LITMIR.BIZ

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Jack said before he realized Shelly had obviously turned him down. Otherwise his son wouldn’t be moping around, as miserable as he’d ever been.

      “It would be terrific if she’d agreed.” Eric’s voice throbbed with pain.

      Jack wanted to kick himself for being so insensitive. “I’m sorry.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Women can be unreasonable.”

      “You’re telling me?” Eric asked.

      Jack chuckled.

      “You and Olivia seem to be getting along okay, though. I like her, Dad. She’s good for you.”

      “I like her, too.” They got along exceptionally well—or had until recently. In the last few months, it seemed that life kept getting in the way of their developing relationship.

      “Listen, Dad,” Eric said, straightening. “It’s time I got on with my life. Shelly’s made it obvious that we’re through. I figured she’d come to her senses and we could settle this, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.”

      “Not for lack of trying on your part.” Although Jack liked Shelly a lot, he thought she was being more than a little stubborn. He understood her feeling of betrayal about the fact that Eric had accused her of sleeping with another man, but his son had turned himself inside out in an effort to appease her. Apparently nothing he said or did could satisfy Shelly.

      “None of that matters anymore.”

      Jack studied his son. His voice rang with a determination and strength Jack hadn’t heard in a long time. “What do you mean?”

      “I’ve applied within the company for a transfer.”

      “To where?”

      “Reno, Nevada.”

      Suddenly tense, Jack clenched his fists. “And you got it?”

      “Not yet, but I’m first on the list. I should know in the next couple of months. Once I hear, you can have your house back.” He said this with a flippant air. “I’m sure that’ll be a big relief.”

      “True—and not true.” Jack didn’t want any misunderstanding; he craved his privacy but was grateful for this opportunity to know his son better. “I’ve enjoyed having you around, even though you drive me crazy.”

      “We drive each other crazy, but it’s been good. I owe you a great deal, Dad.”

      They hugged quickly, and Eric walked toward his room. “I know it isn’t going to make any difference, but I think I’ll send Shelly flowers for Valentine’s Day.”

      “Flowers,” Jack repeated. He’d make sure Olivia received a big bouquet, too. It was the traditional gift.

      “I’ll leave the card blank,” Eric added. “She’ll know they’re from me.” With that, he disappeared into the bedroom.

      So Eric would be moving out and from the sound of it, the transfer would come soon. Jack sank down on the sofa, closing his eyes. He decidedly had mixed feelings about this, but there was one major benefit. He could get his own love life back on track.

      He liked everything about Olivia—her looks, her smarts, her class. He loved the way she laughed at his stupid jokes and how she made him feel when he was with her. Okay, okay, he’d admit he often thought about making love to her. It hadn’t happened yet, but…

      Excitement flooded him at the prospect of resuming their relationship, picking up where they’d left off. He’d learned a long time ago that Olivia prized honesty above all else. Knowing that, he planned on being completely straightforward; he’d confess his feelings and ask where she felt the relationship was going—and where she wanted it to go.

      Standing he reached for his coat. “I’m heading out for a while,” he called to Eric.

      Thinking about Olivia made him miss her even more. They’d only talked once that week, very briefly. When he’d gone to visit Charlotte at the hospital, Olivia hadn’t been there. Jack didn’t feel he could press Charlotte about her daughter’s whereabouts, but he was curious. Then, as he was leaving, he’d run into her in the hospital lobby; she’d been with her brother and had made somewhat perfunctory introductions, her mind clearly on something else.

      It probably wasn’t proper form to show up unannounced, especially at a stressful time like this, but he did have a good excuse. Charlotte wrote the Seniors’ Page each week and did a fabulous job of it. Her friend Laura had willingly stepped in, but Jack needed to know Charlotte’s prognosis and when he could expect her back. It wasn’t a question he felt comfortable asking the older woman, so he’d use that as an excuse to drop in on Olivia.

      As he drove down Lighthouse Road, Jack whistled, his mood light. The situation with Eric and Shelly wasn’t ideal, but his son had done everything possible to salvage the relationship. He didn’t blame the boy for wanting to get on with his life.

      Jack loved Olivia’s big old-fashioned house with the dormers, the square-paned windows and the wraparound porch. Light blazed from the front windows, spilling warmth onto the porch. His heart swelled as he anticipated her opening the door, imagining her smile, her kiss….

      Jack parked and hurried up the steps to her door. He leaned against the doorjamb, struck what he hoped was a sexy pose and rang the bell.

      Only a few seconds passed before the door opened—and Jack came eye to eye with Stan Lockhart, Olivia’s ex-husband. Jack immediately straightened. He’d met Stan last May and had disliked him on sight. From the look the other man gave him now, the feeling was mutual.

      “Who is it?” Olivia called from some distance away. She was probably in the kitchen. Music from Credence Clearwater Revival played in the background.

      “Your boyfriend’s here,” Stan shouted over his shoulder.

      Jack noticed that he was left to wait on the porch until Olivia arrived. The instant she got there, she threw open the door and greeted him effusively. Grabbing his hands, she pulled him into the house.

      “I didn’t mean to interrupt your party,” he said, feeling like an intruder. He noticed she wore the bracelet he’d given her and that helped ease his mind.

      “You’re not,” she insisted, wrapping her arm around his. “You’ve met my brother, Will.”

      Jack awkwardly nodded in Will’s direction.

      “And of course you know Stan.”

      Again the brief nod.

      “We’re celebrating Mom’s release from the hospital. She’s doing really well, better than anyone expected. She’ll be coming home in the morning! The doctors assured us they got all the cancer, which is a huge relief. She’s still going to have some precautionary chemotherapy, but everything looks very hopeful.”

      “That is good news,” Jack said. His eyes narrowed slightly as he focused his attention on Stan.

      “Stan and I are old friends,” Will explained. “This was the only time we could all get together before I fly back to Atlanta.”

      Jack appreciated the explanation. “I won’t keep you,” he said. “I just stopped by on the spur of the moment to see how Charlotte’s doing.”

      “Please stay,” Olivia urged.

      He shook his head, invented an excuse and left as soon as he could. Olivia walked him out to his car but not before he saw Stan watching her. A chill went through Jack, leaving him as cold as ice. In that split second, Jack had read the other man’s look.

      Stan Lockhart was in love with Olivia and he wanted her back.

      * * *

      Grace grabbed her workout clothes and headed for the YWCA for her regular Wednesday-night class. Because of Charlotte’s surgery, Olivia had skipped the last two weeks, but she’d promised

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