LITMIR.BIZ

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her appear young and vulnerable again, reminding him of that night when she’d lain naked in his arms. “Well, unless one of us pleads mental incompetence, we have to file for a divorce instead.”

      “I guess we could both plead mental incompetence. We were only kids.”

      “Yeah, impulsive, crazy in love…” She laughed, a nervous sound this time.

      “Crazy teenage hormones. But I don’t suppose the judge would buy that.” He forced a laugh, too, but the laughter died quickly, fading into awkwardness.

      “Anyway, my mother agreed to file the papers for us. She said a divorce takes about thirty days, unless someone contests it.” She fiddled with her notepad. “I told her to keep everything confidential, that I didn’t want the whole town to know. Since I’m a wedding planner, a divorce might not be good for business.”

      So her job was more important than his feelings. And she probably didn’t want her new boyfriend to know she’d married him.

      Brady nodded, glancing sideways at the fake wedding cake sitting on the table. They hadn’t had a cake the night they’d married, but they’d stopped at the doughnut shop, bought crème-filled doughnuts and fed them to each other to celebrate their union. Everything had been so simple—they hadn’t cared about details. They’d only cared about being together.

      Now she wanted to erase that past without anyone ever knowing they’d shared it.

      ALISON WONDERED IF BRADY was remembering their wedding, the simple but romantic ways they’d celebrated. Maybe she could put their relationship behind her if she understood more about where it had gone wrong. He looked so lost and faraway that she forgot her pride.

      “Why did you stop writing, Brady?”

      His head jerked back to hers, his breathing raspy. But he quickly looked away, studied his hands, his shoes, finally resting his hands on his knees. “I intended to keep my promises when I left. But…”

      “You met someone else?”

      “No.” His gaze flew to hers, a hint of desperation there, as if it was important to him that she believe him. “I was sent on a training assignment and was out of touch most of last year.”

      “That’s when the letters stopped.”

      He nodded. “I couldn’t contact anyone, not even my family, to let them know where I was.”

      “What about when you returned?”

      “I intended to write you then, but we did some combat maneuvers in Arizona, and I had the accident.”

      “You were in the hospital?”

      “About three months.”

      Alison’s hand flew to her chest. “That serious? Vivi didn’t tell any of us.”

      He nodded again, his eyes dark as he stretched his fingers in front of him and studied his hands. “I asked her not to say anything.”

      “Why not? You knew we’d be worried.”

      “Look, Alison, I’m sorry.”

      “Was anyone else hurt?”

      Brady hesitated. “My best friend, Josh, was killed.”

      Alison’s heart broke for him. “Oh, Brady, I’m so sorry.”

      “It’s over now, but things change, Alison. People change.” He flexed his hands, then balled them into fists. “When I was recovering, I realized I’d been away too long, that it was time for both of us to move on.”

      She frowned in confusion. “Because you lost your friend?”

      His voice took on a hard edge. “Because you have your life here, and I have another life. Why keep writing, hanging on to silly teenage dreams? Like you said, we were impulsive kids. We’re not anymore.”

      His words sounded so harsh, so final. Alison tried to absorb what he was saying and the things he wasn’t saying. She had a feeling the parts he’d left out were as important as the things he’d openly revealed.

      “When do you have to report back for duty?”

      “In a month, but my enlistment time’s almost up.” He shifted, avoiding eye contact. “Mom’s pressuring me to come home and run the print shop, and with Dad gone and Vivi moving to Atlanta, I’m…I’m considering it.”

      “What?” Alison couldn’t have been more shocked if he’d said he wanted to open a bridal shop. “But, Brady, you hated working there in high school, even for the summer. You never wanted to do anything but fly.”

      “Like I said, Alison, things change. And so do people.”

      Alison stared at him in confusion. Some things did change, but Brady giving up flying? He couldn’t have changed that much. Or could he?

      Chapter Five

      The bell on the door tinkled, interrupting them, and Vivica walked in, followed by Brady’s mother. Brady breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for the change in subject.

      “Hey, Brady, Ali, I’m sorry we’re running late, but we got tied up looking for shoes at the mall.”

      Brady stood. “That’s okay. Where’s Joe?”

      “He had to go back to Atlanta. He’s trying to finish designs on a big shopping complex so he can take time off for the honeymoon,” Vivica explained. “He gave me free rein, told me to do whatever I wanted for the wedding.”

      “We do need to do a fitting for your dress,” Alison said. “The alterations may take time.”

      “Okay.” Vivica plopped down onto the sofa. “But give me a few minutes. I’m worn-out.”

      Alison explained the checklist she used to make certain all the arrangements would be completed on time—the photographer, caterer, florist, reservations for the chapel, the wedding cake, invitations, bridesmaids’ dresses, music.

      “You’re a dream,” Vivica said, giving her a hug. “I don’t know how I’d get through this without you.”

      “It seems like you have everything under control,” Brady commented. “You’ve turned into quite the businesswoman.”

      Alison smiled, obviously picking up on the admiration in his voice. “Thanks. Dad’ll be glad to know college was worth something.”

      “Have you started plans of your own with Thomas?” Vivica asked.

      Brady tensed, waiting for Alison’s reply. Was she planning a big splashy wedding to Emerson?

      Alison blushed. “Did Joe tell you about Thomas?”

      “Of course.” Vivica turned to Brady. “Joe and Thomas were college buddies. Thomas actually introduced me to Joe.”

      She turned back to Alison, and Brady ground his teeth. So the four of them were chummy, huh? How nice.

      “He shouldn’t have said anything,” Alison stated in a low voice.

      Vivica grinned, oblivious to their discomfort. “Even if he hadn’t, Ali, this is Sugar Hill. Proposals and pregnancies are the stuff that keeps the gossip vine alive.”

      “You’re pregnant?” Brady asked in a shocked voice.

      “No!” Alison screeched. “And I haven’t given Thomas an answer yet, Vivi.”

      Mrs. Broussard cleared her throat. “Vivica, honey, if you don’t need me, I’m going to grab Brady and take him to the print shop.”

      Brady’s chest tightened. Had he made a mistake by agreeing to help his mother temporarily? She was already dropping hints and pressuring him to stay permanently.

      “Vivi, go on into the fitting room and start changing,”

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