Journey’s expression softened. “I don’t mind. I like taking care of you.”
Reno steeled his resolve to do what was right. “This is hard.”
“What?”
“What I’m about to say.”
Journey braced herself. “Just tell me.”
“Don’t fall in love with me.”
CHAPTER NINE
Don’t fall in love with me.
What he said took her completely aback.
She almost giggled and told him that it was too late. That ship had sailed. Journey felt her heart plummet to her feet. “Why would you say that, Reno?”
He looked up, not realizing his heart was in his eyes. “If things were different…but they’re not.”
“If what was different?”
“My circumstances. The way you feel about me, the way you treat me – it’s all very compelling. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t flattered.”
“Flattered?” Suddenly, she felt a bit insulted. “I think you need to explain yourself further.”
Reno could feel the hurt in her words. This wasn’t going as planned. “I don’t want to hurt you. If we get involved…”
“I can take care of myself, thank you.”
“That’s not what I meant.” He tried to find other words to make his feelings clearer.
“Maybe I should tell you not to fall in love with me.” Journey stood to gather the empty dishes. She stiffly moved to the sink.
Reno had the crazy urge to laugh as he noticed how cute she looked stomping across the floor. Only – this wasn’t funny. “My father left my mother. She never got over it. I refuse to do that to a woman I care about.”
Journey slumped, realizing what he was trying to say. “This isn’t the same.”
“Close enough. I’m here today, but I can’t promise tomorrow. Who knows what will happen? I don’t know how I arrived; how can I be sure I won’t leave just as unexpectedly? Frankly, I’m going to actively seek a way back to my life at every opportunity. I can’t lose sight of that fact – and you can’t either.”
She didn’t fully process everything he was saying – not at the moment. One stark truth stuck out above the rest. “Are you waiting for some kind of guarantee? None of us are promised tomorrow, Reno. My parents were with me one moment and gone the next. They were in a boat on the lake and I was playing in the shallow water at the shore. I was looking up and waving at them when their boat hit a log floating just beneath the surface. They died instantly.”
“I’m sorry.” He didn’t know.
She wiped a lone tear from her cheek. “Don’t be, it was a long time ago. Wounds heal.”
“Not completely.” He spoke from experience. “What I’m trying to say is that I appreciate you. I like you.” Hell, the way he felt about her was more than like. “God knows I’m attracted to you. I’d have to be blind and dumb – or dead – not to be.”
Journey didn’t think she could listen to his explanation. Not without crying in front of him. She didn’t want that. Best that she just beat him to the punch. “Anything more than friendship between us would be foolish.”
Foolish? Somehow, that thought didn’t sit well with him. However, her stance supported his position. “Friendship is best.”
“Fine.” She nodded. “I know you want and need to return to your own time. “I’ll help you in any way that I can.”
“I’m not sure what you can do.”
Journey ignored the hurt in her heart. Later, when she was alone – she’d deal with it. Right now, she didn’t relish Reno knowing she was dying inside. “Forewarned is forearmed. History may have recorded more than we know. There may be documents or letters that can help us figure out the identity of the drummer boy and the man who betrayed you. Then…when you do go back to your own time, you’ll be prepared.”
He could see the wisdom in her suggestion. “That would be very helpful. Where can we find this information?”
As they spoke, her eyes lingered on his features. He was so dear to her. So familiar. In her flights of fancy, Reno would always fall at her feet the first moment he laid eyes on her. As captivated by her as she was by him. Now, she realized her fantasies were childish. He might not be from this century, but this was a real man with real-life problems and goals. He didn’t know her, not even as well as she knew him. Journey didn’t like to admit that the tales might have been embellished. No one liked to speak ill of the dead. Sometimes the actions of a loved one who is passed are recounted in the most glowing of terms. To top it off, there was no real emotional connection between them. What she wanted and fantasized wasn’t really a factor when faced with reality.
So be it.
In an odd way, Journey felt as if she might have grown a little bit in the last little while. She still wanted to help him, there was no doubt about it. Maybe in doing so, she could bring some type of closure to her own issues. Maybe when this was over, however it turned out, she could move on with her own life and leave the past behind.
“I’ll gather all the information we have here. I’ll also ask Aunt Myra what Uncle Myles may have in storage. We can also visit libraries and museum. The University of Texas has a huge collection of historical documents. Plus, there’s always the internet.” At his puzzled expression, she tried to explain briefly. “This is the computer age. I’ll get out my laptop tomorrow and explain this to you. Basically, every computer in the world can have access to anything a user has made available – that’s books, papers, documents, dissertations, research – you name it, it’s
