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“It’s okay, Jason.” Kendra put her hand on his forearm. Maybe she sensed the fury coursing through him. “I got this.”
Her touch burned into his arm. Scalded him with longing. But her gaze was firmly fixed on Dominic. And the man knew it, judging by the smirk tugging at his lips.
Jason didn’t say another word. He turned on his heel and went in search of his crew. Do the job, get the hell out. He couldn’t be in the same space as that prick for one more second.
He was barely aware of signing the certificate of inspection. Didn’t recall getting into his truck and driving back to the firehouse. Whatever he put in the report he filed, who knew? Everyone kept a wide berth from him. He was grateful for that. Ordinary conversation seemed utterly impossible.
He shouldn’t have told Kendra how he felt. Especially right before her ex showed up. Talk about bad timing. It was like fate was laughing in his face. Oh, you think you have a chance with her? Dream on, lowly human.
Oddly, it wasn’t his conversation with Kendra that kept running through his mind. No, it was long-ago comments from his parents that were doing that. Not everyone can be a superstar. Don’t set your sights too high. Be realistic. Do you really think you can handle that class? Or that after-school job? Or band practice?
Or woman? Maybe he really was stupid after all. Stupid enough to aim for the stars and land flat on his face.
Kendra wasn’t quite sure how it happened, but a short time later, she found herself driving Dominic into Lake Bittersweet. His aftershave filled her Lexus with the scent of Armani and crushed dreams.
An Uber had dropped him off at the nursing home. An Uber from Minneapolis. She didn’t even want to know how much that must have cost. He’d booked himself a suite at the Bittersweet Inn. When she’d asked him for how long, he’d refused to say. That made her nervous. His very presence made her sick to her stomach. Her head was still in a fog and she desperately needed some sleep.
“Let’s make a stop at the Blue Drake,” said Dominic. “I want to meet your parents. Besides, that place is beyond even what you described. I need photos of that gigantic duck up on the stage.” Dominic kept behaving as if everything was normal, and his magnetism made it hard to resist. But she had to draw the line somewhere.
“Absolutely not. My mother’s in Arkansas and you can’t meet my father.”
“Why not? He always sounded like a real character.”
“He’s a real person,” she corrected. “Also, we broke up and now you’re dead to him. He won’t want to see you. I don’t even know why you’re here.”
He gave one of his familiar jaunty shrugs. “We’re still business partners.”
“Sorry, but there’s no way I’m letting the man who ditched me on his way to London meet my father. Call me a coward if you want.”
“You are many things, Kendra, but one thing you absolutely are not, is a coward.”
“That sounds like a compli-sult.”
“A what?”
Right, that was one of her and Jason’s running jokes. Of course Dominic wouldn’t get it. Did she and Dominic ever have inside jokes? They hadn’t had that sort of easy relationship. They’d talked a lot of business, so much business. And dreams. Goals, plans. What else?
“Let it go. I’m not going to put on some farce in front of my father.”
“That’s a shame, I love a good farce.”
He sounded so British that she had to ask, “Do you fool the people in England? Do they think you’re one of them?”
“No, but they appreciate the effort,” he said lightly. “They adore me there. I’m like a unicorn, a witty, sexy, diabolically clever Canadian.”
“Then what are you doing here? Why fly all the way from London where they all kiss your feet?”
“Are you saying you won’t—” At her look, he dropped that line of thought. “I have a reason. A few reasons. The first one is so I can apologize in person.”
She waited, but apparently he considered that the apology. “Is that it?”
“Oh, the apology? No, of course not.” He covered quickly, she gave him that. “I want to take you out to dinner and do it properly. You pick the place.”
She didn’t want to go to dinner with Dominic. But she wouldn’t mind an apology. Some groveling would be super. Besides, she was curious about the other reasons too. Dominic always had many reasons for everything he did.
“How does the most expensive restaurant in Lake Bittersweet sound?”
“Perfect. Is it also the best in Lake Bittersweet?”
