She was kissing his neck. “Who is that?”
“Glad you don’t remember,” Jamie said as he stretched out beside her.
Suddenly, Hallie sat up. “I forgot about Braden!”
“Understandable.” Jamie reached out to pull her down beside him, but she rolled to the far side of the bed and got out.
Jamie’s shirt was on the floor and she picked it up, put her arm in one sleeve, and turned the other one to the right side as she ran to the bathroom. “I forgot all about him,” she said through the door. “Where did he sleep? Oh, no! You don’t think he jumped in bed with one of your cousins, do you? His mom will kill me. I’m supposed to take care of him but I didn’t. This is terrible.”
Jamie was stretched out on the bed, a stack of pillows under his head. “No to all of it. Boyfriend is safe and virginal.”
Hallie looked around the door at him. “You can laugh about this, but Braden is my responsibility. I’m going to have to tell him that even his backup girl won’t marry him. And how do you know he’s safe?”
“From about a dozen text messages. Adam wrote that he took both Leland and the boyfriend—”
“Please stop calling him that.”
“Ex-boyfriend to Plymouth’s house. With Todd gone, they had an empty bedroom.”
“Your brother left?” Hallie said. “Too bad. I would have liked to say goodbye to him. Maybe Uncle Kit can teach me some special goodbye boxing moves just for your brother.”
Jamie chuckled. “Just so you know, Todd would never hit a girl back.”
“Good to hear.” She left the bathroom wearing her robe. “You made me forget everything last night.”
“Did I?” Jamie opened his arms to her.
She went to him, snuggling beside him, and they began kissing. Her robe opened and his hands began to explore.
“Hallie? Are you here?” she heard Braden call from downstairs.
She pushed away from Jamie. “I have to go.” When he didn’t release her, she pushed harder. “I have to see to Braden.”
“Tell him you’re busy.”
She gave such a big push that she would have landed on the floor if Jamie hadn’t caught her as he got out of bed. “He can’t know about us. Not yet. I have to break it to him gently. He’s had too many heartbreaks lately.” She put her hand to her forehead. “I just remembered I promised Leland that this morning I’d walk around Nantucket with him. And some of your family is leaving today and I have to say goodbye. You should too.”
“I had all the family I can bear yesterday. How long before you can get rid of cousin and boyfriend?”
“Leland leaves this afternoon, but Braden…I don’t know. He’s a mess right now and he’s my friend.” She went to the stairs to call down to him that she’d be there in a few minutes. “I have to get dressed,” she said to Jamie as she hurried past him. “Do me a favor and go mess up your bed so Braden thinks that’s where you slept.”
“I don’t like lying,” he said.
She put her hands on his back and pushed him toward the door. “You love lying when it gets you what you want. Now go! And put some clothes on.”
“Boyfriend might freak at the scars of a soldier?” He said it as though he were a martyr.
Hallie stopped and looked at him. “No, because you are so magnificently beautiful that Braden will feel awful.”
“Yeah?” Jamie asked, smiling.
“Go!” she said as she went into her closet. For a moment she stood there and breathed deeply. She wanted time to think about all that had happened, to go over everything in her mind: Jamie, Braden, finding a family, Jamie, Todd, and oh, yeah, Jamie.
“Don’t let this get messed up,” she said aloud and didn’t know if she was praying or talking to the resident ghosts who always seemed to be near. “Let me keep this. Please.”
She didn’t have time for more thought. People were waiting for her. She grabbed clothes and pulled them on.
Chapter Twenty-one