man with grayish, hardened eyes. It made no sense. But she was torn between outrage at his attitude toward her during their meeting and a strange feeling of intrigue.
Uh-oh. Jess didn’t dare follow this path again. She’d already had her fair share of experience with an overbearing man who was all too quick to dismiss her opinion.
Still, she couldn’t seem to dampen her curiosity. Who was Jordan exactly? Why was he here? Wealthy tourists and seasonal residents flocked to the island every year during these summer months. Everyone from Hollywood megastars to political elites. But not many folks made the vineyard their permanent home. What had made Jordan decide to do so?
And why was he his little sister’s guardian?
Though she only taught part-time, Jess had been around enough children to know that families came in all sorts of shapes and sizes. But Jordan and Sonya’s particular scenario definitely had her curiosity piqued.
Right. As if she could actually deny the real reason she was so curious. Something about him called to her in a way she couldn’t explain.
She pushed open the door to the class building and nearly ran into Clara, the center’s director.
“I’ve been waiting for you to come in!” the older woman declared as Jess fought to retain her balance before dropping all her art supplies. “You’ve been holding out on us.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Who’s the mystery man?” Clara asked.
Had she sent Clara a text or email in her sleep during one of her Jordan dreams? The mere possibility of the absurd thought had her horrified.
“Mystery man?”
“Let’s go to your classroom,” Clara simply stated without clarifying anything about what she was referring to. She’d definitely walked into some sort of unexpected mystery this morning. One she didn’t really have time for, Jess thought, glancing at the industrial wall clock hanging above the door.
It all made sense once they arrived in the classroom she usually taught in. An elaborate display of colorful, exotic flowers adorned the entire surface of the long supply table that sat next to her easel.
“Who are they from?” Clara wanted to know.
Did she dare hope? That was silly. Why would Jordan Paydan send her flowers, and such elaborate ones, no less?
“They must have cost a fortune!” Clara declared.
“I—I don’t know.”
Clara gave her a disbelieving look. “Well, go on. Take a look at the card, then.”
Jess slowly set down her paints and charcoal pencils and walked over to the centerpiece—a tall glass vase with a large elegant red bow at its base. A delightful scent of lilies, orchids and lilacs tickled her nose as she approached. The sender must have bought out half of Bower’s Flowers in the center of town. She removed the card and pulled it out of the envelope. Shockingly enough, the flowers were from Jordan. Her mouth went dry as she read the tiny font.
Please accept the flowers along with my apologies for my inexcusable behavior.
Jordan Paydan
She read it again, the words slightly blurred now as her hand was shaking for some strange reason. Simple. Direct. But she couldn’t help but feel touched. He’d gone out of his way during a no doubt stressful and busy move to take the time to send her flowers. Most men would have simply called or waited for an opportunity to present itself. The man she’d been briefly involved with during college probably wouldn’t have even done that much. In fact, she could count on one hand all the times she’d been sent flowers from a man.
Though Jordan had certainly overdone it. A simple bouquet would have sent the same message. A single rose would have, in fact. Jordan was clearly the type who spent an exorbitant amount of money to make a simple apology. An uncomfortable sensation tingled at the base of her spine at that thought.
“Well?” Clara broke into her musings. “Don’t keep me in the dark any longer. This is so exciting,” she said and clapped her hands in front of her chest.
Clara was in for a disappointment. “It’s nothing to be excited about, I’m sorry to say.”
Her smile faded. “But these are gorgeous. It’s such a romantic gesture.”
Jess shook her head. “Hardly. They’re simply meant as an apology.”
“An apology?”
“That’s right.”
“From whom?”
“There’s a new family on the island. They’ve just moved in.” She paused, trying to find the right words to explain how this all came about. “Our first couple of meetings didn’t exactly go well.”
“I see.”
“I’ll have to find a way to tell him all is forgiven,” Jess said, glancing at the card once more. “I think he signed the little girl up for a swimming class the other day. We might have their contact information.”
“Who is it? I did most of the recent sign-ups myself.”
“Jordan Paydan.”
A flash of recognition crossed Clara’s face. “Jordan? Why didn’t you say so?”
“You know him?”
“Most of the locals do. Well, they know of him anyway.”
“They do?” Jess had only lived on the vineyard for about three years. Compared to some of the families who had been here for generations and lived here year-round, she was considered a newbie—barely more than a long-term tourist.
Clara explained, “Jordan’s mother was born here in town and grew up not too far from the center, in fact. She used to take classes as a little girl. Mostly athletics. Quite the gymnast.”
“I had no idea.”
“She left as a young lady and made quite a name for herself as a successful fashion model in New York City. Such a shame what happened.”
Clara definitely had Jess’s full attention now. But she didn’t get a chance to ask as several of her pupils entered the room. Class was due to start in about five minutes.
Clara motioned toward the bouquet. “So nothing romantic behind this at all?” she wanted to know as one child waved to them both and took her seat.
“Not even a little.”
The disappointment that settled behind Clara’s eyes was as clear as the vivid colors of her bouquet. “What a shame. But such a nice gesture on his part.”
Jess simply nodded. Nice. Yes, that was all it was. Jordan was being apologetic and conciliatory by sending her flowers, as beautiful and expensive as they were. Who knew, perhaps he’d run their encounters by a girlfriend or even a wife who’d admonished him and urged him to apologize.
