Читать книгу Blossom Street - Debbie Macomber - Страница 84

ELISE BEAUMONT

Elise had never learned to drive. A driver’s license was good for ID purposes, but hardly necessary. Seattle had perfectly good public transportation. The bus generally got her wherever she needed to go, and on rare occasions, Aurora would drive her or she’d take a taxi.

That all changed with Maverick’s arrival. He was more than willing to drive her anywhere she wanted. Then he’d wait for her with limitless patience. For the past two weeks, he’d sat outside the yarn store while she attended her knitting class. She spoke so often about Bethanne, Courtney and Lydia that he knew almost as much about her friends as she did. She shared her concerns about Bethanne’s job and her hopes that Courtney’s senior year would be a good one. She’d also told him about Jacqueline, with whom she’d now attended two Birthday Club lunches.

“Let’s go for a ride,” he suggested Friday afternoon when they’d finished lunch.

Aurora, David and the boys were on a rare family outing to the Woodland Park Zoo. It was just the two of them, Maverick and Elise.

“A ride where?” she asked. No longer did she avoid his company and, in fact, she often sought him out. No longer did she instinctively distrust him—although she never forgot that he was a gambler. She didn’t like it, feared he wouldn’t be able to keep his promise, but decided to enjoy whatever time she had with him before he gave in to his compulsion again.

She did love to hear his stories, though. While she didn’t approve of gambling, she had to admit the tales of his exploits intrigued her. He’d been all over the world, to Europe, to Australia, to the Caribbean. He’d gambled in many of those places, but he’d also experienced real adventures—a boat trip down the Nile, driving through the Australian Outback, being briefly—and erroneously—arrested in Paris. He’d met famous people and told her anecdotes about them. Elise found she could listen to him for hours. She envied, just a little, his emotional extravagance. Unlike Maverick, Elise had always been cautious and frugal, with her money and her life.

The ideal way to live, she thought, was probably a combination of his approach and hers….

“I was thinking it might be nice to take a drive to the mountains,” Maverick said. “It’s been years since I went up to Mount Rainier.”

Elise frowned. “It’s a little late in the day for that, don’t you think?”

“Nah. Come on, Elise, aren’t you bored sitting around the house knitting?”

She bristled. “I happen to enjoy my knitting, thank you very much.”

“Bring it with you. You can knit in the car, can’t you?”

“I … I suppose.” Suddenly, she didn’t want to yield to his plans. She no longer seemed to have any resistance to him, and that frightened her. “I believe I’ll pass, but thank you for thinking of me,” she said stiffly.

Maverick grew quiet then, his disappointment unmistakable. He washed his lunch plate and tucked it inside the dishwasher. Then he disappeared for a few minutes, returning with a spy novel he’d been reading, and sat down in the family room off the kitchen.

As she wiped the counters, Elise glared at him. She refused to let him manipulate her.

“You can go without me, you know,” she told him.

Maverick lowered his book and glanced at her over his reading glasses. “I know.” He went back to his novel, apparently engrossed in the plot.

With Maverick reading, Elise walked down the hallway to her room and reached for her knitting. She was finished with the first sock and working on the second one. On Tuesday she’d purchased yarn for another pair of socks; these, she’d knit for her daughter.

She finished two complete rounds until, with a disgusted sigh, she set her knitting aside and marched into the family room. “Oh, all right. I’ll go.”

His face broke into a broad smile. “I hoped you’d come around.”

He’d blatantly used guilt to get his own way—and she’d let him. He was quite a master of manipulation; with barely a word, he’d coerced her into doing exactly what he wanted.

Within ten minutes, they were in the car and on their way out of the city, heading toward Mount Rainier National Park. Although Maverick had suggested it, Elise didn’t bring her knitting. She had enough to concentrate on.

Maverick was a fascinating conversationalist, able to talk about anything, able to switch topics instantly. This was a gift she didn’t have and one her ex-husband often used to ensnare his opponent on the other side of the gaming table. At least, according to his stories …

“I want you to tell me what happened,” he said as they continued down the two-lane highway that led to the park.

“If you’re referring to the debacle with the house, then let me inform you, the subject is closed.” She couldn’t bear the idea of exposing her foolishness to his scrutiny.

“Will you be okay financially?”

“Of course I will, once the lawsuit is settled.” She felt irritated that he was asking her these awkward questions now, while she was virtually his captive. The only thing she could do was change the subject. “I don’t remember the last time I was up in Paradise,” she murmured, staring out the window. Maverick was a skillful driver and the scenery was breathtaking.

“I do,” Maverick said, shooting her a look. “I’ll bet you remember, too. We were on our honeymoon.”

She swallowed tightly. Time to change the subject again. “You were gone this Wednesday. For several hours.”

“I had personal business and before you ask, I wasn’t gambling. You have my word on that.”

She shouldn’t have brought it up, and regretted that she had.

“Paradise was a misnomer,” she said after a stilted pause. “Our honeymoon was ruined by those dreadful mice.”

Maverick burst out laughing.

“It was no laughing matter,” she said with a shudder. Maverick had managed to get them reservations in the National Park’s beautiful and romantic lodge. In the middle of the night, Elise had awoken to a faint scratching sound. Her mistake was turning on the light. To her absolute horror, she saw five or six deer mice crawling in Maverick’s overnight bag. She’d let out a scream that had startled her husband—and probably half the lodge—into sudden wakefulness. Maverick had peanuts in his suitcase and the mice had gone after those, carrying them out one by one in what was practically an assembly line.

The following morning Elise had complained to the man at the registration desk about the unsanitary conditions and the fact that there appeared to be an infestation of mice. He’d informed her that the lodge was prohibited by federal law from killing any of the wildlife in the area—including mice. The only place they were allowed to set traps was in the kitchen.

“Remember how I distracted you?” Maverick asked in a sultry voice.

Leave it to a man to mention sex. Or to hint at it, anyway. She refused to give him the satisfaction of a reply.

“You remember,” he said, his amusement obvious.

“I most certainly do not.” She hugged herself even tighter.

He laughed at her stubborn refusal to admit the passion they’d shared. “How long has it been, Elise?”

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Longer for me than for you, no doubt.”

“Don’t be so sure.”

She turned around to glance at him. “You can’t fool me, Maverick. I was married to you, remember? I know you. You had an extremely healthy sexual appetite.”

“After we split up, you used to let me come to your bed.”

Her face went instantly crimson. “That was a mistake.” The year following their separation and divorce, he’d showed up at the apartment every few nights and talked his way into her bedroom. Then he’d abruptly stopped and Elise knew why. He’d found some other woman who welcomed him. One who was happy to overlook his flaws and take what he offered without questions or recriminations.

“It wasn’t a mistake on my part,” he said.

“Do you mind if we talk about something else?” she asked in a bored voice.

“You used to be such a prude—until I got you between the sheets.” He shook his head. “I guess you still are a prude.”

“Stop it right this minute! Or I swear I’ll … I’ll open this door and jump out of the car.”

“Well, that got a reaction, didn’t it?” He chuckled softly.

“I’m sixty-five years old and I find this discussion embarrassing.”

“I’m not dead yet, and I doubt you are, either,” Maverick said smoothly.

Elise was determined not to answer.

They drove in silence after that and then, for no apparent reason, Maverick started laughing. Despite everything, Elise grinned. Then Maverick reached over and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

The rest of the afternoon was delightful. They drove through Rainier National Park and dined on steak and baked potatoes in the lodge.

The house was dark and quiet when they finally returned. Worn out from an entire day at the zoo, Luke and John were sound asleep. Aurora and David must have been tired, too, because not a sound came from their part of the house.

Maverick escorted Elise to her bedroom door. “Thank you for a wonderful afternoon and evening,” he whispered.

Elise kept her gaze averted. “Dinner was lovely.” Everything about the day had been lovely. “Just … thank you.” About to turn away, she didn’t expect him to kiss her. But he did. He leaned forward and pressed his mouth to hers. His lips were warm and moist and his arms slid around her waist, pulling her close. When he ended the kiss and released her, Elise’s knees nearly buckled.

“Good night, Elise,” he whispered, touching her face as if memorizing the feel of her skin.

She mumbled a reply that was completely unintelligible and nearly fell into her room. Her hands shook as she undressed and carefully hung up her clothes.

The tap on her bedroom door came just as she’d finished brushing her teeth.

She closed her eyes, swaying, not sure what to do. She could ignore him and go to bed—or she could open her door. Deciding quickly, she walked to the door.

As she’d expected, Maverick stood in the hallway. His eyes met hers in the light from her room. “Are you going to let me in,” he asked, “or turn me away?”