by Amie Denman
“But I’m hungry.”
Kevin sighed. “Fine. Yes or no on the painting for Mom?”
“Yes,” Tyler said. “I can’t believe you had to drag me in here to ask. It’s perfect. She’ll love it. My wife will be so impressed I thought of it.”
Kevin ignored his brother. “Can you gift wrap it? I’ll pick it up later when I’m not on duty. I don’t want to put it in the back of the truck or let it sit around the fire station.”
“Of course,” Nicole said.
Kevin stood, hands on counter, looking at Nicole as if he wanted to say something.
“Tyler, if I buy the donuts, will you wait in the truck?”
“Insurance, please.”
Kevin took out his wallet and handed his brother a ten-dollar bill.
Tyler grinned at Nicole and left, the foghorn punctuating his exit.
Kevin pulled a credit card from his wallet and handed it to Nicole. She ran it through the machine and waited for the receipt to print. Without a word, she slid the paper across the table. She watched his fingers as he signed, and thought about the way she’d felt when he touched her.
There was no one else in the gallery. Morning light poured through the front windows. Nicole and Kevin faced each other over the narrow counter. Almost close enough to touch. Her heart pounded in her ears. This was a mistake, letting herself be attracted to him. He was all wrong for her. But it would be a lot easier to ignore him if he didn’t have broad shoulders, a dimple when he smiled and stormy green eyes that were also incredibly sweet.
“Jane told me about your brother,” he said. “And I want to tell you how sorry I am.”
All the air whooshed out of Nicole’s chest. That was the last thing she thought he was going to say. She stepped backward, reaching out a hand to a low table for balance. Kevin stepped around the counter and pulled her into his arms, holding her tight. Tears pricked her eyes. It felt so good to be held by someone with strong arms. A sweet smile, sensitive eyes. Someone who smelled of soap and aftershave.
Someone who did the same thing her brother died doing. Why did Jane tell Kevin about Adam? She must have had a reason, but right now it felt like betrayal.
Nicole opened her eyes. The fire department symbol on his chest was right under her cheek. A vivid memory of hugging her brother at the airport, the same symbol on his chest, shook her.
She put both hands on Kevin’s chest and pushed him away.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
Nicole shook her head, trying to clear it. Trying to make him go away. He was not the kind of man who would leave unless he thought she was okay. Unless she made him.
She had to make him.
“Thank you,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady. “I have work to do. You should go.”
The radio on his belt crackled. Good. He’ll have to leave in a hurry.
“Just static,” he said, dismissing the sound. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I just wanted to tell you I understand. Finally. Why firefighters aren’t your favorite people.”
Nicole didn’t say anything. Adam had been one of her favorite people. Would he think she should give Kevin a chance? What would he tell her now, if he were here?
But he wasn’t.
“You should go,” she repeated.
Kevin looked at her for five long seconds. His glance made her think he’d seen a lot of things in his time as a rescuer. Maybe he thought she needed saving.
Maybe she did.
But not by him.
He turned and walked out the front door, not even breaking stride when the foghorn blasted.
CHAPTER EIGHT
JANE AND NICOLE admired the new awning over Sea Jane Paint. With pink-and-white stripes, it gave the shop a vintage beach look. Nicole had talked her into the new addition, and had also suggested the white wicker chairs on the sidewalk out front. Guests might sit in the awning’s shade and perhaps linger long enough to purchase a painting. Jane was glad her friend had persuaded her to make the physical improvements as well as the back end improvements in her computer system no one would actually see.
“I can’t believe I waited two years to improve the storefront,” Jane said.
“You were being cautious and responsible, making sure your business would be viable before you put more money into it,” Nicole said.
“That’s me.” Jane pointed a subtle finger toward her belly. “Cautious and responsible.”
Nicole laughed. “I meant fiscal responsibility. It has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day or misguided hormones.”
Was spending the night with Charlie misguided? She loved him as a friend...and more than that...well, she had to admit to herself that they would never have become entangled physically if there wasn’t something already there. At least for her.
Jane crossed her arms and surveyed her gallery, the culmination of a dream she’d chased since high school. Being able to support herself as an artist had seemed out of reach so many times, and now it was right in front of her, but she didn’t have just herself to support. Would she be able to run the store and take care of a baby?
“When are you going to tell him?” Nicole asked.
Good friend that she was, Nicole had asked no further questions for over a week, only offered support and an ear when Jane wanted to talk about it. Until now.
“I’m waiting for the right time.”
“Any idea when that will be?”
Jane shook her head. “He wants me to meet him across the street at the end of the day today. He’s bought one of the downtown storefronts and has some idea about putting in a coffee shop.”
“Really?”
“That’s what he says. He wants a mural painted on an interior wall, a beach scene of Cape Pursuit.”
“That sounds nice. It will also give you an excuse to spend time with him.”
Jane grabbed Nicole’s arm, sudden panic gripping her. Maybe it was the thought of finding the words to tell him. “Come with me. Please. I’m so nervous around him now... I know it’s ridiculous.” She released Nicole’s arm and rubbed her own temples. “I’m carrying his child—I should be able to talk to him about a painting. I’ve got to get it together.”
A group of tourists walked down the sidewalk and paused under the new awning. Two of the men in the group sat in the wicker chairs while the women went inside.
“It’s working already,” Nicole whispered. “I’ll go help those customers, and when we lock up for the day, we’ll go meet Charlie. I’m your business manager, so I’ll negotiate a good deal for you for the custom artwork he’s ordering.”
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You’d be fine. One day at a time.”
As Nicole went inside, Jane remembered giving her friend the same advice during the past year. Take things one day at a time...she’d helped Nicole survive losing her brother. And now Nicole was helping her as she came to terms with her own little family. A friendship like that couldn’t be beat.
Jane worked steadily throughout the day, and, a few minutes after six that evening, Jane and Nicole crossed the street and peered through the wide front window of a vacant storefront.
“This is a mistake,” Jane said. “I’m too tired and hungry, and I won’t be able to think.”
“It will probably take seven minutes. Just focus on breathing, and remain calm for four hundred and twenty seconds.”
Jane sighed. “You’re so much better at math than I am.”
Charlie opened the front door and held it wide. “Come in and see this place. It looks bad now, but I’ve got you and Kevin on my side.”
“Kevin’s helping?” Nicole asked.
“He’s my painter. He’s going to do the inside and just enough of the outside to make it appealing. He’ll be here in a few minutes. I asked him to pick up a pizza on the way.”
<
br /> Jane’s mouth watered at the thought of pizza. Maybe Charlie wasn’t the carefree playboy she’d believed him to be. He’d thought to buy dinner, knowing she’d be hungry after a long day of work.
“Kevin’s been on duty all day and they didn’t have time for lunch, so I had to bribe him somehow or he’d be a whiny baby,” Charlie explained. “No time for that.”
Back to the playboy man of business persona.
Charlie turned and gestured to a long side wall. “Ugly as sin right now, but the right paint job will make all the difference, and I’ll have tourists dropping money here all season long.”
Jane didn’t answer. She was busy evaluating the sunlight that would come in the front window at different times of day, the width and length of the room, and the antique lighting fixtures. It was a beautiful space, one of the historic shopfronts that had hardly seen any remodeling in the century it had existed. Her own store across the street was from an era of much newer construction after a fire had swept through downtown forty years earlier. It had modern advantages but lacked the charm of Charlie’s property.
“Do you like it?” Charlie asked. “Or do you think I’m making a huge mistake? Maybe I rushed into this, but I grabbed it right before it was going on the market.”
If only they’d thought ahead eleven weeks ago when they’d rushed their relationship from friendship to the bedroom without stopping to consider the consequences.
“Not a mistake. It could be beautiful,” Jane said. “I’m imagining a seascape all along that wall.” She waved her hand. “Water here, shoreline and sand along there, maybe a lighthouse or colorful beachfront homes.”
“Sounds fantastic,” Charlie agreed. “Why haven’t you done a mural in your gallery?”
“Because it would detract from the art I’m trying to sell,” Jane said. “I don’t want people looking at the walls—I want them looking at the paintings. The walls aren’t for sale.”
“What exactly is your business plan?” Nicole asked. She nudged a loose floor tile near the front entrance. “If you don’t mind my asking.”
Jane appreciated her friend jumping in. It freed her up to use her imagination on the future mural. It was a long wall, and the ceilings were high. She would need a ladder and a lot of energy to complete it after busy days in her gallery. Was it wise to commit to a big project in her situation?
“Coffee and donuts in the morning, maybe sandwiches and cookies later,” Charlie said. “Didn’t you ever notice this street has no place to get something quick to eat?”
“I haven’t been here long enough to notice the local holes in the marketplace. Have you ever owned a restaurant?” Nicole asked. “Any relevant experience?”
“Never really owned anything. I’ve been buying and selling houses for a while, and I thought it was time to get my hands on something more permanent.”
Jane and Nicole exchanged a quick glance. Charlie wants to do something with permanence? Before they could ask any more questions, the front door opened and Kevin came in with empty hands.
“Where’s the pizza?” Charlie asked. “I was going to provide dinner.”
“I was just giving you a hard time when I said you had to buy me pizza,” Kevin said. “This won’t take long, and I should get home and feed Arnold. He’s into this canned meat and gravy stuff lately. Smells awful, but he loves it.”
Jane thought about feeding Claudette, and the canned food’s aroma came over her with a wave of nausea. She put a hand on the wall and tried to breathe. How many more seconds until they got to four hundred and twenty? She was just hungry...and she had to stop thinking about gross things for a few months. Especially canned meat and gravy dog food. Yuck.
“Jane?” She heard someone saying her name but it sounded as if it was coming through a tunnel. She opened her eyes and saw Charlie’s face only inches from hers. “Are you okay?”
“Too hungry,” she said, her voice shaking.
Charlie put a hand on her back. “We can do this later. I’m not anywhere close to opening this place, though I thought I might try for midsummer.”
“We’re here now,” Jane said, forcing herself to breathe and straightening up. “Let me get a rough idea what you’re looking for, and I can come up with a few sketches to fit the space.”
“You’ve seen it,” Charlie said, concern drawing a line between his eyebrows. “Let’s talk over dinner. You want to come, too?” he said, gesturing to Nicole and Kevin.
Kevin shook his head. “I’m headed home. I already looked at the front façade, and the interior is just like another one I painted not long ago. I’ll work up a price for you based on that.”
“Are you hungry, Nicole?” Charlie asked.
“I’ll pass,” Nicole said, holding up one hand. “I was thinking of taking some pictures while the evening light is so beautiful.”
Nicole is bailing and leaving me alone for dinner with Charlie? Panic rushed through Jane’s chest and her heart thumped.
“I can give you a ride,” Kevin offered, smiling at Nicole.
Jane was ready to protest, knowing how sensitive Nicole was about Kevin. She wasn’t really going to accept a ride home with Kevin, was she?
“That would be great,” Nicole said brightly. She turned to Jane and Charlie. “You two have plenty to talk about over dinner.”
With one meaningful glance, Nicole turned and left with Kevin.
“Where to?” Charlie asked in the silence that followed the door closing. “Burgers? Italian?”
She had to tell him. There would never be a better time. Nicole had set her up perfectly.
“Pancakes?” he prodded. “Mexican?”
Jane shook her head. She couldn’t tell him in a restaurant. Not with other people around.
“My gallery. We’ll order something, and you can look around and tell me what you like. All my samples and portfolio work are right across the street.”
* * *
THE FOGHORN BLASTED as Charlie followed Jane through the front door, but he hardly noticed. What was going on with Jane? She was pale and nervous. He’d never seen her like that before, and he thought he knew her better than he knew anyone else. Their relationship had provoked questions from his friends for years, and he’d always claimed there was nothing more than friendship between them.
It was a lot harder to make that claim now, after the night she’d spent at his place, in his arms a few months ago. He’d tried to forget, tried to honor the pact they’d made that it wouldn’t change their friendship. It was just one foolish night.
Forgetting had been tough every time he saw her and remembered the way she’d made him feel—as if he belonged somewhere...to someone...for the first time in years. All the other women he’d dated as he’d tried to fill the hole in his heart had never made him feel complete.
Jane locked the front door behind them. “Chinese?” she asked without looking at him.
“Sure. You want the usual?”
He knew what she liked. Orange chicken and rice, a side of snow peas and two fortune cookies.
She nodded and he searched for the number on his cell phone and called in the order.
“Fifteen minutes,” he said. “They’ll deliver. Must be a slow night.”
“That should be enough time.”
“Enough for what?” Since when was she in a hurry to get away from him?
“Why don’t you look around and take note of what sort of images you would like in your mural? I’ll go in the back room and work on a framing project so you can wander in peace.”
Charlie walked around her shop, taking a close look at the works on display. He’d been in here dozens of times, had stood over her shoulder and talked with her when she’d painted outside, had visited her booth at the Art in the Park show the previous summer. He’d even purchased small paintings as gifts for more than one girlfriend.
He wanted to look at Jane’s watercolors with fresh eyes. Since Valentine’s Day, he’d seen her as a woman, not just a friend. A brave, passionate woman who cared about the town and poured herself into whatever she was doing. Her passion and bravery showed in her work. Even the sunsets over the water in her paintings glowed with life. The ships at rest in the harbor seemed to have an energy, as if they were waiting to take to the open water.
After he’d spent enough time looking to satisfy Jane that he’d given the project adequate thought, he pushed aside the curtain and entered the back room where Jane leaned over a worktable with a mat knife and a ruler.
When she saw him, she took two bottles of water from the small fridge and put them on the table. “Have a seat,” she said as she took one of the chairs. Her posture was rigid, hands folded on the table in front of her.
“What’s going on, Jane?”
She unfolded her hands and laced her fingers. She didn’t look at him. “There’s a lot going on.”
“Early summer in a beach town.”
Jane met his eyes. Her lip trembled. “It’s not about the season or the town.”
Charlie reached across and put his hands over hers. “Are you all right? Is this about what happened between us a few months ago?”
“Yes. No.” She pulled her hands from under his and jumped to her feet but then swayed and paled.
He was out of his seat in an instant and took her in his arms. She trembled against him, her head pressed against the center of his chest.
“Whatever it is, please tell me.” Dark thoughts raced through his mind. He remembered that horrible night when his parents had sat on his bed and told him his mother had cancer. She fought it for almost two years before she lost. His father had been strong enough for all of them throughout it.
He would be strong for Jane no matter what she had to tell him.
“I’m pregnant,” she whispered. “We’re pregnant.”
Charlie sucked in a long breath and held Jane tight against him. She was sobbing now. Was she sad? Angry? He couldn’t tell. Didn’t know how to react. Like an animal frozen by something unexpected, he remained perfectly still.
