Page 10 of Suddenly Single
Her legs appeared, visible through the stalks of the bramble. “Are you fishing?”
No, he was playing tennis. “I was.”
“What are you looking for?”
“My lure.”
“What’s it doing in there? I don’t know that much about fishing, but isn’t the lure what the fish tries to get? Maybe you could use worms. I went fishing with my grandfather when I was like, four, and he tried to get me to put a worm on a hook.Disgusting.I never went fishing again.”
Edan could almost reach the damn lure and stretched his arm, but his shirt caught on a thorn.
Jenny squatted down.He couldn’t see her face through the gap in the bramble shoots, but he could see long, wavy tresses of her hair. “Oh, I get it, youlostit.Wow, that’s alotof thorns. You’re going to hurt yourself, you know. You should leave it.You can buy more at the gas station, I’m sure.They have everything.”
He was trying to concentrate and her chatter was not helping.
Her hand suddenly appeared between the shoots of the bush.She had a leather tie and silver bracelet around her slender wrist that momentarily distracted Edan.“I can get it!”
“No—” Edan tried to grab the lure before it slipped, but he was a moment too late—it sank deeper into the bush.And he had a nice long cut across the back of his hand for it.
“Sorry.I thought I had it.” She withdrew her hand and began to scratch Wilbur behind the ears.Wilbur.The only dog on the face of God’s green earth that did not care to have his ears scratched.Not even by Edan, to whom the dog was ridiculously devoted.
Edan was more concerned about the lure.He decided he’d have to fetch a tool to free it. He washed his hands in the water, then stood up, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked up at Jennifer Turner.
She was standing just above him on the bank, her legs braced apart, her hands on her hips, lightly swaying from side to side as if she were listening to a song in her head.She had changed from the tight-fitting clothing she’d worn to defile his tee box, and was wearing a silky dress that hung to her knees, a sweater over that and, of course, the hiking boots.Her hair, wavy and golden, hung loosely to her waist.She reminded Edan of the flower child of the sixties—natural and free and a wee bit barmy.
“That’s really too bad you lost it.”
She made him think of sex.Hot, grinding sex.
“Sorry about that. It really sucks because you couldn’t have asked for better fishing weather. I’ve been looking around. This is one gorgeous spot, Mr. Mackenzie.I mean, look at the lake! It’s so many colors of blue, and it glitters, like it’s studded with crystals.And the hills are so green.I mean, seriously, have you ever seen a more beautiful day?”
No.It would have been perfect for fishing.He swept off his hat and pushed his fingers through his hair, hopefully knocking loose all the thoughts about sex.What he needed was a machete. He couldn’t recall seeing one in the tool shed—after all, it wasn’t as if they had to hack their way through the bramble for anything.
“Cool boots,” she said, nodding, as she checked out his waders.“Very hip.They make your look very outdoorsy.”
His waders were nothip,they were a functional piece of his favorite pastime, and hewasoutdoorsy.
“I’d be outdoorsy, too, if I lived here,” she announced.“But with sunblock.Gotta have that.”
He stepped up onto the bank and looked down at her.She smiled up at him.“Is there a reason you’ve come down to the river, or is this merely a happy coincidence?” he drawled.
“Oh! I almost forgot.Yes, I wanted to ask if there was a bus or something that might take me into East Beach.”
“No.” He picked up his tackle and his pole and began to walk.
“No?Really?I wonder how I’m going to get there,” she said, falling in behind him as he strode up the path. Edan glanced back for his dogs—the bloody beasts were trotting along behind Jenny as if they knew her.
“That’s the big difference between California and here, you know,” she said.“Public transportation.Did I mention that’s where I live? I can’t remember. Have you been there?”
“No.”
“Too bad.Well, anyway, wouldn’t it be great if a bus came out here?” She suddenly materialized next to him on the path, her eyes bright as she smiled up at him.“Hey, that’s an idea. You could ask whoever runs the buses around here to stop at the top of the road, and then it would be easier for people to find your inn.”
Did she honestly think he’d not thought about that? One did not build a golf course without thinking through a thing or two.“No’ enough people for it.”
“Huh,” she said, as if surprised by that. “Then how does everyone get around?”
“The usual way—car.”
