“Get your hands off her!”
Eugene whirled at the sound of Luke’s voice behind him. The look of fear on his face was almost enough retribution. Almost.
“You were the one who started the rumor about McCall,” Luke said between clenched teeth, confirming that he’d heard. There was a cold fury in his voice.
Eugene must have heard it, too, because he released her and stepped back, raising both hands in surrender.
Why had Luke come back? Not that it mattered. She’d never been so glad to see him.
“Cousin,” Eugene said, sounding alarmed. “It isn’t what you think.”
“I think you were about to rape McCall, but I asked you a question. Did you just say you were the one who started the rumor about me and McCall?” Luke demanded.
Trapped, Eugene went on the defensive, turning belligerent and confrontational. “You should be thanking me. I did you the biggest favor of your life and you didn’t even know it. You could have ended up with this slut if it hadn’t been for me.”
LUKE FELT AS if he’d been sucker punched when he’d heard Eugene confess to what he’d done. “Do you have any idea what you did?” He took a step toward his cousin.
“Come on,” Eugene said, taking a step back. “If she slept with you, she slept with everyone else in high school. She wanted what I was going to give her tonight. She asked for it.”
Luke punched him, knocking Eugene down, and advanced ready to kick the hell out of him. He wanted to tear Eugene limb from limb. He’d never felt this kind of rage.
“What the—?” Eugene said, scrambling to his feet. “I was like a brother to you. She’s a Winchester. A friggin’ Winchester. I—”
Luke reached for Eugene, right hand balled into a fist and ready to strike again.
McCall grabbed his arm. “You don’t want to do this,” she said quietly.
“You’re wrong about that,” Luke said, breathing hard. “You heard him. His jealousy destroyed what we could have had. All these years...”
He started to pull free of her, half-afraid that once he started in on Eugene he might not be able to stop, and knowing it wouldn’t change what had torn him and McCall apart.
“Eugene just started the rumors, Luke. I didn’t trust you enough to know you were telling me the truth. And once the lies started...”
Eugene was cowering at the edge of the deck.
Luke fought to control his temper and stepped back. “Get out of my sight, Eugene, or I swear...”
His cousin scrambled over the railing, dropping the few feet to the ground and was gone into the night.
It took a moment for Luke to calm down. When he turned to McCall, he saw there were tears in her eyes.
“I should have believed you,” she said.
He shook his head. “We thought we were alone. We were young, and what we had together that night scared us both.” He drew her into the shelter of his arms and she snuggled against him. “I couldn’t bear it though that you thought I would betray you. After that...” He was unable to put into words how miserable he’d been, how miserable he still was without her. “You should have let me kick his ass. If I hadn’t come back to your cabin when I did...”
“Luke, I’m okay.” She stepped back from his embrace as if she needed to get her equilibrium, to reassure herself that she was fine, that she could take care of herself.
Eugene had scared her, made her feel defenseless, and Luke knew that was a feeling McCall couldn’t bear.
But it wasn’t Eugene, he realized, who had her running scared. It was him. He’d hoped that the truth would change everything but now feared it hadn’t.
“Don’t push me away,” he said, but didn’t touch her.
She shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. “It was high school,” she said, confirming what he’d guessed had her so afraid.
Had what they’d felt for each other back then been real? Or had they built it up in their minds, making more of it than it was? Was she that afraid to find out if those feelings for each other were still there?
“I came back here tonight because I can’t bear to let any more time go by,” Luke said. “For hell’s sake, stop pushing me away, McCall.”
MCCALL KNEW THAT if she let him walk away this time, it would be the last chance for them. “I don’t want you to go.”
He stared at her as if afraid to trust her words. Both of them were still afraid of being hurt again; she could see it in his eyes.
But neither could deny the electricity that arced between them, she thought. The air seemed to vibrate around them. She could almost hear the low hum in the cold night air. She didn’t dare touch him. Didn’t dare move.
She could see in his face the same battle that was going on inside him. Had that night they’d made love so long ago just been puppy love? Nothing more?
They would never know if she let him walk away now.
“Please,” she whispered and closed her eyes as he reached out and cupped the back of her neck with his large warm hand. A quiver shuddered through her as he tightened his fingers on her nape and slowly drew her to him.
Her heart seemed to stop, then take off. Heat rushed through her. Her breath came in a rush as he dragged her against his firm, solid body. She could feel the pounding of his heart.
He held her like that, his breath ragged. She heard him swallow and finally opened her eyes to look up at him.
“McCall,” he whispered as he swept her up into his arms and into the cabin, kicking the door closed behind them.
As he lowered her
