Chapter 4
Chapter Four
“I guess we’re staying in the good part of the resort,” Jayce murmured after he and Kelsey wandered down a path that led to about a dozen abandoned cabins that were surrounded by overgrown weeds.
“They’ve done a good job of keeping this part hidden from guests, but…
it’s kind of sad seeing so much disrepair. ”
“Didn’t Walker’s family usually stay over here?” Kelsey gripped his hand as they got closer to one of them. “How could they let it get like this?”
“Walker’s never said anything about it. Anytime we bring up those summers, it’s to talk about the past, never what the place is like now. If I had to guess, I’d have to say that it just became too much for his grandparents.”
“And the family. Such a shame.”
He was about to step onto the porch when he saw the broken and rotted wood.
“I don’t think we should disturb this. For all we know, we’re trespassing right now.
” Most of the time, that wouldn’t bother him, but there was no way he was going to risk Kelsey getting hurt.
“Come on, let’s go and see what kind of shape the boathouse is in. ”
“Are we really going to try the paddleboats or do we need to go put on our bathing suits first?” she teased.
“Well, if our history is any indication, we should probably go change,” he replied with a laugh.
“However, paddling seems a bit more our speed. It was the rowing that got us in trouble with the canoes.” Pulling her close, Jayce slid his arm around her waist. “What do you say? Are you feeling daring?”
“Hmm…I’m not sure…”
The thing was, he knew she was teasing. Kelsey was probably the most fearless person he’d ever known, and last night confirmed it.
After listening to her talk about the struggles she’d overcome—between losing her father, her challenging career as a social worker, and then the loss of her mother—it was amazing she could still find anything to smile about.
Jayce had marveled at her resilience, but he could also tell she was putting on a brave face.
Coming back to the place where she had nothing but great memories, to do something so devastatingly emotional was taking its toll.
That’s why he was determined to do whatever he could to help her.
Last night, she had quite literally shocked the hell out of him with her proposition.
If he were a different kind of guy, he might have taken her up on it.
God knows it would have been amazing and a great way to forget about the world for a while.
But he couldn’t take advantage of her like that.
No matter how well they had known each other when they were growing up, the fact was that they were different people now.
It was important for him to know that she wanted to be with him because she wanted him specifically, not just someone to sleep with so she didn’t have to be alone.
“What time are we supposed to meet your parents for bingo?”
“Um, we’re not meeting them for bingo. I mean…come on. We’re old, we’re not bingo old.”
Beside him, she laughed, and it was the sweetest sound. “I know we’re not, but it seemed like they were looking forward to spending time with you. The last thing I want to do is get in the way of you having time with your family.”
“Kelsey, I talk to my parents several times a week. I call my grandparents every Sunday. It’s not like they never talk to me.”
“That’s not the same as seeing you and spending time with you. So…bingo’s at three, right?”
He groaned.
Walking around the bend in the path, he noted more abandoned buildings. “Is that where the indoor archery was?”
They stopped and stared out at the overgrown field and the run-down building in the distance. “I think so. Didn’t it also have a basketball court in there?”
Nodding, he replied, “Definitely. And an indoor badminton court. We used to run wild in there on the rainy days.”
“This was where we hung out while all the adults were up at the lodge playing cards, doing arts and crafts, and all the quiet activities.”
“Like bingo?” And that’s when he realized they were adults now and were going to end up in the lodge doing the quiet activities and groaned again.
“Oh, stop. I’ll be right there with you. Then we’ll all go to dinner. Your grandfather wants to go to that Italian place in town.”
“How do you even know that? I thought we were just eating at the lodge again.”
“Jayce, he must have mentioned wanting lasagna and how great that restaurant in town was about five times!”
“Gramps says a lot of things,” he reasoned. “Besides, I was too busy listening to my mother go on about all the romantic activities there still were for young people around here. In case you haven’t noticed, she’s kind of excited about you and I spending time together.”
“Aww…”
They were coming up on the playground again, but there was a group of kids running around, so he couldn’t pull her in for a kiss in their spot.
Instead, he pulled her over to the big, red oak tree and kissed her.
“And in case you haven’t noticed, I’m kind of excited about spending time with you too. ”
Her smile was one of pure delight as she playfully grabbed the front of his T-shirt and pulled him in close. “Kiss me again,” she whispered.
“My pleasure.” Last night he had kept his kisses on the tame side so they wouldn’t get too carried away, but right now, he kissed her with all the pent-up emotion he’d been feeling.
Sleeping with Kelsey in his bed—in his arms and all tangled up with him—had been the sweetest form of torture.
And right now, he needed to show her she was sexy and desirable.
It was crazy how much he wanted her. The fact that it had been less than forty-eight hours was messing with him, but…
did that really matter? They had practically grown up together. They were far from strangers. But…
She hummed seductively as she moved against him and Jayce was lost.
Maybe they could skip the paddleboats.
They could definitely skip bingo.
There was no reason they couldn’t just go back to his cabin right now and do all the things they were both thinking.
This time, Kelsey was the one to break the kiss. She was breathless and looking a little dazed, and more beautiful than any woman had the right to.
“Wow,” she said as her hand smoothed over his chest. “That was nice.”
“Nice? Just…nice? I must be losing my touch.”
“Jayce Nash, you’re not losing anything,” she quietly scolded. “And it was more than nice, but we’re ten feet away from a playground full of kids. I was going for casual.”
Grinning, he said, “So what I’m hearing is that I’m very sexy and an excellent kisser, and you wouldn’t mind me kissing you again.”
Her laugh was sweet and lyrical. “I think we both know I wouldn’t mind that one bit.”
He heard what she was saying, but he sensed there was also something she wasn’t saying. “But…?”
“But…later. You were right last night. It was nice to spend the time getting reacquainted. And today it’s been fun to just explore the resort and spend time with your family. But maybe tonight we can see about you reminding me of how good your kissing skills are.”
“Sweetheart, you’re on!”
Being on the paddleboats was fun and thankfully uneventful.
Bingo would have been boring, but Jayce got incredibly competitive and it was borderline hysterical.
Dinner at the Italian restaurant in town had been loud and boisterous, and everything a meal with your family should be. And while Kelsey had enjoyed herself—and she truly loved Jayce’s family—it made her miss her own.
Now, as they were slowly strolling back to the cabins, she hated how melancholy she was feeling.
“You okay?” he softly asked.
“Mm-hmm.”
“You’ve been quiet ever since we got back here to the resort.” For a few moments, he let that statement just hang there. “I get it, you know. This is a hard trip for you and while I’m sure having distractions is great, some of them can also be painful reminders of what we’ve lost.”
How was it that this man knew her so well? That he could always tell what was on her mind? It had always been that way—even all the way back when they were kids. Back then, she never gave it much thought, but now it was both a blessing and a curse.
At least…that’s how it felt.
After quietly sighing, she nodded. “I kept thinking how much Mom would have loved catching up with everyone tonight. One of her favorite things was going out and enjoying good food with friends. She used to love trying new places and surrounding herself with people who made her laugh and smile, so…this would have been a perfect night to her.”
Giving her hand a gentle squeeze, he replied, “Then it’s something you should do to honor her memory. You know she’d hate it if she thought you were sad when everyone around you was having a good time.”
“Maybe, but sometimes it’s just hard.”
They walked in companionable silence as the cabins came into view.
His family had gone to their cabin about an hour ago, but she and Jayce had stayed behind at the lodge and listened to the jazz trio that was playing in the bar.
Honestly, it had been a wonderful evening and she hated how she was letting herself get sad.
Again.
And Jayce was right about her mom hating it for her too.
Now it was her turn to squeeze his hand. “Okay, I’m done focusing on things I can’t change. From this moment on, I’m here to enjoy myself and the place that holds nothing but great memories for me.”
He lazily nudged her shoulder. “For what it’s worth, I think that’s a good idea.
And I don’t want you to feel pressured to hang out with me and my family.
I know it all just sort of fell into place yesterday and today, but if there’s something you already had planned, I don’t want to stand in your way. ”