by Josie Kerr
Molly looked over the rim of her glass at Buddy, who had been studying the Guinness poster that hung over the mirrored bar. He now looked directly at her, his gray eyes exactly like his daughter’s.
“Because that’s what I am.”
Molly blinked. A male matchmaker? Really?
Buddy grinned. “Not that kind of matchmaker. A fight matchmaker.”
“Now I’m even more confused.”
Buddy explained that he matched up fighters for a local fight club, the club Colin happened to own.
“It’s a matter of matching up styles and abilities. And . . . you don’t want to hear about all that.” Buddy laughed. “I work for the fight club, behind the scenes, not in the cage. Let’s just leave it at that.”
“And how long have you been doing that, this matchmaking stuff?”
“Officially about ten years. Unofficially? Since high school. So, twenty years, give or take.” He fidgeted on his stool. “So, how long have you been teaching? I saw in the program that you were a veteran teacher.”
“This is my seventeenth year teaching.”
“Always in kindergarten?”
“No, I ventured up to sixth grade for a few years, but my heart is with the little ones.”
He nodded. “It’s a fun age.”
“It is,” Molly agreed.
They fell into a comfortable silence as they drank their beers. Molly let her gaze wander across the labels on the glass bottles, using the mirrored wall behind them to examine the man next to her. Sandy-blond hair that he kept cropped short, most likely to tame the curls that she could tell he had. He had a strong brow over unusual gray eyes that matched his daughter’s. A closely trimmed beard that camouflaged a very full bottom lip, which he worried with his top teeth. Yes, he was definitely handsome, though not at all her usual type.
Molly could see Buddy’s eyes dart over toward her, studying her as well. When she caught him looking, those gray eyes widened and he choked on his beer before chuckling.
“Busted,” was all he said before giving her a wink.
Molly chuckled, and that grew into full-fledged guffawing on her part. Buddy shook his head and added his own snicker.
She held out her hand. “Hi, I’m Molly Mayhew, and I’m pretty awkward.”
Buddy took her hand, but instead of shaking it, he brought it to his lips. “No, you’re just . . . pretty.” He grinned at her, still holding on to her hand. He gave it a little squeeze. “It’s nice to get to know you, Molly Mayhew.”
“Likewise, Buddy Thomas. And now, I’m afraid I must be leaving. I have an early morning appointment with my mother to paw through dead people’s things.”
“Wh-what?”
Molly cackled. “I’m going with my mother to the flea market tomorrow, so I need to get home and get some rest. Have a good rest of the weekend, Buddy. I had a nice time tonight.”
“I did, too.” He seemed to be about to ask her something but then just smiled before saying, “Let me walk you to your car.”
*****
Molly closed and locked the front door and leaned against it. She tapped out a text message to Buddy, informing him of her safe arrival. He’d walked her to her car, given her his cell phone number and asked her to text him when she got home, and then squeezed her hand before putting her in her vehicle. She saw him in her rearview mirror, watching her, making sure she got safely on her way.
He was a nice fellow, and if this had been a couple of years ago, well, she might have been prone to develop a little crush on him. But this was now, and she’d learned her lesson about getting entangled with a parent, especially one with a problematic ex. Not that he’d told tales about his ex—Lucy’s mother hadn’t even come up at all this evening. Molly had witnessed her fair share of toxic parental relationships, and she appreciated the fact that Buddy seemed to at least be pleasant about his ex-wife.
“Buddy Thomas, you’re a cutie-pie,” she murmured to herself. She heard a whimper and realized she hadn’t turned on the automatic timer on her living room lamps yet. She flipped the light switch on the wall, and the table lamp turned on, illuminating her dog in her crate. “Oh, Louise, I’m so sorry you were left in the dark.”
The giant mastiff barked once but didn’t make any other noise as she waited patiently for Molly to let her out. Molly released Lou from the crate, and the huge mastiff promptly began smothering her with slobbery kisses.
“Aw, Big Lou, I missed you, too. It’s going to take some time to get used to being away from you.” She planted her own kiss on the dog’s slobbery face. “Go do your business and then I’ll fix your dinner, okay?” Molly went into the kitchen and let Lou outside through the back door. After she let Lou back in, Molly gathered up her beloved pet’s food and food bowl. talking to her about her day and her encounter at Foley’s with Buddy. The dog barked again when she said the man’s name, and she thumped her tail twice, but Molly figured it was because she had Lou’s bowl in her hands.
After she got Lou’s meal sorted and served, Molly picked up the phone to check her voicemail. She’d more than expected Boone to leave at least one message today after their little discussion last night. She crossed her fingers as she dialed the code and then heard the most beautiful four words on the planet: “You have no messages.”
She heaved a sigh of relief and hung up the phone. Curious, she checked the caller ID for missed calls—fourteen. More than usual, but not worrisomely so. After all, her number, although unlisted, had been in the system long enough now to get on telemarketers’ lists.
Her cell phone chimed with a text message.
Thanks for letting me know. Am home myself. Have a good one.
Molly grinned. Yeah, he was a nice guy.
She was in the middle of her evening beautification routine when her phone rang. Glancing at the time and fearing the worst, because no one called her after the evening news, she snatched up the phone and uttered a hurried, “Hello?”
“About time you got home. Where’ve you been?”
Molly’s breath caught in her chest. “I said I didn’t want to talk to you, Boone.”
“I get worried, darlin’. A single woman, all alone. You never know what can happen.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“What? Don’t be ridiculous, Molly. I’m just sayin’ you need to be careful. I got worried when you weren’t home when I called.”
“Fourteen times.”
“What?”
Molly huffed. “You called fourteen times. Fourteen times in five hours, Boone. That would be excessive even if we were dating, which we are most certainly not. So I’m going to say it one more time: do not call me. Good-bye, Boone.”
She hung up the phone with more force than was necessary and, just for good measure, unplugged the phone from the wall. She wasn’t going to deal with Boone tonight. She wasn’t going to deal with Boone at any time. She was going to cancel her landline tomorrow. Then he wouldn’t have a number to call.
Molly checked all the doors and windows and made sure the blinds were closed and the curtains were drawn tight. She snapped her fingers, and Lou lumbered into the bedroom and onto the twin futon that served as her bed. Then Molly brushed her teeth and got into her own bed, thankful that the only window in her bedroom was high on the wall, the result of a 1960s addition at the back of the house. She turned off the light, and after a period of fretting and listening to Louise snore, she fell into a restless sleep.
Chapter Nine
Molly held up the strand of crystal prisms, giddy at the way the light refracted off the octagonal beads. When she and her mother came to the flea market, they usually didn’t buy anything at all, except maybe a gourmet popsicle, but every once in a blue moon, she found something she couldn’t pass up. A box of chandelier crystals fit that bill today.
Barbara grinned at her daughter. “It’s good to see that smile on your face. You’ve looked so grim lately that I was worried I’d never see those dimples again.”
&nb
sp; “Ugh. Mother, I haven’t been that much of a sad sack.” When her mother gave her a very pointed look, Molly grumbled, “Okay, maybe I have.” Molly wiggled her fingers, making the prism reflections dance across the scarred surface of the table one last time before tucking the long strand back into a nondescript cardboard box. She knew she’d been moody lately. Well, not just lately. All during the weeks leading up to the start of school, when she was getting her room ready for the students and attending meetings, she couldn’t help but realize she should have left her old school long ago. If she had, she probably would not have ever crossed paths with Boone Cash, and things would have been a lot calmer these past eighteen months.
“Penny for your thoughts, love.”
Molly clucked her tongue. “Oh, Mother, I just don’t know.”
“About what?”
“About anything?” she said with a bleak laugh. “This whole thing with Boone has been so surreal. From the beginning, when he first showed interest, until those last horrible moments when Boone’s ex confronted me—”
“You mean when Boone’s wife came into your conference and had a screaming meemies shit fit in front the administration?”
Molly cringed. “Yes, that time. Lord, that was humiliating.”
“It was psychotic, is what it was. The police should have been called, Molly, and you know it.” Barbara leveled a sharp look at her daughter. “You know damn well that’s why your principal just happened to know of an opening at another school across the county and fast-tracked you through the system.”
“Well, it all seems to have worked out for the best. Hembree Springs is lovely. It’s got a nice mix of students, the teachers are all very friendly, and the parents are involved, but not too involved, if you know what I mean.”
Barbara made a rude noise in the back of her throat. “No comment on the overinvolved parents.”
Molly hesitated but decided to speak frankly with her mother in her father’s absence. “Speaking of . . . I didn’t tell you everything about Boone.”
Barbara rolled her eyes. “What now?”
“Scott’s at Hembree Springs. Vanessa just happened to move into the boundaries when she and Boone actually divorced.” Molly huffed a laugh. “Since I’m in the lower school and we generally do not have events on the same nights, Vanessa and I shouldn’t have cause to cross paths, but . . .” Her voice trailed off. “I’ve really screwed my life up royally this time, Mother.”
Barbara scoffed at Molly. “Oh, this is just a setback, you know? A meaningful learning experience, if you will.”
Molly chuckled. A meaningful learning experience was her mother’s code for something that completely, utterly sucked but ultimately left you better off. Yes, getting involved with one of your student’s parents is risky; getting involved with a parent who is not quite as unattached as he indicated is disastrous.
“I know you don’t meet many eligible men, being an elementary school teacher. That’s why I think you should sign up for one of those online dating service things. Go out and have some fun. Swipe right and all that.”
Molly choked on the gourmet popsicle she’d just begun eating. “Mother, that is for young people—”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, you’re not old. Please.” Barbara scoffed at Molly’s scowling face. “Oh, Molly, you can’t let one bad apple ruin the bunch, and you can’t let one lying liar spoil you for all other romantic relationships.”
“Mother, I am a forty-year-old woman who has never married. Believe me, my dreams of an epic romance were ruined a long time ago.”
Chapter Ten
Buddy took advantage of Lucy’s extended sleepover to finish the last bit of unpacking he’d put off. He’d had some bookshelves for a few months but had always seemed to find something else to do other than assemble them, or when he did have time, Lucy was asleep and he couldn’t very well bang around in the living room then. He spent the afternoon cursing poorly written instructions and making multiple runs to the home improvement store. But by the end of the day, he had hacked the inexpensive shelving into something that resembled high-end built-in bookcases.
Buddy surveyed his redesigned living space. The boxes he’d moved from house to house were finally emptied of their contents and put on the shelves. Now, he found himself alone in the house in the middle of the afternoon for the first time in literally years, and he didn’t quite know what to do with himself.
His stomach rumbled. He went into the kitchen, and after perusing the contents of the refrigerator and finding that he couldn’t face another night of leftovers, he thought he’d venture back down into the city to Foley’s, the pub where he’d spent the previous evening. He figured he would see if any of the DS Fight Club crew were hanging around, and if worse came to worst, he’d head into the actual gym. After all, there were always different combinations of fighters to be investigated.
*****
Buddy pushed through the heavy wooden door of the pub and stood in the entryway, blinking until his eyes adjusted to the dark interior from the bright, midafternoon Atlanta sun. The dining area was empty, which wasn’t surprising seeing as it was too late for lunch and too early for dinner. However, every stool lining the ornate mahogany bar was occupied, and the bartenders darted back and forth while they prepared drinks and bantered with customers.
Buddy scanned the long bar and saw the familiar figures of Junior and Ryan once again talking to Meghan. He walked over to the duo and slid onto a lone, unoccupied barstool.
“Hey, man, back so soon?” Ryan stuck out his hand, and Buddy shook it.
He gave Junior a pat on the back. “Yeah, it’s amazing how efficient you can be when you don’t have a kindergartener underfoot.” Buddy grinned, but he wondered what Lucy was up to.
“You’re not used to being on your own, huh?” Ryan remarked. He took a sip of his drink and looked inquisitively at Buddy, as if he wanted to know more about him.
“No, I’m not. It’s been the two of us for so long. It’s weird not having Lucy with me.”
“How long has her mom been gone?” Junior asked, then waved his hands. “Sorry, man, none of my business.”
“Nah, it’s fine. Uh, Natalie first bugged out when Lucy was about six months old. She . . . was not an easy baby, and I had a pretty erratic schedule, working construction during the day and doing the odd job at night.”
“For Raptor? The odd jobs?” Ryan gave Buddy a knowing look.
“Yeah, for Raptor. That’s right—you were tangled up with him for a while.”
Ryan rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I was. You get into it through construction, too?”
Buddy nodded. “Yep. I was essentially a day laborer. One of the foremen and I were friendly, talked about MMA and combat sports. He asked me if I wanted to earn some extra money. I got in with Raptor, met Natalie, and then . . . that was that.”
“Man, how long had you been tangled up with Raptor then?” Junior crunched the ice in his drink. “I mean, Lucy is five, right?”
“Close to ten years.” Buddy shook his head. “But I didn’t meet Natalie until about six years ago.”
“You work fast. Ow!” Junior elbowed Ryan.
Buddy chuckled. “Yeah, it was a whirlwind romance all right. I should have known better.”
Buddy had actually been thinking about Lucy’s mother the past few days, ever since unpacking one of the boxes that contained photos and mementos of happier times.
“Buddy?”
“Hmm?” Buddy pulled himself out of his memories to find both Junior and Ryan looking at him, concerned.
“You okay, mano?” Junior’s brow furrowed in concern.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just a weird day.”
Ryan yawned and rubbed his face.
“What are you even doing here, Richards? I thought you’d been up for thirty-six hours, or something crazy like that.”
Ryan laughed. “Yeah, I had, but I couldn’t sleep anymore and didn’t wanna cook, so we came here to have some of Nol
an’s grub. But now I’m full and tired again.” He rubbed his eyes and yawned again.
“Ach, Junior, take your man home before he collapses in the garnish.” Meghan wagged her finger at the couple. “Shoo.”
“Okay, okay. Let’s go, chulo. I don’t need Meghan sore at me. She’s scary.” Junior tugged on Ryan’s shirt, and Ryan slid off the barstool.
“See ya on Monday, Buddy,” Junior said.
“See ya, guys.”
Meghan and Buddy were the only two left at the bar, but several couples had wandered in for an early dinner. Buddy was surprised at how much time had passed while he was talking with Junior and Ryan. He liked the two guys and felt a camaraderie that he didn’t with the other members of DS Fight Club, since he wasn’t actually a fighter. He hadn’t actually fought in years, not since Jett Raptor had discovered that his strength was matching up fighters. Once that happened, Raptor had put him to work, creating matches for Raptor Pryde as well as the illegal matches Raptor ran on the side, though it had been almost two years since the illegal matches ring collapsed.
He didn’t like to think about two years ago. Natalie had left for good to pursue her acting-slash-modeling career. The reality was that she’d hooked her wagon to a better gravy train, one unencumbered by a child. He couldn’t fathom leaving his child behind, but Natalie was a very different sort of person than Buddy was. She was young—too young for him—more than ten years younger, and very spoiled with a father who had fingers in all sorts of pies. When she had gotten pregnant, the first thing Buddy did was go to her father and ask for her hand in marriage, fully expecting to not be able to walk out of the man’s office on account of her father’s goons having smashed his kneecaps. But the man had been agreeable to Buddy marrying his daughter.
Unfortunately, Natalie wasn’t. She’d thrown a fit about actually getting married, but she seemed to be excited about having a baby—at least, at first. Then the realities of parenthood, with everything that entailed, had set in. She’d sucked it up for a while, but when Lucy was six months old, Natalie’s father died, and with him went all sense of pretense that she had any desire to actually be a mother. She had come back twice, the first time when Lucy turned one, and again when she was almost three. Natalie had attended Lucy’s first birthday party. The majority of the memory box’s contents were photos from that birthday party. The second visit, Natalie hadn’t actually had contact with Lucy. Buddy would never, ever forget that visit. She’d stood outside in the lobby of the indoor play center and watched Lucy jump and climb, but ultimately, she had told Buddy she was leaving the country, her return date unknown. He hadn’t seen or heard from her since.
