Perfect for the Beach (29 page)

Sure, last night had been beyond incredible. And what a way to end her two-year drought! But she and Trey had fallen into the old routine of going to bed in hopes of solving all the problems between them. That was something she just couldn’t do anymore.

Very carefully, Jenna slipped Trey’s arm off her body. She was relieved when he didn’t stir. Then she eased her body to the edge of the bed and sat up, aware that there was a hole in her heart bigger than the state of Florida.

She had made up her mind to go, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to stand up. Not yet. Sighing softly, she stole a glance of him over her shoulder. Regret slammed her in the gut like a sledgehammer. Maybe it was the peaceful look on Trey’s beautiful face, but it was hard to believe that she would be walking away from him forever.

It was the very reason she hadn’t wanted to see him again. She’d simply wanted his signature on the separation papers because it would have been easier that way.

At least with him sleeping, it would be easier to slip out of here now. Then she’d find Ruby and get the separation papers, and meet up with Trey later at Castaways. Ruby would have a lot of explaining to do when she got back to their hotel, but Jenna would worry about that later.

She inched herself to a standing position. Still, Trey didn’t stir. A part of her wanted to climb back into bed and wake him up with hot kisses. But the other part, the part that was afraid he’d revert to his morning-after emotionless shell, told her she couldn’t risk her heart.

Her eyes lingered on his sleeping form. The bed sheet was strewn over a part of his hip, but other than that she could see all of his naked body. There was no doubt about it—Trey was the picture-perfect man of any woman’s fantasies.

But one who had never fully given her his heart.

Jenna gathered her bra and thong from the floor, wondering where her shorts were. Then she remembered the strawberries and chocolate and Trey’s skillful fingers. A hot flush stung her cheeks.

She had been wanton. Insatiable. Greedy with a lust that was shocking in its intensity. She and Trey had reacquainted their bodies by making love in every conceivable position until the early hours of the morning.

Her lust was satisfied, but her heart was sad. Staying here for another hour or a day would only be delaying the inevitable. She had come here with one purpose—to end a marriage that never should have been.

Her bra and panties in hand, Jenna crept across the hardwood floor.

“Jenna.”

Trey’s deep, raspy voice stopped her dead in her tracks. And though she’d just been trying to sneak out on him, she felt an odd sense of relief that he was now awake.

Turning, she did her best to look casual. “You’re awake.”

“Where are you going?”

“Um … I’m just…”

“Are you leaving me?”

The touch of sadness in his voice sent a jolt of pain straight to her heart. “I need some time, Trey,” she admitted. “Time to think.”

“Time so you can run.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“But it’s what you’ll do, Jenna. The moment you get a chance. Because we haven’t resolved anything.”

Jenna didn’t say a word as Trey climbed out of bed and approached her. “We still need to talk,” he told her. “Believe it or not, that’s what I wanted to do most last night. We just got … carried away.”

“That’s our problem. We always get carried away and forget the important issues.”

Trey reached for her hand and linked their fingers. “Do you remember the day you left me?”

Meaning, did she remember their argument. How could she forget it? “Yes.”

“That day, we started off in this bed full of happiness and hope—until things turned ugly. I wish I could go back in history and change all the happened, but I can’t. So the best thing I can do is backtrack to before the argument.” He paused. “And finally answer your question.”

Trey’s words left Jenna in shock. That question had been the catalyst for their breakup. He had outright refused to answer it then, at a time when the truth had been vitally important to her. Did he honestly think that responding to it now would change things between them?

A million times, Jenna had played out that morning in her mind, wondering if she had been unfair. Insensitive. Ambushed him, as he’d said. She always came up with the same conclusion. She could understand how the question might have been a surprise, but asking him about his past should not have led to an explosive argument. Not if he had nothing to hide, and certainly not if he loved her as deeply as he had claimed.

Even now, Jenna felt a sting of pain in her gut as she remembered how Trey had shut down. She had been in the throes of passion one minute, the pit of despair the next.

Reliving the day their marriage ended wasn’t something she wanted to do. So she stepped away from him and said, “I gave you the chance to answer that question two years ago. You didn’t want to. Maybe it’s best that we not bother with it now.”

“I wasn’t ready then.”

“And now you are?” Jenna asked, a hint of incredulity lacing her tone.

“Yes.”

This was a trick. A ploy to get her into bed again. God only knew why, but clearly Trey wasn’t ready to let her go.

Maybe it was their sexual chemistry that he couldn’t walk away from. Neither of them could deny that the passion between them was explosive. But Jenna wanted more out of a marriage than just hot sex. Even mind-altering, toe-curling, spicy hot sex.

“Why don’t I make some breakfast. We can talk while we eat.”

“Don’t you have to go to work?”

“Nope. I took the day off to spend it with you.”

Trey never took a day off. He’d acted as if Castaways would fall apart if he wasn’t there personally. “Then who’s running the restaurant?”

“Someone new. A guy you don’t know. A guy I trust completely.”

“Wow, that’s a shock.”

“I told you, Jenna. Things are different now.”

Trey kissed Jenna’s cheek before slipping into his white boxers. Then he strolled out the door, leaving her to ponder his words.

She hugged her torso for a good ten seconds before putting on her panties and bra. She found her shirt in the living room and pulled it over her head. Bright sunlight spilled into the house, lifting her spirits a little. The clear blue sky and vast ocean always helped improve her mood.

While Trey opened and closed cupboards in the kitchen, Jenna headed toward the patio. The terrace table still held their dirty plates, the bowl of strawberries, and the now hard chocolate. If this had been any other morning-after-great-sex with her husband, Jenna would blush like a schoolgirl as she helped to clean up. But today, all she felt were mixed emotions.

Stepping outside, she inhaled the invigorating scent of saltwater as she reached for her shorts. One thing was certain—she would miss this place.

Get this business over with, Jenna. And the sooner the better.
Jenna put her shorts on. Fully dressed, she felt somewhat less vulnerable. What she’d really like to do was go to the bathroom and shower, but that would mean spending more time here. And right now, that wasn’t an option. Trey didn’t appreciate that she needed time to think, but she did. Here, she was under the influence of their memories and his charm, and much more inclined to think with her heart. She needed to think with her head.

She would head back to her hotel, shower there, and take care of Ruby—and not necessarily in that order.

“How do you want your eggs?” Trey called from the kitchen.

“Actually … I’m not very hungry.” The truth was, Jenna was starving. But if she stayed here, she would be tempted to indulge her carnal hunger, and that would get her nothing but more heartache.

“No?”

“No. I’ll, um … just … head back to my hotel.”

Trey appeared from behind the kitchen wall. He had a dishrag slung over his shoulder. “Oh.”

“And pick up the agreement my lawyer drew up.”

Disappointment streaked across his face. Jenna glanced away, unable to face him. “You knew the deal when I got here. And you promised that if I spent the night, you’d sign the papers in the morning.”

“I figured we’d at least talk first.”

“I know, but … I feel … overwhelmed. At least look over the document. I can have it couriered here if you prefer—”

“No.”

Jenna met Trey’s eyes. “Trey, you gave me your word.”

“Don’t run away from me again. If we’re going to do this, then let’s not make it impersonal. You bring the papers here and we’ll go over them face-to-face.”

Jenna blew out a shaky breath. “I don’t know … I just … it’s pretty straightforward.”

Trey tossed the dishrag onto the counter and marched toward her. “Nothing about this is straightforward, Jenna.
Nothing.”

The intensity in his voice shocked her. She took a step backward, but Trey advanced, placing both hands on her shoulders. “When I pledged before God to love you in good times and in bad, I meant that. When I said till death do us part, I meant those words in the deepest part of my soul. Now you want out and you expect me to make this easy for you. You’re my wife, Jenna. My
wife.
Does that mean nothing to you?”

“That meant everything to me!” Jenna countered. Then she looked away. The last thing she wanted was an ugly argument with Trey. “Please, I don’t want to fight about this.”

She jerked when she felt Trey’s palm on her face, but it was a surprisingly gentle caress. “I’m not angry, sweetheart. But I am frustrated. You’re my wife—my
life—
and you want to walk away again before you’ve given us a chance.”

“I’m confused,” Jenna admitted.

“I’m a different person, Jenna. I’ve grown. Won’t you give me a chance to show you that?”

“I came into this marriage with all the hope in the world. That hope was shattered, Trey. You don’t know how much that hurt me.”

“I was hurting, too.”

“Then why didn’t you just talk to me that day? Why get angry? Why watch me walk away and now act like you can’t live without me?”

There was a flicker of something in Trey’s eyes. Jenna couldn’t pinpoint the emotion. The tension built as silence stretched between them. Once again, he had no answers for her.

He finally said, “I know you blame me for the downfall of our marriage, and I’m willing to accept the lion’s share of the blame. But if we’re going to hash things out, let’s not sugarcoat anything here. You played a role in our breakup, too. Long before the day you walked out on me.”

Jenna’s mouth fell open. “How can you say that?”

“You took a sabbatical from your job.”

“Because—” Jenna promptly shut her mouth as his words hit home. She had taken a leave of absence for one reason only—in case things hadn’t worked out with Trey.

“You have no idea how insecure that made me feel. Like you were waiting for the first sign of trouble so you could head back to New York.”

“I …” What could she say?

“I knew I loved you, but your decision to ‘keep your options open’ made me realize I needed to guard my heart.”

“I … I never thought about how that would make you feel.”

“I know you didn’t. You also didn’t know that I’d spent much of my life guarding my heart. My father raised me because my mother didn’t want me, and for a long time that made it hard for me to trust. I wanted to know that the woman I was going to spend my life with wanted me with the same kind of passion that I had for her. If you didn’t want to be here …”

Trey’s voice trailed off, and silence filled the air. After a moment he said, “Let’s take a walk on the beach.”

“Now?”

“You always liked to walk on the beach in the mornings. Now I know why. It’s a great place to think. A great place to talk.”

He was already walking past her to the bedroom. Moments later, he reappeared wearing jeans and a T-shirt. “C’mon, sweetheart.”

Trey took her hand and led her to the terrace. At the side of the patio enclosure was a door and steps that went down to the sand.

There was something infinitely calming about the sound of waves lapping at the shore. Something peaceful about a seagull’s early morning call. Jenna stared out at the water, as far as the eye could see. She found solace there, something she didn’t find when she looked onto her tree-lined street back home in Buffalo. The sun and the sand were good for her soul, and Key West provided both.

Jenna and Trey walked hand in hand for several minutes, neither saying a word. Jenna had thought they’d end up arguing in the house, that she would end up in tears and he would emotionally shut down. But neither of those things had happened.

“That morning,” Trey suddenly said, “when you asked me about my ex-wife, it wasn’t that I didn’t want to tell you about her. It was that your question caught me completely off guard. I was stunned that you knew about Irene. And when you said your father had found out that piece of information about my past—that’s what sent me through the roof.”

Jenna still remembered the shock of her father’s news. He had never approved of her sudden marriage, and had been determined to prove to her that Trey was no good. The day he called to tell her what he’d learned—that Trey had been married before but had kept that from her—he’d had an unmistakable “I told you so” smugness.