Driftwood Lane (20 page)

It was pale and silvery with blue flecks against the velvety darkness of the night sea. She closed her eyes and listened to the soft ripple of water kissing the shoreline.

A scraping sound startled her and she whipped around. Nothing moved on the dimly lit porch or in the shadowed yard except the shimmying sea grass. Maybe Ben had forgotten to put Piper in the garage.

“Piper?” she called over the rippling water. The wind answered with a gust, sending a shiver over her arms. Gooseflesh pebbled her skin.

Her eyes scanned the backyard again. Nothing. Probably just the wind rocking a chair or tree branches scraping the house.

She looked out to sea and focused on the sounds again. She’d become accustomed to the ocean’s music. The repetition of the waves had a certain rhythm to it. She might even miss it when she left.

She thought of her father and the nice life he’d had here. So different from their life in St. Louis. While in the deepest part of her she couldn’t blame him for leaving her mother, she did blame him for leaving her. Why hadn’t he taken her? Why had he left her to suffer under her mother’s erratic mood swings? Had he thought Meridith had any chance at happiness when he’d had to leave to find it himself? She’d been a child. A lost and lonely child.

A thump sounded behind her. Meridith spun.

The tall silhouette, so close, sent her heart into her throat.

“Heeyyy . . . Meridith . . .”

She stepped back even as she recognized the thickness of his neck, the curls at his nape, against the distant porch light.

“Sean.”

“Thought that was you.” He took two steps closer, the movement kicking sand over her feet. He reeked of alcohol.

Meridith clutched at the collar of her robe. “I was just turning in. But you stay and enjoy the moonlight. Good night.” She tried to step around him, but he blocked her path.

“Waas your hurry? Enjoy it with me.”

“No, thanks, I’m tired.” She stepped around him.

He grabbed her arm. Even through the thick robe, his fingers bit into her skin.

A riptide raged inside. Her mouth was as dry as the sand under her feet. “Let go.”

“Don’t be like that.” His grip tightened, digging into her flesh. “You know you want me.” His voice was suddenly dark, his words clearer.

What did she know about this guy? Nothing at all. She could scream out here, and no one would hear. Her voice would be swallowed by the wind, by the ocean. Her heart was bursting from her rib cage. “You’re drunk, Sean.”

“And you’re hot, but you know that, doncha? All pretty girls do.”

She pulled away, dislodging her body from the robe he gripped. She made it two steps before he grabbed her. He jerked her into his chest.

His breath smelled like whiskey. Meridith turned her head, pushed against him. But his chest was like a brick wall, his arms like shackles. She grunted in her effort.

“Oh yeah, I like the spunky ones.”

His laugh sent a shiver up her spine. He was too strong. “
Let go, Sean.”
She fought the lump of bile churning inside. Her lungs struggled to expand against the hard wall of his stomach.

She gave another push, stepping back, and he stepped forward, maintaining his hold. His feet tangled with hers, and Meridith felt herself falling backward, then the heavy weight of him crushing her.

Twenty-eight

Jake flipped over and punched down the feather pillow. Meridith’s guests had stumbled in, waking him, and now he couldn’t get back to sleep. Lying in the darkness, he listened to the house sounds. The heat kicking off. The ticking of the alarm clock. The squeak of the back stairs. Probably Meridith checking the front door.

All he could think of was that tomorrow was his last day at Summer Place. He’d leave, and then what? Did he have enough information to take to a judge, or should he try and convince Meridith that moving was wrong?

But who was he? Only a contractor, as far as Meridith was concerned. And if he told her the truth now, she wouldn’t care about his opinion. She’d only care that he’d tricked her into working here, living here. She’d be furious.

And he couldn’t blame her.

He flipped onto his back. Maybe he could talk to her again, convince her to let him stay and finish the list. What did he have to lose?

He lay quietly, listening, then realized he’d been waiting for Meridith’s return, for the squeak of the stairs to announce she was headed back to her room. He sat up in bed, wondering what was taking her so long to check the door. Outside his window, a light glowed from under the porch roof, a halo reaching into the yard.

Meridith always turned off the light before bed, but maybe she was sitting on the porch, unable to sleep, just like him.

He perched on the bed’s edge, tempted by the idea of joining her. The thought stirred something he didn’t want to acknowledge. Wyatt was right. He was an idiot. He was falling for his adversary. His engaged adversary. Talk about self-sabotage.

Jake ran a hand over his face. Stay or go? He drummed his fingers on his leg.

A noise sounded outside his room. The clicking of a door. He listened. A squeak on the front steps. Meridith wouldn’t come up that way, not with the locked door between the wings. One of the guests was stirring.

A new concern rippled through him. Jake stood and rooted for his T-shirt before remembering he’d hung it on the bed’s spindle. He shrugged into it, opened his door, then peered into the hall. Two doors closed, one cracked open.

It was enough. Jake crept down the front stairs, his eyes scanning the darkened living room. When he reached the front door, he found it locked.

Where was she? A dim light glowed in the kitchen, but that was only the stove light. He padded through the living room and dining room, into the kitchen. The refrigerator hummed, breaking the silence. Light glowed from the porch through the kitchen window. A quick scan revealed nothing but empty chairs.

Had Meridith turned on the porch light and forgotten about it? Had she come up the back stairs without his hearing? She must have.

He breathed a wry laugh. Meridith was upstairs drifting off to sleep under a warm quilt while he traipsed barefoot through the house in search of her.

He flipped off the porch light and turned toward the living room. He could use a little sleep himself, if he could just stop thinking about—

A movement on the beach slowed his steps. He approached the window and peered out. The stove light glared on the windowpane, blocking his view. He reached for the doorknob and found it unlocked. He knew that wasn’t an oversight. Meridith was on the beach.

But what of the guest? Jake knew he’d left his room. His original fear returned. He opened the door and traversed the porch in three steps.

He pictured Meri up against one of those boys, drunk and belligerent. Alone and vulnerable on the beach. Jake felt the blood fire in his veins. Then he told himself he was crazy, jumping to conclusions. If they were outside, they were just having a little chat, a casual conversation about Nantucket or ocean tides or college life.

But even as he reassured himself, his feet carried him quickly. The edge of a flagstone cut into the arch of his foot, but he barely felt it. He scanned the beach, his eyes adjusting to the dim moonlight.

There. A shadow moving. Two of them. Embracing?

They stepped from the moonlight’s reflection on the water, disappeared in front of the water’s inky blackness.

He took the beach steps slowly, questioning his gut instinct.

Their shadows barely visible, he strained to hear them over the wind. Maybe it wasn’t Meridith at all. Maybe it was one of the boys with some woman he’d met in town.

“
Let go, Sean
.” Meridith’s voice.

Something welled inside at her fearful tone. Jake darted forward, his feet digging into the sand.

The shadows clarified. Meridith went down hard; the guy came down on her.

Jake honed in on him. As he neared, he heard Meridith struggling.

He grabbed the guy’s shirt, hauled him up. He heard a ripping sound, and then his fist found its mark. The loud
pop
was gratifying.

Sean hit the sand, moaning.

Jake braced his feet, ready—eager—to have another go at him. The kid only rolled to his other side.

A sound at his feet drew his attention. “Meridith.” He dove to his knees beside her.

“I’m okay.”

He helped her sit up. She looked impossibly small.

Behind him, Sean was standing, staggering.

Jake stood, placing his body between them.

Sean held up his hands, surrendering. “Hey, man, didn’t mean nothin’ . . . just flirting with the girl.”

Jake took a step, ready to plant his fist in the guy’s face.

A hand, surprisingly firm, on his leg stopped him. “Don’t, Jake.”

He took a breath. Tried to calm himself. He wanted to plow the guy down and show him what it felt like to be powerless. Make him feel as powerless as Meridith had. Jake had no doubt he could do it.

Apparently, neither did Sean. He was backing away toward the house. “Sorry, Meridith. Swear I didn’t mean nothin’.”

The words meant squat to Jake. He clenched his fists at his side.
Dirtbag
.

“Let him go.”

Meridith’s voice, all tired and shaky, was the only thing that stopped him.

He should call the cops and have the guy hauled off. Then he thought of the squad car pulling up to Summer Place, lights spinning. Summer Place didn’t need the bad publicity. The kids didn’t need the distress. He looked down at Meridith, huddled in the sand. She didn’t either.

Jake glared at Sean. “Pack your things and get out of here.
Now
.”

Sean stopped and turned. “What am I s’posed to tell my friends?”

“Couldn’t care less.”

Sean shifted in the sand, grabbed the railing. Finally he turned and stumbled up the beach steps and across the yard.

Jake turned to Meridith. She’d pulled her knees to her chest, wrapped her arms around them.

He extended his hands and she took them. They were icy cold. He pulled her to her feet, then took her chin and turned her face into the moonlight. He scanned her face for damage and found none. Just dazed eyes and chattering teeth. “You okay? He hurt you?”

She shook her head.

He could feel her trembling. He remembered feeling something on the sand and stooped to collect a bulky robe.

Downwind, he shook out the sand, then draped the robe over her shoulders. The weight of it buckled her knees. He caught her around the waist.

She came into his arms willingly.

Jake tucked the robe around her, freed her hair, and the wind stole it from his fingers.

She shivered.

He could feel her cold fists through his shirt, tucked into his stomach. “You’re cold.” He wrapped his arms around her, turned his back to the wind.

Shallow puffs of breath hit his chest, warm and quick. He cradled her head in his palm. She was so small. Helpless. What would’ve happened if he hadn’t come?

And where was Lover Boy when Meri needed him? Halfway across the country. He ground his teeth together, fighting the anger that had barely begun to simmer.

“The children.” Meridith pulled away. “I left the door unlocked.”

He nodded, taking her hand, and led her toward the house. Sean’s friends would probably go with him, which meant they’d all be up and packing. And still drunk. They might even go on a rampage and decide to damage a few things in the process.

When they stepped inside, Jake locked the door behind him, then caught Meridith as she turned to go. “Check on the kids, then go to bed.”

“I have to make sure—”

“I’ll see to that, and I’ll lock up behind them.”

“Jake, I’m—”

“Not taking no for an answer. Go on, now,” he said gently.

She opened her mouth one more time, an argument poised on her lips, as visible as the fire returning to her eyes.

He heard movement overhead, the guys, and played on her weak spot. “The kids . . .”

It worked. One last look at Jake, and she was darting for the back stairs. He heard the lock click into place and the squawk of the stairs as she ascended. Then he was off to offer his services as personal escort.

Twenty-nine

Meridith pulled the cinnamon rolls from the oven, savoring the sweet spicy smell. She set the rolls on the stovetop to cool, flicked off the oven, and poured a cup of coffee. The kids were taking advantage of the break by sleeping late.

Even Meridith had woken later than usual, her eyes heavy, her body achy. When her eyes fluttered open earlier, she’d stared at the clock’s hands as the night before rushed back to mind. Her heart sped in response. She hadn’t felt fear like that in so long. Never wanted to feel it again. Though her mother had never hurt her, there were the sudden change of moods, the euphoria, the yelling.

The waiting.

She’d waited for things to settle down, but they never had. When change came, it brought a different sort of fear. From euphoria to depression, the worry her mom wouldn’t be there when she got home from school, would disappear just like her dad.

The night before she’d fought back futilely. Sean was so much stronger. The weight of him crushing her, leaving her breathless . . .

And then Jake arrived.

When Sean’s weight left her body, she’d been confused. Then she saw Jake. He’d protected her, held her, taken care of her.

The concept was foreign to her. It left her feeling . . . confused.

Meridith sipped the strong brew, breathing the rich aroma. The college guys were gone, Jake had seen to that, and now the house was quiet except for occasional noises from the basement. Jake.

He was leaving tonight, and the realization stirred a new anxiety. What if she were attacked again? What if it were one of the kids? She was glad for the door between the wings, but they couldn’t stay locked up there. And she couldn’t watch three children every moment—that much she’d learned.

What if last night’s scenario repeated itself—and Jake wasn’t there? What was she going to do the next month and a half? Even after that, while she waited for Summer Place to sell. She should put it on the market now. The repairs were as done as they were going to be. Nothing was stopping her.