Let Me Love You (18 page)

“You coming?” Dane said, revving the engine.

Indecision warred within her. She should stay at the winery to make sure the jubilee wrapped up well. She should manage the cleanup, the way she always did.

But more than anything, she wanted to see Joey again, to talk to him about why she left this morning…and how much she wished she could’ve stayed.

Hell, the jubilee was almost over anyway, right?

“One second.” She pulled her cell out of her pocket and sent out a mass text message to the managers and assistants on staff, letting them know she’d be out of the winery for a few hours. “Okay, let’s go.”

She grabbed the passenger’s helmet, hopped onto the back of Dane’s bike, and wrapped her arms around his waist. As they pulled out of the parking lot, Lucy glanced back. Zin sat at the entrance to the tasting room, watching them drive away, his gray fur blowing in the breeze.

He’d be waiting for her to return. Surprisingly, Lucy liked to think Zin would be waiting for her when she got home. He’d welcome her with sloppy kisses and warm her feet when she fell asleep.

Although she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was, Lucy knew the dog had changed something inside her. Whether or not it was for the better, she didn’t have the faintest clue.

Lucy had never been to Blue Lake airport before. Probably because it wasn’t located in the town itself. It was a thirty-minute drive up the highway, deeper into the Sierras. When they reached the summit, the mountains opened enough for the valley to appear below them. Smack in the center of the valley, trees had been cleared to allow a runway to stretch through it.

As the motorcycle rumbled through the pass, hugging turns and racing down the stretches, Lucy hugged Dane’s middle for dear life. She liked adventure, but with every turn, her insides wrenched, threatening to revolt against the ham and eggs she’d scarfed for breakfast.

She couldn’t wait to talk to Joey.

Dane took the next exit and weaved along the narrow road that led to the airfield. The smell of smoke and pine hit her, and she breathed in deeply. Okay, so riding a bike wasn’t
so
horrible. As they rounded another curvy bend, cars appeared on either side of the road. A gravel parking lot appeared on the right, chock-full of cars. Hangars stood out in the distance. Overhead, two planes zoomed over their heads, twisting and turning through white and wispy clouds.

Lucy gawked, following their path through the sky.

An announcer buzzed in the distance, though Lucy couldn’t make out what he’d said.

Dane turned, and pulled up behind a large grandstand. It was packed. People crowded everywhere, holding pamphlets, beer, churros, and binoculars. It looked like the place had standing room only left.

Another plane zoomed overhead, its engine rumbling as it sped through the sky directly over the stands. The crowd screamed and clapped, oohed and aahed.

“Thanks for the ride, Dane.” Lucy dragged her leg over the side of his bike. Her foot caught on something and she tripped. Hopped. Tried to regain her balance. And landed smack on her backside on the grass. “Oomph!”

Muffled laughter surrounded her.

“You okay?” Dane said, dismounting like a damned motocross pro. He extended his hand, and she took it, hauling herself to her feet. “You’ve just got some…” He reached around her to brush dirt off her backside.

She spun away, dodging his hand before it touched her rear. He smirked.

“I’ve got it.” Blushing, she wiped loose grass and dirt off her backside and thanked the Lord she’d decided to wear pants today. “I’m fine. Thanks for the ride.”

“No problem.” He leaned in close, and took the helmet from her hand. “I know you’ve got your heart set on Joey, but if you ever want to take a ride again, next time we’ll leave the bike behind.”

How crude. How…
tacky.

A week ago, she’d been so thrilled at the possibility of going out with the bad Brackett brother, the thrill seeker. Now, weighed against Joey’s goodness and the way he made her feel light and genuinely happy, she couldn’t understand Dane’s appeal. For a second there, back at the grape stomp, she thought she’d gotten through to him. She thought she might’ve seen the soft center behind his hardened shell. But if she’d broken down any walls, they were back up now.

It was
sad,
really…did Dane really think he had to act that way to get a woman’s attention?

Lucy clenched her fist so she wouldn’t smack him in front of the entire town of Blue Lake, and then took off to find Joey.

* * *

From the moment he’d first opened his eyes this morning and caught Lucy reading a text from the winery, Joey should’ve known the day wasn’t going to get any better.

He understood the reason Lucy left.

Something had happened at the winery and she needed to be there.

He’d heard what she said after her phone went off with a couple texts.
I should’ve been there.

On the surface, there wasn’t a problem. She was late for the jubilee, they needed her help, and as the owner, she needed to jet over to fix the issue. But the underlying issue remained as strong as ever.

StoneMill Winery was more than a job to Lucy. It was her life. She’d worked her ass off to make it the success it was today. She couldn’t afford distractions. She’d said it again and again. It was the main reason she didn’t want a relationship to pin her down.

Although it’d be better for Lucy if he disappeared from her life, Joey couldn’t muster the strength to do it. He yearned to be the one to prove her wrong, to show that she could have balance in her personal and professional life.

He’d never been more at odds about what he should do versus what he wanted to do.

To distract himself from the indecision niggling his gut, Joey left the station and came to the air show. He tuned up his Cessna, watching as Walker drove it out of the hangar and onto the starting line. The plane started up like a champ, as if it hadn’t been sitting for months. Walker came out to get it running every now and then, but it wasn’t enough.

The thought stung him.

He should’ve been the one flying the skies today. Hell, he should’ve been the one flying the skies every day. He ached to rise off the ground, tilt over wind currents, and feel the pockets of air beneath him, lifting him to the heavens. What would Lucy think if she watched him fly? Would she be impressed? Ooh and aah and gasp when he looped through the air?

The white paint of the tail wing shone bright in the glare of the afternoon sun, blinding him as it turned. He and Walker had repaired the damage from the crash six years ago. The frame had been bent back into proper form, the metal smoothed, the paint perfectly coated. The only physical evidence of the tragedy that remained was the scar beneath Joey’s chin.

He brushed his fingers along the blemish and eyed the plane. He’d been sitting
right there
—where Walker sat now—when he’d gotten the call about Alec. If only he’d been on the ground, ready to pull out of the hangar. Just like this. They could’ve bolted into town and saved him.

Things could’ve been different.

What a difference a few measly minutes could make…

From the hangars on either side of them, planes emerged, their propellers whipping through the air with deafening grumbles. Joey’s plane was powerful, but if Walker wanted to win, he’d have to fly hard and fast, pushing the Cessna to its limit.

Joey’s chest tightened and ice water lurched through his veins merely thinking about it.

He couldn’t fly.

He wasn’t ready yet…and he’d probably never be.

As his plane approached the bleachers, Joey’s attention shifted to a fiery redhead standing in the parking lot closest to the bleachers. Her locks blew in the afternoon breeze, flittering about her face. Dane stood next to her—too close for Joey’s taste—with his bike at his back. They must’ve come together. Twinges of jealousy made his lip crinkle. As Dane leaned in close to whisper in her ear, Joey groaned and averted his gaze.

It was a like a bad accident. He couldn’t
not
watch, even though his stomach lurched as if he was going to be sick.

When he looked back, Dane was peeling out of the parking lot, and Lucy was tramping over the grass in front of the bleachers. When she reached the fence near the starting line, she caught Joey’s eye. And smiled.

God, she really was angelic.

He’d always dreamed of a gorgeous woman catching his eye from across a crowded room—a packed airfield was even better, though he couldn’t have painted the scenario in his wildest dreams—and smiling, her entire face lighting up.

“Hi!” she mouthed, waving. “Can we talk?”

He nodded, and kept his eye on his plane as he walked off the field. He planted one hand on the fence and hopped over, landing in a crouch at her feet. When he stood, her grin was bigger than it’d been before.

“Is that yours?” She pointed over his shoulder. “The one you were walking behind?”

“The white Cessna with the blue stripe,” he said over the growl of the planes. “Number four-oh-six.”

She looped a wavy stray strand of crimson hair behind her ear. “It’s pretty.”

He’d been thinking the exact same thing. The deep green hue of Lucy’s sweater picked up the brightness of her eyes and played off the fairness of her skin. Her smile was fixed, her eyes twinkling. His heart skipped a beat.

“Can we go somewhere to talk?” she hollered as the announcer asked the planes to ready for takeoff.

“Did you need to let Dane know how long you’re going to be here?” It was a jab. He knew it, but couldn’t hold back.

She frowned as the buzzer blared over their heads and planes shot down the runway. His Cessna broke away from the pack as Walker drove it hard. He lifted off the ground before the others and then jetted into the sky.

“I didn’t come with Dane,” she said flatly. He opened his mouth to rebut when she said, “Well, he gave me a ride, so I guess I came with him if you want to talk about it literally, but we didn’t come together. I’m not here with him. I came to look for you.”

“For me?” The planes completed their first round around the airfield, each one passing by like a rumble of thunder. “Why?” he hollered between flybys.

“I can’t hear a thing out here.” She tugged on his arm. “Take me somewhere quiet.”

He put his hand over hers and led her to the hangar where he stored his plane. It didn’t take long before they were distanced from the crowd, though they couldn’t escape the smell of oil and exhaust, and the rumble of planes as they sped overhead.

Since his was the only plane to occupy the space and the hangars were off-limits to the public, they wouldn’t be disturbed. The hangar was wide and vast. Clean concrete floors. Posters of famous flights framed on the walls. Workbenches against the back. Couch and chair against the far wall near the door to the office.

She settled onto one of the couches and patted the flannel-patterned cushions for him to sit next to her.

But she didn’t want him close. Not really. Notions whirled in Joey’s head and with each passing moment, they became harder to fight back.

“How was the jubilee?” He dragged a rolling chair from the desk in the corner and straddled the back. It was better this way. For her. “Sorry I couldn’t make it. Walker asked me to help him out.” He shrugged. “Couldn’t say no.”

“No, of course not.” She replaced her hands in her lap. “The grape stomp went smoothly. The events are getting easier and easier, the more years I put under my belt. Janice and Skylie won their round,” she said, a soft laugh escaping her lips. “They were dressed as Bella and Jacob from
Twilight
. It was awesome.”

He smiled, feeling that grin burn deep. He would’ve liked to see Janice stomp around in the muck, not a care in the world.

“That sounds like Janice,” he said. “I think I’ve seen her nose buried in those books at least a dozen times.”

“Listen, Joey, about earlier…”

“It’s okay, I know why you left.”

“You do?”

“Sure.” He shrugged. “Duty called.”

“Exactly. And that’s exactly the reason I wanted to find you today. I know you want something beyond what I can give you, but what happened this morning is the perfect example of what it would be like for us if we dated. In fact, things would only get worse from here. Believe me. I’ve dated men who said they wanted their woman to have a career, but when it came down to it, and they didn’t get Little Miss Homemaker, they bolted. And that’s exactly who you want.” She slid to the edge of the couch, leaning forward as if her words could reach him better that way. “I see the reality, but you have to see it too. I’m not the woman who’s going to cook you dinners or clean your house. Not when I have hundreds of guests to feed and a winery to maintain. I can’t be the woman you need, even if I wanted to.”

Heart bursting, Joey stood, pushing the chair aside. He rushed to her feet. Fell to his knees in front of her and gripped her hands in his. Now that he was in front of her, the air whooshed from his lungs and he didn’t know how to express what was on his mind. He paused, choosing his words carefully. “Lucy, we’ve only been out a few times, but I feel like I’ve known you forever.”