“How big do we need the areas to be?” asked Luke.
“Thirty by forty seems to make sense for the medical tent. We can get one that’s divided into sections. We’ll get another tent for VIP seating. I was thinking their biggest for that.”
“That’s a lot of VIPs.”
“It’s also a lot of leveling. I think it’s best to put them in the infield across from the start-finish line. According to NMAC, we’ll need beverage service, catering and dedicated washrooms.”
“Porta-Potties?”
“Uh, no.” She couldn’t help but smile as she shook her head. “Flush, for sure. We can have them brought in, self-contained on semitrailers. Flush toilets, running water, high-end soaps and lotions, and usually a small floral display.”
Luke laughed. “That I have got to see.”
“I can probably get you into the VIP section,” she teased. “That also brings me to another challenge. We’ll need a footbridge across the track to safely access the infield.”
“A bridge?”
“It’s either that or a tunnel to meet the safety standards.”
“Do you have a construction company lined up?”
“I do,” said Jillian. “ALC Builders. They’re just south of the city.”
“You’ve done a lot of work on this,” said Luke, sounding surprised.
“That’s what they pay me for.”
“I got the impression—” He stopped talking, his gaze traveling back to where Devlin and Shari were chatting with Hank.
Jillian knew Shari was going over the race program and the awards.
“That I was more decorative than functional?” she finished his sentence for him.
“Not exactly,” he said, but his expression told her she’d gotten it right.
“Devlin’s biased,” she stated unequivocally.
“Funny, he says the same thing about you.”
“Biased against who?”
“Us, this.” Luke gestured all around them. “All of it.”
“Just because I think something is loud and messy doesn’t mean I can’t effectively plan it.”
“I can see that,” he admitted.
“A beer tent seems standard.” She returned to the work.
“Absolutely.”
“I thought we could put it a little farther away, maybe around turn three?”
Luke pulled a measuring tape from his pocket. “I agree. Let’s go stake out some sites.”
By the time Jillian and Luke had marked out all three sites with wooden stakes and bright orange survey ribbon, it was full dark. They made their way carefully by flashlight back to the office building. There, Luke left her to return some equipment to his truck.
As she mounted the stairs, Devlin materialized on the porch.
“Have a nice time with Luke?” he asked, an edge to his tone.
“Yes.” She came up on the top step, even with him. “Have a nice time with Shari and Hank?”
He stood between her and the closed door. “You seemed anxious to get away from me.”
“I was doing my job.”
“I’m your primary contact.”
“And Luke is prepping the tent sites.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “Are you avoiding me?”
“No,” she lied.
“Because I kissed you?”
“The kiss meant nothing,” she lied again.
“I agree. So, it begs the question of why it has you rattled.”
Her phone chimed inside her purse.
“I’m not rattled,” she told him firmly, reaching into the outside pocket to retrieve it.
“Then why avoid me?”
“Is this a circular conversation?” The caller was Amelia, and she gratefully accepted the call, putting the slim phone to her ear.
“Hi, Amelia.”
Devlin compressed his lips.
“Jillian.” Amelia sounded breathless. Then again, Amelia often sounded breathless. Jillian assumed she lived her life at warp speed.
“I’m glad I caught you,” Amelia continued. “Everyone’s on board.” She giggled. “Hey, that was a pun. The two-day cruise out of San Francisco, and everyone’s on board. But it’s going to work.”
“That’s great news. How many cabins?”
“Sixteen...no.” She paused. “Nineteen altogether, including me and Morgan.”
“Darn,” Jillian put in before she could censor herself.
Devlin canted his head to one side, watching her with what looked like concern.
“What?” asked Amelia
“Sorry. No big deal. Well, it’s just that if you hit the magic number of twenty, you and Morgan get a free suite upgrade. And they’d keep you in it for the whole Mexico leg.”
“Then we need one more. Wait. I know. You come.”
Jillian’s stomach lurched, and she reflexively glanced at Devlin. “No. No, that’s not going to work.”
“Of course it’ll work. It’s only two nights. And they’ve got full connectivity that close to the coast. You can keep working on the races. Plus, you’ll be there to make sure everything stays organized for the wedding. We’ll pay you.”
“You can’t pay me.” Jillian had been doing this as a favor. Then her brain stumbled for a split second as she realized she’d been doing it as a favor to Devlin.
She liked Devlin. She liked him quite a lot. Even if she did have to ignore her attraction to him, and especially ignore his kisses, she still didn’t want to fight with him.
“Then we’ll pay for your cabin. Oh, come along, Jillian. It’ll give us twenty, and it’ll be fun.”
“I don’t have time—”
“You can work from the boat. Well, a little bit anyway. Because you also have to have some fun. And I’ll feel so much better about the arrangements if you’re there to supervise. I don’t know why I didn’t think of this before. It’s really the only way it can work.”
Jillian felt herself capitulating. She’d somehow become invested in Amelia’s wedding. She really wanted it to be a success. And she would like to see how it all turned out, especially the cupcake tree. It was going to be both magnificent and delicious.
“Fine,” she agreed. “I’ll come along and make sure everything stays organized.”
Amelia squealed at the other end of the line, and Jillian jerked the phone from her ear.
“Anything else?” Jillian asked.
“Not tonight. This is so great. I can’t wait to tell Morgan.”
“I’ll talk to the cruise line in the morning,” said Jillian.
“Bye, bye.” Amelia signed off.
Jillian tucked her phone back into her purse before looking up at Devlin.
His expression had neutralized. In fact, he looked a little smug.
“It’s going to be hard to avoid me on a boat.”
“I’m not going along to hang out with you.”
“There’s no need to be embarrassed, Jillian.”
“I’m not embarrassed.” She was more frightened than anything. She couldn’t seem to trust her emotions around him. It was confusing and frustrating.
“You’re a pretty good kisser.” There was a smirk lurking in the depths of his eyes.
“Well, thank goodness you told me that. I’ve been lying awake nights worrying that I’d botched it.”
His interest appeared to perk up, and he took a step forward. “You’ve been lying awake nights thinking about me?”
“That was sarcasm, Devlin. What I’m trying to do here is stay realistic, professional. You and I are vastly different people. I’m here to do a job, and then I’m leaving.”
“We kissed, Jillian. I didn’t ask you to have my babies.”
She felt her face heat in embarrassment, and thanked goodness it was dark on the porch. “You’re right. Okay. That’s good. So, status quo then? We plan a motocross event, and that’s it. Nothing more’s going to happen.”
“Hey, guys,” Luke called as he made his way along the path from
the parking lot.
Devlin kept his focus on Jillian for a moment longer. “Nothing but a cruise along the coast and a wedding.”
o o o o
“You’ve got trouble,” Luke said to Devlin as the two men made their way across the Desert Heat parking lot.
Jillian and Shari had left an hour ago, while Hank’s headlights now bounced their way along the service road from the office building.
“I thought things seemed pretty well under control,” Devlin countered. He’d been surprised and impressed by the progress Jillian and Shari had made on virtually all fronts.
“I meant with Jillian.”
“She’s doing fine.” Devlin didn’t know why Luke would have a problem with Jillian. She was doing a great job.
Luke stopped beside his truck and turned. “You didn’t like me talking to her.”
It was uncomfortably close to the truth. But Devlin wasn’t seriously worried about Luke. “You can talk to her all you want.”
Luke chuckled. “You couldn’t take your eyes off her in there.”
“So, she’s hot. Lots of women are hot.”
“Shari’s hot.”
Devlin drew back, bringing up a picture of Shari. “You think?”
“I know she is. But the interesting point is that you don’t seem to have noticed.”
“Shari’s fine. She’s great. Sure, she’s attractive.”
“But not like Jillian.”
Devlin couldn’t help but think it was a trick question.
“Face it, Dev, Jillian Korrigan’s got you tied up in knots.”
Devlin withdrew his car keys from his pocket. “You’re out of your mind.”
“I’m just trying to help.”
“You’re not helping.”
Luke braced a hand on the truck’s side mirror. He seemed to ponder for a moment. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“I’m going to be away a couple of days next week. Can you take the kids’ workouts?”
“Where’re you going?”
“Amelia’s wedding. She’s decided to elope to a cruise ship. Some craziness about paparazzi and LA TV industry weddings.”
“Is she famous now?”
“I didn’t think so. They’ve only run a couple of episodes with her in them. But apparently some fans of the show are overzealous.”
Luke shook his head. He’d met Amelia several times over the past few years. “I don’t know why she wants to be an actor.”
“Can’t say it would be for me,” Devlin admitted. “The family’s all going along on a two-day cruise to try to keep things under the radar. I guess as long as there are no reporters on the boat, it’ll all be good.”
“I’ll take care of the kids.”
“Riley looked good again today.”
“You think he has a chance?”
“I don’t know. I can’t help thinking he needs to find an edge.”
“What about Spike?”
Devlin couldn’t help but laugh. “Spike’s got nothing but edge. If we can keep him from killing himself for the next year, he’ll be a contender.” He sobered. “I was thinking the other day about having a little man-to-man talk with Riley. He’s getting pretty big. And he’s a good-looking kid. He’s going to have a lot of decisions to make in the next few years. Guys are going to challenge him. Girls are going to notice him.”
Luke kicked a stone out of the way with his foot. “You know you’re not his father, right?”
Devlin didn’t need Luke to point that out. “He doesn’t have a father.”
Luke clamped his jaw. “For all your cocky arrogance, you know you’re a soft touch, right?”
The idea that Devlin was soft was laughable. “I’m a hard-ass, ask anyone who does business with me.”
“Okay,” Luke gave a skeptical nod. “I’ll step out of it. Talk to Riley. Lust after Jillian.”
“I’m not lusting after... Okay, I am lusting after Jillian. But I’ve got it all in perspective.”
“And if I lust after her?”
The question was like a shot to Devlin’s gut. He felt his jaw go tight and his hands curl into involuntary fists. “Then I’ll have to take your head off.”
Luke gave a cocky grin as he pulled open the driver’s door. “Glad to see you’ve got it all in perspective.”
It was in perspective, and it was staying in perspective. Devlin wasn’t some hormone-fueled teenager. No matter what his innermost feelings were, he could make rational decisions and stick to them.
Chapter Six
Jillian’s cabin on the cruise ship was compact but breathtaking. Alongside the bed there was a small sofa and a coffee table with a bottle of champagne and a vase of flowers. On the table, The table held a tray of savory treats, artfully arranged next to a selection of chocolates.
The bathroom sparkled. The closets were roomy and well thought out. And she had a small balcony, with two deck chairs and a plexiglass table. The balcony faced the dock, and she could see the last of the passengers boarding the vessel at midship, while at the stern, the final pallets of luggage and supplies were being carried through cargo doors by forklifts.
Her cell phone rang, and she sat down on one of the deck chairs, lifting her bare feet onto the other. The readout showed it was her oldest sister, Dani, out there in the real world. She couldn’t help but wish she was staying on the ship for a week or more.
“Hi, there,” she greeted, feeling lighthearted and content. Maybe she’d open the champagne right away and indulge in a celebratory, sail-away drink.
“Did Jade call you?” Dani asked in a worried rush.
“Call me about what?” Some of Jillian’s contentment dampened down a notch. Was something wrong with her other sister?
Dani’s tone dropped to a hushed, scandalized level. “Grandma called Mom.”
“Really? What did she say?”
The call was big news. Nobody had spoken to their grandmother Lizbet Blythe in a couple of decades, not since their mother had discovered Lizbet had had an affair while traveling overseas on business and broke her husband’s heart. Jillian’s mother, Sandy, had cut off ties. It had grown even worse after Jillian’s father had passed away.
“She asked about you.”
That didn’t make sense. “What about me?”
“She read about your wedding in the newspaper.”
“Does she even remember who I am?”
“Apparently. Mom’s beside herself.”
“Was there more? I can’t imagine Lizbet called her just to talk about me.”
“Yes.” Dani infused the word with a wealth of emotion. “She wants to come and see Mom.”
“Out of the blue?”
“She said she wanted to reconnect.”
“That’s a bit random. Why now?” Jillian had always been under the impression that Lizbet was content to be left alone. Family lore had it that she had been a terrible mother, never liked kids, spent her entire life traveling around the world in some high-powered financial job.
“I think she’s sick, maybe even dying. She’s pretty old, you know. Maybe she wants to put us in her will.”
“That doesn’t sound like Lizbet.” Not that Jillian had any firsthand knowledge of her grandmother. But nothing anybody had reported to her over the years led her to believe anyone in the family could expect to be in the will.
“So, what’s Mom going to do?” she asked Dani.
“She hasn’t decided yet.”
“You mean she might agree to see her?”
“Believe it or not, Jade’s trying to talk her into it.”
Jillian considered that information. Their middle sister had always been the logical, pragmatic one. Unlike their rather emotional mother and Dani, Jade always seemed to keep things in perspective.
“Did Jade tell you why?”
“Some stupid thing about giving Grandma a chance. We got into a fight about it. She’s probably going to call you. If she does, tell me what she says.”
“
I’m not getting in the middle.”
“That’s not getting in the middle. Mom’s really upset. You have to help.”
“Telling you what Jade says isn’t going to help.” Jillian was used to her sisters taking opposite perspectives then both coming to her in confidence to vent.
“She’s out of her mind,” Dani wailed.
Jillian wasn’t sure if her sister was referring to Jade or to their grandmother. “Talk to Jade yourself.”
Dani sniffed. “Not unless she calls me first.”
“Give me a break. Where’s Mom?”
“She went up to the cottage for the week. She said she needed some time to think.”
“That’s probably a good idea.”
Their mother had some close friends near the family’s cottage in Maine. And most of them would be there in the late summer. The group had spent years sharing sangria on the porch in the evenings, usually solving the problems of the world. Her mother would get loads of sympathy and advice from the gang at Crystal Lake.
Jillian’s phone pinged with a call waiting. A quick look told her it was Jade, but she wasn’t about to share that information with Dani.
“I have to go,” she told her sister. “I’ve got a meeting.”
“Call me if you hear anything.”
“Sure. If it’s anything important.”
“Call me if it’s anything,” Dani insisted.
Without making any promises, Jillian switched to the other call. “Hello?”
“Jilli, it’s Jade.”
“I know. I just got off the phone with Dani.”
“It’s all my fault.”
“What do you mean? How is it your fault?”
There was a sharp knock on the cabin door. Jillian guessed it was her luggage, so she slipped through the balcony doorway to answer it.
“It was me,” said Jade. “I called Grandma.”
“You what?” Jillian banged her shin on the coffee table. “Ouch! Crap.”
“What happened?”
“I banged my leg. What do you mean you called Grandma?”
“After your wedding fell apart. I called her and told her what happened.”
“Why would you do that?”
Jillian swung open the door, coming face to face with Devlin. For a moment, the sight of him threw her and she stood silently.
“Well, it’s like this...”
An Impractical Match (Match #2) Page 8