by Dana Mentink
“Why?” she said. “Why did you do that?”
He put a hand on her knee. “I was a jerk, such a jerk to participate in that. I wanted to get back at you for what your father did, to regain some of my cred with my friends. I’m sorry. It was probably the most vile thing I’ve ever done. I’ve wanted to say that since high school.”
“If you knew where I was all this time,” she whispered, blinking hard, “why didn’t you?’
“Would you have listened?”
She considered. “No.”
“And now?”
“I listened.” She caught his look. “If you want to know if I forgive you, I don’t.”
He nodded slowly. “Fair enough.”
“It changed things, that day.”
He took his hand from her knee. “I know. You kept to yourself after that. Any time we were together in classes, you nearly killed yourself to beat me on every test, every quiz. And on those rare occasions that I came out on top, you fumed.”
“Well, you did cheat in debate class.”
His lip curled. “I didn’t. I merely did more thorough research than you. You aren’t lawyer material.”
“Maybe I could have been if...”
“If what?”
“I didn’t trust the wrong man.”
He paused. “Foster? Eva’s cousin?”
Her heart spasmed. “You’ve heard the story, haven’t you?”
He looked away. “Only that you left school abruptly because you were wrecked that Foster broke up with you.”
She fumed. “He’s a liar.”
“How so?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Maybe you should. It might help you feel better.”
She let out a long, slow breath. “Look, Pike. I trusted Foster and that was the dumbest thing I ever did. I’m not going to trust you, either.”
He frowned. “I won’t even try to point out that you’re being irrational. Slow down, we’re coming into town.”
She complied, heading for Hardware Heaven, but she was stopped in her progress by a blockade in the road. “What in the world?”
“Boat festival preparations,” he said, hopping out of the car.
“But boats go on water,” she protested. “Why does that impact the whole town?”
“I take it you’ve never attended this Tumbledown extravaganza?”
“No, I think it started after we left.”
“I know. My father was one of the founders of this event. He had an idea it might help attract visitors.”
The streets were bustling with people carting supplies from their cars or loading them up. A hot dog cart was parked outside the hardware store and the Brew Unto Others coffee shop. Nester Lodge was up on a ladder, affixing some colorful bunting to the front of his store. He waved a hand at them.
“Morning. If you want some scones just go behind the counter and get them. Chuck the money on the counter.”
“Don’t need scones, but can we do self-serve on the coffee?” Pike called up.
“Sure thing, man. Step over the supplies, okay? Haven’t had a chance to move them yet.”
Pike and Rosa waded into the store. A passable-looking papier-mâché donut took up most of the seating area. True to her word, Sharma had crocheted a mountain of colorful sprinkles that were now attached to the top.
“Why a donut?” Pike asked.
“Nester says scones are too plain.”
Pike took the odd bit of information in stride as he made for the coffee. “No to-go cups?” he shouted out to Nester.
“Nah. Ran out. Just use mugs and return them when you’re done.”
Pike poured them each a mug, adding milk and sugar to his.
“Black for me,” Rosa said, taking the hot mug.
Pike surveyed the shop once more. “Did it ever occur to you that this town is a little...unorthodox?”
At that moment, six members of what appeared to be a kazoo band pressed into the shop, abuzz with conversation and eager to help themselves to scones. The leader greeted Pike and Rosa with an enthusiastic blat on his instrument.
Rosa could not hold back a stream of giggles. “A little unorthodox?”
Pike laughed too and held his mug up in a toast. “To Tumbledown,” he said solemnly.
Rosa clinked mugs with him, accompanied by an impromptu kazoo medley.
* * *
WITH SOME QUICK action on her part, Rosa scored the last two rolls of painter’s tape and another two plastic tarps at Hardware Heaven along with a plain, unframed rectangular mirror.
“Is that going to please Cy?” Pike asked, eyeing the purchase. “It looks...cheap to my unpracticed eye.”
“He’ll think of some fantastic way to frame it for much less than the price of one that’s already framed.”
He nodded as they stowed the purchases in the Nissan, but she could tell his attention was drawn to the goings-on down at the beach. “I’d like to take a quick look,” he said. “Do you want to come?”
She found that she did. The path was uneven, slippery with sand, so Pike tucked his arm through hers. She experienced a mixture of pleasure and angst to be arm in arm with Pike Matthews. He was a man people noticed, a man women watched, and he knew it. As a matter of fact, he waved at no fewer than six people as they made their way along. Wind grabbed at them the moment they set foot on the crescent of beach, which was as busy as the town. Squares were being carefully measured off in preparation for a sand sculpture competition. A duo was busily constructing a small bandstand while another group of volunteers set up nearby tables and chairs.
Three boats were anchored offshore in the choppy water. The first, little more than a rowboat, was being festooned with Christmas lights, and a second, larger boat sported massive yellow butterflies that strained to be free of their moorings, but it was the last boat, anchored farther out and free of extravagant decor that riveted Pike. Her wooden decking gleamed in the sunshine, and a single American flag fluttered on the back.
“Chris-Craft,” Pike breathed. “Mahogany decks.”
“Like Poppy’s Dream,” Rosa said softly.
He didn’t seem to hear, walking down to the water’s edge, staring out along the waves at the sleek boat. “At one time in my life, that’s all I wanted.”
“The boat?”
“To sail. To own my own boats. A sailboat, a runabout. Open a school to teach kids about sailing. That was my plan, not law school.”
She drew level with him, not wanting to interrupt. “When did you let that plan go?”
“I like nice things. You don’t live a life of luxury sailing a boat, and society doesn’t look up to you.”
She sighed. “They don’t when you decorate houses, either.”
“The night Poppy’s Dream sank was a turning point in my life. I didn’t realize until then how much money mattered. There had always been enough, more than enough. When Poppy went to the bottom, my mother was beside herself, worrying about the expense until my dad told her it was insured. I assumed, in my arrogant teenage way, that they would replace the boat, but the money was needed elsewhere.”
“You didn’t know that?”
“I was spoiled, ignorant. My parents did a good job hiding the reality from me, but I finally realized that my dad’s business was struggling. He’d had some investment reversals. He needed help.”
“So you decided to go to law school?”
“Wasn’t the first time the idea occurred to me. Dad always dreamed that I would take over the practice.” He squinted against the sunlight, never taking his eyes off the gleaming wooden boat. “That was the smart thing to do, the right thing, to go to law school.”
She heard the defeat and it stunned her. For years, she’d figure
d she made the stupid choice to drop out of law school. Maybe the choice to stay in had its own consequences.
“I always admired you for that, Rosa.”
“For what?”
“After a big fail, you had the courage to walk away from the sensible choice and go after your heart’s desire.”
A big fail. The phrase shivered through her. She moved away a pace. “I didn’t have many options, and I’m more than likely going to fail again. Dollars and Sense is on the brink of disaster nearly all the time. My heart’s desire will probably never pay the bills.”
“Then you’ll find another way.” He looked at her then, those rich brown eyes peering into her very core. “You had the courage to make your own path. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t wish I had done the same.”
She goggled. “But you’re a success, Pike. A lawyer.”
His smile was bitter. “Yes, I am. And don’t get me wrong—I love the prestige, but sometimes I think I succeeded at someone else’s dream.” He pulled her closer and cupped a hand around her cheek, sending tingles along her spine. “I think that’s why I’ve kept tabs on you over the years. The last time I felt like I had it right was on Poppy’s Dream. With you, all those years ago.” He closed the gap between them and lowered his mouth to hers.
A wild rush of emotion swirled through her. His lips were warm, soft and strong at the same time. She found herself pressing her palm to the back of his neck, to keep him there, joining them together. The wind cradled the two of them, embracing them in a world of their own, a world of sand and surf and tender feeling. Her pulse pounded a rhythm in time with the waves. A vision of Foster rose in her memory, along with a bevy of sinister thoughts. What would a lawyer like Pike want with a girl like her? She should have wondered the same thing about Foster. She yanked away. “Don’t do that.”
A dog bounded by, followed by Eva Lassiter, and Rosa jerked back.
“Hello, Pike. Hi, Rosa,” Eva called.
Rosa gasped, trying to restore normal breathing. “Hi.”
Pike was somewhat wild-eyed, as if he’d just fallen from a great height onto the sand.
“Hey, Eva,” he said, a slight shake in his voice. “We were just...looking at the boats.”
She shaded her eyes. “That’s Dad’s,” she said, chin bobbing at the wooden beauty. “He’s looking to sell. Are you in the market for one?”
Pike’s gaze wandered back out to the ocean. “I wish I was.”
“Well, anyway, I’m sorry the Pelican sale didn’t go through,” she said. “I hope it didn’t create too many problems for you.”
Pike wrenched his attention from the water. “No. We’ll be fine. Just a delay, that’s all.”
“Good,” she said, turning to Rosa, pulling the long blond hair from her forehead. “I haven’t seen Cy yet.”
“He’s working,” Rosa managed. “Come by anytime. I’m sure he’d love to say hello.” He wouldn’t, in fact, but he needed to get over Piper sooner or later.
“I will,” she said. “Gotta run. I’m helping with the face-painting booth. Bye.” She trotted off, Dragon at her heels.
Rosa was not sure if the dizziness was because of the sand shifting under her feet or the sheer insanity of what had just happened between her and Pike. The kiss might even have been chalked up to a massive hallucination, if the residual river of electricity was not still humming through her veins. She wouldn’t be derailed. Not again. Not by Pike. He stared at the ocean and then down at his shoes before tracking the progress of a wheeling gull.
“I’m not sure what happened there, before Eva came. I apologize.”
“No trouble,” she babbled. “A, uh, mistake between friends.”
“Yes.” He nodded a little too enthusiastically. “Exactly. I’m glad we’ve gotten to the point where we can call each other friends, aren’t you?”
“Definitely.” She beamed. “Much better than enemies.”
They made their way to the car, preserving a careful distance between them.
Her emotions crashed against her reason like sea foam combing the shore. Pike, a friend? The kiss had been anything but friendly.
It was safer to have him for an enemy.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER thousand dollars,” Bitsy said, after the last of the dinner dishes had been cleared away. Rocky and Stu had volunteered to do the washing. They made an efficient team, Rocky scrubbing and rinsing away lasagna residue, and Stu drying and meticulously stacking, his hands ensconced in yellow rubber gloves and an apron tied around his waist.
Rosa rolled her shoulders, which ached from the feverish painting. Busy, busy, busy, her mind called. Keep yourself busy and away from prickly thoughts about friend Pike and his tantalizing kiss on the beach. “I can’t believe we’re almost to the end of week one with only two to go. We’re going to have to push hard this weekend.”
“Well...that might be tricky for the next few days,” Bitsy said. Rosa noticed a new set of earrings sparkling on her lobes.
“Why?”
“The boat festival,” Pike put in.
Rosa drained a glass of water and thunked it on the table. “Yes, I know there’s a festival, for crying out loud. I hear about it all the time. But it’s not going to interrupt our progress.”
A collective raising of eyebrows caught her off guard. “It’s a couple of boats and a hot dog stand down at the beach. We’re up here on the bluff with plenty of supplies. One doesn’t affect the other.”
The eyebrows remained elevated.
“Okay,” she said. “I give. What’s going to happen tomorrow? Tell me, so I can be prepared to work around it.”
Bitsy stifled a yawn. Baggy followed with his own a moment later. “Probably best to see for yourself.” She went around the table and kissed everyone good-night. Manny closed his eyes when she kissed his cheek.
“All right,” Rosa called to her departing back. “But nothing is going to derail my schedule tomorrow. We’re doing flooring and painting.”
“Flooring and painting for you,” Manny affirmed as he rose, “and window seat finishing and painting for us, right, my boy?”
Cy gave two thumbs up.
Rosa was pleased that Manny seemed in good mental shape and his cheeks had a healthy glow. Plus, there had been no unpleasantness between Pike and her father over dinner. One night’s reprieve was helping with the current frazzled state of her nerves. She gave him a smile and said good-night as he left.
“You know, sis,” Cy said, the gleam of inspiration shining on his face. “I got this totally amazing idea to frame that ugly mirror you picked up.”
Rosa gave Pike a “what did I tell you?” look. “Yes, brother? Do share.”
“Hand-forged nails.” He beamed.
Rosa waited patiently.
“We found tons of them under the window seat and in the shed.” He looked from Rosa to Pike. “They’re Mr. Herzberg’s nails, originals from the 1860s, still as straight and true as the day they were forged. Unbelievable craftsmanship.”
“Nails, yes, I get that part,” Pike encouraged.
“I’m going to cluster them to make a frame around the mirror.” He sat back, triumphant.
Pike was not impressed. “You’re going to hammer nails around the mirror?”
“Nah. See here.” Cy sketched a quick picture on his paper napkin. “I’m going to construct a wood frame, spray paint it black, lay the nails down, side by side, and wire them in place to cover the wood.”
“That’s going to take a lot of nails,” Pike said.
“Hundreds,” Cy affirmed with a joyful grin.
Rosa readied the argument she’d fired off countless times and that never so much as made a dent in her brother’s plans. “Cy, that is going to take hours that we don’t
have.”
“No problem, sis. I’ll pull a couple of all-nighters if I have to. It’s worth it.”
“Are you sure?”
He held up his hands and worked his magic. “Picture the faces that will gaze into that mirror, framed by the very nails that Mr. Herzberg used to build his house some hundred and fifty years ago. Present meets past, history peeking into the here and now.” He shook his head. “It gives me the chills.”
Rosa laughed, gave her brother a hug and kissed him, accepting that the project was no longer negotiable. “Me, too, Cy. Let me know if I can help.”
“I’ve got Stu collecting nails in between gardening tasks. He’ll do it, as long as he can pick up the nails with tongs, wearing his gardening gloves, so he doesn’t get his fingers dirty. He’s found a hundred or so already.”
“Stu is a good worker,” Pike said. “I’m embarrassed to say I never really noticed that before.” His happy expression dimmed. “I’ve got feelers out, to see if any of the locals are in need of a handyman after the Pelican is sold.”
“Any bites?” Cy said.
“No.” Pike rubbed a hand across his eyes. “Anyway, are we ready to pull off the painter’s tape and reveal our lily-pad stripes?”
“Mossy linen, and we’ll do it tomorrow to be sure the paint has dried completely.” Rosa couldn’t hold in a giant yawn. “I’m exhausted. Time for bed.”
Baggy perked an ear.
“Sometimes I think he can understand English,” Cy said. “I knew he was a smart dog.”
“I’m still not convinced he’s actually a dog,” Pike said.
“Of course he’s a dog,” Rosa said. “What else would he be?” Baggy skittered over to Rosa and waited to be scooped up. She complied, rubbing her chin on his lopsided head. “Did you do anything interesting today, Baggy?”
He cast a wandering eye at Pike and then back to Rosa. “Not as interesting as you,” he seemed to say.
