“There’s no… I don’t… We just…” Jane had no idea what to say. This wasn’t a real date, and the one person who should know that was Nikki. She was the one who’d set the entire thing up. “Nothing. Nothing’s going on.”
Amy’s and Nikki’s faces lit up.
Their expressions caused Jane to feel uncharacteristically defensive. “What? There isn’t.”
“You keep telling yourself that.” Nikki continued to grin like she knew something Jane didn’t.
Jane was as flustered as a tornado ripping through a dusty field. And totally out of her element. She wasn’t the girl other girls came over to gossip with. She was the girl looking in from the outskirts. The girl who was overlooked. The girl who observed from afar.
Being the center of attention wasn’t all she’d imagined it to be.
Amy reached across the table and squeezed Jane’s hand. “Well, can I just say, you look so beautiful tonight.”
Jane appreciated Amy’s conversation redirection, even if it was still centered on her. She ran her hands down the form-fitting bodice of her dress and let out a breath of relief. “Thanks. I’ve seemed to have put on some weight since moving to Hope Falls, and when I realized about an hour before I needed to be ready to go that none of the gowns I had fit, I almost canceled.”
“That dress definitely fits.” Nikki let out a low whistle. “You are one hot mama.”
A blush crept up Jane’s face. “I practically poured myself into it. It never used to be this snug.”
“Well, it seems snug is working for you. Incoming at three o’clock,” Nikki said under her breath as she lifted her eyebrows.
“Incoming?” Jane repeated as she looked up and saw Eli walking—with purpose—straight towards her. His lips were turned up in a half smile, and he looked like a man on a mission.
Out of sheer habit, Jane glanced behind herself. Yes, he was definitely heading in her direction, but the object of his single-minded energy had to be someone else.
“Hello, ladies,” he greeted Amy, Nikki, and Jane, smiling as he stopped beside the table. “You all look lovely tonight.”
“Thanks,” Amy and Jane responded at the same time that Nikki said, “You’re lookin’ pretty sharp yourself.”
Jane had to smile. Mike had told her that Nikki wasn’t like anyone he’d ever met before in his life. He’d said that she was spectacular, like a shooting star. At the time, Jane had figured that her boss was just smitten, so he was waxing poetic. But once she’d met Nikki, she had known that the description was accurate. Their relationship was a true testament that not only do opposites attract, but also that, when you’re with the right person, the person you’re supposed to be with, you don’t have to change.
Nikki was flirtatious by nature, and Jane knew that her behavior never bothered Mike. He was totally secure with her. One time, when they’d been at a Book Club meeting, Nikki’s flirtatious ways had become the subject of discussion. Nikki had told all the girls that, when she had been worried that being with Mike, a politician whose world was so different than hers, would change her, her mom had told her that she just needed to be herself. She’d gone on to counsel her that a good guideline for marriage was to always behave as if your spouse were right beside you. That way, you know that, if you’re acting a certain way or saying something you would be totally okay with if your partner were there, then it was fine if they weren’t.
From what Jane had observed, Nikki had taken her mom’s advice to heart. She was the same person when Mike was standing right beside her as she was when he was across the room.
That was the kind of relationship Jane wanted.
“Jane?” Eli’s voice cut through her inner musings.
“Huh?” Her eyes lifted and she saw that he was holding out his hand.
“Would you like to dance?” he said in a tone that indicated he was repeating himself.
“Me?” Jane clarified.
“Yes.” He nodded, a grin of amusement lifting on his face.
“Oh…um…”
“You promised you’d save me a dance,” he reminded her.
Nikki pinched her, and at the sting, her eyes darted over to her friend. Before she could even say, “Ouch,” Nikki was pushing her off her chair.
“She’d love to dance!” Nikki exclaimed as she acted as her human air bag, ejecting her out of her seat.
Not knowing what else to do, Jane took Eli’s hand and allowed him to lead her to the dance floor. Her eyes scanned the room, but she didn’t see Adam. Not that it mattered. They weren’t actually there on a real date, and he hadn’t asked her to dance all night.
Regardless, a twinge of guilt twisted in her chest.
Eli placed his hand around Jane’s waist and pulled her against him. For a moment, she stiffened. Then she forced herself to relax. This was just a dance.
As they swayed to the music, Eli spoke against her ear, “You truly do look incredible. When you walked in, you took my breath away.”
Jane didn’t answer him. Instead, a nervous laugh bubbled up.
Thankfully, Eli didn’t try to continue the chitchat. He pressed one hand to her lower back and the other in her hand, leading them seamlessly across the dance floor. She had to admit that she was impressed. This wasn’t normal sway-back-and-forth moves; if she wasn’t mistaken, they were actually doing the waltz. She never would have guessed in a million years that Eli knew how to waltz. It just went to show that you really couldn’t judge a book by its cover.
This entire night felt to Jane like one of those movies where the nerdy girl gets a makeover and then gets the guy. As they floated across the room, she had to remind herself that Eli had asked her out before he’d seen her in the dress she was pouring out of. He’d been interested in the metaphorical nerdy girl in glasses.
As much as she wanted to enjoy this dance with a hunky firefighter who, from what Jane knew of him and had observed, was also a genuinely nice guy, her mind kept wandering to her quiet, reserved, too-sexy-for-his-own-good neighbor. Even in the arms of one of Hope Falls’ most eligible bachelors, Jane couldn’t stop thinking about Adam.
The nerdy girl had gotten to dance with the hot guy; it was just the wrong hot guy.
Chapter 11
‡
Adam flexed his fingers on the steering wheel and stretched his tense neck. He was trying to release some, even a tiny amount, of his pent-up frustration. Tonight hadn’t gone well. At least, it hadn’t as far as his sanity was concerned.
From the moment Jane had opened the door, he’d had more testosterone flooding his system than he’d ever had in his entire life—all instances combined. Then, when they’d walked into the ballroom and every male had looked at her like she was a steak dinner, he’d wanted to kick all of their asses. He knew, on a logical level, that it was ridiculous. On a primal level however, he thought it was a perfectly reasonable response.
The hours during the dinner portion of the evening had been its own form of torture. They’d chatted with their friends at the table and also each other. The conversation hadn’t been the excruciating part.
The almost unbearable moments of the night had been the small touches, both accidental and intentional. The sweet smell, which Adam had discovered was uniquely Jane’s, that kept wafting through the air every time she brushed her hair over her shoulder, turned her head to the side, or—the worst—leaned close and spoke so that only he could hear her. Every time the fresh scent of fruit and vanilla had hit his senses, he’d had to hold himself back from burying his face in the crook of her neck.
“So, how did things go with Kyle Austen Reed?” Jane asked, her all-business tone a complete contradiction to her Hollywood-vixen appearance.
“Good. Mike is going to send him a little more information, but it looks like he’s on board not only to invest but also to become the spokesperson, basically the face of Latch Key to Success. He even offered his PR company pro bono.”
“That’s great,” Jane enthused. “I know that
Mike was hoping he’d get a chance to connect with him. I spoke to his publicist earlier today, and she thought it was exactly the kind of project he’d be interested in.”
Adam was still having a hard time wrapping his brain around the celebrity factor that was unique to Hope Falls. There were pop stars, Olympians, and reality-TV stars. Kyle Austen Reed, a mega movie star, didn’t technically live in Hope Falls, but he visited frequently and the town had sort of adopted him as their honorary son.
It was surreal, to say the least, when Adam had explained the tutoring app to Kyle and the superstar had hung on his every word. For a moment, it’d been a little difficult to articulate the program—until he’d looked up to see Jane on the dance floor with Eli. That had sharpened his mind to a razor point. Who knew that searing, hot jealousy was the equivalent of a colossal dose of Ritalin for someone with ADD?
With his blood boiling to a dangerous level, he’d grown laser focused on the information he’d been relaying to Kyle. Hell, his reaction to seeing her in another man’s arms was exactly what he’d needed to speak with pinpoint accuracy and effectiveness. Actually, it wasn’t so much the jealousy that had done it; it was more like he’d dived into his pitch as an all-encompassing distraction. And it had worked.
As he turned onto their street, he couldn’t help but feel sad that the night was ending. Which was odd. Tonight had been a special form of torture, yet the thought of his evening with Jane being over was even worse.
“Well, thanks for—” Jane sounded nervous as she unclicked her seat belt “—tonight.”
Before the truck even came to a full stop on her driveway, her hand was already on the door. She obviously wasn’t feeling the same sting of disappointment he was over the night’s end. And why should she? He’d been an ass. Yes, he’d done the obligatory polite gestures any half-decent person would have done for the first half of the night. But the second half, after she’d returned from almost a full hour on the dance floor with Eli, he’d given her a shoulder so cold that it could’ve been mistaken for one of the ice sculptures.
“Jane.” Adam reached over the console and covered her hand with his.
Even a touch that innocent sent fiery, hot lust shooting through him. It was like her body was supercharged with erotic energy.
At his hand on hers, she froze. Stiffened. Adam was trained in the art of reading body language, and hers was clearly broadcasting that she was uncomfortable. He removed his hand immediately, knowing he needed to do some damage control.
He and Jane always had a tension between them—a sexual tension. Which was bad enough. But this, whatever was going on between them now, was worse.
“I’m sorry.” He knew she deserved more than those two words, but it was a start.
Her head whipped around, and the sweet smell of her hair filled the cabin of his truck. “For what?” she asked, the cute wrinkle appearing between her eyebrows like it did every time she was trying to figure something out.
“For being an ass and a bad date,” he explained, his tone not revealing the pent-up sexual frustration he was suppressing.
Her light amber eyes widened as she began rebutting his apology. “What? No. You weren’t an ass. You were a total gentleman. And this wasn’t a date. Not a real date. I mean, we went together, but it was just…just…a business…thing.”
At her declaration, Adam winced.
But she continued full steam ahead, seemingly unaware of his reaction. “One you were finagled into, at that. Which is just more evidence that you are a gentleman. You could’ve backed out of tonight. But you didn’t. I mean, I know Nikki can be persuasive. She could sell ice to an Eskimo. Which is great for business, but it can be challenging on a personal level.” Her eyes grew even larger. “Not that this was personal. This was business. But I think she wanted it to be… I mean, you know she was trying… She thought that you. Or, I mean, she thought that I… That we…”
The more Jane tried to explain Nikki’s intentions in playing matchmaker, which Adam knew was exactly what she’d been doing, the faster she spoke and the more frazzled she became.
“She just wanted it to be a, sort of, date. She wants everyone to be happy, you know. Like she is. She wants that for her friends, and she thinks she has this sixth sense and she can read people. Which, I mean, maybe she does, but I honestly think that it only works for her. I don’t think it necessarily translates to other people.”
When Jane finally took a breath, Adam asked, “What do you want?”
He wasn’t sure why he asked the question other than it was something he really wanted to know.
Jane blinked at his question. “What?”
“You said that Nikki wanted tonight be a real date…but did you?”
For a moment, she stared at him blankly. Then, when his words registered, a faint-pink flush on her cheeks was highlighted by the moonlight streaming in through the window.
“Uh, um, I don’t…” She gulped before answering, “No.”
Adam could read people. He had to in his job. Cryptology was only a portion of what he did, and the part he was most comfortable with. But when he was in the field, reading people was a necessity, one that could mean the difference between life and death. He didn’t comment on the fact that he knew she was lying.
She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear as she barked out a nervous laugh. “I mean, I hope it wasn’t a date. If it was, I would feel so bad for dancing with someone else all night.”
“I wanted to dance with you.”
“You did?” she asked.
“I did,” he confirmed.
Her brow knitted. “But you didn’t… I thought you didn’t… I mean, we could’ve…but I didn’t think that you wanted to.”
Adam had observed Jane’s interaction with various other people, both professionally and personally. She was poised, articulate, and well spoken. But when she talked to him, or even about him, she stumbled over her words. She’d done the same thing when Eli had asked her out, and that had bothered him until he’d realized that the reason she’d turned him down was because Adam had asked her out. Tonight, when he had seen them talking, there’d been no stumbling.
He liked that she felt as off-balance around him as he did around her.
Not that it mattered. He wouldn’t—couldn’t—act on it. Still, it didn’t change the fact that he liked it more than he should. He needed to put some distance between them. Well, as much distance as he could with a woman he lived across the street from and worked with.
“I’ll get your door,” he spoke gruffly before he exited the car and made his way to her side.
*
Jane’s head was spinning. She had no idea what was going on with Adam tonight. It was like she’d spent the evening with two different men.
For the last couple of hours, Adam had seemed withdrawn and distant. The few interactions they’d had since her first spin on the dance floor had grown increasingly tense. If she hadn’t known any better, she would’ve thought she’d done something to irritate him.
At first, she’d tried to ignore his attitude, act like she didn’t notice the fact that he was barely making eye contact with her and answering questions with one word. Next up, she’d attempted to joke her way out of it. That had been as successful as Ron Paul’s runs for president. Lastly, she’d gone with avoidance. Which meant she had spent a good part of that time out on the dance floor.
It hadn’t been a hardship. Eli was a great dance partner, and she’d figured, this way, she wouldn’t be bothering Adam. It was bad enough that he’d been roped into being her escort for the evening. The least she could have done was give him some space.
So she’d danced. And danced. And danced.
When it had been time to go, the tension hadn’t eased. The space she’d given him hadn’t put him in a better mood. If anything, he’d seemed not so much agitated, just more self-contained. That was when Jane had gone into business mode. It was her default mode as it were, so it came naturally.
>
The truck door opened, causing Jane to jump. She checked her dress to make sure nothing had popped out to say hello. Her tendency of having “Lucy” moments increased about a thousandfold around Adam. Luckily, both of her lovely lady lumps were still confined under her constricting chiffon dress.
“You okay?” Adam asked, his face unreadable.
Yep. Just wanted to make sure I didn’t have a nip slip. “Yep. Great!” Jane said a little too brightly.
Carefully, she took the hand he was offering her and stepped down from the truck, her other hand holding her heels, which had come off two dances in. When her feet were firmly on the ground, she said a little prayer of thanks that she had avoided any falls.
Now, all she had to do was make it the front door without incident and she could get out of this dress, soak in a nice warm bath, and try to forget the way Adam had made her feel tonight. At the beginning of the night, every touch, every look had given her hope that the connection she sensed with him was mutual. Then, the end of the evening had cemented that, sadly, it was totally and completely one-sided. And she was on the wrong side.
Still, she always tried to find the positive in everything, and so tonight, instead of hiding in the corner or being a wallflower, she’d torn it up on the dance floor. Nikki had even said that she was “breaking it down” and getting “turnt.” Jane wasn’t sure what the latter meant, but her friend had been smiling and giving her a thumbs-up while she’d said it, so she assumed it was a good thing.
Lifting her dress so that it didn’t drag on the driveway, Jane took a step and a sharp stab of pain shot up from the bottom of her foot.
“Oww, oww, oww!” she screeched as she hopped on the other foot.
The next thing she knew, she was getting swept off her feet. Literally. Adam had scooped her into his arms and was cradling her as he walked double time up to her door. On pure instinct, she wrapped her arms around his neck. The pain still gripped her like a mother effer, but she had to admit that being held by strong arms did take the edge off.
Secret Kiss Page 9