by Marci Bolden
“I’ll take them,” Liam offered. “Teaching them would be fun. I know a great place. We can bring our catches back and cook them on the fire. What kind?”
Jade was confused by his question until she realized he’d guided her to a booth stacked with homemade pies. “Oh, no. I don’t…”
“Seriously,” Liam said. “Don’t tell me you don’t eat pie. That would break my heart.”
Jade had to admit the baked goods looked delicious. She hadn’t allowed herself to break the strict diet she’d put herself on. Though her doctor had told her that healthy eating was a priority, he hadn’t told her to cut out sugar, alcohol, and caffeine. She’d done that herself, and she’d never regretted it. Until now. The golden, flaky crust settled over various fruit fillings made her want to shove her face into one of the pies like she was going for first prize in an eating contest.
She had to resist. She’d given in to Darby’s offer to take her to Harper’s Ice Cream the day Nick had called her at the lake. And she’d give in to the temptation of drinking her cares away the night she’d singlehandedly consumed the bottle of wine Taylor had left at the cabin. She couldn’t continue down this path. She could not be tempted with baked goods.
“Sorry,” she said, “but I don’t eat stuff like this.” She turned to leave, but Liam slid his arm around her waist and pulled her back.
“Do it for the kids, Jade,” he said.
“I just told you my kids aren’t here.”
“They are in spirit,” he said, causing her to laugh. “Come on. One slice. I’m buying. What kind?”
“No, Liam.”
He didn’t exactly pout, but she suspected the look he was giving her had won over many women in the past. She hated to admit he was softening her resistance. “Jade. It’s pie. Homemade pie. Even you can’t resist that.”
She bit her lip. Her resolve faded as a breeze carried the scents to her. “Okay.”
“Yes,” Liam said.
“Just one slice. Apple.”
“We’ll take an apple,” he said as he reached into his pocket. “You get one slice. I get the rest.”
While Liam bought a pie, she mentally kicked herself. Not because she was tempting fate by eating pie but because she’d let him sway her. She was not going to fall for his charms. She refused. He was not the type of guy she would ever consider getting involved with, mostly because she doubted there was any “getting involved” with Liam. She suspected he was one hundred percent the love-’em-and-leave-’em type. She wasn’t interested in that either.
He accepted a white box tied with twine before leading her away, beaming with pride. “So what is it with your healthy food obsession?” he asked as they pushed through the crowd at the next booth. “It’s not like you need to lose weight or anything.”
Jade debated how to answer. She didn’t need to lose weight. In fact, she was finally back to a healthy weight, and all her time spent on the water had given her a muscle tone she’d never had before. She didn’t like the way people tended to look at her when they learned about her battles, but she felt comfortable enough with Liam. Something about him told her he’d faced his own wars.
“I had cancer,” she said. As expected, the air around them filled with anxiety. “In my overzealous attempt to learn everything about it,” she continued, “I did a lot of research into diet. I choose to not eat things that could increase the risk of cancer returning.” She sighed when sympathy filled his blue eyes. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m still here, alive and kicking…when I’m not on crutches.”
He didn’t even grin at her joke. “How long have you been in remission?”
“Five months now.”
The muscles in his jaw worked beneath his scruff. He looked at the box in his hands. “Damn it. I shouldn’t have bought this.”
“I didn’t say you can’t eat sweets,” Jade said lightly. “I just choose not to.”
Liam looked around them at the booths and the people strolling by. He looked at anything but her. Yes, there was the discomfort that speaking of her illness tended to bring.
“I know that eating kale won’t save my life,” Jade told him, “but it makes me feel in control of something that is uncontrollable.”
Finally turning his focus on her, he shook his head. “That son of a bitch is divorcing you five months into remission?”
Jade jolted, surprised by his attack against Nick. “What does that have to do with my newfound affection for leafy greens?”
When he spoke, his voice was soft but held an edge. “You don’t leave somebody so soon after what you’ve been through.”
“Well, he did,” she said and gave her best devil-may-care smile.
“What kind of asshole does that?”
“Hating him would be easy,” Jade said. “But I don’t want to live with that. Life is a precious gift that I took for granted for far too long. I’m not going to do that anymore. Hanging on to anger isn’t healthy.” She lifted the bag to show him the vegetables she’d been buying. “I’m kind of fixated on healthy right now.”
“How about I hate him for you?” Liam asked with a surprising amount of tenderness in his voice.
Though he was usually the one who cavalierly tossed winks around, Jade gave him one as she said, “Darby and Taylor have that covered.”
“Well, there’s enough to go around.”
Her smile softened. “Yeah, there is. Listen, I’m not going to say I’m not mad, because I am. However, I’m not going to let my anger toward him consume me. I have a second chance that pretty much every doctor told me I wasn’t going to live to see. I haven’t quite figured out what I’m going to do with it, but I do know I’m not going to use it to hate Nick for not loving me anymore.”
“Good plan. However, I am willing to bet one piece of pie wouldn’t throw your cells into turmoil.”
“Oh, no, I agree. One piece wouldn’t, but one piece leads to two, which leads to three, and before you know it, I’ve eaten all the sweets in Chammont Point.”
A grin toyed at the corner of his mouth. “Maybe not all the sweets.”
“I can’t risk it,” Jade said. “I’m weak and have zero self-control.”
“Good to know.” He winked, and his usual flirty, borderline inappropriate self returned. “So I should take this pie home with me?”
Jade looked at the box, tempted by the butter crust she’d been eyeing at the booth. “Yeah, I think you should.” She glanced around at the crowd. “So nobody else needs to know I was sick, okay?”
“It’s a secret?”
Returning her gaze to him, she shook her head. “Not a secret, just not something I want everyone to know.”
“Are you embarrassed that you were sick?”
“No, but people get freaked out sometimes. Like it might be contagious. Illness makes people uncomfortable, except during cancer awareness month. Then I’m a miracle and a badass.”
Liam brushed her short hair behind her ear and traced his fingertips along her jaw. “You’re always a miracle and a badass.”
He trailed his fingers down her neck and under the edge of her sun dress. Jade was about half a second away from slapping his hand away when he ran his finger over the scar where her port had been. For many months, that had been the place where harsh chemicals had been pumped into her body to kill the cancer that had invaded her.
She hated that scar. All her scars. She hated the reminder of the pain and suffering. But more than anything, she hated how her body looked like some kind of science project. Every slice and stitch had left a purple mark on her pale skin that would never go away.
“You shouldn’t hide them,” Liam said as he brushed his rough fingertips over her skin.
Jade pushed his hand away and patted down the neckline of her dress. “I’m not.”
“You are. They saved your life, Jade. Don’t be ashamed of them. Be grateful. Thank them.”
She cocked her brow and smirked. “Thank my scars?”
“Yes.�
� He was serious. The usual playfulness had disappeared from his eyes. “They’re beautiful. They’re life. They’re a part of your story. Your scars are proof that you’re a fighter, a survivor. They’re badges of honor, letting the world know you beat something that a lot of people don’t.”
Jade had to pause to process his assessment. She’d never thought of her scars like that. Of course, she knew she’d beaten something that many people succumbed to. She’d fought hard, overcome the odds that so many doctors had put against her. She’d conquered more than she could have ever imagined.
They were badges of honor in a strange and confusing way.
A sly grin curved his lips, but it wasn’t the usual annoying I’m-so-sexy smirk she’d come to know. “Look at that,” he said softly. “I finally found a way to shut you up.”
This was probably the most sincere conversation they’d had, and it made Jade feel uneasy. She knew how to handle sarcastic and annoying Liam. Sincere Liam was an enigma she wasn’t certain she was prepared for. “And you think I’m strange,” she said, determined to return him to his usual coy self.
Liam chuckled. “I didn’t say I thought it was a bad thing. I’m being serious.”
“I know, and it’s freaking me out a little,” she admitted. “I appreciate your pep talk, but I’m not ready to thank my scars. They still terrify me.”
“I’m sorry for what you went through,” he said. “But you’ll never stop being terrified if you don’t learn to be grateful.”
“Give me a break, huh? My life has been in a blender for over a year. I need a little bit of calm and steady to catch my breath. Then I’ll be grateful.”
“Life doesn’t stop because we need a break, Jade. Life keeps going, even when it’s in a blender.”
She rolled her eyes. “You were a Buddhist monk in a past life or something, weren’t you?”
“Possibly. I’ve been known to spout words of wisdom every now and again.”
“In between batting your long lashes and flirting with tourists?”
He gave her that mischievous grin of his. “Part of being good with your soul is spreading that peace to others.”
“By wooing every woman you see?”
“By making them feel good about themselves for a few minutes. Come on, Jade, don’t tell me having a handsome fella flirt doesn’t give your ego a little boost.”
“Find me a handsome fella and I’ll let you know.”
Liam laughed heartily. “That’s it. That’s the spicy side I’ve been missing lately. Welcome back.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
A little girl called out to Liam, and they both turned in time to see her wave him over. Jade stood back, watching as he answered her plea to buy lemonade from her little stand, which was set up next to a booth selling homemade candies. He dropped a few dollars into the girl’s hand, took two cups from her, and gave one to Jade.
She took a sip and smiled at the girl while Liam doled out compliments on their behalf. He was surprisingly sweet with kids, which reminded her of how he’d taught her boys to paddleboard the weekend prior.
“I meant it when I thanked you for working with my boys on the paddleboarding,” she said as they left the girl. “I appreciate it. You taught them much faster than I could have.”
He downed his drink in one gulp and tossed his plastic cup into a recycle bin. “They’re good kids. They’re worried about you.”
She creased her brow. Liam’s time with her kids had been limited, and Jade had been there the entire time. Yet, she couldn’t recall either of her boys saying they were worried. “Did they say that?”
“They didn’t have to. I could see it in their eyes—the way they watched you to make sure you were okay.”
A touch of pride mixed with sadness washed over Jade. “I wish I could protect them from all this stuff with their dad. I know they’re grown, but I hate this for them.”
“They’re okay. They’re being strong for you. I could see that.”
“They shouldn’t have to do that.”
Once again, he gave her that sympathetic look. For the briefest of moments, Jade felt herself falling for his charms. She looked away from him and chastised herself. Though she wasn’t nearly as susceptible to his charms as others seemed to be, she was only human.
“I need to take my kale home.”
“Hey,” Liam said before she could walk around him. “Come kayaking with me tomorrow.”
She was tempted, but she wasn’t about to trust herself to be alone with him. Her heart had been broken, and hard as she was trying to move forward, she wasn’t foolish enough to ignore how vulnerable she felt sometimes. Instead of sharing any of that with him, Jade simply shook her head and started around him. “I’m busy.”
Putting his hand lightly on hers, he stopped her. “Come on, Jade. We’ll have a blast. I can give you an unofficial tour of the best places on the lake.”
She sighed. “I don’t think that’s a great idea.”
He lifted his hands to show her his innocence. “I’m not asking for anything other than a few hours on the water. I know you’re going through a breakup.”
“A divorce. We weren’t dating, Liam. I spent over twenty years of my life with that man.”
“And look how he treated you.”
Jade narrowed her eyes at him as if she could peel away his layers and see what was underneath. “Are you trying to use my pain as a tool of seduction?”
“I’m trying to be your friend.”
“Really?”
“Yes, and you aren’t making it easy.”
Standing taller, Jade stared at him. “Maybe I would make it easier if I knew whether or not I could trust you.”
“You can trust me. We’ll be in two separate boats. What do you think I’m going to do?”
“I don’t think it would be wise for me to underestimate what you could do in two separate boats.”
Liam laughed loudly. “All right. Suit yourself. I’ve already told Parker I’m taking a break and hitting the water around noon tomorrow. I’d like for you to join me. I think we’d have fun.” He bowed slightly before turning into the sea of people navigating around the booths.
By the time he disappeared into the crowd, Jade already knew she’d take him up on his offer.
Jade set her bag on the counter at Tranquility Cabin and looked around the small space. She wasn’t going to think of Liam’s request as a date, because it wasn’t. He’d asked her to hang out on the lake for a few hours. That wasn’t a date. That was…hanging out on the lake. With a man who she figured would go kayaking with anyone willing. And she wasn’t sure that statement was limited to actual kayaking. She also had no intentions of finding out for herself.
If that was the game he was playing, he would fail. Not only because she wasn’t emotionally ready—or even remotely interested—in letting a man back into her life right now, but also because she wasn’t ready on other levels. Her body may have healed, but her mind was still broken from the trauma of what cancer and the treatment had done to her. Liam could thank her scars all day long, but that didn’t make her any more comfortable with them.
Even so, the excitement of exploring the lake with him caused a bright smile to cross her face. These types of adventures were not ones she’d ever had before, and she was really loving her time on the lake. Sure, she knew going out with Liam was likely to end with her rolling her eyes and setting boundaries he should be firmly aware of. But she also knew there were likely few people who knew as much about Chammont Lake as Liam. His time as a tour guide was definitely something she didn’t mind taking advantage of.
She rushed from the cabin and headed next door to tell Darby about her plans. Undoubtedly, Darby would turn Jade’s time with Liam into something it wasn’t, or ever would be, but again, Jade didn’t mind. Having Darby’s lighthearted teasing was another aspect of being in Chammont Point that Jade had come to enjoy. Darby was quirky and strange, but even more, she
was lovable. Jade was excited to have a friend to share things with, even if she would have to convince Darby her intent was not to have wild sex with Liam in the middle of Chammont Lake.
Imagining Darby’s inevitable over-the-top reaction to the news she was about to share caused Jade to giggle. Darby had been trying to convince Jade to let her do a makeover. Jade expected this would give her one more opportunity to point out that Jade needed to update her makeup and hairstyle. She was climbing the steps when elevated voices came through the open windows. Jade’s smile fell as she rushed up the stairs toward the entrance to Darby’s cabin. Rather than knocking, Jade let herself in, as Darby tended to do.
Inside she found Darby and Taylor in a face-off. The tension in the cabin, which was only slightly larger than the one Jade was renting, was palpable. Jade practically felt the waves of anger surround her once she stepped inside. She had no idea what was happening, but Darby’s bright red lips were set in a scowl as she narrowed her eyes at Taylor.
“I’m not doing it,” Darby nearly shouted. “You can’t make me.”
Taylor threw her hands up in the air. “Well, you can’t leave a broken ladder for your renters to climb, Darby, and you have to fix the roof before fall. It won’t last another winter. These aren’t things you can just ignore and hope they go away. They’ll only get worse.”
“I can’t afford it, Taylor. You’re going to have to find some other way.”
“Ladies,” Jade said.
She was ignored.
Taylor shrugged. “There is no other way, Darby. You can’t rent a cabin that’s a literal hazard to the occupants. You’ll get sued. I guarantee you that not every tenant is going to be as understanding as Jade. You cannot rent that cabin knowing there are safety concerns.”
Darby huffed and crossed her arms. “If I don’t rent it, I can’t pay to have it fixed.”