Melanie’s lids fluttered closed, and he studied her thick lashes, her small nose, the outline of her pretty bow-shaped lips. Just as he lowered his mouth for a taste, there was a thump at the door.
They were quick to break apart.
Lucas lifted the carafe, while Melanie reached for a mug and said, “It’s open.”
Levi entered carrying a to-go cup and a carton of cream. “Mornin’, Mel. I was hoping you had coffee made.” He nodded at Lucas. “How’s your back, son? You did most of the unloading yesterday.”
“I’m good. When I was a kid, my stepfather liked telling everyone I was strong as an ox.”
“You’re still strong.” Levi chuckled. “I saw your truck in the lot and told Kathy I had a mind to go pick up another load of logs and feed while we still had your help.”
“Feel free.” Lucas shrugged. “No need to rush, though. I’ll be around for a while.” From his peripheral vision he saw Melanie jerk a look at him.
Even Levi seemed to notice her jumpy reaction. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “If I could get topped off,” he muttered, holding up his cup, “I’ll get started in the quarantine stable.”
“Sure.” Melanie gestured for him to help himself, then moved to the desk and pulled out a drawer. “How much for the cream?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Levi said, waving her off.
“Darn it, Levi. Don’t get stubborn on me. That’s what petty cash is for. Sadly, I know what a teacher’s pension amounts to. Take the money.”
Levi glared at the folded bills she held out to him, then at her. “You used to be such a sweet, obedient girl. Always minding your elders. What happened?”
She came around the desk and stuffed the money in his shirt pocket. “I grew up.”
“I was just teasing,” Levi said cheerfully. “You’re still a sweet girl, Mel. Did she mention I was her high school teacher?”
Lucas shook his head, surprised she seemed annoyed. Maybe she didn’t like being called “sweet.”
“Yep, you ask any teacher who had Melanie. They’d all tell you the same thing. Smart as a whip, always behaved like a little lady, the model student—”
“All right, that’s enough.” She held up a hand to Levi. “Or you’ll see quite another side of me.”
The man chuckled as if he didn’t believe that for a second. He finished stirring his coffee, then pressed the top back on the travel cup.
She sighed. “You might want to reconsider picking up another load of supplies today,” she said, then turned to Lucas. “The cabin isn’t available tonight after all. I didn’t realize Nina would still be using it.”
“No problem. Rachel is letting me stay.” He would’ve preferred the cabin or sleeping outside, but he wasn’t picky.
“How? The Sundance is booked solid. Rachel told me herself.”
“She took pity on me. I have a room in the main house.”
“Oh. So you wouldn’t have to...” She grinned. “That was nice of her.”
“Very nice. Except we’re having a disagreement over payment. She won’t accept any money because, as she puts it, I’m ‘a friend of Safe Haven.’”
“Well, you are, aren’t you?” Levi had stopped at the door to listen.
“I pay my own way,” he said and meant it. “I won’t feel comfortable staying there for free.” He met Melanie’s eyes. “I’m counting on you to back me up.”
“I’ll call Rachel,” she said, breathing in deep and looking away. “Can’t promise it’ll do any good.”
Levi eyed them with a faint speculative frown, then opened the door. “Well, I’d better get to work before Kathy comes looking for me.”
“We’ll be out right after I make the call,” Melanie said, casting him a brief glance.
“You can talk to Rachel in person.” Lucas picked up a mug. “She’s invited us to supper tonight.”
Melanie blinked at him. “Tonight? Both of us?”
Apparently Levi had forgotten he’d been about to leave. Shamelessly eavesdropping, he waited in the open doorway.
She slowly shook her head. “It’s Saturday—”
Lucas noted the color blooming in her cheeks. “You already have a date?”
“A what?” She let out a laugh. “No. No. It’s just that I’m always busy on the weekends. Rachel understands.”
“Take the night off, Melanie,” Levi said quietly. “Go to the Sundance. The McAllisters are such nice folks.”
“Yes, of course they are, but that doesn’t change the fact that I have a lot to do.” She was getting defensive, crossing her arms over her chest.
After the look Rachel and Jesse had exchanged last night, Lucas should’ve foreseen this, maybe mentioned dinner in private. Damn, he really wanted to spend the evening with her. “Hey, you know what? No big deal. It’ll probably be noisy and crowded. They’re expecting a bunch of new guests.”
She frowned, her lips pursing into a slight pout. “Right. Saturday is usually a big check-in day.”
He heard the door close. So did she, because they both glanced in that direction. Levi had finally left.
Lucas silently cursed his stupidity. He’d seen how she’d gotten nervous when Levi had joined them. “Should I not have mentioned supper in front of Levi?”
“It’s fine.” She sighed, gazing toward the window, her thoughts obviously drifting. “Maybe I can swing dinner if I hurry and get my act together. I have a huge list of things to do.”
“I can help.” He spread his arms. “Use me.”
Her lips parted, she stared at him for a long drawn-out moment. And then she just laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing.” She shook her head, averted her eyes. She glanced at him again, her gaze roaming across his chest before she looked up and caught him staring back. “Nothing,” she repeated, this time more adamantly.
“All right.” He didn’t believe her, but he didn’t want to piss her off or give her another reason to blow off dinner. “Put me to work,” he said, wondering if tonight he’d find out if the sweet, pretty schoolteacher was still looking for trouble.
* * *
MELANIE’S GRIP ON the rake handle tightened as she watched Lucas pick up a bale of hay and hoist it to his shoulder, causing the snug brown T-shirt to stretch across his back. His muscles were getting quite the workout, even the ones in his butt, and for the first time she completely understood the term eye candy. When he’d offered to help Levi and Chuck rearrange the barn to make room for the last cutting of hay, she’d assumed he’d make use of the borrowed Bobcat. Not lug around the huge bales by himself.
And instead of finishing her share of the barn chores, what was she doing? Standing around and staring like a love-struck schoolgirl. Her only consolation was that Kathy and Liberty had been eyeing him, too. Though Liberty was only fifteen.
Kathy stopped sweeping to blot her face with the red bandanna she wore tied loosely around her neck. “I must say, that cowboy sure knows how to fill out a pair of jeans.”
“He’s young enough to be your son,” Liberty said, grinning when Kathy turned to glare at her.
“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not dead.” Kathy sniffed. “A woman at any age can still appreciate a fine-looking man.”
“What’s that?” Levi had come up behind them. Judging by his expression, he truly hadn’t heard. Not that he would’ve minded his wife’s remark.
“Why, nothing worth repeating.” Kathy smiled at him, then gave the mischievous Liberty a warning look. “Guess I’ll go muck out the stable. Liberty, why don’t you come help?”
That wiped the smirk off the girl’s face, and Melanie couldn’t help laughing. Liberty might want to argue but she didn’t dare put up a fuss. Considering trouble followed her around lik
e an eager puppy, the girl took her duties seriously. But mucking out stalls was her most dreaded chore. Not that she had a choice. Volunteering at Safe Haven was court-appointed community service.
She sent Melanie a pleading look. “Really? Is that what you want me to do next?”
“It has to be done,” she said, pulling off a work glove to take care of an itch at the back of her neck. “But if you really don’t want to do it, I’m sure Kathy can manage by herself.”
Liberty’s smug expression lasted only the second it took her to glance at Kathy, who played her role perfectly. She was talking to Levi while absently pressing a hand to her lower back, right where it sometimes stiffened on her.
The girl bit her lip. “No,” she said, turning back to Melanie. “I’ll do it. Maybe there’s something else Kathy could do. Collect eggs, maybe?”
A warm sense of satisfaction pooled inside Melanie. She and Kathy knew Liberty wasn’t a bad kid. Sure, she’d had a number of scrapes with the sheriff’s department, but she also had little to no parental supervision. She had a good heart and they were hopeful that between Liberty’s involvement with the sanctuary and her aunt moving to Blackfoot Falls to look after her, the teenager would straighten out.
Kathy glanced over her shoulder. “Come on, kiddo. Let’s go clean out those stalls.”
“I can do it by myself.” Liberty gave her a shrug. “Find something else to do.”
“No, we’ll do it together. I have to work the stiffness out of my old bones.” Kathy gave Melanie a private wink.
She watched them head out, then swung her gaze toward Lucas. Levi had stopped him on his way to pick up another bale.
Her cell buzzed and she checked the caller ID, though she didn’t know why she bothered. Gertrude made the same call every Saturday morning. “Hello, Mrs. Wagner. No, I haven’t forgotten that I need to do your shopping this afternoon.”
The elderly woman snorted. “Well, now, if you’d keep your panties on for a minute, I’ll tell you why I called. It’s my kitchen sink. Something got it all stopped up.”
“Okay,” Melanie said slowly, her mind racing ahead. The problem would likely be fixed with a plunger, so that wouldn’t throw her off schedule. “I’ll have a look at it when I bring your groceries.”
“It can’t wait that long.”
“I’ll be there in three hours.” She glanced at her watch, then saw Levi and Lucas walking toward her. “Can’t you use your bathroom sink for now?”
“Sorry, dear, I can’t do that.” Her sudden conciliatory tone did not bode well.
Melanie sighed. “Tell me you haven’t been cooking again.”
Levi heard and was shaking his head. He knew exactly who she was talking to. A faint smile lifted Lucas’s lips, making her wonder if she’d rolled her eyes.
“Mrs. Wagner? Are you there?”
The woman responded with a wheezing cough. That meant one of two things: she’d been sneaking cigarettes again, or she didn’t want to answer. “I might also have a small leak,” she said.
“You might— Is the floor wet?”
“Yes, I believe it’s a bit damp.”
Melanie rubbed her tired eyes. Translation...there was a puddle. “I’ll be right there.”
“Will you be able to fix it, dear?”
“I don’t know anything about plumbing....” So much for dinner at the Sundance with Lucas. “I’ll find someone who does. Just please, stay out of the kitchen so you don’t slip.”
After securing the woman’s promise, Melanie disconnected the call.
“If she’s been cooking, she’s tried to hide the evidence,” Levi said.
“I know.” She pocketed the phone. “I’m sorry to bail on you,” she said, looking from Levi to Lucas. She was even sorrier that now she’d probably miss dinner, but she wouldn’t tell Lucas yet.
“There’s not much left. Can you and Chuck finish up?” Lucas asked Levi, who nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
“Me?” Melanie felt like an idiot. Who else? He was looking right at her. “No, I’ll be fine.”
“Look, I know enough about plumbing to fix a leak.”
Thoughts were swirling and colliding inside her head. Levi was giving her a puzzled look. It wasn’t that she minded the help; she just hadn’t decided how much she wanted Lucas knowing about her.
“It’s the start of hunting season,” Levi reminded her. “You might not find anyone else if it turns out the leak is bad.”
Lucas hadn’t waited for her to give him the green light. He’d already yanked off his gloves and pulled a cloth out of his back pocket to mop his face. “Let’s take my truck. I have a tool chest in the back.”
“You don’t have to do this,” she protested.
“You’re right. Let’s go.” He cupped her elbow but then immediately lowered his hand.
She wasn’t sure if it was because Levi was watching them. “We’ll be back as soon as possible,” she told him, already backing out of the barn.
Levi waved her off. “You get the rest of your Saturday chores done. Can’t have you using them as an excuse to miss supper.”
With an exasperated toss of her head, she turned around and caught Lucas’s expression of amusement. “What?”
He slid her a glance but said nothing.
“Is that why you offered to go with me?”
“That’s one reason.”
“I’m not looking for excuses to bow out. Weekends are busy. If I didn’t want to go tonight, I would’ve told you.”
“You need anything from the office?” He veered toward his truck.
“I should probably take my car so you won’t have to make the trip out here again. Plus, I have other errands to run.”
“We’ll do them together.”
She smiled. He didn’t understand, and she still wasn’t sure she wanted him to see her in her element. Most of her Saturdays revolved around helping members of her father’s congregation. Everyone seemed to think she was a darn saint. There were worse things to be labeled. It probably shouldn’t annoy her, but it did.
“Ride with me.”
Only after he spoke did she realize she’d stopped walking, her gaze idly fixed on his dented bumper. The damage was her fault. She still felt awful about the accident. “I wonder if there’s someone at the gas station who could look at that dent.”
“Not today.”
“How do you know?” She turned to him, unprepared for the dazzling effect of his blue eyes in direct sunlight. “Did you stop in town?”
He squinted against the glare. “The truck’s not a priority.” He moved his hand, and she held her breath, expecting him to touch her. But he only rubbed the back of his neck. “What’s wrong, Melanie? Afraid to be seen with me in town?”
“Why would you say such a...?” Had Levi or Chuck mentioned she was Pastor Ray’s daughter? So what if they had? This wasn’t high school. Lucas wouldn’t ditch her. As for Mrs. Wagner and the other elderly ladies on her list, it was almost a given they’d say something embarrassing about her. “Here’s the thing—if I ride with you and you get bored, you can’t leave me stranded in town without my car. So you’d better think twice about...”
She trailed off, amazed that he’d so rudely walked away. If he’d changed his mind, fine. But he could’ve at least let her finish.
He opened the truck’s passenger door, moved something off the seat, then stood back waiting for her. His expression was blank, except he still managed to communicate his complete ease, which oddly made her nervous. That and the way the T-shirt clung to his chest and shoulder muscles, reminding her of how he looked bare chested.
Melanie took a deep involuntary breath and forced herself to move. No need to feel like a lamb being led to slaughter. “Okay,” she said, finding a foothold on the step-up. “Bu
t I warned you.”
His warm calloused palm cupped her elbow until she was seated. “Noted.”
Her skin tingled from the casual touch, even after he’d let her go, and continued to do so while he rounded the hood, then slid behind the steering wheel. She rubbed her arm, trying to stop the sensation. It was ridiculous for a twenty-seven-year-old woman to be feeling this way.
She eyed his Stetson sitting on the console between them and wondered why he hadn’t worn it. He’d look good. Oh, Lord, he looked good now.
Lucas turned the key he’d left in the ignition and the engine purred to life. “Where are we headed?”
“To town.”
After checking the mirror, he slid his arm along the seat behind her shoulders and looked out the rear window as he reversed. “You seem tense.”
“Me?” She shook her head, then nodded. “I’m a little tense.”
“Does it have anything to do with me?”
“I want to go to dinner tonight. I really do. But I have a lot of things on my list.”
“So you said.” He tried to control a smile, but she saw it tugging at his mouth.
“Do I amuse you, Mr. Sloan?”
His right eyebrow went up. “You do a lot of things to me, Ms. Knowles,” he said, shifting gears and giving her a look that could melt a pound of butter.
The tingling started again. “Are you flirting with me?” she asked, surprised at how easy it was to give it back to him.
“Damn straight.”
Melanie laughed. “I know you’re teasing, but you can’t do that in front of Mrs. Wagner. She won’t understand.”
He frowned at her, his expression more curious than anything. “Who said I’m teasing?”
Not knowing how to answer, she stared at the road ahead. “You have to veer right to get to Blackfoot Falls.” After a stretch of unnerving silence, she glanced at him. “You know how small towns are.”
For a moment the only sound in the cab was the air conditioner whirring to beat out the September heat. “Where do you live?”
“In town.”
“By yourself?”
“Yes.” She’d bet he assumed she still lived with her parents. Seven months ago he wouldn’t have been wrong. And then she’d had her big aha moment. She loved her mother, but Melanie didn’t want to be an extension of her. And that was exactly how everyone seemed to view her. “I’m in a small two-bedroom house. It’s convenient, close to school, not too far from Safe Haven. Why are you smiling like that?”
Need You Now Page 7