Chapter Eleven
Carina
Carina wasn’t certain when Josh had slipped away from the barbeque, but when she had reemerged from the kitchen, Josh was nowhere to be found. Which was for the best. She had been furious with herself over the fact that she had dug down deep for the strength not to appear disappointed when he hadn’t kissed her. But what had pissed her off to no end was that she had begun to believe that he cared for her a little. She should have seen it coming. The overprotective act of wanting to keep her safe from Eric had just been his way to hopefully get into her pants. She was nothing more than a temporary fix while his girlfriend was out of sight, out of mind.
She needed to get away. From Eric. From Josh. From the city.
“Bastards,” she uttered to her empty classroom.
Carina retrieved her purse from her desk drawer and withdrew her phone and car keys. She was looking forward to the drive down to Gabe’s bayside cottage, though she would have preferred that he be there when she arrived. He was different than the rest of her brothers. He enjoyed the quiet and the sanctity his shore home provided. To outsiders it probably appeared as if he lived as a recluse. But he never seemed to mind when she invaded his hermit-type lifestyle. He spoiled her rotten whenever she was in town by making her dinner, which was always straight out of the sea, and asking nothing more from her than to relax and enjoy a few beers with him on the deck.
She loved spending time with him, although she also wished he would find someone, have a woman he could come home to at the end of one of his long fishing trips. But she was also well aware of his past. Gabe, Brennan and Luke had been adopted by her parents when Gabe and Brennan were six and Luke was eight. Though the three brothers had never openly shared with her the details of their lives prior to the adoption, Carina knew that something horrific must have taken place before Carina’s father had rescued them and brought them into their family. Carina couldn’t help but think that Gabe’s past contributed to his need to live a seemingly solitary life.
Although Carina would miss Gabe this weekend, she was looking forward to being with Morgan. Carina couldn’t imagine better timing. Morgan needed to get away from Boston for awhile, away from the animal hospital she worked in as a vet alongside her now ex-husband, and the madness she’d had to deal with for the past several months. Morgan hadn’t revealed all the details surrounding her recent divorce, but Carina gathered that the dissolution of her marriage had taken an emotional and physical toll on her friend. Morgan and her now ex had seemed so happy on their wedding day. But looking back, Carina knew it couldn’t have lasted. There would always be that one that had gotten away, that one Morgan never spoke of, even to Carina. But Carina knew. She had always known who had stolen her friend’s heart when they were kids, never allowing Morgan to give herself completely to another man.
Carina shook her head, ridding herself of all distractions. This weekend belonged to Carina and Morgan, not the past and the ghosts that could easily resurface at any moment. Like old times, she and Morgan would throw on an apron for this one night, laugh, serve delicious food to Brennan’s customers and wait with bated breath to discover who was going to screw up. It was inevitable and now a McGinnis ritual. Either Carina or Morgan would drop a tray of wine glasses or flutes of champagne at some point in the night. Unfortunately, it was Carina’s turn to make an ass of herself. It was a miracle that Brennan still allowed her and Morgan to walk through his doors, let alone be the help.
The clock struck four and she eagerly headed to her classroom door. Carina was happy that she had taken a moment last night, albeit feeling exhausted at the time, to pack her SUV with the items she would need for the weekend so she could just leave from work. If she left now and took the shortcuts she knew like the back of her hand, she could be at Gabe’s in a little over an hour. Ordinarily she would spend this particular night at her parents’ house, but her mother had told her over the phone while she was stuffing her face with Ben and Jerry’s that they had decided to hop on a last-minute flight and surprise Jake while his team took on San Fran. Her mother had apologized for going away, but she said she needed to see those beautiful green eyes of his. Carina didn’t ask and her mother didn’t explain why she felt compelled to fly across the country to see her son. But she suspected that her mother knew that Jake needed his family right now, that his head was most likely not in a good place since he had recently learned that Morgan’s marriage was over. Although Carina would miss seeing her parents, she completely understood, because her mother would have done the same for her, for any one of her children.
Carina entered the hallway and instantly felt uneasy. She had never experienced such anxiety before, as if she couldn’t get out of the building fast enough. It was possible the empty and eerily calm corridors were contributing to her sudden need to pick up the pace. But she knew that wasn’t it. Eric ruled these halls. His presence was everywhere.
“Hey, heading out?” Melissa asked. Carina turned and saw her friend again juggling too many books, as she attempted to close her classroom door. Carina made it just in time and grabbed three textbooks before they spilled to the ground.
“That’s it. I’m getting you one of those rolling carts for your birthday,” Carina quipped. Melissa chuckled. “It would make it easier for you to eat breakfast on the run,” Carina said, tempting her disorganized friend.
“Now, you have my attention,” Melissa said as they reached the main entrance.
Carina could actually feel the air change around her. A second later she knew why. “Have a good weekend, ladies.”
Eric was standing outside his office door. “You, too, Mr. Ross,” Melissa said. Carina glared at him. He flashed them both a smile and then disappeared into his office.
Disgusted, Carina hurried outside and walked in the direction of Melissa’s car. “It may be a little early to ask, but what do you think of our new fearless leader?” Like most of the staff, Melissa was probably skeptical that Eric could fill his predecessor’s rather large shoes. The previous principal had been well loved and respected, not only by the teachers, but by his students and their parents.
Carina held her tongue and gave her a safe answer. “He’s only been here a week. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
“I know he’s only been here a week, but I…I don’t know…I just…”
Carina stopped in front of Melissa’s car and looked at her friend. “What? What is it?”
“Did someone ever just give you the creeps? I mean, don’t get me wrong. He’s good-looking, like really good-looking, but he just makes my skin crawl for some reason.”
In the four years that Carina had known Melissa, she had never heard her say a bad word about anyone. She might be disorganized and her time management skills were questionable, but the woman had a heart of gold and always saw the good in people. Always. Melissa opened the trunk to her Honda CRV and set her books down. Carina laid her small pile next to hers. “I hate talking about people. I. HATE. IT. But my gut is telling me…”
“Trust your gut, Melissa,” Carina said, cutting her off. Melissa’s eyes narrowed and her lips parted.
An obnoxious jingle thankfully interrupted the silence, prompting Melissa to reach first into her purse and then into the tote bag she had slung over her shoulder. She finally dug her cell phone out and looked at the display. “Oh no. It’s Charlie’s daycare. What did he do now?”
“I’m sure he’s okay.” Melissa flashed her a half-hearted smile, not seeming at all convinced that her two-year-old hadn’t gotten into trouble again, and answered the call. A few seconds later, Melissa whispered, “He’s fine. But apparently Charlie thought it was a good idea to strip and go streaking across the playground this afternoon.” Carina laughed and gave Melissa a hug before she headed to her car.
But once inside, Carina forgot about Charlie flashing his preschool classmates and thought about what Melissa had said. How intuitive her friend was. Why hadn’t Carina picked up on the creep vibe while they were dating? That he was cheating on her? Why hadn’t she seen it? Suspected something?
“Asshole,” she grumbled. Carina put the car in drive and started for the bridge. She had approximately one hour to fester. One hour to think about how she had missed the signs. One hour to think about how she was going to bring Eric Ross to his knees.