Loving Kate

by Lara Van Hulzen

  “So, painting. Talk to me.”

  The warmth of Jack’s arm up against hers and the deep rumble of his voice gave her shivers. The good kind.

  Even though he couldn’t see her, she shrugged. “I don’t know. It gets my mind off...things.”

  “What kinds of things?”

  His tone wasn’t nosy, just conversational.

  Even so, she wasn’t about to go into her past tonight. And not with Jack, that much was for sure.

  “Well, I’m sure, as you know, running your own business is hard. I have stress and lots on my mind.”

  “Mmmmm. Yeah, I hear ya on that one.”

  They lay there, side by side, both with knees bent, hands clasped across their middles. Kate fought back a laugh. What was she doing here? She was lying in sand for crying out loud. In dressy clothes. It was so beyond her norm. And yet...it was right. The sound of the waves nearby, the breeze that wafted over them. And yes, she had to admit, the hunky, motorcycle-riding, boot-wearing bad boy beside her. Even his presence felt right. She couldn’t help it. She laughed. Because that was the craziest part of all.

  “Something funny over there?”

  She sighed. “No.”

  “Thought I heard ya laughing, princess. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a mighty good sound. One I wouldn’t mind hearing from you more often.”

  Her toes curled in the sand. She should be irritated with him for calling her princess, but she found herself liking it. Not that she’d admit that to him any time soon. It was too much fun trying to keep his cockiness down a notch or two.

  He sprinkled sand along her arm. Teasing her. She bit back the urge to sit up and rub it off.

  “Close your eyes.”

  She did.

  “Unclench your hands. Feel the sand. Let go.”

  She did.

  Each grain tickled her skin as if fairies danced down her arm. Visions of trips to the coast with her family as a child danced in her head. She and her brothers digging in sand all day, their bathing suit bottoms loaded by the time their parents packed them up and drove them home. She fought a sigh. That was back before she’d become an adult. Before marriage. Back when she was fun. Carefree. She’d always been a control freak on some levels, yes, but...free. Why’d she let Barry take that? Or did she? He couldn’t have anything without her permission. She’d lost herself somewhere in those years. Was her heart ready to be found again?

  Jack’s hand brushing against hers brought her back to the moment.

  “So, what did make you move back to Silver Bay?”

  “I liked Portland. It’s a cool place to live. And I didn’t mind being there to get the company going, have a presence. But we have a great guy running the place up there, so I came back. I like it here. I like being near my family and my nephews, as well as soon to be niece.”

  Kate could understand. She was close to her family, too. And, as much as she needed a new start, missed them terribly. It helped having her mother nearby now, but she missed her brothers.

  “You have two brothers, right?”

  “Yes. David is the oldest. He lives in Boston. And Drew is a pitcher for the New York Empires.”

  “I heard that! That’s so cool.”

  Kate smiled. “It is cool. And, of course, I now have a sister.”

  “Oh, man. When Josh told me about that whole story, how you found out you and Maggie are half sisters. That’s nuts. Like fiction novel material.” He turned his head to look at her. “But also very cool.”

  She turned her head as well, his face not far from hers. Did those brown eyes of his always twinkle with mischief or did she imagine it?

  “What made you want to open an interior design shop?” he asked. “Has that always been your thing?”

  She laughed and looked again at the sky. “My thing?” Her heart rate sped up a bit. How could she talk about Atmosphere without going into her past, tell too many details? “I studied design and always wanted a career in it, yes. Life took a turn away from it for a bit, though. But I was able to move here and open Atmosphere and I love it.” She took a deep breath in and let it out. “My dream is to buy a house of my own and fix it up. Start from scratch and make it all mine.”

  Why was she telling him this? The sky was growing darker, the stars beginning to peek out from their hiding places. The whole scene just made her whimsical, more willing to share. And, quite frankly, when he wasn’t being super annoying, Jack was easy to talk to.

  “No way! Me too. I want to fix my own place, too.”

  She turned her head to look at him again. “But you live at Josh’s house he built. That place is amazing.”

  He shrugged. “It is. Totally. But it’s not...mine. Ya know?”

  Oh, yes, she knew. All too well.

  He turned his head to her and gave her a heart-melting grin. “So...you still mad at me about taking you to dinner in the sand, princess?”

  “Well, I’m sure I have sand in my hair and you might have ruined my pedicure,” she teased. “But, you did buy me a new sweater so I believe I can find it in my heart to forgive you.”

  He laughed, a from the gut, all male sound that floated through the night and warmed her insides. “Phew.” He swiped his brow with the back of his hand. “I’m glad I made that purchase then, otherwise, I’d be in deep trouble.”

  It was her turn to laugh.

  He nudged her shoulder with hers. “Come on. Admit it. It feels good to let go and live a little, doesn’t it?”

  “What makes you think I don’t?”

  “Huh. No comment.”

  Her instinct was to fight him on that point, but why? He wasn’t wrong. “Alright. Fair enough.” She put her hands in the air, stretching out her fingers, trying to place them on stars now emerging in the dusky sky. “But what If I do let go? What if I let go and everything falls apart?” She wiggled her fingers and let her hands fall back to her stomach.

  His arm rubbed against hers as he shrugged. “What if you let go and everything falls into place?”

  For a moment, she closed her eyes and let that sink in. Opening them again, she cocked her head and eyed the Big Dipper. Could that even be possible? Her heart raced just at the thought of letting go. Not having a plan. Not having every single duck in a row. What if she let go and things went horribly wrong? She’d done that once before and Barry ran her life; she’d controlled nothing. She wanted a say. To have a vote, especially in her own world.

  Jack’s warm hand covered hers, entwining their fingers. “Don’t overthink it, Kate.”

  She’d told herself no men. No more of having someone else call the shots. But, at that moment, Jack’s hand holding hers was more right than anything else in her life.

  A song broke through the quiet of the night. Jack reached into his pocket for his phone.

  “The song from Pirates of the Caribbean is your ringtone?” Kate asked.

  “What? I like the movies.”

  She chuckled as he pulled his phone out and answered. “Jack here.”

  Of course he had that ringtone. Jack Sparrow. Pirate. Tattoos. Live life by your own rules. Kate shook her head.

  “Okay. We’ll be right there.” Jack sat up as he hung up his phone.

  Kate didn’t like his tone. It wasn’t the laid back, fun-loving guy she’d spent the evening with. Something was wrong.

  He stood and reached out a hand to her. “We need to go.” He helped her to her feet and wrapped an arm around her.

  “Jack, what is it?”

  Her eyes searched his. He was holding back, afraid to tell her. “You can say it. What’s wrong?”

  “There’s been a fire at Atmosphere.”

  Chapter Five

  Did Jack just say fire?

  Kate’s knees buckled but Jack had a firm hold on her. He wrapped both arms around her and whispered in her ear. “It’s going to be fine. We need to go.”

  She nodded but things still weren’t registering fully in her mind. Unable to move, she stood there staring, w
hile Jack packed up their picnic and blanket with breakneck speed.

  He guided her to the car, carrying everything, even her boots.

  The rev of the engine when he started the engine rattled her back to reality. “Wait. What? A fire? At my store?” Her voice sounded near hysterical but she didn’t care. She swiped the sand off her feet and went about getting her boots back on. Not an easy task with her how her hands were shaking.

  Jack guided the sports car along the windy road with speed and precision. Thank God he was driving. Kate was certainly in no condition to do so. “But why did they call you?”

  “Maggie said she’s been trying your phone but it went straight to voice mail.”

  Kate dug in her purse for her phone, only then remembering she’d turned it off to ignore Barry and his texts. “Damn you, Barry,” she whispered.

  “What? Did you say Barry? Who’s Barry?”

  Oh no. That was the last thing she needed right now. “No one. Nothing.”

  His focus on the road, Jack accepted that as an answer and didn’t push. God bless him.

  Kate mentally berated herself for turning off her phone. She could have ignored Barry without doing so. A million questions scrolled through her mind as she and Jack sped through the night, but she feared asking any, unsure she could handle the answer.

  The moonlight now cast a soft glow across the water, the waves silver rather than blue.

  She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tears fought their way out but she swallowed them down. Getting weepy or hysterical wouldn’t do any good. And it wasn’t her MO either. With a glance in Jack’s direction, she forced out the questions she had to ask, bad answer or not.

  “Is Atmosphere gone?”

  “No. Maggie said it’s only a portion of the shop.” He reached over and took her hand, his other steering them towards the edge of town. “Let’s just get there and see. I’m sure it’s not as bad as you’re imagining.”

  She nodded. What she was imagining was pretty bad. The worst. Her whole world up in smoke. Crawling back to Boston having to admit she failed. Never hearing the end of it from people there. From Barry. For the love. Would she ever get that guy out of her head? Out of her life?

  The warmth of Jack’s hand holding hers calmed her, his optimism flowing in her direction. Yes. They had to wait and see exactly what she was dealing with before coming to any conclusions.

  Her resolve deflated, however, when they turned onto Seapoint Boulevard. A large fire truck blocked the road and smoke wafted from the back of her store. Kate fought the urge to vomit. She covered her mouth with her hand.

  “Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! My store...”

  Jack parked the car and came around to help her out. They found Maggie and Josh standing on the sidewalk in front of Atmosphere. Kate let go of Jack’s hand and ran into Maggie’s arms.

  “Hey! I’m so glad I found you. Your phone wasn’t on.”

  “I know. I know. I’m so sorry.”

  Maggie pulled back and looked her in the eye. “Don’t be sorry. I’m just glad you’re here.”

  Kate looked at her shop. The front looked fine. The door was open but nothing was amiss or out of place.

  “Most of the damage is in the back, Kate,” Josh said.

  “How bad?” Kate was grateful Jack asked. Words escaped her. Her voice would crack and tears would fall for sure if she even tried.

  A firefighter stepped through the front door out onto the street. “Is one of you the owner of the shop?”

  Kate answered, “It’s my shop.” Jack’s hand on her back and his warmth beside not lost on her.

  The firefighter nodded. “My name is Chet. You can follow me. I’ll show you the damage done.”

  Kate followed Chet through her store, Jack and the others behind her. Her heart rate evened out a little seeing that the majority of the store was still intact. Linens in spring tones draped a side table. The vintage lamps she’d ordered recently sat on their perch on either end of the faux mantle that adorned the side wall. There would be some smoke damage to a few items but nothing she couldn’t handle. They approached the area in back that held the small break room and adjacent stockroom. Half the break room was singed while her entire stockroom was nothing but burned boxes and soot.

  She put a hand over mouth, both to block the stench of smoke and hold in the urge to get sick. Her eyes filled with tears and she blinked, not caring now if they fell or not. Tough exterior be damned. This was her store. Her livelihood. Her new beginning. And a good portion of it was now rubble.

  Jack rubbed her back. “Hey. It will be okay,” he whispered in her ear.

  A slight shake of her head was all she could manage. How? How could this be okay? Yes, only a portion of the physical store was harmed, but all her stock was gone. She’d have to pay to replace that. It took time and money, two things she couldn’t afford to give up right now. Sure, the insurance would cover most but...

  “Jack’s right,” Maggie agreed. “It will all be fine.”

  “How...?” She could barely manage the question.

  Her eyes moved from the devastation in front of her to the firefighter who had stood aside, quietly letting her take in the scene. He’d taken his hat off, his jet-black hair blending in with the charred surroundings and his blue eyes a piercing contrast to the soot on his face.

  “We believe it actually started at the bakery next door. These brick buildings hold up pretty well. It honestly could have been worse.”

  “Oh, Lord. I didn’t even think to ask. Is anyone hurt?” Kate mentally berated herself for not asking that first. She’d been so focused on her store. Thank goodness her shop had been closed. She took Friday evenings off. Closed up early. Most tourists were out to dinner at a recommended restaurant and many of the other shops kept the same hours. It was one of the things she liked about owning her own place in a small town.

  “No. A colleague of mine is talking to the owner of the bakery right now.”

  Kate moved past Chet the firefighter and towards the back door.

  “Where are you going?” She could hear Jack’s footsteps behind her.

  “I want to make sure everyone is okay next door. I need to check on Baylee.”

  She stepped into the back alley and was gone.

  Jack followed Kate outside and weaved his way through a few firemen who lingered. Police cars and fire SUV’s blocked the alley. The back door to the bakery mimicked the one to Kate’s shop and was sitting open. A curvy blonde stood by a firefighter, Kate’s arms now wrapped around her. The woman looked pretty shaken up, understandably. If she owned the bakery, she was in as bad a situation as Kate was.

  He held back for a moment, watching Kate. Ever since they’d left the beach, she’d tried to put up a brave front, but his gut knew better. He sensed she was afraid of more than the fire and how it affected her and her shop. But what? Or maybe who? She’d mentioned the name Barry in the car but shut down when he’d asked who she was talking about.

  Kate spoke to the woman, Baylee, for a few minutes then, with a nod and a hug, walked over to him.

  “She okay?”

  Kate breathed in deep and let it out, her hands dug deep in her pockets. There was a smudge of soot on her green silk top. Ironic, really, since she was battling every grain on the beach from touching her not an hour ago. She looked at Baylee and back towards Jack. “Yeah. We’ll get through it. She has more to lose than I do.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “I’ve only met her a few times, but I know she’s a single mom with a little boy. I would imagine she needs her store flourishing more than me.”

  Jack eyed the blonde again. Her curly hair came just to her shoulders, the top section pulled back with one of those clip things women liked to wear. Her fair skin made her green eyes stand out. Both arms were wrapped around her middle as if to hold herself together.

  “Do you need to stay with her? She seems pretty shaken up.”

  Kate shook her head. “I asked. S
he said her mom’s with her son right now. She’ll be fine. I’ll check on her again tomorrow. We’re gonna both need a plan for how to fix this mess.” She shook her head again, her ponytail swinging against her back.

  A strand of hair had fallen and now brushed against her cheek. He reached out and tucked it behind her ear. She didn’t pull back. It was a night of small victories. “Maybe I can help. Both of you.”

  Her eyes met his, a ray of hope glimmering within. “What do you mean?”

  He put his arm around her. “Come on. Let’s go back inside and take a look. You forget; you have an architect and master builder at your disposal.”

  Although she didn’t laugh, she did smile. Considering the circumstances, that was pretty good.

  “I couldn’t ask you or Josh to help me. Besides, I can’t afford to pay you. I mean, I’m insured and all, but I need to be...frugal.”

  Hmmm, another interesting tidbit about Miss MacIntire. Jack made a mental note to find out who the hell Barry was, why she was always so uptight all the time, cryptic about her life, and also frugal. Not that frugal was a bad thing. It was quite good, actually. But the mystery that was tucked under his arm at the moment fascinated him and he intended to find out all the answers to his questions. No hurry though. He had time.

  He placed his hand over his heart and hung his head. “You pain me, princess. I ask for nothing. I am your most humble servant.”

  The sound of her giggle filled the air.

  He smiled down at her. “I’m serious. We’ll take a look at the damage and see what we can do.”

  She eyed him with caution but didn’t fight him. That was a good sign. Always so set to do things her way and alone, he thought for sure she’d give him a shove and never look back.

  “Well see...”

  They went back into her store, the lighter air about her he’d been able to coax out snuffed as soon as she stepped into her stockroom again. The room was not large, by any means, but the sight of it in ashes made his stomach turn. It had to be eating away at hers.

  Maggie approached from the front of the store. “I just got off the phone with Rose.” Although Rose was Maggie’s birth mother, she still hadn’t come around to calling her Mom. Jack understood that. Maggie’s world had been turned on its axis. Just having Rose in her life had to be an adjustment. Calling her Mom would be downright...awkward. He admired his sister-in-law though. She’d had a tough upbringing. Her dad had been no picnic. And although her mom had been awesome, their home life wasn’t easy. Josh came up and put an arm around his wife. Jack smiled. He was happy they’d found each other again.