by Owner
“I’ll mark that down.” He got out his pad and pencil. Under the import heading, directly beneath Quiet but dead, he penciled in, Quiet but alive hunters. Under exports he’d written Expensive junk and Organic foods.
“The ferry’s in.” Helgie eagerly fitted her helmet over her gray curls, and Jon tucked away his notebook.
“By the way, how’d you hear about CC Consulting?” he asked Elmer.
“The mayor.”
As the biker buckled Helgie’s helmet strap, he waved the couple off. That made two for two. Barb had referred Chambers to two board members and so had the mayor. Not that it mattered much in the overall picture, but Charles Chambers and the elder Bain-Powells made him curious.
The younger Bain-Powell made him horny, loving, protective, a whole list of things. When he reached Maddie, she was minus the woman with the brown hair.
“See you met up with Helgie again.”
“This time without her purse.” He took Maddie’s arm and walked her across to the boarding ramp. “She’s a highway honey.”
“Helgie lost her husband two years ago in a boating accident. It’s nice to see her getting on with her life.”
“And wearing biker logos.” He decided to give Maddie a heads up on the newsy woman. “She was concerned about our sleeping arrangements.”
No crinkle of surprise. “See how easily rumors start. I’m shocked she didn’t ask what position we prefer.”
“She did, but I wasn’t sure. What position do you like best?”
She looked around. “All of them.”
“I have a long list. We shouldn’t waste time.” He would’ve liked to kiss her, but knew better. “She asked whose side you take during your mother and father’s arguments.”
“This is a perfect example of why it’s best you stay off the island.”
Once her parents outted their divorce, backbiting could get ugly. If he hung around, he’d become open to scrutiny. Suppose someone uncovered his problem with his father and his father’s alcoholism. How unfair would that be?
Once aboard, they took a seat on the upper deck. The wind ruffled his hair in a sexy way. He was tanned, not pale or green like during his first ferryboat ride. He looked thinner and toned around the waist, too, since they’d first met a week ago. His face appeared relaxed. No tension lines around the mouth or eyes. He was becoming quite the seafarer.
“Hey, what are you grinning at?” He tilted his chin toward her.
“You.” The words I love you would’ve been easy to add at that moment, but she bit them back. Too soon. Too complicated. Maybe she’d tell him next year after the Bain brouhaha died down.
“I can think of a few things about you to smile about.” He wriggled his eyebrows, his eyes speaking unspeakable things. Things that made her heart flicker and her crotch tickle.
He had her from head to toe. Inside and outside. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Friends and lovers, yes. Confidants and intimates, yes. Love upset the order of their relationship.
She’d lose him, like the sports-med doctor. Once a year, with no exclusivity, was the only way to keep him long-term.
A stretch of greenness came onto the horizon, and she said, “There may not be much of a selection of men’s slacks in Tinkerport.”
“I’m not fussy.”
“As long as they’re khaki.”
“Are you suggesting I’m boring?” His eyes rounded.
“Predictable.” She leaned over and whispered near his ear. “But only in your clothing.”
“Meaning?” A bit of a smile creased his lips.
“Meaning out of your clothing you’re very unpredictable.”
He smiled wider, obviously pleased with himself. “You’re not bad out of your clothes either.”
She batted her lashes. “I thought I was very bad.”
“Stop it or I’ll embarrass myself by not being able to walk off the boat when it docks.”
“I love to make you blush,” she teased, recalling the cabin and his morning boner.
“I love to make you come.” He wasn’t teasing. Her insides knew it, too. They melted and moaned.
She sucked in a deep breath of salt air. “Either we change the subject or head for the men’s room.”
“A few more ferryboat rides and I’ll earn my sea legs. Then you won’t get off so easy.”
“It’s too late for this ferry anyway.” They’d landed at Tinkerport.
Off board, they passed a waitress in a white uniform. Barelegged and barefoot, she perched on a dock pillar as if waiting for someone to depart the ferry, possibly a husband or boyfriend. A smile touched Maddie’s lips. The girl made a simple but romantic picture.
They moved away from the docks, uphill toward small art galleries, handcrafted jewelry and pottery shops, and a store window overflowing with plants and flowers. A slate plaque swayed in the breeze and waved to Maddie. All Growth Comes From Love.
Not today. She hurried Jon toward the business section and the bigger stores. At the base of Main Street, in front of the Mainely Used Bookstore, facing Tinkerport’s three blocks of scattered development, he asked, “What’s the plan?”
“I thought we’d meet back here in an hour. I have a list and a stop to make at Brenda’s House of Fashion.”
“Sounds girly. Where are the manly stores?”
“Ties-R-Us is up the street on the left.”
“I’m not that stuffy.” The brows over his dreamy dark eyes veed.
She shook her head. He wasn’t. “Hundred Percent Cotton carries men’s clothing and I’m sure they’ll have...” she was going to say khakis but stopped short, “slacks.”
He checked his wristwatch, and she ducked into Soapmakers where a wild array of scents assaulted her nose. Eppie, the owner, rushed over. “We have lots of new products since your last visit.”
Maddie left the store carrying a bag stuffed with loofah soap, almond body lotion, sea lavender shampoo, and lemon hair rinse. Rather a heady spree. She breathed in the salty fresh air for relief.
Next she hit the pharmacy where Dot asked about an exercise for her tennis elbow while Maddie picked up toothpaste, deodorant, and shaving cream. Afterward, she crossed the street to Brenda’s ladies’ shop to look for a dress for the dance tonight. Something feminine, not sporty. Oh, face it. Something romantic.
The dress had to keep Jon enthused until next year. Look how easily the sports orthopedist had dropped out. But then, they’d been trying to maintain a full-time relationship. Part-time was the way to go. She was sure of it.
While she flipped through the dress rack, a voice behind her said, “That shade of blue will make your eyes pop.”
Maddie had never popped eyes before, but from the way the sales clerk said it, it sounded like something she should try.
A little later, Maddie left the shop with one more shopping bag. Mid-block, her green sneakers tripped up in front of a store window where a pair of strappy sandals winked their tiny, shiny buckles at her. Her toes didn’t throb when she tried them on, so she bought them.
Ten minutes later and only fifteen minutes behind schedule she rushed down the street. Jon sat on a bench two doors down from the bookstore. He had one bag.
“Get lucky?” She plopped down next to him.
“Now I did.” He winked at her. “Looks like you got lucky in a lot of places.”
“I don’t shop often so I make up for it when I do.” She smiled at him. “I seldom have anyone to carry my packages for me.”
“Now I see why you invited me. Here, I thought it was my charm and sex appeal when all along it was my muscle.”
“And your wallet. I spent all my money. Interested in treating me to wood-fired oven pizza for lunch?”
“Any kind of pizza interests me.” He stood up and grabbed all the packages. “Is pizza healthy for us?”
“Fresh made from whole wheat flour, organically grown tomatoes and herbs, and goats milk cheese.”
“But it still tastes like pizza.”<
br />
“Uh-huh.”
“Maddie, is that you?” A well-groomed woman about her mother’s age stopped in front of them and whipped off her rhinestone-studded sunglasses.
She looked like one of Barb’s friends. Nasal voice, expensive jewelry, trendy coif, and French manicure.
“I’m Delores.” The woman tugged on the arm of the man alongside her. “My husband, Bill.” She chuckled in a hoarse tone. “We’re friends of your mother.”
Maddie didn’t recall the couple. “This is Jon Matthews of Matthews Consulting.”
Jon shook hands with the woman and her husband.
Delores laughed, coarsely. “How uncanny. The last time I ran into your mother she had her consultant with her, too. Maybe I should get one.” She looked at her husband from beneath over-mascaraed, hooded lashes. He didn’t seem to have a green bone in his body if she’d intended to make him jealous. “You remember Barb’s friend, the consultant? Charles or Chuck Chambers, wasn’t it? He seemed very, umm, solicitous toward her every need. Such a virile young man.”
“Yes, I recall them dining at Darby’s,” Bill agreed, apparently oblivious to his wife’s innuendos.
“How is your mother since her unusual accident?” Delores shivered. “I can’t imagine how she missed a turn in the parking garage and hit the cement divider.”
“Her recuperation has been slow.”
“We do miss her summer soirees. We’re on our way home from Boston and detoured the interstate to get something to eat. Give Barb our love.” Delores blew them a kiss, donned her sunglasses, and grabbed onto Bill’s arm, heading toward the seafood restaurants along the wharf.
“I can’t believe that woman. She implied my mother hit the divider on purpose, had an affair with her consultant, and then she made snide insinuations about us, and sent her love, all in the same breath.”
“But we are having an affai…er, not to say that your mother did with her consultant. What a cheap shot.” He thumbed to where Dolores and Bill had stood a moment ago.
She stared into his eyes, but didn’t connect. If her father was meeting a woman on the sly, what was to say her mother wasn’t meeting someone as well? They were divorced. But, why the thieving consultant, of all men? What a mess. She had to get Jon off Bain Island before the mess splattered.
Her heart wasn’t quite as light as it had been as they meandered down a side street leading to the bay. Dozens of sailboats and lobster boats dotted the water. Saturday shoppers milled amongst travelers and tourists who’d stopped along scenic Route One.
A hostess seated them at a table overlooking both the inlet and the wood-fired oven, which dominated one end of the room. A woodpile heaped high with hardwood sat on one side of the oven. On the other, a brick counter sprawled where pizza dough was kneaded, tossed, and spread onto long-handled wooden paddles. Toppings were added, and a sturdy young man shoveled the pie into the oven.
“Looks like hot work,” Maddie said.
“And I thought pizza came in cardboard boxes, frozen or delivered to your door.” He smiled at her smile, as if he lived only to make her happy.
When she knew darned well he didn’t. The feeling was both exciting and unwise. She was falling in love. She knew it. And she couldn’t think of a way to stop herself. She’d been in love before, or imagined she’d been, but this felt different. And serious. And incurable.
“Tomato and basil?” he asked, placing their order.
“Sounds yummy.” Everything about Jon was too yummy and too appealing, and next year was beginning to seem too far off.
They lingered over lunch, following pizza and wine with fresh-brewed decaf. While they talked and laughed, the afternoon slipped away.
“Look at the time.” She jumped up. “We have to hurry or we’ll miss the last ferry.”
“Would that be so bad?” His voice sounded low and intimate next to her ear when he stood up.
“Unlike Rose Island, they know me here. And even if we’d have brought the Jag and driven inland, imagine the field day some of the islanders would have with both of us away at the same time.”
With a shrug, he gave up and paid. When they arrived at the landing, a friend she’d known from high school cornered her. “I’d love to play for the Bane.” She chattered away excitedly about her batting average while the ferry launched.
Halfway across to the island, a fog set in. Then, a drizzle of rain kaplunked down. All the while the sun tried to crack through the clouds. The weather was as mixed up as Maddie felt about Jon.
Chapter Twenty-Four
After Maddie dressed for the dance, she stopped in the living room to see Barb. “We ran into Delores and Bill in Tinkerport. Your friends said hello and asked after your health.”
“Did she say anything else?” Barb looked up from the fashion magazine she was paging through. Her tone sounded more nasal than usual.
“No.” She passed on mentioning ‘Chuck’ Chambers to bring up her mother’s treatment, or lack of one, instead. “I would’ve liked to add that you’d started physical therapy.”
Barb’s cool blue eyes looked annoyed. She rubbed her temples. “I have another headache coming on. This isn’t a good time.”
Her mother looked away, dismissing her. Maddie stood her ground with no intention of leaving. The phone rang and startled them both, ending the standoff.
Barb answered it. “It’s for you. Take it in the other room.”
****
When Maddie hung up the phone and stepped into the hallway, Jon was waiting at the foot of the staircase. He let out an appreciative wolf whistle. But that wasn’t what knocked her knees.
“You’re wearing jeans.” Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. Her brand new sandals nearly skidded on the polished floor.
“Not so predictable after all, huh?” With one elbow draped over the newel post, he looked tall and lean and sexy.
Stripping him out of the jeans was going to be a treat. She stopped in front of him, regained her balance, and checked him out, front and back. Nice package. “Cute tush.”
“I shopped at Planet Men,” he said, proudly.
“You shopped well.” She wanted to shove her hands into his back pockets and grope his butt. Check out the merchandise firsthand. But, her parents were in the house somewhere.
“You beat me all to hell.” He crooked a smile. “You’re absolutely stunning.”
She flushed a little at his words and looked down. “You’re wearing sneakers.”
“And you’re not.” He licked his lips, his tongue slow and suggestive at the sight of her blue leather sandals with the faux flower near her naked toes.
Taking his arm, she led him toward the front door. “Wait until Jill gets a load of you. She called several times to make sure I was bringing you. She must have the hots for you.”
He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close. “Are you jealous? I’d like if more than those clunky sneakers you wore today were green.”
“I’m trying not to be,” she said in earnest. “It’s one of the conditions of our agreement.”
“I never agreed not to be resentful of other men.”
“It falls under the stipulation that if one of us should meet someone else and not show up next year, there would be no hard feelings.”
“But it’s still this year.” His breath was warm and close. His words promising.
“Yes, it is.” She swallowed hard.
“Just one thing.” As they stood in the open doorway, his dark eyes looked puzzled. “What’s a contra dance?”
She smiled, inside and out. Whenever he was clueless but willing like this, he melted her heart. He turned her into mush a lot, between hiking and biking, not to mention wading and ferry-boating with his fear of water. How could she resist such an accommodating man?
“Contra’s a form of English country dancing. Similar to an old-fashioned square dance.”
He rolled his eyes.
How had he gotten so lucky? Maddie was the m
ost beautiful woman on the island. On the continent. And her beauty didn’t just radiate from her violet eyes, which looked explosive in the blue dress, but from her heart.
The phone rang as they were about to leave. “I bet Jill’s checking on you one last time.” Maddie laughed before darting toward her father’s office to pick it up.
He liked her laugh and her teasing. He liked everything about her. He was even getting used to her colorful array of god-awful sneakers, which were nowhere in sight tonight. But her sexy toes were.
“It’s for you.” She waved him into the den and moved discreetly out of hearing distance. Her tart scent lingered on the phone, keeping her near though.
“Hey.” Craig sounded less than cutting edge.
“Everything firing on all cylinders?”
“Your father was here to see the baby.”
Silence. On both ends. Jon didn’t know what to say. He felt as if he’d been sucker-punched.
“It was Sarah’s call, Jon.”
“I know it’s up to her, but—” He didn’t know what to add.
A sense of disloyalty washed over him. But knowing his sister as he did, her motives were selfless. Just as they had been concerning their mother’s lover. Jon and Sarah didn’t agree on matters of the heart. Maybe she had more heart than he did.
“Jon,” Craig said. “You still there?”
“Yeah. I’ll live with it.” Somewhat bruised, but not critical.
“She wants to invite him to the christening. He’s Gracie’s sole grandparent.” He heard the tension in Craig’s voice. “He promised to start alcohol abuse counseling.”
Jon felt like crap. Craig’s parents were both gone. Who was he to deprive Gracie of her only grandparent? Maybe the old man would sober up for his grandbaby. Hell, he certainly never had for his own kids.
“Listen, Craig. Whatever Sarah decides is fine by me,” he said, resigned.
