Ten Years Later.... Marie Ferrarella

Her own person who was committed to going her own way whenever she had to and helping others whenever she could. Being a nurse wasn’t just what she did—it was what she was.

      “Oh, I wouldn’t exactly say that,” Sebastian told her.

      Maybe it was the combination of the perfume, the song and the fact that, for the most part, he’d led a fairly solitary life overseas. There were more than a few times when he’d felt alone in the crowd for these past few years, despite living in one of the most crowded cities in Japan.

      Whatever the reason, holding Brianna like this, having her perfume fill his senses, managed to stir up some old, treasured memories. Memories that nonetheless felt a little misty, because time had a way of creating holes in the fabric of life as it began to stretch out.

      The memories allowed him to suddenly feel as if he had been transported back to the past. To the last time he’d held Brianna in his arms. Then his head had been full of dreams for both of them.

      He’d made love to her for the first—and only—time that night.

      The wave of nostalgia that hit him was almost overpoweringly strong.

      Brianna was undergoing a struggle of her own—and losing.

       Talk, damn it. Say something. Something vague and neutral. Before you wind up making a fool of yourself and melting all over him.

      Desperate, Brianna hit on the only topic she could actually think of. “So, how is your mother doing these days?”

      “Not as well as I’d like,” Sebastian admitted in an unguarded moment.

      Ordinarily, he wasn’t given to voicing his concerns or feelings. The years had made him far more stoic than he had been.

      Less than five minutes in Brianna’s company and he was regressing, he thought, annoyed with himself.

      The concern he saw entering her eyes surprised him. “What do you mean by that?”

      A simple excuse occurred to him. One that was, ultimately, a lie. But he had never been able to lie to Brianna. To start now just seemed wrong.

      So he told her the truth. “The doctor said she’d had a minor stroke—reminded me just how fragile life really is. I was planning on having a lengthy visit with her over the Christmas holidays, but once she told me about her condition, I rearranged my vacation plans and flew out as soon as possible.”

      He paused for a moment, debating his next words. It exposed his vulnerable side, but then, this was Brianna, whom he had once trusted implicitly. He supposed, simply because old habits were hard to break, part of him still did.

      “Mom made me realize that putting off the visit home might not be the wisest thing to do. If something had happened to her before I got a chance to see her, I’d never forgive myself.”

      She knew he wasn’t being dramatic. His mother was a wonderful woman whom everyone absolutely loved. Including Sebastian. And her.

      “So here I am,” Sebastian concluded.

      The wheels in her head had instantly begun turning at the first mention of his mother’s illness. The nurse in her was never off duty.

      “Has your mother ever had a stroke before?”

      “No, not to my knowledge.” He came back at her with his own question. “Why?”

      Her shoulders rose and then fell in a casual shrug. “No real reason. I’m just trying to pull some facts together.”

      He’d been so caught up in the moment—and trying not to be—that he’d completely forgotten. “That’s right. You became a nurse, didn’t you?”

      Brianna nodded. “After my father got well, there was this tremendous feeling of relief. But at the same time, there was also this feeling of ‘what do I do with myself now?’”

      “The words ‘relax a little’ come to mind,” he told her.

      She smiled as she shook her head. “Not really in my nature. Besides, going into nursing seemed like the natural progression at the time. I like helping people, like getting them motivated and helping them realize that the only thing holding them back from achieving their goals—no matter what those goals are—is themselves.”

      Sebastian had grown quiet and there was a strange look on his face now.

      She flushed a little ruefully. “I’m talking too much, aren’t I?”

      She was even prettier than she had been when he’d left, he thought now. Her looks were enhanced by a confidence that hadn’t been there when they’d gone together.

      He found himself having to struggle to keep from being drawn in.

      “I don’t think so,” he answered honestly. Who would have thought that the feelings he had for her were still there? That they hadn’t disappeared but had just gone into hibernation? “When my mother asked me to attend this reunion—”

      “She asked you to attend?” Brianna echoed in surprise. That sounded so much like what her father had done, she was struck by the odd similarity.

      He nodded. “My coming to the reunion seemed to mean a lot to her. Why is beyond me,” he admitted. But then, the workings of a female mind mystified him. “What?” he asked when he saw her mouth beginning to curve. To his knowledge, he hadn’t said anything funny.

      “Don’t act as if you came here kicking and screaming,” she told him, amused at his protest. “The Sebastian I remember never did anything he didn’t want to do.”

      The shrug was careless, even though he didn’t take his eyes off her for a second.

      “Maybe I’ve gotten more thoughtful in my old age,” he speculated.

      “Twenty-nine only qualifies for old age if you happen to be related to a fruit fly,” she countered.

      Sebastian smiled in response, a slightly self-deprecating expression on his face. She’d forgotten how easily that could get to her. Several more couples had joined them on the dance floor, so it no longer felt as if the two of them were putting on an exhibition strictly for Tiffany’s amusement.

      When Sebastian stopped moving about on the floor a moment later, she looked up at him curiously. “Why did you stop dancing?”

      “Because the music stopped playing,” he answered simply.

      Damn it, how could she have missed that? Had she been that mesmerized by him? That couldn’t be allowed to happen.

      “Right.” Embarrassed, Brianna stepped back, dropping her hands from his. “Well, I guess we’ve fulfilled any leftover obligations from that last prom.”

      At least the obligations to strangers, she couldn’t help thinking.

      “Oh, no, you two aren’t planning on ditching us already, are you?” Tiffany gushed, suddenly coming up to them again. “Maybe for a little secret rendezvous?” she asked with a laugh that threatened to turn Brianna’s stomach.

      Like an unwanted guest who was oblivious to any attempt to get her to leave, Tiffany hooked one arm through each of theirs, placing herself strategically between them. Her smile was as fake as it was wide.

      “Is that it?” she pressed. “Do you two really intend to make up for lost time?”

      He knew that telling Tiffany it was none of her business just made her more curious—and more determined to prove that she was right.

      So he deftly avoided a direct answer. “I guess I can stay for a little longer,” Sebastian told the former cheerleader.

      Without meaning to or being totally conscious of doing it, he glanced in Brianna’s direction to see if she’d been persuaded to remain for a while longer as well.

      Or, he supposed, strong-armed into it.