“That’s it? Did he at least kiss more than just your lips? I’d share the details with you if I’d spent the weekend with Aaron.”
An image of Holly lying on the floor as Aaron moved his lips slowly down her body while his hands rested between her thighs formed. Anger and an unfamiliar emotion settled in her chest.
Hands off. The words took shape, and she took in a deep breath before speaking again. Holly was more than six hours away and hadn’t seen Aaron in close to two years. She had no reason to worry.
“All I’m going to say is, the man has one talented mouth.” She’d let Holly interpret that statement however she wanted. “But I didn’t call to talk to you about Aaron. I need your help. I asked him out for tomorrow night. Any suggestions of where we should go?”
/> “Boston. Unless you go to the movies or hiking, there isn’t much to do in Avon.”
Perhaps some other time, they could drive into Boston and spend a night or two, but not tomorrow. “People don’t sit in their houses all the time. There has to be something else around besides the movie theater.”
“A mini-golf course opened last year, but it’s probably still closed for the season. Silver Lanes Bowling and Lounge is over in Ashford. I haven’t been to it in a long time, but they used to have a separate area with pool tables too. And Tree Ventures is in Ashford too. It’s one of those outdoor rope courses. But I don’t think it opens until early May.”
It didn’t sound like she had many options available, at least not until the weather warmed up more.
“Maybe you should take him to dinner. There are some nice restaurants in Ashford. My favorite is the Stomping Ground. It’s right on the lake. There is a nice little winery in Ashford too. Afterward, take him back to your cottage and have some fun doing something other than playing chess.”
She’d already planned to feed him, although she hadn’t decided if she’d try to cook for him here or venture out to a restaurant. “Thanks for the suggestions. If you think of anything else before tomorrow night, let me know.”
“Will do. And call me sometime on Wednesday. I want to know how your night goes.”
Oh, she’d be talking to Holly soon, because if Juliette didn’t call her, Holly would reach out.
Aaron found Candace flipping through a magazine and drinking tea when he came back downstairs from putting away his sleeping bag and the blankets Juliette had used. She hadn’t said anything about finding Juliette eating breakfast with him yet, but he’d seen the look on her face when she joined them. It was only a matter of time before she opened her mouth. If he got her talking about something else first, perhaps they’d run out of time, and she wouldn’t get a chance to ask whatever questions were floating around in her head.
“Sounded like Tiegan had a lot of fun.” He poured himself more coffee before taking a seat at the table. “What about you? Did you enjoy the show?”
Candace closed the magazine, revealing the photos of Juliette on the cover. One of them showed her exiting a building, perhaps where she lived. In another, she stood between a pretty brunette and a dark-haired man about his own age. A third photo of Juliette having dinner with a man completed the set. He guessed the man in the last picture was the married jerk she’d dated. He saw nothing wrong with men who chose to date a lot rather than enter into a long-term relationship. A few of his friends preferred to live their lives that way. He had a big problem with guys—women too, for that matter—who made a commitment to one person and then messed around on the side. Juliette claimed she hadn’t known the jerk in the photo was married. He saw no reason not to believe her.
“Mom and I both did too. It was an amazing show. And the hotel’s indoor pool was fantastic. I had trouble getting Tiegan out of it. She won’t forget this birthday, that’s for sure. Next year, though, don’t go quite so overboard.”
Considering the jackass of a father she had, his niece deserved to be spoiled every once in a while. Presently he was in a position to do so. “I’m not making any promises.”
“You invited Juliette to stay here,” Candace said before he could ask any more questions about their time in Boston or start any other conversation.
“She had no power and no wood to start a fire. She had blue lips when I went down to check on her. What was I supposed to do?”
“You could have given her some firewood. It’s not like we don’t have more than enough.”
He’d thrown wood in his truck before driving down with that very intention. It was still in there, in fact. When he saw her, he’d changed his mind. “I thought about it, but I was afraid she’d burn the cottage down.”
“Sure, you were.” She patted his hand and picked up her tea. “Sometimes, you’re a rotten liar. Has anyone ever told you that?”
Not that he recalled, but he didn’t make a habit of lying either. Lies tended to make life more complicated than he liked. “I’m not lying. I did bring wood with me when I went down to check on her. It’s still in my truck if you don’t believe me.” He shrugged. “But the next thing I knew, I was inviting her to stay here.”
“Must have been those blue eyes of hers.” She batted her eyelashes at him and smiled. “I saw the kiss you gave her before she got into her car.”
He should have known Candace’s what’s-going-on antennae would go up the moment he walked outside with Juliette. Honestly, though, his thoughts had been centered on tasting her lips one more time before she left and not who watched them from the window.
“Didn’t you tell me at this very table that you didn’t want anything to do with her?” Candace asked. “I think you even said something along the lines of if she was a schoolteacher, you’d consider asking her out, but because she comes from a wealthy family, you wanted nothing to do with her.”
Yep, he’d said that to her the last time they discussed Juliette, and he didn’t need Candace to remind him. “I kissed her. I didn’t propose to her.”
“You really don’t like to admit when you’re wrong,” she said before sipping her tea.
Did anyone? “Don’t you need to get ready for your class tonight?” His sister was enjoying this conversation far too much.
“Nope. So you are going to see her again, right?” Her smile faded a little, a clear sign the conversation was about to take on a more serious tone. “I like her and think she’d be good for you. You need someone in your life besides me, Mom, and Tiegan.”