Someone to Trust Read online

  “I’ve never had a male friend.”

  “Alan and I were just friends and now look at us!”

  There was a long pause while Megan digested that comment. “You and Alan make a wonderful couple, but I am not looking for anything beyond friendship.”

  “Neither was I,” Cindy agreed readily. Megan could not see the smile on Cindy’s face, but she thought she detected one in her voice.

  The two old friends ended their conversation with a time to meet for dinner and an invite from Cindy for Megan to bring Sir along. The Wolff property sat in a valley with rolling hills and was well fenced. It needed to be fenced to accommodate the various animals that were kept there, both on a permanent and a temporary basis. Anyway, Sir loved going to their home where he had acre upon acre of fenced land on which he could roam without the hindrance of a leash, or Megan’s weight to drag along behind him.

  When Megan put the phone down, she turned to Sir and said, “Guess what, Sir? We’ve been invited to dine at the Wolff’s house tonight.” His ears perked up instantly and he walked over to the front door as if to say, well, what are you waiting for?

  Megan laughed. “You may as well lie down, boy; we’re not leaving for a while yet.” With a whine, Sir plopped down in front of the door to wait. There would be no leaving him home tonight.

  Six o’clock rolled around quickly for Megan. She loaded an excited Sir into her SUV and made the short drive to Cindy and Alan’s. After a short drive, Megan pulled through the gates and up the drive to the Wolff’s large two-story log cabin with a porch spanning its length. Sir was whining before she could even park the vehicle. He was beside himself with excitement. However, when she first opened the vehicle door, he just stood there.

  “Well, go on you big galoot.” That’s all it took and he was off like a shot. There was no worry though; once he tired himself out, he’d reappear and lay on the front porch until Megan was ready to take him home.

  Cindy greeted Megan on the front porch with a hug.

  “Where’s my little angel, Katie?” Megan inquired about her nine-month-old goddaughter.

  “She’s sitting in her swing on the back porch, while her daddy and Lee are grilling the steaks.”

  “Alan’s steaks? Mmm, my favorite,” Megan complimented as they walked into the cabin.

  “I hope you’re hungry, because these are some really huge steaks! I sent the men to the store to buy them and they came back with steaks big enough to feed a couple of pro-football players. They’re more like the size of roasts.” Cindy laughed.

  Megan followed her into the well-equipped kitchen, asking, “What can I help you do?”

  “Not a thing. I have the table set and the salad and baked potatoes are ready. I’ll pop the rolls in the oven and put ice in the glasses when the steaks are almost done.”

  Alan and Cindy were excellent hosts, who went out of their way to make any guest feel comfortable and welcome. By the time the steaks were ready, it had grown dark outside, so the four of them enjoyed a candlelight meal around the dining room table. Lee volunteered to start a fire in the fireplace, since spring nights in the mountains could still be chilly.

  The fire further complimented the atmosphere, casting a soft glow on the room and filling the Wolff home with an inviting and relaxing ambiance. Even Katie, who had been fed a half-hour earlier by Megan, dozed contentedly in her swing next to the fireplace.

  At first, Megan feared she would be unable to relax and be her usual self around Alan and Cindy in Lee’s presence. She feared she would be reserved and self-conscious, spoiling the evening for her friends.

  She shouldn’t have worried. Alan and Lee bantered amiably back and forth, while they ate. As with any other friend, Lee teased Megan. She felt her reservations melting. The conversation throughout the meal was playful and lighthearted, and at one point, Lee stopped eating, put his fork down and stated, “Wait a minute, there’s something wrong here.”

  This had everyone’s attention and they watched in bewilderment as Lee carefully examined everything on the table.

  “What…what is it?” Cindy asked.

  Lee turned toward Cindy, and in a serious voice, said, “You are a brave, brave woman, Cindy.”

  “How so?” Cindy’s brows drew together in perplexity while Alan and Megan curiously waited for an explanation as well.

  “You’re not afraid to use your good china,” Lee simply stated, and when he saw the blank stares his friends were giving him, he explained, “With the Queen of Klutz dining with us, I thought you would have chosen something made of rubber or paper or such.”

  Alan erupted with a hearty laugh, while Cindy giggled before immediately turning to Megan to see if the fun at her expense had offended her.

  Megan responded by playfully slapping Lee on the arm and giggling. “That’s not funny. It’s true…but not funny.”

  By the time they were all finished eating, Megan’s anxiousness had completely dissolved.

  Without inhibition, Lee laughed often. There was nothing whatsoever forced or unnatural about it. When he laughed, his eyes twinkled with an inner light. It affected Megan in a way she could not explain. It seemed to radiate from deep within him and she could feel it in her bones. It was a confident, joyful sound that resonated around the room. It washed over her, making her feel just like she was basking in the warm sunshine on a chilly day.

  To Megan’s chagrin, Lee looked up and caught her staring at him. She could feel the color fill her face as Lee simply raised his lips in a gentle, knowing smile. A smile saying he could see things about her that others could not see. This brought her both discomfort and curiosity.

  When everyone had eaten until they could hold no more, the foursome moved their party from the table to the living room where Lee kept them in stitches as he shared some of his childhood antics.

  To Alan’s feigned embarrassment, Lee regaled them with animated details of some of his and Alan’s escapades in vet school. After that, it was tit-for-tat between the two old buddies, as they strove to see who could drum up the most ridiculous or embarrassing moment for the other one. As the two veterinarians competed with their most bizarre animal/doctor situations, they had the girls laughing so hard tears were streaming down their faces.

  “But it wasn’t just at the clinic or school that we had situations,” Alan said. He looked at Lee to see if he knew where he was going but Lee shook his head.

  “Remember Mrs. Hodges’ tomcat?”

  “How could I ever forget Tom?” Lee asked, rolling up his sleeve and pointing to a long thin scar that had faded white on his forearm. He added melodramatically, “I’m marked forever.”

  “I’ve never heard this story; what happened with Tom?” Cindy asked.

  “Well…” Alan started, “Mrs. Hodges lived on the same apartment floor as we did.”

  Lee jumped in. “She’d adopted a huge tomcat named Tom from off the street. We liked Tom. He’d come down to our apartment two or three times a week and meow to get in, we’d give him a treat and he’d stay for a while before heading back home.”

  “Mrs. Hodges had never taken Tom to a vet to get checked out so Lee and I convinced her that she really needed to do so. Since her only mode of transportation was her daughter who’d come by to take her places, Mrs. Hodges convinced the kind young interns to take Tom in for her.” Alan pointed to himself and Lee.

  Grinning, Lee said, “So, I picked Tom up in my arms and carried him to the car.”

  “We got in and closed the doors. Tom sat in Lee’s lap as gentle as a lamb. Until—”

  “Until he started the car!” Lee interjected.

  “Tom became a wildcat, hissing, fur flying and claws extended as he started doing laps around the car.”

  The girls gasped and then burst into giggles as Lee finished, “We were in Alan’s little two-seater and there was no place for us to go. We opened the doors at the same time and fell out on the ground. Tom made his escape and stayed hidden for two days.”


  “It didn’t occur to us until later that perhaps we should have gotten a carrier for him,” Alan concluded.

  Finally, Megan breathlessly exclaimed, “Stop! Stop it both of you—right now. I can’t take any more.” She was holding her side as she gave the order.

  “Me either,” Cindy agreed, wiping her wet cheeks. She stood and retrieved Katie from the swing since all the laughter woke her.

  “Okay.” Lee took pity on them. “We’ve monopolized the floor and I’m sure you girls are dying to share some of your most embarrassing moments.”

  Megan and Cindy turned simultaneously, giving each other an incredulous glance, aghast at the thought. Their outraged expressions brought hearty laughter from the men, who seemed to be enjoying their discomfort.

  “Oh, all right.” Megan relented after a few moments of silence while the men waited. “Cindy, you especially will get a kick out of this. Alan should appreciate it as well. You guys both know what a klutz I am, right?”

  “Hey, I think I can testify to that,” Lee chimed in, with a tease.

  “You be quiet!” Megan said, with mock sternness.

  “Sorry,” he offered, but the teasing glint in his eyes belied his apology entirely.

  Megan nodded, proceeding to recount the incident of running into Lee the first time they met. As she told the story, Lee would pipe in, helping her with a detail here and there. Together, they told the story so well they would have been mistaken for a couple who’d had years of practice in joint story-telling. Where one would leave off, the other would automatically resume. Nonetheless, when it was all said and done, laughter filled the room again.

  “That’s our Meg,” Cindy quipped, “the Queen of Klutz.” She smiled and squeezed Megan’s arm. The comment was made with no offense intended and none was taken. It was a long-standing fact that Cindy gently teased Megan about. Alan rarely missed an opportunity to get in on it as well.

  “I’m glad she’s a klutz. We actually met because of it,” Cindy explained.

  “Really?” Lee seemed eager for more information. “Do tell,” he encouraged with a mischievous glint in his eye.

  Cindy glanced at her friend with raised brows, obviously waiting for permission to proceed.

  “Oh, go ahead. I know it’s killing you,” Megan affably agreed.

  “Well, the first time Megan drew attention to herself—”

  “I did not draw attention to myself,” Megan interrupted.

  “The entire school’s eyes were on you.”

  “Not the entire school, just those in the lunchroom. Besides they’d have been on you, too, if you’d dumped the entire tray of silverware on the floor,” Megan defended.

  “Oh this is good,” Lee teased, with a wink in Megan’s direction.

  Cindy continued, “It was the first day of school and we were both starting our freshman year. The cafeteria was already crowded, and being underclassman who didn’t know the ins and outs of high school yet, we were a little late to lunch and therefore some of the last in the lunch line.”

  “As I recall, you were two or three people ahead of me,” Megan interjected.

  “Right,” Cindy agreed. “Anyway, there was this long line where you go through and get your tray of food and then you exit. Placed next to the exit was a huge metal tray, for the return of your dirty silverware.”

  Megan chimed in, “Evidently, I wasn’t watching where I was walking and I knocked the metal container over, emptying all of the silverware onto the floor.”

  “All of it!” Cindy added. “It was incredibly loud, especially since it was a tile floor and it seemed like they just kept falling. It scared the life out of me and everyone else in the cafeteria. The whole place grew so quiet you could hear a pin drop and all eyes were on Megan.”

  “I was just standing there, frozen to the spot with this truckload of silverware scattered all around me on the floor.”

  Cindy took over again, “Then somebody started clapping and pretty soon everyone was clapping. You know…like way to go! Good job!”

  “What did you do?” Lee turned to Megan.

  Cindy piped up with, “I would have run from the room and I wasn’t even the shy one. But not Meg.” Cindy gave her friend a loving wink as they strolled down memory lane. “She just looked around at everyone laughing and clapping and said in her best Elvis voice, thank you, thank you very much, took a bow and began to pick up the silverware.”

  “Cindy had mercy on me, put down her own tray and helped me pick it all up.”

  “What could I do? I felt sorry for her.”

  “I knew it,” Megan exclaimed in mock hurt. “I've known it all along. Our entire friendship has been based on pity.”

  “It has not and you know it,” Cindy began to defend herself until they locked eyes. “Oh get out of here.” She waved her hand.

  “Hey…” Alan interrupted. “What about that delectable Chocolate Éclair Cake I saw you making earlier?”

  “I almost forgot.” She handed him the baby. “Here, you entertain your daughter and I’ll go get us each a piece.”

  Alan gladly took Katie. As Megan rose and headed toward the kitchen to help her friend, she couldn’t help but see the apparent adoration Alan had for his wife and baby.

  Megan and Cindy returned from the kitchen with a tray of dessert and coffee. Lee was sitting on the floor with Katie. Megan stopped short, nearly causing Cindy to collide into the back of her at the sight of Lee sitting Indian-style, with his dark head bent over Katie’s fuzzy blond one, as they played with child’s blocks.

  Megan’s heart tightened in her chest, at the picture they made. This man was getting under her skin with no apparent effort on his part.

  Friends! She admonished herself, silently. We’re just friends, she repeated, suddenly feeling as if her foolish heart needed to be reminded.

  Over all, it was a wonderful evening. Megan enjoyed herself immensely, although she had grown rather quiet upon returning from the kitchen with dessert. Megan gave Cindy a goodbye hug at the door.

  “Thanks for including me; I had a wonderful evening. I want to have you all over to my place soon.”

  “Just let us know when and we’ll be there with bells on,” Cindy said, turning the front porch light on so Megan could make her way to the SUV. When she stepped out on the porch, she found Sir waiting in his usual spot.

  “Come on, Sir, it’s time to go.” The Great Dane jumped to his feet and practically ran circles around her as they walked down the drive.

  Chapter Ten

  It was around midnight when Megan and Sir climbed into the SUV to leave the Wolff home. However, when Megan turned the key in the ignition, nothing happened. It was as dead as a doornail. Even after several attempts by Lee and Alan, it remained unresponsive.

  “Let me drive you home,” Lee graciously offered.

  Megan hesitated a moment but knew it was a logical choice. “Okay, thanks.”

  On the drive to her cabin, conversation flowed between them with a natural ease. At some point, the conversation turned to the law firm where Lee’s father worked in Atlanta.

  “The law firm originated with my mother’s father and his best friend. My father joined them about ten years ago. His name was added to the firm, as a partner, last year.”

  “We did a lot of work with law firms. Which one is your dad with?” Megan asked curiously.

  “Collins and Stevens, originally. Now it’s Collins, Stevens and Grainger.”

  At the mention of the firm’s name, Megan drew a sharp breath.

  “Is something wrong?” Lee questioned, turning to give her a look of concern. Megan tried to recover from her surprise quickly so she could answer truthfully, albeit evasively.

  “I’m just surprised. It really is a small world. That law firm was a client of the firm I worked for in Atlanta.

  “Really? It is a small world,” Lee agreed.

  No kidding! Trevor Raines was an associate at that very firm. It was entirely possible Lee knew the man. H
er heart sank at the thought Lee might know Trevor, and in turn, learn of her relationship with him. It wasn’t plausible really, not given Trevor’s penchant for secrecy. Still! The chance filled her with trepidation and shame.

  Lee attempted to carry on a conversation with her the remainder of the trip. Megan only answered in monosyllables, and looking back now, was unsure if she had even answered in the correct places. However, her hope that Lee had not noticed was fruitless.

  As they stood on her front porch, after letting Sir inside, Lee gazed down at her in the moonlight.

  “I have either said something to offend you, or something is troubling you,” he pointed out gently.