Page 23 of 40 and Flirting (with Disaster) (Silver Foxes of Black Wolf’s Bluff #5)
Twenty-Three
T he Carousel glittered like crown jewels set atop its own lake.
Iris admired the view of the glass-enclosed building, now blazing with lights, as she pulled into the parking lot and found a space along the periphery.
The lot was full—of course it would be on a busy Friday night—but she knew Jamie had arranged to take a few hours off to have dinner with her family.
Adam and Chloe, and hopefully Krista, would all be here soon.
The pier leading from the parking lot to the double glass doors that formed the entry to the restaurant’s second floor was dotted with couples and groups waiting for their tables to be ready.
She made her way through the crowd, her gaze repeatedly seeking out the man-made lake beyond the building.
Jamie had certainly built a destination when he’d built the Carousel.
Even with her memories of what had happened here with Kirk, she couldn’t be blinded to the beauty of what Jamie had created.
Just inside the entry stood a slim glass podium, behind which waited a young man, sharply dressed in black and white, that she didn’t recognize. His name tag read, Sam.
“Good evening, ma’am. May I have your name, please?”
She gave him a warm smile. “Yes, Iris Daniels.”
“Ah, yes. Mr. Worthington’s guests.” He set down the pen in his hand and raised a finger. “Wait here just one moment.”
Iris watched him cross the restaurant toward the back hall where Jamie’s office was located.
She’d gotten caught up in searching out her favorite part of the décor, the carousel horses adorning the walls between the wide windows, when she sensed Jamie’s approach.
His energy was too strong to miss, even in this crowd.
He wore a crisp white shirt that set off the deep tan of his neck from hours in the sun, and long black slacks emphasized his height.
He always made her feel tiny in comparison even though she was average height for a woman, not only because of his height but because of that heavy barrel chest and the heft of his muscles.
Just looking at him move gave her the shivers.
His smile lit a glow inside her. “There you are, beautiful.”
A thrill went through her. Jamie’s hand enveloped hers, and in front of everyone in the dining room, he drew her closer, leaned down, and pressed his lips to hers. When he drew back, she was breathless. “You look wonderful tonight.”
She glanced down at the copper-colored sheath she wore. “I wanted to dress up for the evening.”
“And give me a gorgeous gift, because I get to look at you all night.”
A blush heated her cheeks. “Are you flirting with me?”
He winked. “Every chance I get.”
Her heart fluttered into her throat, her smile so wide her mouth ached. “You make me feel so special, Jamie,” she said, the words bubbling up without warning.
“Good.” He eased in for another kiss. “That’s exactly what I was hoping for.”
“Stop groping my mom,” Adam said somewhere behind her.
Iris sputtered out a laugh. “Adam!”
“Never,” Jamie said, winking at her son this time. Moving to Iris’s side to face the newcomers, he reached for Chloe. “Nice to see you again, Chloe.” When he kissed the back of her hand, Adam gave a mock growl.
A masculine chuckle sounded behind Adam’s back, and Michael appeared to one side of him. “Just ignore him,” Michael said to Adam. “He can’t seem to stop himself.”
Jamie chuckled. “Keep it up, son. Do you guys want dinner tonight or should I leave you out in the cold?”
“It’s not cold; it’s hot.” Adam tugged at his collar. “I think you’re in the wrong season, mate. Must be the age creeping up on you.”
Jamie turned back to Iris, a huge sigh leaving him as he rolled his eyes. “Rescue me from these two?”
Iris laughed, shaking her head. “You’re on your own.”
The boys chuckled.
Jamie escorted them to a table at the end of the dining room overlooking the lake.
Set atop a dais, much like the one she’d shared with her ex-husband all those months ago, this table was massive, suited for a large party.
Candelabras adorned the center, their candlelight shining off the gold of the tableware and the soft petals of the flowers gracing the length of the table.
The entire setup was much more elaborate than the normal decor for the tables in the Carousel.
“Jamie!” Iris stroked the edge of a set of gold-rimmed dishes. “This is lovely.”
“Only the best for my girl,” Jamie told her.
As they settled into their seats, Iris glanced around, anxiety starting a flutter in her stomach. “Krista’s not here yet,” she murmured quietly to Jamie.
He gave her hand a squeeze as he took the seat next to her. “Give her time. I’m choosing to believe in her.”
She met his eyes, absorbing the calm reassurance she found there. This man who’d been treated with nothing but disdain and outright hostility from her daughter was choosing to give her grace; the least Iris could do was the same. “I will too.”
Jamie explained to them all that he’d ordered a special menu for tonight, being certain to first check with Iris to make sure everyone would enjoy what he’d selected.
Toward the end of his little speech, Iris heard loud noises from the area of the front podium.
Shouting. She squinted in that direction, seeing a large figure yelling at the young man, Sam, who had spoken to them earlier.
Iris couldn’t see clearly who it was, but Adam’s, “Is that Dad?” told her everything she needed to know.
What was her ex-husband doing here?
Somehow Iris was on her feet. Jamie cursed beside her, and she heard the click of his phone, presumably to dial someone—maybe the cops?
At the same time she noticed Krista next to her father, the panicked look on her face shooting alarm through Iris.
Krista caught sight of her and hurried across the dining room just as Iris heard Jamie speaking into his cell.
“Francisco, get Brian into the dining room now.”
Not the cops, then. Should she be relieved her ex wasn’t about to be arrested in front of their children?
Unfortunately Krista wasn’t the only one who’d seen them across the wide dining room.
Kirk had as well. Pushing past the podium, he followed in his daughter’s footsteps, charging in their direction, rage clear on his face.
Iris caught her breath. From the corner of her eye she saw Adam stand, saw him place a firm hand on Chloe’s shoulder to keep her in her seat where she would be more protected.
There was little doubt that was what was uppermost in her son’s mind as he watched his father race toward them—it was on Iris’s as well.
And when Jamie stood, one arm coming in front of her to push her back a couple of steps, she knew he felt it too.
Protected behind his shoulder, she watched with increasing horror as Krista and Kirk approached the table.
Tears fell in a torrent down Krista’s face. She was dressed as if she’d been coming for their dinner, her glittery shirt and pressed slacks clear evidence of her intent, but words soaked in sobs spilled from her lips. “Mom, I didn’t… I’m sorry. I tried to stop him. H-he’s drunk, he doesn’t— Don't…”
Kirk shoved their daughter out of his way as he reached them. Thank God for Michael, who caught Krista before she hit the floor. Iris cried out, the sound half fear, half anger. “Kirk!”
Her ex-husband slammed into the opposite side of the table from them, the smell of alcohol continuing across the space until it filled Iris’s nostrils. “There you are, bitch!”
Shock jolted through her.
“Kirk—”
That was Jamie. Iris wanted to tell him to stop, to not draw attention to himself. She didn’t want anyone hurt, and though a part of her would never have believed Kirk would do such a thing, she had to admit she didn’t know the man standing in front of her now. Maybe she never had.
“You!” Kirk jabbed a finger at Jamie. “You fucked my wife.”
“What?” Iris spluttered.
Kirk was fixated on Jamie now, ignoring her. “That’s why she left, ain’t it? Because you broke up our family. You took her away from me!”
She couldn’t let him do this. “You did that just fine on your own, Kirk. You have no one to blame but yourself.”
“Stay out of this,” Kirk spat at her.
“I won’t stay out of it.” She fisted her hands, willing them to stop shaking. “It’s my life and my boyfriend and you are not wanted here. You need to leave.” Beside her she could hear Jamie murmuring to someone, presumably on his phone, to call the cops.
“I’m not leaving until he admits that he broke up our family.”
“He didn’t, Kirk.” Anger blazed in her chest, drowning out the fear. “You did.”
“Shut up, whore!”
“Dad!” Horror filled Krista’s eyes, spilling into the tears dripping down her face as she stood in the protective circle of Michael’s arms.
Adam’s fury was a palpable aura around her son. He left his spot to round the table, just escaping Iris’s frantic attempt to hold him back. “You’re leaving, Dad.” He reached for Kirk’s arm.
Staggering back, Kirk threw an unsteady punch. Thank God it missed its mark, sailing futilely through the air. The momentum tipped Kirk off balance, and he fell to his knees.
Adam stood, staring down at his father. The look in his eyes, in both her children’s eyes, broke Iris’s heart.
“Dad,” her son said, his voice full of warning, “there’s no one to blame for all of this but yourself. Not Mom, not us kids, just you. This is what you wanted, and you got it.”
Kirk blinked up at him blindly.
Krista cleared her throat and stepped carefully away from Michael, staying outside of Kirk’s reach. “Adam’s right, Dad.”
A jolt of shock shot through Iris.
“Mom told us what happened,” Krista continued, not looking at Iris. “She told us that you wanted to open your marriage. You wanted to sleep with other women.”
Krik’s mouth twisted angrily. “That’s a damn lie.”
“No, it’s not,” Jamie said. “I heard you, right over there”—he pointed across the dining room, ignoring the audience Kirk had drawn—“that very night. That’s what you wanted, what you asked of your wife, and now you have to live with the consequences.”
“I believe Mom,” Krista said. “And you know who else I believe?” She pointed to Jamie.
“Him. Because he’s been better to Mom than you ever were the last few years.
I’ve watched it with my own eyes, and I haven’t wanted to believe it because I wanted our family back together, but it’s true.
He loves her, in a way that you don’t anymore.
So no, you don’t get to come in here and ruin our night. ”
Kirk deflated, all the anger and spite giving way to defeat if the slump of his body told Iris’s anything. She breathed a sigh of relief.
A commotion across the dining room had Iris glancing over. Cops appeared at the front door. Adam saw them too, as well as two men lingering close to the dais—Francisco and Brian, Iris assumed. “Let’s go, Dad,” he said.
As Adam pulled on his arm to get him off the floor, Kirk stumbled. Michael stepped forward and grabbed Kirk’s other arm, looping it over his shoulder to mimic Adam, and they escorted Kirk’s swaying, stumbling body back to the front door.
Jamie silently left Iris’s side, leaving her feeling cold as he moved around the table to stand at the front of the dais and address the dining room.
“I apologize,” he said loudly, clearly, “to all of you for the interruption to your meal. Please forgive us, and continue to have a good time. Dessert is on the house tonight.”
A smattering of applause came from across the dining area. Jamie turned and rounded the table, gesturing for all of them to sit back down.
“Are you all right, beautiful?” He gathered her against his chest, practically pulling her into his seat to get her close enough to comfort. She tucked her face into his neck and nodded without verbally responding. Warmth seeped in to take the place of the chill holding her body captive.
“Mom?” The word was tentative, shaking, as if Krista was afraid her mother wouldn’t acknowledge her.
Iris wondered for the briefest moment if she should, but she couldn’t leave her daughter hanging out to dry.
With a sigh she turned her face the slightest bit, still keeping contact with Jamie’s skin, to meet her daughter’s eyes.
“I’m so sorry.” Krista’s gaze flitted to Jamie, then back to Iris.
“I’m sorry for the way I’ve acted. I understand now.
” She stopped to wipe fresh tears from her cheeks.
“I was looking for things to go back to the way they were, but they can’t, not after what Dad put you through.
I won’t keep standing in the way of you being happy.
You deserve it.” She faced Jamie squarely. “You make her happy. Thank you.”
Jamie’s grin was only half-formed. “I hadn’t expected the first time your mother hears that I love her to be from her daughter.”
Iris’s eyes went wide. Krista had said that, hadn’t she? And Jamie wasn’t denying it.
Krista gave a hiccuping laugh. “Sorry about that.”
Jamie’s grin appeared fully this time. “Oh, don’t worry. I intend to talk to her about it again later.”
“Well”—Krista wiped at her face again, her smile watery—“good luck with that.”
“I’m right here, you know.” And yes, she sounded cranky, but good grief, they were talking about her, after all.
Jamie and Krista both laughed, and in that moment Iris caught a glimpse of a future she had doubted could ever exist.
When Adam and Michael returned, Iris stood and walked over to her son. Gripping his broad shoulders, she pulled him in for a tight hug. “Are you all right?”
“I think we are all, all right now.” He returned her hug for a long moment, then moved to sit next to Chloe and took her hand, giving her a comforting kiss.
Iris turned to Michael. “I can’t thank you enough for your help.”
“It’s what we do for our friends,” Michael said and reached down to place a small peck on her cheek. “Thanks for making my dad happy,” he whispered for only her to hear.
Iris’s tears returned, but she fought them down as she walked back to her seat. The waitstaff approached the table and quietly began to take drink orders. She leaned close and whispered to Jamie, “So do we have a chat planned for later?”
Jamie winked. “A chat…and more.”
Her laughter was genuine this time, tears disappearing beneath the sweetness of the moment.