Shelby stepped out into the sun by the pool, feeling like the luckiest girl in the world with her arm linked through Jake’s. He had pulled her in close as they left the suite and hadn’t let her go since. She caught sight of their reflection as they made their way to a cabana by the expansive pool. To anyone else who saw them, they looked like a couple. The thought made her heart speed up. Her plan was to suspend belief for the day and she planned to do just that. Tomorrow could wait with all its problems and reality checks. This day required a little mental gymnastics.

Jake led her to a cabana with deep red silk panels on four sides, pulled away on the front and held with ties. Two pool lounge chairs were in front and inside there was a larger, cushioned lounge like a bed, a table, and a few armchairs. The table held a chilled bottle of champagne with two fluted glasses, plus cold bottles of water and a tray of crackers and fruit.

“This is…wow.”

“We can lounge here or do the lazy river or just swim,” Jake said. “Your choice. It’s your day.”

“I thought it was our day,” Shelby said. “Our first date. Right?”

“Technically, yes. But this particular date centers around you.” He touched the tip of her nose when he said this, grinning. “Tell me what we’re doing. I’m all on board.”

“Let’s swim first, then do the lazy river,” Shelby said.

“Perfect.”

They left their clothes in the cabana. Maria had sent up a few extras that Shelby bet Jake requested: in addition to black heels for the cocktail dress, she sent strappy silver sandals for the blue dress, leather flip flops, sunglasses, and a sheer cover-up that she had on over the silver bathing suit. When she was getting dressed, she almost chickened out and wore the black suit that she’d had on a at the Mayor’s house, the one that Jake had already seen. The silver seemed too bold.

It's just for today, she told herself. Be bold. Tomorrow you can worry.

Now as she took off the cover-up, she caught Jake looking, but trying to not look too much. He had a way of making her feel beautiful without ogling her. She smiled. “Thanks for this suit. I really like it.”

“I like it too,” he said. “Uh, not to sound creepy. I feel a little weird complimenting you in a swimsuit. I’d like you even in a trash bag.”

She giggled. “Just stick with the compliment, City. I’m not reading into it. But I can change into a trash bag if needed. I’m sure I can find one around here somewhere…”

“Nope. Let’s stick with the suit. You’ll attract enough attention in it as is. In a trash bag I might have to fight off other would-be suitors. I’m not in the mood to share.”

Jake meant it, keeping constant physical contact. He put a hand on the small of her back as they moved from the cabana to the pool. In the water he held her hand, only letting go when he tossed her into the deep end, making her squeal. But even as she came up for air, he was back beside her, his fingertips on her shoulder. She basked in the affection and attention.

Even when he swam a few laps, he returned quickly to her side, reaching for her arm or hand. She loved the touch, but also loved watching him swim. He was clearly showing off for her. When he popped up out of the water after swimming a lap of freestyle, she could see that like her, he was longing for her approval and affection. She gave it back just as he gave, keeping a hand on his arm or standing on his feet in the water.

He let her go and swam a lap or two of butterfly, his broad shoulders and back moving powerfully through the water. When he finished, he swam to her underwater, grasping her ankles lightly before coming to the surface. Water dripped into his eyes as he smiled. He brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles, one at a time, making her shiver even in the heat of the day.

“When did you start swimming?” she asked, feeling the need to take things back a step.

“High school. My sister Candace recommended it. She saw something in me that I didn’t. Took me a few years to get good and catch up to everyone who’d been swimming every summer forever. It’s how I was finally able to trim down.”

Trim wasn’t the word that Shelby would have used for his body, which could have been immortalized into statue form. “You have a sister?”

“Yep. She’s a few years older. Married with two little girls who have me basically wrapped around their fingers. I guess this is the time I should tell you that your competition is pretty stiff.”

Shelby giggled. She could picture Uncle Jake swinging two little girls in the air, reading bedtime stories, playing chase. In her mind the little girls had fiery red hair. He would be an amazing uncle and a great dad. Her heart beat wildly thinking this way.

She turned away from him and began to swim away. “Ready for the lazy river?”

“As you wish,” he said.

Shelby caught the Princess Bride reference but couldn’t respond to it. It was a common movie to quote. But “as you wish” was also the farm boy’s way of telling Buttercup that he loved her. Her heart was already feeling too fragile, too close to falling over the edge for something impossible.

Jake secured two clear plastic tubes for them and they joined the throng of other people floating through the lazy river path that circled the pool area. To stay together, they connected their hands, intertwining their fingers as their tubes bobbed and weaved through the low, warm water. Shelby relaxed into this feeling of being carried along, connected to Jake by their joined hands. Every so often he’d give her a yank, sending her shooting ahead, his own tube jerking a few seconds after hers. They both rested after a time, a comfortable silence settling between them. She couldn’t see his eyes under his sunglasses, but she closed hers, feeling the sun baking into her skin.

“I could get used to this,” Shelby said.

“Which part?” Jake asked. He squeezed her hand tighter.

Shelby’s stomach fluttered again, but she couldn’t locate the right words to answer. She wasn’t sure if it was because she didn’t know the answer or didn’t feel like she could say it out loud. She didn’t want to jinx the day.

“The river is nice,” he said, “but the company is my favorite part. I could definitely get used to it. But we should probably get out at the next exit. I forgot sunscreen. While I’m the rare redhead who can tan, I’m pretty sure my skin isn’t ready for this level of sun.”

Shelby lowered her sunglasses and leaned over her tube, careful not to topple it. “You’re definitely looking a little crispy there. Might be too late for sunscreen. Should we head to location number two of our day date?”

Still firmly holding her hand, Jake slipped out of the tube, dunking his body in the water and then pulling Shelby and his empty tube toward a set of stairs on the side. “You get to choose location number two. What do you want to do next, Shelby?”

Knowing he was paying for all of this made it hard to say the next part out loud. It felt too extravagant. Undeserved.

She still hadn’t answered when Jake returned the tubes and took her hand again as they walked toward the cabana. His skin against hers felt safe and comfortable, but also sent sparks through her body. It was hard to think.

“If you aren’t sure, I have a suggestion.”

“Spill it.”

“I say spa next. Then if you want, we can dress for dinner and hit the casino for a bit before eating.”

Relief poured from her. It was so much easier to feel like she was just accepting what he offered, rather than having to ask for it. “That sounds perfect.”

“We can go straight there, if you’d like.”

“Don’t we need to dress up?” she asked.

He smiled. “Nope. You’ll be in just a towel for the massage and there are some really great saunas and hot tub.”

Shelby glanced at Jake. “Just a towel?”

“Don’t worry—it’s very professional.”

“I wasn’t worried about them…”

He laughed. “You don’t need to worry about me either. I’m actually going to be running a quick errand. I’ll send you onto the spa alone. Trust me—for this kind of thing, you just want to relax, not feel like you have to make conversation or anything else. You’ll get the full treatment and then I’ll meet you back up in the room a little later. They’re expecting you. Is that okay?”

Shelby knew that he was probably right—being in just a towel in the same room with him would have made it really hard to relax. At the same time, she felt a pang of disappointment as he let go of her hand after checking her into the spa. He leaned in and kissed her cheek before waving and heading out to whatever his errand was.

She missed him before he was out of the room.

Jake hummed as he drove, even without music on. He’d leased a black SUV for the afternoon just for this particular errand. His phone buzzed in the console. Xander. Jake had been avoiding his calls all morning. This was a text, which he’d read when he stopped, but he knew what it would say: CALL ME.

Just for today, Jake wanted to live in this bubble. He and Shelby together, pretending like their problems didn’t exist. Acting like they were in a relationship that wouldn’t, as Xan liked to say, have an expiration date. Avoiding reality meant keeping Xan at bay.

All day, though, Jake had been trying to puzzle through this problem. Could they have a future? If so, how?

Jake couldn’t imagine living in Lucky. Not that he couldn’t do it, but the idea was too strange to wrap his mind around. Moving from a high-rise condo in the center of Chicago, going to business meetings in suits, working eighty hours a week, to a tiny town that barely made a blip on the map. He couldn’t picture it, but the idea of not seeing Shelby again…he didn’t want to picture that. At all.

He knew that she wouldn’t move to Chicago. Not with her dad and the life she had in Lucky. Her mom complicated things. Maybe that would take some of the pressure off and free Shelby up to do more, but he still couldn’t imagine her moving. The idea of a back and forth didn’t really work either. The nearest airport was Houston, an hour and a half away, at the least. Even with a private jet, this would be impossible, and he didn’t want to use a private jet.

If he wasn’t working for Obsidian, Jake could do whatever he wanted. He wanted to be with Shelby. But could he move to a small town like Lucky, where he felt like an outsider? Where there wouldn’t be a job? Not that he needed an income, but without working, how would he spend his days?

The GPS directed him to take a left into a parking lot of a low, small building with the name Book Exchange on the sign out front. The smell of the place hit him first when he walked through the doors: old books. Not musty, but the alluring scent of fresh, dry paper. Immediately he realized that he should have brought Shelby with him. She would love it. Next time.

Would there be a next time?

He took a breath and began wandering the aisles, stacking up books as he went. He didn’t know what she already had, but picked some of his favorites and some just for fun. He found a well-loved, but still good copy of Nine Stories by Salinger, Dracula in hardback, and one more contemporary novel with a great cover called How to Be Lost. When he had as many books as he could carry, he headed toward the counter, but felt his phone buzzing. He glanced at it, expecting Xan, but it was Candace.

“Hello?” Jake found a back corner of the store and balanced the phone on his shoulder so he didn’t drop the books.

“Hey little bro. How goes it in Texas?”

“Strange. Good and strange.”

“I sense a story there. Do you have time to talk? The girls are playing with Leo out back, so I can actually carry on a conversation for once.”

Jake stacked the books on a shelf together so he could have free hands. “I have a few minutes. I’m not sure where to start, though. I think I need advice.”

“You? My brilliant and successful billionaire brother wants my advice?”

“Shut up. Not like I don’t ever ask.”

“You don’t. And you don’t listen when I give it without asking, so this is a first. We should make a plaque to commemorate. Now tell me what you need advice about. Please, please tell me it’s a girl.”

“It’s a girl.” Candace squealed and Jake held the phone away from his ear, smiling. “You done?” he asked.

She cleared her throat. “Yes. Professional here, ready to dispense very professional advice.”

“I met someone amazing, but it’s complicated. She lives here in this tiny town I’m in and I know she won’t leave.”

Candace was quiet. “Baby bro, I want you to meet a girl. But I don’t want you to move to Tiny Town, Texas.”

“I know.” He sighed.

“She wouldn’t move for you? And hang on—this is huge. You’re talking about moving. How long have you known this girl? Because this sounds like crazy talk. I think you need to get back up to Chicago where the air is clearer.”

“Does it really matter how long I’ve known her?”

“To talk about moving for her? Yes. You’ve been gone about a week, right? Could you make a big decision like that after a week?”

He didn’t want to tell her that it was less than a week. “What about long distance? People do that, right? And it works?”

“It usually ends badly. Unless there’s already a great foundation in place. Like, a longer-term relationship. I’m sorry—I feel like I just totally crushed all your hopes and dreams.”

“Dream crusher,” he said. “It’s a good nickname.”

“Shut up.”

“I’m curious and not trying to be judgmental. What is it about her that has you asking for advice and thinking about moving? Is she really hot or something? Are you just, like, attracted to her?”

“She’s beautiful, but no. It’s not just that.” Jake thought about how to explain Shelby in words. “I don’t know how I can even describe her. She’s a spitfire. Crazy. Amazing. I just feel like I can’t get enough of her and I don’t want to. I’m not ready to leave her. I’m not ready to say goodbye or to give up on an idea of a future. I think…maybe I’d like to stay longer. See where this goes.”

When the silence stretched out, he spoke again, “Candace?”

“I’m here. I just…I’ve never heard you sound like this. It gives me hope and makes me happy. I’m just trying to get my brain around it. What does Xan say?”

Jake sighed. “I’m currently avoiding him, for work reasons. Plus, he’s got the worst advice. New girl every weekend for him. He’d have one every night of the week if he weren’t so busy. Commitment isn’t his thing.”

“Your boss is a cad.”

“He’s really not. It just looks like it because he won’t commit. He’s not sleeping with the women he dates, Candace. He just doesn’t go out with the same woman twice.”

“Still. It’s gross. Who will ever want to marry him if he’s acting like such a playboy?”

“Focus. Back to me and my problems.”

“Sorry.”

“I think that I could finish up this deal with Xander in Chicago and then take some time off to come back down here. Spend some time with her and see what happens.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” she said carefully. “It’s hard to picture you not working.”

“I’m sure I’d find something to do. The whole laptop lifestyle people are always going on about. And I’ve been working really hard with no break for five years. It’s about time, right?”

“I don’t know how it would sort out long term, but if you feel strongly enough about this girl that you want to move down there and see, then you need to do it. You can’t give up on something like that. Even if it doesn’t work in the long run. Sometimes you take the risk, even if it doesn’t make sense on paper.”

He hated hearing even the thought of it not working in the long run, even if he couldn’t picture how it would work. Relationships weren’t easy—that’s what people always said, right? Then there was the one other complication, which wasn’t so small. Shelby might not be willing to try at all if she knew about the land deal. He swallowed a lump in his throat.

“Thanks for talking to me, Sis. Or should I say, Dream Crusher?”

“I’d smack you if I were there, little bro.”

“Just like old times. I’ll give you a call when I come back. Give my love to the two main girls in my life. Would they want stuffed alligator heads? That’s something they have here.”

“Ew. You bring something like that back and you’re banned from the family.”

“Okay. But remind me to tell you about how I went swimming with an alligator.”

She paused. “Jake, I think you need to get back to Chicago, stat. Do not pass go, do not collect two-hundred dollars. I think Texas broke you.”

He laughed. “Maybe. But I think I like me broken.”

“I’ll let you know when I see you next.”

Jake hung up, a smile on his face. Maybe he didn’t have a full plan. How could you plan a life with someone you just met anyway? Candace was right. He needed time. Tomorrow he’d call Xan back and they would figure out the rest of this project. Today the focus was on Shelby. If he wanted to move down and give this a chance, he needed to know she was on board. But that would also mean being honest and telling her about his role in her losing the house.

He had to think positively. It would work. She would forgive him. He would come back. They would figure this thing out.

His heart sped up as the miles closed, beating in time with his thoughts: Shel-by, Shel-by, Shel-by. It felt like he’d been gone from her for hours, though it had only been two. She probably wasn’t even done at the spa yet. He hoped that she was having a good day. One more stop and then he would be back with her. As he turned into a parking lot, Xander called again. Jake glanced at the phone. He had three voicemails and fifteen texts. This was bad. He hesitated for a moment, his finger over the phone. Instead of opening it, he turned off his phone and stepped out of the car.