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“My pleasure.” Libby backed up a step. “We won’t keep you.”
“You don’t mind, do you?” Jake pulled out the chair next to Bryan and sat.
“We don’t want to interrupt.” Libby gave Jake a pointed glare.
“But, Libby, all the tables are full.” Jake grabbed a menu. “I’m starving.”
“Please, join us.” Jade gestured to the empty chair next to hers. Libby draped her purse over the back of it.
Bryan asked Jake about his job, but his eyes met Jade’s. Questions lurked in there, ones she couldn’t decipher.
“So, Jade, tell me all about yourself.” Libby gave Jade her full attention. She beamed with interest...and hope. Why the hope?
“What do you want to know?”
“How did you meet my brother?”
“Well, I moved here yesterday...”
“Oh! The T-shirt shop, right? You’re in Mrs. Reichert’s building around the corner. I think it’s a fantastic idea.”
Jade didn’t know how to respond. How did Libby know so much?
Bryan’s eyes glimmered with amusement as he said, “No secrets in this town.”
Apparently not. “Yes, I specialize in custom-designed shirts.”
“Embroidered?” Libby splayed hot-pink fingernails on the table. Jade couldn’t help but be charmed.
“Sometimes. Mostly I make standard screen prints, but I enjoy playing around with glitter lettering, rhinestones and shimmer decals.”
“Glitter and sparkles?” Jake snorted. “Sounds right up Libby’s alley.”
Libby’s laugh tinkled. “Exactly. You’ll have to show me some of your designs.”
“I’d love to.”
“So how did you two meet?” Libby’s lips parted slightly as she gestured to Bryan, then to Jade.
“Jade’s from Las Vegas. She’s taking my outdoor course.” The way Bryan said it discouraged additional questions. A point in Bryan’s favor. He was discreet.
“Outdoor class.” Libby made a face and stuck her tongue out. “Don’t tell me you’re a nature nut, too, Jade.”
“No.” She grinned. “I can’t say I am.”
“That’s a relief.” Libby brought her hand to her lips. “Oh, me and my big mouth. What if you were obsessed with the outdoors? My sister, Claire, is always saying I need to think before I speak.”
Jade laughed. “I wouldn’t be offended. I don’t know much about nature.”
“Well, Bryan will help you. He knows everything there is to know about trees, bugs, fishing, making a fire. He’ll go on for hours about soil and worms and how the silver undersides of leaves mean rain’s coming.” Libby turned her attention to Bryan. “I mean that in the nicest possible way.”
His jaw clenched, but he didn’t reply.
Libby continued. “Talk about uncanny. I mean, you moved here yesterday, you want to learn about nature and Bryan just happened to be teaching a class this morning. It’s as if God planned it.”
Jade did a double take. She’d thought the same, but hearing it from a stranger? She stole a peek at Bryan. He frowned as though he, too, pondered Libby’s words.
“What’s Las Vegas like?” Jake asked. “I’ve never been there.”
All the things Jade loved about it bubbled up inside. “It’s hot, loud and over-the-top. A fun place to visit. There’s so much to do—that is, if you can handle the crowds.”
“I’m not much of a crowd person.” Jake grinned.
“Tell me about it.” Libby shook her head. “That leaves you out, too, Bryan.”
Everything Libby was saying didn’t add up to the picture Jade had been painting of Bryan, the one where he was another too-good-to-be-true guy poised to let her down.
It didn’t matter. Jade was not interested.
“How many are in your family?” Jade asked Libby.
“Depends on how you define family,” Libby said. “There are five of us kids. Add Jake, Reed, Stephanie and Macy, plus Dad. And Aunt Sally and Uncle Joe, and...”
Libby listed more names, but the pizza arrived. Bryan dished out the slices. Half an hour later, Jake and Bryan paid the bill, and they all walked Jade back to her apartment.
“It’s so cute.” Libby stopped in front of the store. “If you need help with decorating or anything, call me.”
“Thanks.” Jade liked Libby already. “Do you all want to come up? It’s a disaster, but...”
“Oh, no,” Libby said. “We’ll let you settle in. It was nice to meet you.”
With his arm slung over her shoulders, Jake steered Libby in the opposite direction.
The air had grown even cooler, and Jade shivered under her coat.
“So,” she said. “I guess I’ll see you next week.”
He frowned. “You still want to come to the classes?”
“Yeah, why?” Had he changed his mind during pizza or something? If he told her he wouldn’t teach her anymore, she didn’t know what she’d do. Her backup plan was dicey and not well thought out. Sure, she could try finding another counselor, but would that cure her when past sessions had failed? She was counting on Bryan’s class. Lake Endwell was too important—the key to her dream life. She didn’t want to start over somewhere else.
“More people will be there,” he said. “You might not be ready to go into the woods.”
“Oh, right.” Her good mood disappeared. She’d assumed she’d be the only one to show up, the way she’d been today. But he was correct. If more people came, she wouldn’t be ready to hike in the woods. It might take weeks—months—for her to be prepared. An overwhelming urge to crawl into bed and duck under the covers came over her.
“What are you doing tomorrow afternoon?” The intensity in his stare made her blink twice, and her pulse quickened.
“Unpacking, why?”
“Maybe I can get you up to speed so you can continue the classes.”
He clearly didn’t know what he was up against.
A Bavarian cottage at the foot of the famed Black Forest. The last week of her summer in Germany. Those mean neighbor boys playing a trick on her.
Why had she been so trusting?
She tucked her hair behind her ear. “You don’t have to...”
“Yeah, I do. Libby was right. The timing and everything.”
“Honestly, you don’t...”
Bryan took a step closer. Her nerves twitched like Mexican jumping beans.
“Meet me at Evergreen Park around two o’clock.” He gently took her by the elbow. “I’ll walk you up.”
Jade climbed the steps to her apartment with Bryan directly behind her. Once she unlocked the door, she opened it and faced him. “Thanks for the pizza.”
He nodded. “Will I see you tomorrow?”
“I’ll think about it.”
“I’ll be there, whatever you decide.”
She slipped inside and locked the door behind her.
She’d lived here all of twenty-four hours and already teetered on the edge of the danger zone. Not that Bryan seemed interested, but still. She couldn’t help being attracted to him.
Hadn’t she promised herself to keep her priorities straight? First on the list was opening the store. Second was overcoming her fear of the woods. She had no business beyond friendship with anyone until she figured out what she’d been doing wrong in her previous relationships.
After tossing her purse on the table, she padded down the hall to her bedroom. Maybe she was overtired. She barely knew Bryan.
Libby was right. God planned the outdoor class. He was helping free her from the chains paralyzing her. Maybe Bryan had the key to unlock them.
God, what do I do? Go to the park tomorrow? Even though I think he’s really cute and seems nice and honest? Or is this a test? Are You checking to see if I was serious about not dating?
Jade fell back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. She’d sleep on it.
* * *
“I assume the move was successful.” Jade’s mother had a distinct accent. Part American, part French with a hint of German. Her rich alto voice matched her vast intelligence. “Did you hire the moving company I recommended?”
Jade had been unpacking all morning, trying to decide if meeting Bryan at the park would be smart or dumb. She propped her cell phone between her ear and shoulder. “Hello to you, too, Mom. I rented a U-Haul. I’m proud to say, I drove it here all by myself.”
Her mother didn’t answer. Jade surveyed the boxes piled high that still needed to be dealt with. Her dining table overflowed with odds and ends. Where was she supposed to put everything?
“You know how I feel about U-Hauls,” Mom finally said. “I don’t understand why you didn’t hire the company I emailed you about.”
The company had given Jade an estimate of over five thousand dollars, that was why.
“They were pricey, Mom.”
“I told you I would pay for it.”
“No, thanks.” She poked through a box and pulled out an adorable silver lamp with a paisley navy and cream shade she bought from a thrift shop. “I’m twenty-seven years old.”
“What does your age have to do with your safety? Tell me you didn’t hire a stranger to unload the truck when you got to town. He could have murdered you.”
“Actually, I did hire a stranger. I googled ‘moving companies who hire serial killers’ and requested the freakiest-looking guy they had.”
White noise didn’t cover the icy stillness. “That’s not funny, Jade Marie.”
“Just my twisted attempt at a joke.” She added Stop baiting Mom to her mental to-do list.
“I don’t approve of you taking unnecessary chances, and I’m not pleased you moved to the middle of nowhere.”
When had Mom ever approved of her decisions? “Don’t worry, when I arrived in Lake Endwell, I hired a reputable service to unload the truck. Yes, I checked their references. They did a good job. Anyway, how is Gerald? Have you two found a breakthrough on the cancer trial yet?”
“He’s fine, and negative on the breakthrough, but we’re working on a fascinating hypothesis...” Excitement colored her mother’s words. Jade’s stepfather, Gerald, and her mother worked in Lyons, France, for the World Health Organization. Both renowned cancer researchers, the two were perfect for each other. Jade’s father, on the other hand, was a celebrated heart surgeon at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, where he lived with his second wife, a board member of a nonprofit for underprivileged children.
Brilliant. All of them.
And generous.
Good people.
Sometimes Jade felt bad her exceptional parents had produced such an ordinary child. She’d brought home Bs and Cs on her report cards. Flunked math in third grade. Didn’t make varsity tennis. Didn’t win a single match. She’d chosen a nonmedical field of study. She hadn’t even graduated with honors. It was a wonder her mother still talked to her. Her father certainly didn’t.
“...the cells stopped replicating... Jade, are you listening?”
“Yes, Mom.” Jade wadded a piece of packing paper and looked for a wastebasket. She opened the cupboard under the sink. Did she own trash bags? Nope. She tossed the paper on the floor. “I hope the replicating thingy gets the results you want.”
“Not a ‘thingy.’ It’s... Never mind. The world is relying on us. Now, listen, this move of yours might not work out, and I think you should consider an alternate plan. We’ll get you settled in an apartment in Paris. Gerald’s sister’s friend works at a prestigious advertising company. It would mean working at an entry-level position in marketing, but you’d have a job. Just don’t...”
Jade held her breath. Don’t say it, Mom.
“Just don’t settle.”
Her shoulders drooped. She’d heard it a million times. At first, she thought it meant something good, that she was special and deserved more, but as she matured, Jade realized her mom actually meant, Don’t disappoint me.
Her mother sighed. “This T-shirt thing was acceptable while you were in college, but you need to think of your future. And the world’s future. We’re all in this together, you know. How will T-shirts help society? Think about it.”
“Okay, Mom. I will.” Society always ranked high on her mother’s list of priorities. “Listen, I’m practically wading in boxes. Can I let you go? I’ll never get them unpacked if I don’t.”
“Certainly.”
“Give my best to Gerald.”
