This Time Around
Page 20
“Great. I’ll be right back.”
She watched him walk away and noticed that he looked just as good from the back as he did from the front. Ugh. She didn’t need to be noticing anything about him. But she couldn’t just leave, not when he was nice enough to get her a drink.
Grabbing another ball, she figured she might as well hit one more while he was gone. Then she would thank him for the lemonade and the golf lesson and leave. And this time she would keep her word.
* * *
“Who’s the pretty lady?”
Joe frowned. He should have known Claude, the owner of the golf range who was also running concessions right now, would comment on Joe bringing a woman with him. He’d never brought one before.
“A friend,” he said, glancing at Sophie as she hit another ball off the tee. She was actually pretty good for her first time driving. He wasn’t really paying attention to her golf form, though. It was her form he couldn’t stop noticing, especially after he’d been so close to her. It had taken every ounce of willpower he had to step away from her.
Claude raised one bushy gray eyebrow. “A friend, hmm?”
“Yeah.”
“What can I get you two?”
“Two lemonades, along with an order of mind your own business.” Joe intended the words in jest, but he didn’t want the old man asking any more questions.
Raising his hands, Claude stepped back from the counter. “You’re a mite touchy for just a friend,” he said in his slow Southern drawl. Before Joe could respond, the old man snuck off to make the lemonades.
As he waited, Joe turned and watched Sophie again, and for the first time since he’d seen her tonight, he wondered about her date with Landon. He’d wondered about it plenty during the day, but once she stepped out of her car and he saw how pretty she was in her white T-shirt, gray shorts, and white tennis shoes, his focus had been entirely on her. So much so that he was having his worst day on the driving range in a long time. That would normally bother his competitive spirit, but right now he didn’t care.
Claude brought out the lemonades and set them on the counter. When Joe reached for his billfold, the man held up his hand again. “On the house.”
Joe shook his head. “I’ll pay for these.”
“You’re one of my best customers, so the drinks are on me today. I’m just glad you didn’t order beer.”
“We live in a dry county.”
“Exactly.” Claude grinned and pushed the drinks toward him. “Don’t keep your friend waitin’.”
“Thanks.” Joe took the drinks and hurried back to the range, in as much of a hurry to get back to Sophie as he was to get away from Claude’s good-natured ribbing. Sophie had just finished hitting a drive that shanked left when he arrived at their stall.
“Ugh,” she said. “I’m getting worse.”
Joe handed her a lemonade. “That happens sometimes, especially when you’re not used to an activity. I think you’re doing great.”
She looked at him from beneath her lashes. “Thanks,” she said softly, taking the lemonade from him.
He took a swig, the sweet beverage cooling his throat but not his thoughts. Then again, he probably shouldn’t be surprised. Fifteen years was a long time to go without a date. Then he had to remind himself this wasn’t a date. He was making up for being a heel about her and Landon.
“How was your date last night?” he blurted, unable to keep himself from asking the question, even though he had vowed not to bring the jerk into their conversation.
After a pause, she said, “It was okay.” She set the lemonade down on a small table flanked by two chairs, then quickly picked up her club and grabbed a golf ball out of the wire basket.
That was uninformative. Did she mean it was okay in a good way? Or was she just being polite?
When she swung at the ball three times and missed, he placed his lemonade next to hers on the table and walked over to her.
“Relax,” he said, gesturing to her shoulders, which were lifted close to her neck. Apparently he’d struck a nerve, and he wished he’d kept his big mouth shut.
“I am,” she said through gritted teeth, and pulled back and swung again. This time she barely nicked the ball, and it fell off the tee.
“Hey.” He moved closer to her and took the club from her hand, afraid she might start swinging it again. “I’m sorry I asked about you and Landon.”
“It’s all right.” She waved her hand at him and sighed. “To be honest, the date was awful. He’s incredibly boring and likes to talk about himself constantly.”
“What a surprise,” Joe mumbled, trying not to smirk.
“It was a waste of time.” She met his gaze. “You were right, I shouldn’t have gone out with him.”
The breeze from the fan in the corner of the stall lifted a strand of loose hair from her ponytail. He fought the urge to tuck it behind her ear. “I’m sorry,” he said again, meaning it.
She scoffed. “I’m waiting for the ‘I told you so.’”
He shook his head. “I’d never say that to you.” He handed her back her club. “We’ve got five balls left. Would you like to hit the rest?”
After staring at him for a moment, she nodded. “Yes. I would.”
“Good. You can pretend they’re Ferry’s head.”
Sophie smiled, and his knees nearly buckled. Oh boy, he was in trouble here. So much for a friendly outing. At least on his part.
* * *
Sophie had never experienced anything as satisfying as getting out her frustration by driving golf balls. Why haven’t I done this before? But she knew the answer. It was the answer for everything she’d missed out on during the past fifteen years. Work. Work, work, work. For once she hadn’t thought about Petals and Posies since she’d left the shop.
How could she when her attention kept flip-flopping from golf to Joe, focusing mostly on Joe the past twenty minutes. While she had gotten out her frustration over Landon being a bust, Joe had sat there drinking his lemonade and calling out a few pointers that were actually helpful. When she saw that only one ball was left, she grabbed it from the basket and walked over to him.
“You can hit the last one.”
He looked at the ball, then up at her. “Are you sure?”
She nodded. “Positive.” Truth was, she needed a break. Her arms were sore from swinging the club, not to mention the way her body had tensed when Joe mentioned Landon. She’d hoped he wouldn’t, but when he did, she couldn’t be dishonest about the date. She’d also genuinely thought Joe would gloat, but he didn’t. If anything, he looked sympathetic. Strange, since he had been so insistent that she not go out with Landon.
“All right.” He took one last drink and stood up, then took the ball from her hand and walked to the tee.
Sophie sat and grabbed her lemonade, the plastic cup slick with condensation. It was a warm night, but not too humid. Very pleasant for hitting golf balls. As she took a drink, she realized it was also pleasant to watch Joe. More than pleasant, she realized, taking in how good he looked as he squared up in front of the tee. His forearms were tan and muscular, but they didn’t compare to those biceps. Who knew I was such an arm girl?
She gave her head a hard shake, nearly spilling her lemonade on her lap. Where were these thoughts coming from? This was Joe, a man she hadn’t paid a lick of attention to in fifteen years. But for some reason, tonight she couldn’t keep her eyes off him. More importantly, he hadn’t rubbed her nose in the failed date. He’d also introduced her to a game she knew she was going to play again.
Friends, remember? We’re here together as friends.
Thwack! The sound of the driver hitting the ball brought her out of her thoughts, and she watched the white sphere fade into oblivion. Was it possible to hit a ball past the range? If so, Joe would be the one to do it.
He was grinning as he walked over to her. “Now that was a good drive.” He sat in the chair on the other side of the table. “Want to hit another bucket?”
Joe chuckled, resting one ankle over his knee. “Then we should listen to your muscles. You don’t want to injure yourself.”
Her gaze went to his biceps again, then she quickly took another sip of her lemonade. He’d caught her staring at him once; she didn’t want him to see her doing it again.
They sat in silence for a moment, then Joe uncrossed his legs. “I’ll take your driver and the bucket back to the clubhouse.”
Disappointment suddenly coursed through her. Their evening was over. They would get into their cars, and she would go back to her house. Alone. Like she always had. She glanced around the range and saw two empty stalls and no one at the clubhouse. The stall next to them had three teenage boys making the usual ruckus teen boys make.
“Do you mind waiting until I finish my lemonade?” she asked, a little embarrassed she was using such a weak excuse to extend their time together.
“Sure.” He leaned back in his chair. “I don’t want to rush you.”
She nodded, taking another sip, a tiny one this time. “Do you coach the golf team at school?”
He shook his head. “Nah. Football keeps me plenty busy. It’s my first sports love. Besides, the golf coach is excellent. His short game leaves me in the dust.”
Sophie had no idea what a short game was, but she would make sure to google it when she got home.
“Hold still,” Joe said, turning toward her.
“What?”
“There’s a bee hovering over your head.”
She looked up and saw the bee. She wasn’t afraid of them, but she also didn’t want to get stung. She remained still, only to cast a look at Joe, his placid expression transforming into fear.
“Sophie!” he suddenly yelled.
Before she knew it, they were overrun with bees. He grabbed her hand and she dropped her lemonade, then together they ran toward his pickup. He had the key out before they got there and quickly unlocked then opened the door, shoved her inside, scrambled in next to her, and slammed the door shut.
Chapter 6
“Are you okay?”
Sophie looked at Joe, who was only an inch or two away from her. She nodded, breathing heavily from the exertion of running across the parking lot. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d run anywhere.
“You didn’t get stung, did you?” Joe’s gaze roamed quickly over her body.
Her face heated and her breath caught in her throat. “N-no,” she said, trying to regain her composure.
“Good.” He scooted back on the bench seat.
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure. I heard the kids next to us throwing golf balls against the roof earlier. I have no idea who they are—they don’t go to Maple Falls High School. I bet they disturbed a nest when they were goofing off.”
Sophie looked out the windshield and saw the kids running toward a white SUV and flailing their arms in the air. As soon as they were all inside, the car’s engine roared to life and the teens peeled out of the gravel lot.
Joe shook his head. “Kids,” he said in a frustrated tone. Then he winced.
“Did you get stung?” Sophie leaned closer to him and saw several stings on his forearm. “Oh no.”
“It’s fine. Just a couple bee stings.”
She looked at his face and saw one on his cheek. Without thinking, she touched the spot right below the sting. “Does it hurt?”
His gaze held hers. “I can barely feel it.”
Did his voice sound huskier, or was that her imagination? She didn’t care. She also couldn’t move, and then he covered her hand with his.
“Sophie, I—”
“Ouch!” She yanked her hand away and started batting at a bee buzzing in the truck’s cab.
“That’s it.” Joe jammed his key into the ignition, turned it, and they flew out of the parking lot. As soon as they were on the road, he rolled down the windows. Two bees flew out.
“Are there any more?” he asked over the wind rushing through the cab.
Sophie looked around, then shook out the hem of her T-shirt. “I think they’re gone.”
“I’m keeping the windows open just in case.”
“Where are we going?”
“Back to my place. I have some calamine lotion in the medicine cabinet.” He glanced at her. “If that’s okay.”
She nodded, and when he faced forward, she winced. Hopefully he didn’t see it, because the bee had stung her on the cheek, too, but unfortunately not the one on her face. She shifted on the truck’s bench seat and leaned as much as she could to her left without drawing attention to herself.
When she glanced at Joe’s forearm and saw red welts forming, she knew he was making the right decision by getting some medicine as soon as possible. “You’re not allergic to bees, are you?”
“Fortunately, no. At least, not much. I don’t go into anaphylactic shock, but my skin reacts.” He looked at her. “What about you?”
“No allergies.”
“You’re lucky, then.” He turned into the entrance of one of the two modest suburbs on the outskirts of Maple Falls, then pulled into the second driveway. He shut off the engine.
“I’m going to leave the windows open,” he said. “In case more are hiding out.”
“Good idea.” She looked at Joe’s house in front of her. A beautiful hedge of pink azalea bushes lined a concrete front stoop. The house was sand-colored brick with cream shutters and a brown front door, which matched the brown door of the garage.
Joe got out of the truck, and before she could pull the latch, he’d jogged around and opened the passenger door for her, then held out his hand. She took it, inwardly smiling, appreciating that he was such a gentleman.
He paused, letting go of her hand. “Uh, do you want to come in? Or I can bring the lotion out here.”
She hesitated. This is not a date, remember?
“I’ll come inside.” She followed him down the sidewalk to the front door.
When she crossed the threshold, she was immediately impressed. The house was not only tidy but nicely decorated too.
“I’ll be right back. Make yourself at home.” He gestured to the brown leather couch in the living room.
Sophie winced. “I think I’ll stand.”
He gave her a puzzled glance, then disappeared down the hallway. A few seconds later he came back. “Brand-new bottle,” he said, taking off the cap. He held it out to her. “You first.”
She threaded her fingers together. “I don’t have as many stings as you do. You go ahead.”
“Are you sure?” When she nodded, he dabbed the pink lotion on the swollen bites on his arm. “I need to get some ice on these too,” he said, putting the bottle down on the kitchen counter. “Do you need some?” When she shook her head, he asked, “You got stung in the truck, right?”
Nodding, Sophie felt her cheeks flame, and she frowned. She hated that she blushed so much. “I did.”
“Where?”
“On my backside.”
His lips twitched. “You’re on your own with the lotion, then. The bathroom is down the hall.”
She caught his grin as he turned to the refrigerator and opened the freezer. She couldn’t help but smile as she took the bottle and went to the bathroom, which was just as tidy as the rest of the house she’d seen. It was also neater than her place. Housekeeping was always last on her list of things to do. If they had gone to her place, she would have been even more embarrassed than she was now.
Sophie applied the soothing lotion to her sting, wondering how she managed to get stung there in the first place, then walked back into the kitchen. Joe was sitting on a barstool next to the kitchen counter, an ice pack resting on his forearm. She set the lotion on the counter.
He moved to get up. “Do you want something to drink? I’ve got Coke, water, tea—”
�
�I’m fine.” She moved a little closer to him. “You didn’t put any lotion on the sting on your face.”
He touched it. “Is it bad?”
“Not too bad.” The welt was red, but not as angry and swollen as the ones on his arm.
Still, it needed tending to before it got that way. She picked up the lotion, took off the cap, then put a little on her index finger. She leaned over and dabbed it on his cheek.
“There,” she said, surprised at the softness in her voice. “Feel better?”
His eyes didn’t move from hers. “Much.”
The swirling of butterflies in her stomach was now at a fever pitch. When his gaze dropped to her mouth, she could barely breathe.
He’s going to kiss me . . . and I’m going to let him.
* * *
If Sophie knew how badly Joe wanted to kiss her, she’d probably slap him. At the very least she’d walk right out of his house and call a friend or an Uber to come get her. Having made several mistakes already, he was determined not to screw up now. He yanked his gaze from hers and stood, the movement almost painful—and not because of the bee stings.
“Uh, it’s probably safe back at the range now,” he said, turning his back to her as he tried to get his wits together. “Claude probably has the exterminator on the premises by now.”
“Oh. Right. I’m sure it is.”
He turned back to her, wondering if he was imagining that she sounded disappointed. Of course, he was, because now she wasn’t even looking at him. She was scanning the room, and he was thankful the cleaning service he’d hired to come by twice a week had decided to come out today instead of yesterday. Usually his place, while not dirty, was messy, mostly due to him being so busy, which was why he’d hired the service.
Why was he thinking about cleaning, anyway? Because it’s better than thinking about kissing Sophie. He pressed the ice pack to his arm, but what he really needed was a cold shower. If he couldn’t keep his focus on something other than Sophie, he’d end up kissing her, and that would be strike three in her book.
He tossed the ice pack on the counter and headed for the front door. “I’ll make sure the truck is empty of critters,” he said as he opened the door, then walked out without waiting for her response. When he got outside, he drew in a deep breath. Get it together, man!