Something Precious Read online

  "I guess it's true that time flies when you're having fun."

  I smiled. "Yeah, I guess it is."

  Chapter 5

  I really couldn't ask for a more comfortable living situation or better landlords. Bill and Jana Reynolds were truly the salt of the earth. They lived in a beautiful, multi-million-dollar home that was situated on San Marco Island in one of Miami's nicest neighborhoods.

  I had shared their lovely two-bedroom guesthouse with Abigail for the last few years, but for just over two weeks, I had been on my own. It was literally the first time in my life that I was living alone, and it was still new enough that it didn't feel real. Part of me felt like Abigail was just on vacation and would be back.

  Her getting married and moving out definitely made me reevaluate things. I wasn't in a huge hurry to move out of Bill and Jana's place, but I knew I couldn't live there forever. Given the amount I was paying for rent, they were making a financial sacrifice to let me remain their tenant. They weren't charging Abigail and me enough rent as it was, and they were only making half that amount now that Abigail had moved out.

  I had mentioned the idea of paying them more when Abigail and Ash first got engaged and I knew she'd be moving out, but they brushed it off like they wouldn't hear of it. I was doing better and better with my photography business, but there was just no way I could pay them what their guesthouse was worth. Even if I did pick up Abigail's slack, it still wouldn’t be enough. They had never said anything about wanting me to move out, and probably never would, but I knew it was a situation I couldn't take advantage of forever.

  Bill and Jana were on my mind because I was about to eat dinner with them.

  Ash and Abigail had just returned from their honeymoon, and they were coming over to eat with us and look at wedding photos.

  I could smell the food on the grill as soon as I opened my front door and stepped onto the terrace. It was a hot May afternoon, but Bill and Jana's backyard had lots of coverings for shade with ceiling fans and misters. And if all else failed, you could always take a dip in the gorgeous swimming pool.

  It was the most comfortable backyard ever.

  I had made cookies.

  Chocolate chip. Nothing fancy, just the store-bought mix where I added butter and an egg and then baked them. They were my favorites, though, and I always bought good quality butter and eggs, which made them taste even better.

  Bill was the only person outside at the moment, and he was tending to the grill, so he didn't see me come out of my house.

  "Smells good!" I yelled.

  Bill, holding a pair of tongs, looked up from the grill with a huge smile. He made a face at me and squeezed the tongs like a crab using its pinchers. "It's gonna be good," he said. "Jana marinated it overnight in her secret sauce."

  "What kind of meat is it?" I asked, coming closer.

  "Chicken," he said. "And I'm doing those little bacon poppers everybody likes."

  "Yum!"

  "What'd you bring, fudge?" he asked nudging his chin in the direction of the box I was holding.

  Fudge was my other go-to dessert. I had an easy recipe, which involved chocolate chips, butter, and sweetened condensed milk. Bill loved my fudge—especially when I made it with extra walnuts. I shook my head, letting him know it wasn't fudge this time.

  "Cookies." I said.

  "Chocolate chip?" he asked.

  I nodded.

  "I'll take one of those right now," he said, lifting his eyebrows. "And we don't have to mention this to my lovely wife." He smiled and then opened his mouth like he expected me to open the box and put one into it.

  I smiled and shook my head at him, but I loved that he liked my desserts—it made me feel good to make him something sweet after all he and Jana did for me. I took half of a cookie out of the box and placed it into his mouth, laughing as he chomped it. He made a sound in his throat like it was the best thing he had ever tasted.

  "I'll take that other piece," he said with his mouth full.

  I did the same thing with the other half of the cookie, placing it gingerly into his mouth when he opened it.

  "I know you are not standing out here feeding him candy." Abigail's voice came from the driveway, and we turned to find her and Ash heading into the backyard through the side gate.

  "Chocolate chip cookies," Bill said with his mouth still full. He said it in a tone that was basically defending himself, which made Abigail laugh.

  She and I smiled as we walked toward each other. We had talked on the phone, but hadn't seen each other since the wedding. She was holding a book of photos, and I was holding the box of cookies, but we hugged anyway. Ash saw our predicament, and took the book from her before taking the box from me.

  "You look so beautiful!" I said, pulling back to look at her.

  "I was gonna say the same thing about you," she said. "I missed you."

  "I missed you, too. I can't believe you're a married woman. How does it feel saying 'I have a husband'? Do you feel old?"

  She laughed. "No. But it does feel weird. I still can't believe I have a whole different last name. I'm still trying to figure out how I want to sign it."

  Ash handed us back our things so we could take them inside. "Hey," I said, taking the time to greet him and give him a hug as he handed me the box of cookies.

  "Hey," he returned."

  "How was Paris?"

  "Pretty French," he said, teasing me.

  "Abigail said you got to meet the Prime Minister."

  "We did," Ash said.

  "We had this big dinner with him. They treated us like we were the important ones," Abigail said with a wide-eyed expression.

  I shook my head. "It must be crazy having fans all over the world."

  Ash grinned graciously and started to say something.

  "Y'all better save your stories," Bill said. "Jana's gonna want to hear all this."

  Abigail and I kept talking as we began to walk inside. Ash stayed outside with Bill. I could hear them talking about Bill's new boat as we walked away. It was parked across the street on the dock, and obviously Ash noticed it.

  Bill and Jana had an old, small, tan poodle named Margo who barely left the house. Her barker was sounding worse and worse nowadays, but she managed a few hoarse barks as we walked in the sliding glass door. Jana heard Margo and came into the living room, smiling when she saw us.

  "I'm sorry," she said, crossing the room. "I was on the phone with my sister. Have y'all been here long?"

  "We just got here." Abigail said, hugging her. "I brought wedding pictures. I just picked them up last night."

  Jana reached out for the book of proofs. "Oh, that's wonderful. I can't wait to look at them. Kristen got some good ones on her camera, too." She started to open it, but then hesitated and looked at Abigail like maybe she was overstepping her bounds. "May I?"

  "Of course, that's why I brought them."

  Jana smiled and turned her attention back to the book. "Is Ash here?" she asked as she cracked it open.

  "He's outside with Bill," Abigail said. "I think he saw y'all's new boat."

  "Bill's baby," Jana said, shaking her head.

  I set the box of cookies on the counter.

  "What'd you bring?" Jana asked when she noticed me.

  "Chocolate chip," I said.

  Jana's eyes widened as she regarded the box. Slowly, she put down the book. Then, as if the temptation was too much, she leaned forward, opened the box, got out a cookie, and popped it into her mouth. "Don't tell Bill I'm eating this before dinner," she said.

  "Oh, I won't," I assured her, turning to look at Abigail with a conspiratorial grin.

  For the next few minutes, we gathered around the table in the breakfast nook and began looking through the photos. We talked about the wedding, and their honeymoon. Abigail had just asked me about the fish tank, and I was about to tell her how much I was enjoying it when Ash came into the house.

  We all looked his way and noticed that he was carrying a tray. "Bil
l said he needs another plate," he said, talking to Jana. She instantly stood up to search for one.

  "Bill said you were expecting someone for dinner," Ash said, looking at me after he set the tray down in the kitchen.

  "Who, Preston? Oh, yeah, he's coming."

  "The guy from our wedding?" Abigail asked.

  I glanced at her to find that she was staring at me with an expression so intense it made me laugh.

  "Yes," I said.

  "Are you dating him now?" she asked.

  "I don’t know if I'd call it dating, but yeah, we're hanging out or whatever."

  "He seems like a nice guy," Jana said.

  "You've met him?" Abigail asked, still looking shocked. "Has he been over here? How many times?"

  It made me laugh that she was being so intense.

  "What?" she said. "I didn't know you were seeing someone. Why didn't you tell me this?"

  "Well, you've been a little busy," I said. "Plus, it's no big deal. It's not like it's serious or anything."

  "Preston Gentry?" Ash asked, coming to stand closer to us.

  "Yes."

  "Does he play in the orchestra?" Abigail asked.

  Ash nodded. "He's a cellist."

  "Not real serious like Ash or anything," I said. "He's an engineer by day. He just does music as a hobby."

  "Pretty serious hobby if he's playing with those guys," Abigail said. "He's gotta be pretty good."

  I shrugged. "I've never heard him play, actually. I mean, besides when I saw the whole orchestra perform, but I didn't know him then. I guess I'll have to wait till next season—if he does it again."

  "He's pretty good," Ash said, nodding as if trying to remember. "I really don't know him that well, but you have to be pretty good to play at that level."

  "How long have y'all been seeing each other?" Abigail asked, shaking her head a little. She was still thrown off that she knew nothing about it.

  "Since the wedding," I said, smiling at her since that was an obvious question.

  "How many times?" she asked, clarifying. "Every day? Do y'all talk on the phone? Do you text? Have y'all kissed?"

  I was already giggling, but I laughed in earnest when she said that. "Oh my gosh, Abigail," I said.

  "What? I can't believe you've been dating someone for two weeks and you haven't mentioned it."

  "Because you have other stuff going on. You've been a little bit busy—getting married and traveling to France, and meeting the Prime Minister and everything."

  "I know, but I still can't believe you haven't mentioned it."

  Jana called Ash into the kitchen so she could hand him a plate to take to Bill, and Abigail used the opportunity to stare at me with wide eyes. "Seriously, it's crazy that you're seeing someone you met at the wedding," she whispered. "Do you like him? Have y'all kissed?"

  "Yes," I whispered, glancing into the kitchen to make sure that Ash and Jana couldn't hear me. "A little. A peck. I don't know."

  "What do you mean you don't know?"

  "I don't know. We're taking it slow. I'm taking it slow. I like him and everything, but I don't know. He's older."

  "Like how old?"

  "Early thirties." I said, shrugging and shaking my head like I wasn't sure. I knew he was thirty-three or thirty-four, but I wasn't positive of his exact age. We had talked about it vaguely, and something he had said made it register that he was seven or eight years older than me.

  That probably wasn't the reason I was taking it slow, though. I felt like I was just doing that because I wanted to. Preston and I had seen each other five or six times since the wedding. He made it obvious that he wanted physical contact with me, but he was gracious and took the hint when signaled that I wanted to go slow.

  Our physical contact had been limited to accidental brushes and goodbye hugs. The last time I saw him, he leaned in to kiss me on the cheek, and I turned, placing a quick kiss on his mouth.

  He had smiled at me for doing that.

  I knew Preston wanted things to move more quickly, but he seemed content to let me go at my pace. I didn't say all this to Abigail, though, and I could tell the suspense was killing her.

  "What's he like?" she asked.

  I smiled. "You'll meet him in a few minutes."

  Chapter 6

  Preston showed up with flowers.

  Roses.

  Red ones.

  He had with him six extra-long-stemmed roses in a simple but elegant bouquet that was definitely not picked up at Publix on the way over. They, no doubt, came from a nice flower shop.

  Receiving them was slightly embarrassing, but sweet at the same time. I did my best to pretend to be totally confident with it. I did have to hide my amusement at the way Abigail gawked at me when Preston wasn't looking.

  We were all in the backyard when he got there, and we spent a few minutes making introductions and surface-level conversation before Abigail said, "We should go put your flowers inside." I knew she just wanted to talk to me, but I went with it.

  "I'll go with you," Jana offered. "I have a vase that would be perfect for them."

  "He's cute," was the first thing Abigail said to me when the door closed behind us. "And I can't believe he brought flowers. You were acting like y'all were barely talking."

  "We are barely talking," I said.

  "Sorry, but roses equal more than barely talking," she said.

  "Maybe on his end," Jana said reasonably.

  Abigail looked at me. "Do you like him?"

  I shrugged. "I think so. I'm just getting to know him. He's nice though."

  "He's handsome, too," she said.

  Jana stood at the sink. She filled the vase before unwrapping the roses and setting them in the water. "I think the flowers were a nice touch," she said, arranging them.

  I was just getting ready to say that it was nice of him, but I stopped when I noticed Jana moving. Something caught her eye, and she quickly shifted to peer out of the kitchen window.

  "Oh good, Jake made it," she said.

  "Jake's here?" Abigail asked. "I didn't know he was coming."

  Jana turned, setting the vase on the counter. "We weren't sure," she said. "Bill told him he should come over for dinner, but we hadn't heard back."

  It was remarkable, really.

  Terrible, but remarkable.

  Even after all this time—even after I had resigned to being nothing but friends with this guy for the rest of my life—still the very mention of his name made me nervous and jittery.

  It shouldn't surprise me that they had invited him. His mother had passed away in an accident years before, and his dad, Bill's brother, had developed a drinking problem since then. Bill and Jana were like parents to Jake.

  The first thing to cross my mind was to ask whether or not he was bringing his girlfriend with him, but by now, I was a pro at hiding my curiosity when it came to Jake.

  I did, however, casually excuse myself to use the restroom.

  I stared at myself in the mirror when I got in there. My hair was pulled into a ponytail, and I adjusted it, tightening it, tucking things, and making sure there were no hairs out of place. I stared at my face, wishing I had some powder and lip-gloss.

  I took a deep calming breath.

  Why? Why did Jake still have the ability to do this to me? I should be checking myself out, touching myself up for Preston. Preston was the one who cared enough to bring me flowers.

  As I sat there having these thoughts I realized that Preston felt for me the way I felt for Jake. That thought pulled on my heartstrings. It made me feel bad for Preston, like I didn't want to leave him hanging.

  Honestly, I was frustrated with myself for having it so bad for Jake. I wished so very much that I was immune to him. I regarded myself in the mirror, telling myself over and over again that I should just be able to make myself like Preston and not Jake. Preston was talented, smart, and handsome, and I was a fool for being so taken with someone who wouldn't give me the time of day.

  By the time
I was ready to leave the restroom, I had convinced myself that I could overcome my feelings for Jake and move on. I would go out there and prove it. I deserved better than loving someone who didn’t love me, and Preston deserved better than trying to pay attention to someone who ignored him. I simply couldn’t do the same thing to him that Jake had done to me all these years.

  I decided right then that I would ignore my feelings for Jake and give Preston the attention he deserved. I was really confident and sure of myself as I turned off the light and headed back toward the kitchen.

  Then, just like magic, all that confidence and reassurance melted away the second I walked around the corner and saw Jake standing there.

  He turned to face me when he saw me come into the room. "Hey, there she is!" he said, dimples showing in all their proud glory as he smiled.

  He had on a baseball cap with shorts and a t-shirt, and he reached across his aunt to take a slice of cucumber off the counter. He popped it into his mouth, continuing to smile as he chewed.

  "Aunt Jana said these were for you," he said, motioning toward the roses that were on the counter. He lifted his eyebrows, teasing me. I glanced toward the backyard but couldn't see Bill, Preston, or Ash from where I was standing.

  "Jake came in through the house," Jana said when she noticed where I was looking. "Kristen's beau is out back with your uncle Bill," she added, explaining to Jake.

  "He's not my beau," I said. It was by sheer instinct that I said it, and I regretted it instantly. I had just decided to be strong—to get over Jake and give Preston the respect he deserved. "We're just talking or whatever," I said, back-peddling a little.

  "Is he that guy you were dancing with at Abby's wedding?" Jake asked.

  My heart soared that he remembered who I was dancing with or that I was dancing at all. I had a split-second internal battle where I rejoiced, thinking he was jealous, and then I had to internally chastise myself for even caring what he said.

  I smiled like none of this was going on in my mind. "Yeah," I said. "We met at their wedding. He knows Ash from the symphony. He's a musician."