“Do you think you'll start dating again sometime?” Jaelynn asked, demeanor curious and teasing. “You're getting old, you know.”
“Don't I know it.” He chuckled. “Well, I'd like to, kiddo. Just haven't met anyone yet.”
She knit her brow and looked out over the creek. “Yeah. Me neither.”
He opened his mouth to respond but promptly shut it. He'd had this conversation with her before and decided to let it go this time. There had been a special man in her life but she'd cut all ties with him after the accident. She'd been head over heels in love with that guy, and for the hundredth time he wondered why she was unwilling to try and win him back.
Chapter 10
Dakota awoke late Sunday morning with a headache and a vague recollection of drinking too much. Rain pattered on the rooftop and her room was gray. She'd come home alone last night, her interest in Michel having fizzled and gone out already like so many birthday cake sparklers. She'd decided to move on for now. Conversation with him wasn't stimulating at all and looks could only go so far. It was time to find someone who was sexy and interesting.
Like Jason.
Handsome, talented, intelligent…
But perhaps Jason only seemed more interesting than other men because he was, as yet, unattainable. A “wanting what she couldn't have” scenario. Nevertheless, she wondered if they had anything in common. Maybe a shared interest in nature? Groaning, she rolled out of bed and trudged to the bathroom. Why was she even thinking about having things in common with Jason? No matter how appealing he was, she still didn't want a lasting relationship with any one man.
She brushed her teeth, took a shower, dried her hair and applied her makeup. As usual, making sure to hide the smatter of freckles across her nose and cheeks. She fastened her trusted talisman around her neck and because it was still raining outside, decided to wear casual jeans and a v-neck top, rather than shorts and tank. She pulled her hair up into a bejeweled claw clip, grabbed her purse and an umbrella, and headed outside to her vehicle.
Clarice was expecting her for a late lunch.
When she reached Shanty Bay, she parked at The Village Milk, a small convenience store, and dashed inside. The rain was coming down hard. Taking a second to compose herself and to pat her damp hair, she glanced around the two-aisled store and thought about what she needed. Clarice was out of milk.
At the back of the store a tall man with strong shoulders was perusing the rack of videos and DVD's available for rent. There was something familiar about the shape of his head, the way his sandy hair curled slightly at the nape of his neck…
She lifted a hand to her heart in surprise. It was Jason. Had to be. But what was he doing out in Shanty Bay?
She hurried up behind him and squeezed his shoulders. He turned around startled and she flashed him a brilliant smile.
“Oh… Dakota,” he said. “How are ya?” His eyes told her she was the last person on earth he'd expected to see here. He was wearing flat-front pants and a button-down shirt; dressier than she'd ever seen him before. She wracked her brain a moment and realized he'd probably spent the morning at church somewhere.
“I'm great,” she said, grinning broadly. “Surprised to see you way out here though!”
He smiled and splayed his fingers over his hips, stance casual. “Yeah, well, I live out here. What are you doing out here?”
“You live out here?” All this time he lived out here and she didn't even know? She shifted her weight to one foot, resting a hand on her jutting hip. “For how long? I was born an' raised here.”
“Really.” His brow lifted showing mild interest. “Same here.”
“No kidding.” She cocked her head and peered up at him coyly. In the tight quarters of the store, there wasn't a lot of space for two people. If he were to step back, he'd bump into a shelf. They were standing only a foot apart and she had no intention of giving him space. She liked this close proximity—she could smell his cologne and feel his body heat. Her belly warmed, pulse picking up a notch. Blinking once, she flashed him another smile; realizing she'd zoned in on his lips for too long.
“So, um, do you have family here?” he asked, looking uncomfortable.
She nodded. “Well, kinda. A close friend of the family. I visit her every other Sunday. Clarice Beaumont—do you know her?”
He shook his head. “No, don't think so.”
She wanted to kiss him. Right then and there. Just stand up on her tippy-toes and kiss him. He looked so appealing, so warm… and that dimple in his left cheek when he smiled…
“Well, um, I should get back to it,” he said, tone polite.
He was dismissing her.
She cocked her head again and smiled once more, hoping he wouldn't see the let down in her eyes. “Mmhm. You take care now.” She forced a blithe look, saying, “I'll see you Tuesday night!” as she turned to leave.
“About Tuesday—”
Dakota met his eyes again, heart sinking.
“Do you mind if I bring my sister along?” he asked. “She's visiting for the week and wants to watch me work.”
“Sure,” she said, masking her hesitation. She pinched out a closed-lip smile. “Of course that's fine.”
“Great! I'll see you then.” He turned back to the movie selection, reaching for a DVD, and Dakota went off to find the milk.
Great, just great. So much for spending time with Jason Tuesday night. His sister? Wow, that sounded fun. Just how was she supposed to get close to him that way? They needed one-on-one time if she was ever going to seduce him.
She'd have to figure something out…
Forcing herself not to look his way again, she paid for her purchase and made the dash back to her water-streaked car.
***
Dakota hurried home from work early Tuesday afternoon so she'd have time to touch up her roots. Ash-blond wasn't her real color but she'd sported it for more than half a dozen years now and most people didn't realize it was a box product. Her natural hair was orange-brown—a pale shade of amber. She hated it. It was hard enough to conceal her freckles with makeup, let alone managing a mop of Anne of Green Gables locks. It was too much of a plain country-girl look. She preferred to look high society—Hollywood sophisticated.
So, Jason was bringing his sister with him tonight.
Yay.
Kind of a downer but maybe having the sister around would give her more of an excuse to sit and talk instead of having to leave him alone which he seemed to prefer. Might as well pull up a chair and use the sister to get to know him better; try and establish a friendship of sorts. Maybe this was actually a good thing.
After a light supper, she dried her hair, curling it softly, and applied a liberal dose of paint to her features. She considered herself an expert when it came to makeup. She'd practiced many a technique and had the skill down to a science. No garish colors and crooked eyebrow lines. She was a perfectionist when it came to her looks; to her flowers and gardening as well. Not a single color or “decoration” out of place. She knew well enough that perfectly applied, sensuous makeup was key in the art of seducing a man.
Satisfied that her looks could kill, she went downstairs and brewed a pot of coffee, noting that Jason was due to arrive in only a few minutes. When the doorbell rang, she scooted into the hallway bathroom to double-check her reflection, and slowed her step as she reached the front door. Breathing composed, she pulled open the door with a fresh smile playing on her lips.
Jason wore painting jeans and a T-shirt. To his left was a petite young woman with chin-length hair and a delicate jawline. Dakota guessed her to be no more than twenty. She was leaning on a crutch and smiling affably.
“Hello-hello,” Jason greeted, a pleasant grin on his lips.
How could he be so friendly and so reserved at the same time? She waved them into the house, keeping her smile bright. “Come on in guys.”
“This is my sister, Jaelynn,” he explained as the girl leaned on her crutch and stepped over the thres
hold. He moved in after her, a hand on her upper back and placed his tote bag on the floor.
Dakota smiled stiffly at the girl and nodded a greeting. “Nice to meet you.”
Jaelynn nodded her agreement, smiling.
“Sprained ankle?”
The girl glanced down at her feet. “Um, no, uh, I—”
“Do I smell coffee?” Jason interrupted with a grin.
“You bet.” She winked at him, catching his eye. “Follow me and I'll get you both a cup.” She turned for the kitchen but didn't miss the glance Jaelynn exchanged with her brother. It seemed a look of gratitude. Dakota wondered if she'd somehow said something offensive. Shrugging it off, she led them to the kitchen where mugs, cream and sugar were already laid out on the counter next to the carafe.
Jason poured a cup for his sister, dressing it the way she liked it, and they made their way back to the living room where he set down the coffees atop the step ladder and unloaded his tote bag on the floor. “Do you have a chair nearby Jaelynn can sit on?” he asked, uncapping several bottles of paint and glancing at Dakota as she entered the room.
“Oh, yes, of course.” Abandoning her coffee mug to an end table, she ducked into the dining room and carried two chairs back to the living room, setting them up to face Jason's mural. She retrieved her coffee and plunked down in the seat next to Jaelynn, determined to stare at Jason's gorgeous body to her heart's content. Jaelynn would be her excuse to linger.
As she sat down, Jason cast a wary glance over his shoulder; a look which suggested he was aware of her ploy. Well, so what. Since when was she in the business of hiding her attraction from a man? Let him feel uncomfortable for a while. He'd start to like it soon enough. Who wouldn't? She was beautiful and charming—he could only resist for so long.
“So, Jay tells me you own 'Reilly's Flowers'?”
Dakota nodded at the young woman, peeling her gaze from Jason's backside. “Yes, I do,” she said with a smile.
Jaelynn took a sip from her mug and licked her lips. Shifting in her chair, she crossed a stiff-looking leg over the other. What was wrong with her leg anyway?
“What do you do?” Dakota asked. “Are you working somewhere… Or in school maybe?”
She shook her head, thin hair swishing. “No, um, not right now. Sort of taking some time off.”
Time off from what? Dakota took several sips from her mug and struggled to come up with something more to say. Jason was working swiftly and with great concentration but she could tell he was listening to their conversation as well. If you could even call it a conversation.
The awkwardness grew, becoming a giant bubble. She could almost see it floating there between them.
Now what…
Jaelynn uncrossed her legs and worked her lips as she glanced about the room. Either she'd run out of small talk questions herself, or just didn't care about the growing silence.
“Do you share your brother's gift for painting?”
Jaelynn whipped her gaze back to Dakota and smiled. A crooked half smile. “No, not really.” She leaned forward and set her mug on the plastic-covered floor.
Forcing back a frustrated groan, Dakota blinked and willed a polite smile to her lips. She had hoped the question would lead to at least a couple minutes of conversation. So much for that. Okay, well, this was getting boring—fast.
“So, did you break your ankle?” she asked with an unrestrained note of impatience. “Or sprain it?” Maybe the apparent injury was her reason for “taking some time off.” But time off from what? McDonald's? The Tim Horton's drive-thru? She was barely a woman. Maybe twenty was being generous—maybe she was only eighteen.
Jaelynn's gray eyes seemed to darken. She looked away. When she started working her lips again, Dakota thought she was going to outright ignore the question.
“Actually, I wish it were as simple as that,” she said, fidgeting with her hands in her lap. Bending forward, she retrieved her mug and wrapped her hands around it like a lifeline. Her knuckles turned white. Jason paused, paintbrush mid-air, and turned toward them, his brow drawn. “It's okay, Jay,” she said, giving her brother a soft smile. “I'm used to it.”
She turned back to Dakota then. “I was in a car accident a couple years ago. I… lost my leg.”
Chapter 11
Dakota nearly choked on her coffee. “I—I'm so sorry,” she fumbled, heat creeping into her cheeks. “I… didn't realize.”
“Of course you didn't,” Jaelynn said with an accepting smile. “And it's okay.”
Dakota wasn't used to delicate situations. She preferred lighthearted conversations with women, and flirtatious ones with men. Generally, she avoided anything deeper; Clarice being the only exception. So what to do now? She wanted desperately to change the subject but sensed Jason would disdain her for doing so. This was his sister, after all.
She needed to act like a caring person.
“How, um, how has the recovery… been?” she asked.
Jaelynn loosened her death grip on the mug and her shoulders seemed to relax. “It's been… hard. But I'm learning how to walk on my own and I'm excited about that.” She grinned. “Once this crutch is gone, I hope to feel like a normal person again. At least then no one will notice me anymore.”
“Wow—” Dakota shook her head back and forth slowly. “I would just die if anything like that happened to me. You must be so strong.”
A laugh. “Not strong. Not really. I just keep trusting God. He let this happen, so he must have good in mind.”
That struck a nerve.
“Good in mind? Ha. If there's a God who would let this happen to a sweet little girl like you, he must be evil.”
“I pretty much thought so too—at first. But eventually, I had to remind myself that God never promised me life would be a bed of roses. I could've died in that crash. And I may have”—she seemed to grimace—“lost my leg, but… at least I'm still here.” She shrugged, a wane smile on her thin lips.
Dakota glanced at Jason. He'd resumed painting but his shoulders were visibly stiff. She turned back to Jaelynn. “If God is good, he wouldn't have let you get in that car accident in the first place. No offense.” She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned. “How can you still believe in God after going through all that?”
The look in Jaelynn's eyes was one of sorrow, but there was something else in there too.
Courage.
Respect welled within Dakota. This girl was looking more and more like a woman every moment.
“My father was driving,” Jaelynn began, speaking in a hushed tone. “We were hit head on by a drunk driver. Dad was killed instantly.” She brushed an imaginary piece of fluff off her corduroyed knee. “I used to ask myself the same question—If God is good, why'd he let that happen to us?” She smiled at Dakota. “And for the longest time, I couldn't think of an answer.” Another shrug. “Then one day, I thought about the driver—the guy who crashed into us. I thought about how he'd been drinking and was high on drugs, and I just realized, you know, that what happened to us was a consequence of his poor choices.”
Dakota just stared at the girl, appraising her silently as she went on.
“If God started preventing everything bad from happening to all the good people in the world, bad people would get away with everything. And then what? Without consequence, evil would reign all the more—” She laughed ironically but grew serious again. “The way I look at it, God allows negative consequences to take their course because if evil didn't result in suffering, it would no longer be considered wrong. That's how I know God is good, despite all the suffering in the world. He gives us the freedom to make our own choices.”
“Okay then,” Dakota lifted her chin, narrowing her eyes, “why doesn't God put a stop to evil itself? Nip it in the bud? Destroy all the evil people with a snap of his fingers. Let us good people just live together in peace and harmony.”
Jaelynn chuckled; the reserve she'd shown just minutes prior long gone. “We-ll, Dakota,” she said
, a glint in her eye, “how about you define evil for me. Tell me what classifies something as evil and something as good.”
Dakota uncrossed her arms and crossed her legs instead, considering how to respond.
“Okay, how about this—” Jaelynn continued. “Have you ever done something wrong? I'm not trying to be rude here. It's basically rhetorical.”
She laughed. “Depends what you mean by 'wrong,' I guess.” A wink.
Jaelynn raised a slender eyebrow. “That's my point exactly. We all have different morals and values depending on how we were raised… our life circumstances… our religion or lack of it… ”
Dakota was beginning to miss the awkward silence and figured Jaelynn must have an aversion to mere small talk. What had she got herself into?
The young woman's eyes were bright as she spoke. There was no stopping her now.
“What's right for me might be wrong for you,” she said. “So, what happens if what's 'right' for me actually hurts you?” She hesitated then as though uncertain if she should continue. Jason glanced over his shoulder at Dakota and she winked at him.
She turned her gaze back on Jaelynn and nodded; prompting the girl to continue.
“Think of 9/11,” she said. “Those Islamic terrorists believed they were doing the 'right' thing when they crashed their planes into the World Trade Centers. But the rest of us saw their actions as evil.”
Dakota blinked, searching her mind for a retort; though she had to agree with the girl on that regard. “Well, that's why I don't believe in God,” she said simply. “If he was a good God, he would make all of us good, too—He wouldn't even allow evil people to exist.”
“So, you're saying that because there's evil in the world, it disproves the existence of God?”
A White Rose Page 6