And so, long after the sun had gone done and they’d finished their meal, they relaxed on the sofa in the living room and talked about old times in Pequoia. And when Ted slid closer on the sofa, slipped his arm around her shoulder and leaned over to give her a peck on the cheek she did not pull away.
Because somehow she had a feeling that after all these years this was meant to be.
***
If Blake had had any complaints about business being slow in the early part of the month she had no such complaints now. She didn’t have enough hands to keep the telephone company workers fed. In fact, she’d had to hire a couple of high school seniors who were saving up for college. They were grateful for the cash and she was more than grateful for the help.
And, more than anything, she was grateful that the telephone company had finally decided to provide service to Pequoia. That was the cause of the influx of workers and the drastic increase in business at Beaumont’s. They were busy putting up telephone poles and were even planning on setting up a cell phone tower in the area. And it was about time.
Things had been so busy lately that Blake was up before dawn and didn’t get to bed till past midnight. And in the midst of all that busyness she still found the time to miss Ryder. She was missing him so bad it wasn’t funny.
When Ryder left he’d made no promises but she’d thought…hoped…he would have come back. He’d made friends in Pequoia and the ladies from the sewing circle, Moonwalker and even Ted would ask about him from time to time.
But as her mind dwelled on the stranger who had come to mean so much to her she smiled to herself. Who was she kidding? It wasn’t the sewing circle ladies she wanted him to come back to see. It was her.
But it had been almost three weeks since Ryder left town and with each passing day her hopes of seeing him again grew-
“Sorry to bother you, Blake, but there’s someone here to see you.” The teenager’s voice ripped her out of her reverie.
Feeling guilty that she’d been in her office cum store room daydreaming, Blake got to her feet and came around the desk toward him. “Who is it, Chris? Is it Penelope?” She glanced at the clock. Only three o’clock in the afternoon. She wasn’t expecting the bookkeeper until four.
“No.” He shook his head and his long brown hair fell over his eyes. He brushed it away. “It’s a man, and he looks sort of important.”
She frowned. “A man?” She wasn’t expecting any man. And then, as if her heart knew something she didn’t, it jerked in her chest. Could the man be Ryder?
The thought made her hurry past Chris and head out toward the restaurant. As she pushed through the swinging doors there was a smile on her lips. She couldn’t help it. There was no way she could hide the fact that she was glad to see him.
When she saw her visitor she froze in her tracks. The man who was staring back at her wasn’t Ryder at all. It was Jerome.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding out.” He looked around the room, pretty much deserted since the lunch crowd had packed up and gone back to their work. Then he turned his gaze back to her. “Did you think I wouldn’t find you? There’s no place on earth you can go where I can’t track you down.”
For a good few seconds Blake stood there, speechless. The audacity of the man, to hunt her down and now to be staring at her with that sickly smirk on his face. She felt like slapping it off but before she went and did something stupid, something she could get locked up for, she folded her arms in front of her and straightened her back, deliberately making use of her height advantage. “What are you doing here?” she demanded. “How did you find me?”
“Ah, that’s for me to know and you to find out.” Looking pleased with himself he put his hand up to push away the lock of blond hair that had fallen into his eyes. He’d always complained that it was a pain and yet he insisted on keeping his hair long. That was another of his shortcomings. Vanity.
Her eyes narrowed as she watched him. “Did you have me followed?”
He chuckled. “You know I’m good at keeping secrets. I’m not going to tell.”
“Okay, forget about that. It’s not important. The real question is, why are you here in Pequoia? You have no business coming to Beaumont’s.”
“Oh, I’ll be leaving your…establishment in a minute.” He glanced around with a look tinged with disdain. “I just thought I’d pass by to let you know I’d be in town for a while.”
“What the hell’s that supposed to mean? What business do you have in Pequoia?”
He tilted his head and smiled. “With the coming of the telephone lines the opportunities are boundless for real estate.” He shrugged. “Things can only go up from here.”
And then, right before her eyes, the self-satisfied look on his face dissolved and he transformed into the guileless, earnest Jerome she’d fallen in love with. “Let’s put all that aside. There’s a business opportunity for sure, but I didn’t come here for business. I came to see you.”
“Why?” The question was blunt and cold. Now that she knew the real Jerome she wasn’t going to fall for his tricks.
“Because I still love you. And you love me, too. I can feel it.” He took a small step forward but the look she gave him made him halt.
“Get out of here.” She said the words through clenched teeth. “Leave and never come back. I’ve had enough of your games.”
He had the gall to look hurt. “I came because I need you, Blake. I can’t live without-”
“Get the hell out.” She released her arms and clenched her fists at her sides. “I don’t want to hear another word from you. They’re lies. All lies. Get out of here before I call the police.”
It took that threat to make him back away. It looked like he was turning to go but then he stopped. “This isn’t over,” he said, his voice soft and almost menacing. “I’m not leaving town without you.”
It wasn’t until he went through the door that Blake expelled her breath. She was not going to take Jerome’s threat lightly. He was the kind of man who never knew when to give up.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“You’re leaving again?” Elizabeth Grant looked up from her computer screen as Ryder walked into her office. “It feels like you just got back.”