by Hope, Amity
“How’s Max handling being away?” I asked.
She laughed. “He was checking in with his grandparents at least once a day. Villette finally told him he needed to stop calling or he wouldn’t have a job to come back to.”
“Oh, tough love,” I said.
“Exactly.” She paused a beat. “So big date tonight, huh?”
“Yes.”
“What are you doing?”
“I have no idea,” I answered honestly. “He’s being very secretive. The only hint he gave was to dress casual.”
“Did you?”
I glanced down at the cute, flirty sundress I was wearing. “Well…”
“Lanna,” she said sternly, “if the guy says dress casual, you should dress casual. What if he takes you rock climbing or something?”
“Then I’ll realize he’s totally not my type and have him take me home,” I said. “But I do see your point. I’ll change into something less…dressy.”
“Good call.” Her tone switched to something more sincere. “Are you nervous?”
“Not really,” I said with a smile. “It seems silly to be nervous about him picking me up in half an hour when he’s been living across the hall all week.”
“Good point,” she said. “Has it been awkward?”
“Surprisingly, no. He hasn’t been around enough for it to be awkward. He’s had class every morning and then he works for a few hours on campus. He comes home and we chill for a bit. It’s been nice.”
I moved to my closet and started rifling through my clothes again.
“I won’t keep you,” Holly said. “Have fun tonight. Call me in the morning so you can tell me all about it.”
“Will do,” I agreed. We disconnected and I shimmied out of my dress. I quickly hung it up and tugged on a pair of denim, cut-off shorts. What could be more casual than that? I chose a white peasant top with embroidered sleeves. I dressed the outfit up a bit by adding a few layers of bracelets…all courtesy of Holly’s jewelry making business.
Once again, I took a step back in the mirror.
Perfectly casual.
A car door slammed. It could be anyone but I assumed it was Jake. I put on a final swipe of lip gloss before exiting my room.
He walked in the front door as I reached the entryway.
I held my arms out. “Casual enough?” My ensemble was pretty much the opposite of what I’d worn almost a week ago.
He smiled appreciatively. “It’s perfect. Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
“You might want to grab a jacket,” he suggested. “It might get chilly later.”
I did as he requested and he ushered me out the door.
~*~*~
We were headed north, out of town, driving along the coast. I had spotted a picnic basket in the backseat when I had tossed my jacket back there. It was the old fashioned kind; woven with a flip top and a handle. Perhaps a picnic wasn’t the most original idea, but no one I had dated had ever bothered to go to the trouble for me before.
I had twisted around in my seat as a smile danced on my lips. I envisioned picnicking on the beach, watching the sunset. It might just be the most romantic date ever. I wondered where we were going. With the ocean spread out to our left, we had a wide selection of beaches. I assumed Jake had a particular one in mind.
“Do you know what I just realized?” I said. “You never told me how your lunch went with Clark McMillan.”
“It went fine.” He paused. “Actually, it was better than fine.” He gave me a sheepish look. “There’s more to the story than what I got into with you before. I didn’t want to say anything until I had a clearer picture, but after talking to Clark, things are looking good.”
“How so?”
“Well, uh, Clark Sr. and Frederic have a longstanding history. To keep it simple, there’s no love lost between the two of them. They essentially can’t even tolerate being in the same room together. But his youngest son and I are friends from school. It was actually his idea that I apply for this internship with his dad.”
“Nice,” I said, “you have an in.”
He nodded. “Yeah. Who would’ve thought our common hatred for Frederic would work in my favor? Anyhow, Clark Sr. knows that it would grate on Frederic’s nerves if I worked for McMillan and Sons. He may have kicked me out of the family, but I know in his twisted mind, he still expects me to be loyal. Me working for a rival is not going to sit well with him.” He sighed. “I know it sounds childish and vindictive. But…”
“But it’s the sort of opportunity that you really can’t pass up.”
“Right. I think our lunch meeting was to affirm that I feel no allegiance to Frederic whatsoever. And I don’t.”
“So working for a guy he can’t stand will be like a slap in the face to Frederic.” I surmised.
“More like a kick to the nuts,” Jake said with a grin. “As long as I can prove my worth, it sounds like I might be offered a position when my internship is done. There’s no guarantee. I will have to prove myself. But if I do?” He nodded. “Yeah. I think my future could be set.”
“That’s great.”
“It is. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not all about revenge. It’s a great company. I’m damn lucky that they took me on. It’s an amazing opportunity. I feel bad admitting this, but I’ve been jealous of Max. He knows what he wants to do and his future is all set,” Jake said.
I nodded. “I know what you mean.”
“I know Max works hard. But still…”
“It would be nice to have your future so mapped out,” I finished for him.
“Exactly. Speaking of Max, have you heard from him?”
“I talked to Holly. They’re having a good time. But I think they’re anxious to come home,” I said.
He nodded. “I can see that. There’s just something about being home that’s comforting.”
I wasn’t sure how to respond to that. It seemed there was deeper meaning to the statement. It had to have been awful to be kicked out of your home, kicked completely out of the life you’d known. Especially when it was through no fault of your own.
“I suppose there is,” I quietly agreed.
“Do you miss Chamberlain?”
I thought about it for a minute. “Not really. Things haven’t been good between my mom and me in a long time. They’ve been worse this past year, worse than ever. But even growing up, I always spent a lot of time at Holly’s. Living in the beach house actually feels like home to me. Or maybe just having my friends so close, that feels like home to me.”
Half an hour into our drive, he turned his blinker on. I had assumed we were headed for a semi-private stretch of sand. Instead, we turned into a marina.
It took no time at all to surmise that the boats docked here were so luxurious that they probably cost more than some people’s houses. Each nestled into their own slip, they bobbed lazily against the waves.
I turned to him with an arched eyebrow and a grin. “Did you rent a boat for the evening?” Then my smile slipped. Renting a boat…any one of the fancy boats that were docked here…would probably cost hundreds of dollars. I wanted to spend time with Jake. What I didn’t want was for him to spend his money on me. “We don’t have to go out on the ocean. We passed a nice beach a few miles back.” I vaguely motioned toward the highway.
I knew money was tight for him. I didn’t want to make matters worse.
“I didn’t rent a boat. But we are going out on one,” he said as he pulled into a parking spot. “Come on.”
He got out of the car and grabbed my jacket and the picnic basket out of the back seat. He used the key fob to lock the door. I followed as he took purposeful strides.
My cheeks hurt from smiling so big. I would have been happy with a picnic on the beach. This went above and beyond my expectations.
Not for the first time I pitied Darby for her inability to see Jake for the amazing guy that he was. She had spent enough time with him over the years, she had to be blind not to
see. Apparently she was. Blind with greed.
“I wanted to do something special,” he said. “Something a little different. I worked here last summer. I knew some of the owners. A few were family friends. One of the guys I got to know pretty well. He’s an acquaintance of Frederic’s but…not exactly a friend. He told me I could take his boat out anytime.” He laughed self-deprecatingly. “He told me it was a great way to de-stress and apparently he thought I needed de-stressing.”
“Have you taken it out before tonight?”
“Yes,” he said.
“Did it help you to de-stress?”
Jake smiled at me. “Every single time.”
Twenty minutes later he had maneuvered the boat so that the shoreline was a distant blur. There was nothing but water in every direction. The waves shimmered, reflecting the sky above as the sun began to drop.
The boat rocked gently in a calming, hypnotic fashion.
Jake had spread out a blanket. I was sprawled out on the deck, my legs stretched out in front of me as I propped myself up on my elbows. He settled down next to me and began unpacking our picnic dinner.
“Would you believe that I’ve been here for like, half a year and I’ve never actually been out on the water before?”
Jake paused with a croissant in each hand. “Never?”
I shook my head.
“What do you think?”
“I think it’s amazing. When you look into the horizon, it looks like you can just fall right over the edge of the world.”
“Wait until the stars come out. The water just glistens.”
“There aren’t proper sunsets in Minnesota,” I said as I eyed the vast, open sky.
“No?”
“No. There are too many trees. Always in the way. I mean, yes, you can watch the sun dip behind the treetops but it’s really not the same. I always felt a little bit cheated, like I was never getting the full effect.”
He spread out the food, artfully prepared by the local deli. Everything was perfect and delicious. But my mind wasn’t really on the food. That didn’t stop us from finishing most of it off before packing it away.
The sun set while we ate. It was an amazing experience to watch the fiery ball drop off the edge of the world. Somehow, bobbing on a boat and not being anchored to the beach made the experience seem almost surreal.
“Just so you know,” I started, “this is hands down the best first date I’ve ever been on.”
“I was hoping you would say that,” Jake admitted. He had already packed everything away. Now he was leaning back on the blanket beside me. The sun had gone down but tangerine and gold streaks lingered on the horizon, lighting up the plum colored sky. The first stars were hazy hints pressing their way into the darkness.
His phone, which was resting near the picnic basket, chimed.
I wasn’t trying to be nosy but it caught my attention. I glanced at it. I saw who it was even though that wasn’t my intention.
The phone continued to ring. “Are you, um, going to get that?”
“No,” he scoffed.
“Are you sure you don’t want to talk to her? I mean, you were together for years. You were engaged. You were in love.”
“And now I’m not,” Jake said simply. “I was also blind and naïve.”
I nodded and blew out breath. “I guess I can relate to that.”
He swiped his phone up and silenced it before tossing it into the picnic basket.
“Does she call often?”
He smirked but it was an amused looking smirk. “Only since last Saturday night.”
“Since the wedding?” He nodded. “I knew she had the jealous look about her.”
“Pair that with the fact that Braden dumped her earlier in the week, and yeah. I guess it was a pretty bad night for her.”
“Did she tell you that?”
“Nah, a mutual friend did.”
“What else did this mutual friend have to say?”
“Oh, ah,” he cleared his throat. “Nothing much.”
“Jake.”
“Okay.” He shifted beside me. “He said she had some grand scheme for trying to win me back at the wedding.”
“I foiled that scheme,” I said wryly.
He didn’t look too bothered by this. “Apparently so.”
“You’re okay with that?”
“Definitely. I’ve had it with her manipulations. Our mutual friend also told me Darby found out about me getting the internship at McMillan and Sons. That put me back on her radar. You know, since I might actually have some potential after all. Apparently that upgraded my status from complete loser.” His tone was sarcastic, I thought probably to hide the edge of hurt behind it.
“Ugh. She’s—” I shook my head, not knowing what to say.
“Something. Yeah. I know. Now she’s been calling a few times a day. She never did give me the ring back. I doubt that’s why she’s calling, though.”
“You’re kidding,” I said flatly. She broke off the engagement. She left him when he probably needed her most. She was perfectly aware of the financial situation he was in and she kept the ring? I laughed though I was not amused. “Jake,” I said as I shook my head, “I like this girl less and less.”
“You’re not the only one,” he said flatly. “Sorry I have a crazy ex.”
I laughed bitterly. “You’re not the only one.”
His head swiveled to the side. I felt his gaze roaming over my face. “Want to talk about it?”
I shook my head, wishing I had kept my mouth shut. “Absolutely not. We’re on this amazing date. From here on out, I only want to talk and think about us.”
“Or,” he said as he rolled onto his side and leaned in, “we could skip the talking altogether.”
“That,” I said as I laced my fingers behind his neck, “is the best thing I’ve heard all night.”
Chapter 13
Two dozen cupcakes were spread out in front of me. I scrubbed down the counter and washed up the dishes as I waited for them to cool. I wasn’t an ace in the kitchen but I was trying to learn. Mostly, I cheated. Boxed products were my friend.
Except for the frosting. I’d made that from scratch.
Baby steps.
One day, I aspired to make an entire culinary masterpiece from scratch. Today was not that day. Today was the day I settled for making salted caramel frosting all on my own.
It was a start.
I gently pressed a finger against the top of the chocolate cupcake. It bounced back into place. I quickly set to work slathering my gooey, decadent frosting on top of the stash of cupcakes I’d baked. I was not so secretly glad that Jake was still staying here. No need to have two dozen cupcakes all to myself.
Twenty minutes later I had them frosted, taste-tested, and sealed away in an airtight container.
The front door swung open and moments later Jake strode into the kitchen.
“What have you been up to?” He chuckled. “Never mind. I think I can see for myself.”
I raised an eyebrow at him.
He grinned as he moved in close. I thought he was coming in for a kiss. I was not about to protest. Instead, he swiped his finger across my cheek. He held it in front of my face to show off the glob of frosting that was precariously balanced on it.
I groaned and instantly tapped my face with my fingers to see if any more of my confectionary masterpiece was lingering.
Jake grinned as he popped the glob into his mouth. He moaned as it melted across his tongue.
“Good, right?” I said.
“Delicious,” he agreed. “Is there more?”
I pointed to the container of cupcakes. “Help yourself.”
He popped off the lid and gobbled up two of them. I was happy to see them go. Better to put his abs at risk than my own. Mostly because I thought he had a long way to go before the condition of his abs would be in jeopardy.
He licked the last of the frosting from his fingers. “Those were awesome. Now,” he said, “maybe you
should go change clothes so we can go out.”
“Change? Into what? Where are we going? Casual isn’t appropriate?” I asked. It was mid-day. I had no idea what he had in mind.
“Casual is perfect,” he said. He tugged at my shirt and I glanced down. “Chocolate spattered…not so much.”
I rolled my eyes at myself. “I swear, I’m such a slob. I need an apron. The old fashioned kind that my grandma used to wear.”
“Aw,” he said. “I don’t mind the splatters. It makes you seem all domesticated. But if we’re going out, I assume you—”
“Don’t want to look like a slob?” I finished blandly. He laughed. “Where did you say we’re going?” I pressed.
“I didn’t. But now that you asked, how about we try golfing?”
“How about no?” I suggested. “No golfing.” I’d never played, not once, not ever. He’d been playing since he was a kid. He and Max had been on their high school’s golf team. He could be done with the whole course—it was called a course, wasn’t it?—before I’d even manage to get one ball into that little hole. “Golfing…not a good idea.”
“I’ll modify the plan. Let’s try mini-golf,” he suggested. “And I thought it was a great idea.”
I didn’t want to disappoint him. I also didn’t want to embarrass myself. I hesitated.
“Tell you what, I’ll play left handed.”
I raised an eyebrow at that prospect. That might work. That might actually be fair. “Okay.”
He tossed an arm around my shoulder, pulling me in for a sideways hug. He kissed my temple before saying, “It’ll be fun, Lanna. It’s just a game.”
~*~*~
Turns out, it was fun. It was a whole lot of fun. Even if he did beat me. Left-handed, no less. When Holly got back into town, I might have to talk her into taking up mini-golf with me. Then maybe someday far, far away we could progress to real golf.
After a few rounds we decided we’d had enough for the day. Neither of us was in a rush to go home. Not to mention, we were both starving and I, for one, needed more sustenance than chocolate cupcakes had to offer.
