Page 97 of Call It Serendipity

“Lucy Hart?” I reply, unsure if he was really looking for an introduction.

Jake’s half smile returns at that, a significant victory all things considered.

“Lucy, if you’ll excuse us, my son and I have serious work to do this evening. I’m sure you understand.”

“I don’t understand,” Jake cuts in.

Richard adjusts his tie in annoyance, and I try to imagine Jake wearing this same charcoal suit and plain red tie to work every day. It’s hard to picture.

“I convinced the board members to have one last individual meeting with each bidder before the public decision tomorrow evening. A chance for me to get in front of them and truly pitch our case.”

“If you’re concerned with my ability to do my job, then you don’t need me to prepare you tonight,” Jake replies calmly. “But it’s good to see you, Dad.”

And without waiting for his father to say another word, he guides us around the stunned man standing in the middle of the sidewalk with a lightness in his step.

I wait until we’re across Monroe and on the path down by the river. And with the coast surely clear by now, I ask, “How bad is it that he’ll be meeting with the board tomorrow?”

Jake lets out a long, strangled sigh. “Well, you know those ordinances I’ve been studying religiously?”

“I do.”

“Let’s just say I have been looking for ways to kill the deal, not seal it.”

My heart sinks like a lead weight. “I don’t think I want to talk about tomorrow anymore,” I mutter.

Lifting our joined hands to his lips, he drops a kiss to my knuckles before turning it upright and pressing another into my palm.

“Tonight,” he says resolutely, “we are still simply Jake and Lucy.”

The problem is, that’s all I ever want to be now.

55

Over the past couple months, I’ve spent enough time cramped in this meeting hall to last me a lifetime. Every chair has a person in it, and the rest of the crowd stands shoulder to shoulder along the walls.

I called Jake from the shelter earlier today to ask if he’d like to walk over together. He had told me to go on ahead and he’d meet me. Given the plan, I opted for a spot on the back wall rather than trying to fight people off to save him a seat.

But as the hand on the clock ticks closer and closer to the meeting time, he’s yet to arrive.

Standing up on my tiptoes, I scan the room once more. There are my parents sitting with Parker. And Claire is here with Levi and her grandmother. I even spot Richard in the front row. He’s adjusting his suit jacket and looking dangerously confident.

And he’s alone.

I thought maybe he would have caught Jake, forced him to sit together as a united front for Carpenter Collection. But no, Jake is truly nowhere to be seen.

It’s terribly hot, and my hair is sticking to the back of my neck, and I want nothing more than to see his face in this horrible, large crowd.

Up front, the trustees file in from a side door and move in an orderly line to the waiting table. One by one they pull out a chair and sit, facing their village. The clock above their heads reads seven o’clock sharp now. Time for the meeting to begin.

My heart slams in my chest, and I want to shout out for them to wait. That one of the bidders isn’t here. They can’t start without Jake, not after everything.

There’s a phone out in the lobby; I could call him if I had memorized his number.

“Dammit,” I mutter. “Where are you?”

And what could be more important than being here for this.

Panic starts to climb up my chest, fingers of fear tightening on my throat. Something must be wrong. Something must have happened. It’s the only thing that would keep him away.