Honor

house had become their refuge, a place for quiet talks, long walks and slow, sensuous sex. Kevin had kept his part of the bargain—until the day he’d stopped going because he no longer had time for the simple pleasure of a relaxing, intimate vacation.
Of all the suggestions he might have made, this was the most wickedly clever. The memories they shared there were among their most powerfully seductive.
She met his gaze and saw that he knew exactly what he was asking of her.
“Please, Lacey,” he coaxed. “You did promise we would talk.”
She was shaking her head before the words were out of his mouth. “I didn’t promise to move back in with you. It won’t work, Kevin.”
“It will if we want it to. I’m ready to try. What about you?” He studied her closely, then added, “Or have you given up on our marriage?”
There was no mistaking the dare. Lacey cursed the tidy way Kevin had backed her into a corner. He knew how desperately she wanted to salvage what they’d once had. If she turned him down, she was as much as admitting that she’d given up hope.
Or that she was afraid.
She couldn’t deny the fear that curled within her at the thought of what might happen if she gave in to his plan. If she accepted, if she went to the Cape and nothing had changed, she wasn’t sure she could bear the pain of another separation and inevitably a divorce.
Now at least the worst days were behind her. She’d begun picking up the pieces of her life, creating a world in which Kevin was no longer the center. She liked the strength she’d discovered within herself.
But if that strength were real, if she’d truly gained her independence, wouldn’t she be able to cope no matter what happened? She could practically hear him taunting her with that, though in reality he said nothing. Maybe it was simply her brain arguing with her heart.
All of the questions and none of the answers flashed through her mind in no more than an instant. Lacey studied Kevin’s face and saw the uncertainty, the wistfulness in his eyes. It mirrored what she felt in her heart, the hope that had never died.
“I’ll go,” she said finally. She’d thought the risk of leaving Kevin had been dangerous enough. The risk of going back was a thousand times greater. She had to try, though. She would never forgive herself if she didn’t.
“Thank you,” he said simply. And she knew from the way time seemed to stand still as she met his gaze that her decision had been the right one, the only one.
No matter how much it might hurt later.
* * *
Kevin had the entire, endless night to think about Lacey’s answer. He knew what it had taken for her to overcome her reluctance. The look in her eyes had spoken volumes about the struggle that raged inside her. He swore that he would do whatever it took to overcome her doubts. He viewed the coming days as a honeymoon of sorts, a chance to put their marriage on a new, more solid footing.
And he began making careful plans.
“I’ll take care of everything,” Brandon announced the following morning when he learned of their arrangement, which he clearly viewed as permanent. “Over the years I’ve learned a thing or two about patching things up after a spat.”
“I’m sure you have,” Kevin agreed, recalling the flurry of expensive gifts that would pour in whenever his father and mother argued.
His mother would point to a piece of jewelry and say, “This was for the time he stayed the whole night through at the factory and forgot to call. And these earrings were for that time he didn’t tell me he’d invited guests for dinner and showed up with two of his most important customers.”
Kevin grinned at the memories, but held up his hand. “Slow down, Dad. I think I’ll handle this one my way. Besides, Jason’s already called the caretaker. The house will be ready for us.”
“What about flowers? Never was a woman who could resist a few bouquets of flowers.”
“Like the five dozen roses you sent Mom, when you forgot your anniversary? Or the orchids that came when you missed her birthday?”
Brandon scowled at him. “Okay, so I had a lousy head for dates. Your mother loved those flowers just the same.”
“Yes, she did,” Kevin said softly, “because they came from you. Let me deal with Lacey my own way, Dad.”
Brandon went on as if he hadn’t heard a word Kevin was saying. “Maybe I ought to take a drive out there and check on things. You can’t trust strangers to remember everything.”
Kevin groaned as he envisioned his father standing in the doorway to welcome them. Lacey would no doubt turn tail and run. Although, on second thought, she might welcome a buffer between them. Either way, Kevin had no intention of letting Brandon meddle in this particular scenario.
“Forget it, Dad. For a man who spent years trying to keep us apart, you’re suddenly awfully anxious for us to get back together.”
Brandon didn’t rise to the bait. “I’m not one bit afraid to admit I’ve made mistakes in my life. A few of them have been doozies. I know what I did back then to try to ruin what you two had was wrong. Lacey’s a fine woman. You couldn’t have done better.”
“I know that. I’m glad you can see it now, too.”
“You think this plan of yours is going to work?” he inquired, his brow furrowed. “Seems mighty chancy.”
Kevin sighed. “It is a risk. If it doesn’t work, I’ll just have to come up with another idea. I’m not going to let her go without a fight, Dad. Not a second time. Come on. Let’s go for a walk around the corridor. I’m going to need all my strength back if I’m going into battle tomorrow.”
As they walked the length of the hospital hallway, Kevin saw the elevator doors slide open. He paused and watched,