by Scott, Laura
“Great.” Zane cleared his throat and turned toward Rae. “You’re shivering. Why don’t you wait inside my car, out of the wind?”
Jenna glanced at the wreck of her house, then toward the fire chief. “Would you at least let me go inside to get some clothes?”
“No, I’m afraid not.” His gaze was sympathetic yet firm. “We have no way of knowing how much structural damage the house has sustained. Parts of the frame may still collapse with just the slightest movement. Your property is off-limits until the building inspector can examine the framework.”
The building inspector? Jenna’s spirits sank lower. “Okay, but how long will that take?”
“I don’t know. There hasn’t been much storm damage, so it shouldn’t be too long.”
Someone shouted, “Chief? We have another call.”
The chief raised a hand, indicating he’d heard, and gave her one last look. “Stay out of the house,” he repeated in a stern tone. “Someone from the city will be in touch with you soon.” He hurried over to jump inside the truck. The massive fire engine pulled away from the curb.
She reluctantly followed Zane toward his car. Rae had already scrambled into the back seat and was leaning against the cushions as if exhausted. Jenna wordlessly slid into the front seat, looking down in surprise at the contents of her purse that were strewn all over the floor. She hadn’t noticed in her haste to get to her sister.
She bent over and gathered her meager things together. This was all they had, at least until the inspector cleared her home.
“All set?” Zane glanced at her.
“Sure.” She forced a smile. “Although, I’ll need you to stop at a discount store so I can pick up a few things.”
“I don’t mind stopping, but I’m not so sure they’ll be open.” Zane gestured out the window. “Several power lines are down. Without electricity, the stores will likely be closed.”
She glanced down at her dark street, there wasn’t a single building with lights on, and she realized he was right. “Maybe we can find a discount store that is still open?” She couldn’t hide her pleading tone. “The power lines can’t be down everywhere.”
“We’ll check it out on the way to my place.” Zane drove toward the freeway until they could see that the lights were on. He pulled up in front of a store that was more expensive than she’d hoped. That’s what happened when you shopped in The Hill. Still, she needed a few things, so she pushed out of the passenger seat, intent on going inside.
“Wait, I’m coming with you.” Zane quickly joined her.
“Me, too.” Rae also jumped out of the car.
Jenna tried to stick to the basics: toothbrushes, hairbrushes, one fresh set of clothing for both her and Rae. No makeup or anything else. She noticed Rae opened her mouth to argue, but then shut it again as if sensing a plea wouldn’t work.
Soon they were back on the road. “Do you have your cell phone?” Jenna turned in her seat to look at Rae. “I tried to call you when you were trapped upstairs.”
“No, my phone was in the bedroom.” Rae had unpacked the brush and drew it through her wet hair. “I was in the bathroom, and the tree fell. I didn’t dare go into my room, so I helped myself to a few of your things. I, uh, hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course, I don’t mind.” She would be forever grateful that Rae hadn’t been in her room when the tree came down.
“You’re very fortunate, Rae.” Zane used his rearview mirror to look at Rae. “I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”
“That makes two of us,” Jenna added.
“Make that three.” Rae’s voice was wobbly.
Zane pulled up to the front of his condo. Now that they were there, Jenna grew nervous. She glanced at her wet clothes, unable to imagine dripping water all over the inside of Zane’s place. Of course, he was soaked too and didn’t seem to mind.
“Come in,” he offered.
She and Rae followed him inside. Her sister oohed and aahed over Zane’s expensive sound system. Jenna had to swallow the urge to remind Rae they were only there for a short time.
The last thing she wanted to do was take advantage of Zane’s generous hospitality. Their stay here was only temporary. It would be best if she and Rae didn’t get too comfortable in their luxurious surroundings.
She and Rae didn’t belong here.
They’d be back in their own cramped, run-down house as soon as the repairs were completed.
THE NEXT MORNING, things seemed more awkward than ever. Last night, Jenna had done the laundry, giving them at least two different outfits to wear. He’d greeted them with breakfast, which had been unexpected, too.
“There’s no reason for you to play host to us.” She tried not to sound ungrateful. “You cooked dinner last night, and now breakfast this morning. Why don’t you let Rae and I clean up the kitchen?”
“I don’t mind.” He stubbornly refused to move away from the sink, so she helped the best she could while Rae went back up to the office she was using as her room.
“Zane, it’s important to me that you to feel at ease in your own home.”
“I do.”
She didn’t believe him.
When they finished with the dishes, he turned toward her, hands tucked into the back pockets of his worn jeans. He looked just as good out of his flight suit as he did in it. His gaze caught hers, holding her captive for long seconds. “I’m very glad you’re here, Jenna.”
Sizzling heat danced along her nerves. Rubbing a hand over her arm, she was suddenly glad Rae wasn’t there. She’d fended off enough of her sister’s curious questions the night before. She moved away, turning toward the living room. She noticed a guitar perched on a stand, off in the corner of Zane’s living room. Had it been there the last time she was here? Probably, only she’d been too self-conscious to notice. She wandered toward it. She didn’t know much about musical instruments, but this one looked well used yet well cared for. She ran a fingertip over the glossy surface. “You play?”
“Yes. Music is fun and helps me relax.” Zane came over to stand beside her, so close she could smell the woodsy scent of his aftershave. His voice rumbled low in his chest. “What do you do for fun, Jenna?”
She shrugged and shook her head. “I, uh, don’t know. Nothing in particular. When I have time to spare, I work on the house, refinishing the wood or painting.” Her smile was lopsided. “Trust me, mindless manual labor can be very relaxing, too.”
“But mindless manual labor isn’t fun.” Zane’s brows pulled together in a small frown.
“No, I guess not.” Jenna couldn’t find the words to admit she didn’t do anything for fun. Even her time spent at the community center was for Rae’s benefit. Sure, she didn’t mind coaching, but it wasn’t exactly fun. More often than not, she found it stressful. She lifted the guitar off the stand and turned toward him. “Will you play something for me?”
“Sure.” Zach took the guitar and sat down on the sofa. He patted the seat next to him, waiting for her to join him, then he began to warm up. “It’s been a while since I played, so give me a minute to make sure it’s in tune.”
Mesmerized by the way his fingers picked out the chords, she listened as he twisted the knobs in an effort to tune the guitar. Then he began to play, and after a few small bars, she recognized the song and began to hum along.
Zane grinned. “I love music, but I can’t sing worth a nickel.”
Singing in the shower probably didn’t count, but since she knew the words, she sang along. She wasn’t great, but her contralto blended decently enough with the strumming notes from Zane’s guitar. She was surprised to discover Zane didn’t make her feel self-conscious, even when she stumbled a bit over some of the words.
“You have an incredibly beautiful voice, Jenna.” His warm sincerity heated her cheeks. “I wouldn’t mind listening to you all day.”
“What other songs can you play?” Sitting like this with him was akin to magic. She didn’t want the moment to end.
&
nbsp; “I, uh, well, I can actually play just about anything I’ve heard before.” This time he ducked his head a bit as if he was embarrassed. “I have an ear for music.”
“Really?” Impressed, she stared at him. “Anything?”
“Yep.” He was back to plucking strings. “Anything I’ve heard before, at least. Name a song.”
A challenge? Hmmm. She thought for a minute. “How about the theme song from Gilligan’s Island?”
Obediently, he picked up the tune. Laughing, she sang along. Soon they were both giggling so hard they couldn’t sing or play the guitar.
“Jenna.” Zane shifted to guitar to the side so he could gather her close. “Do you have any idea how much I missed you?”
“I missed you, too.”
His mouth descended on hers, and she eagerly met his kiss. If she’d once doubted her feelings, the intensity of his kiss reminded her just how much she cared for him.
“Hey, Jenna?” Rae appeared in the doorway.
Jenna broke away from Zane, trying to focus. “What?”
Rae grinned and wiggled her eyebrows. “Gee, sorry to intrude, but I need a ride to work.”
“Take my car.” Zane fished in his pocket for the keys.
“No. Are you crazy?” Jenna hopped up from her seat beside Zane, ignoring his low groan of protest. “You are not taking Zane’s car to work. I’ll give you a ride, no problem.”
“All right.” Rae didn’t put up much of an argument. No doubt her sister understood the wisdom of not leaving a Lexus parked outside Carlson’s Custard.
“See? It would’ve been a good idea to allow your sister to get the repairs done on your car.” Zane sighed. “Then she wouldn’t need a ride.”
“Are you saying it’s a problem to give her a ride?” Jenna’s tone was sharper than she’d intended. “There was a time you were trying to force me to drive your car. You want to give her a ride?”
“No, it’s fine.” Zane looked disgruntled, but that was just too bad. She tried to tell him that it would be inconvenient for him to have both of them living there, but he hadn’t listened.
She didn’t want to pick a fight on their first full day. Obviously, there were adjustments to be made on both sides of this arrangement.
And she needed a little distance from Zane anyway, before she did something she’d regret.
As they left, Jenna heard Zane’s fingers on the guitar, but instead of the soothing music, a jarring chord hit her ears.
Annoyed, she closed the condo door firmly behind her. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe it would be best if she and Rae moved into a motel room after all.
13
Zane stood on his deck, resenting Rae’s timing and detesting himself at the same time for his juvenile attitude. He curled his fingers over the deck railing and stared out at the rain-soaked trees.
He knew Jenna was devoted to her sister—it was one of her most endearing traits. But at the same time Rae was eighteen—a high school graduate, allowed to vote or join the military. Wasn’t it well past time for Jenna’s little sister to become more independent?
Yet Jenna seemed just as determined to keep taking care of Rae as if she couldn’t trust her sister to make a rational decision. The whole issue surrounding the car repairs was a perfect example. He thought it would be good for Rae to use some of her custard money to help pay for car repairs. But he didn’t have any reason to think Jenna would change her tune after all this time.
“I’m back,” Jenna’s voice rang out as she entered the condo with the key he’d given her.
He glanced over his shoulder but didn’t respond. He honestly didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to fight with her on their first day together.
Crossing her arms over her chest, she stepped closer. “I guess we should start looking for a motel room.”
“No.” The denial was instinctive and automatic. Panic rose in his throat. He’d just gotten Jenna here, he couldn’t lose her already. “I promised no strings, Jenna, and I meant it.”
“Yes, that’s what you said.” Her brows pulled together in a frown. “But I’m not sure I believe it. You’re pulling away, Zane, just like you did before.”
Pulling away? What was she talking about? Holding her and kissing her had gone straight to his head faster than a fine wine. The moment he captured her mouth in his, a strange possessiveness had swept over him, straining his self-control. He’d wanted to shout mine for the whole world to hear. Unwilling to frighten her, he’d tried to take things slow, she had been the one who’d pulled away the moment Rae had lifted a finger, needing help. “I didn’t pull away from you. You’re the one who left to take Rae to work.”
Her gaze bored into him. “Maybe not physically, but you did on an emotional level.” Jenna’s expression was wounded. “You resent Rae.”
“No, I don’t.” He resented Rae’s rotten timing, her dependence on Jenna, the way Jenna wanted to control her life, but not the fact that Rae existed. He couldn’t imagine how awful it would be if Jenna was alone in the world, without anyone to call family. She and Rae had turned out pretty well, considering the environment in which they’ve grown up.
“What about your sister, Zane?”
“Eve? What about her?”
“Did you pull away from her, too, after she ran away?”
He scowled. “What does my sister have to do with the two of us? My feelings for you have nothing to do with how close I am to my sister. Do you have any idea how much I care about you?”
“Answer the question, Zane. Did you talk to your sister, and I mean really talk to her, after she returned home?”
He set his jaw and glanced away. Eve was not a topic he liked to discuss. “Of course, I tried to talk to her. But she wouldn’t open up. Pushing for information only made her more upset.”
“Maybe she didn’t think you were there for her.”
“I was there for her. I spent months looking for her.” His response was quick, but a kernel of doubt seeped in. Had he really tried as hard as he could have to get through to Eve? Or had he allowed her to push him away because that meant he didn’t have to carry the guilt of knowing the horrible details of what she’d lived through?
“Looking for her was the easy part.” Jenna was persistent. “Dealing with the emotional aftermath may have been what she needed most from you.”
He shied away from the possible truth. “You don’t even know Eve. My relationship with my sister isn’t anything like the way you control every move Rae makes. How is your sister going to get through college if you’re making every decision for her?”
Jenna’s eyes darkened. “I don’t make every decision for her. She’s choosing her classes and her major.”
“Sure. Until you don’t approve, then you’ll be right there in her face, convincing her to change her mind.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Arguing like this wasn’t going to change anything, but he couldn’t seem to stop.
“You don’t know anything about being a parent, a role model.” Jenna’s tone held an underlying note of bitterness. “Do you think any of this is easy? I make difficult decisions every day. And if you really cared about me, you would try a little harder to see my side of things.”
“I do care about you.” Heaven help him, he did. Yet it was obvious they’d reached a stalemate. Further arguing was useless. Zane’s chest tightened, and he plowed his fingers through his hair. “Jenna, this isn’t the way I wanted to spend our first day together.”
She was silent for a long moment. “Me either.”
“Let’s put on some music.” He went back inside the house and picked his guitar off the sofa, returning it to its stand. He hit the dial on the sound system, keeping the volume low. The brief moment of fun they’d shared was over. He wished they could recapture it. “So where do we go from here?”
“I don’t know.” She hunched her shoulders. “We could declare a truce.”
A truce sounded like a good idea, even if it would likely only last un
til the next time Rae needed something. No, he shouldn’t expect the worst. There had to be some way to get back on friendly terms. The music gave him an idea. “Why don’t we go down to Rainbow Summer?” At Jenna’s blank expression, he explained, “There are live bands playing on the Riverwalk in downtown Milwaukee.”
“Sounds great.” Jenna’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes, but her acceptance was a step in the right direction. Earlier, she hadn’t answered when he’d asked what she did for fun. Working on the house didn’t count, at least not in his book. Maybe if he could teach her to relax and have a good time, she’d lighten up and stop worrying about Rae.
“We can grab something to eat down there, too.”
“Sure.” Jenna glanced at her watch. “Rae is working until eight. We have plenty of time.”
Determined to prove he didn’t resent her sister, Zane nodded. “Speaking of food, how are the burgers at Carlson’s Custard? We could surprise Rae with a visit.”
Jenna’s smile blossomed, and this time, her eyes lit up with keen anticipation. “I’d like that.”
“Good.” Maybe his attempt to meet her halfway would help mend the rift between them.
He’d give anything to recapture the closeness they’d once shared.
FIRST THING MONDAY MORNING, Jenna contacted her homeowner’s insurance company. Once she connected with her agent, the guy agreed to meet her out at the house to assess the damage.
Zane rose to his feet. “I’ll drive you over.”
“All right.” Jenna glanced at the clock, taking note that it was almost nine thirty in the morning. Wasting an hour on the phone dealing with insurance red tape should be a crime. “We’ll have plenty of time before we report in.”
They were both picking up the later part of a twelve-hour shift to help cover a vacation day for Ethan and Kate. She and Zane were due to report at Lifeline at one o’clock in the afternoon.
“What about Rae?” Zane asked. “Does she need a ride to work?”
“Yes, I told her we’d drop her off at her friend Claire’s house.” Jenna frowned and glanced around. “Where is she anyway?”
