Page 129 of This Time Around
He wasn’t sure if it was a reprimand or an agreement to play along, but he had his answer soon enough.
“Of course, we’re very sorry.” Kate’s voice quivered a little, and Jonah wondered if it was nerves or part of the act. Either way, it fit the situation. She brushed a shock of straight, dark hair from her eyes and smiled at him. “My husband gets a little carried away by passion sometimes. I tried shoving a sock in his mouth, but you know how it is.”
Jonah stifled a laugh as the two women stared. They didn’t look embarrassed or angry, which was a good sign. This was Oregon, after all, and a liberal artsy town at that. People probably had sex on street corners and called it performance art.
“Well.” The taller woman glanced at the shorter one, and the pair seemed to come to some sort of unspoken agreement. She looked back at Jonah and offered a cautious smile. “Congratulations to both of you. Where are you from?”
“Eugene,” Kate offered, and Jonah wondered if that was true or part of her character. “My husband owns a store that sells novelty socks, and I’m a painter.”
“A sock store?” Both women eyed Jonah with confusion before glancing back at Kate. “What do you paint, dear? Watercolors or oils or?—”
“Houses,” Jonah interrupted, earning himself another shin kick. His arm was still around the back of her chair, and she felt damn good there. Warm and soft and her hair smelled like vanilla. “And commercial buildings. Especially skyscrapers,” he added. “You should see her up there on that crane with a paint sprayer in her hand and a hard hat on her head.”
“Isn’t that something!” The shorter woman extended her hand as the server bustled over and began pouring coffee. “I’m Carol, by the way, and this is Marilee.”
“Pleasure to meet you,” Kate said.
They all shook hands while the server arranged a large tray of bacon and ham at the center of the table and set a German apple pancake in front of each of the new arrivals. Jonah watched as Kate took another bite of hers, and he tried not to fixate on the lovely bow of her mouth. Her features were unique. Not beautiful, but striking. She had sharp cheekbones and chin-length hair that might’ve looked black without the glint of late-August sunlight slashing streaks of mahogany through the strands.
She met his eye then, catching him in the act of staring, but not seeming to mind all that much.
“So,” she said, turning her attention back to Carol and Marilee. “What plays are you seeing?”
“We saw The Merry Wives of Windsor last night and plan to see UniSon tomorrow at one thirty,” Carol said. “How about you two?”
“Off the Rails was terrific,” Kate replied, glancing at Jonah. “There’s this really captivating story line about Indian boarding schools in the American West. Cedric Lamar gave an amazing performance.”
“I saw that earlier in the season!” Carol said. “What did you think of Barret O’Brien’s performance?”
Jonah expected to see a flicker of panic in Kate’s eyes, maybe an uncertainty over whether the actor in question was male or female. He readied himself to answer. But her expression didn’t waver a bit, and her reply was cool and even.
“I thought ’Barret’s performance was surprisingly understated, but still delightfully irreverent,” Kate said. “How about you?”
“I agree.” Carol’s gaze swung to Jonah, and he held off biting into the slice of bacon he’d just lifted. He could sense another question coming. “So tell me about your wedding. Where was it?”
Marilee’s face lit up. “I want to hear about the flowers and the music.”
“We just adore weddings!”
A tiny snap of anger zinged through Jonah’s chest, and it took him a few beats to remember this wasn’t a real question. Not about his real marriage, anyway. The one that hadn’t ended well.
Luckily, Kate was quicker on her feet than he was.
“It was beautiful,” she gushed. “We had it out at Ponderosa Resort in Central Oregon. Do you know it?”
Carol tilted her head to one side. “That’s in the desert part of the state, right?”
“It’s the high desert, yes,” Kate replied. “But there are so many trees and glorious mountain views. We got married right at sunset on the big grassy lawn with these little wild rabbits hopping around everywhere and tall vases of gladiolas in all different colors. You could hear coyotes yipping and smell the sagebrush on the breeze. It was magical.”
Jonah looked at her, struck by the image she’d just painted. Was this something she’d envisioned for herself, or just an act? Something she’d experienced at some point?
She turned to look at him, and he couldn’t help feeling moved by their imaginary ceremony. “She walked down the aisle to Pachelbel’s Canon, and the recessional was the throne room song from Star Wars.”
Kate laughed, which was the opposite of what his ex-wife had done when he’d suggested it for their wedding.
“You know I love your whimsy, darling,” she’d said, placing her hand on his arm the way she used to. “But maybe we could find something with more meaning for the two of us together?”
“It was awesome,” Kate said, jarring Jonah back to the present. “And afterward, we served cupcakes instead of regular cake.”
