Tara Randel - Always The One

As the conversation faded, Deke and Dante, his two youngest brothers, rose and wandered over to their girlfriends. Derrick watched, the envy he’d tried to ignore all weekend making a repeat appearance. He was happy for his brothers, too, wasn’t he?

“You okay with Mom doing this?” he asked Dylan, the second brother in the Matthews line. All the brothers were dark-haired, with varied shades of blue eyes, concerned about the woman who had raised them.

“Not particularly, but it’s what she wants.”

“And you’re tired of arguing with her?” Derrick asked, amused by his brother’s failed attempt to rein in their mother.

“She’s stubborn,” Dylan muttered.

“I tried to talk to her, but she ended up lecturing me, so I gave up.”

“She lectured you?”

“What can I say? I was deep into a case and she caught me off guard.”

“Like she manages to do with all of us,” Dylan said.

“You know you could investigate. We threatened Stanhope we’d do it.”

Dylan looked at Derrick like he’d lost his mind. “Not if I prize my future.”

Derrick chuckled. “Exactly.”

“So I’ll let it go. For tonight.”

The Cypress Pointe crowd had gathered for the special occasion, which was all the insight their mother would allow. Neighbors, townsfolk, kids and teens swarmed the beach located not far from the city park. The sand ran up to the grassy area, which then led to sidewalks, picnic benches and a large gazebo used for town, or private, events. Everyone brought a dish to share. There were drinks galore, plenty of riveting conversation and the occasional firecracker set off farther up the beach. It reminded Derrick of his youth, even if he hadn’t grown up in this particular Florida location, but the antics were still the same.

“So when’s your big day?” Derrick asked, referring to Dylan’s upcoming wedding.

“This summer.”

“You’re going to brave the Florida heat?”

“It’s what Kady wants.”

Right. Dylan’s fiancée. The first of the brothers to make it to the altar.

Dylan and Kady had met during a DEA investigation in this sleepy little tourist town. Since then, Jasmine Matthews had moved to Cypress Pointe to be near one of her sons because the rest were scattered. What they hadn’t expected was for her to fall for a man and remarry.

Derrick and his brothers were law enforcement, following in their police commissioner father’s footsteps, or had been, anyway. Dylan had met Kady during an undercover stint in town, but was still on the job. Former criminal forensics, Deke had gone off to the Georgia mountains to get a line on the man in their mother’s life and had fallen in love with Grace. He now worked as an outdoor guide for her family’s adventure vacation business. And Dante, the youngest, had left his position as a detective with a local PD. His girlfriend, Eloise, had been promoted to sergeant, but Dante had decided to open a specialty mechanic shop to work on classic cars, located on the other coast of Florida.

They were happy with their decisions, in love and bugging the socks off him.

“Good luck with that,” Derrick grumbled.

“Don’t need luck. Just two words that’ll make me happy.”

I do. Yeah, he got it.

“You’re still my best man?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.” Even though he’d like to. He didn’t need a reminder of the love he’d once had and lost, but he wouldn’t tell Dylan no. They were close, all the brothers were, and Derrick would do his part, even if it about killed him.

He must have frowned because Dylan said, “It’s been a long time.”

Like he’d ever forget. “Feels like a hundred years.”

“Think it’s time to move on?”

He barked out a harsh laugh. “Move on to what?”

“Happiness.”

Derrick didn’t hide his annoyance. “Happiness is overrated.”

“Says the guy who won’t give any nice woman he dates a chance.”

Okay, that was true. He’d been accused of being a serial dater albeit it wasn’t the case. He purposely let his brothers believe he was out enjoying the wild, single life when he was still hung up on Hannah. It was better for them to think he couldn’t commit, instead of witnessing their pity if they knew otherwise.

“I don’t need your opinion on how to live my life.”

Dylan raised a dark eyebrow. “Aren’t you the first one to stick your nose in our business? You made sure to give me unsolicited advice when Kady and I started dating. And if I remember correctly, you managed to butt into Deke’s and Dante’s love lives, as well.”

“I’m the oldest brother. It’s my job to put in my two cents.”

“Even when it’s unsolicited?”

Derrick lifted a shoulder. “Blame it on the cop in me.”

“More like you want to be in control.”

“Can’t help myself. I’ve got Mom’s genes.”

Dylan snorted. “On that we can agree.”

Derrick dug the toes of his boots into the sifting sand. Said in a quiet voice, “I was the first one to fall in love. The first one to talk about getting married. Now look at me. I work too much, don’t ever commit, as you endlessly remind me, and have to put a smile on my face to make our mother happy.”

“Don’t beat yourself up. You tried to find her.”

“A lot of good that did.”

“You can’t blame yourself.”

Derrick shot him a sharp look. “Really? Who else?”

Dylan wisely kept his mouth shut.

“She’s out there, Dyl. Somewhere, she’s out there.”

Hannah Rawlings had been his first love. His only love. The one who got away.

He glanced at his brother. “I was sure I had a good lead two years ago.”

Dylan sighed. “You’ve searched for years. Never made any headway. Let her go. Give yourself a chance to grieve and then start embracing life. Get serious with a woman.”

It wasn’t like the idea had never occurred to Derrick. There had been a woman once, but in the end, the memory of Hannah had overshadowed the budding relationship. Still, he’d ignored the idea of moving on. Until now.

Recently he’d been rethinking his goals. Wondered what they’d look like without Hannah at the forefront. There was more to life and he was missing out by searching for a woman who didn’t want to be found.

“For once I’m inclined to go along with that.”

Astonishment flashed across Dylan’s face but was quickly gone. “Wise choice.”

Was it? He closed his eyes. Shouts of laughter and conversation surrounded him. He’d come to Cypress Pointe this weekend at Jasmine’s summons—yes, he still jumped when his mother called—as did all his siblings. But this time was different. His mother was about to announce her engagement to a man he and his brothers had suspected of harboring a secret past. Turned out they’d been right, he had a shady history, mistakes he’d made after losing his wife and his way, errors he was currently atoning for by paying back the families he’d swindled more than a decade ago. Nevertheless, there could be more to him than they’d uncovered and even though Dylan still talked about investigating, Derrick had convinced him to drop it. The kicker? Derrick kinda liked James Stanhope. He too was intimately acquainted with regrets of the past. Sometimes it was okay to let it go.

Could he do that with Hannah?

A woman’s bubbly laughter floated his way and memories bombarded him.

Bicycling to the beach under a blazing summer sun. Hannah’s riotous auburn curls shining, her hazel eyes filled with teasing merriment. They’d exchanged class rings junior year and she’d been excited to wear the necklace that held his ring around her neck. Every year they’d celebrated their birthdays on the same day. He’d always said she was the best birthday present he’d ever received.