“I brought a peace offering.” Meghan peeked out from behind the box, giving an apologetic smile.
Tara unfastened the chain, unbolted the deadbolt, and unlocked the front door. She began to speak before the door was completely open. “I noticed.”
Meghan held the box out in front of her, letting the smell of still-warm kolaches waft into the room before risking entering the house. “I even made David drive to The Czech Stoppe.”
“I can see that.” Damn the smiling woman stamped in red on the box. Even when Tara was obsessed with counting every calorie as a teen, The Czech Stoppe had been her undoing. “He’d better have gotten plenty of apricot cream cheese.”
“Six.” Meghan peeked into the box. “Well, five now.” She rubbed her hand over her rounded belly. “I got hungry on the way over.”
“You live ten minutes from here.”
“You try being five months pregnant.” Meghan rolled her eyes. “For three months, I couldn’t keep anything down. Now I can’t stop eating.” Meghan stood stiffly in the living room, silently taking in Tara’s appearance.
“Then you can make the coffee. I have decaf. It’s in the cow canister.” Tara rolled her neck to the side, trying to get a little of the stiffness out of the muscles. “Let me throw some clothes on.”
“Take your time.” Meghan patted Rosie’s head before turning to walk into the kitchen. “You kind of need it.”
Five minutes and a half-cup of coffee later, Tara took a seat opposite her sister-in-law at the kitchen table. Meghan was a notoriously early riser. She’d probably already gone for her daily three-mile walk before driving to Tara’s house. If Tara didn’t know that Meghan was serious about following her obstetrician’s strict no-caffeine rule, she would have suspected she’d snuck in a grande mocha this morning. Meghan was practically buzzing in her seat which meant only one thing …
“So when were you going to tell me?” Meghan’s first question erupted before Tara had taken hold of the lightly golden pastry placed on the saucer in front of her.
“About?” Tara concentrated on the pale orange filling while intentionally avoiding answering the question. She didn’t want to associate Wyatt with her favorite treat, so she reached for one of the prune-filled pastries. David always picked a few up as a joke. Rosie loved them. Tara didn’t.
“You know.” Meghan leaned over in a half-whisper appropriate for gossiping in the high school cafeteria.
“Wyatt?” Tara tore a miniscule bite from the pastry. Meghan would notice if she stopped eating completely.
“Of course.”
Tara chewed slowly. Meghan was literally bouncing in her seat. Tara had doubted her brother would ever find anyone who loved football as much as he did, but she was wrong. Meghan knew her favorite team’s statistics as well as any of the football coaches at the high school David worked at.
Tara tore off a second bite. “Not much to tell. He’s … Wyatt.” Vain. Cocky. Believes he’s God’s gift to women.
Meghan took an enormous bite of her strawberry-filled kolache in frustration. She wasn’t getting the details she wanted from Tara, that was plain on her face. She let out a long breath and rested her chin on her fist. “David said you wouldn’t want to talk about him.” She rolled her eyes. “Ugly breakup?”
“Something like that.” Tara took a sip of her coffee and tried not to grimace. Meghan’s coffee bordered on paint thinner. She reached for the sugar bowl and added two spoons, wishing she could stir in three, but not wanting to hurt Meghan’s feelings.
Meghan sat back in her chair, using her belly as a place to rest her coffee mug. She pursed her lips, giving a hint of her former life as a schoolteacher before she decided to be a full-time mom. She nodded, agreeing with some conversation going on inside her head. “Then let’s talk about Josh.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.” Tara took a deep breath. Time to put all those breathing exercises she learned in her college yoga class to use. Calm. Mellow. Serene.
Who was she kidding?
She met Meghan’s unwavering stare.
definitely not her sister-in-law.
“Really?” Meghan drew the word out three times as long as necessary. She narrowed her eyes and grinned. “Because that’s not what Lainey said.”
God, Tara was going to have to have a talk with Lainey.
“Because Lainey said that Josh hurt his hand digging you out from under the roof when it fell in on you.” Meghan failed to read the let’s-not-have-this-discussion expression on Tara’s face … or she just preferred to ignore it.
“That’s right.”
“Interesting.” Meghan sounded like she’d just heard the juiciest piece of gossip in years.
“But that’s it. He dug me out.” Tara heard the pitch of her voice begin to rise in annoyance. Or panic. She wasn’t exactly certain which one, and she struggled to sound calm. “What else would he do? Let me stay under?”
“But he got hurt helping you.”
Tara clenched her jaw. She hated this part of small town life. Every little hint of a possible blooming romance flew through the air. Meghan was probably already planning a June wedding for them. “It’s nothing.”
Meghan rolled her eyes and shook her head. She patted her belly while shifting forward in her chair to place her coffee back on the table. “I’m bored. I spend the day with a toddler.”
“Whose vocabulary is better than most teenagers,” Tara interrupted.
“I spend the day with a precocious toddler,” Meghan corrected herself. “Come on. Let me live vicariously. What’s Josh like?” Her almost-black eyes pleaded with Tara.
Tara hesitated, taking an apricot pastry from the box. Taking her time, she tore off a corner, staring at Meghan. Her sister-in-law wasn’t going to drop this. “He’s … nicer than I thought he’d be.”
Meghan bounced in her seat in excitement, clapping with glee. “Tell me more.”
Chapter Six
September
“You missed the staff meeting.” Lainey jogged through the hall and intercepted Tara before she made it to her cubicle.
“I had a good excuse.” She held up her sling-free arm. “I told Chuck where I’d be.”
“But you didn’t tell him why you left the football god’s reception on Saturday.” Lainey shot Tara a warning look.
Tara ran her hand through her hair and pulled it back from her face. “I meant to call him.”
“No problem.” Josh sauntered down the hallway and came to stand next to Tara. “I talked with my dad.”
“You … you didn’t need to do that.”
“Sure I did.” He stared at Lainey until she understood she was no longer welcome to be a participant in this conversation.
Lainey quickly looked between the pair. “Um, I’ll see you two tonight at the auction.”
Josh flinched. “Of course. Wouldn’t miss it.”
Tara ran her hand over the skin on the back of her left arm. Only a tiny ridge could be felt, but her arm ached from the poking and prodding she’d endured that morning. “Really, you didn’t need to cover for me.”
“Who was covering?” He arched an eyebrow in Todd’s direction. “I just explained that Wyatt and I had been talking about participating in the bachelor auction and before I realized what had happened, I did the interview without you. Blame the New York ego.” He emphasized the last word in his sentence. Tara had a vague memory of mentioning his ego to him while still in Florida.
“Thanks.” Tara relaxed as they were once again alone in the hall. “But you shouldn’t have had to do that.”
“It’s okay. My dad won’t fire me.” He looked down at her. She could tell he was trying to read what she hoped was a blank expression on her face. “Is it so hard for you to believe a guy just wants to be nice sometimes?”
“Not much. We’re broadcasting live from the kickoff of the Bicentennial Heritage Days celebration tonight. You’re in charge of the bachelor auction, but we won’t be covering every event. Have to save some airtime for the real news.”
Tara nodded in agreement. “That’s good to hear. Have you ever been here for Heritage Days?” Josh shook his head, and Tara continued on. “Trust me. It turns September into the longest month of the year. You’ll be tired of it before it’s over.”
“That bad?”
“I think we could broadcast all day and still miss some of the events.”
Josh chuckled as he braced himself against the wall with one hand, surprised to realize that Tara didn’t back away from him. “Then I’m glad we’re using restraint.” Josh pursed his lips as he looked into the main room of cubicles. “I think that was it.” He drummed his fingers on the wall just above Tara’s ear. “Oh, you need to go talk with my dad. A woman up on The Hill filed a police report for sexual assault last night. Doesn’t sound like she can really remember much.”
Tara’s heart sped in her chest as she tried to keep her voice steady. “And why is it my story?”
“Because you’re female. Thought it would be easier for her to talk with you about what happened.”
“Of course. That makes sense.” Tara couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of that herself. Even with Josh behind the big desk, they wouldn’t assign him to that type of story. It was official: she was on edge with Wyatt back in town.
Josh’s phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out to check to see who was calling. Frowning, he glared at the screen. “I’ve got to take this.” Giving Tara a half-wave, he backed down the hallway. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Tara smiled a little too widely. “Looking forward to it.” She walked into the office and turned into her cubicle. Sliding her messenger bag from her shoulder, she reached for the rake on her desktop Zen garden. As she focused on making the zigzag lines the perfect distance from one another, she felt the tension leaking away. Her phone rang just as she drew the last section of lines. She pressed the button to answer. “Tara Sullivan.”
“Glad you’re back. I need to talk with you.”
She picked up her pen and notepad from the top of her desk. “I’ll be right there, Mr. Owens.”
• • •
“How did we get this lucky?” Lainey rose onto her tiptoes as she looked at the preparations being made for the bachelor auction. Even an hour before the event’s scheduled start time, the room was almost full of women of all ages — most of whom Tara had never seen.
Tara studied her friend’s face to make certain she was serious. “You mean, how did we get to cover the auction?” She shook her head as she attached her microphone to her blazer. “Do you think Todd or Spencer really wanted to do this?”
Lainey rolled her eyes. “Well, you never know about Todd.”
Not wanting to touch that remark, Tara turned to check to see that their camera would have a clear view of the action. “Trust me. Once you’ve covered a few of these, they all start blending together. We don’t have that many eligible guys in town.”
“Says Miss Big Time Anchor,” Lainey teased as she pushed Tara’s shoulder.
“Because this is so glamorous.” She looked down and tapped her phone’s screen. “We’ll record the whole auction and clip a segment for a tease at ten. Then, we should have time to edit it to be the piece we close with on the eleven o’clock news.”
“Sounds good to me,” Lainey’s voice had taken on a dreamy quality as the first few men filed into the room. Her chocolate brown eyes lingered on Wyatt’s back. He placed a typewritten card on the table and almost caused a riot as ten women fought to be the first to see what he’d planned for his date. “Have you looked at their cards?”
“I’m not planning on bidding.” Tara’s hair slid into her face as she looked down at her notes and shook her head.
“It would be good research. Background stuff,” Lainey licked her lower lip and purred at Wyatt. “Now he’s what I call attractive.”
“Trust me. Every guy can look hot when you put him in a suit. Why don’t you … ” Tara rose from studying her notes just as Josh entered the building. The sunset cast a golden glow across his face, and the room fell silent as all the women seemed to hold their breath.
He’d gotten a fresh haircut. While his messy locks still looked as if someone had just finished running their fingers through his coal black hair, it seemed tamer than she’d seen in recent days — more like he wore it back on the nightly news. The first of the eligible men to refrain from wearing a tie, the top two buttons of his starched white shirt stood open, revealing a hint of ebony chest hair. The five o’clock shadow across his jaw was unexpected, but it made his impossibly blue eyes shine even brighter. As he placed his card on the table with those of the other men, he glanced up, and those mesmerizing eyes fixed on her.
Tara forgot how to breathe.
“Tara.” Lainey’s elbow poked firmly into Tara’s ribs. “Really, girl, you’re drooling.”
Tara blinked as her cheeks flushed pink. She quickly turned away but caught sight of Josh’s amused grin. He had dimples.
“Can he be any more perfect?” Lainey let out a long breath as she fanned her face with her program. “Guess they just don’t get enough of him at school. Really.”
Tara was about to answer when she realized just who Lainey was looking at. A dozen teenagers encircled Wyatt as he signed autographs. “Not sure if they should be allowed here. They can’t bid.”
“I don’t think they care.” Lainey sighed again and ran a hand over her hair.
“Looks like Mr. Sexiest Man on Television has some competition.” Kelly Pearson, one of the girls in Tara’s graduating class, approached the two women. She chewed the end of a pen between her teeth. She leered at the men talking with Mrs. Slaggle as if she were a tiger ready to pounce.
Tara turned her back on her former classmate and rolled her eyes. As the final preparations for the auction began, Wyatt reached into the clear fish bowl and pulled out a folded slip of paper. A little girl shyly bit her lip as she shuffled the stack of cardstock tags in her hands and gave him a sign with a red seven. Wyatt winked at the crowd and held up the corresponding number of fingers.
“Lucky seven!” A middle-aged woman began digging through the cash in her billfold. Even from this distance, Tara could tell the stack was made of hundred dollar bills. She’d never really understood the excitement associated with the auction, but this year the crowd seemed ready to spontaneously combust.
The little girl hesitated as she approached Josh. “Your turn.” She held the bowl in front of her chest.
“Can’t wait.” Josh teased as he reached in and dug through the remaining pieces of paper. Unfolding it, he nodded in satisfaction. Josh silently pinned the number eight to his jacket as he stepped off the small stage the librarians used for story time.
Mrs. Slaggle clapped her hands together eagerly. Tara fought back a laugh at the woman’s smile. She couldn’t have planned it better if she’d tried. The two men most likely to draw the highest bids were the final pair in the auction.
“I’ll bet I know who you’re bidding on.” Kelly looked at Tara — a challenge in her eyes.
“I’m not here to bid.” Tara shook her head dismissively as she positioned her earpiece. She nodded to Lainey as she tapped her ear.
Kelly giggled and rested her hand on Tara’s arm. “You’re telling me you’d let someone else go out with Wyatt? Really? I’m surprised you two aren’t married yet.”
Lainey stopped adjusting the camera and stared at Kelly as if she were watching a car accident on the freeway. “Ta
ra and Wyatt? You’re kidding me, right?”
Kelly gave a low chuckle and leaned across the table, her cleavage readily apparent beneath her partially unbuttoned blouse. Just like in high school, spreading gossip was her favorite sport. “Totally. Y’all were voted Most Likely to Be Attached at the Lip, right?” She turned to Tara for confirmation.
Lainey’s eyes were the size of half dollars. “Tara.” She pointed at her friend. “And Wyatt Miller?” Her head swiveled and she let out a long sigh at the former quarterback. “Why did you never tell me about this?”
“There’s nothing to tell.”
“Except the story when they almost got kicked out of the after-graduation party.” Kelly was enjoying the attention from her new audience.
“We weren’t doing anything. Mrs. Conyers asked us to go into the storage closet and get more cups. Coach Belkins apologized after he found out we were supposed to be in there.” Tara felt the tension building in her neck as she spoke. She couldn’t believe she had to defend actions that happened in what seemed a lifetime ago.
“Then why was he wearing your lipstick?”
“Somebody was wearing your lipstick?” Josh approached Tara from behind. “Sounds like an interesting story.”
Kelly gave a Cheshire cat smile at Josh’s attention. “Wyatt looks good in pink — just like everything else.” She narrowed her eyes and glanced at Tara. “My mother says she’s the reason he came back.”
“Your mom doesn’t know what she’s talking about.” Tara slammed her notepad on the desk. “Feel free to carry on this conversation without me.” Her heart was speeding in her chest and she felt beads of sweat forming along her brow. “I need some air.” She pushed past an amused Kelly and strode out of the building, slamming the door behind her so hard all conversation in the room stopped.
• • •
“Hey, Tara.” Lainey peeked out the door, interrupting Tara’s pacing. “They’re about to start. You coming back in?”
Tara lowered her chin to her chest and took a last cleansing breath. “Thanks.” She forced a smile. “I’ll be right there.” Smoothing her windblown hair with her palm, she adjusted her blouse and tugged her jacket higher on her shoulders. Pushing open the door, she stepped into the main room of the library. Wyatt appeared to be re-enacting the Super Bowl winning play he’d made last season. The men were standing to the side of the stage, listening to Wyatt with rapt attention. As Tara took her place to the side of the stage, she realized not all the men were paying attention to Wyatt’s story.
Small Town Secrets Page 7
