by Gerri Hill
“We really need to stop doing this,” she said, her eyes still closed as Annie’s face was buried against her neck.
“Why?” Annie murmured.
“I think you know why.”
Annie pulled back but only enough to meet her eyes. “Do I?”
“We’re awfully close to that line, Annie.”
Annie’s smile was slow, sweet. “I think we’ve already crossed the line, Jordan.”
Jordan smiled too. “Mentally, yes.”
Annie pulled away a little more but didn’t completely untangle from her. Her eyes were open and honest, and Jordan tried to decipher what she saw there.
“Something’s…happening to me,” Annie said. “I feel…different.”
“Does that frighten you?”
“No…yes…maybe a little,” she said with a smile.
Jordan reached out, brushing her fingers across Annie’s cheek, then lower, caressing her lips with the barest of touches.
“You know you never, ever have to be afraid of me,” she said.
Annie swallowed. “It’s hardly you I’m afraid of, Jordan.” She smiled slightly. “Maybe you should be afraid of me.”
Jordan smiled too. “Oh, that, I definitely am.”
Annie took another step away from her, breaking their contact.
“So? You’re leaving. When?”
Jordan sighed. “Tomorrow. He already had my flight booked.”
“And you’ll be back home when?”
Home? Yes, this did feel like home. When had that happened?
“Hopefully on Saturday,” she said.
“Well, you don’t have to worry about the store. I’ll take care of it.”
“I’m not worried,” she said.
Annie nodded, then motioned to the house. “I think I’m going to shower and get to bed early.”
Jordan nodded. “Sure.”
Annie made it to the door, then stopped. Jordan held her breath as Annie walked back over to her. She leaned closer, kissing Jordan…not on the cheek, like she usually did. Not on the lips, either. No, on the corner of her mouth, just enough to let Jordan know that they had indeed crossed over the line.
“Goodnight, Jordan.”
“Goodnight.”
Jordan stood still, watching as Annie went back inside. She turned around to the bay again. What was happening? Her pulse was racing, her heart was pounding and she had a difficult time catching her breath. Oh, she knew exactly what was happening.
Did Annie?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Annie stared at the laptop, her chin resting in the palm of her hand. She couldn’t seem to concentrate on the inventory this week. Oh, who was she kidding? Had she even tried to do inventory? No. All she could see was Jordan driving away that morning.
In the light of day, they’d both been a little…well, she didn’t want to say distant, but perhaps more careful with what they said, what they did. She still couldn’t believe she’d kissed Jordan like she had. What in the world had she been thinking?
She leaned back in the office chair and stared at the ceiling. She knew exactly what she’d been thinking. She nearly panicked at the thought of Jordan leaving. The intimacy of the hug they shared had been so…so sweet, so innocent and yet so very thrilling it made her pulse race. She couldn’t remember a time—ever—in her life where a hug from someone had made her feel like that. Something about Jordan caused her to…to crave her touch, made her want to touch Jordan, to be close to her. And the kiss? She’d be lying to herself if she said it had been an accident that she’d brushed Jordan’s lips with her own. Shocked by her actions? Sure. Jordan had been as well.
And this morning they’d not mentioned it. Jordan had been packing, and she’d made a quick breakfast for her even though Jordan had told her not to bother. Bacon and toast were hardly a bother. They’d shared breakfast and coffee and made small talk, nothing more. Jordan promised to call her and Annie had promised to take care of the inventory and ordering for the week. She’d walked out with Jordan and right before Jordan had gotten in her SUV, she’d pulled Annie into a tight, quick hug. They’d stared at each other, but no words were exchanged. Annie had been shocked that she’d felt tears threaten when watching Jordan drive away.
“Damn hormones,” she murmured.
Yes, indeed. Damn hormones. They apparently were wreaking havoc on a number of her senses.
She shook off her thoughts, trying to turn her focus to the inventory instead. It had to get done. Not only had she promised Jordan she’d handle both it and the ordering, Brandon had told her they were nearly out of the “I’d Rather Be at the Beach” T-shirts that were so popular, as well as popcorn supplies. She ordered the popcorn supplies first. As Matt had told her many times, never run out of popcorn.
She managed to put Jordan from her mind as she went about her office tasks, again thankful for the interface Steven had done with the inventory. It made it so much easier to place orders. She’d just pulled up the last vendor’s website when the back door to the store opened. She expected Brandon and was surprised to see Loraine, Jordan’s mother, smiling at her.
“Annie, hi. I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“I was about to place our last order for the week.” It was then she saw the familiar Subway bags.
Loraine held them up. “I understand Jordan had to go to Chicago unexpectedly. I brought lunch, if you’re interested,” she said.
Annie smiled at her. She’d only seen Loraine once since they’d had them out for dinner, and that was one Saturday when she and Jordan had gone to the restaurant for lunch. She assumed Loraine’s presence here now was Jordan’s doing.
“That was thoughtful of you,” Annie said. “Please come in.”
“The office looks completely different,” Loraine said as she looked around. “No clutter, for one thing.” She glanced at the sofa. “This is new, right?”
“Yes. Jordan replaced the old one. It was…well, rather worn,” she said, hoping she wasn’t blushing. Since Jordan had brought in the new leather sofa, Annie no longer had visions of that night with Matt. However, Loraine’s mention of the old sofa brought them back in an instant.
Loraine nodded. “Well, finish with your order. I need to wash up.”
“It’ll only take me a second,” she said. “There are water bottles in the fridge out there.”
“I’ll grab a couple.”
Annie made quick work of her order, clicking the submit button just as Loraine came back in. She closed the laptop, then joined Loraine on the sofa.
“I hadn’t even thought about lunch,” Annie admitted. “Jordan usually takes care of that for me.”
Loraine laughed. “Which is probably why she suggested I come by.”
Annie smiled. “I figured she had something to do with it.”
“She was rather evasive on the phone. Do you know why she had to go back?”
“Some client in Tokyo,” Annie said. “Apparently things weren’t working out with her assistant.”
“She’s never been very forthcoming about her job,” Loraine said. “I really have no idea what she even does.”
Annie nodded. “No, she doesn’t talk about it much at all. Based on how many hours she says she works, I imagine it’s very stressful.” She opened her sandwich, finding the usual turkey. It even had the added sweet banana peppers that she liked. Apparently Jordan had been exact in telling her mother what to get.
“I hope I got it right.”
“Perfect. I don’t know why, but I’ve been craving peppers lately.”
“I had the weirdest cravings when I was pregnant. Onions, of all things. I could practically eat them like an apple,” she said with a laugh. “And when I was pregnant with Matt, I went through a whole month where I ate pineapple slices on my hamburger, which I had nearly daily. Then one day I had it and it was the nastiest thing I’d ever tasted. To this day, I can’t stand pineapple.”
“I’ve had cravings for Mexican food,” Annie s
aid, “but that doesn’t always sit too well with me.”
“How’s your morning sickness?”
“All but gone, thankfully. My doctor said after the first trimester, it should lessen.”
“Do you like your doctor? Jordan tells me she’s in Corpus.”
“Yes, I like her. I’ve only been to her twice so far.”
Loraine put her sandwich down in her lap. “I don’t mean to pry, but has your mother become more involved?”
Annie shook her head. “Not yet. We had my parents out to the house for dinner,” she said. “I thought maybe…well, they didn’t know where I was living, who I was living with. I thought having them out, having them see me, might bring them around.” She shook her head. “My mother can’t seem to get past the fact that I’m pregnant and unmarried.”
“They know Matt is the father?”
“Yes.”
“And now that he’s gone, that probably makes it worse for them. There’s no chance of a marriage now.”
Annie took a bite of her sandwich, debating whether she should tell Loraine the truth about her and Matt. She decided she didn’t want her to think that they had been on the brink of marriage.
“Matt and I…well, I liked him fine. We had known each other forever, of course. But we were just together the one night,” she said. “We weren’t actually dating. I’m sorry if that shocks you. Or disappoints you.”
“Matt was always very open about who he was dating. Quite unlike Jordan,” Loraine said. “Now that I think about it, he only mentioned you in the context of the store. He always spoke so highly of you. Whatever happened between you two for that one night, it’s none of my business. You were both adults.”
“Thank you. I wish my mother would be as understanding.”
“When the time comes, I can’t imagine that she won’t be excited to hold her baby grandchild in her arms. I know I can’t wait,” she said as she patted Annie’s hand.
Annie felt near tears, and she wondered what it was about the Sims women that did that to her. “Thank you,” she said again. “It means so much to me that you’re as supportive as you’ve been. If not for you and Jordan, I don’t know what I would have done.”
“Jordan has always been the responsible one,” Loraine said. “I guess you know that by now. She and Matt were so different growing up. She was always mature for her age and we trusted her to make her own decisions. Matt…well, he was carefree and loved to have fun. We were terrified of having him run the store at first. Jordan would have made a much better manager. The financial numbers the last couple of months prove that,” she said.
“Yes, she runs a much tighter ship than Matt did,” Annie said.
Loraine sighed. “I’m not sure where we went wrong with her.”
Annie frowned. Was she insinuating that they’d failed in some way because Jordan was gay?
“What do you mean?”
“We were a close family. Always were. For some reason, she never felt comfortable telling us she was gay. I don’t know if she inferred from our actions that we wouldn’t accept her or not…but she withdrew from us and we had no idea why.”
“You never guessed she was gay?”
“No, never. And when we found out—quite by accident—it was almost too late to salvage our relationship.” Loraine smiled. “Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. She’s still so very private about her life though. I don’t know if she has someone in Chicago or not. I would like to think that she’s found someone to love, someone to love her.” Loraine shrugged. “My subtle questions to her are always left unanswered. Like I said, she’s very private.”
Annie decided it wasn’t her place to tell Loraine the little that she did know. She did, however, think Loraine should know why Jordan withdrew from them.
“She thought you would hate her.”
“Hate her?”
“That’s why she withdrew from you. That’s why she went away to college. And when you found out she was gay, she said you cried. That convinced her that you did hate her. That’s why she stayed away, that’s why she’s in Chicago.”
Loraine leaned her head back. “Oh, my goodness. Yes, I cried. We surprised her at her apartment. There was…there was another girl there with her.” Loraine waved her hand. “Well, I won’t go into details, but you can imagine,” she said. “Anyway, yes, I handled it poorly and yes, I did cry. I don’t think I was crying because she was gay. I think I was crying because she seemed so lost to us.”
“I’m guessing you never talked about it.”
“No. Jordan wasn’t much for talking. We talked around it,” she said. “I tried to include her in everything. I invited her home for each and every holiday. It was rare that she came. And when I suggested that we visit her up there, she was never receptive to it.”
“She and Matt were close growing up?”
“Yes. Matt adored her. It didn’t faze him in the least that she was gay.” Loraine folded up the rest of her sandwich. “After his accident, we weren’t sure what to expect from Jordan. When she offered to come stay here, offered to take care of things, it was such a relief. And having her here this summer has made us realize how much we’ve missed her.” Loraine turned to her. “We love having her here. It’s going to be so hard once she leaves again, but I know she’s got her life now in Chicago.”
Annie nodded. Yes, it was going to be very hard. So hard, she didn’t dare even think about it.
“You know, you’re starting to show more. That maternity blouse looks pretty on you.”
Annie smiled, wondering if the change in subject was intentional or not. “Thank you. I finally went shopping for new clothes. These shorts are so much more comfortable than my old ones,” she said. “I was having to unbutton them, they were getting so tight.”
“You should have let me take you,” Loraine said. “You shouldn’t have to bear the financial brunt of this, Annie.”
“I’m okay. This is my problem, not yours. You’re not responsible for this.”
“Nonsense. As Jordan said, it took two. My son is responsible for this. And if Matt were still here, it would be his problem and he’d be expected to help you.” She patted Annie’s hand. “I shouldn’t say problem. It’s a blessing, really. And we want to help,” she said. “Your expenses will add up before you know it.”
“I’m living with Jordan and not paying rent,” she said. “I’m working full time this summer. I’ve been able to save. So I’m doing okay.”
“Well, even if you are okay, you still won’t have to face the financial burden all by yourself. We’re going to help.”
Loraine reached in her purse and pulled out some folded bills. Annie saw the top bill was a hundred and she shook her head.
“Loraine, I can’t accept that.”
“Annie, it’s not much. A few hundred dollars. Just something to help with your new clothes or whatever.” She smiled. “Please take it. That’s my grandchild you’re carrying.”
Annie gave in, taking the money from her. Loraine squeezed her hand. “We want to help you in any way we can. Jordan has already told us that once you go back to part-time, we’re still going to carry you on the insurance at the store.”
“Really? Jordan never said anything to me.”
“Yes. She told us that weeks ago. And it’s as it should be. We need to help in whatever way we can. Please don’t hesitate to ask us for anything, because honestly, Annie, I’m so, so happy about this baby. I think it’s a wonderful thing.” She smiled. “You probably didn’t think so at first and I know you’re most likely scared…being alone and having a baby. But just know that we’ll be there for you and we will help you with anything you need. You can count on us.”
Annie felt tears in her eyes and she tried to swallow them down. “Thank you. I don’t know what to say…but thank you.”
A tear ran down her cheek and she wiped it away. Damn hormones.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jordan stood at the window, staring out at the hig
h-rise office building across from hers. It was a view she’d admired for years. Well, maybe not admired. She’d rarely taken the time. Her corner office, though, was coveted by the others on her staff. She half expected Antonio to have staked a claim to it in her absence. Actually, it looked undisturbed, and she wondered if anyone had even set foot in there since she’d been gone.
Gone. Yes, she’d been gone, both physically and mentally. She’d actually been surprised at how easily she’d been able to forget about her job. It was rare when it even crossed her mind at all.
Yet here she was, falling back into the swing of things after being away for most of the summer. Three months. And she’d slipped back into her business suit, had swiped her security card at the door, had taken the elevator up to the twenty-second floor like she had never been away. And she had handled Tokyo and Mr. Hashimoto in less than two hours.
And now she wanted to go home. Back to Rockport. Back to Fat Larry’s. Back to Pelican’s Landing.
Back to Annie.
She closed her eyes. Annie. It was a dangerous game they were playing. But truth be told, she hadn’t been this attracted to anyone in years. Something about Annie—her innocence, maybe—drew her and Jordan had an almost overwhelming desire to protect her. At first, she thought it was simply because Annie carried her brother’s baby. But as the weeks, months, passed, she decided that wasn’t the case at all. It was a physical attraction that was growing daily. It was something she had thought she could deal with. Because she had assumed it was a one-sided attraction.
The last few weeks, certainly the last few days, told her that wasn’t the case at all. Annie was fighting her own battle with it. Yes, she knew Annie was confused. Who wouldn’t be? She’d been married to a man for six years. She was pregnant. Now she found herself attracted to a woman. It was a situation that Jordan should run from…and fast.
Only she didn’t think Annie was going to let her run. Annie wasn’t quite as naïve as Jordan thought. Annie knew exactly what was going on between them.