Page 41 of Love Among Vines

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

JADE

Jade held a tray with sample cups as Rett schmoozed with his patrons. Even though he had been panting and dying not half an hour before, he had recovered with ease. His presence was warm and comforting, and it was easy to see how he made each person feel welcome as they approached the booth.

Older women giggled when Rett demanded to see their ID before they could sample the wine. He crouched down when children approached, handing out lollipops and asking about their hobbies. It never felt forced or performative.

Bottles disappeared by the case. Men and women alike listened with rapt attention as Rett explained the winemaking process and difference between varietals. His intense vibe from earlier was gone, replaced by the calm, collected Rett she usually saw. He was in his element, and he was amazing.

Oh, no. Feelings. Danger! Danger! She needed to get out before she witnessed something that tipped her over that precipice.

“I’m just going to stretch my legs,” she announced.

The sample tray banged onto the table as she rushed away from the scene. When she was a good twenty feet away, she took a deep breath to clear her head.

This was not a time for feelings. Rett had been crystal clear about the terms of their relationship. There was an agreement in place. There was no future here. Falling for him was not an option.

She had no passion for budgeting, no driver’s license.

She lacked the stamina to hold down an office job.

Rett was a workaholic who excelled at everything…

except maybe running. He was confident, charismatic, strong, generous.

He probably expected a partner who was at least not on the verge of homelessness.

They were just too different. It would never work.

She scanned the festival. Booth runners greeted customers like old friends. The smell of pie was everywhere—warm notes of cinnamon and apples, buttery crust, and rich blueberries.

Heart still beating uncomfortably fast, she beelined it in no particular direction and came to a stop in front of a booth with spun glass figurines. Pieces twirled in the light breeze, casting rainbows onto the ground.

She reached out to touch one, then snatched her hand back. She didn’t have money for beautiful trinkets. She barely had money to eat.

“Jade?” a female voice called out to her.

She whirled around, probably looking like a still-sweaty madwoman.

Cindy, who had smoothed her hair back into a sleek topknot and changed into a white coat, waved at her from a booth. A banner flapped in the breeze. It read Braeburn Family Medicine—Free Mole Checks.

Jade scrambled over.

“Are you okay? You look flustered.”

Jade glanced to the right and left, but no one was looking at them.

“I messed up,” she admitted.

Cindy turned to the woman in scrubs next to her. She pulled cash out of her purse and handed it over. “Brooke, would you mind running over to Ted’s booth and picking up a couple slices of apple cake? I think Tom’s going to need it later.”

Brooke disappeared into the throng, and Jade stepped closer.

“What’s going on?” Cindy’s brows drew together.

“You remember the whole fake relationship thing?” Jade asked with a glance at Rett’s booth. His eyes were on her.

“It’s hard to forget,” Cindy said.

“Well, it’s still fake for Rett. But I think I’m having feelings.”

Cindy took a step back and sat on a pub chair. She took a long sip from a metal water bottle, looking almost amused. “You mean spending time with a handsome and thoughtful eligible bachelor and pretending to be in love led to feelings? Who could have predicted this?”

Jade shot her a dirty look. “You’re not helping.”

“I’m sorry.” The water bottle hit the table with a clunk. “This is what I was worried about. I don’t want to see you get hurt. Either of you. Rett’s been out of touch with his emotions for so long, I don’t think he knows how they work anymore.”

Jade leaned against the booth. “I’m so stupid. I know myself. I fall in love easily—way too easily.” She relayed the mixed CD and guitar-playing incidents.

Cindy cringed.

“I can’t be trusted. That’s why I’ve been keeping everyone at a distance for over two years.

One-night stands, meaningless flings. There was no danger of getting attached.

It was the only way to keep myself safe.

But I fucked up. I let Rett in. And the worst part about it is he’s been so clear with the terms from the very beginning. It’s all fake. To him.”

“I don’t mean to interrupt this realization for you,” Cindy said slowly. “But there’s some guy behind you staring you down.”

Jade whirled around. If there was a creeper trying to get in on their conversation, she was going to set them straight. But what she saw stopped her in her tracks.

“Nate?” Her lips stumbled over the word.

What. The. Fuck.

There he was. The ex-boyfriend who had cheated on her and lied about it for who knew how long. Cheating with Ashley was painful enough, but how many others had there been?

He slunk up to her, clad in aviators and a pink Vineyard Vines polo.

She crossed her arms over her chest. What the hell was he doing here?

“Hey,” he said in a low voice. “Can we talk?”

Her mouth fell open, but nothing came out.

Cindy cleared her throat, and Jade found her voice.

“No.”

“Come on. I just want to apologize. I know I did a shitty thing.”

“A shitty thing?” A bitter laugh escaped her lips.

“Are you kidding me right now?” She punctuated the sentence with a pointed finger.

“My parents’ bodies were barely in the ground, and you were screwing my best friend behind my back.

And then you had the audacity to lie about it to my face and pretend like nothing happened between you two. How many other girls were there, Nate?”

“None. I promise,” he said. He took his sunglasses off and slid them into the neck of his polo. He reached for her hand, and she slapped it away.

“Your promises mean nothing.”

“I’m sorry, Jade. The guilt’s been eating me alive.

Ashley too. We had a huge fight. We should never have been together.

I know what I’ve done to you. Done to your life.

You were this amazing, gifted painter. And look where you ended up.

” He gestured at the fall festival. “Some Podunk-ass town surrounded by nobodies. This isn’t where you belong. ”

She reeled like he had slapped her. Her hands curled into fists. She was going to drown him in this Podunk-ass lake. Someone put a hand on her arm and she whirled around. Cindy. She shook her off.

Cindy sighed, and a first aid kit hit the booth with a thwack .

“Why the fuck are you here?” Jade said to Nate.

“I told you, I want to apologize.”

“No, you don’t.” A realization shattered over her like a glass window in a hailstorm. “You’re here because you’re jealous. You saw me with Rett and couldn’t handle the idea of me preferring someone else to pining over your shitty memory. I only have value to you when another man is interested.”

Her voice was basically at shouting level, but she couldn’t stop herself.

“And I’m sorry, but where’s your wife? The girl that you fell so madly in love with that you ‘had no choice’ but to crush my heart and leave me in an apartment I couldn’t afford by myself?”

“We never should have gotten married. I never should have left you. I had what I wanted, I was just too blind to see it.”

“You’re despicable. You always want what you can’t have. The second you nailed Ashley down, you got bored and slept with someone else. And you will keep doing the same thing because it’s all you’ve ever known. I’m not an idiot.”

“Come on, Jade,” he said in a softer voice. “I know you don’t love him. I know you’ve been going from guy to guy, chasing after what we had. But you haven’t found it. Because you’re meant to be with me.”

He tugged down the neck of his polo, where a matching ice skate tattoo lurked beneath his collarbone.

She was numb. She was going to carve this tattoo out of her body like a cancerous tumor. Forget laser removal.

“You don’t know anything about me.”

He took a step closer. “I know you’re a city girl. You need the lights, the action. You’re not going to find your muse here. When we were together, you painted something new every day. I was your muse. Can’t you see that? I can give it back to you, Jade. Let me help. Let me take you home.”

What the hell was this? Some kind of ego trip? Was he getting off on the idea of being her inspiration? Maybe that was part of his problem with Ashley. She was poised to become a brilliant doctor in addition to a shitty friend. Ashley didn’t need him. Nate had always had a deep desire to be needed.

But he wasn’t Jade’s problem anymore either. And she sure as hell didn’t need him.

He reached for her again, but a large shadow moved in front of her.

“Jade doesn’t want you here. It’s time for you to leave.”

Even with moderate sweat stains and baggy athletic shorts, Everett Rhodes was a commanding presence. There was danger in his voice. A thrill ran through her.

Jade peeked around him in time to see Nate take stock. Did he just stand up a little straighter to try to close the distance between their heights? Pathetic.

At some point, Margie, the book club, and a large number of people she recognized from the café had crowded around. Margie came to stand beside her with a protective hand on her shoulder. Ethel had produced a pair of knitting needles and was holding them menacingly in Nate’s direction.

Was an Anchorman -style rumble about to go down at this picturesque fall festival?

“Why don’t you make me?” Nate lunged toward Rett but stopped before making contact.

Rett didn’t flinch, though he did curl one hand into a fist.

Jade gripped Rett’s arm. “Don’t take the bait. He will sue you.”

Scooter the cop sauntered into view. “What seems to be the trouble here?”

“This is a public event. I’m allowed to be here.”