She pressed her hands to his chest and went up on her tiptoes to kiss him.
“I do know, and after he leaves we can sneak some time in.”
“Yeah, about that. I’m about ready to just tell Vera I won’t be home until morning. She won’t care, and she knows we respect her.”
“Jamie,” she whispered.
“About ready, Jamie?” Mark called from the bottom of the stairs. “We’ve got hours of work ahead of us.”
“Be right there.” Jamie sighed. The last thing he wanted to do was go see Mark. “Sorry, babe.”
“Wait, are you sure about Vera?”
“Of course I’m sure.” He pulled her close and shifted his eyes to Mark, who was standing at the bottom of the stairs with his back to them. “I’m sure of you, too.”
Chapter Fifteen
“NOT QUITE THE Boston Symphony Orchestra, is it?” Vera smoothed her long black skirt and patted her hair. She and Jessica had driven to the harbor together. It was almost eight o’clock and they, along with the other musicians in Vera’s quartet, were preparing for their show.
There were only a handful of people seated in the metal chairs waiting for them to begin. Jessica had been watching the parking lot, waiting for Jamie to arrive. She knew that the girls were having drinks down the street at the Bookstore Restaurant with their significant others, and they’d be there any minute.
“It’s better than the symphony in many ways,” she answered Vera.
“How so?” Vera asked.
“Well, for one thing, Jamie will be here, so that makes it a million times better.” She inhaled deeply. “And this is so comfortable, Vera. Don’t you think so? With the breeze coming off the sea and children playing behind us. It’s casual and much less stressful. Although I have to admit that my heart is going crazy. I’m not sure why I’m so nervous.”
Vera touched her arm. “It’s because you care. You’re an accomplished musician, and when you play, every note carries a piece of you with it.”
Vera truly understood, and it made her realize that she would miss the camaraderie of her musician friends if she didn’t return to the orchestra, and she did sort of miss having people around who understood the pressures of a musician’s lifestyle.
A little boy darted past the tent and Vera laughed. “I miss little ones.”
“I’m sorry about your daughter, Jamie’s mother. That must have been very difficult for your whole family.”
Vera dropped her eyes for a beat. Her eyes were warm when she met Jessica’s gaze again. “Yes, it was beyond difficult when we lost our daughter, but I had Jamie to focus on. I think there is only one thing that could be worse than losing my child.” Vera watched the children play for a moment, then brought serious eyes back toward Jessica. “If I had never had her in the first place. I would have missed out on all those wonderful years that we had together. Nothing can replace time spent with family.”
Vera paused, looking into the distance with a sorrowful gaze. “Do you hope to have a family some day?”
“Before this summer, I didn’t have time to think about what I wanted. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking lately. I do want a family one day, but I have a lot of decisions to make before that can happen.”
“Oh, I have faith in you.” Vera squeezed her arm. “You’ll figure everything out.”
They settled into their chairs.
“Try not to be too nervous tonight. We’re like family now. And as far as making your decisions goes, you’ll know the right thing to do. Sometimes the heart tells us things in whispers, and we miss them. When we’re ready, we hear them loud and clear.”
Jessica loved the words Vera chose. Sometimes the heart tells us things in whispers, and we miss them. She wondered how many whispers she’d missed in her life—or if she’d missed any at all. Thinking about what Vera had said, she assumed that one day she’d know that answer—she’d hear it loud and clear.
She looked into the sparse audience. Her Seaside friends were all there, except Jamie. Jessica closed her eyes as they began to play, trying not to focus on missing him. The music carried her worries away. After they were done playing the first piece, Jessica opened her eyes and was immediately drawn to the dark-haired man in the second row, wearing a navy-blue tee and gazing right through her. Jamie. My Jamie. She was so happy to see him, and he looked so proud of her. He was sitting beside Mark, whom she suddenly realized looked a lot like the actor Peter Gallagher.
Jamie blew her a kiss as they began playing the next piece, and Mark shook his head. She closed her eyes again, choosing to ignore Mark’s head shake and soaking up the comfort of having Jamie nearby. She allowed herself to get swept into the vibrations of the cello, the higher notes of the violin, and the energy of the musical piece.