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"Well, technically he's not my kid and was this a date? 'Cause I never do it on the first date."
Jake looked back at her. "Guess I should have followed protocol, huh?"
Eva thought about Jamison and his rules. "Eh, protocol is probably overrated. But a date would be nice. I wouldn't mind some footsie under the table."
"Exclusively," Jake said. "I don't want prissy pants Jamison sniffing around anymore. Or anyone else, for that matter."
Eva sobered when she thought about Clint.
Lord, they were sitting there naked not even a mile from where Clint lived. The pain in Clint's voice wafted through her head, and she felt a sort of shame for having lost her mind over Jake merely a day after she'd shot Clint down, after she'd uttered the words about Charlie and putting him first. What would their friend say about her and Jake dating? Likely no warm fuzzy congrats. Not with the invisible wall of guilt and blame Clint and Jake had danced around for years.
But deliberating all of the hard stuff could come later. No sense in ruining the magic of the evening. She wanted to savor this tenderness, relish the potential for a while longer. Before reality broke in, throwing elbows and knocking cracks into her vision of happily-ever-after with Jake.
Did that mean she doubted a rosy future with Jake? She didn't want to. But she would never regret what had happened here today. Jake was right. This could be exactly what they'd been waiting for all their lives.
"So you know, I told Jamison that things were too complicated in my life at present to continue dating. He didn't kick up a fuss so I think the flirtation is over," she said.
Jake gave a Cheshire cat smile. "Good. Like you want someone who knows the difference between cashmere and cashmere blend to hang around your brother."
"You know what cashmere is?" Eva joked.
"Hilda sent over a dozen men's catalogs a few weeks back. She thinks I need a makeover."
He helped her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her. Rubbing her back, Jake kissed the top of her breast, looked up and said, "I've never been this happy in my entire life."
"Me, too." Eva lifted onto her toes and kissed him, meaning every word of what she'd said. "Now, let's get back before they send the police. I don't want to greet my ex wearing my birthday suit.”
Jake glowered. "I never liked Chase. He's-"
Eva pressed a finger over Jake's mouth. "Chill. I never even slept with him. No need to be jealous."
"Like I'm jealous of him," Jake scoffed, releasing her to tug on his clothes. "He probably watches the Hallmark channel and secretly knits baby blankets or something."
"You are so immature," Eva teased.
Jake cocked his head "Look, I like both Jamison and Chase fine. I just don't like that they put their hands on you."
Eva struggled gracelessly into her dress, tugging it into place with a grunt. "If I were jealous of all the women who put their hands on you, I'd hate half the town. Let's just leave past relationships where they belong. Let's live in the present, including that I presently don't know where I kicked my shoes."
Jake found her shoes and soon they were slipping back through the woods, leaving behind their hidden piece of paradise. Jake held her hand, stopping intermittently to kiss her or cop a feel. Made Eva feel very much like a teenager living in the moment, uncaring of what lay ahead. At that moment, laughing with the man she'd just made love to, life was butterscotch lollipops and warm fuzzy panda bears.
They reached the truck, still laughing, acting like two kids in Disney World. The sun had dropped beneath the horizon, bronzing the darkness before slipping out of sight. As Eva paused, taking one last look at the rickety fence and the secret spot that lay within the woods, she wondered if she had, indeed, ever been so happy.
To have the man you'd loved for so long take your heart and close his hands around it and say, ''This is right," made a gal dream of lace veils and side-by-side rocking chairs. To even nudge a toe toward happily-ever-after with the Magnolia Bend's resident hound dog seemed wishful thinking.
She climbed in the truck and turned to him."Are you sure we're doing the right thing?"
His answer was another tender kiss. ''As I am of anything, E."
17
THE FLYING ELBOWS and cracks in the rosy veneer of love came at Eva the next morning. Charlie had a high fever, and the toilet had backed up, leading to an expensive plumbing call.
The plumber- Mickey Guillot- she could deal with. He liked coffee, conversation, and gave discounts to civil servants like Eva. The high fever and crying from Charlie was something she'd never faced before. She'd consulted WebMD and then bathed his head with cold washcloths before finally calling Jake's sister, Abigail.
"Did you give him ibuprofen?" Abigail asked.
"No. I thought kids couldn't take that stuff," Eva said, peering down the hall to where Mickey worked in her bathroom.
