by Susan Meier
She offered him a glass. “Fruit punch?”
She smiled tentatively, as if she didn’t know how to behave around him, either.
He took the glass. “Sure. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” She turned away just as her two little girls came running outside. “Who wants juice?”
A chorus of “I do” billowed around him. He drank his fruit punch like a man in a desert and put his glass under the pitcher again when she filled the kids’ glasses.
Their gazes caught.
“Thirsty?”
“Very.”
“Well, I have lots of fruit punch. Drink your fill.”
But don’t kiss her.
As she poured punch into his glass, he took a long breath. He was happy. He liked Owen. He even found it amusing to hear the girls chatter about their dolls when they sat under the tree and played house. And he’d spent most of his life wanting a kiss from Missy Johnson and never getting one.
So, technically, this wasn’t new. This was normal.
Maybe he was just being a pain in the butt by being upset about it?
And maybe that was part of what he needed to learn before he returned home? That pushing for things he wanted sometimes made him a jerk.
Sheesh. He didn’t like the sound of that. But he had to admit that up until he’d lost Betsy, he’d gotten everything he wanted. His talent got him money. His money got him the company that made him the boss. Until Betsy cheated on him, then left him, then sued him, his life had been perfect. Maybe this time with Missy was life balancing the scales as it taught him to gracefully accept failure.
He didn’t stay for lunch, though she invited him to. Instead, he ate a dried-up cheese sandwich made from cheese in Gram’s freezer and bread he’d gotten at the 7-Eleven the day he’d bought the beer and champagne. When he was finished, he returned to his work of taking everything out of his grandmother’s closet, piling things on the bed. When that was full he shifted to stacking them on the floor beside the bed. With the closet empty, he stared at the stack in awe. How did a person get that much stuff in one closet?
One by one, he began going through the shoe boxes, which contained everything from old bath salts to old receipts. Around two o’clock, he heard the squeals of the kids’ laughter and decided he’d had enough of being inside. Ten minutes later, he and Owen were a Wiffle ball team against Lainie and Claire.
Around four, Missy came outside with hot dogs to grill for supper. He started the charcoal for her, but didn’t stay. If he wanted to get back his inner nice guy, to accept that she had a right to rebuff him, he would need some space to get accustomed to it.
Because that’s what a reasonable guy did. He accepted his limits.
Once inside his gram’s house, tired and sweaty, he headed for the bathroom to shower. Under the spray, he thought about how much fun Missy’s kids were, then about how much work they were. Then he frowned, thinking about their dad.
What kind of man left a woman with three kids?
What kind of man didn’t give a damn if his kids were fed?
What kind of man expected the woman he’d gotten pregnant to sacrifice everything because she had to be the sole support of his kids?
A real louse. Missy had married a real louse.
Was it any wonder she’d warned Wyatt off the night before? She had three kids. Three energetic, hungry, busy kids to raise alone because some dingbat couldn’t handle having triplets.
If she was smart, she’d never again trust a man.
A funny feeling slithered through Wyatt.
They were actually very much alike. She’d never trust a man because one had left her with triplets, and he’d never trust a woman because Betsy’s betrayal had hurt a lot more than he liked to admit.
Even in his own head he hadn’t considered wooing Missy to marry her. He wanted a kiss. But not love. In some ways he was no better than her ex.
He needed to stay away from her, too.
He walked over to her yard the next morning and played with Owen in the sandbox. He and Missy didn’t have much contact, but that was fine. Every day that he spent with her kids and saw the amount of work required to raise them alone, he got more and more angry with her ex and more and more determined to stay away from her, to let her get on with her life. She ran herself ragged working on the wedding cake every morning and housecleaning and caring for the kids in the afternoon.
So when she invited him to supper every day, he refused. Though he was sick of the canned soup he found in Gram’s pantry, and dry toasted-cheese sandwiches, he didn’t want to make any more work for Missy. He also respected her boundaries. He wouldn’t push to get involved with her, no matter that he could see in her eyes that she was attracted to him. He would be a gentleman.
Even if it killed him.
But on Saturday afternoon, he watched her carry the tiers of a wedding cake into her rattletrap SUV. Wearing a simple blue sleeveless dress that stopped midthigh, and high, high white sandals, with her hair curled into some sort of twist thing on the back of her head, she looked both professional and sexy.
Primal male need slid along his nerve endings and he told himself to get away from the window. But as she and the babysitter lugged the last section of the cake, the huge bottom layer, into the SUV, their conversation drifted to him through the open bedroom window.
“So what do you do once you get there?”
“Ask the caterer to lend me a waiter so I can carry all this into the reception area. Then I have to put it together and cut it and serve it.”
By herself. She didn’t have to say the words. They were implied. And if the caterer couldn’t spare a waiter to help her carry the cake into the reception venue, she’d carry that alone, too.
Wyatt got so angry with her ex that his head nearly exploded. Though he was dressed to play with Owen, he pivoted from the window, slapped on a clean pair of jeans and a clean T-shirt and marched to her driveway.
As she opened the door to get into the driver’s side of her SUV, he opened the door on the passenger’s side.
“What are you doing?”
He slammed the door and reached for his seat belt. “Helping you.”
She laughed lightly. “I’m fine.”
“Right. You’re fine. You’re run ragged by three kids and a new business. Now you have to drive the cake to the wedding, set it up, and wait for the time when you can cut it and serve it.” He flicked a glance at her. “All in an SUV that looks like it might not survive a trip to Frederick.”
“It—”
He stopped her with a look. “I’m coming with you.”
“Wyatt—”
“Start the SUV and drive, because I’m not getting out and you don’t have another car to take.”
Huffing out a sigh, she turned the key in the ignition. She waved out the open window. “Bye, kids! Mommy will be back soon. Be nice for Miss Nancy.”
They all waved.
She backed out of the driveway and headed for the interstate.
Now that the moment of anger had passed, Wyatt shifted uncomfortably on his seat. Even though it had been for her own good, he’d been a bit high-handed. Exactly what he was trying to stop doing. “I’m not usually this bossy.”
She laughed musically. “Right. You own a company. You have to be bossy.”
“I suppose.” Brooding, he stared out the window. She wanted nothing to do with him, and he wasn’t really a good bet for getting involved with her. And they were about to spend hours together.
She probably thought he’d volunteered to help in order to have another chance to make a pass at her.
He flicked a glance at her. “I know you think I’m nuts for pushing my way into this, but I overheard what you told the babysitter. This is a lot of work.”
&n
bsp; “I knew that when I started the company. But I like it. And it’s the only way I have to earn enough money to support my kids.”
Which took him back to the thing that made him so mad. “Your ex should be paying child support.”
Irritation caused Missy’s chest to expand. She might have been able to accept his help because he was still the nice guy he used to be. But he hadn’t offered because he was a nice guy. He’d offered because he felt sorry for her, and she hated that.
“Don’t feel sorry for me!”
He snorted in disgust. “I don’t feel sorry for you. I’m angry with your ex.”
Was that any better? “Right.”
“Look, picking a bad spouse isn’t a crime. If it was, they’d toss me in jail and throw away the key.”
She almost laughed. She’d forgotten he had his own tale of woe.
“I’m serious. Betsy cheated on me, lied to me, tried to set my employees against me. All while she and her lawyers were negotiating for a piece of my company in a divorce settlement. She wanted half.”
Wide-eyed, Missy glanced over at him. “She cheated on you and tried to get half your company?” Jeff emptying their tiny savings account was small potatoes compared to taking half a company.
“Yes. She only ended up with a third.” Wyatt sighed. “Feel better?”
She smiled sheepishly. “Sort of.”
“So there’s nobody in this car who’s better than anybody else. We both picked lousy spouses.”
She relaxed a little. He really didn’t feel sorry for her. They were kind of kindred spirits. Being left with triplets might seem totally different than having an ex take a third of your company, but the principle was the same. Both had been dumped and robbed. For the first time in four years she was with somebody who truly “got it.” He wasn’t helping her because he thought she was weak. He wasn’t helping her because he was still the sort of sappy kid she’d known in high school. He was helping her because he saw the injustice of her situation.
That pleased her enough that she could accept his assistance. But truth be told, she also knew she needed the help.
When they arrived at the country club, she pulled into a parking space near the service door to facilitate entry. She opened the back of her SUV and he gasped.
“Wow.”
Pride shimmied through her. Though the cake was simple—white fondant with pink dots circling the top of each layer, and pink-and-lavender orchids as the cake top—it was beautiful. A work of art. Creating cakes didn’t just satisfy her need for money; it gave expression to her soul.
“You like?”
“Those flowers aren’t real?”
“Nope. Those are gum paste flowers.”
“My God. They’re so perfect. Like art.”
She laughed. Hadn’t she thought the same thing? “It will be melted art if we don’t get it inside soon.”
They took the layers into the event room and set up the cake on the table off to the right of the bride and groom’s dinner seating. Around them, the caterers put white cloths on the tables. The florist brought centerpieces. The event room transformed into a glorious pink-and-lavender heaven right before their eyes.
Around four, guests began straggling in. They signed the book and found assigned seats as the bar opened.
At five-thirty the bride and groom arrived. A murmur rippled through the room. Missy sighed dreamily. This was what happened when a bride and groom were evenly matched. Happiness. All decked out in white chiffon, the beautiful bride glowed. In his black tux, the suave and sophisticated groom could have broken hearts. Wyatt looked at his watch.
“We have about two hours before we get to the cake,” Missy told him.
He groaned. “Wonder what Owen’s doing right now?”
“You’d rather be in the sandbox?”
“All men would rather be playing in dirt than making nice with a bunch of people wearing monkey suits.”
She laughed. That was certainly not the old nerdy Wyatt she knew in high school. That kid didn’t play. He read. He studied. He did not prefer dirt to anything.
She peeked over at him with her peripheral vision. She supposed having money would change anybody. But these changes were different. Not just a shift from a nerdy kid to a sexy guy. But a personality change. Before, he’d seen injustice and suffered in silence. Now he saw injustice—such as Owen being alone—and he fixed it. Even his helping her was his attempt at making up for her ex abandoning her.
Interesting.
White-coated waiters stood at the ready to serve dinner. The best man gave the longest toast in recorded history. In the background, a string quartet played a waltz.
Wyatt looked at his watch again. Silence stretched between them. Missy knew he was bored. She was bored, too. But standing around, waiting to cut the cake, was part of her job.
Suddenly he caught her hand and led her outside, but a thought stopped her short. “Is the wedding bringing up bad marriage memories?”
He laughed and spun her in a circle and into his arms. “Actually, I’m bored and I love to dance.”
“To waltz?” If her voice came out a bit breathless, she totally understood why. The little spin and tug he’d used to get her into his arms for the dance had pressed her flush against him. His arm rested on her waist. Her hand sat on his strong shoulder. And for a woman who’d been so long deprived of male-female contact, it was almost too much for her nerves and hormones to handle. They jumped and popped.
She told herself to think of the old Wyatt. The nice kid. The geeky guy who’d taught her algebra. But she couldn’t. This Wyatt was taller, broader, stronger.
Bolder.
He swung her around in time with the string quartet music, and sheer delight filled her. Her defenses automatically rose and the word stop sprang to her tongue, but she suddenly wondered why. Why stop? Her fear was of a relationship, and this was just a dance to relieve boredom. Mostly his. To keep it from becoming too intimate, too personal, she’d simply toss in a bit of conversation.
“Where’d you learn to dance like this?”
“Florida. I can dance to just about anything.”
She pulled back, studied him. “Really?”
“I go to a lot of charity events. I don’t want to look like a schlep.”
“Oh, trust me. You’re so far from a schlep it’s not even funny.”
He laughed. The deep, rich, sexy sound surrounded her and her heart stuttered. Now she knew how Cinderella felt dancing with the prince. Cautiously happy. No woman in her right mind really believed the prince would choose her permanently. But, oh, who could resist a five-minute dance when this sexy, bold guy was all hers?
His arms tightened around her, brought her close again, and she let herself go. She gave in to the rush of attraction. The scramble of her pulse. The heat that reminded her she was still very much a woman, not just a mom.
He whirled them around, along the stone path to a colorful garden. As they twirled, he caught her gaze and the whole world seemed to disappear. There was no one but him, with his big biceps, strong shoulders and serious brown eyes, and her with her trembling heart and melting knees. Their gazes locked and a million what-if’s shivered through her.
What if he hadn’t gone away after college?
What if she’d been able to keep their date?
What if she wasn’t so afraid now to trust another man?
Could she fall in love with him?
The dance went on and on. They never broke eye contact. She thought of him being good first to Owen and then to all three of her kids. She thought of him angry when he’d jumped into her SUV. Righteously indignant on her behalf, since her ex was such an idiot. She thought of him wanting to kiss her the other night, and her already weak knees threatened to buckle. If it felt this good to
dance with him, what would a kiss be like?
Explosive?
Passionate?
Soul searing?
“Excuse me? Are you the lady who did the cake?”
Brought back to reality, she jumped out of Wyatt’s arms and faced the woman who’d interrupted them, only to find a bridesmaid.
Missy’s senses instantly sharpened. “Yes. Is there something wrong? Do I need to come inside?”
“No! No! The cake is gorgeous. Perfect.” The woman in the pink gown handed her a slip of paper. “That’s my name and phone number. I’m getting married next year. The third week in June. I’d love for you to do my cake. Could you call me?”
Happiness raced through her. Her cheeks flushed. “I’d love to. But I have to check my book first and make sure I don’t have another cake scheduled for that day.”
The pretty bridesmaid said, “Well, I’m hoping you don’t.” Then she slipped back into the ballroom.
Slapping the little slip of paper against her hand, Missy joyfully faced Wyatt again.
He leaned against a stone retaining wall, watching her with hooded eyes.
“Look! I’m already starting to get work for next year.”
He eased away from the wall. “Yeah. I see that.”
She’d expected him to be happier for her. Instead he appeared annoyed. Her heart beat against her ribs. Surely he wasn’t upset that they’d been interrupted?
She licked her lips and fanned the little slip of paper. “She hasn’t tasted the cake yet. This might not pan out.”
“Everybody who ate at the diner loved your cakes. You know they’re good.”
She grinned. “I do!”
“So you’re a shoo-in.”
“Yeah.”
She took a breath. He glanced around awkwardly.
Then she remembered they’d been dancing. Her heart had been pounding. Their gazes had been locked. Something had been happening between them. But the moment had officially been broken.
And now that she was out of his arms, away from his enticing scent, away from the pull of their attraction, she was glad. Really. This wasn’t a happily-ever-after kind of relationship. He’d be around only a short time, then he’d go back to Florida. And her divorce had left her unable to trust. Even if she could trust, she wouldn’t get involved in something that might distract her from her wedding cake business. She’d never, ever find herself in a position of depending upon a man again.