“At times, yeah.” Enclosed places made him feel trapped and out of control. He couldn’t shake the sense that disaster was about to occur any second.
Hope lifted her head again, and those big brown eyes of hers stared solemnly into his. “Want to talk about it?”
He stared up at the stalactites hanging from the roof of the cave. Wrapping one of her silky, burnished curls around his finger, he began to speak. “It doesn’t always happen. I noticed it first when I flew to Mexico last summer. Longest plane ride of my life. That’s the reason why I didn’t come home for so long. I couldn’t make myself get on a plane. Did all my traveling by car or boat.”
He exhaled a heavy breath. “When the van rolled, the impact crushed the doors. We were trapped. I could smell gasoline and I thought we’d burst into flames any second.”
“Oh, Lucca,” Hope whispered.
“It was … awful. I’d let Seth bring a dog along. A puppy. During the accident the dog was thrown around. You could see that he’d been … broken … and Seth … Seth …” Lucca closed his eyes. “It was so random. He didn’t have a scratch on him except for the shard of metal that had punctured his thigh. It nicked an artery. I tried to stop it, to clamp off the bleeding, but I knew it was futile. He bled out right in front of me and I couldn’t … The whole time Seth held that crying puppy, crooning to him. They died within a minute of each other. The silence in the aftermath … it haunts me.”
“That’s why you reacted the way you did with Roxy’s puppies,” she said softly.
He shrugged. His thing with dogs was humiliating, and he didn’t like to think about it. He’d loved dogs before the accident. “Thank God for cellphones. We were able to call for help. Still, it took two hours for them to get to us and get us out.”
Two long, endless hours trapped with the dead, injured, and traumatized students for whom he was responsible while the fear of explosion hung over them.
He had to live with that memory for the rest of his life—live with the knowledge that his ego and pride had brought them to that point. “Guilt eats at me.”
“It shouldn’t.” Hope rose up on her elbows. She gazed down at him, her eyes filled with tender sorrow. “I understand, believe me. It was a terrible, horrible thing, but it was an accident.”
“I know, but that doesn’t seem to matter.”
“Then think about this. You kept your head when it mattered. I remember the news reports. I remember how steady and supportive you were for your team and their families. Those surviving boys loved you.”
“And the dead ones … are dead.”
“It was an accident. It’s not your fault.”
How could he make her understand? “For two hours that dog stared at me with flat, lifeless eyes. Accusing eyes. Now … hell.” His voice cracked a little as he confessed. “I’m afraid of dogs, Hope.”
“Oh, Lucca. No, you’re not. You’re wounded.”
He whispered the words, “I can’t forget.”
“Of course not. You won’t forget. You never forget. But you can heal. It takes time, but it does happen. It
Her words made his heart swell and pressure build at the back of his eyes. He attempted to avoid the total humiliation of tears by clearing his throat and quipping, “I brought you here to get laid. Pretty smart, huh?”
Hope didn’t let him get away with that. “Stop it. Listen to me. I want you to hear what I’m saying.” She cupped her hand against his cheek and stared deeply into his watery eyes, her own eyes damp with tears. “You are a good man, Lucca Romano. Accept that. Believe it.”
A single tear escaped his eye and trailed slowly down his temple. Hope leaned forward, kissed it away, and whispered in his ear. “I think I’ll get you a dog.”
TWELVE
On a Saturday morning ten days later, Hope awoke with a smile on her face and a naked man in her bed. Not just any man, she thought as she stretched slowly like a satisfied cat, but Lucca Romano, the oh-so-hot, been-on-the-cover-of-
Despite the fact that they’d shared each other’s secrets, Hope had no expectations that this was anything more than a fling. Nothing had changed. Lucca was still a short timer in Eternity Springs, and she told herself that that suited her just fine—that she didn’t want more than friendship and a fling. Honestly, after her disaster of a marriage, she couldn’t imagine ever wanting to travel that road again.
“Good morning,” rumbled the deep, sexy voice next to her ear.
“Good morning.”
He cuddled her against him. “You know, my mother likes to wax poetic about how beautiful the sunrise is over the mountains. I have to say that when it comes to beautiful sights in the morning, sunrise in Eternity Springs takes a backseat to you.”
She could have said the same thing. Instead, she offered to cook him breakfast, and interest lit his eyes.
“I’m starved. Breakfast would be great.” But when Hope rose and reached for the robe lying draped across the iron footboard of her bed, he shot out a hand and grabbed her wrist. “How about an appetizer first?”
She grinned when he tugged her back into bed, and she tumbled on top of him. As he rolled her onto her back, a phone rang. His phone, she realized upon identifying the ringtone. She didn’t have “Hell on Heels” on her cell. “Damn,” he muttered. “That’s Gabi. I’d better answer. She wouldn’t be calling if it wasn’t important.”
Gabi was still away on her dog-sitting beach vacation and not due back until the middle of the following week. Lucca fished his phone from the pocket of the jeans he’d left lying on the floor, his expression tense. He answered saying, “Gabi? Are you okay?”
Hope watched him closely, and when he visibly relaxed, she did, too.
“No, I don’t know what she’s doing today,” he spoke into the phone. “But I don’t mind picking you up. What time, again?” He listened for a moment, then said, “Sure. See you then.”
After disconnecting the call, he explained. “She’s on a layover in Atlanta. The Thurstons cut their trip short, so she’s coming home early. Mom said she couldn’t pick her up at the airport, so I’m going to do it. How about Mexican food?”
“For breakfast?” Mentally, she reviewed the contents of her pantry and fridge. She’d been thinking bacon and eggs, but she could do huevos rancheros.
“A late lunch. Gabi’s plane gets in at four. Zach has been singing the praises of a Mexican restaurant in Gunnison.”
“Gloria’s,” Hope said. “I’ve been wanting to try it.”
“Now’s your chance. Or did you have plans for the day?”
Hope thought about her schedule. “I have some errands I planned to do this afternoon. If it’s not too domestic for you, we could make a couple of stops in Gunnison and I could get it all done there.”
“Perfect. Now …” He sank back down onto the bed. “Where were we?”
“Kiss me, caveman, and I’ll show you.”
By noon they were on the road to Gunnison. Almost before they’d reached the Eternity Springs city limits, Hope found her eyelids getting heavy. She stifled a yawn and gave her head a shake to keep from nodding off. Lucca noticed and asked, “Sleepy?”
“Yes. I guess I didn’t get enough sleep last night.”
“I’d apologize, but I’d be lying,” he replied, an unrepentant look on his face. “Why don’t you take a nap?”
“I think I will, if you won’t mind. Just a short one.”
He reached across the console and gave her thigh a pat. “Sleep as long as you want. I’ll wake you when we
