“Can I get you a beer?” he asked. “Or there’s wine or soda.”
“A beer would be great, thanks.”
He retrieved a beer from the cooler and presented it to her. He was trying to think of something smooth to say when Lauren, who must have snuck back to her car, walked around the side of the house with two tiny furballs clinging to her.
Even as he mentally realized they were kittens, the word, “Kittens!” rang out from every female in sight and suddenly Lauren was surrounded by women plying her with questions and asking to hold the bundles of fluff. Of course, Lucky had also rushed up, but not, he thought in order to gush over the kittens, more to try and chase them or somehow prove Dog the superior animal. She was barking her fool head off.
“This is a cry for help,” Lauren admitted when Rose asked, over the sounds of barking, why she had brought kittens to a barbecue.
“Quiet, Lucky. Down,” Lauren said, and the dog complied. Lauren’s bond with animals was what made her such a great veterinarian. “These babies were brought into our clinic by someone who found them in a box on the side of the road.” Her pretty face grew grim. “Who does that? If people had their pets spayed and neutered we wouldn’t have such a problem with strays.”
“I know, honey,” said Jack, who’d managed to edge out the women and somehow got hold of a tiny black and white kitten that he held in the palm of his hand. “What are you going to do with them?”
“These are the last two. I’m trying to find homes for them. I was hoping you might know people who could take a kitten and give it a good home.”
“Well, maybe we could…” At that moment Daphne came out, took one look at her husband with the tiny kitten curled up against him and said, “Oh, no.”
“But it’s homeless. We’ve never turned away a homeless infant in our lives.”
“They were human!”
Iris smoothly intervened. “I could put up a sign in Sunflower. Everyone comes through the coffee shop. We’ll have homes for these babies in no time, right, Kim? I’d take one myself if I wasn’t expecting twins.”
“A sign in Sunflower is a great idea. Especially if it had a picture.”
“I’ll make you a sign,” Daphne offered, clearly hoping to get the kittens housed before Jack talked her into keeping one.
Rose came up to them. “Kim, it’s good to see you again. I haven’t seen you since the wedding. How are you enjoying Hidden Falls? How’s the job going?”
“It’s beautiful here. And I love working at Sunflower. Thanks for recommending me.”
“Iris has been raving about you. She and Geoff are delighted that you fit in so well.”
“That’s nice of them to say so.”
James said, “I’m not sure if it’s fitting in as much as getting dragged in.”
Rose nodded. “He’s right. If Daphne and Jack take a liking to you, you’ll be part of this crazy family whether you like it or not.”
He knew that Rose herself hadn’t always liked it. She was born cool and elegant. He could still remember when they were kids that she’d somehow make her hand-me-downs look like designer originals. Now that she was a successful doctor, she wore real designer originals.
“That’s okay. I like your family.”
Jack bellowed, “Burgers are up. Beef, chicken or vegetarian.”
Rose ushered Kim toward the food. It was funny how when someone new came among them there was an unspoken rule that one of the family would take the newcomer under their wing. Tonight there were two newbies. Sarah emerged from the house in a loose floral dress that clearly belonged to Paisley. Cooper might have invited his running partner to dinner, but it was obvious that Paisley didn’t trust him to take proper care of his guest. The two young women were soon caught up with the kittens and Sarah so quickly settled once she had a fur baby to play with that Cooper was tacitly forgiven.
And then there was Kim. Rose had clearly laid claim to the woman she was responsible for bringing to Hidden Falls. He felt like Cooper, on the outside while the woman he longed to be with was soon settled in a small group with Rose and Iris. He loaded his plate and joined Cooper and the Vasilopoulos brothers.
He and Matt Vasilopoulos had become friends when he’d taken Matt and some buddies shooting as part of a stag outing. That stag party had led to him getting invited to the wedding, which was how he’d met Kimberly.
No doubt Matt saw him glance that way for he said, “Last time I saw Kimberly, you were driving her home from that wedding. Now she’s living here in Hidden Falls.”
He forked up a chunk of potato salad. “Your two and two aren’t adding up. She didn’t know I lived here when she took the job.”
“Huh. You two seemed very friendly at the wedding.” He bit into a pickle. “Pretty girl.”
“All I did was drive her home.” Well, there’d been a little more than that, but he wasn’t about to share that information with Rose’s fiancé. Might as well take out an ad in the Hidden Falls Weekly.
They’d barely finished dinner when Iris yawned hugely. Rose said, “I think this pregnant lady needs to get to bed.”
Iris nodded. “I hate to be a party-pooper, but I can’t stay awake. But Kim doesn’t want to leave this early.”
“No. It’s fine,” Kim said, starting to rise.
“But we haven’t even eaten your dessert yet,” Daphne protested. “I can drive you home.”
“I’ll do it,” he said.
Kim glanced up at him and he thought she’d refuse, but suddenly she nodded. “That would be great. Thanks.”
When, at last, she was settled beside him in his truck and they’d rattled down the rutted lane from his parents’ place and onto paved road, he said, “I wasn’t sure you’d let me drive you home.”
She let out a tiny sigh. “You were right. We do need to talk.”
Her tone wasn’t enthusiastic, so he kept his tone neutral. “Okay.”
She turned her head and stared out the side window, as though the dark fields were fascinating. “I—last time you drove me home, I got carried away. I feel like I might have given you the wrong impression. If I did, I’m sorry.” She said it in a rush, as though she’d practiced her speech and wanted to get it out as fast as possible.
He kept his voice deliberately casual. “Hey, it was just a kiss.” In fact, it had been one kiss that started out soft and safe and the minute their mouths had met it had turned incendiary. He could still remember the heat they’d generated, the way she’d tasted and the tiny sounds she’d made as the kiss had deepened. One kiss had turned into a string of hungry, open-mouthed soul kisses. He’d had sex that hadn’t felt as intimate, or as memorable. They’d both pulled back, shocked at the intensity, and there had been a moment when he’d known, with the certainty that he knew his own name, that if he’d kissed her one more time, they’d be sharing her bed.
However, she’d been skittish and nervous at the wedding. He felt there was something troubling Kimberly and the last thing he wanted was to take advantage of a woman who was under emotional stress and who may have had a drink or two. As much as he’d longed to take things between them to the next level, he wanted to do it right. He’d said he’d call her. And he had. Repeatedly. Until he grew to hate the sound of her recorded message saying she wasn’t available. “Not available, I get it,” he’d finally yelled at his phone and then forced himself to give up.
She turned and looked at him and he could see that his dismissive tone had surprised her. Which made him smile inside. Her world had been rocked as badly as his had been. So what was the problem? Why had she never answered a single call or text?
“It was a great kiss,” she said softly, as though she refused to let him make it less than it was.
“If it was such a great kiss then why have you been avoiding me?”
“I—it’s complicated.”
“Is there someone else?” He hadn’t seen her with a man but that didn’t mean there wasn’t one.
“No. I just, I don’t think it would be good for me to get into a relationship right now.”
He turned right toward town feeling better by the second. He heard the longing in her voice, which didn’t match her words. “Who said anything about a relationship?” he asked, feeling much more cheerful. “How about we simply enjoy a few more of those steamy kisses?”
He heard a tiny choke of laughter beside him. “Somehow I don’t think we’d stick to kissing.”
Every fiber of his body perked to attention at the breathless, sexy way she said the words. “Now that’s just cruel. You’ve gone and put a picture in my head of you and me…not kissing.”
He felt the air between them crackle with possibilities. “Whereabouts should I drop you?” he asked, as though he hadn’t already made it his business to discover where she lived. In a top floor apartment in a brick building from the turn of the last century.
She gave him the cross streets and he nodded.
When he pulled up outside her building, she said, “Thanks for the ride home.”
“Kimberly…” All she had to do was lean forward. For a moment their gazes locked, and then, she had the door open and was unbuckling her seatbelt so hastily the truck could have been on fire.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said again and was gone.
He waited until she was safely inside, and then pulled away from the curb. He’d confirmed a couple of things tonight. She was single, and that pull between them was as real and powerful as the first time they’d met.
So what the hell was keeping them apart?
Kimberly was on her hands and knees underneath a table at the Sunflower café. She’d seen the toddler on collision course with her mom’s cappuccino (large, low-fat milk, vanilla syrup) before the mom, who was texting somebody on her phone, could register that disaster was imminent. Even as she sprinted from behind the bakery case, the large cup was already on its side and the drink spilling on the floor before she could reach it. Luckily, the hot liquid hadn’t splashed the child, her first concern.
The mom, who looked irritable and stressed, put down the phone and turned to the child who had the wrinkled face of a kid about to start wailing. Before Mom could snap at her, which Kim could see was about to happen, she was there righting the cup and saying, “I’ll get you another. I’m so glad nobody was hit with the hot milk.”
The mom gave her a momentarily puzzled look and then, obviously realizing that a burn on her baby’s tender flesh would’ve been a lot more serious than a spill, said, “Right. Thanks.”
“I’ll clean this up before anybody slips.” And then she dropped to her hands and knees and began mopping up the mess. She heard the jingle of the cheerful sunflower chimes that indicated a customer had entered. It was the strangest thing, but her entire body felt like it sizzled for a moment, almost as though she’d gone radioactive. From her perch underneath the table she peeked out and saw jeans and boots. Even though he wasn’t wearing his uniform, she knew it was James Chance. She couldn’t explain how she recognized his calves or his boots, but she did. She took an extra moment underneath the table and then backed out.
As she stood, she found that James was looking at her. She had the uncomfortable feeling that he had recognized her based on her butt. As their gazes connected, she nodded and then hastened with her dripping cloth back behind the counter. She threw the sodden cloth in the sink, knowing she would need to get the mop out to finish the cleaning. But first, she started remaking the cappuccino. She also started a small hot chocolate for the little girl.
James didn’t say a word. She knew he’d taken in the whole scene when he walked behind her and said softly, “I’ll get the mop.”
She felt as though he’d given her a bouquet of red roses. “Thanks,” she replied, as softly. By the time she returned to the table with the newly made drinks, calm had been restored. James was chatting with the young mother in a manner that Kim frankly thought could be called flirting. The mother was eating it up like the froth of her cappuccino, flicking her hair and smiling at him as though he was the most fascinating man in Hidden Falls. Which, of course, he was. Even the child seemed smitten by his charm and watched with big eyes. He’d finished mopping and stood with his hands around the handle of the mop almost as though it was a trusted friend or a deputy.
She delivered the drinks and got a much calmer thank you from the mom and a shy smile from the little girl and then headed back behind the display case. James walked behind her once more and returned the mop. She could hear him washing it out in the big sink. He was nothing if not thorough.
Unfortunately, she had a feeling he was just as thorough in his policing. She fussed with the things in the front case, rearranging brownies and lemon dream bars, gathering the half a dozen morning glory muffins that remained into a more appealing arrangement, but really all she was doing was giving her nervous hands something to do. James came to the edge of the doorway between the kitchen and the front area and leaned against it regarding her.
She glanced around but everyone was busy and nobody seemed to be in need of a coffee or coming in the door. It seemed as though they had a moment of relative privacy.
“How’s it going?” he asked, immediately throwing her off stride. She felt so guilty around him, always waiting to be accused of something. His perfectly normal question had her dropping the silver tongs so they clattered. She rose and faced him. “I’m fine. Hidden Falls is a very nice town and Iris is wonderful.”
He nodded, his eyes serious. “Iris is wonderful. And so is this town. Frankly, I try to keep an eye on them both, keep them safe from any harm.” He didn’t phrase it is a question but she understood that there was a question hanging in the air.
“I know,” she said. It was lame but it was all she could manage. To get his attention onto something else, she pointed to the poster Daphne had made advertising that two homeless kittens needed new families. The photograph was heart-meltingly adorable. “One kitten’s already found a home. With Loreen Ludlow.”
She and Iris had both encouraged the woman, thinking a pet might take some of her attention off James.
“That’s great.”
“And Edna May Tittlebury is thinking about taking the other one. It’s nice to see a lost baby find a home.”
“What time do you get off?”
“Iris is coming back around four and we’ll close up. We’ll be done by five and then I’m finished for the day.”
He nodded. “Okay. How about I swing by after five? Maybe I can take you for a cup of coffee.” Then he grinned, the seriousness suddenly replaced by amusement. “I meant, maybe I can take you for a drink or something?” Before she could refuse he said, “There’s something we need to discuss.”
Her stomach began to sink, drifting slowly down like a rock in deep water. She nodded. “Okay.” If he heard her obvious reluctance he didn’t comment he merely echoed, “Okay. I’ll pick you up here.”
She didn’t know if Iris had asked her brother to check out the newest hire, or if it was Mrs. Busybody Edna May Tittlebury, but Kim was pretty certain that Sheriff James Chance had typed her name into some policing database and whatever it spat out he didn’t like.
She couldn’t blame him. She didn’t like what policing databases said about her either. She wondered if there was a place in the world where she could get away from the blight of her past?
One thing she was certain of, it didn’t look like her safe, secure future was going to be here in Hidden Falls. Once more, she did what she’d done so many times in the past few years. She got ready to move on. She’d be sad to leave here, sad to leave Iris who needed all the help she could get, and sad to leave this quirky town.
Even more, she’d be sorry to know that there was never ever going to be any hope for her with a man like James. In fact, if there was one man she could never have, it would be the town sheriff.
Suddenly she heard her dad’s voice echoing in her head. She’d been sixteen, and during one of their infrequent trips to town for supplies, a young guy at the hardware store had asked where she went to school.
“I’m homeschooled,” she’d answered, though in truth most of her learning was self-directed. Her mom didn’t have time to teach her anything and her father’s skills weren’t the kind she wanted to learn.
Luckily, she loved to read and devoured books. The only time she ever saw her mother stand up to her dad was when she insisted that Kim be allowed to go to the mobile library every single time it was in their area.
Books became her friends, her link to the outside world, her hope that there was something better out there.
When he’d seen her talking to the boy, her dad had hustled her out of the hardware store so fast she was nearly dizzy. He waited until they were home and then banged his fist on the kitchen counter and warned his eldest daughter, “We only socialize with our own kind. You hear me? You want to talk to boys, you talk to the boys we know.”
She was so angry, all the years of doing as she was told, helping with babies and tending wounds and cooking, of wearing clothes that came ordered from a catalogue, all of it came boiling up. “Losers and drug dealers? No thanks!”