Casual Affair

“What happened to her?” she asked softly.

He picked at a thread on his pants, avoiding eye contact. “Car accident. It happened just a few months after I gave her that scrapbook. She and my father were arguing one night. He stormed out to go work his night shift, and she was still pretty upset. She said she had to go run an errand and that she’d be right back.”

Bea watched as Zane swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down.

“I knew how angry she was,” he continued. “I knew she shouldn’t have been driving like that. But I was young and didn’t really know what to do. That was the last time I saw her. My father got a call from the hospital an hour later saying she’d lost control of her car and crashed into a utility pole. She died in the ambulance.”

An unbearable ache settled in Bea’s chest. “I’m so sorry, Zane.”

He looked back up and smiled, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Thanks. It was ages ago, though.”

But he still hurt. She could see it in his eyes. That would explain those glimpses of sadness and regret. Knowing him the way she did, she had the feeling he’d been carrying a heavy load of guilt around with him all these years. She wanted to tell him that he shouldn’t blame himself. It wasn’t his fault. There was literally nothing he could have done.

But Felicity’s warning of getting too involved with him echoed in Bea’s mind, so she held back.

“What about your father?” she asked. “Do you get to see him a lot? Back in England, I mean.”

Zane’s expression softened, and some of the tension in her shoulders eased. She was so used to his goofy grin and playful banter, seeing him unhappy was different…and unpleasant.

“Yeah. We got pretty close after her death, and we still talk all the time. He actually remarried a couple of years ago. She seems to make him happy, and that’s all I can really ask for, I suppose.”

It was obvious Zane had a deep love for his family, and that only made him more attractive. Before Bea could ask him another question, he beat her to the punch.

“Your turn. Are you close with you parents?”

Sensing he wanted to switch the focus to her, she swallowed her questions. “More with my dad, but Mama and I have always had a good relationship. Felicity and I were just so different growing up that we formed different bonds with each of them. Daddy loves us both, of course, but he always wanted a son, and I think I more or less filled that void for him. He taught me how to play sports and did all the things he would have done with a boy, so I pretty much became a tomboy.”

“Which meant that Felicity was closer with your mother, I take it?”

“Yep. She was the girly girl who liked to play with Barbies and practice putting on makeup. Mama had her in beauty pageants for most of her childhood. Instead of trying out every activity known to man like me, she stuck with gymnastics until she was fifteen. Mama was a beauty queen and a gymnast herself, so you could say that each parent was grooming us in their own way.”

“Do you visit them frequently?”

“Not as much as we used to. Ever since we started the business, we haven’t had as much time. But they come up to see us as often as they can. We’re usually able to make it down South for holidays.”

After several more minutes of conversation about their personal lives, the topic inevitably turned to work.

“So, the launch is still scheduled for a month from now, right?” she asked.

He nodded. “Assuming there aren’t any major disasters, yes.” He was silent for a moment, then added, “I know I’ve already said this, but I just want to reiterate what a fantastic job you and Felicity have done. The store is looking amazing, and my people back in England are very pleased.”

“You should probably wait until after the launch before you sing our praises,” she told him. “We don’t know how consumers will respond yet.”

He shot her a look as if to say come on. “Oh, please. Even you know it’s going to be a big success. I think you and I make a pretty good team.”

She snorted. “Yeah, when we aren’t at each other’s throats.”