Dune Drive

by Mariah Stewart

  “My son, Nicky.” Delia turned to Nick and took his arm in an elegant motion. “Shall we?’

  Nick nodded. “Indeed we shall.”

  Sharon followed with her clipboard, leaving Chrissie standing alone in the foyer, and in a direct line to Jared.

  Jared, who was still looking at her.

  At first, Chrissie’d told herself he’d been watching Delia and Nick walk toward the family gathered in the front of the room, but no. He was definitely looking at Chrissie. She could feel a blush wash through her entire body under his gaze.

  The look in his eyes did not say Hey, buddy.

  The rehearsal dinner was everything Chrissie’d expected it would be, with delicious food and wine and champagne toasts; but she escaped to her room as soon as she could, mostly because she wanted to avoid being alone with Jared at any cost. When he suggested they take a walk out to see the moon, she begged off, claiming her headache had returned. Alone in her room, she changed into a nightshirt and sat in a chair near the window where she could see the big yellow moon just fine, without complications. She knew being anything other than just friends with Jared would be a complication.

  She’d been doing so well. She’d found a job she really enjoyed, working with people she liked who encouraged her and appreciated her skills. Not unlike Rob at Luna. She’d give anything to be able to call him and tell him about Blossoms, to invite him and Jim to come visit and meet Ruby and Owen, and yes, Jared. But she didn’t dare make that call. She still sent Rob photos once in a while, still without captions, sometimes of the island, sometimes of dishes she’d prepared. She still didn’t trust Doug to stop looking, because her gut told her otherwise. She didn’t understand why, other than the fact that she’d put one over on him. His ego would not accept a blow like that. In his mind, she’d have to be punished, but he’d have to find her first, and she’d done everything possible to prevent that.

  She may have put him behind her, but the effects of his abuse were long lasting. She would have expected by now she’d be able to spend time with a man and not be on edge. The funny thing was, she didn’t feel that sense of dread when she was with Jared. But as soon as she realized that, she went on alert, as if she truly believed there was no such thing as a safe relationship. No such thing as a man who didn’t manipulate, no such thing as a man who wouldn’t try to break you.

  She’d been broken once, but now she was healing. Why would she even consider being anything other than a friend to a man who could break not just her spirit but her heart as well? She wasn’t sure there was a difference. Either way, something in you was broken.

  Not fair, a little voice inside her whispered. Not fair to make Jared pay for Doug’s sins. Was that what she was doing by avoiding him? Did she really think she could avoid him for the entire weekend?

  Too many deep thoughts brought the headache back for real. When Jared knocked on her door later to ask how she was feeling, she sank into her pillow and lay silent, hoping he’d think she was asleep and go away. She hated feeling like such a coward; it went against everything she knew about New Chrissie. But she still couldn’t face Jared alone until she sorted out how she really felt about him, and what she was prepared to do about it.

  Chapter Ten

  He’d scared her. He’d seen it in her eyes the moment the words left his mouth. He hadn’t meant to; he couldn’t help but notice how pretty she looked, and who wouldn’t smile when they looked at a beautiful woman? He’d had a feeling that things would be different between them than they’d been in St. Dennis, and he’d spent several nights in hot debate with himself before he’d asked her to be his date for the weekend. He’d meant it when he’d said no pressure, that he recognized they were just friends, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t hoped maybe something more might develop between them.

  He hadn’t seen that coming, hadn’t meant for that to happen, but there it was.

  Chrissie Jenkins was not like any woman he’d ever met. She had a straightforward way about her, said what she thought, didn’t act like a diva, didn’t act like she was doing him a favor by spending time with him. If he were to be honest with himself—and he’d recently decided it was time—most of his relationships with women had been mostly superficial, beginning because he liked the way a woman looked, liked the way she moved, and ending when someone else came along whose looks caught his eye. Chrissie seemed unaware of how pretty she was, even on their walks around town, wearing no makeup and whatever clothes she felt comfortable in. He liked that about her. He liked that they’d had conversations about their families and about what was important to them, about what they wanted to do with their lives. Seeing her here—with his family, the people who mattered most to him—seeing how she interacted with them and them with her, the easy way she fit into the big picture, made him realize he wanted her to be more than his friend Chrissie. He just didn’t know how to make that happen. He couldn’t help the way he looked at her when she appeared the way she had tonight—and that had sent her running to her room with a “headache.”

  Of course, there was always the possibility that she just wasn’t attracted to him. Jared didn’t have a lot of experience with situations like that, but he knew he’d been a fool to think every woman he was attracted to would be equally attracted to him. If that was the case with Chrissie, he’d have to respect her feelings if they were to remain at the very least friends. He’d rather have friend Chrissie than no Chrissie at all.

  Yeah, she’d really gotten to him.

  For the first time in his life, Jared didn’t know what to say to a woman or how to act around her. It was a totally unexpected turn of events, one that had kept him tossing and turning all night.

  The morning of the wedding was a perfect June day. The dew dried early, the flowers in the gardens were in full bloom, the sun was shining, and there was a sweet breeze blowing to scatter the fragrance of the peonies across the patio, where everyone had gathered after breakfast.

  Jared had been watching for Chrissie, and when she appeared in the doorway, he’d fixed her a cup of coffee he’d poured from the carafe on the table.

  “Oh, thanks.” She’d smiled, though she hadn’t met his eyes. She took a sip of coffee, then said, “It’s just the way I like it. Thanks.”

  “I’m very observant,” he told her. “How’d you sleep? Are you feeling better?”

  “I slept well, thanks. And I do feel better.”

  “What would you like to do today? Anyplace you’d like to go or see?” he asked.

  “Not really. How ’bout you?”

  “We don’t have as much free time today since the wedding is at four. So anything we do, we should be back here in time to get ready for the wedding,” he said.

  “We’re taking all the kids to the petting zoo this morning, back in time for afternoon naps so no one has a meltdown tonight. No guarantees on that, of course.” Rachel had apparently overheard their conversation. “Are you man enough to come with us, Jared?”

  “Doesn’t that sound like fun, Uncle Jared?” Rachel’s six-year-old son, Dylan, tugged on his arm. “Wanna come?”

  “Ummm . . . what are the other options?” Jared consulted his phone. To Chrissie he said, “We could do Longwood Gardens. Or the Delaware Art Museum. That’s relatively close.”

  “We talked about Longwood yesterday. How far is that?” Chrissie asked.

  “Maybe twenty minutes, give or take a few.” Jared looked up from his phone. “Totally doable.”

  “We’ve been, many times,” Zoey told them. “It’s wonderful, a former Du Pont estate. We take the kids several times every year because they have such fun things for them. And we never miss their Christmas display. Really, you should go.”

  “If you go, you won’t want to leave,” Delia cautioned. “You’ll fall under its spell and miss the wedding and Gordon will have no best man and years from now the grandchildren will be looking at the photos from our wedding and asking, ‘Where was Uncle Jared?’ ”

  “And
we’ll have to tell them you were tiptoeing through the tulips,” Rachel said.

  “Nah, there’s no way I’m missing this party tonight,” Jared told them. “We’ll be back in plenty of time.” He turned to Chrissie. “What do you say? Longwood?”

  She nodded. “Sounds good.”

  Delia threw up her hands. “You’ve been warned.”

  • • •

  AFTER WALKING THE magnificent grounds, through the park, then on to the varied beautiful gardens, Chrissie began to fade.

  “There’s a café,” Jared said. “Let’s grab a bite and then we’ll see what time it is.”

  “Good idea. After yesterday’s hike through the hills at the battlefield, I don’t think I’m up to another all-day walk-a-thon.”

  “Half-day walk-a-thon,” he corrected her. “Delia asked us to be back by around two.”

  “We’ll make it.”

  Jared looked at the map again. “We’re right here.” He showed her. “The café is in the Terrace, over here. Between here and there is the Hillside Garden. We can go along this path, along the Allees, past the Main Fountain Gardens, and right on over to the café.”

  “I love a man with a plan,” Chrissie said.

  Jared liked the sound of that. He knew it was just an expression, but it brought a smile to his face.

  “It all sounds so very French.”

  “As it should. The Du Ponts were originally from France, I’m pretty sure.”

  “I think we should have picked up a brochure in the visitor center.”

  “We can get one on the way out.” He paused in front of the sign that pointed to the Hillside Garden. Ahead of them clouds of color swayed in the light breeze.

  “Oh, lilies,” Chrissie said as she walked a little faster. “I love lilies. And daisies. And oh, look at all the pretties. I can’t even imagine how many people they have working here. How many expert gardeners it must take to care for all of these. And oh, look, Jared, those white flowers. Do you know what they are?”

  He had no idea, but the delight that shone on her face made him want to find out so he could buy her an armful. She had the same reaction to the fountains, and for a moment she danced, a pirouette, a leap, another spin—moves perhaps remembered from a long-ago ballet class—then caught herself, remembering, no doubt, that she was in a public place.

  “Sorry,” she whispered, her face turning pink as she looked around and saw other visitors smiling at her. “I got carried away.”

  “Don’t apologize.” Jared couldn’t help but smile as well. “I like to see you happy. And I’m willing to bet that more than one of them”—he nodded in the direction of the others—“feel like dancing, too.”

  They grabbed a quick lunch in the café, then went back through the visitor center, where Chrissie nabbed several brochures.

  “I want to know what else is here,” she told Jared. “In case I want to come back. I feel like we’ve missed a lot.”

  “Judging from the map, I’m pretty sure we didn’t see even half of the gardens. You just let me know when you’re up for another trip.”

  Jared took her hand as they walked out of the center and into the sunshine. When they got to the car, he gave her hand a gentle squeeze before he let go so she could get in, and she squeezed back. He knew it was ridiculous for such a small gesture on her part to make him smile, but he didn’t care. The entire day had been easy and had made her happy, and just then, that was all that mattered to him. She’d danced by the fountains, and the sight of her twirling around had lifted his heart. He was pretty sure it was an image that would stay with him for a long, long time.

  • • •

  THEY MISSED GETTING back to Delia’s at two o’clock by a full half hour, but there was still plenty of time to shower and get dressed. There seemed to be a dozen florists buzzing about the house, bringing in garlands of orchids and urns filled with peonies. Huge pots of roses flanked the fireplace, and outside on the patio, tall trellises covered with climbing roses in deep pots were set in place. The entire house smelled as if it were in bloom. Delia hadn’t wanted the florals brought in too early because she wanted everyone to be surprised when they came downstairs after getting dressed for the wedding.

  Jared finished tying his tie, then went downstairs to await the others. In the absence of his father and Delia, Jared played host to the few invited friends: Delia’s agent, several neighbors, a few booksellers who’d become close friends of Delia’s, two men who’d been members of Gordon’s crew for over twenty years and their wives, and, to Jared’s surprise, Grace Sinclair.

  “Grace. I didn’t know you were coming.” He greeted her with outstretched arms.

  “I hadn’t seen you since I’d received the invitation,” she said, “or I’d have mentioned it. Assuming I’d remember. I seem to need to write notes to myself every day, then of course half the time I forget where I put them. I’m at the age where I find growing old a pain, but I recognize the alternative is much worse. Delia’s home is lovely, just the way I knew it would look. Beautiful grounds, and her gardens are magnificent. I sneaked a peek on my way in.”

  “How did you get here? Surely you didn’t drive.” He moved out of the foyer with her and into the living room.

  “Delia told me to bring a guest—something about uneven numbers at the tables for dinner—so I asked Barbara Noonan to come along. You know, of course, that she’s the owner of Book ’Em in St. Dennis and knows Delia well from the many times she’s signed her books at Barbara’s store,” Grace explained. “She should be along any moment, she’s just parking her car.”

  As if on cue, Barbara entered the foyer and spied Grace and Jared.

  “Jared, hi—oh look, there’s Rita Cramer from Mama Loves Books in Salisbury.” To Grace and Jared, Barbara said, “We belong to the same independent booksellers’ organization. Excuse me for just a minute . . .”

  “How nice for her to find an old friend to chat with,” Grace said. “Now, is there something you should be doing instead of keeping me company, Jared?”

  “I’m just door tending.” He signaled one of the waiters who’d just come from the kitchen with a tray of champagne flutes. He lifted a glass and handed it to Grace, saying, “Here’s something to sip while we wait for the ceremony to begin.”

  Georgia and Zoey were coming down the steps in long dresses in different shades of hot pink, several guests were arriving, and the string quartet had started to set up next to the fireplace in the living room. Jared excused himself to Grace and greeted the guests, made sure they had champagne, and showed them where to go. Sharon, the minister, arrived, and she, too, was given champagne and shown into the living room.

  “Looking good, bro.” Rachel came up behind him, a small boy on each hand.

  “Wow. You look pretty good yourself.” Jared kissed his sister on the cheek, for just one moment recalling how she’d looked at an Easter egg hunt one year in a dress that same color. Sometimes it was hard for him to remember that his little sister was one guy’s wife and mother to two more. If he had more time to think about it, he might become nostalgic over how quickly the years had passed and how little time he’d shared with his sister. Time wasted was time you couldn’t get back, their aunt Bess used to tell them, so choose wisely how you spend it. Looking at Rachel with her sons made him wish he’d spent more time with her before her life and his had taken different directions. “So is pink the color of the day?”

  “Delia wanted us all to be her attendants and said the style of dress was up to each of us; she didn’t care that they’d be different. But she wanted us all to wear any shade of pink, as long as it wasn’t pale pink.”

  “I’ve been told the correct term is blush this year,” Chrissie said.

  “Ah yes, I did read that somewhere.” Rachel nodded. “Oh, for heaven’s sake, Jeremy . . .” Her youngest took off down the hall headed for the back door, and she took off behind him. “Dylan, you stay with Uncle Jared until you see your daddy.”

  Jare
d turned to Chrissie, and anything he might have said was lost. She’d changed into a long dress that sent shades of blues and greens shimmering when she moved. She’d done something different with her hair, pulled it all to one side so it flowed over her shoulder. She wore long sparkly earrings that swayed when she moved, and strappy high heels in shades of blue leather.

  “You look beautiful,” he said when he found his voice. “You look like a mermaid.”

  “Now I suppose you’re going to tell me you’ve seen mermaids along with your UFOs,” she teased.

  “I think you’re the only one.”

  “Well, then, thank you.”

  A touch of pink spread from the skin at the low V of her neckline to her forehead. He wished he could reach out and follow that pretty blush with the tips of his fingers.

  “You look pretty, too.” Chrissie straightened his tie.

  “Jared, your dad’s coming down now.” Zoey poked him in the back just as Sam showed up to take Dylan off Jared’s hands. “Could you make sure the strings are ready to start playing? They probably should be anyway, while we’re waiting for Mom.”

  “Sure. Chris, they’re passing out champagne somewhere. We’ll get you a glass and find you a place in the living room. Oh.” He snapped his fingers. “Grace is here.”

  “Grace? Grace Sinclair?” Her brows knit together.

  Jared nodded. “I was surprised, too.” He took her arm, her warm skin soft under his fingers. He hoped there’d be music later, so he could put his arms around her and slow dance her around the patio.

  “Oh, there’s Grace. And Barbara, too. Go do your best man things. We’ll catch up after the ceremony.” Chrissie tossed a smile over her shoulder to Jared, snagged a glass of champagne from the nearest waiter, and joined Grace and Barbara at one side of the room.

  The musicians were given their final instructions, and at promptly four o’clock, Jared accompanied his father to stand in front of the fireplace. Next the five ladies in shades of pink made their way to the front of the room, followed by three little girls in fluffy white dresses with bright pink sashes and tiny pink flowers in their hair. Soon all the players were in place except for the bride.