Omnibus 50 That Summer Place: Private Paradise\Island Time\Old Things by Debbie Macomber; Susan Wiggs; Jill Barnett

Author:Debbie Macomber; Susan Wiggs; Jill Barnett
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Romance, Fiction, General
ISBN: 9780778321194
Publisher: MIRA
Published: 2005-01-02T06:00:00+00:00

Five

Mary Jane: So how’s it going with you and John?

Beth: Going?

Mary Jane: Has he kissed you yet?

Beth: Good grief, no! It isn’t like that with us.

Mary Jane: Listen, girlfriend, this guy is wonderful. He’s smart, gainfully employed and decent. You two have a lot in common. He’s about as high on the food chain as you’re going to get.

“A t least come down to the dock with us,” Paul urged Nikki the morning of their scheduled kayaking lesson. The first few days with Nikki had been rough, but Beth soon realized her most powerful ally was her own son. When Paul did the inviting, the chance that Nikki would tag along immediately increased. She’d joined them for a couple of outings, and while she laughed and goofed around with Paul, she kept a protective distance from Beth.

Beth acted as if it was understood that Nikki would be joining them in all their activities. As if this was how things had been planned from the very beginning.

“I’m not getting inside any boat that rolls over in the water,” Nikki protested.

“The least you can do is come down to the dock with us,” Paul said. “It’s better than sitting around the house all day by yourself.”

Nikki hesitated. “Oh, all right,” she muttered with ill grace. “But don’t expect me to change my mind.”

Beth tossed her son a triumphant smile, marveling anew at what an asset he’d turned out to be in this situation. It didn’t hurt any that Nikki and Paul were becoming friends.

Nikki raced upstairs and returned in shorts and tennis shoes—black, of course—with a backpack slung over one shoulder. Once she was ready, they headed toward the carriage house for the bicycles. Up to this point Beth had ridden on the tandem with Paul, but she’d seen Nikki glance enviously at the two of them.

“Nikki,” she whispered conspiratorially, “would you mind riding the tandem with Paul? I don’t seem to be able to get the knack of it and…well, frankly I’m a bit afraid to try it again. I’ll take one of the regular bikes.”

She wondered briefly if Nikki had seen through her ploy; if so, the girl chose to overlook it.

“Yeah, sure,” Nikki said.

For just an instant Beth thought she might have seen the girl smile. It astonished her how gratified an almost-smile made her feel. While no longer openly hostile, Nikki wasn’t exactly friendly, either. But thanks to Paul, Beth felt she was making progress, bit by bit, day by day.

As soon as they got down to the dock and met their instructor, Nikki decided—with a little persuasion from Paul—to try kayaking herself. Beth’s reaction to the girl’s change in attitude was a blend of relief and unreserved delight. So what if she couldn’t expect that change to last? Needless to say, Nikki grumbled and complained until she was in the water and paddling on her own. A smile teetered on her lips, then gave way to a full-blown laugh as the three of them practiced maneuvers in the protected waters of the marina.

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