Without another word, he slipped from her grasp and joined the boys, who were standing in the hall joking. "Why don't you guys start in the living room? Here's a bucket."
For the next few hours, conversation was sparse as everyone scrubbed the little house from top to bottom, keeping time with the throbbing rhythms from Roman's 'boom box.' The only breaks were for other neighbors delivering little welcoming gifts. In between receiving cakes and various casseroles from the town's lonely women who were very good cooks, Holt supervised the furniture moving. When the truck was empty, Lacy volunteered to get pizzas for all, which was her plan all along.
"Yay, pizza!" Sofia jumped up and down and clapped her hands. "My favorite!"
"I’d better go home. They’re expecting me. My brother Jay will be home." Steve shook hands with Holt and gave Lacy a little salute.
"Pizza, yeah." Roman high-fived Sofia. "I’ll stay for pizza, if you don’t mind."
"I have the makings for pizza at my house. I’ll run home and get it," Lacy offered. "Back in five."
As Lacy headed out the door, Holt said, "You don't have to do this, you know. We have lasagna and something called relleno casserole from. . . all the neighbors."
"No thanks. I’ve got it."
This was all part of her plan. Well, mostly. Lacy was prepared for everything except the way she felt when Holt touched her. It was almost electric. The feelings generated between them shouldn’t be happening, especially this soon. Still, she could taste his kiss. . . or wanted to.
Feverishly she gathered frozen pizza crusts, her homemade pesto, her homemade tomato paste, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, along with her pre-sliced veggies. Oh yes, she was prepared. This would be the best-tasting and freshest pizza they’d ever had.
Minutes later, Lacy placed it all in Holt’s kitchen. "Here you are," she announced. "All the makings for your own special pizza."
Sofia wrinkled her nose. "What's that green stuff?"
"Pesto. Homemade," Lacy said grandly. She'd grown and picked those basil leaves herself.
"What are those black things?"
"Hey dude, olives!" Roman answered.
"Olives?" Sofia's voice was small and intense. "And what’s pesto?"
The two kids looked at one another and made faces.
"Lots of cheese, guys," Lacy said enthusiastically. "And veggies. Good for you."
Their expressions turned to horror.
Holt stepped forward and started spreading tomato paste on one of the crusts. "Thanks, Mayor. This looks great. All homemade. Do you guys know how lucky you are? These are all my favorites. Now, what do you want on yours? You get your own choice."
Roman shuffled closer. "Hey, I like olives. A few."
"Not me," Sofia said. "I just want my pizza with cheese."
Holt helped them put their choices together and Lacy baked them in the oven. Then the tasting began.
Holt took a big bite and chewed while they all stood there and watched. When the bite was gone, he grinned and winked at Sofia. "You can't even taste the green stuff. It’s just like regular pizza."
"Hey dude, this one’s just the way I like it."
Reluctantly, Sofia took a bite. After a moment of silent chewing, she nodded. "It’s surprisingly delicious."
She had everyone laughing and Lacy relaxed a little. It was a slow beginning, but they eventually devoured all but a few slices of the pizza. And they ate more than a half of the lasagna, especially Roman. He must have been starving. When they had finished eating, she noticed Roman gazing longingly at the remainder. "Would you like more, Roman? Please help yourself."
He looked up quickly. "Well, I, uh..."
"Go ahead," Holt insisted, shoving the pie his way. "We've had it. If you can hold more, help yourself."
"Uh, well, it’s not for me. But if you don't mind, uh, I'd like to take it home to my sister. She's like—" he paused to nod toward Sofia "—like that little one. She’d like this pizza, I’m sure."
"You have a sister at home?" Lacy found some foil and wrapped the remaining slices. "Please take it, and for your aunt, too."
"Aunt? Oh, yes. Uh, thanks."
"And here. Take the rest of the lasagna and this cake. We don't need all this food." Holt helped package up the food for Roman to take home to his family.
When Roman left on his scooter, food tucked in his backpack, Lacy began cleaning up the kitchen. Holt leaned against the cabinet and finished his Coke. Sofia wandered into her bedroom, and soon they could hear her talking to her stuffed animals.
"I'm sorry I brought the kids here without consulting you, Holt." Lacy spoke with her back to him as she finished wiping the stove. "But, you see, the boys need so much attention, especially from a man. And I was hoping, that is, well..."
"It's okay, Lacy."
"And then I failed pizza 101." She laughed, embarrassed. "I should have known. . ."
"With kids, you never know. I thought it was very tasty. The kids didn't starve." His voice softened and he touched her hand, a gentle, reassuring pat, as he walked across the room. Lacy thought it was an endearing gesture, considering she was feeling pretty lousy over the events of move-in day.
A loud pounding on the door interrupted the moment and Holt hurried to answer it. There stood Sandy Amado, hands on her hips, mad as a wet hen, her voice shrill and loud. "Just who do you think you are, having those boys in here to work all afternoon for you and not paying them anything, not one dollar!"
"Well, I – " Holt's answer was hesitant.
"As tight as money is around here, you have some nerve!"
"Yes, you're – "
Lacy stepped up. "Hi Sandy, what's wrong?"
Sandy waggled her finger at Holt. "Steve and Roman were over here all afternoon, working and lifting and who knows what and he didn't pay them anything!"
Lacy's heart pounded. She had screwed up again, big time. But she couldn't let Holt take the blame for this. Unfortunately, the kids' secret would have to be revealed. "Let me explain. This was all my doing. You see, the kids got into a little trouble the day Holt was in town for his interview."
"Trouble? What kind? I didn't know about any trouble."
"It was minor, actually," Holt said.
Lacy looked curiously at him. This was a switch. He was the one so upset initially.
"It was pretty typical of boys on a hot, boring afternoon," he continued in a level tone, as opposed to Sandy's shrillness.
"Are you going to tell me exactly what happened?" Sandy edged into the doorway.
"Come on in and have a seat," Holt said. "Let's talk."
"I don't want to sit and talk – "
Lacy took her arm. "Sandy, please, come in."
With a heavy sigh, Sandy complied. She sat on the edge of her chair, fingers intertwined. "Go ahead. Explain."
"The boys took a little joyride in my Jeep. For a brief few minutes, we didn't know what had happened, where it was, or who took it."
Sandy gasped. "They stole your jeep?"
"No, they returned it shortly, everyone and everything safe." Lacy continued the story. "I chose not to call the sheriff, and thankfully Holt chose not to press charges. I thought they were reaching out for attention."
"And I thought they were just bored," Holt said.
"They really didn't want their families notified." Lacy tried to sound sympathetic, but Sandy's fury raged on.
"I'll bet!"
"So I assigned them some community service," Lacy continued. "To paint the principal's office. And help Holt move in."
He gestured toward the living room. "And they did a fine job for me today. So I'm not opposed to paying them for the job, say twenty dollars each."
"Oh no you don't. This is just to appease me," Sandy said, standing. "This was their punishment, and pretty easy compared to what I'm going to do to Steve. He'll be grounded forever – no, that would mean he'd be stuck at home. I don't know, but I'll do something."
"I think they got the message," Holt said.
"They know they did something wrong. They've been punished enough. And I'd be willing to bet they won't do that again."
"You damn right they won't. At least, Steve won't. Don't know about that wild kid, Roman."
As she headed for the door, she said, "I apologize for their actions, Holt. And for storming over here like this. But Lacy, you should have told me."
"I'm sorry, Sandy. You're right." Lacy tried to take Sandy's hand, but she refused. "Families should know these things."
Sandy shook her head. "Lacy, you always want to be in charge, to be the big decision-maker. But sometimes you're wrong. Now I have to figure out how to handle this. I think the best thing about this was that they got to spend a day with a real man. Something lacking in their lives."
The word ‘man’ hung in the air for a long moment after Sandy slammed the door.
Lacy cleared her throat. "Well, I guess that pretty-much sums it all up. I want to be in charge. And you're the man."
"Look, I have no intention of replacing fathers around here. I have all I can do with my own kid."
"Sandy meant it as a compliment, that you're the kind of man we need around here." Lacy looked away, trying to gather her thoughts and shut her mouth. "When the kids took off in your Jeep, I was afraid you'd back out and leave us flat. When you didn't, I respected that. Admittedly, I wanted your move to go smoothly. Smoother than it has." She shrugged. "So, one way was by being here. Maybe it wasn't the best. Just like my decision not to tell the kids' families. That was my bad."
"It's okay. You were doing the best you could, and that's fine. I’m glad. . . you were here today, Lacy."
She looked around.
He continued. "I like it here in Silver Creek. I have a good job, one I want very much. And my child is expecting to live here, start school in a week and get a freakin' dog. But there's no guarantee that I will be able to save this town. Or you either, Lacy."
"If we all work together, we can make it happen," she said with more conviction than she felt.
Holt gazed at her for a long moment, and she could see so much in his dark eyes. Calm confidence. Hope. Even a bit of belief in what she'd just said. "Together we will make a difference, Lacy," he said quietly. "That’s the best we can do."
Her heart swelled at his words, and she took a step toward him. She wanted to give him a great big bear hug and promise something grand. But Sofia appeared in the doorway and announced, "I'm going to play in my very own backyard on my very own swing set." She dashed between them on her way out the back door.
"Sure, honey. Have fun," Holt responded absently, not taking his eyes off Lacy.
Lacy and Holt continued in a locked gaze. He reached out and touched her face with the back of his hand. "It’ll be all right, Lacy. Even if we don’t save the town, we'll give it a try."
"We just can’t afford to fail."
"If we try our best, we won’t be failing."
"I really need some success here. Or at least promise."
He moved closer and turned his hand around to caress her cheek with rough fingers. "I promise to do my best. How's that?"
And before she realized it, his lips were on hers, softly giving her inspiration and power and a loving gesture all in one kiss.
She moved and held her breath. "No."
"Why not?"
"A hundred reasons."
"Name one." His lips were still close to hers and she felt his warmth and male power encompass her.
"You work for me. This isn't fair, Holt. To you or me." She started to turn.
He placed his hand around her wrist. "Don't go. Not yet. We haven't had a chance... to talk."
"About what?"
He puffed a little laugh. "About you. Us. You know I’m single. Are you?"
She nodded, then managed, "Divorced."
"That’s a relief. Oh, not that you’re divorced, but that there won’t be a Mr. Donahue coming through the door, looking for his woman."
"No. That won’t happen. There is no one else. After my divorce last year, I came to Silver Creek to start over." She would make it simple and omit the disastrous episode with Colin, the mine exec.
"No kids?"
It was a natural question, yet it always ripped at her insides. So she moved onto an easier subject. "No. When I arrived, Silver Creek was already on a downhill slide. The copper mine was closing. People were moving on to brighter jobs, mostly in Tucson and Phoenix. The incumbent mayor had been in office about a hundred years. Nice guy, but no new ideas."
"And, of course, you had ideas."
"Barrels of them." She chuckled. "I campaigned on the promise that we would pull ourselves out of this financial slump by our bootstraps. It was just what the people around here wanted to hear. I was very optimistic then. Maybe 'idealistic' is a better term."
"And now?" He gazed at her with a gleam of admiration in his brown eyes.
"Well, I'm not idealistic anymore, although some on my committees think so. I'm still optimistic, but now it's mingled with a healthy dose of realism. I'm out of a job if the town goes under."
"Me, too." He placed both hands on her wrists and she felt tingles all the way up to her shoulders. "My daughter needs better security, a homey atmosphere, a backyard. Maybe even a puppy." He sighed and shook his head. "All those things are important to a kid. And I. . . I need this town. Maybe as much as Silver Creek needs me. I have no intention of leaving—"
She tried to back away but he held her. "Holt – "
"Lacy Donahue, you have definitely influenced my decision to take this job. You are an amazing woman. I want to know more about you."
She leaned forward, just a fraction of an inch because she couldn’t move away. Even if his hands weren’t on her, she probably wouldn’t budge. "You might not like someone who always wants to be in charge."
"I don't give a damn about that. This is all I want to know. . ." He embraced her fully and pressed her body to his while his lips embraced hers in a hungry kiss.
She was lost in the hardness of his body and the softness of his lips, while her own feminine yearnings screamed for fulfillment. She wanted to stay here forever, drinking of his sweet power. Still, a small corner of her practical brain squeaked that this was not right and this had to stop right now.
Her hungry soul ignored the rational warnings until –
The moment was shattered by loud wails coming from the backyard.
"Sofia!" Holt released Lacy and bounded for the door, noisily overturning a chair in the process.
Lacy scrambled after him. By the time she arrived by his side, Holt was cradling his small daughter in his arms, a look of horror on his ashen face. "I think she's hurt bad. Look how she's holding her arm."
Lacy rubbed the top of the small, soft hand. "We’ll get you fixed up in no time, Sofia. Don’t worry, honey." Then she looked into Holt's frightened eyes. "In case her arm's broken, keep it very still. I’ll find something to stabilize it. We should take her to get an X-ray."
"Oh my God—"
Lacy grasped Holt's sinewy arm and pressed reassuringly. "It'll be okay, Holt. Accidents happen to kids. And parents fix them up again. We can do that here. It’s a small clinic, but perfectly adequate for little emergencies." Her voice caught in her throat.
Who was she, of all people, to tell this concerned father anything about parenthood? About what kids do and what parents do? She, who had no kids, never had them. Through tight lips, she muttered, "I'm sorry, Holt. What do I know? But I'll help you. I... I’ll get my car and drive you to the clinic. It isn’t far."
"Make it quick," he said above the wails of his daughter.
Lacy ran up the street to get her car. Their kiss was everything – and nothing. Gone now. A moment of pleasure, now forgotten. But not by her.
CHAPTER FIVE
A few hours later, they were on the way back home, Lacy driving. "Sorry Holt. Not a very good first day in Silver Creek."
He made a soft groaning sound. "But memorable." He glanced at Sofia, who w
as finally quiet, thanks to a shot for pain.
"The doctor said it's pretty common for kids to get a broken clavicle."
Holt gazed at Lacy wearily. The skin around his eyes showed signs of the stress he'd been under for the past couple of hours. "Yeah. Common for rowdy boys of ten. Not for little girls of six."
"So she's rowdy." Lacy smiled sympathetically at the dozing child in Holt's arms. "She's advanced for her age. And being a modern girl, she doesn't adhere to the old stereotypes for girls and boys."
"Great." He rolled his eyes. "Then I have all the boy stuff to worry about as well as the girl stuff?"
"You're a modern father. You can handle it."
"Not very well when it comes to my little girl, apparently." He stroked the small, limp hand resting on his chest.
The touch evoked a wellspring of emotions in Lacy, and she caught her lower lip between her teeth. That simple act of affection showed the devotion the man had for his child. And the way Sofia clung to and now slept in her father's arms revealed her solid trust in him.
It was a beautiful moment, one that Lacy cherished. And one she'd never have. But she had reckoned with that long ago. Or so she told herself. Tonight she kept her facade intact, careful not to expose her true feelings.
Holt's strong brown eyes softened. "I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't been here, Lacy. You kept your cool when I was too upset to think straight, and I appreciate it. Thanks."
She shrugged and pushed aside her emotions. Pretending was her specialty now. "What's a mayor for, if not to help out a little?"
Under The Desert Sky (Desert Sky Series) Page 5