“Well, you’re certainly not paying for my lunch. It’s not like this is a date.”
His eyelids lowered as though he was trying understand a foreign language. “I’m not poor, you know.”
“I never said you were,” she replied, then walked over to the soda machine so he couldn’t see that her cheeks were the same shade as the pink plastic drink cup she’d just grabbed. Had she messed up? Had she offended his pride? Ugh. It was times like this when she hated her social awkwardness.
This was why she was single. She couldn’t even carry on a normal conversation with a man she wasn’t dating. A man she wasn’t the slightest bit interested in. Attracted to, maybe, but that wasn’t the same thing. Which was why Julia had made that comment about this not being a date. More to remind herself of the fact since, judging by his annoyed expression, Kane Chatterson certainly didn’t need reminding.
In fact, he didn’t say another word as they sat down across from each other at a small booth in the crowded restaurant. She’d heard his laughter outside only briefly, and though it had been at her expense, she regretted that it had been short-lived. Julia was accustomed to being on her own, and silence was pretty much standard in her house growing up. So she didn’t mind him not speaking. But she hated the fact that she might’ve offended Kane or done something to ruin the good mood he’d been in a few minutes ago.
“Are you okay?” she finally asked when he didn’t say more than two words to the friendly server who’d brought them their food.
“I don’t like big crowds,” he said before hunkering down over his plate and taking a large bite of his sandwich.
Then it wasn’t her or something she’d said. She was no expert on cognitive behavior therapy, but perhaps if she got his mind on something else, he would be able to relax and enjoy the meal, at least.
“So, you were in the military,” she started, thinking they could discuss something they had in common.
His brows shot up. “No. Why would you think that?”
“Because I saw you at Shadowview. Why would you be a patient there if you weren’t a veteran or on active duty?”
“What makes you think I’m a patient?”
Julia couldn’t very well ask him why he was in the psych department the other day. Perhaps he’d been there visiting someone, but she could have sworn that the room he’d gone to was where the PTSD group held their sessions. She squirmed slightly in her seat. “No reason.”
Sharing a meal with such an attractive man—even in a location such as the Bacon Palace, of all places—wasn’t something that happened to her all that often, and this was why. She didn’t have anything to talk to a good-looking man about. Julia picked up a french fry, racking her brain for another conversation starter. But before she was forced to ask him about the wainscoting in her downstairs bathroom, she recognized another doctor from the base hospital coming toward their table.
“Kane, it’s good to see you out and about,” Dr. Drew Gregson said as he reached out to shake Kane’s hand.
“Shh, Drew.” Kane pulled his hat lower and sank deeper into the vinyl booth seat. “Do you have to be so loud?”
She had met the Navy psychologist at the hospital during one of the bigger admin meetings and seemed to recall that he also lived near Sugar Falls. But that didn’t explain why Julia’s surly contractor was on such familiar terms with him. Unless they were encouraged to use first names in those PTSD sessions.
“Sorry. I guess I was just surprised to see you making a rare public appearance.” The psychologist, who’d inadvertently just given Julia some insight into the man spending every day working on her home, turned to her. “Hi. I’m Drew Gregson.”
“I know,” Julia said, returning his handshake. “We both work at Shadowview.”
The man took off his wire-framed glasses, probably fogged up by the bacon-tinged air around them, and wiped them off. She didn’t blame him for not recognizing her out of uniform and without her standard surgical scrubs.
“Julia Fitzgerald. I’m in Neurology.”
“Of course. That’s right. Kane’s remodeling that old Victorian on Pinecone Court for you, right?”
Apparently Kane told his therapist all kinds of information about himself. Maybe she should ask Dr. Gregson for some tips on how to get the man to open up more when he was with her.
Wait. Where did that thought come from? She didn’t want Kane Chatterson opening up to her about anything but carpet samples and light fixtures. It was already bad enough that her heart rate accelerated every time his lips gave off the slightest grin. She’d probably suffer from a full blown case of tachycardia if he actually engaged in a friendly conversation.
Julia gave him an exaggerated nod, trying to shake loose the unwarranted analysis of her contractor’s personality. “That’s right. We came into Boise to pick out some appliances, and Kane was kind enough to offer me his expertise at Bed Bath & Beyond next.”
Julia wanted to make their relationship sound as businesslike and professional as possible. But something about the other doctor’s quirked smile made her think she’d done just the opposite.
“Is that so?” Gregson asked. “My twin brother and his fiancée, Carmen, just registered at Bed Bath & Beyond for their wedding gifts. I’m sure Luke would’ve loved your expertise with that, Kane.”
Julia wasn’t positive, but she could’ve sworn Kane’s shoulders visibly shuddered at the word wedding. She wiped her mouth on the pink paper napkin—seriously, pink?—and pushed her salad plate away. If there was any other way to signal it was time to exit this odd conversation, she didn’t know how to go about it.
“You know what else I’m an expert at?” Kane spoke so low, Julia didn’t know if it was annoyance in his tone or something more sinister. “Taking all your winnings at poker. Get ready to pay up next Thursday, doc.”
When Dr. Gregson let out a loud burst of laughter, Julia finally released the breath she’d been holding, feeling more out of place than she had back in the appliance store.
* * *
Today was a perfect example of the reason Kane avoided cities, shaved his beard and kept his hat firmly in place—even when he was indoors. He didn’t want to be recognized. Of all the people they had to run into at a crowded restaurant, why did it have to be his know-it-all brother-in-law? And what was up with Just Julia’s insistence on paying for lunch for him?
Was she under some impression that Kane was poor? First she’d paid for his breakfast at the Cowgirl Up when she thought he’d been choking. Then she’d made that comment about not wanting him to use his own gas money to drive into the city. And just a few minutes ago, she’d swiped her credit card before he even had a chance to do the gentlemanly thing and offer to pay. He hadn’t had a woman pay for one of his meals since...well, since ever. Not that he and Julia were on a date or anything, which she’d made more than clear. But still.
It had felt cheap. As though he was simply the hired help—which he was currently acting like as he pushed the nearly full shopping cart behind her down the kitchen gadget aisle of the big home goods store.
Worker, employee, someone to pay. That’s what he was to her, after all. What he should be. Hell, they weren’t even friends, which was too bad, because the woman’s rear end looked more than friendly in those expensive, curve-hugging dark jeans. His chest tightened and for the hundredth time that day, he asked himself why couldn’t she have worn her boxy hospital scrubs. Kane was no expert on women’s fashion, but today, Julia’s outfit was serving up one contradiction after another. Her clothes were simple, but obviously high quality. Preppy, but sexy at the same time. Like she wasn’t trying to flaunt her good looks, but they were still so obviously there. It was distracting, and he’d been having a difficult time keeping his eyes off her. Worse, it drew too much attention to her from other people.
Not that he cared if
slick salesmen or overeager waiters were checking her out. The problem was that it also drew attention to him. Kane ran his fingers under his bottom lip. Erica used to love it when they’d get all dressed up for a dinner event or a fancy cocktail party with the team owners. Once Kane had been horrified to overhear her telling the cameraman to make sure to capture everyone’s reactions when the hottest couple in the sports celebrity world walked into the room. Once upon a time, he hadn’t minded the attention to his skills on the mound, but he’d never been comfortable with being recognized in public. Now, he simply avoided it at all costs.
“Do you think seven hundred dollars is too much to pay for a set of knives?” Julia had her back toward him, her cute blond ponytail bouncing as she took in the variety of displays. “Maybe they’d be willing to give us some sort of discount, like Paulie did over at Land O’Appliances.”
“Jules, this isn’t the kind of place where you can negotiate prices.” Jules? He squeezed his eyes shut in an effort to clear his mind. Where had that name come from? Like most of the stupid things he’d said in his life, it’d impulsively popped out before he could think about the inappropriateness of giving his client a nickname.
“Of course it’s not,” she said, not noticing his slip, he hoped. “Even I know that. What I meant was that maybe they offer some sort of coupon or sale on certain items. Anyway, Aunt Freckles says to never scrimp on kitchen equipment, but I have no idea if this is a fair price. What do you think? Would you pay seven hundred dollars for ‘VG-10 supersteel blades with durable pakkawood handles’? It says they were handcrafted in Japan.”
“I wouldn’t pay that much if they came with four wheels and their own engine.”
“No, I don’t suppose you would.” She picked up the midprice brand instead and put it into the shopping cart on top of the sixteen-piece glassware set she’d selected twenty minutes ago.
There she went again, thinking he couldn’t afford something, and a knot of shame wedged itself in his throat. What with his poor grades, his career-ending injury and being cheated on by his ex-girlfriend, Kane had experienced plenty of embarrassing moments in his life. But having a lack of money had never been the subject of any of his pity parties. In fact, he had almost as much money as he did pride, which was why he didn’t want her thinking he was just some busted, broke-down contractor who couldn’t pay for his own meals or buy his own set of fancy Shun double-bevel blades.
“Actually, I think you should get the nicer ones. Your Aunt Freckles would have a fit if she thought I was letting you purchase substandard tools.” When he saw the doubt fill her green eyes, he said, “In fact, consider it a housewarming gift from me.”
“Oh no. I couldn’t accept such a generous gift from you.”
He thought about the limited-edition Bentley he’d bought for Erica—before he found out she’d been sleeping with his nemesis while Kane was undergoing shoulder surgery. “Trust me. It’s not that generous a gift.”
“No, you don’t understand. It would be wasted on me. I spend hardly any time in the kitchen. My aunt inherited all the culinary skills in the family. She wouldn’t even let me help her slice peaches in the café last August when she was perfecting her recipe for the Cobbler Festival or one of those dessert themed events Sugar Falls always seems to be putting on.”
“Maybe she thinks you need more practice with sharp instruments?”
“Are you kidding? I use scalpels and bone-cutting saws with as much precision as a laser. In fact, I use lasers, too. Steady hands, remember?” She placed her palms up, and he tightened his gut to keep from laughing at how unsteady those fingers had been at programming touch screens. Who in the world would’ve let this woman anywhere near a laser?
“All the more reason you should own a good set of knives,” he said, sincerely hoping she wielded the sharp tools better than she operated a cell phone. “Speaking of Freckles, when I went in for breakfast this morning, Monica, that new waitress she hired, told me she was gone for the day. That’s three Saturdays in a row that I haven’t had my chicken-fried steak made the way I like.”
“I think she might have a boyfriend,” Julia whispered as though the thought of Freckles dating was some big secret. It wasn’t.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“Not for her, no. But she thinks everyone should be paired off. In fact, she told me I needed to bring a date to the Sugar and Shadow Shindig next month.”
“What in the hell is that?”
“Apparently, it’s some annual fund-raiser dinner and dance that the town puts on to benefit the hospital. Get it? Sugar Falls and Shadowview? I think it’s supposed to be a play on words.”
“Oh, I get it all right. I just hadn’t heard that was the theme the committee had come up with for it this year.”
“So you’re familiar with it.” Julia’s eyes lit up, reflecting a hundred questions that Kane did not want to answer. “Are you going?”
“No way,” he shook his head. “I stay far, far away from those kinds of dog and pony shows.”
“Normally, I do, too.” Julia leaned forward as though she were confiding in him. “But my commanding officer said that most of the doctors are expected to attend. Even if it wasn’t a work-related function, Aunt Freckles would want me there so she could introduce me to most of the town all at once. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but my great-aunt can be a bit of a show-off.”
“Yeah, it’s hard not to notice. So...uh...have you found a date yet?” There he went, engaging his mouth before his brain again. He had no business asking her such a personal question, especially when his lungs froze as he waited for her answer.
“Pshh.” She swatted her hand in the air. “Are you kidding? I barely have enough free time to go to a Laundromat, let alone go out looking for man. But I’ll get to it.”
“Huh.” Kane leaned on the handle of the cart, struggling not to show his relief. “I’m surprised Aunt Freckles isn’t doing your laundry for you.”
Julia sighed. “She offered to. Unfortunately, she’d also spearhead the Find Julia a Man Committee if I’d let her.”
Kane started to rub his chin, then thought better of it and pinched the bridge of his nose instead. “You’re not going to let her, are you?”
“Do my laundry or set me up with a date for the hospital gala?”
“Either.”
“Listen, if it were up to me, I’d be happy living alone and doing everything on my own. However, I promised my aunt I’d try to become a little more social, which isn’t exactly one of my strengths. Yet.”
With that, Julia moved toward the bedding section, and Kane walked beside her with enough questions to fill the shopping cart he was pushing. Personally, he didn’t blame her one bit for not wanting to get dressed up and schmooze with all the bigwigs from the hospital. But he also understood about high-handed family members who thought they had your best interests at heart. While Kane could hold his own with the rest of the Chattersons, he doubted Julia would be tough enough to oppose her aunt. Hell, Kane himself had a hard time standing up to a determined Freckles. But there must be something he could do to help the underdog. He might not be great at studying, but he’d always been good at coming up with ways to fix things.
“Do you have a plan in mind?” he asked.
She stared at a shelving display and tapped her bow-shaped upper lip, making his mouth go dry. “I think the plan is to hold off on the new sheets until I order a real bed. But I might need a down comforter for my air mattress in the meantime.”
“No, I meant do you have an idea of how you’re going to get out of the Sugar and Shadow Shenanigans?”
“You mean the dance?” she corrected him, but a smile twitched at the corners of her lips. “Of course I’m not. Why would I try to get out of it?”
“Because you supposedly have a high IQ?”
Julia cros
sed those arms primly across her fitted white blouse, making Kane’s veins pulse at the sight of her breasts pushing up against the fabric.
“I’m assuming that you don’t plan on attending,” she said as though he was beneath fund-raising galas. Or maybe he was just being extra sensitive since his energy level was at an all-time high. His teeth ached from clenching together so tightly. “Don’t get me wrong, I wish I could be like you and write the whole thing off. But the way I see it is that it’s something I have to do. I might as well give it my best shot to find a date and try to make the evening a success.”
Kane forced his jaw muscles to loosen. “It must be so easy to decide to master something and then snap your fingers and, boom, it happens.”
She tilted her head and squinted. “I didn’t say it was easy. In fact, I know I’ve got my work cut out for me. I just haven’t found the time to put the effort into it. But I’ve set a goal for myself, and I’ve even made a list.”
“A list? Of what?”
“Of...” She hesitated. “Of what I’d want in a date.”
Oh no. Kane tugged his ball cap lower on his head. He really didn’t want to think about what was on that stupid piece of paper again. Or the fact that he didn’t meet any of those qualifications. But the impulsive demon inside him was overriding his common sense. Besides, it didn’t help that they were standing in the middle of an aisle full of plush bedding and all he could think about was her bedroom. “What’s on the list?”
Julia blushed, a deep scarlet to match the rose-printed decorative shams on display. “Just a little of this and that.”
She was normally so confident, he felt his lips quirk at seeing her a bit flustered. But he also didn’t want her thinking he was applying to be her date. At least not the kind her aunt would approve of. His eyes lowered to her soft pink lips and he briefly toyed with the idea of putting on a tux and taking her to the gala himself if it meant he’d get a good-night kiss.
Her head was tilted up and it would be so easy to slide his hand around her neck and pull her toward him...
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