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“She doesn’t know I’m asking. She’s moved on.”
That wasn’t completely true. He knew it still bothered Kendra. She didn’t radiate that same sassy confidence she used to. It broke his heart that Lake Bittersweet had inflicted one more blow on her, after what had happened in Minneapolis. She was too proud to dig deeper, so he was doing it for her.
“Okay. I do know something.” Granger glanced around to make sure no one was listening. “A call came in from someone who said he was Kendra’s business partner. He said she was still committed to this other business and wouldn’t be able to give her full attention to the job.”
Jason’s stomach gave a sickening lurch. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” He’d expected a different sort of answer, something in the realm of “pushing people off piers is wrong.” He hadn’t imagined anything like sabotage from her ex-boyfriend.
“He sent a copy of the contract. It seemed pretty clear that it was still in effect. But that was just the last straw. That thing on the dock, that hurt her. The dude threatened to file suit.”
Now that didn’t surprise Jason. He’d looked like that kind of guy.
“Thanks, Granger. Just so you know, I’m going to tell Kendra. She deserves to know that she got sabotaged.”
“Fair enough.”
“One more thing. With the twins, I want to be the first call you guys make in any kind of emergency, especially if Bliss is going into labor. I’ve personally delivered two babies and wouldn’t mind doubling that total.”
“Thanks, man.” Granger clapped him on the shoulder. “We’ll try to remember that when the panic hits.”
Talk about panic…try figuring out how to tell someone you cared about that her ex was going out of his way to sabotage your job hunt.
Jason put it off for a couple of days, wondering if he should let it go. She’d already been turned down for the job. Would it change anything to know what happened? Would it make things even worse to know that Dominic had a vengeful streak?
In the end, he couldn’t keep the truth from her.
Sundays were the one day they both had off from work. They slept late, then went for a mountain bike ride to the old quarry. In high school, they used to dive off a craggy rock into deep green water so still it was easy to confuse the reflected rock faces with the real thing.
It hadn’t changed a bit. The cliffs, with their gashes and scars left from the quarry days, still surrounded the quiet water like timeless sentinels. No one else was there, making them wonder if the current high school generation had forgotten this spot.
They dove into the cold water to rinse off the dust and sweat from the bike trail. As she hit the water, Kendra’s shriek echoed off the cliffs. They splashed around like kids, then climbed the rocks back up to the top.
Since they were still alone, they made love on a blanket Jason had packed into his saddlebag. The mid-August sunshine poured down on them. The chipper sounds of chickadees echoed through the tall pines. A junco hopped nearby, cocking a curious eye their way. It was such a perfect summer moment, Jason wished he could preserve it forever, just like that.
Instead, he had to shatter it.
“There’s something I have to tell you,” he said gravely, after pulling his swim shorts back on. Kendra lay stretched on the blanket, one arm protecting her eyes from the sun.
“You sound so serious. Are you about to confess that you’re in love with me?” She scrambled into a sitting position and grabbed for her sunglasses. With her aviator shades perched on her face and her tiny thong bikini, she looked like she belonged by a Hollywood hotel pool. “Gretchen’s getting divorced and wants you back? You’re leaving town to follow your dream of running a hot air balloon?”
Jason blinked at that rapid-fire list. “I never told anyone about my hot air balloon dream, damnit.”
Kendra laughed, which reminded him this was serious. She really never did take him seriously, did she?
“It’s not about me. It’s about you. I found out why you didn’t get the town manager job.”
“Oh.” Everything about her seemed to deflate, all her shine and laughter evaporating. “I don’t give a shit anymore. It’s better this way. I can help my dad get through the summer season, then figure out my next move.”
Which would be leaving town, no doubt. But he didn’t want to think about that.
“Kendra, listen. It wasn’t you. You were kneecapped. By Dominic.”
He braced himself for her reaction, which he figured would be somewhere between a lightning storm and a hurricane.
Instead, she went still. “Okay, what now? What are you talking about?”
With that blank expression, he couldn’t tell what she was thinking. But she was definitely thinking something. The wheels were turning back there behind those aviator shades.
“Dominic called someone on the board and told them you were still locked into your contract.”
