Chapter 11 #2
He combed his fingers through her hair. “I used to imagine sometimes how it would be if we got together. I have to admit, I never pictured having to sneak around.”
“I know this isn’t what you want.”
Joe rested a finger over her lips. “I didn’t say that. I want you. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. If this is how it has to be for now, then we’ll deal with it.”
“Do you know what I was thinking before?”
“What’s that?”
“I’m glad I didn’t get married without knowing it was possible to feel this way.”
“He didn’t. . . satisfy you. . . in bed?”
“Not like this. The sad thing is, I didn’t even know it should be different. Until you showed me. I thought I had a good thing with him, but now I see it was mediocre at best. It probably was for him, too, which is why he did what he did.”
“Those are the things I want you to work through before you make any kind of commitment to me, Janey. I don’t want to look back and have regrets because we rushed into something before you were ready.
That’s what worries me most.” He gathered her in close to him.
“I waited a really long time to be able to hold you like this. I don’t want to blow it. ”
“We won’t blow it.” She pressed her lips to his chest and ran her hand over his back. “It’s too good.”
“Yes,” he said, his voice heavy with emotion. “It is. I don’t want anything to screw it up.”
“When will I see you again?”
“I got a call yesterday that your car is ready to be picked up. If you want to come over with me tonight, we can get it in the morning.”
Janey thought about that for a minute. She’d have to explain spending another night at Joe’s, but no one other than Maddie would think to question it. Except for maybe Mac.
“Could you get someone to watch the dogs?”
“My usual sitter is off-island. I suppose I could get Maddie to come by and let them out.”
“I’d rather that Mac not know you’re coming with me again.”
“I’ll ask her not to tell him.”
“Janey,” he sighed, “you’re playing with fire. He’s going to blow when he finds out about this.”
“So then let’s make sure he finds out about it after his wedding, when he’ll be all dumb with happiness, wanting everyone else to be happy, too.”
“Maybe then he’ll cut me a break and let me live.”
Janey laughed and peppered his chest with kisses, working her way up to his scruffy chin. “We can get through ten days, right?”
He captured her wandering mouth and devoured her once again. “I suppose if I’ve already survived years, I can get through another ten days.”
“Mmm,” she said, encouraging more heated kisses.
“I have to go to work.”
“I know.” But she didn’t let him go. Rather, she straddled him and took him deep inside her.
“Janey.”
“You do own the company.”
“And I am required to actually work once in a while.”
She slid off him and flopped onto her back. “All right. Never mind. If you’ve got better things to do. . .”
Growling, he rolled on top of her and set out to finish what she’d started. Just as she’d known he would.
After, she unearthed a razor and toothbrush for him, and he showered while she made coffee. It all felt so domestic—waking up with him, making love, listening to him in her shower while she made coffee before sending him off for the day. This was how it could be if they were together all the time.
After shooing the dogs into the backyard, she carried her “Doctors Make Better Lovers” coffee cup to the window to watch a cardinal foraging for seed in one of her feeders.
The stained glass dream catcher David had given her for her birthday years ago sparkled in the morning sun, reminding her that just a week ago, all her dreams had been tied up in him, not the man in her shower.
Although she’d done a quick trip through her house the night before to remove photos and other obvious mementos of David before Joe arrived, the mug and dream catcher were reminders it would take far longer to remove thirteen years of memories from her home and her heart.
That didn’t mean there wasn’t room in her home and her heart for something new in the meantime, or so she told herself.
A knock on the front door had her tying her robe tighter around her naked body. She glanced at the closed bathroom door to make sure Joe was still in the shower. Janey opened the door to David’s bruised and battered face. She suppressed a gasp. “What’re you doing here?”
“We need to talk, Janey.” He sounded like he had a bad cold.
A bandage covered his nose and both eyes were black and swollen.
His dark hair was standing on end, as if he’d spent hours running his fingers through it, and exhaustion clung to him.
Janey was satisfied to realize he’d been up all night while she’d slept peacefully in Joe’s arms. A few sleepless nights were the least of what he deserved.
“I said everything I have to say yesterday,” she replied, anxious for him to be gone.
“You said everything. I didn’t get to tell you what I need you to know.”
“And what’s that?” she asked, even though she didn’t really care. Not anymore.
He opened the screen door and caressed her cheek, but Janey jerked her head out of his reach and pulled the screen closed. She prayed Joe would hear their voices and stay out of sight until she got rid of David.
“She means nothing to me, Janey. It was just sex. It has nothing to do with you and me.”
Janey stared at him, incredulous. “You really think you can separate what does and does not involve us? Everything you do—or I should say everything you did—involved me. You were engaged to me, David. You can’t just sleep with someone else because you’re bored or stressed or lonely. It doesn’t work that way.”
“I can’t lose you over this, Janey. We’ve been through so much, and we’re so close to having everything we’ve waited so long for. You know I love you. You know that.”
“I thought I knew that until I saw you having sex in our bed with someone else. Let me ask you something, David.”
“Anything.”
“Why’d you bring her there? Why would you do that in the bed you shared with me?”
He glanced down at his feet and then winced at the pain the movement caused him. “She works at the hospital, and she. . . she has roommates.”
Janey released a harsh laugh. “Ahh, I see. And you couldn’t let the people at work find out that the honorable Dr. Lawrence is really a cheating pig.”
“I’m sorry, Janey. What can I do to make this up to you?” He took a step forward, but Janey pulled on the handle to the screen door to keep him out. “I’ll do anything.”
“There’s nothing you can do or say that will ever scrub that image from my memory. I saw you, David.” She hated how her throat closed and her eyes burned with tears. “I saw you.”
“I’d give everything I have to take back what happened that night. If only I’d known you were coming—”
“What? You wouldn’t have screwed someone else because your oh-so-willing fiancée was coming to town? You make me sick!”
“That’s not what I meant! I would’ve been thrilled you were coming! I miss you all the time, Janey. I hate living like this. I can’t wait for our wedding.”
“There isn’t going to be a wedding. It’s over.”
“It’s not over. You can’t just walk away from thirteen years like they never happened over one mistake. That’s all it was. One mistake.”
“Go back to Boston, David.”
“I can’t go back there looking like this. I told them I was in an accident, so I’ll be sticking around for a few more days.”
“Great. Have a nice visit with your mother. Just leave me alone.” She started to close the inside door, but he moved quickly to push open the screen door to stop her.
“Janey, honey, please. Let me come in. Let’s talk about this. There’s nothing we can’t get through. Look at all we’ve already survived to get to this point.”
A low growl came from behind her. “It’s okay, Riley. David was just leaving.” With a hand to his chest, she pushed him out of the way, closed the door, flipped the lock into place and rested her forehead against the cool wood.
“Janey!” David called from outside. “Come on! You can’t do this!”
“Please go or I’ll call the police, David. I mean it.”
“Fine. I’ll go. But I’ll be back. This is not over. Far from it.”
Janey didn’t breathe until she heard him stomp down the front stairs and slam the gate behind him.
Whimpering, Riley nudged at her leg, and she reached down to stroke his silky ears. “He’s gone now, boy.”
“Everything all right?” Joe asked.