Inside a small trailer near the football field, Nash enjoyed a plate of spicy barbecue brisket with coleslaw and pinto beans. The meal was the first break of any kind he’d had all day, and though he’d tried to find Harlow to join him, he’d been unsuccessful. He was disappointed that they’d had so little time together, but not surprised. Any time he agreed to a publicity event, he was swallowed up in demands on his time and person.
Still, he’d wanted to hold Harlow’s hand and ride the Ferris wheel like old times. He’d wanted to kiss her in the dark spook house and then make her laugh by dunking the clown in the dunk tank. And he wanted to win her and Davis each a teddy bear at the football throw.
Simple pleasures, sweet memories. He wanted those things for her and Davis. Part of his penance, he thought, after realizing that he’d falsely accused her. But what he desired deep down was much more complicated than Ferris wheels and teddy bears.
He bit into a microwave-warmed dinner roll and listened to the man across from him rehash Nash’s winning catch in a playoff game last year. The guy, Pete, an avid fan, had won a drawing to have dinner with him. Nash knew he was nothing without people like Pete and focused his attention on the man, even as he wished to be home with Harlow.
Home. Funny how the ranch he’d escaped was once again home in a way no place else had ever been.
Maybe because his son and Harlow were there.
“Mind if I get a photo with you?” Pete asked. “To show my kid?”
“Sure.” Nash pushed his half-empty plate aside and stood next to the man while one of the festival organizers snapped the photo. “If your kid is here, bring him in for his own photo.”
“Seriously? You don’t mind?”
“Not at all.”
The man scampered out the door faster than a jackrabbit.
Nash finished his meal, now cold but still filling. The man and two boys soon returned. He smiled and played his part, charming the boys while wishing for this to be over.
He signed a team cap for each boy and told them how much he appreciated their support for his team. They asked about other players and he regaled them with stories while the organizers snapped photo after photo.
When the happy trio departed, another man appeared in the opened doorway. A man in a thousand-dollar business suit and Italian leather shoes.
Nash’s stomach dropped. His whole body tensed.
Sterling Dorsey, his agent, had found him.
“Nash, my man.” Smiling as if he wasn’t a cobra in the grass, Sterling said, “I’ve been trying to reach you. Is your phone broken?”
Guts clenching, Nash managed to keep a straight face and pretend a welcome he didn’t feel.
“How ya doing, Sterling? What’s up?” Where’s my money?
“That’s what I want to know. Why have you disappeared off the face of the earth? Do you know how far back in the boonies this place is? I had to rent a car over in Arkansas just to get here.”
Nash ignored the condescending attitude. Sterling was a snob. An agent who was top-shelf all the way. His attitude had never bothered Nash until he discovered that Sterling’s yacht, fancy parties, and half-dozen flashy cars were bought with clients’ money far beyond his contractual percentage. Clients like him.
“Needed some R and R, someplace private while my shoulder heals.”
“Fair enough, but I’ve been trying to reach you for days. Business is booming, man. Have I got a deal for you.”
For himself most likely. “What is it?”
Sterling pulled a chair to the small table and slid a twenty-dollar bill toward the festival volunteer.
“Say, hon,” he said with a wink. “Get a couple of drinks for us. Keep the change. And take your time. Nash and I have business to discuss.”
“She can stay,” Nash said.
“That’s okay, I don’t mind.” The volunteer took the money and left.
“Don’t be rude to these people, Sterling. They’re my friends.”
“Was I rude? I gave the gal twenty bucks.” He waved away Nash’s concerns. “Little places like this don’t matter anyway.”
Nash fisted his hands, his tone flat. “They matter to me.”
Sterling didn’t seem to notice Nash’s sudden tension. Or he didn’t care. He had his own agenda. All Nash had to do was play along.
“How much did they pay you for this gig?”
Money. For Sterling, only the money mattered.
With a jolt, Nash realized he’d been no different.
“They didn’t.”
Sterling tsked, wagging his head as if Nash was a recalcitrant child. “Which is why you need me. So, listen up. Sponsors are clamoring for you again. You have become an even hotter commodity since your little disappearing act. A brilliant PR move, by the way.”
Nash forced his fingers to relax. He had to think clearly and stay focused on getting his money back, not let Sterling push his buttons.
From his easy demeanor, the agent thought Nash remained clueless about the embezzled funds. If he was telling the truth about endorsements, Nash had a chance to recoup his fortune. At least, enough to take care of Harlow and Davis.
Working to appear casual and interested, he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in the chair. “I’m listening.”
If legit endorsement deals were on the table, he’d take them. All of them. But this time he’d handle his own business affairs.
The next morning, Harlow finished preparing Davis’s breakfast just as a sleek Mercedes pulled into the driveway and Nash stepped out of the passenger side.
“Nash. Nash!” Davis abandoned his toast and rushed out the door to slam into the big athlete’s legs.
With one strong arm, Nash easily swung his son up for a hug.
They hadn’t seen Nash at all since the end of the parade yesterday. Only a few hours had passed, and yet she’d missed him. So had Davis.
Harlow followed her son across the new grass, curious about the car. Something about its sudden, unexpected appearance gave her a bad feeling. This obviously wasn’t a reporter or Nash wouldn’t be in the car. Would he?
Was he about to leave town? Go back to Florida? They’d settled exactly nothing.
His actions of recent days said he felt more than friendship for her. His love for Davis was obvious.
But where did they go from there?
And what about the disaster he’d brought on her family? He still hadn’t mentioned the pyramid scheme or offered an apology. He knew she struggled financially. And he must know the reason.
Why didn’t he bring it up? Could he be that callous?
She didn’t think so, and yet, he said nothing.
He behaved as if it never happened.
Something about the entire situation felt off to her. She desperately wanted to ask him about it, yet a part of her didn’t want to know. Not now.
Not when she’d fallen in love with him even deeper than before. Not when she saw him as the same wonderful man, only rich and famous.
Nash was not the kind of person to hurt his friends without remorse.
Yet he had.
Was love so blind that she wanted to deny what she knew to be true?
“Harlow,” he said, as she crossed the greening grass to the strange car. “Got a minute?”
Her stomach tightened, anxious. “Sure.”
Nash hugged Davis a little tighter and kissed the top of his head before sliding him to the ground.
His gaze finding hers, he said, “I’m headed back to Florida.”
“Today? Now?” Not now. Please not now. “But—”
He held up a stop sign hand. “I know. Unfinished business.”
Davis stood at his knee, looking up with an earnest face. The expression twisted Harlow’s heart.
“You come back?”
Nash swallowed hard and went to his haunches. “Yes, Davis. I will be back. As soon as I can.” Gently, he pulled their son against his chest and held him there for a long moment. Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “I love you, little man. You be good for your mama, okay?”
“Okay.”
Nash rose to his full six feet four inches. He dwarfed her. She’d always loved his impressive size compared to her diminutive frame. He’d made her feel protected.
At the moment, all she felt was vulnerable.
When Nash opened his arms, Harlow walked into them. He was her safe place...until he wasn’t.
She wanted him to be again.
His giant heart thundered erratically against her ear.
“I’ll be back,” he said again.
“Promise?” She was afraid to trust his promises.
“I do. One way or the other, no matter what happens in Florida, I will come back here.”
Right. He had to. His son was here.
The Mercedes window rolled down. “Got a plane to catch, Nash. Wrap it up.”
A cold, empty expression shuttered Nash’s face. He kissed her cheek and when she didn’t move away, he kissed her lips.
Then, he let her go, got into the fancy car and left her standing in the breezy morning alone except for their child. Just like before.
Though the weather was pleasant, Harlow suddenly felt as cold as a January ice storm.
She’d seen the driver of the Mercedes. Nash had ridden away with his agent, the man who’d convinced Poppy to invest too much. All because of Nash Corbin.
The next couple of days were a whirlwind for Nash. He met with prospective sponsors and, although Sterling had urged him to sign immediately, he told every one of them that he’d get back to them ASAP.
The deals were good and with strong companies he didn’t mind endorsing. He’d have to outwit Sterling to keep the man’s grubby paws clear of the paychecks.
On day two, he contacted a highly recommended—and expensive—lawyer and set the wheels in motion to discover the truth behind his missing funds and an agent he knew was embezzling faster than he could earn.
The attorney advised him to temporarily freeze his financial accounts and fire Sterling. He’d already done the first. The second took some finesse and ego-smoothing, but he’d managed to get away without Sterling recognizing the true reasons. The agent would know soon enough when he was hit with a subpoena.
That night, exhausted from the round of stressful appointments, phone calls, and a long meeting with his coach and team owner, he retired to his condo. He’d agreed to begin rehab with the team therapists the next day. Tonight, he just wanted to talk to Harlow.
Only two days and he missed her so much his chest literally hurt. Did she miss him? Was she upset about his abrupt departure?
He’d seen the disappointment in her beautiful face. He knew he’d hurt her again. He seemed to be good at that. Would she forgive him once she understood all the things he hadn’t been able to tell her before he left?
Opening his cell phone, he found her long-ago photo. Funny that he’d kept it all this time. Or maybe not funny at all. Maybe his heart had always known what he was too busy to admit.
She’d looked like pure joy that day when he’d snapped this shot of her as she sat on the steps of his back porch, arms around her knees, discussing his dreams that were about to come true. His dreams. Not hers.
He knew she had dreams too, but his had always been the most important to her. She’d believed in him long before he’d become a success.
Harlow had loved him then, and he’d been too self-focused to notice. He believed—hoped—she still loved him, and the hope was like a hot air balloon filling his whole being with warmth and buoyance.
He wished she was here. Wished he’d brought her and Davis along. He’d take them to Disney World, SeaWorld, the ocean. Harlow had never seen the ocean.
He tapped her smiling photo and listened as the connection brred in his ear.
“Nash, hi.” Her voice washed over him like a warm shower, refreshing and pleasurable.
“Hey. How are things in Sundown Valley?”
“You’re still the buzz. A couple of reporters stopped here today asking if we knew where you lived.”
“Did you tell them?”
“Yes.”
“Harlow!”
She laughed. “I told them Florida.”
He laughed, too, then. “Pretty smart.”
“We don’t want them roaming around our property any more than you do. They scare the cows.” He heard the smile in her voice.
“Everything okay with you and Davis?”
“We’re good. Are you getting your issues resolved?”
“Working on it. Listen to this, Harlow. I’m about to sign three very lucrative endorsement deals. TV ads, magazines, etcetera.”
“That’s great.”
All of a sudden, her voice sounded a little off.
“You don’t sound excited.”
“I am if you are. How long will you be there?”
So that was it. “I promised to return soon, Harlow. And I will. We left too much unfinished business between us.”
“When? Davis asks me every day. You made him love you, Nash. Please don’t abandon him. Please. He’s just an innocent child.”
Her plea cut through him, a saber to the bone. She still didn’t trust him. She might be in love with him, and he was convinced she was, but she expected him to let her—and Davis—down again.
Harlow took Davis horseback riding through the woods and along the flowing creek where she and Nash had spent hours as kids. Everything in this place reminded her of Nash.
He’d phoned three times since leaving and sent numerous text messages. He was headed to physical therapy. His shoulder was doing great. Docs said he’d play next season. Or he’d met with a sponsor and signed a television deal to advertise their insurance. Or he was off to have dinner with friends. They’d talk later.
That night he hadn’t called. She’d been tempted to text him but hadn’t.
Try as she might, she couldn’t resist a look at his social media.
What she saw confirmed her worst fears.
Nash with a beautiful woman on his arm, smiling his million-dollar smile, and looking happier than he’d ever looked when he was here.
He had a glamourous life that didn’t include her or Davis. But, as she’d suspected, included a very beautiful woman.
Her stomach cramped. She thought she might throw up.
She’d been a fool of the first order to believe she could ever win a man like Nash. He loved their son and was kind to her, but that was where the relationship began and ended.
He would never love her the way she’d loved him.
Nash was, in a word, miserable. Shockingly lonely for the ranch life, he did everything he could to clear up his business so he could grab a few days in Sundown Valley. He’d have to fly back to Florida sooner rather than later, but the need to go home was impossible to resist.
He had so much to tell Harlow. The phone was not the place to explain.
The lawyer had confirmed through a number of sources and a very sharp investigator that Sterling, indeed, had embezzled a huge amount of money from him, as well as other athletes. Micki Abelman, his new attorney, put things in motion to recoup what was possible, though Sterling was crafty and had moved much of it offshore. Nonetheless, the agent owned many possessions and had a healthy onshore account, as well as stocks and other investments to make him appear legit. Nash’s lawyer quickly worked to freeze Sterling’s accounts and file charges.
With the new sponsorships, Nash would eventually be all right. Rebuilding his portfolio would, however, require more time than usual because he already had plans for the first big endorsement advance.
Early Friday morning, he took a cab to the airport. He’d promised to be back by Tuesday to resume therapy and begin filming commercials for the insurance company, but he couldn’t wait any longer to see Harlow and Davis.
Even a few days was better than a video call.
In the cab, he texted Harlow. Headed your way. See you soon.
She immediately sent a return text. Davis is eager to see you.
What about you?
There was a long wait. He arrived at the airport and exited the car, still waiting for her response as he rolled his duffel through the sliding doors and into the low hum of airport activity.
Finally, his phone chimed. See you when you get here.
Her reply was unsatisfactory but what did he expect? Neither of them had made any declarations of undying love.
Pocketing the cell phone, which he had the good sense to bring this time, he checked in and started through security.
A couple of fans noticed him and stopped for autographs.
After being scanned and his bag x-rayed, he sat down inside the terminal to put on his shoes.
His phone buzzed. He fished it from his pocket, glanced at the screen.
His attorney.
He held the device to his ear. “Hello.”
“Mr. Corbin? Micki Abelman here.” Brisk. To the point. Typical of this go-getter lawyer. “I only have a minute but I have disturbing news.”
“That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
“We’ll get Dorsey. This isn’t that.” Before he had time to feel relief, the no-nonsense voice went on. “Our investigator discovered a pyramid scheme that your agent ran on unsuspecting victims with the usual untrue promise of a huge financial windfall.”
Nash frowned. “I don’t recall getting involved in anything like that.”
“You didn’t. He made sure you didn’t know.”
“Then what—”
“One of the victims was the family of the woman you told me about. The mother of your son.”
Confidential attorney-client privilege meant he had discussed his plans to provide for Davis without concern that word would leak out and embarrass Harlow.
Finally admitting to himself that he wanted more than Davis felt good. He wanted the package deal.
“Are you saying he scammed the Matheson family?”
“Yes. Using your name to convince them it was legit. He claimed you had sent him.”
A groan escaped Nash. His stomach churned, sick to realize how terribly Harlow and her family had been wronged by his thieving agent.
Through clenched teeth, he said, “If I get my hands on him—”
“Listen to me, Nash.” Again, the tone was sharp and brisk. “As your lawyer, I strongly advise you to steer clear. Let justice do its work. I am very good at what I do, and I relish destroying creeps like him. Trust me. He will pay and pay big. You stay out of it.”
Nash knew the advice was sensible but struggled to agree. After a moment, he said, “Fine. Just get him.”
“I will. With pleasure.”
“How bad did he hurt them? Give me the details. I have to fix this.”
“You won’t like it.”
“Hit me.”
Abelman sighed. “He bilked them out of basically every penny they had and what they could borrow. When the scheme crashed, they were forced to take out a second mortgage in order to keep their ranch.”
His jaw tightened. His free hand clenched into a fist. He wanted to hit something. Someone.
Aware people milled around him, he lowered his voice. “How much?”
She named a sum that broke his heart.
Gus would never have fallen for a scam like that without Nash’s name being involved.
It killed him to know how much he’d inadvertently hurt the people he loved.
Harlow had more than one reason to despise him. Except she didn’t. Another reason to love her.
But now he understood why she’d been so cold to him at first. Because of him and his association with Sterling Dorsey, Harlow and her family had been hurt terribly. Now he better understood the reason she worked so hard and worried about money constantly. And the reason she’d sold her mother’s wedding rings.
Why hadn’t she said something? Why hadn’t Gus?
The call to board his flight broadcast over the intercom. He ended the phone call and, mind whirling, found his way onto the plane and settled in.
He would make this right with Harlow and her family.
Somehow.