Dreams Don't Wait (Contemporary romance)

by EC Sheedy

  "You know, when that beautiful, lonely boy wandered into my backyard that long-ago day, I knew he was special. Those eyes of his..." She shook her head and smiled in reminiscence. "Those blue eyes raked over me with enough insolence to intimidate a queen. It was as though he was expecting me to tell him to leave, and determined not to care. He was raw challenge. But I knew he was hurting. He was the boy with everything, at least every material thing he wanted. But his mother..."

  Maud seemed to search for the right words, as if her need to explain warred with her innately charitable nature. She went on, "She was a cold woman. Although she didn't work outside the home, she was always busy with social things. She wasn't much interested in her children." Maud gave a forgiving shrug. "But then, as I've learned, not every woman is predestined for motherhood."

  "I think I loved Lincoln from the moment I set eyes on him, but it took him a long time to become my friend. Even back then Linc didn't give of himself easily, but when he does, his spirit is truly generous. Jenny is much like him in that respect."

  "What are you trying to tell me, Maud?"

  Maud put her hands in a praying position and tapped her chin with their tips. "I'm not totally sure, but I do want you to understand, Linc feels deeply for those he loves, and he's more vulnerable than you might think." Maud turned her serious eyes to Evan. "He's devoted to Jenny. And while I don't want to see him hurt again, you're right to be concerned about her. The care and nurturing of a child is a long-term responsibility. It takes time, self-sacrifice, and a great deal of love. And when it's the child of the man you love—"

  Evan started to protest, but Maud silenced her.

  "When it's the child of the man you love," she repeated, "that responsibility is basic to your relationship. If you have qualms, uncertainties, it's important you face them honestly, for Linc's sake as well as Jenny's."

  Evan turned to the older woman with what she knew was a cheerless smile. "You know, I just realized, I didn't really want you to agree with me."

  "What did you want?"

  Evan lifted and dropped a shoulder. "I don't know. Maybe some romantic twaddle about how I should run off with my knight in shining armor and let the future take care of itself."

  Maud smiled. "I think you already tried that, dear. As I recall, Randy didn't work out too well."

  "You're right about that." Evan wiped a spot of moisture from under her eye and sniffed. "Do you think I'm awful, Maud? Unnatural? It's not that I don't love Jenny, you know." She gestured at the soon-to-be five-year-old who was engrossed in hunting sand crabs. "Look at her. What's not to love?"

  Maud nodded her agreement. "You're not unnatural. You're honest. Linc is a lucky man—and a smart one at last." When Jenny turned and started back toward the house, Maud stood. "Everything will work out, Evan, but it's not going to happen if you continue to avoid Linc—or Jenny. You don't have to make a decision today or tomorrow, you know. Give it a chance. Give yourself a chance."

  Evan nodded, but didn't feel totally convinced.

  Maud called Jenny, and the child came running, anxious to show her catch. Maud bent over to wipe some dirt from her happy face. That done, she turned back to Evan. "Don't run from this. If you do, it may be the biggest mistake of your life."

  Evan forced a smile. "And here I thought I'd already made all the big ones."

  "What did you make, Evan?" Jenny asked.

  Evan swept the child up and into a good-bye hug. "I made bloopers, Jenny. Great, big, giant bloopers." She planted a kiss on Jenny's cheek before putting her down. Inexplicably, she was feeling better than she had in days. Talking about things helped, and maybe Maud was right. She didn't need to make a decision now. The pressure she'd been feeling eased, and her smile came back.

  When Maud took Jenny's hand, the tot tugged her back toward Evan.

  "What's a blooper?" she asked, her brow furrowed.

  Evan laughed. "Ask Maud, sweetie. She'll do a much better job of explaining than I will." She gave Maud a teasing glance before heading up the stairs to the cabin.

  Evan had taken only one step into the cabin when the phone rang. She checked the call display, and her hand hesitated over the receiver before picking it up.

  "Have you had enough time to think?" It was Linc's deep voice, with a sharper edge.

  Evan's mouth quirked at his impatient tone. The sound of his voice made her feel unaccountably good, creating a fuzzy warmth in her stomach. She visualized him standing at the window in the library, staring down at the cabin, frowning, one hand resting on his hip.

  "Evan?" Irritation was suddenly replaced with concern.

  "Yes, I've had enough time to think, Linc."

  "Any decisions?"

  "Uh-huh."

  "And?"

  "I've decided not to decide anything—for now."

  Evan heard him draw in a controlled breath, then let it out slowly. Silence.

  "Okay," he said finally, giving the impression he'd just made a decision of his own. "Do you have plans for today?"

  "I was going to—" She stopped, reconsidered. What plans she had could wait. "No. No plans."

  "Good. You can help me pick out Jenny's birthday present. Can you be ready by eleven?"

  "I'll be ready."

  Another silence. Neither of them made a move to hang up the phone.

  Linc's voice was low and fervent when he finally spoke. "It's been a long six days."

  "For me, too," she admitted.

  "See you at eleven then, love. Wear jeans." He hung up.

  * * *

  A few minutes before the appointed hour, Evan heard a knock on the door.

  "Linc. What are you doing here? I was going to come up to the house." As she opened the door, she was tying her hair back in a colored scarf. He reached for her hand, took the scarf from it, and pulled her into his arms.

  "I came here because I thought I'd embarrass you if I did this in front of Maud and Jenny."

  "Do what?" she asked dazedly, watching his gaze drop hungrily to her mouth, leaving no doubt at all as to what he was about. He kissed her long and thoroughly, and by the time he finished, her body was hot and vibrating.

  While she struggled desperately to gather her wits, he gave her a sexy, thousand-megawatt smile and handed her the scarf. "Ready?"

  Still slightly breathless, she said, "I'll get my sweater."

  Five minutes later they were in the car, heading north on the Island Highway. Linc reached across and took her hand. He lifted it to his mouth, kissed it, and looked at her. "So. Aren't you curious? You haven't even asked where we're going."

  Evan had wondered, but somehow his full-throttle kiss had disrupted her brainwaves and numbed her vocal cords; she'd been concentrating so hard on bringing her overwhelmed senses back under control, she hadn't trusted herself to initiate conversation.

  She was in even more trouble than she'd imagined.

  Smart people ran from trouble...

  Chapter 10

  "Where are we going?" she asked, risking a glance at his profile. God, the man even had a perfect nose.

  "Cowichan Bay. There's a great oyster bar there. And it's only a few miles to a kennel I want to check out."'

  "A kennel? Oh, Linc, you're going to get Jenny a dog. She'll be thrilled, absolutely. It's all she ever talks about. What kind of dog?"

  "An Irish setter. One of those 'red ones,' as she calls them. The litter is over two months old, so the timing is perfect."

  "I can't wait to see her face. It will be priceless."

  Linc gave her a long look. "You like Jenny, don't you?" His eyes left the road and shot briefly, intently, to hers.

  Something heavy dropped to the bottom of Evan's stomach. It was evident how important the question was to Linc. She forced a smile. "When she's not around you, I like her a lot." She joked, knowing she was on risky ground.

  She was surprised when Linc laughed before turning his attention back to the road. Then his expression turned thoughtful. "You've been mounting
something of a rearguard action, haven't you?"

  "What do you mean?"

  "Using that 'firm hand' we talked about."

  "I'll assume you mean that figuratively." A knot of nerves tangled in Evan's chest. Might as well face the music now as later. "But yes, I've disciplined her from time to time if that's what you're asking."

  "That's exactly what I'm asking."

  "I've never hurt her." Evan's compulsion to defend herself was overridden by an urge to reassure him. "I would never do that."

  "I know," he said. "And I see a big change in her, and it's all to the good. I suppose I was too lenient with her. But I didn't want her to feel unloved. Her mother... well... you know about that. I overreacted, I guess. Couldn't find the middle ground. But I've never seen Jenny take to anyone as quickly as she's taken to you—despite your firm hand. How do you do it?" He looked genuinely curious.

  Evan was uncomfortable with the subject of Jenny, motherhood, and how good she was at it. She hadn't always been good—until she'd nearly lost Cal. But that night, in a dirty alley, holding her son's small, trembling body to hers, she'd understood it for the first time—the deep love, the constant worry, the weight of responsibility that came with being a mother.

  "I'd like to know," Linc asked again.

  "Since... Randy." She began slowly. "There's only been Cal and me, so we had to be straight with one another. I needed to be as sure as I could be that Cal did what I asked of him. I couldn't let him run out of control. I had to work, so I wasn't able to be with him as much as I'd have liked. Sometimes it seemed all I did was leave him." She glanced right to stare out the car window, old regrets taking their usual sharp bite at her new reality. The past. It never truly let you go.

  Memories marched past for review. The cheap apartments. The succession of roommates and baby-sitters. The crummy, low-paying jobs. And even with the endless extra shifts she'd take, always being stone broke. There was never enough money and never enough time for either Cal or herself. But, she reminded herself, they'd made it. And that was what mattered. She turned back to Linc.

  "Cal had to learn very young how to fend for himself and be responsible, and he did." Her smile was proud. "So did I. We both had to learn discipline. You might even say we grew up together, two kids who brought out the best—the adult—in each other. I respect him, and he respects me. I guess it's natural I treat Jenny the same way."

  "Still, it must have been tough."

  She shrugged, never good at hosting pity parties. "It's all behind us now. Cal starts at U Vic in a few days. I've got some savings and a good job that will pay for his first year—not to mention a much-appreciated break on my rent. Next year he wants to live on campus, and then..."

  "And then?"

  Telling herself this was as good a time as any to make things clear, she looked him square in the eye. "I'll be almost thirty-two. Then it will be time for me."

  He nodded. "School?"

  "Uh-huh, school, then travel. Whatever I want."

  Linc gave her a sideways glance before putting the car into a right turn. "This is it."

  Evan saw the sign. BRUSHWOOD KENNELS.

  Five minutes later they were deep in Irish Setter puppy land.

  A gangly setter pup slithered around Linc's chest more like a greased pig than the pick of the litter. Tail spinning, eyes bright with love and mischief, and with a coat the color of polished copper, she was a darling. Evan could tell she'd claimed Linc's heart with one messy, damp dog kiss. He brushed the moisture away with the back of his hand, all the while smiling like a fool. The pup kissed him again.

  "What do you think of this pretty little girl?" Linc said looking down to where she sat on the grass awash in red puppies. "Think she'll do?"

  "I think I'd like to take them all." But she stood, brushed herself off, ruffled the fur of the feisty pup in Linc's arms, and looked her over, while Linc stood holding her like a proud papa. "You know, I'm beginning to think the get-a-dog idea has more to do with her dad than her. "

  "There is that," he said with a grin.

  "Anyway, Jenny will love her. She's beautiful."

  As if rewarding Evan for her kind words, the pup licked her throat, with what, she was sure, was the longest tongue in the universe.

  "Thank God, she's turned her attention to you," Linc said. "One more of those tongue slurps and I'd need a shower."

  Linc turned the wiggling pup over the kennel's owner, telling him he'd be back Saturday morning to pick up the pup.

  He draped an arm around her as they walked back to the car, making her feel as if she belonged there. It was terrifyingly comfortable. He tightened his grip and squeezed her shoulder before opening the passenger side car door.

  "Lunch?" he asked, taking her elbow and helping her inside.

  She shouldn't. They should go home, not make more of this than it was. Should. Should. Should. "Great, I'm starved."

  "I hope you like oysters?"

  "Love 'em."

  "Good. There's hope for us yet."

  Hope. Exactly what she didn't want to encourage.

  * * *

  The restaurant was waterside, and they were seated outside on a deck overlooking a busy marina that hosted a small fleet of fishing boats. The sun glinted on the water, and gulls, being their usual raucous selves, provided the musical background.

  When the waiter left the table after taking their order and filling their glasses, Linc took off his sunglasses and set them beside his glass. "Breaded and fried." He shook his head. "Pure sacrilege. And I thought you said you liked oysters."

  "I do. The taste of them, not the look of them. I can't imagine eating them raw. Ugh." Evan grimaced.

  "It's an acquired taste. I think you should try a couple—for stamina."

  Evan raised a brow. "You think I need stamina?"

  "You will." He paused. "Tonight."

  He expected her to blush, and she did. She shifted her eyes briefly to the horizon, before turning back to give him an unexpectedly seductive smile in return. He watched her eyes drop to his mouth. "Okay."

  He knew exactly what came with that okay, and his breath snagged in his windpipe. Shifting back in his chair, he wondered if she knew the lethal effect she had on him. He reached across the table for her hand, the one nearest him that was playing with her water glass, and rested his thumb in her palm.

  "About last Saturday," he started. "I think—"

  She pulled her hand away, returning it to the water glass. The gaze she gave him was steady, with a note of pleading. "Don't think. And don't let me. I'd like to enjoy this week with you while Cal is away. Can we leave it at that?"

  "I know what you're trying to do, but it won't work. I love you, and I want to go where those words lead." He struggled against his natural impatience and kept the words soft.

  Her gaze turned again to the horizon. Her way of detaching. But this time he touched her chin to bring her back to him. He let out a long breath and conceded. It wasn't his normal M.O. to back off, but if that's what Evan wanted, that's what she'd get. He had a week, and he wasn't going to mess up the chances that came with it. "Okay, I won't push it. For the next few days, we'll just enjoy each other." He stroked her cheek and grinned. "Fair enough?"

  Her tense expression eased, and she nodded.

  "After all, you did promise to help me with these," he said, as the waiter put a plate of raw oysters in front of him.

  She looked down at the slick, oozy creatures resting in their shells, and grimaced. "They look like seepage." Her eyes lifted to Linc, she cocked her head. "Can you guarantee that you're worth it?"

  "Absolutely. Haven't I already given you a preview?"

  Evan laughed outright and her eyes danced. "That's what I like about you, Linc, your refreshing humility."

  He lifted one of the oyster shells to her lips, dipping it slightly so its contents started to slide. "We only have a week. I don't have time to be humble. Now"—he tipped the shell—"open up."

  She straig
htened, swallowed, closed her eyes, and opened her mouth. The oyster slid down her throat like tide over smooth stones.

  * * *

  When they got back to the house, it was dark. Linc activated the garage door opener; a light came on, and he drove the car in. When the door closed behind them, he turned the car off, but made no move to get out of the car.

  Evan pulled a knee up and turned sideways to look at him. "Thank you—for a great day. I loved the puppies."

  "What about the oysters?" he teased, reaching for her. His hand went around the back of her neck, and his thumb gave it a light, sensuous massage.

  "Especially the oysters."

  He brushed his mouth over hers, returning to nibble on her lower lip. She smiled, and he kissed the comer of it before running his tongue along the seam of her lips.

  She put her arms around his neck and smiled into his eyes. "But I have to say your mouth on mine beats an oyster hands down." She moved closer until her breasts touched the wall of his chest.

  He crushed her against him, taking them both deeper into the kiss, then groaned in frustration and released her. "This is the last time I kiss you in this car," he said. "It's a lousy place for seduction." He leaned back against the side window. Draping one arm on the steering wheel while bracing the other against the seat, he sucked in some air.

  Evan took the same position on the other side of the car, and he knew she shared his frustration. "I think you're right."

  The light that had come on automatically when he'd opened the garage door went out, and they were plunged into darkness.

  "We'd better go. Maud will be wondering what we're doing in here," Evan said, reaching for the door handle.

  His voice, not his touch, stayed her hand. It was impatiently demanding and he said only one word. "Later."

  Evan's hand stilled on the handle. "Later," she said.

  He hated that she hesitated, but he'd live with it. "Good, now let's go say good night to Jenny." He opened the car door.

  "You say good night to her. I think I'll go straight to the cabin. I'll see you later."