Fool for Love

by Beth Ciotta

  “You don’t think my grandson’s crazy about you? Then what were you two doing fogging up my back windows?”

  Chloe focused on the narrow road and rolling hills. “Let’s not go there.”

  “All right then, let’s talk about Sam.”

  “I’m not attracted to Sam and he’s not attracted to me. A girl knows these things. Trust me. Not an ounce of zing.”

  “But there’s zing with Devlin?”

  Enough to light up the Manhattan skyline. “I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t mention last night to the family,” Chloe said. “I mean it was sort of … embarrassing.”

  Daisy snorted. “Only because you got caught.”

  She smiled. “Only because we got caught.”

  “I won’t mention it. Not on purpose anyway.” The older woman shifted in her seat. “Sometimes things just pop out.”

  Chloe sensed an opening to pry into Daisy’s state of mind and health and carefully wiggled in. “Why do you think that is?”

  “Part of growing old,” she said with a shrug. “Loss of memory. Lack of focus. The mind starts to go. Among other things.”

  Chloe was pretty certain that was a broad and not wholly accurate generalization. She’d known a few seniors whose minds were as sharp as tacks and who, through daily exercise, remained physically fit. One of her favorite teachers at the culinary institute had been in his early seventies and spry and smart as a whip. “I read somewhere that crossword puzzles and other brainteasers help to keep one’s mind strong,” Chloe said. “I think vitamin supplements help, too. Although I’d have to research—”

  “Ginkgo biloba. Been taking it for years.”

  “Anything else? Other medications, I mean.”

  “Lots of medications. For various, sporadic ailments,” she elaborated, though not enough. “Part and parcel of aging. Not that you have to worry about that anytime soon.”

  “Maybe not. But I do worry about you.”

  Daisy reached over and patted Chloe’s arm. “That’s sweet, but don’t. Believe you me, I’m enjoying what’s left of this life.” Before Chloe could comment, the woman pointed out the front window. “Look at all those cars. We’re late for the party. Punch the gas, kitten.”

  Chloe noted the Red Clover, a sizable Victorian home with a wraparound porch and a magnificent view of a not-so-distant tree-covered mountain. Her first impression was, Beautiful, remote, and in need of a paint job. But other than that, even as she tried gearing up for working and socializing with the people who’d already arrived, Daisy’s words monopolized her thoughts.

  I’m enjoying what’s left of this life.

  As if she knew the end was near.

  Chloe prayed heart and soul Daisy was wrong.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Once they’d toted all the groceries inside the Red Clover, Daisy hunkered down in the kitchen with her friends Ethel and Helen, telling Monica to give Chloe the nickel tour, since Rocky was outside with “the boys.”

  “It’s really amazing, what she did with the place,” Monica said as she led Chloe toward the central sitting room.

  Behind them, laughter flowed from the kitchen, and Chloe relaxed, suppressing her concerns about Daisy’s enigmatic statement about life. Probably she only meant it as the cliché it was. Life is too short. Live life to the fullest, and such. Maybe, no, most likely, that was why she’d been throwing caution to the wind, cramming in as many thrills as possible. No matter how old you were, you never knew when it could all end. Chloe’s own mom had died at thirty-five. So many unrealized dreams. One of the reasons Chloe had always followed her passions no matter where they took her, no matter how brief the experience. No missed opportunities. No regrets.

  Although, in hindsight, she could see now that some of her choices had been made out of fear: What if this opportunity never comes again? What if I wait or say no, only to die tomorrow?

  Chloe shook her head. She’d never had that thought before. Why now?

  “Earth to Chloe.”

  “What?”

  Monica frowned. “I was trying to give you a heads-up about the situation out back, but you were zoning.” She sighed, “What a mess,” then whisked Chloe into the downstairs guest suite.

  Snapping to the present, Chloe took in the eclectic décor, somewhat surprised by the romantic element, given Rocky’s tough-as-nails persona. “I’m sure the men will have that tree cleared away in no time,” she said, admiring a hand-painted armoire that just had to be a creation of Sam’s.

  Monica shook her head. “I don’t mean that. I mean Rocky. This really knocked her for a loop. Generally she’s a rock. Today? Totally stressed out. I swear I saw her hands shaking.”

  “She’s probably worried about the cost of replacing the shed and the damaged gear. You heard her at dinner last week. Business is down. Has been for a while. Diminished income, yet she’s been shelling out to repair and replace appliances.”

  “And now her Jeep’s in the shop,” Monica said. “Leo’s scrounging for the best deal on a few parts so he can essentially build her a new engine. He can’t work for free, but he’s trying to cut her a break.”

  Chloe smiled at her friend. “You’ve got a good man.”

  Monica smiled back. “Yes, I do. Hoping we can say the same for you someday soon.”

  Chloe opened her mouth, closed it.

  “What?”

  “I shouldn’t.…” Chloe shook her head as her thoughts centered on her own situation. “Now’s not the time. I feel bad about being so…”—she grappled for a word that didn’t sound immature—“… happy when Rocky’s so … miserable.”

  Monica shut the guest room door and leaned against it, ensuring Chloe couldn’t get past her. Her eyes sparked with curiosity. “Spill.”

  Alone with her best friend, the only person who knew everything about her—good and bad—it was all Chloe could do not to break into a silly dance. “Devlin kissed me.”

  Her friend looked disappointed. “I know. In J.T.’s. It was awful in an orgasmic kind of way.”

  “No. Last night. In the backseat of the Caddy, and it was … incredible.” She briefed Monica on the nocturnal liaison without sharing graphic details, which meant she pretty much told her everything. “He said when he gets back we’ll pursue this and I said, ‘Okay.’”

  “You did?” Monica pushed off the door and jammed a hand through her pixie cut, making the shorter layers stand on end. “Wow.”

  “I know, I know. I’m on the rebound and this is probably a really bad idea for several reasons. But I’m living in the moment and going with that Mr. Right Now premise.”

  “I’m not judging, Chloe. I think this is great. I’m just … surprised.”

  “From the first moment I plowed into him at Oslow’s there was this … spark. And then an itch. No matter how much we scratched or resisted, it wouldn’t go away. Then when he called me this morning from the airport…” She trailed off, feeling like an idiot for rambling.

  “Oh … my … God.” Monica gawked at Chloe as if she were an alien. “Are you in love?”

  Chloe’s hand flew to her racing heart; her eyes widened. “What? No.” She laughed, but it sounded nervous even to her ears. “How could I … I barely know him. We’ve never even been on a date. It’s just infatuation. A crush.”

  “Sounds like love at first sight.”

  “That’s crazy.”

  “Why? Leo and I fell head over heels the first time we laid eyes on each other and look at us now. Married and trying for kids.”

  Flustered, Chloe forced a smile. “How’s that going anyway?”

  “Don’t change the subject.”

  “Then I’ll end it.” She’d just accepted the fact that she was hopelessly infatuated with Devlin. Love? She wasn’t sure she’d know real love if it bit her on the butt. But this wasn’t it. Couldn’t be it. He was all wrong in the long-term scheme of things. Frowning now, she breezed past Monica and out into the hall, nearly barreling into Daisy.

 
“I was just coming to get you,” she said. “We made some iced tea. If you girls wouldn’t mind taking the jug and tumblers out to the men—”

  “Our pleasure,” Chloe said, grateful for the distraction. She hurried toward the kitchen with Monica on her heels, trying to ignore the teasing love ditty her friend was singing under her breath. “Honestly,” Chloe huffed.

  Monica just laughed.

  Five seconds later, they were navigating a rickety back porch, refreshments in tow. “As beautiful as the interior is,” Chloe said, “the exterior could sure use some work.”

  “I know for a fact Devlin offered to put some money into the place, but Rocky refused his help.”

  “Pride. I get that.” Chloe eyed the men hard at work. Some with chain saws. Two others heaving debris into the back of a pickup along with Leo. “That’s Jayce, right?”

  Monica nodded. “I just met him this morning. Close friend of the family. I know he grew up here and still owns a house here, but I don’t think he visits much. Seems nice enough. Kind of quiet. Intense. Handsome if you go for the bad-boy type.”

  Chloe pointed toward the only other man she didn’t know. “Who’s that?”

  “Adam Brody. Also a native of Sugar Creek, though I understand he moved away for a few years. I guess you’d call him a freelance sports instructor. Hires out to various lodges and gives lessons in everything from horseback to snowmobile riding. I thought he and Rocky were just friends, but…”

  “But what?’

  “I don’t know. When we first got here, I noticed them sneaking looks at each other and I sensed … tension.”

  “Maybe they had a disagreement.”

  “Caught some other looks, too. Between Jayce and Adam, and Rocky and Jayce.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I’m not sure.”

  Chloe gestured. “Looks like she’s giving Luke hell just now.”

  They fell silent as they reached the disaster area, just as Nash and Sam cut the motors of their chain saws, allowing Luke’s words to carry loud and clear. “Chill out, for Christ’s sake, Rocky! We’ve got it covered. Take a walk or something. Damn.”

  She spun off in a fury, blond braids swinging, jeans smeared with mud.

  Monica cleared her throat to draw attention away from their stressed friend. “In case you guys are thirsty,” she said, holding up a jug of tea.

  “Is she all right?” Chloe whispered when Leo joined them.

  He simply raised his brows and relieved Monica of the jug. “Maybe you girls should join her.”

  Sam took the plastic tumblers from Chloe. “At first I thought it was pride.” He frowned over at Adam. “Now I’m not so sure.”

  “We’ll look after her,” Monica said, grasping Chloe’s elbow and hurrying after Rocky, who was jogging toward a distant patch of trees. “I told you. Something’s up between Rocky and Adam.”

  “And Adam and Jayce,” Chloe whispered. “Just after Rocky split, I caught them trading a look.”

  “Was it hostile?”

  “It wasn’t friendly.”

  “Oh, boy. All right, well, Rocky’s pretty tight lipped about her private life and she suffers from control issues, so whatever you do, don’t push.”

  “Me? You’re the pushy one.”

  “True.”

  They followed the younger woman into the woods and found her pacing back and forth along a skinny trail. “I can’t breathe,” she blurted as if she’d been waiting for them to hurry and catch up.

  “Are you hyperventilating?” Chloe asked.

  “Maybe you should sit,” Monica said. “Put your head between your legs.”

  “No. I need to walk it off.”

  “Would it help to talk about it?”

  Chloe glared at Monica and mouthed, Pushing.

  “I don’t know. I don’t…”

  “You don’t have to say anything,” Chloe said gently, prodding Monica to sit next to her on a flat-topped boulder. She thought about how frantic she’d been when Ryan had shattered her world. How alone she’d felt with her closest friend hundreds of miles away, even though she was only a phone call away. It wasn’t the same as being in the same breathing space where you could reach out and touch and hug, if that’s what you needed. “Just know we’re here for you,” Chloe said. “That’s all.”

  The women sat quietly as Rocky continued to pace and after a minute or two she started spewing. “I just … I feel like my life is spinning out of control. Nothing’s going according to plan, and if that’s not bad enough, I think … I know I hurt Adam.”

  “Does it have something to do with Jayce?” Monica asked.

  Chloe kneed her just as Rocky stopped in her tracks. “Why would you say that?” she asked, wild eyed.

  Chloe swallowed hard, struck by the misery in the younger woman’s tortured gaze. “We just … we saw them trading looks and you seemed to be the cause.”

  Rocky sank down on a log across from them, although one leg bounced nervously as she chewed on her thumbnail. “Do you think any of the guys noticed?”

  Chloe and Monica shared a look. Sam and Leo had. They shook their heads.

  “I doubt it,” Monica lied.

  “They were too busy sawing wood and pitching trash,” Chloe said.

  “Plus, you know men,” Monica added. “Oblivious.”

  Rocky blew out a breath, stared at the ground. “Adam and I have been seeing one another for a few months now. Actually, we’ve just been sleeping together. And not overnight. It’s just about sex.”

  “Friends with benefits?” Monica asked.

  “Fuck buddies.” She shrugged. “Same difference.”

  Chloe instantly wondered if Daisy had picked up that term from Rocky. Although it could have been Luke, who also seemed to have a relaxed attitude toward sex.

  Monica whistled. “Wow.”

  “It was perfect,” Rocky plowed on. “The perfect arrangement. No promises. No expectations. No grief from anyone, specifically my brothers, since we kept it secret.”

  “What happened?” Chloe asked. So much for not pushing.

  “Adam offered to invest in the Red Clover. To partner up professionally. Which was perfect, actually, given his interests and skills.”

  “But that complicated the personal end,” Monica ventured.

  “From my point of view,” Rocky said, “there was that potential. But mostly, I wasn’t willing to give up full ownership. It made me feel like a failure and threatened my dream.”

  “I get that,” Chloe said. “So you turned him down and now he’s hurt.”

  “I took him up on the offer and then he caught me in Jayce’s arms this morning. In my underwear,” she added. “Now he’s hurt.”

  Chloe and Monica swapped gazes. What the hell?

  “Is there something between you and Jayce?” Chloe asked. Only because she sensed Rocky wanted or needed to get this out. That’s not to say she wasn’t curious herself. As was Monica. This was juicy stuff.

  “No,” Rocky said, leg bouncing. “Yes. Once. A long time ago.”

  “How long ago?”

  “I was seventeen. Just.”

  “Twelve, thirteen years ago,” Monica said. “Jayce is the same age as Devlin, which means…” She did the math. “He was … twenty-one? Two? Damn.”

  “Your first?” Chloe guessed, blowing over the jailbait issue.

  Rocky dropped her face into her hands. “I was so freaking in love! Had been for years.”

  Puppy love. First love. At least on her end. But what of Jayce? Forbidden love? Talk about powerful stuff. Still … “He should’ve known better,” Chloe said. “Not to mention he’s your brother’s best friend and, from what I’ve heard, adored by the entire family.”

  “Not Jayce’s fault,” she said. “Not that part. I seduced him.”

  Monica blinked. “You knew how to seduce a guy at seventeen?”

  “I had two older brothers and a pack of male cousins,” Rocky said. “And eyes.”


  “Enough said.”

  Chloe tried to make sense of it all. “Do you love Adam?”

  “No. Although, I do care. I think. Just not in the way I love Jayce.”

  “So you love Jayce,” Monica said.

  “What? No!” Rocky bolted back to her feet and resumed pacing.

  Chloe scrambled. “But you said love. Present tense.”

  “Loved,” Rocky said. “Past tense.”

  “Yet he’s here and coming between you and Adam,” Chloe pointed out. “Does he love you?”

  Rocky snorted. “Yeah, right. If that were true, I would’ve married him when he asked.”

  Wide-eyed, Monica looked over her shoulder, making certain they were still alone, then blurted in hushed amazement, “Jayce asked you to marry him?”

  “When?” Chloe asked.

  “The day after we … did it.”

  “Thirteen years ago,” Chloe clarified.

  “I thought he loved me,” Rocky said in a choked voice. “The way he … he was so gentle. It was so perfect. Then he ruined it the next morning by saying we should get married.”

  “Should,” Chloe said, beginning to put things together.

  “Because it was the right thing to do,” Rocky spit out, more angry now than upset.

  “So he offered more out of a sense of duty than love,” Monica said. “Ouch.”

  “Still,” Chloe pointed out, “there’s honor in that.” She was trying desperately not to judge. She didn’t know Jayce. Didn’t know his side of the story. And Rocky was drawing on the naïve and melodramatic emotions of a teenager.

  “Devlin married for honor,” Rocky blurted, “and look what that brought him.”

  Monica cast Chloe a glance that verified she knew nothing about Devlin’s previous marriage. Chloe played dumb, because she’d promised Daisy she wouldn’t bring it up. Ever.

  Talk about an awkward moment.

  Chloe cleared her throat. “I don’t mean to pry,” she said, redirecting the focus back to Rocky, “but are you certain there’s nothing between you and Jayce?”

  “Just a decade of resentment.”

  “You resent him for offering marriage out of duty,” Moncia said.

  “And he resents you for rejecting his proposal,” Chloe finished. “Not to minimize what must have been an exceedingly intense moment in your lives, but…” Tread lightly, Madison. “After all these years, you haven’t been able to … get past this?”