Vin splashed some water on his face and chest. His reaction to Miss Ashley a moment ago had left him flushed and feverish. Good thing the light had been turned off and he hadn’t been able to see her standing in front of him wearing almost nothing.
He leaned his backside against the counter and stared at the bright green numbers. His eyes fell to the little orange bottle that sat on the counter next to him. He reached for it. The thing rattled when he shook it. It contained pills the doctor at the hospital had wanted him to swallow several times each day to keep his wounds from getting – what he’d called – infected.
Vin shook his head. He would be a dead man right now, had he been in his own time. Miss Ashley had told him that Moira had found a note with him from the man who’d found him at his campsite. Someone by the name of Chris Hawley, a man who’d come from this time and had been sent to the past, and had chosen to make his life there. If someone from this time could live in the past, it was just as likely that someone from the past could make a fresh start in the future.
All the noise in this future time, and the hustle and bustle of people everywhere was almost too much. Thankfully, Miss Ashley’s home was peaceful and quiet, the way he liked it. Vin set the small bottle back on the counter. His eyes drifted to the window, and he smiled. The fireworks noise at least was somewhat familiar.
What Miss Ashley called ‘a little town in the middle of nowhere’ wasn’t so little by his standards, but still much smaller and out of the way from what he’d experienced so far. At least it was possible to see the stars at night and hear the silence most of the time without some strange noise tearing through the stillness.
He’d almost gotten used to the constant beeping and humming in the hospital. Almost, but not quite. Even here, there was always something that made some kind of noise in the background. The low humming of the refrigerator was only one example. Ashley had said she didn’t even hear these noises, but to him, they were everywhere.
Vin pushed away from the counter. He lumbered back up the hall to the bedroom he occupied. He stopped in front of the door while his eyes drifted to the one across the hall. He ran a hand over his face. A woman like Ashley Gilbert would make life in this time all worthwhile. Could she possibly see something in a man like him?
Chapter 9
Ashley slipped into her uniform and tied the little white apron around her waist. The baby-blue, short-sleeved blouse and matching short skirt looked more ridiculous than ever as she glanced in the bathroom mirror. The white socks and sneakers completed the ‘Sixties Diner’ look that Jim was so proud of.
Jim’s Diner had been around forever, or at least since the 1960’s, as Jim loved to tell his patrons. It had belonged to his grandfather, then his father, and now it was his. Walking into the place was like stepping back in time, and the waitresses he employed needed to blend in with the décor while also standing out, as he’d like to say. That meant that Jim only hired younger women who looked good in a miniskirt.
Ashley had worked for Jim since she’d first moved in with Grandma and taken over the house. At first, it had been part-time, to help her pay for college classes. When she’d quit school to take care of her grandma, Jim had given her full-time hours.
Over the years, he’d relied on her to work on-demand and to put in many hours of overtime. She’d always done so without complaint because she certainly needed the money, and it was the only available job within a reasonable distance from where she lived. After all she’d done for him, the least he could have done was give her a few extra days off without threatening to fire her if she didn’t show up for work today.
A quick, final inspection in the mirror and another tug to tighten her ponytail, and she was ready to grab a quick bite of breakfast before leaving for work. She also needed to talk to Vin one more time.
She squeezed her eyes shut and took in a deep breath. What was she going to do about him while she was at work? Would he really stay in the house all by himself without getting into trouble?
For the last two days, she’d tried to show and explain to him about all the modern things in the house she’d taken for granted all her life. He’d paid attention with concealed fascination. The shower, the climate control, the fridge, electricity – he seemed to marvel at them as he came to appreciate their convenience.
He’d already been exposed to most of these things while he’d been in the hospital, but she’d never had the opportunity to fully explain them to him. He hadn’t cared much for the television when she’d turned it on and flipped through the channels, shaking his head at many of the silly commercials.
“Why do folks want to sit all day and stare at moving pictures?”
Good question. One that she’d never considered before. “It’s like seeing a story being told to you, but you get to watch it happen instead of reading or listening to it.”
“People like watching stories about folks getting into predicaments and expect to take the advice of a talking duck?”
His truly perplexed look had made her smile. “The duck isn’t real, and it’s not a story, but a commercial selling a service. It’s only made to look real. A lot of things you see on TV and in movies are make-believe. I think that’s partly why we like to watch them. Takes us away from everyday life.” When his eyes had connected with hers, she’d found herself completely flustered.
“Don’t make much sense to me to want to live in a pretend world. I’ve often wondered what life would have been like if certain things had been different, but there ain’t no sense dwelling on it. You gotta make the best with what you have and play the hand you’re dealt.”
Ashley had stared at him for several seconds. Vin was a guy who didn’t play games. He was completely honest and open. What had happened in his life that he’d wished had been different?
“You’re right,” she’d conceded. “When you put it like that, it is rather silly.”
When he’d abandoned the TV and gone outside, Ashley had given him a brief tour of the yard and the garage.
“It’s a bit cluttered in here,” she’d said, glancing around the garage that barely held her car among all the boxes piled from floor to ceiling. “I only keep my car in here so it doesn’t constantly get too dusty. And, as you can see, it’s used for storage.”
The many trunks and boxes had belonged to her grandma. One of these days she’d have to go through it all, but it was mostly old junk she’d never need or use.
The scenarios swirling in her head of what Vin might do in her absence while she was at work had left her with few hours of sleep. She mentally shook her head. That wasn’t the only thing that had kept her up. The punks shooting off fireworks had definitely been no help last night, and neither had colliding with Vin in the dark hallway. Especially colliding with Vin in the hallway.
She hadn’t needed to see him in the dark to imagine exactly what he looked like when she’d impulsively grabbed hold of his arm. Her palm had pressed like a magnet to his bare chest, the strong beats of his heart only magnifying the electric current that had raced up through the tips of her fingers at the touch. When he’d pulled her up against him with one solid arm wrapped around her to steady her, she’d nearly melted into him.
Vin Kincaid.
The thought of him and the memory of his touch brought a rosy glow to her cheeks, and she didn’t usually blush all that easily. Nothing about the encounter had been about intimacy, yet that’s exactly how it had felt – the tender intimacy of a protective embrace, without any expectations. In fact, she’d never felt more connected to a guy than she had in that brief moment, as silly as it seemed. They were virtually strangers, after all.
She knew next to nothing about him, and her curiosity had grown as the days had passed, but it had hardly been the moment to ask him about his personal life. In that instant, all she’d focused on was the masculine scent coming off his skin, and how safe and secure she’d felt with his arm around her.
Vin had only held her so she could regain her bal
ance after stumbling head-long into him. For the briefest of moments, however, the undeniable feeling of being exactly where she belonged had taken hold in her.
It had been both surprising and comforting at the same time, which had left her with nothing but confusion. Ashley had already written out her list of criteria for any future relationships. Good looks and short-term weren’t on it.
Stability, safety, and friendship were at the top of the list. So were kindness, caring, honesty, and old-fashioned politeness. The guy also had to show some consideration for others. In short, someone who’d sweep her off her feet, not offer to take her out once and then expect to be invited to spend the night. Someone perfect, who more than likely didn’t exist.
Ashley shook her head for real this time. The encounter in the hallway, and comparing Vin’s attributes with her list had given her little peace all night. All her good intentions of staying away from another relationship that was doomed to fail before it even started seemed to be going out the window. She’d wanted to remain in Vin’s embrace, feel the secure hold he had on her.
She paused. What hold did he have on her? He hadn’t even shown any interest in her, and here she was, thinking like a high school girl with her first crush. At least all the previous boyfriends had asked her out before she’d decided she was in love, that it was for real, and it would last.
Holding on to the bathroom door handle, she frowned. This was a new low, even for her. Why even consider a guy who was destined to leave and never return after a few weeks, or a couple of months at the most?
Ashley glanced at the watch with the blue ribbon tied to it. She’d removed it from around her neck when she’d taken a shower. Wearing it to work would raise too many questions, so she’d left it on the counter in the bathroom. The hands still whirred around at the same speed as before.
Vin is here to find true love?
Her question to Moira Lockhart’s explanation of why Vin had time traveled slammed her in the gut and made her heart beat faster.
What if you’re the one he’s supposed to find?
Ashley let out something like a snort through her mouth. Yeah, right. Besides, Moira had made it sound as if he didn’t have to stay or even look for someone to hook up with, and that he was free to return home whenever he wanted. It didn’t sound like he had to find anyone if he wasn’t really looking, only that he was given the chance to find love. Her eyes fell to the watch again. Had Moira explained all of that to Vin?
Ashley stepped out into the hall and toward the kitchen. The strong aroma of coffee drifted through the air. Her forehead scrunched. She hadn’t made coffee yet this morning. A pot clanked at the same time as her cell phone rang. She fished it out of the pocket of her waitress apron and glanced at the name on the display screen.
Amber.
Taking a deep breath, she swiped the screen to answer the call and held the phone to her ear. As if Amber could see her, Ashley plastered a smile on her face. She’d been expecting this call for several days already.
“Hey, Amber. How’s the honeymoon?”
“The honeymoon is great. We don’t have much phone reception here, and I just got your message from a few days ago. Did I understand right, and you brought Vin with you to California?” The disbelief in Amber’s voice was palpable.
Ashley repeated what she’d rehearsed in her mind for days. “I had no choice. Jim was going to fire me if I didn’t come back to work, and Moira had some family emergency in New York. I suppose I could have left him in the hospital to fend for himself.”
There was a short pause. “No, I see your point. Scott and I can come home if you want.”
“Absolutely not. You two deserve your time together. Everything is under control here.”
Was it? It seemed as if nothing was under control, least of all her emotions and infatuation with Vin. Hadn’t she always joked that she wanted to find a guy like Gabe McFarlain? Vin was strikingly similar to Gabe in his manners, and it made complete sense. They were both from the past.
“What if the clock hands slow down? Vin won’t have time to get home.”
“He wanted to come, Amber. He even hinted that he didn’t want to go back to where he came from.”
The image of Amber shaking her head, but smiling indulgently came to mind. “All right, Ash. I’m sure you know what you’re doing.” She paused again. “This might work out for the best.”
Ashley’s brows rose. What was that supposed to mean? She didn’t dare ask, because it was obvious what Amber was hinting at. Of course, she was quite familiar with the workings of the time travel watch, and knew exactly why Vin had been sent to the future.
Ashley rounded the corner into the kitchen. Her eyes lifted and she stopped dead in her tracks. She fumbled with the phone as it nearly dropped from her hand.
“I have to go, or I’ll be late for work. Say hello to Scott for me.”
After a quick good-bye from Amber, Ashley stared across the space between the kitchen table and counter. Vin was pressing buttons on the coffee maker, his back to her. The jeans and maroon t-shirt he wore fit him to perfection from behind. His long hair only enhanced the nice view. The only remnants that he wasn’t a modern guy were the worn and permanently dusty boots on his feet.
“Do you need some help with that?”
Vin turned around at the question. The look of frustration on his face was quickly replaced with something else as his eyes connected with her. He glanced first at her face, then his gaze drifted down along the length of her body, to her feet, and back up again, lingering on her bare legs from the knees down. Ashley rubbed at her arm. Her insides heated at his slow perusal, and her skin tingled as if he were caressing her with his hands instead of his eyes.
“I was awake, and thought I’d try my hand at makin’ some coffee like you showed me. Would you like a cup, Miss Ashley?”
Ashley blinked and shook her head slightly while she stared at him. He held her contact. Safety, kindness, caring, old-fashioned politeness, considerate . . . check. In only a short amount of time, he already fulfilled more of her requirements in a guy than most of her other relationships put together. Ashley cleared her throat.
“Sure. I’d love a cup of coffee.”
Vin poured two cups and handed one to her, still perusing her with undisguised curiosity.
“You really don’t have to call me Miss Ashley,” she stammered, blowing at the steam rising from her cup.
“What should I call you, then?” A slow grin spread across his face.
“Ashley will be good enough. No sense for being so formal.”
“If that’s acceptable to you, then I’ll oblige.”
Oblige?
There was that word that Gabe had used so frequently. It had left both her and Morgan fanning themselves. Ashley raised the coffee to her lips. She took a sip, swallowed, then scrunched her face. Rushing to the sink, she spit the coffee out, then dumped the entire contents of the cup down the drain.
“How much coffee did you use?”
She faced him again, swirling her tongue in her mouth to get rid of the bitter taste.
Vin shrugged. “I thought it was a fair amount. You don’t like it?” He held his cup to his lips and drank. “There’s nothing wrong with my coffee.”
“I guess I don’t like it quite as strong as you.”
Ashley opened the fridge to pull out a yogurt. She’d have to go without coffee this morning until she got to work.
“I think you should let me make the coffee next time,” she suggested.
“No one’s ever complained about my coffee.”
Ashley’s spine stiffened. He’d come up behind her, and stood much too close. That sultry voice sent a shiver down her back. When she turned and looked at him, he was smiling, and his eyes sparkled with mischief. She stared.
“Apparently, people don’t drink their coffee quite as strong anymore.” This coffee was worse than a double shot of espresso, but it was best not to say that. Vin had tried making coffee
for her. She wasn’t going to criticize.
“A lot of things have changed in the last hundred and fifty years.” He glanced at her uniform again, his eyes coming to rest on her legs.
“This is my work uniform.” Somehow it seemed important that she explain what she was wearing and why, even though it had never mattered before. “I don’t wear stuff like this ordinarily, but I’m required to for my job.”
“What is it that you do?”
There was a curious, but also an almost accusing note in his voice, and his eyes narrowed with his tilted head. Ashley met his stare.
“I’m a waitress. I serve food to people at a diner… similar to Moira Lockhart’s diner.”
He pointed at her knees. “Best as I recall, she don’t wear those kinds of outfits.”
“Well, no. This is the uniform I’m required to wear. Stop giving me that look like you don’t approve.”
Vin’s eyes darkened. “Serving food shouldn’t require you to bare your legs to people.”
“Maybe where you come from, Vin. Like we’ve both said, times have changed.”
His eyes traveled over her from top to bottom again, unhurried. She’d seen similar looks from men who were all mentally undressing her. There was none of that in Vin’s gaze. His look remained respectful, as if he truly liked what he saw without any ulterior thoughts.
She tore her eyes away. Every time he looked at her, it was in an appreciative sort of way. Ashley mentally shook her head. No, this wasn’t happening. She was letting herself fall for the next guy who showed the slightest interest in her, exactly what she’d told herself she wouldn’t do. Ashley glanced at the clock on the microwave.
“I have to go, or I’ll be late.” She snatched her purse from the kitchen counter, then stopped to look at Vin. “Please, stay in the house. Don’t answer the door or the phone. You’re not ready to meet other people, and the world isn’t quite ready to meet you, either. I’ll be home this evening.” She stopped, then glanced over her shoulder one more time. “And please, don’t use any appliances.”
Timeless Hero (Timeless Hearts Book 12) Page 8