Page 2 of The Cottage on Plum Island
“Again!” She pointed at the mangled mess in his hands and arced her index finger through the air. “It needs to be placed on the—“ She leaned forward, saying forcefully, “SIDE OF THE ROAD!”
“Here’s a little tip for you,sweetheart.”The man’s eyes narrowed. “That mirror attached to the windshield is forglancingbehind you,notstaring at yourself or putting on lipstick. And those signs with thenumbers on the side of the road indicate the speed limit, which is the law and not a suggestion of what speed you should be doing.”
Jennifer’s chest rose as fury exploded inside her.Who does this arrogant jerk think he is?She was about to give him a piece of her mind, but she’d already wasted enough time with him.
Jennifer raised both her hands. “You know what? I don’t have time to stand here and argue with a crazy stranger. I have to get to Newbury Port Hospital.”
She pushed past him and was about to climb into her car when he called from behind her.
“You may want to change your skirt before going to the hospital!” He laughed. “I think you may have wet yourself when you nearly killed me.”
Jennifer glanced down at her navy skirt, and her cheeks burned with humiliation as she saw a large wet patch strategically placed on it.
She raised her chin, her eyes narrowing dangerously, as she turned to him. “Here’s a bit of advice for you,sweetheart!“ She mimicked his tone. “Always ensure you have a phone charger in your car and a fully charged phone while driving on—“ She glanced around the quiet road. “Quiet country roads.” She gave him a smug smile as she slid into the car and closed her door. She started her engine and lowered her window. “Good luck with thenextvehicle.”
With that, she pulled off, leaving the man staring after her. Jennifer’s humiliation and anger melted into a delightful feeling of satisfaction as she watched him fade into the distance.
“Take that you, rude, arrogant, insufferable,”a gorgeously handsomevoice whispered in her head, but she pushed it aside, “jerk. I hope you’re stranded there for hours and hours.”
Five minutes later, Jennifer’s conscience got the better of her, and she called the roadside rescue service.
“I didn’t do that for him,” Jennifer said, speaking to no one in particular as she hung up. “I did it because it was the right thing to do. My aunt didn’t raise me to be petty. And besides, I wouldn’t want to live with it on my conscience if I read about a man dying on the side of the road.”
Two hours later, Jennifer was pulling away from Newbury Port Hospital with her aunt propped up on the back seat and heading to Cobble Cove on Plum Island.
“Are you okay in the back, Aunt Betty?” Jennifer glanced at her aunt as they made their way to Plum Island.
“I’m fine, honey,” Aunt Betty assured her. “I feel awful that I’ve put you out like this. You didn’t have to interrupt your plans to babysit me.”
“It’s not babysitting, Aunt Betty.” Jennifer slowed down as they neared Plum Island town center. “I can get to New York any time.” She glanced at the library as they drove past it. “It’s hard to believe that just ten months ago Caroline was still the head librarian there.”
“Yes, we miss her at the library,” Betty told her. “Although we do like Daniella as well.”
“I’m surprised Daniella has the time to run the library and the clinic,” Jennifer commented as they turned onto Cobble Cove Road.
“She’s a remarkable woman,” Betty remarked. “Sam said she’d had a hard time of it before moving to Plum Island with her daughter.”
“Oh?” Jennifer looked at her aunt in the mirror. “Daniella doesn’t speak much about her past.”
“Not many of us do, dear,” Aunt Betty pointed out. “When is Liam getting back from his cruise?”
As they drove past, Jennifer turned to see the Summer Inn, the hotel her brother owned.
“I’m not sure.” Jennifer frowned. “I think he said he wasn’t due home for another two weeks.”
“He needs a break.” Betty nodded. “Oh, Jen, honey, I nearly forgot to tell you. I’ve invited Sam to dinner tonight. He’s going to quote on the work that needs to be done on the cottage.”
“Aunt Betty, I told you I’d take care of the repairs when I was back in town,” Jennifer reminded her. “Sam can’t possibly handle the amount of work that needs to be done on his own.”
“Don’t worry about it, Jen. Sam has help,” Betty told her as they turned onto Middle Point Road, which led to Beach Plum Cottage’s driveway. “His nephew Harley, a wonderful man, helps him out now.” She paused. “Harley will be at dinner too.” She gave Jennifer a look.
“Seriously, Aunt Betty, I know that look, and I’m not going to tell you again,” Jennifer warned her. “I don’t like being set up.”
“I’m not getting any younger, Jen.” Betty started with the guilt trip. “I want great-nieces or nephews.”
“You have a great-niece,” Jennifer reminded her. “With compliments of Liam.”
“It was such a joy raising you and your brother.” Betty sighed, her eyes misting with crocodile tears, making Jennifer roll her eyes as she glanced at her in the mirror.
