Chapter 6 #2
“Psych,” he said with a laugh. “Owen picked them up at the studio and brought them here earlier. I didn’t want them exposed to the heat, so he didn’t take them to the marina.”
“I wouldn’t put it past you to try to bring them on the bike.”
Smiling, he kissed her one more time. “I’ll admit to giving it some serious thought.” He got up and went into the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth, he said, “Make sure you hydrate before you drink tonight. It’s hot as snot.”
“Believe me, I know. It was crazy hot in the store today. Will you be okay playing in the heat?”
“I’ll probably sweat my balls off, but I’ll be fine.”
“Don’t do that. I have plans for them.”
He froze, toothbrush in his mouth, eyes wide with shock.
“What?”
Removing the toothbrush, he said, “You never would’ve said that a year ago. I’ve been a terrible influence on you.”
“Nah, you’ve loosened me up. I’m a better version of my old self thanks to you.”
He spit out the toothpaste, splashed water on his face and combed his hair. Emerging from the bathroom, he came over to her and gave her hand a gentle tug until she stood before him. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her again. “I’m a much better version of my old self thanks to you, too.”
“Love you,” she whispered as she took a moment to wallow in the overwhelming love she felt for him.
“Love you more.”
“No way.”
“Yes way.”
“We’ll fight about that later. Go to work.”
“See you there?”
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
“Good, because I never have stage fright when you’re there.”
Grace hid her surprise at hearing something he’d never told her before. Watching him pick up all the guitars and somehow get them through the door, she felt a crushing sense of fear that everything they’d managed to achieve together could be threatened by this unexpected change of plans.
Jenny’s day had been dreadfully unproductive thanks to the nagging guilt and shame over her behavior with Alex. Everything she’d attempted to accomplish had been derailed by her lack of attention as much as the blistering heat that was literally sucking the life out of her.
At three o’clock she’d surrendered to the heat-induced exhaustion and gone upstairs to her bedroom to lie down for a while. She’d dozed off and slept fitfully, plagued by odd dreams that had her tossing and turning only to wake up throbbing with unfulfilled desire.
That was when she realized she’d been dreaming about Alex. “Oh God,” she whispered through dry lips. Every cell in her body was on full alert, the way it had been last night when he’d driven her out of her mind with desire so potent she’d been unable to shake off the sex-induced stupor all day.
Glancing at the clock, she gasped at the late hour, then dashed out of bed and ran for the shower with only twenty minutes until Linc Mercier was due to arrive.
After a quick and very cold shower intended to cool her body temperature as well as her suddenly ravenous libido, she kept one eye on the driveway watching for Linc and another on the bathroom mirror as she attempted to do something with her hair.
But the heat and humidity had other ideas, and she gave up on trying to tame the curls that had formed around her face in the heat since she was a little girl. Toby had called them her banana curls for some strange reason, she recalled with a pang of nostalgia. She hadn’t thought of that in years.
Her face was so shiny with perspiration that she decided not to bother with makeup but applied some powder to combat the shine.
This date was doomed to disaster status before she even left her own bathroom, and it was all Alex’s fault.
He’d fried her circuit board with a gruff voice, sexy body and incendiary kisses.
“Stop thinking about him and focus on the guy your friends were good enough to fix you up with,” she said as she threw her cell phone, keys, some cash and lipstick into a small purse and stomped down the stairs, wearing the lightest-weight dress she owned and not bothering with a sweater because she knew she wouldn’t need it.
She was far too out of sorts for a first date tonight, but it was too late to cancel.
Besides, she had no desire to cancel. It was time to get back out there and meet people—men in particular—unless she wanted to spend the rest of her life alone.
And that wasn’t what she wanted. She’d loved being half of a couple during the years she’d spent with Toby and hoped to experience that kind of special bond again someday.
The only thing she knew for sure was if she stayed holed up in her own little safe zone, she’d never achieve that goal, and she’d sacrifice any remaining chance she had of being a mother.
While the lighthouse was a popular tourist destination, single men weren’t lining up outside her door. Except for the one who’d come to cut the grass…
“You’re not thinking about him, remember?
” Right… Easier said than done after the most explosive sexual experience she’d had in twelve long years.
She would never forget the first time she’d had sex after Toby died.
It had taken more than five years to even consider the possibility of doing that with someone else.
The guy, Drew, had been nice enough. They’d gone out a few times, and he’d known her story, so he was patient and considerate, which had only made the whole thing more excruciating.
Afterward, she’d cried uncontrollably. He’d said and done all the right things, such as they were, before taking her home and promising to call.
She’d never heard from him again, not that she could blame him.
That was one of the reasons why she’d appreciated the anonymity with Alex.
He had no idea he was supposed to be careful or patient with her, which was exactly the way she wanted it.
When she’d gone out with Mason Johns last week, her past had never come up, but she knew he was aware of it.
Her friends would’ve prepared him to ensure he navigated her emotional battlefield with the utmost care.
In truth, she hated being “tragedy girl,” and for a brief—albeit mortifyingly out-of-character—moment last night, she’d been “Just Jenny” for the first time in a dozen years.
She’d rather liked being “Just Jenny” again.
She hadn’t seen “Just Jenny” in a very long time, and apparently she’d changed quite a bit over the years, if her behavior with Alex was any indication.
You are not thinking about him!
A sharp rap on the mudroom door startled her, and she took a deep breath in through her nose and blew it out of her mouth before she went down the spiral staircase to greet Linc.
He was a good friend of Tiff’s new husband, Blaine Taylor.
As Blaine was the Gansett Island police chief, Jenny took Blaine’s approval as a ringing endorsement.
She opened the door and absorbed the wave of heat that smacked her in the face.
Oh, he looks good. Wearing madras plaid shorts with a pink polo, Linc directed an appreciative smile at her.
Tall and broad-shouldered, he had close-cropped blond hair and friendly blue eyes.
He was more than man enough to pull off the pink shirt. “Hot enough for you?” he asked.
“It’s brutal.”
“You look gorgeous.”
“Thank you, but I feel like a wilted flower.”
“Heat getting to you?”
“Big-time. No AC in the lighthouse, which is normally fine, but not this week.”
Executing a gallant bow, he extended his arm to her. “Right this way, madam. I promise you an icy blast of air-conditioning to go with dinner.”
“You had me at icy blast.” The instant she said the words, she began to second-guess them. Did saying he’d “had her” make her sound loose or easy? After her unprecedented behavior last night, she had cause to question everything.
But Linc just laughed at her comment and led her to a royal blue two-seater BMW and held the passenger-side door open for her.
“Nice car,” she said as he slid into the driver’s seat.
True to his word, he set the air conditioner to blast. “Thanks. It’s my one major indulgence.”
Jenny closed her eyes and let the cool air wash over her. “I suppose everyone has one.”
“What’s yours?”
“At the moment, it’s your air-conditioning.”
“Very funny.” Shifting the car into gear, he left a cloud of dust in his wake as he pulled away from the lighthouse. “What is it the rest of the time?”
“I’ve moved around a lot, so I don’t have all that much stuff I can’t live without, but I do love my e-reader.
” She glanced over at him, appreciating his attractive profile and the scent of subtle but appealing cologne coming from him.
He was exactly the type of guy she had always gravitated toward—handsome, a bit preppy, successful, confident, obviously witty and intelligent.
She made up her mind to give him a fair chance tonight, and the best way she could do that was to forget all about the moment of madness with Alex.
It was in the past where it belonged, never to be repeated.
There was no point giving it any more attention, especially when the perfect guy had just appeared at her door possessing all the qualities she looked for in a partner.
“So you’re a big reader?” he asked.
“I love to read.”
“What do you like to read?”
“Anything and everything. Mostly mysteries and suspense, some memoirs.” She didn’t mention that she’d recently been devouring the memoirs of 9/11 widows and widowers. Enough time had passed that she was able to read about the partners others had lost on that horrible day.
“I figured you were a romance type of gal.”
“I used to read a lot of romance, but not so much anymore.” He was only making conversation, and she didn’t want him to be uncomfortable, so she didn’t elaborate.
The truth of it was she’d gravitated away from the genre she used to enjoy, because reading about fictional characters ending up happily ever after made her yearn for her lost love.