Northern Fascination (11 page)

Apparently that was the right thing to say because within seconds, she was tasting all of him against her tongue.

She liked it.

N
ELSON PUT ON A FRESH POT
of coffee. Dr. Skye lived on the stuff and so did most of their patients but today was a slow day. He’d had to toss half the pot and start another one.

Clara Lightfoot, Ellie’s grandmother, was scheduled for an arthritis check-up today. He was hoping Ellie would bring her in.

Ellie had been on his mind all morning. Most of the night, too, if he was being honest. The image of her in the water, the moonlight kissing her shoulders, her hair spread around her had invaded his sleep, haunted his dreams. He had seen Ellie in a whole different light.

The bell over the front door rang but it was Leo Perkins who entered. “Hi, Nelson. How goes it?”

“Pretty slow day. How about you?”

“Can’t complain. Say, the missus sent over some molasses cookies. Been on a baking binge, she has.” He held out an old-fashioned cookie tin.

Nelson took the box. Nancy Perkins made the absolute best cookies. “Tell Nancy thanks. You want a cup of coffee? I just made it fresh.”

“Don’t mind if I do.” Leo helped himself to a cup and one of his wife’s cookies.

Nelson snagged one as well.

Dr. Skye wandered out. “I thought I smelled cookies. And fresh coffee.” While she poured herself a cup, she spoke to Leo. “How’s the ingrown toenail?”

“Well, now that you mention it, it still hurts like the devil.”

“I’ve got a few minutes. Come on back and let me have a look at it.” Munching on a cookie, her mug in the other hand, Dr. Skye led Leo back to the exam room.

That was the kind of doctor he’d like to be.

Nelson was just emailing their weekly supply order when the bell over the door jangled. Ellie. He knew it before he saw her. Sometimes Ellie’s mother was the one to bring in her grandmother, but somehow he’d known that today Ellie would be by.

“Hello, Nelson,” Ellie’s grandmother said, leaning heavily on the cane that helped her move with her arthritic knees.

“Good morning, Mrs. Lightfoot,” Nelson said. He nodded to her granddaughter. “Ellie.”

“Hi, Nelson,” Ellie said. Her dark hair, in a loose plait, hung over one shoulder and past her breast.

“How about a molasses cookie and a cup of coffee?”

“Are they Nancy’s cookies?”

Nelson nodded. “Leo just brought them in.”

“I like Nancy Perkins’ cookies. I’ll take two,” the older woman said, settling into a chair with Ellie’s help.

“No, thank you,” Ellie said. “But I’ll make Aanak’s coffee since I know how she likes it.”

Something had changed since he’d shared the water of the lake in the moonlight and cold. Nelson felt a bond with Ellie, a meeting of spirit he’d never quite experienced with anyone before. It was as if they were communicating on another level outside of the mundane conversation in the office.

Two nights ago was special.

Yes, it was, wasn’t it?

She poured the steaming liquid into a mug.

I want to swim with you in the moonlight again.

I’m looking forward to tonight.

She added creamer and some artificial sweetener and stirred.

I’ll be there.

“Don’t forget my cookies,” her grandmother said, looking at the two of them, as if she was well aware of the nonverbal interplay going on.

Nelson grabbed a napkin and snagged a couple of molasses cookies out of the box. He delivered them, excusing himself. “I’ll just step back now and see if Dr. Skye needs any help.”

The truth of the matter was, if Dr. Skye needed help, she’d call for him. However, he wanted to escape Ellie’s grandmother’s discerning scrutiny before she saw too much. Especially since he didn’t know exactly what it was he was afraid she’d see.

J
ENNA ROLLED UP HER YOGA MAT
and waited while Merrilee did the same.

“Wow, I needed that,” she said. The stretching had felt especially wonderful today and she always enjoyed the tranquil feeling afterward. It was like she revved up with zumba and then wound down afterward with yoga.

“So did I,” Merrilee said, tucking her mat beneath her arm. Among a chorus of goodbyes, they stepped out into the dark for the walk home from the community center.

“I guess our men are deep into their poker game by now,” Merrilee said. “So how did last night go? I wanted to get by all day but I was swamped. Logan certainly looked happy this morning.”

Jenna smiled. “I had no idea what I was missing. The imagination doesn’t begin to compare to the real thing.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Not surprised, mind you, the way you two throw off chemistry, but glad.”

“Merrilee, what do you make of someone who isn’t comfortable with feelings?”

“Logan, I presume?”

“Yeah. He kind of had a freak-out when I asked him how he felt, so I dropped it.”

“That discussion is pretty uncomfortable for most men. Give him time. It’s like anything else. It’s a new process that can be learned but can’t be forced. Just let him be who and what he is. You can talk about your feelings all day, if that’s what you need to do, just don’t expect the same from him.”

“You want to hear something crazy?”

“Sure.”

The darkness made it easier to say. “I think I love him. And it’s not just because of the sex, although that’s pretty stupendous in my book, too.”

“Tell me something I didn’t know. The two of you are nuts about one another. So what’s crazy about that?”

“Because I haven’t seen him in twelve years. Because he’s leaving in two days. Because there are a whole lot of things I don’t know about him that might drive me crazy. I swore I wouldn’t do this.”

“Wouldn’t do what, sweetie?”

“Fall in love with a man I didn’t really know, only to find out later that he actually drives me insane.” Nothing had ever felt so right, but she’d also never been so scared of being wrong.

“You’re not your mother.”

“How do you know that’s what she did? Do you want to know why she divorced my third stepfather? Because he left the toilet seat up. Don’t you think she would’ve noticed beforehand?”

“Jenna, you are not your mother. You know who you are. Look at where you are now and I mean that in a literal sense. You just finished a yoga class.”

“Uh-huh.”

“If your mother had a new man in her life, would she be at a yoga class?”

Merrilee had a point. “No.”

“Trust yourself, hon. Trust your instincts. Sometimes the heart recognizes what the head doesn’t hear. Your heart told you from the beginning this was where you belonged. Perhaps you waited for twelve years because, once again, your heart knew. Wherever the path leads, be true to yourself.”

“Okay, but what about Nelson? Remember how I sort of had that crush on him? How trustworthy is my heart if I felt that way then?”

“Your heart recognized him as a friend, a kindred spirit. It was simply your head that had it confused. I don’t believe for a minute your heart is sending you the same message about Logan that it sent you about Nelson.”

“Um, well, no.”

“Sometimes we have to get out of our own way, Jenna.” She paused for a second, her smile rueful. “Look at me and Bull. Talk about having to get out of my own way…”

The truth of the matter was that Logan meant so much to her, she was scared to even consider the possibilities. She so badly wanted what she thought they could have. And she was afraid they wouldn’t get it.

E
LLIE SHIVERED
. S
HE WAS COLD
.

In all the years she’d been coming to Mirror Lake, she had never been chilled when she was drying off. Perhaps it was because she’d stayed in the water far longer than she normally did, waiting on Nelson. She had thought if she just stayed long enough, he would show up. But hours later, she was still alone in the water.

She’d always found great comfort in the lake but not tonight. Instead of being soothed by the slide of thermal water against her skin and the gently falling snow, she’d been preoccupied, waiting on a man who had never arrived.

She cranked her jeep and rubbed her gloved hands together. Chugach sat in the passenger seat. “I am a foolish woman,” she said to the dog. He regarded her with knowing, watchful eyes.

In her mind, she and Nelson had shared a connection today. She could’ve sworn they’d been on the same plane. She played it back through her head again as she shifted gears and turned around. He’d said last night that he’d come back. And although the words hadn’t left his mouth, he’d said it again today in the clinic as clearly as if he’d spoken aloud.

Yes, she’d been foolish on many levels. One, to think that he’d actually show up. Two, that she’d stayed in the lake that long. And thirdly, she had allowed her thoughts of him to superimpose themselves on the experience itself, so that the peace and answers she usually found in the water had been nonexistent.

She heard a hum and lights in the distance. Someone was coming. Her heart began to pound in her chest. She pulled to one side, being careful not to go so far that she’d land herself in the ditch. The other vehicle rounded the curve and it wasn’t until it drew nearly even that she could see past the headlights. It was Nelson. He had come!

He pulled even with her and they both lowered their windows. Shadows obscured his face.

“I didn’t think you’d still be here,” he said.

What? Had he waited, giving her plenty of time to clear out? God, she’d been totally stupid. Hurt and anger swamped her. “I was just leaving.” Even though she tried to keep her response normal, her voice sounded stiff. She didn’t really care, as long as she didn’t cry in front of him. Only she was dangerously close to doing just that.

“No. I didn’t mean it that way, Ellie. I got called out to check on Darren Whitefeather. I didn’t
think
you’d be here, but I
hoped
you would.”

“We almost weren’t. Chugach and I were heading home.” He looked almost crestfallen. “But I’ve got a few minutes if you needed to talk.”

“I’d like that,” he said.

She suddenly felt ridiculously, immeasurably better. “I’ll go to the main road and turn around. I’ll meet you at the top of the hill.”

She caught a flash of his teeth as he smiled. “I’ll be waiting.”

Although it was but a short distance, it felt as if it took forever for her to drive to the main road, turn around and stop next to him on the hill that served as Mirror Lake’s parking spot. Her hands and legs were unsteady as she killed her engine and climbed out. “Stay, Chugach.”

The dog settled on the seat, content.

She opened the passenger door of Nelson’s truck, the dome light coming on, and got in. It was much warmer in his vehicle than hers, but that’s because her engine hadn’t had time to heat up yet.

“You look tired,” she said.

The light went out and once again the shadows claimed him. “It’s been a long day. And then I was ready to come out here when I got the call about Darren.” Taking “sick” calls was part of his training to take over as the clan shaman. “I would’ve let you know but I don’t have your number.”

“I can remedy that if you have a piece of paper and pen,” she said. “Although sometimes I don’t get service out here.”

He turned on the dome light again and handed her a notepad and pencil. “But at least I could’ve left a message so you didn’t think I was a no-show.” She felt him watching her as she wrote down her number. “That is what you thought, wasn’t it?”

Her grandmother had always told her she wore her feelings on her face. Apparently she still did. “The thought crossed my mind.”

“I wouldn’t do that, Ellie.”

She handed him her number. “That’s good to know.”

He turned off the light, leaving them in the dark once again. Outside, snow fell, melting as it encountered the warm windshield. Inside, an easy silence stretched between them.

Ellie sat, content to share the cab with him, to inhale the scent of wood smoke and antiseptic that clung to him. It took her a second to realize that his breathing had become steady and deep. She leaned forward, bridging the space between them and peered at him.

Nelson had fallen asleep. She smiled quietly to herself. At least he was comfortable with her, although that wasn’t what she particularly wanted. Just once she’d like to incite a man to great passion. Too bad it wasn’t going to be this man on this night.

L
OGAN FELT GOOD—ALL WAS
pretty damn right with his world. He’d just lost fifty bucks to Sven, but he’d had a good time doing it, drinking damn fine Scotch and smoking an even finer cigar. And now he was on his way to see Jenna.

Once again, as with the night before, her porch light glowed with welcome, a homecoming. He knocked and she opened the door, greeting him with that sunny smile that undid him every time. “Hi.” She stepped aside for him to enter, then closed the door behind him. “How was the poker game?”

“Good. How was yoga?”

“It was fun.”

“Uh-huh.”

He backed her against the door and kissed her thoroughly.

“Um. You taste like whiskey…and you. I like it.”

“I’m glad.”

She ran her hand over his jaw. “Good Riddance is turning you into a real reprobate. Did you skip your daily appointment with the razor this morning.

“How do you know I shave every day at home?”

“Do you?”

“Yes.” Smarty-pants.

She smiled. “I thought so. Logan, do you leave the toilet seat up?”

Really, he was learning that with Jenna it was best not to worry about following her train of thought. He probably wouldn’t follow the rationale anyway. “I’m a guy and I live alone, so yes. But when I’m in someone else’s house, no.”

“Okay. And do you put the toilet paper on so that it rolls down from the front or from the back?”

He had to think about it for a second. “Back.”

“Don’t you want to know which way I do it?”

“No. My needs are simple. I don’t care which way it rolls, as long as it’s there when I need it. How am I doing so far?”

“Well, enough.”

“That doesn’t give a guy a whole lot to go on.”

“You’re here, aren’t you?”

“True.”

He knew it was a dead end but he asked anyway. “Do you ever think about moving back to Georgia?”

“I’m building a business here.”

“So? You have a business there, as well.”

“But here, it’s more than a business. It’s my home. Let me show you something.”

She took him by the hand and led him to the sofa. “Sit.” He sat.

Grabbing a roll of blueprints from the corner, she flipped on the overhead light. She unrolled the papers on the ottoman. “Here’s the spa. Reception area, nail salon, hair area, massage room, sauna, whirlpool, storage and laundry facilities. Up here is the living space. Very small kitchen, den, guest room, bath and then up here, a loft bedroom with a walk-in closet,” she said, pointing.

“What about a family?” Surely someone with Jenna’s warm, giving disposition wanted a husband and kids. The thought made him ache inside. If he fell into the next phase of the Jeffries plan, he’d be looking to start his own family soon enough back in Atlanta.

“I can always build up.”

“True.” It was far too easy to imagine her laughing and playing with a couple of kids. She’d be a fun mom.

She rolled the blueprints back up. “Moving back isn’t on my radar.”

“I can see that. You just don’t seem like the wilderness kind of woman.” There was a part of him that just couldn’t concede it. “You don’t even like cross-country skiing, for crying out loud.”

“So? Do you like to bowl?”

“No, I can’t say that I do.”

“Okay, then. There are a lot of bowling alleys in your area. When’s the last time you went to an art museum or a play?”

“Okay, okay. I get you.”

“Have
you
ever considered moving?”

He didn’t hesitate. It had never even crossed his mind. His life was centered in Atlanta. “No. My family’s there, my job is there, my life is there.”

Jenna nodded. “I know.”

“So what was with the twenty questions earlier?”

“Hardly twenty. Try two. Can’t a woman be curious? I’m just trying to get to know you. The real you. The important you.”

“Yes. I’ve always thought I was defined by how I loaded my toilet paper dispenser.”

“So, what do you think defines someone?”

“How do you manage to ask these difficult questions?”

She laughed, her eyes alight with humor. “Think about it and get back to me later.” Her expression sobered. “Logan, I—” She hesitated and cupped his face in her hands. “I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad you came. I’d like it if you stayed tonight.”

What she didn’t say, he saw in her eyes, in her expression, in her tenderness. She loved him. And the hell of it was, he didn’t know how he felt about that. He didn’t know how he felt about her. So he said the only thing he could. “I’m glad I’m here, too. And I’d like to stay…tonight. You matter to me.”

It was the best he could do. He had no idea if it was enough.

J
ENNA WOKE TO FEEL THE PRESS
of Logan’s body next to hers. For a minute she simply lay there, absorbing, reveling the experience. She’d never spent the night with a man in her bed like this.

Of course, she and Tad had shared a bed when they’d come to Good Riddance but that had been different. She felt kind of strange lying in bed with one man and thinking about another but it wasn’t as if she was thinking of Tad with longing. She was simply reflecting on what their situation had been.

But this, having Logan next to her, was how it should be—his steady, even breathing against her shoulder, the warm strength of his arm wrapped around her, the solid press of his body against her back. She could wake up like this every morning for the rest of her life. True, she didn’t know what his favorite color was or who his favorite sports team happened to be, but none of that mattered.