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“Want to eat in the square?” I asked, pointing toward the small park in the middle of a traffic circle, complete with a fountain and several benches.
“Sure,” he agreed, trying to take our food off the tray.
I took it from him. “I’ll bring this back in a little bit, Dani,” I called to the manager, whose kids I used to babysit when they were younger.
Her oldest worked part time as a server after school now, which I tried not to think about since it made me feel ancient. She nodded and waved, seeing Jax for the first time and wagging her eyebrows at me suggestively. I hustled him toward the door before she came over and embarrassed me.
“Do you know everyone here?” he asked, after we dodged the traffic to get into the park.
We chose a bench facing the fountain, a rather boring spray of water because every time someone wanted to change it to a statue of some sort, no one could agree on what it should be. The bottom of the fountain was littered with pennies and a few nickels and dimes that all got scooped out every few months and donated to the library.
“Not everyone,” I said. “We get new people from time to time.” He took a bite of his tuna melt and closed his eyes while nodding his approval. I found myself focused on his mouth as he licked away a buttery crumb, then quickly looked away. “You grew up in Manhattan, right?”
He nodded. “Born and raised in the city. Summer’s up in Massachusetts or…” he trailed off.
“What?” I asked. “A villa in Monaco? You can admit you grew up rich, it’s not your fault or anything.”
He gave me a long look before cracking up. “No, I suppose it wasn’t my fault. And it was a villa in Tuscany.”
We lapsed into alternating between silence while we ate and mild teasing. He sat down right next to me so we could put the tray on our laps between us and our legs rubbed together every time he turned to look at me. Our hands brushed as we reached for a fried pickle and he smiled slightly, as if it had been his plan all along. I wasn’t about to complain.
A couple of people who were enjoying their own lunches out in the sun, called over to me, and we shouted updates on our lives to each other. After the third person who cut through the park on their way to the courthouse stopped to say hello, clearly curious about a handsome newcomer, Jax started getting a little tense.
“People are really outgoing here,” I said, trying to get his smile back.
“Nosy,” he corrected.
True, but what was so bad about it? Everyone meant well, and I liked keeping up with the community as much as the next person. I grumbled a noncommittal reply, wondering if we had a time limit or something. Were we only allowed to have so much fun together before it expired? Mrs. Dunston came over from across the street, dragging her wheeled shopping bag behind her and stopped directly in front of us. I greeted her, and she waited pointedly for an introduction to Jax. He just as pointedly craned his neck around her rather plump form to look at the fountain.
“This is actually Silas’s business partner, from New York,” I said, then turned to Jax, willing him to be nice. “Mrs. Dunston lives next door to Silas.”
“He was a real son of a gun when he was a kid,” she said. “Seems all grown up now, though. So, are you moving here, too?”
Jax smiled thinly at her. “Absolutely not.”
Well, he didn’t have to be soabsoluteabout it. Mrs. Dunston shrugged and went on her way, and I rounded on him. He beat me to the punch.
“She actually crossed the street to hound you for intel,” he said. “I bet she can’t wait to tell whoever lives on the other side of her.”
Once again, true, but the way he kept acting like the townspeople’s curiosity was such a crime rubbed me the wrong way. I scooted over a notch and started wrapping up our trash so I could take the tray back into the diner. Our pleasant morning had definitely expired. It seemed impossible I had wanted to roll in the leaves with this man only an hour ago.
“She was just being friendly,” I said sourly. “Something that seems to be lacking in your neighbors in New York.”
“They keep to themselves the same as me. That’s the way I like it. People’s personal lives should be just that.Personal.”
It sounded awful and dull and lonely. It didn’t seem like he noticed that I wasn’t going to take part in his trashing my neighbors, and he continued teasing as he drove me back to my car. For the life of me I couldn’t understand him, or how I felt about him, as it seemed to change by the minute. Not that it mattered how I felt about him, since he’d be back in his precious city soon enough and out of mine.
Chapter 11 - Jax
I had no complaints about changing our trip. Virginia was suiting me just fine. The next few days were spent fishing in the creek behind the farm, but the few fish I saw jumping in the water were too wily to get lured to my line. Crayfish scuttled by the dozens on the rocky bottom of the creek, and Silas swore up and down they were delicious boiled in butter, but Raylen and I opted not to get our fingers pinched and let them live.
I finished a detective novel and started a biography, and caught up with all my favorite podcasts. Despite being so relaxed I wasn’t sure I had bones anymore, I was having trouble not checking my work emails. Things were certainly on track back in New York or one of our assistants would have let us know, but work was the only thing that could come close to keeping my mind off Luna. However, to admit to working would be a betrayal of the vacation code, so I kept it to myself. Just like I kept it to myself that checking on work didn’t keep me from wondering when Luna would drop by the house again for dinner.
Positive that I wouldn’t get lucky a third time and see her on the trails, and would most likely end up lost without her as a guide, I decided to poke around the town square and take some pictures of the quaint storefronts to add to my collection of nature shots. Silas and Raylen wanted to play a few rounds of golf at a club in the next town over, but I never much cared for the sport. They took Silas’s car and left me the rental, so after a few cups of coffee by the pool, I headed into town with my camera.
I found a parking spot near a charming gazebo surrounded by flowers and shrubs. A couple dressed in their Sunday best was getting their picture taken under the wrought iron structure. Probably just got engaged, based on how happy they looked, laughing and hugging each other while the photographer captured it all. I took a few pictures of the whole scene, then waited for them to move on so I could get some close-ups of the intricate ironwork. Bits of rust gnawed away at the gazebo, adding to the texture for my picture, but I could imagine that Luna might be organizing a gala to save it in a few years if nobody got in there with some sandpaper and paint.
She was even making me think like her now, and not just about her. Which was why I was so stunned to see her when I went into the theater. The woman had two jobs and still went there during her free time? There was no way I could have foreseen it.
