by Leigh Duncan
While Tara slipped the card into a pants pocket, her boss retrieved her reading glasses and slipped them on. Regina’s focus dropped to the pages she’d been examining when Tara had entered the room. “Be sure to get those collages to me,” she said without looking up. “Spend the next couple of days wrapping up your assignments in the office. You’ll need to take your company laptop, of course. Someone from the travel department will explain how to get reimbursed for your expenses—I’ll have them get in touch with you. You’ll catch the train on Thursday. No one in Heart’s Landing expects you until Friday, but that’s the point. Remember, you always get a more honest picture when you catch your subjects off guard.”
Tara stood. “I won’t let you down, Ms. Charm.”
“I’m sure you won’t.” Regina removed the paperclip from one of the stacks on her desk and picked up a red pen. With bold strokes, she relegated someone’s work for the week to the recycle bin. “That will be all for now.”
Outside her boss’s office, Tara leaned against the wall to catch her breath. Guilt prickled her scalp. She swallowed, then swallowed again. Raising the issue of Kate Steven’s dress had backfired and, for a minute there, she’d been afraid Regina would tell her to clean out her desk. She exhaled, happy it hadn’t come to that. Getting fired would only confirm her parents’ opinion that moving to New York had been a big mistake. Besides, Regina had offered her a way to redeem herself. To succeed, though, she’d have to destroy the foundation of a town that had staked its reputation on providing the perfect wedding for every bride.
Could she do it?
She squared her shoulders. She had to. This new assignment could give her everything she’d been working toward—the chance to make a name for herself, establish her career at Weddings Today, and prove to her family that she’d made the right choice by moving to New York. And if she didn’t do it, Regina would find someone else to handle the task. She snapped her fingers.
The job was as good as done.
Chapter Three
Wood paneling that had darkened with age lined the walls of Jason’s office at the rear of the Captain’s Cottage. Near the door, history tomes crowded the shelves of a bookcase. Atop it sat one of the many artifacts taken from the merchant ship his great-great-great-grandfather had named after his wife, Mary Shelby Heart. Through fair skies, following winds and rough seas, the brass clock had kept near-perfect time, a job it had continued to do for more than a hundred years. The minute hand clicked into place with a faint tick.
Jason propped his iPhone on its stand on the worn surface of the teak desk that had been in the family for generations. He checked the camera angle and smiled. Perfect. Any second now, the phone would ring, and Clarissa’s face would appear on the screen. Thanks to the miracle of modern technology, the miles between them would disappear. They’d laugh and talk of building a future together like they used to do before he’d inherited the Captain’s Cottage and left Boston.
Well, almost like they used to do.
No matter how often he told himself that their long-distance relationship was working, his heart complained that a series of texts, phone calls, and Facetime visits weren’t at all the same as actually being together. He longed to breathe in air scented with Clarissa’s perfume. Twirl a lock of her hair around his finger. Help her with her sweater. Feel the occasional brush of her hand on his arm. He missed that, all of that. And no wonder.
Nearly two years had passed since he’d come home to Heart’s Landing. Despite all his experience managing convention centers throughout Boston, it had taken a while to get the hang of running a venue that hosted a dozen weddings each week. Now that he had, he loved doing his part, along with everyone else in town, in giving brides and grooms their perfect day. But the work was demanding. He’d only managed a few, quick trips back to the city, the last of which had been cut short when Clarissa had cancelled their plans for a picnic on the Common and had gone into the office. As a result, three—no, four—months had slipped by since he and Clarissa had shared a meal or taken in a movie together. But after several false starts, she was finally coming here.
A whisper of self-doubt rode the wave of anticipation that jittered through him. Was he doing the right thing by letting her help him with the Weddings Today review? It was sure to be a stressful time, and he had to admit, he wasn’t sure their relationship could withstand the pressure. His cousin Evelyn could have filled the role of hostess; he’d been performing with her for so long now that they had the routine down pat.
But when she’d heard that Regina Charm was handling the evaluation personally, Clarissa had insisted on taking Evelyn’s place. He only hoped his girlfriend understood how crucial this review was, not only to him, but to the entire town. After how badly things had gone with the Executive Editor’s own almost-wedding, it was doubly important that Heart’s Landing put its best food forward this time.
Tapping his toes in time to an old sea shanty, one of dozens carefully recorded in Captain Thaddeus’s journals, Jason deliberately shifted his focus to the upside. Maybe it was a good thing Clarissa had timed her first visit to Heart’s Landing to coincide with the big review. He’d wanted her to see his hometown—and all it had to offer—at its best, and it had never looked as beautiful as it did right now.
A low buzz sounded from his cell phone. Straightening, he punched the button, accepting the call. On the screen, Clarissa’s familiar face appeared in the frame.
“Hey!” His heart warmed. It didn’t matter that she was running late, as usual, or that he’d spent the last ten minutes woolgathering while he waited for her call. She was on the line now, and almost before he knew it, she’d be here in person. That was the important thing. “It’s good to see you! How are things in Boston?”
“Busy as usual.” Clarissa’s focus remained glued to something beyond the camera’s angle. Papers rattled and came into view. She held up one sheet. “Make the changes I’ve marked and get this back to me before the end of the day. Close the door on your way out.” She slipped the paper into a waiting hand. “Sorry,” she said, not sounding the least bit apologetic as she finally glanced at her phone. Her lips curved upward into a smile that didn’t quite warm a pair of cool blue eyes. “I had a little something that couldn’t wait. But I’m all yours now.”
As good as that sounded, Jason knew better than to hope for a lengthy conversation. He’d been trying, without much success, to finalize the details of Clarissa’s arrival for several days. He’d even connected with her once, only for her to be called away shortly after they’d exchanged greetings. Not that she was entirely to blame. He’d had his own share of emergencies to deal with. Everything would be fine as long as they both remembered that managing a long-distance relationship required patience and compromise. And doubly so for successful couples.
Now, though, Clarissa’s often-delayed visit to Heart’s Landing was just around the corner. He was sure it would do her a world of good to step away from the crushing routine of her hectic life in the city. Starting the day after tomorrow, they’d have nearly two weeks to reconnect and strengthen the bond between them. Complete strangers had fallen in love in less time.
“You’re looking good! Everything going well at work?” He hoped so. As an account manager at one of Boston’s most prestigious firms, Clarissa’s mood ebbed and flowed with events in her office.
“Yes. In fact, Rick—you remember Rick Handon, don’t you?”
Jason nodded while he squelched an urge to ask when she’d started calling her boss by his first name. During his last visit to Boston, Clarissa had respectfully referred to the ad agency’s owner as “Mr. Handon.”
“He was so pleased with how I handled the press releases for the Ballor merger that he turned the Craigen account over to me. You know Craigen’s, don’t you?”
“Who doesn’t? It’s one of my favorites.” Though the city fathers of Heart’s Landing had been vigilant i
n preventing chain stores and restaurant franchises from gaining a toe-hold, Jason stopped in at one of Craigen’s popular eateries whenever his errands took him to nearby Newport. “Their lobster rolls are the best. That’s really good news for you. Congratulations!”
“It is, but”—Clarissa ran long, thin fingers over the dark hair she’d captured in a tight chignon—“it’s a lot of work. I need to develop an entire new ad campaign before I meet with the client next month.”
“Oh, so this will be more of a working vacation?” Disappointment crept through Jason’s midsection. He quickly squelched it. Who was he to complain when he had his own responsibilities to attend to while Clarissa was in town? “I’m sure we can free up some time for you.”
Elbow on the desk, he propped his chin on one fist. With a few clicks, he brought up the agenda for the next week. Dinners, outings, weddings, and festivities crowded the schedule. It would take some work to clear an hour or so here and there, but he’d do whatever it took to make Clarissa’s trip a productive one.
“Let’s see. There’s the assembly on Friday afternoon—that’s a must.” The arrival of the Executive Editor from Weddings Today was a grand occasion. As was the custom in the 1800s when Thaddeus and his wife Mary had thrown lavish parties on the estate, the entire staff would line up on the driveway to meet their important guest. “You won’t want to miss the cocktail party that evening, and we have a big day on Saturday when we’ll accompany Ms. Charm on a tour of Heart’s Landing.”
He exhaled. Carving time out of the hectic schedule was going to be tougher than he’d thought. “We could cancel the hike later in the week, but everything is in bloom right now. I’d hate for you to miss it. I thought we’d hit the beach one day, too. And don’t forget, we have starring roles in the pageant next Saturday.”
“Hmmm.” A soft chiming drew Clarissa’s focus away from the phone. She fiddled with something on her desk before she faced him again. “Getting this account is a huge opportunity for me. I can’t afford to be away from the office right now. I’m sorry, but I’m not going to make it.”
“At all?” He had to have misunderstood. She wouldn’t, couldn’t, cancel out completely. Not on the eve of the most important event to occur since he’d inherited the Captain’s Cottage. She knew how important Regina’s visit was.
“I know it’s disappointing, but honestly, darling, it’s better this way. I have so much work to do to get ready for this presentation that I won’t be able to focus on anything else. Plus, I have to be near Rick—he needs to approve every decision. So, you see why I can’t go out of town.” Blue eyes flashed as Clarissa smiled brightly. “Why don’t you come here instead?”
“You’re cancelling out a promise you made weeks ago, but you expect me to walk away from my obligations to visit you in Boston?” The suggestion was beyond ludicrous.
“You won’t come to see me?” Annoyance tightened Clarissa’s lips.
Jason shoved down an angry retort and took a breath. If he had any hope of salvaging the situation, he’d have to appeal to her sense of fair play. “This was your idea, Clarissa. You insisted on coming now so you could meet Regina Charm. You’re leaving me high and dry here.”
“Oh, please.” She rolled her baby blues. “You make it sound like the world is coming to an end. Evelyn can take my place.”
His cousin would usually be glad to step into the role. But with the review looming, her responsibilities as the Cottage’s bookkeeper and supply manager had doubled. “She’s already pitching in wherever she’s needed. I can’t ask her to do any more.”
Any hope that Clarissa would reconsider died when her blue eyes hardened. “It sounds like you’re forcing me to make a choice I didn’t want to make.”
He gave her one last chance. “I’m just asking you to keep your promise. All the arrangements have been made. People are—I’m—counting on you.”
But apparently she didn’t care. His heart sank. He ran one finger along the edge of the desk. If things had gone well during Clarissa’s visit, he’d hoped to pop the question and slip a ring on her finger. That wouldn’t happen now. A woman who couldn’t commit to ten days certainly couldn’t commit to a lifetime.
“Look.” Clarissa glanced over her shoulder at the closed door behind her. Satisfied that they wouldn’t be overheard, she sighed. “We haven’t been on the same page in this relationship for a while. All those broken dates? Those cancelled trips? You have to admit, we’ve drifted apart.”
He bit his tongue. As much as he wanted to deny it, he’d known that things had become strained between them. But he wouldn’t point out that she was the one who’d broken date after date and cancelled one trip to Heart’s Landing after another. Swapping recriminations and accusations wouldn’t help them salvage what was left of their relationship. “That’s one of the reasons I was looking forward to this visit. I hoped we’d reconnect, rediscover what we’d lost.”
“What’s the point when we’re headed in opposite directions?” She leaned forward. “My career is taking off. Yours, though…” She shook her head. “How you could walk away from the life we had in Boston? I never understood that.”
She’d known from the very beginning that he’d inherit the Captain’s Cottage one day, though neither of them counted on it happening so soon. But if she wanted to believe that he was at fault, he’d take the hit. He came from strong, seafaring stock. His shoulders were broad enough to carry the load.
“It’s over between us?” he asked, just to be clear.
“I always thought you’d get tired of living there and come back, you know. But that hasn’t happened.”
No, and it wouldn’t. He’d found his sense of purpose in Heart’s Landing. Studying the past had always been important to him, and now he actually had the chance to play a small part in history by giving brides their perfect day. He’d developed the kind of friendships here that he’d never had in the big city, where people spent so much time rushing from one thing to the next that they rarely slowed down long enough to talk, really talk. He loved the slower pace, the quiet streets, the fog that carried the tang of the ocean. He wouldn’t trade what he had here for a thousand years anywhere else.
“I guess this is goodbye, then.” There was no use in drawing things out. Clarissa had made her decision, and it wasn’t him.
“I guess it is. I’ll, uh, I’ll see you around.” Staring into the phone, she brushed her fingertips beneath dry eyes.
“Yeah. See you around,” he agreed, though he wouldn’t hold his breath. He shook his head when the screen went black and automatically shoved a hank of hair off his forehead. So this was how it felt to break up with the person you thought you’d spend the rest of your life with. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, waiting for the heartbreak to wash over him. When the stabbing pain didn’t come, he sighed. He supposed he and Clarissa had really been saying goodbye to each other ever since he left Boston. Six months ago, when she’d cancelled her first trip to Heart’s Landing, he’d known on one level that things were never going to work out between them. Somehow, his heart had gotten the message long before his head—and yeah, his pride—had understood it. That had to be the reason why the breakup didn’t hurt as much as he’d expected. Not that it mattered. He didn’t have time for heartache.
In less than forty-eight hours, the Executive Editor for the nation’s most popular bridal magazine was going to arrive on his doorstep. From the moment she passed the Heart’s Landing city limits sign until her departure, every single detail of her trip had to be absolutely perfect. A goal that was going to be nearly impossible to achieve, considering the huge monkey wrench Clarissa had thrown into the town’s well-laid plans. He’d need help if he had any hope of getting things back on track.
In the hallway outside his door, heels tapped on the ancient hardwood floors. Jason shook his head. He should have known. Just when he thought he’d have to trac
k her down, the very person he needed to talk to was on her way to his office. How did Evelyn do that? Ever since he was a kid, he could count on his cousin to show up at the slightest hint of trouble.
Seconds later, an impish face peered around his door jamb. “Hey there. I thought I’d pop in to say hello to Clarissa. Looks like I’m too late, though. You two lovebirds have already wrapped things up?”
Jason inhaled slowly. “Turns out, breaking up doesn’t take very long at all.”
“No.” Evelyn let out a low whistle. “You called it quits? I didn’t see that coming.”
“Neither did I.” His neck suddenly felt tight. He worked the knot in his tie loose and gave it a yank. Colorful silk in a pattern he’d never have chosen puddled onto his desk. Huh. He should’ve suspected things weren’t going to work out for them when he’d opened the gift Clarissa had sent for his birthday last October. Holding the gaudy cloth over his trash can, he let it drop.
“Are you okay?” Evelyn peered at him, her brown eyes filled with concern.
“Other than the fact that she bailed at the worst possible time, I think so. I thought it’d hurt more, but frankly, I’m more irritated about her leaving me in the lurch than anything else.”
“Well, I never liked her. Not even a little bit.” Evelyn’s hand sliced through the air. “As for the review, you know you can count on me.”
“Can you handle the extra load? You’re already doing so much.” He searched his cousin’s face, relieved at the serious look that darkened her eyes. He ran a hand through his hair. “I promise. I’ll make it up to you.”
“Well, I wouldn’t turn down a day at the spa when all this is over.” Evelyn’s gaze softened. She sank onto one of the office chairs and slung denim-clad legs over the arm. “Honestly, though, there’s no need. We’re family. We help each other out. It’s what we do. Besides, we can’t afford to mess up this thing with Weddings Today. It’s too important for Heart’s Landing. I’ll go over everything online, but what’s first on the agenda?”
