by Bird, Peggy
“Yeah, it’s huge.”
Meg shook her head. “Some crazy gets it in their head to look for the treasure and next thing you know there’s a huge hole in the lawn.” A timer went off and Meg made her way to the oven.
Jade sighed. “I guess I was hoping it was some emergency plumbing issue rather than stupid treasure hunters.”
Meg started to laugh. “One year Lester Manning got it in his head that the treasure had been buried at the edge of his property next to the outhouse. He dug too close and almost buried himself in poop.”
Jade nodded. “I kind of remember that story. Jeez, this is such a pain in the ass. I’m supposed to be taking care of this place. I feel like I’m letting Aunt Bertie down.”
Meg set a tray of cinnamon buns down on the counter to cool. “That’s a bit harsh. I know Bert fairly well, and I’m pretty sure she would not hold you responsible for a mysterious hole in the lawn that I’m assuming you didn’t dig and didn’t hire someone to dig.”
“Yeah. It just feels like I’m failing, you know? And who the hell digs a huge hole in a gorgeous, perfectly manicured, postcard-perfect lawn?”
“Well, if your intention is to control life’s little road bumps, you are definitely failing. That’s a game you can give up on right now. It’s pointless. If your intention is to run Lakehaven smoothly, however, you’re doing fine.”
Jade straightened, pushing off from where she’d been leaning against the counter, and took one final sip of coffee before placing the mug in the sink. “I will be once I find Jeff. Thanks, Meggs.”
• • •
“Your mom is going to be very unhappy,” Samantha complained over the phone. “What happened? Yesterday you were staying a week, and now it’s three months. I don’t get it.”
“I just need more time than I thought.” Matt swiveled in his chair away from the desk and his laptop. He picked up a pen from the desk and tapped it on his leg.
“Time for what? What in the hell is there to do there?” There was a pause on the line and a sharp inhale which sounded like Sam taking a drag on a cigarette.
“Nothing. That’s the point. Are you smoking again?”
“Damn straight. Are you tapping a pen on your leg?”
Matt stilled the hand with the pen. “No.”
Samantha laughed. “Liar. I promise I won’t talk to your mother. What’s going on?”
“Some intriguing developments.” Matt started tapping his pen again. He swiveled his chair to face the window on the wall opposite his desk. Dappled sunlight filtered through the crosshatch of branches that arched over the cabin eaves, creating a mosaic of dark and light on the wood floor. He imagined Jade lying in that swath of light, the glow of it on her skin. Matt had a very good imagination. He smiled to himself.
Sam waited for a moment before prompting Matt. “I assume you don’t mean with your story.”
“Hmm?” Matt pulled his mind back to the phone call. “Oh, no, the story is fine. Writing is going well. Better than usual.”
“A woman, then.” It wasn’t a question.
Matt laughed. “I’m that easy to figure, huh.”
Sam sighed. “Maybe not for everyone. But I know you, Matt. Most people probably wouldn’t figure you for a sentimental wuss. They see the successful writing career or the high-profile dating sprees and assume that your personality goes with the pictures in the paper. I know better, so spill! Don’t leave me hanging.”
Matt stood up and began to pace the cabin. “Okay, but if you talk to my mother about this I’ll publish that picture of you with whiskey shooting out of your nose. She’d be up here in a heartbeat if she thought there was something to interfere in.” He paced into the kitchen.
“Oooooh … It’s that good?”
“No, it’s nothing yet. It just has the potential to be something, which is why I want my mother as far away from here as possible. I want time to explore this, whatever it is.” Matt leaned against the counter and looked out the window over the sink. The morning fog had already burned off. He turned back toward the living room.
Sam paused as if there was something important she wanted to say, but instead she just offered, “Okay, is there anything that needs taking care of here?”
“Just have Allison forward my mail. I’ll take care of everything else.” Matt flipped his cell phone shut and plugged it into the charger on his desk. He was surprised that he got service here in the woods, but the phone used up about twice the charge searching for a signal.
He wandered back to the kitchen and filled a teakettle with water. Each Lakehaven cabin came with a compact but tidy kitchen that was stocked with basic appliances and some simple pantry items. Now that he was staying for three months, he would probably make a trip into the town nearby to fill the tiny fridge with some of his favorite foods. He dumped the old grounds out of the French press sitting next to the sink, rinsed it, and filled it with fresh coffee. He leaned against the counter, arms crossed over his chest, and thought about the morning while he waited for the water to boil.
While diplomacy was not his strength, Matt didn’t necessarily think of himself as a complete ass either, despite all evidence to the contrary. Part of what annoyed him was Jade’s assumption that he was a shallow womanizer. As far as he knew, she wasn’t even basing that opinion on the society pages in the Times, which did have a tendency to portray him in a somewhat salacious manner. No, as far as he knew, she still didn’t know his real name. She was either judging him based on the way he looked (which would be pretty shallow), or on some relationship in her past. That was the root cause of his foul mood. He was not about be punished for the crimes of some ghost from her past, and he was too damned attracted to her to let it slide. He was used to having a take-it or leave-it approach to relationships, even with women he had dated for months. He was always in control of his heart and his emotions. This was something else entirely, something a little wild. Being a bit out of control was new for Matt, and it had him off balance. But Matt was good at plotting, and tables were easy to turn … he hoped.
Matt poured boiling water into the French press and let it sit for a few minutes before depressing the plunger and pouring himself a fresh cup. He brought it to his desk and sat down to plot.
• • •
Two cups of coffee and a cinnamon roll later, Jade had her blood pressure back in the green zone. Amidst much grumbling, Stu, who had finally found a different shovel in the shed, was filling the hole in the lawn, and the local nursery and garden center was delivering some fresh sod later that afternoon. Now that Jade had dealt with that, she could focus on the other problem at hand. She had made a bet that almost required her to have an affair with Matt.
The kitchen was a large room with an open layout and a high ceiling with chocolate brown wood rafters. It had three doorways: one on the north wall that lead out to the hallway, one on the east wall that lead to the dining room, and one on the south wall that led outside. The south wall faced the lawn and, beyond that, the lake. A fireplace occupied the southwest corner, and next to that was an old wooden table where Jade sat cradling a mug in her palms and looking out the window at the lawn and the lake beyond.
Meg had finished cooking breakfast and began preparing lunch: cold pasta and chicken salad, Parmesan rolls, and a cold green bean salad. She sat with Jade while the pasta boiled. “So what are you going to do?”
Jade sighed. “I wish I knew. It’s ridiculous, really. I should just apologize for losing my head and tell him respectfully that the bet is not really appropriate because he is a guest.”
“Oh God, you’re not going to be that big of a wuss, are you?” Meg got up and stirred the pot of pasta. She looked over her shoulder and raised her eyebrows.
Jade slumped down in her chair. “I don’t know,” she whined.
Meg rolled her eyes. “Wuss.”
Jade stuck her tongue out at Meg. Meg just laughed.
“What if he’s right? What if I really am incapable of having a simple a
ffair?”
“Hey, that’s a good point. What if you are? What happens if you lose?” Meg asked.
“Oh, that’s a nice vote of confidence from my best friend,” Jade said.
“No, I just mean, what are the terms of the bet?”
“We never came to terms. It all just happened so fast. I was so annoyed, and then the next thing I knew we were shaking hands, and … ”
“Ooooh, this is great. He left himself wide open if you win. You’ll just have to make sure you win.”
“Do you think I can do it?” Jade asked.
Meg smiled devilishly. “You sure could have some fun finding out.”
Jade just put her head down on the table and moaned.
Chapter 6
Matt strolled into the main house at the tail end of the lunch hour. The Kent sisters were the only guests left in the dining room, and they sat at a table in the corner sipping tea. A haphazard pile of playing cards lay face-up on the table, and each woman had a neat stack of cards facedown in her hand. Matt watched them as Adele yelled out, “Two of clubs!” and then flipped a card from her hand onto the pile between them.
Beatrice replied, “Hah, not even close! Jack of hearts!” and flipped one card from her hand onto the growing mass of cards in front of her.
“Nice try, but no cigar!” Adele crowed. “Ace of spades!” Adele flung the card out, then both of them stared open-mouthed at the ace of spades staring up from the top of the pile. Adele was the first to recover. “Hah! I won! I won!” She jumped up from her seat and did a happy dance. Or at least Matt assumed that’s what it was. He hoped she wasn’t having a seizure of some sort. She giggled with glee and shouted, “Booyah! Take that, little sister! In your face!” She pumped a fist in the air and then turned toward Matt. “Did you see that? That was beautiful!” Adele sashayed over to Matt and took his hands and twirled him around in a circle. It was the first time Matt had ever been twirled by a woman, but he was so swept up in her enthusiasm that he just went with it, grinning from ear to ear.
Adele executed a final spin, ending up right in front of her chair and twirling Matt out in a move worthy of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes twinkled, and she was slightly out of breath. Matt stared at her, taking in the vitality and charm. She smiled at him, and he smiled back, giving her a courtly bow. He hoped that he had that kind of spunk when he got to be her age. That’s what he was thinking when the swinging door smacked him in the back and knocked him forward.
He might have caught his balance and remained standing if Jade hadn’t smacked into him next, at a full run no less. He did manage to turn himself over onto his back mid-fall to avoid an embarrassing face plant, but he couldn’t do a thing to slow down the momentum. He landed hard, and Jade landed hard on top of him. She was small but still made an impact as she landed, forcing all of the air out of his lungs with a whoosh. They lay there for a moment, Matt trying to catch his breath and Jade with a stunned look on her face.
Then she started to squirm. “Let me up!” Jade wiggled against him.
Matt winced as he finally took in a breath. “Uh, you’re on top.”
“I know that! What kind of idiot stands right in front of a door?” Jade pushed her hands against Matt’s chest and struggled to her knees.
Matt shifted suddenly when her right knee came dangerously close to making contact with his crotch. “I hope nothing’s broken,” he groaned.
“Of course not, I’m fine,” Jade said as she crawled backwards on all fours down the length of Matt’s body.
“I meant on me.” Matt lifted his head to look down the length of his torso to where Jade hovered, her face directly over his crotch.
“Oh.” Just then, Jade stopped what she was doing to look up Matt’s body at his face. He dropped his head back onto the floor and draped his arm over his eyes, trying not to think about the proximity of her mouth to certain very interested body parts.
Jade glanced down directly into the fly of Matt’s jeans. Oh, dear God. Why does this happen to me? Jade felt a flush run all the way down her body, heating her to her core. She scrambled the rest of the way down Matt’s body and stood quickly.
When embarrassed, bluff like crazy. Jade planted her hands on her hips. “What the hell is going on in here? I heard Adele yelling!”
Matt just lay there, only moving his arm to look up at Jade. He didn’t look inclined to give an answer. Or, maybe he was still out of breath from being crushed by her … awkward entrance. She glanced from one sister to the other. The sisters exchanged a look as Jade waited for an answer.
Beatrice was grinning. “Wow, I haven’t seen anything like that since I Love Lucy was on the air.”
“You know, you can still catch reruns of that on late night television,” Adele piped in.
“Oh, yes, that was always one of my favorites. That and that Gomer Pyle thing.”
Jade looked back and forth between the Kent sisters, bewildered. She was starting to feel like Alice down the rabbit hole. She shook her head. “I’m sorry, maybe I was mistaken.”
“No, no. You heard correctly. Sorry if we disturbed you, dear. I won a bet and Matthew was kind enough to help me celebrate.” There was warmth and pleasure in Adele’s voice. “He’s quite the dancer!” She looked fondly down at him and gave him a wink. Matt smiled up at Adele and winked back. Jade glared down at Matt, hands on her hips, stance wide, given that his feet were on the floor between hers. He looked fabulous stretched out before her, and she had to work hard to avert her gaze before her eyes met his.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Jade looked to Adele and Beatrice for confirmation. Both nodded in assent.
“I’m not,” Matt complained. “Twisted my ankle a little in the fall.”
The two sisters rushed over to him with sympathetic murmurings.
Beatrice jumped up with a spryness that belied her age. “Adele, could you come with me to the kitchen and help me get some ice?” She stared pointedly at Jade. “You’re much younger and stronger than us. Be a dear, will you, and help Matthew up and onto the couch in the great room. We’ll bring the ice to you there.”
Adele nodded enthusiastically in agreement and hustled out the door to the kitchen, leaving Jade alone with Matt.
Jade looked down at Matt and quirked an eyebrow at him. “A sprained ankle?”
Matt looked up at her. “Really. It’s not too bad though.”
Jade kept staring at him. She crossed her arms over her chest. “Hmm.”
“Would I lie to you?” Matt kept eye contact, steady and open.
“Possibly. But if you are lying, you’re very good at it.”
Matt pushed himself to his elbows. “Hey, look, it’s no big deal. I’m sure I can hobble to the couch on my own.” Matt wiggled his foot a bit and winced.
Jade narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. “I know what you’re doing.”
“Other than trying to walk, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Matt pushed himself up onto his hands and looked up at Jade. He almost looked sweet and harmless. Almost.
Matt slid his right foot in toward his body and sat up a little higher, then paused. His brows knit together. Jade exhaled. “Oh, fine then.” She stepped off to Matt’s left side and extended her hand to him. He reached up for her and rolled up to a standing position, making sure to put his weight on his right foot. He did it with the fluid ease of an athlete. He took a quick step, favoring his left leg, and sucked in a breath of pain.
“Oh, for crying out loud. Here.” Jade stepped under his left arm and let him take some of the body weight off his left foot. Matt’s gratitude seemed genuine. Jade got him settled on the couch and waited in silence for the Kent sisters to return with the ice. Once they did, Jade figured she could leave them to coddle Matt while she made a hasty retreat.
Minutes ticked by. Matt lounged on the couch, looking comfortable and relaxed and like he was about to take a nap. The Kent sisters still hadn’t returned. What the heck coul
d be taking so long with a simple bag of ice?
“I’ll be right back.” Jade got up quickly, glad to have an excuse to get out of there. It was impossible not to be affected by him lying there. She found herself studying the planes of his face, the even rise and fall of his chest, the stubble on his jaw and thinking how he looked completely at home, like he owned the place—a place that had been her summer home for as long as she could remember. It was an uncomfortable thought.
When she got to the kitchen, she found a bag of ice sitting on the counter next to the freezer with a note lying beside it. It read: “Forgot that we promised Mr. Boyle we would meet him at three o’clock for bird watching. Take care of Matt’s ankle for us. A & B.”
Great. There went her escape. Even when she was young, Jade could count on the Kent sisters to be mischievous and a bit strange. That really hadn’t changed in all the years she had known them. They were getting along in age and sometimes seemed scattered, but this sudden case of forgetfulness was suspicious. Jade had no doubt that they had left her alone with Matt on purpose. She shook her head; they were certainly sharp enough to exploit a matchmaking opportunity in two seconds flat. Jade was better off worrying about extricating herself from her current situation. She grabbed the ice pack from the counter with a frustrated sigh. Might as well get this over with.
Jade reached the arched doorway to the great room and pasted on a chipper smile. “Here’s the ice. I guess Adele and Bea had to run … ” she trailed off as she rounded the arm of the sofa where Matt was stretched out. His face was turned to the side and his features were lax, making him seem boyish and innocent. Long lashes brushed the tops of his cheekbones, giving him the look of a fallen angel; one hand trailed off the side of the couch adding to the whole effect. Jade stopped in her tracks and just took him in. She smiled, imagining him dancing with Adele, remembering the glow of pleasure in Adele’s voice. She tiptoed forward, slid a blanket off the arm of the couch, and spread it across Matt. Jade gently placed the ice pack on his ankle, resting it on the far arm of the couch and then turned back to the doorway and snuck out.
