That Thing You Do (A Crystal Lake Novel Book 2) Read online

  “You what?” Tucker grinned.

  “I like to cuddle her.”

  “You cuddle.” The disbelief on Tucker’s face pissed off Nate, and he sat a little straighter.

  “Doesn’t everyone?” He knew he sounded defensive, but Nate couldn’t help himself.

  “I just didn’t picture you as a cuddler. I always thought of you as more of a ‘don’t let the door hit you on the ass when you leave’ kind of guy.”

  “That’s harsh,” Nate retorted with a frown.

  “I guess so, but you get my drift. You’re not a douchebag, from what I know, but you’ve never been a man to stand still, so to speak. So what makes this girl so special?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe because we were friends first?”

  “Abby and I were, and yeah, that helps, but it’s more than that. Don’t you think?”

  “I don’t know what to think.” Nate was just about done with this conversation.

  Tucker checked his watch and got to his feet. “I can tell you what I think.”

  “Even if I don’t want you to?”

  He flashed a smile. “I think you’re in love with this girl.”

  “I can’t be in love with her.” Shit. Fuck. Really? The big L? He’d never been in love before. Lust, yes, but love?

  “Why not?”

  Nate got to his feet and ran his hand across the stubble on his chin. He walked to his window, though if you asked him what he saw, he wouldn’t be able to tell you. “I can’t… She lives in Crystal Lake and I live here. Even if she felt the same way, she’d never move to the city.”

  Vegas. He thought of that night, of the things she said but didn’t remember.

  Holy hell. Did she really feel the same?

  Tucker joined him at the window. “Look, I’m going to say something I’ll probably regret later, but here’s the thing. When someone like your Molly comes into your life, you don’t let her leave. Life’s too short and unpredictable to play the game that way. You play to win. You play for keeps. Now, this business can be run from just about anywhere. And as long as you’re willing to fly to New York every few weeks for meetings, I don’t see why you can’t move your main office to, say, Crystal Lake.” He chuckled. “That’s the part I might regret later, not the playing-to-win-your Molly part.”

  Tucker stepped away. “I guess the ball’s in your court. What are you going to do with it?”

  What the hell am I going to do?

  That question plagued Nate all the way home. Once inside his brownstone, he grabbed a beer and sat in the dark. For hours. Thinking about that question. About what he should do. About what he wanted to do. He thought about it until he couldn’t see straight, and when he fell onto his bed exhausted, it was the last thing on his mind.

  He woke up at six and went for a run, thinking fresh air and exercise would do the trick to clear the fog and give him some answers. But he saw too many women with dogs, and that made him think of Molly, which led back to his dilemma, and by the time he got back to his place not only was he confused, he was kind of pissed off.

  He had a plan. A life here that was leading to… But that was just it, wasn’t it? Where was it leading? And whenever he got to wherever the hell he was supposed to end up, would he be happy without Molly at his side?

  “Hell no,” he muttered, scooping up his cell phone. The phone rang four times before it picked up.

  “What’s up?” His brother sounded winded.

  “You still planning on selling the Manchester place?”

  “If I can find the right buyer. I won’t let it go to just anyone. Why? You got someone in mind?”

  Nathan hesitated for all of two seconds. He was really going to do this.

  “I do.”

  “All right. Just put them in touch with me and—”

  “You’re talking to the buyer.”

  Silence greeted his words at first, but then Beck recovered. “And how soon are you planning on taking ownership?”

  “Sooner than you’d imagine.”

  “Your buddy Link is still living there.”

  “I’ll deal with him.”

  “That’ll make the folks happy to hear, as well as someone else I know.”

  “Beck, I need you to keep this on the down low. Until I iron out the details. Probably a few weeks.”

  “Okay,” Beck replied, his voice gruff. “I can do that. It’ll be good to have you back, brother.”

  Nathan hung up the phone and then made a second call, and then a third. Within a few hours, not only did he know exactly where his path led and where he was supposed to be, he also knew when he was going to get there.

  The next two weeks were going to be the longest of his life.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The last Sunday in October snuck up on Molly when she wasn’t looking, and it was something close to surprise that she felt when she walked out the front door of her house and headed for her truck. The vibrant fall colors, the reds, golds, and oranges that had painted the area for days were nearly gone, and soon those trees that had trumpeted the season would be completely bare.

  The ground beneath her boots crunched as she walked, and early morning frost still clung to the earth and grass. The air was crisp, the sky a brilliant blue, and she swore she could smell a hint of snow on the breeze that kicked up her hair. She’d heard some of the old guys who gathered each morning at the coffee shop saying that it was going to be a long, cold winter.

  She was fine with that. She was more inclined to stay in these days than anything else. Though she made a note to make sure the snow-removal guy was ready to go when the first snows came.

  She pointed her truck toward town and, once there, marveled at the artistic champs who went all-out for Halloween decorations. It looked as if Halloween had vomited over most of Crystal Lake, and when she pulled up in front of the animal shelter, she saw someone had attempted to decorate, no doubt Jade, one of the volunteers. There was one bale of straw strung with black webbing and glittery spiders, along with what she supposed was a scarecrow or something close to it, wearing her dad’s old plaid shirt and a pair of ripped-up jeans. A couple of pumpkins and a stuffed black cat sat at its feet.

  She slid from her truck and strode inside, excited because today, Petal, the last of her littermates still in the shelter, was being adopted. Jade was doing paperwork at the counter, and Molly said a quick hello before disappearing through the back door to the kennels, where she stopped dead in her tracks.

  “What are you doing here?” Her brother, Zach, was playing with a small kitten, one of six up for adoption. He smiled widely and jumped down from the exam table.

  “I was thinking of surprising Jess with this little guy.”

  “Oh.” With a shrug, she walked past him and headed to the last kennel. “I thought Jess was allergic.”

  “She is?”

  Molly gave her brother a look that told him just how stupid he was, and then squatted in front of Petal and her mama. She watched the two of them with a lump in her throat. Once the pup was gone, the mom would go up for adoption, something Molly had done a hundred times before. It was what they did here. They saved these animals, took care of them, and then found them new homes.

  It was something Molly was more than happy to do—she saved these animals—but something about these two tugged at her heart, and that something was Nathan Jacobs. Maybe it was because as long as they were here, she still had a connection to him. Or maybe she was just being silly. Or had PMS. Or maybe she was just plain crazy.

  The mama cocked her head, her large, soft brown eyes trained on Molly, and she immediately began to wag her tail.

  “Hey, girl,” Molly said. There was a couple from across the lake who were interested in her. So that was good. Right?

  The pup woke up then and began searching for milk, and for a few seconds, Molly watched them, the mother licking her pup and Petal feeding noisily. The puppy was on solid food but still liked to feed from her mama.

 
Because of the connection. Because of the love.

  With a sigh, Molly got to her feet and went in search of the duffel bag she gave to adoptees. It was filled with food and treats and toys, as well as a blanket that smelled of her mother. Once Jade was finished with the paperwork, that would be added, along with a signed contract between the new owner and the shelter.

  She was just rifling through the bag when Jade poked her head through the door and told Molly Petal’s new owner was here.

  “Send her in.”

  “It’s, um, not a her. It’s a him.”

  Molly looked up with a frown. “Really? I could have sworn it was a woman I talked to the other day.”

  If Molly was looking close enough, she would have seen nervous excitement on Jade’s face. And Zach’s. Hell, maybe even the dogs’, who were both pushing at the door of their kennel, their tails wagging crazily.

  “Okay. Well, send him in to meet his new little girl.” The entire adoption process had been facilitated online via the shelter website.

  She turned back to her task, looking for the specific chew toy Petal enjoyed, when she heard the door open and Petal began to bark excitedly. That in and of itself, wasn’t out of character, though she did seem a little too happy.

  “Geez, Petal. Are you that anxious to leave us?”

  “I think she missed me.”

  Molly froze. She glanced up and caught sight of the grin on Zach’s face. He nodded and walked by her, squeezing her shoulder as he did so. When he was gone, Molly slowly turned around.

  And lost her voice.

  The ability to breathe.

  Or think.

  Or act like a normal human being.

  She was a puddle of flesh and bone, and a beating heart that hurt.

  Nathan Jacobs stood a few feet away. He wore old jeans with paint stains on them, big work boots that belonged at a construction site, a blue-and-white-plaid shirt over a white T-shirt, and his beat-up Ranger’s cap. He hadn’t shaved in few days, and his hair had grown longer than ever. He didn’t look New York City at all. He looked like he was home.

  “You’re adopting Petal?” she managed to say without tripping over her words.

  He nodded, and for the first time, she thought that maybe he was nervous, or off his game…or something.

  He blew out a long breath and took a step toward her. “We never talked about Vegas,” he said slowly.

  “What?” He’d switched gears, and she had no idea where he was going.

  “We never talked about that night.”

  “I still don’t know what you mean.” When in doubt or cornered, you play dumb. That was a rule she’d always lived by, and it had never proven wrong before.

  “You were drunk, and you told me you don’t remember anything about that night.”

  She held her breath, suddenly very afraid of where he was going. He took a step forward. She gripped the table behind her, because if she didn’t, she’d melt into that puddle of flesh and bone, and how humiliating would that be?

  About as humiliating as what’s coming.

  “I thought I’d share the pieces I remember.” His tone was conversational, but his eyes were so intense, they appeared obsidian.

  “You wore a red top that had sequins all over it. It shimmered when you moved, and black jeans that fit your body like you’d been poured into them. Your hair was down the way I like, and your smile could have lit up the entire casino. You gambled fifty bucks and won three hundred. We celebrated by ordering up some Jack and cokes.” His eyebrow rose. “And you drank ’em all.”

  “Nathan, we don’t need to relive that night.”

  He smiled then and took another step closer. “We kinda do, Moll.” He paused, and her cheeks grew hot under his gaze. “We headed up to the rooms because the guys had left hours earlier, and you came to mine because you lost your key card.”

  “That was a lie,” she whispered.

  “I know.” He cleared his throat. “This is where it gets good, so listen up. You got real close to me and I remember how you smelled.” He paused. “I like the way you smell.” Another step closer. “You told me you loved me. That you’d always loved me. That you wanted to be with me. That you wanted me to make love to you.”

  I want to die, Molly thought. Right here and now.

  “Then you got this weird look on your face and ran for the bathroom, where you proceeded to lose your cookies for at least an hour. And then I put you to bed.”

  Molly grimaced and lowered her eyes. She forgot about the puking part.

  “The thing is, Molly? Once I put you to bed and you passed out, I sat there and did some thinking. I decided that you and me couldn’t be a thing because I didn’t want our friendship to suffer. But I wanted you. Even back then.”

  She felt his hand on her chin, but kept her eyes shut when he forced her head up.

  “It took a few years, but I finally got it. It’s that thing you do.”

  “What’s that?” she asked softly.

  “You make me want to be a better man. You make me feel alive. You make me hope. You make me want things I never thought I’d want.”

  “Like what?” Molly held her breath.

  Nate dipped his head, his voice low and intimate. “Like you.”

  Her eyes flew open, and she shook her head. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “I love you Molly Malone, and I probably always have. After what we shared, being away from you has taught me one thing. I don’t want to be away from you. I don’t want to live in another state if you’re here in Crystal Lake. I want to wake up with you every single morning. I want to make breakfast for you because we both know you might starve if I don’t.” His hands slid up either side of his face so that she was trapped. “Molly, you’re the first face I want to see in the morning and the last one before I fall asleep. I want to make love to you. I want to make babies with you. I want to raise that damn puppy with you. I want it all.”

  Nathan watched her closely. “Now is when you should say something.”

  Her life was about to change, and Molly had never felt readier. She shrugged and attempted a smile. “Yes,” she whispered, leaning into him. “Yes, to all of it. Yes to you and Petal and love and babies, and yes to a life together.”

  He swooped in and kissed her so hard that her head spun, her insides liquefied, her body came alive. She’d been dormant since he’d left, and for the first time since she woke up alone in that cabin, Molly felt alive in every sense of the word.

  “Geez, guys, can we get past the kissing stuff and get to the good part?”

  Molly pulled away from Nathan and peered over his shoulder at her brother. What could be better than this?

  “Let’s get our dog and get out of here,” Nate murmured.

  “Okay,” she replied slowly. “But it will be dogs. I can’t leave Mama.”

  Molly was still stunned and pretty much speechless as they gathered up the pup and her mother, along with a bunch of supplies. They hopped in Nathan’s truck, and Zach followed behind in hers, with Jade behind him. When they turned onto River Road, she looked at Nate, but he shook his head with a smile.

  When they pulled into the Manchester driveway, again she looked at him, totally confused, but he took her hand and led her to the front door. Zach got out of her truck and hopped in with Jade, the two of them grinning like crazy fools as they left and waved goodbye. She turned back to Nathan.

  “Why are we here?”

  He slid a key into the lock, pushed open the door, and before she knew what was happening, Nate lifted her into his arms and walked inside as if he owned the place. Which, after he kissed her near senseless, she found out that he did.

  The house was beautiful. Beck had done an amazing job renovating the place, incorporating modern touches along with the things that made this two-hundred-year-old home special. The stained glass. The intricate woodwork. The fixtures.

  They brought the dogs inside, and while they sniffed and got comfortable, Nate too
k her hand and showed Molly his office. He explained that he was going to work from here, and that he’d fly to the city once a month or on a need-to-go basis for meetings. Then he led her outside, where an outbuilding that was obviously new was located.

  “And this is for you,” he murmured.

  “You built this for me?”

  “Beck helped me out.”

  “But what’s it for?”

  “I know the lease for your shelter is coming to an end and that the owner wants to sell. I thought you could move your shelter here.”

  She couldn’t speak. A part of her couldn’t believe this was happening. Another part of her was afraid it wasn’t real.

  “I want to marry you, Molly. I want this to be our home.”

  She’d been waiting for him all her life, it seemed, and it took a few moments for all of it to sink in.

  “I love you, Nathan,” she said turning in his arms, finding it hard to say the words in her heart. “So much.”

  “That’s what I wanted to hear,” he murmured, gazing down at her.

  “But there’s still one place I haven’t seen.”

  “What’s that?”

  “The bedroom.”

  Nate grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.” He tugged on her hand and led her back to the house. “I hope you’ve cleared your schedule for the day, Moll, because we’re going to spend most of it in bed.”

  “Stop talking,” she growled, tugging off her sweater.

  Nathan Jacobs was more than happy to oblige, and as they fell onto the bed, a tangled mess of heated skin and blankets, Mama dog and Petal found a great place to snuggle on the area rug in front of the fireplace. They were pieces of a puzzle that fit.

  And it was a puzzle she’d treasure forever.

  Epilogue

  Thanksgiving came on the heels of a winter blizzard the likes of which Crystal Lake hadn’t seen in a good long while. It pounded the area for over forty-eight hours and covered the entire town with at least four feet of snow, which caused power outages, shut down businesses, and created havoc with the Malone family get-together.