“I don’t own one,” Jim said.
Robyn tsk-tsked and wagged her index finger at him. “You could have rented one.”
“Jim’s been busy,” Bernie said. “He’s had more important things on his mind than tuxedos.”
“Why didn’t you just ask Dad to pick one up for you when he got his?” Robyn removed her arm from around Scotty Joe’s shoulders and clung to Jim’s arm with both hands. “He got your son one today and you should see the kid. He’s a doll. One of these days, Keith will be a real heartbreaker … just like his dad.”
Frowning, Jim glanced down at his feet and cleared his throat. “Where is Kevin?”
“Oh, right, his name is Kevin. But then Kevin and Keith are practically the same name, aren’t they? He’s somewhere around,” Robyn said. “Probably with Dad. Those two have certainly become great pals.”
“If y’all will excuse me, I’m going to find Kevin.” Jim glanced at Bernie as he dragged Robyn’s hands down his arm and broke free. “Don’t forget to save me a dance, Sheriff Granger.”
Bernie’s heart did a wild flutter. Idiot! She offered him a fragile, closed-mouth smile before he wandered off in search of his son.
“And you save me a dance, Miss Robyn.” Scotty Joe winked at Robyn, then led Holly off toward the buffet tables.
Robyn huffed. “I’m going to have that man if it’s the last thing I do.”
“I assume you are not referring to Scotty Joe,” Bernie said.
Robyn guffawed. “Hell no. I could have him by snapping my fingers. I meant Jim Norton. That man is playing hard to get for some reason. I even asked him if there was another woman in his life and he said there wasn’t.”
Bernie’s stomach tightened. “Why don’t you just leave him alone? If he’s not interested—”
“Oh, stop playing mother hen. Just because he’s your new chief deputy doesn’t mean you have to look out for him and protect him from your wicked little sister. Jim’s a big boy. He can take care of himself.”
“You’ve got every single man in town panting after you and a few married ones, too,” Bernie said. “You just want Jim because, for once in your life, you’re having to do the pursuing instead of the other way around. If he had hit on you first thing—”
“We’d be lovers by now.”
Bernie’s stomach muscle knotted painfully. “Look, I’m going to find Mom and Dad and wish them a happy anniversary.”
“I suppose I should find Paul and play nice with him,” Robyn said. “Just in case.”
“Just in case?”
“Just in case I can’t persuade Jim to take me home tonight.”
For the first time in her life, Bernie actually hated Robyn. Damn it, I’m jealous of my own sister. And all because of Jim Norton. I’m a fool. Jim and I are friends. He’s not the least bit interested in me as a woman.
“Hmm …” Bernie couldn’t manage to say anything else. At the moment, it took all her strength to keep the emotion lodged in her throat from bursting free into tears. If she knew her sister—and she did—Robyn would get what she wanted. Jim Norton in her bed. Tonight.
Bernie found her parents, but wished she hadn’t when her mom hauled Raymond Long away from his mother, Helen, and practically threw Bernie into the man’s arms.
“You two young folks get out there and dance,” Brenda said.
“Don’t they look wonderful together?” Helen Long smiled as she gazed proudly at her son, who stood stiffly at Bernie’s side.
Bernie glanced pleadingly at her father, who gave her an I’m-sorry-honey-but-what-can-I-do? look.
“Would you care to dance, Bernie?” Raymond asked, in a tone that implied he’d rather have a root canal.
“Yes, thank you. That would be nice.”
He didn’t take her hand as they walked side by side onto the dance floor. When he put his arm around her waist and she placed her left hand on his shoulder and her other hand in his, she tried to smile.
“I’m sorry about this, Bernie,” he said.
“It’s okay, Raymond. Really. Our mothers mean well.”
He led her into the dance, his movements slow and steady, as if he was afraid he’d step on her toes.
“It’s not that I don’t like you,” he told her. “Heck, we’ve known each other all our lives and we used to be friends, back in high school. But I’ve never thought of you as … well, you know … a girl.”
Bernie laughed. “Yeah, I know.” She looked at Raymond briefly, not wanting to stare and embarrass him. He hadn’t changed much since high school, except he’d filled out from a tall, skinny teenager into a broad-shouldered man. He still wore his black hair short and neat, and instead of correcting his farsightedness with contacts, he still wore glasses. “You’re not interested in me and I’m not interested in you. But we can be friends, right?”
He heaved a sigh of relief and Bernie almost laughed in his face. Did Raymond actually think she wanted him?
“Hey, I know you’ve got a thing for Robyn,” Bernie said.
Raymond’s face turned beet red.
“Oh, look, I didn’t mean to embarrass or upset you.”
“I’m not upset.” His muscles tensed. “I’d just rather Robyn didn’t know how I feel, that I’m nuts about her and always have been.”
Oh, get real. Robyn knew. Heck, everybody in Adams Landing knew.
“Mums the word,” Bernie assured him.
“Is she serious about Paul Landon?”
Robyn serious about a guy? He had to be kidding, right? “No, I’m pretty sure she’s not serious about him.”
“Would you laugh if I told you that I’ve been in love with your sister for as long as I can remember?” Raymond looked directly at Bernie, sincerity and hopelessness in his expression.
“No, I’d never laugh at you or anyone else about something as serious as being in love.”
Shrugging, Raymond forced a rather pitiful smile and paused, doing little more than shuffling his feet. “I married someone else and moved away from Adams Landing because I knew I didn’t have a chance with Robyn. But she’s older now and sooner or later she’ll settle down. Why not with me?”
Bernie widened her eyes. “Ah …”
“You think I’m crazy?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Robyn needs a man who’ll put her up on a pedestal and worship her. She needs a man who’d be totally devoted to her.” Raymond jerked his hand out of Bernie’s and laid his open palm over his heart. “I’m that man.”
“Oh, Raymond … I … I …”
He released her and stepped back, his sad brown eyes glistening with tears. “God, I don’t know why I told you all this. I feel like such a fool. But you said we could be friends and I thought … if you could put in a good word for me with Robyn …”
Bernie reached out and grasped Raymond’s arm. “Let me give you some advice about my sister.”
He looked at her, hope in his eyes.
“Play hard to get.”
“What?”
“Robyn loves a challenge. Pretend you’re not interested in her.”
“I—I don’t know if I can do that.”
Bernie patted him on the arm. “I’ll tell Robyn that I think you’re a great guy and a real catch for some lucky girl, but not for me.”
Raymond nodded. “Thanks, Bernie. I’m sorry I went all emotional on you.”
“Why don’t you go ask Holly Burcham or Renee Michaels to dance? Show Robyn that you aren’t pining away for her. Consider it a first step in proving to her that you’re not the least bit interested in her.”
“I guess I can do that. You’re her sister. You should know what would work with her.”
Bernie stood there alone on the dance floor for several minutes and watched Raymond Long make a beeline to Renee Michaels, who had been dancing with her date for the evening, Ron Hensley. Holding her breath, Bernie prayed that Renee wouldn’t reject Raymond. The poor guy needed something to boost his sagging ego. When Re
nee slipped her arm through Raymond’s and led him onto the dance floor, Bernie sighed with relief and turned to go to the buffet table. She hadn’t eaten a bite since breakfast and she was hungry.
When she turned around, she ran right into Jim, who grabbed her shoulders and shoved her backward to keep them from colliding.
“I thought you said you weren’t interested in Raymond Long,” Jim said teasingly.
“Ha-ha. Very funny.”
“I was headed this way to rescue you, but you two looked awfully chummy.”
“I was giving him pointers on how to deal with my sister. The poor guy is so crazy about her that he’s downright pitiful.”
“What did you advise him to do?”
She looked Jim right in the eyes. “I told him to do what you’re doing—play hard to get.”
Frowning, Jim released his hold on Bernie’s shoulders. “Do you think I’m playing games with Robyn?”
“Aren’t you? You have to know that the more you resist her, the more she’ll want you.”
“Hmm … I take it that she hasn’t been turned down very often.”
“Make that never.”
“There’s a first time for everything.” Jim grasped Bernie’s hand. “Let’s dance.”
With her head spinning and butterflies doing a mating dance in her belly, Bernie stared wide eyed at Jim. “What?”
“You promised to save me a dance,” he told her. “So do you or don’t you want to dance with me?”
Yes, I want to dance with you. I want you to take me in your arms, hold me close, whisper sweet nothings in my ear. And when you leave here tonight, I want it to be with me, not my baby sister.
“Well, actually, I was thinking about heading to the buffet tables. My stomach’s on the verge of making some very unseemly noises.”
Jim chuckled. “One dance, then we’ll hit the buffet tables together.”
She nodded and didn’t hesitate when Jim slid his arm around her and pulled her into his arms. For an entire minute, she couldn’t breathe. He was so close she could smell him. Just a whiff of a light citrus aftershave, a mint mouthwash, and an underlying masculine scent that was as individual to Jim Norton as his fingerprints. She was sure that she could pick him out from a dozen other men simply by his smell.
“Don’t be surprised if Kevin asks you for a dance later,” Jim said.
“What?”
“My son has a crush on you. He asked me if I thought it would be all right if he asked you for a dance.”
“I’m flattered.”
“Kevin’s a smart kid. He knows when someone genuinely likes him.”
Is his dad as smart as he is?
“Does he know how much you love him?” Bernie gasped. “Oh, God, Jim, I’m sorry. That just popped out. Your relationship with your son is none of my business.”
“It’s okay. You and I are friends, aren’t we? At least I feel like we are. You’ve spent a lot of time with Kevin and me the past week or so and I know you weren’t asking just to be nosy.”
“I’d like to think that you and I are friends and that Kevin and I are, too. But friendship doesn’t give me the right to—”
Jim tightened his hold around Bernie, drawing her so close that her breasts pressed against his chest. “I want to be a good father more than anything, but I’ve made such a mess of my life. I’ve got a real chance with Kevin now and I don’t want to blow it. I think he knows how much he means to me, but I’m not sure. My relationship with my ex-wife has been volatile, to say the least, and she’s used Kevin to get back at me. For over six years, she’s undermined my relationship with Kevin.”
“I don’t understand why she would do that. Doesn’t she know that by driving a wedge between you and Kevin, she’s hurting him just as much as she’s hurting you?”
“I’ll give Mary Lee the benefit of the doubt and say she doesn’t know, but you’d have to know my ex-wife to understand the way she operates. She loves Kevin, and in many ways she’s been a good mother. But she doesn’t love him as much as she loves herself. If it came to a choice between what she wanted and what Kevin needed—Damn, would you listen to me bad-mouthing a woman who’s battling breast cancer and could die. You must think I’m a real jerk.”
Bernie lifted her hand from Jim’s shoulder and without thinking about what she was doing, caressed his cheek. “I think you’re human. Your ex-wife hurt you, then undermined your relationship with your son. You have every right to resent the way she’s treated you.”
“I want you to know that I’ve never said anything against Mary Lee to Kevin. I wouldn’t do that.”
“No, you wouldn’t, because you love your son.”
Jim cleared his throat. Bernie laid her hand back on Jim’s shoulder.
“You know what, Sheriff Granger? I’m beginning to agree with what my son said about you.”
Her heartbeat accelerated with excitement. “What did he say?”
“He said, ‘Bernie’s a really super lady.’ He was right. You are.”
Oh, God. Oh, God. How should she respond? Don’t gush and goo and go all fluttering female on him. “Well, for the record—I think you and Kevin are pretty super, too.”
The band ended one romantic jazz number and began another. Jim released Bernie in the interval. “Ready to hit the buffet tables?”
She placed her open palms over her stomach. “I am so ready I may eat a gallon of boiled shrimp all by myself.”
Jim slipped his arm around her waist and escorted her off the dance floor. Bernie felt as if she were floating on air. The words to an old song flitted through her mind. Something about this being the night and him being the one.
Jim hated big parties like this one. He hated wearing a tie and being sociable. He was a blue jeans, beer and chips, kicking-back-with-his-buddies kind of guy. He’d much rather be over at the King Kone wolfing down burgers and fries with Kevin and Bernie than eating gourmet food and drinking champagne with hundreds of people, most of whom he didn’t know. But putting in an appearance tonight had been mandatory. After all, Bernie was not only his friend, but his boss. And God knew he owed Brenda and R.B. Granger big time for the way they’d practically adopted Kevin as their grandson.
Jim flushed the urinal, then went over to the sink, turned on the faucets and lathered his hands. He had escaped the music, laughter, loud chatter, and requests to dance from countless women by taking the back stairs to use the second floor men’s restroom. The second floor was practically deserted and there had been only one man in the restroom when he arrived. He was alone now and a part of him wished he could hide out in here until it was time to leave. After drying his hands, he checked his watch. Ten till ten. He’d promised himself that he’d stay until eleven, then use Kevin as an excuse to leave.
After dancing with Amy Simms, the DA’s wife, and with Deputy Holly Burcham, he’d lost track of Bernie. Then just as he headed out of the ballroom, he’d caught a glimpse of her talking to Reverend Donaldson and couldn’t help wondering if Bernie found the new minister more interesting than her sister had. Surely not. The good reverend wasn’t the right guy for Bernie any more than Raymond Long was.
When Jim reached out to open the restroom door, it flew open, nearly knocking him down. On the verge of saying something rude and crude to the numbskull coming into the restroom, Jim did a double take when he got a good look at the person.
“This is the men’s room,” he told Robyn Granger.
She grinned from ear to ear. “I know that, silly.” She pointed her index finger into the center of his chest and eased into the room, closing the door behind her. “I followed you up here. I’ve been trying to get a minute alone with you all evening.”
“This is hardly the place for a private conversation.”
“The door’s closed and we’re all alone.”
He eyed the door. “Somebody could walk in at any minute. How would you explain being in the men’s room?”
She shrugged. “I like to take chances. Live dan
gerously.”
“I don’t.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself intimately against him.
“Liar.” She kissed him.
He clamped his hands down on her shoulders, then put some distance between them by pushing her back a few inches. “Why me? You can have your pick of just about any guy here tonight.”
“Then aren’t you lucky.” She gave him a sultry, I-want-tofuck-you look.
“Robyn …”
Brenda Granger grabbed Bernie’s arm and led her out of the ballroom and into a quiet corner in the massive foyer.
“What’s going on?” Bernie asked, startled by her mother’s sudden request of “We need to talk” seconds before she grabbed her.
“Tell me something,” Brenda said. “And I want the truth.”
Bernie nodded.
“Are you involved with Jim Norton?”
“What?”
“I said are you—?”
“Jim and I are friends.”
“Nothing more?”
Bernie shook her head.
“Oh, sweetie, you’ve fallen for the guy, haven’t you?” Brenda gazed sympathetically at Bernie. “You should have told me. You should have told Robyn.”
“My personal relationships aren’t any of your business. Besides, you’re wrong. I’m not—”
“Bernadette Granger, do not lie to me. I’ve watched you with Jim all evening. The way you look at him … Oh, my sweet girl, it’s obvious that you adore him.”
“Jim and I are friends. That’s all.”
“But you want more.”
“Mom!”
“We have to tell Robyn how you feel. She’s set her sights on Jim and she’s determined to… well, you know. But if she had any idea that you were in love with him, she’d back off in a heartbeat.”
“Don’t you dare say anything to Robyn!”
“But if she doesn’t know how you feel, she won’t realize that if she and Jim become”—Brenda struggled for the correct word—“close, it will break your heart.”
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