Page 44 of This Time Around (The Can’t Have Hearts Club #3)

This time, they had the whole evening and the whole B&B to themselves.

This time, Skye was on a romantic overnight getaway to Cherry Blossom Lake with Wade, and Paige was staying the night with a classmate.

Allie had nearly twenty-four hours of alone time with Jack, and she planned to make the most of it.

She threw open the door at eight o’clock and grinned up at him. He wore a blue-gray shirt that brought out the color in his eyes, and he held a bottle of wine and a bouquet of daisies in the same hand.

“Hey, sexy,” she said, stretching up on tiptoe to kiss him hard and deep.

Jack responded with enough enthusiasm to leave her breathless. By the time he’d kicked the door shut, she was halfway to shimmying out of her panties and letting the appetizer burn.

“Wait,” she said, breaking the kiss and pushing against his chest. “I want you.”

Jack grinned, his familiar, dimpled grin, and Allie felt herself melting. “I think you just established that,” he said, setting the daisies and wine on an end table and reaching for her again.

“But I also want razor clams,” she said.

“Razor clams?” Jack’s hand tightened on her waist. “Fresh?”

Allie nodded. “A co-worker drove to Cannon Beach this morning. Dug up her limit in the first twenty minutes, but her dinner plans fell through at the last second. She said they’d go to waste if I didn’t take them, so I couldn’t say no.”

“You know the way to my heart.” Jack kissed her once more, then scooped up the daisies and wine and headed toward the kitchen.

He had the flowers in water and the top off the wine before Allie could get the glasses out.

While he filled them up, Allie pulled crisp, fragrant bread slices out from under the broiler and began rubbing each one with a clove of garlic.

“That smells amazing,” Jack said as his lips brushed her neck, making Allie shiver.

“It’s that bruschetta my grandma used to make,” she said. “I remember you liked it.”

“Loved it. I can’t believe you remembered.” He reached out to grab half a cherry tomato from the bowl in front of her, and Allie gave his hand a playful smack.

It felt good to be here with him in this kitchen where so many of her happiest memories lived.

If they’d gotten married sixteen years ago, would Jack have ended up laced through all of those stories in Allie’s mind?

Would he have carved the Thanksgiving turkey with her father or helped Paige make pumpkin pie at the massive granite island?

No, dummy. Paige wouldn’t have existed if you guys had gotten married.

The thought gave her pause, but Allie pushed it out of her mind as she ladled the tomato basil mixture onto each piece of toast. “Want to enjoy these in the living room with a glass of wine before I put the razor clams in?”

“Perfect. I let Paige choose the wine, by the way. We decided it’s bumpy with notes of kumquat and parakeet droppings.”

Allie laughed. “I can’t believe a ten-year-old has heard of kumquat.”

“Are you kidding? She loves them.”

“I’m impressed you’ve raised such an adventurous eater.”

“We have this tradition we call Fear Factor Friday,” he said, scooping up both wineglasses as Allie picked up the tray of bruschetta and led the way to the couch. “Every Friday, we try some experimental new food that maybe sounds a little weird or scary.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, like stuffed grape leaves or carpaccio or whole Dungeness crab that we clean ourselves.”

“What a cool idea.” Allie set the plate down on the coffee table and Jack handed her a glass of wine before seating himself on the sofa.

“I think it’s a big part of the reason she’s never been a picky eater,” he said. “From the time she was really little, I had her tasting things like artichoke and escargot and gazpacho—stuff that would make most kids turn up their noses.”

“But you made it a game.” Allie took a bite out of a piece of bruschetta. “Very smart.”

“Thanks. Not everything’s been a hit. She still hasn’t forgiven me for the frog legs or the fried chicken liver.”

“You win some, you lose some.”

Jack laughed and popped a bite of bruschetta in his mouth. “True enough.”

“You’ve turned out to be a pretty awesome dad.”

Pride shimmered in his eyes. “Thank you.”

Allie finished off the bruschetta and took a sip of wine. She felt nervous all of a sudden, and it had nothing to do with Jack’s hand on her bare knee.

“So,” she said, dusting crumbs off her shirt as she struggled to keep her tone casual. “Speaking of parents, did I tell you I visited my mom last weekend?”

“You did, but we never got a chance to talk about it. How’s she doing?”

“Good. She’s good.” Allie cleared her throat. “I finally got a chance to ask her about the money.”

Jack picked up another piece of bruschetta and didn’t say anything. Allie watched him chew slowly, and she wondered if this was his way of buying himself some time, of not blurting out the first thing he thought. He was still touching her knee, so that seemed like a good sign.

“And did she know about the money?” Jack asked.

“Yes,” Allie said. “She did.”

“Let me guess.” Jack picked up his wineglass and swirled it around, his expression more guarded than it had been five minutes ago. “Your mom told you the money’s yours free and clear. That you should just spend it and not worry about things. Is that about right?”

Allie gritted her teeth and fought the urge to argue. So what if he’d used almost the exact words her mother had? She took a small sip of wine, willing herself not to react. “That is what she told me.”

“Did she say where it came from?” Jack asked. “Or did a million dollars cash miraculously drop from the sky?”

Allie frowned. “Why are you being so snarky about this? The money was in my grandmother’s home—a home she willed to me, along with its contents. The combination on the chest was my birthdate. Don’t you think that adds up?”

“You’re kinda dodging the real issue here.”

“Which is?”

“Which is the fact that no one’s saying where the money came from.

” He took a bite of bruschetta, and Allie wondered if they were both continuing to sip and eat as a way to make this whole conversation feel less acrimonious than it really was.

Jack was still touching her leg, and they sat close together on the sofa.

Allie took a deep breath. Sixteen years ago, this would have been a fight by now. She was determined not to let it escalate. “My family has a history of making a lot of money,” she said. “My grandfather made a killing on Portland real estate in the eighties.”

“And your parents made a killing on unsuspecting investors thirty years later. Just because they made a lot of money doesn’t make it legit.”

Allie frowned. “Maybe we should talk about something else.”

His palm curved over her leg, and the look he gave her was almost sympathetic. “Allie. I know you always love to believe the rosiest, happiest version of a story, but don’t you think you’re taking it a little far here?”

“No, I don’t.” She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t you think you’re being a little suspicious?”

Jack sighed and sipped his wine. He didn’t say anything for a long time, and Allie began to fidget. She picked up a piece of bruschetta, then set it down again.

When Jack spoke again, his voice was softer. “I have a legal team on retainer for my company. They usually work on stuff related to app development, but I asked them to help me with a little legal research a couple days ago.”

“Oh?” she tried to sound casual, but her hands were shaking.

“I had them pull up information on Oregon’s found-property laws.”

“You mean the same information Wade dug up for me?”

“Right,” Jack said, his voice even. “I wanted to read it for myself. Have you read the whole text of ORS Chapter 98?”

Allie nodded. “Yes.”

“So you know what it says about your obligation to provide notice to the county clerk within ten days and in the newspaper within twenty days.”

“I read the laws,” Allie said, doing her best to summon the lawyer voice she’d worked on up until she’d dropped out of law school. “But the notification rules only apply if you don’t know who the money belongs to. And I know now that it belonged to my grandmother. And now to me.”

Jack raised an eyebrow. “On your mother’s say-so.”

“And the fact that my own birthdate was the combination on the lock.” Her pulse began to race. “Doesn’t that seem significant?”

“Maybe not as significant as the fact that the amount in that trunk isn’t too far off the mark of what was unaccounted for during your parents’ trial.”

She shouldn’t have been surprised he’d know the details. It had been in the papers, which also made clear that Priscilla Ross had been the instigator of the investment scam. Still, she hadn’t expected Jack to go reading up on old court cases and statutes that Allie would just as soon forget.

“Look, Allie—I’d love for that money to be yours. I really would.”

“It’s not about that, Jack.” Allie heard her voice start to quiver, but she was determined not to get choked up. “I’m not counting out fistfuls of hundreds and thinking about buying Prada handbags and a condo in Lake Oswego.”

“So what is it about?”

Allie sighed. “It’s about wanting to believe that’s not dirty money. That my family did something good by leaving it to me. That my grandma really cared that much.”

He didn’t say anything for a long time. When he finally spoke, his voice was softer.

“I understand what you’re saying. But I’m just trying to keep you safe.

To make sure you’re acting within the parameters of the law.

That we both are. You know this affects me, too. I was there when you found that money.”

“I know that. And I also know it’s been fourteen days when the law says I’m supposed to do something within ten.”

“Right.” Jack sighed. “You and I are the only two people who know the exact dates, though. I’m fine keeping quiet a little longer to buy you some more time, but you should really?—”

“Wade knows about the money.” The second the words left her mouth, Allie watched his expression darken. “He’s a lawyer. I had to talk to someone.”

“Isn’t he an entertainment attorney?”

“He still knows the law. And he’s done some work in estate planning and even criminal cases.”

Jack pressed his lips together for a second. “I think I’d feel better if you consulted someone else. I can have someone from my legal team talk with you at no charge.”

“I appreciate that,” Allie said. “And I’ll certainly consider it.”

“I’m glad.”

“Can you tell me something, though?” Allie cleared her throat. “Is this because Wade doesn’t specialize in this type of law, or is this because I was engaged to Wade?”

Jack looked down into his wineglass, but didn’t take a sip.

When he looked up again, the silver-blue of his eyes seemed darker.

“A little of both,” he admitted. “But also that you didn’t tell me about the engagement until right before we slept together.

Not even when we were baring our souls over whipped cream and mud masks that night or when I was spilling all my intimate stories on the way to my reunion. ”

“You’re right,” Allie said softly. “I suppose I should have mentioned it sooner.”

Jack sighed again. “I guess it doesn’t help that you’re still so close with a guy you used to sleep with. A guy you loved and made plans with and thought you’d spend your whole life with at one point. I’m working on the jealousy thing, Al, but it’ll probably always bug me just a little.”

Allie felt something soften inside her. She put her hand on his, and Jack’s gaze swung back to hers. “You’re forgetting something, though,” she said.

“What’s that?”

“I might have loved Wade once. Not the right way, exactly, but it was a kind of love. I might have even loved those other two guys I was engaged to.”

He raised one eyebrow. “Is this supposed to be helping?”

Allie leaned close and brushed her lips over the edge of his jaw. “I’ve never loved any of them twice . But I’m falling for you all over again, Jack. Maybe even harder this time.”

She drew back in time to see his eyes widen ever so slightly. Allie felt her heart slam against her ribs. Maybe it was too soon to start trotting out the L-word. She hadn’t flat-out said she loved him, but close. Maybe she’d said it too soon or?—

“I’m right there with you.” Jack smiled. “I’ve been falling for you again since the moment you opened your apartment door.”

Allie grinned as a rush of warmth flooded through her. “I’m so glad.”

He squeezed her hand. “And I want us to be smart this time around. Honesty and trust and open communication.”

Relief washed through her, warmed by the simple bliss of hearing those words. Of knowing he felt the same way she did. That maybe they really could have a second chance to get things right this time.

Jack leaned in to kiss her again, and Allie met him halfway. She slid her fingers into his hair, loving the feel of his chest pressed against hers, his breath coming faster as she ran a hand up his thigh.

Jack kissed her hard and deep with an urgency that left her breathless. Allie closed her eyes and tipped her head back, savoring the gentle brush of kisses down the middle of her throat. As pleasure coursed through her his words were still echoing in the back of her mind.

Honesty and trust and open communication .

But for now, she pushed them aside, and reached up to unbutton Jack’s shirt.