by LuAnn McLane
While there were a few excellent restaurants in Cricket Creek, Shane wanted to keep his existence on the down low. Nashville wasn’t all that far from Cricket Creek and he sure didn’t want to ruin his newfound privacy by luring the paparazzi to this small town. Nope, that would really suck, he thought, and decided he needed to watch some cooking shows now that he had the time. He’d read in the local paper that the chef at Wine and Diner conducted cooking classes, so perhaps he could sharpen his culinary skills and discover a new hobby. Learning to cook might be fun and serve a purpose as well.
After one last lap Shane glided to the side of the pool and hefted his body up over the edge. He stood up, letting the water sluice down his body. The warmth of the sunshine felt good and he closed his eyes and tilted his face upward. With a long groan he raised his arms above his head and stretched out the kinks.
“Oh dear God, you’re naaaaa-ked!”
“What?” Startled, Shane opened his eyes and encountered a red-haired woman he’d never seen before. He lowered his hands to shield himself. Where in the hell had she come from? At least she didn’t have a camera. She covered her eyes with her hands and took a big step backward.
“I . . . I . . .”
“Watch out for the lounge chair behind you,” Shane warned when she nearly fell into it. The back of her calves hit the metal edge and she did a little hoppy side step, looking as if she were ready to start a line dance. Coming to an unsteady halt, she nodded but kept her eyes covered. Her flaming cheeks were nearly the same color as her hair. With her eyes still hidden she said, “I’m so, so sorry!” Her purse slid from the shoulder of her white blouse and hit the pavement with a thud. She dropped a folder she was carrying, causing papers to scatter.
“It’s okay.” Shane glanced around for his clothes but couldn’t remember where he’d shed them, thinking that he could remember the lyrics to hundreds of songs but forgot where the hell he’d left his clothes just a little while ago. “But if you don’t mind if I ask, who are you?” He looked around again, thinking perhaps he should jump back into the water.
“Laura Lee Carter. I . . . I’m here about the housekeeping position. I went to the front door, but there was no answer and I s-saw your truck and . . . and I thought I’d check back here, um, here. I . . . I was supposed to interview with you at ten.”
“Oh, I thought that was tomorrow,” Shane admitted, thinking that having a personal assistant was something he was really going to miss.
“I’ll come back another time,” she offered, and hastily turned around but hit the chair again.
“No, hey, listen this is totally my fault. I just need to get dressed,” he said. “As soon as I figure out where I left my clothes.” Seriously what the hell? Did his damn shorts just get up and walk away? Was a raccoon wearing his running shoes? “They’ve got to be around here somewhere.”
She nodded but looked as if she wanted the ground to open up and swallow her up. He also noted that Laura Lee wore a plain blue pencil skirt hitting just above the knees and sensible blue pumps. She probably thought the outfit was all business, but Shane found the understated look somehow sexy and to his horror his body reacted. “Um . . .” He spotted a towel draped on the chair behind her. Thank God for small favors. “Laura Lee, there’s a towel on the lounge chair. Would you please toss it to me?”
“Oh . . . oh, sure.” She nodded vigorously, allowing a lock of her hair to escape the neat bun she had perched near the top of her head. The breeze blew the deep red curl across her face just before she whipped around to retrieve the towel. She turned back to him with her one hand still over her eyes and gave the towel a hard toss, sending it sailing over his head and into the pool. It amused Shane that she didn’t simply close her eyes but felt the need to add her hand as protection against the possibility of viewing him naked again. Perhaps he wasn’t in that great shape after all.
Laura Lee lowered her hand and looked at him. “You’re still naaaa-ked!” she sputtered, forgetting for a second to shield her eyes. “And oh my God, are you Shane McCray?”
“In the, um, flesh,” he said, hoping to make her laugh. He’d left out his real name in the ad, not wanting to give away where he lived or attract the wrong people. “You tossed the towel in the pool.”
“Oh! I did?” Laura Lee surprised him by hurrying past him, dropping to her knees, and looking into the water. “I see it!”
He suddenly remembered that his clothes were behind a big potted plant near the deep end of the pool. “Laura Lee,” he began, but before he could stop her she reached for the edge of the rapidly sinking towel and tumbled headfirst into the water with a big splash.
Shane’s first impulse was to laugh, but when she flailed her arms around he thought that perhaps she couldn’t swim. The water would only be slightly over her head, but he knew that when people thought they were drowning they panicked. “Here!” Shane leaned forward, offering his hand, but more of her hair had escaped, obscuring her vision.
And then she went under.
“Dammit!” Without wasting another second Shane jumped in and dove beneath the water. He reached for her, but as he suspected she was a tall woman and was able to stand up.
“Here,” Laura Lee said with a little cough. Pushing the hair from her face, she shoved the wet towel in his direction. “Sorry. Again.”
Shane took the heavy wet towel from her and wasn’t quite sure if he should laugh or give Laura Lee a polite thank-you. For someone who was used to dealing with some pretty crazy situations, this one sure did take the cake. He wrapped the towel around his waist and tied the edges into a knot and tried not to chuckle at her expense.
“Well . . . I guess as interviews go, this pretty much puts me out of the running, so if you don’t mind I’ll just be on my way,” she said with a slight quiver in her tone. When she started to wade through the water, Shane reached over and tapped her shoulder.
“Laura Lee?”
She slowly turned around.
“Are you kidding me? You dove into the pool to retrieve my towel. I’d say that goes beyond the call of duty and tells me that you’d be an excellent employee.”
Laura Lee’s mouth twitched and he didn’t know if she was going to laugh or burst into tears. “In all honesty I fell, but let’s go with the diving-in, excellent-employee theory,” she said.
Shane finally laughed so hard that he slapped the water, splashing her. “Oh, sorry.”
“I’m already soaked, so no harm done,” Laura Lee said, making him laugh even harder.
“When can you start?”
“Seriously?” She blinked at him and even with smudged mascara and a sopping-wet bun sliding to the side, Laura Lee Carter was one pretty woman. Not that he would hire her for that reason. “Do you want to see my résumé?” She looked over her shoulder. “Oh, gone with the wind, I’m afraid.”
For some reason Shane found her comment hysterically funny and laughed again. When she appeared a bit distraught he cleared his throat and tried for a serious tone. “So, tell me what it said on your résumé.”
“Well . . .” When she lifted her chin and tried for a businesslike expression, he had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. He was draped in a towel and she was fully clothed complete with her sensible shoes, standing in his pool. “I’ve had my own housekeeping business for the past year. I know that’s not all that long, but I have several references to vouch for my excellence. I’ve lived in Cricket Creek all my life. If you wish to do a background check you will see that I’ve not had as much as a parking ticket. To find wrongdoing you’d have to go all the way back to high school when I got detention.”
“And what did you do?”
“I broke the dress code by wearing my skirt too short.”
“What a rebel,” Shane said, and she finally laughed.
“I know, right?” She gave him a slight grin. “Actually my legs were gr
owing way too fast for the length of my clothes, but I rather like the rebel idea.”
“So, what got you into the housekeeping business?” Shane asked.
“It’s always been my dream. Much like you and country music, I imagine. I’m just living the life, you know?”
He laughed. “No, seriously.”
“Do you want the truth or the sugarcoated version?” Laura Lee asked, and then shook her head, making droplets fly. “I don’t know why in the world that just came out of my mouth.”
“Because I asked?”
“No, I mean—”
“Hey, I like straight shooters,” Shane interrupted. “Don’t sugarcoat it.”
Laura Lee gave Shane a long look and then said, “I was married to a jackass who didn’t allow me to work because it would detract from me waiting on him and keeping his house spotless. I got really good at cooking and cleaning.”
“Allow you?” The notion infuriated Shane.
She shrugged. “I was at the tail end of the baby boomers. I thought I was doing the right thing by pleasing him just like I watched my mother do for my daddy. I believed it was my wifely duty.”
“Was? Good for you.”
“You got that right.” She gave him a short laugh.
“Tell me more,” Shane said, and for some reason he couldn’t explain he had to know her story. “If you don’t mind.”
“You really want to know?”
“I do, but only if you want to tell me.”
She hesitated but then said, “Well, Jack . . . short for jackass . . . traveled a lot for his job and had been cheating on me for years while he ignored me. He depleted our retirement account and savings in the process. Because of that, I did get the house in the divorce settlement, but I couldn’t afford to maintain it, so I sold it.” She paused and then said, “I used the money to buy a van, slapped my logo on the side, and started cleaning houses. Not glamorous but good honest work.” She paused again and then added, “My story kinda sounds like one of your sad songs.”
Shane tossed his head back and laughed. He was about to feel sorry for her, but she was a feisty redhead who had stiffened her backbone and landed on her feet. She laughed too, but there was a bit of a haunted quality in her green eyes that hit him in the gut. “You’re a steel magnolia.”
“Damn straight.”
“So, did it say all that in your résumé?”
“No, and I can’t believe I just told you all that personal stuff.”
“I asked, remember?”
“You did. But hey, this is a small town and we all know a lot about each other, so it doesn’t really bother me to tell. Good thing Jack moved away, because he wasn’t welcome at too many places around Cricket Creek.”
“Well-deserved shunning, I’d say. I’m starting to like this town more and more.”
“I’ve lived here all my life and a lot of people have my back.” Laura Lee laughed. “So, do I still have the job?”
“Is there any doubt?”
“Is that a yes?”
A sudden thought hit Shane and he gazed at her for a few seconds.
“You’re rethinking your hasty offer? If you want to interview more people, I fully understand.”
“Not at all.” Shane shook his head. “I was just thinking that I’m embarrassed that I need a personal assistant to remind me of things like this interview, for instance. And I can’t cook worth a lick. How do you feel about working for me full-time as my personal assistant, cook, and housekeeper? I know it sounds like a lot, but I’m retired . . . well, sort of anyway . . . and those three positions can be rolled into one. Plus, I still have an agent and manager and a staff that manages my other investments. Although I won’t be recording or touring any longer, I’ll do an occasional endorsement and charity functions. You would have to keep track of those things for me through them. Just hand me a sheet of paper telling me what I have to do that day.”
“Oh my goodness.” Her eyes widened. “But I have other clients to clean for.”
“What kind of compensation would you need to give those up?”
“I don’t know. I . . . um, what would my hours be?”
“A nine-to-five kind of thing mostly, but it could be flexible when you need it and of course you’d get vacation time. I eat breakfast after my morning run and I’m gone a lot too, so I won’t be breathing down your neck. Lunch can be left in the fridge and dinner but only if I’ll be here. If I don’t have errands for you to run, you’re welcome to use the pool and exercise room as part of your job perks. I might also need you to go to Sully’s South or My Way Recording Studio with me once in a while.”
She put a hand to her chest. “This is so unexpected. I don’t know what to say.”
“Would sixty thousand work?” Shane asked. He suspected his offer was much more than she was making.
Her pretty green eyes widened again. “I take that back. I do know what to say. Yes. I will take the job.”
Shane laughed again, thinking that he was going to like having Laura Lee Carter around in his daily life. He was a good judge of character, and his gut told him that she would do an excellent job and could be trusted. “So, can you start tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” Shane extended his hand and as expected she gave him a good grip. “I’ll give you some details so you know what to do.”
She nodded again but appeared slightly uneasy. “Um, when I said I was a good cook, I meant the basics, you know, home-style. I don’t know how to do really fancy stuff.”
“Laura Lee, just to let you know I’ve always thought the whole celebrity thing to be a bunch of hogwash. I’m just a good ol’ boy who can sing. Trust me, I’m really easy to work for. And I don’t go for the fancy stuff. Simple home-cooked meals will be perfect.”
She let out a sigh of relief, making Shane smile. “Well, then I guess I’ll see you tomorrow at nine. Make a list of your favorite meals and I’ll go grocery shopping today. I’ll leave a card for you with my e-mail address.”
“Will do. I would walk you out but if you don’t mind I’m not quite dressed for it.”
Laura Lee laughed. “I can see myself out to my van.”
Shane watched her slosh through the pool and walk up the steps. When she had to pause to find a shoe, he found it hard not to laugh but somehow managed not to. He tried not to notice how her wet clothes clung to her tall, shapely body when she emerged from the shallow end of the pool but felt another pull of attraction. She seemed like a sweet, down-to-earth woman who had been put through the wringer. He sternly reminded himself that she was his employee and he needed to keep his hands to himself. Still, he was looking forward to her company.
She picked up her scattered papers, chasing one down in a sudden gust of wind. “Do you want these?”
“I know all I need to know,” Shane replied.
“Okay, then . . .” She slid her purse over her shoulder and gave him a crisp little nod that was at odds with her soggy status. “I’ll be off.”
“I’ll send the list. See you tomorrow morning, Laura Lee.” He had to grin when she sloshed away, leaving a wet trail in her wake.
4
Everybody’s Got Somebody but Me
MATTIE SAT CROSS-LEGGED ON THE FLOOR AT THE BACK of the diner while browsing through the bottom shelf of the historical romance section of her books. “Hmm . . .” She pulled one out and looked at a long-haired, bare-chested pirate on the front. “I wonder if I’ve read this one,” she mused, and started reading the back cover. Mattie had a weakness for pirates and often imagined herself as the feisty heroine who after putting up a fight ended up having lusty sex with the swashbuckling hero. Tired to the bone after doing inventory, she wanted a book to read later that evening.
Rusty came over, flopped down, and rested his head on her thigh. “Ha. If you think that’s gonna get
you out of trouble you’re dead wrong,” Mattie said, but then petted Rusty’s head until she heard him sigh. When she stopped he raised his head and gave her that sad look that got to her every time. “You know I can’t stay mad at you,” she said, and started scratching him behind the ears. While the old dog snored she started reading the first few pages of the story.
“Hey, Mattie, you here?” Rusty lifted his head at the sound of Mason’s voice and trotted to the front of the restaurant.
“In the back, Mason. Whatcha need?”
“You got any sexy shad? It’s the only bait the bass seem to go for.”
“I’m all out,” Mattie shouted. “And would you let Rusty out?”
“Okay. Go on out, boy.”
A moment later Mattie looked up to see Mason standing over her with his arms crossed over his chest. “Don’t give me that look.”
“You gotta be kidding me. I need shad-colored baits, Mattie.”
Mattie sighed. “Like you said, it’s the go-to bait right now, so I’m sold out. Don’t be so cranky. I’ve got some ordered.” She patted the floor next to her. “Pop a squat.”
Mason bent his long jean-clad legs and sat down next to Mattie. “Sorry for being such an ass. You know how I get when the fish don’t bite. It’s not fun to take somebody out fishing for the day and come up empty-handed.” He leaned in and gave her shoulder a shove. “I need to get you out on the water sometime soon.”
“I’d like that. Maybe do a little bit of night fishing.”
“You got it. We’ll get Danny to come along. You can pay me back with some homemade fried chicken in Mama’s cast-iron skillet. You talked to her or Dad lately?”
“Not in a day or two. They’re practicing for a couples tournament coming up.”
Mason nodded and then grinned down at the book she was reading. “I remember picking up one of Mama’s books she was reading and my eyes just about popped out of my head when I read a page or so.”