Chapter Fifteen
*Diane*
“Aging is not 'lost youth' but a new stage of opportunity and strength.”
Betty Friedan
Eventually, Jason slowed the bike. As we pulled over at what initially looked like just a thicket of bushes and tall trees, I spotted a narrow, cleared space between the trunks and hedge. He offered his hand. I took it to disembark from the bike, my legs a little unsteady. This was the first time I’d been on a motorcycle. All things considered, I felt like I’d handled the thrilling unsteadiness of it well.
Jason carefully pulled the bike into the small clearing, presumably to hide it and us from the passersby on the road, then finally cut the engine. I’d followed him in, and he held out his hands for the helmet.
I passed it over, and then belatedly lamented the state of my hair. It must’ve been a fright.
“You’re beautiful,” he said, watching me pat at my hair with a soft smile.
“I’m disheveled and messy.”
His eyes kept on twinkling. “I’ve seen you messier.”
That made me blush and I breathed a laugh, twisting away from him so he couldn’t see the red staining my cheeks and neck. My embarrassment was quickly forgotten as I came face-to-face with the view. Our little house had a view off the deck facing west, mostly of the sky and treetops. We’d often watched the sunset from there.
This was something different. We must’ve been facing due north. The sun to our left was almost fully cloaked by a puffy cloud and, yes, the sky was certainly beautiful with its oranges and pinks and purples. But below, instead of just trees, entire hills and mountains spread out before us, the blue mist clinging to the valleys.
“We must be really high up.” I shivered because it was cold and the wind lifted up my hair. I had to smooth it back and twist it to keep it from flying around my face.
“We are.” I heard and sensed Jason come up behind me a moment before something warm, heavy, and smelling of him settled on my shoulders.
I glanced down and realized he’d placed his leather jacket on me. “Aren’t you cold?” I frowned up at him. “I already have a jacket.”
“I’m not cold,” he said, coming to stand at my shoulder, his deep voice hitting me like another blanket of warmth.
We stood for a bit, looking out over the shifting mists in the valleys, admiring the speckled last rays of sunlight as they graced the leafless trees and evergreens on the mountains. I thought about this moment, and all the moments that had come before, and how much I’d treasure them no matter what happened between us next. For once, the silence didn’t make me squirm or fret, probably because I dreaded the end of it.
Which was why I was surprised when I heard myself ask, “If I break things off because of you following me around last year, what will you do?”
“I’ve been wanting to leave Green Valley for a while,” he said, his answer immediate, like the matter hadn’t required any thought.
I reared back and looked at his profile, this information catching me unprepared. “You’d leave? Because of me?”
“No. Not because of you.” His eyes were narrowed and focused on the horizon. “Because of me.”
“Because you followed me?”
“Partly, but not really. I know, if I did stay, I’d probably . . .”
“What?”
Frowning, he glanced at me. “I’d fret about your safety, with your ex out there and his woman, with Miller running around. I’d drive myself crazy if I stayed and wasn’t able to ensure your safety.”
“So, you’d leave?” I faced him fully and tugged his jacket closed against the wind. “And the Wraiths would be okay with that?”
“I would leave, and they wouldn’t have a say. When I’m ready to go, I’ll go.”
“And they won’t come after you?”
He scoffed. “They could try, but their reach isn’t what it used to be. I’d keep out of the southeast and I’d be fine.”
Something in me relaxed at this news and how sure he sounded just as something else excited and tensed. I found myself batting away crazy thoughts like, Maybe Jason and I could run off together.
See? Crazy.
I needed some perspective. Folks don’t go running off with men who follow them for months. It simply wasn’t done. He was probably the jealous type, and I wouldn’t be allowed to speak to other men. Then it would get crazier and crazier the longer we were together. He likely wouldn’t let me out of his sight, and I’d be stuck in another bad situation.
Except . . . He didn’t seem at all like that.
But then, I’d never been a good judge of character when it came to my personal life. In business, I could read people like a book. But when my feelings were involved, I’d always let hopes cloud my judgement. And I hoped Jason wasn’t a jealous, possessive jerk. Perhaps I hoped it so much, I’d decided it was true.
Inspecting him out of the corner of my eye, I watched carefully and asked, “What if I’d gone on a date when you were watching me last year? Would you have followed me?”
“Yes.”
I heaved a sad sigh. Well, there’s my answer. He is a possessive, jealous—
“This wasn’t—isn’t—a possession thing,” he said haltingly, almost like he could read my mind and knew the direction of my thoughts. “I wouldn’t have intervened, I wouldn’t have interrupted. There were a few times I saw you flirting with folks and it didn’t—I wasn’t upset. Chris Williams, for example.”
“That young deputy? What? I did not flirt with Chris Williams!”
Jason lifted an eyebrow, his mouth twisting to the side like he thought I was cute. But there was no jealousy there.
I huffed. “Okay, maybe I did flirt with Chris Williams.” The young deputy and I always went to the Piggly Wiggly on the same night of the week at the same time and he was a cutie pie. “But it was harmless. I am old enough to be his momma.”
“But you are fine enough to catch his notice. Most men are visual creatures. He liked what he saw and age has nothing to do with it. And if you and Chris—who, I admit, is a fine young man—had ever taken that step, I honestly would’ve been relieved.”
“What?” I felt my spin stiffen. “Why?”
“I wouldn’t need to run a background check on Chris Williams, and then you would’ve had someone to keep you safe from your ex and his woman. And, apparently, Miller.”
I squinted at him, trying to spot a lie. “Is that true?” If his words weren’t the truth then Jason was a world class liar.
“That is true. Prior to us trying to make a go of this, who you spent time with was none of my business, as long as they didn’t do anything to make it my business.”
“Like what? What would make it your business?”
“If they harmed you.”
Huh.
I turned back to the view. “So, I’m supposed to think of you like a guardian angel instead of someone who invaded my privacy?” I wasn’t sure who I was asking, him or me.
“I’m no angel, gorgeous.” In the darkening dusk he sent me a look that had a shiver racing down my spine, but not a bad one.