Summer Of My Secret Angel (28 page)

That smile should be illegal.
I
threatened to melt next to him.

“I don’t dance,” I muttered, although I
yearned to be held by him again. Dancing seemed the best
possibility to reach that goal.

“Why not?”

Because I don’t know how.
“Because I
don’t like it.”

“When have you ever been dancing?”

“Never.” I puckered my lips and focused on
my knees, which swayed slightly to the left as the car turned.

“See, you’re flipping the switch off again.”
He grabbed my hand once more. This time he didn’t release me when
he shifted into a higher gear and sped along the road. His fingers
dug into the back of my hand with his squeeze. “Would you consider
granting me one dance if I said please?” He waggled his brows and
made me laugh.

I swatted his shoulder. “Fine, I’m
considering. Now leave me alone.”

Julian nodded, satisfied.

He parked Marie’s car in the garage, then
unloaded the boot with the empty basket and the sandy, damp towels.
When he reached for my hand next, I was reluctant to take his.

He angled his head. “What’s wrong?”

I sucked in a long breath and released it
slowly. “Nothing. I just don’t want them to see—to know we’re—you
know.”

Julian arched one brow and studied me. “And
by
them
you mean—”

“The dragon.” I harrumphed. She didn’t
approve of Julian and me getting closer, I knew that much. Probably
because she still wanted him to herself and hated me like hell.

“I overheard you talking. Twice.” When the
scolding I expected from him didn’t come, I continued. “I didn’t
mean to. But it was clear you were talking about me, so I couldn’t
just walk away. And I know what Charlene thinks of you looking at
me.”

His gaze lowered to the basket in his hand.
“You heard that, did you?” He sounded more sorry than mad.

I nodded. “She doesn’t like it.”

His gaze met mine, his lips tightening.
“Would you believe me if I told you she doesn’t like it for a
totally different reason than what you think?”

“I might if you explained,” I suggested.

“I cannot explain.”

Oh, why wasn’t I surprised?

“Julian, you’re one serious riddle to me.
For now, I just want to act normal around them. Besides, I don’t
feel like answering my aunt’s hopeful questions about whether we’re
getting together. Or listen to her romanticize how you and I would
be such a lovely couple.” I rolled my eyes.

Realization flashed in his eyes. “She was
talking about us the other day?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Afraid?” His forehead creased. “So you
don’t want us to be—”

“A couple?” I cut him off. “God no!” The
hurt shining in his eyes made me pause. “I don’t think it’s a good
idea. I hardly know you. And you’re linked to Charlene. And—and
this is really not the right place to discuss it.”

Especially not when a twinge of fear was
spreading in my chest. Rubbing my throbbing temples, I whirled
around and strode toward the door.

A couple—how could he even think that? Just
because he kissed me?
And oh boy, he could kiss.
Butterflies
still drifted in my stomach at the mere thought of it.

But that was no reason for a relationship. I
wouldn’t let Julian bind me to him. I was free, no ties to anyone.
No
feelings
for anyone. This was the only way to keep safe
from getting hurt.

I needed to clear my head and stop thinking
about his lips on mine and his arms wrapped around me.

“Jona?”

Julian’s soft voice made me stop before I
reached for the door handle. I cast a glance over my shoulder.

He circled me to stand face to face then set
the basket and the towels down to take my hands in his. “Don’t
waste a minute in your room, if you can be out here celebrating.
Life isn’t all that bad if you give it a chance.”

“What makes you say that?” My voice almost
cracked. I didn’t understand the tears misting my eyes all of a
sudden.

“Because I care about you. And today I saw
how much happiness you’re capable of if you allow it to break
through your façade.” His forehead touched against mine, and he
skimmed tender fingers through my hair as he gazed into my eyes.
“You withstood all the blasts in your life. I don’t see why you
refuse to take the chances life’s offering now.”

The soft scent emanating from him together
with his touch soothed me the way it always did. Without my knowing
my arms lifted and wrapped around him. I pressed my cheek against
his chest. He hugged me tight and placed a soft kiss on my
brow.

“I have a surprise for you if you promise me
one dance tonight,” he whispered.

I looked up at him. “What is it?”

“Uh-uh.” He shook his head. “First, you
promise.”

I pulled back, staring at his face. It was
full of anticipation. “Okay, I promise. Now, what’s the
surprise?”

“You’ll find out later.” He grabbed my hand,
lifted the basket from the ground, and ignored my protest as he
pulled me into the house.

Marie peeked out of the kitchen when the
door shut. “You are finally back. Good. I just took the cake out of
the oven, and the guests should be arriving soon.” Her glance
dropped to our joined hands. She paused, obviously puzzled. Then
suddenly her mouth stretched wide.

I jerked my hand out of Julian’s. There was
no way I’d give her the chance to make this wrong conclusion in her
mind. A hard stare made that point clear.

Marie remained silent while she regarded me
with disappointment. Then she sighed and slipped a hand into her
pocket. Out came a small yellow note. “There was a call for you
today. A police officer.”

My mouth dropped open. I twisted my head to
catch Julian’s narrowed gaze on me.

Lifting both hands as if being arrested, I
took a defending step back. “I swear, I didn’t do anything wrong!
No stealing whatsoever. And how could I, without you noticing, when
you’ve been with me all day?”

“Good point.” His expression eased.

My aunt handed me the note. “He said his
name was Officer Madison and that you might like to call him
back.”

“Quinn?” My friend hadn’t forgotten about
me. “He probably wanted to check on me.” I beamed at Julian, who
suddenly seemed irritated and shoved his hands into his
pockets.

“You can use the phone here if you want to
speak to this officer,” Marie offered, although she didn’t seem to
quite understand why I was happy about hearing from the police.

“Yeah, thanks. I just want to shower off the
salt and sand, and then I’ll call him back.”

With Marie gone, I turned to Julian. “You
okay?”

He didn’t seem angry, but my hearing from
Quinn obviously bothered him more than I would have thought.
Jealous of my policeman friend in London?
Quinn was the best
friend I could think of, but not once had I felt for him what I
felt for Julian.

When Julian heaved a sigh, but remained
silent, I rubbed his arm. “Back in London you seemed comfortable
with Quinn. I thought you liked him.”

“I do.” He slowly drew nearer until the tip
of his nose almost touched mine. “I just don’t like the way you
reacted to the news of him calling.”

So he was jealous. I couldn’t bite down a
grin. “We’re just friends.” I planted a brief kiss on his cheek and
rubbed the damp spot with my thumb. “See you later.”

He strode toward my mother’s room as I
leaped up the stairs. With my hand on the rail, I halted and
turned. “Julian?”

He pivoted, his brows lifted.

“We’re still on for that dance, aren’t we?”
I suddenly felt anything but confident.

His lips curved, he nodded. My heart did a
somersault of relief.

After the shower, I went back down to punch
the number from Marie’s note into the phone. With the receiver
pressed to my ear, I paced the hallway as far as the cord would
allow, waiting for Quinn to answer.

“Hello.”

My heart lifted, and I drew in a breath to
greet my friend.

“You’ve reached the voice mail of Quinn
Madison. Please leave a message after the tone and I’ll return your
call.”

In an instant, my shoulders sagged, my back
thumping against the wall behind me. When the long beep rang in my
ear, I said, “Hi, Quinn, this is Jona. I heard you called today and
I’d have loved to talk to you, but obviously, you have other
things—”

A crackling at the other end cut me off.
Then Quinn blurted into the speaker. “Hi, Jona! Don’t hang up. I’m
here.”

Cheerful warmth filled me. “Hi, Quinn.”

“Hey.” He sounded a lot softer and relieved
as he drawled the word. “Sorry, I was just coming in. So, how’re
you doing, kiddo?”

“I’m just fine. Who would have ever believed
that?” It was hard to speak normally with the broad smile
stretching my mouth.

“I did. So, do you like it over there in
France?”

“The house and the vineyards are beautiful.
You’ve really got to see this. I’ve my own room on the second
floor, overlooking the garden and vines. And everyone is really
friendly.”

“Sounds great. I knew you would get along
well with your family.”

I peeked around the hallway then lowered my
voice. “Well, I do try to evade the dragon, but Aunt Marie and her
husband are very nice people.”

“That’s good to hear. Now tell me, how often
do you think of running away?”

“Never!” I said with feigned shock.

Quinn’s laugh chimed through the line.
“Really? And why don’t I believe you?”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “Okay,
maybe I thought about it once. Or twice. But the situation has
changed. If you must know, I think I might even stay until my
birthday.”

“I hope you will!” His choice of tone made
it clear I shouldn’t even dare to consider otherwise. “But what’s
the situation you were talking about? What changed your mind?”

What? Or
who
? Thinking about Julian
spilled the pack of butterflies in my gut once again. As if on cue,
said man descended the stairs just then, hand sliding along the
rail. My heart thudded against the base of my throat.

“To cut a long story short,” I said into the
phone, “I made a friend here.”

“Jules?” A taunting note mixed with Quinn’s
cheerful tone.

Julian’s eyes fixed on mine as he came
toward me, his chin tilted low. He leaned forward and whispered
into my free ear. “Your surprise is in your room.”

“Yes,” I answered Quinn, but my eyes traced
Julian walking away to the door. Before he slipped outside, he
winked over his shoulder. For a moment, I covered the speaker with
my hand, afraid Quinn might hear the hard pounding of my heart
through the line.

“I knew you would like him if you gave him a
chance,” Quinn said. “He seems like a nice boy.”

“Yeah. And he’s helping me get past my
vertigo, which comes in handy considering I do have a balcony
attached to my room.”

“Wow. You really seem to be living in a
palace over there.”

“Sometimes it feels like it,” I confessed.
“There’s also a party on tonight, and I’m supposed to dance, can
you believe it?” I snickered at the absurdity of the statement, but
eagerly anticipated the moment I would be in Julian’s arms
again.

“I’m sure you’ll have fun. I shouldn’t keep
you talking too long then. But it was very nice to hear from you.”
He paused. “Work has actually become quiet since my favorite
criminal abandoned the country. London’s streets aren’t the same
without you.” His soft laugh sounded forced.

I swallowed against a tightening throat. “I
miss you, too, Quinn. See you in a few weeks.”

“Yeah. Pass my regards on to Jules and your
family.”

“Will do. And you say hi to Abe when you see
him.” We both laughed then said goodbye, and I hung up. Talking to
Quinn made me a little homesick, but there was a good reason
keeping me in this country a few weeks longer.

Julian.

And he’d said there was a surprise waiting
for me in my room. I dashed upstairs, almost tripping over the last
step. The door gave way to my eager push and slammed into the wall.
Stumbling inside, I scanned the desk for a package or something out
of place on my bed. There was nothing.

Had he just fooled me? Hands on my hips, I
whirled on the spot while my narrowed gaze moved over the room.

And then my breath caught in my throat. I
staggered a step backward, knocked against the bed, and slumped
down on the mattress.

There, hanging on the outside of my
wardrobe, was that blasted yellow dress.

1. HE BETRAYED ME. HOW COULD HE?
   

AN AWKWARD ME stared back from the
full-sized mirror looking like a marigold in a field of green.
According to the label on the inside, the bodice and three layers
of skirt were Chinese silk. It floated around my knees as I swung
my hips from side to side. This had to be the most beautiful piece
of cloth in the world. My auburn hair contrasted oddly against the
sunshine yellow.

I couldn’t remember what had been on the
price tag in the shop, but I assumed Julian had paid a fortune for
it. And for just that reason I decided to wear it that night. I
didn’t want him to think I was disrespectful or ungrateful. But I
didn’t feel wonderful in this dress.

The guests would all gape at me, and there’d
be no way to hide in the shadows like I could have done if I wore
my usual dark clothes.

Oh God
!
A shudder made me hug
myself.

A deep breath forced my chin up. I could do
this. I’d put on a nice smile and walk out into the garden dressed
like a marigold. For Julian. And only for tonight.

A knock sounded on my door, and Marie popped
her head inside a moment later. She gasped. “Good Lord, Jona. You
look beautiful!” My aunt strode toward me to feel the fragile
fabric between her fingers. “Is this not the dress we saw in
town?”