Driftwood Lane (Nantucket #4)(71)

“Meridith?” Ben’s small voice called from down the hall.

“Say something,” Jake whispered, and she knew he wasn’t talking about Ben.

Jake’s hands, the ones she couldn’t get enough of before, now felt like a vise. She pulled them away.

“Meridith,” he said.

“I have to go.” She whirled into the shadows before he could stop her. With trembling hands she felt her way through the darkness and she knew, come morning, nothing would be as difficult as facing the light of day.





Thirty-seven

Jake awoke late the next morning, a rarity. After finding his way to the basement the night before, he’d found nothing wrong and had called the power company to discover that an accident had taken down the wires. After being assured electricity would resume in a few hours, he went to bed.

But he didn’t go to sleep. No, he lay for hours remembering the feel of Meridith in his arms, the feel of her lips on his. He remembered until he wanted to stride down the hall, knock on her door, and tell her something was wrong and it had nothing to do with the electric.

What was holding her back? The fact that she was leaving? That she was still in love with Stephen? Was it possible that she somehow saw Jake as beneath her? A mere carpenter . . . She’d never treated him that way, but what else was there?

His mind spun with possibilities, returning repeatedly to the fact that she didn’t know who he was. He had to tell her, but he’d been hoping . . .

What? That he could win her heart first? Heaven knew discovering he was the uncle wasn’t going to win him anything but her wrath.

Now that his feelings were involved, they muddied the waters more than ever. It wasn’t only the kids he had to consider now. There were Meridith’s feelings, not to mention his own, and he’d clarified those pretty well.

And he did love Meridith. Despite her response—to the words or lack thereof—he wasn’t sorry he’d said them. It was the truth.

But now he realized his declaration had frightened her. What if she asked him to leave? In the middle of the night, he decided to start on the fireplace right away. He’d have half the stone chipped out, and then what could she do? She couldn’t afford to pay someone else to finish.

Jake woke to a quiet house. The kids were at school, and Meridith was avoiding him—he had no doubt that’s what she was doing. At least it gave him a chance to dismantle the chimney.

By the time she pulled in the drive, the fireplace was a mess. Mission accomplished. And now that she was home, he’d finally get the chance to talk to her about last night.

But when the door opened, the kids bustled through—a half-day at school, Noelle fairly sang. Great, now he just needed a dozen guests to arrive on their doorstep and they were good to go. And as it was a Friday, he realized that could very well happen.

All afternoon Meridith buzzed around the house, fixing rooms, mixing up a batch of something in the kitchen, vacuuming the rugs. Doing everything but speaking to him, making eye contact with him.

But she wasn’t fooling him. The woman had wanted that kiss as badly as he had. Even now, as he chiseled away a loose piece of mortar, the memory stole his breath. He ran the back of his hand across his cheek, rubbing away the dust and grit.

His stomach growled, and he checked his watch. It was nearly dinnertime, and he needed to clean up his mess and shower. As he swept away the debris, he could hear Meridith and a newly arrived guest talking on the porch.

After dinner he was going to get a few minutes of her time. Surely she knew it was coming. Surely she knew she couldn’t avoid him for two weeks. Not after that kiss, not after what he’d said.

An hour later Jake was seated across the table from Meridith. She chatted with the kids while Jake brooded about what he’d say when he finally got her alone.

After a long meal, the kids finally pushed back from the table. Meridith hopped up, no doubt to busy herself in the kitchen. But Jake was prepared.

“Meridith, a word?”

“I have to clear the table and do the dishes,” she said without a glance.

“Max and Ben, clear the table, please. Noelle, the dishes?”

The kids agreed before Meridith could protest. Finally, she set down the casserole dish, apparently realizing she couldn’t stop the inevitable.

He gestured toward the back door, and she exited the house. Not wanting the kids to overhear, he continued down the porch steps into the yard, stopping at the steps leading to the beach.

Dark clouds gathered on the horizon, and the wind tugged at Meridith’s blouse. She’d known this was coming, had dreaded it all night and all day. Had lain awake for hours trying to put words to her feelings. Impossible. Instead, she’d felt Jake’s lips on hers, heard those words that all but stopped her heart.

Jake turned to face her, leaning against the wood railing of the beach steps. She wasn’t deceived by the casual pose—he was going to get to the bottom of this. Only Meridith didn’t know what was at the bottom. She only knew this thing with Jake could not happen.

She couldn’t bring herself to look him in the eye. Not after that kiss. It had been easier in the dark. Too easy. She felt a flush climbing her neck as she remembered deliberately touching his bare flesh. She’d made no bones about wanting that kiss. What had gotten into her?

Even now her skin warmed, her pulse sped as if preparing for a repeat. She wished she could hide the flush that climbed her cheeks. Wished he would say something. Anything.