I arrived at Thea’s lakeside cottage—the one she and Charlie shared with Hazel—just in time to catch Jackson kiss Thea.
There was nothing quite like the pain of watching your long-time crush kiss another woman.
Especially a woman like Thea. She was gorgeous, with shiny, dark hair and seductive brown eyes. She was brave and confident and sexy. In other words, my polar opposite.
I ran away from the party, too upset to stay. A few days later, I’d all but convinced myself that Jackson was in love with Thea, so I mustered all my courage and stopped by the bar to ask for certain. Thea swore up and down there was nothing between her and Jackson but a sibling-type love. I believed her and decided it would be best to forget the whole thing.
Just like it would be best to forget all things Jackson.
Still, the mental image of his lips on hers made me nauseous. The idea of him and any other woman made my stomach churn.
Maybe that was the reason for his appearance last night. Had he run out of tourists to bang? Was I just next on his conquest list?
“I don’t know what’s going through your head, but steam is going to come shooting out of your ears at any moment.”
I focused on Hazel. “Sorry. I’m . . . mad.”
“At Jackson?”
“Yes.” No. Not really. I was mostly mad at myself. I was mad for giving him my focus for so many years.
“Good,” Hazel declared. “Be mad. Take it out on him. I’m sure that whatever he did, he deserves it. Just like he deserves a thump on the back of the head every now and again.”
“He deserves it,” I muttered.
“Just don’t be mad forever. I’m not sure what has finally caused that boy’s eyes to open, but I’m glad for it. The best thing that could happen to him is you.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but I had no idea what to say, so I just nodded.
Hazel gave me a small smile and stood, going back to the kitchen without another word.
I stared at the empty doorway, replaying her words.
Make him work for it.
Maybe Hazel was on to something. Jackson had a lot of work to do if he was going to prove his sincerity. My guess was that he’d be bored with his pursuit within the week and move on to someone easier.
And after that happened, I’d truly be free to move on.
Maybe the quickest way to let him go was to watch him walk away.
Make him work for it?
I could do that.
“You keep staring at that door like you’re expecting someone.” Wayne chuckled from his stool at the bar.
“Nah.” I tore my eyes from the door and opened the dishwasher, letting the steam bellow out. As it did, my gaze drifted back to the door.
Wayne laughed again and took a sip of his beer. “Who are you waiting for?”
“No one.”
That was bullshit. I was hoping Willa would come in, though I wasn’t sure why. She’d blown me off today when I’d stopped by the camp under the guise of inviting Hazel to lunch.
I’d caught her off guard when I’d shown up at her door two nights ago. She’d made it clear that I’d done something to irritate her. I just had no idea what.
That’s why I’d gone to the camp today. I’d assumed that in broad daylight and dressed in something other than pajamas, she’d explain the problem. But hell, she wouldn’t even talk to me. She’d barely looked at me before whipping that hair around and rushing out of the kitchen.
When I’d asked her last night if I was missing something, she’d said yes. But what?
The only women I irritated on a regular basis were Hazel and Thea. Both of them were lousy at keeping their mouths shut, so whenever I pissed them off, I knew about it five seconds later. Willa’s silence was bothering me, almost as much as being turned down for a date.
I never got turned down.
Though, I don’t think I’d ever really asked a woman out before. I didn’t date. I hooked up. And the women I hooked up with didn’t get asked to dinner, unless they were eating here at the bar. They got asked to bed, then sent on their way after we were done.
But with Willa, I wanted more than an easy fuck. It wasn’t every day I met a woman who had no qualms about slamming a door in my face. I had to admit, it was kind of a turn-on. I wanted to spend some time together and get to know her. Maybe that would shake the damn dream out of my head.
Though, dreaming about her and all that hair wasn’t really a hardship.
Because, fuck me, that hair was incredible.
It’s what had caught my eye in Thea’s drawing. I wanted to spend intimate hours with that hair. I wanted it wrapped around my hands and threaded through my fingers. I wanted to feel the silky ends tickle my bare skin. Just thinking about her hair made my dick twitch.
I needed more of that hair and the woman who grew it. If she wouldn’t agree to a date, I’d have to learn more about her in other ways.
“Hey, Wayne. You know Willa, don’t you?” I asked.
He choked on his beer. “Willa Doon?”
I handed him a stack of napkins to clean the beer slobber on his chin.
He dried his face and gave me a sideways glance. “Yeah, I know Willa.”
“What’s she like?”
“She’s great. Her dad is the science teacher so I’ve known her since she was little. She used to come into the school with him during the summers. They’d practice his new experiments before school started.”
“Nate’s a good guy.” He was one of the first people I’d met when I’d moved to Lark Cove. He didn’t come down to the bar often, so I didn’t see him much, but he always waved and asked me how I was doing whenever we bumped into each other around town.
I felt like an idiot for never noticing his daughter. How old was she? Nate wasn’t all that old. And his wife, Betty, looked like she was in her forties, not old enough to have a grown daughter.
“How old is Willa?”
Wayne shrugged. “I don’t know. I see so many kids at the school they all kind of blur together.” He thought about it for a minute. “If I remember right, she graduated the same year I got divorced. And that was eight years ago, so . . . twenty-six.”
Twenty-six. No wonder I hadn’t noticed her years ago. She was too young.
I was thirty-one. She’d been a teenage girl when I’d moved to Lark Cove. I didn’t have a lot of limitations when it came to the women I took to bed—women were beautiful creatures, no matter their shape or size—but they were all women.
Except Willa wasn’t a teenage girl anymore. She’d grown into a stunning woman. A woman I should have noticed long before last night.
How had I missed her?
She came into the bar every now and then. I’d served her and her friends drinks. When she came in with her parents for pizza, she sat quietly and listened while Nate and I shot the breeze.
Oh, fuck. How many times had I called her Willow? I was such a prick.
“She does good work at that camp,” Wayne said. “Her parents have been bragging for weeks about her saving it.”
I nodded. “I’m glad it all worked out. I’ve heard nothing but good things about that camp, and it would be a shame to see it close.”
Logan may have bought the camp, but I liked the idea of giving Willa all of the credit instead. My eyes went back to the door, hoping it would push open and she’d walk inside. But it stayed closed.
“Uh, I don’t know if you know this or not, Jackson,” Wayne said carefully. “I think Willa might have a little crush on you.”
“No shit?” Then why had she turned me down for a date? Twice?
He shrugged. “Just a guess.”
So not only had I not noticed her, but I’d also missed the fact that she was interested in me. How was that even possible? Wayne had to be wrong. Willa had never once batted her eyelashes my way, given me a seductive smile or flashed me a cleavage shot. I was good at picking up on subtle hints from women.
Wasn’t I?
So how had I missed Willa’s?
“Are we talking about the same Willa? Long, blond hair. Delicate face. Big blue eyes. That Willa?”
Wayne nodded. “The one and only.”
“Well, if she liked me before, she’s over it now,” I told him as he drank his beer. “I asked her out twice in the last twenty-four hours and got shot down both times.”
He sputtered his beer again. “You’re kidding.”