True to You in Good Hope: A Good Hope Novel Book 15

by Cindy Kirk

  Chapter Eleven

  Piper wasn’t sure how it happened, but when she headed for the door after saying good-bye to Bea and Clay, Anders fell into step beside her.

  After the conversation with Fin, he and Piper had made the rounds downstairs before she was pulled aside by Lila Nordstrom for a karaoke duet.

  Anders had smiled and wished her good luck before falling into a conversation with Sheriff Cade Rallis, another family member.

  Piper hadn’t seen him since.

  Now here he was, pausing with his hand on the door leading outside. “Where’s your coat?”

  He wore the same battered Carhartt he’d had on when he moved into the apartment.

  “I live just across the street, remember?” She gave a little laugh. “I’ll be fine. I’m hot-blooded.”

  The spark that flared in his amber eyes told her she might want to choose her words more carefully. Then again, what was the fun in that?

  Without warning, Anders slipped off his coat and wrapped it around her shoulders. “And I’m a gentleman.”

  She wanted to refuse it, but when he pushed open the door, the blast of arctic air had her inhaling sharply. She turned back. “I really don’t want to deprive you of your coat.”

  He took her hand in his, and she felt the heat. His golden eyes sparkled. “Let’s run.”

  After checking both ways for traffic, they ran like a couple of kids, laughing as they crossed Wrigley Road. Instead of taking the long way around, Piper pulled a key from her pocket, and they stepped inside Swoon.

  Seconds later, the lights flashed on.

  Instead of ushering him to the back of the store so he could make his way to his apartment, she stood next to a rack of coats as she slid his from her shoulders and handed it to him.

  He took it, shrugging it on without taking those glittering golden eyes off of her.

  Piper cleared her throat, then had to clear it again when his hand rose to cup her cheek.

  His gaze traveled slowly over her. “I enjoyed spending the evening with you.”

  Her skin prickled, and heat surged through Piper’s body at the simple touch. Could he hear her heart pounding?

  What was there about this man that affected her so much? Or was it simply that she’d been without a man in her life for too long? She couldn’t recall the last time she’d been kissed.

  From the look in his eyes, kissing her was exactly what he had in mind.

  “You’re thinking too much.”

  Something in his low, husky voice made Piper look at him, really look at him. At the wiry hair that refused to be tamed and the sexy scruff along the angular jaw. At those piercing golden eyes that made her think he knew all her secrets.

  He smiled, a crooked, boyish sort of smile that sent her stomach into flips and made her blood feel like warm honey sliding through her veins. Before she could come up with a response, his lips were on hers, exquisitely gentle and achingly tender.

  Piper forgot everything in the pleasure of the contact. She lifted her arms, wrapping them around his neck and sliding her fingers into his hair.

  With deliberate slowness, he brushed his lips back and forth across hers, the barest hint of friction sending shivers and tingles spiraling through her body.

  He continued pressing his lips lightly to hers, teasing, his mouth never pulling away. Just like at the reception, she wanted him with a fierceness that shocked her with its intensity.

  As need erupted, Piper pulled his head down with her free hand and gave him a ferocious kiss.

  She caught a flash of surprise in his eyes before he changed the angle of the kiss, sweeping his tongue across her lips. When her mouth opened to him, he deepened the embrace, kissing her with a slow thoroughness that left her weak and trembling.

  Her heart pounded against her ribs, and she rested the top of her head against his chest and fought to steady her breath.

  She felt his hand come up to stroke her hair.

  “The connection is as powerful as I remember,” he murmured as his fingers began moving up and down her back in a slow, sensual rhythm.

  “I can’t do this, Anders,” Piper heard herself say.

  “Do what?” he asked, continuing to stroke.

  She shuddered and stepped back. “I can’t get involved with you this way.”

  He only inclined his head.

  “My life is a mess. My store is struggling, and then there’s my sister’s wedding. If I have to make her dress…” Piper expelled a shuddering breath. “What I’m trying to say is I don’t have time for a relationship.”

  Compassion deepened the golden hue of his eyes. “You do have a lot on your plate.”

  Relief mixed with a healthy dose of regret flooded her. “I do.”

  “That’s why you don’t have time for a relationship.”

  Piper gave a jerky nod and stepped back. It was difficult to think when he was so near. He smelled so good, and the heat of that firm, muscular body called to her in a primitive way.

  “What about a friend? The way I see it, everyone can use a friend.”

  She lifted her gaze to his. The moment their eyes met, something inside her seemed to lock into place, and she could not look away. Their eye contact turned into more of a tangible connection between them.

  When she realized he was waiting for a response, she had to force herself to recall what he’d said.

  “F-friends?” She stumbled over the simple word.

  “I could use a good friend like you.” He grasped her hand, giving it a quick squeeze before releasing it. “Sleep well.”

  For some reason, the simple gesture soothed and steadied her.

  “Yes, you sleep well, too,” she called to his retreating back, even as she wondered what being friends with Anders Cross would involve.

  Gladys stood with Ruby and Katherine in front of the Ding-A-Ling’s front window. Though wind whipped the falling snow outside, she and her two friends were toasty-warm inside.

  Lifting a glass of wine to her lips, Gladys kept her gaze fixed on Swoon and the two young people illuminated in the window. “I have to admit I was concerned about Piper.”

  “In what way?” Former accountant Katherine Spencer dealt in facts and figures. She liked data, the more exact, the better.

  “Piper is a real sweetie.” Ruby Rakes, the most social and gregarious of the three, preferred to talk about emotions.

  “She wasn’t keen on being matched.” Gladys spoke directly to Katherine. Then, as if knowing Katherine would find that comment lacking in content, she added, “Piper attempted to give me back the relationship cards. I, of course, refused to take them.”

  “I heard her sister is getting married,” Ruby told her friends. “Perhaps she’s too busy right now.”

  “That may be part of it,” Gladys acknowledged. She narrowed her gaze, watching Piper slip off the jacket and hold it out to Anders. There was something rather sensual in the gesture.

  Or was she reading into the scene what she wanted to see? Looking for a connection that would work quite nicely with the plan forming in her head?

  “There is no one in the area who interests the young woman.” Katherine stated her belief as fact.

  Since Gladys agreed with Katherine’s assessment, she let it stand. “I believe that may have changed.”

  Gladys gestured with her head.

  “The snow is quite lovely.” Ruby’s lips curved upward. She was a petite woman with softly curling champagne-colored hair and bright blue eyes. Her grandson, Jeremy, had inherited those baby blues.

  “She’s not talking about the snow, Ruby.” As Ruby was a close friend, Katherine tempered her normal bluntness. “Gladys is referring to what’s going on across the street.”

  Ruby squinted. “All I can see is snow.”

  “Put on your glasses.” Gladys’s tone held a hint of impatience. “Or you’re going to miss the show.”

  There was nothing Ruby loved more than a good show. Rummaging through her purse, she pull
ed out a pair of glasses studded at the corners with sparkling jewels.

  She smiled as the world came into focus. Then a look of delight crossed her face. “They’re kissing.”

  Gladys nodded, the satisfaction flowing through her veins. “He’s kissing her, and she’s kissing him back.”

  Katherine, apparently having gathered enough information, shifted her focus to Gladys. “How are we going to get them together?”

  Ruby gave a snort of a laugh. “I think they’re doing fairly well on their own.”

  Both women were looking at her now, seeking guidance on how to proceed. Gladys considered herself the leader and appreciated that tonight she didn’t have to beat them over the head with that facts.

  “Things look good right now, but the road to love can often be a bumpy one, filled with all sorts of potholes and detours.”

  Katherine arched a dark brow. “Potholes and detours?”

  Gladys refused to flush at Katherine’s wry tone.

  “They’re part of real life,” Ruby asserted, appearing to notice the sudden tension in the air. “What’s worrying you, Gladys? Don’t say ‘nothing,’ because I can see you’re concerned about something.”

  “Piper is obviously attracted to Anders Cross. And I love it that he lives close to her.” Gladys pinched her lips together. “But rumor is he’ll be here through the end of the year, and then he’ll be moving on.”

  “You think she won’t want to get close to him because he’s leaving?” Katherine met Gladys’s gaze.

  Gladys nodded.

  “We’ll just have to clear that bumpy road that’s full of potholes and make it a smooth ride so he’ll want to stay.” Ruby smiled. “In the meantime, we’ll do whatever we need to do to keep throwing them together.”

  Gladys stared at Ruby, amazed that her friend had not only come up with a plan, but it also made sense.

  “Swoon has grown dark,” Katherine observed. “The light just turned on in her apartment.”

  “Do you think she took him upstairs with her?” Ruby’s eyes danced with excitement.

  “I don’t—” Gladys was about to say she didn’t know, but then she saw the lights over Book & Cup flip on. “It looks like he went home.”

  “Darn.” Ruby snapped her fingers. “I was hoping she’d invite him to stay.”

  “They just met,” Katherine reminded her. “I don’t think they’ve even been on a date.”

  “Since when is going on a date a requirement for a little hanky-panky?” Ruby wiggled her eyebrows, and the other women laughed.

  By the time Piper finished readying herself for bed, her heart had finally settled into a steady rhythm. Anders’s kisses hadn’t lost any of their power. If anything, his mouth was even more potent.

  Piper touched her tingling lips with the tips of her fingers. She could have kissed him all night. But she’d meant what she’d said. This was not the time for her to get involved with any man.

  Her gaze dropped to the relationship cards sitting on her nightstand. Dropping down to sit on the bed, she picked up the deck. She hadn’t looked at the cards before. It had seemed beyond pathetic to be answering relationship questions when she didn’t even have a boyfriend.

  Tonight, she’d taken charge of her life. She’d made it clear to Anders she wasn’t interested in a relationship. That had been a wise move. Agreeing to still be his friend? Well, the jury was still out on that one.

  Piper pulled out a card, flipped it over. Being in control made her feel strong. Which meant she could answer these questions alone, then give them back to Gladys the next time she saw the woman.

  What’s the craziest job you would consider taking?

  Smiling, Piper set down the card and considered the question. A woman clearly didn’t need to be tied to a relationship or a guy to respond to this question. How did it even fit into the deck?

  The only reason she could think it was included was because work was a big part of anyone’s life. In any relationship, it would probably be helpful to know how far someone would go to survive. That’s the way she saw it, anyway.

  This was a timely question. The thought she might have to find a new career if Swoon failed had her heart twisting.

  What would she do if she had to walk away from her boutique? How would she survive? Her sewing business had bolstered her income these past couple of months. She could possibly add tailoring to Swoon’s services, maybe even do a few custom wedding dresses a year on the side.

  Even as that thought formed in her head, her gaze was once again drawn to the question. It wasn’t asking what job or career would she take on if things fell apart…but the craziest job she’d consider taking.

  Craziest.

  The operative word.

  If she had to, she’d scrub floors to survive, but again, that wasn’t what the question asked. She thought about the Ding-A-Ling and Ethan Shaw’s unsuccessful attempts—so far—to find a manager.

  Piper supposed that job would have to be the one most outside her wheelhouse. From what she’d observed, a bar manager had to possess extensive knowledge of all kinds of drinks, listen to what both employees and customers wanted and be pleasant yet firm when someone had to be denied more drinks or asked to leave. Plus, bar managers worked crazy hours.

  That kind of job would never be something she’d choose, but if she had to do it to financially survive, she’d take it on.

  She slipped the card back into the deck, at peace for the first time in weeks. If she had to close Swoon, if she had to close her wedding salon, she would survive.

  Closing Swoon would mean the end of a dream formed long ago. She’d likely lose all of the inheritance money she’d used to launch that dream, but life would go on.

  Just like this situation with Sasha. Though the thought of her sister marrying Heath set her teeth on edge, she’d get through this wedding, somehow.

  In the meantime, she’d be Anders’s friend.

  With that thought in mind, she slid under the covers and wondered what he’d have said this time if she’d asked him up to her bed.

  Piper spent Saturday morning updating floor displays in preparation for the upcoming Black Friday sale. In the past, she’d had to call in part-time help to tend to customers while she worked on the displays.

  This year, tending to customers wasn’t a problem. Business had slowed to a crawl since she’d relocated Swoon. Piper knew it wasn’t simply the move. Online shopping had been soaring for years, and specialty shops, such as hers, faced a difficult future.

  Setting aside the gloom and doom, Piper finished up the last display. Stepping back, she studied the front window and nodded approval. Then she glanced out over the empty street. More snow had fallen last night, which had undoubtedly made Anders’s skiing group happy this morning.

  There was nothing better than being out on skis, the scent of fresh pine teasing your nostrils while a wintery blanket of newly fallen snow glittered in the sunlight. She wondered if being outdoors was more to Anders’s liking than being stuck in an office.

  The jobs he’d held since leaving his NYC firm had all involved outdoor work. Piper loved being outside, too, but retail was really where her heart was, helping customers, ordering just the right number of items that would fly off the shelves…

  She glanced around her store and sighed. Lately, nothing was flying off the shelves, though hopefully that would change once the holiday season officially kicked off on Friday. Still, it hit her again that if things didn’t improve dramatically, she might have to close the store. Tension formed a knot at the back of her neck.

  She needed to get out, needed to do something physical to work off some of this tension. Either that, or she’d end up sitting upstairs and eating.

  That, she would not do.

  Flipping the sign to Closed, Piper locked the front door, not exactly sure where she was headed. She only knew she couldn’t take another three hours of waiting for customers to walk through the door.

  Thirty minutes later
, she found herself—blue snowflake sledding tube in hand—at the top of Hill 17 of the Peninsula State Park golf course. Piper stood, a single female amidst couples, families and groups of friends. She didn’t mind being single, preferred it ten times over being with someone like Heath. Still, she had to admit that ever since her two friends had married, she felt very much alone.

  My own fault, she reminded herself, for not building a larger network of friends. Then again, she’d never been one to have a gaggle of girlfriends. That was Sasha’s thing. Piper had always stuck to one or two close friends.

  She was happy for Bea and Charlotte, she truly was, but she sensed her friendships with them changing as the two women became more involved in activities with other couples. Still, that didn’t mean that Piper needed to stay home and feel sorry for herself.

  She wanted to sled, and that’s what she was going to do.

  “Hey.”

  Piper turned toward the familiar voice. Instead of the Carhartt he’d draped around her shoulders last night, Anders wore a blue ski jacket and a striped hat.

  “Hello, yourself.” She glanced around to see who he might have come with, but saw no one she recognized.

  “Beck, Ami and the kids are over there.” He gestured with one hand toward the edge of the hill, obviously reading her mind.

  She lifted her chin. “I came alone.”

  “That’s cool.” He smiled. “I do a lot of stuff by myself. Truth is I often prefer it over being with someone who either doesn’t want to be where I want to be or who might ruin the day.”

  Piper smiled, realizing he did understand. “I feel the same. I wanted to go sledding, so here I am.”

  He lifted his gloved hands, palms facing her. “I don’t want to intrude on your experience, but that looks like one heavy-duty tube. I’m betting it’ll go down the hill twice as fast with two bodies on it, rather than one.”

  Pipers lips curved, knowing her tube could hold up to six hundred pounds. Though it might be a bit crowded with two adults, she didn’t mind getting close and cozy on the slope with a friend. “Let’s give it a try.”