“Exactly how rebellious were you?” he asked.
“By today’s standards, not very, but it didn’t take much to get my father riled up. I was worse after my mom died, because the only way I could think of to get his attention was to misbehave at school so he’d have to come down to bribe them to keep me.” The smile that touched her lips seemed sad. “I’m pretty sure I single-handedly provided funding for a new gymnasium.”
Brave words, but Bobby could hear the hurt behind them. Damn that father of hers for sending her away just when he should have been holding her close. How could a man send his only daughter away right after she’d lost her mother? For that callous act alone, Bobby would have refused to do business with him, but this deal wasn’t really about Pennington. It was about his daughter and her struggle for independence and self-respect.
And the more Bobby discovered about Jenna, the more convinced he was that he could never knowingly do anything that would hurt or demean her the way all of the other men in her life apparently had.
Jenna awoke the morning after her dinner with Bobby filled with regret. Why had she spilled all of that personal information about what an irresponsible brat she’d been as a kid? That was hardly the professional, competent image she wanted to project to a man she hoped would invest millions in her boardwalk development plan.
Somehow, though, gazing into his warm, compassionate eyes, she had found herself sharing details about things she’d been trying for years to push out of her mind—old hurts, petty slights, even recent evidence of her father’s lack of respect. Once she’d started, she hadn’t been able to stop. Bobby had listened to all of it without comment.
“Your father is a horse’s ass,” he said when she was finally done venting years of pent-up frustrations.
Jenna had grinned. “I’ve certainly painted him as one, anyway. Sorry. He really isn’t a bad person.”
“Just thoughtless and cruel, to say nothing of arrogant,” Bobby said with a ferocity that startled her.
Jenna hadn’t been able to bring herself to contradict him. At that moment, she hadn’t been feeling all that charitable toward the man herself.
Still, it would have been wiser to be more circumspect.
“Mom, what time is it?” Darcy asked sleepily from the next bed. “Why are you up? It isn’t even daylight yet.”
“My head’s spinning,” she told Darcy. “I have a lot of things to do.”
Always eager for an adventure, Darcy shot up in bed. “Are we going somewhere?”
Jenna had planned to spend the morning at the small desk in their hotel room working the phone and a calculator to come up with the rough figures for her proposed project. One glimpse outside told her it was much too nice a day for that. And Daisy’s suggestion that she find a place to rent, at least for the rest of the summer, had been popping into her head all night long, right alongside the image of Bobby’s mouth hotly devouring hers. Now that would definitely be something worth staying for.
“Darcy, what would you think of staying in Trinity Harbor for a while?” she asked.
“How long?” Darcy asked, instantly cautious. “I thought we were just here on vacation.”
“I’m not sure how long,” Jenna said. “Till the end of the summer, at least. If we get this deal, maybe even longer.”
“Would I go to school here?”
“If we stayed, of course.”
Darcy looked hesitant. “I don’t know, Mom. Those kids were pretty mean. I’m not sure I want to go to the same school they do.”
Jenna was alarmed by her daughter’s frightened reaction. Had there been further incidents, of which she was unaware? It would be just like Darcy to put on a brave front and keep them to herself if there had been no adult witnesses.
“Those bullies haven’t bothered you again, have they?” Jenna asked, studying her daughter’s face with a penetrating look. Darcy was many things—impossible, smart, funny—but she was a terrible liar. Jenna would know in an instant if she was trying to put a good face on something that had happened.
“No,” Darcy admitted. “But we haven’t been to the river again, except by Tommy’s house. And Pete’s been okay since then. I think Walker told him he’d better shape up. Walker’s pretty cool. Tommy said at first he wasn’t sure how he felt about Walker, since he’d never even known he had an uncle and then this guy shows up and wants to claim him after his mom died. But now Walker’s like a real dad to him. He says that’s way better than before, ’cause his dad died before he was even born.”
Jenna heard the wistful note in Darcy’s voice. “You do know that your father loves you, don’t you, Darcy?”
“I guess.”
“Well, he does, but he’s never going to be a traditional kind of dad,” Jenna said, mentally cursing the fact that Nick refused to take one single thing in his life—including his daughter—seriously. That meant it had been up to Jenna to be the mature adult in Darcy’s world, the one person whose love she could count on.
“I know,” Darcy said with an air of resignation no child of nine should be expressing. “Dad doesn’t like being tied down, and I’m a responsibility.”
That was Nick, all right. Darcy had captured his put-upon tone, to say nothing of his attitude, almost precisely. He wanted nothing if it interfered with having a good time.
“You’re my responsibility, too,” Jenna told her. “And that’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“I know,” Darcy said matter-of-factly. “But it would be nice to have a dad around all the time.” She gave Jenna a speculative look. “Like Bobby. I bet he’d be an awesome dad.”
Jenna almost choked. She had thought of Bobby in any number of roles in recent days—some of them even X-rated—but the image of him as a dad hadn’t once crossed her mind. Maybe because that was a role in Darcy’s life she’d determinedly refused to consider casting after the way Nick had loused up the part.
“Let’s not get carried away,” she told Darcy. “Bobby and I are potential business partners, nothing more.”
“You could be more. I’ll bet if you asked him, he’d take you on a real date.”
“I try to make it a rule not to ask men on dates,” Jenna said. “That’s a suggestion you might want to keep in mind, too.”
“Why shouldn’t girls ask guys out?” Darcy asked reasonably. “If you want to go somewhere and you want a boy to come too, what’s wrong with asking?”
“There’s nothing wrong with it exactly,” Jenna said, wondering if her old-fashioned view was completely out of step in today’s modern world. “But I don’t care how liberated women get, guys still like to do the pursuing in a relationship.”
“Then you and Bobby might have a relationship, if he asks you out first?” Darcy wondered.
“That is definitely not what I said,” Jenna insisted, fearful that Darcy would get it into her head to meddle. On that score, Daisy was already bad enough. “We’ve gotten off-track now. All I asked was whether you’d mind if we stayed in Trinity Harbor a while longer.”
“I guess it would be okay,” Darcy said with what passed for enthusiasm with her these days. Suddenly her eyes lit up. “Could I have a dog if we stayed? Grandpa says all they do is piddle on the carpet, but mine wouldn’t. I’d train it real good, and it could protect me, and if we ever go back to Grandpa’s, he’d have to let me keep it because it would be a member of the family by then, right?”
Jenna wasn’t entirely sure of that. He’d sent her away, and she was his daughter. “I’m sure we could work it out,” she agreed, suddenly determined to give Darcy something of her own to love and care for. No one knew better than Jenna what it was like to be a scared, lonely kid.
“All right!!!” Darcy exclaimed, bouncing on the bed. “Mom, you’re the best.”
“For now, anyway,” Jenna said wryly. “Okay, get up and get dressed. First things first. Let’s check out the real estate situation.”
“Call Bobby,” Darcy recommended. “I’ll bet he k
nows everything that’s for sale in town.”
“Leave Bobby out of this. And we’re not going to buy,” Jenna insisted. “We’ll just rent for now and see how it goes.”
“Whatever,” Darcy said, racing for the bathroom. “I can’t wait to get a puppy. Do you think Bobby has a dog?”
“I have no idea.”
“I’ll bet he does. Guys like dogs. I’ll bet there are bunches of them at his father’s farm. Tommy says Cedar Hill is so cool. I can hardly wait to go there on Sunday, can you?”
Jenna rolled her eyes at the boundless enthusiasm. “Just get dressed, okay?”
While Darcy was in the shower, Jenna stared at the phone and debated whether to call Bobby or Daisy. Daisy, she decided, then hesitated. Daisy might make too much of her impulsive decision to rent a place to stay. Then, again, Bobby might have a heart attack if he thought she were simply settling in, counting on him to make a decision in her favor. She’d sensed his struggle to keep from discouraging her, but she’d also heard the genuine excitement in his voice over her sketches.
She glanced up and realized that Darcy was peering at her curiously. Her hair was damp and sticking up in green spikes with dark roots. It was quite a look.
“Mom, did you call Bobby?”
“No,” she admitted. “I decided we’d go to breakfast and see who we run into. I’m sure there will be someone who can steer us in the right direction.”
Naturally, though, because she’d decided against calling him, Bobby was the first person they spotted at Earlene’s. He waved them into the booth opposite him.
“Guess what?” Darcy said. “Mom and me are gonna stay here. We’re gonna find a house and then I’m gonna get a puppy. I think maybe a golden retriever. What do you think?”
Bobby looked a little dazed. His gaze sought Jenna’s. “Oh? When did all this happen? You didn’t mention anything about this last night.”
“We just decided,” Darcy said, not giving Jenna a chance to reply. “Mom asked me what I thought and I said yes, so now we’re gonna do it. Do you know a place we can rent? I want one on the beach with a big, fenced-in yard for the puppy.”
Bobby’s gaze never left Jenna’s face. “And you? What do you want?”
“Something that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg,” she said honestly. “I used up all my spare cash on that carousel.”
“So, something cheap in a prime location?” he said. “That could be tricky.”
“It doesn’t have to be a prime location,” Jenna said. “I’ll settle for something with running water and no bugs or mice.”
He chuckled. “Maybe you could convince Darcy that the mice make better pets than a dog.”
“Yuck,” Darcy proclaimed. “No way. Mom, I see Tommy coming down the street with Pete. Can I go out and meet them?”
“It’s may I, and, yes, you may.”
When Darcy had gone, Jenna met Bobby’s gaze. “I hope this doesn’t bother you.”
He regarded her with amusement. “What? The idea of you staying in Trinity Harbor? I think the town is big enough for both of us.”
“I just don’t want you to feel pressured, as if I’ve set up camp on your doorstep so you’ll feel obliged to make a deal with me.”
“Sugar, there is very little I feel obliged to do, as my father and Daisy could tell you. When I make this deal with anyone, it will be on the merits of the presentation. Period.”
There was no mistaking the warning behind his words. “Don’t worry, I won’t start counting my chickens before they’re hatched,” she said.
“I will promise you one thing,” he said, his expression grim. “If Tucker hasn’t found out anything new about that missing horse by the end of the week, I will pay you for it and for the whole carousel. That will get you out of your financial bind, too.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Jenna protested.
“Yes, I do,” he insisted. “No matter what plan I go with, I want that merry-go-round here.”
“But what if the horse is never found, Bobby? You’ll be stuck.”
“No, I won’t.” He glanced up. “And here’s my crime-fighting brother now.” He scooted over. “Have a seat, Tucker.”
Tucker frowned. “Why do I have a feeling this is a bad idea?” he asked as he slid in.
“That depends on how hard you’ve been working to get Jenna’s missing carousel horse back,” Bobby said.
“I wish I could tell you that I had a lead, but I don’t. The security guard is still missing.”
“You checked out Harvey?” Bobby asked.
“I didn’t have any evidence to get a search warrant, but I did have a chat with him and his wife. I’d stake my badge that they’re not involved in this.”
“What about a man named Dave Meltzer?” Bobby asked.
“Who’s that?” Jenna asked.
“He showed up at the yacht center last night with the mayor. He’s a developer out of Richmond. For all I know, he could have ties to that security company. He might use them at his properties all over the county down there. I have an appointment with him this morning. I’m guessing he wants to buy the land outright for condos. Creating a little stir around my ideas for the boardwalk could work to his advantage.”
Tucker shook his head. “I just don’t see some hot-shot developer stealing an antique carousel horse and risking it being traced back to him. Besides, what would he accomplish?”
“You mean aside from making me appear foolish?” Bobby said.
“You’re not the one who stole the horse. You’re the victim,” Tucker reminded him. “Or, rather, Jenna is.”
Jenna thought about Tucker’s explanation. What if Meltzer knew that she was here without her father’s authorization? What if he had somehow figured out that the horse—and the carousel—had tied up all of her funds?
“I want to be there when you talk to Meltzer,” she told Bobby.
Both men stared at her, clearly startled by the request. “Why?” Bobby asked.
“What if he took it because he knows I’d be financially strapped, at least long enough to keep me out of the picture? For all I know, my father could have called him and clued him in. Developers might be highly competitive, but it’s still a relatively small, tight-knit community. They could know each other. And it would be just the kind of sneaky, underhanded thing my father might do to teach me a lesson.”
Tucker looked shocked. “Your own father would do that?”
“And more,” Jenna confirmed grimly.
“Then I say we all go to this meeting with Mr. Meltzer,” Tucker said, already sliding out of the booth. “You guys coming?”
“Not me,” Bobby said.
Tucker paused. “Why not?”
“Because I haven’t had my breakfast, and the meeting’s not for another hour.”
Tucker looked relieved. He sat right back down. “Then by all means, let’s eat. Bobby, you buying?”
“I’ll buy when you’re in my place. In here, you’re on your own.”
“It’s my treat,” Jenna said, grinning when both men stared at her in amazement. “It is a business expense, you know.”
“Do you actually have an expense account?” Bobby asked.
“No, but I do have a company credit card, and unless my father’s cut it off, I haven’t even started to max it out.”
“Then by all means, you can treat,” Tucker said, waving Earlene over.
Bobby shook his head. “You’d think the tightwad didn’t have a dime of his own. He’s my brother and I’m ashamed of him.” He scowled at Tucker. “Letting a woman buy you a meal. What would Daddy say?”
“That he raised me to have good sense,” Tucker asserted.
He started to order, but Bobby cut him off. “Just one problem, bro. Earlene doesn’t take credit cards.”
Jenna sighed. “Sorry. I never thought of that.”
“I’ll buy,” Bobby said. “I can’t have the two of you starving to death on my conscience. I’ve got enough other things
on there these days.”
His gaze caught Jenna’s and held. She trembled at the heat he made no effort at all to hide. The idea that thoughts of her were troubling him was…disturbing. No, correct that. It was exciting, but she couldn’t allow him to see that.
“Don’t lose any sleep on my account,” she said, sounding a whole lot more breathless than she would have preferred.
“Too late for that,” Bobby muttered.
Tucker cast a speculative look from his brother to Jenna and back again. “I think I’ll go eat at the counter.”
“Good idea,” Bobby said, without once glancing away from Jenna.
She swallowed hard. “Maybe I should be eating over there, too.”
“Now, what would be the fun of that?” Bobby teased.
“This is a bad idea,” she said very firmly. “We’ve discussed that. The timing is atrocious. It’s…” She floundered, searching for a word to describe it.
“Unethical?” Bobby suggested.
“Yes,” she said at once, seizing on the concept. “It is totally inappropriate and unethical.”
“No, it’s not,” he said. “Unless, of course, you’re only interested in seducing me so I’ll give you the deal you want.”
“I am not…” She sputtered to a halt. Of course, she was. She was very interested in seducing him. It just had nothing to do with the deal.
And that was the problem. The deal had to be the only thing on her mind right now. The only thing. Not Bobby’s sexy, dimpled smile. Not his amazing, compassionate eyes. Not the way she shivered when he touched her. None of that.
And while she was asking for the impossible, maybe she ought to throw in a request for a few million bucks.
14
Bobby could barely hide his amusement when Dave Meltzer arrived for their meeting and spotted not only Jenna but a uniformed sheriff sitting in his office. To his credit, the man plastered a cordial smile on his face and introduced himself. The smooth manner must have been the result of all the practice he got schmoozing with city officials to get zoning variances for his projects. He was reportedly a master at it, from what Bobby had read overnight in the computer archives of the Richmond paper.
Ask Anyone Page 17