“She wants to make up for lost time.”
“That’s what she said.” Jenna paused, wondering how much it was safe to share.
Her mother smiled. “It’s all right. I know the two of you talk. I know you’re developing a relationship. I think that’s a good thing. If you’ll remember, it was my idea.”
Jenna decided to take her at her word. “We’re getting along. She’s not as strange as I first thought, so that’s good. And you’re right—we do have things in common. Biology can’t be denied. The cooking seems to come from her side of the family. I want to meet Wolf and his wife and see the winery. But I don’t know what to say when she talks about feeling guilty about giving me up for adoption. I’m happy she did.”
“Is that what she said?”
“Yes. I think she regrets it. She was talking about how she should have fought her parents more and kept me for herself.”
Beth pressed her lips together. “She has other children. Isn’t that enough?”
“Apparently not. She mentioned that she wanted to have even more kids but couldn’t get past the guilt.”
“Oh, please,” Beth snapped. “She was irresponsible as a teenager and got pregnant. It’s been happening since the be ginning of time. She gave up her child for adoption and got on with her life. Doesn’t this all strike you as dramatic? Just another bid for attention?”
Jenna stared at her mother. “What do you mean?”
“Serenity is quite the drama queen. Everything is about her. Haven’t you noticed that every conversation is about her feelings or her holistic ways or her connection with the universe?” Beth used her fingers to make air quotes around the last word.
“She never talks about anything that isn’t directly related to her,” her mother continued. “She doesn’t ask about anyone else. She’s myopic and narcissistic.”
Jenna was stunned. “You really don’t like her. I thought you did. I thought you two were getting along.”
“She’s fine, in her own way,” Beth said grudgingly. “As long as you don’t mind only talking about her. And that’s not even what bothers me. What pisses me off is her assumption that you would have been better off with her.”
“She didn’t say that.”
“It’s implied in her guilt. As if she’d left you at the side of the road. What is there to be guilty about? You were loved and nurtured every second of your life. Is she saying she could have done it better? That we were lousy parents?”
“I don’t think it was about you at all,” Jenna said slowly, feeling odd about having to defend Serenity.
“Of course not—because that would mean thinking about someone other than herself.” Beth shook her head. “She’s good, I’ll give her that. She’s managed to weasel her way into every corner of your life. She even picked your boyfriend.”
“It wasn’t like that.”
“Really?”
“You wanted me to get to know her.” Jenna couldn’t figure out what they were fighting about.
“I know and I still stand by that.” She sighed. “She’s just so damned annoying. Now you’re going off to see the winery they named after you. If you were so precious to them, why didn’t they get in touch with you before? Why didn’t they contact us when you were younger?”
Jenna had wondered the same thing herself but not with Beth’s energy. This probably wasn’t the time to admit she’d started to like Serenity and appreciate having her around. Watching the vegan classes had opened her eyes to cooking possibilities. She couldn’t deny that Serenity had inspired her in some important ways.
“Do you not want me to go to California?”
Her mother took a deep breath. “Of course you have to go. It’s important that you see whatever it is they want you to see.” She looked at her. “I’m fine. Most of the time I can deal with her but every now and then she rubs me the wrong way. Like I said, it’s the drama thing.” Beth paused and looked down. “You’ve been the center of my world so long, it’s difficult to share.”
“Finally,” Jenna said, putting her hands on her hips. “All this time I’ve been telling you the whole thing is strange and you’ve been pushing me toward them. It took you long enough to feel threatened.”
Beth laughed. “Well, I am. I know it’s irrational, but I can’t help it.”
“Mom.” Jenna hugged her. “I love you so much. I’m not going anywhere.”
“You’re going back to California. You might adore it and want to stay there again.”
“Different circumstances, I swear.” She paused. “As for Ellington, Serenity didn’t pick him. She introduced us.”
“A subtle difference. You weren’t interested in meeting anyone I mentioned.”
Jenna winced when she realized her mother was right. “I will. When I get back you can set me up to your heart’s content.”
“I thought you liked the naturopath.”
“I do.”
“So why would you want to go out with anyone else?” She shifted her handbag over her shoulder. “It doesn’t matter. I want you to be happy. That’s the most important thing.” She glanced at her watch. “I need to run. I’m getting all my errands out of the way so I can stop by the store every day and get in Violet’s way.”
“You won’t be in her way.”
Beth ignored that. “You’re leaving day after tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“Give us a call when you arrive.”
“I will.” She hugged her mother again. “It’s only for five days.”
“I know. I’m happy you’re going. Really. You’ll have a wonderful time.”
The words were right, as was the tone, but pain darkened her mother’s eyes and something that might have been fear.
Jenna watched her leave, then rubbed her forehead. Nothing about this was turning out how she’d planned. The last thing she’d wanted to do was hurt Beth. Ironically, she was only going because her mother had suggested she give Serenity a chance.
Relationships were complicated, she reminded herself as she turned to answer a customer’s question. Complicated and unpredictable.
Tiffany left at five, so Jenna was alone as she shut down for the day. After locking the front door, she closed out the cash register, then started stocking shelves. She wanted to leave the store in good shape when Violet arrived the following morning. She was just about to turn off the lights and head out the back when she heard a knock on the front door.
Why people couldn’t read a Closed sign was beyond her, but it happened more often than not, she thought as she crossed to the front of the store. But instead of a customer, she saw a familiar dark-haired man. He was only a couple of inches taller than her and slim. When he saw her, he flashed a smile that used to have the power to bring her to her knees.
Yesterday she would have been terrified to see him again, worried about what he would say and how he could hurt her. It was amazing what a short phone call could do to change a woman’s perspective.
She opened the door and smiled. “Hello, Aaron.”
“Sweet Cheeks,” he said, sweeping into her store and lightly kissing her. “You look great. And this store. Amazing. How are you? I’ve been thinking about you, so I decided to stop by and see how you’re doing.”
“L.A. is about twelve hundred miles away.”
He gave her his best smile, the sexy, slightly lazy one that had always made her want to push him down on the kitchen table. Now she saw the smile for what it was—an act.
“I miss you, Jenna. More than I thought I would. I miss us.”
“Really? You haven’t called. Oh, wait. I take it back. You did call to tell me that someone you’d never met was trying to find me. You gave out my personal information. That was nice.”
“It wasn’t bad, was it?” he asked, sounding horrified. “God, did someone try to hurt you?”
“No. It was fine. So why are you here?”
He drew in a deep breath and took both her hands in his. “Let’s go have dinner.
Or we can stop by a store and pick up some ingredients. We’ll cook together. I miss that, Jenna. Us cooking, side by side. You were always so brilliant.”
“Um, I don’t think so.”
He blinked in surprise. She could almost hear him thinking, “But hey. It’s me.”
“Don’t you want to spend time with me?” he asked, sounding more petulant than sexy.
“Not really.”
“But we have things to talk about. Jenna, you can’t be happy here. A store? Really? Your heart and soul belong in a kitchen. We did so much together. I hated it when you left.”
She pulled her hands free of his. “Hated it? You told me you’d never been faithful and that I was holding you back.”
“I was drunk.”
“It was ten in the morning, Aaron.”
She knew she could let him keep talking, get her pound of flesh, so to speak. Or she could be mature and tell him he was too late. It was the mature thing to do.
Besides, being mature was going to feel really good.
“You don’t have to pretend,” she told him. “Tara Peters already called me.”
He stiffened, then relaxed into a smile. “Did she? Good. Then you know about her idea for us to work together. I think it’s great.”
“No, that’s not really what she said. She’s interested in working with me, but she didn’t seem that impressed by you.”
The friendly facade slipped. “What the hell did you tell her?”
“Nothing. She was doing all the talking. Oh, wait. I said yes.”
He glared at her. “I never thought you would play the bitter ex.”
She felt happy and free and filled with possibilities. “That would make me a bitter woman with a book contract, Aaron. You probably want to leave now.”
He started to speak, but she didn’t stay to listen. Instead, she walked to the front door and held it open. “Have a safe trip home.”
He stalked past her, then turned. “You’re nothing without me. This store is ridiculous. It can’t possibly support a book deal.”
She stared at him, wondering what she’d ever seen in him and why she’d ever thought his opinion mattered.
“You know the best part?” she told him. “I don’t even care if the book thing works out or not. I’m happy here, Aaron. I’ve made it work and you can’t take that away from me.”
He was still sputtering when she closed and locked the door.
As she turned out the lights and walked into the back to collect her purse, she had to ask herself why she’d thought he was so special. She’d finally figured out she’d been wrong about him.
Fifteen
“I’m sorry,” Ellington said, sounding frazzled. “Isaiah picked up this stomach bug somewhere and now my mom has it. He’s finally feeling better, but she’s worse and I can’t get away.”
“I understand,” Jenna said, keeping the disappointment from her voice. She and Ellington had been planning an eveing together before she left for California.
“Do you?” he asked. “I’m sorry I won’t be able to see you.”
She smiled. “I’m sorry, too. Anything I can do?”
“No, but thanks for offering. The pediatrician said he would be okay to go to school tomorrow. Now I just have to keep my mom hydrated.”
“You take your son to a pediatrician?”
Ellington chuckled. The sound was both weary and amused. “Sure. There are a whole lot of laws about doctors treating their own family members. Plus kids aren’t my specialty.”
“But you’ve given him tree bark or whatever it is you’d prescribe.”
“Are you mocking me?”
“I’ve heard tree bark is very helpful.”
“It is, but you’re mocking me.”
“Maybe a little.”
“Nice. I like a little mocking now and then.” He paused and she heard muffled conversation. “Sorry, I gotta run. Call me while you’re gone?”
“Promise.”
“Good. Talk to you soon.”
She hung up and glanced at the clock, then wondered what she was supposed to do with the rest of her evening. She’d already packed and had been planning to spend the time with a certain handsome doctor.
She felt badly that he’d been having to deal with a sick kid and now a sick mother. If it was anything but tummy trouble, she would have taken over food. But with a stomach issue, it was best to leave the special dishes for another time. There were—
She sat up straight as she remembered Ellington saying something about a bake sale. Wasn’t that this week?
Five minutes later she’d logged on to his son’s elementary school and saw that the bake sale was tomorrow.
It was close to nine-thirty when she stopped in front of her garage. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Ellington.
“Hello?”
“It’s me,” she said. “Hope I’m not disturbing you.”
“Both patients are sleeping. Isaiah’s energy is back, which is both good and bad, and my mom’s improving.”
“I’m glad. Did you remember that tomorrow is the bake sale?”
There was a second of silence, followed by a lot of swearing.
She held in a laugh. “I’ll take that as a no. It’s okay. Go look on your front porch. I’ll wait.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Go look.”
She heard him open the front door.
“You didn’t,” he said. “Jenna, I don’t know what to say.”
“Be careful when you pick it up. Then look inside.”
“I need to put the phone down.”
“I’ll wait.”
A moment later he was back. “I can’t believe you made these.”
She smiled, picturing the cupcakes she’d baked, then decorated to look like a bright gold C3PO from Star Wars. “My homage to your obsession. I hope Isaiah likes them.”
“He’s going to love them. That was very thoughtful.” He cleared his throat. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I’m going to miss you.”
She leaned back in her seat. “Then my work here is done.”
She heard him laugh.
“I’m going to miss you, too,” she admitted.
“Then we have that in common.”
“I’ll call you while I’m gone,” she promised.
“I look forward to that and seeing you when you get home.”
“Night, Ellington.”
“Good night.”
Dragon was waiting at the San Francisco airport, looking as tall and handsome as she remembered. Several women eyed him as he took Jenna’s suitcase.
“Do you get that everywhere?” she asked as they hugged. “The female attention.”
“Everyone suffers,” he said with a grin. “I bear my pain as best I can.”
She laughed. “Thanks for picking me up.”
“You’re welcome. I’m part of the entertainment for the weekend, so you’re not getting rid of me. Mom and Dad got in late last night. Rather than make them take the drive again, I said I’d bring you.”
They walked to his car—a silver BMW 550i—and she watched as he put her suitcase in the trunk.
“I’ll warn you my parents have the entire visit planned down to the second. There’s going to be plenty of eating and drinking. While I don’t object to the drinking part, I was thinking we could stop and get a burger on our way out of town.”
He looked so hopeful as he spoke that she had to laugh.
“That sounds great,” she told him.
“It won’t be up to your excellent standards. I’m still dreaming about that dinner you fixed for me.”
“Next time you’re in town, I’ll make you something else.”
“Promise?” he asked, holding open the passenger door for her.
She made an X over her left breast. “I swear.”
They stopped at a diner with big windows and comfy booths. They both asked for burgers with the wo
rks, an order of fries and an order of onion rings to share. Dragon pulled two small disposable toothbrushes out of his shirt pocket and waved them.
“For after,” he said. “Mom can smell meat on my breath from a mile away. When I was a kid, I tried chewing grass to disguise what I’d been eating, but it never worked.”
She stared at him. “You’re what? Thirty? A successful attorney who has his own life. Can’t you simply tell her this is your choice and to lay off you?”
He scrunched his face and shook his head. “I don’t think so. When was the last time you really stood up to your mother? How did that work for you?”
“Good point.”
Dragon sighed. “I’m saying it all wrong. Mom is great. I joke about her, but seriously, she couldn’t have been more supportive. Maybe I didn’t always love the food, but there was lots of freedom at our house. There were just enough rules to keep us safe, but otherwise, we got to do what we wanted. I knew whatever happened, whatever I chose, she would be there for me.”
“I’ve heard Serenity talk about you and Wolf. It’s obvious how much she loves you both.”
“We love her and Dad just as much.”
The waitress brought their sodas.
“I’m looking forward to seeing the family home,” Jenna said. “From what I’ve heard, it’s beautiful.”
“You’ll like it. It’s big and bright, with lots of windows. Nearly all the materials are recycled, which gives the place a lot of character.” He grinned. “Wolf is just like Mom and Dad. Totally organic, vegan.”
“I heard Jasmine weaves her own cloth.”
“Oh, yeah. She’s currently weaving diapers from organic, unbleached cotton. She’s sweet enough, but not my style.” His gaze sharpened slightly. “How’s Violet?”
“Still seeing Cliff.”
“Bummer. Let me know if they break up.”
While she kind of liked the idea of Violet dating her brother, it wasn’t what she would call a practical relationship. “You live a thousand miles from her.”
“For the right motivation, I could move.”
She raised her eyebrows. “That’s a long way to go to get laid.”
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