by Lisa Wells
This was her first vacation. None of her first six foster parents took her on their vacations. They always left her with respite families while they got away to recharge their batteries. Dottie offered, but said she preferred skipping vacations to save money for Adeline’s college fund.
Jack kicked out of his shoes and joined her.
Adeline grinned. It was hard not to. “Are you looking forward to relaxing here in paradise?” They were going to end, but they could enjoy the minutes that led up to the ending.
Jack wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him. “I’m looking forward to spending time with my fiancée.”
She relaxed into him. “You’re so full of it. You’re looking forward to finishing the deal. Becoming a partner,” she countered.
He kissed the rounded edged of her shoulder. “That, too. But not for the reason you might think.”
His words caused goose bumps on her arms. She rubbed them away. “The only reason I was running was to impress Mr. C for you.”
Jack scooped her up in his arms. “I was wondering what possessed you to do something you proclaim to hate. You can’t imagine how shocked I was when someone said you fell while running on the treadmill. Let’s not do that again. Okay?”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m pretty sure they’re going to ban me from the exercise room.”
He walked farther into the ocean. “Tell me about your heart’s desire; the dreams you dream at night.”
She tried to get out of his arms, but he held her tight. “I don’t know what that question means.” Under normal circumstances, she didn’t like to be held tight, not even in a hug, and would panic when it happened. With Jack it was different. God, she was getting soft.
“Your dreams are those things you imagine when your awake brain isn’t telling your asleep brain what you can and can’t have in life.”
“My dreams are nightmares. I’ve told you that.”
He rested his chin on top of her head. “Have you always had them?”
“Not always. But please, let’s not talk about that here. I’m on vacation.”
“I want to know everything there is to know about the real Adeline. If I remember right, you once said that Dottie was your final foster mom. What happened with the others?”
Hell. Why were they going down this path standing chest deep in the ocean off Cayman Island’s seven-mile beach? “Isn’t there’s something else we can talk about?”
A wave crashed around them, soaking them both, but Jack kept them from falling.
Jack grinned. “We don’t have to talk about them, but I’d really like to get to know everything about you.”
He let her down, and she dug her toe in the wet sand of the ocean floor. “If I tell you about my foster moms, will you promise not to bring any of my past back up the rest of the trip?”
He led her up to the beach, and they sat down where the waves could still wash over their feet. “Deal.”
She ran her tongue over her teeth, tasting the salt of the ocean water. “The first fell off the wagon. Went back to drinking after I came to live with her.” Adeline sat quiet while a couple walked past them. “The second got pregnant. Decided she didn’t want children that didn’t belong to her. The third’s husband got a job out of state. They moved. Left me on the front steps of my Guardian ad litem. The fourth, now that was a doozy. She had a son. A piece of work. He took an unhealthy liking to me. The fifth thought I was retarded—his word, not mine— because I couldn’t read. She didn’t sign on to raise a child with special needs. The sixth, that was Alice. I’ve told you about Alice. By the time she got me, I was mad. I knew she was going to be short term, they all were, so I was a delinquent until she sent me away.” She glanced at Jack to check his expression.
“And Dottie was your seventh.”
“An emergency placement. Temporary until another place could be found. I tried to ditch her. She wouldn’t be ditched. She loved me. Not unconditionally, but even though she had rules and conditions, it was the best sort of love I’d ever known. She taught me how to cook.”
He took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. “Is going to Paris negotiable?”
Adeline licked her lips. She wanted him to take back the question. The question forced them to have a conversation she didn’t want to have. Especially at this moment. Just the thought of having this conversation caused a dull ache in her heart. “Why would I want it to be negotiable?” she said in a noncommittal reply, trying to stall until she could think of way to distract him from his question.
He placed his hand under her chin and turned her head so that she could see his eyes. Eyes that flashed love. “What would happen if you fell in love with a man who couldn’t bear to have you living that far from him because he loved you?”
Adeline’s stomach sank. Their happy-go-lucky pretend relationship was about to take a hit. A hit it would never recover from. But if you’re going to hit someone, hit them cleanly. Make sure they see it coming. And don’t hold anything back. Playground-bully-rule number two. “My mom chose a man over me. All she had to do was kick her lover out of the house, and I could have stayed with her. She didn’t kick him out. Trust me when I say I’ll never choose a man over my other options in life. Over my other obligations in life.”
He stared out at the horizon. “It’s hard for a guy to compete against all of that.” His voice held the anguish his steely expression didn’t.
Even though she’d just hit him, she wanted to give him an out. A way to salvage his pride. “It’s a good thing you’re not trying to compete.”
“Right. Just pondering out loud. Your singledom makes sense. A guy won’t be able to win your heart until you’ve completed your plan.”
She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them. “If I didn’t have plans, you’d be the type of guy I’d want to give my heart to.”
Jack rubbed a hand over his face and then pulled her into a hug.
She quickly hugged him back and then pushed out of his arms. “I need to get back to my room and change. It’s time for me to wow your coworkers with my cooking.”
He gave her an intimate smile. “I’ll come with you.”
“Stay and enjoy yourself. I need to get my game face on, and I can’t do that with you distracting me with conversations that bruise my heart.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jack sat at the dining table and waited for the food to be served. He was nervous for Adeline. He wanted everything to be perfect. For her.
He spent the afternoon trying to get his room moved closer to Adeline’s. He had no idea why their rooms were booked so far apart, but he hadn’t succeeded.
Now he sat at the table and, like everyone else, wondered what was for dinner. Drinks were flowing freely and everyone was relaxed. Which was good, because his cohorts could be brutal food critics when they were sober. They’d either give Adeline five stars or no stars.
He worked with a lot of social snobs. The biggest being his boss. Hell, once you made partner in the company, rumor had it you were no longer allowed to shop at discount stores.
Jack’s meeting with him had been promising. Mr. Carpenter quizzed him on a lot of his philosophies about life and loyalty along with when he and Adeline planned on getting married and who her parents were. He answered all of the questions as best he could, not lying about the fact she was brought up in the foster system, and hoped it was good enough.
Right on time, seven p.m., two young ladies, dressed in crisp white shirts and black skirts, stepped through the double doors leading to the kitchen and entered the banquet room. One placed shrimp salad on each person’s plate. The other served an orange colored soup.
“What type of soup is this?” Mr. Carpenter asked.
“A cold pumpkin soup,” the server said. “The chef has prepared special bowls for you and your wife,” she said, sitting them in front of the Carpenters. Their bowls had an image of a cruise ship in the frothy top.
&nbs
p; “An unusual choice,” Mr. Carpenter commented, frowning toward Debbie. Debbie was in charge of the details of the retreat. Like room placement.
“Sir, I am so sorry. This is not a menu item I approved. I’ll have a talk with the chef.”
“Please don’t,” Mrs. Carpenter said quickly. “I’m afraid it’s my fault.”
“Your fault?” Debbie asked, her facial expressions controlled just only a bit better than the tone of her voice.
There was an imperceptible shift of body language at the table. If there was one thing you didn’t do, it was question the boss’s wife.
Mrs. Carpenter carefully wiped her mouth with her napkin. “I was chatting with Adie yesterday, she’s a dear girl, and I mentioned how much I loved the pumpkin soup on our honeymoon cruise.”
“That explains the ship decoration,” Mr. Carpenter said, sitting back in his chair with a smile on his face.
Debbie sat her napkin on her plate. “With all due respect, Mrs. Carpenter, Adeline should have run the menu change by me before serving the dish. We talked extensively about what she was to cook for us. What if one of us was allergic to pumpkin? I’ll go speak to her immediately.”
Mr. Carpenter cleared his throat.
Mrs. Carpenter stopped him with a tiny shake of her head. “I would hope you’d have the good sense not to eat it if you were allergic.”
No one responded. Everyone ate.
…
Adeline stood in the massive kitchen and waited for the servers to come in and tell her how things were going.
The swoosh of the door sent her spinning around.
“The soup was a hit,” one of the female servers said.
Adeline released a breath. The first impression was the most important impression. If you could wow your clients with the first taste, they were inclined to believe everything you served them would be just as perfect.
Over the course of the next hour and a half, she sent several more courses out with the servers. The main course: batter fried lobster tail with butter. Dessert, a chocolate decadence cake with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, was the grand finale.
“Ms. Rigby, your presence over dessert has been requested in the dining room,” Jack said, startling her and causing her to drop the spoon. He came over and kissed her on the lips. “You are a huge hit. Mr. Carpenter and Mrs. Carpenter have never had fried lobster.”
She touched her lips, only too aware that the number of stolen kisses he would get out of her were numbered. Would it be ten more? Twenty more? Only time would tell. “They really liked everything?” she asked, shaking away her melancholy thoughts.
“Come. Let’s not keep them waiting,” he said, swatting her on the butt.
Adeline yelped and removed her chef’s hat and apron, washed her hands, and followed Jack into the dining room. He pulled out a chair next to his. She was wearing jeans and a T-shirt. Perfect for cooking, but way underdressed for the table. Everyone at the table was dressed to impress.
“Thank you for joining us,” Mr. Carpenter said.
“Thank you for inviting me,” Adeline replied, inhaling the fragrant aroma of the fresh island flower arrangements that filled the room.
The dessert was served.
“This looks like a million calories,” Mrs. C commented.
“Only a half-million,” Adeline said.
“Adeline,” Mr. Carpenter said, picking up his dessert fork, “Jack and I have had several conversations in the past couple of days. I think you are going to make him a fine wife.” He was wearing a black suit, crisp white shirt, and a patterned black tie. Every bit the head of a major corporation.
“Of course I am. My question to you is…is he going to make me a fine husband?” she asked in a joking tone. Was Jack offered the promotion?
Mr. Carpenter chuckled. “That’s a good question. I’m going to go out on a limb and say yes. He’s a hard worker, and he’s ambitious.”
Adeline patted Jack on the knee. “He is indeed. But then, so am I.”
Mr. Carpenter frowned. “What type of ambitions do you have?” He speared another piece of cake on his fork.
“I hope to open my own bakery within the next five years.”
The fork paused halfway to Mr. Carpenter’s mouth. “You plan to work once you’re married?”
“Of course,” Adeline responded sweetly. Was she supposed to say no? Was that part of the deal to become a partner in the firm? You had to be married to a woman who stayed at home? She took a bite of the cake. The idea was ludicrous. Jack may prefer a stay-at-home wife, but surely his company wasn’t that backward in their thoughts. Besides, she’d already told Debbie of her plans. It wasn’t like she could lie about them now.
“Good for you,” said Mrs. C, who sat next to her husband at the head of the table. “My husband is much too stuffy when it comes to his view of women and the workforce and marriage.”
Mr. Carpenter made a grumbling noise in the back of his throat. “Jack, are you going to let your wife work once you get married?”
Adeline opened her mouth to answer for Jack, but his hand squeezed her knee. She shut her mouth. Of all the asinine things to ask a man in this day and age. Let! Let indeed.
She glanced toward Debbie. Why did she put up with this sexism?
“Sir, it would be selfish of me to keep her culinary skills all to myself,” Jack said.
Adeline reminded herself that this wasn’t about her. She was here to help Jack. She took a calming breath. “I’m sure we’ll come up with a compromise.”
“Pumpkin soup was not on the approved menu,” Debbie complained.
“Oh, for crying out loud. Give it a rest,” Mrs. C snapped. She wore a beautiful white gown with startling red rubies at her neck and ears. If Adeline didn’t know her better, she would be intimidated by the beauty. Thank God she knew Mrs. C would have her back in this conversation.
“I wanted to make something special to say thank-you to Mr. and Mrs. C for allowing me to be a part of the retreat,” Adeline replied.
Mr. Carpenter laid his napkin in his plate. “Adeline, I’m happy to hear that you are open to compromise. There are some things I’m not willing to compromise over when it comes to who makes partner within my organization.”
“Why do you feel so strongly about a woman staying at home? You have women who work for your company.”
He gave her a thoughtful expression. “My father taught me that a man who has a wife at home depending on him is less likely to leave the company on a wild hair, stealing clients in the process. The kind of man I want to advance in my corporation is a man who has roots and bills and a stay-at-home wife. That’s the man who will be loyal to my company.”
Adeline placed her napkin in her plate. “But your dad lived in a different time. Most women stayed at home. Most families were able to make it on one salary.”
“Partners make more than enough to have their wives at home.”
“But—”
“Shame on you for trying to push Adeline’s buttons,” Mrs. C interrupted. “Your own daughter has a career.” She looked at Debbie. “What does the entertainment committee have planned for this evening?”
“A midnight swim,” Debbie said, throwing a glance at Jack.
“Well, if that’s all you have planned, Adeline and I will join you. Isn’t that right, Adeline?” Mrs. C said. “I think you all might have gotten a little out of control today without us there to chaperone you.”
Mr. Carpenter cleared his throat. “If everyone has finished with their dessert, it’s time for us working stiffs to retire to the meeting room.” He gave his wife a smile. “Darling, if you and Adeline would please excuse us, we have business to take care of. We’ll see you at the pool. At midnight.”
Adeline stood. “No problem. I need to tend to things in the kitchen.”
“And I think I’ll take a nap,” said Mrs. C.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Adeline stood at the entryway to the swimming pool and glanced around.
Jack’s company had reserved the entire area. She thought Jack would come and pick her up. He didn’t. He texted her and said he’d meet her at the pool. She glanced at her two-piece suit. Not a lot to it. But Mrs. C insisted Adeline wear it tonight, telling her she looked 100 times more fabulous than Debbie had earlier in the day.
“There you are,” Mrs. C said. She was wearing a very expensive black swimsuit and a black swimsuit cover up with stylish heels that only certain people could wear around a pool and look perfectly fine doing so.
Adeline knew the swimsuit and cover up were expensive because she had been there when she bought them. She insisted on Adeline buying a swimsuit and cover up at the same store and insisted on buying them for Adeline as a thank-you for keeping her company.
“I’m sorry I’m late.” Adeline was no longer thinking of her as Jack’s boss, but more as a potential friend. Or mentor. Someone who would help her navigate the lifestyle of being married to a partner. Not that she would ever need that type of mentor, but if she did, Mrs. C would be there for her.
“I thought we were going to have to send the search team after you,” Mrs. C scolded.
“I’m sorry.” Adeline glanced at her watch. Fifteen minutes after midnight. Not that late. Her phone had rung several times while she was showering and changing. She didn’t recognize the number, so she didn’t answer it. But she’d waited around to see if they left a message. They didn’t leave a message. Maybe she should have answered.
“I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just lonely.” Mrs. C took Adeline’s swim bag and dropped it by the pool next to a variety of others. “As you can see, they are all still deep in conversations about something. Let’s go get ourselves a drink while we wait on them to decide to break and have some fun.” She took Adeline’s hand and led her away from Jack and his co-workers.
“Are you sure it’s okay for me to be out here?” Adeline asked. “I don’t want your husband to think I’m overstepping my role at the retreat.”
“Don’t you worry about him. As long as I’m happy, he’s happy.”