He pressed his face into her neck and draped his arm over her waist. He felt her fingers weave through his. He squeezed them.
Chapter 14
Sunday morning, Davis dropped Jemma off at one of Derring’s few hotels on his way to work. The post-wedding brunch was being held at the hotel’s restaurant.
“I’ll pick you up from Mary’s when I get off work?” he said, scratching his jaw.
“Yep.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek, wanting to apologize for the previous night. However, it felt strange to mention the previous night at all. So much had happened, and she was still trying to digest it all.
He started to say something and then closed his mouth.
“What?”
He pressed a hand to her hair, letting it drop to her ear, which he caressed between his thumb and forefinger. “I can’t wait ‘til this evening. That’s all.”
She felt like that wasn’t all, but who was she to push? After all, she’d been the one faking sleep last night because she didn’t want to talk about anything that’d happened. They were both closed books. What a pair they made.
“Me, neither.” She took his hand from her ear and kissed his fingers before letting go. “Okay. I have to go and you do, too.” That didn’t mean she wanted to.
Hopping out of the car, she hurried into the hotel to avoid the light rain that misted from the gray sky.
She looked forward to downing a couple of cups of coffee. She still had her headache from the night before. Thinking over what Wendell had said made her sick with guilt every time she did it, but she couldn’t stop.
Then there was Smooth. She wanted to go see him, to let him know that he hadn’t ruined her life, and that she hoped he rotted in there for what he’d done. But could she look into his face again? In her mind, at least, he was a murderer even if there was no way to convict him for the actions of her mother. If she went to the prison, what would she say to him? She definitely hadn’t figured out that part yet.
She was startled out of her intense thoughts by a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see Wendell.
“Hi.” She tensed while trying to gauge his mood. She couldn’t deal with any more dysfunction at the moment.
“I’m sorry about last night. I kind of freaked out on you, huh?” he said with a smile.
His words gave her a sense of relief. “It’s okay.”
“Stephanie and I had a fight about it last night and I realized how stupid I was being.” He studied the carpet for a moment before giving her an earnest look. “I want my friend back and I’m going to act like it,” he said. She caught a hint of sadness in his eyes, but she could tell he wanted to hide it from her and she was going to respect that.
“Okay, friend.”
“It really is good to see you again.”
“And I really do promise not to disappear anymore.” They laughed. “Seriously, I’ll keep in touch this time. In fact . . .” She dug one of the business cards she’d had printed up after getting the job offer out of her purse. Handing it to him, she said, “Here.”
He read the card and gave an approving nod. “Assistant director. You really are doing well for yourself, huh?”
“Told you.”
He slipped the card into his pocket. “Tell me more.”
She told him about college, Florida, and her new job. He then told her more about Stephanie, law school, and his life in D.C. They talked until the others showed up.
Emily Rose ran up, throwing an arm around each of them. “Hey, you two. I’m so hungry. Let’s go get some brunch. Where’s Steph, Wendell?” Jemma could hear the rest of the group behind them.
Wendell put his arm around Emily Rose’s shoulders. “We’re staying here. She’s up in the room, married lady. I left her up there getting ready. She’ll probably be down, oh, sometime before tomorrow.”
They laughed.
Michael slid up next to Jemma. She let Wendell and Emily Rose walk into the restaurant ahead of her. Michael looked at her, his brown eyes serious. “You know, we haven’t talked much. I want to thank you for yesterday. And to let you know Em Rose is in good hands. I love her more than anything in the world.”
They stopped walking. Carolina and Meg gave them curious glances, but continued around them to the restaurant.
“After yesterday, who could doubt that?” Jemma said.
Michael chuckled. “I just wanted to say that. Because . . . you haven’t seemed so sure about me since we met.”
So Michael had picked up on that. Between his comments and Carolina’s, Jemma was realizing she wasn’t as good at hiding her feelings as she’d thought she’d been.
“I’ve had a lot on my mind,” Jemma said. She sighed and then added, “Maybe I wasn’t. At first. Sure about you, I mean. I was too quick to judge. You’re a better guy than I gave you credit for. Besides, Emily Rose loves you and that’s all that matters.”
A slow grin spread over his face. “Emily Rose isn’t like any girl I’ve ever met. My grandmother says she’s sunshine and thunderstorms all rolled into one. As strange as that might sound, it makes total sense to me. I like it. Gram’s from the South, too. I think that’s one of the biggest reasons she and Em Rose have bonded so well.”
Jemma nodded. “Em Rose is special.”
Michael held the door to the restaurant open for Jemma. “Yeah, she is. I don’t know what I’d do without her.” The enraptured look on Michael’s face at that moment both warmed and pained Jemma’s heart.
She wanted what Michael and Emily Rose had. And she had no idea how to go about getting it.
“She gets me in a way no one else ever has, Jemma. I don’t have to try to be perfect for her.” Michael made all kinds of wild hand gestures as if trying to make sure Jemma understood exactly how he felt. “She knows me so well. It’s so good to be loved by someone who knows how to live with the flaws. Who knows not to expect the world from you and how to be grateful for what you can give. And who knows that, like the people who give it, love is not perfect.”
Emily Rose skipped over to them and threw her arms around Michael, kissing his cheek. “What are you two talking about back here?”
“Southern girls,” Michael said, squeezing her to him and kissing the top of her head.
A thought struck Jemma and she said, “Yeah. What is it you used to always say about Southern girls? Something about sweet tea and charm?”
Emily Rose did her best impression of Julia Roberts’s Shelby accent in Steel Magnolias. That was her favorite movie and she’d long ago named herself an honorary Steel Magnolia. “Sweet tea, charm, and giggles. We have it all.”
They laughed. Carolina and Meg looked at each other and then turned their puzzled looks on Jemma and Emily Rose. Emily Rose turned to them to explain the inside joke. Jemma took a seat at the table next to her and across from Wendell. When Stephanie came down, she sat next to Wendell.
“Hi, Jemma,” she said with a sweet smile. Apparently, having it out with Wendell the night before had helped.
“Hi,” Jemma said, surprised by her mood change and grateful for it. Things were well on their way to normal when it came to Wendell, at least.
All through brunch, Jemma thought about Michael’s words. Especially what he’d said about love not being perfect. Davis had disappointed her, hurt her, yes. But what about second chances? Maybe there was a chance he wouldn’t do it again.
But did she want to take that chance? Even if he didn’t hurt her again, and that was a big “if” Davis was a reminder of a past she didn’t care to dwell on. Could she be with him and stay in Derring, without being haunted by that past? Probably not.
No, it wasn’t only about second chances. It was about finding a way to move on as well. She decided in that moment that she did want to see Smooth. Then, after meeting with the parole board, she would leave. There was nothing else to stay in Derring for any longer.
She looked at Wendell and Stephanie. Then at Michael and Em Rose. Both couples had something she and
Davis lacked. Or she and Davis shared something the two couples lacked, depending on how a person looked at the situation.
Jemma was distracted with similar thoughts throughout the brunch. Emily Rose and the others had to call her name several times any time they wanted her attention. She barely touched her omelet and only picked at her fruit.
Eventually, Emily Rose turned to her and said in a low voice, “Do you even want to be here?”
“Of course I do,” Jemma said.
“I get the feeling—now don’t get me wrong, I’m forever grateful for what you did for me yesterday—but, sometimes I get the feeling you don’t really want to be around me.”
“No, Emily Rose.” She put her hands over her friend’s. “No, it’s not that.”
“Then what? Jemma, you’re not—it’s like we’re strangers now.”
Jemma’s heart sank. Emily Rose hit on one of the things that had been bothering Jemma since she’d arrived home.
Em Rose narrowed her brown eyes and leaned in closer. “Carolina keeps hinting that I really need to talk to you. Did you say something to her about me? What’s going on with you?”
She twisted her lips to the side for a moment before answering. “She’s right. We do need to have a long conversation about some things. Really talk. But not around everybody like this. Why don’t you come to Mary’s tomorrow afternoon?”
“What’s wrong with today?”
“Well, it’s your last day with Michael for a whole week. He goes back to New York early tomorrow morning. And you won’t see him again until you go back at the end of the week. I don’t want to take any of your time with him.”
Emily Rose still looked unsure, but she nodded. “Okay. But only if you promise to tell me what is really going on with you tomorrow.”
“I promise. We’ll talk about what’s happening between us,” Jemma said, choosing her words carefully.
Emily Rose turned back to Michael, interrupting a story he was telling about Emily Rose giving a homeless man a drunken serenade in Central Park. She shouted at him that he was telling the story wrong. Jemma had to do a better job of paying attention. She didn’t want the spotlight on her again.
Later that morning, when they were leaving the hotel, Jemma grabbed Carolina’s arm. “Can I talk to you for a second? Before you go?”
Carolina gave her a confused look but nodded and walked with Jemma to the parking lot.
“Emily Rose told me what you said about her and me needing to talk,” Jemma said.
“My big mouth always gets me in trouble. I’m sorry if I was butting in where I don’t belong, but Em Rose means a lot to me and she’s so sweet. This thing is getting to her, whatever it is going on between you two.”
Jemma nodded. “I know. You’re a good friend to her, I can tell that. And it’s good you said something. We do need to talk.”
“Good,” Carolina said. The two of them stood there for a moment, looking around the parking lot.
Finally, Jemma said, “We didn’t get off to the greatest start, huh?”
Carolina grinned. “Didn’t seem like it.”
“Sorry about that. I just wish we had more time to get to know each other. I start coming to my senses right before you leave.”
Carolina shrugged. “What about now? You need a ride anywhere? I don’t see that car you’ve been driving around.”
“Actually, I do.”
“Let’s go.” Carolina nodded in the direction of her rental.
“So what’s this audition for?” Jemma asked as they walked to the car.
“Comeback tour for a has-been pop star.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah, actually he used to be a pretty big deal. It’s a closed audition. I’m lucky to have it, I guess.”
“You don’t sound very excited about it.”
They got in the car. Carolina made a noncommittal noise and pulled out of her parking space. “It’s just—it might be my last audition.”
“Why?”
“Because . . . it’s probably time I got realistic about some things. I’ve been thinking about going the practical route and becoming an agent for a while. I’m not going to make very much money off a few dancing jobs here and there. Not enough to support myself.”
“Isn’t dancing what you went to school for?”
“Yeah, but I minored in economics and I know this guy who works for a dance company. As a business manager. He knows people. I’ve been thinking about the agenting thing for a while now.”
“But dancing means a lot to you, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah, but I’ll be working with dancers and I’ll still dance, just not professionally. And nobody gets everything they want, right?”
That was certainly true. “I guess not.”
“And I figure that sometimes, you have to decide which dreams are worth fighting for and which dreams are just too unrealistic to hold on to. And then you have to make some hard decisions. Sometimes painful, but necessary, decisions.”
Jemma nodded and her thoughts immediately went to Davis.
Chapter 15
Sunday evening, Davis picked Jemma up from Mary’s as soon as he got off work. They went to his house so that he could shower and change. He kept telling her he had a surprise for her, but he wouldn’t give her any hints. He’d only say that he wanted to do something special for her.
She tried to guess after he came into the living room with his black hair still wet and slicked back from his forehead.
“Is it food?” Jemma asked.
He sat down next to her and kissed her cheek. “No.”
“Is it in this house right now?”
“Uh-uh.” He kissed her throat.
“Are you taking me to get it?”
“I guess you could say that.” Davis kissed her shoulder over the strap of her tank top.
“We have to leave?” She pulled him closer and kissed his lower lip.
He grinned, pulling her onto his lap. “I went by the Bradens’ after I dropped you off for the brunch thing and before I went to work. To get this.” He pulled a brass key out of his pocket and showed it to her.
She didn’t get it. “A house key? Why?”
“I asked if we could borrow their lake house for the night. Up near Louisa.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Thought it’d be fun. What do you think?”
“When do we leave?”
“How about . . . right now?”
Jemma grabbed the bag she’d packed to stay at Davis’s that night and he told her he’d packed a duffel bag and put it in the trunk earlier. He took her bag and they headed out of the door. She enjoyed the feel of the heat of the early evening sun on her skin as they walked to the car. She was glad the sun had finally come out after the morning had been so gloomy.
***
Davis drove with one hand on the steering wheel and the other in one of Jemma’s.
He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them before placing their hands on his lap. “How’s Mary?”
“Good, but the poor woman. She’s still in denial. She doesn’t think I’m really leaving.” She looked straight ahead while answering him.
“Oh.”
“But I am. My train leaves in less than three weeks. The movers have already picked up my stuff from South Carolina. They’re paying for my moving expenses. The job is, I mean. Did I tell you that?” It was like he’d asked her for hard proof she was leaving or something. Why did she think he needed to know all of that?
“Yeah,” Davis said. He didn’t want to talk about her job or anything that had to do with her upcoming move to Jacksonville.
“I never lied to you about it.”
He pulled his hand away from hers and dropped it onto the bottom of the steering wheel. “Yeah.”
“It’s for the best, Davis.”
“Man, this song is awful.” He fiddled with the knob on the car’s radio. “You bring any CDs?”
“I think I have a few in my bag,”
Jemma said. She gave him a look, but didn’t try to change the subject back. Instead, she reached behind her and grabbed her purse off of the backseat.
“Good. Hopefully they don’t suck.”
“What? I have great taste in music.”
“Says the world’s number one Vixen Vengeance fan.”
“Hey, shut up about Vixen Vengeance or you won’t like the consequences.”
“Consequences?”
“It’s going to be a long and lonely night sleeping by yourself up at the lake house,” Jemma said, handing him the CD.
“Point taken. Lips sealed.” Davis slid it into the player.
“They better be until tonight.”
“That’s a promise.”
“’Cause I don’t make threats,” Jemma said, completing their old inside joke. It made him happier than even made sense that she remembered it. “I can’t believe you remember that. You’re full of surprises, huh?”
“I try to be,” he said.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Full of something, anyway.”
“Oh, Jemma, the impossible, c’mere,” he said, hugging her close.
She smiled, settling into the crook of his arm. If only he could keep her there. If only they never had to go back.
Jemma fell asleep, pressed to his side. He brushed a few stray braids out of her face and grinned down at her. He told himself not to get used to having her there, but he knew that wouldn’t stop him from doing so. Or from missing her when she left for Florida.
It wouldn’t be news to say he loved her. But it was amazing that he could fall in love with her all over again when he hadn’t thought it was possible to be more crazed over her than he already was.
“I love you and I don’t know how I’m going to be able to let you go,” Davis whispered. “But I have to. I know it’s what you need.”
The Davis Years (Indigo) Page 11
