Page 68 of Love Among Vines

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

JADE

When the cafélights turned off, Jade raised her head. She had been so engrossed in another sketch idea that she hadn’t even noticed the passage of time. Her stomach grumbled. Margie had surprised her with a request to join her for a late lunch.

“Ready, sweetheart?” Margie had loosed her gray hair from its net, and she had a sunflower-shaped pocketbook slung over one shoulder.

“Sure.” Jade flipped her book shut.

She cast a wary glance at the wall that was still completely blank. If Margie had opinions about the delay, she didn’t share them.

“Why don’t we leave the bike?” Margie asked. “You could ride with me. I’m sure Rett will pick it up later. Will you see him tonight?”

Jade nodded. He was dropping her off at Cindy’s on his way to poker.

Margie was silent as they climbed into her Toyota Camry. A pair of dog tags hung from the rearview mirror. The name Stoneroad was barely visible. A tiny sunflower joined them.

“Were these your husband’s?” Jade gestured to the tags.

Margie nodded.

“How did you meet?”

“The army,” Margie said. “I was a culinary specialist. David was a combat engineer with an insatiable sweet tooth. There’s a picture in the glove box.”

Jade opened the glove box, and a picture frame with two people slid out. “Oh, wow.” Margie had been a certified babe, with wavy brown hair down to her waist. Her husband had the jawline of an A-list actor and a smirk that suggested he knew it.

Jade smiled. “He is so incredibly handsome. How did you know he was the one?”

Margie put her turn signal on and waited for a car to pass. There was a small smile on her face. “He felt like home. He was wildly charming, of course. But that wasn’t it. When I was with him, I felt safe. During the dinner rush, no matter how frazzled I was, I could look up and find him in the crowd. And it was like everything else just melted away.”

“That’s beautiful,” Jade said softly.

Margie turned to her with a question in her eyes, but she thankfully didn’t ask it. She had probably just opened up a direct line to some Rett questions that didn’t have answers.

Even their budget date the night before—which had ended with a kiss on the cheek as he jetted off to the winery—had been fraught with feeling. It felt more like a mentorship than a date (even a fake one). But there was no denying the chemistry between them. Being in limbo was driving her insane.

“How long have you lived here?” Jade asked.

“Oh, since we were discharged. This was David’s hometown. I wanted to see the world, but he wanted to be close to family. I didn’t have roots the same way he did. My parents rolled around the country in a Volkswagen van. They were musicians.”

“How did you compromise on Hammondsport?”

Margie smiled wistfully. “He brought me home to meet his parents, and it was right in the middle of fall. It’s virtually impossible not to fall in love with this place. Even if you don’t drink wine.”

“I can see that.”

They rolled down the driveway and pulled into Margie’s spot.

“How long has it been since he passed?” Jade asked quietly.

“Six years, four months, and nineteen days. I miss him terribly.”

Jade reached over and squeezed Margie’s hand. “I bet he’s insanely proud of you. For your strength and resilience. And for your bangin’ French toast.”

Margie let out a full-body chuckle. “You know, I think he is. Come on, love. You get Penny and I’ll get the picnic basket. I’ll meet you on the deck.”

Minutes later, Jade and Penny traipsed up the stairs to the deck that reached out over the water. A rope covered the entrance to a slide that twisted down and disappeared at the lip of the lake. Unlit tiki torches stood sentry at the railing, and a gas firepit stood in the middle of an assortment of mismatched chairs.

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