Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
There’d been no further kissing—nothing at the door when Vince had finally left—and that was his fault.
Driving home, he wanted to kick himself.
He’d craved getting physical again, for sure, and Lace had been sneaking enough peeks at his lips that he knew she wanted to go there, too.
But instead, he’d been stupidly chivalrous; determined to hold a hard line on any more canoodling until they’d hashed out all the details of becoming roommates.
Vince didn’t want to assume anything as being on or off the table, and he didn’t want to make the living arrangement uncomfortable for either of them moving forward.
It was the smart thing to do.
Then why do I feel so dumb? he questioned, smacking the steering wheel with the heel of his hand.
All the way home, he couldn’t stop imagining his lips on Lace’s, their bodies pressed up against one another, and… yeah. He’d admit it to himself. In his fantasies, there’d been a distinct lack of clothing.
He wanted naked, skin-on-skin time with Lace. He wanted to worship her in her entirety, and let her know that nothing the chemo was doing would change her innate and undeniable appeal.
Vince knew she didn’t believe that. Yet. But he’d give her time. And a lot of attention so she knew he wasn’t just blowing smoke.
The pragmatic part of his brain still didn’t quite understand how he’d become bowled over so quickly, though.
Why Lace? Why now?
Vince had never before been in love, or even imagined he’d want to be.
He’d certainly been in lust a few times back when he was a teenager, and he’d one-hundred percent enjoyed a lot of fast hook-ups while serving, but he’d never felt like this. Like he was immediately missing a vital organ when he parted company with Lace.
His conquests in the past—
Right.
Conquests.
There it was.
Vince had always looked at procuring sex as a game. A fun game, to be sure, where he’d either win or lose the prize. It all depended on how thick he could spread his bullshit. And he’d found that the more he laid on the humor, the easier it was to triumph.
With Lace, Vince wasn’t trying to use his clowning skills. At least not purposely. Anything amusing he sent her way, was for her enjoyment, pure and simple. He wanted her to laugh. He wanted her to relax. He wanted her to actually like him and think he was funny.
There was just something about her that made him feel like he’d found his little slice of Maine heaven.
Huh. Maybe that was it.
He hadn’t been local for twenty years and had always admitted missing New England. What he hadn’t realized, was that the people here embodied certain characteristics—those of down-to-earth comfort and inclusiveness—that epitomized home.
Not that everyone in town was a saint. Far from it. But those who weren’t just seemed to add a special kind of local quirkiness that Vince felt couldn’t be replicated anywhere else in the world.
Did everyone feel that way about the town where they grew up?
Perhaps. But this place felt as if it were ingrained in him so deeply, he’d never be happy settling down anyplace else. When it had come time to separate from the Navy, there’d been no question that Vince would return here.
But finding the woman who almost immediately amused him, intrigued him, got under his skin, and pushed every one of his lust-buttons? That had been completely unexpected.
And he wasn’t going to screw it up.
Not by being a “handsy” asshole.
His libido could wait.
Driving up to his parents’ house, the lights in the living room were still on, which wasn’t exactly a surprise. It was still only eight o’clock.
He’d left Lace’s early because she’d looked pretty wiped out to him, and she had to get up at four to work a full day tomorrow.
Seriously?
He didn’t know how she was doing it.
If this had been wintertime, her schedule would have been a whole different story. Commercial fishing excursions depended upon the seasonal availability of certain catches; tuna in Maine being from June to October. By the end of October, Lace would be finished with this particular job.
Sometime in November, NOAA would assign her to another boat which would likely be a lobstering vessel, and her hours would be greatly diminished.
But here she was, at least for the present, slogging away with twelve—but more likely fourteen-hour—shifts, 5AM to 7PM, six days a week. It was a difficult haul for anyone, but for someone undergoing cancer treatment?
Lace was some kind of crazy super-woman.
Walking into the house, his parents greeted him from their respective spots.
His mother always favored the couch, her basket of knitting next to her as they watched the singing shows they both enjoyed.
His father had a kick-ass recliner that boasted all kinds of electronic gadgets; heat, vibration, lumbar support.
Once the man settled in for the evening, there’d be a habitual fluctuation between watching TV and napping, before he finally took himself off to bed.
Cooper and Reyghan, Buck and Bobbie’s dogs, came racing over to greet him like they hadn’t just seen him yesterday.
“Good pups,” Vince crooned, bending down to pat them before addressing his parents.
“Who’s winning?” Vince sent out cheekily. It was his normal comment, no matter what was on the screen.
“Well, that lovely young man from Bar Harbor—”
“Ellen,” Guy Sothard butt in with a snort. “Vincent is not really interested. Haven’t you figured that out by now?”
Ellen shot her husband a look. “You never know, Guy. One of these days, he might be asking out of real curiosity.”
She lifted the remote and paused the show, giving Vince a probing look. “And speaking of serious… How did things go with Lace and Inez today?”
For once, Vincent didn’t fluff off his mother’s nosiness. He took a seat, anxious to share his thoughts.
“Good. Really good. Lace was able to take her treatment in Inez’s chemo suite today while we both kept Inez company.” He chuckled. “Lace used that opportunity to shmooze a couple of the nurses—because who can resist a concerned cancer patient—and found out all about Inez’s case.”
Vince went on to explain about the particular cancer that was affecting the little girl, and mentioned the additional Tuesday treatments that were more invasive than the normal infusions.
“That means I hope to be going to the hospital on Tuesdays, as well as my regular gig on Fridays,” he apprised, then looked at his dad. “That’s if you think you can spare me at work?”
“Son,” Guy said patiently, as was his way. “I’ve been dealing with the mill without you for twenty years. I think I’ll be just fine.”
“Yeah, but I promised that I’d get more involved; re-learn the ropes so you and mom can take some vacations. Some time off.”
“Which will happen. Eventually,” Guy returned calmly. “I’m assuming that these treatments for your girls won’t last forever.”
His girls.
Vincent really liked the sound of that.
“Lace has three months left, and Inez has about the same.”
“And then?” Ellen asked.
“Then Inez should be good to go. With testing, scans, and meds ongoing for a number of years to make sure she stays in the clear, of course. Lace, however…”
Vince rubbed the back of his neck. He hated that it would be such a long haul for her.
“Once she finishes up her chemo, she’ll have her mastectomy, then undergo radiation treatments. Afterward, it’s the same protocol for her. Lots and lots of follow-up.”
“Poor things,” Ellen commiserated. “And both being all alone, too. Lace must miss her grandparents dreadfully at this point.” Ellen’s eyes softened. “I’m so glad you’re stepping up to help her through this.”
Vincent wasn’t going to take any credit for things he hadn’t accomplished yet, but he did want to pass on his good news.
“Speaking of helping, you’re not going to believe this. Even with all her own problems, Lace has offered to take me on as a roommate. She’s willing to subject herself to DHHS’s scrutiny, and basically co-foster with me.”
Ellen smiled and nodded appreciably. “That sounds exactly like what I’d expect of Fran’s granddaughter. Willingness to step up. Empathy. Lace sounds just like her grandparents,” she gushed. “And that house,” she went on. “Such a charming cape. It’ll be the perfect place to raise Inez.”
Vince stopped her right there. “Uh, let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Mom. I’m not even approved for fostering yet, and who knows what it will take to get Inez’s care switched over to me. Or if it’s even possible.”
Ellen got a sly look on her face. “Don’t you worry about that, honey,” she said. “We haven’t lived here all our lives not to know a few people.” She winked.
Vince felt his heart flutter.
Wow. If Ellen Sothard thought she could grease some wheels, and had been confident enough to say so out loud, she meant it.
Vince was normally one to solve his own problems, but…
“If that’s true, I’ll be more than happy to take you up on that offer,” he told her with a grin. “Inez is really special. Just wait ‘til you meet her. I…”
He’d been going to offer that his mother join him for Inez’s next treatment, but he was still feeling his way around the situation himself, so wasn’t sure if adding Ellen to the mix was appropriate at the moment.
“Don’t you worry,” the Sothard matriarch assured him, understanding all too well.
“When the time is right, I’ll meet both Inez and Lace.
Even though I knew Lace when she was young, and saw her briefly at her grandparent’s funeral back when it happened, I didn’t have a chance to really talk to her. I’m looking forward to catching up.”
Vince still didn’t know the circumstances surrounding Lace’s grandparents’ passing. His mother made it sound like they’d both been taken from Lace at the same time.
He wouldn’t pry now. Lace would eventually fill him in as they got to know each other and shared important details of their lives.