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“Don’t you have the construction company coming?” Jeanette asked. “I don’t want to keep you from anything important.”
“We’re taking a small break,” Amanda explained. “They’ll be back next Monday to continue the work, but for now, we have all this time for ourselves.”
Jeanette nodded mutely, and without another word, Amanda and Whitney closed her door, leaving her to herself. A heavy sigh with tears attached to it escaped her chest once she was alone. Glassy-eyed, she bent down to one of her suitcases and unzipped it. She tried for a while to put her things into the closet and dressers, but soon gave up and abandoned the task.
She took another look around the room, then walked over to the balcony doors to open them. The crisp, salty scent of the ocean air hit her as she stepped outside, lessening her pain a little. She had done so well all day—keeping away from thoughts of Daniel. And now here they were again, smacking her right where it hurt.
Bracing her hands on the wrought iron railing, she leaned over the edge and let out a frustrated sound that was a mix of yelling, screaming, and sobbing. She beat her hands against the railing in her sadness and then began a feeble attempt at shaking it.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” a voice said.
Startled and embarrassed, Jeanette froze instantly. She looked around at the balconies that lined the boutique hotel sitting beside The Sea Glass Cottage and saw nothing.
“Down here,” the voice said again, in the same bemused tone.
Shielding her eyes with her hand, Jeanette leaned over the railing and looked down. Though he had changed quite a bit, Jeanette saw the familiar face of Jason Flaherty peering up at her through dark sunglasses. He hadn’t changed much, if at all. It was as if time had decided not to touch him since she’d last seen him in his early twenties. Tanned, dark hair, and he had the same athletic build—as if the man hadn’t gained a single pound. Jeanette wondered suddenly if he even remembered her.
“You wouldn’t do what?” she yelled down at him.
He pointed up in her general direction.
“Take your frustration out on the railing.”
“And why not?” she replied defensively, crossing her arms.
A cheeky grin spread across Jason’s face as he continued to look up at her.
“Well, for one, it’s not entirely braced yet and we don’t want you tumbling from all the way up there. For two, that railing didn’t do anything to you. It doesn’t deserve to be treated in such a harsh way.”
Despite her feelings of sadness and frustration over Daniel, Jeanette let out a dry chuckle. He still had the same cheesy, sarcastic humor about him. Another thing that hadn’t changed.
“Well, that may be true,” she replied dryly, “but if I shook the person my frustration was meant for, I’m pretty sure I’d have the cops called on me.”
“You always were a little rough around the edges,” he replied, going along with the bit.
So hedidremember her.
“Stay there,” Jason said, walking toward the latticework of the giant house.
“Where else am I going to go?” she quipped back.
Jeanette watched, amused, as Jason grabbed ahold of the ivory-covered lattice and began to climb up. As she watched him, she couldn’t help but notice his biceps and forearms rippling as he made his way up to her balcony. Within a minute, he was swinging his legs over the railing, and standing beside her. He looked her up and down, as if studying her, and then removed his sunglasses so his deep blue eyes met her green ones.
“Good to see you, Netti Spaghetti,” he said, his voice deep and calm. Jeanette gave him a single nod.
“You too, Tarzan,” she replied, referring to his recent climb. Jason gave her a side smile, flashing white, straight teeth.
“You home for good?” he asked, dusting his hands together.
Jeanette shrugged, her mind still hung up on the childhood nickname he’d given her.
“Probably. Maybe. To be honest I’m not really sure.”
Jason nodded his head. As if he understood where she was coming from. Had she been literally screwed over by someone too?
“So, what do you know?” Jeanette asked. Though it was still very warm, she wrapped her yellow cardigan tighter around her white blouse. While he had only gotten muscular with age, she had widened a bit. She still had a great figure, in her opinion, but two-piece bikinis were definitely no longer comfortable.
Jason shrugged nonchalantly.
