She clung to his back, fighting tears as the Harley wove through nighttime traffic. She loved him so much. But that was no guarantee of a happy ending. Life being what it was, when he let her off at the motel tonight, there was a chance she might never see him again.

By the time they reached the motel, a sleety rain was falling, blown almost sideways by the wind. Liam pulled up under the lip of the roof, the bike stopped at an idle. Before he could dismount and help her, Brianna climbed off the back seat and handed him his helmet.

“Put this on. You’ll need it tonight.” It was the closest she could come to saying goodbye.

He buckled on the helmet. “Call me after your appointment. I’ll be wanting to know how it went,” he said. Then, he swung the bike away from the building and headed out of the parking lot.

Brianna had pocketed a key to the room. Opening the door with caution, she stepped inside. On a table next to the empty bed, a small lamp lit the warm darkness. In the other bed, Allison was sleeping, or at least pretending to.

Trying not to disturb her, Brianna stripped off her damp boots and clothes, pulled on her pajamas, and turned off the light. Only then did she allow the tears to come, her heaving sobs muffled by the pillow she pressed to her face.

* * *

The next morning, Brianna kept her eight fifteen appointment with the dean of students. Half an hour later, feeling numb and shaken, she emerged from the administration building and sank onto a sheltered bench to wait for Allison, who’d gone to the dorm to pick up her boxed possessions. Right now, it was time to phone Liam.

Last night’s storm had stripped the leaves from the maples and sycamores, leaving bare branches etched against the chilly blue sky. Brianna shivered as she pulled her phone out of her purse. The color and warmth of autumn was coming to an end. Would the love relationship of her life be coming to an end, as well? She and Liam hadn’t exactly quarreled, but things had been cold between them when they’d parted last night.

The phone rang once on the other end. No answer, but Liam had said he’d be working. Brianna waited as the phone rang again, then again. Worry tightened an icy band around her heart. What if he’d gotten in an accident last night? Nobody would have called her. She’d have no way of knowing whether he was all right.

“Brianna?” She heard his voice, and her world slipped back into its orbit. “How did it go with the dean? Are you all right?”