Chapter 6 #3
Linc took her to dinner at the Lobster House and regaled her with stories about the Coast Guard, including some amazing tales of his tenure with the search-and-rescue teams, and had her laughing about life as the older brother to four conniving younger sisters.
“I’m being a total bore talking about myself,” he said as he poured the last of their bottle of chardonnay into her glass.
“Not at all. I enjoy your stories.”
“I wouldn’t mind hearing some of yours, too.”
“My life is nowhere near as interesting as yours. No searches, no rescues, but I do have two younger sisters, so I feel your pain there.” She made a joke, but her sisters were her best friends.
“Yours sound a bit more spirited than mine, who married their high school sweethearts and have made me an aunt five times over.”
“I bet you have pictures.”
Charmed that he would ask, she withdrew her phone from her purse and found the latest pictures of her nieces and nephews. “Matter of fact, I do. Meet Michael, Lacey, Brent, Tyler and Mackenzie.”
He flipped through the pictures with genuine interest. “They’re incredibly cute, and clearly, blond hair runs in your family.”
“Yep. We’re all blondes.” She found another picture of the entire family taken last Christmas and showed it to him. “Here’s one with all of us. My dad, the one with the dark hair and eyes, is king of the blonde joke.”
Linc cocked a brow that only added to his rakish good looks. “You let him get away with that?”
“In a house full of women, he put up with a lot more than we did. He deserves to take his fun wherever he can get it.”
“Beautiful family. Where do they live?”
“They’re all in North Carolina.”
“How’d you end up so far from home?”
She suspected he already knew but was hoping to hear it from her. “That is a very long story.”
“I don’t have anywhere to be. Do you?”
He was charming and easy to talk to and funny.
It would be too easy to share her story with him, but she wasn’t in the mood for a trip down memory lane.
“If it’s all right with you, I’d like to pass on telling you that very long story, for now anyway.
I’m having fun tonight, and it’s not a fun story. ”
“Fair enough,” he said, running his fingers over the stem of his wineglass. “As long as you know I’m interested.”
She couldn’t miss the double meaning in his words and smiled at him, grateful for his kindness, his interest and the fact that he didn’t try to cajole the story out of her despite her obvious reluctance.
That had happened before, and it was an instant turnoff for her.
Anxious to change the subject, she said, “Some friends of mine are playing at the Tiki Bar at McCarthy’s Marina. How do you feel about live music?”
“I love it, especially when Evan and Owen are playing together. I was going to ask if you wanted to go.”
“Great,” Jenny said, excited to continue the date and see their mutual friends.
He paid the check and casually reached for her hand on the way out of the restaurant.
Jenny curled her fingers around his much bigger hand, marveling at the strange twenty-four hours she’d had. Last night Alex had been arriving at the lighthouse right around this time, and… Well, there was no need to go over all that again.
And here she was tonight, holding hands with Linc Mercier during what was turning out to be one of the better dates she’d had since Toby died. As much as she liked Linc, though, he didn’t inspire the same level of edgy, gut-wrenching desire she’d experienced with Alex.
Oh for God’s sake! Give the guy a chance, will you? She admonished herself all the way back to the car, where Linc once again held the door for her and waited until she was safely settled before he closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side.
On the drive from South Harbor to the marina in North Harbor, it occurred to her that she’d already known Linc for longer than she’d known Alex, and still, she wasn’t climbing all over him the way she had Alex.
That thought made her mad—at Alex. If she’d never met him, she wouldn’t be sitting here comparing him to Linc, who was exactly the kind of guy she needed in her life.
Unlike Alex’s man-of-mystery act, Linc was straightforward, forthcoming and handsome as hell.
Not that Alex wasn’t handsome… That was hardly an issue where he was concerned.
Determined to push all thoughts of him to the far corners of her mind, she recommitted to enjoying her evening with Linc.
He reached across the center console for her hand. When they pulled into a parking space near the marina, he turned off the car but didn’t let go of her hand. Sitting in the waning daylight a couple of blocks from the marina, she was acutely aware of him and the fact that he intended to kiss her.
If he made the move, she decided, she would let him. She glanced over to find him watching her.
“You’re incredibly beautiful, but you probably hear that all the time.”
What might’ve been a cheesy line from another guy actually sounded sincere coming from him. “No, I don’t.”
“Well, someone should tell you that every day, because it’s true.”
Once upon a time, a wonderful young man had told her she was beautiful every day.
“Did I say something to upset you?”
Jenny shook off the moment of melancholy. “Not at all.”
Turning toward her, he raised his hand to her face and leaned in to kiss her.
While it was happening, Jenny felt removed from the situation, as if she were watching someone else kiss the sexy Coast Guard officer.
The kiss was nice. He moved slowly and didn’t go for broke at the first sign of interest from her.
He showed restraint that she appreciated.
And when he pulled away and smiled at her, she smiled back.
Walking hand in hand with him to the Tiki Bar, it occurred to her that she’d felt absolutely nothing during that perfectly lovely kiss.
That, too, was Alex’s fault.