by Tara Randel
Serena followed Grace inside, hoping her friend would spend more time dwelling on her own relationship with Deke and forget about setting her up with any of the bachelors currently residing in Golden.
A crowd had already gathered, and the assembled group was upbeat and merry. Once her eyes grew accustomed to the low lighting, Serena sought out a table near the back of the room, where she could observe the meeting without getting involved. She was all for drawing tourists to Golden to make the town profitable, her store included, but old habits had her keeping to herself. Working on committees meant people getting to know you, and until she paid back her debt, she couldn’t risk being found out.
She’d just slipped onto a hard wooden chair and hooked her purse over the back, when the chair next to her scraped across the floor and a tall male dropped down.
“Fancy meeting you here,” Logan said, placing his glass on the table.
Great. She really didn’t want to field questions about why she’d been out of town or if she was going to take advantage of his grandmother. “Don’t you have any other store owners to badger?”
“Nah. Only here to sit in on the meeting.”
“You don’t even live here.”
“Doesn’t mean I’m not interested.”
He looked up and waved. To her dismay, Grace and Deke joined them. Now she had two men giving her more attention than she wanted.
“This should be a good meeting,” Deke said, sinking into a chair after making sure Grace was seated.
“The Tremaines are at the helm, so it’ll be intense,” Grace added.
Carter and Lissy Ann Tremaine were the town’s “it” couple. Carter’s family, like the Mastersons, had helped found Golden. While the Tremaines were about branding and being in the public eye, the Mastersons were about real estate and making money. But from what she’d understood, Logan had some kind of business in Atlanta and didn’t participate in the day-to-day running of the Masterson business, which made Serena wonder about his sudden interest in the town’s activities. Could his grandmother have upped her matchmaking game? Squirming in her seat, she crossed her fingers, hoping her conclusion that Mrs. M. had lured him here was correct.
“Uncomfortable?” Logan asked, leaning close enough to Serena that his spicy citrus scent surrounded her. His intense gaze made her want to shift away, but she forced herself to be still.
“Busy. I had to close the store to come to this meeting.”
“No help?”
“Heidi, and she’s here, too.”
Logan scanned the pub. “Everyone is getting in on the town spirit.”
“That’s one of the things I like about Golden.”
He turned to look at her, his eyes capturing hers, and she fought back an unwanted shiver. “Town spirit?”
“Yes. It’s nice to see everyone coming together.”
“Something you aren’t used to?” he asked.
She wasn’t touching that question, so she asked instead, “Why are you here tonight? You weren’t part of the town’s summer festivities.”
His eyes shuttered. “I live and work in Atlanta.”
“Doing what?”
“Information retrieval.”
She sent him a puzzled look.
“I find things for people.”
“What kinds of things?”
Before he could answer, a server stopped by the table for their drink order.
“So why the interest in Golden now?” Serena asked as the server hurried on.
“My grandmother. Also, Deke’s a friend, so we’ve been catching up.”
“Your grandmother mentioned you still have ties to the family business.”
“I do. It’s a small part, but gets me to Golden once a quarter.” He took a drink from his glass. “You? Family, I mean?”
“Not locally.”
“But you have family?”
“Sure. Doesn’t everyone?”
His amused gaze met hers. “Vague.”
She stared ahead, trying to ignore him.
Before Logan could say anything else, the Tremaines called the meeting to order, which suited her fine.
They began with a recap of the summer celebration, statistics and a discussion about what generated the most interest. And could this be translated into even more tourist traffic in a few weeks’ time. Suggestions were made to play up the quaintness of the town, drawing on its history as part of a gold-rush craze in the 1800s, to appeal to vacationers. The town had been established when people from far and wide arrived to pan for nuggets after a gold vein was discovered in the mountains on the outskirts of Golden. Tourists could try their luck to this day in some of the panning locations found around town. But as much as there was to offer in Golden and the surrounding areas already, twenty different people had twenty different suggestions. Carter finally reined in the discussion and read off all his own ideas.
“Carter always did like to listen to himself talk,” Logan muttered under his breath for only Serena to hear.
She grinned. Logan had the preppy-looking man pegged. “I take it he’s not a favorite of yours?”
Logan sat close enough that his shrug brushed against her arm. “Competitors. Mostly from his point of view.”
“In high school?” she asked.
“Yep. Gotta love memories from good ol’ Golden High.”
Curious about the handsome man beside her, Serena made a mental note to research Golden High School. She figured both men were in their early thirties, so she could narrow down the years they attended.
“Well, he seems invested in placing Golden on the map.”
Logan leaned closer and a trickle of pleasure danced over her skin. “How about you? Part of Team Golden?”
She shifted, widening the space between them. Put starch in her tone. “As long as I have a store here, yes.”
His gaze met hers again. The way he gauged her, as if trying to uncover all her secrets, took her breath away. Danger, Serena Stanhope, danger.
Panic rose and she sucked in air too quickly, almost choking. Logan reached over to slap her on the back as Deke and Grace sent curious glances their way.
“You all right?” he asked in between her coughing.
No, she wasn’t.
Logan’s knowing gaze unnerved her in more ways than one.
CHAPTER THREE
THE COMMITTEE MEETING wound down after the particulars of Oktoberfest were discussed and job descriptions handed out. To Serena’s dismay, Heidi volunteered them both to serve food during the three-week event. She couldn’t get out of it without questions being hurled in her direction, so she smiled and graciously went along with the idea. Once the meeting had been adjourned, Serena jumped up and headed straight to the ladies’ room.
Logan couldn’t know, could he? She stared in the mirror, searching her soul. She’d been careful. Had kept her nose to the grindstone. Hadn’t created any red flags. Aunt Mary’s story was carefully crafted and cemented. So what did he think he knew?
All during the meeting he’d peppered her with questions that hit too close to home to be considered random curiosity about a store owner in a town where he didn’t even live. And the way he kept leaning into her space? Like he was trying to trip her up? It had worked, all right, if her startling response to his proximity was any indication.
Or could he actually be going along with his grandmother’s matchmaking attempt?
She hadn’t had many serious relationships with men throughout the years, but she did recognize the early stages of attraction. She couldn’t ignore Logan’s tantalizing spicy scent or keep from meeting his gaze when those dark brown eyes caught hers. When he’d brushed his shoulder against hers, she’d tried to control the rush of anticipation without success. His appeal was like a beam, pulling her toward him when she should be running in the opposi
te direction.
What was it about this attraction that scared her so much? How Logan had swooped in and claimed her attention? How she’d reacted to his presence? Or was it more about him finding out who she really was?
Throwing cold water on her face, she took several deep breaths and calmed her nerves. She could handle this. She’d kept her past hidden up until now, hadn’t she? She’d continue doing so, no matter that a handsome man with broad shoulders and a gorgeous grin weakened her confidence. Smoothing her dress, she walked back into the main room.
Conversation about Oktoberfest flew around her, and she heard something about how working together made everyone family, but she focused on scanning the pub, looking for a certain good-looking dark-haired man, instead of engaging in the discussion.
“You’ll love it,” a voice said near her ear as the group milled about and folks visited before heading home. Still distracted, Serena jumped when Heidi elbowed her. “Did you hear me?”
“Huh?” Serena turned her attention to her employee. “Sorry, I wasn’t listening.”
Heidi followed her gaze across the room to Logan, who stood talking to the pub owner.
“Ah, so that’s how it is.”
Serena felt her face flame. “Not at all. There’s nothing going on.”
“Really? Then why are you so jumpy?”
“Because I have a class that starts in—” she glanced at her watch “—thirty minutes and I want to get back to the store to set up.”
“You did that before we left,” Heidi reminded her.
“Well, I need to get back.”
Heidi looked at her as if Serena had forgotten her own name. “If you say so.”
“I do. Are you coming with me?”
“If you don’t mind, I’m going to grab a burger. I’ll be there in time for the class.”
“Okay, see you in thirty.”
Serena scooped up her purse and fled the pub, leaving the raucous music and loud voices behind her. Heart beating, she pulled her cell phone from her bag and hit speed dial. Even though she’d told Heidi she was going to the shop, she took a detour into Gold Dust Park, crossing under the stone arch at the entrance. She sat down at the first vacant picnic bench she encountered.
When the ringing finally stopped, her father’s voice came across the line.
“Serena. What a surprise.”
“Hi, Daddy. I know we were going to limit our calls, but, well, I think I have a situation here.”
“Deke, right?”
She had told her father about Deke’s curiosity last spring, when he’d come into the shop to introduce himself and the probing conversation had turned to family. When she found out later who Deke was, her father hadn’t thought dating his mother a problem at the time. They’d both successfully kept their past a secret, hadn’t they? Deke had backed off, as her father had predicted he would when she voiced her concerns, and everything had returned to normal, making Serena feel a bit foolish. After her bout of nerves, her father suggested they only talk when necessary, and up until now, there’d been no problems.
“There’s this guy, Logan Masterson. I don’t know him very well, but he seems interested in why I’m in town, do I have family, all the questions I’ve been trying to avoid.”
“Serena, no one knows who you are in that town. Your past is safe.”
Safe, but for how long? There had to be a list of people interested in her past, but her father had conveniently stuck his head in the sand while she righted wrongs.
“It’s probably me being overly cautious, but I’m wondering why after two years anyone is asking about my family.”
“Well, um, I’m sure it’s your imagination. You suspected Deke was interested in you, but nothing ever happened, so you were wrong about that.”
Was she? Just because Deke had backed off didn’t mean he hadn’t called in reinforcements. Logan definitely looked like a reinforcements kind of guy. How else to explain his attempts to meet up with her all summer?
“You’ve always been too nervous for your own good,” her father scolded, but Serena caught a note of worry in his tone.
Suddenly she was sure she wasn’t overreacting.
“Daddy? What’s going on?” She paused as a terrible thought rushed into her head. “You haven’t started any new scams, have you?”
“Of course not. I promised you years ago that I was going straight and I’ve kept my word.”
Relief washed over her, but she still suspected he wasn’t on the up-and-up. “Then why do I feel like you’re up to something?”
“No scams.”
His quick answer didn’t reassure her. “What aren’t you telling me?”
The silence on the other end seemed to drag on forever. Finally, her father spoke, his voice light and happy. “Jasmine and I are getting serious.”
Serena blinked. Not what she’d expected.
“Explain serious.”
“I think I’m in love.”
Definitely not what she’d expected. Ever since her mother had died when Serena was eight, her father had never seemed interested in other women.
Lifting her right hand, Serena gazed at the angel wings tattooed on her inner wrist. The ink had been a tribute to the mother she’d known briefly, yet who had made a big impact on Serena’s life. All that remained were fuzzy recollections of her mother encouraging her innate artistic abilities. Memories of a woman who’d smelled like flowers and had squeezed Serena in loving embraces. Their little family had been happy until a brief illness had taken her away, leaving Serena with a father who couldn’t deal with life.
It wasn’t until years later, when her father had made her a part of his scams, that she’d learned her mother had been the driving force behind keeping him legit. With his moral compass gone, he’d reverted to shady tricks, dragging his unsuspecting daughter with him until she was in so deep there didn’t seem to be any way out. Serena was still trying to outrun the shame.
“And she knows all about me,” her father said, breaking the silence.
Serena froze, then stuttered, “You—you told her?”
“No details. Just that I was a bit of a con man in my day.”
“A bit?” Serena choked out.
“I didn’t want to run her off.”
Serena spoke her deepest fear aloud. “Is there any way Jasmine could have sent Deke to spy on me?”
“Why would she? I told you, her sons are law enforcement. If they knew something about me, they would’ve confronted me by now.”
Or maybe they’d use reinforcements?
“So far I’ve played it cool and haven’t run into any problems, Serena. It’s more that they’ve got a problem with the idea of their mother dating. But their father is gone. It’s time to move on. She’s told them she’s happy, and it seems to have worked.” He chuckled. “Quite a woman, my Jasmine is. You’ll love her.”
“I don’t understand why you ever told her about me.”
“How could I not brag about my successful daughter?”
His words made her chest constrict. She loved her father, no matter his faults. “You’re sure no one is snooping?”
“I can’t see any way a person would know the truth. At least not through me or my beloved.”
Her father in love? As much as she was happy for him, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this was behind the sudden interest in her life.
“I’m sure you’re overreacting, like you did with Deke,” her father continued. “Take a few deep breaths. Be nice to the new guy and evade like I taught you to. You’ll be fine.”
Said the man who lived hundreds of miles away. Yes, he was sticking his head in the sand, appropriate, since he lived in Florida, and Serena would now have to keep her guard up all the time.
Did he have to fall for a woman with sons in law enforcement? Just when
she thought maybe, just maybe, she could lead a life without looking over her shoulder, her father might have jeopardized her future.
But he’d never see it that way. Her father was a romantic at heart, one who could sell you swamp land in Florida. She’d have to handle this alone.
“You’re probably right, Daddy. Thanks for listening.”
“Anytime, my sweet girl. Now, I have to run. Love you.”
“Love you, too,” she replied, already moving the phone away from her mouth.
A group of people walked by, reminding Serena where she was. She hurried to the store, unlocked the front door, flipped the sign to Open and dropped off her purse in the office. After starting the coffee maker, she collected the class supplies she’d stacked on the counter and carried them to the empty table on the showroom floor, where she laid out the paper and pens for the 7:00 p.m. calligraphy class. With only minutes to spare, she forced herself to corral her runaway emotions.
Her father in love. This spelled disaster.
Serena shoved away the conversation with her dad and concentrated on the students, who had started to arrive.
“Coffee will be ready in a jiff,” she told the women. “Or let me know if you’d like sparkling water instead.”
Members of a local Purple Hat Society were signed up for tonight’s calligraphy lessons. Serena had been thrilled, since working with customers connected her to the community. The ladies, age seventy and up, were a hoot. They spoke their minds and always seemed to enjoy the class, especially the refreshments Serena offered as part of the experience.
As the women got settled, she picked up a pen, recalling how she’d discovered her love of everything writing related in college. She’d taken all kinds of art classes on campus, but had loved calligraphy from the very beginning. All her dorm mates had asked her to sign their names to greeting cards in the fancy script, and now she shared that talent in the classes she offered here in the store.
“Now, ladies,” she said to the group of six sitting around the table, “this is a beginner class, so we’ll be using ballpoint pens instead of the finer pen nibs. If you keep at it, you can advance to dipping in ink later.” She walked around the table, handing out alphabet templates. “Tonight you’ll trace the letter patterns to get a feel for the decorative writing.”
