“The problem is, once it ends, I have to live here and deal with the aftermath,” Rachel said. “You’ll be back in L.A.”
And in front of the cameras, God willing.
The half thought, half prayer arose from deep inside Jay, sucking the air from his lungs.
Next week he’d get the casts off. The way his face was healing, with the help of a little makeup, he could be back in the anchor chair by the end of the month.
If they still want me.
A chill traveled up his spine. They had to want him. That job was his life.
“Jay?”
Rachel’s voice pulled him back and as he refocused he realized she’d continued to talk. “—I have to do it. I have to call Gladys and set the record straight.”
Jay started shaking his head before she’d even finished. “Not a good idea,” he said. “By the time you reach her she’ll have already told at least fifty people. Besides, I’m not that bad of a guy, am I?”
Rachel shook her head and Jay’s smile softened. “C’mon, babe. It’ll all work out but only if we stay engaged for now.”
“But—”
“And when we break up, I’ll take the heat,” he added. “I’ll make sure you come out smelling like a rose.”
If he’d thought that would pacify her, the look on her face quickly told him he’d failed miserably.
“No way.” Rachel shook her head, her lips pressed tightly together. “I won’t let you do that.”
“I’ve already decided,” Jay said in a matter-of-fact tone. “It only makes sense.”
“To whom?” Rachel folded her arms across her chest and lifted her chin in a stubborn tilt. “I refuse to let you play the martyr.”
Jay sighed. He’d come up against a brick wall and her name was Rachel. In a situation like this, there was only one solution. He shot her the smile that had been winning him hearts since grade school and…changed the subject. “We can work out the details later. Right now we have more important things to do.”
“What could be more important than figuring out this mess?” Rachel asked.
“How about celebrating our engagement?” Jay said. “Since it’s not going to last long, I figure we need to make every minute count.”
“Fishing isn’t what I had in mind when you said you wanted to celebrate.” Rachel repositioned herself on the dusty bank of the Nordstrom’s pond and wiped a bead of perspiration from her brow.
Though Rachel liked the outdoors as much as anyone, by the time she and Jay had gotten the breakfast dishes cleaned up and Aunt Lena to her bridge group, the day was half gone, the sun was high overhead and the heat index was soaring.
“This is how everyone in L.A. celebrates their engagement,” Jay said with a straight face.
Rachel chuckled. “I bet.”
“And after a fishing expedition, they relax in a cabana next to the waterfront.” Jay gestured to the red plaid blanket they’d spread out earlier in the shade of a tall cottonwood. “Care to join me?”
Rachel rolled her eyes. The guy had charm down to a science. And the crazy thing was she found herself wanting to play along. “If the deal comes with a cold glass of lemonade, count me in.”
“That’s my girl.” Jay shot her a broad wink and took the pole from her hands. After reeling in the line, he placed it next to his on the bank and awkwardly pushed himself to his feet. Once upright, he appeared to sway.
Alarm raced through Rachel and she scrambled to her feet. It was only when her hands grasped Jay’s arms to steady him that she discovered he didn’t need any help. Hadn’t needed any help. But when she started to release him, his hands moved to her waist.
Jay tugged her to him and Rachel found her arms rising and encircling his neck as if it were the most natural thing in the world. His eyes seemed to glitter, suddenly looking more green than blue in the bright sunlight.
She moistened her suddenly dry lips with the tip of her tongue. “What—?”
He reached forward with his right hand and pulled her chin up, then stopped her words by covering her mouth with his own.
The thought of pulling away didn’t occur to Rachel. His lips were soft, warm and persuasive. She tightened her hold around his neck.
Rachel couldn’t remember ever having been kissed quite like this before. It was a slow, leisurely sort of kiss, but one with a definite punch. It made her knees go weak. It made her tingle all the way to her toes. It made her wish it never had to end.
He released her unexpectedly and she stood there dazed in the bright sun. After a moment she found her balance and her voice.
“That was nice.” She tried to sound blasé, but ruined the effect by sounding slightly breathless.
“It was more than nice.”
The look in his eyes filled Rachel with womanly satisfaction. Apparently she wasn’t the only one who’d been knocked off balance. Emboldened by the knowledge, she wrinkled her nose and batted her eyelashes. “Ya think?”
“I don’t think. I know.” He brushed his knuckles against her cheek. “It was fabulous. But then kissing is one of my many talents.”
“I’ve never liked conceited men,” Rachel said with a sniff, resisting the urge to smile and agree.
“You like me.”
She tilted her head. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because,” he said with a widening grin. “You told me once you never kiss men you don’t like.”
Jay stared up at the cottonwood leaves fluttering above him and sighed in contentment. Though he wanted nothing more than to pull Rachel into his arms, he remembered what had happened earlier and knew he’d be playing with fire.
While she’d been taking the picnic basket out of the truck, they’d kissed a few more times. But when Jay found himself wanting more, he’d brought the kissing to a halt.
Rachel was a woman with high moral standards, standards that Jay would never ask her to compromise.
He’d had to force the food past his lips, but Rachel hadn’t seemed to notice. She’d chattered about the children who’d been in her classroom last year, telling him one amusing story after another until the heat, food and fatigue caught up with him. His eyelids started to droop.
He’d agreed to rest in the shade for a few minutes but only if she agreed to take a break, too. But her proximity drove all thoughts of sleep from his head and Jay found himself wide-awake.
“When I was a little girl we had a hammock in our backyard.” Rachel’s voice held a lazy edge. “I remember looking up at the sky when I was about eight—it was a cloudless day like this one—and wondering what I’d be doing in twenty years. Now, here I am, all these years later looking up at the same sky.”
“When I was eight, just waiting for Christmas seemed like an eternity,” Jay said. “Twenty years must have seemed like forever.”
“I think that’s why I picked it,” Rachel said with a laugh. “It sounded like forever to me, too.”
“Are you where you thought you’d be?” he asked, curious.
“I always wanted a little house,” she said softly. “With each room painted a different color. I have that.”
“You’ve also got a great career.”
“And good friends,” Rachel said.
“Appears to me you’ve got it all.” Jay rolled to his side and faced Rachel, propping his head up with one hand.
“Not quite,” Rachel said. “But I have so much, it seems wrong to want more.”
“What else is there?”
“Silly girl stuff,” Rachel said. “You know—marriage and kids kind of things.”
The hitch in her voice told him the importance of this “silly girl stuff.”
“You’ll have that, too,” he said. “I know you will.”
“I hope so.”
He reached over, found her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
To his surprise, Rachel didn’t pull away. Instead she laced her fingers through his. “How about you?”
“What about me?”
/> “Do you want children?”
Jay paused. The truth was he’d never really given the matter much thought. He’d just assumed that someday he’d marry and have a couple of kids.
But did he want them? Jay thought for a moment.
“I’d like to have at least one child,” he said finally. “More if my wife would agree.”
Jay tried to picture Lindsay pregnant and the scene just wouldn’t compute. He couldn’t imagine the svelte model ever letting her flat stomach swell into the size of a basketball. Besides, he wasn’t sure she even liked kids. Lindsay wasn’t the most nurturing of women. Not like Rachel.
Rachel would be thrilled at the thought of a new life growing inside her. He could easily picture her pregnant. And he could even picture the child she’d have: a tiny blue-eyed, blond-haired bundle.
The scene warmed Jay’s heart until he realized that a blue-eyed blonde would only be guaranteed if she had his baby and that was never going to happen. Not because he wouldn’t consider marrying her…but because Rachel would never consider marrying him.
Chapter Fifteen
“I didn’t bring a suit with me,” Jay said. “So this will have to do.”
Rachel stared openmouthed. Jay stood in the foyer, wearing a dress shirt and tie, and a pair of khakis. Though the pants were tight against the cast on one leg and baggy on the other, he still looked wonderful.
As she’d gotten ready for church this morning she’d tried to be extra quiet. After all, if Jay stayed in bed while she was gone, she wouldn’t have to worry about him falling. Since Lena was singing in the choir and needed to be at church early, her friend had already been by and picked her up.
Rachel felt guilty leaving Jay alone. But part of the deal she’d made when she’d agreed to stay for the weekend had been that she’d be gone a couple of hours Sunday morning. Jay hadn’t balked, saying he usually slept in anyway. And now here he was at half past seven, fully dressed.
Jay smiled. “I’m going to church with you.”
Rachel widened her eyes. “Why?”
“Why do most people go?” He lifted a brow, the innocent look on his face not fooling her in the least.
“You know what I mean,” she said. “You never go to church. Why now?”
“My face is almost healed,” he said. “It’s time to make an appearance.”
She’d gotten so used to seeing him that she barely noticed his injuries, but now that he’d mentioned it, she realized he was right. The discoloration around his eye had faded to the color of yellow putty and the swelling was almost gone.
Other than the casts, he looked more like someone recovering from a black eye than someone who’d had reconstructive surgery. It was time he got out. Still, he admitted he hadn’t been much of a churchgoer in the past few years and it didn’t make sense that he’d choose that venue to make his first public appearance. Especially when the diner would do just as well.
Of course, most of the town did show up for Sunday services and if he wanted to see everyone, that was the place to do it.
Rachel glanced down at her wrist. “We’d better get going or we’ll be late.”
She turned to the door, but a light touch on her arm stopped her.
“Wait,” Jay said. “First you have to put this on.”
She turned, her gaze immediately drawn to the ring resting in the palm of his outstretched hand. A curious tightness filled her throat.
“It was my grandmother’s,” Jay said hurriedly, not giving her a chance to comment. “She left it to me in her will.”
It was a simple ring: a white gold band with an emerald cut diamond solitaire. The stone was a nice size—not too large, but not too small, either. It sparkled brightly, even in the foyer’s subdued light.
Suddenly she understood why he’d gotten up early. “You didn’t have to do this.”
“I know,” he said. “But you and I are in this together. We’re a team. And that’s the way I want the town to see us.”
He smiled, slipped the ring on her finger and brushed a chaste kiss against her cheek.
It fit perfectly, and all the way into town Rachel was conscious of its weight upon her finger. She found herself wanting to glance down at it every few minutes, but after a couple of quick peeks, she quit looking, afraid Jay might notice and think she was making too much of the simple gesture.
But when she pulled in to the church parking lot and saw the cross at the top of the small clapboard structure, her doubts came flooding back. Could she really go inside and accept everyone’s congratulations? Could she really show off her ring, knowing the engagement would soon be over? Could she really—?
“It’ll be okay,” Jay said softly. “I’ve got your back. Remember, we’re a team.”
Jay could see by the look in her eyes that she was scared. Heck, he was scared, too. This would be his first appearance in public since the accident. It had taken all his courage to make the decision to come and then follow through with it.
But lying in bed last night, he knew that he couldn’t let her face everyone alone. And he couldn’t let her go to church without a ring on her finger. In Millville, if you asked a woman to marry you, you’d better do the proposing with a ring in your pocket. He still remembered Wayne going to Des Moines to get the “perfect diamond” for Barb before he’d popped the question. If Rachel went to church without him and without a ring, everyone would talk. And this engagement was supposed to stop the talk, not fuel it.
By the time Rachel brought the vehicle to a complete stop and got out, there was a whole crowd of friends wanting to offer their congratulations.
No one seemed to notice his eye, or if they did, they didn’t comment on it. Although a couple of guys he knew from high school did come over and kid him about his casts, calling him “hop-along,” and try to push him off balance.
It was a great day to announce an engagement. The sun was warm on his face and the sky a brilliant robin’s egg blue. Rachel had worn his favorite dress—a pink-and-white cotton that reminded him of spun sugar. He rested his hand against the small of her back as they entered the church, proud to be the man at her side.
They’d barely crossed the threshold when their progress came to an abrupt halt. Tom stood just inside the entry and Jay had the feeling it wasn’t coincidental.
“Tom.” Jay inclined his head slightly in greeting.
Tom’s gaze flicked briefly over Jay and settled on Rachel. “Rumor has it you’re engaged. That right?”
Though Jay could feel Rachel’s back stiffen, she raised her chin and offered Tom a slight smile.
She didn’t answer, but instead held up her hand, the diamond sparkling in the light.
“It looks old.” Tom shifted his gaze to Jay. “You’re smart not to spend a lot of money, considering you’re out of work and Rachel could end up being the breadwinner in your family.”
Jay’s fist clenched at his side but he kept the smile on his face, refusing to let Tom know his words had hit their mark.
“Actually this ring was Jay’s grandmother’s. It has special meaning for both of us.” Rachel, Jay thought, sounded surprisingly sincere.
“It’s beautiful.” Claire Karelli slipped in between Tom and Jay and gave Rachel a congratulatory hug. “Tony gave me his grandmother’s ring, too.”
“I remember,” Rachel said. “It was at your birthday party shortly after you’d arrived in Millville.”
“I wasn’t sure I liked it at first,” Claire said with a little laugh. “But I love it now. Of course, I still wouldn’t turn down a box from Tiffany’s—”
“What woman would?” The young minister came up and brushed a kiss on his beautiful wife’s cheek. “By the way, where’s our son?”
“Raye wanted to hold him for a while,” Claire said. “You know my generous spirit…how could I refuse?”
Apparently satisfied that the baby was in safe hands, the minister turned his attention to Jay and Rachel. “I understand from Gladys that congratulations
are in order.”
Gladys poked her head around the pastor. “The news was just too good to keep to myself. I’m sure you understand.”
Though he hid it well, Jay could see question and concern in Tony’s eyes. The minister clearly had some reservations but was trying hard not to let them show.
“Rachel and I are engaged,” Jay said. Impulsively, he reached down and grabbed Rachel’s hand. “Rachel once told me God had a plan, that there was a reason I had the accident and ended up recuperating here. I know now, it was because she and I were destined to be together.”
Tom snorted in disgust and walked off.
“Oh, my stars.” Gladys’s fingers rose to her lips and she exhaled a melodramatic sigh. “That is so romantic.”
“What a sweet thing to say.” Rachel stared up at him, a misty look in her eye.
Thankfully, Jay had never been the kind to blush, because if he had, he knew his face would be bright red by now. Once he’d started talking, he hadn’t been able to quit. And where that last part came from, he didn’t have a clue.
Some of the suspicion in Tony’s eyes eased, and as Jay and Rachel walked into the church, the minister lowered his voice for Jay’s ears only.
“Claire and I had a whirlwind courtship and marriage,” Tony said. “I wish you the same happiness I’ve found.”
Jay smiled and was thankful when the minister was waylaid by another parishioner so he didn’t have to respond.
“Is this okay?” Rachel pointed to the back row. “I usually like to sit further down, but see how this pew jogs over? You can stretch out your leg.”
“Looks good to me.”
He settled into the hard wooden pew and after the first hymn Jay realized with a start that, since he’d arrived at the church, not one person had said anything about his face.
“I think I must be looking better,” he whispered to Rachel. “No one has commented on my appearance.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” Rachel said. “You look fine. Besides, these people are on your side. They’re pulling for you.”
All through the sermon Jay considered her words. He thought about his friends in L.A., friends who’d been too busy to help when he’d gotten out of the hospital, friends who’d been too busy to call since he’d been in Millville.
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