by LuAnn McLane
“Yep.” Jimmy scrubbed a hand down his face.
“Dude, look, you have to elaborate. One-word answers won’t cut it.”
“Okay.” Jimmy raised his eyebrows and finally looked over at Jesse. “I think I’m … maybe kinda falling for her.”
“Say what?” Jesse sat up so fast that he sloshed beer down his bare chest, but he didn’t seem to notice. “Like falling as in falling-in-love falling?”
Jimmy nodded slowly. “I think so. But how the hell do you know?”
“You’re asking me?” Jesse raised his arms akimbo. “I’m a serial dater, remember?”
“I think that’s an overstatement.”
Jesse lifted one shoulder. “Then not far from it. My problem is as soon as I start to experience warm and fuzzy feelings, I bolt. But you?” Jesse shook his head. “You just avoid dating pretty much entirely. We’re both kinda fucked, I guess.”
“Why is that?” Jimmy asked. “Even though I know.”
“Uh, yeah.” Jesse took a deep swallow of his beer. “Well, the whole boy-band thing, for starters. Girls were after us just for the famous part bullshit. Our adolescence was anything but normal. We never learned how to date, approach a girl in the hallway at school.” He crushed his empty beer can in his hand. “But you know all this.”
“Yeah. But how did Grady and Oliver manage to overcome all that?”
“They’re both with people from their past. Arabella and Belinda were aware of the pitfalls of the music industry and weren’t fangirls after some fantasy. I think people forget we’re not just posters on a wall, but bleed red just like everybody else. I mean, I know our glory days are done, and I kinda thought living here in Sea Breeze would help us keep a low profile after we moved back to be with Mom. But after the success of the reunion concert and the hit single, well …” Jesse shrugged. “Once again, it makes it hard to tell what’s real and what’s just an obsession with Heartbeat.”
“Do you ever wish we’d never done the whole boy-band thing?” Jimmy asked. He’d sure wondered what a normal life would have felt like sometimes. Then again, he’d always suffered from stage fright and was never comfortable with the celebrity part of success to begin with.
Jesse shook his head. “No, but then you know how I love attention,” he said with a grin. “But mainly because it brought such joy for Mom and took her mind off losing Dad—or at the very least, it was a distraction. And now we get to use our celebrity status to continue to raise money for the lupus foundation. So yeah, the pain-in-the-ass part was worth it.”
After a moment, Jimmy nodded. “You’re right. If given the chance, I’d do it all over again too.”
“Okay, we’re straying from the subject. Tell me more about the lovely Maggie you’ve been falling for so fast. I knew you were into her when I mentioned wanting to get to know her a few months ago and you got shitty with me.”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Uh, you did.”
“Whatever. Well, one of the cool things is that she doesn’t seem to know that I was part of Heartbeat, or indicated she was ever a fan.”
“Seriously?”
“Is your ego hurt?”
“Kinda.”
Jimmy tipped his head back and laughed but then shrugged. “I gotta say it’s damned sweet to just be the songwriter guy next door without dealing with the Heartbeat thing.”
“I hear ya, but Maggie must be about the age to have been a Heartbeat fan back in the day. Are you sure she doesn’t know who you are?”
“I never asked if she did, and I never mentioned my last name on purpose. Our mailboxes only have numbers.”
“Interesting.” Jesse grinned. “Then again, maybe you haven’t stayed as young-looking as I have and she hasn’t recognized you.” He patted his chest and then asked, “Where’s she from?”
“Cleveland.”
“We performed there a few times. You really think she hasn’t put two and two together? Especially living here in Sea Breeze?”
“I dunno, Jesse. She travels a lot promoting motivational books she writes for young women. She said she hasn’t been out much except for walks on the beach.”
“It’s not like there’s a ‘Welcome to Sea Breeze’ sign with our names on it.”
Jimmy sat up straighter. “There is a welcome sign with our names on it.”
Jesse rolled his eyes. “I guess my sarcastic tone needs some polishing.”
“Maybe she didn’t pay attention to the sign.”
Jesse tilted his head. “It’s pretty big. But maybe she just thinks it’s awkward to mention it? I guess it’s not a big deal either way, right?”
“Good question. So should I just casually mention, ‘Hey, by the way, I was once part of a famous boy band’?”
“You still are. And Oliver wants us to do our next benefit concert at his theater sometime soon. Grady’s been pushing for it too.”
“An entire concert?”
“Just a few songs, and then they plan to showcase some local talent.”
Jimmy blew out a sigh of relief.
“Hey, would you go get me one of those Bitchin’ beers?”
“Beachin’,” Jimmy corrected, but Jesse laughed. “Why don’t you go get it?”
“It’s my house.”
“Right, I’m the guest.”
“Fuck, okay.” He pushed up to his feet. “Only because I have to take a leak.”
“And order that pizza while you’re at it,” Jimmy shouted.
“Only because I’m starving!”
Jimmy laughed and relaxed a little bit more. Now that Oliver lived in Tennessee and Grady had baby Ella, he missed guy time with his brothers.
After a few minutes, Jesse returned and tossed Jimmy a can of Beachin’. “Pizza will be here in about thirty minutes. I told ’em to come around back here.”
“Good, I’m getting hungry. Haven’t had pizza in a while.”
“You and your eating-healthy crap.”
“I’ve got my vices.” Jimmy held up the can of beer.
Jesse swung one long leg over the lounge chair and sat back down. “So, when are you gonna tell the sexy redhead that you’re into her?”
“She knows.”
“Jimbo, you’re confusing the hell out of me.” Jesse leaned forward and dangled the can of beer between his legs. “But that’s nothing new.”
“Hey, I’m the quiet, thoughtful boy-band brother. It’s my job to be mysterious.”
“Stop beating around the damned bush and tell me what you’re gonna do. Have you slept with her?”
Jimmy shot Jesse a look.
“Hey, I’m trying to get a bead on the sitch.”
“Okay, I saved her dog from a snake, got scraped up, and she took me to her place to remove splinters.”
“Mmm, good. Good move. Gotta give you props.”
“It wasn’t a move, for fuck’s sake. Trixie fell off the boardwalk.” He raised an eyebrow. “And I came to the rescue.”
“Wait, you’re scared as shit of snakes.”
“Uh, yeah. But I sure as hell wasn’t about to let Maggie go down there.”
“The knight in shining armor.”
“I wish. I was the dude in board shorts waiting to get a snakebite on my ass. Shining armor would have been nice, along with a big-ass sword.”
“That’s pretty awesome. Damn, I wish I’d been there with my camera ready.”
Jimmy shook his head. “You’re something else.”
“You mean that in a good way, right?”
“No.”
“So go on. You’ve got me hooked.”
Jimmy rolled his eyes. “Anyway, during the removal of the splinters, we both had a couple of Irish whiskeys, and well, I—”
“Put a move on her.”
“Yeah.”
“Yes! And?”
“It went well—too well, and I did the right thing and reined it in.”
Jesse raised both hands. “Whoa, wait, things were heating up and you … stopped?�
�
“Jesse, I care about her. Damn, we haven’t even gone on a date. I didn’t want to fuck it up,” he said, but then frowned. “Except I did.”
“Sleep with her?”
“No, fucked it up. Focus.” He pointed to his eyes and then to Jesse’s.
Jesse held his hands up again. “Okay, total confusion.”
“She kicked me out.”
“You? I can’t remember you ever getting kicked out of anywhere. Ever. Damn, Jimmy, how the hell did you manage that? I’m the twin who gets kicked out of places. You—you saved her dog!”
Jimmy took a drink of his beer and then rested his elbows on his thighs. “I think she was embarrassed that things got so hot and then stopped suddenly, and she placed the blame on me in defense.”
“Women.”
“I deserved it. Don’tcha think?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” But then Jesse shook his head. “No.”
“Really?”
“Maybe. Shit, I’m usually in this kinda position. This role-reversal thing is confusing.”
Jimmy had to chuckle despite the situation.
“So.” Jesse raised his eyebrows. “Now what?”
“You tell me. Dammit, I knew I needed to play it cool but … I’m just so into her.” Jimmy jammed his fingers through his hair. “And she had on this little white tank top—”
“Oh, the white tank top gets me every time.”
Jimmy groaned.
“So, you think maybe she overreacted, though? You always were the one to take the blame, but really? I mean, so you got carried away.” Jesse shrugged. “It happens.”
“To me? Not so much.”
“But did she overreact?” Jesse persisted.
“I guess, maybe. I mean, without going into details, it was a mutual thing. And now she’s super pissed at me. I’m kinda confused.”
“Then call her out on it.”
“I don’t know if that’s the tack I should take. Redheaded Irish? I might have to duck and run. But she promised me dinner for saving Trixie. And she’s a helluva good cook.”
“There you go.”
“What?”
“Collect!”
“What don’t you understand about the she-kicked-me-out part?”
Jesse waved a hand through the air. “That was just girl drama. Listen, if you almost ended up in bed, she’s hot for you too.”
“You’ve got a point.” Jimmy rested the cold can on his knee. “She said she didn’t want to get involved with a neighbor.”
“Makes sense. If it goes south, it could get messy.”
“Yeah, but I get a feeling there’s something else she’s not telling me. I mean, she did talk about her childhood. She was bullied.”
“Fuck that shit. Who does that? To a little girl. If anyone pulls that shit with Ella …” Jesse shook his head.
“And her dad left when she was little.”
“Damn.”
“Yeah, she’s been through a lot. But she’s turned her pain into something beneficial by writing empowering books for young women. She’s complex, feisty, and yet so vulnerable at the same time. I think she’s afraid that she has too much baggage, but I want her to know that we all do, you know?”
“Yep. You know it.” Jesse looked out over the pool and nodded. After a few minutes he said, “Grady and Oliver are so happy. You and I need to step up our happiness game.”
“I don’t think happiness is a game.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yeah,” he admitted.
“I’ve never seen you this strung out over a girl.”
“Jesse, I think about her all the time. I know I haven’t dated a lot, but I know how I feel. I just want a chance, you know?”
“Then take it. Hearts don’t give up.” Jesse patted his chest. “Find ways to run into her accidentally-on-purpose.”
“She’s pretty damned good at avoiding me.”
“You live next door. You’ll figure it out.”
“I sure as hell hope so. She makes me lose sleep at night. I can’t concentrate on my songs.”
“Whoa.” Jesse snapped his fingers. “There you go!”
“What?”
“Write a song for her.”
Jimmy raised his eyebrows. “Do I look like Taylor Swift?”
“No, you don’t, and if you did, that would be weird, because she’s hot.”
“Isn’t that kinda Say Anything cheesy?”
“Well, yeah, but chicks love that kinda thing. But look, you get to think about her and write at the same time,” Jesse insisted. “Winning.”
“You just might be brilliant.”
“Yeah.” Jesse tilted his head to the side. “I get that a lot.”
Jimmy laughed.
“I’m serious.”
“Since when?”
“Good point. Damn, where’s the pizza? Being a genius is making me super hungry,” Jesse said, and as if on cue, the pizza-delivery girl walked around the side of the house. “Stacy, my favorite person.”
Stacy blushed as she handed Jesse the big box. “Sorry it took so long,” she said, and then noticed Jimmy and smiled.
“No problem, it will taste even better. Meet my brother Jimmy.”
“Hey,” Stacy said with a shy smile, and then took the money from Jesse.
“Change?”
“Of course not,” Jesse said, and her smile grew wider.
“My older sister loved Heartbeat,” she gushed.
“Was I her favorite?” Jesse asked.
“Grady,” she replied with an apologetic little shrug. “Enjoy the pizza!”
“You know it,” Jesse said, and then motioned to the tiki hut when Stacy disappeared around the corner. “Grady,” he grumbled. “Why do girls always go for the bad boy? What’s wrong with the funny one?”
Jimmy laughed.
“Let’s eat over there.”
“Okay.” Jimmy nodded, glad he’d made the decision to hang out with Jesse. “We gotta do this more often.”
“Just say the magic word.”
“And what would that be?”
“Beer.”
The conversation turned to other topics, but Jimmy’s mind kept drifting to Maggie. He had to find a way to fix the fiasco that had happened earlier. Maggie was right, the against-the-wall thing had been his fault. But not entirely. He could blame his reaction on the white tank top. The whiskey. He understood her anger that he’d heated things up and then put on the brakes. That had to feel like rejection. Damn, he was so fucking stupid!
He was just going to have to casually-on-purpose run into her.
She lived next door.
How hard could it be?
CHAPTER EIGHT
HEARTBEAT SONG
Maggie pushed away from her desk so hard that her chair on wheels careened across her office and crashed into her bookcases, making a loud thud that toppled a few books to the hardwood floor. Trixie’s head popped up from her curled position on the love seat and she blinked at Maggie.
“Yap … yap, yap.”
“Sorry, girl,” Maggie said in a soothing tone, but Trixie gave her a wary, big-eyed stare. “I’ll be okay.” Maybe. Maggie hadn’t slept well, and she’d muddled through the day in a grumpy mood. She’d answered several emails from readers, and reading the heart-wrenching stories they shared with her always tugged at her emotions, leaving her feeling a bit frazzled. She’d learned a long time ago that anger was wasted energy, but sometimes she found it difficult not to feel rage at the pain endured by innocent, young girls who just wanted to go to school and live their lives without getting bullied. “I think I need a punching bag for days like this,” she muttered.
Since her appetite was off, she’d only eaten a hasty salad for dinner, and now she felt out of sorts. Hungry but not hungry. Bored. Frustrated. Trixie gave a wheezy yawn and then propped her head on her little paws, as if anxious to know what would happen next.
“I know, I’ve been a bit moody,” Maggie sa
id, but knew her admission was a complete understatement. The deadline for her next book was looming over her shoulder and whispering fear into her ear. For the first time ever, Maggie was way behind schedule. Normally she turned in her manuscripts a few weeks early, but for the past three days all she’d been able to think about was how she’d kicked Jimmy Heart out the door after … “Ugh!” she shouted, startling Trixie yet again. And to top it off, she suffered from a serious case of cabin fever. But if she left her condo, she might run into Jimmy, and she didn’t have a clue as to how to react to him. A casual wave? Uh, no. A tentative smile? Maybe …
And even though she had enough stored food to last a few weeks, she wanted something fresh—like air, for example.
Plus, her secret stash of chocolate was nearly depleted, and even worse, she was nearly out of wine. The situation was quickly becoming dire.
Deadlines had kept Maggie in her writer’s cave before, but unlike in the past, her nearly nonexistent productivity was driving her bonkers. Three days of almost no pages written might not have seemed so bad, but she’d been dragging her feet even before what she liked to refer to as Bathroom-gate. Plus, she’d been setting her alarm for an insanely early wake-up so she could walk Trixie before Jimmy would be out and about. Since neither she nor Trixie enjoyed bleary-eyed early-morning walks, the days started off on the wrong foot/paw.
Maggie rubbed her throbbing temples and let out a long, suffering groan. Something had to give.
For a few minutes, she simply sat in her chair, mulling over the Jimmy Heart situation again. She wouldn’t feel right unless she made amends. But how? “Hmmm.” She tapped her chin with her finger. Baking some of her to-die-for brownies for him seemed like a plausible olive branch to extend. After all, Jimmy deserved an apology for her hasty reaction when she’d shown him the door.
She had shown Jimmy Heart the door …
Maggie hung her head. God. Had she lost her ever-loving mind? Okay, no, steering clear of Jimmy was still her best defense against getting her heart shattered. But it felt as if her heart were already shattered and needed to be mended.
“Okay, enough.” Maggie finally scooted her chair back to where it belonged, behind her desk. She glanced at her computer and sighed. Knowing that trying to work remained futile, she headed to the kitchen to see if she had the ingredients for her chewy, fudgy, decadent brownies. She rarely used boxed mixes, because Granny Mags frowned upon anything not baked from scratch. She smiled sadly, suddenly missing her grandmother. “Granny Mags, I’m about to do you proud.”