Love Me Again
Page 13
Ethan shook his head. It wasn’t the time to think about Philly. He’d left for a reason, and he didn’t want to ponder on it just yet.
He grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. “See you goons tomorrow,” he called out to the next shift of firefighters.
“Yeah, see you tomorrow, Philly,” one of the guys called out.
Ethan stepped out of the garage and looked to the right, where the community center stood. How did he not know that Mallory was right next door every Thursday night? He sniffed a laugh, unimpressed with his own wooing skills. He walked a few steps, just past the monument with a flag, and narrowed his eyes towards the hall. It didn’t look all that different from a barn house. Yellow lights glowed from its windows. He wondered if Mallory would be surprised—or upset—to see him. Either way, it was too late to ponder on that as he pushed the double doors open.
“Ethan?” Mallory said with a small smile on her face.
“Ethan?” Lorraine Myers echoed. His mother popped her head up.
“Ethan!” Graham exclaimed. “It’s good to have another man in the club! Come join us, boy.”
Ethan gave them a small wave and walked to where the Thursday Night Hookers sat around a table with balls of multi-colored yarns sprawled out in front of them.
“What are you doing here?” Mallory asked with a curious smile.
She didn’t look upset—so Ethan concluded she was surprised. “I thought I’d come and join your club,” he said with a grin.
“So, you wanna be a hooker?” Mallory teased.
“I’ve always wanted to be one,” he said as he hung his backpack over the back of a spare chair. “Do you mind?”
Mallory shook her head. “Not at all. Do you want a cup of hot chocolate before you start?”
“I’d love one—but let me do it. You go back to the others.” Ethan glanced around at the enthusiastic hookers. He grinned as he noted probably half of the town’s elderly population sat at the table.
“I didn’t know you like to crochet, Ethan,” Lorraine looked up at her son and titled her cheek for a kiss.
“Well—now you know, Mom.” Ethan pulled up a chair and sat next to Graham. He took two knitting needles from the center of the table and holding one in each hand, he turned to Graham. “So how do we do this?”
MALLORY SMILED TO HERSELF as she watched Ethan struggle with the knitting needles.
“Maybe you should try crocheting first, dear,” seventy-three-year-old Elsa offered.
“I’m making a grandmother square,” Graham held his project up to show Ethan.
“It’s called a granny square, you nincompoop!” Murray shook his head disapprovingly.
“Ethan, darling—are you dating Mallory?” Lorraine asked her son pointedly.
Mallory wasn’t prepared for the question and felt her cheeks burn as the whole table stopped what they were doing and looked at Ethan—and then at her.
Ethan shrugged. “Maybe.”
“Maybe!” Murray snorted. “In my day, there was no maybe. It’s either you were dating or you were not.”
“Well, they may just be getting to know each other.” Sweet Elsa always tried to keep things cool and even. Bless her, Mallory thought.
“We’re going on a date tomorrow night,” Ethan said. He held up a chain of about seven or eight links. “Is this how you do it?”
Mallory stared at him in surprise, but he wouldn’t meet her eye.
“Oh, that’s wonderful to know!” Lorraine said. “Well, darling, you have my blessing to court Mallory.”
“Your blessing?” Ethan asked. “To date Mallory? Shouldn’t you be giving her your blessing to date me? I am your son, after all,” he joked.
“Oh, pish-tosh! I’ve seen more of Mallory this year than I’ve seen you, young man.” Lorraine waved her knitting at him. “How long are you staying this time?”
“I don’t quite know yet... we may have to wait and see.” Ethan said.
His gaze made Mallory’s stomach do a little somersault.
“Do you like this boy?” Graham asked Mallory in a voice loud enough to be a shout. “You’d better make sure he treats you right.”
“Graham, there’s simply no need to shout,” Lorraine said.
“Huh?” Graham looked at her. “I’m not shouting!”
He was shouting—like, actually shouting. But despite the horror of being given the third degree, Mallory’s heart swelled. Having the Thursday Night Hookers look out for her made her feel like she had five moms and dads all at once.
“Now, where was I?” Graham thought out loud. “Ah—do you like this boy, Mallory?”
“Maybe,” she said quietly. Mallory glanced at Ethan with a smile.
“Now, that’s more like it.” Ethan nodded and held a hand up to Graham for a high-five.
“What is that?” Graham asked as Ethan.
Ethan crumpled his face and pointed at his raised hand. “It’s a high-five.”
Mallory laughed. She couldn’t believe all this was happening. It certainly was a different kind of Thursday.
Judith nudged Graham. “You’re supposed to give him a high-five back.”
Graham hunched his shoulders. “Until he treats the lady right, that boy ain’t getting no fives or sixes from me!”
“Graham! That’s my son you’re talking about,” Lorraine blurted.
Graham motioned over to Mallory. “That’s our Mallory he’s trying to date, Lorraine.”
“Well, that’s true, isn’t it?” Lorraine looked at Mallory with a sigh and then turned to Ethan. “You’ll just have to make sure you do right by our Mallory, won’t you Ethan?”
Ethan put a hand to his heart. “You have my word.”
“Can we just get on with the grandmother squares?” Murray complained.
“They’re granny squares!” Graham said with an air of confidence.
The next hour went pretty much the same with the Hookers bickering amongst themselves. But just the same—it was something that Mallory wouldn’t trade for anything in the world. They had become her closest friends in Willow Oaks, and they made her feel like she finally belonged.
“I had a good time tonight,” Ethan said as he helped Mallory stack the seats and put things away.
“Did you, really?” Mallory smiled.
“Yeah! I haven’t had this much fun since—I can’t remember.”
“That doesn’t sound right to me. Rumor has it, you’re quite the party guy.” She glanced at Ethan, who pretended to be shocked.
He stood and motioned as if he’d been stabbed in the heart. “Whoever told you that has got it in for me. That’s a blatant lie!”
“Your sister...”
“Okay, there may be a bit of truth in that... but that was a long time ago. I swear!”
Mallory rolled her eyes at him. What his plans were, she didn’t know. But Lorraine raised a good point—how long was he planning on staying? It wouldn’t be fair to expect him to remain in Willow Oaks when they’d only just started getting to know each other. But then again, maybe he wasn’t staying for her. After all, Ethan was born and raised in Willow.
“Looks like we’re all done here,” Ethan said. “Wanna get something to eat?”
She wanted to. She really did. But Mallory shook her head. “I’ve got to get home to feed the Golden Girls.”
Ethan raised his eyebrows. “Golden Girls?”
“My girls—Blanche, Dorothy, and Sophia.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Ethan crossed his arms across his broad chest.
“Nope.” She desperately wanted to kiss the grin off his face. “I’d usually tell them if I’m going to be home late. So, if I’m not home shortly, they’ll worry.”
“Wait—I thought we were talking about pets?”
Mallory grabbed her purse and turned the main light switch off. “We are,” she said in the dark, with only the glow from the outside lighting her path as Ethan held the door open for her.
If you enjo
yed that sneak peek, you can get your full copy here ♥
READ THE WHOLE SERIES:
Willow Oaks Series - Sweet Romance
Book 1: Love Me True
Book 2: Love Me Maybe
Book 3: Love Me Again
Book 4: Love Me Always
Book 5: Love Me Timeless
Other Books by Melissa Crosby
Willow Oaks Series - Sweet Romance
Book 1: Love Me True
Book 2: Love Me Maybe
Book 3: Love Me Again
Book 4: Love Me Always
Book 5: Love Me Timeless
Mulberry Lane Series – Inspirational Women’s Fiction
Book 1: Tea for Three
Book 2: Three Wishes
Book 3: In Three Years
Collections
A Willow Oaks Sweet Romance Collection: Volume 1 - Books 1-3
A Willow Oaks Sweet Romance Collection: Volume 2 – Books 4-5
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About the Author
Melissa Crosby lives in Wellington, New Zealand with her husband, two children, and their adopted rescue pets, Evie and Zuko. She enjoys writing inspirational women's fiction and heartwarming small town romance.
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Read more at Melissa Crosby’s site.