Chapter 10
ten
BONNIE
I’d spent the last ten minutes lurking in my living room and glancing out the front window. Jack was due to arrive any moment, and I was telling myself to just be cool about this.
It was worth a try, but so far, no such luck.
When I’d woken up to a text message from Jack, I’d stared at it for a few minutes, not really believing it.
Jack: The weather should be nice tomorrow. I’m thinking about taking a ride on the parkway. Would you like to come with me?
The parkway was the Blue Ridge Parkway, a stretch of road that wound through the nearby mountains, complete with gorgeous views and scenic overlooks.
You could ride all the way into Virginia if you really wanted to.
Since it was very early October, the leaves hadn’t hit their peak yet.
So the route wouldn’t be as busy as it could be.
Despite the invitation and the fizzy, anticipatory feelings it inspired, I hadn’t replied right away.
Yes, it would be nice to spend more time with Jack.
I liked him. He made me feel unsteady, but in a good way.
One that made me a little brave. But after the kiss, I didn’t know what to think.
Was he interested in pursuing something with me?
I didn’t know how to feel about that possibility.
I was barely divorced, and I knew what people would say if I started up something with Jack or anyone.
Besides, I didn’t know if I was ready for anything like that anyway.
I’d told Jack that I liked him because he didn’t treat me the way everyone else did—like I was broken.
But the truth was, I felt a little broken.
Like my old self was buried in quicksand, and every time I tried to dig her out, I lost another inch.
I still had a hard time believing Jack wanted anything to do with me.
I was a thirty-one-year-old divorcée with anxiety.
A boring art teacher who stole rabbits and went to bowling league.
That felt like more trouble than Jack was used to.
Or like the benefits didn’t outweigh the effort. Or somewhere in between the two.
Either way, I was skeptical.
I’d seen all those women surrounding him after the soccer game. All the smiles and flirting. I could easily imagine the attention he received at Magnolia’s every night, too.
So why would he want to take me out on his motorcycle?
I still didn’t have an answer after a cup of coffee and two strawberry Pop-Tarts, but it seemed rude to wait so long to respond.
Me: Sure. That sounds like fun.
His reply came pretty quickly, telling me he’d pick me up at 11:00 a.m. and not to worry about the helmet. He had one for me.
I wondered at that a little, but I was attempting to be cool, so I didn’t ask.
Instead, I was pacing in front of my window and gnawing a raw spot on the inside of my cheek.
Suddenly, it was 11:02, and Jack was pulling into my driveway. My heart rate kicked up several notches, and it was time for my antiperspirant to go to work.
Jack looked effortlessly cool and so handsome.
His dark hair was a little disheveled from the helmet, but it suited him.
Overly polished and put together would have clashed with his general vibe.
He wore his leather jacket and dark boots with light-wash, well-worn jeans.
The thought of pressing my body up to his for the next hour or so made heat rise in my cheeks.
I glanced down at my thick cardigan and jeans and felt another jolt of nerves in my midsection.
“It’s not a date,” I mumbled as I hurried to slide my ID and some cash into my pocket. “Be. Cool.”
With a deep breath, I opened the door and stepped out into the fall air just as Jack reached the porch.
“Hey,” I said. I could hear the tremble in my voice and hoped he didn’t notice.
“Hey.” He smiled. “You ready?”
“Yep. Yes. I’m ready.”
His grin widened. “Okay, then.”
I followed Jack to the bike, where he unstrapped a second helmet and passed it over to me. “I thought we could ride north to Thompson Ridge and stop for lunch at the Rhododendron Inn up that way. Sound good?”
My gaze drifted from the motorcycle back to Jack. “Yeah, that sounds great. I’ve always wanted to go there.”
His hazel eyes searched my face before he said, “You okay? You seem more nervous now than when you rode with me the first time.”
I let out a small, slightly hysterical laugh. Yeah, well, I happened to be in the middle of a public meltdown that first go-around, and now, well, I’d had plenty of time to freak out in advance. “I was a little distracted that night.”
Jack raised a brow and took a step closer, bringing with him the scent of leather and a spike of awareness. “Oh, do you need me to distract you?”
The sound of my swallow was loud. I had no idea what to say or how to flirt with this man. I was so far off my game here that I didn’t know how—
Jack laughed a little and plucked the helmet out of my hands before smoothing my hair back and wiggling it into place on my head. He raised the visor and met my gaze, his amusement settling into something fond and reassuring. “It’s okay to be a little scared.”
Then he held out his hand.
I took it just as easily as I had the first time, a sense of safety and comfort soothing the nervous energy inside me.
A moment later, I was settled behind him, wrapping my arms around his firm middle as he started the motorcycle and backed us carefully out of the driveway.
Then we were off, the sound of the rushing wind drowning out my busy mind. I took a deep breath of fresh mountain air, feeling my lungs expand and my heart pound out a steady rhythm against Jack’s solid back.
There was more to see in the light of day. And it was gorgeous to behold. Mild weather, blue skies, and the sun shining brilliantly overhead. The leaves were just starting to change, golds and reds tipping the higher elevations as the mountains formed layer after endless layer in the distance.
I loved my home and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.
There were times in the last few months when it had felt like a prison, too small and too confining for what I’d been going through.
But out here, where I could catch my breath and see for miles, it was easier to remember why I loved it so much.
We rode for a time, and just when my body was getting a little sore from holding one position for so long, Jack signaled and turned onto a long paved drive that wound back up the mountainside. We passed beneath a canopy of trees and into a gravel parking lot.
We left the helmets with the bike and climbed the stairs to a small overlook on the front of the building. I’d always wanted to visit the Rhododendron Inn. It seemed silly now. Only forty-five minutes from my house, and I’d never made the time for it.
The inn boasted two levels of quaint, themed mountain-view rooms on the hillside just above the parkway. In May and June, the rhododendrons covering the valley below bloomed bright and bold, drawing tourists from all over. The inn also housed a restaurant that was open to the public.
It looked like we were early enough today to have our pick of seating on the covered porch. Jack and I got settled at a table near the railing as a server dropped off menus and glasses of water.
“It’s so gorgeous here,” I breathed, gaze focused on the view before us.
“Yeah,” he replied. “It’s a nice spot.”
“I’ve never wanted to live anywhere else,” I admitted, turning to face him. “I know some people probably think that’s weird, but I just can’t imagine moving away.”
“Where did you go to college?” Jack wondered. “Did you stay local?”
“Not far. East Tennessee State.”
“That’s a pretty drive, too,” he offered.
I smiled. “Yeah, it is. Did you always live in Kirby Falls?” Then I felt my stomach drop. I couldn’t believe I’d asked that. It was intrusive and horribly nosy. “I’m sorry. Where are my manners? You don’t have to answer that.”
Jack chuckled. “You can ask me questions, Clyde. I don’t bite.” But his eyes sparkled with a hint of challenge, and I thought he might give me a little nibble if I asked nicely. “I’ve lived here most of my life. Took a few years and traveled, went to school.”
I’d always been curious about what happened to Jack after his arrest.
“You can ask,” he assured me, still grinning. “I’m sure whatever rumors you’ve heard are way worse than what actually went down.”
I winced. “Military boarding school?”
He snorted. “Try community service and a GED. Reverend Price dropped the vandalism charges senior year. I got lucky with the judge on the breaking-and-entering stuff and everything that came after. The house arrest rumor wasn’t too far off.
But afterward, I traveled around a bit. Got my head on straight.
Came back and took some online classes. Figured out what I wanted. ”
I listened to him explain the past, watching for agitation or disquiet as he ran through a laundry list of youthful misdeeds. But if he was nervous about revealing his history, I couldn’t detect it. His gaze remained steady, fingers tapping the base of his water goblet absently.
Yet, there was something in the set of his shoulders that made me think he was bracing himself, waiting for me to pass judgment. If that was the case, he’d be waiting a long time.
“And what was it you wanted? What did you figure out?” I asked softly, curiosity to know this man beating out all my peacekeeping politeness.
“That I was wasting my life and hurting the only person who mattered. The only person who’d ever cared about me. I was tired of hurting Lia, my grandmother, and it took a while, but I finally grew up.”