklessly. That wasn’t the kind of baggage she needed in her life. No matter how devastatingly gorgeous the bag may be.
So that’s it then,she thought. Keep busy. Stay out of the house until absolutely necessary. No more wine, intimate fireside chats. No more enclosed spaces where he could rest his forehead against mine….. Her stomach tightened, remembering the elevator. She sighed, turned her eyes to the ceiling of the room, and let the alcohol allow her to drift to sleep.
THE FOLLOWING WEEK,the world outside Paula’s estate became a blur of white and biting wind. The snowfall wasn't just heavier; it was a relentless force, transforming the picturesquelandscape into a treacherous canvas. The beauty of winter faded quickly for Lana, replaced by the grating reality of her rickety Ford, which whined in protest each morning and demanded a full forty-five minutes of precious time just to thaw. Driving to visit Rachel became a white-knuckled ordeal —a battle against icy roads and dwindling visibility, each trip a stark reminder of her isolation.
Inside the sprawling house, the cold felt different; a chill born of her own making. After that charged night by the fire, Lana had retreated, keeping Kayden at arm's length. It was a futile exercise when they shared the same roof, the air thick with unspoken words, and her eyes averting his stares. Yet, the universe seemed intent on throwing them together. Everywhere she went in town, Kayden would appear, a shadow in the periphery of her vision. At the grocery store, his broad shoulders would suddenly block an aisle. In the small shopping plaza, his deep voice would cut through the mundane chatter. Even the hushed sanctity of the library offered no escape, his presence a sudden, startling warmth beside a shelf of dusty novels.
She tried to rationalize it, to tell herself it was just a small town, a coincidence, but with Kayden, certainty was a luxury she couldn't afford. He would often visit Rachel or the police station, and for those brief moments, Lana was profoundly grateful for the empty house, the silence a calm against the constant hum of his proximity. Then she'd grab a sandwich at Aunt Mae's for dinner, a ritual escape as repairs had just begun on the diner, a desperate bid for normalcy each night. One afternoon, amidst the clatter of plates and the comforting scent of fried food, as she shamelessly stuffed her face with strawberry shortcake, she spotted him. Kayden, an imposing figure, pacing the icy sidewalk in front of the diner, his cell phone pressed to his ear, his expression etched with an intensity that sent a fresh shiverdown her spine—one that had nothing to do with the falling snow.
Dressed in jeans and his signature leather jacket, he looked damned sexy as usual, but she could see he was upset. Whoever he was talking to, he was pleading with them.His mother most likely.Earlier that week, Lana had overheard him arguing with her on the phone as she was heading out to visit Rachel. It seemed most of their conversations were heated, but at least she understood why now.
Lana scarfed down the cake and took the opportunity to high-tail it back to the estate. Most days after visiting Rachel, she’d go to the small library and curl up with a book, often finishing them in one sitting. Only once did the librarian have to warn her of closing time, which was about six o’clock, and she’d have to hurry back to the house before dark. Driving through the snow was hard enough during the daylight. She and Kayden had fallen into a pattern.
If they spoke, she made no mention of his brother, and he didn’t ask about her ex—a simple “hi” in the morning and “goodnight” at bedtime. Last night, though, she returned to a cooked dinner of bacon-wrapped ribeye steak and a Mediterranean salad, but she declined the meal, not ready for another sit-down with him at all. She felt bad about seeing the effort he had put in, but she knew it was for the best. The less time she spent anxious and wrestling with her feelings, the better, and she’d even devised a new plan for the remaining three weeks left of her vacation.
Her mornings would be spent visiting with Rachel, then volunteering at the diner, as they made restorations. It seemed like a fun way to spend her time. She loved the building and the people, so why not help out as much as she could? As much as she liked the library, the selection wasn’t as big as city libraries, and her supply was dwindling, so she’d maybe revisit Rachel orbinge-watch something on the TV in the master suite she was in. Not the ideal vacation itinerary, but it would do—anything to keep her mind occupied on something other than Kayden.
KAYDEN WONDEREDWHY Lana was going out of her way to avoid him so much. Sure, the other night was intense, but was it really that bad? Fear struck him, wondering if, after she got a better understanding of who he was, she didn’t like what she saw anymore. It made him a bit angry to think he had succeeded in pushing another person away when all he had been trying to do was the opposite. He let his guard down. Something he didn’t do often, and it backfired anyway. At least Rachel was still happy to see him every day, but he knew the visits would have to slow down with the impending snowstorm on the horizon. He wondered if Lana had even stopped to check the weather forecast? It was getting more dangerous to drive, and soon the town would be on lockdown. The salting trucks had already been prepared, as the roads were becoming too dangerous to drive on.
All roads would eventually be closed regardless, and it wasn’t uncommon to be snowed in for weeks at a time. This also impeded his plan to help with the diner repairs. He wanted his mother to allow Capshaw Realty to restore the diner at no cost as a peace offering and because it was the least he could do. This didn’t sit well with her, and she told him that it would be on his own dime, as she wouldn’t use company money to fix his mistakes again. As he stood in front of Aunt Mae’s and assessed the damage, he knew it would cost at least fifty thousand at minimum. Once he could get a contractor there, he would know the full cost, and honestly, it didn’t matter. He wanted to undothis blunder and lift the cloud that loomed over him because of it.
He could handle that easily on his own, but still had to be careful with what he had. His inheritance was substantial as the company was worth half a billion dollars, but if he were cut off, that would be gone, so he had to spend wisely. He also owned three houses, and the mortgages alone would eat up his savings if he were left out in the cold. After having the heated debate with her, standing in the cold, he glanced over at Lana, eating alone as she often did. He wanted to prove to himself that he was changing and evolving, and it didn’t hurt to prove that to her as well.
Inevitably, he yielded and agreed to take on the restorations himself, deciding to do so under his own company ledger. Maureen hung up on him without acknowledging or encouraging him, which made him angry. She was so unrelenting when it came to him—never giving an inch for mistakes. Living up to her degree of perfection was exhausting. It was as if she didn’t care about the efforts he was trying to make to better himself, although she demanded it. He had to figure out a way to stop letting her control his emotions, as it had been the catalyst for his spiraling behavior, and he refused to let it happen anymore.
By the time he got off the phone and calmed himself down, Lana was gone, and her truck was already turning onto the roundabout. Kayden walked up to Aunt Mae, and her cheerful disposition melted into a glare. After spending twenty minutes explaining to her what it was he wanted to do, her frown turned into a smile, and the ample woman he had known all his life grabbed him and hugged him. It would take about four weeks to complete, and the work would begin once the storm blew over, but Aunt Mae was still elated.
Now, he was more excited than he’d been in a long time. He was forming his own company, breaking away from his mother and doing some good for the community he loved. For the first time, Kayden saw a light at the end of a very dark and lonely tunnel. He couldn’t wait to share the news with Lana, and hopefully, she’d look at him the way she did before.
6
stormbound
She rose early the next morning, hoping to leave the house before she ran into Kayden. She’d skip the coffee and muffins he usually left out and high-tail it today. Lana took a long, hot shower and dressed in the warmest clothes she had: Her favorite pair of denim jeans, a light pink turtleneck sweater, and a brown leather jacket. She pulled her hair up into her signature work bun, but thought it looked too librarian, so she let her curls hang wild and free. It was seven-fifteen when she crept carefully down the stairs to not wake Kayden, but the smell of food alerted her that she was already too late. Coffee and bacon should be a cologne in her opinion, the two were a perfect match. As she reached the bottom of the landing, Kayden was at the stove cooking, while two place settings were up on the granite countertop.
“Morning,” he beamed as he stirred the scrambled eggs.
“Morning. You’ve been busy.” She looked at the spread, which included cheesy grits, pancakes, bacon, coffee, and now the eggs, which he was plating up.
“Yeah. I didn’t sleep much last night anyway and wanted to make breakfast,” he smiled, putting the pan in the dishwasher.
“You didn’t have to do that. I would’ve gotten something at Aunt Mae’s,” she lied.
Lana wasn’t looking forward to freezing in the parking lot while hunched over another breakfast burrito.
“Don’t be silly, eat up.” He grabbed one of the stools and pulled it out for her.
She looked at him, a thin smile on her lips, and sat. She wasn’t getting out of it, and the sound her stomach made sealed the deal. He sat next to her and poured her a cup of coffee.
“This all looks amazing, thanks.”
She took the steaming mug and mixed in some yellow packet sugar substitute and way too much creamer by some people’s standards. She couldn’t drink it any other way.
“You’re welcome,” he replied with his signature wink.
He picked up the TV remote on the counter, pointed it at the massive TV above the fireplace, and tuned it to the weather channel. From the screen, she could hear the weatherman: “Three inches of snow last night, which isn’t bad, but later this week it will be up to five feet. Yes, you heard right, there's a blizzard headed for the following cities: Hamby, Shelby, Covington...”
He turned the TV off.
