by Judi Lynn
Tessa snorted. “Who wouldn’t? He’s easy to get along with, so it’s no big deal.”
“When he talked to David on the phone, he said he’d invited you to his place tonight to show you all the improvements. He’s going to grill for you, too.”
That worried Tessa. Ian and a grill? But anyone could make hamburgers, right?
Darinda’s dark eyes gleamed with curiosity. “I’ve heard he’s a looker. Come on. Spill. Any sparks flying?”
“Yeah, between him and his fiancée.” Tessa laughed at the disappointment on Darinda’s face. “He’s safe. That’s why I’m comfortable around him.”
Darinda heaved a dramatic sigh. “Damn, girl, you’re no fun. I had high hopes for this one. But see here, you’re spending time with him and you seem to be surviving just fine. It’s time, friend. You’re one fine woman. You’ve got to find yourself a man.”
“Not all of us bump into a David.” That was literally how Darinda met her husband—in a fender bender. Her fault, but no insurance cards exchanged hands. Instead, David said he’d consider his smashed fender as only a scratch if she’d go out to supper with him. The rest was history.
Darinda pursed her lips. “Well, I came over here to get all the scoop, and there isn’t any.”
“Did he tell you about his horse stalls?”
When Tessa finished her story, Darinda shook her head. “All the farmers David’s talked to are happy Ian’s opening a resort here. It’ll only make things better. We have so many specialty farms in the area, it will bring in more business.”
“Grams and I were shocked when he told us about it.” Tessa cleared away the empty milk glasses and asked, “Wine?”
“Ooh, a little more temptation. Why not? One glass to celebrate friendship.” When Tessa brought a bottle of rosé and two glasses, Darinda nodded. “Perfect, something light.” She poured some for herself and pushed the bottle to Tessa. “David’s going to have a carry-in at our place to welcome Ian to the community. Put it on your calendar for Sunday, May nineteenth.”
Tessa wrote it down. She knew better than to think she’d remember it without a note. “What do you want me to bring?”
“A dessert. David’s making his famous brick chicken. I happen to love your tiramisu. Just saying.”
Tessa grinned. “Okay, I got the hint. I’ll bring it.”
Darinda looked at the clock on the kitchen wall. She sighed. “I actually have stuff to do, so I guess I’d better get moving. I’ll quit making plans for your wedding, but I’m not giving up hope. It’s time you start looking around again.” When Tessa didn’t reply, Darinda put her hands on her hips. “Oh, be like that, but I’m right. Your libido can’t be totally dead. That man should wake something up.”
“He has. He’s fun to cook for.”
“Oh, pooh!” She stalked outside to collect her boys, and Tessa walked with her. She handed Gianni and Luigi each a baggie with a few cookies in it, and Darinda pulled her into another hug. “See you on the nineteenth.”
Tessa waved them off, then went back to the greenhouse to clean up the mess she’d made potting the tomato plants. It was almost time to get ready to go to Ian’s. On her way to the house, she noticed the daffodils were blooming in the beds that lined the picket fence. Early tulips added bright shades of red and orange. Ian needed to plant old-fashioned bushes and flowers around his lodge to make it look homier, maybe lilacs and spirea, hollyhocks, and rose bushes.
Her mind went to her conversation with Darinda. She hadn’t really thought about having Ian stop in for supper most nights. It just seemed convenient for both of them. That way, neither of them had to eat alone. But she didn’t like the idea of people talking about them. When she drove to his place, she meant to ask him about it, to see how he felt.
Her chance came while she stood on his back patio, watching him grill steaks. “My friend, Darinda, stopped by today. Seems the whole town is gossiping about how much time we spend together.” She braced herself, ready for his reaction.
He laughed. “Everybody talks about everything. You’re the one who told me this is a small town, that nothing’s secret. But people are getting the idea. I’m engaged, and we’re just friends. It might not work if you were—” He stumbled to a stop.
Tessa frowned. “If I were . . . what?”
He hesitated, obviously choosing his words carefully. “Everyone knows you don’t want to meet anyone, that you’ve sworn to remain a spinster.”
“A spinster?” Her spine stiffened. “Isn’t that a little old-fashioned? Women who choose to stay single aren’t spinsters anymore.”
He fumbled to reword his reply. “People know you’re not interested in men.”
“That’s not fair either. I like men. I just don’t want to date or marry them.”
He sighed. “I like you just the way you are.”
Her brows furrowed in disgust. Those words had made her all gooey inside once. Not this time. “Lucky me.”
He took the steaks off the grill and covered them with foil to let them rest. “I’m not giving you a steak knife tonight. You might stab me with it.”
“Forks don’t feel much better.”
He laughed. “After we eat, I want to show you all the work that’s been done. The place is beginning to shape up.”
She shook off her aggravation and put it behind her. She was looking forward to his tour. “I heard you saw David Danza today, Darinda’s husband.”
“He’s going to be one of my suppliers. Nice guy.” Ian led her into the lodge’s kitchen, and they settled at the small table near the window. He took baked potatoes out of the oven and shook a tossed salad out of a bag, into a bowl. “I went all out,” he teased.
“How many suppliers have you lined up?” she asked.
They talked business while they ate. Ian had been busy. He’d talked to almost every specialty farmer in the area. “Thanks for cluing me in about them,” he said. “Which brings me to you. I’ve talked to a baker one town over about supplying me with bread, so that’s covered. Can I sign you up for pies and desserts?”
They crunched numbers and Tessa nodded. “That’s doable. I can manage that.”
Satisfied, Ian leaned back in his chair. “I’m hoping to open for business by the middle of June. Not everything will be done, but enough to do a test run and advertise for the Fourth of July.”
A mother duck with a row of ducklings paddled along the shore toward his pier.
“She comes every day,” Ian said. “She must like that spot.”
Tessa shook her head. “Sam used to feed her. He always had scraps of bread to toss to her.”
“I have bread.” Ian went to take a few slices out of the loaf he’d bought.
Tessa led him to the end of the pier, tore her slice of bread into small pieces, and tossed them into the water. The ducks scrambled for them. A broad smile on his face, Ian did the same.
“If you do that every evening when she comes, you’ll have a regular,” Tessa said.
“I’d like that.”
They wandered back toward the house, stopping to look at the shade plants that circled the tall trees in the yard.
“The beds are a mess,” Tessa said, “but Luther knows what a weed is and what isn’t. He’s worked with hostas and bleeding hearts. He can clean these up in no time.”
“You’ve trained him well for landscaping, haven’t you?”
“He’s a fast learner. Just treat him with respect. If he likes you, he’ll work his ass off. If he doesn’t, you’re doomed.”
“I’ll remember that.”
Once back in the kitchen, Tessa helped clear the dirty dishes off the table, rinse them, and load them in the dishwasher. “Thanks for the supper. It was great.”
“We can eat dessert on the back patio after I show you around.”
“You made dessert?”
“Three flavors of ice cream to choose from with the best jar toppings in the store.”
Tessa laughed. She didn’t care. Sh
e didn’t have to cook. Ian motioned her toward the door. “The grand tour.”
The ground had been leveled for the tennis courts between the house and the lake. “They should be done by the end of next week.” He showed her the work he’d done inside the horse barn. Half of the graffiti was cleaned off. Tessa stared at what was left. GO AWAY scrolled across one stall. CITY FOLKS BELONG IN THE CITY said another.
She shook her head. “This graffiti’s almost too nice.”
“New York kids would make this stuff look tame, but boy, there was a lot of it. A pain to clean. David thinks someone just wants me to leave.” He spread his hands in confusion. “But why? Most people like the idea of a resort.”
“Kids would just paint something crude on the outside.”
“Unless they didn’t want to be seen. I’ve gone over and over it in my mind. None of it makes sense.” Ian turned to leave. “We’re having a nice night. Let me show you the golf course.”
Big machines sat on his side field and stakes marked where each green should go.
“Do you play golf?” he asked.
“Used to. I’m pretty good at it.” Her mom practically lived at the country club in the summers. She’d signed Tessa up with every pro around.
He beamed. “We’ll have to have a friendly match sometime.”
She doubted that. He seemed pretty competitive, and she hated to lose. Their game should be interesting.
“Come see the great room. We’ve redone that, too.”
A blue heron flew overhead as they crossed the front yard to the house. Tessa wondered if it was the one she’d nicknamed Bill that spent most mornings on the edge of her shoreline.
When she stepped through the lodge’s front double doors, she sucked in her breath. Three brown leather sofas formed a seating area in front of the tall, fieldstone fireplace. Dark-green leather recliners were scattered in small groupings around the rest of the room. A counter with a granite top stood ready to check in guests. The only jarring elements were two huge crystal chandeliers that hung from the ceiling, but they didn’t detract too much from the rustic charm of the room.
Ian followed her gaze. “The chandeliers don’t quite fit the mood, but Lily saw them online and liked them.”
Tessa tried to be diplomatic. “They’re beautiful.” For castles or ballrooms. But she didn’t add that.
He grinned, clearly hearing what she didn’t say. “As you see, no tables, no rugs. You promised to help me search out antiques,” he reminded her.
“When do you want to go?”
He looked sheepish. “Tomorrow or Wednesday, and can you drive? My car doesn’t have much of a trunk.”
She didn’t say it. She thought it, but clamped her lips shut. Instead, she nodded. “I have both days open. What would work better for you?”
“Wednesday. The pod with my stuff from New York is coming tomorrow morning and then I have to drive into the city to talk to my banker. I can switch, though, if I need to.”
She shook her head. “Wednesday’s fine. I’ll drag you to all the small antique shops around here. There are a few in every town.”
They went out to the back patio and sank into the Adirondack chairs to eat their sundaes and watch the sun go down. Ian reached for her hand, stopped, and pulled back. He’d been that close. Tessa could almost feel his fingers twine through her own. She sighed. How would that feel? Wanted? Cherished?
“Lily would love this.” His voice was brusque. “She loves water. Her favorite vacation spots are islands.”
Time to reel it in. Tessa swept the fantasies out of her head, made herself concentrate on the moment. “Like the Caribbean or Hawaii?”
Ian nodded. “She travels a lot with her job. Goes all over the world to work with clients. Everywhere she goes, she has fun. She says she’s ready for somewhere to relax that she can use as a home base.”
“And she chose here?” Tessa loved the Midwest, but she didn’t see Lily embracing the slower pace, the abundance of green.
Ian frowned. “It wouldn’t be her first choice, but I couldn’t afford a resort on one of the coasts, so we decided I’d start here. When this makes a profit, then we can add another one.”
“And Lily’s all right with that?”
“Why wouldn’t she be? It’s good business sense. Lily understands business.”
If he said so. Tessa would never have guessed it. The sun was low enough to tint the bottom of the clouds a coral pink. She stretched and yawned. Parts of her body she’d thought were dormant suddenly tingled. Time to get out of here. “This has been fun, but I want to get home before dark. Good luck with your banking tomorrow.”
He seemed distracted, but gave a curt nod. “See you on Wednesday. Are we getting an early start?”
“Might as well. What if I pick you up at eight?”
He smiled. “Office hours, eight to five. I’m used to those.”
She smiled, too, and when he started to stand to walk her to her pickup, she waved him off. She didn’t want to brush up against him. Hell, she didn’t even want to be close to him right now. “Enjoy the sunset. And thanks for supper.”
“I owed you.”
A splash of cold water. Those words didn’t warm the cockles of her heart. On the drive home, she brooded. When Ian had reached for her hand, she’d wanted him to take it. Not good. They were just friends. Period. Nothing more.
Maybe they needed to spend less time together. This was the second time Ian had reached for her and then blabbed away about Lily to make it clear to Tessa that it had been a mistake. Her frown deepened. What would she have done if he had taken her hand? Crap. A surge of emotion that had been bottled up inside her for too long welled to the surface. Would she have crawled over the arm of his chair and attacked him?
It wouldn’t have happened. She’d have pulled away first. Right?
Chapter 7
A blue jay woke her on Tuesday morning. The damned bird sat in the old oak and called incessantly until she gave up and got out of bed. She looked out the window and saw a hawk sitting on the white picket fence. The blue jay blasted his warning to everyone else. Danger! Beware!
She padded to the kitchen, flipped on the coffee pot, and went to the front door to fetch the morning paper. Mill Pond didn’t bustle with news, but she liked to keep up. Grandma’s church was doing an ice cream social on Sunday. She went to write that on the calendar in her kitchen. If she missed being there, Grams would string her up by her thumbs. Or worse.
She wouldn’t see Ian today, and twenty-four hours stretched before her. She decided to work in her gardens, get everything caught up, and have an omelette for supper tonight—simple and easy. She started at her compost piles on the side of the garage, where she faithfully tossed scraps, grass clippings, and coffee grounds in the chicken wire structures. She’d filled three wheelbarrows with the contents from one and was putting more mulch around the strawberry plants in the third bed when a car pulled into her drive. She glanced up and frowned at the unfamiliar vehicle.
Then the door opened and Gary stepped out. She froze. Her heart stopped. Was that possible? Could she die from shock or surprise? Maybe if she didn’t move, sat absolutely still like a rabbit, he wouldn’t notice her. No such luck. He looked her way and started toward her. She put up a hand to stop him. “No, don’t come any closer. Just get back in your car and leave.”
Sunlight glinted off his light-blond hair. His sky-blue eyes narrowed on her. He could be an Adonis, but Greek gods were shifty, too, weren’t they? “We need to talk.”
“No, we don’t. We have nothing to say to each other. Go away.”
He planted his feet and didn’t move. He wore the same jean jacket he’d worn in college. No, it couldn’t be, but it sure looked the same. His worn jeans hugged his long legs. Too good-looking. She should have known. Good-looking men couldn’t be trusted.
He tucked his sunglasses in his jacket pocket. “I know I hurt you. I didn’t mean to. It’s time we moved on.”
“We have moved on. You’re married. You’re happy. Leave me alone.”
“Tessie . . .”
“Don’t call me that.”
“What should I call you?”
“From a long distance. Leave a message on my machine.”
He jutted his jaw forward. He was as tall as Ian, but not as muscular. He took a step closer. “I’m not leaving until we talk.”
“Then your wife’s never going to see you again. How sad.” Tessa pushed to her feet. She wiped her hands on her jeans and started toward the kitchen door. “Don’t follow me. You’re not invited in.”
He didn’t listen. He made up the distance between them more quickly than she thought he could. She opened the door, slid inside, and started to close it. He put his foot between the door and the doorframe.
“I have a butcher knife. If you want to keep your toes, get them off my property.”
He pushed, and she scooted across the oak floorboards. Then he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. He leaned against it. “I still care about you. That’s why I came. “
“It took you a while. I’m over it. I’m fine. If you feel better now, you can leave.”
He smiled. “Sadie’s pregnant.”
She turned her back on him and hung her ratty jacket on the peg by the door. She stepped out of her shoes and padded into the kitchen.
“My parents talked to a few people about you and it sounds like your life just stopped; you’ve never dated anyone else, and you don’t intend to. That’s just wrong.”
“You have no right to lecture me about what’s wrong or right.”
He flinched. “I’m happy. I want you to be happy.”
“I am. I like my life.”
He raised a blond eyebrow. He’d always called her out when she spouted bullshit.
“I’ve never liked anyone more in my life than I like you.”
Oh, brother. She should have worn boots. She was going to be wading through a lot of crap soon. “I’m thrilled,” she said. “You’ve made me feel all warm and fuzzy. You’ve done your duty. See?” Her lips curled in a fake smile. “There. Feel better? This isn’t about me. It’s about you. You were a turd and it’s not your usual style. But you were never a knight in shining armor, either, and I don’t need to be rescued. So leave.”