Love Between the Pages: 8 Romances for Booklovers

by Bird, Peggy

  • • •

  Matt woke up and immediately wondered where he was. It was a couch but not the couch in his Manhattan apartment. That had white ceilings. Not wooden beams. Right, Lakehaven.

  A blanket was draped across him and the hem of his jeans was … wet. Matt glanced down to the far end of the couch where a soggy plastic baggie lay on its side. He smiled. Someone had tucked him in and tended to his ankle. It might have been Adele, but he was betting on Jade. The thought made him grin.

  He found her in her office huddled behind a large desk. It was a man’s desk with heavy, dark wood—substantial, unadorned, practical. She looked like a kid playing at office. Matt was sure she wouldn’t appreciate the comparison. Still, it made her seem cute and a bit vulnerable. Again, she probably wouldn’t like those adjectives either. He leaned against the doorjamb and just watched her for a moment as she chewed on a pencil, wrote a note on a sticky pad with a purple-inked pen, and then swiveled in her chair to look at a computer screen. It was then that she noticed him and jumped. The pencil fell out of her mouth and onto the desk blotter with a plop.

  “Crap, you scared the bejeezus out of me.”

  “Sorry.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him and tilted her head to one side. “How’s your ankle?”

  Matt pushed himself off the doorframe and shook out his left foot before standing with his weight on both legs. “Great. I’m a fast healer.”

  “Uh, okay.” Jade looked up at him from under a thick fringe of lashes. “Is there something I can do for you?” The question sounded stiff and formal. Jade clasped her hands together and rested them on the desk blotter in front of her. It reminded Matt of Ms. Stockton, his high school librarian. The thought made him smile.

  “Actually, I thought this would be a good time to discuss the terms of our bet.”

  “I’m not sure this bet is such a great idea.” Jade worried her lower lip with her teeth, drawing Matt’s attention to her mouth. Her lips were a deep cherry color even though she was completely without makeup. Either way, she was utterly kissable.

  Focus, Matt. “Backing out?” he asked.

  Jade crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I didn’t say that. I just said it was a bad idea.”

  “But you’ll do it anyway.”

  Jade sighed. “Yeah, it won’t be the first bad idea I follow through on, and probably not the last.”

  “Great. When I win, you help me to search for the Cartwright treasure.”

  Jade rolled her eyes. “Please. Number one, you will not win, and number two, searching for the treasure is a huge waste of time.”

  “So what? It’s my time to waste as I see fit.”

  “Okay, fine. And if I win …”

  “Never happen.”

  “If I win,” Jade spoke louder, “you … ” she paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. Then, a look dawned on her face that ended with a bright gleam in her eye. “If I win, you have to escort me to my dad’s retirement dinner.”

  “God, no! Not a room full of academicians!” Matt said with mock horror. “It’s a deal. Especially since there’s no way I can lose.”

  “How exactly are we going to determine the winner?”

  “Easy. The second you make it complicated, you lose.”

  “And who exactly will judge this competition?”

  “I’ll be the judge,” Matt volunteered.

  “Oh, yeah, right. That’s fair.”

  “I’m glad you agree.”

  “No, we’ll have to come up with an impartial judge,” Jade mused aloud.

  “Who will be impartial? Everyone here seems to know you, and I’m a complete stranger. You have home court advantage, so to speak.”

  “Tough, you’ll just have to deal. How about the Kent sisters?”

  “No, they’ll definitely vote for you. They’ve known you for over twenty-two years.”

  “How did you know that?”

  “They’re very talkative. They like to socialize.” Matt gave one of his signature smiles, full of mischief and heat.

  Jade glanced away. “Yes, they seem to have taken quite a liking to you. In fact, I’m not sure that they would be good judges after all. You might sway them with your manly wiles.”

  “I have manly wiles? I wish someone had told me sooner!” Matt quipped.

  Jade crumpled a sheet of paper on the desk and threw it at him. It smacked Matt square in the chest. “Okay, smart ass. So who would you pick?”

  Matt thought seriously for a moment. “Mr. Boyle.”

  Just as Matt’s mouth formed the words, he realized Jade had said the very same thing.

  Matt’s gaze found Jade’s, and they looked at each other for a beat. Matt smiled and, thank the Lord, Jade smiled back. It was like a beautiful light spreading across her face, and he felt simply stunned by it. Her smile was warm, and in it, Matt sensed a world of comfort and joy. The moment he thought it, he realized the implied danger, and yet he knew it was the truth with absolute certainty. Crap, now who’s going to make this complicated? Matt winced at the thought.

  Jade looked concerned. “Are you sure your ankle is okay?”

  Matt was confused for a moment but covered quickly. “Yep, I’m fine. Okay. Mr. Boyle will be our judge. Now, when do we go out?”

  “What do you mean, we?” Jade smirked at Matt.

  “We, as in you and me.”

  “Why does it have to be me and you? The bet was whether I can or cannot have a simple affair. At no time did we specify who the other party would be.”

  Matt burst out laughing. “Oh, this is going to be so easy. You are complicating things already. You are attracted to me, and I am attracted to you, so the simplest thing would be that we start to explore that attraction. But you want to go out and find someone else to date?”

  “Who says we’re attracted to each other?”

  Matt’s laughter subsided and was replaced with an intensity that had Jade bolting up out of her seat and taking a step back from the desk.

  Matt rounded the corner of the desk and Jade stepped back again. He came for her and she stumbled back until she was up against the filing cabinets. Matt stopped inches from her body; there was heat coming off her, filling the small space between them. It was such a slight gap that Jade’s breathing almost had them touching. But not quite.

  • • •

  Jade could feel the heat coming off of Matt, smell his skin, spicy and warm, and if she tilted her chin up she could see the look in his eyes—a look that promised wanting and having. The combination had an answering heat flaring low in her body. Matt was still. God, why the hell was he standing still? He was just a hairsbreadth away. Please. She felt her body begging to touch him and almost swayed against him. She was breathing hard, their chests almost touching. Matt lifted one hand toward her waist, and she could almost feel how it would be to have him pull her hips into his body. She all but sighed in relief.

  Matt lowered his head toward her and smiled, then dropped his hand to his side and stepped back. He was still only a few inches away, and he leaned over to whisper in her ear. “I say we’re attracted to each other.”

  Jade swallowed then frowned. It was taking her mind a bit of time to catch up with her body. She felt Matt’s warm breath on her ear and wanted to rub herself all over him, but she knew that his words should somehow piss her off. Matt took another step back and let out a slow breath. Jade felt the blood that had moved south rush up her body in a deep blush. Some weird adrenaline reaction had her shaking slightly, and she had to focus on staying steady. She pressed herself fully into the filing cabinets for support.

  Matt had stopped smiling, but the molten look in his eyes held. Jade closed her eyes and just breathed. After a few minutes, she could feel her body’s reaction settle and her breathing even out. She thought about not opening her eyes—just standing there with her eyes closed, head leaning back against the filing cabinets, ignoring Matt until he went away. Not a bad strategy if you wanted to take the wimp
y way out.

  Jade took a deep breath, opened her eyes, and met Matt’s gaze. “Okay, one date.”

  Chapter 7

  The next few days passed in a blur. Jade kept busy, but it was always there in the back of her mind. She was going out on a date with Matt. She was excited about the idea of it, but given her history of scuttling even the most promising of dates, she was certain that keeping her distance from him in the days before the date was for the best. Still, that spectacular kiss kept creeping into the edges of her mind and she was worried. The more potential the date seemed to have, the bigger the disappointment when she messed it up. Not if, when. So she avoided Matt and tried to keep her mind on other things.

  When she was anxious, she holed up in her cabin and occupied herself with some new jewelry designs for her fledgling business. She had some sketches for a line of bracelets called “Morning Mist” that she was still working out, and she had finished a series of pieces with a leaf design that she knew would be a success at some of the summer fairs. She wanted to mirror that design on her website, if she could only figure out how to do it.

  The dreaded day got closer, and she thought about buying something new to wear. She dismissed the idea, deciding it would be taking things too seriously, something she definitely did not want to do. She filled Meg in on the bet, and they got down to strategizing.

  “You know, this bet is really vague. Is Mr. Boyle going to accompany you on the date?” Meg asked while chopping carrots. Meggs still wasn’t as fast as the tableside chef at their favorite Teppanyaki restaurant, but Jade could tell she’d been practicing.

  “God, I hope not. That would be weird.” Jade tried to imagine Mr. Boyle sitting at a table next to them on a date. She shuddered. “We haven’t really asked him yet, but I was just thinking if we disagreed, we would plead our cases and he would make a decision. Like a judge in court.”

  “Either way, it’s a little weird.”

  Jade lifted her eyebrows. “A little?”

  “Yeah, you’re right. A lot weird. But that’s what I like about you. You don’t let that stop you.”

  Jade laughed. “Thanks, I think.”

  “So, what are you going to wear?” Meg scraped the carrots into a large stockpot.

  Jade picked at the paper label on her bottle of iced tea. “Nothing special. I don’t want to encourage him.”

  Meg was over at the sink putting water in the stockpot, but she turned her head and shook it. “No, no, no. Make an impression. You want him to swallow his tongue.”

  “I’m not sure that’s possible.”

  “It’s a figure of speech, you dork.” Meg rolled her eyes at Jade.

  “No, really?! Duh!” She rolled her eyes right back. “I meant that I don’t think Matt is that easy to impress. He seems like he dates high-maintenance.” Jade began to tear the drink label into little pieces.

  “One: You are a knockout. In the right dress, you could make a monk swallow his tongue. Two: I have seen Matt looking at you in denim and flannel, and you could definitely make that big of an impression. And Three: Did you just say ‘duh’? What, are you ten?”

  Jade stuck her tongue out at Meg. “Okay, a dress and heels.”

  “A dress and fuck-me heels,” Meg insisted.

  “Yeah, ’cause a twisted ankle is soooo sexy.”

  Meg set the stockpot on the stovetop and turned on the flame. “Don’t be a wuss. You can take a little pain in order to make Matt squirm.”

  “Well, when you put it that way … ” Jade’s smile took on an evil gleam. Oh, yeah. This could be fun.

  • • •

  Matt didn’t know enough about the area to pick a good first date spot, so he did what came naturally: research. Hopefully, Ben or Jeff would be around to give him some information. He found Jeff first just outside the porch area, trimming the edge of the lawn. Matt didn’t intend to surprise Jeff, but between the earphones in Jeff’s ears and the buzz of the weed-whacker, he jumped about a foot at Matt’s approach.

  “Geez, give a guy an embolism why don’cha?” Jeff said a little too loudly as he yanked the ear buds out of his ears.

  Matt lifted his hands in surrender and stepped back quickly to avoid being whacked as Jeff spun around with his yard equipment. “Sorry.”

  “No sweat,” Jeff shouted then turned off the weed-whacker. “Hey, you’re the writer, right? I’ve got a great idea for your next book. We could make a fortune.”

  Matt smiled. “Thanks, but could we discuss that later? Right now, I was hoping to get some information about local date spots.”

  “Oh, right, for your current project.” Jeff nodded slowly with an exaggerated up and down range of motion.

  “Something like that.” Matt found himself nodding back but stopped himself, mostly because he had no idea why they were nodding like idiots.

  The two of them stood staring at each other for a moment, Matt waiting for Jeff to respond and Jeff waiting for god-knows-what. Finally, Matt raised his eyebrows, which seemed to rouse Jeff out of his reverie.

  “Right, so you need to know … what exactly? Casual dining? Upscale restaurants? Forget that … Um … hot pick up spots?” Jeff squinted his eyes.

  Matt thought about it for a moment. “I need a good first date place. Nice, but not too pretentious, with good food but not too loud.”

  “Wow, that’s a lot of stuff. And we have a limited selection. Okay, here’s what I’d do. Fitch’s is low key and very local. The atmosphere is pub, the food is stellar, and the music is very low decibel, so you can talk. They have two pool tables if that’s your thing. Tamblin’s is more of a restaurant-with-a-view type place. Nice, but a little on the pricey side. If you take a date there, it’s a date-date. Um, what else? The best dancing is at Wildflowers, and the best place to pick up hot chicks is the Grille. That just about covers it.”

  “Really, that’s it?” Matt ran his hand through his hair and tried not to frown.

  “Yep. Addie’s is the best place for coffee and omelets, and then there’s the deli for bagels and subs, but those are only open for breakfast and lunch.” Jeff shrugged.

  “Okay, thanks.”

  “Yeah, no problem. And don’t forget my new idea for your next novel.”

  “Right.” Matt waved as he made a hasty retreat.

  After a day of book research at the library, he wanted to get a second opinion on the dating scene. Jeff seemed to know what he was talking about, but Jade had mentioned he was flaky. Matt decided to check in with Ben. At the same time, he needed to be careful not to embarrass Jade. It was inevitable that the staff eventually would know that he and Jade were going out—Lakehaven seemed too small and tight knit to avoid it entirely—but since Jeff had already jumped to the convenient assumption that this was research for his latest novel, Matt decided to go with that approach. He hoped the circumspection would earn him some extra points with Jade. She might be happier getting to choose how and when her staff found out they were dating.

  Matt found Ben at the front desk behind a computer. When he saw Matt approaching, he quickly hit some keys on the keyboard and then stood at attention. Matt smiled. It looked like Ben hadn’t wanted anyone to see what was on the computer screen.

  Matt got right down to business and asked what he wanted to know. While Ben considered the question, he fiddled with a pen, lining it up precisely with the edge of the computer mouse pad. The pen was printed with the Lakehaven logo on the side, a leafy tree designed to form the “L” of “Lakehaven” with the tree’s canopy providing shelter for the “a.” It was a beautiful design that evoked the feel of the woods. The font used almost seemed to have a natural texture to it. Matt idly wondered about the design while he waited for Ben’s answer.

  “Yeah, I prefer going out for coffee. Less risk,” Ben said.

  Matt shook his head. “No, I’m talking about a real date. If you’re going to ask someone out, you have to really ask. She’ll say yes or no but at least everything is up front. I say make it crystal c
lear what you want.”

  Ben nodded. “Or you could just bet the woman to go out with you.”

  So much for circumspection. Matt nodded. “I guess that cat is out of the bag.”

  Ben gave a simple explanation. “The Kent sisters.” He straightened some papers on the desk by his computer keyboard and then neatened the pamphlet display.

  “Jeff thought the best bet would be Tamblin’s.”

  “While I hate to actually agree with anything Jeff has to say, and particularly in the category of dating, he’s pretty much right. Unless you want to drive an hour, maybe an hour-fifteen minutes away. Once you get closer to the college, you have a much better selection.”

  Matt saw an opportunity to win some points here. “Anything particular near the college that Jade might like?”

  “Well, there’s nothing really spectacular. Everyone at the university is more interested in the experience of exotic dining. It’s like they want to be able to say, ‘I had a great Nasi Goreng’ or ‘They have the best Doro Wat,’ and then have everyone nod knowingly. Jade and I used to joke about it when we would meet up between classes. She’d probably rather just eat at Tamblin’s.” Ben pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

  Okay, that was interesting. It seemed that Ben and Jade were more than just coworkers. Matt saw an opportunity to pry. She was less than forthcoming about herself, other than the fact that she did not particularly want to date him. “You two went to school together?” Hopefully, that had come out sounding like a casual question. Although Lakehaven had a casual feel and the staff was very friendly, Matt wasn’t sure how chatty Ben would be with a guest he barely knew.

  “Sure, for a while.” Ben nodded. “I’ve been going part-time for years. I commute during the day. It’s taking a while, but I’ll get it done eventually.”

  “And is Jade commuting too?”

  Ben shook his head. “She was full-time and living on campus until she quit. We would get together for lunch sometimes because we knew each other. She spent every summer at Lakehaven when she was growing up, and I’ve had summer and part-time jobs here since I was seven. Mr. Sawyer used to hire me to collect kindling so I could earn money to buy my mom Christmas presents.”