Snowmen In Paradise (Book 2 Tj Jensen Paradise Lake Mysteries) (8 page)

Friday night at the Jensen household meant movies and popcorn in front of a roaring fire. Tj’s grandfather was playing poker with Doc, Bookman, and the boys from the senior center, her dad was out with Rosalie, and Dennis was working, which left Tj, Jenna, and the four girls with a bottle of wine, a six pack of soda, a huge bowl of popcorn, and three Disney movies. It was times like this, when it was seven-thirty and she was already dressed in her PJs, that Tj looked back at her life and wondered exactly where she’d left it. It hadn’t been that long ago when Friday night meant a late-night date with a handsome man at a fancy restaurant or a glitzy nightclub. After her mother died and she became Ashley and Gracie’s legal guardian, she’d folded up her old life and tucked it away to make room for a new one filled with beautiful princesses dancing across the sixty-inch flat screen on the wall in the den.

“Did you even realize that today was Valentine’s Day?” Tj asked.

“Sure. Dennis knew he had to work tonight, so he had a dozen red roses, a box of chocolates, and a beautiful ruby necklace delivered to the house. He starts his off days tomorrow, so we plan to go out for a romantic dinner then.”

“Sounds nice.” Tj sighed. She hadn’t even thought about the fact that she was going to be dateless on this very important date night until the kids
had mentioned it at downhill practice.

“
So how’s Kyle doing with your ragtag singers?” Jenna wondered.

“Really good
. I can’t believe how much the kids have improved in just a few days. He’s even asked Connor and a couple of the other kids to sing at the wedding.”

“
Speaking of the wedding, I heard that our newlyweds-to-be arrived in town this afternoon.”

“They did
.” Tj grinned. “They all looked so happy. I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen quite so many shy looks, full-face blushes, or happy smiles as I did as we discussed who would be sharing which cabins.”

“I don’t understand how you can get to be sixty-two
-years-old without ever . . .” Jenna left the sentence unfinished.

“Maude and Millie
grew up in a very strict religious community in which matters of the heart and the body were strictly regulated,” Tj reminded her. “After their father died and they were released from their obligation to the church, they came to the resort looking for love. Thankfully, they found it with the brothers who happened to be staying in the cabin next door. I can’t believe the big day is already here. I keep thinking I’ve forgotten to do something and the whole thing will come crashing down around me.”

“You haven’t forgotten anything,” Jenna assured her
. “Just show up at the rehearsal dinner tomorrow night and the church on Sunday looking beautiful in the dress Mom bought you and your maid of honor duties will be complete.”

“The flowers?”

“Red and white roses being delivered to Timberlake House Sunday morning,” Jenna confirmed.

“And you have everything under control for the dinner tomorrow night?”

“I run a restaurant,” Jenna pointed out.

“Yeah;
sorry. I guess I just feel nervous because I’ve been so busy and have had to leave all the planning to everyone else.”

“Between Kyle and Julie,” Jenna
said, referring to the resort’s activities director, Julie Sorenson, “the event has been organized to death. Relax.”

“
Okay. I have downhill practice all day tomorrow, but barring complications, I should be back in time to get cleaned up for the rehearsal dinner.”

“Are you bringing Dylan?”

“Actually, I’m bringing Hunter.”

“Hunter?”
Hunter Hanson had been Tj’s high-school sweetheart, and although they’d remained friends, they hadn’t dated since they’d broken up during their junior year of college.

“It’s not actually a date
, but Dylan didn’t want to go. Kyle invited Hunter because he was helping out with the music, so we decided to go together.”

“I thought Ricky Fielding’s band was doing the music.”

“He was, but his dad fell and broke his leg, so Ricky had to fly to Denver to take care of him,” Tj told her. “I mentioned to Kyle that in addition to being a doctor, Hunter had a garage band he’d been jamming with ever since high school. I wasn’t sure he’d do it, but Kyle said he was thrilled for the chance to strut his stuff.”

Jenna popped a piece of popcorn into her mouth
. “Hunter always did say his destiny was with medicine, but his heart was firmly planted in rock-and-roll.”

“Is Dennis off on Sunday
?”

“Luckily
, he finishes up his rotation tonight and has the entire weekend off,” Jenna informed her. “Is Kyle bringing a date?”

“
Kyle’s bringing Carmen.” Carmen Lewis had met Kyle, Maude, and Millie when Tj’s old friend, Zachary Collins, brought them together just prior to his death in October. “She only has a few days until she’s off for Switzerland.”

“Switzerland?”

“The trip has something to do with her research into particle physics. She’ll be gone for six months, so she’s leaving Newton with Kyle. They’ll be here in the morning. I can’t wait to see them both.” Newton, an orphaned golden retriever, had been just four weeks old the last time Carmen had visited.

“Is she staying at the resort?”

“They decided it would make for an easier transition for Newton if Carmen stayed with Kyle over the weekend.”

“A puppy
. How fun. What is he, like three months old now?”

“Fourteen weeks
.”

“We’re getting a puppy?”
Gracie, who must have been listening in on their conversation, waddled over with Crissy, the cat Zachary had left behind, in her arms.

“No, Uncle Kyle is
going to be puppy sitting for Carmen,” Tj clarified.

Gracie looked confused.

“Remember Carmen and her puppy Newton? They stayed with us over Halloween.”

“Oh
, yeah.” Gracie smiled. “He was really cute. Echo is already big;
can
we get a puppy?”

“Sorry, but the last thing I have time for
is a puppy.”

“I can take care of it
. You won’t have to do anything. I promise.”

“I’m sorry
, sweetie, but it’s really not practical right now. Maybe we can think about it next summer.”

Gracie stuck out her lower lip in a gesture Tj had come to recognize as total manipulation on her part
. Of course, she was so darn cute it usually worked.

“How about a snack
?” Tj offered.

“
Can we get pizza?” Ashley chimed in.

“You just had dinner two hours ago,” Tj pointed out.

“I know, but I’m hungry.”

“Me too,” Kristi added
.

Tj looked at Jenna
, who shrugged. “Sure, I could do pizza.”

“
I doubt Rob’s will deliver all the way out here. How about I call over to the Grill and see if they can send something over?”

“Chicken wings,” Ashley and Kristi said in unison.

“And French fries,” Gracie added.

“And crab cakes,” Jenna
shouted as Tj headed for the phone.

Tj wasn’t quite sure how she’d done it, but she had. Maude and Millie were married to Abe and Andy, her toast had been a huge success, and her maid of honor duties were complete. Thanks to Helen’s help with the dress, Jenna’s help with the rehearsal dinner, Kyle’s help with the reception, Hunter’s help with the entertainment, and her dad and grandpa’s help with the girls, she might actually be able to slow down and enjoy the rest of the party.

“
Tj,” Helen, the person literally responsible for Tj’s much improved appearance, walked up, with Bonnie trailing behind her. “Where’s your prince charming?” During the makeover, Tj had shared that she planned to bring Dylan to the wedding as her date. She’d had a lot of fun with Hunter the night before, which momentarily had made her wish he was going to be her date for the wedding, but she knew that if she didn’t keep a bit of distance between them, the emotions they both knew they shared but chose to repress would make maintaining a just-friends relationship difficult at best.

“Working
.” Tj sighed. “It seems there was some kind of accident up on Angel Mountain, and he was called in to help deal with it just as he was getting ready to come to pick me up. Luckily, Grandpa and the boys hadn’t left yet, so they gave me a ride, saving me from driving my own vehicle, which, as always, is covered in dog hair.”

“I saw Doc talking to Ben near the
bar, but I didn’t see Bookman,” Helen replied.

“He’s here somewhere
.” Tj looked around the room, scanning the happy couples dancing to a popular love song. Bookman was tall and debonair, with a sophisticated style that conveyed an effortless comfort in the dark suit he’d worn. His natural grace and rhythm alone made him stand out in a crowd. “We rode over in his car, and Grandpa promised he’d check with me before they left to see if I needed a ride home.”

“Do you t
hink Doc would want to dance?” Bonnie looked nervously toward the retired coroner, who was wearing his signature Hawaiian shirt beneath his black jacket. It seemed odd to Tj that Bonnie would be nervous about asking Doc to dance, considering they’d been friends for years, but Bonnie had just recently started dating since becoming a widow two years earlier and might be looking at him in a new light.

“I’m sure he’d love to dance
. In fact, he’s looking in this direction as we speak.” Tj waved as Bookman joined Doc and headed their way. Ben, a bit less agile on his feet than his friends, had drifted over to a table where his good friend Jake Hanson was sitting with County Judge Harold Harper, who had performed the ceremonies.

Tj tried not to laugh as both women beamed in anticipation of the waltz that had just begun to play
. Tj had never seen Helen so smitten. Jenna’s dad had died when she was a little girl and her mom had dated over the years, but in every case Tj could think of, her commitment to the relationship could best be defined as amused detachment.

Deciding to say hi to Jake while she had the chance, Tj crossed the room and headed toward the table where he still sat with Ben
. Seeing the two men together gave Tj a strange sense of déjà vu. It hadn’t been that long ago that she’d assumed Jake would become her grandfather by marriage when she finally tied the knot with Hunter. Somewhere along the way, she’d begun to think of him in that context, and when she and Hunter broke up, she’d been as upset about losing Jake as she’d been about losing Hunter.

“There’s my girl,” Jake greeted
her as she walked up.

Leaning over
, she kissed each man on the cheek before taking a seat across from them. “I didn’t realize you were coming to the reception,” Tj commented to Jake. “Not that I’m not thrilled to have a chance to visit.”

“Wasn’t going to
, but Chelsea’s been on a rampage ever since that young man of hers came back to town, so I figured it’d do me good to get out of the house.”

After Jake had a heart attack a couple of years
back, Hunter had moved him into his house on the lake in an attempt to keep an eye on him. After Travis had left town, crushing Chelsea in his wake, she’d moved in as well, and the three had been living together ever since.

“I have to admit that I can empathize,” Tj commented
. “I can’t remember the last time
anyone
has gotten my blood boiling the way Travis has this week.”

“Sorry
, darling.” Jake patted her hand. “You worked so hard to put on this beautiful event and I’m sitting here ranting about something well enough left in the past. I didn’t mean to get you all worked up.”

Ben laughed
. “It doesn’t take much to get our little spitfire worked up these days.”

Tj glared at Ben.

“The wedding really was beautiful, sweetheart,” Ben complimented her. “You did such a good job. I can’t remember the last time I attended an event that was executed in such a seamless manner.”

Tj laughed
. “I didn’t actually end up doing anything, and if things went smoothly, it was really more Kyle’s doing than mine. But thanks.”

“It’s almost like old times with my boy singing and you watching from the sidelines
.” Jake smiled.

“Yeah, it does feel nicely nostalgic
. The only difference is that in the old days I’d be trying to sneak a glass of sweet wine past Dad. Where is he, by the way? I haven’t seen him all night.”

“I think I saw him heading toward the bar,” Ben answered
.

She
looked around the room. Everyone appeared to be having a good time. Tj had been bummed that Dylan had missed the wedding ceremony, but she’d hoped he’d make it here in time for the remainder of the reception. Now that the meal had been served and the traditional customs taken care of, she had time to relax and enjoy the music, and she really wanted someone to dance with. Kyle appeared to be tied up with Carmen, and Hunter was busy singing. Since the brides and grooms were well into their sixties, the average age of the attendees at the reception was something north of fifty. Maybe she’d borrow Doc when Bonnie was finished with him. He had several decades on her in terms of age, but with his outrageous wit and personality, he had what it took to entertain any woman.