“See my former comment about sparks.”
Good grief. Jonah rolled his eyes as he turned on his heel and left the room. “You read too many romance novels.” His little sister had obviously never been anywhere near the vicinity of love. It didn’t start with mutual dislike. It began with attraction.
Like when a guy caught the eye of a beautiful brunette at the Daily Brew and they shared a private smile. Or when he held the door for her half an hour later and she asked for directions to the post office and he thought his heart might explode from his chest.
That was attraction.
Jonah had escorted Monica to the post office, which was formerly a train depot. Monica had just been hired as an esthetician at the spa in the new Harborview Resort. She was from a tiny town in Maine he’d never heard of and had taken this job straight out of beauty school. Back in Maine she had two brothers, five sisters, and amicably divorced parents.
The conversation was fluid with plenty of give-and-take. He liked that she was direct, and that wicked smile she turned on him made him feel like a king. They reached the post office way too soon. He was still trying to figure out how to get her number when she pulled her phone from her pocket and said, “What’s your number, Jonah Landry?”
A moment later his phone vibrated with a text.
“See ya later.” She flashed a smile and entered the post office, those beautiful brown waves bouncing around her shoulders.
As soon as they parted ways, he checked his phone.Call me, her text said. And he did just that the next day—right after he looked upesthetician.
He mentally fast-forwarded through the months of courtship, full of ups and downs—mostly ups—until they reached the end of the road: a job offer from some spa in Manhattan.
Maybe he should’ve seen it coming a million miles away. She’d mentioned her determination to escape that small town where she’d grown up. Her search for bigger and better things than the lone town diner where she’d waitressed through high school and where her mother still worked. He’d thought of her as a small-town kind of person from a middle-class family, much like him.
He’d missed all the clues, and the cost of his ignorance had been a broken heart. The memory of that first meeting fizzled like a spent firework.
Now as Jonah headed off to find a quiet spot to read his assigned chapters, he caught a glimpse of Lauren through the window and scowled. No, he knew what attraction looked like, felt like—and it wasn’t this.
Chapter 11
Present day
Lauren wasn’t in a social mood, but she’d simply had to get away from the resort. She watched an ember from the bonfire drift upward until it burned out against the black canvas of the night sky. She dug her toes into the sand as she scanned the row of residential homes lining the unfamiliar north shore of Loon Lake. Some of their windows were lit from within, but many of the homes must’ve been closed up on Labor Day weekend.
Another reminder that she’d missed the entire summer.
Her gaze drifted across the yard to Carson’s house—or rather his aunt’s, where he was apparently living while he completed his internship. The sound of laughter carried from the shoreline where Meg and some of the others from her friend group dared to wade into the cool water, clothes and all.
It was Lauren’s first outing since the accident. It had been a week ago now and her headache had finally subsided. The fog had cleared, or most of it anyway. Her focus wasn’t great when it came to numbers or figuring out complicated schedules. But she was back to work.
Meg had said something about the fall inventory, which apparently consisted of accounting for every fork and spatula in each cabin. Lauren would attempt that task next week.
She checked the time. Sydney’s brother was married by now. Her friend would head back to the city tomorrow. She’d checked on Laurenevery day this week, but Lauren hadn’t wanted to usurp her time with her family.
Carson headed her way across the sand, barefoot and smiling. The golden glow of a fire had never danced on such a handsome face. Tonight he wore a white button-down and a pair of khaki shorts on his lean frame. The sight of him made her pulse race. That Carina was one lucky girl.
“Can I get you a drink?” he asked as he neared.
“No thanks.” She held up her Diet Coke, then took a sip.
He sank onto the other end of the log. “How have you been feeling? Meg said you’ve returned to work.”
“Nothing too strenuous, and I’m feeling much better, thanks.”
“That’s good. Just take it easy. You don’t want to rush it.”
“Believe me, they’re not about to let that happen.” Jonah was like Big Brother, popping up every time she tried to so much as pluck a weed.
She watched the others at the shoreline: Meg, Tori and Lori—fraternal twins—and Sam, a guy who appeared to be a few years younger than the rest of them. They all attended church together, apparently. Lauren and Jonah had been included in the outings throughout the summer. But she remembered none of it, of course. She’d only agreed to come tonight because Jonah had other plans.
“How’s the memory coming along?” Carson asked as if reading her mind. “Anything coming back to you yet?”
