Just One Wish (The Kingston Family #4.5)(5)

They hadn’t parted on bad terms all those years ago. They’d just both had life plans that had taken them in different directions. She’d always known they wanted different things out of life. He’d desired fame and travel while she’d planned to settle down in a vet practice and have a family one day. When he’d said goodbye, saying he hoped they’d reconnect in the future, she had known better. Now they were two very different people, and seeing him again could only be awkward.

At that moment, Harry walked out of the back area. He was a good-looking man, older, with salt-and-pepper hair and a distinguished goatee.

He glanced around the empty waiting room. “Everything okay?” he asked.

“Fine. There’s a man in the parking lot who should be in any minute,” Tara said.

Harry nodded. “I just finished eating. Would you like me to see him?”

Bless him, Tara thought. She was not ready to face the now famous Axel Forrester, former drummer for Caged Chaos and now the Original Kings, and the type of man who women threw their panties at.

“Sure,” she said at the same time her mother spoke. “You’re busy, Harry,” Marsha said, stepping over to him.

“No, I have time for a break.” His eyes crinkled in confusion at their contradictory replies.

“Good idea. Go take a break.” Tara’s mom urged him toward the back, her hands pushing at his arm.

“Mom! Cut it out.” Taking control, Tara decided what to do. “Thanks for handling the next patient, Harry. I’ll be in the back if you need me.”

She walked through the double doors leading to the back rooms but remained close by so she could hear everything. She couldn’t help but be curious.

“Marsha, are you okay?” Harry asked, concern in his voice.

“I’m fine. I just…” Her mother whispered something Tara couldn’t hear.

Before she could find out what her mother was up to, the bells over the outside door rang, announcing the patient had arrived. Tara curled her hands into fists, her short nails digging into her skin as she waited.

“Good afternoon,” her mother said in a chirpy, happy voice. “What can we do for you?” Obviously, her mother was pretending not to recognize him.

“I was hoping Dr. Stillman could see my dog.” Axel’s voice was familiar yet not, deeper and sexier than she remembered.

“Your dog?”

Tara peeked out in time to see Marsha lean over the counter to look at the animal in question. “Axel Forrester, are you bringing Bella Kingston in for Sasha and Xander?”

“Busted,” he muttered, looking adorable. Dammit. “Mrs. Stillman, it’s good to see you. You looked familiar, but I thought you lived in California, so I didn’t think it could be you.”

“What’s with the Mrs. Stillman nonsense? It’s Marsha. And my last name is Davidson now. I remarried after my husband passed away.”

Glued to her place and unable to tear her gaze away, Tara watched as his eyes grew wide, his expression turning sad. “I’m sorry. I had no idea.”

“Thank you. It was right after you left town. Anyway, what’s wrong with Bella?”

Tara tore her gaze from his handsome, grown-up face with more defined and chiseled features and looked around the waiting room. Harry was gone. He must have slipped out the door as Axel walked in. Her mother definitely deserved an A in scheming.

Awkward or not, it was time to grow up and face him. Tara drew a deep breath and stepped through the doors into the reception area. “What is wrong with Bella?” she asked.

“Tara.” Her name on those sexy lips turned her insides to mush.

“Hello, Axel.”

They stared at each other for an uncomfortable few moments in which her mom remained shockingly quiet.

“Is Bella okay?” She broke the silence first.

“She’s fine.” An unexpected red flush rose to his face. “I was scrolling through Facebook, came across your picture, and realized you were only a mile away, so I…”

“You borrowed a dog as an excuse to see me?” She didn’t know whether she was more flattered or shocked. But her traitorous heart skipped a beat.

“Yeah.” He cleared his throat. “Now that we’ve discussed Bella, my icebreaker, I’ll just get to the point. Would you have dinner with me?”

She blinked. He’d taken her by surprise. “I can’t,” she said, the words automatically coming out of her mouth. Getting to know this man could only lead to heartbreak. She knew it just by seeing him again.

“Why not? Do you have a husband? A boyfriend?” His jade-green eyes bored into hers. “Because your Facebook page didn’t mention a relationship.”

She was certain his persistence had helped him succeed in the hard-to-make-it-to-the-top music world. “No, no relationship. I’m just … busy.”

“No, you are not,” her mother said.

Tara had been aware of her mom watching them, looking back and forth like at a tennis match. “You don’t know my schedule,” Tara snapped.

Her mother ignored her and picked up one of Tara’s business cards, then a pen, wrote something on the card, and held it out to Axel. “Here. Her address and cell phone number.”

He didn’t accept it, and his gaze remained steady on Tara’s. “If you really don’t want to go out with me, I get it. Too much time has passed, too much water under the bridge.” He shrugged, but disappointment was clear in his expression and hunched shoulders.