Chapter 32
In the end, it took Linney three more weeks than she’d hoped to get Page Turners ready for reopening. But finally everything was done. The woodwork gleamed, the walls were freshly painted, new lighting warmed the place up, and several comfortable chairs had arrived for customers to curl up in.
Linney had sectioned off a corner and created a kids’ area—a temporary one, she hoped, because she had plans to expand the store to the rest of the ground floor of the building she’d bought. Currently a portion was empty, having last housed a paper shop. She had placed a bright blue oversized chair off to one side where a parent and a child could cuddle up together and added a mural to the wall. Danny built her a platform, so the section sat up a little higher than the rest of the store, providing a step for children to sit on as well.
The old house’s kitchen had been scrubbed clean, and Linney bought a new refrigerator to keep staff lunches and platters for signings cool. A new microwave and dishwasher were also installed, making heating lunches and dinners easier. She turned the old butler’s pantry into her office. Outfitted with a new computer, Wi-Fi, and a good desk and chair, the private space pleased her. She wiped down the foldup chairs that KnitWorks used and oiled their stiff joints. The group was looking forward to using the new space for their next meeting.
The Silver Lake News article had come out well and Linney used it on her growing social media to garner more interest. The Bridgegrove radio station interviewed her, increasing interest beyond the town’s borders. In both cases, Linney found it strange to be on the other side of the microphone answering questions instead of asking them. How life had changed for her!
More recently, Linney was focussing on the business end of things, updating the store’s computer systems and placing orders with publishers for summer. Boxes seemed to arrive every day now, and the brown paper in the window had been updated with an opening date. Every time more money went out she gulped, but excitement outweighed fear. She hired Emma and two more part-time staff. If all went well, she’d be looking for more people for the summer.
The day before opening, she was so focussed that she didn’t hear the back door open. Derek had taken to coming by for lunch several days a week, when he wasn’t visiting his mother. If he didn’t, he’d never see her. Linney left her house early, and often didn’t return until nine or ten o’clock at night. Ivy and Leo missed her, and if he was honest, he did too. He’d gotten used to the evenings they spent together. It was a school holiday, so he had brought the kids along today.
“So, are you ready?” he asked, making her jump.
“I sure hope so,” she answered. “And I guess whatever isn’t done now will just have to wait.” She stood up from her chair and stretched.
Derek held up a paper bag with the café’s logo on it and stomped the snow off his feet. “We brought soup and sandwiches.”
“We?” She rolled her shoulders, stiff from a morning at the computer. Suddenly she noticed the children and her face lit up. “Come here you two—I’ve missed you!” They were in her arms in seconds.
Derek pulled the table out from the wall so there was room for all of them. Linney brought spoons, and they sat down to eat. The kids chattered away about their friends and about school—Linney and Derek just smiled at each other. “That’s great, Leo,” Linney said when he told her about his perfect score on a spelling test. “Thanks for bringing lunch, everyone. I needed a break. Now, who wants a story?”
* * *
Derek leanedagainst the sales counter in the early afternoon light. Ivy was sitting on Linney’s lap in the bright blue chair, snuggled into her soft curves as Linney read. Leo was lying on the ground moving his fingers along a line of text in the early reader book he’d chosen and waving his feet in the air.
Derek remembered Linney always saying she didn’t want children—that it wouldn’t have been fair, with her crazy career. But now, he wondered if her perspective had changed. She looked so tranquil there. The scene was serene, and if you didn’t know better, you’d think the tableau was of mother and child. He shook his head. Back to reality, Derek thought to himself. Linney was off limits. A friend. His best friend. Nothing more. And yet, as he watched her chest rise and fall with her breath, and noticed the hollow at the base of her throat and his Christmas gift around her neck, he had to fight back feelings he knew could ruin everything. The back bell rang with one more delivery, and he went to sign for it, stuffing all of that back inside for another day.
* * *
When story timewas finished and Linney and Derek had bundled the kids up into their coats, Derek caught Linney off guard with a big hug. The hug lasted longer than usual and Linney was shocked to find her feeling something far stronger than friendship. For Derek? But she couldn’t have those feelings for Derek. He was her friend. A very handsome man for sure, but her best friend. And the father of the two most adorable children she’d ever known. She had fallen in love with them, she knew. But their father? She shook her head as she headed back to unpack the boxes that had come. That was impossible.
* * *
Opening day was a smash hit,as everyone other than Linney had known it would be. The store was busy from the moment she peeled back the brown paper, and not just with curious townsfolk. Customers from Bridgegrove and even further afield made the drive, browsed, and made purchases. Emma was busy at the sales counter. To Linney’s delight, Jake made the drive up with all three of his teenagers to support her as well. Books flew off the shelf and almost nobody left without a package under their arm.
There was a brief lull at dinner time, which gave Linney time to set up the KnitWorks chairs in the centre of the store. The Canadian author with a new thriller that she had been advertising was due shortly, to do a reading from his book and sign autographs. The big coffee percolator that Emma had filled with water fifteen minutes before started to gurgle on the counter, and Kirsten arrived with a platter of pastries Linney had ordered. Next time, she hoped to have a liquor licence and be able to serve wine as well. That was one of the many “little details” that hadn’t gotten taken care of just yet.
People started streaming in just before the reading was to begin. Gabby was baby-sitting Leo and Ivy for Derek, who was sitting in the front row. Anna and Danny were behind him, and Kirsten hung out in the back to usher in late arrivals as Linney welcomed her guests and introduced the author. After the reading, he answered questions, and together they sold several autographed books. He graciously signed another ten for her shelves and thanked Linney for the evening, wishing her much success.
When the front door bells jangled with the final customer leaving, Linney sighed with relief, kicked off her high-heeled shoes and rubbed her hip. She’d made it through day one. All that remained was to find out if people would come back. Derek sent Danny and Anna home and shooed Kirsten out the door. “I’ll help her get everything cleaned up.” He was awed by how she’d transformed the bookstore. Together they folded up the chairs and covered up the remaining pastries. He ran a broom over the refinished floors while she closed out the computer system. Linney locked the front door and turned off the store’s front lights.
“You did it.” Derek’s voice was husky behind her in the dim light. “You’re incredible, Linney.”
Linney turned to face him. He found his hands on her hips. There was a moment of silence and then he reached down and his lips gently met hers. It was a slow, warm kiss, unfamiliar, but borne of years of friendship. Derek felt his pulse quicken when she kissed him back. She tasted so good. He kissed her again, more intentionally this time. Then suddenly he broke away, panic wild in his eyes.
“I’m so sorry … I didn’t mean … I don’t … I have to go.” He bolted out the back entrance and the wheels of his car slipped on the snow as he sped out of the parking lot.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. Derek’s heart pounded in his chest and he shook his head. What had he done? Linney was his best friend. And he’d gone and kissed her. He could only hope their years of friendship would mean they could overcome this lapse. Good grief, what was he going to say to her tomorrow?
As it turned out, Derek said nothing. And neither did Linney. They both put it down to a momentary lapse. It wouldn’t happen again.
* * *
Page Turners was doing boomingbusiness. Linney’s first three months of sales were more than she’d budgeted, and summer was right around the corner. It would soon be warm enough to paint the store’s deep porch. Linney had plans for that porch, including half a dozen Muskoka chairs that were due to arrive in a week. It had been too late to plant spring bulbs in front of the porch when she’d taken over the store, but she intended to put in summer annuals in a month’s time and daffodil bulbs would be purchased to plant in the fall.
Linney left the bookstore in Emma’s capable hands and pulled on a spring jacket. She walked up the street to surprise Derek for lunch and her hair blew in the warm breeze. When she opened the door to the law firm, she saw Janet was at lunch already.
“In the back. I’ll be out in a moment.” Derek’s deep voice travelled beyond the door to his file room, sounding formal and lawyerly. Linney decided not to wait and headed back. She bashed into the door frame on her way into the file room, something that rarely happened anymore.
Hearing the noise, Derek rushed out from behind the tall file cabinets. He winced, watching her hold her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll be fine. Just my ego was bruised.”
“Let me see.” Derek placed his hand on her shoulder, rubbing it gently. She shivered under his touch. “Are you cold?” He rubbed her upper arms and Linney’s breath caught.
“Derek,” she whispered.
He smelled good. Linney took a step closer and then slid her arms around his neck. She stood on her tiptoes and lifted her chin. She could feel his heart as the small distance between them evaporated, and she kissed him hungrily. Fireworks went off in her head. Linney slid her hands down his back and realized his were tangled in her hair. Derek was kissing her back like he couldn’t stop, and she didn’t want him to. Derek. Derek! Derek? Linney’s brain took over again, and she stopped mid-kiss. She stiffened in his arms and he opened his eyes, reacting to her body language. Something was wrong. He stepped back.
“Linney?”
“Derek, we can’t … I shouldn’t have … I … I—” Linney was panicking and her face flushed as she fled.
Linney ran across the road and down to the pavilion at the park. She sat on the steps, taking deep breaths. She put her hands on her hot cheeks and willed the colour to leave her face What had she done? Twice now, they’d kissed, and it had been good. So good. How had she never thought of Derek like that before? They’d always had a lot in common and he had always been her champion. But now the sound of his voice gave her butterflies. It was almost criminal how handsome he looked dressed in his suit to go to court. Her hands itched to comb through his curls, and the feel of his breath on her neck, when they were close enough to kiss, was exciting.
His kisses. That could never, never happen again. They couldn’t ruin this lifelong friendship. And yet, when he touched her—well she couldn’t let that happen either. She pulled herself together and headed back to Page Turners. She could make a sandwich in the kitchen for lunch.
Linney threw herself into summer planning to ensure the bookstore was a success. She didn’t stay away from Derek, but she made sure they were rarely alone together and that there were no hugs and no friendly kisses on the cheek. She was stiff around him, and he was as well. They spent evenings alone in their separate homes. She ached to tell Anna and Kirsten but she didn’t want to put them in the middle. She didn’t even want to talk to MJ about it. There was nothing to talk about, really. Two kisses. Two kisses that had to be ignored.
* * *
It was an unseasonably warm June,and with Ivy and Leo both at birthday parties, Derek had a rare Saturday afternoon to himself. He headed to the shore where Linney was skipping stones. It hadn’t taken long for her brain to compensate for her monocular vision and she could rival him once more . “How do you feel about a quick spin in the kayaks?” Linney hadn’t tried to get into one since her accident. “I’ll give you a hand in and out if you like.”
Linney hesitated. But her love of the lake won. “Let’s do it.”
They headed down to the dock and Derek put both boats in the water. As he watched, Linney sat on the dock with her life jacket on and slowly transferred her weight into her kayak. She looked triumphant to have done it without his help and he silently revelled in her happiness. Derek buckled his own life jacket and dropped into his kayak. They headed out over the water, leisurely paddling along the shore away from town.
Derek was the first to notice the rain. A single fat raindrop landed with a splat on the front of his kayak. It was followed by another. It had clouded over while they were out, but they’d been engrossed in conversation and neither of them had noticed how dark the sky off to their starboard had become.
“I think we’d better head back,” he said, backpaddling to turn his kayak around. Linney followed suit and with swift strong paddles, they were soon skimming along the surface of the lake, but not fast enough to outrun the rain. Within minutes they were soaked.
“At least it’s a warm rain,” called Linney. Her hair was plastered to her head and her glasses were getting hard to see through. She squinted and focused on following the red kayak in front of her.
Derek looked back to make sure she was close. Linney’s delicate cotton blouse was moulded to her body, and had been rendered see-through from the rain. As she pulled closer, he could see the lacy bra she wore underneath and the sight of it stirred feelings. “It’s not the first time you’ve been wet in a boat with me,” he yelled back, covering his rising desire. He didn’t know she wore underwear like that.
Linney laughed, remembering the time they’d tipped over a canoe, and he saw the beginnings of laugh lines at the corner of her eyes. They were both older now.
Even through her spotted glasses, Linney could see how fit Derek was as she pulled closer to his kayak. His black T-shirt was stuck to his toned torso and water droplets dripped from the ends of his slightly greying curly hair. He shook his head, spraying water everywhere. He was a fine specimen of a man. Linney gulped. Why was she thinking of Derek like this? It was getting harder to push these feelings away.
The rain was still pelting down from the sky when they pulled their kayaks up to the dock. Derek jumped out and then reached down to give Linney a hand up. Getting out of the kayak would be harder than getting in. Taking care with her hip, Linney took his hand and managed to get back onto the dock, but lost her balance when she stood up as the dock swayed slightly under their combined weight. She stumbled into him and he put his hands on her waist to steady her. She grabbed his arms for balance and they stood pressed against each other for what felt like several minutes. Their eyes locked, asking unvoiced questions. After an eternity, Derek brought his head down to meet Linney’s, and with mutual understanding, their lips met.
This was not like the kisses they’d shared before. This was a kiss filled with years of understanding each other, but now with a shared passion. It was a long, steamy, sensual kiss, between two equal partners with needs and wants. Linney heard a low guttural sound from Derek’s throat as she wrapped her arms tightly around his broad back. His hands cupped her face, and he kissed her again, with even more intensity this time. The hairs of Linney’s neck stood at attention and her legs turned to jelly. Derek thought he heard her moan softly but he couldn’t believe it was real. Breathing heavily, they pulled apart to make sure they understood what was happening. Convinced that they were on the same page, Derek drew her in again and his lips crushed hers, making every nerve in her body tingle.
“Linney,” he breathed raggedly, and the first crack of thunder broke the spell, making them jump.
“Run, Derek!” Linney held out her hand, and they ran together through the downpour to the relative safety of her porch. Linney reached out to open the door, but Derek spun her around. Another kiss sent her mind whirling like a child’s top. Or maybe that was the sound of the wind, which was now thrashing through the trees.
Still with his arms around her, Derek pushed open the door, and they kissed their way into the house, as the sky flashed with lightning. Linney stood in front of him, dripping wet as he slammed the door behind them. He kissed her neck and her collar bone, making her shiver with delight. He cradled her face once more and kissed her again until they were both breathless. Their hands were busy exploring each other’s bodies. Derek didn’t know how much more of this he could take. “
Linney, are you sure?” he whispered hoarsely. He didn’t want to do something rash, but at the same time, he was nearly vibrating with desire.
She took a step back, and he felt a moment of disappointment. But then she started unbuttoning her wet blouse as lightning lit up the room. Stepping out of her shorts Linney stood in front of him in her wet bra and matching lace panties, and she answered him in a husky voice. “I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life.”
Derek didn’t need to be told twice. As thunder shook the house, he pulled his T-shirt over his head, took a step towards Linney, and brought his mouth down passionately on hers. He picked her up and took her to the bedroom. Suddenly they were discovering each other in ways Linney had never dreamed of.
Afterwards, they lay in each other’s arms as the storm continued to rage around them. His fingers traced the scar on her hip, illuminated by another crack of lightning. “Does it still hurt?” he asked, tenderly.
“Only when the weather changes. Like now.” She laced her fingers through his. “Why have we never done this before?”
“I don’t know,” he whispered. “But I love you, Linney. I think I’ve always loved you.”
“I love you too.”