by Holly Jacobs
Ecstatic. Joyful. Gleeful even.
None of them quite fit.
Carrie couldn’t come up with a word that seemed adequate to describe the emotion that was filling her to the bursting point
She checked in the mirror. Her hair was tamed, at least momentarily, and her heart was in her eyes.
Anyone who saw her today wouldn’t be able to help but know the truth of things. Carrington Rose Delany loved Jackson Eric Templeton.
Of course, she wasn’t going to tell him.
Not, just yet. She wasn’t completely sure he had healed. Sandy had been a part of his life for years. Though, she’d been in his life even longer. Still, until Carrie was convinced that he was over Sandy, she’d take her time. They had all the time in the world.
Even thoughts of Sandy couldn’t dim her mood. Not after the way she and Jack had spent the past twenty-four hours.
She opened the bathroom door. “Jack?”
The room was empty. Maybe he’d gone down to the restaurant to get them a table. They’d decided today that they would leave the room, for a while at least.
Carrie smiled as she grabbed her key card.
Yes, just for a little while.
They’d eat, maybe take a walk on the beach and then come back to their room, and she’d let Jack work his delicious magic on her again.
She quickly pressed the elevator button. She was anxious to find Jack, to eat, to take that walk and then get back to the room.
Oh, how she wanted to go back to their room.
She practically bolted off the elevator, so great was her need to see Jack. Walking through the lobby she stopped short.
In that one moment, her dreams didn’t just fade away, they died.
Jack was sitting on a couch next to Sandy.
No, not just sitting—hugging.
Clinging to each other. Wrapped in each other’s arms, as if their separation had never happened.
Carrie stood, locked in place, watching her dreams shatter before her eyes.
Jack and Sandy.
Sandy and Jack.
They ended their embrace, but didn’t move apart. His hand rested on her thigh, like it had countless other times.
They were talking.
Jack was smiling.
Carrie backed out of the room.
She had to get away.
Jack had Sandy back. She was his true love.
Carrie had just been a momentary aberration, just as she had feared.
Friendship had mingled with loneliness and for a moment they’d had something more. Now Jack didn’t need her anymore. He had Sandy.
It was a couples’ resort, a small voice in the back of her mind whispered. Sandy had to have come with someone, with a man. But the image of Jack and Sandy hugging overrode that voice.
Whoever Sandy had come with meant as little to her as Carrie had meant to Jack. Sandy and Jack were together again and nothing and no one else mattered to them.
The pressure in Carrie’s chest threatened to cut off her oxygen. She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
She had to get away.
Away.
That’s what she’d do.
It might seem cowardly, but Carrie looked at it as self-preservation.
She had to put some distance between herself and Jack.
She needed some time to put the pieces of her broken heart together.
He’d been nothing but honest with her.
She just needed some space.
She’d see when there was a flight leaving the island and she’d be on it
She couldn’t stay and witness Jack and Sandy’s reunion. She couldn’t witness the look in his eyes when he had to tell her their short fling was flung.
Over.
Finite.
Just like the dreams that had been revived. They were over as well.
Chapter Seven
“YOU’RE HOME EARLY,” Eloise said the next day between a mouthful of pins. “What happened?
“You know, that’s why God created pincushions,” Carrie said, ignoring Eloise’s question.
She tossed her bag on the bench in Encore’s workroom and went to her desk.
She was going to force herself into normality. Going back to work was a start. She looked at her boss. “One of these days you’re going to swallow one of those things, trying to talk around them like that and you’ll kill yourself.”
“What happened?” Eloise asked again.
Carrie should have stayed at home. Eloise was like a pit bull—when she grabbed hold of something, she didn’t let it go.
“Nothing,” she tried. “I just decided the life of decadence wasn’t for me.”
Eloise didn’t look up, she just continued pinning a pale pink dress on the dressmaker’s form. “So, what did Jack do?”
“Nothing.”
That was the truth. He’d done nothing. She was the one who’d gone and fallen in love with her best friend.
Carrie went through the motions of looking at the letters that were waiting for her.
Eloise didn’t look up again, she just continued pinning the dress. “You might as well just tell me and save yourself the inquisition.”
Carrie tossed the letters down and walked toward Eloise. She sank onto the floor next to her boss.
“I slept with him,” she admitted.
Eloise stabbed another pin into the material.
“Ah.” Eloise nodded her head as if that’s exactly what she’d expected to hear.
“That’s all you’re going to say?” Carrie asked. “Ah? You browbeat me into telling you—”
“I didn’t browbeat you, I just threatened to.” Eloise looked up and grinned through her mouthful of pins.
“And I tell you what happened. I confess that I’ve slept with my best friend and all I get from you is Ah’?”
“What would you prefer?”
Carrie rested her head in her hands. She was so tired and every time she thought she knew what she was doing, doubt whispered in her ear. “You could have said something like, Carrie, you poor thing.”
“Was he that bad in bed?” she asked.
Carrie shook her head. “He wasn’t bad...it wasn’t bad. As a matter of fact, I’ve never experienced anything quite like it.”
“Did he snore?” Eloise asked.
Despite herself, Carrie felt herself start to smile. “Nothing I couldn’t cope with.”
“So, the problem was...?” Eloise left the question hanging.
“He’s my best friend, and he’s on the rebound, and...”
“And?”
It was time to say her deep, terrible secret out loud. “Sandy.”
“So, she called.”
“Not called. Came to the island. I found them in the lobby together. They were hugging.”
Carrie doubted she’d ever get that image out of her mind. Jack embracing Sandy.
“And what did Jack say?” Eloise’s expression furrowed as she studied Carrie.
Carrie felt like a bug under a microscope as she admitted, “Nothing.”
“He slept with you and didn’t say anything when he went back to Sandy.”
“He didn’t have a chance to say anything. I saw them hugging and I left. I packed, wrote a note and just left. I couldn’t face him. I just got in this morning and came straight here. I didn’t want to go home. I wanted—”
“You wanted me to say, poor baby and comfort you?” Eloise asked.
Carrie nodded. “Something like that.”
“Sorry. I’m fresh out of sympathy for fools.”
Carrie wasn’t sure what sort of reaction she’d expected from her friend, but that wasn’t it. “Eloise.”
“Listen, I’m offering you a partnership in this business because I think you’ve got a lot going for you. You’re talented, creative and have been an asset to the business. With you at the helm here, I can move forward with opening a new store in Pittsburgh. But, now I’m rethinking—”
It took a minute
for Carrie to register what her friend had just said. “Partnership?”
“Oh, didn’t I mention it?” Eloise smiled, pins sticking oddly out of the comer of her mouth. “While I was working on our exclusive Carrington Rose line, I was also working on a partnership between us. The papers are on your desk. You’ll be taking over the store here in Erie.”
“Uh.” She didn’t know what to say.
“Is that a yes?” Eloise asked.
“Yes.”
Eloise took the pins from her mouth and stuck them in a pincushion. She extended her hand. “Put it there, partner.”
“Partner. I’ve thought about starting a place of my own, but I liked it here, liked you...” She let the sentence trail off.
Partner.
It was a dream come true.
“Encore will be the exclusive home of Carrington Rose Originals.”
A partnership. Her own label. It might not be New York, or Paris, but Erie was home and this was her dream.
This was a dream come true.
Which just proved that some dreams could come true.
She thought of Jack.
And some dreams never would.
~~~
It was eight that evening before she finally went back to her loft.
Her answering machine was flashing when she came in. More out of habit than an interest to know who had called, Carrie poked the message button on her answering machine.
“Message one of sixteen,” the disembodied voice said.
“Carrie. Where are you? And what the hell kind of emergency does a dress shop have?” Jack’s voice asked.
“Message two of sixteen.”
“Carrie. There’s some front moving in and no planes are leaving until it passes. I’ll be in the first available seat. Call me here. You must have the number.”
“Message three of sixteen.”
“Carrie. What happened? Call me.”
She shut the machine off. She didn’t need to hear anymore.
She’d left a note. Of course it was brief, but he had a note and he had Sandy. What more did he want from her?
The phone rang three times and the machine picked it up.
“Carrie. I know you’re there. Pick up the phone. Is this about us? Did I rush you? Scare you off? It scared me, too. You’ve been my friend for as long as I can remember. If you want to slow things down, I’ll try. I’m sorry. I—”
Sorry? He was sorry? Carrie couldn’t stand listening to any more. Jack was going to play the wounded party?
He had Sandy back. Why keep up the charade?
She picked up the phone. “Jack. It’s me. I’m here. I just got in from the shop.”
“And the emergency?”
“Eloise made me a partner. Isn’t that wonderful?” She tried to infuse her voice with a happiness that she didn’t quite feel.
“It couldn’t have waited until the end of our vacation?” he asked.
“Eloise knew the whole thing was a setup to get you out of town. She’s found a fantastic site in Pittsburgh, but she had to move fast. So I’m back, holding down the fort here. When she’s done there will be all kinds of paperwork to do. You deal with contracts, so you know how it is when people are setting up a partnership.”
“I’m glad for you,” he said. “But that doesn’t explain why you just left and didn’t tell me.”
“I couldn’t find you,” she lied. She didn’t want him to feel sorry for her if she admitted she’d seen him and Sandy. She certainly didn’t admit she’d snuck out a side door in order to avoid the two of them in the lobby. “And I had to hurry to catch my flight. I left you that note.”
“What about us, Carrie?” he asked.
“Us? Why, we’re friends, Jack. Nothing could change that.”
Even as she said the words, she realized it was a lie. Their friendship had changed and she wasn’t sure if they’d ever get past those two glorious days they’d spent together.
“Friends? That’s all?”
“I know things will be odd, after we...well, you know.”
“After we made love?” There was frustration in his voice.
“Had sex,” she corrected. “It was the atmosphere. I’m sure it was just a fluke. We’ll just forget it. Put it behind us and get back to reality. The reality of the situation is we’re friends. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“That’s it? Whatever else we’d started to discover was just a fluke? You can discount it that easily?”
“Jack, you know that we’re not meant for each other. You’ve...” she started to say, you’ve got Sandy, but he hadn’t mentioned his ex’s return. Maybe he felt guilty. Maybe he was just putting up a front to help Carrie save some self-respect. He’d tell her about Sandy later.
Well, Carrie wasn’t going to ruin his illusion. “You’ve got someone out there who can be what you need. It’s not me. I mean, can you see me fitting in with your lawyer friends?”
“Yes.”
“Listen, I’ve got to run. There’s so much to do here. Call me when you get home and we’ll get together as friends.” She put a heavy emphasis on the as-friends part.
“You’re sure that’s the way you want it?” he asked.
“It’s the way it has to be. Goodbye, Jack.”
~~~
On Monday, Carrie mechanically began to review Encore’s books from last week, getting herself up to speed.
Her books.
Her store.
The thought should thrill her, but it didn’t.
Nothing did.
Everything seemed grey and flat.
She forced herself to focus on the numbers. It was easier to concentrate on work than to worry about Jack.
The phone rang. She tried to infuse some enthusiasm in her voice as she answered it. “This is Encore, where yesterday’s clothes are rediscovered for today’s woman. Carrington Delany speaking. How can I help you?”
“Carrie, you didn’t answer the phone at home all weekend,” Jack stated emphatically.
Carrie decided another reason why a woman shouldn’t fall for a friend—they knew too much. “I’ve been busy.”
“Busy?” he asked, his tone sharp.
“I needed to get back to work. Things are going to be crazy here until we settle into the new routine,” she finished lamely.
“Yeah, all those emergencies at the dress shop.”
She wasn’t going to fight with him. She avoided him after his return for just that reason. “What can I do for you, Jack? Shouldn’t you be out defending the American way of life or something?”
“I’m at work,” he said.
Carrie tapped her pen against the ledger. “Well, you should be thinking about your next case, not your friends.”
“Well, I wanted to see if you wanted dinner tonight,” he said.
“I’m sorry, Jack, I can’t. I’m...uh, busy.” She needed some time apart from him, time to let their relationship get back to normal.
“Doing what?” he asked.
“What?” she repeated.
“Yes, what?” Jack said again.
“I...uh, well...”
“It’s an easy question, Carrie. What are you doing tonight that you can’t go out to eat with me? Are you waxing your legs again?”
She snorted and felt a reluctant smile erupting. “I’ll never be that desperate. There’s not much I’d ever go that route for again.”
He laughed. “Okay, is it a date? Are you seeing someone else?”
Carrie only wished she were.
For years she’d wanted Jack, but she’d ignored what she felt and dated other men. Now, after having experienced what truly being with Jack could be, she wasn’t sure she’d ever want another man again. “No date. Just work.”
“I wanted to ask you at dinner, but since you’re busy I’ll ask you now. I have a favor and I’m hoping you’ll help me out.”
“What favor?”
“I need a date for Simpson’s retirement party—”
“A
nd you want me to suggest someone?”
What about Sandy? She wanted to ask him how their time together on the island had been and what their future plans were, but she didn’t. She’d just act as if she didn’t know they were back together. Jack would tell her when he was ready.
Knowing Jack, he might even feel a little guilty, but there was no reason for that. They hadn’t made any promises.
When Sandy flew, Carrie had played fill-in date numerous times. He’d simply taken at her word and was falling back into their old routine.
“I want you to come with me,” he said.
“Are you sure?”
“Ah, come on, Carrie. You’ve gone to office stuff with me in the past when Sandy was out of town.”
She didn’t want to cut Jack out of her life entirely, she just needed distance. But it didn’t look like she was going to get it. He was right. Things were going back to normal.
“Fine,” she agreed.
“Great. Tomorrow at seven.”
“Fine.”
“Oh, and wear that dress. You know, the one you wore to the club after I waxed your legs,” he said.
“I thought you didn’t like that one.”
“No. The problem was I liked it way too much.”
Carrie shook her head. “Then I probably shouldn’t wear it.”
A sharp pain shot through her hand and Carrie realized she had the phone in a death-grip. She forced herself to relax.
“Well, I thought, since we’ve decided we’re just friends again, you might want some introductions around the office. That dress certainly shows your...assets to their best advantage.”
As Jack spoke to Carrie on the phone, he was torn between wanting to kiss her senseless and the urge to throttle her for what she was putting him through. He had no plans of introducing her to anyone at the party, at least not any single, available men. But he wasn’t about to tell her that. Something had spooked her and it was up to him to fix it.
She sputtered. “You’re going to show me off to your friends and parade me around like some offering?”
Jack grinned at the annoyance in her voice. She might be running, but she wasn’t going to run fast enough to escape him. “Sure. I mean, I’m sure we can find you someone better than Fred.”
“Ted.”
