by Jean Oram
She blinked a few times, gasping at the whiskey's sting. What was she thinking? Drinking before her opening? She ducked into the tiny office off the kitchen and dug through her purse for mints. She shoved a handful of Tic Tacs in her mouth and chewed hard. The room's purple color suddenly felt much too optimistic.
When she was sure her breath was okay, she barreled out of the office in seek of her to- do list. Sensing something had changed, she spun on her heel and halted, almost losing her balance.
Frankie stood tall in a button-down shirt and faded jeans. Her knees went all Jell-Oey and the amount of oxygen in the room seemed to suddenly diminish significantly.
The hungry look in his eyes—the one he used to mask as soon as she noticed it—was there. Unmasked. No hiding. No protection. The same truth she had in her heart and had been sheltering for years, behind pretense and fears.
She took a step toward him and he shot her a soft grin, exposing all those wonderful white chompers.
"Taking the edge off?" he asked. He took a step forward, his hands running up her arms and making her body tremble. She forced herself to remain rigid so she wouldn't tumble into his arms and make a fool of herself. Despite that fiery look in his eyes, they were still only friends. It was his move. "I can think of much better ways that won't leave a telltale scent on your breath."
If he was insinuating what she thought he was, she was going to pass out and miss it all.
"Then how should I chill out?" she asked, hoping and praying he was going to suggest something involving his body.
He tugged her into her office, shutting the door behind her. She tilted her head back to look at him, her mind failing to succeed in reminding her body to cool it and that there were important things to be tending to on the other side of that closed office door.
Frankie reached out to give her chin a gentle nudge. "You did it, huh?" But instead of his knuckle gliding off her chin in his mock hit, his finger gently ran the length of her jaw.
Inadvertently, she sighed and sagged toward him. Then, catching herself, she pulled back.
Instead of tensing, Frankie eased closer, trapping her in the tight space between the filing cabinet and doorframe. He rested a hand on top of the helium canister for the balloons she still hadn't put up. Frankie's dark eyes sent her soul calming messages and left her feeling relaxed and safe. Loved. Forgiven.
And maybe they were asking questions, too.
She gently placed a finger over the soul patch below his lip, testing its softness. He was well worth the risk. Always had been. She would take what he was willing to give and she wouldn't know what that was unless she stepped in and accepted.
She rested against him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she leaned her head against his chest. His heart throbbed against her. "I love you, Frankie," she whispered. She froze, her eyes flying open.
Oh, crap. That was out loud.
Oh, fuck, oh, fuck.
She wasn't going to push it. She was...
Oh hell. What did it matter, anyway?
She'd painted her feelings on the freaking tower and she'd told him straight out how she felt on national television and then also announced her intentions on the local news.
She tipped her head back to see his reaction and his lips were upon hers, his right hand flying into her hair, holding her close as he kissed her long and hard. His hand slipped up the back of her shirt and every touch against her skin sent lightning through her veins. They butted up against the filing cabinet and he suddenly upped the intensity, as though his revving engine had finally been released at the starting line after all those years.
Every emotion they'd experienced over the past few months crashed into their kisses as they hit the floor, Frankie on top of her, pinning her while cranking up the heat. She moaned and thrust her hands under his shirt, her fingers roaming every back muscle as though she was deciphering an urgent braille message. Every muscle she'd pretended not to admire over the years was inventoried as they rocked against each other, panting. Frankie's hand found her breast and she wrapped her legs around him as their lips tightly sealed around each other.
This was what she had been missing.
Right there on the cold tile floor, she promised herself she would never miss an instant of this for the rest of her life. No matter what. This was the reward she'd always been seeking. The love of her best friend. He was the man who could help her through anything. He was the one.
The one.
* * *
Mandy handed out another balloon and grinned. She couldn't help it. Her lips felt as though they'd swelled to twice their normal size, prompting Mary Alice to frown and squint and ask if she'd undergone lip enhancement surgery until she'd happened to catch a glimpse of Frankie grinning from his spot by the sample table. Mandy had simply beamed like the fool she was.
A lovesick fool.
She shot Frankie a wink, which he returned with a smile. Trying not to be such a sap, she handed out another balloon and invited a family to try some samples. Less than two hours in and they were already running low. But people were actually purchasing items off the menu, and Benny, bless his heart, had sent Gloria over to help run food out to tables.
She could already see what Wrap it Up would become here in Blueberry Springs and how she would convince the other franchisees that this was the way to go—a blend between what Wrap it Up had been and a regular restaurant. A hybrid.
Frankie sidled over and, grabbing her around the waist, pulled her in for a long kiss. The restaurant cheered and a few clinked their plastic forks against their cups as if it was a wedding reception. Mandy blushed and smiled at her boyfriend. They hadn't discussed it, but she knew they were already far more than exclusive and things would continue to do nothing but heat up between them. It had only been a few hours, but things were already different than they had been with anyone else she'd ever been with.
She couldn't wait to close up for the night and see where the future took them.
Her brother wheeled up and whispered, "We're out of brownies."
"Good." She nodded. "People will have something to come back for."
"The brownies are all gone?" Benny asked, coming closer. "Huh. Well, it looks like you've got a hit on your hands—and I don't just mean the brownies." He raised his brows at the full room of bustling, happy eaters. "This place is what the town needs, especially with all these youngsters coming in to enjoy the outdoors. You'll do well." He rocked back on his heels and frowned in thought. "I may have to build an apartment building for all these youngsters to live in." He turned, catching John by the arm and immediately began discussing how to amend zoning bylaws.
Her heart skipped half a beat when she realized the next people waiting to talk to her and offer congratulations were Oz and Beth. Beth was cradling her barely rounded out midsection with a cupped hand and beaming like a crazy fool.
Man, life happened fast.
But I guess if you knew, you knew. She used to hate that reply when she'd ask people how they knew if it was true love: You just know. But now she understood. Completely.
Beth and Oz reached out at the same time to give her a double hug. "Congratulations," Mandy said to Beth. "You're going to be an awesome mom."
Beth blushed, looking immensely pleased to be harboring a baby. "Thank you."
They watched each other for a second, and then suddenly the tension, that had been there between them for all those years dissipated. They shared a soft smile of understanding.
"I'm happy for you two," Beth whispered in Mandy's ear. "He's always been so crazy about you."
Mary Alice pulled Beth away to chat about morning sickness remedies and Mandy felt relieved. It was one thing to drop the gloves, and quite another to start talking about their men and love. The couple blended back into the crowd and out on the street, the cars began a slow cruise up and down Main, honking and waving at the spectators. A success outside. A success inside.
Frankie pulled Mandy back into his arms. "I
heard Ed bought thirty tickets for the whiskey and gumdrops raffle. He's desperate for a whole tray of those things."
Mandy laughed. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask... Who was that blowtorch girl, anyway?"
Frankie frowned in confusion.
"Sorry, I mean Justice," Mandy amended quickly.
"Nothing," Frankie said, a glint in his eye. "Why? Were you jealous?"
Mandy felt her cheeks burn.
Frankie pulled her closer. "Just a girl who needed a break. I may have let people think there was something between us. You know, so I could be sure a girl I had my sights on wasn't just playing me."
She playfully pushed him away and shook her head. He pulled her back in, brushing his lips against hers. "Mmm. Did I ever tell you how good you smell with food in your hair?"
Shivers raced down her spine and the glee inside threatened to erupt like a dropped can of beer. When life was good, it was good. "Are you trying to change the subject?" she asked.
"No, just admiring how delectable you are. If I were going to change the subject, I'd tell you I loved you."
"And do you?" she asked, swinging her body to the side so she could see him better.
He chuckled and drew her against his firm chest, holding her tight as he whispered in her ear, "I've been here all along, Mandy, loving you every day."
"I like the sound of that," she said, warmth flooding her system.
"Be good to her, man," Cody said as he walked by, his voice a warning.
Laughing, Mandy tossed a crumpled napkin off a nearby table at his retreating form. "I'm not fluff!"
"Oh," he said, grinning as he turned back and caught the napkin, "and by the way, Dad is wondering if he can change out one of the fluorescents. The bulb is flickering."
"Tell him he can help me later. My insurance won't cover him falling off a ladder in an overcrowded building."
Frankie opened his mouth to speak and Mandy gave him a kiss to shut him up. Enough already. Less talk, more action. It was all green lights from here on out and she was ready to see where the road took them.
Devon, tucking his guitar under his arm, began strumming at the checkout counter and Frankie swayed her side to side. "You know, we have a lot of time to make up for as a couple."
Mandy felt her cheeks heat, the fire flowing to the rest of her body. "Do we?" she asked coyly.
He nuzzled her neck and said, "We do."
"Then I think we'd better start as soon as possible." She gave him a deep kiss amidst more hoots and cheers.
* * *
With her place closed up for the night, Mandy held Frankie's hand as they walked down Main Street, all signs of Mandy's grand opening and the debut Blueberry Cruise whisked away. Despite Mandy's exhaustion, she was exhilarated. Everything she wanted was right here in Blueberry Springs, putting a bounce in her step she was certain would be there for some time.
Everything had worked out perfectly. She had her own restaurant, but most of all she'd learned to let go and let others help. Without doing that she wouldn't have had the successful grand opening that she did. And she might not have Frankie.
And although he had to return to finish up the television show, the editors, who had come to Blueberry Springs to catch some footage of Frankie running parts of the Blueberry Cruise, had decided to reframe the footage they'd taken of Frankie's best friend-turned-girlfriend (yeah, that would be her) whispering her feelings on the show. She would be the villain no more when the show aired in December. They'd even requested to catch some footage of Mandy and Frankie kissing a few times in front of the souped-up, restored cars lining Main Street.
But most of all, she had the love of her best friend and couldn't wait to make the most of what was sure to be a long time together.
She turned to Frankie, and he drew her close as he clasped both her hands in his, raising them to his lips. "Mm. You smell good, Miss M."
She laughed lightly. "Did I ever tell you how much I love it when you call me that?"
"I know everything about you, Mandy." He lightly kissed her knuckles. "Everything."
"No, you don't. Not yet." She gave him a wicked smile and drew him toward her waiting apartment. "But you soon will. You soon will."
~ THE END ~
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Want a sneak peek?
Don't miss the next adventure in Blueberry Springs featuring Jen! How on earth did this girl end up in Blueberry Springs and what's going to happen when she almost burns it down? (Turn the page to read a sneak peek of Rum and Raindrops—coming Spring 2014!)
Rum and Raindrops
(A Sneak Peek of Book 3 in Blueberry Springs)
Copyright 2013 Jean Oram
By Jean Oram
Coming Spring 2014
~ Go to JeanOram.com to sign up for an email when this book comes available. ~
This time she wouldn't run.
She wouldn't be able to live with herself this time.
As tempting as it was. She could. Not.
Even though this was much, much worse than anything else she'd ever been through—worse than finding her best friend's belt under her live-in boyfriend's bed. Worse than running away from home at sixteen and losing herself in the process.
Completely worse.
She stared at the layers of gray drifting lower in the sky. For days, the clouds of smoke had been building, closing in, choking out the mountain town's residents. Jen couldn't hear the forest fire crackling from here, but she knew if the wind changed direction she would never live down being the girl (nature guide, at that) who burned down the small town of Blueberry Springs.
She sighed and wiggled her key in the back door of Wally's Sporting Goods, shouldered open the warped door and flicked on the lights. Normally, in May, she wouldn't need lights at this time of day but thanks to her own neglect, that forest fire was making pretty damn sure everyone was using plenty of electricity.
She stood outside the store's back door and worried her keys. Her car was ready. Packed with the essentials as well as her most prized belongings in case they called for an evacuation. She didn't need to wait; she could just get in and go. Now. She didn't have to stop. Didn't have to come back.
It was right over there. Only a few steps away.
"Jen!"
She jumped, dropping her keys as Wally, her boss, rested a heavy hand on her shoulder. "What are you doing?" His brows folded in concern. "There are rumors of evacuation. Everyone's closing up."
She picked up her keys and stared through the open back door where she'd rediscovered the old Jen—sporting good by sporting good—after her unplanned arrival in Blueberry Springs. The old Jen who used to cross-country ski. Who won swim meets. The Jen who knew her way around a pair of hiking boots and welcomed the adventures they would bring. The Jen she had been before running away from home. Before Ken.
She'd lost that Jen over time, but here in Blueberry Springs she'd found her again. She was thriving. But now...if she ran...
"Look. I'm closing up shop," Wally said gently. "Help people load their cars and then get the hell out of here. In case."
"It smells like rain," she whispered, wishing she could see the sky—see the weather coming over the mountain ranges instead of being blocked by big clouds of smoke that made her eyes burn.
"We're going to need a helluva lot more than rain," he said, turning away.
* * *
Jen moved uneasily down Main Street. Should she simply walk up to people as they were loading their vehicles and start pitching in? What if they were angry with her for what she'd done? Because, seriously, what kind of nature guide started a raging forest fire when out testing equipment?
She couldn't
understand it. She was always so careful. She'd gone out with Wally when she first started her excursion business out of his shop and the expression he'd used when she put out their little campfire was anal retentive. But this time, obviously, her anal retentiveness hadn't been enough.
Scott, the local officer and stand-in park ranger, told her she'd been the only one out at Raspberry Creek Park the weekend the fire started. And therefore...well, it wasn't difficult to do the math and figure out where to point the finger. When the fire had been discovered, Scott had his team try to put it out. But nature pulled a fast one, switching directions several times until it was out of control. And now everything was in jeopardy.
Everything.
"Hey, Jen," said Moe, her good friend, as he fell into step beside her. She smiled and leaned toward him. She needed a good friend right about now. And despite the way she'd sorta chased Moe—or at least, hinted in humorous and easy to brush off ways that they would be good together—they were still just friends. Which was probably a good thing. Some days she felt as though she had more baggage than came in a Samsonite world traveller set.
"Heard about the evacuation suggestion?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Don't worry. Nobody's going to crack any jokes about what kind of nature guide burns down her forests. God, that has got to be bad for business."
"Moe! Shut up, it's not the whole forest. It's just Raspberry."
"And Blueberry Springs."
