The Reluctant Bachelorette (38 page)

Taycee grinned. “I’ve heard through the rumor mill that Jake
isn’t leaving until tomorrow morning. According to Mary, he’s planning to grab
some breakfast at the diner before heading out of town. You should, you know,
drop by and say goodbye.”

“Maybe I will.” Jessa pursed her lips, and then cocked her
head at Taycee. “And speaking of guys, heard anything from Luke?”

The mere mention of his name was all it took to suck the
happy, light-heartedness away. “No. I’m worried he left town because I’ve tried
everything. It’s like he gave up without a fight.” A thought Taycee hated
voicing aloud because it sounded even more true. More real. The only possible
conclusion.

“In that case, I think it’s time I give that boy a piece of my
mind. In fact—

“No. You’ve done enough, thanks.”

Jessa’s finger poked Taycee’s shoulder. “You’re making it
sound like I’d make it worse.”

“Because you would,” Taycee said. “You’d track him down, probably
punch him, and then yell at him—assuming you can find him, that is. Good luck
with that.”

“And you’re saying punching and yelling wouldn’t help?”

Taycee tried for a wry smile, but a yawn came out instead. “Just
leave this one alone, okay?”

“Fine,” Jessa said. “But if he doesn’t show his face in the
next day or two and beg you to take him back, I am going to track him down and
then strangle him, okay?”

“Okay.” Taycee agreed. “I’ll even go with you.”

L
uke tossed his overnight bag
on
the couch, and then flung open his fridge. Nothing. Only sour milk and fuzzy
cheese. He would have stopped by the diner on his way home if it hadn’t been
closed. His flight had been delayed, and it was now after midnight, which meant
he’d have to wait until morning before he could talk to Taycee.

He closed the door and sauntered over to the couch, dropping
down beside his bag. His fingers raked through his hair as he glanced at his
watch yet again. 12:24.

His phone vibrated with a text, and Luke grabbed it from his
pocket, hoping Taycee’s name would appear and that she was still awake. But it
was only Caleb.

Idiot, where R you? If you don’t fix things w/ Tace soon, I
might have to kill you. Or sue. So sick of hearing about it.

A second later, another text came.

If you haven’t seen her final interview, watch it. NOW. Idiot.

For the first time in days, Luke smiled. Really smiled.
Forgetting his hunger pangs, he grabbed his laptop and pried it open. What
final interview?

Jake’s Audi was still parked in front of the diner. Good. Before
Jessa could talk herself out of it, she pulled open the door and walked in,
head held high.

She clutched her purse and schooled her face into a surprised
smile, but Jake was already talking to someone. Liza. She sat opposite him,
leaning across the table with dreamy, flirty eyes.

Jessa made a beeline for the table and stopped beside it.
“Hey, Liza. Long time no see.”

An annoyed glance darted Jessa’s way. “I just saw you the
other day.”

“Oh, that’s right. My bad.” Jessa scrunched her face in a look
of confusion. “Now, was that before or after you took those pictures of Luke
and Taycee and emailed them to Babette?”

A flush crept over Liza’s face.

Jessa bit back a smile. “Yeah, probably not the smartest move
to email them from your home computer since IP addresses can be traced. Jake,
here, actually taught me that.”

The flush darkened as Liza quickly stood. Before she could
escape, Jessa put a hand on her arm. “Tell you what, if you promise to start
being prompt with Taycee’s orders from here on out, I’ll forget about the whole
thing. If not, well, let’s just say that you’re not the only one who can spin
news to the town gossip blog. Oh, and I’d love a Sprite.”

With a glare, Liza turned and left.

Problem solved.

Two problems, actually, because the seat opposite Jake was now
vacant. Jessa slid right in. Jake looked amazing, as always, in a light blue
polo with a navy stripe across his chest. It made his eyes look bluer than
usual. “Fancy meeting you here. I figured you’d be long gone by now.”

Jake gave a wry smile. “There’s just something about Shelter
that made me want to stay a little longer. And now I know why. I just got
breakfast and a show. Nicely played.”

“I have my moments.

“Yes, you do.” His fingers fiddled with his drinking straw as
he studied her.

“I’m actually glad I ran into you, Jake. I, uh, wanted to
apologize. Again.”

An eyebrow raised in question.

“And to let you know that I was the one who convinced Taycee
to continue with the show after things started to happen with Luke.” She
paused, searching for the right words. “I’ve always had this issue with
failure. As in, I don’t like it. At all.”

Jake chuckled. “Somehow, I already knew that. But no worries.
We’re good.”

A glass of Sprite came between them, hitting the counter with
a thunk. Jessa glanced up. “Thanks, Liza.”

“Don’t mention it,” Liza huffed before turning away.

Jake pointed at the Sprite. “You going to drink that?”

“It’s all yours.” Jessa slid the glass forward. “I only
ordered it to tick her off.”

“I figured.” He took a swig of the drink before setting it
back on the counter. “So I hear you’ve been given the ax.”

The joys of living in a small town. “Funny you should mention that.
I actually got an email from the mayor this morning apologizing and saying the
job’s still mine—if I want it.”

“Do you?”

“I don’t know.” Jessa rubbed at a sticker on her pink painted
fingernail. She was officially at a crossroads in her life. She could either
take the easy and predictable route or make a leap into the unknown. Whether it
was her talk with Taycee or some deeply rooted need to have an adventure of her
own, the latter suddenly didn’t seem as scary as it used to. “Shelter’s been
good for me, but thanks to you and your family’s company, I’m not sure they
need me anymore. It might be time to spread my wings.”

Jake took another long swig of the Sprite before setting it
back on the counter. He reached for his wallet and pulled out some cash for a
tip, along with a business card, which he tossed across the table. “If you ever
think of venturing west—say Sacramento—give me a call. We could use someone
like you on our team.”

Jessa fingered the card with both fear and excitement. Jake was
giving her an opportunity to take a plunge and see if there really was life
beyond Shelter Springs. Did she dare take it?

Jessa slid the card into her purse. “Thanks,” she said. “I
might take you up on that.”

“I hope you do.” Jake stood, easing his tall frame out of the
booth. “It was great meeting you, Jessa McCray.” He gave her one last smile
before walking out the door.

As Jessa watched him drive away, a happy feeling surrounded
her—the kind that comes when life gives you sweet, juicy strawberries rather
than lemons. Maybe Taycee was right. Maybe it was time to see how big of a
splash she really could make.

T
aycee hugged one of her soft
,
ivory down pillows to her chest and stared at her bedroom ceiling.

It was over. Finally.

No more cameras, no more dating a bunch of guys, and no more
pretending. Taycee could finally be herself again, whatever that meant. She
didn’t really know anymore because it felt like something huge was missing from
her life. S
omeone
.

Taycee frowned—something she did every time she thought of
Luke, which was often. If she kept it up, she’d probably etch permanent sad
lines across her face. It had been five days since she’d walked away from him.
Five days since she’d talked to him.

Five. Long. Miserable. Days.

No more. It was time to put an end to the misery. If Luke
didn’t want to see or talk to her, that was his problem. Taycee refused to
wallow any longer. It was a new beautiful day outside, and she planned to spend
it doing whatever she wanted. Forget work. Forget responsibility. And most
importantly, forget Luke. She’d earned a day of freedom.

Taycee rolled out of bed, took her time in the shower, and
then slipped on some comfy yoga pants and a lime green T-shirt with the words,
“Just how many frogs do I have to kiss?” scrawled across the front—a thank you
jpgt from Jessa. She padded barefoot to her kitchen and rummaged through her
pantry. Cornflakes? No. Popcorn? Yes. Taycee stuffed the package into the
microwave.

Today was a day for celebrating the demise of
Shelter’s
Bachelorette
. She would watch her favorite non-romantic movies. She would
read her favorite non-romantic book. She would eat whatever she wanted. And she
would
not
think of Luke.

The buttery smell of popcorn drifted into her nose, reminding
her of a certain drive-in style date. Taycee frowned at the microwave. Okay, so
maybe she wouldn’t eat
anything
she wanted.

She yanked on the handle and grabbed the steaming popcorn bag,
playing Hot Potato with it as she carried it out to the trash. When she came
back inside, the smell was still there, taunting her with images of Luke
throwing popcorn at her while
Sneakers
played on the wall of the garage
in front of them.

Argh.

With purposeful steps, Taycee opened all the windows in her
house, even going so far as to place a box fan in the front window to help
purge the room of that rich, popcorn smell.

Three raps sounded on the door in quick succession.

Taycee turned her frown on the door, not interested in talking
to anyone—not even Jessa. Maybe if she didn’t answer, whoever it was would go
away. She turned toward the kitchen.

“Taycee Lynne? You in there?” a muffled voice called through
the door.

On second thought.

She rushed to the door and flung it open, revealing Luke with one
hand planted firmly on her doorjamb as he leaned toward her, looking more
delicious than any popcorn. Damp hair and all.

Taycee’s heart dropped to her toes, and she felt the crazy
urge to beat him and kiss him at the same time. “Where have you been?” she
blurted. “I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for days. Did you lose your
phone or something? Because if you’ve been ignoring my calls on purpose, I’m
going to . . . to . . .”

“You’re going to what?” His brown eyes smiled at her, making
her heart beat double-time. He took a step toward her. “Punch me? Write me out
of your will? Or were you planning to sic Missy on me again?”

She cleared her throat and lifted her chin. “All of the
above.”

“Then you’d better get started because I didn’t lose my
phone.”

“What?” Taycee suddenly felt like she really did want to punch
him. Her fingers fisted at her side. “How could you? Do you have any idea what
you’ve put me through?”