Guy Next Door (9781460341179)

by Tippens, Missy

  “I’ll leave you two to talk about it.” Darcy tucked the auction notes into her tote bag. “I’m scheduled to work a couple of hours at the mall tonight.”

  Grace made a tsking sound. “Friday night’s the time for a nice dinner date. Didn’t I hear that boy Joey up the street asked you out?”

  “Joey Meadows?” With twinkling eyes, Luke looked at Darcy, a laugh so close to the surface she wanted to smack him.

  “No, Grace. Joey didn’t ask me out. His mother asked for him.”

  Luke’s bark of laughter bounced off the kitchen cabinets.

  “Now, no more pushing me to date. Be thankful I’m leaving with the silly file folder.”

  “I am thankful. I think you and Luke will do an excellent job co-chairing the auction for the kids in our community.”

  “What?” he asked.

  Darcy’s stomach briefly took a nosedive before launching into a fluttery dance. This was Grace’s plan? “What do you mean co-chairing?”

  “Luke, honey, I need you to take over my duties for the fund-raiser. I’m simply too busy right now to do a thorough job.”

  “Whoa. Wait a minute,” Darcy said. “I thought you were just going to ask him to help.” She’d imagined him picking up donated furniture, setting up tables, manual jobs that required a little extra muscle power.

  Grace picked up her Bible and waved it. “I’m leading a new women’s Bible study group as well as volunteering at the food pantry this month. I’d like to completely hand over the reins to Luke.”

  “Granny, I—”

  She threw her hand up to stop him. “How about we talk more about it over dinner? We don’t want to make Darcy late.”

  “Okay. I’ll walk her out.”

  Maybe Darcy should tell Grace Luke’s plan to ask Burt to move. What if they put the house on the market and Luke left next week?

  No, Darcy couldn’t bear to break the woman’s heart. How could she tell Grace that her plan to lure Luke into moving to Appleton was doomed from the start?

  Darcy stood and pushed the strap of her bag over her shoulder. “I’ll see you on Sunday.”

  “Thanks for coming, dear. The kids in the community will be blessed by your hard work.”

  Darcy smiled as she waved and headed toward the living room. Luke went ahead of her and stepped outside to hold the screen door open. For some reason, the thought of working closely with him on the project made her stomach wrap around itself in a pretzel of dread. So many things could go wrong—namely, the fact that he could leave town at any moment, sticking her with the majority of the auction work.

  No, worse was the fact that he didn’t seem to care they’d never see each other once he moved Burt and Grace to Nashville.

  Barreling out the front door, she ran into a wall of solid muscle.

  She nearly bounced off Luke, and he grabbed her arms to set her upright. “You okay?”

  “I’m sorry. I was zoned out, wasn’t watching.”

  “In that much of a hurry?”

  She looked into his stunning brown eyes and swallowed. Nodded. “Can’t be late.”

  “Working weekend evenings must cut into your social life.”

  “Not everyone has a hot date every weekend,” she snapped.

  His eyes widened, and he held up his hands. “Sorry. I meant no offense.”

  Heat swept from her chest upward. “No, I’m sorry. Sensitive subject after that conversation with your grandmother.”

  Luke leaned against the screen, trapping her between it and the front door, his lips tilted up in a semi-smile. A knowing, snarky and way-too-appealing smile. “So, no hot dates lately, huh?”

  “Spoken by the guy who would date anyone in a skirt.” She laughed at his ridiculously cocky pose and tried to shove him out of her way.

  His bulging biceps didn’t budge.

  A growl formed in her throat, but she stifled it. “Some of us are more selective than others,” she said instead, staring him down, wondering at her breathlessness. What was wrong with her?

  “Touché.” His gaze dipped to her lips.

  Great. A smudge of pecan pie filling or a speck of crust must’ve landed on her mouth. She nonchalantly wiped the area, just in case.

  Luke laughed and stepped back, holding the screen door open. “I’m just playing with you. So you’re heading to the mall job?”

  The extra space between them gave her room to breathe. “A night of selling accessories to the teen crowd at Glitzy Glenda’s. Have to be there at six.” Still trying to gather her wits, she glanced at her watch. “It’s five-thirty already.”

  “Oh, well, I won’t keep you. But I do need your input on a matter with my dad. Maybe we can get together this weekend?”

  Before she could decide how to answer, he gave a jaunty salute and headed back inside, totally unaffected by their close encounter.

  * * *

  Luke stepped inside Granny’s house, closed the front door and let his head drop against it. Man, what’s my problem?

  Darcy was acting perfectly normal, but he hadn’t been able to since the previous day when she’d first smiled up at him and it hit him how badly he’d missed her.

  The last time he was home, Darcy had been his rock, holding his hand through his mom’s funeral and graveside service. Talking to friends and family whenever he choked up, sensing his every need. They’d been more in tune than ever.

  As friends. So what had changed?

  Maybe he’d been working too hard. Hadn’t been on a date in ages. That had to be the problem. Easily remedied when he got back to Nashville.

  Luke shook off the weirdness and headed back to help with dinner.

  Bustling around her kitchen, his grandmother tried to fill the space—space his mother would normally fill—with chatter.

  Everything felt wrong without Mom in their midst. Empty-chair wrong. Lack-of-her-voice wrong. And wrong for Grace to be preparing dinner without the help of her daughter.

  Desperate to ease the emptiness, Luke touched his grandmother’s shoulder. “Will you show me how to make your chicken casserole?”

  With a grateful smile and misty eyes, she nodded. “Of course.”

  As Granny continued making his favorite dish, she jotted down the recipe and talked him through the preparation. Pulling boiled chicken off the bones and chopping vegetables somehow soothed both of them. Granny chatted about the townspeople and church friends to update him on all the latest news. When she finally popped the casserole in the oven, she settled him at the table next to a freshly baked pecan pie with two slices missing. His mouth watered.

  “There’s your dessert,” she said as she sat across from him with a satisfied smile.

  “You know, you’re making life tough for my future wife.”

  “I love spoiling you, and having you back home where you belong.” Her brown eyes shone with happiness. Time together was good for both of them.

  Unfortunately, his ultimate goal would not make her happy. “Granny—”

  “Before you tell me everything that’s going on with you, I need to talk to you about heading the auction committee.”

  “I won’t be in town long.”

  She pushed herself up from the table and grabbed the calendar off the wall. The month of May featured a photo of kittens and puppies snuggled up together. Typical Granny.

  As she returned to her seat, she spun the calendar around so he could see the blocks of writing. “You may not know it, but I’m a busy woman. Thought my senior years would be slow-paced and relaxed, but I hardly have a spare moment.”

  Her scribbles on the calendar indicated committee meetings and Bible studies and luncheons. Other than Sunday, she barely had a day open each week. Had she guessed why he was in town and wanted to make it clear that she’d ne
ver willingly move away?

  “Wow. Looks like you’ve got your hand in everything around town.”

  “I do. I like feeling needed. And like that I can contribute, giving back to my community and church.”

  He nodded and swallowed hard. Here it comes. She’s onto my plan and is going to scold me for it.

  “That’s why I need your help,” she said. “Your timing is perfect for this project.” Her smile gentled. “The purpose of the auction is to raise funds for Food4Kids, the program your mother started.”

  He pulled in a long, slow breath, trying to control his emotions. “I remember her working on it.” He’d hated to imagine kids having the kind of gnawing hunger that made your stomach dig into your backbone.

  “When Joan first started Food4Kids at the elementary schools, the number of kids whose parents weren’t willing or able to provide nourishing meals on weekends was small. No more than ten children. But a growing number come to school on Mondays hungry.”

  “How many are in the program now?” he asked.

  “Over a hundred kids countywide. More on a waiting list.”

  “And you need more funding.” His mother’s face formed in his mind. He recalled her working diligently for those children, making sure each one went home on Friday afternoons with a backpack full of food to keep them until Monday’s breakfast at school. She would be pleased to have his help on her pet project.

  If Luke took over this auction and saw it through, the funds would help the community, and possibly comfort his grandmother.

  Ensuring this program continued would honor his mother. Perhaps help his dad to heal. “Granny, tell me what I can do.”

  Squeezing his hand, she blinked back tears. “You’re a kindhearted man, Luke. I’m proud of you.”

  She wouldn’t be so proud when he offered his dad a job in Tennessee. Or when he asked Granny if she’d consider joining them.

  Grace popped up out of her chair once again and grabbed a spiral-bound notebook from the small desk near the pantry. She set it in front of him. “Here are all the ideas Darcy and I have jotted so far. And a preliminary list of individual and business donors.”

  “Darcy has all this info, too?”

  “Yes, she’s been my co-chair and has worked on the committee for a couple of years.”

  “Good. She can get me up to speed. I plan to see her this weekend.”

  “Perfect.” She shoved the notebook into his hands. “The job’s all yours.”

  Later, though, after Burt joined them for dinner and Luke had time to reflect on the arrangement with Darcy, he had a moment of doubt. Six months ago—six days ago, even—he would have said working with Darcy would be fun. He would have been pleased to spend time with his best friend. Content to relive the times they worked together on school or church projects.

  But now, he felt uneasy.

  He thought of the spark that zipped between them earlier, across the table and again at the front door. Thought of Darcy’s greeting the other day, falling into his arms, so glad to see him. The flowery smell of her silky auburn hair, the brush of her arm against his as she looked up at him, caring, trusting.

  Yeah, the trusting part must be what was unsettling him.

  He’d come to help his dad prepare to move. Period. He couldn’t let his thoughts run to what Darcy expected from him, or of any disappointment she’d shown over his plan.

  * * *

  While sitting at the workbench Saturday afternoon, Darcy’s stomach growled. Loudly.

  Lois, her coworker in the microbiology lab, giggled. “Almost ready for lunch?”

  “All done.” Darcy stacked petri dishes in a large bin and slid it back into the incubator. She enjoyed her full-time job at the local hospital. Loved the challenges each day offered, loved knowing her work helped patients even though she didn’t have direct contact with them.

  “You want to go to lunch first?” Lois asked.

  “I’ve still got to enter culture results into the computer.”

  Darcy pulled over the portable keyboard to record the Saturday morning data. When she got to the last patient, she entered “Light growth beta hemolytic Strep. Isolated for typing and sensitivity.”

  This particular patient had been septic. Darcy prayed the organism they’d discovered on a Gram’s stain yesterday wouldn’t show antibiotic resistance.

  “Darcy, there’s someone out front asking to see you.” Dr. Violet Crenshaw, the new pediatrician in town who often came by the lab on weekends to check test results of her patients, stood in the doorway of the microbiology lab. “And he’s gorgeous,” she said in a singsong voice.

  “Thanks. I’ll be right there.” The mystery man had to be Luke. She’d always gotten that kind of reaction when she introduced him to friends at college or work.

  Lois popped up from the microscope and hurried around the workbench. “So? Who is he?”

  “No reason to get excited. I’m sure it’s only Luke, an old friend of mine.”

  She wiggled her eyebrows. “Only a friend?”

  “My best friend since birth.”

  “Ooh, is he single?” she practically purred.

  “No.” Shock jolted through Darcy at the sharp tone she’d used. “I mean, yes. I assume he is.”

  Lois’s surprised expression confirmed her abruptness.

  “I’m sorry. Anyway, he lives in Nashville now,” she added stupidly.

  “If he’s only a friend, maybe you can introduce us sometime. I love Nashville.” Lois wiggled her eyebrows and headed back to the scope.

  “Sure.”

  Why did I do that? Lois and Luke would actually be a good match. She was cute and fun. A little quiet, but not afraid to belt out a good laugh when warranted. And she was a struggling single mom with a young son who could use a good man in his life. Luke would like her sweetness. Her generosity. Her dark brown eyes and wavy blond hair.

  Luke had always been partial to blondes with brown eyes.

  By the time Darcy reached the lab waiting area, workers whispered and checked him out. She was irked that Luke had garnered the interest of every female in the lab.

  She tried to exhale her irritation as she approached, brushing her not-blond hair out of her not-brown eyes.

  “Hi, Darcy. I saw you back there in the lab, looking professional in that lab coat,” Luke said.

  “Yeah, it’s a real fashion statement, all right.”

  “I’m serious. You worked hard to get here.”

  Her stomach tumbled and twirled, pleased he’d noticed. “Thanks. So, what’s up?”

  “Looks like we’ll be working together on the Food4Kids auction.”

  “So you’re definitely taking Grace’s place?”

  “I figured it’s the least I can do to honor my mom. And I have some ideas. Wanted to see if you’d like to have lunch to discuss them.”

  Still hesitant to spend too much time with him, yet certain she could handle it, she gave a firm nod. “It’s a great way to honor your mom. I was just about to take my lunch break.”

  He held up a bag from the local sub sandwich shop. “Brought your favorite.”

  “You don’t know my favorite anymore.”

  He widened his eyes at her, looking quite pleased with himself. “Really? You don’t give me enough credit.”

  “I no longer order ham and cheddar.”

  “No ham and cheddar with mayo, mustard and tomato?” he asked with a cocky grin.

  She shook her head, admittedly pleased he at least remembered her old favorite. “See? You’ve been gone too long. Things have changed.”

  “Then I’m glad I ordered you the turkey and Swiss instead. With light mayo, honey mustard, spinach and green peppers.”

  “How on earth?”

  He s
hrugged and glanced across the room awkwardly. “I care enough to find out what you like.”

  Her stomach swooped up and around, doing a few curlicues in the region of her heart. She opened her mouth but, unable to find words, she snapped it shut.

  The fact that he knew her new favorite sandwich really should not make her so happy. She was acting ridiculous.

  Luke suddenly gave her a big flirty wink—a Luke Jordan trademark, as if the whole embarrassment thing had been for show. “I also had to promise Mike a place to stay when he comes up for a concert in Nashville.”

  Of course. Mike. The owner of the sub shop where she’d eaten regularly for the past year.

  She snatched the bag out of his hand with a laugh. “You’re incorrigible.”

  “The weather is perfect. Let’s go outside.”

  She joined him as they headed outside to a picnic table near a walking path for employees.

  As he set out the sandwiches and chips, she realized she hadn’t been on a picnic since their college days. They’d frequently eaten together while studying, sometimes in the quad on a blanket. Of course, their last picnic had been a disaster.

  “The last picnic I had was when we ate pizza outside the dorm during finals senior year,” he said.

  Why did he always seem to know what she was thinking as if their brains were somehow connected? “Me, too. And you ruined that one by bringing along what’s her name.” Which had hurt Darcy’s feelings. Before that day, they’d always kept their friendship separate from dating relationships, had protected their time together.

  He grinned and held his hand over his heart. “You wound me. You don’t even remember her name.”

  Snorting a laugh, she reached for the can of Coke he’d sat in front of her and popped the tab. “You probably don’t, either.”

  He belted a hearty laugh as he pulled Grace’s notebook out of the bag and flipped it open. Then he attacked the wrapping on his ham sandwich. “I think an auction is a great idea for a fund-raiser, but I wonder if maybe we should do more this year. Maybe host a dinner or even a formal dance to coincide.”

  She threw her hand up. “Whoa. I only signed on for the auction, which has always included a covered-dish dinner right after church. What you’re suggesting sounds like a ton more work. As it is, I barely have time to breathe.”