Chasing Destiny (16 page)

Cassie did as he instructed. She placed her hands on his broad, muscular shoulders and felt the firm grip from his large hands around her tiny waist. Once her feet were firmly planted on the dock she looked up at him. Their hands were still in place. She gazed deep into his mesmerizing, green eyes as though they were hypnotizing her.

“Thank you”, she said softly.

“You’re welcome.”

Cassie broke free of his hold and walked ahead of him toward the cottage. Jacob followed slowly behind, observing her in amazement.
What just happened
, he wondered? They’d shared an unspoken attraction to one another since the day they’d met, but this was different. He recognized more than appreciation in her eyes; he saw emptiness and desire. He saw a beautiful woman involved with a man who endowed her with lavish gifts and deprived her of the emotional connection she so desperately craved. He saw a fiery yearning—
for him.

He wanted to fill that void, but he couldn’t. Jacob ran his hands through his dark hair in an attempt to clear his head. He
reminded himself about what had
happened the last time he’d followed through with his desires. He’d kissed her and sent her running back into Landon’s arms. Somehow, he needed to resist the temptation and observing her as she walked ahead of him certainly wasn’t helping.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The front porch swing appeared awfully inviting. Jacob took a seat, gently rocking back and forth while he waited for Cassie. An agile black bird with red wings perched itself on the small, black birdfeeder and picked at the seeds for several moments before focusing its attention on him.

“
Hey little fella—what are you
looking at?”

The bird angled its head slightly and stared a moment longer before finally flapping its wings to take flight. Jacob continued swaying effortlessly in the porch swing, bewildered. It was obvious to him that he still harbored feeling for Cassie—hell, even the small black bird saw right through him. Something was different, although he couldn’t quite pinpoint what. Cassie had confided in him the anguish she’d struggled to suppress and he’d finally caught a glimpse into her relationship with Landon. He was partially delighted that there was trouble
brewing below the surface of their
relationship, although it tore him to pieces to see her agonize over it. He wanted more than anything to believe that she was ready to put her relationship with Landon behind her and rekindle one with him, but he didn’t want to read
too much into their earlier discussion or
the look in her eyes after he’d lowered her from the boat.

He raised the sleeve of his tan sport coat and glanced at his silver GUCCI watch: seven thirteen. Cassie was running a few minutes late, but then again so was their ride. Emily and Tanner offered
to pick them up—even though the
restaurant was only three blocks away. Jacob gently placed his head against the back of the swing and scratched the dark stubble along his pronounced jaw. He continued swaying with his eyes shut when he heard the front door to the inn close. He raised his head and opened his eyes; almost unable to speak.

Cassie stood in front of him smiling. She wore her golden hair down, her natural waves settling softly down the middle of her back. The cap-sleeve wrap dress emphasized her figure along with the belt that accentuated her tiny waist. Its mint color complimented her olive skin, as well as the four inch, taupe sandals adorned to her pedicured feet. Was it possible for her to look more
beautiful with every encounter, he
wondered? Yes, it most certainly was and the ache in the pit of his stomach was proof of that.

“Wow! Y-you look stunning”, he stuttered.

“Thank you. You look pretty hand
some yourself. Sorry I’m late.”

“It’s alright; they’re not even here yet—”

Cassie pointed ahead. “Well, they are now.”

Tanner’s
black Jaguar sedan
turned into the gravel lot and two beeps sounded as Cassie and Jacob descended down
the front porch steps
.

They arrived at the riverfront restaurant moments after they’d left the historic inn. Tanner was adamant about being seated outside along the back deck and as they were led to their black, wrought iron table, it became clear why. The view was breathtaking; the mirror-like Kennebec River reflected the violet clouds and kaleidoscopic heavens above. Hundreds of strands of small patio lights were strewn overhead, delicately illuminating the riverfront deck as the sun finally
disappeared out of view
.

The four of them became re-acquainted over dinner and reminisced about their college years back in New Orleans. When their fresh seafood platters were presented in front of them, Tanner held up his glass of pinot noir and proposed a toast.

“Before we eat, I just wanted to say thank you. Jacob, you’re like a brother to me and I can’t imagine anyone else standing there next to me while I marry the love of my life. Cassie, where do I begin…? I’ve had the pleasure to get to know you over the years and I just can’t say enough good things about you! You’ve been an extraordinary friend to me and especially Emily, and I can’t tell you how appreciative we both are that you were able to share this moment in our lives with us. So, on that note I’d like to propose a toast… May our lives continue to interweave with every passing year—I love you guys!”

They tapped their wine glasses together and sealed the toast with a taste. Cassie was happy for Emily and Tanner; they’d overcome many obstacles to get to this point. Emily was several years younger and when Tanner graduated they’d endured a long distance relationship. He’d graduated and moved to upstate New York to begin his career as a medical device salesman. Emily had stayed behind to finish her education and upon graduation had moved back to her hometown in Knoxville, Tennessee. She’d been offered a position as a microbiology teacher at one of the local high schools and had remained there up until the end of the school year at the beginning of the summer. She planned to move to Albany after they returned from their honeymoon.

During dinner Cassie wondered what their secret was. How had they managed to make their long distance relationship work and why hadn’t her re
lationship with Jacob turned out
similarly?

After devouring their delicious entrees they sat at their table immersed in conversation when Cassie and Emily
suddenly stood up from the table
.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Tanner asked.

“The ladies room—we’ll be back in a few minutes”, replied Emily.

Tanner looked over his shoulder as they walked away and once they were clearly out of sight, he turned his attention back to Jacob. “So, how are you holding up?”

Jacob stroked the stubble along his jaw and let out a sigh. “I’m holding.”

“Where do the two of you stand?”

“We’re in a good place right now—she confided in me earlier on the boat about her relationship with Landon. Something’s clearly off with them right now and—”

“How do you feel about Cassie?” Tanner interrupted.

Jacob exhaled loudly through his mouth. “I’m crazy about her—I’ve had to fight the urge to kiss her again on more than one occasion today.”

“Geez, you’ve got it bad for her, bro… Look, you need to tell her how you feel and if I was you, I’d start off by explaining why you walked away from her in the first place.”

“I don’t know, man—we’ve been getting along great. I don’t want to ruin it.”

“But what if you don’t ruin it? What if it only gets better from here? You mean to tell me the man who’s never been afraid to approach a beautiful woman—
the man who comes up with some of the smoothest things to say to a woman—
is afraid to tell the one woman he’s in love with how he really feels? Wow—that’s a first, my friend!”

“A lot’s happened since I dodged my trip to New Orleans six years ago. She’s moved on—”

“Yes, she did—she had to—but, she also hinted to you earlier that there’s trouble brewing in paradise! This may be the perfect opportunity—maybe even the
last
opportunity you have, bro.”

Jacob pondered about that for a moment. The last thing he wanted was to push her away again, but he didn’t want to live the rest of his life wondering what might have been. “Maybe you’re right… Okay. I’ll tell her… tonight.”

“Did you miss us?” Emily asked as they approached the table. She leaned over and gave Tanner a kiss.

“I always miss you when you’re not around”, Tanner replied. “Look guys, I think we’re going to head back to the cottage. Do you want us to give you a lift back to the inn?”

“I was actually going to stick around here for a while—the inn’s only a few blocks from here. I can walk back”, Jacob explained.

“Okay… what about you, Cassie?
Are you staying or going?”
Tanner inquired.

Cassie looked at Jacob for a brief
moment before answering. “It’s still
early… I think I’ll stay for a while, too.”

After Jacob graciously paid their bill, they abandoned their table and ambled toward the outdoor bar. The lone
guitarist sat on a stool in the corner on a
small, raised section and played a
soothing melody as they approached
. Once they were seated, Jacob ordered another bottle of pinot noir.

“Thank you”, Jacob said as he leaned his forearms against the bar.

“For what?” she asked.

“For staying…”

“Well, it’s the least I could do—you did pay for my dinner.” Cassie smiled and gave a playful wink with one of her captivating, hazel eyes. “So, I’ve been meaning to ask you… how are your ribs and your shoulder doing?”

“The ribs are fine, but the shoulder…” Jacob raised his arm and moved his shoulder in a circular motion. “It’s still a little stiff.”

“Well, did you complete your therapy?”

“No.”

“Jake! Okay, you have a lot of explaining to do!”

He shrugged his shoulders. “It
wasn’t an intentional thing. When I got
pro
moted I just didn’t have a lot of extra
time.”

“Well, I’d like to take a look at it before the week is over—if you don’t mind.”

Please do.
“You don’t think it’s too late to get back the movement I had before the accident, do you?” He asked,
trying not to concentrate on the image of
her
hands touching his bare skin
.

“Well, I don’t know until I examine you. Once I have an idea how much range of motion you currently have, I can formulate a therapy regimen and give you my prognosis.”

Jacob turned his body in the stool to face her and placed his elbow on the bar, resting the side of his head in the palm of his hand. His eager, green eyes targeted hers as he smiled.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked.

“It’s nothing”, he replied, smiling.

Cassie turned to face him; their knees touching. “
Nothing?
You can’t look at me like that and expect me to believe it’s
nothing.
”

He wanted more than anything to tell her how beautiful she was and how he wanted to spend the rest of the night examining every last inch of her beautiful body, but he couldn’t. “Your intelligence is very becoming”, he finally managed. “You sound really cute.”

Cassie could feel the warmth on her cheeks spread as she began to blush. What was it about this man that had that effect on her, she wondered? “
Cute, huh
? Well, I’m glad all those years of hard work in college paid-off!”