Somewhere on Mackinac

by Jeff Adams

  Miles was stunningly handsome, more than any other man in the room. He wore a simple black-and-white tux that showed him off beautifully. Rather than Somewhere in Time, this was a fairy tale, and I was the one the prince had come for.

  “You look amazing,” I said.

  “As do you. May I have this dance?”

  My gaze darted around the room. There were other gay couples here, but they weren’t dancing. It was unusual for me to feel skittish about being out in public. Maybe it was less about what other people would think and more about Miles asking me. It’d been a long time since anyone had asked me to dance.

  “Yes.” My voice didn’t hesitate to take the leap while my brain processed what was happening.

  The girls’ subtle “oohs” were politely quiet. I gave them just a quick glance of stink eye, which made them giggle.

  Miles led me out to the floor and we settled in with the other dancers. I tried subtly to dry my hands inside my pockets so Miles wouldn’t be stuck gripping my sweaty palms. Our initial steps were klutzy as we figured out who was leading. I relented since he was the one who’d asked.

  “I hope you don’t mind my boldness,” he said as we settled into the waltz. “I watched you all through dinner, and when the music started, I couldn’t stay away.”

  “I’m glad you did. I’ve enjoyed getting to know you, and it seems you’re a delightful dancer so this is a great addition to the evening.”

  I thought I might fly apart at the seams. Miles wasn’t doing anything in particular, but every fiber of my being was tingling and alive—more alive than it’d been in… longer than I could remember.

  We danced and danced. I was the belle of the ball, which was kinda ridiculous, but it was a feeling I couldn’t shake. The confident, positive vibe Miles gave off made it hard to feel otherwise.

  “You’re a good dancer,” Miles said.

  “My parents wanted to make sure I could hold my own if I was ever in a formal situation. It’s served me well about three times in my life.”

  “I’ll have to thank them one day.”

  “You’ve clearly had lessons too.”

  “Sometimes there’s not a lot to do up here, so my mom taught my brother and me when we were kids.”

  It’d been a long time since anyone made my pulse quicken like Miles was. The many lights of the ballroom flickered captivatingly in his eyes while his smile was just enough to trigger the dimple on his left cheek. It was all ridiculously cute.

  Across the room, a photographer was taking pictures of the couples dressed up. He had a vintage box camera on a wooden tripod, and he held up a flash lamp to illuminate his subjects.

  “Wow.” The flash kept catching my eye. “That’s hardcore old-school photography.”

  Miles laughed. “Yes and no.” He continued to keep us gracefully dancing. “He built that rig just for this event. There’s a digital camera tucked inside that box. He e-mails the images out later, and for a fee, he’ll even manipulate it so it looks like it was from 1912.”

  “Okay, not as cool as I’d thought, but still a great way to keep up the authenticity.”

  “Wanna get a picture? Capture the moment?”

  “Sure.” It’d be great to have a memento of this swoon-worthy moment with Miles.

  We walked across the dining room, and Melanie caught my eye and smiled. I grinned right back at her.

  We got into the short queue and waited for our turn. As we got to the head of the line, the photographer popped out from under the hood attached to the back of the camera.

  “Hey, Miles,” the man said. “Didn’t know you were here.”

  “I got a free dinner since we’re helping out more this year, and I haven’t pulled out this suit in a few years so I decided to give it a whirl.” He looked over to me. “Jordan, this is Luke, one of my best and oldest friends and the man who put this camera setup together.”

  “Nice to meet you.” I shook his hand as Luke stepped from behind the camera a bit more. “Miles told me how this works. Very cool setup.”

  “Thanks,” Luke said. “Shall we get your picture?”

  We got into place and Luke went back under the hood. He told us to do a couple simple poses, one of which was Miles’s arm around me just above my waist. I was sure this would become my favorite picture from the weekend.

  “Thanks, Luke.” Miles and I stepped out so the next couple could take our place. “I’ll catch up with you next week.”

  “Sounds good.” Luke peeked out from behind the cloth. “Good to meet you, Jordan.” And then his head disappeared again.

  “I’ve enjoyed this,” Miles said as we took our time walking back to my table. “Unfortunately, I’ve got to say good night. It’s an early morning tomorrow to get things ready for the tours.”

  I hated to let him go, but I understood too.

  “Thank you for a delightful time. I enjoyed starting and ending the day with you, especially the dance.”

  “Perhaps we’ll get to do it again sometime.”

  “I hope so.”

  In princely fashion, he gave me a slight bow as he left me at my chair. “Good night, Jordan.”

  “Good night,” I said, smiling at him.

  I watched him go, and just before he left the room, he turned and gave me a wink and a smile.

  “Are you just going to stand there or sit down and talk to us?” Melanie asked. I had no idea how long I’d been swooning in Miles’s wake.

  “Sorry.” I took my seat.

  “Don’t be sorry. I’d say you had a great time.”

  “I did.”

  As the five of us finished dessert, it was hard for me to stay focused since most of my senses were still in full swoon mode.

  Chapter Six

  SPENDING THE morning with George and two other guys was the right way to start Saturday.

  It was relaxing and a much-needed distraction from the dreams I’d had about a certain blond man who swept me off my feet. I still wasn’t sure what to make of it. Miles had been a perfect gentleman, which made him all the more appealing. There were no expectations. It was simply a wonderful evening. The only thing that would’ve made it better was to have started earlier and had dinner together.

  The course was beautiful and the guys were a good time. George worked for a public relations firm and the other two worked in finance. The conversation was around business, which was easy, or sports, and I had plenty of opinions about the Chicago-based teams.

  I lost myself in the beauty too. Like so much of the island, the golf course had a magic and wonder of its own. The back nine was incredible. It was known as the Woods, and it was in the middle of the island, surrounded by forest. To get there, you rode in a carriage for fifteen minutes through the wooded landscape. Not that the front or Grand Nine wasn’t spectacular on its own, situated across the street from the hotel. Sometimes I had to be prodded to take my turn, because I was all too happy to turn off my mind and watch nature.

  George was the best golfer among us, but I hung in with the other two as we kept trading second place. Coming into the sixteenth hole, I was hanging on to second by a stroke. As I placed my ball to tee off, a staffer on a bicycle approached.

  “Yes?”

  “There’s a call for you.” The young man handed me a cell phone. “The gentleman said it’s important.”

  That’s odd. No one knew I was out here, at least none who would call.

  “Thank you.” I took the phone and found Drake’s mobile number on the display. “I’m sorry,” I said to the trio. “Play through and I’ll catch up.”

  Drake had better have a very good reason for not leaving a message. I stepped a few feet away from the group while the guy who’d brought the phone retreated to his bike.

  I took a deep breath so I’d start the conversation calm. “Hello?”

  “Good God, that took forever. Did they have to get the phone to you in the middle of the lake or something?”

  “Is everything okay?” I was genu
inely concerned. Even though Drake was being a pest, to have the phone brought to me, it could be a real emergency or something.

  “You haven’t exactly been calling me back, and since I’ve got arrangements to make, I decided to make sure the phone landed in your hand. There’s a conference in Aspen that I’m going to and I know you love Aspen and this would be a good thing for us to both go to.”

  I should’ve known. It was always business. Frankly I was surprised he remembered that I liked Aspen. The three times we went, he’d barely skied or done anything with me. Instead he had spent his time trying to make business contacts.

  “Did you talk to Alberto?” My grip tightened on the phone. “He can decide on conference attendance while I’m on vacation.”

  “You should be the one who goes to represent your firm.”

  “It’s our firm and you know that. Why’d you really call?”

  Alberto and I worked with Drake and his firm often, sharing clients and making referrals. We’d found the corporate synergy early when Drake and I had started going out. It might be time to revisit that, though, if he was going to try to use it to lure me back to him.

  “What do you mean? This conference has some great speakers lined up. It’d be a chance to network beyond Chicago, and that could grow your business. Plus, well, Aspen. We could, maybe, start over.”

  “You’re kidding, right? The mere fact you’re using business to try to woo me is one of the reasons we broke up. You’re consumed by business twenty-four seven, and that’s not what I want my life to be. Send the information on the conference. Alberto and I will review it this week. I’m going back to my game now.”

  “Jordan, don’t you—”

  I disconnected, refusing to let him finish. Did he really expect I’d go to a conference as a date? He didn’t even ask how I was doing or if I was having a good time. It was all about business, and maybe getting back together with me. There was no romance in that, at least not like I desired.

  Drake didn’t seem to get why we broke up. However, the more he went on with the campaign to try to get me back, the surer I was that he wasn’t for me. Of course, the guy who made me swoon for the first time in a long while also lived on an island hundreds of miles away. None of my previous relationships had made me feel like Miles had during the time we’d spent together last night. Yes, each one of those had started with a spark, and there were moments of passion, but the pull Miles had….

  “Will that be all, sir?” asked the young man who brought out the phone, pulling me out of my thoughts.

  “Yes, thank you.” I took a ten from my wallet to give to him, hoping the hotel’s no-tipping policy didn’t extend to the golf course. He shouldn’t have had to run out here for that ridiculous interruption, so I wanted him tipped.

  “Thank you, sir.” He pocketed the phone and the cash before walking quickly back to his transportation.

  “Everything okay?” George asked as I rejoined the group just as he was about to send the ball flying.

  “Yeah, just a call that wasn’t as urgent as the caller thought it was.”

  George shook his head. “I know those all too well.” He took a moment to set up and then swing. He dropped his ball on the green. “You’re up.” He looked to me.

  The final two holes were good, even though I finished in third place. Our foursome had brunch in the clubhouse before we all traded business cards. It’d been a great time, even with the disruption. It was a delightful morning with new friends and exactly what I needed to keep from replaying last night on a loop.

  I headed back to the hotel solo since George was meeting Melanie and the girls in town. I hadn’t seen Miles, which wasn’t surprising since he had tours to do.

  There were two days left on this trip, and I didn’t want to leave, which was unusual. Even if I’m enjoying myself, I’m typically ready to go home before the vacation even hits the halfway point. While I liked traveling and all that goes with it, I also liked being at home and in my routine. I wasn’t missing the routine here, though. If anything, I enjoyed having no routine. Maybe that was the fresh air and retro environment working on me.

  As I arrived on the hotel’s porch, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Alberto.

  “Jordan! How’s the past treating you?”

  “The event is awesome. The golf’s great. You’d love playing here. Just wait until you see the pictures I’ve got. I’ve got two days left, and I’m kinda dreading having to leave. It’s like I’m in a storybook and it’s kinda perfect.”

  “Why not stay for a few more days? You barely take time off as it is. Or work from up there, if you want. It’s all good as far as I’m concerned.”

  I knew he’d say that, but a guilty feeling always rose up if I wasn’t in the office when I was supposed to be. Alberto was in and out, and I never worried about what he was doing. He was right, though; there was no reason I couldn’t work from here—or even extend the vacation.

  “Thanks, Alberto. As always, you’re great.”

  “Glad I could point you in the right direction. Now go enjoy yourself.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Attaboy,” Alberto said. “Later, my friend.”

  I had just enough time to grab a shower and get to the first of the afternoon panel discussions, including one that I really wanted to hear, about how Somewhere in Time might play if it were made today.

  Instead of going to my room, though, I detoured to the front desk. I’d made up my mind about one thing.

  “How can I help you, Mr. Monroe?” It was the same clerk who’d checked me in.

  “I’d like to stay on the island longer than I’d planned. I know the Grand closes Monday. Can you recommend other accommodations for at least a week?”

  “Absolutely. If you’d like we could make arrangements for you.”

  “That would be great. Wherever you think would be best.”

  “I’ll see to it we have something booked for you by this evening. Check back then and the details will be ready.”

  “Thank you.”

  I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to do with the week, but at least I’d have a roof over my head.

  Chapter Seven

  ONCE THE afternoon panels were done, it was time to get back outside. I laughed a little at myself. I’d never been one to be outside all that much since I was a kid. Here the outside beckoned like a siren song. The break before dinner was a perfect chance to go for a walk and think.

  I wished I trusted myself enough to get a horse, but I was far from confident in riding solo. My meanderings took me to the boardwalk near the hotel. The lake was soothing as the waves lapped at the shore. The lakefront in Chicago was nice, but with all the buildings and people, the feeling was nowhere near the same. Here, the nature and quaintness encouraged relaxation.

  Settling on a bench that looked out over the water, I watched as the sun made its way toward the horizon. As was the case a lot over the past few hours, Miles drifted into my thoughts. Why couldn’t he live in Chicago? Of course if he was in Chicago, he wouldn’t be the man he was—the one who works with horses, knows the best place to get fudge, and loves the same movie I do.

  Perhaps I could use part of the coming week to find out more about him. If nothing else, Somewhere in Time proved that you have to take a leap sometimes. Richard gave up everything to go back in time to meet Elise. Nothing as drastic as time travel would happen if I saw Miles again.

  The light played across the water as the sun gradually changed position. Periodically horses clopped by on the street behind me while birds chirped in the trees. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been so peaceful. Being away from the city, and on my own, made me realize how much hustle there was in my life.

  Suddenly, Miles’s voice was in the distance, and he didn’t sound happy. I couldn’t make out everything he was saying, but it was a heated discussion. Hopefully I could sit here, since I was off the road, and he’d ride by so there wouldn’t need to be an awkward moment.


  “You realize this could be the end of our family business, right?” he asked.

  The soft clip-clop of his horse was all I heard for a few moments.

  “I bought you out because it was the right thing to do. Can’t you reinvest some of that money to help clean up your mistakes?”

  He was right behind me.

  “You may have left, but I still live here. It’s not my fault you got bored. I would’ve taken over everything and you know it.”

  I willed myself to become one with the bench as the horse stopped.

  “I gotta go.”

  I held my breath, hoping he’d nudge the horse into moving. Silence prevailed. Maybe Miles was considering the conversation. Maybe he had a way to make horses go stealth. Maybe he was staring at the back of my head.

  “How much did you hear?”

  Option three was right.

  I pivoted on the bench to look at him atop Wildfire. Of course, Miles looked great in a red plaid shirt and blue jeans along with the denim jacket I’d first seen him in. What I didn’t like were the worry lines around his eyes, or the way his forehead was deeply furrowed.

  “Enough.” There was no reason for me to lie. “Anything I can do to help?”

  “Not unless you’ve got a way to make my brother stop being a self-obsessed ass.”

  I shrugged. “’Fraid I don’t have a fix for that.”

  “Well, I’m sorry I disturbed you. I should get going, but hopefully I’ll see you later.”

  Before Wildfire could even get a couple of steps, I got up and approached. He pulled back on Wildfire’s reins and the animal obediently stopped.

  “Sounded like you’re having business problems.” I approached Wildfire so I could rub his nose. “Maybe I could help with that?”

  “I’m not sure anyone can.” Miles tensed in the saddle.

  “Business strategy is what I do.” I looked up at him. “I’ve never worked with a stable, but I’m happy to offer any guidance if I can.”

  His sigh sounded like a breath he’d held for years.

  “Honestly, it’d be good to talk to someone who doesn’t live here. Trying to keep it under wraps to keep the gossip down isn’t easy. Luckily, Mr. Walker at the bank maintains discretion.”