Foundation for Three

by Vella Day

  Thad didn’t want his time with Zoey to end, so he’d had to come up with something to do with her that wouldn’t put a strain on his injury. It was a bummer that his outdoor activities had to be curtailed for now. Whenever he’d had a day off, he’d tool around on his motorcycle or go for a long run. With the arm out of commission, his options were limited. Even shooting pool was out of the question. Didn’t matter he’d been shot in his non-dominant arm.

  He supposed he could have asked her to watch television, or go to a movie, but that wouldn’t have given him the chance to get to know her better—hence, the suggestion of darts. Teaching her would be fun, and hopefully provide an inside view to the intriguing woman.

  “Ready to be wowed?” he asked as he held open the door to Banner’s Bar.

  She laughed. “Ready to be frustrated? I hope I don’t embarrass myself.”

  Thad grinned. “Never. I won’t let you fail.”

  “You don’t know how bad I can be.”

  “Oh, ye of little faith.” He placed a palm on her back as he led her inside. Even having that small contact gave him a sense of protective power. Being around Zoey seemed to alter his thinking.

  Inside, the place was calm compared to Saturday nights. Except for four occupied tables, and a couple of regulars at the bar, they’d have Banner’s to themselves. He liked that.

  Adam, the bartender, looked up from the counter then waved to both of them. Thad bet the guy wouldn’t have guessed he’d walk in with someone as classy as Dr. Zoey Donovan. She’d mentioned she and her friends came here weekly for happy hour, but Thad must have been working during those hours. He would have remembered her.

  “You want a drink?” Thad asked her.

  “At two in the afternoon?” She shook her head.

  Way to go. Zoey was already rather tentative around him, and now he’d been unclear. “I meant like coffee. Or do you want a soda?” She didn’t respond. “Hot tea maybe?”

  Her shoulders lowered. “A diet soda would be nice.”

  Thad stepped up to the bar and gave Adam his order. “And let me have the house darts. Zoey wants to learn how to play.” If he’d stopped off at his house first, he would have grabbed his own set.

  Adam nodded to the sling. “Heard you took a bullet. You good?”

  “I’ll be back to normal in a few days.”

  “Great.” Adam nodded to Zoey. “You sure about this? Thad here can be quite deadly with those darts.”

  She laughed. “I know of a few good nurses who can patch me up if things go south.”

  Adam smiled as he handed her a set of six. “Give him hell. I’ll bring the drinks right over.”

  Zoey dumped the darts onto Thad’s palm as if she feared they’d explode. She was quite adorable. “You take these.”

  “Adam was kidding. Unless you plan on standing in front of the board, you’ll be safe.”

  “I know.” She smiled, and his groin tightened.

  The moment they’d entered the bar, her demeanor had changed. She seemed more comfortable here. Either it was because she knew the waitresses, bartender, and possibly some of the customers, or else he was wearing her down. “Ready for your first lesson?”

  “Let me watch you first. I want to study the mechanics of your throw.”

  “You going to analyze the trajectory, speed, and aerodynamics of the dart?” As soon as his smartass words left his mouth, he cursed himself. I’m an ass. He’d been temporarily so relaxed around her that he’d forgotten she wasn’t one of the guys. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to mouth off.”

  “No. That sounds good. I’ll try that.”

  He had to laugh. Zoey was a refreshing change from other women. No wonder Pete was so taken with her. Put her in a hospital and she acted like a shrink. Once he got her outside her normal area of expertise, the real Zoey Donovan began to emerge. Under the right conditions, he bet she’d really blossom.

  Thad escorted her into the separate game area that consisted of two pool tables, one dartboard, a foosball table, and two video consoles. He led her over to the designated area for darts then placed each one of the loaners in his hand. Zoey stepped close, and her linen scent enticed him. That wasn’t good. She didn’t consider this a date, so he needed to stay cool.

  “What are you doing?” Zoey looked from his palm to his face.

  “Picking three that are relatively the same weight and design.”

  “Is the purpose of having them the same so that it will be easier to adjust your throw if you miss?”

  Smart lady. “You sure you haven’t thrown darts before?”

  She shook her head. “I suck at athletics.”

  He inwardly chuckled. Only a few men he knew would consider darts a sport. “You run.”

  “Running doesn’t require the same amount of fine motor skills as throwing a dart.”

  “I know a few athletes who would disagree with you, but we don’t need to go there. First thing is your stance. You right-handed?”

  “Yes.”

  He placed the edge of his shoe on the toe-line. “Place your right foot perpendicular to this line, like so, and make sure your back foot distributes your weight evenly.” He stepped back. “Give it a shot.”

  Her face slightly colored. She inhaled as if this was some exam. With care, she slid her foot to the mark on the floor, leaned forward, and lifted her back toe. While Thad could have repeated the instructions, he wanted to touch her. He stepped behind her, placed his right hand on her shoulders and straightened her stance. “Stand up.” With his toe, he nudged her right leg back. “No, no. Keep your right toe on the line.”

  Her fists tightened. She was really trying. After some additional adjustment, and possibly a bit more touching than was necessary, her form looked good.

  She looked up at him and smiled. “Thanks. This feels right. I’m more balanced.”

  He hadn’t expected his pulse to speed up. Thad stepped back and drank some of the coffee that had miraculously appeared on the table right behind them. He inhaled. “Step two.”

  She moved out of the way. He went through how to hold the dart, about the need to keep it level or slightly elevated in relation to the floor, and then showed her the motion for throwing.

  “Throw one to show me,” she said.

  Her gaze on him, he let one fly, but it hit the outer ring. Damn. So much for looking studly. “Stupid sling.” He ripped it off and tossed it on the table then lifted his injured arm to stretch it. “Being confined throws off my balance. This is much better. Let me try again.” He refused to be embarrassed. His second throw came closer to the center.

  Zoey clapped. “You’re really good.”

  Pete, Cade, Stone, Ethan, Tom, and a bunch of his other friends might have disagreed. “You try.”

  It would be more fun watching her anyway. He retrieved the two darts he’d tossed and handed them to her. “Remember, don’t hop, bounce, stand on your toes, or move your head. It’s all about being smooth.”

  She inhaled and moved her forearm back and forth several times before letting go. The dart hit the board but immediately bounced to the floor. “Oh, no.” She faced him, looking distraught.

  “It’s okay, honey. Darts take hours and hours of practice. It’s not as easy as some people make it look.” He didn’t want her to give up.

  She nodded and bit her lip, looking so cute. With more concentration than he’d seen anyone possess in a long time, she picked up the next dart, took aim, and let go with a big exhale. The dart stuck, barely clinging for life.

  “I did it!” She hugged him. No one was more surprised than he was at the contact, but she moved back before he could decide what to do.

  “You sure did.”

  “I want to try again.” She ran up to the board, gathered the dart, and returned. She must have moved her toe four times before she was satisfied with its location.

  “Remember, nice and smooth.” He held his breath, wanting her to succeed.

  As if a patient’s life depende
d on it, she tossed the dart. This time, it stuck well. Arms raised, she did a little dance. Before he could congratulate her, his cell rang. “Mind if I take this? It could be the precinct.”

  “Sure.” With more joy than he’d seen from her, she retrieved her dart, acting as if she wanted to stay all night until she hit a bullseye.

  The caller ID said it was his grandmother. “Hey, Nana.” She rarely called, but he knew what she wanted. “Don’t worry, I didn’t forget about the anniversary party on Saturday.” Oh, crap. Zoey had asked to take him to dinner that night.

  “I figured you wouldn’t. You did remember to invite Pete, right?”

  “Not yet, but I will. Can I bring a guest?” Even if he hadn’t agreed to dinner on Saturday, he’d want to bring Zoey. He bet she and Nana would get along well.

  She hesitated. “Do I know her?”

  The last time he’d brought a woman, the lady had insulted his grandmother’s home. Nana lived on a large farm, grew her own food during the summer, and chewed tobacco like a whisky-guzzlin’ redneck. “No. I worked with her when I was helping to catch that serial killer. Remember I told you about that?”

  “Vaguely. She pretty?”

  He wanted to shoot his grandmother’s comment back at her about how it was what was inside a person that counted, but Zoey had both traits. She was gorgeous on the outside, and as far as he could tell, sensitive and caring on the inside. “Very.” Zoey was looking at him, and he decided not to say too much. “What time?”

  “Come around five.”

  He would have asked if he could bring the dessert or something, but that would have been an insult. His grandmother enjoyed cooking too much. “Will do.” He disconnected the call.

  He loved his Nana, even if she was a throwback. He always accused her of traveling forward in time from the 1860s but she vehemently denied it.

  Zoey was standing by the table with her drink in hand. A brow rose. “Everything okay?”

  “That was my grandmother. It’s my parents’ thirty-fifth wedding anniversary on Saturday and she’s throwing a big to-do at the family farm.”

  “That sounds nice. As much as I love my siblings, our family wasn’t much into big gatherings.” She shrugged. “It could have something to do with the fact that both my parents were only children.”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I would have done if I hadn’t had all my cousins to get into trouble with.”

  From her enthusiastic response, she didn’t act like a farm was beneath her. “Nana said to bring a guest. I forgot about my folks’ anniversary when I accepted your dinner invitation for Saturday. Would you be interested in keeping me out of trouble there instead?” When she’d asked him in the first place he’d been so stunned that the special date had flown out of his head. They weren’t at that stage of “meet the parents” yet, but he doubted she’d draw unwarranted conclusions. Hell, they hadn’t even gone on a formal date. But he liked her. A lot. She was smart, nice, and caring. Being around thugs all day made him jaded. Zoey soothed his soul.

  “I’d love to.”

  Yes! “Pete’ll probably be coming, too.” Would that bother her to be around both of them? Or did she prefer one over the other? Thad had never worried about such things before, but something about Zoey made him want to be cautious.

  “Super. I’m looking forward to it. A farm sounds cool.”

  Thad probably should warn her what to expect. “Nana’s place is about as far from fancy as you can get. We’ll have our meal in an old barn, since it’s the only place big enough to hold everyone, and the backyard is an old junkyard.” He waited for a scowl, but none came.

  Her face lit up. “Do you think anyone would mind if I brought a camera? I love taking pictures of old things.”

  He laughed. “You can do anything you want. When on the Dalton farm, there are no rules. As for old things, that’s all there is there.”

  “I can’t wait.”

  * * *

  After her fun dart lesson, Zoey drove Thad to the grocery store so he could pick up some supplies. She didn’t need anything, but she enjoyed following him around while he loaded up on what looked like a month’s worth of food. Nothing fancy. Just chicken breasts, frozen fish, eggs, bread, and lunchmeat. If she’d been with Mark or Dave, they would have tossed in chips, dip, and a few six packs of beer. Nutrition wasn’t even in their vocabulary, which was odd given Dave was a dentist.

  “Do you buy stuff for Pete, too?” She was curious how two busy men managed.

  “Sometimes, but mostly we do our own thing.”

  To each his own. That was how Dave and Mark worked, too. Thad tossed some apples into the cart and a few other items, but it was always with his uninjured arm. She hoped throwing darts hadn’t set him back.

  After they checked out, he let her direct where to put the packages in her car, but insisted he place them just so in the trunk. Men.

  When she pulled in front of his home, she was impressed with its grandeur. Then she remembered this had been Pete’s family home. “Nice.”

  “It’s too big actually. It was built for a family, not two bachelors.”

  She wondered if he liked his single status. Stop analyzing. Courtney would be proud of her big sister for not digging any further for the answer. Zoey couldn’t wait to tell her that she’d accepted the dart invitation and hadn’t even balked when Thad asked her to his grandmother’s farm. Part of Zoey’s reasoning was that if his parents were anything like hers, they probably had bugged him about getting married again and about giving them grandchildren. And if he were anything like her, he’d be tired of hearing them harp. Asking her to a party would shut them up, at least for a while.

  Zoey cut the engine and jumped out. She popped the trunk and lifted two packages, one in each arm.

  Thad was by her side in a flash. “You don’t have to do that. I got it.”

  He was doing his macho thing again. “I know, but I want to thank you for the nice time.”

  “Uh-uh. You think I need help.”

  She couldn’t deny it. “You were shot.”

  He gently shook his head and grabbed the remaining bag. “Come on, Miss Helper.”

  Inside, the place was spacious but sparsely decorated. She loved everything about the comfortable looking living room except the flowered wallpaper. She bet Pete’s mom had picked it out and now he didn’t have the heart to change it.

  A long hallway led off the living room to an open concept kitchen that was totally updated, a dining area that had a crystal chandelier in need of dusting, and a den of sorts that had a humongous television, above a fireplace. As for the furniture, it looked like the men had gone to a thrift store and bought whatever suited their fancy. They didn’t seem to care that nothing matched.

  “We’re not home enough to worry about decorating,” Thad said, acting as if he could guess her reaction before she said anything.

  “You don’t need to explain. I get it. I like comfortable.”

  Once they placed all the packages on the large center island in the kitchen, she helped him unpack. She had no idea what her next step should be. Was he waiting for her to leave or should she hang out for a few hours to help him prepare dinner? Or would Pete be home by then?

  Once more, Thad put the items away using his right hand. It was possible he wouldn’t have used his left even if his left hadn’t been injured.

  Zoey inwardly sighed. The girls would be arriving for happy hour soon. Zoey had already called Jamie Henderson, the point person, to let her know she might not make it. She was pleased that Jamie, who was a hospice nurse at the hospital, had returned to her usual activities of organizing the group. It had only been three weeks since Ben, Jamie’s former boyfriend, had inadvertently shot Jamie while he was trying to kill Amber. The emotional toll had yet to sink in.

  Thad seemed quite settled, so maybe Zoey could leave. But do I want to? No, but with all that had happened, she was equally excited to be with her friends and tell them about her day.
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  When she’d first encountered Thad, Zoey decided she wanted to get to know him better. He was really nice, but she never thought he was that interested in her. After their lunch today, and with the way he touched her during the dart game, just maybe he liked her back.

  Zoey seriously needed help reading a man’s clues. “I guess I should be going. You seem to have everything under control.” She held her breath.

  “You’re welcome to stay.” His lowered his chin and looked up at her, but no tension filled his face. It was as if her decision didn’t matter.

  Adrenaline rushed through her, but the high was immediately blocked by an intrusion of common sense. She wasn’t ready yet. She needed space to think. “What time Saturday?” Being evasive was so passive, but her jumbled nerves would only muck up the great time they’d had together if she stayed any longer.

  “How about Pete and I pick you up at four thirty? Dress warm. The barn can be drafty.”

  “You bet.”

  Saturday would be yet another adventure. For the last two years, she’d barely dated, and in the span of a week, she’d met two great guys. The problem was that she’d have to pick just one. Or did she?

  Chapter Ten

  “You played darts with the cop who was just shot?” Jamie asked. Her voice came out a tad loud, and a few people in nearby tables turned their heads.

  Zoey leaned forward. “As for being able to throwing darts, Thad has healed quite nicely already. Or else he was pretending the wound didn’t hurt. The bullet hit here.” Zoey pointed to the fleshy part of her forearm.

  Jamie winced. It was understandable she’d be sensitive around the topic of a shooting after her own gunshot wound. The worst part of the whole ordeal was that Jamie had no idea her boyfriend had been guilty of all the mercy killings in the hospital. So far, she’d been remarkably resilient, but there were a lot of issues they still needed to work out in therapy.

  Melissa Williams, an OB-GYN nurse, set down her drink, her eyes looking wistful. “He was a real hero to protect you like that.”

  Zoey sipped her refreshing wine. “I completely agree. I’ve never met a man that brave. He brought down my captor after being shot.” The group oohed and aahed.