Kisses Between the Lines: An Echo Ridge Anthology (Echo Ridge Romance Book 2)

by Lucy McConnell

  She sucked in a breath and he felt a tug on his shirt as she grasped it on the sides. “Um, I’ll have to get back with you. I have to check the schedule.”

  “I bet you don’t, I’d bet you already know what breaks you can finagle.” He shifted his lips from her forehead to her right temple, then brushed them down her cheek.

  Her breath grew ragged, her answer stilted with frequent pauses. “I, um. Thursday about two. That’s after my meeting and lunch rush. I’ll have to be back before six.”

  “No problem.” He buzzed his lips along the side of her jaw, then, despite an intense desire to kiss her lips, pulled back. He could have sworn he heard a sigh slide from her mouth and nearly moved back in to take it.

  Instead, he released her and stepped back. “Two o’clock on Thursday. I’ll pick you up.”

  “Oh, okay.” She seemed to pull it together and continued the last few steps to her car, nearly dropping her keys when she removed them from her pocket.

  He managed not to chuckle, smiling goodbye as she slid into the car and then pulled out of the parking lot.

  He let out a low breath of his own, though he hadn’t realized until then that he was holding it. Wow, that had almost been more potent than he could handle. He hoped she didn’t back out of their date before Thursday. He could hardly wait.

  “WHERE ARE YOU GOING?” Hank asked as Fay removed her apron after the lunch rush Thursday.

  “I have an appointment.” She had fifteen minutes before Austin was supposed to pick her up for their afternoon date. She had no clue what they were doing, but he said it would be casual. No problem, she was all over casual— but that didn’t mean she didn’t want to clean up first.

  “You were at the library board meeting all morning and now you’re taking off again? What’s up with you lately?” Hank’s heavy brows lowered over dark eyes as he studied her.

  “I wasn’t gone all morning, just an hour and half. I left the meeting early so we could gear up for lunch.” Still, she was feeling guilty about leaving again. She had nearly sent Austin a text to cancel the date, but she knew he would rib her about being scared. He would be partly right— the moment in the Kenworth’s parking lot when she had been sure he was going to kiss her, and her head would explode, had terrified her. She hadn’t felt that kind of chemistry... ever. Not even when they had clung to each other, kissing in the dark in high school. That moment, so long ago, had seemed like the most important one of her life at the time.

  Would she someday say the same about their date today?

  No, she was not putting any expectations on the activity this afternoon. Maybe it would go great and she’d get to see if the chemistry she’d felt with him at Kenworth’s was real, and not simply anticipation. Either way, as long as the activity with him went well— she was not going to call it a date if he hadn’t called it one— then that would be good enough. Disappointing, but worth it.

  Fay pretended she wasn’t fully aware she was lying to herself about her motives. It was easier to pretend everything was perfectly normal this way.

  She told Maria to let her know if there was an emergency and headed upstairs to freshen up. She changed into a clean t-shirt and jeans, added another necklace to her gold chains to include something with beads and shimmer, and changed her earrings for a pair of double S-curves with purple beads at the end. She tried to keep her jewelry toned down— comparatively speaking— at the café— at least enough that it wouldn’t get in the way while she worked, but she had always had a bohemian flair and liked plenty of accessories.

  After touching up her lipstick, she sorted through her collection of rings and chose two that were large and gaudy— exactly the way she liked them— sliding them into place, one on each hand, as the doorbell rang.

  “You’re right on time,” she said, opening the door to Austin.

  “Punctuality is my middle name.”

  “You can’t fool me. I’ve known you too long.” And he had never been the overly punctual type as a teen.

  His eyes flicked over her in quick appreciation before returning to her face and he shook his head. “I’ve turned over a new leaf. You used to know me, but you might find a couple surprises now.”

  She couldn’t help but be intrigued at the idea of new aspects to learn about the man before her. They had been friends before... well, friendly anyway, when they weren’t getting on each other’s nerves. And when he wasn’t teasing her to irritating levels.

  They headed down the wooden stairs on the back side of her building, their shoes clomping against the planks. “So, what are we doing today, anyway?”

  “I have plans. And thoughts. And schemes. It’ll be fun if you relax and decide to let it be.” He cocked an eyebrow at her and she narrowed hers.

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Wait and see.” He headed for the southwest end of town, where the stores were less shiny and new and the homes weren’t kept up as nicely. They pulled into the parking lot Walmart shared with several smaller businesses.

  “Are we taking care of your grocery list?” Fay asked when Austin stopped in front of Walmart.

  “Well, we will be doing some shopping, but not like you think.” He pulled out a reusable shopping bag and a few pieces of paper. “We’re playing Walmart Bingo, and shopping for the rest of our date.”

  “Walmart Bingo? What’s that?”

  Austin passed over the papers to her. She found a shopping list with random items and behind that two BINGO sheets. She followed him inside, glancing over the top sheet.

  Dirty diaper in the parking lot.

  Someone wearing bright orange or camouflage.

  Frozen food left to thaw in another aisle.

  Barefoot person.

  Group of teens doing nothing.

  The Bingo sheet went on and on. “It’s like they’ve been in our Walmart,” Fay said.

  “And that’s the beauty of the game, because everyone feels that way.” He fished two pens from his front pocket and passed one over. “Give me one of those pages. You choose.”

  She looked over the second BINGO sheet, but the options were about as likely, so she passed it to him. “What’s with this random shopping list?”

  “It’s not that random.”

  Cups, plastic utensils, tape, paper, snacks, small figurines, circular objects, glue, small decorations, drinks.

  She looked back at him again. “Really? It looks pretty random and non-specific.”

  “I guess we’ll have to wait to see how it turns out.” He smiled smugly, apparently enjoying that he was keeping a secret from her.

  They walked inside and did the rounds of the store, crossing items from their Bingo cards as they went— though Fay insisted on putting the still-frozen package of broccoli back in the freezer instead of leaving it for an employee to hopefully save in time.

  “I need either someone in camo or some loitering teens and I’ve got it,” Fay said as they entered the craft section half an hour after entering the store.

  Austin glanced at his paper again. “I need loitering teens or a screaming child.”

  “So you’re saying we could tie?” That was no good. Tying wasn’t fun, she needed to beat him. She paused in front of a sewing display. “Are you sure you don’t care how I fill the shopping list?”

  “Nope, it’s up to you. It’s far more random and interesting that way.”

  “Okay.” She slid some liquid stitches glue and a package of empty bobbins in their basket. “That covers the glue and circular objects.”

  “Good choice, you never know when you might need a bunch of bobbins.” His forehead scrunched up. “What is a bobbin for anyway?”

  “You put thread on it for machine stitching. It holds the second thread.”

  He nodded as if it made sense to someone who didn’t sew. At all. “Right, of course. Well, I’m sure it’ll come in handy for our activity.”

  “Sure.” She was wildly curious about what he had in mind. Down the next ais
le she picked up some zebra-print washi and then marked tape off the list. “I think we only need figurines and we’re set.” Thankfully the hunting and fishing section was between the crafts and toy sections in her Walmart. Surely they would find someone in hunter’s orange or camo there— especially considering the time of year.

  “Nice choice. I love the colors.”

  “They’re my favorite.”

  A child started wailing moments before an elderly man came around the corner of the aisle, wearing a camouflage hat. Of course, Austin won with half a second to spare.

  “Yes!” Austin fluttered his paper at her. “I win.”

  She smiled at the old man as he passed them, not as irritated as she normally would have been. Somehow spending time with Austin was worth losing their game, despite her strong competitive streak. No need to let him know, though. “Are you sure you didn’t rig it?”

  “Of course I didn’t— I wouldn’t cheat.”

  “Of course you wouldn’t. What was I thinking? This isn’t Marco Polo, after all.”

  Grinning, he held up a hand. “Hey, I was seven, and I learned my lesson, thank you very much.” He gestured down the toy aisle.

  She glanced at the last item on the list. “Figurines. What does that mean?”

  “Figurines. Of something living.”

  She wished she knew why he was being so cryptic, she could use more details. “Like army guys or Pokémon characters or something else?”

  “It’s up to you.”

  Fay looked at a number of options. Though she checked his expression several times, he kept it fairly bland. She settled for some vegetables that had hands, legs, and faces.

  “Nice choice. I like those,” he said as she put them in the basket with everything else.

  He led her back to the kitchen aisle and stopped in front of a display. “One more thing I left off the list. What do you think? Bamboo skewers or toothpicks? Or we could get some of those long, skinny nails used for hanging pictures.” He held his fingers apart to show the length he was talking about.

  Fay considered the random assortment of items in their cart. “I’m going to say toothpicks.”

  “Toothpicks it is.”

  It was driving her crazy that he wasn’t giving her any hints about what they would be doing with the toothpicks. She pretended it wasn’t. “Are you sure that’s everything we’ll need?”

  He considered the purchases and nodded. “I think it should do us. I should have everything else that’s necessary. Are you good with the snacks or do you want something even worse for you than potato chips?”

  They came out into the aisle by the food and passed a baking display. “Chocolate chips.” She tossed a yellow bag in with the rest of their stash and he chuckled.

  “Do you mind if we swing by Second Chances thrift store when we finish here? I have this assignment.” Fay explained about her search for a hardcover of Much Ado About Nothing for the library, and how Marian wanted something with character. “I’ve checked a few places online, but either the hardcovers are too shiny and new to make her happy, or they are in bad condition, and that’s not going to work, either.”

  “So she wants something old, but in perfect condition?” Austin asked.

  “Pretty much. I heard some of the other board members had luck at Second Chances, so I’m hoping I can too. Otherwise it’ll be Amazon all the way. I’m running out of time.”

  “It’s practically next door to your café and you still haven’t gone?”

  Fay squeezed her eyes shut in embarrassment. “I know! I’m such a slacker, but it’s been insane, seriously.”

  “And yet you still made time for me today. Now I feel extra special. And yes, we can stop in to Second Chances.”

  “Thanks! How are renovations coming? I can’t believe Bret left you here to work on the building alone.”

  Austin tipped his head in nonchalance. “That was part of the deal. He had meetings this week he needed to attend. He’ll be back tomorrow night and work all weekend with me. But he is a lazy slacker, isn’t he? I should totally make him cook this weekend.”

  She laughed at the thought of Bret making something more difficult than a quesadilla. “Only if you like charcoal disguised as food. Spare your taste buds and come out to my café. I’ll give you both a family discount. Or I’m sure your or my parents would love to have you stop in for a few meals. Why aren’t you guys staying with your parents, anyway? The store has to be uncomfortable.” The thought had crossed her mind a few times, but neither guy had been around to ask at the time.

  “My parents are renovating and the spare room has everything from the living room in it right now. I think for Bret it’s a matter of solidarity and, you know, the fun. He’s not here much yet, anyway.”

  “Wait— the fun?”

  They reached the cashier and Austin set the purchases on the belt as they spoke. “You know, sleeping on cots, cooking on a camp stove, using a mini-fridge to keep the milk and soda’s cold, eating on paper plates. Fun.”

  “Like you’re thirteen or something?” she asked.

  He heaved a dramatic sigh and shook his head. “Girls don’t understand.”

  “Nope, and I’m okay with that. Have you rigged up a shower, or do you go home for them?”

  He pulled a face. “No hot water in the building, so we go home— no cold showers if I can help it, thanks.”

  She chuckled and greeted the woman paying at the neighboring cash register. By the time they finished paying for their purchases, Fay had gotten the run-down on what was happening with the Harvest Hurrah, and was curious about the upcoming author reading and his stand-in personal assistant.

  “I don’t think I’ve seen the assistant around before,” Austin said.

  “You haven’t exactly been around much. Besides, she’s not from here originally. She’s Shennedy’s cousin, Lindy. It sounds like she has her hands full.”

  “That makes two of you, then. I don’t know how you do everything you do. In fact, I was surprised you didn’t call and make an excuse about being too busy to go out with me today.” He shot her a sideways look.

  “I almost did, but I figured you’d come badger me at work instead. This way I don’t have to be irritated with you.”

  “So true. And we’re having fun.” He took her hand as they ambled back out to the vehicle, bags of purchases hanging from his other hand.

  They were having fun, making her glad she hadn’t bowed out. “Where are we going? You know, after Second Chances?”

  “To the shop. Wind might not be our friend this afternoon. We definitely need to be inside.”

  “I wondered how the store was coming. I never ate there when it was the restaurant, but I heard a lot about it. Sounds like you’ve done a lot of work, though.”

  “We have. I can’t wait to show you around.”

  She couldn’t wait to see it, either.

  THE STOP AT THE THRIFT STORE was unproductive. After a thorough check in the book section, they left empty handed.

  When they arrived at the future site of Ruby Ridge Recreation fifteen minutes later, Fay was impressed with the adjustments he and Bret had made to the outside of the building. Nothing major, just repainting lines in the parking lot, cleaning up the garbage and painting the wooden-sided building, which had begun to look grungy.

  “It looks nice out here.”

  “We started on the outside, power washing and clearing away the garbage. We have a business sign ordered for the building. It’s supposed to be here in a couple weeks— just in time for us to open. Come see inside.” Austin held her door and then let her into the building. The floor was a neutral off-white tile with black grout lines, the walls had been painted a soft blue-gray and slat board covered several of them. A huge stack of boxes filled one corner and a metal free-standing display took up the middle of the floor. Sticky notes were posted every few feet around the room with inventory descriptions and part numbers, and a few items were already hanging in random locati
ons.

  “Wow, looks like you’ve done a lot here. You might actually be ready to open on time.”

  “That’s the plan. It’s amazing how long it takes to put out inventory, enter it into the Point of Sale computer, upload it to the website Bret created, and list it to online retailers.”

  “Why don’t you unbox everything now and then deal with the computer stuff later?”

  “Because I work better if I’m not stagnating on a single piece of the project for too long. I need the variety, so I take a break from the constant pricing and hanging to add items to the web.”

  “I thought Bret was doing all the website stuff.” Fay walked down the aisle, running her fingers over warm, but fashionable, scarves, hats, and gloves.

  “He’s still working on some of the customer functions on the site, but I’m focusing on loading the pictures and sales info. Eventually it will all be his baby. But since he’s full time at his job for a few more weeks and will still work part time for them after we open our doors, I’m learning to be ambidextrous— in a manner of speaking.”

  “Have you done that kind of thing before?” She turned to consider him. She knew he had been the manager at the ski shop where he worked until just before moving back to Echo Ridge, but she still imagined him as a partying college student who wanted nothing more than to hit the slopes or take off for a spin on his mountain bike the second his shift ended.

  “Yeah, once I got the hang of the manager’s paperwork, I took over on uploading information to the website too, though we only listed a few of our items. I kept telling my boss we could do better if we listed everything, plus added our stuff to a couple of online retailers, but he didn’t want me to spend the time on it. He definitely didn’t want to hire another person, even part-time, so I would have time to update the website more.”