Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
T he next morning, Mel’s nerves were shot.
As she stood behind the circulation desk at Point Beacon Public Library going over the list of books she needed to pull that day for storage to make room for the new titles coming in, she pasted on a smile and vowed to get through it. Even if her new outfit felt like a big arrow pointing her out for all to see.
Truthfully, other than a few side glances from her elderly volunteers, no one had made a comment about her new clothing choices. Then again, most of the patrons that day were too focused on getting to their small genealogy section before it filled to capacity. Seemed tracing one’s family tree was a hot new trend in Point Beacon. Most people went online to search, but these patrons were all from the retirement center across town, and Mel doubted they had the technology resources in their community.
Besides, she was determined to see her plan through and prove to herself she could do this. Head high and shoulders back, she moved out from behind the desk and headed to the nonfiction section to locate a biography on James Dean an internet patron had put a hold on for future pickup.
Speaking of future pickups…
Each time she closed her eyes, she could still feel Adam’s lips on hers, his breath warm, the taste of alcohol and desire in his mouth. Talk about the stuff fantasies were made of. In all her years of pining for the guy, nothing beat the first real thing. He’d smelled of soap and sandalwood and a hint motor oil and she’d felt like she was flying, so high in the clouds she’d lost touch with reality for a second.
Then Adam had bolted through the door, muttering an apology. To him, apparently, the kiss had been a mistake, an error in judgment.
Until she could prove to him otherwise, she had to tread lightly.
She tugged at the hem of her new fitted black top, then crouched to pull the biography from the bottom shelf. Even she had to admit the new black pants she’d worn made life much easier. She’d been caught in a rut of her own making, she realized. Perhaps it was time to stop sticking to the status quo in other areas too.
Retrieved book in hand, she straightened and glimpsed her reflection in the glass front of a memorabilia case lining the wall nearby. She’d made her first attempt at re-creating Marguerite’s genius on her hair that morning, and though it wasn’t quite as perfect as it had been in the salon, it still looked good. Her makeup did too. She’d applied with a light hand, as the stylist had suggested, and she looked well rested and refreshed, if not Vogue cover-worthy .
Which was surprising since she’d slept like crap last night.
Kissing the man of your dreams only to have him flee afterward did that to a girl.
Mel headed back to the circulation desk as the automatic doors near the entrance swished open and in walked her mother, carrying an armload of library books Mel suspected were overdue.
While Mel and her mom were similar heights and weights, that’s where the similarities ended. Audrey Bryant was a force to be reckoned with around Point Beacon. Along with Mel’s father, Bud, they were the cool parents every kid wished they’d had. Mel had always balked when Lilly told her how lucky she was to have parents like Audrey and Bud. Not that Mel didn’t love her mom and dad. She did, but that wasn’t the issue. The issue was they were too close to see what was right in front of them. Like James being gay. Or Mel being in love with Adam Foster.
“Morning, dear.” Her mother dumped her load on the desktop, then straightened the designer purse slung over her shoulder. “We missed you last night.”
“Sorry.” Mel averted her gaze as she stacked and sorted the items her mother had returned. Friday evenings at her parents’ house were game night, but she didn’t regret her choice to spend it with Adam instead. Not that she’d tell her mother that. She shook her head and grabbed another tome to scan back into the library’s inventory. “I had to go out of town yesterday and didn’t get back until late.”
“Where?” Her mom’s voice perked up. “A conference?”
“No. Personal errand.” Not the whole truth, but not a lie either .
“And you got your hair cut!” Her mother’s excitement echoed in the quiet library and drew the attention—and scowls—of several nearby senior citizens. Her mom cringed and flashed Mel a conciliatory smile. “Sorry. It’s just been so long, and I love it! The highlights really suit your skin tone. Good for you, dear.”
Heat prickled Mel’s cheeks as she moved to put the books in the bin to be resolved. Surprisingly, none of them were overdue. The Bryant clan weren’t known for their excellent timing.
“Thanks.” Mel said. “I went to the same stylist Lilly does in Indy. Got my makeup done too and did a bit of shopping afterward.”
“I see that.” Her mom grinned. “Lilly went with you then?”
“Uh, yeah.” Mel’s skin prickled from the lie, but she could hardly tell her mother the truth at this point. It would ruin everything.
“Huh. That’s weird. I ran into her earlier at the grocery store and she didn’t mention anything.” Flustered, Mel opened her mouth to answer then closed it again. Thankfully, her mother moved on to other topics. “Anyway, I came to remind you of dinner tomorrow.”
Mel hovered between relief and nausea. It was one thing to avoid detection in brief interactions. Quite another to sit for several hours and be grilled across the dining room table. But then she really couldn’t cancel now without drawing more suspicion, so she bit the bullet and asked, “What time?”
“One. Same as always.” Her mom glanced through a pile of returned books stacked up near the overnight slot. “Oh, and guess who else I ran into at the grocery?”
The question, innocent enough on its own, sent a spike of apprehension though Mel. She swallowed hard as she scanned in the bar code for the requested James Dean biography and typed in the reserved date beside the requesting patron’s name on her computer screen. “Who?”
“Adam Foster. I’ve been meaning to stop by Victory Vets and say hello to him since he returned to town, but it’s been so crazy volunteering for the town art council that time got away from me. Anyway, I invited him for dinner tomorrow too.”
Mel’s heart stuttered. “What?”
“He tried to get out of it, of course,” her mother continued. But I told him I’d make the pot roast he loves so much. Said it would be like old times and refused to take no for an answer.” Her mom patted Mel’s hand. “And he said he can’t wait to see you too. I wonder if he’s dating anyone. I should set him up with that nice gal from the diner who just moved to town a few months back. What do you think?”
“I think you should let Adam have his privacy,” Mel said, the words stilted by the vise-like tension squeezing her chest tighter by the second. Mel gathered up the bin of returns, then backed away slowly. “I appreciate you returning the books, Mom, but I really need to get back to work. The weekly book club meets this afternoon, and I have to prepare the question-and-answer section. Then there’s the discussion group to lead tonight for the history club. I’ll see you at dinner tomorrow, yeah?”
Her mom gave her an odd look, then turned on her heel and headed for the exit. “Fine, dear. See you then. It’ll be fun.”
Fun.
Not exactly the first word that popped into Mel’s mind for what was sure to be a disaster tomorrow. All sorts of nightmare scenarios ran through her head. What if Adam blurted out their little plan in front of her parents? What if they picked up on something weird between them? What if Mel couldn’t control herself and kissed Adam silly on her parents’ sofa?
The horrific anxiety plagued her the rest of the day and all through the night, raising Mel’s stress levels to unbearable by the time Sunday rolled around.
She stood before her closet, unable to decide what to wear.
She tried on the jeans and blue top, then quickly discarded them. A reminder of her brief kiss with Adam, followed by him running for the hills. Next, she considered wearing the black top and pants from the day before again. But they quickly joined the growing pile of rejects atop the bed. Too stuffy and businesslike. The last thing she wanted was for Adam to think she’d given up one kind of armor for another. She wanted to project an image of relaxed confidence now. It was Sunday dinner with her family, after all. Why was she so nervous about it?
Because Adam would be there.
Which made no sense because she’d eaten meals with the guy probably a million times growing up, and she’d never seen Adam wear anything other than jeans and black T-shirts. She needed to chill.
Mel eyed the blue top and jeans again, remembering the way he’d looked at her when she’d come out of the dressing room in the boutique. Like he was a starving man and she was a banquet.
Wearing that outfit again, especially in front of her parents, was a risk, but one she was willing to take.
After rehanging the rest of the clothes she’d pulled out, Mel tugged on the jeans and slinky blue top, then checked her reflection in the full-length mirror. They still fit her like a second skin and still made her feel sexy without being too revealing. Perfect.
Next, she headed to the bathroom to do her hair and makeup. A quick glance at the clock showed it was noon. One hour to finish getting ready, then get over to her parents’ house for an afternoon of food, fun, and fraud.
Adam rolled his stiff neck to relieve the kink there, most likely because he’d spent the majority of the meal glancing at Mel to his right. She’d worn that blue top again, and no matter how much food he shoveled into his mouth as a distraction, he couldn’t seem to keep his gaze from straying to her. Mel stood and reached for her empty plate.
Everyone else seemed to have finished eating a while ago, but Adam didn’t care. He loved Mrs. Bryant’s pot roast, and it was a real treat being here again. Plus, he liked looking at Mel in her new outfit and he wasn’t ready to stop yet.
“Can you pass me the mashed potatoes?” he asked Mel.
She handed him the bowl as her cell phone rang on the table. “Aren’t you full yet?”
He caught a glimpsed of James’s name on the caller ID before she answered. Mel put the call on speaker phone, and Adam swallowed his potatoes without tasting them, his focus split between Mel’s curves and the fact that his best friend was calling in from half a world away.
“Hey, bro,” Mel said, flicking a glance at Adam. As nice as dinner had been, there was still an awkward undercurrent between them after the kiss the other night. He still wasn’t sure why he’d done it. And even wrong as it was, he couldn’t bring himself to regret it. Not that he’d repeat it either. One and done. That was how it had to be.
“James, Adam’s here too,” Mrs. Bryant said, winking at him.
“Hey,” Adam said. “How’s the army treating you?”
“Same old, same old.” James’s smile was evident through the phone line. “Miss seeing you around the base. How’s the business?”
“Good.” Adam pushed his plate away at last. “Victory Vets picks up new customers every day. Jag and Miguel and Hollywood say hello.”
“You having dinner?” James chuckled. “Still scarfing down my mom’s pot roast, eh?”
“You know it.” Adam rubbed his full belly. “Had thirds and fourths in your honor.”
Mel had started clearing the table and leaned past Adam to grab the butter dish, bumping his shoulder with her breast. Her uneasy chuckle, combined with the searing look she gave Adam, only served to intensify the tension crackling between them. God, why had he kissed her Friday night?
A stupid rookie move. He knew better than to play with fire. And flames were definitely flaring between them now, if the sexy look she just gave him was any indication. Then, to make matters worse, Mel whispered in his ear, “You sure you’ve had enough?”
Time froze as he stared into her eyes, their green irises hypnotic and infinitely seductive. The rattle of glasses from the other side of the table jarred him from his inappropriate, erotic thoughts.
Get a grip, man.
Mrs. Bryant was now regaling her son with stories from Point Beacon, including his sister’s new miraculous makeover. “Seriously, James. You won’t recognize her when you get back. She looks like she walked out of some fashion magazine or something.”
“Good for you, sis!” James said. “Glad you finally joined the twenty-first century.”
Mel’s cheeks flushed pink, and she tugged the neckline of her blue shirt higher. “Like you know anything about fashion.”
“You tell him, kiddo. She looks great.” Mr. Bryant beamed at his daughter, and Adam felt the lack of familial support even more than normal. He didn’t think his own father had ever looked at him like that. Like he cared. Like his son was worth more than the dirt on his shoes.
“She reminds me more and more of your mom every day,” Mr. Bryant continued.
“As long as Mel’s happy, I’m happy,” James said. “And she’s right. I’m lucky if my socks match, let alone anything else.”
Adam swallowed hard, listening in on the conversations around him. Over the years, these Sunday dinners had been the highlight of his miserable weeks. There was always lots of talk and laughs, good food and the feeling of a real home, so different from where he came from. The only place he’d imagined a world like that actually existed as a kid was in cheesy sitcoms on TV. But the Bryants proved it was real. Too bad it would all be over if they found out Adam was lying to them.
A crash sounded from the kitchen. Adam jumped and Mr. Bryant stood. “Better go check on the ladies,” he said. “I’m sure you two guys have things to talk about anyway.”
He left and silence hung in the air for a moment before Adam tried to make small talk by asking James about his current mission. Last he’d heard, their platoon was providing security for a civilian village in an undisclosed location in the Middle East where a new conflict had erupted. While James told him about the false alarms and friendly fire, Adam’s guilt grew because through the open doorway leading into the kitchen he could see Mel at the sink, those new jeans cupping her butt just right and all he wanted to do at that moment was put his hands there. He didn’t dare though. The kiss had been bad enough. More touching would be way out of line.
James was telling him about the native interpreters and gossip from the guys at the base. Adam did his best to follow along, but he was still preoccupied with Mel.
Since Friday night, every time he closed his eyes, he pictured her against him, eyes shut and expression dreamy, her lips parted from his kiss. He’d run out of there like the coward he was, racing all the way home, praying the slap of wind on his face would drive some sense into him.
It hadn’t. He’d lain awake all night, body aching. Done the same last night, too. Today had been sheer torture, having her so close and wanting her so bad, but knowing she was totally off limits.
“Why are you so quiet?” James asked suddenly, jarring Adam from his thoughts. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong.” Adam cleared his throat to cover the lie. “I’m just listening to you. ”
“Whatever. I know when something’s bothering you, so you might as well just tell me. I’ll find out eventually. I always do.”
And that was the problem right there. Because Adam knew he was right. He would find out. Then Adam’s life would be over.
He wasn’t ready for that. He wished he’d never agreed to this harebrained scheme of hers. He wished he were a better man, an honest man, but at the moment, he wasn’t, couldn’t be.
So, he just said, “I’m fine. Everything’s fine. It’s just crazy busy here without you. You better get yourself back here in one piece because we’ve got cars out the wazoo waiting for you to work on at the garage.” He added that last part because it was true and made the lie more palatable. “And I miss you too.”
Then James’s next words nearly sent Adam into cardiac arrest. “It’s Mel, isn’t it?”
“What? No,” Adam said, defensive. “Why would you say that?”
“I don’t know. I’ve been worried about her. It’s like she put her life on hold when we left and she never hit restart. I’m glad she’s started changing things up again,” he said. “But please tell me the truth. Is the new makeover okay?”
“Better than okay,” Adam said, meaning it. “She looks great. Really beautiful.”
“Beautiful huh?” James seemed to sense something in Adam’s tone, making him scramble for cover.
“I mean, in an objective sort of way. Like a piece of art. Or a brand-new Harley or something.”
Idiot.
James snorted. “As bad as I am at fashion, you are at art. You wouldn’t know the Mona Lisa if it bit you on the butt. ”
“True.” The observation cut through the tension building inside him and Adam laughed. “When are you coming home?”
“Not soon enough, it sounds like. Hey, will you do me a favor?” James asked. “Will you keep an eye on Mel until I get back?”
“Uh…” If he said yes to James, he’d be playing both sides, which was not a good place to be.
“I don’t mean like a bodyguard or anything,” James cleared. “Just watch out for her. If she’s as gorgeous now as everyone tells me, she won’t know how to deal with that. I just don’t want her to get hurt.”
I don’t want that either.
“ Just keep an eye out on the guys she’s with. Mel doesn’t have a lot of experience and I don’t want her taken advantage of by the wrong sort.”
Like me.
“Please?” James asked and how could Adam say no? It wasn’t like he was going to date Mel anyway. They were partners on this project and that was it. And maybe he had kissed her once. He wouldn’t do it again. And making this promise to James might help him keep that vow.
“Okay.”
“Thanks.” The relief in James’s tone was obvious. “I’d hate to see her with some player like we were back in high school, right?”
“Yeah,” Adam managed to squeak, past the invisible noose tightening around this neck. It was hard to breathe now, hard to sit there and pretend everything was all right, when deep down it wasn’t and might never be again.
Mel walked back into the dining room then, her sunny smile wavering at whatever she saw on Adam’s face. “Everything okay?”
“Hey, sis. Send me a selfie of your new look please,” James said, his tone even and light. “I gotta see this for myself.”
“I need to go.” Adam pushed to his feet. “I, uh, have some paperwork to finish up at the garage for tomorrow.”
“What? You’re leaving already?” Mrs. Bryant said as she returned to the dining room as well, wiping her hands on a towel. “We were going to play games.”
Loneliness ached inside Adam. He’d loved game nights here, but he couldn’t stay now. Not with Mel looking like his every fantasy come to life and the lies he’d just told James and his world falling apart at the seams. He backed slowly toward the front door. “Afraid so. Thanks again for dinner, Mrs. Bryant. Great seeing you all again.” To James on the phone he called, “Stay safe, buddy. Can’t wait to see you home next month.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Mel said, following him to the doors.
“Uh, no.” Adam stopped in his tracks. “I mean, go spend time with your family. I’ll call you.”
“When?” She gave him a suspicious look. “We need to talk about the going to Indy again. You said you’d take me to one of those clubs.”
“At the end,” he said, alarmed. “Not yet.”
“I want to do some reconnaissance,” she said. “Check out the clubs so I know what I’m in for and prepared, is all. Maybe we can go one night this week?”
“Oh…uh…I don’t know. I’ll have to check my schedule. I’ll call tomorrow and let you know, I promise. Tuesday at the late st.” The metal doorknob felt cold against his palm. “See you later.”
With that, Adam rushed down the porch steps to the sidewalk where his bike was parked at the curb, unable to shake the fact that even thousands of miles away, James had sensed something was up with him. If that was the case, then how obvious was it to the people who saw him every day? He’d thought he’d done a good job of hiding what was happening between him and Mel, but maybe not.
As he cranked the Harley’s engine, James’s words reverberated in his mind.
Hate to see her end up with some player like we were back in high school…
Adam’s reputation in the romance department hadn’t improved much since then. He was a loser, a playboy, a bad bet. Except when he was with Mel, she made him feel like he was good enough. Made him feel like he could be a better man. Someone strong and worthy.
Someone who stuck around for the long haul, no matter what.
As he pulled away from the curb in a squeal of tires, Adam felt more torn than he’d ever been in his life. And now she wanted to go to Indy again? Worse, he was considering it. Showing her what those clubs were like wasn’t a bad idea. Maybe it would show her it wasn’t the glamorous thing she thought it was.
But he also didn’t want to betray James, and he definitely didn’t want to hurt Mel. However, since she’d said she was doing this with or without him, she was safer with him because he knew the rules .
Adam stopped at a red light and rubbed his face. Or least he’d thought he knew them, but now he wasn’t so sure anymore. What scared him most was how he kept thinking about her all the time. About her laugh or her smile. Her killer body and her magnificent brain. About how she looked at him and the way she made him feel like he stood ten feet tall whenever they were together.
He couldn’t remember the last time that had happened, if ever.
The light turned green, and he sped forward, trying to keep it all in perspective. It wasn’t too late. It wasn’t love. He just liked spending time with her, that was all. Somehow, the past week or so, Mel had gone past being James’s little sister and become a vivacious woman he wanted to know better. That was all.
He’d keep it light, fun, because that’s the deal he’d made.
Once this was over, he’d walk away as promised.
Because that’s the only way any of this would work out in the end.