by Addison Cole
“I’m really happy for you.”
“I didn’t get to talk with you much last night.” Jack put a hand on Kurt’s lower back. “Excuse us for a minute.” He guided him away from the others and lowered his voice. “You doing okay? You look a little…something.”
Something? Other than the two years when Jack had been dealing with his own loss, he’d always been in tune to his siblings’ feelings. It didn’t surprise Kurt that Jack would pick up on his missing Leanna. His emotions were a little rawer than he was used to or comfortable with. He tried to shift the conversation away from Leanna.
“You’re a lucky guy, Jack. Savannah really loves you.” He waved to Treat and Dane, who were heading their way.
“Don’t want to talk about it, huh?” Jack asked.
Kurt shrugged. “It’ll just make me miss her more.”
“I’ve never heard or seen you like this. Ever.”
“Tell me about it. She threw my whole world off balance; then she righted it with herself firmly lodged smack dab in the center of my heart.” He was grinning so hard his cheeks hurt.
Jack threw his head back and laughed, a deep, hearty sound of joy. “Welcome to love, little brother.”
“Another unsuspecting Remington falls prey to the love of a woman.” Dane was a marine researcher and shark tagger, and at over six feet tall, he was about two hundred pounds of lean muscle. He opened his arms and embraced Kurt, then Jack. “Too bad she missed the wedding. I’d have liked to meet the woman who got you away from your computer. From what I hear, that’s not an easy feat.”
“She had a meeting today that she couldn’t reschedule. She’s just started a jam and jelly business. Luscious Leanna’s Sweet Treats.”
“She should call me. If her products are as good as the name, I’ll carry it in my resorts.”
“Seriously? That would be great, Treat. I was able to connect with Blue and hire him to renovate my studio at the Cape for her business. He’s working on it now. I plan on surprising her with it in a few weeks.”
“That’s great. I’m glad it worked out.”
“Thanks for the referral. If you’ll excuse me for a minute, I want to give Leanna a quick call.” Kurt walked over by the fence at the edge of the yard and sent Leanna a text. Miss you more than anything. Hope your meeting went well. Call me?
OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH! Leanna had been driving for twenty minutes and her heart was still racing. She’d spent three hours with the executives of Daisy Chain, and though she was initially intimidated by the mere size of their offices, which took up the entire top floor of a four-story office building, the people had been down-to-earth and easy to talk to. They were smart, funny, and driven—and they wanted to carry Luscious Leanna’s Sweet Treats in every store. Every store! The figures they discussed would allow Leanna to rent space on a full-time basis, which she’d need to keep up with orders. She would also need to commit to her business full-time if she wanted this contract—and she wanted this contract.
Leanna drove up Route 6 thinking about the opportunity and knowing that if Al were able to see her, he’d be proud. Her mind raced in a hundred different directions. She might need to hire a few trusted helpers, because while Leanna knew that she’d never want to dole out all of the day-to-day operations, she wasn’t fooling herself. Wide distribution would take several sets of hands. Leanna also knew herself well enough to understand that there would be times when she wanted a few days off to spend with Kurt.
Kurt. Oh gosh. Kurt.
Therein lay the reason for the tightening in her stomach and the ache in her chest. Daisy Chain wanted her sweet treats not only because they were delicious, or because they liked and seemed to trust Leanna, but also because Luscious Leanna’s Sweet Treats was a local business. Although Daisy Chain had stores throughout the East Coast, they were big on supporting local businesses. The owners, Arnold and Lilian Hayes, were both born on the Cape and had lived there for more than sixty years. Local to them was Cape Cod. Not New York.
She glanced at her phone on the passenger seat, and the muscles in her neck tightened. She’d seen the message from Kurt, and she needed to call him. She wanted to call him, but she was in such a quagmire about Daisy Chain that she felt sick to her stomach.
I want the Daisy Chain contract.
I want Kurt.
Why me? Why now? Why can’t this be easy?
Leanna went off the main drag and took a residential road through Eastham toward Wellfleet. With her windows down, the breeze from the bay washed over her, settling her nerves a little. The smell of the damp sea air brought memories of the first night she met Kurt and the first time they made love on the beach. It made her long to be with him. The Cape had always soothed her in ways that no other town ever had. Her creativity flowed when she was here. She thought of her family’s vacations at the cottage, arguing with her siblings over who got to sleep in the loft, playing in the surf, and when they all got a little older, scoping out the other teenagers. Summers with Bella, Amy, Jenna, and the other Seaside residents were irreplaceable. Those were memories she’d always cherish, and one day, she hoped to have her own family and create memories that were just as meaningful.
She wanted to create those memories with Kurt.
She knew he couldn’t move to the Cape full-time. He’d made it pretty clear that his life was in New York and he had no intention of changing that. Why should he? It was Leanna who was changing the plans, not Kurt.
This is why I’m not a planner.
She pulled into Seaside and parked by the laundry room, then crossed the gravel road to Bella’s cottage and walked right in. She kicked off her sandals by the door, dropped her keys on the floor, and headed into the bedroom. Bella’s king-sized bed was always perfectly made. Kurt would like that. The fluffy pink comforter and lacy white pillows seemed out of place beside thoughts of Bella’s brash personality. Pink and lace should be reserved for sweet Amy Maples. Leanna didn’t have the emotional fortitude to figure out Bella at the moment. She was just thankful for their friendship. She knew Amy would have let Pepper out plenty of times and loved him up throughout the day, and right at the moment, she needed to disappear. She also needed to call Kurt. But the bed looked so inviting, and she couldn’t call Kurt until she cleared her head. Just five minutes of escaping her worries; that’s all she needed. Leanna lay facedown on the bed and closed her eyes with a heavy sigh.
Maybe she could just hide out here and everything would somehow be okay.
She heard the screen door open, and she grabbed a pillow and put it over her head.
“I told you I saw her van,” Amy said as she came into the bedroom. “Uh-oh. I guess it didn’t go well. I’ll get a bottle of wine and Pepper.”
Leanna felt the mattress sink on her right side, and a hand landed on her lower back. The scent of Jenna’s Hawaiian Tropic sunscreen gave her away. Bella’s body landed heavily to her left, and when Leanna opened her eyes, Bella narrowed hers.
“Forget ’em.” Bella pressed her lips together. “You need Daisy Chain like you need a third pinky. Fun to show off, but what are they bringing to the table?”
Leanna couldn’t help but laugh.
Jenna stroked her back as the screen door opened again and Leanna heard Pepper’s nails click-clacking on the hardwood floors. His paws and wet nose popped up by her head, and he barked.
Leanna reached out and petted his head, still sort of wishing she could close her eyes and everything would be okay.
“I’ve got wine and brownies that Pepper and I made together this afternoon. Oh, and we might have eaten a few of the fruits from your bouquet.” Amy paused. “Okay, I might have eaten them, but Pepper didn’t stop me, so he’s sort of responsible, too.”
Leanna flopped over onto her back and reached for Bella’s and Jenna’s hands.
“They want me,” she said flatly.
“They want you?” Bella bolted upright and glared down at Leanna. “Then what on earth?”
Jenna’s
face came into view, head-to-head with Bella’s above Leanna. “Isn’t that what we worked so hard for? This is good, right?”
Amy’s face joined the others, head tilting first one way, then the other. “Sweetie? Did something happen with Kurt? What’s going on? What can we do?”
Leanna sat up, parting the wall of concerned faces like the Red Sea. Amy handed her a glass of wine, then handed one to each of the others. Leanna looked at the glass, hoping that somewhere in the sweet liquid was a remedy to her hurting heart—and knowing that all the wine in the world wouldn’t help. She handed the glass back to Amy and fell back on the bed again—eyes slammed tight.
“Oh, no you don’t,” Bella said. “Ames, can you please take these?”
They handed Amy their glasses.
Leanna felt her strong hand on her left arm, and Jenna’s on her right, as they dragged her to an upright position. Pepper stood sentinel at Leanna’s feet, barking at the others.
“Guess we’re doing walk therapy, huh?” Amy took the glasses to the kitchen as Bella and Jenna brought Leanna to her feet and dragged her out to the deck.
They waited for Amy, who returned with Leanna’s sandals, and she took hold of Pepper’s leash. They walked down the gravel road arm in arm.
“Spill,” Bella directed.
Leanna let out a loud breath. “You know I’m supposed to move in with Kurt in New York on Monday.” A lump formed in her throat.
“Right. Got it,” Bella said. “And?”
“And Daisy Chain wants to carry my stuff everywhere, which is great, but they want me to remain local. To keep up with the distribution, I have to pretty much work year-round, but that means working here year-round, and if I do that, then I can’t be with Kurt, and—” Her eyes filled with tears as they passed the pool and headed back up the hill toward her cottage. “And if I can’t have Kurt…”
“Honey, why can’t you have Kurt if you work?” Amy’s voice was filled with compassion.
“Because. He’s not going to upend his perfect, organized life in New York and live on the Cape. What’s in the Cape during the winter? Snow? Ice? It’s desolate, and he’s a family guy. I told you about the interviews.” Jenna made a tsk sound. “This is a dilemma. What does Kurt say?”
Leanna bit her lower lip. Jenna had spoken her worst fear. She’d said aloud what Leanna couldn’t force herself to, because doing so would make the words—and the meaning of them—seem more real.
“You haven’t told him?” Jenna exchanged a worried look with Bella. “Leanna, you have to tell him. Monday is only a few days away.”
Leanna’s gut clenched again. “Don’t you think I know that?” She didn’t mean to raise her voice. “I want to be there. And I want to be here.”
Tony came out of his cottage wearing nothing but a pair of board shorts and a rich tan. “Hey, girls.” He stood with his hands on his hips as they approached, taking in each of their worried faces. His smile faded quickly.
“Uh-oh. What’s happened?” He fell in line beside Amy.
“She got the Daisy Chain contract,” Amy explained.
“But she might lose Kurt because she needs to be here and he needs to be in New York,” Jenna added.
Tony pressed his smiling lips into a firm line and cleared his throat while muffling a laugh. “She’s not going to lose Oh gosh, Kurt.”
Leanna glared at each of the women.
“We didn’t say anything. I swear it,” Amy protested.
“Not a word,” Jenna added.
“Your window was wide open, Leanna.” Tony shook his head. “It’s not like I haven’t heard people having sex before.”
Leanna stopped walking and looked up at the sky. “Please, just strike me down right here, right now. Spare me any more indignity. Please!”
“Don’t worry. I deleted it from my memory banks just now,” Tony assured her. “Although I was happy for you. I don’t think I’ve ever heard your cottage rockin’. Now, Bella’s, that’s another story.”
“A girl’s gotta live,” Bella quipped.
“You guys, this is serious. What should I do?” They arrived at Leanna’s cottage and settled in around the table on her deck. Leanna buried her face in her hands. Pepper put his paws on her lap and panted at her until she reached down and stroked his fur. She couldn’t even look at him without thinking of Kurt.
Who am I kidding? I can’t breathe without thinking of Kurt.
Tony clasped his hands behind his head and leaned back. Amy’s eyes slid to his broad chest and the waves of muscles covering his midsection. Jenna kicked her under the table.
“You’re overthinking this, Leanna.” Tony leaned across the table and touched her hand. “Call Kurt. Talk to him. You two will figure it out. Plenty of couples have long-distance relationships, and New York is a short flight from P-town.”
“He has a point.” Jenna brushed a few grains of sand from the table. “And you know, in many ways, seeing a guy on weekends might be better than living together. You won’t get sick of each other.”
“I highly doubt I’d ever get sick of Kurt. He’s so…” She contemplated how to sum him up in one word.
“Hot?” Bella asked.
“Loving?” Amy suggested.
“Attentive? Good in bed? Intelligent?” Jenna bumped Leanna playfully with her shoulder.
“How about normal? Does a guy really have to be all those things all the time?” Tony set his eyes on Leanna’s until she met his gaze. “He’s a bestselling author, so yeah, he’s probably pretty intelligent. He treats you well, from what I’ve heard, and he’s definitely attentive in all the right places. Although I’m pretending that I didn’t actually hear that. You all think he’s handsome, so I take your word on that. He’s not my type, as I like women, but you know, hey, whatever.” He held his palms up toward the sky. “Seriously, Leanna. If what I’m told is right, and you love Kurt the way you said you did the other night, then call him.”
“Call him.” Leanna set her palms on the table and used her most serious voice. “Okay. How would you react if your boyfriend—or girlfriend—committed to living with you, then called and said, Hey, you know that promise? That plan we made? Guess what? I’m really sorry, but I got this great job offer to fulfill my dream, and now you either have to change your entire life for me, or we’re going to see each other on a once-in-a-while basis?” She sat back and crossed her arms. “See? Not exactly loving, is it?”
Bella rolled her eyes. “So you don’t say it that way.” She waved her hand in the air and spoke in a higher tone. “Hey, babe. It’s me. I got a great offer from Daisy Chain that’s too good to pass up, but I’d have to be at the Cape full-time. Maybe we should talk about it? Better?”
“Much,” Amy said. “What about this? I got this great offer, but I don’t want to lose you, either. Maybe we can figure this out together?”
Bella leaned across the table and pointed at Amy. “Even better. Nice addition.”
Leanna shook her head. “Maybe you guys can make the call for me.”
They talked for another twenty minutes, until they’d beaten the subject and hypothetical outcomes to death. Amy took Pepper back to her cottage to give Leanna privacy. Leanna gathered her belongings from Bella’s and from her van, then went into her cottage with her heart in her throat and called Kurt.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
IT HAD BEEN almost two hours since Kurt texted Leanna, and he took that as a good sign that her meeting was going well. It was a cool, sunny day in Colorado, and Kurt was enjoying visiting with his family and the Bradens, even though seeing the Jack and Savannah so in love made him long for Leanna. Now he stood by the split-rail fence at the edge of the yard watching Hal Braden down by the barn with Treat and his horse Hope.
Rex joined him and leaned his elbows on the fence, watching his father. Rex, like all of the men, had shed his suit coat and wore his dress shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His bulging forearms twitched as he wrung his hands together.
; “Dad and Hope,” Rex said with a shake of his head. He looked up at Kurt. “I think we see them as a couple.”
“The horse?”
“Yeah. Dad bought that horse for my mom when she first became ill. She loved that horse so much, and after she died, I swear my dad began talking to Hope like my mom’s inside her somewhere.”
Kurt cocked his head in question.
“Yeah, I know,” Rex said. “I always thought Dad was a little off for doing that, but now? I’m not so sure. It sure feels like Mom’s around, especially when I’m near Hope.” Rex leaned his hip against the fence and crossed his arms. He wore his thick black hair longer than his brothers, like Sage preferred to wear his, brushing his collar. His powerful, broad frame reminded Kurt of Hal, and when he narrowed his dark eyes, the resemblance was uncanny.
“Do you miss Leanna?”
Kurt half smiled, half laughed. “Look around.” He glanced at Jack and Savannah, kissing by the buffet table. Jack ran his finger down Savannah’s cheek, and she leaned forward and kissed him. “Hard not to miss her.”
“Yeah, I can see that.” Rex said. “When I see love like that, I understand where Dad’s coming from. Have you ever felt that way? Do you feel that way about Leanna?”
Kurt mulled over the question. He’d been away from Leanna for a day, and he had no idea how he’d make it until tomorrow, much less Monday. He couldn’t imagine his life without her. He leaned his arms on the fence and exhaled loudly. Talking about feelings wasn’t something he was used to doing, but Rex made it look so easy, and feel so right, that the words came easily.
“To be honest, until Leanna, I never felt much for a woman. My life was about writing, and family of course, but that goes without saying. I don’t know about the whole spiritual connection thing, mostly because I’ve never really thought about it. But as far as Leanna goes? I think about her every second.” He smiled. “Boy, do I ever. She’s gotten under my skin. I want her with me even when she talks incessantly and barely takes a breath.” He looked at Rex. “So yeah, I guess I do feel that way. I’m going on thirty-one and have never lived with a woman, well, besides my sister, of course. I have no idea if I’ll drive her crazy or what, but I do know that I can’t wait to have her with me every day.”