Just My Luck (A Shamrock Falls Novel) (Entangled: Bliss) (11 page)

She nodded. When Jace reached her he pushed a lock of hair behind her right ear. She didn’t flinch, but held completely still. That was almost as bad. He wondered if he was doing the right thing. What if this decision was the one to cause them the most problems? What if he lost her completely? Caused discord with their friends? But then…it couldn’t be that bad, could it? They were stronger than that. He felt it in his gut.

“Do you want to go with me today, B? Forget about everything else. I just need to know if you want to go.” A foreign feeling wrapped around him. Almost…needy. It was different, how it confused him and interested him at the same time.

When his hand fell away, she answered quietly, “Yes.”

Some of the weight eased off his chest. “Go with me.”

“Yes.”

Jace smiled. “Let’s make a promise. We’ve both been going through a lot. I’ve rushed you into this marriage and taken you from your home. That can’t be easy on you. Let’s just have a good time today and forget everything else. Can you do that?”

She nodded, her eyes firmly on his. Jace almost stepped back, awed at the pure affection on her face. He wasn’t sure he deserved it. Hell, he was pretty sure he didn’t, but he wanted to see it. To hold it in his memory.

Women checked him out all the time. He wasn’t an idiot; he knew he was attractive. Knew they saw a handsome man and dollar signs in his eyes.

Clients turned to him for answers. For him to help them, and while that meant a lot to him, he couldn’t describe how good it felt to just be looked at not for what he could do for someone, but just for who he was.

It was unlike anything he’d ever felt. Genuine in a way not many people were anymore.

“Okay,” he said, not sure what else to say. “We should get ready, then.” Jace turned and didn’t stop walking until he got to the door. Glancing over, he saw the bag on the bed again. Jace made eye contact with Betsy. “And just be yourself. However you feel comfortable, okay? We’re going to a restaurant and after that I have something special in mind. Nothing extravagant. Just…just be yourself.”

With that, he walked out of the room, wishing he’d added that he liked who she was just fine.

Dates Jace could do. Even ones that weren’t technically real dates. He had everything planned out perfectly, and even though they were getting a little bit of a late start, it would go smoothly. For the first time in more than a month, he’d landed in familiar territory. He’d actually been looking forward to it all week, which was why when he came home to find Betsy upset, he’d been upset, too.

After losing his parents, no one had really tried to make it better for him. Wallace showered him with gifts and let the nannies take him to do fun things, but it hadn’t been what he needed. He hadn’t let anyone give him what he needed in a long time, but he had this fierce instinct inside him to do just that for Betsy.

Jace took a quick shower, shaved, and then put on a pair of black jeans and a button up white shirt. He rolled the sleeves to his elbows before grabbing his leather jacket out of the closet.

He knew without going downstairs that Betsy was still in her room, so he knocked softly and waited. He pictured her on the other side of the door…waiting. Who knew if she really was or not, but he put his palm flat against the door before realizing how ridiculous that was and pulling it away.

As he did, the door slowly opened. It was almost the same as when he saw her on their wedding day. It was Betsy…but not. No, that wasn’t right. It was definitely her, but in a different light because her hair was pushed back from her face in those long, silky curls. Her hair was shiny, like he’d noticed before, but she had this one curl, smaller than the rest. It looked springy and fell off to the side of her face.

The style wasn’t overdone. It was simple. So very simple that he probably never would have noticed it if it hadn’t been so different for her.

She hadn’t had Sidney or Row here doing this for her. It had been all Betsy.

Her sweater was a thick material, but not big or baggy. It dipped into a slight V at her neck. It wasn’t too low, but enough to tease him because she didn’t show skin often.

Like him, she wore jeans, but he could tell they were new. A deep, unwashed blue that molded to the curves she often deprived the world of. But still, her cheeks were blushing pink.

There she was.

Definitely still his Betsy, like he’d asked for, but maybe a bit of the girl she kept locked away, too.

“It’s too much.” Betsy tried to close the door, but Jace put his hand out to stop it.

“No…it’s really not.”

“Not enough?”

“Just right.”

And then they both started laughing. Belly laughs that came from the comfort of feeling like yourself and letting someone in. Christ. When had he last laughed like this? Only during his times with her.

“Are we channeling Goldilocks and the Three Bears?”

Jace shook his head. “No. Just Betsy and Jace.” He held out his hand. “May I?”

Her eyes fell closed for the briefest of seconds before she opened them and latched her hand with his. Yes. Dates, he could
definitely
do.

Chapter Ten

As they made their way onto the Freeway headed for Seattle, Betsy sat on her hands so they didn’t shake. Her nerves drove her crazy, but she had no control over them. More than anything she wanted to enjoy this day, but she wasn’t sure how to make herself relax and do that.

“Are you warm enough?” Jace asked as he played with the dials on his dashboard.

“Yes.”

Open your mouth and start a conversation
. Betsy searched for words she could say rather than only replying to him, but couldn’t make any of them come out.
Thank you for today. How’s the case going?
Heck, right now she’d be happy with
anything but instead all she did was fidget in her seat. Nice.

No.
She wasn’t going to let herself do this. “Have you had a chance to watch the movie I gave you yet?” she asked, feeling proud of herself.

“No, I haven’t. Things have been too crazy. Maybe we can sit down and watch it one night together.”

“I’d like that,” Betsy told him. But really she loved it.

“Good.” Jace glanced over his shoulder and changed lanes before speaking again. “Breck has a short trip coming up. It’s a tournament he can’t get out of. Plus, I’m sure he’d like to try and get his traveling done before the baby comes. He asked if we’d help out if Row needs anything. I wasn’t sure if she mentioned it to you or not—you know how she doesn’t like to ask for help.” Jace glanced at her and smiled, and it was almost as if it were the first time she saw him. He wasn’t holding anything back like he usually did. She held in a gasp at his beauty.

“Of course. I’ll do whatever she needs. I’m sure he’s nervous leaving her.”

Jace nodded. “He is. It would be hard leaving someone you love like that.”

Betsy nodded. “It would.”

“Would you like some music?” Jace asked her.

Betsy opened her mouth to reply when
flop, flop, flop
sounds came from outside of the car. It jerked slightly to the left, but Jace kept control over the vehicle, a soft curse coming out of his mouth.

“Flat tire,” he growled as he moved over a lane before pulling off to the side of the road. He grabbed his cell from the cup holder, glanced at the time, cursed again, and then said, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to change it.”

The door slammed before she could reply. He was frustrated and the last thing she wanted to do was sit in the car while he did all the work. Betsy got out as Jace was opening the trunk. “I can help.”

Jace’s head peeked at her from over the trunk. She couldn’t read the look on his face, which drove her crazy. “We’re on a date. You’re not helping me with a flat tire.”

Wow. How positively 1950s of him…and kind of sweet, too. “It’s not a real date.” She wanted to make sure he knew that she understood the score.

A deep frown formed on Jace’s lips. “Thanks for reminding me. You’re still not helping with the tire, though.”

He pulled the spare and jack from the trunk and walked away. This chivalrous side of him didn’t surprise her. It made her feel warm inside.

Betsy headed Jace’s way. He passed her again, grabbing a small blanket and laying it on the ground before he jacked up the car. It didn’t take him much time to kneel onto the blanket and change the tire.

She noticed that he had a full-sized replacement instead of the typical spare; it was so Jace not to bother with one of the donuts. Looking in the bag he kept his jack in, Betsy noticed a small bottle of hand sanitizer. That was
so
Jace too. She giggled.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.” She couldn’t stop herself from smiling. He looked back at her and let a short grin sneak through before shaking his head and getting back to the tire.

She had a feeling Jace knew she was laughing at him. And that he might be enjoying it too.

Once they were back in the car and on the road, he said, “I know this isn’t a real date, but like I said before, I thought you might want something to eat. It’ll be a late lunch, then we’ll head out on the rest of the dat—day.”

She was starving. She’d been so nervous, she hadn’t eaten, so food definitely sounded good to her. “Where are we going?”

“Angelo’s. Have you been?”

Betsy shook her head.

“They make the best homemade pizza in Seattle. It’s a tourist hotspot and the locals love it, so it’s always packed. I called and managed to get us a reservation. Otherwise, people line up outside waiting, even early in the day.”

“It sounds good.”

“It’s the best.”

Forty-five minutes later, they were pulling into the parking lot of a little white building with a red and white checkered awning. The sign boasted
Angelo…the Pizza Boss,
which Betsy found pretty amusing. And just as Jace promised, a line began at the door and wrapped around the side of the building.

Jace was walking to her side of the car when she got out and she wondered if she should have waited for him. If he had wanted to open the door for her, like he’d done before.

A delicious warmth spread through her when he grabbed her hand. It was a formality, she told herself. But even with that thought, she loved it. Being attached to him temporarily was better than nothing.

A man stood at the door with his arms crossed. He looked how she would assume a guard did at an exclusive nightclub or something. Obviously this pizza boss took his business very seriously.

Jace led her straight up to him. “There should be a table for Macnamara.”

Betsy wondered if they were late, since they didn’t leave on time and then had the flat tire, but then Jace added, “We’re a few minutes early.” His and Betsy’s eyes met and she could have sworn she saw sheepishness in them when he shrugged and said, “I don’t like to risk being late. I planned for us to leave early so we’d have plenty of time.”

It was probably the cutest thing she had ever heard. Her heart swelled even more for him.

When the bodyguard-looking man finished going through the papers, he said, “I don’t have a Macnamara on the list.”

Jace frowned slightly. “What about Jace?”

The man rechecked the list and said, “Nope. No Jace either. I’m going to need you to head to the back of the line.”

For pizza
, was all Betsy could think.

“That’s not possible,” Jace said, obviously not willing to just get in line. “I called at the beginning of last week and made the reservations for today.”

“Your name isn’t on the list. We don’t have a table for you if your name isn’t on the list. Your only option is to get in line and wait.”

“We don’t have time to wait. We have somewhere to be, which is the reason I called for
reservations
,” Jace countered.

Betsy gripped his hand tighter. “It’s okay. We can always eat somewhere else.”

Jace sighed. Looked at Betsy. The line. The man at the door, before shaking his head and taking a few steps back with her. “I know how you like pizza. I wanted to bring you somewhere you’d enjoy.”

She wanted so badly to tell him that she would enjoy being anywhere he was. The place didn’t matter. She settled for, “It’s okay. Really. I promise.”

He sighed again, and she could tell he wasn’t happy about it, but he led her away from Angelo’s.

“Should we just walk up the street until we find somewhere else to eat?” he asked.

“Okay. That sounds good to me.”

They walked hand in hand down the Seattle street. They weren’t far from Pike’s Place Market. There were antique shops in the busy square she’d always wanted to check out, plus she knew Pike’s Place had a very popular Farmer’s Market and tons of family owned restaurants. She’d always planned to come down here, but she’d never taken the time to do so.

A little diner that looked like not much more than a hole in the wall sat right inside the entrance to Pike’s Place. The sign was wooden and beat up. The door slightly back from the street. Almost as though it were hidden…or maybe a little shy. “What about here?” Betsy asked.

Jace’s brows creased as he looked at the diner. “Are you sure?” Before she could answer, his eyes were on her face. She didn’t know what he saw there, but he said, “I think it’s perfect.”

There weren’t many people inside. An older woman with gray hair sat them at a small table in the corner. The menu wasn’t extremely long, but it boasted everything being homemade. They both decided on potato and ham soup with bread. Jace drank water while Betsy had tea.

The talk was small while they ate their meal. Jace seemed a little on edge, though she wasn’t sure why missing out on the pizza would upset him so much. The place they ate didn’t matter to her. She just wanted their day to go well.

When Jace set money down to pay the bill, she said, “I’ll cover half.” Betsy picked up her purse and started to dig around in it.

“Put your money away, B.”

“It’s not fair. This isn’t a real—”

“Put it away. Humor me. Please.”

It was the
please
that did it. She set her purse on her lap and waited for him to pay. A few minutes later they were in the car again, driving. Betsy wanted to know so badly where they were going. But she also didn’t want to get there. The closer they got, the closer they were to their day being over.

…

So much for Jace being able to do dates. She deserved today to be a good one. Hell, maybe he also felt he needed to be the one to give it to her. All he knew was that he’d failed miserably. So far, it had just been one thing after another going wrong.

Still, he had his ace in the hole. The closer they got to Safeco Stadium, the more excited he became. Jace couldn’t wait to see the look on Betsy’s face.

Signs began to show their destination. Jace turned his head to see if she realized and was grateful he did. Her eyes were wide, happy-excited wide as she looked at him.

“But baseball season hasn’t started yet.” Betsy sounded awed.

Jace winked at her. “I didn’t even have to do my research to know that one.”

“But—”

“Just wait and see.” Jace made his way through the parking lot. When they got out of the car, he put his hand at the small of her back as they walked toward the building. Jace was surprised at how empty the lot was.

Jace pulled out his phone and sent a text. It received an immediate reply.

When they reached the door, his friend and a former client waited there for him. Jace held out his hand and they shook. “Hey, man. Thanks a lot for helping us out today. This is my wife, Betsy. Betsy, this is an old friend, Edward. He runs the security for the stadium.”

Betsy got that deer in the headlights look as he eased her forward, making Jace wonder what she was thinking. Was it still hard for her to be called his wife? He found it was easy for him. Maybe a little scary how easy it was.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Betsy.”

“You, as well,” she replied.

Edward then turned his attention to Jace. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but things didn’t work out like I thought they would. The guys aren’t here.” The pitchers and catchers had already left for Spring Training, but the rest of the team didn’t leave for another week. From what Jace knew, there was a batting practice going on here today.

Jace cursed. How had he known something like this would happen? “There’s nothing you can do?”

Edward shook his head. “I’m sorry. You’re welcome to stay for a little while. I’ll be here for an hour or so. We’ve got a few events coming up that I’m preparing for.”

Jace tried to hold in his frown. Everything about today had been ruined. “Okay. Thank you.”

Edward pointed them in the right direction, and Jace led Betsy to the tunnel that went to the field. The second they stepped into the open, with the diamond out in front of them and the stands all around, Betsy froze. She circled, taking it all in with the most amazed expression on her face.

He would never forget that look. He never wanted to.

“Jace…this is wonderful,” she said.

He ignored that because it wasn’t. The whole day had been a wash and this was nothing more than an empty stadium. Regardless of missing it, Jace wanted to find a way to make this fun for her. He needed to have fun
with
her and he would find a way to do it.

“Wanna play?” Jace asked her.

Her mouth dropped open and Jace laughed. He put his finger under her chin and pushed it closed. Jace leaned forward and whispered in her ear, “Play with me.” He didn’t know what made him do it, why he kept feeling the urge to get closer to her lately. What he did know was that he liked her beside him. Wanted to touch her curves, just to see how she felt. To watch the look in her eyes when he had his hands on her.

“Sure…okay…” Her words were breathy. Jace closed his eyes, focusing on the sound of her breathing. Wondering what was happening to them. No, what was happening to
him
.

Before he could contemplate it too much, Betsy was pulling away.

“Come on. You bat.” He led her to the dugout and handed her a bat. Jace grabbed himself a glove and a baseball.

They took their places, Jace at the mound and Betsy over home plate. “I pitched in high school. Was pretty good, but it’s been a long time. Hopefully I don’t embarrass myself,” he called to her.

“Please! Jace Macnamara embarrass himself? It’s not possible. You’re good at everything.” Betsy laughed, clearly meaning her words as a joke, but they made him feel something he hadn’t truly felt in a long time.

Pride.

Get it together, Macnamara!
He’d never felt so out of sorts in his whole life.

“Stop trying to suck up and get ready. Don’t think I’m not going to try and strike you out.”

“Don’t think I don’t know it’ll be easy!” she responded. It was incredible the way she was letting loose. Like somehow this stadium held the key to unlocking Betsy.

“Switch from sucking up to stalling?” he teased.

At that, Betsy got this mock-serious look on her face, holding the bat out…before dropping her arms to her sides. “I feel like an idiot. I don’t know how to hit a baseball, Jace.”