Harbor Lights

by Sherryl Woods

  Shanna, who’d been on the verge of tears all afternoon, suddenly began to cry. Kevin stared at her helplessly, then cast a desperate look at Bree. She merely scowled back at him until he slid his chair closer to Shanna’s and put an arm around her. He tucked a finger under her chin and forced her to meet his gaze.

  “The worst’s behind you,” he reminded her. “And it’s all going to look a thousand times better in the morning.”

  “I know,” she said, sniffing and reaching for a napkin to blot the tears.

  “Then don’t drown a perfectly good burger.”

  “It’s just that you’re all being so nice,” she said again. “Even Sally, and I barely know her. I barely know any of you.”

  “You stop that right now,” Bree chimed in. “We’re friends, okay? And friends pitch in. What would your friend Laurie do if she were here?”

  Shanna’s lips quirked in a surprising smile. “She’d help,” she said at once. “As long as I paid for her manicure if she chipped a nail.”

  Bree held out her own hands, nicked from working with roses with thorns, wire and scissors. “Hmm. I could use a manicure.”

  “Done,” Shanna said at once. “You, too, Susie. I propose a girls’ day out later in the week. My treat.”

  “You’ve already bought us dinner,” Bree protested. “That’s more than enough, but we will go with you for a manicure, right, Susie?”

  “Count me in,” Susie responded, though she regarded her hands with despair. “I haven’t had decent nails in a very long time.”

  In fact, it was apparent they’d been bitten to the quick. Mack had driven her to that, Kevin suspected. Those two really did need counseling to get off the dime and own up to their feelings.

  From across the table, Mack covered one of Susie’s hands with his own. “There’s nothing wrong with your hands,” he said gruffly, then jerked away, looking embarrassed. “I have to go.”

  Susie backed away from the table, almost knocking over her chair in the process. “Can you give me a lift?”

  Mack looked even more flustered, but he nodded, and then they were gone.

  Beside Kevin, Jake shook his head. “Those two are pitiful.”

  “Amen to that,” Will added. “Do you suppose Mack will remember that he drove me over here earlier today?”

  Bree laughed. “Not a chance. Jake and I will drive you home or back to your car, wherever you need to go. And we should be heading out now, too.” She caught her husband’s gaze, heat climbing into her eyes.

  Kevin looked away. He did not want to know what his sister and Jake had planned for the rest of the evening.

  Within minutes, he and Shanna were alone at the table. She finished the last bite of her burger and dipped one last fry in ketchup. When she’d finished it, she turned to him and grinned, her usually sunny disposition obviously restored.

  “Thank you,” she said.

  “For what?”

  “Agreeing to come here. It was just what I needed.”

  “It made you cry,” he reminded her.

  “I needed that, too, I think, but now I’m about to crash.”

  Kevin stood and held out his hand. “Then, come on. I’ll walk you back to your place.”

  She tucked her hand in his, and for the first time in more months than he cared to count, Kevin felt not just a spark of attraction, but a deep and powerful connection to another human being. Shanna had needed him today—needed all of them, for that matter—and it felt good knowing that he’d come through for her. Though he’d been strong for Davy’s sake since Georgia’s death, this was different. It made him feel like a man again, rather than the shell of a man who’d only been going through the motions of living.

  It also gave him hope that one of these days he might actually start to feel something again…something besides guilt and despair.

  True to her word, Susie O’Brien arrived at Word Games first thing the next morning with the claim forms and a check in hand. Her cheeks were glowing and her red hair was mussed, as if she hadn’t had time to deal with it after getting out of the shower this morning. Or as if someone had tousled it right before she’d left home, Shanna thought, hiding a grin and wondering if Mack had been that someone.

  “You and Mack have a good evening?” she inquired lightly as she poured cups of coffee for herself and for Susie.

  Under her freckles, Susie’s skin turned pink. “Mack’s just a friend,” she claimed.

  Shanna gestured toward a chair. “You may not appreciate me saying this, but you and Mack may be the only people in town who actually believe that.”

  Susie’s color heightened. “It’s that obvious?”

  Shanna nodded. “Afraid so.” She hesitated, then said, “May I ask a personal question?”

  “I guess,” Susie said with unmistakable reluctance.

  “Why are you both fighting it so hard? It’s evident that he’s crazy about you and vice versa.”

  Susie set her cup down on the table and leaned forward, her expression earnest. She almost looked relieved that someone had finally asked. “You’re new in town, so you don’t know that much about Mack, right?”

  “I barely know him,” Shanna agreed. “But he certainly seems like a nice guy.”

  “He is, but he’s a player, if you know what I mean.”

  “He’s dated a lot of women,” Shanna concluded.

  Susie rolled her eyes. “You have no idea. He was a big football star in high school, so the girls around here were competing for his attention.”

  “Except for you,” Shanna guessed.

  “Why bother? I couldn’t compete. Mack dated the cheerleaders, the most gorgeous girls in the class. Nothing’s changed since then. He was a big man on campus at the University of Maryland. Now that he’s back here, he’s been out with just about every female with a summer home here, plus most of the tourists, at least if they’re attractive.”

  “And yet, you’re the one he seems most interested in spending time with,” Shanna pointed out. “Has it occurred to you that he’s tired of the whole shallow dating ritual and is looking for someone with substance, someone like you?”

  Though her eyes were filled with yearning, Susie waved off the suggestion. “He’s never once asked me out on a real date.”

  “Then what was last night about?” Shanna asked.

  “He walked me home,” Susie told her. “He didn’t stay, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  So much for her earlier theory, Shanna thought. “Well, the way I’ve heard it, you’ve said hell would have to freeze over before you’d go out with him.”

  Susie grinned. “Yeah, I’ve mentioned that a time or two.”

  “Then maybe he’s too intimidated to ask you out directly.”

  “Mack?” Susie scoffed. “Come on. Nothing intimidates him.”

  “I just know what I see. The guy has it bad.”

  “Really?”

  “Really,” Shanna confirmed. “And if you don’t believe me, think back over the past few weeks or even the past few months, and count how many evenings Mack has found a way to spend time with you without actually asking you out on a date. Seems to me he can’t possibly have much time left to be dating all those other women anymore.”

  Susie looked startled by the observation, but as the truth of Shanna’s words sank in, she began to smile. “Oh, my gosh,” she said, her delight unmistakable. “Mack and I have been almost dating for months.”

  “Looks that way to me,” Shanna agreed.

  Suddenly her face fell. “Oh, jeez, I really wish you hadn’t said anything.”

  “Why?” Shanna asked, bewildered.

  “Because now I’m going to be a nervous wreck every time I’m with him.” In her haste to stand, she came close to knocking over her cup of coffee. “I have to go.”

  “Where?”

  She reached up and touched her out-of-control curls. “I need a haircut, and that manicure we talked about, and maybe a whole new wardrobe.”

&nbs
p; “Slow down,” Shanna said. “What you need to do is remember that Mack seems to like you just the way you are.”

  Susie closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. “You’re right,” she said with more composure. “I don’t think I’ll throw in the towel on playing hard to get just yet, either.”

  She grinned at Shanna. “But I am going to get some sexy lingerie. You know, just in case.”

  Shanna stared at her, startled, then chuckled. In her zeal to give Susie a gentle push in Mack’s direction, it appeared she might have created a femme fatale.

  As Susie headed toward the door, Kevin came in. Susie threw her arms around her cousin and gave him a smacking kiss, then gestured toward Shanna.

  “Don’t blow this, Kevin. She’s a keeper.”

  She breezed out the door while Shanna’s cheeks were still flaming. Kevin stared after his cousin, then turned slowly around.

  “What was that about?” he asked.

  “I might have done a little meddling,” Shanna admitted.

  “Susie and Mack?” he asked.

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Then what was that bit about you and me?”

  “I believe she was returning the favor,” Shanna said. “Pay no attention to her.”

  “Don’t you think there are enough matchmakers and meddlers in my family without you joining their ranks?” he asked.

  “I thought she might need an outside perspective,” Shanna told him.

  “Do I need to warn Mack that his life is about to get even more complicated?”

  Shanna grinned at him. “Now what would be the fun in that? It’ll be much more fun to see how he handles Susie’s newfound self-confidence.”

  He blinked at that. “You’re devious. Why didn’t I realize that before?”

  “Oh, I have lots of hidden depths you know nothing about,” Shanna told him.

  But even as she made the lighthearted claim, she realized that she was keeping one secret that might truly change the way Kevin looked at her. And increasingly that scared her to death.

  11

  Kevin didn’t miss the shadow that passed over Shanna’s face. One second her mood had been light, her tone bantering, the next it was as if she’d seen some sort of emotional ghost. Since those kind of moods hit him without warning from time to time, he recognized the signs and couldn’t help wondering at the cause.

  “What are you thinking about?” he asked, his gaze on hers.

  She looked away and busied herself at the counter. “Everything I have to get done in here before I open,” she said, carefully avoiding his eyes. “I only have a little over an hour. I should get busy.”

  He stepped in front of her. “And you will, with my help, but first tell me why your mood changed so abruptly just now.”

  “I wasn’t aware that it did,” she claimed.

  “Really?”

  “Kevin, I have a ton of things to do,” she said impatiently. “Are you going to be a help or a hindrance? If you’re not going to help, go home and take care of those kids you’re supposed to be looking out for while Trace and Abby are away. Did you leave them with your grandmother again?”

  “Gram volunteered to watch them so I could help you,” he said, immediately defensive. “And since you seem to think I’m slacking off, you should know I’m taking over from her at ten. I figured once you’re open, you won’t want me underfoot, so I’ll head back to the house. I think I can keep them all out of trouble until Trace and Abby get back later today. In the meantime, though, I’m here to help. I brought Dad’s SUV in case there are more things to go to the dump.”

  She hesitated, looking faintly chagrined, then let the subject go. “Fine. Thanks,” she said tersely. “There’s a box of damaged merchandise by the back door, and I’m almost through tossing stuff into another one. I just need to take down a few inventory codes.”

  “You do that, and I’ll take the first box to the car,” he said, eager to get away from the tension he’d inadvertently stirred up between them. He had no idea why she’d been so touchy, but something told him he needed to figure it out. Today, though, wasn’t the time, and this was definitely not the place. Obviously they were both too edgy to confront whatever was going on.

  He deposited the first box in the back of Mick’s SUV, then retrieved the second one. “Okay, now what?” he asked her.

  She gestured around the store. “Everything sitting on tables, counters or chairs, needs to go back on the shelves.” She frowned. “I probably should do that myself, since I know where everything belongs.”

  Kevin was beginning to get exasperated with her stubborn independent streak. “I think I can figure it out. I learned the alphabet at an early age, and the sections are pretty clearly marked.”

  Shanna blinked at his tone, then sighed. “I’m sorry if it sounded like I was dismissing you or something. I really am in a foul mood. But I shouldn’t be taking it out on you.”

  Now it was Kevin’s turn to sigh. “No, I’m the one who’s sorry. You have enough going on without me getting in your face about doing it your own way. Look, I can see how the children’s section is organized, so how about I get in there and deal with those books? If I have questions, I’ll ask.”

  She nodded. “Thanks. That would be a big help.”

  By ten o’clock, they had the store put back together. Though many of the shelves, especially in the children’s section, were nearly empty, only someone who’d heard about the disaster would know anything had happened in here. Bree even brought over a small vase of brightly colored daisies to sit on the counter by the register. Shanna had spritzed the room with a lightly scented spray to cover any hint of dampness in the air, though in Kevin’s opinion the air hadn’t needed it. The store was dry as a bone, the broken pipe now replaced and every other pipe checked for potential problems. The plumber sent over by his uncle had seen to that. He gathered, in fact, that every store on Main Street was being checked thoroughly to avoid other potential problems.

  “Looks as if you’re all set,” he told her.

  “I think so,” she said, taking a last look around. Her gaze settled on the flowers. “It was sweet of Bree to bring these by. And, Kevin, you really were a godsend this morning. Thanks for not walking out when I was being a pain in the butt.”

  He grinned at her. “You’d have to be a lot worse to reach the level of pain in the butt,” he assured her. He dropped a kiss on her cheek, considered moving on to her mouth, then pulled back instead. “Call me if you need anything today.”

  “It’s all good. You need to spend the day with the twins and Davy. Do something fun.”

  At the door, he lingered, though he couldn’t explain why he was so reluctant to go. Shanna grinned.

  “Are you trying to avoid going home to those kids?” she taunted.

  He laughed. “Absolutely not. They’re a piece of cake.”

  “We’ll see about that,” she said doubtfully. “You caught a break by getting to send them home yesterday when they were pea-green from eating too much. Call me later and tell me if your luck holds today.”

  “Maybe I’ll bring them by instead. The girls never did get the book I promised them yesterday.”

  “Little Women,” she said, her face falling. “The copy they loved was ruined. It’ll be a few days before I can get it in again.”

  Sensing she was on the verge of tears again over the losses, he impulsively leaned in and kissed her. He’d meant it to be nothing more than a comfort, maybe a brief distraction. Instead, it unleashed something inside him.

  She tasted so sweet. Her lips were so soft. She smelled faintly of lilies of the valley, a scent he’d always associated with home because of his mother’s garden path. And the whisper of breath she’d exhaled as their mouths met did something to his restraint. The next thing he knew, he’d deepened the kiss, pulling her close, then tangling his fingers in her hair.

  It was only the sharp tap on the door and a muffled laugh that dragged him away from her. He turned to find
her friend Laurie on the doorstep, her eyes alight with amusement, though there seemed to be a shadow of worry behind the glint of humor.

  Shanna took a shaky step backward, her expression vaguely dazed. She didn’t seem to realize they had company, so it was Kevin who unlocked the door to admit her friend.

  “Well, well, well,” Laurie said. “Looks to me as if everything here is under control. Almost, anyway,” she added with a pointed glance in Shanna’s direction.

  Shanna blinked and stared at her, her cheeks now a vivid pink, her expression guilty. “What are you doing here?”

  “You called. I came,” Laurie said succinctly. “Though one crisis at least seems to be in the past.” She glanced around the neatly organized store, then turned back to frown at Kevin. “Somehow, though, I don’t think I wasted a trip.”

  “I was just leaving,” he told her.

  “Excellent timing,” Laurie said.

  Kevin disagreed. Something told him he should have been out the door five minutes earlier…before Laurie’s arrival and most definitely before the kiss.

  “Where’s the coffee?” Laurie asked, standing in front of the cappuccino maker. “Shouldn’t it be made when you open the door for business.”

  “I had a few other things on my mind this morning,” Shanna replied, a defensive note creeping into her voice.

  “Are you talking about yesterday’s flood and cleanup, or are you referring to the man with whom you were sharing a lip-lock when I arrived?” Laurie asked, filling the coffee machine with beans and turning on the grinder.

  With Laurie occupied for the moment, Shanna ignored the question and went into the back room. A quick glance in the mirror over the sink told her she looked as mussed and flustered as she’d feared. That unexpected kiss would have been disconcerting enough under normal circumstances. With Laurie here as a witness, it was a calamity. Shanna knew she wasn’t going to be able to explain it away. Even if she tried, her friend would never believe that the kiss had been totally innocent. Heck, even she knew there’d been nothing innocent about it. There’d been enough heat in that kiss to sizzle a steak.