by Noelle Adams
“Right,” Allison replied, rolling her eyes.
“I’m serious. You’re absolutely gorgeous. Guys will be knocking each other out trying to get to you.”
“I somehow doubt this town is going to be crawling with good-looking, eligible men. The few times I’ve been there, all the men I saw were grizzled or had potbellies or were reeking with cigarette smoke.”
“I’m sure there’s a few good-looking specimens to be found. What about a sexy sheriff or a hot ex-SEAL who has come back home to take over his father’s contracting business?”
“You’ve been reading too many romances,” Allison said, still laughing but feeling a lot more encouraged. “I’m just going to spend a transition period there—only a year or two, hopefully—so any relationship I had would have to be temporary anyway. I’m not looking for the love of my life. All I want to do is support myself for a while so I can figure out what I really want to do and be. I’m not sure I even want a man later on, when I’m able to move back to the city. Not anytime soon, anyway.”
“Are you sure? Because Russ has a friend. He’s a criminal defense attorney in town, and he’s—”
“No, please. I don’t want another man to support me. I don’t want to be another trophy, dependent and not valued for who I really am. I want to…find out who I am, on my own. Once that happens, then maybe one day I can even open my jewelry shop.”
Vicki’s smile faded slightly. “I really hope so. It’s great to have a dream. But you can do other things with your jewelry right now, you know. Why don’t you start selling it online? The shop is going to take a lot of money, so—”
“I know,” Allison interrupted, with that quick flash of fear and grief she always experienced when she let herself see how unrealistic her dream really was. “I know it’s not likely to ever happen, but I’m allowed to dream, aren’t I?”
“Of course you are.” Vicki reached over to pat Allison’s hand. “Of course you are. I know that dream kept you going for a long time. You don’t have to give it up.”
Allison sighed and rubbed her face. “I know I’ll have to figure out what to do with my jewelry eventually, but it’s too much for me to think about right now. It’s hard enough to do even normal things on my own. It sounds stupid, I know, but I was so stressed out yesterday, just making all those calls about my utilities. I’ve never done anything like that before. The first thing I need to do is learn how to live on my own. Then I’ll have time to figure out everything else.”
“That sounds like a good plan.”
“I know you think I need a more detailed plan for my life, but the only thing I need right now is to feel like I can be independent, that I can really stand on my own.”
Vicki nodded. “All right. If it takes moving to this hick town for you to do it, then I’ll support you. I’d never be brave enough to do it myself. Are you excited?”
Allison finished her wine and let out a long breath. “The truth is I’m absolutely terrified, but I’m going to do it anyway.”
—
Her grandmother’s house was a three-bedroom brick ranch on an acre of property in Fielding, North Carolina, population five thousand.
Vicki had hired a car service to drive Allison and her possessions to the house the following day, something Allison greatly appreciated, since she didn’t want to start eating into her meager savings already.
She’d never known her grandmother very well—only seeing her maybe once every two years, since there had been some sort of big blowup between her father and grandmother before she was born—but Allison still felt a wave of nostalgia as she walked into the house. The house smelled like her grandmother and like her parents in their last few years. She missed them.
She didn’t have any family left alive. She wondered what it would feel like to have someone other than a friend to rely on now.
She brushed the thought away as she looked around the house. It opened into a dining room with a connected kitchen. The living room was to the left, and the hall with the bedrooms was to the right. The renters had cleaned it before they’d left, to get back their deposit, so it was in pretty decent shape, although the hardwood floors were worn, the kitchen was twenty years old, and the toilet in the bathroom would only occasionally stop running, which was very annoying.
The furniture her parents had left was still stored in the basement, so Allison would have to try to bring it up. Vicki would have helped by hiring some movers, but Allison needed to start taking care of things on her own.
She tried to feel hopeful as she thanked the driver for helping her bring in the luggage and signed the ticket, but what she really felt was helpless. She didn’t even have hangers to put all her clothes on, and they would never all fit into the small closets in the bedrooms.
After moving the luggage into the bedrooms and looking in the basement to see what was there, she decided she needed to go to the store and buy some basics like clothes hangers and garbage bags. There was a small grocery store in town, but the one Walmart in the county was in a town fifteen minutes away. That was probably the first thing she should do.
She had the money from Arthur as well as what she’d saved from the year’s worth of rent on this house, but it was going to disappear fast.
She had the appointment with the dentist’s office tomorrow morning at nine. She didn’t know if it was an interview or just to pick up an application, but either way she was planning to be there right on time.
Maybe that would work out. If it didn’t, she would have to find a different job. Her savings wasn’t going to last for long.
—
Two hours later she pulled her father’s old tank of an Oldsmobile back into her driveway. She’d tried to be careful at the store, but her trunk was filled and she’d spent way too much money.
Plus, Walmart had been packed on a Sunday.
It was four in the afternoon, and she was exhausted. It was just early May, but the air was hot and humid today, and she was sweating, even in her sleeveless top.
She was leaning over into the trunk to gather up as many bags as she could carry when she was startled by a voice behind her. “You need some help?”
She straightened up with a jerk, turning to see a man beside her wearing faded jeans and a white T-shirt. He looked to be in his thirties. He needed to shave and his brown hair was too long, and he had the rough look of a man who worked with his hands. He’d surprised her so much she just stared at him. “What?”
“Do you need some help?” he asked again, gesturing toward her trunk. “Carrying all that in?”
She frowned. Who the hell was this guy? And did she really look so helpless that she couldn’t unload her own trunk by herself? “Oh. No. I’ll be okay. Thank you.” Several bags were already hooked over her arms, so she gave him an absent smile and turned to walk up the steps to the front door.
She had some trouble getting her key into the door with the bags on her wrist, but she’d almost gotten the door unlocked when she suddenly felt someone behind her, swinging open the storm door that had been propped against her back.
She gave a little squeal of surprise as she turned to see the man she thought she’d dismissed. He had twice as many bags hooked over his arms as she was able to carry.
“I’m Rob West,” he said with a slight mountain drawl in his deep voice. “I’m your neighbor across the street.”
She felt flustered now and annoyed that a strange man was walking into her house as if she’d invited him. “Okay, but I said I could get the bags by myself.”
“I was already over here. Why shouldn’t I help?”
Because she’d said she didn’t need his help. Any basically civil person would have respected her wishes. She really hoped everyone wasn’t as rude and pushy as this man was.
“Where’s all your furniture?” Rob asked, looking around the empty house after he’d dumped his load of bags on her kitchen counter.
“It’s in the basement. I just got here today.”
&nb
sp; He focused his gaze on her, looking her up and down. His eyes were actually quite nice—a really deep, melting brown. “Are you Chris and Sharon’s girl?”
She was startled by the question but then realized that if he lived across the street, he’d probably known her parents. “Yes.”
“I thought you lived in the city.” He glanced down at her left hand, and she realized he was looking for a wedding ring.
She’d taken off her rings six months ago. “I’m moving here now.”
He nodded slowly, as if trying to piece together her situation, something he had no business knowing. “Well, welcome to town. I’ll get the rest of your stuff.”
“I don’t need any—” she began.
He just ignored her, striding back outside as if she hadn’t spoken. Arthur had done that all the time—completely disregarded what she was trying to say. She hated it.
Rob might be a small-town, blue-collar guy, but he obviously wasn’t all that different from Arthur at heart.
He came back into the house a minute later with another huge load of bags. She couldn’t help but notice he had really good shoulders, and his biceps were very impressive, clearly visible beneath his shirtsleeves as he held the bags. He set them on the opposite counter and then turned to look at her. “That’s it from the car. Do you want me to haul some stuff up from the basement for you? You at least need a chair or two and a bed.”
“I’m fine,” she said, managing to smile although she really wanted to scowl at him. “Thank you.”
He frowned. “You can’t get it all up yourself. Do you have some guys who are coming to help?”
Now she frowned too. “I said I was fine. Thank you.”
“What are you all snippy about?” he asked, looking at her curiously.
She gave a sharp gasp of indignation at his clueless rudeness. “I’m snippy,” she bit out, “because I’ve said several times that I’m fine, and yet you refuse to listen to me.”
His expression relaxed into almost a smile, as if he’d finally figured out her mood. “Oh, I get it. I’m not some creepy asshole, so no need to worry about that. I live across the street. I knew your folks. I just figured you could use some help, especially since you’re all dressed up and everything.”
She looked down at herself in surprise. “I’m not dressed up!” She wore a sleeveless pale blue top, black capris, and sandals. The sandals had heels on them, but almost all of her shoes had heels. In terms of her wardrobe, these clothes were very casual.
He chuckled—a surprisingly pleasant sound. “Okay. If you say so.”
Allison heard a familiar sound just then—that damned toilet was running again, after she’d spent five minutes jiggling the handle before she left.
Rob must have heard the sound and seen her expression. “Sounds like it just needs a new flapper. I can look at it for you.” He actually turned around and took a step toward the bathroom.
“That’s okay,” Allison said quickly, relieved when he stopped at her words. “I’m sure I can take care of it.”
He turned to face her again, not looking like he believed her, but fortunately he didn’t argue. “There’s a hardware store in town—just a block down from Dora’s. You can get a new flapper, and they can talk you through replacing the old one.”
There was he was, assuming she’d need help again, based on nothing but her appearance. He could have no idea whether she was capable of fixing a toilet, and he shouldn’t make assumptions.
She didn’t like this guy at all. She really wanted him to leave.
She took a deep breath, making sure her voice was polite as she said, “I appreciate your help, and it was nice to meet you.”
“You really don’t mean that, do you?” he drawled, an irresistible half smile on his face.
She narrowed her eyes. “I’d like to unpack my bags now.”
“Got it,” he said, still smiling as if privately amused. “I’ll see you around.”
Finally he turned to leave. Allison was very glad to see him go, and it wasn’t because her eyes drifted down to his very nice ass as he walked away.
—
A couple of hours later Allison was so exhausted she could barely move.
She’d unpacked her summer clothes, leaving her winter clothes in boxes since she didn’t have room for them anyway. She’d put away all the stuff she’d bought from the store, and she’d hauled up a chair, a couple of side tables, a bed frame, and a mattress from the basement.
The bed had been the hardest. It was just a full size, not even a queen, but she’d almost killed herself getting it up the steep basement stairs by herself. But after Rob had been so patronizing about it, she had to prove to herself that she could do it on her own.
She took a long shower and put on a simple light green sundress, since she still needed to go out to get something to eat.
She’d bought a few staples from Walmart, but she didn’t have anything easy to eat because the meat and produce hadn’t looked very good there. She didn’t have the energy to make something anyway.
There was a restaurant in the small downtown section of Fielding. It was just a mile away. She’d get a sandwich there tonight and then go grocery shopping tomorrow.
She’d learned how to drive as a teenager, and Arthur had bought her a car, but she’d never driven very much, since she’d always used Arthur’s car service. She was out of practice. Plus, her father’s car was a tank, and she was very uncomfortable maneuvering it on the road.
She drove very slowly, relieved when she saw a parking space next to the restaurant that wasn’t too difficult to fit the car into.
The restaurant was called Dora’s Café, but it was really more like a diner, with several stools in front of a bar counter and two rows of booths that looked very uncomfortable. There were about ten customers in the restaurant when Allison walked in, and all of them turned to stare at her as she entered.
Maybe it was only a natural observation of who had just entered. Maybe it wasn’t as blatant as it felt. But she was very self-conscious as she walked up to the counter. They were watching her like she was some kind of freak or alien.
“What can I get you, honey?” a tired waitress with fake red hair asked her, pulling out a pad of paper.
No one had offered her any sort of menu. She imagined most people who ate here already knew what was available. “Do you have a club sandwich?” she asked, trying to think of something most restaurants served.
“Sure thing. White or wheat?”
“Wheat. Thank you. And I’ll take it to go, please.” Allison had been thinking about eating in the restaurant, just to get out of the house, but with so many people looking at her, she decided she’d enjoy her meal more by herself.
She perched on a stool at the counter and tried to avoid the eyes of the large man beside her in the dirty T-shirt and camouflage ball cap.
“You lost, sweetheart?” he asked after a minute of staring at her.
She cleared her throat and gave him a small smile without meeting his eyes. “No. I’m not. Thank you.”
“You just passing through, then?”
He obviously didn’t think she looked like she belonged in this town. He was right. At the moment, she had a comfortable dress on, with her hair pulled back in a low ponytail and no jewelry on and very little makeup. Arthur would have thought her barely appropriate to be seen in public like this, but she felt way overdressed compared to everyone else in the diner. “No,” she said quietly, looking down at the counter. “I’m not.”
“She’s Chris and Sharon’s girl,” a familiar voice said from farther down the counter. “Helen Davies’s granddaughter.”
Allison sucked in a breath and leaned over far enough to see Rob sitting four stools down, finishing off what looked like a hamburger.
Great. Just her luck. She couldn’t get away from him.
“Oh yeah?” the greasy guy next to her said. “You selling their house?”
“No. I’m moving in.” She didn�
��t like to share her business with strangers—and the entire restaurant appeared to be listening—but she was going to live in this town and she didn’t want to alienate everyone immediately. They were probably already predisposed to assume she was some kind of city snob.
Maybe she was.
“No kidding!” The guy leaned over to look at Rob. “So you got a pretty new neighbor, West? How come you get all the luck?”
When Rob didn’t answer, Allison couldn’t help but look over at him, although she’d been trying to ignore him.
He’d stood up and was swallowing the last of his water. After he’d put the glass down, he pulled out a billfold and laid a twenty on the counter without waiting for change.
He gave the man next to him a soft punch on the shoulder and then gave Allison a polite nod, with just a hint of a smile still on his lips, as if he were still a little amused by her unwillingness to let him help earlier. “See y’all later,” he said.
Allison wasn’t exactly sure who he was talking to. Maybe it was everyone, since nearly everyone in the room either mumbled or called out a farewell.
Either everyone knew everyone else in this town, or else everyone knew Rob.
He eased out the door with a relaxed swagger that showed he was comfortable in this place and in his own skin.
Allison was not comfortable. She hoped her sandwich would be done soon so she could get back to the privacy of her home.
She didn’t regret divorcing Arthur. In fact, it was the best thing she’d ever done. But she couldn’t help but wonder if she’d made a mistake by moving to this rural town.
She wasn’t likely to ever fit in here.
—
Fifteen minutes later Rob West was leaning against his pickup truck, talking to his friend Keith, whom he’d run into on leaving Dora’s.
He and Keith had gone through school together, and they’d married in the same month, when they’d both been eighteen. But while Keith’s marriage had worked out and produced four kids, Rob’s had fallen apart within four years. Then his second marriage had imploded two years ago. Fortunately he’d not had any kids of his own to deal with the fallout, although his former stepdaughter was more than enough.
