Getting Maeve bathed and in her pajamas wasn’t difficult that night as, even with her brief nap at the park, the little girl was tired from her full day of outdoor activities. So when the doorbell rang that evening, announcing that Rachel and Mary had arrived to babysit, Maeve was curled up on the living room sofa, already half asleep.
“You should be able to get all your homework done tonight,” Kara told Rachel. “I don’t think she’ll be able to stay awake for much longer. And thank you for coming as well, Mary,” she said to her old friend. “I shouldn’t be gone too long.”
Mary nodded while Rachel playfully squished up next to Maeve on the couch and was rewarded with a sleepy giggle. “That’s okay. I have lots of homework I need to get done before Monday,” Rachel said, “and Mom wasn’t doing anything anyway,” she added with a smile at her mother, who was already busy flipping through channels on the TV, looking for something appropriate for all of them to watch together.
After bidding everyone goodbye, Kara checked her makeup and hair in her foyer mirror one last time before straightening the collar of the white cotton blouse under her short navy jacket and heading out the door.
As Kara walked the short distance into town, she lifted a hand to hide her yawn. She would have preferred to stay home tonight, but since the garden center was a sponsor of the annual Volunteer Day, she felt obligated to make an appearance at their thank-you dinner, if only for a few minutes. Kara raked her fingers through her hair to fluff it up and felt a flush rise in her cheeks as she wondered if she might see Scott tonight. She hoped that he’d be there, but she also had no idea what she’d say to him if he was.
Was greeting a man with Hey, dude, you are an amazing kisser! an appropriate way to say hello?
As she got close to the hall, Kara could hear music spilling out from the open double doors and a smile crept across her face. She increased her pace as her hips swayed in time to the beat.
When she walked through the community center entrance, she was greeted enthusiastically by Amanda, who was checking invitations and selling drink tickets. “Come on in!” she said, leaning forward to give Kara a hug. “But I should tell you, Mark was here just a minute ago asking if you’d arrived yet. If I were you, I’d avoid him. I think he wants you to help serve drinks.”
“Thanks, I’ll make sure I run in the other direction when I see him,” laughed Kara. “But no matter where I hide, he always seems to find me when he needs free labor.”
Amanda smiled and waved her friend farther into the hall, where she was quickly greeted by her neighbors and friends. There was a good turnout tonight, and everyone seemed to be in high spirits. The live band, a local group, was already onstage at the front of the room and was playing music that was just begging to be danced to. Kara was swaying to the beat as she sniffed the tantalizing smells coming from the buffet table lined up against the far wall.
She was just heading toward the end of the buffet line to pick up a plate when she was grabbed around the waist and twirled around. “Come and dance with me!” yelled Jamie above the music, taking her by the hand. Without waiting for a reply, he dragged her into the center of the room where others were dancing. Kara grinned at him and started to move along with him in time to the music.
He smiled back and kept pace with her as she turned and playfully bumped her hip against his. He danced faster as the band swung into a quicker number, and Kara easily swung to the new beat, her movements matching his. She loved to dance, and one reason she had dated Jamie all those years ago was because he did as well.
The band played a repertoire of older pop music before shifting into some current cover songs. Kara was enjoying herself, but was careful to keep a reasonable distance from Jamie. She also paused frequently to admire the moves of Andrew, who in his wheelchair had raised the front two wheels and was spinning and bouncing in time to the music. His wife, Christina, was settled firmly in his lap and had her arms looped around his neck, laughing loudly as they spun together.
Before long, Kara felt her shoulders sag with fatigue. “I’m hungry!” she yelled to Jamie above the music and turned to make her way back to the food table. Jamie followed her, leaving her side only for a minute to fetch them both a plate and cutlery. After handing one set to her, he fell in line for the buffet behind her.
Kara wiped her brow with the back of her hand and waited for her turn to select her dinner from the many warming trays set out on the tables.
“You can still dance,” Jamie whispered into her ear.
“You can too,” Kara answered, but she didn’t turn around. She knew Jamie wanted to be a part of her life, and he always would be as Maeve’s father, but she just didn’t have the strong feelings for him she’d had when she was younger.
Kara sighed and inched closer to the buffet table, trying to create more space between them. Now that Kara had met Scott, a man who made her baby laugh and made Kara’s stomach do somersaults with his kisses, she didn’t want to lead Jamie on.
Almost as though he knew she was thinking about him, Kara suddenly heard Scott’s unmistakable laugh behind her. Her stomach leaped in anticipation, and she turned to see him standing at the entrance to the hall, talking to Amanda. Biting her bottom lip, she forced herself to bring her attention back to what Jamie was saying.
“Do you know who brought the potato salad? It looks terrific,” he asked, heaping some onto his plate from the overflowing platter in front of him.
“I don’t,” Kara replied. As she led Jamie through the rest of the buffet line, Kara repeatedly felt him gently propelling her forward by her elbow. Each time he touched her, she jerked her arm away, unsettled by his possessive touch.
After they had finished selecting their meal, they took seats together at one of the folding tables and tucked into their food.
“It looks like Jaycee has donated the entire contents of her bakery tonight,” Kara said, gesturing to the beautifully decorated dessert table that was set up in the far corner of the hall. “And look at how busy it is! We should probably get over there soon if we hope to get something from it.”
Jamie nodded. Jaycee’s Bakery had opened just over a year ago in Larkin Bay and was enormously successful as all the town’s residents enjoyed her delectable pastries, cookies, and cakes.
“It’s amazing we haven’t all gained a hundred extra pounds since she opened up the bakery in town,” said Kara. Catching the eye of Jaycee, they exchanged enthusiastic waves across the room. “She’s become a good customer for us too. I’ve done the plants out front of her shop many times now, and she’s always giving Maeve free cookies—she’s such a sweetheart.”
Jamie nodded, but Kara could tell he wasn’t really listening. “What are you thinking about?” she asked him.
“You,” he answered. He put down his fork to take her hand and gaze intently into her eyes.
Kara pulled her hand away. “Uh-huh. Very funny,” she replied, but she didn’t return his smile.
“It’s true, Kara,” he said, looking over at her. “Well, I guess what I was really thinking about was you and the town and nights like this. It wasn’t until I moved away from here that I realized most towns aren’t like Larkin Bay. What we have here is pretty special.”
Kara looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “Really? Do you honestly believe that now? Weren’t you the one who couldn’t wait to escape from here?”
Jamie slid his chair closer to her and put his arm around her shoulders. “Yeah, well, I was wrong. I guess I just didn’t understand how special what we had here was. I missed a lot of it after I moved away, and I regretted leaving you and Maeve too.”
Kara bit down on her bottom lip to stop herself from replying with a sarcastic retort. She might not believe what Jamie was saying, but making a smart comment about him finally having grown up would serve no purpose.
“How about I go over and check out the desserts and bring us some back?” Jamie asked a few seconds later, breaking the silence between them. Kara nodded, relieved to have a few minutes to herself.
The purpose behind tonight’s event was to celebrate the town’s good fortunes and extend the feeling of community. It also helped cement any new friendships that might have been formed during Volunteer Day. Kara looked around the crowded room. She knew she should be focused on feeling the community spirit, but instead, she found herself searching the crowd for Scott. His kiss still felt fresh on her lips, and she hoped she could see him for at least a short time this evening.
Kara finally located him, and as if he sensed her gaze, he looked up from the group he had been talking to and locked eyes with her. Kara lifted the glass of wine that Mark had delivered to her earlier and tipped it in Scott’s direction. She watched as a slow, sexy smile spread across his face, and he excused himself from the people he had been chatting with to make his way over to her.
Kara straightened in her seat and smiled back, giving her the perfect vantage point to see a pair of scarlet-tipped hands come up behind him and swing him around. A moment later, a scantily dressed Candy arched her back and smiled widely at the people around her as she pulled Scott toward her and locked her lips on his.
Déjà vu.
Kara frowned as she watched Candy thoroughly kiss Scott. Finally, she tore her eyes away and got to her feet. Candy and Scott might have a history, but he’d told her it meant nothing, she reminded herself.
She looked back over at them and gulped hard when she saw Candy still had her lips pressed against Scott’s. Kara clasped her suddenly shaking hands in front of her and took a deep breath.
It’s stupid to be upset. A kiss means nothing.
Still, tears stung her eyes as she headed off in the opposite direction, so she didn’t see Scott scowl as he flung Candy’s hands off him and pushed her away.
Kara moved quickly toward the dessert table and tried to calm her rapid breathing. She and Scott might have had a few special moments together, but it was silly to think anything lasting might come of it. He was a famous ex-professional baseball player and a successful lawyer who was about to leave town to become a celebrated pro-sports commentator. Kara was a single mom who enjoyed working with plants and certainly had no intention of ever leaving Larkin Bay.
As Kara wiped her eyes and tried to calm her trembling lips, she hurried toward the bakery table, where her friend stopped hovering over the desserts long enough to give Kara a warm, welcoming hug. “How are you? How is Maeve? Is she here?” Jaycee asked.
Kara shook her head and was about to answer but was silenced when the loud music suddenly stopped. Both women looked over at the stage at the far end of the hall to see what had caused the sudden lull, and Kara was surprised to see Jamie was standing on the stage beside the musicians.
They both watched him take the microphone and tap on it twice to get everyone’s attention. The hall quickly quieted as everyone turned to hear what he had to say.
He chuckled as he looked over the gathering. “Hi, everyone. Welcome and thank you for attending Larkin Bay’s annual volunteer dinner celebration.” He paused as his words were greeted with hoots and applause from the audience.
“I wanted to start off the speeches tonight by coming up here and thanking everyone for volunteering and helping make today such a great success. I’ve heard from the organizers that we’ve completed a record number of projects, and it was only because of your generous giving of your time and support that this happened.”
“I thought this was Mayor April’s speech to give,” Jaycee whispered to Kara. “She spent months organizing today’s schedule.”
Kara shrugged in reply. It was typical of Jamie to want to be the center of attention and take credit for someone else’s work.
