Kiss Me Now: A Romantic Comedy

by Melanie Jacobson

  I didn’t know any other way to show her how sorry I was, but at least I could do this for her: Rink was done.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Brooke

  I drove home barely able to see the road through the red mist of my anger.

  At Ian for sure.

  But mostly at myself.

  Of course Ian’s interest hadn’t been in me. Why would it be? He’d told me that he usually dated ambitious career women, not high school biology teachers who were content to live in the country with sawdust in their hair half the time.

  All those leading questions he’d asked to try to get to know me better...those weren’t genuine interest on his part. That was detective work. He was investigating Rink.

  Rink deserved it. He deserved every bad thing coming to him if Ian was able to turn up any dirt.

  My time in Rink’s office had stripped away every illusion I’d ever had about powerful men. At least, the ones in politics. He’d lied to the public so convincingly for so long about who he was that I didn’t believe the one warning I’d been given; when an aide I barely knew from a Midwest senator’s office sought me out in the congressional cafeteria once to give me a vague warning about Rink, I’d brushed her off. Her boss was junior to Rink on the appropriations committee, and he’d benefit from a Rink scandal.

  But she’d been right, and I’d been so wrong.

  So painfully, terrifyingly wrong.

  And wrong in a way that was almost impossible to prove.

  What Rink had done to me in his office that night...I’d gotten away from him before he could push things as far as he’d wanted to. There was no physical evidence to take to the police beyond a torn skirt, a blouse with a missing button, and some pictures of me with some vague red marks. I was grateful for that, at least. I was grateful that he’d done no lasting physical harm.

  But I’d still spent a year working with a therapist to get over the scarring no one could see, the raw places inside my mind where all my illusions, trust, and idealism had been ripped away.

  Someday I’d be ready to trust another man, but maybe it would have to be someone like Noah Redmond, someone I started out with as truly just friends, something that would grow slowly over a long time, so I had a chance to study him, watch him in all kinds of settings to see how much integrity he really had.

  Look what had happened when I had let my attraction to Ian hijack my personal judgment. My hormones and silly romanticism sent me to DC on the off-chance that I might see him. I’d talked myself into believing that he was the good man Miss Lily claimed he was. I’d wanted to believe that the electricity that sparked between us was something real.

  “Ha.” The laugh tore out of me, bitter and not at all funny.

  Ian had swum with sharks and become one. Except that wasn’t fair to sharks. He’d gone from thinking I was a gold digger to pretending to be into me so he could take down Rink. He wanted me to put my reputation, my job, everything on the line so he could score a victory for his firm.

  No way.

  I’d love to see Rink pay, and I had made him do it quite literally by threatening a lawsuit so big that he offered me a huge settlement to keep me quiet. I would have gone after him through the cops, but my mother had assessed it all with a lawyer’s eye and confirmed that I didn’t have enough for them to open an investigation that would stick. Without hard evidence, witnesses, corroborating statements...I’d had nothing. And even if I had those things, there was still no guarantee that Rink’s connections wouldn’t protect him. I’d be hung out to dry as an opportunist and a gold digger.

  Either way, my career in DC was over, and I’d known it. So I took the money and walked, determined to build beauty from ashes. That was a phrase my favorite resident of Landsdowne used to say when she talked about turning failures into successes. I’d never really understood it until Rink forced me to burn my life down when I wouldn’t let him take what he wanted just because he wanted it.

  But no matter how often Ian bragged that he was good at his job, there was no way he would be able to find anything that would stick to Rink. And it was wrong to try to guilt me into offering myself up as leverage.

  I drove the rest of the way home fifteen miles over the speed limit, and my anger could have pushed me higher if the roads were less winding.

  I wasn’t any less furious when I pulled into my driveway, and when I climbed up to my front door, I went out of my way to kick the box with the swing in it.

  It took me forever to fall asleep that night, and I didn’t wake up in a much better mood. My anger had cooled but my disappointment ran even deeper.

  I spent Sunday ripping out old carpet upstairs, cutting and rolling it into rolls I could haul to the backyard by myself. I’d have to rent a truck to take it all to the dump, but the hard, heavy work helped burn off more of my mood. Ian texted a couple of times, but I ignored them. The first couple of lines I could see in each showed that he was at least trying to apologize instead of pressuring me into coming forward, but I wasn’t in the mood for apologies. Or Ian.

  When I rolled into school Monday morning, I felt almost normal. I got permission from the principal to turn a space in the school quad into a community garden. It was a 10 x 8 foot square of dirt surrounded by a low wall for students to sit. Ferns grew inside it but not well. The spot was too sunny for them, and it wasn’t doing anything to beautify the campus. It was a perfect place to start a small garden, and I’d already looked into the supplies I’d need and come up with a game plan.

  I stopped by Grace’s store on the way home, smiling with grim satisfaction as the high total appeared in the register screen.

  “This might be the kind of thing you could get the PTA to fundraise for,” Grace said, noticing my look.

  “It’s okay. I set aside funds for this.”

  She eyed me for a minute as she typed up the invoice for delivery of the topsoil I’d ordered. “I know it’s none of my business, but—”

  “But that doesn’t ever seem to stop people in Creekville from getting into mine anyway.”

  She grinned. “True that. But I have to say, you’re going to go broke if you keep spending out of pocket like this for your classes.”

  I leaned forward and met her eye with another smile. “I really, really won’t.” I wasn’t kidding about having made Rink pay. He’d paid me over a million dollars to keep my mouth shut.

  Grace shook her head like she wasn’t so sure, but she finished ringing me up without further comment.

  I was halfway toward the door when I turned and went back to the register. “Have I thanked you a million billion times for helping me with all your advice and connections yet?”

  “Yeah, but it’s nice to have someone who actually takes my advice. A lot of the men who come in here don’t believe me until they do a thing wrong their way, then they’ll do it mine. But you can thank me again,” she grinned. “I don’t get tired of it.”

  I studied her for a second, really looking. She was probably about my age, her dark brown hair gathered in a ponytail, no makeup that I could see, but she was pretty in a quiet way. I’d only ever seen her in her work uniform, a shirt with the name of the hardware store and jeans. I didn’t know much about her, but she always seemed to watch the world like she was secretly amused, whether she was helping me wrangle a rented floor sander up my stairs or gently explaining to someone’s grandpa that he needed a different plumbing piece than the one he was asking for.

  “Hey, Grace, would you want to get dinner some time? Miss Lily is my best friend in town right now, and I adore her, but she’s kind of done for the day at 7:00 PM. Could be fun to have someone to grab a movie or dinner with.”

  She took a second to reply, and I rushed into the pause. “Sorry, is it weird that I asked? It probably is. I used to be good at socializing, but maybe I’ve forgotten how.”

  Grace shook her head and smiled. “No, it’s not weird. I think I might be the one who’s acting weird. I just...” She paused again
. “I’ve kind of made a point of not getting too tangled up with people around here since I’ve been back the last couple of years. I don’t plan to stay long term, and it seemed easier that way. But I think I’d love to grab dinner some time.”

  “Okay, cool. Thanks for not thinking I’m weird.”

  “Yeah, sure,” she said. “Thanks for asking. The first part of your order should be in by Tuesday. The store closes at 6:00. What if you came by then to pick it up and then we’ll grab something to eat?”

  “Great. See you then.” I waved and left, satisfied that both the garden and a new friendship was on their way to existence.

  At home, Miss Lily was waiting for me in the garden like she’d known exactly when I would show up. She wore her gardening clogs and had her tote on the ground beside her. “Afternoon, Brooke. How was school?”

  “Fine. I found a spot and got permission to put in the garden. Even started ordering supplies from Grace. I knew exactly what I needed thanks to your tutoring out here.”

  “Good. Tell me what you’re going to plant.”

  I knelt to weed the squash and went through my plans with her, talking about all the lessons I would be able to teach about each point of the process. “I honestly don’t know how anyone teaches biology without having a garden,” I concluded.

  “Hands on is always best. Makes it real for them while their brains are still trying to develop their abstract thinking skills. But enough about work. How goes life otherwise?”

  Something about the way she asked it put me on guard. She was trying too hard to sound casual.

  “It’s good.” I left it at that, waiting to see which way she would dig.

  “Had a good visit with your parents?”

  “Yes. They’re busy as ever. My mom still thinks Creekville is a phase.”

  “You came home sooner than I expected. Didn’t think I’d see your car until Sunday night.”

  I concentrated on pulling out an especially stubborn weed. It came loose but tried to take a bunch of soil with it. I smashed the clod and shook it back to its garden furrow, tossing aside the weed without remorse. “Let me guess; you talked to Ian.”

  “He did mention that he saw you this weekend, yes.” She peered over the edge of her sunglasses. “I found it interesting that you didn’t mention seeing him.”

  I didn’t know what to say here. It wasn’t like I was going to trash Ian to his own grandmother. “It was just in passing. Met up for lunch.”

  “And how did it go?”

  “Fine. Good sandwiches.”

  “Brooke Spencer, that is not what I’m talking about, and you know it. Don’t play clueless. It’s unbecoming.”

  I sighed. “What did Ian say about it?”

  “Not much. Mentioned that he’d seen you and asked if you were all right. Wouldn’t tell me why he was asking. So. Are you all right?”

  “Miss Lily, I adore you, and I know you’d love to see Ian and I get together, but it’s not going to happen. We’re not a good fit.”

  “Nonsense,” she said, her voice calm as ever. “Eight decades buys you a lot of wisdom, and I haven’t been wrong about a match in twenty years. If I say a couple doesn’t have what it takes to make it, I’m right, and when I think two people are meant for each other, I’m also right. That’s not bragging,” she added, waving a gloved hand in my direction like she was preempting any argument. “It’s fact. I have never once had an instinct about a couple and gotten it wrong either way.”

  “There’s always a first time,” I mumbled.

  “Did you just sass me?” Her eyes narrowed. “Say it outright or don’t say it at all.”

  “Fine,” I said, pulling off my gloves and tossing them in my garden tote. “I admit this is the first time I’ve ever known you to be wrong about anything, but you are dead wrong about me and Ian. There’s not a worse mismatch that I can think of. I think you missed having him come around so much that you talked yourself into believing that he and I were a good fit.”

  I scrambled to my feet, not daring to look at her in case I’d offended her. But she was quiet for so long that I finally snuck a glance. Instead of a frown, she was grinning as she went back to pulling weeds like nothing had happened.

  “Miss Lily?”

  “Yes, honey?”

  “You’re not mad?”

  “Of course not. Why would I be mad when you’re so clearly in love with my grandson?”

  I gasped. “I am not!”

  “You are. Or very close to it. Otherwise, he wouldn’t make you so mad.”

  This delusion was worse than her being angry. I hated the idea of dooming her to disappointment. I didn’t want to go around destroying any of her illusions about Ian, but I didn’t want her clinging to the vain hope that he and I would end up together, either. It seemed a poor way to repay all her kindness.

  “We won’t work, Miss Lily. Our val—priorities are too different.” I caught myself before accusing him of having poor values. “Night and day different. City and country different. If it makes you feel better, I admit he’s as handsome as you said he was, and he’s definitely charming, but we don’t have enough in common to work.”

  She narrowed her eyes at me. “Charming is a word for men who are all flash and no substance, and that’s not Ian. Why don’t you tell me what really happened this weekend? And don’t tiptoe around me. How many times do I have to remind you I’m eighty? I don’t break easily, so you can stop treating me like I’m fragile. Just spit it out, girl. Can’t fix it if I don’t know what’s broke.”

  “There’s nothing to fix.” I hesitated, still unsure if I wanted to lay out the whole story, but there wasn’t one thing Miss Lily hadn’t worn me down about that she wanted me to do yet.

  “Are you realizing it’s easier to tell me now since I’ll get it out of you eventually?” she asked, her eyes twinkling.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Smart woman. Now spill.”

  “Well, you know Ian and I had a rough start,” I began.

  “A rare miscalculation on my part,” she acknowledged.

  “The thing is, I thought we’d gotten past that. But I told him I didn’t think us dating made much sense because his career is in DC, and I’m never going back. I didn’t see the point. Still, I just...”

  “Found yourself thinking about my rogue of a grandson anyway?”

  That wrung a smile from me. “Something like that. I was worried that spending all that time in cutthroat DC politics had maybe...” I didn’t want to say “corrupted” him and offend Miss Lily. “Had maybe jaded him too much.”

  “Too much for what?”

  “Me, basically. He spends all his time in an environment that I had to leave or be consumed by. But then we’d hang out, and it was so simple and easy. And I thought I was wrong. I kept waiting for him to come back so I could explore it more and see.”

  “You waited for him to come back after you told him to stay away?”

  “He told you about that?”

  “Of course. To be fair, he was trying to make sure I left you alone and didn’t meddle.”

  “It wasn’t that I told him to go away, exactly.” I toed the dirt, remembering the conversation on my porch. “It was more that I told him to talk to me from his side of the creek and kicked the bridge down between us.”

  “I do love a good metaphor,” she said. “But you changed your mind?”

  “At first. I went out to DC to meet him on his turf since he’d kept coming to mine.” I hesitated, searching for the most diplomatic way to say the next part. “I know you love Ian, and I’m not trying to badmouth him, but the thing is, it turns out he was more interested in me as a witness to a case he’s working on than anything else.”

  Miss Lily’s gaze sharpened. “That doesn’t sound like Ian at all.”

  I shrugged. I couldn’t tell her anything else without it sounding like a character assassination.

  “Keep going,” she said. “I’m not going to get mad at you for r
eporting facts as you see them. I know you’re fair-minded. But it would save me the trouble of digging the details out of Ian. Come on to the house for some sweet tea, and we’ll talk it through.”

  It was the last thing I wanted to do, but there was no way I’d hurt Miss Lily’s feelings. I’d give back my million-plus dollars first.

  We settled into her breakfast nook with a cold glass of iced tea in front of each of us, the A/C cooling us down.

  “Go ahead,” Miss Lily prompted.

  So I told her about Senator Rink harassing me, getting the settlement when I realized I couldn’t win a prosecution, starting over out here away from the disillusionment of DC politics. How Ian and I had connected, and I pushed him away, then found I couldn’t stay away myself so I made up a flimsy excuse to see him in DC. How wandering the zoo with him had been perfect and easy, and everything had been going great until he asked me to make a public statement about Rink.

  She took it all in without interrupting, only sipped and listened. When I was done, she sat in quiet for a moment. “Just to clarify,” she said. “You say he didn’t bring up speaking out about Rink until his assistant burst in and blurted out his name?”

  “Correct.”

  “Do you think they coordinated that, or do you think she genuinely didn’t realize you were there?”

  I thought back. Sherrie had looked honestly startled to realize Ian had someone in his office. “I think she was surprised.”

  “So it’s possible he brought it up only because she’d already mentioned Rink.” She set her glass down and patted at her mouth with her linen napkin. “I think you read him wrong. If Ian had wanted to drag you into this, he would have done it before you showed up in DC. He’d have been out here trying to talk you into it. And I don’t think for a second that he’d try to fool you with seduction or anything like that.”

  I blinked to clear the image of Ian’s granny talking about seduction.

  “He’s too straightforward for that. But either way, he still didn’t come out here. It only came up because his assistant inadvertently brought it up without any idea you were there. So it sounds like he’s been working on this for a while without contacting you about it once, correct?”