Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1) (12 page)

Nicky and Sara exchanged a puzzled look. “Uh, I guess. Iʼll have to call Jack and let him know, though,” Sara said.

Brent nodded. “Good. Iʼll go get a table at The Cove before the lunch crowd gets there.” With that, he strode toward the door, leaving the office―and two very confused friends―behind.

Chapter 10

The Cove was packed when Sara and Nicky joined Brent for lunch. Since it was a beautiful day, they decided to take one of the tables available on the outdoor patio. They had just sat down when Charlene approached their table with a tense look on her face. She took their orders in silence, though she appeared on the verge of bursting.

Sara nearly let out a sigh of relief when she started back toward the door, but to her disappointment, Charlene only walked a couple of steps before she changed her mind and turned around. “Is it true?” she blurted out, flattening both her hands on the table and leaning toward Sara. “Is Jack staying at your house?”

She stiffened in her chair. “Yes. But I donʼt see―”

“What is wrong with you? A nice girl like you should not mix with such scum.”

“Thank you for your concern, but I can assure you that Iʼm perfectly able to take care of myself.”

Charlene’s blue eyes flashed with rage. “You donʼt know Jack like we do! You have no idea what disaster youʼre bound to bring upon yourself and all of us―”

“Thatʼs enough, Lene.” Brent raised a hand to stop her flow of words. “Saraʼs here to enjoy a relaxing lunch, not to hear lectures.”

The waitress fell silent but glowered at both of them. Finally, she turned on her heel and walked away without a word. Sara waited for her to go back inside the diner before wilting on her chair with a sigh. “Thanks, Brent.”

“No problem. Sorry, hon, a lot of people in Starville still believe Jack is guilty and resent him.”

“I know.”

“Besides…” Brent snapped his mouth closed, but Nicky caught his slip-up and gave him a curious look.

“Besides, what?”

“Never mind. Itʼs not important.”

She snorted. “Oh, come on! Just say it.”

“Well, Jack― He and Charlene had a relationship, okay?” he blurted uncomfortably.

Sara froze. “Jack…and
Charlene?
” That bombshell with head-spinning curves and the brain of a blow-up doll? It was a good thing she hadnʼt eaten yet, as her stomach nearly revolted at the sickening images racing through her mind.

“They were together for a while, but it was many years ago. We were young,” Brent added, wishing heʼd kept his damn mouth closed. Sara was obviously shocked, and Nicky kept gaping at him, her mouth a perfect O of surprise.

“I bet every guy in town drooled over her―you included,” she commented with a grimace, shooting a glance at Charlene as she swayed among the tables.

“We were kids!”

Sara barely heard their bickering.
Jack and Charlene
. Her mind just couldnʼt get over the thought of them together…kissing, having sex. No wonder Charlene had had such a violent reaction when she heard about his return! Her stomach threatened to revolt again, but this time Sara chastised herself for her foolish thoughts. She had no reason to be jealous about Jackʼs past. She had no rights on him, and it was none of her business if he had slept with every bimbo in Starville.

Yet when Charlene walked back to their table and placed a plate in front of her, she couldnʼt help staring at her beautiful curls cascading down her back like a golden waterfall. She couldnʼt help envisioning that gorgeous woman in Jackʼs arms. And she couldnʼt help feeling dull and inadequate.

***

Jack lifted the TV remote to resume the absent flipping of channels heʼd been doing for the last hour. Damn, could he possibly be any more bored?

Sara had called him a while ago saying that she was done with lunch but was going to the library. To do what was beyond him, but she surely seemed to go there a lot. Whatever. All he knew was that he had nothing to do and was bored out of his skull. Heʼd even considered going for a walk around the neighborhood, but it was scorching hot and humid outside, and his knee was hurting like a bitch.

Squirming on the couch, he turned the TV off and set the remote aside. “Now what?” he asked Lance, whoʼd been lying at his feet the entire time. The dog didnʼt seem to share the same restlessness he was feeling and barely slanted him an uninterested look before stretching back on the rug.

Jack huffed. “Fine. Iʼll just find myself something to do without you.” Maybe he could use the Internet to do some more research about his past? As depressing as it might be, it was still better than wasting time on the couch, he thought, standing and heading toward the den.

Another annoyed huff slipped from his mouth as he bent over the desk to turn Saraʼs computer on and realized it was password protected. Great. He certainly wasnʼt going to call her at the library to ask for the password. Rubbing the back of his head with one hand, Jack looked around in search of ideas, but the only things in the room were books. Hundreds of them.

Curious, he plodded to the gigantic dark-wood bookshelf. They were mostly history textbooks, biographies of famous historical figures and other people heʼd never heard of, plus tons of literary masterpieces. He skimmed through the few titles he recognized.
Hamlet. Romeo and Juliet. The Importance of Being Earnest. Pride and Prejudice. Jane Eire.
Wuthering Heights.
Yikes. No sci-fi, no action. Not that heʼd really expected any of that, knowing Sara, but a man could hope.

Discouraged, Jack moved his gaze up to the top shelf. No literary crap here, but every book was from the same author—some Michelle Storme. How strange, he mused, grabbing a random book and studying the cover. Mystery. Not exactly what he was hoping for, but it would have to do.

Sitting at Saraʼs desk, he started reading. Much to his surprise, only a few pages into it, he found himself engrossed in the intricate plot. It wasnʼt until about an hour later that he started regretting his choice. Page 103. The beginning of a sex scene—and a pretty damn hot one, too. After a couple of pages of heated lovemaking, Jack squirmed uncomfortably in Saraʼs chair and debated whether to keep going or not. It wasnʼt so much the scene, per se, but the fact that he knew Sara had read it, too. She had chosen that book. She had bought it, read it, and obviously liked it, since she owned many more from the same author. Had she gotten as turned on as he was?

Jack slammed the book closed and shut his eyes. No way he could keep reading it now—not when all he could think about was Sara getting all squirmy and wet and…
Shit!

He rose so fast that his knee sent a gazillion burning needles all the way up to his thigh. It didnʼt do a thing to his massive hard-on, but if anything, heʼd learned his lesson: no more picking up books from Saraʼs collection. Bad, bad idea. Jack cursed again, waiting for the pain in his leg to subside a little before cautiously walking out the den and back to the living room.

“Wanna go out?”

Still sprawled on the rug, Lance gave him a pitiful
are you nuts?
look and went back to sleep.

Even the damn dog had better things to do than he did.

***

Sara spent the rest of the day at the library to do some research for her book. And mostly to avoid Jack. The revelation about his past involvement with Charlene still stung too much, and she wasnʼt sure she could face him quite yet. The whole thing just felt so strange.

She got out of the car with a sigh―and had to force herself not to rush back in as she noticed the elegant gray-haired man walking up to her. Speaking of strange things….

“Sara, dear, how are you?”

“Good afternoon, Mayor. What brings you here today?”

“Actually, I came to talk to you, if you have a minute.”

“Um, sure,” she said, trying to hide her surprise. “Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee?”

Mayor Parrish glanced at the windows before moving his gaze back to her. “Is
he here?”

Sara stiffened. “If youʼre talking about Jack, then yes, Iʼm pretty sure heʼs inside. How can I help you?”

He shook his head. “I have to say, Sara, Iʼm disappointed in you. I have welcomed you in Starville from the bottom of my heart. Everyone ʼround here has always trusted you, respected you, and supported you. However, your behavior lately is as though we donʼt even know you anymore and is making us wonder whether weʼve made a mistake.”

“Mayor Parrish…”

“Honestly, dear, I donʼt know whatʼs gotten into you―sharing your house with that man.”

She inhaled sharply and invoked patience. “
That man
is a perfectly fine man. Right now he doesnʼt even remember what happened ten years ago, and frankly, I donʼt care.”

The mayor glanced around before returning his eyes to her. “All Iʼm saying is that maybe you should tell him to find a more appropriate…
location
, instead of letting him stay at your house.”

“And what would a more appropriate location
be, exactly? Jail, perhaps?”

Sara stilled at Jackʼs question.
Crap!
Had he heard everything?

“You said it, Turner, not me,” the mayor countered promptly, squaring his shoulders as Jack walked out of the garage.

Sara rushed toward him, but he didnʼt stop until there was barely a couple of feet between him and the mayor. At that point, all she could do was stand between the two men, a hand pressed against Jackʼs chest.

“Please, stay out of this,” she pleaded with him, trying to keep her voice firm though she was trembling. As Jack didnʼt move, she slowly turned to the other man. “Thank you for your visit, Mayor, but I think youʼd better go.”

His disgusted gaze darted alternately from Jack to her. “You canʼt have it all, Sara. Everyone in Starville has been patient with you because youʼre relatively new here. But if you side with Turner, you side against the whole town.”

“How dare you, son of a—”

Saraʼs hand pushed harder against Jackʼs chest as he took a menacing step toward the mayor. Her heart was racing so fast that she was surprised it hadnʼt shot out of her chest yet. “Mayor Parrish, I appreciate your concern, but this town does not own me. Nobody has any rights to tell me what to do.”

“Sara—”

“Itʼs been a long day, and I would like to go home and relax, if you donʼt mind.”

The mayor opened his mouth as though to add something, then closed it with a sharp nod. “Very well.”

Sara didnʼt take her eyes away from him until his car disappeared down the street. Only then did she turn to Jack, her heart still racing. “Sorry you had to hear that.” When he didnʼt answer, she blew out a deep breath. “What were you doing in the garage, anyway?”

Jack shrugged as they walked together up the steps. “I was bored, so I decided to fix your swing. When I finished, I went to the garage to put the tools back—thatʼs when I heard you guys talking.”

“You…fixed the porch swing?”

Another shrug. “The chain was detaching on one side, so I thought Iʼd give it a try,” he explained, slightly embarrassed. “Hope you donʼt mind.”

Sara shook her head. “Are you kidding me? I love my swing but had to stop using it weeks ago because it started squeaking funny.” She watched him as he sat on it, his injured leg straightened in front of him. Once he made sure the swing was safe, he patted a hand on the seat next to him. “Cʼmon.”

She accepted his invitation with an uncertain look. “I didnʼt know you repaired hopeless objects.”

“Neither did I.” Hinting at a smile, Jack started to rock the swing. “Thereʼs so much I still have to discover about me.”

“And you will, in time.”

He didnʼt comment, and for a while, they kept swinging quietly back and forth. Saraʼs heart just about stopped when his voice broke the silence. “Iʼm going to leave tomorrow.”

“
What?
Why?”

He grinned sarcastically. “Iʼm not stupid, Sara. I know when Iʼm not welcome.”

“Thatʼs ridiculous! Iʼm happy to have you here―”

“Iʼm not talking about you.”

“Oh.” Duh. “Well, if this is about Mayor Parrish, never mind him. Heʼs just an old, stubborn man, and I couldnʼt care less about what he says.”

“Iʼm destroying your reputation. You canʼt deny it, Sara,” he insisted as she started shaking her head. “Dammit, look what happened a few minutes ago! You adore this town and its people, and I refuse to ruin it all for you.”

“Youʼre not ruining anything, Jack. To tell you the truth, I donʼt even know Starville anymore…and Iʼm starting to wonder if I ever have.” Sara sighed. “This is not the town I fell in love with a few years ago. And, honestly, I couldnʼt care less about what everyone thinks.” Which was amazing, coming from her. From someone who had always let everyone control her life.

“What about you, then? Donʼt you care about yourself?”

She turned to him. “I donʼt know what you mean.”

“Come on!” Jack snapped, springing up from the swing. “Chances are that Iʼve killed a man, Sara―a man who allegedly loved me and trusted me with his life. Have you thought about that? Have you thought of what I could do to a nice girl like you?”

She raised her chin to give him a sarcastic look. “And what exactly would you do to me, Jack? Strangle me in my sleep?”

Jack took a slow step toward her. His gaze was hard and dark as it roamed boldly over her body, an intense slide that felt like a physical touch and made her shiver inside out. “Sweetheart, there are worse things a man can do to a woman.”

Saraʼs jaw dropped.
He was right
. In all truth, she didnʼt know why the idea of him being dangerous and capable of killing somebody didnʼt sit well with her at all. It was inconceivable, and she just didnʼt believe it possible. Period. If anything, at the moment, she trusted Jack more than she did anybody else in town.

“Donʼt try playing all macho on me, Jack,” she said when she found her voice. “You couldʼve easily raped me the night we met, when we were alone on that dark road, with no other soul in sight. But you didnʼt. You helped me change my tire and left without a second thought. Iʼm not afraid of you.”