“No, thanks, dearie,” Gram said. “The mosquitoes eat me alive when I’m outside at night. But I’m sure I’ll catch a view of the fireworks from Debbie and Carl’s screened-in porch. And they’ll have margaritas, too,” she said with a chuckle. “I’ll leave the key to the house under the red, white, and blue flowerpot by the front steps. You just let yourself in whenever you want.”
“Thanks, Gram. I appreciate it. And I’ll look forward to talking with you in person late tonight, if our paths cross, or tomorrow morning for sure. I’ll make you a nice breakfast, okay?”
She laughed lightly. “Okay. Drive safely.”
After he clicked off, Tina slanted him a sideways glance. “Did she say anything about me...or us? Any insinuations at all?”
“Not a bloody word. It’s bizarre.”
“I know. My aunt and uncle haven’t said a single thing about you either, not once so far since we’ve been gone. Although, I still have to call Aunt Debbie today to let her know we’re heading back.”
“She likely already knows. My grandmother, no doubt, has alerted her in the past five minutes. Gram has grown fond of texting.”
Tina Marie nodded, her hair brushing her shoulders in a way that never failed to mesmerize him. “Yeah,” she said.
And, sure enough, when they switched seats so he could take over the next driving shift, she found out that Gram had, indeed, texted her aunt immediately.
“Not a peep about our travels together, though,” she told him. “No jokes. No suggestiveness. No romantic inquiries at all.” She shrugged. “The only thing Aunt Debbie said that referred to you in any way was that my uncle got the car part you needed from the shop. Apparently, he can install it tomorrow.”
This news should have made Trevor happy or, at the very least, relieved. He wouldn’t be stuck in the middle of Nebraska for the rest of his days.
Except...a part of him wished he could be there for a lot longer. But only if Tina Marie was staying, too.
Which she wasn’t, he reminded himself sternly. She’d be gone within twenty-four to forty-eight hours as well. And, dammit, he didn’t like knowing with such certainty that they were supposed to go their separate ways so soon.
~*~
The Annual Town Festival was in full swing by the time they arrived in Sapphire Falls and parked downtown. Everywhere Trevor looked there were people milling around and booths that featured a multitude of desirable things: caramel corn, cotton candy, burgers and brats, “love potions” (or so the sign said), and one booth that was entirely devoted to kissing.
“Gotta love that,” he said, motioning toward it.
She flashed a sexy smile at him. “You don’t need cash on hand or a ticket of any kind to kiss me, Trev.”
“Good to know.” He stopped her just before she walked into the street and kissed her so long and deep that a few teens whistled at them. “Expect me to do that a lot tonight,” he warned.
“Noted,” she said, running her tongue across her lips and staring at him with an expression he couldn’t read, but he desperately wanted to.
Something about her demeanor had shifted slightly since they’d gotten back into town. Like a part of her was already starting to say goodbye to him, and he hated that feeling that she was pulling away.
She pointed out some other attractions—a haunted house, a petting zoo, a dunk tank, a Ferris wheel (he remembered that from when he was a kid), and a beer garden. He bought them a couple of beers and a large bag of caramel corn just as sunset descended upon them. Tina retrieved a blanket from her car to stake out a spot on the riverbank where they could have a clear view of the fireworks. They snuggled together, waiting for the pyrotechnics to begin.
And it did.
A beautiful, awe-inspiring display that lit up the sky with sensory delight and brought back a feeling of childhood magic. Reflections of the bright colors shimmered on the water, mirroring the heavens and enclosing them on every side in a snow globe of wonder.
Tina exhaled happily next to him, just as the finale began. “It’s turning me on,” she murmured. “What’s a word that rhymes with fire?”
“Higher. Wire. Desire.”
“Desire is three syllables,” she said. “But I like it anyway.”
“I like it, too,” he admitted. “And I like you, Tina Marie. So, you’d better be careful. I’m becoming more interested in writing about you and your creative process than even about my big Olympic feature. You’re that intriguing to me.”
She grinned. “Well, since I have no publicity to speak of, as a completely unknown country singer, I could use all the promotion I can get. I’d happily be your subject anytime, Trev.”
“I’m not entirely kidding, you know. What it takes to become a professional musician in such a tough industry would make a great human-interest feature. You’re giving me a way to expand my story idea beyond just sports. Or, maybe, I could write more than one article.”
“Ah, yes. Adding ‘scope’?” she joked.
“You said it.”
He leaned in to kiss her again, effectively preventing them both from seeing the tail end of the light show, but this had already become his favorite fireworks display ever.
The ringing in their ears from the booming had barely subsided when he felt a shadow on his face. Tina must have felt it, too, because she broke away from him and turned toward the two individuals who’d materialized by their blanket. A man and a woman, both in the same general age range as Tina and him, were staring at them. Oddly.
Tina’s body stiffened and, immediately, he knew who this couple must be: the infamous David and Lori.
Aw, shit. Way to spoil a moment.
~*~
Oh, crap, she thought. Of course they’d have to show up here and poison a beautiful night. That was so like her ex and her former best friend. Couldn’t they have just stayed in Omaha and kept the festival for the current residents this year?
David studied her before he spoke. “I hardly recognized you,” he said, although he didn’t imply one way or another whether this was because he thought her appearance had improved. He rarely gave compliments, so, probably not.
She didn’t answer. She just looked between him and Lori and raised an eyebrow. Next to her, she felt Trevor slide even closer, if that were possible, and wrap his arm around her even tighter. It gave her courage.
Lori looked embarrassed by the awkward silence and nudged her new husband, but David didn’t take the hint and go away.
“I heard you were leaving town,” he said, squinting down at her and, then, over at Trevor. “Did you go to Nashville and come back already?”
Ah, there it was. The snotty, condescending tone. She knew the faux neutrality couldn’t last. David was a dick. Funny how she hadn’t really seen that clearly until after he’d cheated on her. Tina almost felt sorry for Lori. Well, okay, not quite, but nearly.
She finally recovered her voice. “I haven’t left yet,” she said, enunciating with overt carefulness, as if speaking to someone too dull witted to understand short sentences. “I’m planning to move in a day or two, but—” She glanced at Trevor and found herself smiling. “I’d wanted to write one more song before I left. A happy one.”
Trevor leaned in and pressed his lips to her cheek. She felt his grin against her skin.
“Tina Marie is an incredible singer,” Trev said, addressing the other couple but not taking his eyes off of her. “I love listening to her voice, even just in the car, singing along with the radio.” Finally, he turned to face David and Lori, something inexplicable glinting in his eyes, hardening them. “It’s rare to meet someone so talented, don’t you agree?”
David’s expression was surprised but icy. “And you are?” he asked rudely.
“The luckiest man in Sapphire Falls tonight,” Trevor shot back. Then he turned to face Tina again, sending her an absolutely adoring look and ratcheting up the PDAs from mere hugging to more obvious shoulder rubbing.
Normally, Tina would’ve ro
lled her eyes if somebody was laying on the love-struck act so thickly.
But, tonight, she didn’t care if Trevor was overdoing it or not. He was clearly perceptive enough to understand that she desperately needed an ally. Just one person who’d stand beside her and remain firmly in her court as she faced down her past. This moment was precisely what had to happen so she could exorcise that bastard David from her soul once and for all. And, man, it felt so good to finally let go of that whole bad experience.
She beamed her most radiant look at Trevor.
“Oh, you’re that reporter, aren’t you?” Lori said. And Tina knew immediately there had been rumors about them already, even if the people who loved them had been downplaying their relationship. Too many others had seen them together (and, let’s face it, she and Trevor hadn’t exactly been subtle tonight), and inevitably talk had begun circulating around town.
Well, so what if it had? She didn’t have anything to prove to anybody anymore—least of all these two mean-spirited former Sapphire Falls residents who’d been trolling for gossip.
Before she could open her mouth to respond, though, the man by her side said, “Indeed, I am a reporter. People who know enough to check their sources, however, would call me Trevor Cayne.”
He played it off as a joke, which the amused twitching of his lips confirmed. But she recognized at once that he was sending the other couple a pointed warning. One that stated as loudly as if he were shouting that he wasn’t impressed with either of them or remotely intimidated by their presence. He didn’t ask for an introduction to them or appear to care one way or another who they were. The quick, dismissive glance he leveled their way only underscored the impression she got that he considered them insignificant.
Which they were. The evil spell they’d cast on her life had been broken once and for all. David and Lori had nothing on her anymore. What a relief that was.
Trevor reached over and gently ran his fingers through the curls on one side of her head. “I think we can come up with more matches for willing,” he murmured almost under his breath, though still loud enough for the other two to overhear.
She chuckled softly at their rhyming joke and responded with “Thrilling.”
“Oooh, I hadn’t thought of that one. I should have.” Trevor was now ignoring David and Lori so completely that Tina almost forgot for a second that they were still standing there.
David cleared his throat. “Well, we probably won’t see you again ‘round here if you’re actually leaving tomorrow.” He made it sound like she was postponing her move to Nashville out of fear of failure. And, perhaps, until recently, a little part of her had been. That wasn’t the case this time, though.
Trevor shrugged, as if any words that left David’s mouth were unimportant and forgettable.
And Tina discovered that her most genuine longing was, in fact, based on two simultaneous truths:
1. Yes, she wanted to contradict anything David might say but, also,
2. She truly wanted to spend more time with Trevor.
“You know, on second thought,” she mused aloud, “I’ll probably stay in Sapphire Falls at least through the end of the festival. Open Mic at the Come Again is on Thursday night, and I think I’d like to play my new song.”
Trevor’s eyes brightened. “Really? That would be excellent. In that case,” he said, as if addressing a crowd of thousands, but still not bothering to look at David and Lori, “if you’re staying here a few more days, I will, too.”
They grinned at each other, not openly acknowledging the departure of the Dreadful Duo, even when Lori said, “Bye, Tina Marie,” and dragged her beloved away.
“They’re gone,” Trevor whispered in her ear.
“I know,” she whispered back. “Thank you for playing along, Trev. I guess I hadn’t realized just how much I needed closure with them. Until tonight.”
“Hey, every word I said was true. Normally, I wouldn’t be so rude to strangers, but that asshat was lucky he didn’t say anything to make me get on my feet.” He paused. “To tell you the truth, he was about three stupid sentences away from me punching the hell out of his face, so it was good that my hands had something better to do.” He ran his fingertips along Tina’s collarbone until she shivered with desire.
“Is your grandmother at home right now?”
Trevor cocked a brow. “I don’t know. When last we spoke, Gram said she’d be watching the fireworks from your aunt and uncle’s screened-in porch and drinking margaritas.”
Tina nodded and took in this information. “Bernadette might not be back for hours, and I need to drive you to her house anyway...”
“That’s true,” Trevor said, his tone hopeful.
“Wanna live dangerously?”
He abruptly stood up on the blanket and pulled her with him. “You don’t know how much, Tina Marie.”
~*~
Trevor had never felt so much affection for any flowerpot as he did for the patriotic one on Gram’s front step, which hid the key to her place.
He also had always loved his grandmother, but never more dearly than he did that night, when she stayed out with Tina’s relatives until almost two a.m. This gave him and his favorite redhead a lot of time to explore the guest bedroom together. And to not have to be at all quiet about it.
Then again, Gram was no dummy.
She must have waited until Tina Marie’s car pulled up into her aunt and uncle’s driveway before leaving for home. In her own way, Trevor figured, his grandmother had probably been trying to set him up with her friends’ niece all along, but she’d just been a lot sneakier than usual this time around.
This theory was only confirmed the next morning when, after Trevor had made good on his promise to fix Gram a homemade breakfast, Tina’s uncle came over to install the missing distributor cap.
Carl worked under the hood of Trevor’s car for just a few minutes. It didn’t take long to correct the problem. When he was done, he said, “You’re set to go, son.”
“Thank you, sir. It’s on tight enough now, right? It won’t, er, mysteriously fall off again?”
The older man chuckled. “Not if your grandmother stays away from it,” he said under his breath. He smiled apologetically at Trevor. “I didn’t know she’d had a hand in its disappearance until after you and Tina Marie were already on your way to Colorado. Let’s just say, Bernie’s intentions were good, but her methods...well...” He shrugged. “Sorry.”
Trevor couldn’t help but laugh. “It’s all right. I figured as much. Besides, the change in plans gave me a chance to get know your niece. She’s a remarkable woman, sir.”
Carl smiled. “That she is. I’m glad—” He paused. “I’m glad she met you Trevor. Even if your time together is brief. I like seeing her happy again.”
“I like seeing her happy, too.”
Once Trevor had his own wheels back, he found himself driving around Sapphire Falls, taking in the town. He was looking at it with new eyes now. Until last night, he’d only seen it as the stomping grounds where his dad had grown up and where his grandparents had spent most of their lives.
But, now, he saw Tina Marie everywhere, too. He imagined the little red-haired girl she must have been at age five—a kindergartener at the grade school. He could see her as a teenager taking a ride on the Ferris wheel with her friends or visiting the local grocery store to pick up some milk for her aunt or working part time at the diner as a waitress.
This was the wonderful town that had helped to shape who she became. And, sure, there were people who used to live here that hadn’t been kind to her...but there were also people, including many who still lived her, that loved and supported her. No matter how big her musical dreams or her desire to go to Nashville, he knew it wouldn’t be easy for her to leave her home.
Much as he would have preferred to spend every waking moment of Wednesday with her, Tina admitted she had some serious packing to do. “And laundry,” she texted. “Oh, my word. I’ve had a batch waiting for me
since Saturday, and it’s only mushroomed since then.”
“You promised me a stop at Scott’s Sweets, though. Chocolate-covered strawberries. Cocoa-dusted almonds. Remember?”
“Of course I do! And there’s the crowning of the Festival King and Queen, too, so we can look forward to some fun later, if we both get our work done.”
He sent an unhappy face emoji in response.
“Shouldn’t you be writing?” she texted.
“Slave driver,” he replied. Then, “Well, yeah.”
“LOL.”
“And Gram’s introducing me to Tyler Bennett, who I’ll be interviewing briefly this afternoon. I’m sure you know him. Everyone knows everyone in Sapphire Falls.”
“Yes, and Ty’s a great guy as well as an incredible athlete. You’ll like him. You already met his mom—Kathy from the book club—and his brother, Tucker, at the bar.”
“As I said, everyone knows everyone. Reminds me of Mirabelle Harbor. Different states, same sense of connection,” he typed.
The mention of home reminded him that he’d better check in with his boss soon. Lillian King had sent him a couple of emails since he’d left the Gazette office on Friday, but he’d been too busy since then to respond. He remembered with a pang of guilt that he’d promised he’d be back to work within a week. If he stayed to listen to Tina Marie sing at the Open Mic tomorrow night, there was no way he’d be back in time. He’d have to let his boss know that he’d be returning home over the weekend. Monday morning at the latest. He hoped Lillian would be understanding.
He and Tina made plans to meet up later, and Trevor threw himself into the spirit of the day.
Just as both Gram and Tina had said, Ty Bennett was awesome. As an Olympic Silver Medalist, he knew a lot about shooting for his athletic dreams and even said that he’d hoped to start a triathlon training facility in Sapphire Falls once he retired from competition.
Trevor spent an enjoyable hour chatting with the guy at Dottie’s Diner, and then he spent some quality time alone with his laptop, working on the feature story for the magazine. It was shaping up, slowly but surely, into a tightly written and sparkly piece of prose.
Sapphire FallsGoing For It Page 7