“Running before we even broach the subject?” When he saw the vacant stare, he knew she’d already forgotten about the two of them. “Are you still musing about the phone call?”
“You must admit its unusual. How many Sheki’s do you know?” He shrugged his shoulder. “Exactly. If that stranger invited my mother to crash this vacation, I will be livid. And how would he even know her?”
“If your mom is single, maybe they dated – before he met his wife, of course.”
“She’s between husbands at the moment, but that man is certainly not her type.”
“How do you determine who is attracted to another person and why? Look at you and me,” said Craig.
“Yes, look at us. Opposite ends of the power tug-of-war. You’re happy with mediocre whereas I am only interested in the exceptional.”
The conversation reached an uncomfortable level. As much as his head wanted to pursue the depths of this woman and see what made her tick, his heart objected. He backed off – they had plenty of time, this was only day one of the vacation.
“So, are you still game for the beach after breakfast?”
Selene groaned. “I was hoping for a massage at the spa, loosen up all these tense muscles.”
“Oh, the soak in the tub didn’t do that?” He was being catty but couldn’t help himself.
“You have no idea the stress I’ve been under and I think it unkindly of you to belittle my need for a little pampering.”
“No problem. I won’t have you blaming me for providing a lousy vacation, since it will probably be your last for another two years once you find a way to get back in your bosses good books.”
“You’re talking work, darling,” she said playfully. “I thought that was against the rules.” She kissed him on the cheek. “Maybe I can meet you at the beach later.”
“Sure, sounds like a plan,” he agreed as she started down the stairs. He was confused. Was she stringing him along? He wondered what role he played in her never-ending quest to get to the proverbial top of the ladder.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
He spun around and stared into Jolene’s magnetic blue eyes. She’d tied her long auburn hair into a high ponytail, the causal style that tormented his sleep at night. He noted the bathing suit under her coverup and raised an eyebrow.
“My thoughts aren’t worth much these days so don’t waste your pennies. I see you’re headed to the beach. Would you care to go for a canoe ride?”
“That’s not fair, Craig Landers. You know I can’t say no to anything involving water. But I must warn you, it’s been a while and my muscles are underdeveloped.”
“Muscles appear to be the topic of the morning,” he growled with a bit too much attitude. When she cast a questioning glance his way, he muttered, “forget it. We’re both rusty but I’m sure we will rise to the occasion and not be left stranded in the middle of the lake.”
“You always could out row me, even on your worst day, so we won’t pretend I’ll be pulling equal weight,” Jolene said.
Craig laughed and felt the tension leave his body. “I have no doubt, Jolene, you will rise to the challenge. There are too many competitive bones in your body.”
She grinned, and at that moment he could have easily swept her into his arms and surrendered to a life of absentee girlfriend – with her. He should never have let her talk him into leaving Sebring in search for the elusive girl-next-door vision of happiness he prized.
“You know this is not a good idea.” Jolene nodded toward the figure of his girlfriend disappearing into the dining room.
“Oh, yeah, I suppose I’m expected for breakfast first. Then Selene is off to the spa for the morning. I’ll catch up with you on the beach.”
“I won’t be a third-party has-been. If you have a good thing going with the beauty queen, hanging with me, no matter how innocent, is not a good idea. She may get jealous and all your best efforts in winning her will go out the window when she decides to throw you to the curb.”
“Not to worry, Miss Sumpter. I’ve been there before.”
Jolene bit her lip. “Craig…”
“No, we will not dig up old dirt. We were friends before taking that giant step into never-land, and I miss that.”
“I thought the very same thing last night. Surely in this day and age, people of the opposite sex can still be friends, right – even the uptight-type segment of the population must follow that trend?”
“Uptight? Is that your definition of Selene?” Craig asked.
“So far,” she said in a playful teasing voice that sounded like music to his ears.
“Enjoy your breakfast, Jolene,” he said as left to find Selene.
All the while he ate the fully loaded meat omelette and Selene nibbled at a piece of dry toast and bowl of fruit, he could not stop his mind from wandering. Selene noticed.
“You are distracted, my dear. Are you pouting because I won’t come and lounge with you on the beach this morning?”
“Lounge? Oh, that was not part of the initial invitation. I’m going canoeing. The lake is calm and inviting.”
“All the more reason I am glad to be headed for the spa.” Selene said. “I did mention tiny boats were not my thing, right?”
“You did. I ran into a friend from my hometown. Maybe I can double up with Joe.”
Why did he say, Joe? He had called his ex that upon occasion, when they were deeply immersed in some competitive sport. Probably that was it. Or was he fearful that Selene might not think
