Love Storm by Jennifer McNare

“I
think there are enough to get you by for another couple of weeks.”
    “Let’s hope.”   His
specialties were grilled steaks and burgers, but he could also make a pretty
tasty omelet and decent stack of pancakes.   Otherwise, his culinary skills were fairly limited.
    “Oh, and when you dry your clothes, don’t forget to put in a
dryer sheet, or else they’ll all be full of static when you take them
out.”  
    “Got it.”   His
housekeeper took care of the laundry at home, but Brooklyn had gone over the
basics of the high-tech washer and dryer with him earlier in the week.   If he’d been on his own, he probably would
have had to call his mom for instructions.   Sadly, he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d done his own laundry,
if ever.   He was spoiled and he knew
it.   Just another one of the many perks
of being a professional athlete.   “Anything else I might forget?”
    Just me.   “Don’t fall asleep in the hot tub.”
    “Check.   Anything
else?”  
    “Nope, I think you’ve got a pretty good handle on everything
else.”
    He wasn’t so sure about that.   He had a feeling that letting Brooklyn go was
going to be even harder than he’d imagined.

 
 
    “Don’t forget to call me when you get back to Denver, so I
know that you made it home safely,” Ryan reminded her as he stood beside the
driver-side door of her Tahoe twenty minutes later.
    “I will.”
    “And don’t drive too fast going down the mountain.   I’m sure the road is still slick in spots.”
    She couldn’t help smiling.   “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful,” she promised.   His obviously genuine concern was extremely
touching.
    Pulling the door shut, she smiled at Ryan one last time
through the window glass.   Then, putting
the Tahoe into reverse she backed slowly from the drive.
    Raising his hand to wave goodbye, Ryan watched her drive
away.   He stood there for several minutes
then, long after she was gone from sight, with his hands shoved into the
pockets of his jeans and his breath clearly visible in the frigid air, as he
fought the overwhelming urge to go after her.  

 
 
    Over the next several days, Ryan fought the urge to go after
Brooklyn on more than one occasion.   He’d
erroneously thought that the first night, lying alone in his bed would be the
worst, but he should have known better, for the following nights had been just
as tough.   He was finding sleep
increasingly hard to come by as his thoughts returned time and again to her,
and unfortunately the days weren’t any easier.
    Going after Brooklyn would mean that he was in it for the
long haul, he knew that.   With her, it
was going to be all or nothing.   It had
to be; she deserved nothing less.   Recognizing that, he forced himself to ponder some difficult questions
in the days following her departure, about the direction he wanted his life to
take.   Surprisingly, the decision really
wasn’t nearly as hard as he’d thought it would be.

Chapter 7

 
    Standing with two other female interns near the back of the
room, Brooklyn watched excitedly as the pieces from the auction catalogue went
up for bids, one right after the other.   She’d been studying the catalogue for the past three weeks, and had
painstakingly memorized the details of each and every item.   She had even taken it with her to the cabin,
reviewing it now and then when she’d had a quiet moment.   She’d gone over it with Ryan as well,
pointing out some of her favorite pieces and listening with avid interest to
his views on those particular works, as well as the collection as a whole.   Much to her delight, she had quickly
discovered that he was even more knowledgeable about the art world than he’d
implied.   She wished he was here now,
knowing that he would enjoy the auction, but of course she wished it for other
reasons as well.
    When her favorite piece was eventually brought to the front
of the auction house, Brooklyn couldn’t help