Arms of Serenity (Rock Services)

by Lynn, Donina

  A change of scenery and getting away from everything sounded like a hell of an idea. Nick smiled. A small town with a chestnut-haired beauty he wanted to get lost in was the perfect destination.

  Chapter Seven

  Nick stood on the sidewalk and glanced around the town square. He felt like he had landed in the middle of a Norman Rockwell painting. There were specialty shops and small businesses in older buildings with colorful storefronts in every direction. A few cars lined the one lane street, and a group of children were playing tag around some trees that grew up from the center square.

  Rustic looking lampposts and benches lined the sidewalks where a few people strolled along taking time to greet others they met along the way. Nick shook his head. What a difference a few hours of driving made.

  In New York, most people hurried around never looking at their surroundings or who was next to them. Wave after wave of crowds could pass, too caught up in their hectic lives to even consider saying, “Hello”. Here the pace seemed leisurely and calm. There weren’t sirens in the distance or traffic clogging the streets. He took a long breath of the crisp, clean air. It was peaceful.

  Nick could see a couple across the square, hand in hand, glancing in the shop windows. The weather had been unseasonably warm, but there was still a bite in Pennsylvania mountain air. The cold didn’t seem to deter the couple from enjoying their stroll. Nick felt a pang somewhere deep inside. He wondered if he could be jealous at the sight of two people obviously happy just being together.

  He shook the thought off and turned back to look at the sign above him. It had the word “Serenity” in large scrolling letters with bakery written below in smaller block lettering. A white rose sprawled across the bottom and completed the sign. It was simple yet charming, just like the owner.

  He hesitated before opening the door. Even though he had thought of nothing else on the drive, he still was at a loss at what to say when he saw Becca. He scanned the area and noticed a cafe down the street. Latching on to an idea, he smiled as he started walking in that direction.

  When Nick got back to the bakery, he opened the door and walked in. The smells of cinnamon and vanilla surrounded him as he entered the small shop. The combination of the two made him think of his mother baking when he was young. It was another one of those few good memories he still had with him of a happy home and loving parents.

  The door closed behind him with the jingling of a bell, and he heard a voice coming from the area that must be the kitchen.

  “Be with you in a moment” floated out from a familiar voice.

  Nick headed to the chairs at the counter and set down the two to-go coffees that he had gotten at the café. Then he sat down and took a look around.

  Behind the counter was a large display case filled with cakes, pies, muffins, and other baked goods. His stomach rumbled at the sight. He might just get a piece of pie to go with his coffee. To the right of the case was a swinging door that he assumed went to the kitchen.

  He swiveled in his chair to take in the rest of the shop. There was a white curved couch in the opposite corner of the room. The cushions were overstuffed, and they reminded him of giant marshmallows. On the couch were green and blue pillows and throw blankets. On the floor, directly in front of the couch, was a round coffee table painted in the same colors, and a vase of white roses had been placed in the center.

  The remainder of the wall was taken up by overflowing bookcases. Next was the storefront that was entirely made of glass. The blinds were open allowing a view to the street and the sun to shine inside. He swiveled and faced the display case again.

  He noticed a book lying on the counter next to a laptop to his right. He could make out a picture of a man with a naked chest and dog tags. Nick chuckled when he read the title that included seduction and combat. He liked the idea of her reading some naughty romance books. There just might be some hope for him. The fact that she might be attracted to military men didn’t hurt either.

  The door swung open, and Becca came walking out holding a plate of cookies.

  “Sorry to keep you waiting but…” Her voice trailed off as she stood staring at him. He couldn’t help but chuckle when her mouth actually dropped open. “Nick?”

  He took in the sight of her. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was wearing a fitted long sleeve T-shirt with the bakery’s logo across the front. Nick’s gaze lingered as he enjoyed how the shirt clung to the swell of her breasts. He looked farther down when his cock started to stir at the memory of how she moaned when his tongue swirled her nipples.

  She was wearing jeans, and he wished she would turn around so he could see if the ones she had on hugged her ass as well as the last pair he had seen her in. He moved his eyes up to her face and noticed a hint of melted chocolate on her lips. She must have snuck a taste of the cookies when they came out of the oven.

  “Hi, Becca. You look delicious.” He put his finger to his lip. “You have a little something.”

  Becca traced her tongue along her lip, and he could see the blush rush to her cheeks.

  “Thanks.” She put the plate down in front of him and continued. “What are you doing here?”

  Nick grabbed one of the coffees and placed it at her side of the counter. “You wouldn’t go for coffee with me so I brought the coffee to you.” He winked as he looked down at the cookies. “May I?”

  She nodded, and he took a bite of one of the best chocolate chip cookies he’d ever tasted. They were chewy and still warm. “These are amazing.”

  “Thank you.” Becca responded but immediately grew quiet as she stood watching him eat. Her head cocked to the side to study him, and he could almost see the wheels turning inside. Finally she added, “Seriously, Nick, what are you doing here? You didn’t drive this far to give me coffee.”

  Nick sat back and arched his brow. “Why do you think I’m here, Becca? What could have brought me to this town, this shop, sitting at this counter?”

  ****

  Holy crap! Nicholas Hollsten, the man she’d had wet dreams about for the past two weeks, was sitting at her counter asking her why she thought he was here. How the hell was she going to answer that? When she’d walked out of the kitchen her stomach dropped as fast as her jaw. Her heart was still pounding as if it was going to leap right out of her chest.

  He said she looked delicious? He was man-candy on a stick, and all she could think about was jumping over the counter to take a lick. Her body reacted just to the sight of him. Her skin was sizzling, and lower parts were humming. She wanted to fan herself or kick on the air conditioning. Damn, he was hot.

  Becca brought herself out of the fog that wrapped her mind whenever he seemed to be near. He was waiting for an answer.

  Crap, what was the question? Right, why she thought he was here. Well it was too far of a distance for a booty call, so he obviously was here to try to get someone who made a point of not wanting him. He really must hate to be turned down, or did she make it more interesting by giving him someone to chase? Did he want to date her?

  Ugghhh. She was over-thinking this. No matter what the reason, her answer was the same. She wasn’t ready to do this again.

  Becca’s mouth had gone suddenly dry. She took a drink of the coffee and a cleansing breath before she answered as steadily as she could.

  “I’m sorry you came this far, but I thought I made myself clear that I was interested in a relationship.”

  Nick put his hand up. “Whoa, who said anything about a relationship? I was thinking about a date—maybe dinner?”

  Becca shook her head. She knew that a date would lead to another, then another. They would spend time together, and feelings would develop. She could see herself falling hard for him and even being blissfully happy for a moment. Then, out of nowhere, he would leave. All that would be left would be the pieces of her broken heart. Her biggest fear was dealing with that pain again.

  “If you weren’t interested in something more you wouldn’t be here.”


  Nick leaned forward. “You’re right, I am interested. I haven’t stopped thinking about you, and I would like to get to know you better. But what I’m focused on right now is just a date. Nothing else. Just to see if we enjoy each other’s company.”

  He smiled that gorgeous smile at her and stared at her with his intense eyes. She could feel herself melting and her resolve floating away.

  “Take a chance, Becca. That’s all I’m asking.”

  Could she do it? Every part of her body was screaming yes. She wanted to take that chance more than she wanted to admit it to herself or him. As fast as she had started to grip her courage, she lost it, and the same fear returned. She felt like she was standing on thin ice watching the cracks get wider underneath her feet. Panic started to grip her chest. Her hands were sweating, and she wanted to laugh at how incredibly insane she was acting over a simple date.

  The door opened, and Becca sighed in relief as she heard the jingle of the bell. She turned to see her mother’s dearest friend walk in and shuffle to the seat next to Nick.

  Becca cringed as Eva turned her head between her and Nick. She had grown up around Eva, and she could read her as well as anyone ever could, including her mother.

  Becca straightened and nervously wiped her hands down her jeans. “Hi, Eva. How was your weekly lunch with the ladies?”

  Eva placed her purse on the counter and took off her gloves. “Oh Becca, it was a bunch of old hens sitting around gossiping and telling juicy tales about the men in this town. It was a hoot. Those ladies keep me young.” She laughed. “Never mind about us busybodies. Who is this devilish handsome young man I’m sitting next to?”

  Becca snorted. Eva had guessed the devil part correctly. She watched Eva take in all of Nick with her pale grey eyes. The woman didn’t miss anything, and Becca wanted to groan at introducing them. She somehow knew this was going to bite her in the ass.

  “Eva, this is Nick. We met at Victoria’s wedding.” Becca turned to Nick. “Nick, this is Eva. She is a very close friend of my family.”

  Eva held out her hand to him. “Nick is a nice strong name. It suits you well.”

  Nick placed her hand inside both of his. His large hands swallowed up small arthritic fingers, and Becca could see genuine warmth filling his features. “The pleasure is mine. Eva is a beautiful name. Did you know that it means ‘full of life’ in Hebrew? Now, why do I have a feeling that your name suits you as well?”

  Becca watched in astonishment as color flooded Eva’s cheeks, and she giggled. The woman, who was old enough to be her grandmother, was actually sitting with a dazed look on her face and giggling. The man had no limits. There wasn’t a woman on the planet who wouldn’t fall for him.

  “Oh, I like him, Becca. We need to keep him around. Are you from these parts, Nick?”

  Nick let go of Eva’s hand and placed it softly on the counter. “No, just came to visit.”

  Eva looked at Becca with mischief in her eyes and turned back to Nick. “Well then, I’m sure this lovely young lady can show you around our small town. There is some beautiful scenery to take in.”

  Nick chuckled when Eva winked at him, and Becca rolled her eyes.

  “Becca and I were just discussing my interest in the scenery here.” He winked back at Eva and sat back to cross his arms. Becca’s mouth dropped open again, and she quickly closed it before Eva noticed. He cocked his mouth in that annoying, smug smile, and Becca couldn’t help get nervous. He was up to something, and she had a sinking feeling this was where her ass was about to get bitten.

  “Eva, how long have you known Becca?”

  “Oh, I’ve known her all her life. She’s such a dear thing. She takes care of me more than I think my Henry does. She even came to my house every day when I hurt my hip to make sure I was all right and to help Henry with the chores. She is such a good girl.”

  Becca crossed her arms and grunted. “You know I am standing right here.”

  “Yes, of course, dear.” Eva quickly dismissed her with a wave of her hand.

  Nick quietly chuckled and asked Eva, “Are you all right now? How did you hurt your hip?”

  There was genuine concern in Nick’s voice, and Becca felt herself soften as she watched the interest Nick was taking in her friend.

  Eva smiled and patted his hand. “You are very sweet to ask. I’m fine now. It was just a bruise, nothing a few days in bed didn’t cure. I’m just a silly old woman who still likes to go out and whip it up.”

  Nick arched his brow. Becca could tell he was waiting to see if she would explain further. She nodded her head toward Nick. “Go ahead, Eva, tell him what you were doing when you fell.”

  Eva got a glint in her eye and squared her shoulders. “I was doing the Tush Push.”

  Becca watched Nick’s face. He smirked and asked Eva, “You do mean the dance, right?”

  Eva laughed and blushed again. “Yes, the dance. It’s so much fun wiggling your hips like that. I was having a grand time dancing around until I pushed my tush a little too far, and I toppled over like an old tree in a wind storm.”

  Nick chuckled and gave her hand a quick squeeze. “I’m glad it wasn’t anything more serious.”

  Becca remembered how frail Eva had looked when she was lying on the dance floor. Her cries of pain had ripped at Becca. She was certain she had broken every bone in her body, and she turned to scold Eva over her lack of concern for her own health. “It could have been much more serious, Eva, and you know it. You need to keep yourself seated and off the dance floor.”

  “Oh now stop your worrying. I was fine and just having some fun. Just because I’m old doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy life, which is something you should be doing more often.” She turned to Nick again. “Speaking of having fun, weren’t we trying to find you someone to show you around?”

  “Actually, Eva, I had just asked Becca out on a date.”

  “Oh good, then how about you pick her up tomorrow evening and after she shows you around she can bring you out to the house for dinner. How does six sound?”

  “Eva!” Becca couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The two of them were acting and making plans like she wasn’t even standing there. “I never said yes to Nick, and what if I have plans for tomorrow?”

  “Don’t be silly. If you have plans, just cancel them. This handsome young man might not be around for very long, and you should take advantage of his company while you can.” Eva winked at Nick, and Becca felt the battle slipping through her fingers. She could never win against the two of them.

  “Anyway, I’m sure my Henry would enjoy meeting Nick. Consider it a favor to me.” Eva looked up, and Becca surrendered. The white flag had officially been run up the pole and was flapping around in the wind for all to see. She could never turn down Eva when she asked for a favor. She was beat.

  Becca sighed. “You know this is blackmail”. She turned to Nick and added, “Again”. He just shrugged his shoulders and put up his hands in mock innocence.

  “Dinner at six sounds good. What can I bring?”

  “Wonderful!” Eva continued as she put her gloves back on. “Nothing, but I will take some brownies now. Chocolate makes my Henry frisky.”

  Nick chuckled while Becca groaned and boxed up a dozen brownies.

  Nick grabbed the box when Becca handed them over and offered to carry them outside.

  Smiling, Eva thanked Nick before turning to Becca. “This one is so charming. We must keep him around. See you tomorrow, dear.”

  Becca watched as Nick followed Eva out of the shop and as they stood on the sidewalk talking. She could see the two of them smiling and knew they were conspiring against her even more. She had been right, and her butt had gotten a chunk taken out of it. That didn’t stop the giddy feeling that had settled into her stomach though. She was going out on a date and not just with any guy. She was going to spend an evening with Nick.

  Gone was the panic, and she admitted to herself she was excited. She was actually looking forward to
having dinner with him. She watched him walk back and smiled when he popped his head in the door. “What time should I pick you up?”

  Chapter Eight

  Becca checked her appearance in the mirror once more. She nervously fidgeted with her sweater pulling it up then down, off the shoulder, on. Her stomach was in a knot, and she was a jittery mess.

  The four coffees she had weren’t helping to calm her down much either. The extra caffeine punch was needed after her restless night. Sleep had not been an option as her mind had raced over Nick and the date.

  After he had left and the initial excitement had worn off, her thoughts had gone into overdrive as she’d ripped apart the situation, analyzed, twisted and then put it back together just to rip it apart piece by piece again. Panic, anxiety, and fear had settled back in as she’d worried and stressed over how much she was excited, happy, and even hopeful over seeing Nick again, the last being what scared her most of all.

  Hope was something she had long given up as a pipe dream. There was no hope for a future that didn’t and wouldn’t exist. Why dream about a happily-ever-after when that’s what it was a fairy tale? Love didn’t conquer all. It was an express lane to heartache. In the end, you were back to where you started … alone.

  The emotional gauntlet she had dragged herself through had taken a toll as she had finally fallen into bed drained and exhausted in the early hours of the morning. Becca had woken a few hours later and called Anne for an emergency girl’s meeting at the shop.

  A couple cups of coffee and a double chocolate muffin or two later, the therapeutic session with Anne had worked its magic. Her friend had found a way to calm her to where Becca had been able to allow herself to look forward to the evening.

  Becca shook her head at how off-the-charts she had become over spending time with Nick. He just had an inexplicable way of making her world tilt and spiral around her. Every emotion she felt seemed to be amplified when he was around.