by Loraine, Kim
“I hope you like Indian. I took a chance.”
“Never had it,” she admitted.
“Well, I think this is one of the best.”
Drew helped her decide what to order, insisting they get samosas. As they waited for their food to arrive, the conversation dwindled to the uncomfortable silence of an awkward first date.
“So, how long have you lived in Braley?”
“All my life, really.”
“Hmm. I’m from a small town, too.”
Drew pulled at his earlobe. “Do you like it here?”
“Yes. It’s charming.”
“Good, good.”
This is bordering on ridiculous. Please let the food come soon. She shifted uncomfortably.
“Sorry. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on a date.” Five years to be exact. She fought the blush creeping up her cheeks.
“For me, too. I’ve always been rubbish at it.”
That made her laugh. “It’s the most awkward thing ever, right?”
“Bloody awful!”
Their food arrived and somewhere amidst the trial and error of experiencing new tastes, Grace forgot her unease. A weight lifted from her as she began letting loose and enjoying herself.
“Mmm. So good,” she moaned around a bite of samosa.
“They’re my favorite. Crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside, with just a touch of spice.”
“Thanks for taking me here. I’m not a very adventurous eater.”
“My pleasure.”
As Drew walked her home, she felt anticipation bubble up. They approached her doorstep in silence, the awkward tension rearing its ugly head again.
“Goodnight, Drew. Thanks for dinner.” Her eyes flitted everywhere but toward his.
“I hope you enjoyed yourself. I’d like to take you out again soon.”
He leaned in then, the scent of his clean skin making it hard for her to concentrate.
Oh, God, he’s going to kiss me!
Panic rose and she made a quick move, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. “Night,” she squeaked as she rushed to open her door. She winced as it slammed behind her. Her heart was racing and her breathing was heavy. She felt the solid wood against her back as she slid down to rest on the floor.
“That bad?”
Grace opened her eyes to see bright, pink painted toes in front of her. “No, he was going to kiss me.”
Valerie crouched down. “Too weird, then?”
“A little. I panicked.”
Valerie grabbed Grace’s hands and pulled her up. “Come on. Let’s have some wine and you can tell me all about it.”
Chapter 5
Saturday morning greeted Grace with a beautiful sunrise, making her glad she’d decided to go for an extra-long run. Still on edge from her date with Drew earlier in the week, she needed to think things through. She’d started before the sun had begun to crest over the rolling hills surrounding the town. She shivered a little in the chilly air, but it was bearable as her strides brought her back from an invigorating seven-mile run. Her muscles trembled slightly and she was dripping with sweat. As she approached the town square, her phone buzzed on her arm. It was a message from Valerie.
Heading out to London for the day with Mick. See you tonight. ; )
Grace rolled her eyes as she read the text and observed the winky-face. Valerie was becoming quite popular with the construction crew, causing Grace to take on the role of big sister; constantly keeping an eye out for trouble where her friend was concerned. Grace might have been out of the dating pool for a while, but she’d experienced her fair share of good looking jerks during her twenties. She searched her memory for what she knew of Mick. Nice guy, kind of dumb, good looking, and very into Valerie.
The worry ebbed as she came around the bend and saw their little cottage on the corner of Baker Street. Valerie was just stepping out of the house. She waved and smiled as Grace came up the walk.
“Hey, we were just on our way out. Want to join us?”
She considered the invitation, took one look at Valerie’s face and realized it was just a half-hearted consideration. “Nah, I’ve got stuff to do. You have fun. Bring me back something.”
“Have a good day. Try not to break anyone’s eggs.”
Grace rolled her eyes and walked into the house, ready for a nice hot bath and a cup of coffee. She locked the door and set her phone on the speaker dock in her bathroom. Turning on the singer-songwriter station, she set about preparing her coffee. Coffee to her had always been a process rather than an instant gratification exercise. She loved the task of boiling water in the kettle while grinding the beans. The smell of freshly ground coffee filled the room, the aroma heavenly. After the kettle started to whistle, she poured the hot water into her French press, watching the dark grounds at the bottom swirl and fizz at the top. She let it brew for a few minutes while she ran a steaming hot bath with a generous helping of bubbles added to it. When she returned, the grounds were settling, so she pushed the filter down as far as it would go and poured herself a large cup of delicious black coffee. She grabbed a magazine and headed—coffee in hand—to her waiting bathtub.
The heat of the water soothed her sore hamstrings. She realized her run had been quite a bit longer than intended and she’d forgotten to stretch afterward. As she sipped her coffee and flipped through the magazine, she couldn’t help but think again about how much Drew and John looked alike.
Her mind kept going over and over the details of his face. The eyes and brows were the real clincher. She’d spent many long moments looking into John’s eyes, searching for what? Love, she supposed; answers maybe. He was always loving and gentle and kind, but he was also guarded and slightly closed off. She could recall many conversations which had begun lightheartedly and ended with him shutting down, changing the subject, or trying to redirect her. That was why learning of his plan to propose had been so shocking and painful. Anytime they’d talked about the future, their plans, or the idea of starting a family, he’d withdrawn.
Grace was still soaking in the hot water, with a steaming washcloth on her face, a half-hour later when she heard her front bell ring. She glanced at the clock. Who the hell is at my door this early in the morning on a Saturday?
Soaking wet and dripping bubbles, she wrapped herself in a terrycloth robe and cautiously answered the door. She hid her body behind the big wooden door and poked her head around the side to see who it was. Her eyes went wide as she saw Drew. He held a grocery box full of produce. Her heart leapt in excitement.
“Uh . . . I think you’ve got the wrong house, Drew.”
He took in her flushed skin and dripping hair. “Did I come at a bad time? You look a little, um, busy.” His ears went charmingly pink at the tips.
“I was in the bath. It’s only eight-thirty in the morning, you know.” Her gaze went to the package in his hands. “Why do you have a box of vegetables?”
“Valerie came in this morning and ordered them, said you’d been asking for vegetables all week, but hadn’t had the chance to come to the shop. She told me to deliver them straight-away.”
She stared blankly and he squirmed uncomfortably in the silence.
“Erm, can I bring this in for you?”
She nodded and opened the door all the way for him to enter with the large box. She watched as he eyed her wet, clingy robe, then flushed when he realized he’d been caught.
“I’ll just, uh, go change. There’s coffee on the counter if you want some.”
“No thanks.” He wrinkled his nose. “I don’t drink sludge. I’d love a nice cuppa though. Do you mind if I put the kettle on?”
She paused for a moment. Cuppa? She thought on the word momentarily and it dawned on her. Tea, right. “No, no problem. The water’s proba
bly still hot. The tea tin is on the counter by the sink.”
She skirted past him as quickly as she could. Flames of embarrassment crept up her face as she realized she was in her robe with someone she barely knew in the room. Looking exactly like John made it hard for her to remember she didn’t know him at all. Her mind was a jumbled mess of emotions as she quickly pulled on a pair of dark jeans and a deep-green fitted sweater. Her hair was loose and fragrant from the shampoo Valerie had given her to use. She took a deep breath and padded softly into the hall toward the kitchen.
His tea steeped in a mug emblazoned with Likes Time Lords in big, bold black letters. Grace leaned against the wall and watched him move about her kitchen, unloading the groceries and adding milk and sugar to his tea, just like he owned the place.
“Likes Time Lords, huh? I would’ve pegged you more for a Harry Potter fan,” she said from behind him, startling him in mid-sip.
“Do you even know what a Time Lord is, you Yankee?” he teased.
She feigned astonishment. “We have BBC America, you know. I’ve seen Doctor Who.”
He grinned and was obviously glad to see her smiling back. She was relieved to be interacting without anyone getting knocked over or anything being broken.
“So what’s all this then?” he asked, gesturing at the stack of blueprints, official documents, forms, and more forms cluttering her dining nook and most of the kitchen counters.
“Oh, just work. You must think I’m a complete slob. I don’t have a real office right now and I have so much paperwork to deal with. My job is two-thirds paperwork.”
“What is your job, exactly?”
She raised her eyebrows. “I’m an architect. I specialize in historical restoration of buildings. Your town is one of the few remaining villages from the Tudor monarchy. I’m here to help restore the town properly, and make it a stop on the historical tourism track. Us Yankees really love to spend money in quaint British towns like this one.”
He looked at her for a moment and nodded. “Good, good. We need you. Have you seen the church? It’s falling into ruin.”
“I haven’t gotten to the church yet. I’ve only been hired to help with the row of homes on Kensington.”
“How long are you here for?”
“At least a year. More, if I’m needed and still wanted.”
“I’m sure you’ll be wanted,” he said, his voice catching slightly.
She blushed fiercely at his statement and abruptly turned away, pouring herself another cup of coffee. Her arm brushed against his as she put the French press back on the counter. He took a deep breath and she turned to look at him, coffee in hand.
“You smell wonderful.” Drew’s voice was soft as he reached up to touch her damp hair.
“It’s my roommate’s. I need to buy some new stuff.”
She licked her lips as she brought the mug to her mouth, then noticed his eyes locked on hers when she ran her tongue along her bottom lip. Drew’s hands moved smoothly toward her and before she could stop him, he took her cup and set it on the counter.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
He took her face in his large hands and crushed his lips against hers. The kiss was strong at first, mellowing into something more tender, exploratory.
She made no move to stop him, in fact she was so wrapped up in the feeling of his mouth on hers, she almost forgot the real reason she was attracted to him. Her mind was overcome by the sensations of her body next to his—even the scent of him was familiar. She groaned softly as he lightly ran his tongue along her upper lip, begging entrance. She pulled away and gently kissed his lips once. Her hands had found their way into his mass of unruly hair and she relished the feeling of her fingers entwined in the strands.
“Hello,” he said, eyes bright.
“Hey,” she whispered, then cleared her throat as she stepped away. “You should probably go. Thank you for delivering the groceries. It was, um, nice to see you again.”
Sadness crept in as soon as she said the words. She had no idea how this could work. This man—a completely different man—had John’s face, body, and he even kissed like him. How could she entertain the idea of being with him? It would be a betrayal to both Drew and John.
Hot tears threatened to fill her eyes as she heard the front door close. She moved about her kitchen, clearing up the mugs and cleaning out the French press. She stopped and placed her hands on either side of the sink to steady herself.
She took a shuddering breath and wiped at her eyes.
Drew’s head spun with thoughts of Grace; her lips, her soft moan against him. He needed a minute to recover from the intense kiss they’d shared. After she’d thrown him out of her house, ridiculously aroused and rumpled, he’d tried to go over it in his mind. He needed to know what he’d done wrong. He remembered the feeling of her fingers tangling in his hair, pulling slightly and sending shivers down his spine.
Where did it go pear-shaped?
He wracked his brain, trying to figure out what had happened to cause her to chuck him on his ear faster than he could catch his breath.
It was early in the day, the morning crowd of shoppers would be arriving soon and he had buckets of paperwork to get sorted before he placed his produce order for the following week. Sighing, he walked back to Ten’s, still confused, still aroused, and still thinking of Grace.
“Oi, what do you reckon, son?” his dad called from the doorway to the office.
The business office of his family’s grocery was seated on the upper level, with a window looking down on the entire store. Drew had the window put in about a year after he took over. He was able to keep an eye on things while taking care of business matters. That kept kids with sticky fingers out of trouble.
“Sorry, she wasn’t expecting me and I had to wait while she dressed.” His ears went pink at the memory of her form in the damp robe.
His dad’s face made him blush even deeper as he realized what had come from his mouth. “She made me tea. I stayed, we had a chat, I’m here now.”
“She make the tea with her clothes on?”
“Bloody hell, Dad! Yes, with her clothes on.”
“All right, all right. Don’t get your knickers in a knot. She’s an American, after all. They might do things differently.” Laughing, he stepped past Drew and headed down into the store. “Sarah’s been phoning in again, son. Best figure out what the plan is for that one. I can only put her off so long.”
Drew waved off his dad and busied himself with invoices and purchase orders for the next few hours. His mind, however, needed constant redirection from thoughts of Grace and the persistent buzzing of his phone in his pocket. Sarah was not letting go this time and his chest tightened at the thought she might show up unannounced.
It was time for a tea break when Drew, frustrated and irritable, got up to stretch and headed out to run a few errands he’d been neglecting. Living in a small town definitely had its advantages. He loved being able to walk practically anywhere he needed to go. As he picked up his post and some meds for his mum, he saw Grace—her dark hair tumbling in waves down her back—walk into the library. He was suddenly overwhelmed with the need for a book, any book, for the chance of another run-in.
The delicious smell of her hair haunted him and the feel of her soft curves as she’d pressed against him caused his fingers to itch with the need to touch her.
Chapter 6
Grace spent the rest of the morning sitting at the kitchen table going over blueprints, legal documents, and historic maps of the area. She hoped if she kept herself busy, she’d be able to take her mind off that amazing kiss.
It was just about noon when she finally took a break from her work. Standing and stretching, she went to the kitchen to make herself some lunch and caught sight of the Likes Time Lords mug setting on he
r drying rack. Her fingers came up to her lips as she remembered the feel of his hands around her face and in her hair.
She jumped as her phone vibrated loudly on the counter.
“H . . . Hello?”
“Grace? What’s wrong?” Valerie’s voice was filled with concern.
“Nothing,” she said hastily. “I’m fine. I was just in the middle of a blueprint comparison. Your call surprised me.”
Valerie sighed on the other end of the line. “It’s Saturday. You’re allowed to take the weekend off, you know. Go soak up some sun before the cold weather takes over.”
Grace smiled and nodded as Valerie continued chattering.
“Anyway, the reason I’m calling is to make sure the groceries arrived. I went in this morning to get some stuff and Drew said he’d deliver them.”
Grace’s eyebrows rose. That’s a slightly different story from Drew’s.
“Yep, he delivered them all right. I was in the bath!” She couldn’t keep the annoyance out of her voice.
Valerie tried to stifle a laugh, but managed a snort instead. “That must have been interesting. Sorry.”
“Did you need anything else?”
“Now that you mention it, I’m going to be home late tonight. We’re having a great time. London is so amazing! Would you mind stopping at Ten’s and getting me a few things I forgot? I can text you the list.”