RAYNE WOKE EARLIER than normal and was informed that she was going to learn how to ride. She dressed as slowly as she could in order to put off the lesson and found Sophie grinning like a loon in the hallway when she left her bedroom.
“Come on, chicken. You’ll do fine.”
Rayne sighed. “Maybe a good breakfast will help.”
Sophie shook her head. “I have a muffin for you… you can eat it on the way to the barn.”
“Has anyone told you that you’re mean?”
Sophie nodded. “More than one… and all the time.”
Rayne was surprised by how easy riding actually was. She might not be ready to jump any fences, but she was able to stay on at a canter, and the feeling was almost as good as riding her Harley.
She was not prepared, however, to miss Sam. After lunch, she’d taken a bath and dressed in a simple day dress, but had holed up in her room for the rest of the afternoon in an effort to give herself a pep talk. The disappointment she felt knowing she wouldn’t see Sam for dinner was slightly overwhelming. A knock on her bedroom door interrupted her melancholy.
“Rayne?”
“Come in.” The door opened and she smiled when Sophie poked her head inside. “Hi.”
“Are you okay?”
“Yep. Great,” Rayne said a little too quickly.
“Madame should be here soon.” Sophie smiled gently as she moved into the room and closed the door.
“Oh. Okay.”
Sophie chuckled as she sat in one of the chairs and patted the seat of the other one. “You miss him, don’t you?”
“I guess I do.” Rayne sat down slowly. “I think he’s become a habit more than anything else.”
“Oh, really?”
Rayne nodded. “We’ve spent every day together since I got here. He’s shown me the city, taken me on picnics…” She ran a finger across the arm of the chair, “…and generally made a nuisance of himself.”
“A nuisance? Really?”
“Yes.” Rayne studied her fingernails.
“Do you get along well?”
“I suppose.” She shrugged. “Except for the part about him thinking I’m crazy and wanting to commit me to a mental hospital.”
“Yes, there is that.” Sophie wrinkled her nose. “How about we go downstairs and wait for Madame? She may have some answers.”
Rayne sighed and rose to her feet. “One can hope.”
* * *
Madame Desmarais arrived half an hour later, looking somewhat put out. “Sophie? What is the emergency?”
Sophie stood and sighed. “I’m sorry, Madame—”
“Rayne? Cherie, what are you doing here?” Madame asked. “You are supposed to be in D.C.”
Rayne scowled. “I really need to go home. I was told you could tell me how.”
“Non, non, cherie. You cannot go home. It is too dangerous.” Madame sat next to Rayne on the sofa.
“What do you mean too dangerous? I need to go home!”
Sophie sat in one of the chairs across from them and smiled. “Madame, please explain why Rayne is here. As you can see, she’s overwrought.”
Madame sighed and nodded. “You will fall into the world of drugs if you are in the future.”
Rayne snorted. “I will not. One, I don’t do drugs. Two, Shaye would never allow it.”
Madame shook her head. “Non. You do not understand. Shaye would not be able to stop it. The Cary family is in the process of bankrolling a combined tour with you and… what is his name?”
“Shaunessy?” Rayne provided.
“Oui… Shaunessy. They will pay for it.”
Rayne groaned. “So? That’s great! It means everyone gets paid, and the fans get to see a great show.”
“Non, it is not bon. I have seen the future. You will become addicted to heroin and under their control. They are trying to corner the market on the youth vote, and if they have you and Shaunessy, they have millions of voters.”
Rayne stood and started to pace. “Listen, lady, there is no way in hell I would ever become addicted to drugs! And certainly nothing like heroin.”
Madame sighed. “It is not your choice.”
Rayne whipped around to retort, but Sophie raised her hand. “Wait. Madame, please tell us everything. I’m confused, as I’m sure Rayne is, how she could become addicted to something if she doesn’t choose to try it.”
“Pardon. You will be forced to take the drugs. I am not certain of the details, but you are taken to somewhere unfamiliar to you and made to take them.” Madame ran her finger over her ring. “Jared was the pawn in their game.”
Sophie gasped. “The Carys will kidnap her?”
Madame nodded. “I believe so. Jared was to take you to them… the night of the concert.”
Rayne crossed her arms. “Why would they kidnap me? I’ve met Chase Cary… he doesn’t seem the type.”
Sophie grimaced. “If you’ve met one of them, then they’ve had you on their radar all along.”
“You make them sound like aliens who’ve inserted a tracking device in my neck or something.” Rayne couldn’t stop herself from rubbing the back of her neck. “What if you send me home and I make sure I beef up my security? Trevor’s a bulldog when it comes to protection.”
Madame hissed. “Non! You must not trust anyone. How do you think Jared got to you?”
“Okay,” Rayne ground out. “What if I go home and hide?”
“You want to escape that bad?” Sophie raised an eyebrow. “What about Sam?”
“I can’t stay here, Sophie,” she insisted.
Sophie squeezed her eyes shut and then turned to Madame and smiled. “Will you be at your shop for the rest of the day?”
“Oui.”
Sophie sighed. “Okay. I’m going to spend some time with Rayne. Then, if she still wants this, we’ll come before you close.”
Madame rose to her feet. “Think hard about this, Rayne. You have one chance and there’s no going back.”
Sophie stood and walked Madame out of the parlor. Rayne flopped on the couch to wait. When Sophie returned, she took the seat next to the fireplace and tucked her feet under her bottom. “There are consequences if you leave.”
“Yeah. I go home to the life and people I love. I have to keep my guard up, but that’s not any different than usual.”
Sophie shook her head. “No, Rayne. If you go back, you can never come back here. You’ll have to leave Sam behind.”
Rayne shrugged.
“You really want me to believe you’d be okay with that? That you don’t love him?”
“But I want to go home.” Rayne bit her lip. “How can I love him and still want to go home so badly?”
Sophie smiled. “Home’s what you’re used to. Sam’s unexpected. It’s a natural reaction. But you don’t have to make any decisions right now. You’re welcome here as long as you want to stay, and the rest will work itself out.”
“He didn’t believe me, Sophie. He’ll always think I’m crazy. It could never work.”
“He’ll figure it all out. He’ll feel like an idiot when he does, but he will figure it out.”
Rayne shook her head. “No he won’t. I really screwed up, Sophie.”
“How?”
Rayne wiped a rogue tear from her cheek. “Because now he knows the whole truth. I wish I hadn’t told him everything.”
“What else did you tell him that you’re so concerned about?” Sophie handed her a handkerchief.
“I’m not a virgin.” Rayne frowned. “Guys in this century are concerned about that.”
Sophie waved her hand dismissively. “Guys are concerned about it in any century. Men always want a maiden in the kitchen and a whore in the bedroom. The difference in our century is that it’s simply accepted that women have control, but the double standard’s still there. I agree that there’s more of an expectation here that a man will marry a virgin, but if Sam loves you and you love him, I highly doubt it’s going to matter.”
“You make it sound so black and white.” Rayne raised an eyebrow. “And so easy.”
Sophie rolled her eyes. “I know. It’s my curse. Perhaps it won’t be that cut and dried, but don’t borrow trouble.” She rose to her feet. “Now, shall we freshen up for dinner?”
“Sure.” Rayne wiped her nose and stood.
“Good. You’ll get to meet Stephen… he’s from the nineties… talk about old-school,” Sophie joked. “You’re going to love everyone. I’m going to miss living here. I’m sad to be going.”
“Going?” Rayne’s head whipped up. “Where are you going?”
“Our house is almost finished.” Sophie sighed. “We’ve been building it for a year. Thanksgiving is at our place this year, so it’s a mad dash to the finish.”
“Wow. I’d love to see it.”
“We can go over tomorrow if you like.” Sophie led Rayne to the foyer. “It’s my absolute dream house, with indoor plumbing and everything. Ahhh, just the idea of not having to pee in a bowl is amazing.”
Rayne grimaced. “Yes, that really does suck.”
Sophie giggled. “Come on. Let’s get you into something gorgeous. You’ll feel better. Emma will be here later as well.”
“You must like having her close by.”
“I do. I miss her when she’s in D.C.” Sophie ascended the stairs. “But I suppose it would be tough to share a house with someone else on a regular basis. Even though they seem to get along well with Richard, it’s still nice to have your own space. It’ll be interesting when he marries Charity.”
Rayne followed her. “Who’s Charity?”
“Gwen’s best friend. She and Richard are getting married in less than a week, but she’s home until he meets her there. She lives in Maryland, and I’m afraid Richard’s having a bit of a difficult time right now because they’re separated.”
“He’s having a difficult time?”
Sophie nodded. “Yes. He’s miserable. Richard’s a pretty serious man, but when Charity’s here, he smiles all the time and actually cracks the occasional joke. He’ll be here for dinner, but don’t expect much in the way of conversation. He pretty much just grunts at the moment.”
“How long have they been separated?”
Sophie paused on the stairs, hand on the balustrade. “Richard got back from visiting her two weeks ago. He breeds and trains horses for the cavalry, and he wasn’t able to visit as long this time. Charity’s busy planning their wedding, so she needs to be home to do it. I think she’s just as miserable, to be honest.”
The front door slammed and Rayne turned so quickly she nearly lost her footing. Sophie frowned. “What the heck is going on?”
She rushed downstairs, Rayne hot on her heels.
“Betty? Is everything all right?” Sophie asked one of the maids.
“It would appear Miss Short has arrived,” she said.
Sophie smiled. “The tornado that is Miss Short might be a better description.”
Betty smiled.
“She’s in the parlor?”
Betty nodded. “Yes’m.”
“Thank you.”
Rayne followed Sophie into the parlor. A petite woman with sandy-blonde hair was pacing the room.
“Charity? Is everything all right?” Sophie asked.
Gray eyes sparkled as Charity made her way to Sophie and hugged her. “Yes. Fine. I missed Richard, so I decided to visit, but I didn’t want him to know just yet.”
“I wondered how long it would take.” Sophie smiled. “How’d you get here?”
Charity began to fiddle with a piece of lace on her jacket.
“Charity?” Sophie pressed.
Charity shrugged. “I rode the train.”
“Alone?”
“Shhh. Yes.”
Sophie gasped. “Richard’s going to blow a gasket.”
Charity frowned. “What does that mean?”
“Right. Uh… he’s going to be extremely angry.”
Charity clasped her hands. “Don’t tell him. I heard Emma was here. I’ll just tell him I came with her.”
Sophie shook her head. “You can’t lie to him, Charity.”
“I know.” She let out a deep sigh. “I just missed him horribly.”
“Well, come upstairs and get settled. He’ll be here for dinner.” Sophie nodded toward Rayne. “By the way, this is Rayne. She’s a friend from D.C. She is the one who actually traveled with Emma.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” Charity shook Rayne’s hand.
Rayne smiled. “You, too.”
“Rayne?” Sophie said. “Give me a minute, okay? I’ll be down in a bit.”
Rayne made her way over to the French doors and stared out at the countryside. The beauty of it settled over her peacefully, which surprised her. Rayne was used to bright lights and crowded cities. She lived in downtown Seattle when she wasn’t on tour and rarely ventured out of her high-rise condo. Everyone knew who she was, so she had people for shopping and other errands she needed done.
“Rayne?”
Turning in shock, she asked, “What are you doing here?”
Sam moved to stand in front of her but didn’t answer her question. Instead, he pulled her into his arms and covered her mouth with his. When he broke the kiss, he cupped her cheek. “I am here, Miss Green, because my fiancée is here.”
Rayne sighed. “Sam.”
He squeezed her chin. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you.”
Her eyes widened. “You do now?”
He nodded.
She shrugged. “I suppose it is kind of a wild story.”
“Yes, it is.” His thumb stroked her cheek. “However, I knew you weren’t lying, I just didn’t want to believe it.”
She moved away from his hand. “Are you still going to try to lock me up?”
Sam lowered his head. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I never would have. I had a moment of—”
“Insanity?” she interrupted.
He nodded. “Yes. That’s a good word.”
“What are you doing here, Sam?”
Pulling her hand to his lips, he placed a lingering kiss in her palm. The annoying shiver once again stole her breath. “I came here to find you, sweetheart… and to apologize.”
“Don’t call me sweetheart.” She tried to pull her hand from his… he wouldn’t budge.
“What would you like me to call you then?”
“Rayne works just fine.”
He stroked her inner wrist with his thumb and smiled. “I want to call you something unique.”
“Because sweetheart is so unique?”
Sam kissed her gently, but Rayne forced herself to break contact. He smiled. “You’re right. Let’s come up with something else.”
“Or… you could get the whole engagement idea out of your mind and not call me anything other than Rayne.”
He leaned down and kissed her again. “That’s not going to happen.”
Rayne couldn’t stop a sigh. “I didn’t think so.”
“And yet, you’re still standing here,” he said with a raised eyebrow.
Rayne raised an eyebrow. “Proof positive that I might actually be crazy.”
“I love you.”
“Good for you.” Pulling away, she tried to move out of his embrace. “Stop kissing me.”
He wrapped an arm around her waist to stop her from fleeing. “I’m not going anywhere and neither are you.”
“I noticed,” she said as she inadvertently leaned into him.
“Will you let me court you the right way?”
“Sam.” He kissed her again. Rayne pushed at his chest. “You need to stop doing that!”
Sam led her to the sofa and pulled her down beside him. “Perhaps I’ll call you ‘Angel.’”
Rayne snorted. “Which is totally not me.”
Sam slapped his knee. “Angel it is, then.”
She shook her head. “I won’t respond.”
He leaned in to kiss her, mischief sparkling in his eyes, and she leaned away from him. Sam gave her his sexy half-smile. “What’s amiss?”
Rayne sighed. “Stop looking at me like that.”
Sam grinned. “Like what, Angel?”
Rayne tapped his cheek and pushed him away. “I want to make sure we’re on the same page.”
He frowned. “Is that an expression from the future?”
“Yes. We can’t get married.” She stood and started to pace the floor. “I still want to go home.”
“We’re definitely not in agreement then, Angel.” He grinned. “Because we are going to get married.”
Rayne bit her lip. “But that would mean I’d be stuck here and I really want to go home.”
“So your only objection to marrying me is because you want to go home?”
Rayne wagged a finger at him. “Don’t you dare turn my words around on me.”
Sam chuckled. “You said them.”
She crossed her arms. “Sam.”
“Would it be so terrible to stay here?” he asked her quietly.
Rayne started to pace again. “I wouldn’t know what to do with myself here. My whole world is in the future.”
He stood and took her hand in an effort to calm her pacing. Pulling her back to the sofa, he kissed her palm. “Why don’t we cross that bridge if and when we come to it?”
“Because I don’t want to fall in love with you and then have to make a choice.”
Sam grinned. “You’re already in love with me and I won’t make you choose.”
Rayne narrowed her eyes. “Oh, really? You’re just going to let me leave?”
“I never said that, Angel. I just said I wouldn’t make you choose.”
“You’re speaking in circles.”
Sam chuckled. “If you have an opportunity to go home, I know you’ll make the right choice.”
“You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”
“I love you, Rayne. Why would I make it easy for you to leave me?” He smiled and cupped her face.
“Evil, Sam. Evil.” She melted into his kiss until she heard someone clearing their throat from the doorway.
Jamie grinned. “Sorry to interrupt. But guests will be arriving shortly.”
“Thank you, Jamie,” Sam said as he gave Rayne a reprieve. He made his way to Jamie and shook his hand. “Nice to see you again.”
“You, too, Sam. Are you getting a little bit of your own medicine this time around?”
“It would appear so,” he said with a laugh.
“Andrew will be thrilled.”
Sam grinned. “I’ll bet.”
“I’ll see you when the guests arrive. I’m going to check on Sophie.” Jamie left the couple alone.
“What did he mean by that?” Rayne asked.
“Hm?”
“When he asked if you were getting a dose of your own medicine.”
“I conspired with Gwen to help her get Andrew back.”
Rayne narrowed her eyes. “How did you do that?”
Sam shrugged. “I played the loving man in order to shake him up a bit.”
“How loving?” Rayne asked through clenched teeth.
“Kissing of the hand, nothing more.”
Rayne crossed her arms. “You expect me to believe that?”
“You can ask Gwen, if you like.” He closed the distance between them. “Actually, you could even ask Jamie. He was present through the whole thing. It worked like a charm, and she and Andrew are now married.”
She held her arm out to him. “Show me how you kissed her hand.”
“Why don’t I show you how I didn’t?” he suggested and pulled her hand to his lips.
He placed a lingering kiss in the center of her palm, sending a chill down her spine—again. Then he pulled the tender inside of her wrist to his mouth, causing her to sigh.
She tried to pull away, but he held her tight. “Okay, you’ve made your point,” she said with a breathless whisper.
“I haven’t even begun to make it, Angel, but I’ll show you more later.” He leaned down and gave her another quick kiss before leading her over to the sofa and pulling her down next to him.
“I should change into something more appropriate, don’t you think?” Rayne asked.
Sam shook his head. “You look beautiful.”
She let him link his fingers with hers as she looked up at him. “Where’s Crow?”
“Tracking again. We probably won’t see him for a few weeks.” He swept a lock of hair from her forehead. “How did you know he was Creek?”
“Shaye. She’s involved with the Muskogee people in the future. She even speaks some Creek, so she taught me a few things.” Rayne leaned against him. “I miss her.”
Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he kissed her temple and whispered, “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
Before she could wallow any further, Christine walked into the parlor with a man who looked eerily familiar. Rayne gasped. “Paxton… Stephen Paxton?”
Stephen nodded. “Yes?”
Sam narrowed his eyes. “You know each other?”
Rayne smiled. “Sort of. His brother’s married to Shaye’s sister.”
Stephen cocked his head. “You know my brother?”
“In the future?” Sam asked, lowering his voice to a near whisper.
“Yes… to both. I stayed with Peter and Ava during a difficult period in my life. You’d already disappeared. They had pictures of you everywhere.
“I can’t believe it!” Stephen ran his hands through his hair. “How is my family?”
“They’re great, Stephen. Pete and Ava have three kids now and live in Seattle. It was a blow for them when you left, especially only married a few months, but they’re good now.”
More guests arrived, and it became difficult to have an in-depth conversation in the crowded room, so they agreed to meet up later and talk. Sam stole Rayne away to introduce her to a few other people. Once the introductions were made, Rayne had no more time to think about Shaye and home, as dinner was served shortly after the rest of the guests arrived.
The evening was lively and the food was delicious. Rayne was floored at the warmth of the group and how quickly she felt accepted into the fold. Sam was in his element, and she enjoyed seeing his humorous side.
He was quick-witted and highly intelligent, able to keep up a conversation on every topic. He laughed easily and she could see the love and respect his friends felt for him. Once again, she was reminded of Shaye and how much she missed her.
Rayne was staring into her wine glass when she felt Sam’s hand on her leg. She looked up at him and saw his concern. She forced a smile and took a deep breath.
“What’s amiss, Angel?”
“Nothing. I’m fine,” she said quickly and sat up a little straighter.
He patted her knee and didn’t comment.