Chapter Eleven #3
Thankfully, Danielle weaved her way through the crowded café, pausing occasionally to say hello to someone she knew seated at a table.
Jovi sighed and then reached for her coffee. She could sit here all day. Except she had to head over to the candy company and help clean up the post–Valentine’s Day mess. They’d left the workroom a disaster, too exhausted to put away the extra boxes, packing tape and discarded packing materials.
“Sorry to keep you waiting.” Danielle put a plate with an oversize chocolate chip muffin and a blueberry scone in the center of the table. “I bought these for us to share.”
“Aw, that’s sweet.” Jovi smiled. “Thank you.”
“It’s a big deal for me to get out of the house on a Saturday morning without the kids, so I’m treating both of us.
” The lines beside her vibrant green eyes crinkled as Danielle grinned, then slid into the seat opposite Jovi’s.
She unwound her striped scarf, then took off her green puffy jacket.
She wore a short-sleeved purple sweater that complemented her beautiful skin and long red curls.
Impressive for a busy mom of three young children.
“I’m so glad this worked out.” Jovi sipped her coffee. Wow, that was good. She let the warm, sweet beverage slide down her throat, soothing some of her angst about Burke.
Danielle nudged her coffee gently out of the way to get access to the pastries. “Justin agreed to handle basketball practice at the rec center this morning and we hired a sitter to stay at the house with the baby so I could squeeze in some girl time with you.”
“Well, please tell Justin I appreciate him.” Jovi broke off a corner of the scone and set it on her napkin. “We need to catch up.”
Danielle reached over and squeezed Jovi’s arm, her head tilting as she offered a genuine smile. “It’s great to see you. So bring me up to speed. What’s going on?”
Jovi leaned forward. “I kissed my handsome neighbor last night, then fled the scene like a complete coward.”
There. She’d said it. But somehow revealing her juicy news didn’t ease the tension knotted between her shoulders.
Danielle blinked rapidly. Then her pink lips curved into a knowing smile. “Now, that’s the way to get a coffee date started. No small talk, no details about your life in Kansas City. Just bam! There it is. Tell. Me. More.”
She punctuated the last three words with enthusiastic handclaps.
Despite her conflicted emotions, Jovi couldn’t help but laugh. “Where would you like me to start?”
Danielle paused, part of the muffin’s top halfway to her mouth. “Is that a trick question? At the beginning, of course.”
Jovi drew in a fortifying breath. “I ran into him and his daughter at the airport in Anchorage when I first got back to Alaska. This little girl is adorable, by the way. Her name is Darby Jane, and she has the cutest Southern accent. She’s just starting school.
Anyway, she’d lost her beloved stuffed animal, so I helped her find it.
Then we shared a ride to Evergreen because he had a rental and I did not. Then—”
“Oh, forced proximity.” Danielle’s eyes sparkled. “Was there a snowstorm? Please tell me there was. And did you get stranded?”
“Slow your roll there, friend,” Jovi teased. “ Yes to the snow, but a no on the stranded part. Although, it seemed like a distinct possibility because he drove like a grouchy old grandpa.”
Danielle’s smile faded. “Grumpy, huh? You can probably work with that.”
“No, I can’t work with anything. Our families have been feuding for eons. There has to be a valid reason.”
“Hmm, that’s intriguing.” Danielle cupped her coffee between both palms. “Any clues?”
“Nothing definitive.” Jovi broke off the end of the scone and set it on an extra napkin.
“Burke found an article about how his aunt Lois and my grandmother apparently were recognized locally for their candy-making talents. And we already know they were best friends, but we don’t know how or when the falling-out occurred. ”
“Can you ask somebody?”
“Well, Grammie is the only one still alive, and her memory’s not great. My family recently moved her to Oasis, a memory care place in Anchorage. She did mention that Lois made candy and also a lovely quilt, but no reference to an argument or anything like that.”
Danielle winced. “That’s right, I saw her name listed in the prayer requests at church. I’m sorry. Dementia and Alzheimer’s are so tough to deal with.”
“You’re telling me. She didn’t even recognize me and Isabel when we visited.”
“Maybe you’ll catch her in a lucid moment next time.”
“Maybe.” But she wouldn’t get her hopes up.
Jovi took a bite of the scone. The coarse sugar crystals sprinkled on top added a nice texture, and the moist sweet pastry saturated with tart blueberries left her reaching for another bite.
She’d make a mental note to ask Isabel, Irene and Jerry if they had any tips on how to find the best sugar for her salted caramel chew experiments.
The batch she’d made the night Burke and Darby Jane came over for help with the costume had been hard as a rock, and not at all edible.
“So back to the handsome neighbor. Have you guys been hanging out?”
Jovi nodded. “That’s how we got to the kiss. I’ve helped him with his daughter several times, so he offered dinner as a thank-you, and he invited me to his place. On Valentine’s Day.”
“That is so romantic.” Danielle pressed her palm to her chest.
Jovi’s cheeks heated again. “That’s the problem.”
Danielle’s pencil-thin brows flattened. “Why? I mean, other than this alleged fight between your relatives. Do you like him?”
Jovi hesitated.
Danielle chuckled. “That means yes .”
“No. I mean, yes, I like him, but… I don’t know.
” She pressed a palm to her forehead, struggling to find the right words.
“My ex-fiancé really did a number on me when he called off the wedding. I don’t know when I’ll be ready to date again.
Now I’m embarrassed that I just spontaneously planted one on him. ”
Empathy etched Danielle’s expression. “I hate you had to go through that. Michael’s loss. One hundred percent.”
“Thank you,” Jovi said. “He’s a decent guy, and it’s probably for the best that he called things off, but—”
“Oh, no.” Frowning, Danielle pushed aside the muffin then leaned her elbows on the table. “You’re talking to him again, aren’t you?”
Jovi tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “He started texting me again, but I haven’t responded.”
“Please don’t let him worm his way back into your life.”
Danielle’s earnest gaze made Jovi’s stomach clench. “You don’t even know him.”
Ugh. Could she sound any more desperate?
“I don’t need to know him personally. I’m speaking up because I’m your friend and I care about you. He called off your wedding, Jovi. That’s not a guy who deserves a second chance.”
Jovi scraped her fingernail against a sticky substance glued on the table. “Not even if he’s contrite?”
“Not even then.” Danielle picked up a chunk of the muffin, then paused, her hand halfway to her mouth. “He should be sorry. He blew it. But that doesn’t mean you have to take him back.”
Jovi leaned back in her chair and rubbed her fingertips against the tightness in her chest. “I guess I’ve always had a soft spot for someone who regrets their choices and wants a second chance.”
“But you just kissed somebody else. It sounds like you’re quite open to the possibility of dating someone new.”
Jovi shook her head. “Not this someone new.”
Danielle finished chewing, then reached for her coffee again. “All I’m saying is if there’s an element of attraction between you and Burke, then you probably are ready to move on from Michael. And that’s okay. Just tell Michael it’s over and he does not need to contact you again.”
“Would now be a bad time to mention that he might transfer to a base here in Alaska?”
Danielle rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. Is that what he’s telling you?”
“Nothing’s for sure, but yes, he mentioned it.”
“I wouldn’t believe a word he says, but that’s just me. And even if he does move here, Alaska’s a big place. We’re more than a hundred miles from the nearest military base. It’s not like he’s going to be your hot single-dad neighbor.”
“Ha. That’s cute.” Jovi sipped her coffee, trying unsuccessfully to banish the thought of Burke’s eyes searching her face.
“Maybe you need to allow this Burke fella to kiss you again.”
Jovi choked on her drink, then feigned a mock glare. She grabbed a napkin and mopped at her chin. “Don’t say that. I can’t rush into anything.”
“Why?”
“I already told you. As much as I don’t like my family meddling in my business, there’s a reason the Wrights and Burke’s relatives don’t get along, and I need to know what it is.
Besides, I’ve only committed to staying here for thirteen weeks.
It’s not fair to him, his daughter, or me to get attached. ”
“I didn’t realize you weren’t planning to stick around.” Her gaze flitted toward the window. “Um, describe that neighbor for me.”
“He’s about six feet tall, with broad shoulders, and wavy brown hair.”
“Carries a leather briefcase type of bag and has a splint on his arm?”
Jovi froze. “Yeah. Why?”
“Because he’s coming this way.”
“No, no, no.” Jovi panicked, desperate for an exit strategy. “I’m not ready to speak with him yet.”
Her adrenaline spiked as Burke walked by outside the window. Please keep going.
“Relax.” Danielle grinned. “You’ve got this.”
But it was too late. Burke paused at the entrance and waited for a young couple to exit, then he stepped inside.
Jovi slid lower in her chair. Seeing him frothed her conflicted feelings into a convoluted mess.
Her lips tingled with the memory of his touch.
She couldn’t deny the connection she felt with Burke, but she was terrified of getting hurt again.
Michael had shattered her trust, leaving her hesitant to let anyone else in.