“I think I'm going to use the little girl’s room.” Abby said standing. “Anyone else need to go?”
Kate stood. “I think I will come with you.”
Sydney stood. “Me too.”
Jake grinned and before Peyton even said anything he knew what was going on.
Peyton rolled her eyes. “I don't see a point for me to go,” she grumbled.
“I think I have to go,” Colt said standing.
Peyton gasped and pulled at his arm. “Sit down.”
He claimed his arm. “I have to release my bladder Woman!”
“Bull.” Peyton picked up her water and sipped on the straw, glaring at her husband, as he took off from the table.
The four, apparently needing to have a bathroom break together, quickly made their way down the hall. Their lack of subtlety was unbelievable. Instead of going in the direction of the bathroom, they turned the other direction toward the kitchen.
Kent chuckled at Peyton. Sitting next to her, he rubbed her arm. “Oh quit you're pouting. In four months you can go right back to sneaking away from me to rot your gut.”
“Not if I'm breast feeding.” Then she gasped realizing what her dad had said. “You know?”
Elaine and Kent laughed and Jake grinned. Did she really think they were that good at hiding it?
“I'm not a blind fool and my smell is one hundred percent in working condition.” He leaned toward his daughter as if he had a secret. “I can smell the alcohol every time you return.”
Peyton sent him a remorseful look. “Oh, Dad I'm sorry.”
He chuckled again, leaning back. “Don't apologize. You kids handle your liquor better than I ever have. That is nothing to apologize about.”
“Except we flaunt it. I just feel so terrible.”
“You're not flaunting it, darlin’. Besides...” He turned to Elaine. “...I have this wonderful woman to keep me on track.”
Elaine sent him a loving smile followed by a kiss.
Envy stirred inside of Jake as he watched the happy couple. His wonderful woman was sneaking away to share a bottle of wine with her siblings and he had the sudden desire to be able to kiss her whenever he felt, hold her hand, wrap his arm around his waist.
He wanted Sydney McAdams.
Joan’s chair scraped the floor. “Excuse me, I have to use the powder room, and I actually do,” she confirmed, but Jake knew better.
He watched her turn left toward the kitchen just as he had suspected and he shook his head unable to hide the smirk. They better be sneaking that gewürztraminer if they weren’t paying for it.
***
“THERE WAS NO code given that you sneaky kids were sneaking back to sneak wine,” Joan scolded, catching them all red-handed passing around a bottle of wine Sydney had charmed Devon, the manager, when Joan or Jake were away, into giving her.
Sydney had been about to take a swig of the sweet red deliciousness that would calm her wild heartbeat that had grown from the heat radiating off Jake’s body. She stopped and wondered if Joan realized how many times she used the word sneaky in one sentence and pondered the possibility she’d already dipped into the liquor today.
Sydney looked around the guilty circle. “I was just taking it away,” she lied, shaking her head at everyone. “Shame on you all, sneaking back here behind Dad’s back for a sip of this.” She shook the bottle at them.
Kate crossed her arms.
Abby rolled her eyes.
Colt tried to grab the bottle away, but Sydney moved it too quickly and Joan snatched it right out of Sydney’s hand and took a swig herself.
That figured.
A long swig.
The woman had an office full of her favorite wine, why was she honing in on theirs? It didn’t bother Sydney and actually made her grin along with everyone in the circle. When she was finished, she read the label and looked appalled at what she’d just swallowed. “Who chose gewürztraminer wine?”
Sydney wasn’t a fan either. “Devon,” she blamed.
Joan didn’t look impressed. “It’s dry.” Sydney agreed. “By the way, you’re dad just educated everyone at the table that he knows exactly why his kids are always sneaking away,” Joan informed them, passing the bottle to Abby, who’d just had her turn before Joan showed up.
Abby took a sip and it continued around the circle again until it finally reached Sydney.
“You better take him some garlic bread with you to quench his thirst,” Joan instructed before taking another sip and leaving.
Sydney was pretty sure that wasn’t how addictions worked, but what did she know, so she brought a couple plates full of garlic bread to start.
“Did Joan find you?” Jake asked, as she sat down.
“Mm-hmm. No fooling that lady.”
Jake chuckled. “You got that right. Is there any left in my wine cooler?”
“I can’t guarantee it.”
He chuckled.
“Soon Haylee will be old enough to drive the boat and can give Joan a break,” Elaine said.
Sydney did not like the sound of that.
“I can’t wait!” Haylee squealed, tearing into her garlic bread.
“Three year countdown to your license,” Abby said to Haylee.
Sydney's stomach knotted like sailor’s rope at the thought. She dreaded that day even more than her boating license.
“I can't wait.” Those comments out of her daughter’s mouth did not help ease her fears.
Sydney dropped the bread she had been about to enjoy and folded her hands on her lap.
The crash still woke her up in the middle of the night. The rollover shook her body into panic. Seeing Kyle and Henry’s lifeless bodies smashed through the front window...unmoving, bleeding, and dead, paralyzed her thoughts.
If those fears hadn’t been enough to scare her away from vehicles, this past March she'd been in another crash with Peyton, who had been in the early stages of her pregnancy. This crash had sent Sydney into another jolt of fresh fear that she was having a hard time overcoming.
“Take a breath Sydney.”
Sydney looked up from her lap, where her hands were squeezing her dress, into Jake’s concerned and knowing eyes. She would have felt embarrassed if it wasn’t Jake catching her going down this road twice in one day. It had to be the extra stress of Haylee’s graduation adding to her fear because she’d moved past this two times a day worry many years ago.
He leaned sideways and whispered so only she would hear, “They weren’t buckled up.” It was the same line every time, knowing there was a good chance they would have survived if they’d strapped their seatbelts. It was logical, but it didn’t really help Sydney when she went into this mode.
Jake didn’t comprehend the fears whenever Sydney’s thoughts travelled down this road but he understood the pain that resulted after the crash. He had lost his father and step-brother in that crash, but he didn’t know the whole truth. He didn’t know why they were all in the vehicle together that night, the fighting, the screaming, and the confessions...none of it. Nobody knew...except Sydney.
“It's just...” her voice trailed off into the sounds of that horrific night, the rain pelting the vehicle, the ambulance’s sirens upon arrival and the voices she didn’t know asking her questions she couldn’t concentrate on.
For a brief moment, she’d wanted them to leave her alone to die in that vehicle. For a brief moment, all her battles, Jake’s absence, a hidden teen pregnancy, and the loss of her mother had seemed like enough reason to close her eyes and never wake up.
“I know.” Jake’s hand reached under the table and covered her trembling hands. All this over one comment about a license. That was three years away...how was she going to handle the day when it arrived and Haylee looked up at her with excitement?
Jake’s gentle and caring touch was one she missed. Even after she had been avoiding him for months, he still went out of his way to sit beside her, comfort her and be her friend. What had she done in return? Run away
and cower to forget what they had done, while he was being mature after their obvious mistake.
Sydney took a deep breath and turned her attention back to the table and the conversation she had completely missed.
She had a reason for lacking maturity in regards to their situation. Heat pulsed against her hand from his skin sending sparks through her body like sparklers the kids ran around with on the long weekend. Only these sparks were not waning.
She wanted Jake.
He was trying his hardest to be her friend and she was battling her hardest to comply with that status. But, darn it, if she didn’t lace her fingers through his and hold his hand until the food came to the table.
Chapter Five
AFTER SUPPER EVERYONE climbed into the limousine. Jake instructed the driver to be on hand for Haylee if she needed to go anywhere before, after or during the dance, giving him Sydney’s address.
The whole time he was worried Sydney was climbing in with them and his opportunity to talk would be lost until they returned from their weekend at Hastings Port. The disappointment dug deep discomfort.
Sydney surprised him by staying behind for a night cap. They spent the evening on the patio, laughing and catching up on the months that they’d been apart, just like old times. He didn’t know how he had spent so many days without her.
When the darkness began to fall, Jake offered to walk her home, via the scenic route. They took the wood stairs down the cliff and strolled along the beach, breathing in the night’s summer air off the lake.
For the first time in months, Jake felt an ambience of calm pulse through him. The days since Sydney left the bar weren't the same. Sydney had a relaxing atmosphere that followed her around like eternal sunshine. Her smile was contagious and she alone could shift the moods of his entire staff as though she concealed a magic wand. Since she left the Cliff House, the spirit was lacking as was the buffer to manage the strain between him and his step-mother...Sydney was their buffer.
Today had been a good day with his step-mother. The strain between them was becoming less on her behalf as much as his own and it seemed easier to smile and joke then the constant fighting battle that usually flared between them. Jake wondered if it was time they settled their differences and moved on. It was a nice thought but far from his mind as he walked in the company of the woman who consumed most of his free thoughts. One woman at a time, and he wanted to concentrate on the one next to him.
“This is nice,” Sydney said.
Jake could see her silhouette out of the corner of his eye and even stole glances as her bare feet sunk into the sand while her heels dangled from her hand.
She was beautiful in the moonlight. She was beautiful any time of the day, but with the moon reflecting off the rippling lake...she was magnificent.
“It feels just like old times,” she said.
He missed the old times. He missed what felt like years ago but was in fact only months, when he’d settled with his laptop at the bar, where she was working, to deal with other investments all the while knowing she was only feet away. She had a manner about her that no one else did. She knew when to let him delve into his work, when to set a beer in front of him, when to send him a smile, and when to shut his laptop screen. She knew him. He missed that about her and he found himself wanting Sydney like he never had before. When she’d worked at the Cliff House, showing up almost every day, it was like a crutch having her around, but not really having her at all. Now, he wanted her...all of her. Day and night, to wake up beside her just like that glorious morning before she ran off, when he held her in his arms and everything in his life felt perfect.
“Before I left the bar and started working with my sisters. We spent a lot more time together.”
Oh, was that what she was blaming their lack of seeing each other on? After months of her being embarrassed and avoiding him it was about time they talked about what happened. He would have done so sooner but she was keeping herself well occupied these days and with summer, creeping up it was the busiest time at the Cliff House. He found his days booked solid. This was, in fact, the first time they'd been alone since that morning and that in itself was weird after years of spending hours together every day.
He braced himself for her reaction as he said, “Before you started avoiding me.”
A tiny shocked gasp escaped her at his blunt honesty. “I have not been,” she denied.
“Just like we do not act weird when we are together?” He leaned over and gently pushed her side to relax her tense shoulders.
She let out a sigh but didn't say anything, letting her gorgeous features flush and give away her mortification.
“It's alright,” he said. “It has been a little awkward.”
She looked up at him, relieved he had admitted it out loud, but he could still see the discomfort across her face. “It’s been so uncomfortable and I left so quickly after we...you know...” She took a deep breath. “Had sex.”
Had sex? Had sex!
Jake almost choked on the two little words. He certainly wouldn’t have waited four months to talk to her if they’d had sex! He knew, just the connection of their two bodies joined together would have left his mind no room for anything else and he would have sought her out so much sooner.
No wonder she’d been avoiding him for months, she thought that they had slept together. Since they hadn’t it meant she didn’t remember what had actually happened. In turn, it also meant she likely didn’t remember confessing her love. There was humor in the situation, but there was also a deep feeling of a lost battle. How would they retouch on the shared confessions if she didn’t even remember sharing them?
He wasn’t about to jump right into that, but he did feel the responsibility to clear up the events of that night...maybe with a little ice-breaking teaser to ease her distress, going against everything he had been trying to maintain earlier that morning. Maybe it was because they were back into routine that he didn’t feel like he had to tiptoe around her or maybe it was the few beers he’d had to relax him. Either way, he wanted to tease her...a little.
“Yeah,” he agreed. “And I saw your naked body, and I mean it is beautiful, it’s gorgeous and...”
“Jake!” she gasped, giving the rise he had intended.
“What?” He lifted his shoulders in a shrug, acting as though he didn’t know she was referring to his candour. “It is beautiful.”
She covered her face with her hands and groaned. “Stop, please.”
He laughed. “I’m just digging.”
She peeked above her hands still covering her mouth. “Digging for what?” she asked through her hands.
He grinned. “Jake, your naked body was gorgeous and hot−”
She laughed then and hit his shoulder. “Shut up!”
He continued. “All those mornings at the gym are turning your biceps into glorious mountains.”
“No,” she laughed. “Enough.”
“No?” he asked, pretending to check his biceps. “You don’t think they’re glorious.”
She shook her head. “Yes, they are glorious.”
He laughed then. “That’s all I wanted to hear.”
Sydney shook her head. “Yeah right. You have enough women at the bar ogling all over your glorious mountains.”
“But the way you say it...” He sucked in a breath of air between his teeth. “I actually believe it.”
“I’m lying,” she teased.
“You’re killing me Syd.”
They walked in silence again, a comforting silence he’d known only with Sydney.
“We never really talked about that night,” she said quietly.
“We didn't,” he agreed.
“Should we now?”
“Do you want to?” They needed to clarify the events of that night.
Sydney sighed again, a soft breathless sound. “I don't know. I'm having such a nice time.” She looped her arm in his and rested her head on his shoulder.
He enjoyed the feel of
her warm body against his and for a long time they continued their quiet walk along the shoreline, listening to the wind push the soft waves to touch their feet every so often. He wanted these days forever with this woman, he always had, but she'd made it clear when he returned home over ten years ago that she wasn't interested in perusing anything other than a friendship. He'd accepted her wishes but he never said he liked them.
As they passed the private properties heading toward the main strip and the lights brightened he decided now was as good as time as any.
“You know the Family Day dance?”
She tensed. “So we are going to talk about it.” She didn’t sound pleased. Funny, because he'd always been the one who didn’t want to talk, but lately, spending his days without her, he felt inclined for the truth to come out so they could get back onto their normal path or possibly start a new path together. He was hoping for the latter.
“We are,” he confirmed.
“Fine.” Her voice was almost pouty. “But no more details.”
“I can’t make any promises.”
“I beg of you.”
“Alright,” he promised. “Syd, I’m just going to tear the bandage off here.” She looked up at him with worry. “We never slept together.” There he did it, ripped it right off.
She stopped walking and pulled away from him. His body instantly missed her touch and he regretted saying anything. They could have talked about this after she'd pulled away first.
She narrowed a look at him. “What are you talking about? I woke up naked in your bed. With you. Naked.” He hadn’t been technically naked. He’d been wearing shorts however his bare chest must have brought her to her conclusion.
“I thought we weren’t talking details.”
“Jake.”
He chuckled. “In the term, I guess we slept together. But we never really slept together.”
She stared at him confused.
“You were drunk. Very drunk.”
“You were very drunk.” Her statement came out in an accusing tone and he almost laughed.
He hadn't said he wasn't drunk and he'd be the first to admit he'd downed a lot of shots that night, more than he usually did. After working years behind the bar serving drinks and dealing with drunks he didn’t do all that much drinking. A shot here, a beer there, but generally not enough to get drunk.
Lakeshore Love: The McAdams Sisters (By The Lake Book 3) Page 4
