The Manning Grooms (16 page)

“Happy New Year, James.”

They stood facing each other, and then, as if this were the moment they’d anticipated all evening, slowly moved toward each other. Summer saw how James’s eyes darkened as her own fluttered closed. She wanted this. Needed it.

She sighed audibly as his mouth settled over hers.

S
ummer was no novice when it came to kissing, but James left her breathless and clinging to him for support. She hadn’t expected anything like this. She’d expected them to lightly brush lips and then laugh and wish each other a happy New Year.

It hadn’t happened like that.

The instant James’s mouth was on hers, she’d gone languid. She was immobile, her arms locked around his neck and her body pressed intimately to his, her lips seeking more.

Summer would’ve liked James to kiss her again. And again. She didn’t want it to end. But she didn’t know how to ask him to continue.

Slowly, with what she thought might be reluctance, he released her. She stood there looking at him, arms dangling stiffly at her sides while her face reddened with embarrassment. She considered telling him she wasn’t usually this blatant.

“Happy New Year,” James said. He didn’t sound like himself at all. He cleared his throat and swallowed visibly.

“Happy New Year,” she whispered, and stepped away from him.

James reached for her hand and held it in his own. Summer was grateful for his touch. They started walking, with no destination in mind, or none that Summer was aware of. She looked at James, wondering if he felt as confused and uncertain as she did. Apparently he did, because he grew quiet and introspective.

“I believe I’ll call it a night,” he announced unexpectedly. He checked his watch and frowned. Summer suspected it had been a year since he’d last stayed up past midnight. He was so proper, so serious and sober. Yet she’d enjoyed every minute of her evening with him. They’d talked and laughed, or at least she’d laughed. James had smiled, and she had the impression he didn’t do that often, either. Every time he’d grinned, Summer had felt rewarded.

Now she’d ruined everything. She couldn’t bear to know what he thought of her. An apology, words of explanation, stumbled over themselves, but she couldn’t make herself say them—because she
wasn’t
sorry about their kiss. She’d savored it, relished it, and hoped he had, as well.

“I’ll call it a night, too,” Summer said. She waited, hoping he’d suggest they meet the following day. He didn’t.

By the time they returned to the Four Queens,
where they were both booked for the week, Summer was miserable.

“James,” she said as they walked across the lobby. Either she apologized now or regretted saying nothing. “I’m sorry. I…don’t know what came over me. I don’t generally…I can only guess what you must think of me and…”

“You?” He hesitated in front of the elevator. “I was wondering what you thought of
me.
I can only beg your indulgence.”

The security guard asked to see their room keys before calling for the elevator. James easily produced his while Summer sifted through the contents of her oversize purse before finding hers.

The elevator arrived, and they both entered. There was no one else inside. Still, James didn’t ask to see her again, and Summer’s heart grew heavier as they ascended. Her room was on the tenth floor, and his was on the fifteenth.

The silence closed in on them. When the elevator stopped at her floor, the doors slid open, and James moved aside.

Summer glanced at him expectantly. Okay, so he didn’t intend to see her again. It made sense, she supposed. A superior court judge wouldn’t be interested in dating an actress.

“Good night,” she said brightly as she walked out of the elevator.

“Good night, Summer,” James said softly.

She hesitated, hoping he’d ask her at the last minute, but he didn’t. Discouraged, Summer trudged to her
room, unlocked the door and went in. She sat on the edge of her bed, trying to sort out her muddled thoughts.

When Summer had requested a week’s vacation, she hadn’t planned to spend every available second with James. She knew he’d taken the same length of time, and he’d probably been thinking the same thing.

She slipped off her shoes and wiggled her toes in the thick carpet. If it wasn’t so late, she’d call Julie and tell her friend she was right. One evening with James, and she saw him in a completely different light. The moment she’d seen him in the gazebo that evening, she dismissed the father-figure image she’d had in her mind all these months. More than anything, that kiss convinced her James was more than a friend. What became of their relationship would depend on several factors, the most important of which was James himself.

The phone on the nightstand rang, and Summer groped for it. “Hello?”

“Summer, I’m sorry to bother you.”

Her heart gave a sigh of relief. “Hello, James.”

“I’ve got a rental car,” he said. “I know it might not be something you’d consider fun, but I thought I’d drive over to Hoover Dam in the morning. Would you care to join me?”

“Why wouldn’t I consider that fun?” she asked.

“I’m sure there are friends here your own age you’d prefer to spend time with and—”

“Friends? I thought you were my friend.”

“Yes, but I was thinking of friends closer to your own age.”

His answer irritated her. “I’m not exactly sure what
you’re insinuating, but if it is what I think it is, you’re wrong, James.”

“Listen, Summer, all I want to know is if you’d like to join me in the morning.”

That might have been his original question, but she wasn’t finished with what she had to say. “I took a week’s vacation, and I know you have several days. I don’t expect you to entertain me, if that’s what you’re worried about, because I can find plenty to do on my own.”

“I see.”

“And yes, there are any number of people my age in Vegas. There would be in any city. If you want my company, fine, but if you’d rather not see me again, I can accept that, too.” Not easily, but she’d do it and have a perfectly good week without him.

He was strangely silent.

“James? Are you still there?”

“Yes. Are you always this direct?”

“No, but I didn’t want there to be any misunderstanding between us. I value your friendship, and I don’t want it ruined because of something silly.”

“Nor do I.” A short pause followed. “Forgive me for being dense, but I’m not sure I understood your answer. Are you going to Hoover Dam with me or not?”

Summer had waited all evening for this kind of invitation, and now the words were almost anticlimactic. “Would you like me to come?”

“Attorneys do this all the time, you know,” he said with a chuckle.

“Do what?”

“Answer a question with one of their own. Yes, Summer, I’d very much enjoy your company.”

“Great. When do you want to leave in the morning?”

James told her, and they set a time to meet in the lobby. Summer replaced the receiver and lay back on the bed. She smiled to herself, eager for morning.

James hadn’t thought of himself as all that old, since at thirty-seven he was the youngest superior court judge in Washington State. Being with Summer, however, made him feel downright ancient.

She was perfectly named. Being with her was like walking along Green Lake in the middle of August, when the air carried the scent of blooming flowers and sunshine warmed the afternoon. She shone with a summery brightness that made him feel content. More than content. Happy.

James couldn’t remember any time he’d smiled more than during their dinner together. She’d told him about playing her role at Disneyland. Her joy and enthusiasm for her job bubbled over like champagne. He could have listened to her all night.

She certainly hadn’t done all the talking, however, and to his surprise he’d found himself telling her about the ins and outs of his own position with the court and the upcoming election, which was vital to his career.

His life was very different from hers. While Summer worked in the delightful world of fantasy, he struggled with the often cruel, unjust world of reality.

Naturally he couldn’t give her any details about the cases he’d heard, but just talking about his short
time on the bench had lifted his spirits considerably. It felt good to share his thoughts with her and he’d enjoyed her opinions and her sometimes unpredictable views.

Then they’d kissed. Talk about sexual chemistry! For the life of him, James couldn’t explain what had happened when she’d slipped into his arms. He’d never intended the kiss to become that intense, but once he’d started, nothing could have stopped him.

He’d been afraid his reaction had shocked Summer, but apparently that wasn’t the case. Later she’d apologized to him and James hadn’t known what to say. She seemed to think she’d done something wrong. She hadn’t. The truth was, she’d done everything right.

The next morning James sat down in the lobby to wait for Summer. He was excited about this outing. He’d decided earlier not to invite her, feeling it would be unfair to dominate her time. She was young and beautiful, and he doubted she wanted to spend her vacation with a staid older guy like him.

He’d gone to his hotel room and congratulated himself on not mentioning the trip to Hoover Dam. Ten minutes later he’d talked himself into calling her on the off chance she might be interested.

Well, she’d told him. A smile pulled at the edges of his mouth. Summer had seemed downright angry when he suggested she’d prefer to be with friends her own age.

James liked the idea of being her friend. The operative word being
friend.
He wasn’t going to kiss her again—that was for sure.

First, he was afraid of a repeat performance of that
kiss in the street. Secondly, he was way too old for her. He enjoyed her company tremendously, but then any man would. He wasn’t going to ruin the bond they’d created; becoming romantically involved, if she even wanted to, would do exactly that.

Summer stepped off the elevator, and James watched as every eye in the place seemed to gravitate toward her. She was stunning. It wasn’t the clothes she wore, although the pretty pink pants and matching sweater flattered her. It was Summer herself.

She searched the lobby until she saw him, and then she smiled. James felt as though the sun was beaming directly down on him.

He stood and waited for her to join him. “Did you have breakfast?” he asked.

She nodded. “Hours ago.”

“Me, too.”

“If you’re ready, we can be on our way.” All he had to do now was stop staring at her….

A few minutes later, the valet took his ticket for his rental car, and they waited for him to drive the luxury sedan to the back of the hotel. When the car arrived, the young man opened the car door and helped Summer inside. James was almost jealous to have been denied the privilege.

They drove out of Las Vegas in companionable silence. James had studied the map so he knew which freeway to take.

“Do you ever think about her?” Summer asked.

James had no idea what she was talking about. “Who?”

She laughed. “That’s answer enough. Christy. Your ex-fiancée.”

“Ah yes, Christy.” James mulled over Summer’s question. “Sometimes. Generally when I’m feeling especially lonely or when I see a couple with kids. That’s when I wonder what Christy’s and my children would have looked like.

“Do you still think about Brett?” he asked.

She lifted one shoulder in a halfhearted shrug. “Sometimes. It’s different with me, though.”

“Different?”

“From what you told me about Christy, she went to Montana to help her sister and met someone there.”

“She would’ve broken the engagement right away, but it seemed like a heartless thing to do over the phone.” Despite everything James felt a need to defend her. “When she did get back, her mother had arranged for a huge engagement party and I was extremely busy with an important lawsuit. I never blamed Christy for not telling me about Cody right away. She had her reasons.”

“
I
blame her,” Summer said stiffly. “It was a rotten thing to do.”

“You blame Brett, too, don’t you?” This was what their conversation was really about, James suspected. Something had happened recently that had hurt her all over again.

“Right before I left,” she said in a small voice, “a friend called to tell me Brett and his wife are expecting a baby.”

“A friend?” James wondered about that. There
seemed to be a certain type of person who delighted in being the first to deliver bad news.

“I’m going to be twenty-eight next month,” she told him.

He smiled. “From the way you said that, one would think you’re ready to apply for your retirement benefits.”

Summer smiled back. “I suppose I sound ridiculous.”

“No, you sound hurt. It’s only natural, but that pain will fade in time, as well, especially if you meet someone else and get involved in another relationship.”

“You didn’t.”

James couldn’t argue. “It wasn’t because I’d dedicated myself to loving Christy for the rest of my life. To be fair, I’m not sure why I never got involved again. It’s not like I made the decision not to.”

“Do you date?”

“Occasionally.” A few months ago, two women had let him know that they’d welcome his attentions. James was flattered and he did enjoy a night out now and then, but he could never seem to dredge up much enthusiasm for either woman.

“What about you?” he asked, then mentally kicked himself. The answer was obvious. Someone like Summer had a long line of men waiting to ask her out.

“I don’t date all that often,” Summer surprised him by saying. “It’s funny, when Brett and I first broke up I saw a different man every night. Within a month I was sick of it, sick of pretending I didn’t care, sick of telling everyone about all the fun I was having.”

“And now?”

“I haven’t been out all month. December is crazy, anyway, with Christmas and family obligations and everything else. In November, I went to a dinner party with a member of the cast, but it was as friends, and it was more a favor to Steve than anything.”

Silly as it seemed, James was offended that she didn’t count their dinner the night before as a date. He certainly had. Their time together had been the highlight of the year for him.

“My parents want me married,” she murmured thoughtfully. “They hinted at it over Christmas.”

Now, that was something James could identify with. “My father’s a longtime widower and I don’t have any siblings. He’s been hounding me for years to marry, but his real interest lies in grandchildren.”