The man on the ladder adjusted the long chain.
“Perfect,” Jenny said. She glanced at the to-do list on her tablet. The theme of the night’s event, Enchanted Evening, promised to be a success, assuming of course she attended to each detail personally.
“Hey, Sweetie.” Her mom stopped long enough to drop her purse on a nearby table. She too was dressed down in comfortable clothes, but her white-blond hair sat styled above her shoulders, ready for the evening. “How’s everything going here?”
Jenny looked around the room and smiled. “It’s going pretty well, just a few more items to check off my list.” She scrolled down, tapped a few check marks into place and highlighted the next item on her agenda.
“You seem better this week, happier, more like your old self.” Her mom rubbed a hand down her arm. “I’m glad to see you’ve been getting some sleep, even with all this crazy auction stuff we’ve had to deal with.”
“Something like that, Mom.” Jenny fought the urge to laugh. She hadn’t had a full night’s rest in a week, but when she did finally sleep it was indeed good. “So, did you want the tables for the baskets lined up against both walls, or only on the far right?”
As they made final decisions and notes, conference center employees moved in and out of the room. Everyone moved at a hurried pace, but with the carpeted floors, the room was eerily quiet. While her mother arranged the silent auction items, Jenny moved a table to the entrance where guests would present their invitations. Through the quiet chaos, a familiar face appeared.
“Sam,” Jenny exclaimed, “you’re back.”
Sam stuck her tongue out and pretended to pant as she set a large box on the floor by her feet. “I told you I’d make it.”
They hugged and then Jenny ran her eyes over her beaming, tanned friend. “So, how was it? And, did I mention how green with envy I am that you got to spend a week at the beach?”
Sam laughed which only added to her radiance. “It was amazing.”
“That’s it?” Jenny’s eyebrows rose in disbelief then she crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. “Come on, you can do better than that.”
“I will. I will, but first I need to unload Spencer’s truck and get started on the centerpieces.”
“Tell you what, I’ll help you and while I do, you can tell me everything.”
Sam grinned. “Deal.”
While they carried glass containers, boxes, and what Jenny was sure were thousands of flowers inside, Sam told her of taking long walks on the beach at night, eating seafood by the pound and being happier than she believed possible.
“It just feels different.” Sam placed another mirror at the center of a table. “You know how people say it’s only a piece of paper? I don’t agree. It’s more than that. It’s a feeling of change, solidarity.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I probably sound like a crazy person.”
“No. You sound like a woman in love.”
Sam held a flower against her cheek. “That I am.” She slipped the flower into the vase and added a few more. “So, when are you going to tell me what’s new with you?”
“You’ve only been gone a week. What could possibly be new with me?” Jenny kept her gaze down, fearing her smile would give her away.
“Hey, Sam,” Adam said. “How was the honeymoon?”
Jenny spun around and saw him standing with his tuxedo bag hooked over his finger and hanging down his back. His relaxed pose and easy manner turned her insides to jelly on sight and the smile she hadn’t been able to get rid of stretched tighter across her face.
“Wonderful,” Sam said as she bounced on her toes.
“Jenny,” he said, nodding.
“You’re early,” Jenny said. “I wasn’t expecting you for another couple of hours.”
He shrugged. “I wanted to see if you ladies needed any help.” He glanced around the ballroom. “It appears you have everything under control though.”
Sam grinned and looked from Jenny to Adam. “I’m going to run some of these empty boxes out to the truck.”
Adam draped his bag over one of the chairs. “Can I help?”
“Oh, no. I can get it.” She turned her grin on Jenny. “You two talk. I’ll be back in a minute.”
Sam gathered a few boxes and hurried out of the room, leaving Jenny and Adam alone except for the few workers who were setting up the sound system. As she stood beside him and surveyed the room, Jenny found herself agreeing with Adam. The room had come to life under the dark flowers and paper lanterns. Now they just needed to raise a lot of money.
“It was sweet of you to come early.”
He turned his body so that they were standing slightly closer than proper etiquette dictated was appropriate. “It’s possible I lied to you.”
“What do you mean?” Jenny narrowed her eyes. “Lied to me about what?”
“I didn’t come just to see if I could help. I came because I needed to see you.”
She burst out laughing. “You’re such a jerk.” She bumped him with her hip and he grunted. “For scaring me, I’m going to find you some really dirty job.”
He leaned in close to her ear. “I can think of a few dirty things I’d like to do to you.”
“Adam,” Jenny’s mother cried, “how nice to see you.”
Face burning, Jenny took a step away from Adam. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for her mom to know how quickly she’d fallen into bed with him. Grown woman or not, there were some things she didn’t want to discuss with her parents and who she was sleeping with was at the top of the list.
“I’m going to go check in the kitchen and make sure the caterers have everything they need.” The further away she got from her mother the better. No one could read her better, and there’d be no hiding her feelings if she stayed in such close proximity to Adam. His scent alone seemed to intoxicate her.
“Oh,” her mother called, “will you make sure the cocktail waitresses know what time to start?”
“Sure thing.” Jenny made it a point to keep her eyes averted from Adam’s.
In the kitchen, after discussing the last points with the caterer and the final schedule of events with the maître d, Jenny plucked a glass of champagne off of one of the waiting silver trays. The bubbles did nothing to calm her emotions, but champagne was a weakness. She caught sight of the clock, set the empty glass on the counter and headed out. It was time to get dressed.
Sam met her in one of the offices, which served as their dressing room for the evening. While Jenny smoothed a brush coated with shimmering gold eye shadow over her eyelid, she glanced at Sam in the mirror donning her dark purple dress.
“You look amazing.” Jenny set her brush down and turned. “Where’d you get the dress?”
“I’ve had this since I lived up north. It’s always been one of my favorites.”
“I can see why,” Jenny said. “You look hot.”
Sam moved to stand beside Jenny at the mirror. “Speaking of hot, I saw Adam out there helping your mom hang a sign in the entryway. I don’t know many guys who would show up early just to help out.”
Jenny grinned. “He’s always been giving.”
“And, in love with you,” Sam added. “So, tell me, how’s it going between the two of you?”
“Who says there’s anything going on?” Jenny feigned innocence to which Sam laughed.
“Oh, so you’re telling me I imagined the sexual tension between the two of you?” Sam scoffed. “You do know I just returned from my honeymoon?”
Jenny couldn’t hold back the laughter this time. “Okay, you caught me. I’ve been with him every night this week.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “Making up for lost time?”
“I guess so.”
“How is it, you know, being back with
him? Does it feel the same or—”
“In some ways yes, but in others . . .” Jenny shook her head. “I don’t know. We’re older now and being with him . . . it fills some sort of hole that’s been inside me since he left. It’s like there’s this space in my heart that’s only for him.” Embarrassed, she looked down at her hands. “Now who sounds crazy?”
“No, you don’t. Not to me.” Sam reached out, took Jenny’s hand and squeezed. “I love seeing you happy. You deserve it. We all do.”
Bodies draped in tuxedos, shimmery fabric and expensive jewelry spanned the room in every direction, but Adam still hadn’t spotted the one person he was looking for. He sipped his whiskey while he continued to listen to a lady from the Historical Society explain what exactly it was she did for a living.
“So, as you can imagine, I stay extremely busy. Our town is an old one and we should take pride in preserving our heritage. Don’t you agree?”
“Definitely.” Adam continued to search for Jenny in the crowd, but when the lady before him laid a hand on his arm, his eyes cut back to her.
“If you’re interested, maybe we can get together sometime and discuss it further.” She leaned in close to him as she slid her hand up his arm and rested it on his bicep. “Or, perhaps I could interest you in becoming a member of our little group. We could always use a man such as yourself.”
While he tried to think of a polite way of saying there was no way on God’s green earth that would ever happen, the crowd shifted, and there in the center he saw her. Jenny stood out like a ray of sun in her silky gold dress, made only more beautiful by the woman who wore it.
“If you’ll excuse me.” He pulled out of the woman’s grasp and let her hand fall away as he strode across the room. When he reached Jenny’s side, he didn’t wait for her to finish the conversation she was having with a wealthy businessman from town. “You look beautiful as always.” He kissed her cheek and smirked when he felt the flash of heat radiate from her face where his lips touched.
“Adam,” Jenny said smoothly, “you remember Susan Emfinger and her husband Phillip? They own the local boat dealership.”
“Sure, it’s nice to see you folks again.” He shook hands with the couple, first the frail southern belle and then her meaty husband. An ex-football player if he’d ever seen one.
“Hamilton, it’s good to see you. Shame about the shoulder though.”
“Job hazard.” Adam took another sip of his drink and hoped the man would take the short answer as a hint.
“What were you pitching there at the end, eighty-five miles an hour?” Phillip’s drink sloshed to the rim of his glass as he gestured into the air.
“Something like that,” Adam said.
“Bet’cha wish you’d gotten another chance against the Yankees, especially after the way they embarrassed you on that last game. Damn shame going out that way.” The man sipped his drink, oblivious to his wife’s look of embarrassment. “At least now you don’t have to listen to people argue over whether or not you were overrated and overpaid. Am I right?” The man laughed at his own cleverness, but he was alone in his humor.
Susan’s eyes closed as her face reddened.
Jenny’s body tensed beside his; she was practically vibrating with temper. A rare thing from her, but once unleashed, look out.
“If you’d been at Adam’s no-hitter or maybe any one of his World Series games the way I was, you’d know what those people were saying was completely without merit. Adam is one of the best pitchers of this generation.” Jenny took a step toward a stunned Phillip. “Anyone who says otherwise is a fool.”
The only thing keeping Adam’s face blank was his astonishment at hearing Jenny say she’d been at his games. He’d always hoped, but never thought it could actually be true.
Jenny started to leave and then turned back. “Oh, and to be clear, his fastball clocked in at ninety-seven miles an hour.” Once her tirade ended and Phillip was thoroughly thrashed, she stormed off, looking like the warrior goddess Athena in her gold dress.
Adam nodded to Susan, who was wrestling her husband’s glass out of his hand, and went after Jenny. There was nothing left to say. Jenny had done a fine job all on her own, and he loved her all the more for it. If a man had a woman like Jennifer Fillmore in his corner, he would never have to question her loyalty.
“Hey, wait up.”
She paused long enough for him to catch up to her and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry about that, but he was out of line. That entire family thinks they have the right to judge other people and have opinions about them. It makes me crazy.”
He raised an amused eyebrow at her. “Aren’t they the ones donating the highest prize tonight?”
“I don’t care if he owns the biggest dealership in three counties. He doesn’t have the right to speak to you that way.”
The color in her cheeks and her defiant temper made him smile.
“What?” she asked. “Why are you smiling at me like that?”
“You are an amazing woman, Jennifer Fillmore.”
Her shoulders relaxed and her expression softened. The small change showing another side of her, another side he loved. They started walking slowly, moving through the throngs of people under the soft light of the lanterns while the strong fragrance of the flowers hung in the air.
“Why didn’t you tell me? Or, come see me after one of my games?” He touched her arm and she stopped and met his eyes. “Why didn’t you come to me?”
“And, say what? What good would it have done either of us? You were out there living your dream and you made it perfectly clear you didn’t want me there.”
“Jenny, of course I wanted you there.” He tugged her arm until she was standing mere inches from him. “I’ve never stopped wanting you. Please, believe me.”
“Adam, it’s in the past. Let’s not get into it.” She wrung her hands. “I need to get ready for the auction.” She stared around the room. “Have you seen my mother?”
He let the subject drop even though he desperately wanted to tell her everything. He didn’t want there to be secrets between them, but it was possible the truth would hurt her more. It wasn’t only his life that would be affected. “Not since earlier. She and your dad were speaking to another couple, but that was at least an hour ago.”
“Okay, I’ll hunt them down. We need to get started.” She eyed him and mistook his look of distress for weariness about the auction. “Cheer up, Hamilton. With an ass like yours someone’s bound to pay big money.”
Chapter 21
Standing at the podium, Jenny took a minute to catch her breath while she arranged the note cards in front of her. She needed the break after the incident with Susan and her husband. Only a year before, Susan had been the one to speak out of turn. Jenny remembered all too well what happened at her parent’s Christmas party, but as with any small town, they saw each other frequently. They mended fences and moved past their differences, but she was sure Susan remembered. And, rightfully so.
Then, there’d been the almost moment with Adam. She blew out a breath. What he’d said about always wanting her was nice, but he didn’t have to convince her of the lie. It was in the past. She still wanted to be with him regardless of why he’d left. What was potentially growing between them was the future. She was ready to keep her focus on what lay ahead.
A spotlight swung to her place on stage, temporarily blinding her. The conversation in the room died down. The evening was staying on schedule and based on what she saw, it looked as though the silent auction was going to break the previous year’s record. Now, it was time for the live auction. Off to her right, her mother was lining up the individuals who were either being auctioned off or who were donating an activity to be auctioned off. Jenny caught sight of Adam, winked and then turned her attention to the crowd.
“Good
evening and thank you all so much for your support.” She continued her spiel about the charity they were supporting, how the auction would work, and where to pick up items they’d won. She couldn’t ask for a better audience. They were engaged, laughed at the right moments, and genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves. Encouraged by the atmosphere, Jenny kicked off the auction and before long, her nerves subsided and she, too, began to relax and enjoy herself.
While she waited for the next person to take the stage and for the applause to die down after one particularly rowdy round, she spotted Sam and Spencer in the crowd and winked. Sam leaned into Spencer, their joined hands resting between them. With his free hand, Spencer tugged at the collar of his tux. Sam and Jenny grinned. Chances were high it was the first and last time they would see him in one.
At another table, she saw her boss, Daryl, chatting up a wealthy businessman who owned a large parcel of land at the edge of town. The man ran a farm, but she had no doubts Daryl was trying to talk him into owning a getaway house on a lake somewhere. The man was relentless.
Beside her, the Sheriff took the stage and was welcomed with whistles and catcalls from the crowd.
“Okay, everyone we’re down to our last two auction items. The first,” Jenny referred to her notecards, “is a chance to go hunting with our beloved Sheriff and three friends of their choosing on a private ranch in Texas. The trip will include airfare, three meals a day which will be prepared by an onsite chef and a long weekend of hunting. Who will start us off?”
Hands shot up around the room as the who’s who of the surrounding counties made bids. Daryl was among the early bidders, but as the price rose, he fell out of the running. Hands continued to signal until only two bidders remained. “Gentlemen, this is it. Who’s it going to be? Mr. Miles for seven thousand dollars, going once, twice?” Jenny slammed down the wooden gavel. “Sold.”
Running Home (Warm Springs Trilogy Book 2) Page 19