Secretly Smitten

by Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Denise Hunter, Diann Hunt

  “She probably would. But I’m not going to show them to her yet. She’ll know I’m investigating. We’re not telling her until we have it all figured out.”

  He called Sophia and tucked the box under his arm. Now he needed to figure out how to keep Tess there for the rest of the evening.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Several swans floated serenely by on the lake where Tess sat with her mother and sisters. A blue-and-white checked tablecloth covered the rough wood of the picnic table, and Anna had produced her famous fried chicken from the depths of the oversized basket she’d lugged from the car. Tess’s contribution to the Sunday feast was homemade herb bread. Zoe had brought a plate of store-bought brownies, and Clare brought mashed potatoes made from scratch. None of it matched the rest of the food, but the mishmash of assorted food was a tradition and gave every Sunday dinner a party atmosphere.

  “I saw a sign up for workdays to redo the station,” Tess told her family. “A train stop in Smitten would be the salvation of my bookstore.”

  Clare handed her a plate of food. “It’s going to take major workdays to bring that place back. It’s filled with mice and spiders.”

  “Eew!” Zoe shuddered. “Last time I looked, half the floorboards were rotted too.”

  “Carson is donating new floorboards,” Anna said. She was wearing black slacks and a bright pink top that lit her fair skin with color.

  Tess had often wondered why she had never remarried after their father left ten years ago. Anna was still lovely and vibrant, and several single men at church had given her more than a passing glance.

  “So the train is coming?” Zoe popped a brownie into her mouth.

  Anna put a chicken breast on her plate. “We don’t know yet. The town is going to put its best foot forward. The decision won’t be made for several months, and there will be visits by RailAmerica to evaluate what we could bring to the table. But you have to admit our town would make a perfect backdrop to a scenic journey.”

  “The train station will look darling when it’s restored,” Clare said. “Just imagine flower boxes under the windows and the walk lined with purple pansies. We’d have enough tourists coming through that the nursery could stay open year-round. I talked to Mr. Lewis about selling wreaths, holiday decorations, and souvenirs. I wouldn’t have to look for a winter job.”

  “Are you doing the landscaping for the train station?” Tess asked.

  “I sure am. I have a ton of plans for the yard.” Clare settled beside Tess at the picnic table. “But I’m more interested in what you’ve found out.”

  “It’s kind of sad.” Tess told her family about the letter they’d found.

  Anna’s eyes filled with tears. “So his family never received it. What if he never found them?”

  “He had to have come to town or his dog tags wouldn’t be here. So maybe he was able to find out where they’d moved.”

  “But if he was in town, why didn’t someone see him and tell Grandma?” Zoe asked. “I would have thought that kind of news would be trumpeted all over town. It’s very odd.”

  “It’s strange for sure,” Tess said. She glanced at her younger sister, who seemed unusually distracted today. Ordinarily Zoe would be demanding they get to the bottom of this now. She’d be pushing for them to talk to their grandmother too. “What’s up with you, Zoe? I heard you quit your job at the coffee shop.”

  A smile played around Zoe’s lips and her dark eyes snapped with excitement. “I’m starting my own business.”

  “Doing what?” Anna asked. “Zoe, you never think before you leap. What is it this time?”

  Their mother managed not to roll her eyes, but Tess wouldn’t have blamed her. Zoe changed jobs like most people changed brands of hand lotion. But maybe this would be what her sister needed.

  “Go on,” Tess prompted when Zoe’s shoulders sagged.

  Zoe sat up. “Smitten may be the romance capital, but for those of us who are single here, it’s still tough to connect. We see couples wandering the town hand in hand and it makes us feel even worse. So I’m starting a romance club, so to speak. There will be online meetings, but I’ll also have parties where people can meet in a safe place in person.”

  “Where will these ‘meetings’ take place?” Anna asked.

  “There’s the community center, for one thing. And I can get restaurants to offer special rates to my group. Natalie has already agreed to host a monthly meeting on the night she’s normally closed. So it will be just for my clients.” Zoe leaned forward eagerly. “And if we can get the train, imagine the romantic dinner trips!”

  “I like it,” Clare said. “No big surprises that way. It feels safer than regular online dating. If you don’t like the guy you came to meet, you can leave and know your friends are looking out for you.”

  “Exactly,” Zoe said.

  Tess tried to imagine herself in a situation like that. She enjoyed meeting new people, but the whole dating scene was scary. Her thoughts flew to Ryan. Would he agree to do something like that? What if he found a girlfriend that way and didn’t greet her with that dimpled smile that melted her heart? She told herself she was being silly. Just because there would be a new dating service didn’t mean everyone in town was going to rush to join it.

  Zoe interrupted her thoughts. “You’ll do it, right, Tess?”

  Tess stared into her sister’s pleading eyes. “You know I hate that kind of thing, Zoe. Clare thinks it’s a good idea. She’ll join.”

  Clare swallowed the bite of food in her mouth. “I will not! I don’t like meeting strangers. You know that. You talk to different people every day at the bookstore. You’re the one who can do something like that and never blink.”

  “You’re both going to join,” Anna said. “I will too. We need to be supportive of your sister.”

  Her mother’s inflexible tone ended Tess’s objections. She might register, but she wasn’t going to e-mail any strange guy. If a man wanted to talk to her, all he had to do was show up at the bookstore.

  The entire town turned out for the train station workday on the first day of June. It was important to the residents that everything be ready for the bicentennial. The hope was that the railroad would decide to come through in time to announce it at the big celebration for the town’s founding. As he scanned the crowd, Ryan realized he was looking for Tess. Clare was directing people on digging up flower beds for the stacks of shrubs and bulbs she had brought. Natalie was making the rounds with a tray of coffee and gluten-free cookies. A truck with Carson Lumber emblazoned on the side was parked in front. The back lift gate was open to reveal oak flooring stacked to the ceiling. But there was no sign of Tess.

  Sophia tugged on his hand. “Daddy, what can I do?”

  “Maybe Miss Clare could use some help pulling weeds.” That should be safe enough. The yard was full of weeds. She wouldn’t be able to harm anything.

  Clare steered the little girl to where two other children were yanking vegetation from a small patch. She had a smudge of dirt on her cheek. “Looking for Tess?” she said.

  Her knowing smile made him squirm, and Ryan decided to be honest. “Yeah. Is she here?”

  “I think she’s inside.” Her smile faded. “Don’t hurt her, Ryan.”

  Her admonition gave him pause. Did that mean Tess had indicated an interest in him? “What exactly do you mean?”

  “I mean, you’re a rich and handsome widower. And you sell ice cream, which could turn any girl’s head.”

  He laughed at her impish expression. “That’s a new one. Think I could win her with enough chocolate almond?”

  “Undoubtedly.” Clare was still smiling, but her eyes were serious. “You’re spending a lot of time with her, and I suspect it’s not only because she’s helping you go through the attic.”

  “It’s not. I like her. A lot.”

  “I thought so. And she’s not used to male attention.”

  “Why not? She’s beautiful.”

  “I like hearing you sa
y that. I agree. She is beautiful, but she has never taken time for herself. She’s always been too busy worrying about making sure the rest of the family has what they need. And . . . well . . . she’s not like Candace.”

  “I’m not looking to replace Candace.”

  Clare eyed him. “You mean you have no intention of remarrying?”

  That wasn’t what he meant at all, but maybe it was better to leave it that way. “There’s Tess.” She was coming toward them with her mother in tow.

  The last thing he wanted was for Clare to tell Tess he was interested in her that way. It might make her skittish around him, and he wasn’t eager to heighten whatever unease Tess had shown last night. He still didn’t know what that was all about.

  “Ryan, there you are,” Anna said. “I was just asking Tess if you were coming.”

  Did the entire family think they were a couple now? He found he liked that idea. If he had the nerve, he would move to Tess’s side and take her hand. That would get the town talking. He sidled a few steps in her direction.

  Her hair was up in a ponytail that exposed the long curve of her neck and accentuated her cheekbones. She wore jeans and a royal blue top that made her blue eyes look even bluer. Her smile made his pulse kick.

  “So what are we working on today?” he asked, rubbing his hands together.

  “I thought I’d paint the trim around the windows,” Tess said.

  Painting. The chore he hated most. But he’d be spending the day with her, so he’d shovel manure to do that. “Did you bring paintbrushes?”

  “Carson did. Paint, brushes, primer, tape. He thought of everything.”

  Ryan followed her inside where five men were working on flooring. In a back room they found supplies. He picked up some brushes and paint. “Where do you want to start? Inside or outside?”

  “Let’s do this room before the men come in here to repair the floor.”

  “Be careful. There are soft spots. I don’t want you to go plummeting into the basement.”

  She pushed a lock of hair out of her eyes that had escaped her ponytail. “I’ll be careful.” She watched while he popped the lid of the paint can and began to stir the cream-colored paint. “I’ve been thinking about David. It’s odd that everyone in town thought he died. Yet he had to have come to town. His tags were here.”

  “Maybe he was only here long enough to find out where his parents moved to.”

  She sprayed the window trim with cleaner and wiped it off. “But someone had to tell him that. Why wouldn’t they have told Grandma and everyone else in town? It’s very mysterious.”

  “Maybe he found out where they went and never came here.”

  “But the tags.”

  “Maybe he mailed them? Or someone visited and brought them back?” He shook his head. “Lame, I know.”

  She chewed her lip. “But that still doesn’t explain how they ended up in Grandma’s attic.”

  “We may not know until we find someone in the family.” He dipped a brush in paint and moved to the window she’d cleaned. “And that might be hard.”

  “I got to thinking.” She rested her chin on her knuckles.–“This may sound a little morbid, but if we can discover where David’s parents are buried, there should be a next of kin listed.”

  He had to chuckle at the earnestness on her face. “So you want to go traipsing through some cemeteries? I’m up for it.”

  “Really? You’d go with me?”

  “I wouldn’t miss the fun.” She looked so adorable that he nearly leaned over and kissed her on the lips. “But first we have to figure out which cemetery to stalk.”

  “I’ll get on it.” She put down her cloth and leaned up to brush her lips across his cheek. “You’re the best!”

  Shoot. He should have moved his head just a fraction and he would have gotten that kiss he’d been dreaming of.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  The windows looked good. Tess looked around the train station as the workers filtered off for dinner. The trim had been painted and the brick cleaned. Shingles had been repaired, and Clare with her worker bees had laid beds of flowers and shrubs. It would take longer to finish the inside, but they’d made a good start. Sidewalks needed to be redone as well as repointing the brick, so it was no one-day project. She’d loved seeing the entire town out working with one accord.

  Only a handful of people remained. Would Ryan ask her to dinner? She was afraid to hope for something like that. He’d dawdled long after Sophia started begging to leave, but he was a man who took responsibilities seriously. Maybe he didn’t want to abandon their project until she was ready to leave.

  A heavy oriental perfume wafted on the air. Tess recognized the fragrance before she turned, and her smile faded. Poison. The name of the perfume matched the wearer. “Hello, Isabelle.”

  The other woman was perfectly decked out in a linen skirt with a matching jacket over a lacy blue blouse. Her hair was down, a beautiful blond curtain on her shoulders. The pumps she wore were the perfect height to accentuate her legs. Tess put her bitten nails, stained with paint, behind her. If she could have disappeared into the shrubs, she would have.

  Isabelle dismissed her with a glance and turned her attention to Ryan. “I thought you’d be here. I’ve been commissioned to deliver an invitation to dinner tonight with the family. Dad is grilling steaks, and Mother is making her pecan pie. She said to tell you she’s making an extra pie for you to take home.”

  Ryan hesitated and glanced at Sophia, who was smiling up at Isabelle. “I’m a mess. So is Sophia. It’s probably not the best time.”

  “Please, Daddy,” Sophia pleaded. “I haven’t seen Grandma and Grandpa in a long time.”

  Ryan shoved his hands in his pockets. “What time?”

  “Now.” Isabelle’s smile was coaxing.

  “Not a chance. We both know your mother would faint if she saw me coming toward her white carpet like this. She’d douse me with the hose.” There was a tone of unease in his laugh.

  Tess had never been inside the Morgan home. It was a lavish estate on the outskirts of Smitten. A tall iron fence surrounded the lush green grounds, and guests had to check in at the gatehouse. Dr. Morgan was a well-known neurosurgeon who practiced in Burlington. His wife was a pediatrician who worked three days a week and spent the rest of her time playing golf. Or so Tess had heard.

  Isabelle’s smile faltered and she glanced at her watch. “Run home and shower. I’ll hold her off as long as I can.”

  “Good luck with that,” he muttered.

  Isabelle stiffened. “What does that mean, Ryan? You’re still part of the family even when you don’t act like it.”

  He glanced at Sophia, then pressed his lips together. “I don’t act like it? See if you can get your parents to pay a little attention where it’s needed, and then we’ll talk.” He held up his hand when she opened her mouth. “Not in front of my daughter. I’ve said more than I should. We’ll be there, but only because it’s what Sophia wants.”

  Isabelle smiled, though it was more of a grimace. “How about I take Sophia with me? You can join us after you’ve showered.”

  “Have you looked at her? She’s in worse shape than I am.”

  Sophia’s red-and-white shorts outfit was muddy and her hands were filthy. A black smudge ran across her right cheek where she’d swiped her palm. Tess wanted to sweep the child away before Isabelle could wrinkle her nose, but it wasn’t her place.

  Sophia stared up at her aunt. “I can take a bath at Grandma’s house. I don’t mind.”

  “You don’t have clean clothes there,” Ryan said. “We’ll get cleaned up at our house. It won’t take long,” he said quickly when her face started to pucker. “The sooner we get to it, the sooner we get there.”

  “Want me to help?” The words had spilled out before Tess could stop them. Her cheeks burned and she wanted to run.

  “That would be great,” Ryan said even as Isabelle shook her head.

  Isabelle’s lips flattened
and she glared at Tess before recovering her composure. “That’s nice of you, Tess, but really, it makes more sense for me to bathe Sophia. I’m her aunt, after all.” She put her hand on the little girl’s head. “Wouldn’t you like me to help you get a bath?”

  Sophia’s lips quivered and she shook her head. “Tess can help me if we’re going to my house. You’ve never been to my house. Tess knows where my bathroom is.”

  “Fine,” Isabelle snapped. “See you in a little while.” She wheeled and rushed to her car, a white Mercedes convertible. The tires squealed as she drove off.

  “Sorry,” Ryan said. “You sure you want to help Sophia get ready? I can do it.”

  “I want Tess,” Sophia said, grabbing Tess’s hand.

  “The princess has spoken,” Tess said. “I can meet you there.”

  “No, ride with us. I’ll be coming right back past the train station on the way to the Morgans’ place.”

  Tess was dying to know what the situation was between Ryan and his in-laws. It was clear he thought they didn’t pay enough attention to Sophia. What a shame. The knowledge made little Sophia even more endearing.

  There was nothing more precious than a freshly bathed child with damp hair and skin. Tess toweled off Sophia’s hair, then helped her don a frilly lavender dress. She pulled the top and sides of the little girl’s hair back and put it in a big matching bow. The white tights were still in a package, and the patent leather shoes didn’t appear to have been worn either.

  “You look beautiful,” Tess said, standing back to admire Sophia.

  Sophia’s smile didn’t match her somber eyes. “You think Grandma will like me?”

  Tess knelt and hugged her. “I’m sure she loves you very much.”

  “She doesn’t like me to get her carpet dirty. But my shoes are new. I’ll be careful not to mess up anything. And I need to not be loud.”

  It was all Tess could do to keep the reassuring smile on her face. What kind of woman wouldn’t want to spend as much time as she could with a granddaughter as precious as Sophia? It was clear the child desperately wanted her grandmother’s approval. Even though Ryan was a devoted father, a little girl missed a mother’s touch and attention.