by Cat Schield
“That doesn’t look good,” he said.
“It’s not as bad as it looks,” Lia countered. “The Hanged Man symbolizes peace and understanding. However, he believes the only way to maintain this state is by withdrawing from society. He’s similar to the Hermit. He’s serene because he’s locked up his emotions for years.”
“And the last one?” Paul demanded, ready to be done.
Lia flipped over the final card to reveal a single chalice, balanced on a palm and suspended over the ocean. “The Ace of Cups indicates a time of happiness and love. A gift of joy.”
“So,” Dallas began, “if I’m hearing this correctly, Paul has been alone too long and he’s going to start a new relationship, but he’s going to fight his feelings because he’s locked up his emotions for so long that he’s afraid of them, but in the end it’s all going to work out and he’ll be very happy.”
While Dallas summarized the reading and Poppy nodded her agreement, Lia studied the cards. A frown line appeared between her brows. Had Lia twisted the reading to suit her needs in the hopes that he would believe himself falling for her? If so, she didn’t look as pleased as Paul would’ve expected, given the strong romantic overtones of the cards.
Poppy turned her bright gaze on him. “I can’t wait to meet the lucky woman.”
Paul very deliberately kept his attention from straying to Lia as he replied, “This isn’t a great time for me to focus on my personal life.”
Dallas chuckled. “I like the way you believe you’ll have a choice.” She indicated the cards. “Looks to me like your future is clear. There’s romance on your horizon and it’s going to change everything.”
* * *
As Dallas summed up her take on Paul’s tarot spread, Lia gathered up the cards and put them away. While she’d been reading for the twins, he’d worn an indulgent half smile. Now, however, he’d retreated behind an impassive expression and only the slight dip in his eyebrows indicated that he was disgruntled.
Either the twins were accustomed to ignoring their cousin’s bouts of irritation or they didn’t notice that he was troubled. For Lia, Paul’s displeasure was palpable. She tried shooting him a reassuring smile, but all that produced was a narrowing of his eyes.
It seemed impossible that she could be falling for someone as serious-minded as Paul Watts. Yet after what had happened between them in the carriage house, Lia recognized that without their growing emotional connection, the earth-shattering orgasm he’d given her wouldn’t have been possible. She’d never known that sort of all-consuming passion.
In some ways it terrified her. She was accustomed to being able to pick up and go whenever the mood hit her. She didn’t have any emotional ties that limited her freedom. Traveling like a leaf on the wind of her whims was how she’d grown up. Her mother’s idea of a perfect lifestyle seemed perfectly rational to Lia given what had happened to Jen Marsh.
No one got close when you moved all the time.
No attachments meant no heartbreak. Or that was how it was supposed to work.
* * *
“What did you think of your first tarot reading?” Lia asked as they strolled along that path that led away from the caretaker’s house.
“You know I don’t believe in any of that stuff.”
“I get it.” Lia knew his skepticism would continue to come between them if she reacted defensively. “You’re a logical guy. It’s not really your thing.”
“All that business about a future romance and having to choose between two things that I love,” Paul continued, his tone thoughtful rather than dismissive.
As she struggled to make sense of what was bothering him, Lia realized that Paul had seen enough truth in the reading to be unsettled by it. How was that possible? He was too much of a realist to do anything but reject all he’d seen and heard today.
“If you aren’t ready for love then that’s not likely to happen for you,” she reassured him, despite having seen the opposite happen when the cards predicted romance. But if anyone could avoid his emotions or anything that distracted him from business, it was Paul. “Maybe the universe is just nudging you to work less and spend more quality time with family and friends.” From the way he scowled at her, Lia should’ve kept the advice to herself. Awash in sudden frustration, she threw up her hands. “Look. What do I know? It’s your life.”
They walked in tense silence until the path was joined by one that stretched between the house and driveway. Lia started to turn away, but Paul touched his fingertips to her arm, stopping her.
“I know it’s last-minute, but I was wondering if you’d like to come with me to Ryan and Zoe’s wedding on Saturday.”
Lia laid her fist over her rapidly thumping heart. “I thought you wanted me to keep a low profile.”
“It’s a small gathering of my close friends. None of them will spread gossip around Charleston about you.”
His declaration struck her as naive and shortsighted.
“Given how your cousins reacted to the tarot card reading,” she said, “there’s more interest in your love life than you realize.”
“If anyone asks, we’ll just say you’re a family friend in town for a short visit.”
Lia studied his impassive expression, knowing she shouldn’t read too much into his offer. Her instincts warned her that spending more time with Paul was a mistake, but the temptation was so strong.
“Let me guess,” she said, concealing her jumbled emotions behind mockery. “You were so busy catching bad guys that you forgot to invite anyone and you don’t want to go to the wedding alone.”
His crushing glare confirmed her hypothesis, but his fingers skimmed down her arm and trailed over the back of her hand. The urge to drag him back to the carriage house and finish what they’d started made her shiver.
“Why do you have to make everything so difficult?” he demanded, his impatient tone at odds with the fire dancing in his eyes.
“Funny,” she snorted. “I was thinking the same thing about you.”
The air around them sizzled as Lia turned her hand and placed her palm against Paul’s. She barely bit back a groan as he intertwined their fingers. For several silent seconds they stared at each other until Lia’s phone chimed, indicating she’d received a text. It took a supreme effort of will to break eye contact with Paul. Glancing down at the screen, she noted that Ethan had sent her a message.
“Something wrong?” Paul quizzed.
“Ethan was going to give me a ride to my camper so I could pick up a costume, and then we were going to go truck shopping, but he has to go into a late meeting so he can’t make it.” Lia considered her options as she continued, “The nurses are throwing a birthday party for one of the children at the hospital on Saturday and I promised to surprise her with a visit from Elsa.”
“I can take you.”
“You don’t have to do that,” she murmured, turning him down despite the craving to spend more time in his company. “Ethan—”
“Forget about Ethan.”
His firm command sent a ripple of pleasure cascading through her body. Before meeting Paul, she never imagined herself attracted to someone so authoritative and formidable. He was as set in his ways as a granite boulder while she glided past, a butterfly borne on the winds of chance. The lack of compatibility in their natures offered no reason why they should have the slightest hint of chemistry, yet the pull between them couldn’t be denied.
“I don’t want to bother you,” she protested.
“It’s too late for that,” he growled, the sound sinking into her bones, turning them to mush. “Text Ethan and tell him I’ll take care of you.”
Lia shivered at his words, every cell in her body sparkling with delight. “Really, it’s okay. I can ask one of the twins...”
“Is there a reason why you suddenly want to be rid of me?”
“I
don’t want to be rid of you,” she retorted in exasperation.
Paul frowned. “Is there a reason why you prefer going out with Ethan over me?”
“It’s not that I prefer Ethan’s company.”
“Then what is it?” Paul persisted.
“The thing is, I think you view me as a tad eccentric—”
“A tad,” he agreed, a teasing note in his voice.
Despite his attempt at levity, she remained earnest. “It’s just that taking you to where I live is intimate.”
All emotion vanished from his expression. “More intimate than what we did earlier?”
“For me, yes. Misty is my safe place. No matter what else changes in my life, she’s a constant, my refuge.” And being away from the camper, disconnected from the nomadic lifestyle for so many months, had caused a shift in her identity that left her feeling vulnerable and a bit lost.
“And I’m not welcome in your safe place.”
“No, I mean...” She scrambled to explain without causing further damage to their fragile rapport.
“But Ethan is?”
“It’s different with him,” Lia said.
“Different how?”
“We’re friends.”
“Friends.” His jaw worked as if he was grinding the word to dust.
“What I’m trying to say is that I’ve known him for months and we’ve talked about a lot of things.”
“Are these the sorts of things you don’t feel comfortable sharing with me?”
Lia thought about the differences between the two men. Ethan was more like a brother who accepted her oddities. Paul was a shining beacon of all things correct, perfect and gorgeous. From the start he’d been vocal about all her flaws and limitations. Lately she’d glimpsed grudging admiration for how she’d helped his grandfather. At the same time, Lia suspected if Paul hadn’t been so suspicious of her from the start, she might never have registered on his radar.
“Ethan sees me. He accepts who I am.”
“And you don’t think I do?”
When his fingers tightened, Lia realized they were still holding hands. Suddenly aware that they could be discovered by one of his family at any second, Lia tried to tug free.
“You have a bad opinion of me,” he declared, looking stunned.
“I don’t,” she countered.
“On the other hand, you have a high opinion of Ethan.”
“Look.” Deciding it was fruitless to dance around the truth any longer, Lia stripped all finesse out of her justification. “Ethan isn’t likely to judge me for living in a camper.”
“But you think I would.” Paul released her hand and stepped back. “Let me point out that you are the one jumping to conclusions about me. Which is ironic, considering I spent the last hour watching you read tarot cards and didn’t utter a single disparaging remark.”
“You’re right. I... I’m...”
“Sorry?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “You should be. I’ve been pretty openminded about all the alternative treatments you’ve used on Grady. Meditation. Sound baths. Aromatherapy. I’ve never met anyone who believes in the sorts of things you do, but I’ve never tried to interfere with anything you’ve suggested.”
“You’re right,” she repeated. Lia bowed her head and accepted the scolding. “I’m not being fair to you. I know the things I’m into are completely foreign to you and you’ve been great about all the weirdness.” She paused and looked into his eyes, then said, “If you’re still willing to take me to pick up the Elsa costume, I’m happy to go for the ride.”
“Afterward we’ll go truck shopping,” he declared, his tone brooking no further discussion. “And then I’ll take you to dinner.”
“That would be very nice,” she said in a small voice, offering him a tentative smile. “Give me ten minutes to put the deck back in my room and get my purse.”
He nodded in satisfaction, but his expression had yet to relax. “I’ll meet you by the driveway.”
Seven
While Paul waited for Lia, he paced from his SUV to the edge of the driveway and back, made restless by his heightened emotional state. Gone were the days when he could summon icy calm and a clear head at will. Just being near Lia disrupted the status quo. The factual logic that had served him all his life was being defeated by things he couldn’t see, touch or prove existed. He was actually buying into all her metaphysical nonsense. His tarot reading had struck far too close to home. He’d like to put it down to sleight-of-hand card tricks and guesswork, but she hadn’t touched the tarot deck after he’d handled it.
He’d always viewed his suspicious nature as a fundamental part of him like his height and eye color. Innate and something he couldn’t change even if he wanted to. He could see how his skepticism created distance from others, but he’d accepted this as a matter of course. He had faith in those who were important to him. His family. Close friends. The rest of the world could go to hell.
But lately he was growing increasingly aware of how his distrust impacted Lia. She lacked the sort of armor those he usually dealt with wore. Her openness and upbeat take on the world displayed vulnerability that charmed everyone she met.
Which made her resistance to letting him see her camper all the more striking.
She didn’t trust him.
The revelation stung.
Worse was her blind faith in Ethan. Had she forgotten which brother had landed her in their current predicament? Ethan, not Paul, had been the one who’d perpetuated Grady’s incorrect belief that Lia was his long-lost granddaughter. More than any other member of the Watts family, Ethan was the one she should be most wary of.
“Ready?”
Paul had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t noticed Lia’s approach. She’d done more than grab her purse at the house. While he’d wrestled with his demons, she’d changed into a loose-fitting black-and-white-striped T-shirt dress and white sneakers. With her hair in a loose topknot and dark glasses hiding her eyes, she gave off a cool, casual vibe at complete odds with the turmoil raging in him.
Longing rippled through him. He itched to reach across the distance separating them and haul her into his arms. Instead, stunned by the willpower it took to keep his hands off her, he gripped the passenger-side door handle as if it was a lifeline and gestured her into the SUV. No matter how temptation swelled in him, this wasn’t the time or place to cross that line. Why was it so hard to do the right thing around her?
Forty minutes later, Paul drove through the security gate of a boat and RV storage lot and stopped his SUV beside a small vintage trailer painted white and mint green. From Lia’s doting expression, he gathered this must be the famous Misty.
“It won’t take me but a second to grab the costume,” Lia said, her hand on the door handle. “Do you want to wait here?”
After their earlier quarrel, he intended to prove that he wasn’t the judgmental jerk she’d branded him. “No.” And then hearing how abrupt that sounded, he added in a more conciliatory tone, “I’d like to see what she looks like inside.” He’d picked up Lia’s habit of referring to the vintage camper by the feminine pronoun.
“Okay.” She drew the word out as she exited the SUV.
Paul noted the matching mint-colored curtains framing the windows as Lia unlocked the camper and stepped inside. He followed her in, surprised that the ceiling height accommodated his six-foot-one-inch frame without him having to stoop.
“This is tiny,” he declared, at once shocked by the camper’s limited footprint and impressed by how Lia had made efficient use of every inch of it. “How do you live in such a small space?”
“Simply.” She flashed him a wry grin and gestured at the boxes piled up in the sitting area toward the back. “It’s not usually this cluttered. Normally I store all the costumes in my truck.”
“Do you like living with
so little?” Paul asked, shifting uneasily in the narrow aisle between closet and kitchen. He became all too aware of the inviting sleeping nook behind him with its extravagance of soft pillows.
“I find it calming.” She gave him a quick tour, narrating the camper’s history while assessing his reaction the whole time. “What do you think?”
“It’s cozy,” he ventured, glancing around. “And it suits you.”
Into less than one hundred and fifty square feet, she’d fit a kitchen and bathroom, full-size bed, dinette and a decent-sized closet. Vintage pastel fabrics softened the white walls, tin-tile ceiling and wood-look vinyl flooring. The appliances were the same mint green as the exterior and appeared original to the 1960s’ vibe.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Being openminded.” Her infectious smile bloomed for the first time since Dallas had interrupted them at the carriage house. “You know, we aren’t likely to get interrupted anytime soon.” While he processed what she’d said, she blew out an exasperated breath. “Are you just going to stare at me?” Giving his shirt a sassy tug, she finished, “Or are you going to take me in your arms and rock my world?”
Relief flooded him. They were going to be okay. Paul wrapped his arm around her waist and hauled her up against him. The breath swept out of her in a soft, satisfying huff. He expected her to get all clingy and press herself against him, but instead she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her cheek on his chest.
“What are you doing?” Paul asked.
She flexed her arm muscles, embracing him more snugly. “Giving you a hug.”
“Why?”
“I want you to know that I like you.” Without lifting her cheek from the front of his shirt, she canted her head and gazed up at him. “Before you kiss me. Before I go all weak-kneed and gooey inside. I want you to know I like you. You. Not your money. Or the power your family wields in this town. I’m a simple girl with simple needs. One of them being a gorgeous, sexy man who makes love to her as if she’s the most desirable woman he’s ever known.”