What If: A Small Town Big Love Novel

by Collins, Kelly

  “What do you mean?”

  “John, are you the careful type?” asked Deena lightly.

  “What would you say, Caleb? Am I too careful?”

  Caleb laid down his menu and looked at his brother. “Seriously? No, not as reckless as me perhaps, but not all that careful.”

  “Maybe not careful, but I think you like to take control.” She thought back to their sexy time in the bathroom. Lucy gave him a tell-me-I’m-wrong look.

  John’s face turned beet red.

  Deena gawked and pointed it out. “Look, you made him blush. In what context are you saying control?”

  Now Lucy’s face heated, having probably announced to the table that she and John had sex. Sex he was completely in control of with the way he made her body sing. The more she tried not to react, the worse it got, making it obvious something had transpired.

  “I like control in some things, not all things,” John clarified. He set his hand on her thigh. “Someone likes to lose control.”

  Lucy nearly fainted. It was true that she had fantasized about someone who could shoulder her load for a while. Take over and make things happen, but experiencing it and thinking about it were different things.

  “Stop while you’re ahead,” teased Deena. “It’s obvious there’s something happening here, and it looks good on both of you.”

  “I hope everyone likes antelope,” Caleb broke in.

  John lightly tapped him on the head with his menu. “There’s no antelope on the menu,” he assured Deena and Lucy.

  “I’m a vegetarian,” Lucy blurted.

  Deena lifted her head.

  John’s mouth dropped. He tilted his head like he was trying to recall if he had ever seen her eat meat.

  “What are you doing in Colorado where wild game is on every menu?” John asked her.

  She eyed him with a mild, sweet expression, but slew him with a single word answer. “Living.”

  “Okay then,” he replied.

  Everyone but Lucy ordered some form of beef, despite there being an unusual amount of wild game and fresh-water fish on the menu.

  Caleb’s phone buzzed. “Maya,” he said, reading. “She’s at a casino. Wants me to join her. I think she’s hitting the casinos too hard.” Caleb sounded more like a big brother than a cousin.

  “I want to go,” said Lucy with a spurt of excitement.

  “You shouldn’t go anywhere near a casino,” said Deena.

  “Do you gamble?” John arched his eyebrow.

  “No,” mused Lucy. “I think you might recall that I like to shoot pool. I’ve been known to wager there and win money.”

  “Lose any?” challenged John.

  “Not really,” Lucy quickly amended. “Once.”

  Deena coughed in a way that shouted, “Liar.”

  “I don’t lose.” Lucy grinned confidently.

  “Braggart,” said Deena dryly.

  “I’m stating the truth.”

  “That you’re a pool shark?”

  “That I’m good.”

  John leaned in and whispered. “You sure are, baby.”

  Lucy burst out laughing. It was a deep, cleansing laugh that cleared her body of all the tension of the past few days.

  “Oh my God, that felt amazing. There’s nothing as good as laughter. I hope Maya enjoys a time in her life where she can find joy and love again.”

  John stared at her, and for a moment she was worried he thought she’d lost her mind. She touched his hand. “Was I too much now?” she asked, nervously hoping she hadn’t embarrassed him.

  “No,” he said sincerely. “What you said … that was one of the nicest things I’ve ever heard someone say. You wished for her joy and happiness. I liked that. As for your laughing, I thought it was awesome. To see you all lit up and happy. I’d pay to see that again.”

  “You already paid at Eldora’s. A hefty price if I’m right.” She tucked her head against his arm.

  “Worth every penny.” John snuck a quick chaste kiss.

  They ordered devil’s margaritas, which were regular margaritas topped with red wine. The waitress brought a pitcher and four glasses. A guy who held the bottle of red wine followed her. She filled the glasses and topped each one with what resembled blood.

  John and Caleb were super polite to the waitress. Lucy thought nothing of it, but the waitress grinned like she was crushing on them. She acted like she knew them. Lucy flickered with a moment of jealousy and then shrugged it off.

  “Jeezus,” John mumbled after he sipped the drink, trying to contain a cough.

  “No?” asked Caleb. “Not your drink?”

  “Little strong, but it’s good,” John said.

  “So, Lucy, we saw your work in town hall the other day,” said Caleb, bringing up business randomly. He seemed to segue into indiscriminate topics. “It was pretty good.”

  “What stuff?” asked Lucy, completely lost.

  “Apparently we—meaning Blackwood Corporation—stole your material for our presentation,” said Caleb. “Deena, you and the Blackwood Corporation should figure out compensation for that. We didn’t know he was going to do that—our lawyer, that is.”

  “Thanks for letting me know and thanks for the compliment,” said Lucy somberly. “We can talk when we get back. This is no longer a business meeting.”

  She hoped she didn’t look upset. She knew they had benefitted from her ideas. She wasn’t happy about any of it, but she needed to think about it when she was alone. Now was not the time to discuss it. Mercifully, Deena changed the subject.

  “Are you guys going to do the hot springs?”

  Lucy tucked her sadness aside and answered, “I’ve lived in Blackwood all my life, so close to Indian Springs. I think it’s high time I checked them out.”

  The waitress returned and set a platter of starters in the center of the table. Deena and Caleb reached out but Lucy did not.

  “You like these, don’t you?” Caleb asked.

  “I like them fine,” said Lucy, trying not to show that the mention of her work had affected her appetite.

  “She eats like a bird.” Deena shoveled the food onto a small plate.

  John reached to take a stuffed potato skin before they were gone.

  “Just one?” he asked.

  Lucy took a bite. “It’s delicious.”

  “So, what’s it going to be?” He stroked her leg. “You want to go spa crazy tomorrow?”

  “I’ve never been to a spa.”

  “When is the last vacation you took?”

  “I look at my life as a vacation,” she said to John. “I love my house and while I don’t always get the jobs I want, I like my work and the people I live with or among. My life is my vacation.”

  “That’s nice. Sounds like you know what you want, how you want it and you make it work.”

  “I do.” Pride made her sit taller. “Or at least I try.”

  “I heard a rumor that you nearly starved for a week. Is that true?” He quirked a brow.

  She gave Deena a sharp look for telling tales, and then gave her a kick to the shin—only she missed Deena and got Caleb.

  “Ouch,” he yelped. “By the kick that probably wasn’t meant for me”—he turned to look at Deena—“I’d say the rumor is true.”

  “It’s true. I had a client stiff me. It doesn’t happen often, but I got snookered.”

  John laughed. “That is a cute word coming from you.”

  She smiled up at him. “I’m cute. What can I say?”

  “You can say yes to the spa,” he countered.

  Chapter Thirteen

  John

  After their meal, John thought they could take a drive. Their lunch ended on a tense note with talk of her circumstances. Even though Lucy joked and laughed it off, she didn’t have an easy life and the Blackwoods had come to town to make it more difficult.

  He knew that romance was easy when he didn’t have to face reality, but soon they would leave Idaho Springs and Blackwood Corporat
ion would evict Lucy from her home and office.

  His mission when he invited her to Idaho Springs had not been to seduce her, although that was an added benefit. No, he’d brought her here hoping he could find her a quaint little house that she would love.

  On their ride, they could sightsee, just the two of them. No Deena. No Cal. If she saw something she liked, he would make it happen for her.

  They sat on a bench outside the restaurant. Her shoulders were stiff and her smile was gone. The soft mountain air brushed by them, bringing with it the scent of pine.

  “Would you like to go for a drive?” he asked softly. “Or if you need some space, you can go enjoy that extra room. I won’t crowd you.”

  “You can feel it too, can’t you?”

  John looked at her. He could stare at her face for hours and never tire of the view. It felt like he was seventeen again and in high school, the private all-boys high school. It made him think. All that time Lucy had lived in the same small town and their paths had never crossed.

  “What do you feel?”

  “Tense—claustrophobic, like I’m trapped.”

  He stroked her face as if to wipe away that tension. If only everything was that easy.

  “It’s a lot to take in at once,” John agreed. “Why don’t we go for a drive in the Roadster? Maybe check out houses or something?”

  When her lips lifted into a tentative smile, he was relieved. All he wanted was for her to be happy.

  “That sounds fun,” she said. “Relaxing as well. It’s been go, go, go since we got here.”

  John grabbed her and kissed her. “Are you saying that Idaho Springs is too big city for you?”

  “Hey, Hollywood,” she smirked. “You might be all up on hustle and bustle, but some of us live a quiet routine on purpose.”

  “Hollywood,” he protested. “Still? Come on.”

  She hugged him. “You’re a cute Hollywood, if that makes any difference. So, you want to go?”

  “Yes, it makes a difference, and yes, let’s go,” he said. “I thought I’d show you some neat areas. Like you said, this place is a lot like Blackwood.”

  “John,” she asked with an unusual formality that kind of made him nervous. He worried he’d said something he shouldn’t in mentioning the town.

  “Yes, Lucy?” He was unable to keep from smiling at her.

  “Can I drive your car?”

  Her question completely knocked him off guard. It was the last thing he expected her to ask. He felt like a jerk for hesitating.

  “Baby, didn’t you have a margarita?”

  “Not any margarita. I had a devil margarita, which makes driving your sports car feel more sinful,” she replied. “You drank one too.”

  “Devil’s margarita.” He hated that he corrected her. It was a habit he’d have to lose. “You know what? Devil margarita sounds better. I’ll call it that from now on. As for driving while influenced by the devil, I outweigh you by a hundred pounds. Twelve ounces of gas doesn’t go as far in my engine as it does in yours.”

  “I have no idea what you mean. I’m perfectly capable of driving,” she said, still smiling and no doubt trying to charm him. It was definitely working.

  “Yeah you do, you little con artist.”

  “So, are you saying I can’t drive your expensive car?” She challenged him with an arch of her brow.

  “Yes, you can. As long as we’re tooling around here, okay?”

  “You mean you won’t let me drive through the mountains?” Her hands went straight to her hips, and she stood to her tallest, which peaked at five feet and a few inches.

  He froze, thinking she was upset. Then she relaxed and gave him a big smile.

  “It’s a tricky car to drive. Start slow.”

  “I wouldn't drag race or anything. It’s a drive looking for a place to move me, right?”

  She socked him with guilt whether or not she meant to.

  “Besides, your car looks cool, and I want to see how it feels to drive it. I’ve got pent-up frustration. I’ve been through a lot lately.”

  She gave him a look of fake sadness and even though he knew she was playing, there was an element of truth that he felt in his heart.

  “Okay,” he said nervously. “But it’s tricky. We have to go over a few things first. We’ll do a quick tutorial.”

  Lucy was instantly animated, excited to drive his car. John was less than joyful, but she was right: the number one reason he didn’t want her to drive it was because if she crashed it would be hard to replace. He didn’t want to lose something he loved so much, but he didn’t have the heart or spine to admit it.

  They held hands walking back to the B&B where the car was parked. He got the door for her. She sidestepped it and nearly knocked into him before she slipped into the seat. He rushed quickly to the passenger side.

  “Maybe we should start in a parking lot.”

  She looked at him with big eyes like she was hurt.

  “Please knock that off,” he begged. She busted out laughing. “I’m going to get you.”

  “Put your seatbelt on please, John,” she said in a pseudo-serious tone.

  She exuberantly buckled herself in and fixed her eyes on the dashboard before them.

  She turned to him and flashed a brilliant smile.

  “Lucy, I know this is exciting you,” he said with dead seriousness. “No silly stuff. This car isn’t too tough to learn, but it is different, and it’s sensitive. It turns and brakes and goes with little encouragement. Got it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Find the brake and the gas pedals.”

  She did as she was told.

  “Okay.” He pointed to the console between them. “Push the ignition. Then you’ll choose 'Strada' mode.”

  “What does Strada mean?”

  “It’s for town driving, which is what you and I will do.”

  He was so nervous. It was a technically sophisticated car. He’d taken months to get used to its power and responsiveness. He recalled her saying he was controlling. That was it in part, but he also felt foolish for being manipulated into letting her drive without teaching her properly.

  “Strada is for street or town driving. Sport is for fun. Corsa is for fast driving. We’ll worry about Strada for now. Nice and slow.”

  “You tell me where to go,” she said gleefully.

  He asked his voice-activated service to guide them through the residential area. Lucy pulled onto the road. She was a good driver. Attentive. Cautious. He kicked himself for being a baby about sharing his car with her. He hoped she didn’t hold it against him.

  They eased around the immediate town where John knew many of the properties were remodeled and restored. He hoped to charm her. She liked Blackwood, but her business would do much better in a place like Idaho Springs. There was more opportunity here.

  “Are you thinking I’d like to live in this area?” She studied the road ahead.

  “I thought you might like it. It’s nice, isn’t it?”

  “It is. The difference between this place and Blackwood is that this place has more paint and polish. People with money coming through. That was what I wanted for Blackwood. Maybe not so fancy. What are the rents here?”

  “Let’s find out.” He asked his voice-activated service.

  The service came back with a figure of median rents and Lucy hit the brakes, slamming both their bodies forward. Even though she hadn’t been going fast, the sensitive car fishtailed. John nearly choked against the belt. He had to hold back a curse.

  At the sound of the screeching tires, several curtains drew back, with faces popping in windows to check out the commotion. John rolled his eyes.

  “I’m sorry,” she cried. “I forgot about the brakes.”

  “Are you okay?”

  The seatbelts didn’t fail, and he jerked forward with such force that he was sure he was going to have a bruise from his right shoulder to his left hip. She fumbled with the side of the door, upset.

 
; “I want to get out.” Her voice grew nervous. “I’m sorry. You warned me. I’m so sorry.”

  John quickly put the car in park and engaged the emergency brake.

  “Stop,” he ordered.

  She didn’t react so he practically growled it.

  “Lucy, stop,” he said. “I’m not playing. We’re in a car in the middle of the road. Chill out.”

  He adjusted her seatbelt to make sure it was on properly.

  “Take a deep breath and drive.”

  “I don’t think I can. I’m too scared. I could have wrecked your car.”

  “You didn’t. It’s fine, but we need to get out of the middle of the road.”

  “What if I had? I couldn’t pay for it. I can’t pay for anything.” She looked around with wide eyes. “I can’t pay these rents.”

  “It said median rent. That means there is a range. We haven’t even looked. Okay?” He watched as his logic sunk in. “Breathe. Now that you’ve been spooked, you have to drive this car.”

  “It’s not a horse,” she muttered. “I don’t need to get back in the saddle.”

  “No, that would be a Ferrari,” he teased.

  “You probably have one.”

  “Was that an insult?”

  “No, I’m upset, and I can’t come down.”

  He absolutely was determined to not let her refuse to drive because of fear. He held on to the belief that this was a salvageable moment.

  “Baby,” he directed in a calm voice, wiping her eyes. “Pull into that driveway.”

  She did that much without event. She looked to him for approval and his heart sank at the sight of her. Black streaks of mascara had run down her face with her tears.

  “Perfect. We can just drive. It doesn’t have to be about moving. Let’s circle around, and we can head back to the B&B and crash if you want. I’m talking about a nap, not the car.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him in response to his joke, and then leaned over and kissed him. At first, it was a light, sensual kiss, but it evolved into a full-blown mauling. They were making out in a stranger’s driveway.