Forever Love on Fireweed Island (Island County Book 4) (19 page)

He helped me off the counter. “I owe you my end of the deal.”

Before I had time to object, he whisked me out of the kitchen.

“What deal?” I asked, completely perplexed how I could have inadvertently shut down the best make out session ever.

“I borrowed three of your books, and it’s my turn to give you three in exchange.”

I groaned and shook my head.

“I think this is the first time in my entire life where a book proposition doesn’t interest me anymore,” I said, only half-kidding.

He hauled me down the hall in the opposite direction of the great room, and I had to silently laugh at the complexity of getting around, but that all went out the window once he stopped in front of an open door that led into a library.

“This is my office,” he said, gently nudging me into the most spectacular library I’d ever laid eyes on.

While most of the house felt light and bright, this two-story room was wrapped in dark wood from floor to ceiling. A large desk sat in the far corner, taking advantage of another beautiful view of the cliff and the Sound beyond. Behind the workspace, a staircase led to the second story balcony that wrapped around the entire room, the walls filled with even more books.

I brought my gaze back down to the main floor and spotted a fireplace and chaise.

“Are those books real or just props?” I asked, bringing my attention back to Jake. He’d been studying my reaction, and I hadn’t even realized it.

“You mean have I read them?” He laughed and nodded. “Most of them.”

A flicker of lightning blazed across the sky outside, and I secretly prayed for the lights to go out so I could spend the night in this room.

“It’s getting nasty out there.” I shivered, and Jake let go of my hand. He walked over to his desk—with me following closely behind—and picked up three books and handed them to me.

“For the librarian who has read it all,” he said, grinning.

I looked down and smiled at the book on top.

“
The Little Prince
,” I read aloud, nodding. “I haven’t read this since I was a kid.”

“I actually think it’s more a book for adults after they’ve been through some of life’s adventures.”

I smiled. “You’re probably right. Good choice.”

“I thought so.”

I looked at the next one and giggled. “A book on seabirds.”

He shrugged. “I figured you hadn’t read that one.”

“You are so right, and I’m looking forward to it.” I slid to the next one and looked down.

“
Smelling in Purple
?” I read the title aloud and saw the author. “Your mom wrote this?”

He nodded. “She’s written several novels. That’s her latest. It’s also her way of ensuring you come to the farm for the Fourth of July.”

“I’m sorry. I’m still in shock that your mom writes.”

Pride flooded his gaze and he nodded. “That’s her latest release. She talks about what the farm has done for her soul after my dad’s death and—” he stopped and took in a deep breath. “And I haven’t even been able to bring myself to read it. The first chapter tore me up.”

“Thank you. I look forward to starting it when I get home.”

“I was hoping you’d polish up your knowledge on seagulls first.” His lips curled at the corners, and my world literally stood still.

There was nothing more perfect than being in a private library with an incredible man who enjoys what life has to offer, Todd and Dotty included, while managing to keep a smile on his lips and mine.

I took a step forward and put the books back down on the desk before wrapping my arms around his waist.

“I have to say, you’ve really thrown a ton of surprises my way.” I looked up into his eyes and felt a shift. “It’s making me think of life a little differently.”

“How so?” His voice lowered.

“I’ve felt broken for a long time.”

He tipped my chin up, and his gaze intensified as he searched my eyes. “Not everything that’s broken has to be fixed.”

I shook my head.

“Going through things in life that make you feel damaged and hurt or make you question the choices you made doesn't mean they destroy who you are. They’ll make you look at life differently, but they don’t destroy the person inside. You’re beautiful because you’re not afraid to show your vulnerabilities,” he said, his gaze dropping to my mouth.

A surge of anticipation flooded through me at the thought of another kiss. I closed my eyes and willed his mouth to mine, and the moment his lips touched down, a shrill ring sounded through the room. My eyes flashed open, and a look of disappointment weighed down his features.

“Sorry. That’s the line for the Firehouse.”

“No. Totally. I get it.” I dropped my hands to my side, and he darted to the phone behind his desk.

He didn’t say much over the phone, but by the time he hung up, I got the distinct feeling that the night was about to be cut short.

“Harry Winters fell down a ravine. Main Fire and Rescue is already there, but with the weather, they’re calling us all in.”

I gasped at the news, my hands flying to my mouth as I scurried out of the room, following Jake as I grabbed a set of keys.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect the night—” He kissed my cheek.

“Don’t apologize,” I assured him. “This is what you do.”

A minute hadn’t even passed by, and we were already at the front door and down the steps. I climbed into my car as he opened his garage door and went inside. Within seconds, he was reversing a 4x4 truck out of the garage and headed down the driveway with me close behind. The gate opened automatically once his truck arrived, and I followed him out as he stepped on the gas and headed to the northern tip of the island. The sky continued to light up, but there wasn’t much in the way of rain yet.

Everything had gone by so quickly, I didn’t even have time to digest what just happened, let alone ask questions. Jake’s truck was no longer in view, and all I could think about was poor Mr. Winters.

And Mrs. Coleville.

Did she know? I pressed on the accelerator and prayed that she wasn’t with him when he went over or whatever it was that happened.

Harry lived in an area with dangerous terrain butting up against his property, but he knew it like the back of his hand, and it surprised me that he’d be trundling around where he could get hurt. His gardens were set back from the cliffs, and he’d have no reason to be over there.

I let out a deep breath and turned onto the road that would lead back to the safety of town and my little home, and I prayed that everyone, including Jake, would make it back safe and sound tonight.

Word had gotten to Mrs. Coleville of the accident by the time I’d returned home. I spent the night with her and Coco as we waited for updates. They airlifted Harry to a hospital in Seattle, and he was in critical condition. She’d been in touch with his kids, but they weren’t exactly welcoming her with open arms, and neither was Harry’s ex-wife, who happened to be at the hospital. I could tell not being by his side was tearing Mrs. Coleville up, but there was nothing we could do.

I’d fallen asleep on the couch with Coco nestled around my feet, and Mrs. Coleville had fallen asleep in her recliner. The sun hadn’t even attempted to rise yet, and all I wanted was my nice warm bed and windows with the curtains pulled tight.

I sat up and stretched, trying not to disturb Coco so I could sneak out of the house without anyone noticing. Thankfully, I didn’t have to go to the library until later in the day today—or tomorrow, or however that worked when it was three o’clock in the morning. I folded the blanket and placed it on the corner of the couch when Mrs. Coleville’s voice nearly shot me through the roof.

“I got a message from Harry’s grandson letting me know he was going to go in for surgery today. He broke a hip.” She shook her head. “This was a man who prided himself on not having a bit of Teflon or metal inside him, and then he goes and does this.”

“I can’t imagine he’ll be too happy with himself,” I agreed. “Do you know what happened?”

She shook her head. “I’ll find out though. You go home and try to get some sleep.”

Coco stood up and stretched before curling back around.

“You’ll be okay?”

She smiled and shooed me out of the room. “It was just nice having company while I waited for the news. Thank you, Jewels. You’re a good neighbor to have.”

“And so are you.”

I blew her a kiss and showed myself out the door. Trundling over to my house in the dark wasn’t the easiest of journeys, even though our houses were nearly on top of one another. I somehow managed to trip over a small rock and turn my ankle sideways on the flowerbed, cursing myself through the front door.

Once inside, I realized that little trip had made me fully awake. I groaned and locked my door as I glanced around my foyer. It was hard to believe that just yesterday, Jake was here flinging around my pink bra. Things felt all out of whack, and regardless of whether I was tired, I needed to try to get to sleep so I could get to the library at noon.

By the time I reached the top of the stairs and made it into my bedroom, drowsiness had mercifully returned, and I snuggled under my lavender comforter, pulling it to my chin.

What felt like minutes had actually been several hours, and the sound of the doorbell ringing wasn’t exactly how I imagined my morning starting or ending—depending on the time. I forced myself out of bed to tell whatever salesman decided to ring my bell that I wanted nothing and my life is complete. I already had cable, I didn’t have any Godzilla-sized bugs or rodents to fend off, and I had no intentions of subscribing to any magazines, so unless it was someone with coffee and donuts in hand, I wasn’t going to be a happy camper.

I hopped down the steps and peeked through the glass on the top of the door to see Jake’s head poking up. I froze and looked down at the clothes from yesterday I was still wearing and quickly ran my hand through my hair that felt like it had succumbed to hurricane winds. Not to mention, I’d probably left most of my makeup on the pillow upstairs.

He rang the bell again, and I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. My car never made it inside the garage, so he knew I was here. I slowly walked down the last few steps and flung open the front door.

His expression brightened at the sight of me, and I let out a heavy sigh.

“This wasn’t exactly how I wanted you to see me in the morning.”

“Looks fine by me.” His smile lingered before leaning over and sweeping a kiss along my cheek. “You look beautiful.”

I craned my neck to get a glimpse of myself in the small mirror by the door and almost choked at what I saw. It wasn’t like my mornings were known for greatness, but this took it to a whole new level. My hair stood several inches from the top of my head, fuzzing in several different directions. Mascara ran down my cheek on one side of my face and stayed perfectly placed on the other, except for the gunk of black in the corners of both my eyes. Not to mention, my lips were completely cracked from sleeping with my mouth open all night.

Great!

“You need your eyes checked.” I brought my gaze back to his and pointed at my face. “This isn’t a pleasant sight to see, especially in this condition.”

He laughed, and it immediately improved my morning.

“It’s a beautiful sight to see, especially in the morning.” He handed me the three books I’d left on his desk in our haste to leave. “I wanted to bring these over.”

“Thank you. I was hoping I’d get them somehow. That was really sweet of you to come by.” I put the books on my shelf and invited him in. “How did everything go yesterday? What happened?”

It only took one step for Jake to enter the foyer and shut the door behind him, and my heart stopped as he leaned in.

I took a step back and shook my head.

“Teeth . . . I need to brush my teeth,” I mumbled, looking down at the floor.

“Why don’t you do that while I make a pot of coffee?” He didn’t even wait for an answer before heading into the kitchen.

“Fine. I’ll go do that, but don’t get your hopes up that it’ll make my morning persona any better.”

Besides brushing my teeth, I combed my hair, put it in a ponytail and washed my face before heading back downstairs to a pot full of coffee and Jake smiling with a cup already in hand.

“So was the rescue difficult?” I asked as he poured me a cup.

“Not too bad, considering the terrain, but he’s lucky to be alive. If he hit his head or went a few feet in the wrong direction, he could’ve wound up in the Sound.”

I shivered and took a sip of coffee. “That’s scary.”

“Nature is both the cruelest and kindest force in the world. I respect her power.”

“I’d imagine you see a lot.”

“You have no idea.” A wry grin spread across his lips.

“I bet I do.”

“Could you get any cuter?” He sat his cup on the counter and walked over to me.

“I could ask the same.”

“How so?” He took my cup out of my hands and placed it on the counter before he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. My entire body tingled with anticipation.

“You’re the one with an alpaca named Todd.” I looked into his blue eyes, and my stomach twisted into a mess of emotion. There was something about being in his arms that made my heart flutter and my entire body heat up with eagerness for the unexpected. “I don’t think you can get any cuter than that. Or strange.”