Gus stared at him long and hard. Jayce wished he’d get his eyes back on the road.
“You’re sunk, kid. You already fell for the Schrock girl.” He shook his head. “And you’re deluded if you think she’d everleave this place to go frolicking around with you in Los Angeles.”
“I don’t think that.” He paused. “Never mind. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“But you did.” Gus’s belly jiggled again, along with his jowls. He almost looked like a normal, happy person when he laughed.But it always seemed to be at someone else’s expense.
“Why are you even going on this trip? I thought you were just an extra in one scene.” Jayce was sure Gus was in for a bigdisappointment when he didn’t show up the slightest bit in the film.
The old guy huffed. “Because people almost drown when I’m not there.”
He had a point. Jayce ran a hand through his hair. With the windows open, it was blowing all over the place.
“You need a haircut.” Gus ground the gears again, missed one, and landed in neutral as he made a turn, then coasted untilhe finally shifted into the right gear.
“So do you.” Jayce eyed the gray ponytail that went a little past Gus’s shoulders.
The man actually smiled a little.
Jayce let his thoughts drift back to Evelyn. Gus was right. He had no business getting involved with her romantically. But had the old man also been right about him having already fallen for Evelyn? Jayce had never fallen for anyone so quickly. Maybe he’d just never found the right woman. And that was a terrifying thought since he’d be leaving soon.
When they arrived at the caverns, it was the same drill as the other days. Jayce did almost all of the heavy lifting, andwhen the boats left the docking area, he stayed behind, wishing he had the guts to go with them. It was weird that he feltlike Veronica would be safe because Gus, of all people, would be with them. Life had a strange way of twisting things intomaking sense when they shouldn’t.
He sat on the dock. Billy would be in the car outside, likely napping or reading a crime novel. Jayce was going to enjoy somequiet time, then maybe he’d see if Billy wanted to get something to eat. Their other driver, Arlen, had come down with a badcold not long after they’d arrived. Jayce preferred Billy anyway. Both men were about his father’s age, but Arlen’s personalitytended to mirror his father’s. Billy was straightforward and an all-around nice guy.
Jayce studied his surroundings. Stalactites hung low as the river wound around the corner inside the cave. Giovanni had saidthere were crayfish in the water, and he’d even seen a few bats. But it was dark, only lit by handheld lights most of thetime, until they reached the places they were going to film. There Jayce was sure everything was lit up like a baseball stadium.
He said a quick prayer that everyone would stay safe. Then he thought about Evelyn. Gus’s warning merged with his own, buthe couldn’t control the way he felt. Or maybe he could. He just didn’t want to.
* * *
Evelyn managed to sneak out of the house without a lecture from either of her parents. So far, her father hadn’t said anythingto her, but she’d overheard her parents talking. Her dad wasn’t happy she was spending time with an English fellow. Her motherdid her best to calm his worry, telling him the situation would phase itself out when Jayce left.
But that fact and her own worries weren’t going to deter her from seeing him again. She’d convinced herself that they couldremain friends when he went back home. Hopefully, they could write letters or have an occasional phone conversation. She wassurprised when she pulled into The Peony Inn and the black limousines weren’t there. Neither was Gus’s truck, and Jayce hadbeen riding with him.
She tethered her horse, unsure if she should wait outside or go in. The new employee, Rose, came out on the porch and waved,so Evelyn decided it would be rude not to go inside. Jayce had said to pick him up around four o’clock. She was a little early,but not by much. She waved back at Rose, crossed the front yard, and went up the porch steps.
“Wie bischt? Are you here to see Lizzie or Esther?” Rose smiled, and Evelyn was momentarily stunned by how pretty she was. She hadn’tpaid much attention the last time she’d seen her, but now, standing in front of her, it was impossible not to see. “I’m notsure where Esther is. Lizzie was napping earlier. She naps late in the afternoon sometimes. But I have kaffi if you’d like to come in. I also have muffins made. Lizzie put a roast in the oven earlier, a really big roast. It smells heavenly in the haus.” She pushed open the screen. “Come in. I’m happy to have company. We didn’t get to talk much when we met.”
As Evelyn stepped into the living room she wondered how much anyone else got to say in Rose’s presence. “I’m actually hereto see Jayce.” She kept her focus on Rose to see if the woman’s expression fell, but she held her smile.
“Isn’t Jayce wonderful? He’s teaching me to cook. I’m not very gut at it.” Her expression soured briefly before she was all smiles again. “He left a chicken salad recipe for me, and Lizzieand Esther were very impressed when I prepared it, so I’m hoping they will just be patient with me as I work on my cooking.I’m not sure how long Jayce will be here, but he’s such a gut teacher. He puts cottage cheese in eggs. I wasn’t sure how that would taste, but all of the guests enjoyed the breakfast.”She paused to catch her breath. “And Jayce let me take credit for the meal even though he’d prepared it. Wasn’t that niceof him?”
Evelyn nodded, thinking she sure was talking about Jayce a lot. Jealousy was a sin, but it had crept up on her
