Page 33 of Save the Dance

He grew silent, unable to think of anything to say to that.

Tara stared into a cooler filled with locally produced cheeses while Jason stood in line at the checkout counter. Her thoughts in turmoil, she couldn’t get the conversation with him out of her mind. He’d shared more than she’d expected. But then, everything about Jason was more than she’d expected. Just being in the same room with him made her pulse race. Her mouth had gone so dry when she’d watched the firm muscles in his calves flex as he’d squatted over the low plants that she’d had to look in a different direction. Hearing the low timbre of his voice created images of the two of them curled up beside each other on a porch swing.

If that were all, she’d chalk her reaction up to hormones and rest assured that she’d be back to normal as soon as she returned to New York. But in one of her first assignments at Weddings Today, she’d learned enough about venues to know that Jason had given up quite a lucrative career to take over the reins at the Captain’s Cottage. His roots ran deep in Heart’s Landing, and she respected that. He’d discovered what was most important in his life and committed himself to it. All of which made him one of the most interesting men she’d ever met.

The sound of the bell on the old-fashioned cash register at the checkout counter rang. Deciding she wasn’t in the mood for cheese, she turned her back on the display just as a freckle-faced teen handed Jason his change.

“Thank you for visiting The Right Berry Farm today. I do hope you’ll visit again soon.”

If Jason noticed the flirty smile that danced across the cashier’s lips, he showed no sign of it. Another factor in his favor. No matter what else was going on, he made the person he was with feel like the center of his universe. For the time being, at least, Tara was that person. As his eyes met hers, she found it hard not to fan herself.

Balancing a large cardboard box piled high with strawberries, he led the way to the parking area. There, he placed the box in the trunk, exchanging it for a heavy picnic basket. Tara chose a table under a towering maple, and soon they were feasting on thick pastrami sandwiches, dill pickles, and house-made chips.

“Ah, that’s a slice of heaven right there,” Jason said, holding half his sandwich in a two-fisted grip. He took a bite and chewed, a blissful look on his face.

Tara bit off a corner. The sweet-and-sour taste of the sauerkraut complimented the lean, salty pastrami perfectly. “What’s in the sauce?” she asked when new flavors and textures rolled across her tongue.

“Connie’s special blend of cheese and mustard. Don’t bother asking her for the recipe. She won’t even give it to me.”

A dribble escaped Jason’s mouth and ran down his chin. She pointed it out to him. Sheepish, he swiped it with a napkin and missed. She pointed again, and this time he mopped successfully. “I feel like I’ve monopolized the conversation this afternoon. The stage is yours. What else is there to Tara Stewart?”

“You pretty much know all there is to know about me.” Except for the most important thing—that she was here to knock Heart’s Landing off its pedestal. She bit into a crisp potato chip. “I work, go home to my apartment, get up the next day, and do it again. I’d like to say I go out on the weekends, take in the sights or a play on Broadway. The truth is, I’m usually too busy keeping body and soul together.”

“I can hardly believe you’re not seeing someone. No one special in your life?”

“Not for a while now.” Heat rose in her cheeks. The ghostly remnants of her longest relationship still lingered two years later. Though she didn’t talk about it often, she felt a need to confide in Jason. “To be honest, I haven’t been serious about anyone since I called it quits with my boyfriend the summer after college graduation.”

“A bad breakup?” Jason leaned across the table, concern written in his eyes.

“Eh.” She tilted her head. “I’d just been offered the position at Weddings Today. We went out to dinner that night to celebrate. He saw someone he knew at the bar and went over to have a word. Left his phone on the table. It buzzed. Some girl had texted him about their date the night before. I thumbed through his messages and discovered she wasn’t the only one—he’d been cheating all along.”

“I’m sorry that happened to you. You didn’t deserve it.”

So much sympathy welled in Jason’s eyes that it momentarily took the wind out of her sails. His honest reaction stirred the need to tell him the part she’d never revealed to anyone else. Did she trust him enough to share her deepest hurt? One look at the warmth in his gray eyes, and her reluctance faded.

“I broke it off with him that night. Lulu and Gloria helped me drown my sorrows in cheesecake.” She shuddered. That was a mistake she’d never make again. “But I didn’t tell them the rest of it. It was too embarrassing to admit that he turned to other women ’cause I wasn’t enough for him. The whole thing has made me a little gun-shy. I’ve gone out on a few dates since then, but I always call it off before things get serious. I can’t stop thinking I’ll never be good enough for any man.”

“He’s the one who didn’t measure up,” Jason said, his words freighted with the kind of reassurance she hadn’t known she was looking for. “Any man who was lucky enough to have you in his life and let you go, well, he should have his head—and his heart—examined.”

Jason’s gaze drilled into her own. Tender and compassionate, his eyes held depths waiting to be discovered. Long seconds ticked past before she glanced away. When she did, she felt certain she’d never doubt herself again. At some point while she’d been pouring out her soul, Jason had reached across the table and enfolded her fingers in his. The intimacy of that simple gesture ignited a warmth in her chest she couldn’t deny.

She drew in a shaky breath. Getting involved with Jason would be so easy … and so wrong. She had to put a stop to it before it was too late. Summoning a breezy attitude, she exclaimed, “Whoa! That got deep. I think you’d better buy me that ice cream before I turn into a weeping ball of mush.”

While every fiber of her being screamed that she was making a big mistake, she withdrew her fingers and began gathering up the remains of their picnic. A beat or two later, Jason stood and helped her load the leftovers into the basket. When they were finished, he wiped the last of the crumbs from his hands. “Now, how about dessert?” he asked.

“I thought you’d never ask,” she answered, choosing to ignore what had transpired under the tree.

Once they had their cones, they raced to finish before the delicious ice cream melted. It wasn’t until she was in the car on the way back to the Captain’s Cottage that Tara had a chance to think about what had happened.

What had possessed her?

She knew better. She and Jason were attracted to one another, but they’d already decided that was as far as it would ever go. So why had she agreed to abandon her research and pick strawberries with him? She could let herself think she’d spent the afternoon with him in order to learn more about Heart’s Landing for her article. Or that she’d doubted the lengths people here went to in order to assure the brides’ and grooms’ happiness so much that she had to see Jason get his hands and knees dirty before she could believe it. She could tell herself that, but she’d be lying.

Though she was loath to admit the truth, she couldn’t deny that she’d developed more than a little crush on the handsome owner of the Captain’s Cottage. From the moment she’d stared up at him in his office the day she’d arrived in Heart’s Landing, she’d been entranced by his cool, unruffled manner, his startling gray eyes, his take-charge attitude. She’d been sure that, given time and exposure, her instant infatuation would fade. That as she found out more about what made Jason tick, she’d learn he wasn’t anyone’s Prince Charming, and certainly not hers.

So far, things weren’t working out the way she’d thought they would. For one thing, he listened—really listened—to her. She’d only mentioned her sisters’ names once, yet he’d committed them to memory. She couldn’t think of a single friend who’d done the same. Even after sharing an office for a couple of years, Van often forgot which of her sisters was the cook. But Jason remembered. He understood how difficult it had been for her to leave home and move to a huge city where she hadn’t known another living soul. Plus, he’d offered to do anything he could to help her land her next big promotion.

Which was another reason that, as much as she might wish he were, Jason could never be her Mr. Right. Because, in order to achieve her goal, she’d have to ruin the reputation of his famous ancestor. A fact she needed to remember, no matter how tempted she was to lose herself in Jason’s eyes or lean into his outstretched arms.

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