Chapter 3
Cindy couldn’t believe it. Of all people to show up to look at the room she had for rent, it had to be the sexy bartender from the Beachcomber she’d been crushing on for weeks.
She wished she’d spent some time on her appearance when she got home from work, rather than throwing her hair into a messy bun and putting on an old tank that sagged in the breast area.
“Come in.”
She tugged the top up to make sure everything was covered as he walked by her, bringing a clean, fresh scent with him that made her want to lean in for a better whiff.
Don’t be a weirdo, she told herself as Jace looked around the living room and kitchen.
“It’s not much,” Cindy said. “Just this, two bedrooms and a bathroom. Oh, and a nice backyard. Check that out.” She gestured for him to lead the way through the kitchen to the sliding door.
“Kevin McCarthy and his sons lived here for a time, and they did the landscaping. They redid the patio and left the gas grill when they moved out.”
“It’s really nice.” Jace walked across the yard for a closer look at the bushes. “Those are holly and boxwoods. I’m surprised the boxwoods are doing so well. They don’t tend to like the salt air.”
“You know your plants.”
“My grandmother was a master gardener. She taught me.”
Good God, Cindy thought for the thousandth time, but Jace was one of the hottest men she’d ever met. How in the world would she stand to have him as a roommate and not give in to the regular urge to lick him or kiss him or—
“What’s the rent?”
Startled out of her salacious thoughts, she said, “Eight hundred plus utilities that are another hundred.”
“Ouch.”
“It’s not cheap to live here year-round.”
“So I’ve discovered. It’s also not easy to find a place.”
“Do you want to see the bedroom that would be yours?”
“Yeah, but first…” He pointed to the chairs Kevin had left. “Can we sit for a second?”
“Um, sure.” Cindy’s entire system had gone haywire with the same desire she felt for him while watching him tend bar, only it was enhanced by the fact that for once, she wasn’t sharing him with numerous other customers.
He tugged on the sleeves of his Henley, revealing the tattoos that she’d stared at many a night at the bar. “I, um, I wanted to tell you… Before you decide to let me live here…”
She held her breath, waiting to hear what he would say and hoping it wouldn’t ruin the first real crush she’d had on a man in years.
“I… I’m a convicted felon on parole for the next five years.”
Like a pin hitting a balloon, all the air left her lungs in one deep sigh. “Oh.”
“And a recovering drug addict. I’ve been clean for six years and have no desire to ever return to the life I led before my brother was killed right next to me during a convenience store robbery.
I attend daily meetings and work the program to maintain my sobriety, which is one of the most important things in my life.
You’d have absolutely nothing to fear from me if you allowed me to live with you, but I wanted you to know the truth before you decide anything. ”
“I, um… I appreciate your honesty.”
He gave her a side-eyed glance that was the sexiest thing since Chris Hemsworth played Thor. “Is it a deal breaker?”
Her mind was racing. I like him. I’ve liked him for weeks. I’ve started to think of him as a friend—as well as a crush. But I can’t deny that I’m conflicted. “Would it be okay if I had a day to think about it?”
“Of course. I should also tell you that I’m here on Gansett because my sons, Jackson and Kyle, live here.”
“Jackson and Kyle… The boys who live with Seamus and Carolina O’Grady?”
He nodded. “My ex-wife, Lisa, arranged for them to be the boys’ guardians after she passed away.”
“Oh gosh, yes, I heard about that from my sister Katie. She’s a nurse and helped to care for Lisa when she was sick.”
“I’ll regret for the rest of my life that I wasn’t there for them when they needed me. I wish more than anything that I could somehow make amends to her, but since I can’t, I’m trying to be there for our boys and to be a friend to them.”
Cindy’s heart beat so fast, she was nearly breathless as she tried to get her head around everything he’d told her. “Would you… Would you like to see the room?”
“That’d be great, thanks.”
Cindy got up to show him the way to the bedroom that included a queen-sized bed and dresser that had been left by previous tenants. “You may want a new mattress. I don’t know the full history of that one.”
“It’s no different than a hotel, right? And better than what I’m sleeping on at the Beachcomber employee housing.”
“That’s probably true.”
“It’s definitely true. This would be perfect for what I need, but it’s completely up to you. I’d understand if it’s not a good fit.”
Cindy followed him back to the living room. “It means a lot that you were honest.”
He shrugged. “I can’t change the story of my past as much as I wish I could. I’m working hard to have a better future, though. If you want to read the whole ugly story online, my last name is Carson.”
“I want you to know…”
He tipped his head, his full attention focused on her.
It was a wonder she didn’t melt on the spot. “I know you’re just doing your job being nice to your customers at the bar, but your friendship has meant a lot to me this summer.”
“Likewise, and being nice to you, Cindy, has nothing to do with my job. It has everything to do with you.” On that startling note, he said, “I’ll wait to hear from you. Either way, we’re still friends. I promise.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“No worries. Come see me tomorrow night.”
“I will.”
After she closed the door behind him, Cindy went straight to her laptop to google him.
It took about five seconds to find the full story about his brother being killed as the two of them were holding up a store and how Jace had been convicted of armed robbery and other charges.
He served six years of a ten-year sentence and was paroled six months ago.
She fell down a deep rabbit hole, reading every word she could find, including the report from the parole board that had deemed him a model prisoner who’d taken full advantage of every resource offered to him in prison to better himself, along with a recommendation that he be paroled early for good behavior.
An hour had passed by the time she came up for air.
She sat back in her chair, thinking about everything she’d learned about him and trying to decide how she felt about it.
After the upbringing she’d had with an abusive, narcissist father, she viewed every choice she made through the lens of having survived that nightmare.
Sometimes that lens colored things unfairly, and for that reason, she needed outside opinions.
She reached for her phone to text Julia and Katie.
I need a sister meeting. Can you guys come by? I’ll buy the pizza.
Coming! Katie replied right away.
Julia responded ten minutes later to say she’d be there after she finished her set at the Sand & Surf. She played the piano during standing-room-only happy hour at Stephanie’s Bistro, their stepsister’s restaurant. Order the pizza, and I’ll pick it up on the way over.
After she called in the order to Mario’s, Cindy got busy slicing some cheese and arranging it on a plate with crackers and grapes for her sisters.
She got out wineglasses to go with the big bottle of chardonnay chilling in the fridge that she kept on hand for them.
Cindy hadn’t had a drink in years due to the migraines.
New medication had helped to keep them to one or two a month, but that was still far too many, and she avoided things like caffeine, chocolate and other foods that tended to trigger them. She’d rather live without wine than suffer through any more migraines than she already did.
Katie arrived thirty minutes after receiving the text, hugging and kissing Cindy like they didn’t see each other all the time these days.
Having all but one of her siblings around, as well as their mother and grandparents, was the best part of living on Gansett.
The island had played a critical role in salvaging the Lawry siblings’ childhood, as their summers had been spent at the Sand & Surf with their beloved grandparents.
That’d been the only reprieve they’d gotten, other than their father’s infrequent deployments, from their horrible home life.
The island would always have a special place in the hearts of all the Lawrys, and being close to most of her family again was wonderful, but the dilemma involving Jace weighed heavily on her.
She really wished she could have a big drink.
Since that wasn’t possible, she chatted with Katie about her work at the clinic, Shane’s night out with his cousins and how Katie was feeling after having suffered a miscarriage that summer.
“I’m fine physically.” Katie tucked her blonde hair behind her ear and sipped from her wineglass as they enjoyed late-day sun on the patio. “It’s the emotional element that’s not quite there yet. I lost the baby before I even knew I was pregnant. The whole thing was just devastating.”
“I’m sure it was horrible. It was for me, and I was just the aunt.”
“Aw, you’re so sweet. You, Julia, Mom, Gram and Laura… Everyone has been so good to me. I mean, I’m a nurse. I know how often this happens, but when it happens to you…”
“It’s totally different.”
“Yeah. And Shane has been so incredible. He’s my rock.”
“I’m glad you have each other to get through it.”
“Maddie called when she heard the news and was so sweet sharing her experience losing a baby. We talked for an hour. Everyone has been so nice.”
“The good news is, when you feel ready, you can try again.”
“I know,” Katie said with a sigh. “It’s just different now that I know what it feels like when it goes wrong. Before that happened, it was just this abstract concept that happened to other people, so I didn’t stress about it. But now… Hopefully, it’ll be different next time.”
“You and Shane are so strong and solid together. You’ll be fine no matter what happens.”