About That Kiss (5 page)

“He’s in love with someone else.” Joy went from almost laughing to wanting to cry.

“Someone you know?”

“Yes,” Joy answered miserably.

“Diana?”

Joy’s eyes popped. “What made you say Diana?”

“She told me this afternoon about Kevin’s brother showing up and that she’d been engaged to him.” Eddie’s roving hand got closer to the small of her back..

Joy neither denied nor confirmed Eddie’s speculation. She let it hang. Just then Joy caught Nick’s eyes glancing her way, and because he happened to be looking, Joy gave Eddie her flirtiest smile. She wanted Nick to know that there were men who found her attractive. Not that there was any point to his knowing.

Eddie smiled back seductively. “Bet he’s the type to try and get Diana jealous by coming on to you. She goes for his brother. He goes for her sister. Maybe that’s the vibe I’m getting.”

“He is not going to do anything of the sort.” Joy rousingly admonished Eddie’s sophomoric attitude. “He’d never stoop to trying to make Diana jealous with me. Could you bring your hand up a little?” Joy requested in a firm, determined voice as Eddie’s fingers began to spread intimately below her spine.

“I don’t get it, Joy,” Eddie grumbled, bringing his hand up. “You’ve been giving me signals.”

Joy guiltily considered Eddie’s remark. He was absolutely right. She had given him signals. “Didn’t you say yourself that some women need more time?”

Eddie issued a groan. “Is there any chance of anything happening between us in this lifetime?”

Joy gave Eddie a conciliatory “Mona Lisa” smile, which made her feel even more guilty. Playing the game she was playing wasn’t like her. Testily, Joy placed the blame on Nick.

“Most women find me very sexy.” Eddie quirked a sexy corner-of-the-mouth smile. “Especially when I’m on stage singing. I had a woman throw me a pair of panties once. It happens to Mick all the time. I couldn’t believe it was happening to me.”

“Mick?” Joy inquired, doing her damnedest to make it seem like she was impressed.

“Jagger…Rolling Stones. He’s my idol.”

“Right. Jagger.”

“Are you going to come and hear me sing?”

“Sure,” Joy answered. “I’ll get a whole group together.”

“How about coming alone? I’m on a real high after I sing.”

Joy’s gaze collided again with Nick’s. “I’ll have to think about it,” she said, guiltily working another superficially vampy smile on Eddie.

“Kevin is going to be wearing a monkey suit and so are you,” Diana insisted. “You are going to be part of the wedding party now that you’re here, even though Kevin couldn’t reach you in time to name you as his best man. He really did want you to be his best man.
It would have been great with Joy as my maid of honor and you as Kevin’s best man.”

“Who is Kevin’s best man?” Nick was sorry he wasn’t standing up for his brother. Who was going to be escorting Joy? Had Diana invited Eddie DeMarco to the wedding?

“Rick Farrell. You know Kevin’s partner, don’t you?”

“Yes. Kevin and Rick go all the way back to law school. I remember Kevin being Rick’s best man when Rick got married a few years ago.”

“Rick is divorced now. I’m hoping that Rick and Joy hit it off. I can see Joy with Rick. He’s got a sharp mind. He’s lots of fun and he’s very nice-looking.”

“I can’t see Joy with Rick,” Nick said, doubly frustrated now. “He’s too old for her.”

“Eleven years is not necessarily that much of a spread. I know it won’t bother Joy. Anyway, I’ve added another bridesmaid just for you. Rachel Harmon. She’s Joy’s best friend. Joy and I have mostly the same friends.”

Diana’s voice went up a notch. “I just realized I haven’t told Joy yet that I added Rachel to the wedding party this morning. I was worried that Rachel would be put off that I was asking her to be a bridesmaid at the last moment, but she was fine about it. You’re going to like Rachel. I told her all about you.”

“Forget it! I don’t want to be matched up.”

“Snap out of it, Nick,” Diana said ruefully.

“Snap out of what?” Nick’s frustration peaked. “I’ve had this conversation with Kevin. I’m fine about the two of you.”

“I’m glad you’re fine about us,” Diana replied placatingly, though she didn’t look convinced. “Are Joy and Eddie still dancing?”

“They’re still dancing,” Nick answered tautly, as Diana craned her neck to look for herself. Seeing Joy smile at Eddie again, Nick became even more tense than he already was. He wasn’t consciously aware of himself counting, but that had to have been the sixth time she’d smiled at Eddie.

“I think Joy may be more interested in Eddie than she’s been letting on to me,” Diana commented.

Nick told himself that if Eddie had been
at all
right for Joy, he’d stop chasing her himself. But Eddie wasn’t at all right for her.

Nick gave a brief thought to letting his hair grow long enough for a ponytail.

“I don’t believe it!” Diana said. “Kevin just came in. He’s looking for us.” Diana and Nick stopped dancing to wave to Kevin.

Seeing Diana and Nick waving to Kevin, Joy stopped in her tracks, bringing Eddie to a halt.

“I called the house,” Kevin said, approaching both couples. “Your mother told me where you’d gone.”

Diana moved from Nick to Kevin. “Did you finish your work?”

“Enough to get me by in court tomorrow.” Kevin put his arm possessively around Diana’s shoulders. “I got off the phone with your mother and I was sitting there thinking of you being out with this brother of mine.” Kevin raised an eyebrow at Nick.

Nick put his hands up and smiled. “I’ve been a perfect gentlemen. You can ask Joy.”

Joy’s gaze darted to Nick. If he was at all bothered by Kevin showing up, he wasn’t revealing it. Sure, he’d been acting proper with Diana since they’d gotten here. But what about the drive over? They’d come in two cars. Nick had insisted on driving. Eddie had insisted on driving. Diana had mediated them into two cars.

“I’ll ask Diana, thank you,” Kevin rejoined.

Diana laughed. “Wait till I tell you what this brother of yours has been up to. And I don’t mean with me.”

“Hey, Eddie.” Gilbert Benson, the forty-nine-year-old, balding proprietor of Gillie’s, called to him from behind the bar. “Come here a minute.”

“Be right back,” Eddie said, speeding off at the summons.

“Can I get you to dance with me?” Diana turned coquettish eyes up at Kevin.

“I’ve promised to dance with you at our wedding.” Kevin smiled lovingly. “Can I get you to sit down with me?”

“Well,” Diana joshed. “Since you’ve promised in the presence of witnesses, I guess you can get me to sit.”

Nick gave some coins in his pocket a restless jingle as he looked at Joy. “What do you say we give these soon-to-be-married folks a little time to themselves? How about dancing with me?”

Joy’s stomach immediately lurched, while her heart began pounding against her ribs. His question had stopped her from following Diana and Kevin as they started for the table.

“Well…I…ah…” Joy stammered.

Nick held on to Joy’s gaze with his eyes. “You can’t put a man through what I went through at lunch, then refuse to dance with him.”

“The anchovies?” Joy asked dumbly, doing what she could to catch her breath. He was giving her the sexiest smile imaginable.

“Damn right! The anchovies.” Nick put his arms around her and brought his body closer to hers, then waited for her to acquiesce.

With her heartbeat driving hard and fast at her throat, Joy brought a hand up to dangle tentatively around his neck. He joined his fingers lightly at the hollow of her spine. Joy placed her other hand on his shoulder. His head dropped down. Hers lifted up.

Keep it slow,
Nick mentally telegraphed to the blond singer on the platform.

Don’t let him know how I feel,
Joy silently begged, making herself as stiff as she could.

“Did I tell you how much I like the suggestion you gave me to do a series on the new East End economics?” Joy asked in a nervously rapid speech while he started swaying with the sensuous beat of the music.
Were their feet moving?
Or was it just their bodies? A whole series of heated fantasies were flashing in her head, all of them with Nick Tremain in the leading role, in varying stages of undress.

“I only came up with the suggestion from something you said. That makes it all your idea,” Nick murmured.

“No. It was your idea.” The shoulder of his sweater was wonderfully soft against her chin. “I don’t even remember what I said to give you the thought.” Her fingers were close to his hair. She wanted to touch.
Just one quick touch. Could she do it without him knowing?

“You were talking about wineries—that started the ball rolling. I just gave your idea a broad stroke. It wouldn’t be anything without your punchy title… ‘Secrets of the new East End economics—people and families.’ I love it.”

Joy felt Nick’s lips brush up against her cheek. She was certain it was accidental, but in the state he already had her in, it was more than enough to make the small steps she was taking go all haywire. Her foot tangled with his. She had to clutch his shoulder with the hand that was already there and grip his neck with the crook of her arm so as not to lose her balance. For half a second he teetered with her before steadying both of them.

“Okay now?” Nick asked gently, pulling his head back to see her face. He studied the pink, flustered cheeks and the way her eyes self-consciously cast about for someplace to center on other than him.

Joy could have died on the spot. She was that embarrassed. “It’s hard for me to dance this way,” she said, trying to mitigate her klutziness. She’d never tripped over herself this way before.

Nick reached up for the hand behind his neck and changed their position to a more conventional dance pose. From the corner of his eye, Nick saw Eddie leave the bar and head over to them. Was Eddie the reason she’d suddenly protested about the way they’d been dancing?

Joy concentrated her gaze on their meshed hands, wondering if he could feel the riotous jumping of her heart all the way through her fingers.

“You’re not going to believe this,” Eddie said, his voice startling Joy, causing her to nearly trip again before Nick stopped them entirely.

“Gillie asked me to help him out behind the bar tonight,” Eddie said to Joy. “One of his bartenders didn’t show. I tried saying no, but you know how it is. Gillie’s acting like he’s about to change his mind about giving me and the boys this gig. I’ll be done by one, one-thirty at the latest, and then I’ll take you home. You can sit at the bar and wait for me. I could shoot myself for letting Gillie know I’ve bartended before.”

“Don’t worry about Joy,” Nick said, more than happy now that Diana had pushed them into two cars. “I’ll drive her home. This way she can leave when she’s ready to leave.”

Eddie shot Nick a glare that didn’t disturb Nick in the least.

“Hey, Eddie,” Gillie yelled over. “Put a move on it.”

“Come sit at the bar,” Eddie coaxed Joy. “Keep me company.”

“It looks like it’s pretty rushed at the bar right now,” Joy responded, much to Nick’s delight.

“Eddie,” Gillie paged again, even more impatiently.

Eddie put a hand up toward Gillie. “If I don’t get to spend any more time with you tonight, I’ll see you at the house tomorrow when you get home from work. By the way, I’m going to be around for a while. I don’t know if Diana told you, but she’d asked me to paint all the bedrooms in the house after the wedding. Don’t tell your Mom. Diana and Kevin want it to be a surprise.”

Nick groaned under his breath, thinking of Eddie having a ready-made excuse to be around Joy even after the wedding.

“That’s nice of Diana and Kevin, isn’t it?” Joy smiled to Nick after Eddie hurried off.

“Real nice.” Nick spoke through his teeth.

Joy looked toward the tables. “I guess we should go join Diana and Kevin.”

Nick shook his head. “I didn’t get a whole dance. You still owe me.”

“I only made you eat one small taste of anchovies,” Joy said impudently, but already turning into his arms before he changed his mind.

Nick put a testing hand out, palm upward to accept Joy’s hand. It wasn’t the way he wanted to dance with her.

Joy put her hand in his, letting her other hand fall limp at her side, deciding not to let her fingers anywhere near his hair again.

Nick started them both off in an unhurried rhythm.

“Oh, Nicky,” Kevin razzed from the table. “The group just signed off for a break.”

Joy blushed. She hadn’t realized the music had stopped.

Nick raised his eyes to the ceiling. “Just what I need. A brother with a big mouth.”

“M
y brother the entrepreneur,” Kevin said kiddingly to Nick, as he and Joy approached the table. “Why didn’t you tell me you bought the newspaper?”

“I was trying to be dramatic,” Nick said with a grin, seating Joy and then himself at the table. “I know better than to tell you anything I don’t want broadcasted.”

Kevin held a hand to his chest in mock pretense of being hurt. “I hope you had some lawyer look over the contract of sale before you signed it.”

“Pay some lawyer the fee you lawyers get, when I have one in the family…Are you nuts? I put in a stipulation that my attorney had the right to negotiate any changes in the first week. The papers should be on your desk tomorrow morning. I mailed everything to you.”

Kevin breathed a sigh of relief. “What made you decide on buying a newspaper now?”

Joy could have answered that. She knew Diana could have answered, as well.

“Your lectures finally worked on me,” Nick said. “I’m settling down.”

Kevin raised a salutatory thumb in the air. “I don’t know what made you decide to settle down, but I’m certainly glad you have. Finally I get to stop worrying about you traipsing around with guerrillas somewhere or another.”

“What’s Eddie doing behind the bar?” Diana asked, looking very much like she wanted to change the topic of conversation.

“He’s suffering the cost of fame,” Nick answered offhandedly. “One of the bartenders didn’t make it in and Eddie got recruited. Doesn’t look like there’s anyone waiting tables tonight, either. How about I go over to the bar and get us some drinks?”

“One round to celebrate your settling down,” Kevin responded. “It’s an hour to Greenport, then an hour back for me.”

The evening, as far as Nick was concerned, had just made another turn for the better. Kevin deciding to drive Diana home had Nick ecstatic.

“It doesn’t make any sense for you to spend two hours traveling back and forth. I’ll go with Nick,” Diana said. “Joy, are you going to wait for Eddie?”

“No,” Joy replied. “I’m going home with Nick, also.” Had he meant to sound as disappointed as he’d sounded when the band’s break had ended their dancing? Joy berated herself for having the thought, much less for feeling hopeful.

“In that case,” Kevin sent Diana a teasing smile. “I don’t have any problem letting Nick take you home.”

“You don’t have a problem either way,” Diana parried.

Joy examined Nick’s face. He looked glum. Joy didn’t have to think hard to figure out why. When he’d offered to take her off Eddie’s hands, he hadn’t thought he’d have another chance to be alone with Diana—not with Kevin having shown up.

“What would you ladies like to drink?” Nick asked, as he and Kevin got to their feet.

“What are you going to have?” Diana asked Kevin.

“White wine.”

“That’s good for me,” Diana said.

“Joy?” Nick asked.

“Umm.” Joy contemplated. “I think I’ll have…a margarita.” She was going for some dramatics herself.

Diana gaped at Joy. “A margarita? Since when do you drink anything hard? You barely even drink wine.”

Joy gave a decided lift of her chin and then lied through her teeth. “I drink more than wine sometimes. I feel like having a margarita tonight.”

Nick’s bemused eyes were on Joy’s upturned face. “It’s a powerful drink,” he said, with a grin in his voice at her expressive zealousness.

“I can handle it. I’ve had margaritas before.” Joy punched up her lie with an air of sophistication that she centered on Nick. Who did he think he was? Patronizing her as if she was a kid. She was a woman! She could even roar if she wanted to.

“A margarita it is,” Nick said, curbing his smile. Her eyes were telling him clearly that a smile wasn’t the kind of response she wanted.

“I’m really concerned that Nick will try to do something to ruin the wedding,” Diana said, after Nick and Kevin had left for the bar.

“I think Nick’s mind is more on his plans for the paper than on your wedding.” Joy could feel her heart in her throat. She liked that supposition, though she didn’t honestly believe it.

“What I’d like to know is exactly when Nick decided to buy the paper.” Diana cast her head to one side, tossing her pitch-black hair over one shoulder. “It’s all very suspicious to me.”

“Why don’t you just ask him?” Now that Diana brought it up, Joy wondered about that herself. How had he even known that Earl was interested in selling? “Anyway, Kevin doesn’t seem worried.”

“Of course not. But you don’t know Kevin the way I do. I know it’s terrible of me, but I do like him trying not to show that he’s concerned.”

“That’s a lousy game to play, Diana,” Joy preached, dismissing her own guilty complicity at playing games with Eddie.

“You’re being a pain, Joy.” Diana wrinkled up her nose. “Oh, I almost forgot. I told Kevin, but I didn’t tell you. I called Rachel this morning, and she’s agreed to be another one of my bridesmaids. That evens things up again with Nick here. Wouldn’t it be great if Nick took a liking to Rachel? What I should do is get them together before the wedding.”

Joy felt as if her heart plunged to the pit of her stomach. Rachel Harmon was almost as beautiful as Diana.

“Eddie says to tell you he wants you to be sure to spend some time with him before you leave,” Kevin told Joy as he and Nick arrived back at the table.

Thanks a lot, Kevin,
Nick thought, scowling.

“Okay,” Joy responded absently, looking down at the drink Nick placed before her.

Seated, Nick lifted his bottle of beer, offering a toast. “To settling down.. To Joy being my ace reporter. To Diana and Kevin’s upcoming wedding.” And to getting Eddie DeMarco out of the way. Nick tacked on silently.

Diana and Kevin raised their wineglasses and clinked them together. Then they clinked separately to Nick’s bottle of beer.

Joy picked up her margarita and joined the clinking.

His eyes on Joy, Nick took a swallow of his beer.

Diana and Kevin took sips of their wine.

Joy sampled the margarita first with the tip of her tongue. Finding the lime taste not at all unpleasant, and being thirsty, Joy swallowed a mouthful. Her eyes watered and she coughed.

Nick’s hand shot to Joy’s back. He was just as quick at it as Diana was.

“Do you want some water?” Kevin asked solicitously, while Diana and Nick patted Joy’s back.

Joy shook her head and elbowed both Nick and Diana away. “It went down wrong.” Joy coughed again. “That’s all.”

With determined aplomb, Joy lifted the hand still gripping the margarita and took a sip. A very tiny sip. Just enough to defiantly prove she was fine.

Nick caught the triumphant look Joy didn’t know was in her eyes as she put the glass down on the table without coughing or getting teary this time. He wanted to hug her. He intended to do just that as soon as he could get her on the dance floor again.
Just how long a break did the band take?

Diana’s attention was still on Joy. “I hope you don’t intend to finish that drink.”

“Leave your sister alone,” Kevin piped up. “At some point we have to let both these fledglings find their own way.”

Nick grinned. “Does that mean I don’t have to hear any more lectures from you about how I’m running my life? Or was that ruining my life?”

“I’ll discuss that with you tomorrow after I’ve read the terms of the sale,” Kevin countered. “It was taking chances with your life. Just to set the record straight.”

“Is everything set for the wedding?” Nick asked, switching the focus.

“Well…” Diana pondered. “I have to take Rachel tomorrow morning to be fitted for her bridesmaid’s dress. Thank heavens, Ms. Louella has another gown in the shop to match the others.”

Diana turned winsome eyes to Kevin. “Don’t say anything. I know I keep changing my mind, but I’m still not sure about the floral arrangements. I’ve decided to take you and my mother with me Saturday morning. I promise I’ll make my final decision then.”

Kevin grinned. “I’m not saying anything.”

“I’ll go with you again, if you want me to go,” Joy said. “I won’t even try to push my opinion on you.”

“What kind of flowers do you like?” Nick asked Joy.

“Red roses with white carnations and lots of green,” Joy said dreamily. “It is a Christmas wedding.”

Diana sighed. “I like red and white, but what if a lot of people wear navy blue? It will look like flag day.”

Kevin teasingly tweaked Diana’s nose. “What’s wrong with being patriotic?”

“I don’t want my wedding patriotic. I want it romantic. I can’t believe I have no trouble at all making decisions for my clients.”

Kevin’s brown eyes gazed tenderly at his wife-to-be. “I love you getting crazy over our wedding. Are we still set to take your mother to visit your uncle Terry in the afternoon?”

“Yes.” Diana gazed back at Kevin. “You don’t mind driving all the way up to Yonkers, do you? My uncle Terry really wants to meet you, and he’s not going to be able to make it to the wedding with his leg in a cast.”

Kevin smiled. “I’d drive to the ends of the earth for you.”

Joy sat observing Diana and Kevin, thinking how hard this must be on Nick. She could imagine what he was going through.

“Did Eddie make any headway today?” Kevin asked, looking like he’d just suddenly realized that he and Diana weren’t alone.

Nick cast Joy a sidelong glance, his mind putting a different spin on Kevin’s question. Eddie’s headway was blocked tonight, but that was just tonight.

She was looking down at her drink. He knew she didn’t want to drink any more of it.

“He’s getting there,” Diana answered.

“If he started in the morning and not late afternoon, he’d be finished already,” Kevin said, speaking to Nick. “You’ve got to see the way he works. He paints a quarter of a wall and stands back to admire it for twenty minutes. Do you remember how fast we used to paint a room for Mom?”

Nick nodded his head, savoring the pleasant memory.

“You can’t rush an artist,” Diana insisted. “He’s doing a fantastic job. Don’t you think so, Joy?”

“Fantastic,” Joy answered, preoccupied. She was debating whether or not to try another sip of the margarita.

Kevin smiled at Diana. “What about the menu? Have we finished debating that?”

“The menu…” Diana let out a moan. “Right. We haven’t finished deciding on the menu.”

“What we should do is have Nick help us decide,” Kevin suggested. “How about we all go to the restaurant for dinner on Sunday? Okay with you, Nick?”

“It’s good for me, if it’s good for Joy,”

Joy’s eyes went to Nick. “It’s fine with me.” What was one more night of the Nick, Kevin and Diana saga?

“I’ll ask Rachel to come along,” Diana added enthusiastically. “And Mother, of course.”

Joy pushed back her seat and stood. “I’m going to finish my drink at the bar. I really should keep Eddie company for a while.”

Nick’s good mood took a dive. “It’s still pretty hectic at the bar.”

“It’s eased up some.” She wanted to be away from Nick. Between nearly falling over herself while they’d been dancing and then coughing over her drink, this was not one of her better nights. To sit and listen as Diana extolled Rachel, which Joy was certain Diana was going to do, was more than she could take.

Nick tried to come up with something else to say to keep Joy from going to the bar, but nothing came into his head.

“I can’t wait for you to meet Rachel,” Diana said, as Joy walked from the table.

“I think five heads is more than enough to vote on your wedding menu,” Nick replied impatiently, turning in his seat to better keep his eye on Joy. He watched as she took a seat at the bar and began talking to a clearly pleased Eddie.

Nick took a pull on his bottle of beer. Then his view of Joy was blocked as a couple came to stand behind her.

“I still can’t get over your buying the
Greenport News
,” Kevin said. “I hope you haven’t jumped before thinking it through. I
know
how you are.”

“I’m not flying by the seat of my pants anymore,” Nick replied. “I had been giving a lot of thought to staying put in one place for a while now.”

“It still seems to me that you got on this rather suddenly.” Kevin gave Nick his legal-eagle look.
“How did you know the paper was for sale? Did you make an inquiry?”

“Something like that.” Nick restlessly tapped his index finger on the table. “How long do you think it’s going to be before the group starts playing again?”

Kevin shrugged his shoulders.

Diana did the same when she noted Kevin glance at his watch. “You really have more work you want to get to tonight, don’t you?”

Kevin smiled. “It’s okay. I’ll give myself an extra hour in the morning.”

“I don’t want you having to get up an hour earlier. If you leave now you’ll be able to finish up whatever you have left.”

“Are you sure you don’t mind?”

Diana leaned toward Kevin and placed a quick kiss on his mouth. “Go home,” she ordered lovingly.

Nick watched the interplay between Diana and Kevin. They were going to make it, he thought. They really had it right.

Kevin stood and put on his coat. “I’ll say goodnight to Joy on my way out. Sleep well, sweetheart. Nick, I’ll call you as soon as I’ve read through the papers.”

Nick smiled. “Don’t burn the midnight oil too long.”

“Now who’s lecturing?” Kevin replied with a farewell wave of his hand.

Diana and Nick watched Kevin leave. He pushed between the couple behind Joy to say good-night, then headed out the door.

The singer took her place again on the platform, and the group started to play. Nick cursed their timing.
He couldn’t very well leave Diana to herself and ask Joy to dance.
Yeah, Tremain. And what makes you think she wants to dance with you?

“Would you mind if we left soon?” Diana asked. “I don’t want to get to bed too late.”

“I’m ready any time you and Joy are.” As far as Nick could see, the rest of the evening was ruined.

Diana got to her feet. “Could you see if Joy is ready? I’m just going to the ladies’ room.”

Nick headed for the bar while Diana headed in the opposite direction to the rest rooms.