by Alanna Lucas
Ignoring her question, Rex made a hasty farewell. “Grams is waiting for me. See you around, Phoebe.”
“Let me know, Rex,” Stephaney called cheerfully after him. He rolled his eyes over at Phoebe.
Rex could not get in his truck and drive away fast enough. He’d been turning down Stephaney since high school, so what would make her think he was at all interested now, if he hadn’t been back then.
Tessa was holding true to form; lights were on at the bookstore. He peered into the front window as he strolled up the front steps. Tessa was setting up some kind of pumpkin harvest display on the white marble fireplace.
Rex tapped the glass on the front door. Through the etched floral design, he could see her approaching. She glanced out the front window, her eyes brightening when she saw him. A couple of seconds later, the door opened.
“Rex, what are you doing here? Bernie is still up at the house.”
Yes! Finally something was in his favor this morning.
He held up his offering. “I brought coffee and chocolate chip muffins.”
“That sounds wonderful, come on in. It’s cold out there.” Tessa took the bag from him. “I presume Phoebe made these?”
“Hey,” he started with a tease, knowing full well Tessa’s aversion to cooking and baking, “I’m not totally lost in the kitchen. But after a night in the ER, baking is the last thing I want to tackle.”
“Thank you.” Her eyes softened for a moment before they retreated behind the mask she continually wore. One step at a time, he reminded himself.
Rex followed Tessa into the kitchen and sat down at the table. She pulled a couple of plates from the cupboard.
She sat nervously at the edge of her seat, worrying her bottom lip. “I… wanted to thank you for the other night.”
“You’re welcome. But I actually came here to apologize for what happened after I saw you down at the cove.”
“Apology accepted.” She gave him a smile that sent his pulse racing. A warm glow flowed through him, giving him hope.
A cool breeze fluttered into the kitchen as the back door opened. Grams came in carrying a box marked ‘Halloween Decorations’. Rex jumped up to help her, taking the box as he kissed her cheek.
“I didn’t know you were planning on coming by this morning, otherwise I would’ve been here sooner,” Grams said as she closed the door behind her. He really had to have a talk with his grandmother about her timing.
“Rex brought some goodies. Do you want a muffin, Bernie?”
“No, there’s too much to do. I want to get these decorations up before the store opens.”
Grams took the box from Rex and strolled into the main shop. Even from the kitchen, they could hear her itemize what needed to be done. “The pumpkin light strand should go across the mantel, the cackling witch by the front door. Yes, she would look cute there.” Her words faded as she moved toward the front of the store, presumably to set up the witch that cackled every time someone passed.
Rex and Tessa’s laughter filled the kitchen. He could get used to mornings like this.
“I should warn you, Grams is obsessed with decorating for Halloween.”
“Every holiday actually.” Tessa corrected him. “I saw the neatly marked and stacked boxes in the attic. Organized by seasons no less.”
“Rex,” Grams called from the front of the store, “I forgot to ask. Did you get Halloween off?”
“Yes, Grams, wouldn’t miss it.” Rex had missed too much over the past several years and he intended to make up for it.
“Don’t forget to get a costume,” Grams reminded him. Rex inwardly chuckled. As if Grams would let him forget to wear a costume.
“You’re dressing up?” Tessa’s tone held a hint of surprise.
“Of course, aren’t you?”
“I hadn’t thought about it. I haven’t dressed up since I was a young child.”
“Well, we’re going to have to change that,” Grams said as she scurried into the kitchen and cast Rex a sideways glance. “Tessa, you’re taller than me, could you help me hang the spiral ghosts?”
Rex took the hint. “I’ll leave you two to your decorations.”
“Thanks for the coffee and chocolate chip muffin.” Tessa’s smile brightened the kitchen. He would bring her coffee and muffins every day for the rest of his life just to see her smile like that.
Chapter 8
Ever since that day at the cove, followed by Nina’s accident, things were different between Tessa and Rex. He was no longer quick to argue with her, or suspected her of trying to swindle Bernie. Even the suspicious looks he constantly gave her when they first met had faded.
The heated stares that always made her insides tingle and her stomach do somersaults were still there, but had a greater intensity. Something had changed, something she couldn’t quite name. Perhaps it was just her inexperience messing with her thoughts. Tessa couldn’t think about those things, she had other things to worry about that evening.
“Are you ready?” Phoebe’s excited greeting echoed from the bookstore kitchen.
“Just about.” Tessa double-checked the front door and flipped off the last few switches as she made her way to the back. “Everything’s locked up.”
“Do you want to eat first?” Given her tall slender frame, no one would ever suspect that food was usually first and foremost on Phoebe’s mind.
Normally, Tessa would give in to Phoebe’s stomach, but for reasons she couldn’t explain, she was too nervous to eat. “Let’s just get it done and out of the way.”
Her comment seemed to amuse Phoebe. “It’s not that bad. I’m sure we can find the perfect costume.”
Bernie’s Halloween party was in two days. Tessa had procrastinated long enough. She let out a long sigh. “Okay.”
An hour later and they were still no closer to finding the “perfect” costume. Tessa roamed around the store for the umpteenth time, but everything was either too childish, too silly, or too sexy. She needed something in between, but didn’t know what.
“What about this one?” Phoebe held up a Cleopatra costume with long drapey panels, and a gold headpiece.
“Maybe if I were taller. You would look great in that.”
Phoebe’s voice was heavy with frustration, “I have my costume.” She showed Tessa the next costume she had in her hand. “How about this one?”
“I don’t know.” Tessa really didn’t know why she was so indecisive. She wanted to dress up, but nothing seemed right.
“Tessa,” Phoebe whined, “I’m hungry and you’ve tried on at least two dozen costumes. There’s nothing left. I think you would look awesome in this genie costume. I am making an executive decision. You’re buying this one.”
Phoebe didn’t give Tessa the opportunity to protest. She grabbed her hand, practically dragging her through the store to the checkout.
“She’ll buy this one,” Phoebe said as she put the costume on the counter. “Pay the man and let’s go eat.”
Two minutes later the transaction was complete, and Tessa was being dragged to the car.
“Where are we going?” Tessa was almost afraid to speak once Phoebe got in one of her ‘I got to eat now’ kind of moods.
Phoebe started the car and drove off, their destination already decided. “Mackenzie’s.”
“Where’s that?”
Phoebe looked at her like she had two heads and ten pairs of eyes. “You’ve never eaten at Mackenzie’s Seafood Grill?”
Tessa lowered her voice, suddenly feeling embarrassed. “Actually, since moving here, your coffee shop is the only eatery I’ve been to.” She had never really felt comfortable venturing out, exploring. All her time and effort went into the bookstore.
Phoebe’s mouth fell open before she regained her composure. “Well, that is about to change.”
A cold evening mist had rolled in, blanketing the wharf in dewy moisture. Tessa pulled the edges of her coat together in a vain attempt to button it up and keep up with Phoebe at the
same time. She had just succeeded in her task when they reached the front door of the restaurant.
When Phoebe held the door open, a warm rush of air invited them to enter, the smell of fresh-baked bread pulling Tessa in. She clutched her stomach as it growled.
“See, even your stomach thinks you took too long to choose a costume.”
“You heard that?” Tessa whispered with embarrassment.
“Half the restaurant could hear it,” Phoebe teased before turning to a very attractive, and very tall, seating hostess. “Two please.”
The young woman with her long legs and exceptionally long blond hair glided ahead of them, past the empty bar, to a table near the window. She was the type of woman Rex would be interested in.
Where had that thought come from?
Just because she hadn’t seen him since he brought coffee and muffins to the bookstore didn’t mean anything, and besides she wasn’t interested in him, or his heated stares that made her insides melt, or any of it. Tessa inwardly groaned, even her thoughts were rambling tonight.
Tessa plopped down in the seat across from Phoebe with her back to the entrance, picked up the menu, and began to study it intently.
“What would you suggest?”
Phoebe hadn’t even opened her menu when she started rattling off her favorites. “The seafood chowder is the best I’ve ever had. The shrimp skewers are fantastic, and the grilled salmon is to die for and… What’s so amusing?”
Tessa couldn’t contain her giggle. “You could do a commercial for them.”
Phoebe opened her mouth as if to say something, took in air, and then looked up at someone.
Before that someone was identified, Tessa knew exactly who it was. Rex. Her body instantly reacted to his fresh, spicy scent, sending a tingling sensation that started at her neck and traveled down her back.
“Hey, Rex, do you want to join us? Unless you’re on a date.”
Tessa’s eyes went wide trying to get Phoebe’s attention. What was she doing? Asking if he wanted to join them, inquiring if he was on a date. Tessa didn’t know if her insides could take it. Next, Phoebe would be claiming some illness and leave her here, alone with the one man she should not be left alone with. No, Tessa was not interested in Rex.
She could feel his gaze drift down to her. The tingling sensation gave way to warmth as her body temperature rose. “I was going to order something to go from the bar, but…”
“Join us.” Phoebe looked at her friend with a teasing smile, waiting for Tessa to protest.
She looked up at Rex. Damn, he was handsome. She swallowed hard. “Yes, we haven’t ordered yet.”
Rex pulled out the chair and slid into the seat beside her. The nearness of him made her fingers ache with a need to touch. Tessa chided herself. Her body was only reacting this way because it had been so long since she’d been with a man. Nothing else.
“Are you ready or do you need more time?” The waitress asked Rex.
“I’m ready,” Phoebe announced before anyone could say anything else.
Tessa looked over at Rex. “I was indecisive and disrupted her feeding schedule.”
“Indecisive?” Phoebe raised a brow in question. “First we order, then I will recount the whole shopping experience for him.”
With the order taken and bread on the table, Phoebe seemed to have relaxed, and began her tale. “Dozens and dozens of choices lined the rack, all she had to do was choose one costume. Doesn’t seem so hard, does it?” The hint of sarcasm brought a smile to Rex and Tessa’s faces.
“It wasn’t that bad,” Tessa defended herself with an equal amount of sarcasm.
“Not that bad? It took an hour.”
“What costume did you finally buy?” Even Rex’s simple question made her pulse pound.
“Oh no,” Phoebe chimed in before Tessa could calm her pulse and find the words. “You know how Bernie feels about everyone not knowing who everyone is before the party.”
“What?” Tessa hadn’t been told anything about this.
“I told you, my grandmother takes Halloween very seriously. Besides decorating and baking—”
“Don’t forget pumpkin carving,” Phoebe added to the list.
“And pumpkin carving, thank you. She loves for everyone to be surprised about who’s dressed as who.”
“Well then,” Tessa began with a smile as she leaned lightly toward him, “I guess you will have to wait till Halloween.”
Rex leaned in, looking her over seductively. His voice was barely a whisper, “I’ll dream of nothing else.”
Her cheeks warmed under the weight of his gaze. Oh dear. She thought she would burst into flames right then and there. Tessa sat speechless, motionless. So, lost in the intense gaze of his eyes, she had even failed to notice the arrival of food.
“Seafood chowder in a bread bowl,” the waitress said as she leaned in, expecting Tessa to back away from the edge of the table. “The plate is hot.”
“Oh, yes… thank you,” Tessa muttered before turning her attention to the food in front of her.
She ignored all conversation, eating her meal in silence. Every brush of Rex’s thigh against hers, every laugh, every gesture he made distracted her and sent a ripple of longing racing through her body. So consumed with mixed emotions and unwanted desires, she could hardly enjoy the chowder.
By the time the meal ended, she was exhausted. All she wanted to do was go home and take a long hot bath, listen to Beethoven, and have a glass of wine. Maybe she would use the new candles and lavender bath salts she purchased the day before.
The mention of her name brought her out of her relaxing fantasy.
“I can take Tessa home. I was going to check on Grams this evening, anyway.”
“If you don’t mind.” Phoebe gave Tessa a quick wink. “That would be great. I have to pick some stuff up.”
Phoebe’s excuse was flimsy at best. Pick up some stuff, as if Tessa couldn’t see through what her friend was trying to do.
Rex took care of the check, and then they headed outside. The night air had chilled considerably.
“My truck is over here.”
“I need to get my bag out of Phoebe’s car. I’ll only be a minute.” Plus, she needed to scold her friend. What was Phoebe thinking?
“Take your time. I’ll start the truck and get the heater going.”
Tessa followed Phoebe to her car in silence. Once they were out of earshot, Tessa whispered, “What do you think you’re doing?”
“Getting ready to go home. What?” Phoebe’s eyes opened wide with feigned shock. “Do you think I purposefully arranged for you to be alone with Rex?”
“That’s exactly…” Tessa grumbled beneath her breath. “I can’t—”
Phoebe held up her hand. “It’s a ride home.” Tessa opened her mouth to argue, but Phoebe quickly silenced her. “He’s a great guy and clearly likes you. I know you think you would be dishonoring your late husband, but he would want you to be happy.”
Tessa shuffled her foot on the asphalt. “That’s exactly what Jillian would say.” She didn’t like it when her friends were right, especially when she was fighting every urge not to jump into Rex’s arms. But there was more to it than that.
“Well, if you’re not going to listen to me, at least listen to your oldest friend. She cares about you and is worried.”
“Have you two been talking?”
Phoebe turned away, dipping her chin into her chest, trying to hide the guilty look.
“Phoe-be,” Tessa pronounced the two-syllable name with emphasis.
“We may have discussed your reluctance when she was up for the grand opening.” She turned her head and mumbled, “And in a couple of texts.”
Tessa really didn’t need another one of her friends ganging up on her over her unwillingness to date. Jillian had been accomplishing that task in spades.
“I won’t say anymore. Rex is waiting.” Phoebe gave her a big hug. “And I’m cold.”
Tessa grabbed her
bag and started to walk away.
“Enjoy the ride home,” Phoebe teased loudly enough for the whole parking lot to hear.
Tessa marched over to Rex’s truck, ignoring Phoebe. She went around to the passenger side and halted dead in her tracks.
Rex was standing there, looking all too perfect in his jeans and brown leather jacket, holding the door open for her. Tessa had assumed that chivalry was a thing of the past, or something you only read about in romance novels. Her late husband certainly never held the door open for her.
“What was all that about?” Rex nodded his head in Phoebe’s direction.
Tessa glanced over her shoulder at Phoebe in the distance. “Just friends not minding their own business.”
Rex shifted uncomfortably and slipped a hand into his pocket. “The heater is on.”
It wasn’t his fault that her friends were ganging up on Tessa. She inhaled the salty sea air, walked to the waiting truck, and slid into the passenger seat. Every fiber of her being instantly stood on end, reacting to being in Rex’s truck.
He closed her door, went around to the driver’s side, and got in. Seat belts on, they drove off. They rode in silence for several blocks before Rex broke the quiet.
“Do I make you nervous?”
“No,” Tessa gulped. “Why would you think that?”
“Because you’ve been clutching your bag since you got into the truck. Either I make you nervous, or my driving sucks.”
Tessa’s laughter filled the spacious cab. “Sorry, I’m just distracted by what Phoebe said.” She sensed a question lingering on his lips. Tessa didn’t want to discuss that topic any further. Changing the subject, she teased, “If your driving did make me nervous, I would’ve jumped out at the last red light.”
Rex chuckled, blending perfectly with Tessa’s laughter. “Well, I’m glad my driving is acceptable. I wouldn’t want to be the cause of any discomfort.” His tone ended on a somber note.
Tessa relaxed her grip on the bag, ignoring the torrent of tingles begging for attention. She remained silent the rest of the way. When Rex pulled up in front of Bernie’s house, she intended to jump out and go straight upstairs to the quiet sanctuary of her room, but Rex’s deep voice held her in place.