“Look, Jett. I’m not glamorous, or trendy, or stylish. A guy like you”—she swept a gesture from his head to his toes, her eyes following—“could have any girl he wants.”
Another blush touched her cheeks, and she spun away on the pretense of moving some of the paint supplies, but he had a feeling it was just to put her back to him.
He folded his arms and leaned into his heels. He hadn’t been wrong. A wave of sorrow washed through him. “So you’ve bought into Dale’s lies and think that the only way a guy could be interested in you is because he’s having emotional upheaval in his life?”
She spun to face him. “What are you talking about?” Anger sparked in her eyes.
Good. Let her feel some annoyance. Because there was no way he was going to let her go another minute believing she was inferior to anyone else.
Salem couldn’t believe what he’d just said to her. This had nothing to do with Dale. And yet…did it?
Jett took a step toward her.
She took a step back, heart beating as though it wanted release from her chest.
She retreated until her back was to the wall, and still he kept coming.
He leaned in and planted both hands on either side of her. A muscle bunched in his jaw, and irritation sparked in his gray-blue eyes, and yet there were other emotions there too—ones of sorrow and empathy—that made her feel like she’d never been in a safer place in her entire life.
His voice was low and gravelly when he spoke. “I want to tell you a story. Will you listen to it?”
She nodded, not at all certain that she was ready to hear what he had to say. His cologne taunted her senses. She wished he didn’t smell so heavenly. Didn’t look so heavenly. How would she ever be able to keep him at a distance again, after letting him get this close?
“There was a woman who worked so hard to care for her family, that she sometimes fell asleep right in the middle of what she was doing.” He caressed her cheek with the back of one finger.
Salem held her breath. She had no idea where he was going with this, but she was fully invested in finding out.
“She was beautiful and feminine and slender, but sometimes when she’d had a long and trying day and she only had a few minutes to sneak away while a friend watched her grandmother, she went to town in her work clothes. Despite being in those work clothes, she was the most beautiful woman in the store, maybe even the whole town—no, scratch that, the whole state.”
Salem smirked. Yeah right.
Jett tapped her nose and wagged a finger for her to pay attention. “In her town lived a sheriff. He was kind of a boor—okay, let’s face it, he was an outright jerk.”
Salem chuckled.
“And our beautiful maiden had rejected his…suit? Is that the right word? I’m not very good at this romance story stuff.”
She grinned. “You’re doing just fine.”
“Right. So she’d rejected Mr. Schmuck’s suit—”
Salem laughed outright.
He grinned. “I thought you’d like that. She’d rejected Schmuck and yet there she stood before him in the store, obviously tired and work-worn, but still the most beautiful sight Schmuck had seen all month. This frustrated Schmuck. In fact it made him downright angry. The rejection he’d suffered felt that much more catastrophic because of her beauty and generous spirit. And the only way he could see to make himself feel better was to point out all her flaws, even if they were fabrications.” Jett’s voice was as soft as warm honey now. “He made fun of how she looked because he was frustrated with himself for still being attracted to her. He belittled her financial status in front of the man she was with to make himself feel better. But it only made the man she was with realize what a small man Schmuck was.”
Jett lifted both hands to encircle her face.
She held her breath, not wanting to miss a word of what he was about to say.
“He’s a liar, Salem. Don’t let him steal from you, or from us. You are a beautiful, special woman made in the image of God who has a heart of gold. You are serving your grandmother with every ounce of energy you have, and that only enhances your beauty, because it comes from here.” He tapped one finger to her chest.
He stepped back then, folded his arms, and leaned into his heels. He tilted her a look as though to ask what she’d thought of his story.
She rubbed clammy palms down the front of her jeans. “I haven’t told you that I’ve dated Dale off and on for several years. He put me down like that even when we were together.”
Jett shook his head. “That doesn’t change the truth. He’s got a self-image problem. People who put others down like that only do it to make themselves feel better.”
She swallowed and turned to stare at the cherry tree that was still in full bud outside the bedroom window. Was it true? Yes. Maybe it was true. She’d broken up with him because she’d never liked the way he treated her, right? Well, partially. Her thoughts flitted to the incident where she’d caught him kissing Monica Hale just outside the doorway to one of the rooms in Riversong’s only motel. She’d been driving through town one evening and seen his cruiser in the motel lot when her headlights flashed over it. She’d pulled into the lot to let him know that her job with D.I.M.E.S. had fallen through. She’d really needed someone to talk to… And there he’d been. Right in front of room 105. Kissing Monica in her tiny black leather miniskirt while she fumbled with trying to get the room’s door to open.
Her teeth were clenched together so hard her jaw ached.
“So what do you say? You gonna let me help you paint?”
She tore her thoughts from the memories and focused on Jett. “You may be right. Maybe I am believing his lies just a little.” It probably didn’t help that Gran had been so negative for the past several months too. “I’ll pray about that and try to do better. But…I can’t handle a broken heart on top of all that I’m going through right now, Jett.”
He spread his hands and gave her that flirty smile of his. “Do I look like a heartbreaker?”
Yes. Yes, you do. But all she said out loud was, “There’s a paint brush on the plastic sheeting over there.”
With only a few days left until his return to reality, Jett was taking every opportunity he could to do some relaxing. At this very moment, he stood in hip waders with a fly tied to the end of his line, and the river sloshing past him in a calming cacophony. Man, it was beautiful here.
Tall evergreens grew right along the riverbank, casting long shadows over the water and creating perfectly shaded pools.
Jett flicked his line, landing his sculpin right at the edge of the shadow, and was rewarded by an instant tug on the line. He set the hook, a little disappointed to have his catch so early, and yet looking forward to maybe spending a little extra time with Salem today. He reeled in the beautiful rainbow trout. It only took him a few minutes to gut and string the trout, and his mouth watered at the possibility of grilling them up for Salem and Gran for dinner.
His route back to the B&B took him past the high school. And when he saw the football team practicing on the field, he pulled over to the side of the road before he even realized what he was doing. He would just watch for a few moments.
He recognized the pastor standing on the sidelines with a clipboard in his hands, but from this distance it was mostly because of the man’s cute little towheaded girl who was playing in the grass near the fifty yard line.
It seemed they were trying to run an offensive drill for their running backs, but the players looked as confused as ants in a sugar factory.
The pastor waved his clipboard and strode out onto the field, calling the players back to the line.
Jett put his truck into gear and started to pull away, but his attention snagged on Genevieve, who was chasing a butterfly across the sidelines and heading right for the road. Another glance at her father showed he was so engrossed in his coaching that he hadn’t noticed.
Jett thrust the truck back into park and shut down the engine. He met th
e three-year-old only a few steps into the grass. He squatted down so he wouldn’t scare her with his height. “Hi there.”
Her eyes widened, and she tossed a glance over her shoulder. Clearly she hadn’t realized she’d moved so far away from her father.
Jett held up his hands palms out. “I’m not going to hurt you. I just didn’t want you to run out into the road.”
“Genevieve!” her father called as he dashed toward them. He scooped his daughter into his arms with a puff of relieved breath.
Jett stood and stretched out his hand. “Sorry if I startled you. I just didn’t want her to run into the road. We met the other day at the grocery store.”
Pastor Duncan shook his hand. “I remember, yes. And thank you so much.” He turned a discouraged gaze back to the team milling on the field.
“You going to be the new coach?” Jett asked, thrusting his hands deep into his pockets.
“Heavens, no. I hope not. Basketball was my game. We just haven’t found anyone who’s willing and able to do it yet. I worked so hard all year to get the school board to agree to make it a paid position, and now there’s no one to step in and fill the job.” He chuckled. “I’m sure there’s a sermon in there somewhere.”
Jett smiled.
Pastor Duncan turned his full scrutiny on Jett. “You don’t know anything about football, do you?”
“I’m leaving to go back home early next week.” Jett was thankful he’d been able to avoid the question yet still give an honest reply.
“Yes, of course.” Pastor waved a hand as though to wipe away that last query. “Sorry. Just feeling a little desperate, as you might be able to tell. Well”—he held out his hand for a farewell shake—“wishing you all the best, and thanks again.” He hefted Genevieve to indicate this thanks had been for keeping her out of the road.
“Of course.” Involuntarily, Jett’s gaze returned to the boys on the field. He pointed to a boy with a mop of blond curls. “Try number thirty there as the quarterback and put your current QB in as a running back. He’s got the legs and build for it.”
Pastor Duncan motioned that he was willing to attempt anything. “I’ll give it a try.”
“Have a good day.” As Jett pulled away, he couldn’t seem to dispel the sense that he was abandoning his team. And that was just stupid. He’d never even met any of those boys.
But maybe that was a nudge from the Lord that he ought to take that high school coaching job back home?
CHAPTER 12
For two weeks Jett helped Salem with projects around the house. She worried that he’d given up nearly his whole vacation to work with her, and insisted that she owed him a refund for all the work he was doing to help her. He assured her that he was having the time of his life, and she appreciated him all the more for his generosity.
He snatched a few fishing trips here and there, but in between they got the Aria painted and Gran moved in. Salem hadn’t even had to ask for help from the men of the church because Jett helped her get the heavy hospital bed moved down from upstairs.
Gran fell into a funk when her routine changed, but after three days, she seemed to resign herself to the new way of things.
Jett had carefully maintained his distance, despite the fact that she’d clearly seen desire in his eyes on more than one occasion. And she was ever so thankful for the space, because lingering in the back of her mind was his imminent return to Florida—and the fact that she was already much too attached to him.
With a little less than a week until his departure, Salem was sitting at the front desk doing some accounting when he strolled up. “Any chance you could get someone to come stay with Gran on Saturday so you could come to Seattle with me?”
She swallowed. He hadn’t even told her what he wanted to do in Seattle, but the thought of having a day away from the stress and emotional burden of taking care of Gran, even for one day, sounded like heaven. She was a wimp. She’d only been Gran’s caretaker for a little over two months and already she felt ready to crumple under the pressure. But… On top of not being able to leave Gran, spending more time with him would only weaken her resolve to keep him at arm’s length.
She shored up her resolve. “I’m sorry. I already have Zaire coming that day to sit with Gran for a few hours so I can run to Wenatchee, which is a lot closer than Seattle, and do some shopping.”
Jett’s face lit up. “That’s perfect. We can check with Zaire to see if she can stay for the whole day, and you and I can do your shopping on our way back home from Seattle.”
She squinted at him. “What is going on in Seattle? And why is it so important that I come?”
That lazy smile brought out his dimples, as if he figured he’d already talked her into it. “What’s going on is a benefit game. All the proceeds go to a local charity that helps kids in lower income housing by bringing sports programs into their neighborhoods for free. Remember the friend I mentioned who wanted me to help him coach a team? This is it.”
Salem felt her heart begin to beat faster. “Wait a minute. You aren’t talking about D.I.M.E.S., are you?”
He nodded. “Yeah, it stands for something like Development of—”
“Ingenuity, Music, Elocution, and Sports.”
He frowned. “Yeah. How did you know?”
She sighed and waved a hand as though it wasn’t a big deal. “I applied for a job with them, but didn’t get it.”
“I see… Well, this might be a good way for you to get your foot in the door with them again. Anyhow…” A glimmer of uncertainty flashed through his eyes, and he straightened. “Like I said, my friend invited me to step in as an assistant offensive coach. And I’m allowed to bring someone with me. I thought you might like to watch the game. And there’s a fundraising banquet afterwards.”
The thought of maybe getting another shot at meeting the CEO of D.I.M.E.S. and reminding her that if she ever had another position come open, Salem would love a chance to try for it, was appealing indeed. But it was the lingering pain in Jett’s expression that broke down all Salem’s resistance. She didn’t want to hurt him more. She knew from talks they’d had that he still questioned whether coaching was the right thing for him or not. “It actually sounds like it would be really fun. I’ve never been to a football game before.”
Jett thrust a hand over his heart as though she’d just mortally wounded him. “Never been to a football game?!”
She smiled and shook her head. “I’ve always just watched on TV. Never had a reason to go to one.”
Jett settled back onto his heels. “Well now you do.” The words were spoken softly like a caress.
Salem sucked in a little breath and broke eye contact. Forget deteriorating walls. The man had just crushed them to dust. Her hand trembled when she straightened her pile of receipts. She hated to ask Zaire to stay all day on one of her days off. But maybe, just this once she’d see if it was possible. “I’ll ask Zaire and let you know?”
“Great. Now how about you lay off of work and come watch a movie with me in the great room?”
This time she couldn’t place the blame for her concession at the feet of anything other than the fact that she really, really, liked the sound of spending some more time with him. You’re so weak. She reminded herself to be strong and resist. “You’ll be going home in just a few days.”
He tilted her a soft look. “You going to miss me?” A grin peeked through. “As much as I’m going to miss you?”
She couldn’t help but smile this time. She stood and rounded the desk, giving him the best indifferent shrug that she could muster. “Maybe a little.” She stepped toward the door, intending to lock it.
But he caught her hand and tugged her around to face him with a laugh.
She looked at him, chest tight and breathing shallow.
His thumb grazed over the side of her hand, and then he said softly. “Honesty, Miss Finn, is the best policy.”
That may be, but it also felt a little like dropping her shield. Especially sinc
e she didn’t know if his feelings anywhere near matched hers. Her throat suddenly felt constricted. “I told you not to break my heart.” She rolled her lips in and pressed them tight.
Jett stepped closer and slipped a strand of hair behind her ear. “Just because I’m leaving, it doesn’t have to be the end for us.”
Her feet felt frozen to the ground. Her breaths were still coming short and shallow. She didn’t see how they could make a long-distance relationship work, busy as she would be. “What are you going to be doing when you go back home?”
He released her hand along with a breath. “I wish I knew. I keep praying, but I don’t feel like I have any direction yet.”
“I know what that feels like.” She loosed a huff of her own and flicked a glance towards Gran’s room. For now she was enjoying taking care of Gran, though she had to admit that Jett had been a huge help with that. But there would come a day when Gran needed too much medical help for Salem to be able to take care of her. What was she going to do then? Even if she could get the rooms downstairs remodeled and keep all of them filled with guests all the time, it would barely keep the B&B running and pay for Gran’s care. Her stomach knotted with worry over what she would do. She despaired of figuring out the answer.
Jett tilted his head. “What are you thinking?”
She waved away his concern. “Just worrying about what I’m going to do with Gran when I can no longer care for her. I’ll get it figured out. God’s got a plan, right?”
“Doesn’t her insurance cover something like that?”
Salem shook her head. If only he knew how much research she’d put into this. “No, Gran’s supplemental health insurance won’t cover it. Neither will Medicare. And she made too much money to qualify for Medicaid, even if the nursing home I’d want to put her in accepted it, which they don’t.”
Jett scrubbed at the back of his neck, an indefinable emotion etching his features. “You know when the time comes that I could make that problem go away for you like that”—he snapped his fingers—“don’t you?”
Angel Kisses and Riversong Page 10
