But he knew how she felt. Their time together was fast running out.
He lifted her from her seat. “I sure do like those shoes, Daisy. Are they new?”
“Mommy bought them for me before we came here.” She lifted a foot to admire the red patent leather Mary Janes.
Daisy on his hip, Tuck rounded the car to where Elisa struggled to lift the suitcase from the trunk. “I thought we’d had this conversation.” He handed Daisy to her. “You take the kid, and let me get this. Please.”
She folded her arms over her chest and nailed him with her I-can-do-this look.
“Yeah, yeah,” he said. “Like I said earlier, you’re capable of handling any and every situation by yourself, Wonder Woman. Let me pretend, just for a few minutes, that I can do something to help.”
“You can. You do,” she argued, reaching for her daughter.
“Good. Then I’ve got this.” He pulled her battered luggage from the trunk, slammed it shut, then started along the walk with Elisa and Daisy following.
The ornate front door swung open and Elisa’s new landlady stepped out. One good look at Desdemona and Tuck understood why men flocked to her, vying to be her next husband. The woman oozed warmth and sex appeal. Everything about her exuded confidence. Here was a lady who not only knew who she was but liked that person. Elisa’s new housemate was no shrinking violet.
She wore black slacks with a sequined red silk blouse…and killer heels. Her dark hair was piled high and a mountain of jewelry clung to her. All in all, it was quite a look for a woman relaxing at home.
He held out a callused hand. “Tucker Wylder. I don’t think we’ve formally met.”
“No, we haven’t, Tucker, but I remember you from our little encounter at the deli. It’s pretty impossible to forget a face like yours. Your mama and daddy made themselves some good-lookin’ kids.” She took his hand in hers and held on. “Desdemona Rosebud Hamilton. I’ve heard a lot about you and your brothers.”
“Not sure whether that’s a good or a bad thing.”
“Good. All good.” She gave his hand one last squeeze, patting it with her other. “Thank you for watching out for these sweeties.”
A questioning smile formed. “You’re welcome. It’s been…a new experience for me.”
“Why don’t you bring that load in here? A big boy like you won’t have any trouble toting it upstairs.”
“Don’t guess I will.”
She swung the door wider.
As he drew nearer, he caught a whiff of her perfume. Something very feminine and very expensive. Yet it didn’t hold a candle to Lissie’s scent when she wore nothing at all.
He paused. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure. I’m an open book.” The quick grin belied her words.
“Not that it’s any of my business, but you know what they say about curiosity and that cat. Both times I’ve run into you, you’ve been done up to the nines. Do you ever dress down? Own anything casual? Jeans, sweats, T-shirts?”
“I do. I own all those things. Of course, they’re covered in bling, and I wear them with heels and tons of jewelry. Nothing’s more fun than a sweatshirt and pearls…or diamonds.”
A smile on his face, he nodded. “Good to know. I like you, Desdemona Rosebud Hamilton.”
She lifted a brow. “I can see why Elisa swooned when she met you.”
Behind him, Elisa snorted indignantly.
He laughed and then, barely inside, stopped and gave a whistle. The outside was magnificent. But inside? “Wow. Lissie said your place was incredible. Seems that was an understatement.”
Like the old blacksmith shop, this structure had stood the test of time. But while his had been built for function, then abandoned, Desdemona’s house had been designed to impress, and impress it did.
If he didn’t know better, he’d swear it had been constructed with Desdemona in mind. The place suited her larger-than-life personality perfectly.
“Haul those bags upstairs,” she said. “Then I’ll give you a tour.”
She turned to the little girl who stood quietly in the hallway, nervously sucking her thumb.
Desdemona knelt by her. “Do you remember which room is yours, sweetie?”
Daisy nodded.
“Can you show Tuck how to get there?”
Daisy nodded again. Taking Tuck’s free hand, she tugged at him. “Come on, Tut. I’ll help you.”
Her little duffel bag slung over her shoulder, she pulled him in her wake.
Elisa and Desdemona followed.
When they reached Daisy’s room, the little girl squealed and Elisa’s mouth dropped open. The room had been freshly painted sunshine yellow, and embroidered daisies covered both the bedspread and throw rug. A vase of fresh daisies sat on the dresser. Dolls and stuffed animals were strewn throughout the room and over the bed, and the dollhouse they’d seen before sat in its place of honor. A small mirrored vanity rested in one corner with a Daisy-sized stool in front of it.
“Desdemona?”
“Now, I know what you’re gonna say. Don’t.” She held up a hand, bracelets tinkling together at her wrist. “I wanted to surprise Daisy, and I can afford it. Let me have some fun.”
Elisa simply stared. “But this is too much.”
“Isn’t it great?” Desdemona grinned. “Do you like your new room, sweetie?”
Daisy nodded. After bouncing on her bed a few times, she slid to the floor and ran toward a three-foot stuffed frog by the window. “Mine?”
“If your mommy says so.”
“Oh, aren’t you crafty.” Elisa narrowed her eyes. “If I say yes, you get your way. I say no, and I’m the baddie.”
Desdemona smiled and shrugged her shoulders.
When Elisa turned to him, Tucker held up his hands. “I’m Switzerland.”
* * *
Walking into his dark house an hour later was like stumbling across the Rub’ al-Khali—the Empty Quarter in the Arabian Desert. He and a few of his fellow Marines had had the displeasure of flirting with the edge of its inhospitable dunes. That’s how his house felt tonight. Inhospitable and barren. Totally lifeless.
He switched on a table lamp, then turned it off when it only served to highlight the emptiness. He’d been happy before Elisa had burst on the scene with her little one, and he’d be happy again. It would just take some time.
Besides, they hadn’t left the country. Any time he wanted, he could hop in the car and visit. It wouldn’t be the same, though. He and Daisy wouldn’t sneak Pop-Tarts for breakfast while Elisa grabbed a few more minutes of sleep. When he came home from work, Daisy wouldn’t be standing at the front window waving to him and blowing kisses.
Maybe he should get a dog.
Okay, now he was thinking crazy. No shedding, slobbering dog in his house.
Tucker headed for the kitchen and a cold beer. He’d settle in and watch an uninterrupted replay of Sunday’s game as loud as he wanted—and stay up as late as he needed. It would be good.
Right.
Chapter 19
The next couple of weeks became a flurry of workmen and book orders, paperwork and decisions as the bookstore came to life. Elisa loved every single minute. It turned out she did, indeed, have a fairy godmother, and her name was Desdemona Rosebud Hamilton.
Despite all the busyness, though, Elisa managed to sneak away a few times for dinner at Tuck’s while Desdemona and Daisy enjoyed a girls’ night in. The first time he’d called and invited her to his place, she’d been like a high school girl invited to the prom. Heck, she still was. Every time her phone rang, she prayed it was him. She’d been so afraid that night they’d moved to Desdemona’s would be the last she saw of him. Thankfully, she’d been wrong.
Their evenings always ended up in that huge bed of his. Her body came alive remembering his touch and the unbelievabl
e care he took with her. The man was fast becoming a habit.
Luke had been so wrong. He’d been the one who wasn’t very good at lovemaking. Then again, for him maybe it had just been sex. If he’d loved her, he wouldn’t have walked away.
Since she was a working mother again, she’d followed Tucker’s earlier advice and enrolled Daisy in Lucinda’s day care. It was a good move for them all. Daisy was blossoming there.
Her phone rang, and she checked the ID. “Good morning, Fairy Godmother. How are you on this beautiful day?”
“Sweatin’ bullets,” Desdemona said. “The shop’s almost ready to open, and we still don’t have a name for it.”
“True.” With the phone tucked between her ear and chin, Elisa cut open another box of books, then leaned into it, taking a deep breath. New books had a smell all their own, one that was totally addictive. One she’d never take for granted.
Over the phone, Elisa heard the beep of a car horn. “What’s that?”
“Yancy. The old fool won’t come to the door for me. Instead he sits out there and honks.”
“Come to the door for you?”
“Yes, ma’am. We’re driving to Savannah for lunch.”
A silly grin played over Elisa’s lips. “Well, you children have fun.”
“Ha!” She dropped her voice. “If I’m not home when bedtime rolls around, be sure you lock up. I’ll have my key.” Then, with barely a hitch in her stride, Desdemona asked, “What do we do about the name?”
Elisa swallowed her groan. They’d spent a lot of time brainstorming this.
Desdemona plowed on. “I’m still leaning toward Rosebud’s Reading Paradise. We can use a rosebud design on our business cards, on the rugs, chairs, lamps—anything and everything.”
“It’s your store, so if that’s what you want…”
“But you don’t like it.”
“That’s not true. It’s a great name—if you’ve changed your mind about our clientele.”
“What do you mean?”
“We went way outside the box with the pink exterior. Now you want to splash rosebuds everywhere. In my opinion, that’s likely to cost you the entire male citizenry of Misty Bottoms.”
“Well, horse feathers! You’re right.” Her deep sigh carried over the line. “Got any other ideas?”
“I do. At two o’clock this morning it woke me up.”
“Honey, at two in the morning, you should have had that handsome Wylder brother in your bed and been too preoccupied to think about business.”
Even though she was alone in the store, heat crept up Elisa’s neck and face.
“You still there?” Desdemona asked. “Or are you daydreaming about that handsome man at work out on Old Coffee Road?”
“I’m here. I thought maybe we could call it Just Books. On the window beneath that, add …and a little more.”
A few seconds of silence followed. “Just Books…and a little more. I love it!”
“Good.” Elisa chuckled. “Because I already told Jenni Beth’s husband Cole to stop looking for rosebuds and start scrounging the countryside for anything with books on it. Lamps, rugs, knickknacks, whatever. It sure is handy to know an architectural salvager.”
“Well, shut my mouth! You and me, Elisa? We make a great team.”
Yancy laid on his horn again.
“Guess I’ve kept my beau cooling his heels long enough. The name feels right, Elisa. Let’s run with it.”
She’d barely hung up when the phone rang again.
Her head still on her conversation with Desdemona, Elisa decided to take the new name out for a spin. “Good morning, Just Books…and a little more.”
“It’s the little more I’m interested in.”
Her knees turned to jelly. “Tucker.”
“I know you’re busy, but I’ve been thinking. Now that you’re not living with me, is it okay if we—I don’t know—date? Openly?”
A smile the size of Texas on her face, she did a fist pump.
“Lissie, you still there?”
“Yes. Yes, I am. And yes, I think that would be totally appropriate.”
“Appropriate, heck. Not a single thing I have in mind comes close to appropriate, sugar, but we’ll start there.”
They talked a few more minutes, then he said, “Got to go. Brant’s after me about some order he can’t find. Call you later.”
She sank onto one of the little chairs she’d placed by the window. She had a bona fide date with Tucker Wylder and felt absolutely giddy. Shades of high school!
Hauling another box of merchandise from the storage room, Elisa unpacked it, her mind ricocheting between Tucker and decorating ideas for the store. She wanted the shop to be comfy and cozy. Peaceful. A place where a person could sit and read or visit with friends. The trick would be maximizing the small space. Admiring the newly sanded and refinished floors, she heard a knock at the door.
Cole stuck his head inside. “Got a couple of things for you in my truck. Be right back.”
When he returned, he carried the drop-leaf table of her dreams. A second trip to his truck netted the perfect lamp to set on it, a lamp not covered in rosebuds. Instead, the base looked like a pile of slightly askew books. She loved it. Just Books…and a little more.
“That the new electric fireplace box?”
“Yes.” She picked up a remote, pushed a button, and the fire sprang to life. “Nice, isn’t it? And safer. After a lot of back and forth, Desdemona and I decided an honest-to-goodness fire in an old building full of books probably wasn’t the best idea.”
Before he left, she handed him a book. “Take this to Jenni Beth. It’s a new one on outdoor weddings. If she likes it, it’s hers. If not, she can bring it back and I’ll put it on the shelf in the wedding section.”
“The wedding section?”
“With Magnolia Brides such a huge part of Misty Bottoms’ economy, you’d better believe I’m playing it up.”
“That makes sense.”
“I’m including a section for car and motorcycle enthusiasts, too. Since the Wylder brothers have their shop here, Misty Bottoms gets a lot of car lovers along with the brides. Again, we might as well capitalize on it.”
“And to think Bowden let you go. They lost a treasure.” He gave her ponytail a small tug. “You’ll do well.” His wife’s book tucked under one arm, he gave her a wave and headed out.
The newly painted front door might as well have been a revolving one. While she loved meeting and talking to all the Misty Bottomers, it slowed her work—but it would pay off in business later.
Stealing a few minutes, she hunted up the chalkboard she’d stashed in the back room. In a pretty flourish, she wrote, All y’all are welcome to come in, sip a glass of sweet tea, and take a peek at Misty Bottoms’ newest business—Just Books…and a little more.
Then she carried it outside and hung it on the door. She’d take advantage of the curiosity and, at the same time, lock down the name. Now that she’d put it out there, Desdemona couldn’t change her mind. Again.
That Wednesday evening, Desdemona had been more than happy to keep an eye on Daisy while Tucker and Elisa drove into Savannah for dinner. The night had been heavenly, but Elisa’s work-night bedtime had long since come and gone when they drove past the Misty Bottoms city limits sign. Since it was too late to detour to Tuck’s house, they’d done some pretty heavy necking parked in front of Desdemona’s. The result? A lot of pent-up needs and more than a little frustration.
Right now, though, that seemed years ago.
It was Friday night, the end of a long week, and Elisa was dog-tired. She wanted a glass of wine, a good book, and a long soak in her big tub. None of that was going to happen, since it was Halloween, with trick-or-treating bumped up to first place on the to-do list.
When she pulled into the day care’s p
arking lot, she realized that, even as tired as she was, she hadn’t been this happy, this satisfied in years.
Yet as she opened the car door, a dark cloud drifted overhead, both literally and figuratively. The figurative one had a name. Hard-Ass Harry.
She should have told Tuck already. Every day, every night they spent together made the secret a bigger betrayal. She knew that, knew she was living on borrowed time. He deserved the truth, and she had to be the one to give it to him. If he found out—no, when he found out, because he would.
Daisy loved Tucker, and she’d be caught in the crossfire.
Harry would hurt them all—Daisy, Tucker, and herself.
As wonderful as all this had been, she had to stop imagining a future with Tucker in it. It was time to sandbag her heart. Time to protect herself and her daughter.
But was she strong enough to take that step?
She honestly didn’t know. A huge part of her wanted to play the ostrich and squeeze out every last second.
* * *
The instant she stepped through the day-care door, Daisy Elizabeth ran to her. “Mommy, Mommy, look what I made.” She held up a pumpkin-shaped paper. “I colored it myself.”
Elisa grinned. “I see that.”
“Can we put it on Miss Desdi’s refrigerator?”
“Desdemona’s,” Elisa corrected slowly and carefully.
“That’s what I said, Mommy.” Those innocent blue eyes lifted to her mother’s.
“I think she’d like that.”
“We had pumpkin pancakes for lunch today. Teacher didn’t put no syrup on them. She said it was ’cause we didn’t need no more sugar.”
Over the sea of small heads, Elisa met Lucinda’s gaze. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure. Good luck tonight, and stay safe.”
Taking Daisy’s hand, the little girl still clutching her pumpkin picture, they stepped outside.
“The weather’s perfect, baby girl. Why don’t we put down our windows and take a drive along Main Street so you can see all the Halloween displays?”
I've Got You, Babe Page 21
