Sunshine on Silver Lake: Includes a bonus novella (Sweetwater Springs Book 5)

by Annie Rains

  On another afternoon, a remote-control airplane event was planned. Not ideal.

  There was going to be a dog appreciation day at the park, where dog owners brought their canines in for a bath, a treat, and a long walk along the hiking trails. Dog walkers would probably interfere with Emma’s event.

  There was also a kayaking race on Silver Lake and a Mentor Match picnic for Mayor Everson’s latest charity.

  Jack held out his palms. “I just don’t see anything that will mesh.”

  Sam jabbed a finger onto the calendar for a Saturday in early August. “It’s so obvious, Uncle Jack. This one is perfect.”

  Jack narrowed his eyes, following Sam’s gaze. “The Women’s Wellness Fair?” Jack remembered booking that one. The Women’s Wellness Center in town was having a day of increasing awareness about women’s health issues. They were doing free screenings and selling a few items to raise money to offer more free services to women throughout the year. “The Women’s Wellness Fair,” Jack repeated, trying to make sense of how Emma’s 5K could jibe with that.

  “What’s Aunt Emma’s 5K for again?” Sam asked.

  Jack whipped his face up to his nephew. “Aunt Emma?”

  Sam chuckled. “Just trying it out in case you two get married.”

  Jack massaged his face again, but his headache was now receding. “Emma is organizing a 5K race in honor of her mom. Entrants pay a fee, get a T-shirt, and the money goes to a charity. I don’t think Emma has decided on what charity yet. She wants to make a difference in her mom’s name.” The hairs on Jack’s arms began to rise. “Funding these free screenings that the Women’s Wellness Center does would make a difference. It might even save a life.” He looked up at Sam and patted the side of his arm. “You’re brilliant.”

  Sam looked away and shook his head. “Anyway, is there a skate park or something here where I can ride my board?”

  Jack patted his nephew’s arm again. “Welcome to Sweetwater Springs. Where nature is your skateboarding platform.”

  Sam rolled his eyes in a playful way. “Can I go check things out?”

  Jack waved him on. “Yeah, of course. Just be back before I leave at six. Call me if you need something. I’ll have my phone on me.” And Sam never went anywhere without his phone.

  Jack heard the front door open and shut, but his gaze stayed glued to the calendar as he wavered on how to make this work. He’d have to convince Emma to raise money for the Women’s Wellness Center, which seemed like a great cause to Jack. And the Women’s Wellness Center would need to join with Emma’s event. It seemed like a win-win union if they both agreed.

  He leaned back in his chair. There was only one way to find out. He’d have to drop in and see Emma after work. If she said yes, their deal stood. If her answer was no, then they might be breaking up tonight.

  * * *

  Emma stared inside her refrigerator, her mood as grim as her dinner choices. She didn’t feel like cooking, and one of the perks of being single was that she didn’t have to. If she wanted to eat cold cereal for every meal, she could.

  But she didn’t necessarily want to. All she wanted to do was curb the hunger and go to bed. After standing on her feet all day at the café, she was beyond exhausted.

  Cereal it is.

  Emma grabbed a carton of milk and carried it to the counter before grabbing a box of Lucky Charms, a bowl, and a spoon. She poured a healthy serving of sugary, marshmallow-laden cereal and then twisted the cap off the milk carton and began to pour, stopping when she heard the doorbell. She wasn’t expecting visitors tonight.

  Per usual, her faithful guard dog stormed the front of the house.

  Emma moved much more slowly, leaving her dinner at the counter and lamenting that it would probably be soggy by the time she returned. She walked to the door to peek through the peephole, and her breath caught the same way it did every time she saw Jack.

  The doorbell rang again, and this time Emma heard Jack’s voice. “Emma, it’s just Jack.”

  She still didn’t move.

  “Em, I know you’re there. Your car is in the driveway.”

  She could keep pretending. For all he knew, she was taking a hot bath right now. Barnaby lifted on his back legs and started scratching at the door. “Fine.” Emma gathered her wits and opened the door. “I was going to answer. I was just making sure you weren’t someone selling vacuum cleaners. I have a vacuum cleaner.”

  Jack offered a silly grin and raised both hands. “Not a salesperson.”

  She glanced beyond him toward his truck. “Where’s Sam?”

  Jack followed her gaze for a moment and then returned his eyes to her. “My nephew is a skateboarder. Soon as I parked in your driveway, he grabbed his board and headed down your street. He’ll be around.”

  Emma continued to block the doorway. “And why are you here?”

  “I have a proposition for you.”

  “Another one?” She lifted her brows. “I’ve already agreed to one proposition with you this week.”

  Jack seemed to pull in a deep breath, and something in his eyes told Emma he was nervous. She stepped back and gestured for him to come inside. “Come on in.”

  “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything,” Jack said as he followed her and Barnaby down the hall toward the open kitchen.

  “Just soggy cereal. Want some?” she asked.

  Jack inspected the box of Lucky Charms and her bowl on the counter. “Breakfast for dinner has always been my favorite. But I’ll pass tonight. Thanks.” He pulled out a stool and sat, folding his arms over his broad chest, which stretched the fabric of his T-shirt.

  Needing distance, Emma leaned against the counter, mimicking his stance by folding her arms across her chest as well. “Okay, what’s your proposition?”

  He looked down at the floor for a moment, and she sensed his nervousness again. “Well, there’s no spot available in the calendar for this summer.”

  She felt her heart drop as she plopped onto the other kitchen stool. “I see.”

  He looked at her. “But I made a promise to you, and I intend to keep it.”

  “It wouldn’t be the first time you broke a promise to me.” She cringed on the inside as soon as she said it. She kept promising herself to leave prom night in the past, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.

  Jack gave a small nod. “Fair enough.”

  “It’s not fair. I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to bring that up. You were saying?”

  He hesitated for a moment, and she wondered if he was recuperating from the sting of her reminder. “I have an idea that just might work,” he finally continued, his blue eyes lighting up. “Last we talked, you hadn’t figured out where the proceeds from your event would go.”

  Emma let her arms drop down by her side. “To a charity that my mom would approve of. I’m looking at a few cancer-related ones and narrowing down my decision.” She’d just decided yesterday to even have an event. Everything was moving so fast.

  Jack grinned. “Well, I have a suggestion. The Women’s Wellness Center is doing a full-day event in Evergreen Park in August, raising money and awareness for women’s health issues, cancer included. I spoke to Dr. Rivers when she booked it.”

  Emma’s throat grew tight as she listened. There was a slight ringing in her ears, and she could feel the blood rushing through her heart. She’d been avoiding the Women’s Wellness Center. Fear had kept her from going to her yearly checkup, and it was also keeping her from rescheduling. What if the checkup showed the same results her mom had gotten at this age? What if this was it? What if…

  “Emma?” Jack’s brow creased as he looked at her across the kitchen island. “You okay?”

  She nodded quickly. Then she forced herself to take a breath and smile to reassure him. “So what exactly are you suggesting?”

  “Well, I haven’t spoken to Dr. Rivers yet, but I thought your 5K event would fit in nicely with that one. They’re raising money and awareness for women’s health
issues, one of which took your mom’s life. What if your event supported those screenings and consultations that could help other women avoid what happened to your mom?”

  Emma shook her head. “I’m not sure, Jack.”

  He drew back. “Why not? It’s perfect.”

  Emma felt weak and shaky. Perfect maybe, but it was hitting too close to home right now. How could she support and encourage women to do something that she couldn’t even bring herself to do? Here she was trying to honor her mom’s memory and the best way to do that was to take care of her own health—but she couldn’t.

  * * *

  Jack had expected that Emma would be ecstatic over his suggestion, but instead she appeared to be on the verge of a panic attack. “Am I missing something here?” His gaze lowered to her fidgeting hands.

  “I’m just not sure, that’s all.”

  “This would be perfect for your event. A symbiotic relationship,” he said, copying his nephew. Emma didn’t look impressed.

  “Didn’t your mom go to the Women’s Wellness Center?” he asked.

  Emma nodded. “That was where they discovered that something was wrong. It was just a routine checkup.” She looked down at Barnaby at her feet, and Jack could feel the emotion pulsing off her. Maybe he was wrong to think this was a good setup for her event. So many years had passed that he didn’t realize this would be a painful suggestion, but obviously it was.

  He got off the stool and stepped toward her. His motion seemed to startle her because she straightened from the counter that she was leaning against. Barnaby rose as well.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, a note of suspicion playing in her words.

  “Just trying to comfort you.”

  “By doing what?”

  He stood only a couple feet away now. He took another step, closing that gap. “Any way I can. I thought this would be a good solution to our problem, but if it’s not, I’ll figure something else out.”

  The muscles of her throat tightened as she seemed to swallow. “Are there any other events I can join with this summer?”

  His knee-jerk reaction was a grimace. “You can join with the Save the Bears Organization.”

  As he’d hoped, this made Emma smile. “I’m not sure that’s a good fit for honoring my mom.” She sighed and leaned over the counter again. “Maybe this whole idea is stupid anyway. I mean, she’s been gone for eighteen years. If I hadn’t seen that Life List of hers, I wouldn’t even be doing this.”

  Unable to help himself, Jack reached out and put a hand on her arm, the touch of her silky soft skin firing up every cell in his body. She responded with that startled look of hers again, but she didn’t pull away. “I think this is a great idea. I think she’d be happy that you’re doing it.”

  Emma’s throat seemed to constrict as she visibly swallowed.

  “Most of the events happen during the day,” he continued, “and we rarely book nighttime events because of staffing and the dangers of wildlife. But if you want to do your 5K at night, I can figure that out.”

  Emma considered the offer briefly but shook her head. “I want everyone to be able to participate. Nighttime makes it harder for families and older adults to join in. More people are likely to do this if it takes place in the morning.”

  “And we want as many people as we can get to go,” he agreed.

  The sound of the front door opening and closing had Jack stepping away from Emma and Barnaby darting off.

  “Anyone here?” Sam called from the foyer.

  “In the kitchen.” Jack’s gaze connected with Emma’s, and he saw the disappointment in her eyes. He hated letting her down. That hadn’t been his intention in coming here this evening.

  Sam strolled in and looked between them. “Am I interrupting? I can go back out and skateboard some more if you two need some private time.”

  Jack felt the corners of his mouth lift into a smile. “Private time?”

  “That’s what Mom calls it.” Sam shrugged a bony shoulder, looking slightly embarrassed. His hand went to pat Barnaby’s head, which quieted the dog.

  “We don’t need you to leave.” Jack turned back to Emma, who was smiling now.

  “I just came in because I’m hungry,” Sam said. “Lunch was hours ago, and I can usually raid the pantry at my house for snacks. You don’t really have anything, Uncle Jack.”

  Jack massaged a hand over his forehead. “Right. I’m not used to having a teenager live with me. I’ve heard the rumors that they can eat you out of house and home.”

  Emma laughed, the sound making his heart skip around in his chest. Then he had an idea that would suit everyone—even though his ideas seemed to be striking out tonight. “What do you say we all go grab something to eat? Something better than cold cereal.”

  She folded her arms over her chest. “I happen to like Lucky Charms.”

  “Me too, but I never turn down a free meal,” Jack countered.

  “Free?” She lifted a brow.

  “I’m buying. It’s still your birthday week after all. What do you want to eat?” Jack asked. “Anything at all.”

  Before she could answer, Sam did. “Burgers and fries. And not the fast-food junk. The real thing. I could probably eat two.”

  Jack turned to Sam, hearing Emma giggling behind him. “So it’s true. You really are going to eat me out of house and home this summer. You’ll be a foot taller and broader by the time I return you to your mom.”

  A sheepish smile swept over Sam’s boyish face.

  “Burgers actually sound amazing,” Emma said. “I’m in.”

  Jack wanted to punch a victory fist into the air. He felt like she’d just said yes to a date, which of course she hadn’t. This arrangement wasn’t real. There was nothing more than friendship going on between them. It only felt like more.

  Chapter Seven

  Emma hurried toward her bedroom and changed into something fresh to go out in tonight. This wasn’t a date so she opted for a pair of pale blue shorts and white blouse instead. Cute sundresses were reserved for dates, which she hadn’t had a lot of lately. She was tired of dating. It never led anywhere—mostly her fault. She couldn’t find a guy she was interested in. At least not one who was also interested in her.

  She stopped in front of the mirror, powdered her face just enough to take the shine off, and brushed her hair. Then she hurried down the hall where Jack and Sam were waiting on her couch and giving Barnaby the attention he craved. “I know you’re starving so I changed as fast as I could,” she said.

  Sam gave her a wide grin as he popped up off the sofa. She didn’t know Jack’s nephew well. He and his mom had moved away from Sweetwater Springs when Sam was a baby. Amanda was five years older, and Emma had hung out with Jack more than her. Amanda had always been sweet though. Emma regretted to hear that she was struggling with addiction these days.

  Emma knew that Jack and Amanda’s father had struggled as well. Jack never talked about it, but she remembered going to his house a couple of times when they were young and noticing that his dad wasn’t acting quite right. Then there was the one time that he’d passed out on the couch, never stirring as they played loudly around him.

  “Ready?” Jack stood from the couch as well and headed toward the front door.

  “Just let me put Barnaby in the yard. A little fresh air before bedtime helps him sleep.” Emma scooped up her dog and carried him to the back door. “Guard the house while I’m gone,” she whispered as she always did, dodging one of his sloppy kisses across her cheek before putting him down. Then she walked back to the front of the house and followed Jack and Sam to the truck, slightly surprised when Jack jumped ahead and opened the passenger door for her.

  “You’re in the back,” he told Sam.

  “Oh, no, that’s okay. I can take the back,” Emma protested, stopping short when Jack gave her a look.

  “The lady rides in the front. The teenager gets the back. Universal rules.”

  “It’s okay. I’m used to it,
” Sam said as he climbed in. “I’m always in the back with Mom and Reginald.”

  “Reginald?” Emma asked. “Do you call him Regi?”

  “No, he hates that,” Sam said. “He’s Reginald.”

  Jack chuckled to himself as he shut the door and got in on the driver’s side. “I’m assuming you two want to go to Bear’s for burgers,” he said as he backed out of the driveway.

  “Mmm, Bear’s has the best fries. I haven’t been there in ages. I assumed we’d go to the Sweetwater Diner.”

  Jack glanced across the seat. “The diner has burgers, but Bear’s makes birthday burgers.”

  Emma scrunched her face and glanced at Sam in the back seat. “What in the world is a birthday burger?”

  “You’ve never seen one?” Jack asked. “Well, tonight we’ll fix that.” He pulled up to a stop sign and looked over at her. “We’ll forget our worries, relax, and celebrate. Sound good?”

  She took a shuddery breath and nodded.

  “Sounds perfect.” Then tomorrow she could return to planning an event, running the café, and juggling a million other things, including what she was going to do about this slow-burning flame she’d been carrying for Jack for too long.

  * * *

  Bear’s Burgers was a quaint little restaurant in town, specializing in every burger imaginable, including bison and vegetarian options. There was also every french fry variety imaginable, although Emma always went with the sweet potato fries topped with brown sugar and salt. She could be happy eating a plate of those and nothing else.

  She followed Jack and Sam to a table along the wall and paused before sitting down. The options were to slide into the booth next to Jack, which meant close proximity for the next hour, or she could sit next to Sam, which meant more eye contact across the table with Jack. Both would result in those pesky heart flutters that she was trying to suppress.

  “Are you going to sit?” Jack asked.

  She nodded and slid into the booth next to him. She could feel his warmth, and some part of her wanted to slide in closer and soak it up.