Chapter 20 #2
It wasn’t lost on her that she was becoming addicted to everything about him—from the way he made her laugh, to how he hung on every word she said, to the nearly spiritual physical connection that hummed between them every time they were anywhere near each other.
She was falling fast and hard for him. Even as she told herself to take it easy, to not dive headfirst into a new relationship when she wasn’t even legally separated yet, tamping down her feelings for Mason would be like trying to keep the tide from coming in.
On Saturday night, they attended the dinner party with Mason’s friends. Jordan loved Mallory and Quinn, as well as Quinn’s brother Jared and his wife, Lizzie. Also in attendance were Alex and Jenny Martinez, Paul and Hope Martinez and David Lawrence and his fiancée, Daisy Babson.
Their hosts had cooked a yummy feast of Mexican food, including the makings for fajitas as well as enchiladas and taco salad.
Mallory seemed to already know that Jordan was a vegetarian and made sure she had plenty of options to choose from.
Jordan noted that, like Mason, Mallory and Quinn avoided the margaritas they’d made for their guests. She wondered if they, too, were alcoholics. “Do you mind if I have one?” she’d whispered to Mason when Quinn made the first batch of frothy margaritas.
“Not at all. Enjoy yourself.”
She limited herself to two out of respect for the fact that he didn’t drink. The last thing he’d want to deal with was a buzzed or drunk date.
“How’re the hands, Mason?” David asked after dinner.
“Much better.” He was down to a few Band-Aids on the deeper of the cuts, but the others had healed nicely. “Jordan has done an excellent job of tending to them and making sure I didn’t do too much so they could heal.”
“We might have a job for you at the clinic,” David said with a teasing grin for Jordan.
“I’m the last person you want working there. In the past, I’ve been known to faint at the sight of blood.”
“And yet you held up admirably while I was a bloody mess,” Mason said.
“I made myself not faint so I wouldn’t be more trouble than I was worth.”
The others laughed at that.
“I have to tell you, Jordan,” Jenny said. “I love your show.”
“Me, too,” Hope said. “Jenny and I watch it together. We’re addicted.”
“That’s so nice to hear. Thank you.”
“Will you be doing more?” Hope asked.
“I’m not really sure. We’re contracted for one more season, but we may not do it. I’m a little skittish about attracting attention to myself in light of everything with what’s-his-name.”
“I can definitely understand that,” Mallory said. “Being famous is probably much more fun in concept than reality.”
“For sure,” Jordan said. “Not that I don’t appreciate how great the fans of the show are.
They were amazingly supportive after everything happened with my ex.
I’ve been talking to Gigi about the way forward.
I’ve kind of lost the desire to live my life out loud.
She’s also my attorney and is trying to get me out of the contract, but we’re not sure what’s going to happen. ”
“Well, I hope you get to stick around for a while,” Hope said. “It’s fun to have a star in our midst.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Jordan said, embarrassed to be called a star when she’d really done nothing to deserve that besides be married to a mercurial musician.
“People really connected with you and Gigi on the show,” Mallory said. “They appreciated how you kept it real even if you showed the glam side of celebrity. You weren’t afraid to talk about your problems. It was refreshing.”
Hearing that such an accomplished woman like Mallory enjoyed the show made Jordan feel good about what she and Gigi had created. “We had fun, but it was important to us that it not just be about hair and makeup and clothes, but real life, too.”
“You did a great job of that,” Mallory said. “We both enjoyed it.”
“I didn’t picture you for a reality TV fan, bro,” Jared said to Quinn.
“Not usually, but Mallory liked the show, so I watched it with her. It was really well done and fun to watch.”
“Maybe you could do a Gansett Island version of the show,” Paul said.
“That’d be awesome,” Hope said. “You could do flip-flops instead of stilettos and talk about the challenges of living on a remote island.”
“People would probably be bored senseless by that,” Jordan said.
“I don’t think so,” Jenny said. “You and Gigi could make it hysterical. I have no doubt it would be a huge hit.”
“I’m trying to picture Gigi on Gansett.”
The others laughed.
“She’d be a riot,” Jenny said. “She is so effortlessly funny. Is she always like that?”
“Yes! She’s had me laughing since grade school when we sat next to each other. She got me in so much trouble.”
“That’s the only dynamic you two need to be successful—each other,” Alex said. “She’s a kook, and you’re the one trying to keep her from committing a felony. I actually can’t believe she’s an attorney.”
“I never laughed harder in my life than I did when she told me she was going to law school. And then I realized she was serious. She said she had a feeling she was going to need to understand the law at some point. Turns out, she was right about that. But what’s really funny is that she’s actually a very good lawyer. ”
“I can see that,” Jenny said. “She’s sharp as a tack as well as funny as hell.”
“She is. Maybe I need to invite her to Gansett to check the place out. See what she thinks of filming our last season here.” The idea of being able to stay, of somehow figuring out a life here, filled her with an unreasonable feeling of elation.
As the others asked about David and Daisy’s wedding plans for that fall, Jordan reached for Mason’s hand under the table.
He sent her a warm smile.
The idea of being stuck on Gansett Island was looking better to her with every day she spent with him.
She’d never been so comfortable with anyone other than her sister and grandmother and a few close friends like Gigi.
He made her happy. She’d laughed more with him than she’d laughed in years, and he made her feel safe and adored.
Not to mention, their physical connection was positively incendiary.
She nearly laughed at thinking her connection to a firefighter was incendiary.
He would like that. She couldn’t wait to be alone with him later so she could tell him about it. And, as soon as she got the chance, she would pitch the idea of moving the show to Gansett to Gigi, who would probably shoot it down.
But it was worth a try. Stranger things had happened.
She tuned back in to the conversation to hear that the activities director at the senior facility Quinn and Mallory ran had decided island life wasn’t for her.
“It’s such a bummer,” Mallory said, “because the residents loved her.”
“She was excellent,” Alex said.
“Alex and Paul’s mother, Marion, is a resident at the facility,” Jenny said for Jordan’s benefit.
“Ah, I see. What does the activities director do?”
“Organize exercise, crafts, games, music and other forms of entertainment for the residents,” Quinn said. “We have a wide variety of capabilities among our clientele. Some are more able to participate than others, but they all enjoy being in the room.”
“I can attest to that,” Paul said. “Our mom has severe dementia, but she still enjoys making crafts. Sometimes she doesn’t recognize us, but she can still create beautiful things.”
“It’s amazing how the mind works,” Alex added. “We’re just so happy to be able to see her every day and that she has the opportunity to do things that used to mean so much to her. You guys are life-savers.”
“I give my lovely wife all the credit,” Jared said, smiling at Lizzie. “It was her idea.”
“And your money,” Lizzie said.
“Our money.”
“Your money.”
“We appreciate the idea, the money and the incredibly dedicated staff that run the place,” Alex said. “It’s been such a blessing to our family.”
“Your mom gave me the idea,” Lizzie said. “I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to have to take a loved one to the mainland to get the care they needed while you were living here.”
“It was awful,” Alex said. “The day we moved her back here was one of the best days of our lives, and you guys made that possible for us and other families.”
As the others discussed Marion’s situation, Jordan was stuck on the information about the activities director. When Quinn had described the role, she’d felt a spark of interest that couldn’t be denied.
When they were driving back to Mason’s, she said as much to him.
“I’m sure they’d talk to you about it.”
“Other than a lifelong interest in all things crayon-marker-glue gun-glitter, I’m not sure I’d be qualified. I’m not very musical, and I avoid exercise like the plague.”
“You could bring other people in for those things. Julia Lawry is living here now. She’s an incredible singer and piano player.
I heard her play at Stephanie’s Bistro, and she’s fantastic.
You could get someone from the yoga studio to come in to do classes for the residents.
I bet they’d even specialize their program for people who use wheelchairs or have other physical limitations. ”
“That’s true.” Her mind raced with the possibilities.
“You should ask them about it.”
“I don’t know. I probably ought to figure out my situation at home before I do anything here.
” Jordan wished she could wave a magic wand and make Brendan go away, get free of her contract for the show and deal with her house and belongings in LA.
After a few weeks on Gansett, her life in LA felt almost foreign to her, as if it had belonged to someone else rather than her.
“Are you leaning toward wanting to be here instead of there?”
“I might be.”
“That’s the best news I’ve heard in maybe ever.”
He had such a way of making her feel wanted. After spending most of her life surrounded by men who didn’t want her, he was a refreshing and delightful change of pace.