Only You

I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned and smiled up at my sister standing beside me. "So, I guess he's gone."

Nodding, I said, "Yeah. He left early, so no one would see him sneaking out to his truck."

"I'm just happy to see you two back together," she said giving my shoulder a squeeze before she wandered over to pour herself some coffee.

Though I knew he'd never really be mine, I thought it was easier just to agree. "It is nice to have him back."

***

Wednesday morning, from the moment we opened our doors at nine o'clock, our shop was so busy, we never had a moment to catch our breath. Seemed like everyone in town wanted their hair done for Thanksgiving. It was just past noon when I ushered Miss Annie into my chair, with her sister Lizzie, patiently chatting with a group of ladies behind me, for her turn.

I looked up and smiled surprised to see Russell wandering in with two coffees and what looked a couple of submarine sandwiches in a bag.

"I was in the neighborhood, and I thought you might be hungry," he said with wink. Though I could tell from the way he was eyeing my lips, he would have loved to have pulled me in for a quick kiss if we didn't have so many eyes on us.

"Aren't you, sweet," Meg said, as Russell set her lunch down on her side table.

He came and stood beside me while I carefully combed out Miss Annie's wispy white hair. Keeping his voice low, he explained, "The other reason I stopped by was to tell you that we can start rehearsing tonight at the school."

Touched that he was going to so much trouble to help organize everything, I put down the comb and told Miss Annie I'd be right back. Heading toward the back of the shop, I crooked my finger at Russell and he followed.

When I got him into the storage room, and closed the door, I wreathed my arms around his neck, pushed up on my toes and really laid one on him. He finally pulled back blinking, and though he was smiling, he still looked a little confused.

I flashed him a grin. "That's to thank you for thinking of us and bringing us lunch, and for going above and beyond for the concert."

Letting his hands slide up along my waist to my breasts, he smiled into my eyes. "Well, if this is how you thank me, then I'll be back tomorrow. And I'll be sure to bring something nice and sweet for dessert, too."

Chuckling, I gave him a playful little nose rub. "We should probably get back out there, or they'll be wondering what we're up to."

Squeezing my backside, he drew me against him, flashing me the naughtiest grin. "Well, I know what I'd like to be doing."

"Down boy," I said, jokingly, till I looked down and noticed the bulge in his jeans. "Yeah, I think I'd better go out first, and give you a minute to cool down."

He quietly laughed. "And I'd better stay in here and tidy up the shelves, till I'm presentable. Wouldn't want to shock the old dears."

I just rolled my eyes as I imagined what the ladies would think if they ever got an eye-full of R.J. McCabe fully aroused.

Before he left the shop, he kindly posed for a few pictures, and autographed everything they handed him. Then with a quick wave, he was gone.

I was carefully trimming Miss Annie's hair, when I noticed her smiling at me in the mirror. Till finally, she shared what she was thinking. "You know, I think that boy is sweet on you."

I had to fight to keep a straight face as I asked, "What makes you say that?"

"Well, you know the eyes don't lie. And the way he looks at you, it's plain to see that he's got some feelings for you. And if I were in your shoes, I'd be more than happy to let him slide his boots under my bed."

I almost choked when she said that, considering she'd been the Sunday school teacher for as long as I could remember. "Well, you know R.J. and I have been friends for years."

She waggled her eyebrows. "If you ask me, I think he'd like for you to be a lot more than friends."

I decided it was probably best to just finish cutting her hair, rather than adding anything to the local gossip mill that might get me trouble.

***

After work, I had to dig into the back of my closet to find my dancing shoes, it had been so long we'd danced together. Once I'd made sure they still fit, I grabbed a quick shower, pulled my hair back into a ponytail, and put on some yoga pants and a long sleeve T-shirt, so I'd be comfortable while we practiced.

Russell texted to let me know that he was outside. When I got in his truck, we took a quick look around to make sure no one was watching, before we laughed and kissed each other hello. Though I kind of hated sneaking around, I also didn't want everyone feeling sorry for me, once he was gone.

Just having his hand wrapped around mine, felt nice as we drove toward the school, especially when he lifted it to his lips when we stopped for a red light. Of course, I got butterflies just thinking about us sharing a bed again tonight, after we'd got in some practice.

Once Russell unlocked the door to the gym, looking around at the big empty room, that hadn't changed a bit since I was kid, I was surprised to see we were on our own.

As he put his phone down, and pulled off his jacket, he explained, "I thought we could finish the show by surprising everyone with one of our old routines. So, I thought we'd better practice on our own at first, because we're probably a little rusty."

We tried a few songs, and some different dances, till we settled on the Fox trot and the song we always loved to dance to; Orleans', 'Dance with Me.'

It didn't take long and we were smiling into each other's eyes as we moved around the floor, like we'd been doing it forever. As they sang:

'Dance with Me

I want to be your partner

Can't you see?

The music is just starting

Night is calling, and I am falling

Dance with me.'

I blushed as Russell sang along as he lifted me into the air.

'Let it lift you off the ground

Starry eyes, and love is all around us

I can take you where you want to go'

As the song ended, with one last dip, Russell pressed a kiss to my lips.

We were both pretty breathless by the time we were done, probably as much from dancing, as from the sparks crackling between us.

"Hey, I think we've still got it." He chuckled, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me in for a hug.

Though I'd been reluctant at first, now he had me looking forward to performing with him again, though I wasn't too sure how I felt about getting back in front of an audience.

"How about we get some dinner?" he suggested as we'd gathered our things, and he turned out the lights and locked up.

We headed over to a little Italian restaurant in Newton, which was the biggest town in the area. When we stepped inside and I realized it was a little dressy, I decided to leave on my waist-length leather jacket, so I wouldn't look too casual.

Once we'd ordered, I noticed Russell looked like he had something on his mind, from the way he kept fiddling with the silverware. "Everything okay?" I asked, hoping he wasn't going to say something that I didn't want to hear.

He nodded, heaving a sigh. "The thing is, I got a call this afternoon, and I'm going to have to head out tomorrow. But I should be back in a few days." He reached for my hand and stroked his thumb across my palm as he explained what was going on. "This last film I did with Tahlia apparently got some negative feedback in the test screenings. The audience didn't think we had much chemistry. Which isn't too surprising, considering how difficult she'd been, at least at first. For the first few weeks of filming, we barely spoke to each other unless we had to."

"So, how can you resolve that, when you've already finished the movie?"

He shrugged. "The studio's been dropping hints that we were secretly seeing each other behind the scenes, to create some buzz. And now they want us to do a few interviews together, to get people interested in the movie. I guess so people will actually believe that we're involved."

While the waiter came and poured our wine, I tried to think of what to say. I hated the thought of him leaving, but knew he had no choice, if he wanted his film to succeed, and have any chance of doing any more of the same type of movie.

"I can stay with you for a few hours tonight Lacey, but I'm going to have to get up pretty early to catch my flight."

"I think it's probably better if you sleep at your gran's then, so you won't be as tired in the morning. By the sounds of it, you're going to have to be prepared for whatever they throw at you."

From the way he was looking into my eyes, I could tell he was torn. "I really wish I didn't have to go."

After they'd put our dinner in front of us, I squeezed his hand and told him the truth. "But you know you have to."

Parked out in front of my building, the way he almost pulled me into his lap to kiss me goodbye, didn't leave any doubt that he was really going to miss me.

Just to be sure I got inside okay, he insisted on walking me to my door. Touching his lips to mine he whispered, "I love you, and I promise I'll be back soon."

"I love you, too. And you have a safe trip," I said giving him one last hug, before I ran upstairs.

Even after I'd got in bed, I still felt a little tingly from the way he'd kissed me as he said goodbye. Although, I couldn't shake the little niggle of doubt that had me feeling a teensy bit uneasy. Snuggling into the blankets, I told myself I was being silly, and that he'd be back before I knew it, and everything would be fine. At least I hoped.

I got a text in the morning, letting me know that the supplies I'd ordered for the salon had arrived. After a quick breakfast, I drove over to the beauty supply outlet in Newton to pick everything up.

After I'd loaded my trunk, I decided I should probably get a few new magazines for our waiting area, since the ones we had were getting pretty dog eared. Stopping in at a supermarket, I grabbed some fruit to put in our mini-fridge, and lined up at the check out.

And that's when the bottom dropped out of my world.

My heart actually felt like it was sinking in my chest as I stared wide-eyed at the different magazines. Every cover seemed to have cozy pictures of Russell and his co-star Tahlia, holding hands, and gazing into each others' eyes. But the one that really made my stomach lurch, was a close-up of her hand showing off a big flashy diamond ring, with the caption, "Wow! R.J. popped the question!"

I thought I was going to be sick as I glanced at the others, taunting me with captions like, "Looks like sparks were flying both onscreen and off, for these two." And "Where will they marry?" And even worse, was the one that said, "Is there a baby on the way?"

Oh my god. Then it hit me. Silly me, I thought we were rekindling what we had, and to him I was just his piece on the side, till he could get back to the woman he loved.

Now I understood how my sister felt when Toby's wife walked in while she was still in his bed. I just felt so used, all I could think of was getting home and getting a shower to scrub away what he'd done to me.

I blindly grabbed a few magazines, checked out, went out to my car and dumped everything on the passenger seat. Before I could start the engine, I dropped my head on the steering wheel and broke down and cried. I couldn't believe he'd do something so cruel and underhanded.

Though it could have been his way of getting back at me for breaking up with him when he first left. Now that he'd got my defences down, he was probably laughing at what he'd done to me as he planned his wedding with his beautiful co-star.

I felt like I was driving on auto-pilot as I made my way back home, barely noticing where I was headed.

When I pulled up in front, knowing I couldn't leave my sister on her own, I knew I had no choice but to suck it up, get in the shop and get to work.

"So, how's the concert coming along, Lacey?" Betty-Ann, the mayor's assistant asked as I trimmed her bangs.

"You probably heard that we've got a venue, and we're starting rehearsals. So, it's going pretty good. And hopefully we'll be selling tickets online soon." That was providing Russell was still planning to come back and perform. Right now, I had no idea what he had planned.

"Well, I hope there'll be some Christmas music, considering it'll be a holiday concert."

"Oh, I'm sure there'll be something to sing along to." At least I hoped, otherwise there were going to be a lot of disappointed people. Especially with everyone hoping that the proceeds from the concert would be enough to repair the church.

Somehow, I managed to make it to six o'clock. Though I felt drained, having to keep everything bottled up inside me all day, when all I wanted to do was curl up in bed and cry until I couldn't cry anymore.

Just after I'd locked up the shop, my cell phone rang in my purse. Meg was already upstairs starting dinner, so she didn't see me check the call display and turn off my phone, when I saw that it was Russell.

I had no idea if he was calling me to gloat, hoping I'd heard the news. But there was no way I could talk to him now, after what he'd done to me.

When I got upstairs, Meg was at the kitchen counter, putting together some pie dough. "Thought I'd make a pecan pie to bring to Miss Ivy's," she said as she shaped it into a disc to put in the fridge to chill.

Oh, crap. With everything else that was happening, I had forgotten all about Thanksgiving. Now I just hoped that Russell would stay in California till after the holiday. No way was I going to share a table with him, especially if he planned to bring his new fiancée to meet his family.

Wouldn't that be fun, sitting staring at the two of them, making eyes at each other, while I tried to choke down some turkey.

"I was thinking, you could make a batch of your killer brownies. I'm sure everyone would love those," Meg said, breaking into my thoughts.

Once I realized what she'd said, I just nodded and muttered, "Sure."

She pointed at the oven. "Well, dinner's almost ready. I nuked some enchiladas I had in the freezer, and just I'm finishing them off in the oven with a little extra cheese."

Though I went through the motions of setting the table, I knew I wouldn't be able to eat, especially since my throat felt like it was closing up.

We had just sat down at the table together, and Meg studied me for a moment, and asked, "Is everything okay?"

I thought I'd been doing pretty good, but I just couldn't hold it together anymore and I lost it, and broke down crying like a baby. "He's marrying someone else," I sobbed as she came around the table, wrapped her arms around my shoulders and hugged me.

"What do mean? How could he be marrying someone else?"

After I told what I'd seen, she hugged me even harder, as she echoed what I was thinking. "I can't believe he'd do something like that."

"Neither could I. But it's all over the news. I think he played me. And I'm not even sure why." I looked at my plate. "I'm sorry, Meg. It looks good, but I can't eat anything right now."

"Neither can I. I'll just put in the fridge for later."

"I think I'm going to get a shower and go to bed."

"If you need me, you know I'm here for you," Meg said, dropping a kiss on the top of my head.

I got up to head to my room, and I turned back and told her, "If Russell tries to call the shop, I do not want talk to him."

"Don't worry, if I see it's him, I won't answer."

Friday being a holiday, Meg and I worked together in the kitchen, fixing the desserts we were bringing to Miss Ivy's. I felt comfortable going, since I didn't imagine that Russell would want to show his face after what he'd done.

Saturday morning, I put together the big salad I was bringing, and crossed my fingers that Russell wouldn't surprise everyone and make an appearance, especially with his lady love.

Luckily, I noticed the coast was clear, and Russell was nowhere in sight when we walked into Miss Ivy's house. Of course, after she'd greeted us at the door with a big warm hug and kisses on each cheek.

My mother was already in the kitchen helping with the finishing touches for the meal. She smiled when she saw us carrying in our contributions. "Oh, here's my girls. And don't you look pretty." We were both wearing dresses and heels, since we were guests and wanted to look respectful.

I went over and kissed her cheek as I pulled on an apron to help out. "Happy Thanksgiving, Mom."

"Same to you, sweetie. I wish your dad could have come, but he left this morning on his way to California, and won't be back for another week."

I thought it was amazing how close the two of them were, especially since they spent so much time apart. Though, whenever they got back together, they acted like newlyweds on their honeymoon, so I knew they were still in love.

By the time everything was ready, and we started setting all the different dishes out on the long dining table, I felt pretty certain that I wouldn't have to worry about Russell showing up and ruining dinner.

Of course, I was wrong. I'd just sat down, and the front door opened and in he walked, smiling at everyone around the table. "Hey folks, sorry I'm late. But it looks like I made in time for the turkey."

He had so many things in his arms, that his cousin Jessie shot to feet to relieve him of the half dozen bouquets of flowers, so Russell only had to worry about the wine and chocolates.

Of course, after he'd put everything in the kitchen, he had to take the empty seat next to mine.

I didn't bother to look over at him, especially since everyone was bowing their heads to give thanks.

As all the different dishes started being passed around the table, he leaned and whispered, "I'm glad to see you're okay. I tried phoning and texting, and even called your shop, but you never answered."

I just gave him the side-eye and passed him the mashed potatoes.

"Lacey, I get that you're upset, but I'd love to know why."

I raised an eyebrow, wondering how he could act so cool, after what he'd done. "You really don't know?"

He shook his head. "I haven't got a clue. I told you why I had to go, and I thought you seemed okay with it."

I leaned in and hissed in his ear, "I don't think this is exactly the time or place to discuss it, do you?"

Once he'd had his first bite, Russell mentioned that the food was good, but after that, we mostly ate in silence. It felt like you could literally cut the tension with a knife, though I doubt anyone else noticed.

By the time everyone was pushing their plate away, I was happy to get up and help clear the table.

No surprise, Russell was right behind me, carrying in what was left of the turkey.

Once he'd put the platter down on the counter, he slipped his arm around my waist and marched me into the laundry room and closed the door behind us.

I couldn't believe that he had the nerve to lift me onto the washing machine, so I had to face him. Then he got in close and stared me in the eye. "Okay, I think it's time you told me what's going on."

Though I tried so hard not to, I started tearing up as I told him about what I'd seen at the supermarket. "I couldn't believe that you'd do something like that to me, knowing you had someone else waiting for you back at home."

I had to give him credit, he did look pretty surprised as he pulled out his phone, and started googling.

Then he showed me what he'd found. "Lacey, they're all tabloids. Look, this one even talks about a woman having twins with an alien. It's nothing but fiction. The pictures they're using, are all from the movie. I agreed to play along to create a little buzz, but no way would I ever agree to a fake engagement."

Though I felt a little foolish, I also realized that I'd gotten way too wrapped up in him, if the thought of losing him could hurt me this badly. And knowing he'd be gone soon, was even more reason to try and keep my distance.