Splashing Right In (Crescent Key Book 2)

by Nicole Highland

  Jenna flipped the television on, thumbing through the endless sea of channels. A little television time would be a nice way to end out the day. Just a girl, her cat, and some relaxation…

  Her eyelids weighed heavy as the minutes passed, and as she drifted to sleep, she realized how truly blessed she was. Life was good.

  And now she had one more reason to be thankful.

  Faded from the sun, the coastal-themed signage on the front of Crystal Shores Gallery had seen better days, but it appeared to be right at home amongst all the other beachside shops along the main drag in Crescent Key.

  For the last few years, it had been Jenna’s home five days a week as she chit-chatted with locals and tourists alike and shared her passion for the local art scene. At any given time, dozens of pieces were on display from budding, aspiring talent, all the way up to seasoned veterans in the artistic realm.

  While there were many tourists that left empty-handed, there were still quite a few that bought some of the art pieces; usually the smaller items that could fit into luggage or at the very least, wouldn’t cost an arm and a leg to ship back home. The satisfaction of making artists and clients smile always made Jenna’s heart swell with joy.

  Still, no matter how much she enjoyed her job, Fridays were always welcome. She could hardly wait to get home and cuddle with Toby, and with as painstakingly slow as the day was going, it felt like it would be an eternity before she finally arrived back home. The day couldn’t get over fast enough, and she slumped in her chair, watching the front door with anticipation, wishing someone would walk in.

  “No clients yet today, I take it?” She whirled around, watching as Nolan walked in from the back of the shop.

  Jenna shook her head. “Nope. Not yet.”

  True, Fridays weren’t exactly their busiest times, but being so slow wasn’t a good sign. Peak season had just begun, and they should’ve been busier.

  And they would’ve, had it not been for the dreaded red tide. This year had been particularly bad, and though Crescent Key was finally on the upswing, it had scared off many tourists all the same.

  She sighed, folding her arms across her chest. If the day kept up like that, she’d be out of her mind by noon for sure.

  “Ah, chin up,” Nolan offered. “Let’s give it some time. I’m sure someone will stop by soon.”

  Nolan’s ever-positive attitude was slightly annoying on even the best of days. But now? It was almost too much to bear.

  “I sure hope so,” she muttered. She turned, fully expecting Nolan to be standing behind her still, but he’d vanished into the backroom once more.

  Three older women walked on the sidewalk in front of the gallery, and a ray of hope sprang to life in her chest. Maybe they’ll stop in here. She could only hope.

  But Jenna’s smile quickly faded as she realized the ladies were not coming into the gallery after all.

  So much for that.

  She sighed and walked to the front of the gallery, tidying up the displays in the window while she waited. The doorbell chimed, and at last, a young woman entered, and Jenna beamed with gratitude as she introduced herself to her.

  “Welcome to Crystal Shores. I’m Jenna,” she said, extending her hand.

  “Serena Thornton,” she said, shaking her hand. “I work down at Room So Chic.” With her blonde hair pulled to one side and a flower in her hair, Serena was a picture-perfect representation of Crescent Key’s laidback atmosphere.

  “Is this your first time visiting this gallery?” Jenna asked.

  Serena shook her head. “Actually, no, but it’s been a while since the last time I stopped by. I’m doing a little browsing for one of my clients.”

  A little spark of hope grew in Jenna’s chest. “That’s perfect. Is there anything I can help you with? Any specific sort of aesthetic you’re going for?”

  Jenna twirled around, following Serena’s gaze as she zeroed in on one of the photographs hanging on the wall.

  “You don’t happen to know who this photographer is, do you? I love this.” Serena pointed to one of the photos on the wall. The photo portrayed a cluster of shells, forming the shape of a heart in the sand.

  “Actually, that is mine,” Jenna blushed. It was nice hearing a compliment from time to time. It made her passion all the more worthwhile in her mind.

  Before Jenna knew it, almost an hour had passed while she and Serena talked. But it didn’t feel like an hour. She felt like she’d known the woman her entire life it seemed, and as they laughed and shared stories of their lives in Crescent Key, a handsome man caught her eye as he peeked through the window. Jenna stood motionless, her thoughts racing a mile a minute as she took him in.

  He sure did look an awful lot like Zach.

  But that was impossible. Or at least, Jenna thought it to be, though, in reality, she had no idea where he lived. For all she knew, he lived just down the street from the gallery. He could’ve lived anywhere. She didn’t know. And thus far, the topic hadn’t popped up in conversation.

  Chalking it up to a foolish desire of the heart, she brushed the thought aside, allowing her full attention to come back the conversation at hand.

  It was all about the client, after all.

  But, try as she might, she still couldn’t get the handsome stranger out of her head, and thoughts of him pinged in her brain the rest of the afternoon.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  That had to have been Jenna.

  Zach could hardly believe it as he walked back to McGuire’s from his lunch break. What were the odds that on the day he decided to take a different route back to work, he stumbled on to her? Not that he knew for sure. But if in fact it had been her, perhaps he should start playing the lottery if he could manage odds like that.

  If only she hadn’t been occupied, he thought.

  Jenna’s client had completely derailed all his thoughts and plans, and he could’ve kicked himself for not going into the gallery and waiting until she had finished her conversation.

  His brow furrowed. He could’ve done so much, but instead, he did so little, wasting a perfectly good opportunity to ask her out. He could send her a message, of course. But where was the old-fashioned chivalry in that?

  No, it would be much better to ask her in person, he decided.

  “Everything go okay at lunch?” Carl asked.

  His mind snapped back to the present. “Yeah, everything’s all right. I think.” It wasn’t entirely the truth, but it wasn’t a lie, either. “Why?”

  “You seemed a little off, but all right. I’ll take your word for it.”

  Satisfied with his answer, Carl slid back underneath the car in his bay. Zach looked around at the mess on the floor around him, shaking his head in annoyance.

  “It’s a wonder you find anything around here, with the messes you make.”

  “Hey, don’t make fun of my process,” he bantered. “It works for me.”

  “I think it works for only you,” Zach joked.

  Two sets of tire rotations later, and Zach still couldn’t get Jenna off his mind. Perhaps he’d only imagined the small connection the two of them had shared at the shelter. Maybe she hadn’t felt anything at all, but he certainly had.

  She was so kind and warm, with a hint of humor, too. And beautiful. That pretty much went without saying. He pulled out his phone and typed a quick message to her.

  Do you work at the Crystal Shore Gallery by chance? Thought I saw you today.

  A tinge of doubt worked its way through his heart. What if the woman he saw wasn’t her?

  The thought continued to gnaw at him, and quite a bit of time had passed before he realized the text hadn’t gone through. Odd, he thought, considering there shouldn’t be any reason his cell service would be acting strange.

  Maybe it’s a problem on her end?

  The possibilities, especially when it came to technical issues, could be endless.

  He resolved himself, knowing he would try again Monday. He’d visit the gallery again and
find out if it really was her, and if in fact, it was, he could seize the moment he’d been waiting for.

  And with any luck, she would say yes.

  Monday Morning

  The pitter-pattering of feet against the blankets made Jenna stir, drawing her out of her slumber. Toby was up and ready for the day, and Jenna felt ten paces behind him as she stumbled through the hallway, eyes still weary from sleep. Tiny meows of hunger pierced the early morning silence like a never-ending alarm clock, and after haphazardly dumping a cup of food into his bowl, Jenna crawled into bed, ready to go back to sleep. Pulling the blanket over her head, she rolled over, drifting back to her dreams.

  Minutes later, Toby jumped on the bed again, waking her once more. She rolled over, eyes bulging wide as she read the clock. She hadn’t been asleep for a few minutes.

  She’d been asleep for almost forty.

  Panic seized hold of her, and she flew out of bed like a bat out of hell. Throwing on a shirt and jeans at record-setting speed, she stormed out the door and practically flew to her car. If she pushed the speed limit enough, she might still be able to get there on time but given how heavily the police had been out lately patrolling, it wouldn’t exactly be wise.

  She cruised along at a quick clip, but as she drew nearer to work, traffic slowed to a complete standstill. A flashing sign signaled everyone to merge to the right, and Jenna cursed under her breath. She didn’t have time for detours. She didn’t have time for any of this nonsense at all.

  More than anything, she was angry that she’d allowed herself to be put into that position in the first place. She knew better.

  She squeezed into the far-right lane, and followed the detour, taking her straight through the heart of the town. Businesses whizzed by in a blur as she hit the gas pedal, desperate to make up for the time she’d lost. Four-letter words whirled around in her brain as the car in front of her slammed on the brake, causing Jenna to do the same.

  “What the hell are you doing?” she shouted.

  She craned her head around, hoping she would be able to make out what was going on with the car in front of her. A sick wave of dread came over her. What if they’ve had a medical emergency? True, it was probably unlikely, but she’d heard of stories like that before. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility.

  Slowly but surely, a pelican emerged and walked across the road, seemingly oblivious to everything going on in the world around it.

  “Seriously?” she wailed. “I don’t have time for this crap.” She heaved a heavy sigh of exasperation, slamming her head back against the headrest. Her eyes drifted to the buildings lining the streets as she searched for something to occupy her while she waited. She zeroed in on McGuire’s, and her eyes flew open wide as she watched a muscular, dark-haired man step out of a vintage black Mustang.

  Can it be?

  Surely, it couldn’t be. It was ridiculous to think that once again, she had seen a glimpse of Zach. Everywhere she turned, she swore she saw him, as silly as it sounded.

  But, still, he looked just like him. And maybe it really was. She rarely traveled that way to work, and it was entirely possible that he’d been right under her nose the entire time.

  The car in front of her began to move again, and Jenna craned her neck to get one final glance at the man as she drove by. If it wasn’t him, it sure looked like him.

  Now, all she had to do would be to pray for a miracle and hope he’d walk by the gallery again.

  ♥ ♥ ♥

  All morning long, Jenna plagued Zach’s thoughts. She was getting to him. Even the other guys at the shop were starting to pick up on that.

  He could hardly wait for lunch to arrive. Even if she was with a client, he’d march his ass in there this time, and he’d wait however long it took for her to finish.

  He didn’t care how silly it sounded. He would see her again. That much, he knew.

  Excitement threaded through him when lunch rolled around, and as he turned the key in the ignition, his eyes drifted to the passenger seat. God, he could just imagine her sitting there, with the hair billowing in the breeze as they cruised through town…

  Only two cars remained in the gallery’s parking lot, and he prayed that one of them would be Jenna’s. He could hardly wait to see the look on her face. That would be the most satisfying thing in the world to him.

  The front door opened, and Jenna nearly fell out of her chair as she examined the man in the doorway. Her heart skipped a beat.

  “Zach?”

  “Jenna. Great to see you again. Glad you remembered me.”

  Oh, and boy did she. She could hardly think of anything but him since the night they met. “Of course. I thought I saw you yesterday, actually.”

  Zach raised a brow. “Really, now?” He threw her a slightly cocky grin. “Here, perhaps?”

  “So, it was you! I knew it!” She couldn’t help the grin lighting up her face.

  “Yes, it was. I didn’t want to interrupt. You seemed to be involved in a very animated conversation.”

  A flush bloomed in Jenna’s cheeks. “I’m so sorry. I hadn’t realized how long I’d been standing there talking to her. I really wanted to talk to you.”

  “Well, I’m here now. And from the looks of it, I finally have your undivided attention.”

  And thank God for that, she mused. No distractions, no interruptions…

  Nolan’s voice thrust her back to reality as he stepped inside.

  So much for a conversation without distractions, she thought. Could he have any worse timing?

  “Good morning, sir. What brings you by today?”

  Zach whirled around. “Well, I’ll be perfectly honest, I’m not too much of an art guy. I’m just here to visit Jenna.”

  Nolan tilted his head. “I see. I didn’t realize you two knew each other.”

  “Zach and I just met the other day at the shelter. Both of us adopted kittens,” Jenna offered.

  “Nice to meet you,” Nolan said, extending his hand.

  “Likewise.” Zach offered him a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. Jenna took note of it, wondering if she was the only one lucky enough to receive his most genuine ones.

  “Well, I’ll be in the office if you need me. Nice meeting you, Zach.”

  Finally, she thought. Now, where were we?

  Zach broke her mental reverie, wasting no time in getting to the heart of the matter. “You haven’t gone to lunch yet, by chance, have you?”

  Jenna shook her head. “I haven’t, and I’m starving. Why? Did you have something in mind?”

  He leaned in a little closer, and a hint of cologne hit Jenna’s lungs like an aphrodisiac. “As a matter of fact, I do.”

  With Nolan tucked away in the office, she scribbled down a note, letting him know she was heading to lunch. Zach’s arm brushed against hers as they walked side by side out of the showroom, and she was pleasantly surprised when he opened the door for her.

  “Thank you. I can’t tell you the last time someone did that for me,” she mused.

  “Anytime,” he grinned.

  “I guess I should’ve worn my walking shoes today.” She gestured down to her feet. They weren’t the most comfortable shoes, but at least they weren’t sky-high stilettos.

  “No need to worry. We’re taking the car. We could walk there, but it would be a lot faster if we take my car.”

  Sure enough, the vintage Mustang was there, gleaming in the sunlight. “This is yours?” she asked.

  “Sure is. She’s my pride and joy, and the first car I’ve ever restored.”

  Her eyes scanned the car from one end to another, taking in the pristine level of craftsmanship that had been put into the car. “That’s amazing. It looks brand new like it had been frozen in time.”

  “Well, I’d like to think I have an eye for anything beautiful.” She was fairly certain he was still speaking of the car, but with the playful gleam in his eyes, Jenna wondered if he was hinting at something else instead. With Zach, everythi
ng was lighthearted, with a hint of humor and a dash of charm.

  Charm. That was an excellent word to describe it, she thought. He certainly had plenty of that.

  Jenna wriggled her way inside, slumping down into her seat. She reached for the seatbelt, only to find her hand had grasped nothing but a lap belt. “I forgot there weren’t regular seatbelts during this time,” she grimaced.

  A nervous smile formed on Jenna’s face, and her blood thrummed through her veins. The excitement she had felt earlier was slowly starting to fade, replaced by a sense of dread.

  “Well, they were regular ones. Back then, anyway.”

  Jenna’s hand reached for the center console, and before she could speak, Zach’s hand enveloped around hers, letting his warmth and comfort grace her delicate skin.

  “No need to worry. I’m a fabulous driver, and if nothing else, this car is built as solid as a ship.” Somehow, between his words and the warmth of his hand, the worrisome butterflies in her stomach vanished, leaving a sense of peace behind. She was safe with him.

  And she was in good hands.

  The engine purred as Zach hit the gas. Knowing that Jenna had been so tense, he drove like Grandpa out for a Sunday drive, making sure to obey every rule like he was back in driver’s training. Ten and two, he thought. No need to alarm her any more than she already was. Watching Jenna’s anxiety ratchet up was the last thing he wanted, and even though he was far from a thrill-seeking speed demon when driving alone, he wanted to make a good impression on her.

  He’d fallen hard for her and now was his chance to make the magic happen.

  “So, where are we off to?” she asked.

  Zach kept his eyes on the road ahead. “Now, you don’t want me to ruin the surprise, now do you?”

  Jenna rolled her eyes playfully. “Trust me, I’m not a fan of surprises. Unless they’re good ones.”

  “I think it’s pretty safe to say it’s a good one.”

  A group of swimsuit-clad women lined the sidewalk, proudly holding signs advertising a charity car wash, and to Jenna’s surprise, his eyes didn’t stray once. Not once! With laser focus, he kept his eyes on the road ahead, unwilling to peel them away for any sort of distraction.