Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida (14 page)

On the way to her door, Jerry apologized profusely for his parents’ behavior. “I don’t know what’s gotten into them. Mom never used to be this bossy. A little manipulative, maybe, but she used to be quite a bit more subtle. And my dad, well…” Amanda detected the pain in his voice as it trailed off.

“Really, Jerry, I understand. Wait until you meet my mom.” She suddenly caught herself. What was she saying? Why would he ever meet her mother?

He grinned. “I’m glad you understand.”

They’d reached her door, so Amanda fumbled for her house key. As she turned toward Jerry, she saw his parents watching from the car. Surely he wouldn’t try to kiss her.

“I had a wonderful time, Jerry. Your parents are very sweet, and they’re just trying to deal with aging.”

“Yes, and I’m afraid they’re not dealing very well.”

“Your mother likes to feel needed.”

“I know. Too bad she doesn’t have her grandchildren nearby. My sister and brother don’t bring their families around much.” His voice cracked, so Amanda knew this was a painful topic.

“Maybe she’ll find a cause—something she can do to help others.”

Jerry shrugged. “I don’t know. If I suggest things, she’s quick to let me know all the reasons she can’t.”

“It’s hard taking care of parents.” She quickly decided it would be okay to admit her own relationship with her mother. “My mom wears me out with some of her issues.”

“You two gonna stand there all day?” his dad bellowed from the car.

Amanda smiled and waved at the elderly couple in the car. “I’d better go in.”

Jerry reached for both of her hands and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. She felt her face heat up as she turned away and shoved her key in the door. When the door closed behind her, she heard the sound of his car pulling away.

She’d barely been inside long enough to turn on the lights and kick off her shoes when she heard her sister’s voice, letting her know they weren’t alone. As much as she wanted to hide in her room, she was also curious about Brad, so she headed to the living room.

“Hey, there,” Lacy said. “Have fun with Jerry and his parents?”

“Yes,” Amanda replied as she turned to the very tall, very handsome man standing beside her sister. She extended her hand. “I’m Amanda Burns, Lacy’s sister.”

“Sorry,” Lacy said. “This is Brad…” Her gaze lingered on him for a couple of seconds before she gestured toward the little boy sitting on the edge of the sofa, who was rolling a toy car over the palm of his hand. “And that’s Timmy.”

“Hi, Timmy.” Amanda smiled, but he broke eye contact and went back to fidgeting with his car, so she turned to Brad. “So how was dinner?”

He looked annoyed as he pointed to his son. “Would’ve been good if we didn’t have so many interruptions.”

Amanda blinked. She didn’t like what she was seeing. Brad never should have said that in front of his son. “He’s just a little boy. I think interrupting is what they do best.”

Brad raked his fingers through his close-cropped hair. “I’ve tried teaching him manners, but he doesn’t listen very well.”

Timmy jumped down off the sofa and zoomed his toy car over her coffee table. Amanda had no doubt he was reacting to his father’s comments.

“No, Timmy!” Brad took a couple of strides toward his son, but Amanda held up her hand to stop him.

“Hey, Timmy, do you wanna see my bicycle collection?” she asked.

“He doesn’t want to see that,” Lacy whined.

“I do, too!” Timmy scowled at Lacy then turned and looked at Amanda. “Where is it?”

Amanda turned toward the sunroom and motioned for Lacy and Brad to stay put. Timmy was right beside her.

Before she opened the cabinet to show Timmy her display, Amanda squatted down next to him. “Do you know what an antique is?”

His eyes widened, and he shook his head no. “What’s a ’tique?”

Amanda smiled. “An antique is something that’s really old. Some of my bicycles are antiques.”

“Why do you have old stuff?”

“Because it’s valuable. It was owned by someone who really liked it, and now I have it because I really like looking at it. Sometimes really old things are breakable, though, so we have to be very careful with them.”

“Can I see?” His eyes were wide as he turned to the cabinet.

She hesitated. Had she made a mistake?
Too late now,
she thought with a tinge of regret. “You can look, but don’t touch them.”

“Okay.”

As Amanda slowly opened the cabinet, Timmy’s eyes grew even wider. “See that one in the corner?”

He nodded.

“It was my grandfather’s. He used to build bicycles for a company up north, and they gave him that for helping design a new model.”

“Wow.” He turned to her with a quizzical expression. “Do you ever play with them?”

“No,” she said. “I’m afraid I’m too clumsy, and I might break them. I just like to have them to look at.”

“But why?”

Good question, coming from a five-year-old. “Do you have anything you like to look at in your room?”

She smiled at his cuteness when he propped his chin on his finger and scrunched his face in thought. Suddenly his forehead crinkled, and he smiled. “Yeah! I have some BMX posters.”

“So you like bicycles, too?”

He nodded. “I love bicycles. Daddy took my training wheels off and showed me how to ride a two-wheeler.”

Brad just jumped a few notches in the parenting department. “That’s great, Timmy! Maybe one of these days you can come see me at my store.”

“You have a store?”

She nodded. “A bicycle store. I sell and rent bicycles and skates.”

“Cool!”

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that they weren’t alone anymore. She turned and motioned for Lacy and Brad to come in.

“Hey, Daddy, ya gotta see Amanda’s cool bicycles!” Timmy crossed the room, took his dad by the hand, and led him over to the cabinet. “But you can’t touch them because they’re ’tiques. They’re just to look at.”

As Brad turned to her, Amanda saw the look of amazement behind his smile. “I’d love to see them.”

Timmy told his dad all about how Amanda and Lacy’s grandfather used to work for a bicycle company and how he got the miniature replica now displayed in Amanda’s cabinet. Now that she had confidence that he understood the value, Amanda took a step back and let him look for a few more minutes.

Brad finally took her aside. “I don’t remember the last time he was this calm,” he admitted to Amanda. “What did you do?”

Amanda shrugged. “I just answered his questions and explained why I never touch this display.”

Brad exchanged a glance with Lacy, who’d stepped up beside him. Timmy turned around.

“Daddy, I’m hungry.”

“But you just ate,” Brad replied.

Amanda sensed a temper tantrum, so she made a quick decision.

“I have some oatmeal cookies in the kitchen. Want some?” She paused for a second then offered an apologetic look at Brad. “That is, if it’s okay with your father.”

“Yes, of course,” Brad replied. “That is, if it’s not too much trouble.”

“No trouble at all.”

As Amanda led Timmy to the kitchen, she overheard Brad speak to Lacy. “Do you think your sister would consider being a nanny?”

“Not a chance,” Lacy replied. “She’s always at her shop, and she doesn’t have much time for anything or anyone else…not even me.”

Ouch! That’s harsh.

Timmy squirmed in the chair as Amanda got his cookies and milk ready. The second she placed the plate in front of him, he grabbed one and shoved it into his mouth. The boy needed some manners, but she didn’t think he’d learn them from his dad, who seemed overwhelmed by being a single father.

She took a cookie for herself and sat down at the table across from him. “So how do you like school?”

He swallowed his cookie, took a sip of milk, and offered a milk-mustache smile. “I’m gonna be a first-grader soon.”

“That’s wonderful!”

Lacy and Brad appeared at the door together. “You’ll be a first-grader if Miss Burns passes you,” Brad said.

Lacy rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Yeah, like I’m not gonna pass a kindergartner.”

Amanda cleared her throat to get their attention. When she was sure Timmy wasn’t looking, she drew her finger across her throat, letting them know they didn’t need to be discussing this in front of Timmy. Lacy looked puzzled.

“I can’t believe you didn’t lay one on her.” Harold sniffed. “You let a prime opportunity slip by.”

“Harold! That’s not the way to court a girl.” Jerry’s mother scowled, but his dad didn’t back down.

“It worked with you,” he said.

Jerry shook his head. “Too much information, folks. I don’t think ‘laying one on her’ is such a good idea right now. We’re still just friends, and I’m not sure if that’ll ever change.”

“Humph! Friendship is overrated.”

Jerry cast a warning glance at his mother. It was obvious that his dad was spoiling for an argument, and Jerry wanted it to stop. Thankfully, his mother didn’t respond.

“So what do you plan to do now?” his dad asked.

Jerry had to be honest. “I’m not sure.” But now that the subject had surfaced, he needed to think about what was best for both him and Amanda.

He decided to back off for a few days and let Amanda have her space. But it was difficult because he really wanted to see her.

On Monday, while running errands for his mother, he took the long way home so he could drive by Amanda’s shop and possibly catch a glimpse of her. The glare on the window prevented him from seeing inside, so he just kept going.

Tuesday, he took a walk along the beach to do some thinking—and his thoughts kept taking a turn back to Amanda. He hadn’t planned for his feelings to be so strong for her; after all, this was vacation, and he wouldn’t be on Treasure Island much longer. Too bad his parents kept forgetting and every chance they had, they mentioned her name.

By Wednesday, he couldn’t take it anymore. He had to see Amanda, so he took off toward her shop. On his way there, he rehearsed what he’d say and how he’d ask her out for the evening. He charged through the door and stopped when he saw the teenage girl—what was her name again?

She glanced up at the sound of the bell on the door and grinned. “Looking for Amanda?”

“Uh…yes, is she here?”

The girl glanced up at the clock on the back wall. “She had to run to the bank and then over to her mother’s place to water some plants and feed the cat. Want me to call her?”

“No, that’s okay,” he said, feeling dejected. “I’ll just come back tomorrow.”

“I think she’d like to know you’re looking for her.”

What did she mean by that? He shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels as he thought it over. What did he have to lose? He exhaled. “Okay, I’ll wait while you call her.”

It took her all of three seconds to have Amanda on the phone. As soon as she mentioned that Jerry was in the shop, she lit up with a smile and held the phone out for him. “She wants to talk to you.”

“I hope you don’t think I’m stalking you,” he said into the receiver.

She laughed. “Why would I think that? Tiffany just said you were looking for me. What’s up?”

“I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight after work.” There. He’d said it. Now that wasn’t so bad, was it?

“Just a minute, okay?” He heard the muffled sound of her talking to someone as she placed her hand over the mouthpiece. She was back on the phone a few seconds later. “Whatcha got in mind?”

He hadn’t settled on anything yet, so he threw the ball back in her court. “What do you normally do after work?”

Again she let out a laugh. “I normally just go home, eat supper, and watch a little TV. Once in a while I walk over to the beach and watch the sunset.”

“Hey, that sounds like a plan,” he said. “Why don’t we find a spot on the beach and watch the sunset?”

“Okay, that’ll be fun.” She paused for a moment. “It sets about an hour and a half after I get off work, so why don’t we meet at the beach-access sign at seven?”

He wanted to tell her that he didn’t mind picking her up at her place, but he thought better of it. He was just happy to have plans with her.