She thought she heard him mutter under his breath something along the lines of,I’m already there.
* * *
Holding hands with Parker,Jade began the long walk around the Main Street Square. Right in front of the city hall building was a massive piece of well-manicured lawn, but that’s not what people loved the Square for. Just like Jade, every other Half Moon Key local knew just how many events took place in the Square.
Dances, market days, plays, fairs, and town parties. They all took place here year-round.
“Really?” Parker asked when she explained it to him.
“Oh, yeah. The Square is the spot. How do you not know this?” she teased.
“Because I’ve lived here for only a short while, and my only social guide is you.” He kissed her cheek. “Just the way I want it to be.”
Jade giggled. “Sure. Because you’re totally not best buddies with Mason, Cohen, and Jack. You all go fishing together every couple of days. Don’t tell me you hatethat.”
“Ha. You got me. I do like hanging out with those guys. They’re different. It’s interesting to watch the two brothers interact.”
“Cohen is a bit surly, yeah. From what I know of Mason, he’s a bit more …” She scrunched up her face as she thought of the right word. “Easygoing.”
“That’s a good way of putting it. It works, though. We have a good dynamic when we’re fishing and having a cold beer.”
“Men,” she teased with a giggle.
“What about men?” Jade’s mother cut in, popping out of nowhere. Jade hadn’t noticed her mother, way too engrossed with Parker.
Crush? Her? No. Stop!
She knew she was head over heels. It helped that Parker clearly wanted to settle down in Half Moon Key. That was a deal breaker for Jade. Besides, she was sure she couldn’t fall in love with someone who would hate Half Moon Key. She wasn’t even sure such a person existed. Half Moon Key was just too amazing to dislike.
“You two look cozy,” Mom’s eyes were glued on their joined hands.
“It’s a cozy kind of day,” Parker said with a smile.
Jade was immediately taken with the good flow of responses between Parker and her mother. She was confident they would get along. After all, Jade was a lot like her mother. As close as she was to her parents, Jade knew they would just adore Parker.
A hard-working man with good values. He was hilarious even when he didn’t try to be, and as sweet as can be. There was a lot to like about Parker. All of him, basically. Even his intensity wasn’t a deterrent. Jade just saw it as strength of character and self-assurance that came from being successful at a young age without squandering it away like so many others did.
“Honey, I’m so glad I’ve run into you. You two did such a good job with the Beach Day planning that I am officially relinquishing the Christmas in July celebration to you. Mrs. Francis agreed, of course, or we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
Jade was immediately hot in the face. “Mom! You can’t do that. Parker might have work to get done.”
“I’m retired, remember? What else am I gonna do?” He pitched his voice a little lower. “Besides, I really want to have all the reasons possible to spend more time with you.”
“Well,” Jade laughed. “I guess it’s okay with Parker then.”
“Excellent. Bye, now!” Mom scurried away, right to Mrs. Francis. They put their heads together and whispered excitedly.
“You know you’ve been played, right? They just really want this to work out.” She shook her head. “Unless it’s the opposite, and they want to break us up. Think about it. People who plan things together always argue, no?”
“Did you argue with your mom?” he asked.
She rolled her eyes. “It’s not the same. She’s my mother.”
“It’s similar. Someone you trust and respect enough to compromise with.”
“You’re deep, Parker. And here I thought we were only talking about planning parties together.”
“I think the point they’re making is that wedowork well together. And if we can plan Beach Day and start dating? I’m sure we can keep dating while planning this one. It’s good practice for planning life around the kids’ schedule.” He winked at her.