Love Rising: Spring (Mandrake Falls Series Romance Book 4) (10 page)

He grinned hugely in response and she punched him, laughing.
“Don’t look so smug. The week isn’t over yet. ”

“But I get the week. That’s the bet. You aren’t going to
stop taking my calls tomorrow.”

“Yes Jeremy. That’s the bet.”

He drew her into his arms, holding her against his chest.
“Good, now shut up and let me enjoy the fantasy awhile longer. If I’m going to
get over you in a week, at least give me the chance to get sick of you first.”

She laughed again and snuggled against him. “Fine, but I’m
not going to get too comfortable. I have to say, it’s pretty easy being with
you. I’m not trying to make a good impression, watching every little thing. I
can be myself.” Jocelyn twisted to look at him. “Jeremy, I’m having a real nice
time tonight. I want you to know that. I like you.”

He swallowed. “Thanks. I’m having a spectacularly nice time
too.”

“I’m sorry I treated you badly before. My dad worries I’m
going to get hooked up with a guy like you and lose my only chance to get out
of poverty. He said I won’t have him to fall back on because he has nothing to
leave me. It changed him when my mom died. He believes it was his fault my mom
died because he couldn’t keep up with the cost of her medication. He was going
to sell the house but she wouldn’t let him.”

“And then she died?”

“And then she died. Yes. It’s what she wanted but my dad
became very materialistic. He was out of line saying those things to you. That
engagement notice completely sent him off the deep end.”

Jeremy shook his head. “Your dad is right. With your looks
you could attract a rich man, no problem. The guys I went to school with only
dated gorgeous girls. Even the really ugly guys had great looking girlfriends
because their families had money. If I were a nicer guy, I’d introduce you to
some of them but I’m not nice. I don’t want you to go out with anyone but me.”

“What school was this? I thought you grew up poor like me.”
Jocelyn slowly straightened and met his eyes. “Jeremy, are you absolutely sure
you are stone-broke? Remember our deal—we have to be exactly who we are with
each other.
Nothing fake.”

“If I had money would I be taking you to the Two-for-One
triple feature at the movie theater on Thursday night? It’s the only date I can
afford. Three westerns for one low, low price and they let you bring your own
popcorn.”

“Oh Jeremy,” she groaned. “I knew we shouldn’t have spent
Aunt Gloria’s birthday money. We should’ve bought groceries instead. You
probably have a college loan to pay off too. How deep in debt are you?”

“I’m not.
Not at all.
My mom left a
little money for my education before she died. I was a baby so I don’t
remember. Enrolling me in private school was my dad’s decision.”

“You mean your mom’s insurance paid for private school?
Cool. My dad did a similar thing.” She grinned. “He drove me to the ski hills
to meet rich kids. I didn’t go to school with them. I could pass for rich if I
had to but I can’t see you passing. God, how did you cope? It must have been
hard on you being the only poor kid in school with Ivy Leaguers. Good for your
mom for thinking of providing for your education though. She must have been
special.”

“Your mom too.”

She grinned. “How do you figure that? My mom didn’t leave
behind an insurance policy. She just ... died.”

“Without your mom, you would never have been born and I’d be
here alone. That makes her a saint according to my definition of a saint.”

She had to kiss him for that. She just had to.

Jocelyn pushed up on her elbows and kissed him very gently
and tenderly on the mouth. He stroked her hair. The obligations and
restrictions of their past and future faded away. She knew who he was and he
knew her too. That’s all they needed to be happy for this night at least.
Jocelyn thought he might feel differently in a week or so, but if anything,
Jeremy Marks acted like he was more in love with her, not less.

“What exactly is it that you like about me?” Jocelyn asked.

“Everything.”

“That’s not true. That’s not even possible. We all have
flaws.”

“I like your flaws.”

“Then you’re the only one who does.”

“I’m the only one who counts.”

He pulled her down and spiked his fingers through her hair,
kissing her deeply. She slid on top of him, straddling his erection. Jocelyn
guided him inside her and held on. Jeremy groaned and caught her hips, lifting
her up and down, joining her in the act with each upward thrust.

He lasted longer this time but still not long enough. Jeremy
wasn’t worried. They had all night. Jocelyn wasn’t in a hurry to leave. She
clung to him and cried out when she came, and then sobbed quietly against his
shoulder as he held her.

Of all the girls in Mandrake Falls, Jeremy would’ve thought Jocelyn
Tate was the girl most likely to have lots of guys in love with her. Tonight,
he realized of all the girls in Mandrake Falls, Jocelyn Tate was probably the
loneliest. Even if her father hadn’t brainwashed her into marrying rich, most
of the guys their age wouldn’t have the guts to ask her out. She was too beautiful.

He knew it wasn’t his moves that made her cling to him the
way she did. Jeremy had no moves. He had no skills with girls. He had a code of
honor that was based more or less on what would make his mom proud. The rest he
learned from books by reading between the lines. To look at him, anyone would
believe he wouldn’t have the confidence to make love to a girl like Jocelyn.
But here she was lying in his arms. Whatever he had to offer her as a man,
Jocelyn seemed to need it.

Jeremy pondered how wrong a person’s perceptions could
be—his about her and hers about him. She had the face of a goddess but the
heart of a mortal girl and he had the lifestyle of a pauper and the family tree
of a—

“Did your mom feel the same about not throwing yourself away
on poor guys?” he asked out of nowhere.

“Oh no,” Jocelyn said softly. “My mom believed in love. A
love rising she called it.”

“A love rising? What does it mean?”

“You know, like sap rising—something pushing to be released.
She’d see two people together—just standing together—and she’d lean over, jab
me in the ribs and whisper: ‘There’s a love rising, Jocelyn.’ Her predictions
were usually right. My mom was a hopeless romantic who believed in love at
first sight, soul mates, eternal love—all that stuff.”

“And you don’t?”

Jocelyn lay on her stomach with her arms tucked under her
for warmth. Her shoulders were bony. She had a full mouth and a slight overbite
that plumped her lips out. Her mouth was perfectly curled at the corners even
when she wasn’t smiling and she had a wide blue gaze enhanced by the dark
smudges under her eyes. Lack of sleep or genetics, the smudges made her look
vulnerable and increased her desirability. She was so perfect he forgot it was
rude to stare, as if she was an image in a magazine.

“As much as I want to believe that happiness can come
through love alone, I can’t forget the years of trying to pay the bills and the
fear in my dad’s eyes. We got phone calls from bill collectors every single
day. Some weeks, it came down to a choice between paying a bill and eating. I’m
not going to put my kids through anything like that. My kids are never going to
worry about anything. My mom was a lovely person and I’ll love her forever, but
I can’t afford to let my heart have its own way like she did.”

A love rising.

Jeremy thought about Mrs. Tate and how right she was.

AT THAT very moment, Andrea
Tarnham
was walking with her head down through Mandrake Falls, cutting across the town
green to reach the movie theater. The last show was just letting out. She hung
back, trying to look inconspicuous in a town where everybody knew everybody
else. And they knew her in particular because she worked at the
Gazette
.

It was chilly. Andrea stamped her feet in the shadows of the
trees and white puffs of air clouded in front of her. She wanted to go home to
a hot bath, a cup of cocoa with whipped cream and the new romance novel she’d
borrowed from the library. Jason had gone home an hour ago. He’d left the
office thinking she was right behind him but she wasn’t. There were a couple of
images on her camera that she had to delete first. Jason didn’t twig to
anything amiss when he saw the photos of the wedding. But in the background,
behind the invited guests, a woman hovered. Shelby Porter would be able to
identify her. And she’d know what Andrea had done.

The woman stepped out of the movie house across the street,
as cool and composed as though she had nothing to hide. Now that the audience
had let out, Andrea was even more anxious not to get caught loitering on the
town green at nine o’clock at night. Someone was sure to spot them together and
talk about it tomorrow because that’s what people in this town did.

But try explaining that to Janice
Feron
.
Sheriff McIntyre’s ex-fiancée had lived in Mandrake Falls for quite a few years
and she still didn’t have a clue how things worked around here.

For a successful New York interior designer, Miss
Feron
was deeply neurotic. Andrea didn’t object to the
woman’s intensity and issues but she had strong objections to being taken down
with her if this revenge scheme blew up.

Andrea waved to get Janice’s attention. The brunette snapped
her head but pretended not to notice. She was wearing a Vera Wang trench coat
and boots that were the stylish version of Andrea’s old rubber boots. The
trench was butter yellow. Janice used to be a blonde but she’d dyed her hair
light brown for some reason. Or maybe she was born a brunette and became a blonde
and has now gone back. Maybe she did it as sort of a disguise. Andrea pondered
the mystery of Janice
Feron’s
hair color as the woman
dashed across the street to meet her.

“Were you waiting long? It took me forever to get out of
there. I didn’t think anyone would still be going to this old movie theater
when Ryan opened the Millennium Mall on the highway.”

“McIntyre Construction amended their original plan to
preserve the vibrancy of Main Street. Monday is Zombie Double Feature Night. It’s
very popular.” Andrea took lip balm out of her purse and applied it. “What did
you want to see me about?”

Janice had light almond-shaped eyes, the cheekbones of a
model, and full lips. Wow, she was gorgeous, thought Andrea. Sheriff McIntyre
must’ve really loved Shelby Porter to walk out on Janice
Feron
.
It was not true that the boss was seeing the sheriff on the sly while he was still
engaged to Janice, but the rumor persisted all the same. Andrea thought it was
romantic.

Janice hoisted her shoulder bag and glanced behind her. “I
wanted to know if there’s been any blow back yet.”

“Not really.” Andrea shrugged. “I told you there wouldn’t
be. Jeremy showed up at the office, upset, but he’s not going to sue. He’s not
the type. We haven’t heard a peep out of Jocelyn, which is very strange. Has
Ryan said anything?” She tried not to sound too eager.

Janice smiled gleefully. “I sent him an email saying I was
sorry he was reduced to asking another man’s fiancée to be his date for the
wedding, but that’s what living in Mandrake Falls will do to you. The men have
to fish from the same gene pool.” Her cool blue eyes traveled over Andrea. “Ryan
was embarrassed so mission accomplished on that front. I want to know how
Shelby took it.”

“She was angry but as long as we print a correction notice,
there won’t be any lasting harm done. I just want you to know, I never meant to
hurt the paper or anyone. I only did it to break up Ryan and Jocelyn. He
deserves better.”

“Ryan McIntyre got exactly what he deserves. He embarrassed
me last fall, now it’s his turn. Did you delete the photos like I asked?
Especially the ones of me in the church.
No one has
recognized me so far. We have to keep this visit off the record for both our
sakes.” Janice smiled knowingly at Andrea. “Somehow I knew you were the right
person to recruit for this little mission of mine. You have sort of a crush on
my former brother-in-law, don’t you?”

Andrea blushed furiously. “He wasn’t your brother-in-law.
You dumped Sheriff McIntyre before you got married. I only agreed to help you
because Jocelyn Tate is a money-grubbing, brainless bitch who is only
interested in him for his money. I didn’t want her to win.”

“I’ll be honest,” Janice hugged her arms to her chest, “I
expected to get more traction out of this. I expected Jeremy Marks at least to
call Shelby Porter out.”

“That’s not his style. He was upset—like really upset but
not about the notice. He was upset that his mother was mentioned.”

“I imagine so.” Janice nodded. “You screwed up there. His
mom is dead.”

Andrea’s mouth sagged. “You knew and you didn’t tell me? You
said to make the announcement look like it was coming from his parents. You never
said anything about his mom being dead.”

“I assumed you knew. Everyone knows Jeremy Marks was raised
by his father. Actually, I wonder if Kenneth Marks has got wind of this
so-called engagement.
He
might
threaten to sue if he thinks the
Gazette
made
his son look foolish. Did Jeremy give you the sense he felt like an idiot?”

“Of course he felt like an idiot. He said it like ten times.
How do you know Jeremy’s dad?”

Janice smoothed a strand of hair out of her eyes. She
sounded bored. “Everyone knows Kenneth Marks.”

“Why, is he famous or something?”

Janice laughed. “You could say that. Kenneth Marks is Marks
Communications. He’s a billionaire heavy hitter in New York, London, Los
Angeles ... I guess the town of Mandrake Falls has more important things to do
than read the
Wall Street Journal
.”
Her smile was brittle.

“Jeremy Marks is rich?” Andrea breathed.

“Close your mouth, sweetie, you’ll catch something. Strictly
speaking,
Jeremy
is not rich, but his
father is, yes. Jeremy moved out when he was eighteen, determined to make his
own way and so far he has been a resounding failure. Kenneth Marks doesn’t see
it that way, of course, as few fathers do until they’re forced to bail their
kid out. Kenneth believes if his son is working and paying the rent, he’s a
success. He claims to be proud of Jeremy’s latest occupation—the stage manager
for an aged regional theater.” Janice shuddered. “Maybe I’ll email Kenneth the
link to the announcement. Is the
Gazette
online yet? When a man in his position sees how the
Gazette
has compromised the Marks name—actually now that I think of
it, it was a stroke of genius including Kenneth Marks’ dead wife in the notice.
That will completely infuriate him. He’s very protective of Jeremy. Best of
all, no one can blame me for it because I knew his wife was dead! Look, I’ve
got to run. I’m catching a plane back to New York in the morning and I still
have to pack.”

She reached out and for a second Andrea thought she was going
to hug her, but instead, Janice flicked some dandruff off Andrea’s shoulder.

“You know something sweetie? You could be pretty if you
tried. Not Jocelyn Tate pretty, but definitely a seven. Take my advice. If you
ever want to attract a man like Ryan McIntyre—lose ten pounds, get a makeover
and do something with your hair. You have good skin but the rest of it is a
disaster. So long, Andrea darling, and thanks for all your help! It has been
tremendously fun even if it wasn’t as explosive as I’d hoped.”

Janice dashed back across the street to the bright lights of
the movie marquee and Andrea slouched off for home. The slow build of panic she
was currently experiencing would be medicated with hot chocolate and a romance
novel. She wanted a man like Ryan McIntyre but she wasn’t going to fix the
disaster that was Andrea
Tarnham
in one night.

TREVOR OTTOWAY stood under the marquee, watching the two
women talking. They were unaware he was spying on them and even if they were
aware, that wouldn’t bother Trevor. He popped a
Raisinette
in his mouth and wondered what they were talking about.

He
knew
the woman
he saw at Michael Shannon’s wedding was Janice
Feron
and here was the proof. Jason didn’t believe him because her hair color was
different. Trevor had four sisters. Girls changed their hair color like he
changed his socks. It was Janice he saw all right and here she was again, still
in town, hanging out on the town green deep in conversation with the girl
responsible for the Classified ads.

Interesting.

He popped another
Raisinette
in
his mouth. He’d tell
Jase
about this interesting
development in the morning and let him deal with it. It probably meant nothing
... but since Andrea was the only one with access to the Classifieds template
and Janice
Feron
had a grudge against the boss ... it
fit.

Trevor pondered the mystery of the female mind, wondering
how he could work that into the zombie apocalypse novel he was working on, and
strolled off home.

LETITIA MURDOCH settled into the large armchair she had
stationed near the fire and lifted the glass of Cabernet to her lips. She took
a sip, rolling the warmth and fruit around in her mouth and gave thanks to God
for France and grapes. Then she turned her thoughts to the scene outside the
hardware store between Jocelyn and her father. Jeremy’s burst of manhood,
defending his lady. What a display!
Letitia
had felt
quite proud of him in that moment. She had a strong suspicion the engagement
announcement
was behind the drama.

It amused her that the girls at the Beauty Box thought she
was responsible for the rogue advertisement. And it was interesting that
neither Paula nor Darlene thought it was real. In particular that Paula didn’t
believe it.
Letitia
didn’t believe it either but that’s
only because she knew who wrote it. How it made it into the paper was the real
mystery. Undoubtedly, Andrea
Tarnham
would have an
explanation.

Letitia
took another sip of wine.
A bit of a dark horse
that girl. Possibly still a virgin.
Carrying a torch for Ryan McIntyre.
Yes, she had a motive
for throwing a monkey wrench into Jocelyn’s little romance. Such antics usually
came back to bite one in one’s
derriere
.

Poor Jocelyn appeared quite humbled and miserable when
Jeremy helped her into the car. You could’ve heard a pin drop in the crowd.
Letitia
Murdoch wasn’t surprised to see them together. She
was no fool, though Jocelyn Tate certainly was. The girl made her life far more
difficult than it had to be.

Letitia
sighed. Still, youth must
have its way. At some point Jocelyn Tate was bound to realize she had latent
feelings for Jeremy Marks and that’s why she tortured the boy so.
Letitia
had eyes in her head; she could see what was going
on between those two during rehearsals this past winter.

Or perhaps Jocelyn really was a fool and Jeremy would
eventually fall in love with someone else. That would be the best outcome, if
Letitia
was honest. Jeremy would suffer for a time but
there would be another love one day. There always was. And the boy was only
twenty-three for heaven’s sake. There would be many loves before he found the
right girl. Jeremy’s problem was that he was convinced Jocelyn was the only
girl for him. For the life of her,
Letitia
could not
understand what that boy saw in Jocelyn Tate. Whatever it was, no one else did.
She reminded
Letitia
of that actress her father had
fallen in love with.
Another gold-digger.

It wouldn’t do to tell Kenneth Marks about his son’s love
interest. The man worried too much as it was. Kenneth Marks called on occasion
to ask how his son was coping with the job.
Letitia
knew that what he was really asking was how Jeremy was coping with being alone.
The boy was awkward; he’d never had a real girlfriend.
Letitia’s
answer was
what of it
? Why were
adults in such a hurry to see young people in relationships? He was alone but
not lonely she told Kenneth. Kenneth Marks would like to change that for his
son, but as the slogan goes: you can’t buy love.

Jocelyn would disagree, mused
Letitia
.
If ever a girl’s love was for sale, that one’s was.

PAULA DUNLOP climbed into her flannel pajamas and bunny
slippers and curled up on the sofa under the crocheted throw blanket she’d had
since childhood. She picked up the remote and flicked through the movie
selections for the evening. Nothing but romance movies and she couldn’t bear to
watch people falling in love tonight. Her hand drifted to the box of chocolates
on the coffee table. Paula lifted a rum-n-butter infused caramel to her mouth
as
The Hunger Games
flicked across
the screen.
Nope
. There was the kiss
between
Katniss
and
Peeta
.
Paula pushed the arrow button. There had to be something on with no love scenes
in it. Reading wasn’t an alternative. Every book on her keeper shelf was a
romance.