The Standby Guy

by Natasha Moore

  “You have a cougar page in that notebook? Did you check off ‘one-night stand with a young stud’ from your list?”

  “There was no one-night stand.” Her voice rose to a near-shout. “He walked me to my car because it was dark outside. And we both drank ginger ale.”

  Carter told himself to calm down. He was relieved to know the truth about Katie’s evening, but it didn’t help the tension twisting his stomach. Worthington was already ticked at him for putting his family ahead of his law practice. Carter didn’t need another strike against him from his biggest client. “It doesn’t matter what really happened, does it? What matters is the gossip that’s Lakeside’s stock in trade.”

  “This is ridiculous. After you get home tomorrow, we’ll go out to Bud’s. Let everyone see us together and laugh about the wild rumors with anyone who asks.”

  Katie sounded so reasonable. Had he overreacted? Was he upset because of the gossip, or was it because he was jealous? Because she spent time with another man? No, he wasn’t jealous. He had no right. What was wrong with him?

  “I guess you’re right.”

  She sighed. “I don’t want to fight with you.”

  “I don’t want to fight with you, either. You’re right, I overreacted. I’m sorry. Things have been crazy, juggling too many balls in the air.”

  “How’s the salvage going?”

  “Fine. We’ll be bringing back some beautiful stuff. Listen, did you get my text about Pop?”

  “Yeah, I talked to Noah. Did you know he and Anita are back from the Falls? Ginny’s spreading the word about Pop. Hopefully, we’ll have a good crowd come in and say hi to him on Saturday. I’ll come over early and hang out with him.”

  “Thanks, Kat.” Hopefully, Pop would be too busy talking with friends to feel uncomfortable.

  “Look, Gloria’s waiting for me in the other room.”

  “Yeah.” He missed her already. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  …

  After she left Gloria’s, Katie headed over to the center of Lakeside where Anita was renovating an old storefront, turning it into her new art studio. It was only a couple blocks from Dixon Photography, but Katie hadn’t been inside yet. Anita met her at the door in black yoga pants and a bright-red tunic.

  “Perfect timing,” Anita told her. “Come on in and lend me a hand.”

  Katie stepped into a large open space. All the walls had been painted a soft white. “Tell me what you’re doing in here. Is it going to be an art gallery, too?”

  “That’s been my idea all along. Not only to showcase my work but I’m going to be on the lookout for other local artists, too. Through this door here will be my studio where I’ll hold classes.” Noah’s new wife had been an art professor before she resigned to move to Lakeside. “I just hope I’ll have some students.”

  “Oh, I’m sure you will. Will you be teaching anything besides painting?”

  “If there’s an interest.” She opened the door and let Katie get a peek at the other side of the building. Two of the walls were the same soft white as the gallery, but the other two were painted a vibrant yellow. “I’ve taught stained glass and pottery and jewelry making as well as drawing and painting.”

  “I’d sign up for jewelry making.” If that wasn’t on her list, it should be.

  Anita led Katie over to the far wall of the gallery. A row of paintings were propped up against the wall. “Help me choose which ones to hang first. The plan is to display mine on the back wall, other artists in the rest of the space. I have a few friends who are willing to send some pieces, but until I can demonstrate we have a market here in Lakeside…” Anita shrugged. “They aren’t willing to risk too much.”

  “I can understand that.”

  “I’ve collected the names of a couple of local artists who will be stopping in with samples soon. I’m very excited. And nervous.” She showed Katie the paper where she’d written the names. “Do you know any others?”

  “I might.” Then she took a deep breath and stepped out of her comfort zone. “Would you consider photographs?”

  “Oh my God, yes! Why didn’t I think of you to begin with?”

  Her stomach tickled. “Now that I spoke up, I’m not sure if I have anything for you right now. I honestly haven’t done much photography for pleasure lately, but I want to.”

  “When you’re ready, I’d love to see what you have.”

  “Right now I have some photos for you, but I don’t think you’ll want them for the gallery.” Katie reached into her bag and pulled out a large envelope. “These are for you. I took them the other day.”

  Anita shot her a curious grin, and then when she pulled the photographs out, her jaw dropped. “Oh, Katie, how wonderful!” Anita threw her arms around Katie. Tears glittered in her eyes. Then she flipped several times through the photos Katie had printed after taking them at the unexpected wedding. “These are beautiful. Thank you.”

  “It was my pleasure, really.”

  Anita flipped through them again. “I can’t wait to show Noah.”

  “Speaking of your groom, how was the honeymoon?”

  “Too short, but we knew it would be. Next July, we’re taking a full month off to travel together.”

  “That’s when you had your flings, right? Every July?” Katie was afraid Anita might be annoyed by the question, but she didn’t seem to mind.

  “That’s right.” Anita slid the photographs back into the envelope and placed it on a counter of polished wood Katie would bet had been salvaged by Colburn and Sons.

  “Can I ask you something about that?”

  “Of course.”

  “I don’t mean to sound judgmental or anything, but I sincerely want to know how you could keep emotion out of your relationships. I mean, sex is intimate. It can’t help but be emotional. How could you walk away every time after only a few weeks?”

  Anita shrugged. “I didn’t love any of them. I liked them, of course. I wouldn’t be intimate with a man I didn’t like and respect. But I didn’t love them. There were a few whose company I missed for a while, but I never had any trouble leaving them behind.”

  “But…how did you look for someone you knew you were going to leave?”

  “Well, first of all, when I had my flings, I hadn’t met Noah yet. I didn’t love any of my July guys, but I wasn’t in love with anyone else, either.” Anita drew her over to a couple of folding chairs, and they sat. “I wouldn’t be able to find another man to have a fling with even if I wanted to now—which, of course I don’t. I’d never look now because I’m in love with Noah. When I gave you that advice, I didn’t know you had Carter.”

  “I don’t have Carter,” Katie said in a rush. And there was still too much emotion inside her simply speaking his name, thinking of his hands on her skin, his lips on hers, their bodies coming together. How could there not be emotions involved?

  But she wasn’t in love with Carter. She couldn’t be. What a nightmare that would be.

  Anita studied Katie. “I thought you two were dating.”

  Katie winced. “Can you keep a secret?”

  “Of course.”

  “Carter and I aren’t really together.”

  “Could have fooled me.”

  “No. Listen. It was just supposed to be a dinner date with a new client and his wife, you know, so he could trust Carter’s loyalty and, I guess, his choice in girlfriend.”

  “So why are you still letting everyone think you’re together?”

  “We have to stay together long enough to help dispel Carter’s playboy reputation with this new client. We made a deal.”

  “I see,” Anita said smoothly. “And what do you get out of this deal?”

  “He’s been helping me. Practicing with me.” Oh God, was that all he’d been doing? Practicing? Of course it was. That’s all she wanted it to be.

  “Sounds like he’s finished with his part of the bargain. Don’t let him use up too much of your time.” She glanced at Katie’s tattoo. “Yo
ur time is important to you.”

  “I’m so mixed up.” What about the life she’d planned? What about her time for herself? She couldn’t abandon her me time when she’d barely started. Was there some way she could have it all?

  “Want to talk about it?”

  Katie jumped to her feet. “It shouldn’t have to be all or nothing. Carter’s been helping me find my confidence again, but he can’t stay a practice guy forever. I can’t just keep him on standby for when I need him. That’s not fair to him.”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “But our families have us practically married off. And I don’t want that, either.”

  “What do you want, Katie?”

  “I don’t know. I need to think about it.”

  “Don’t waste too much time thinking, Katie. At some point, you just need to jump in with both feet. And live.”

  She was living. Wasn’t that what she was doing by working her list?

  On the way home from Anita’s, she stopped at Ramsey’s, a restaurant a few miles from home known for its delicious meals and outstanding desserts. There was an item on her list that Katie had been eyeing for the past few days.

  It was a little early for dinner, but the place was already half full. Like at the Bullfrog, Katie didn’t recognize a single person in the room. She supposed for all the people she used to know who’d moved away, even more people had moved into the area from other places. That could bode well for her if she wanted to continue to look for guys to have flings with, guys with whom she had no past and wouldn’t be apt to see again.

  But was Anita right? Were her feelings for Carter keeping her from finding another man she’d want to be intimate with?

  Before she could think any deeper about her conversation with Anita, the hostess greeted her and sat her at a small booth by a multipaned window and gave her a menu. Katie flipped to the back page so she’d be able to mark another item off her list.

  Eat dessert first.

  She’d always told herself she was going to do that someday. By the time she finished her meals, she was always too full and never got a chance to enjoy any of the luscious-sounding desserts. When the waitress, a young woman with a long braid down her back, came over to take her order, Katie grinned at her. “The hot fudge brownie sundae sounds amazing.”

  The waitress grinned back. “It is. Are you in just for dessert then?”

  “Oh no. I’ll have the pot roast special, but I want to eat my dessert first.”

  The waitress raised her brows. “Good for you. I’ll hand in your order and be right back with your dessert.”

  But somehow the treat wasn’t as joyful as she thought it would be. It smelled so good, with overwhelming chocolaty goodness. It was luscious, a double scoop of vanilla ice cream on top of a warm square of brownie with the whole thing covered in hot fudge, walnuts, and whipped cream. She wasn’t going to lose those last ten pounds this way. If she didn’t watch it, she be back to having twenty pounds to lose again. And the worst thing was, she wasn’t sure it was going to be worth all those extra calories.

  She’d enjoyed the anticipation of the forbidden experience. The rush of having another item to check off her list had given her exciting tickles in her stomach. She hadn’t considered the possibility that it wouldn’t be as much fun eating it alone. The sundae was delicious, so what was the problem?

  The last dessert she’d eaten had been the tiramisu at Castle on the Hill. It wasn’t that the tiramisu was tastier than the brownie sundae she was eating now, but the experience had been more enjoyable. Carter had been there with her. They’d talked and laughed with the Worthingtons. Then Carter had playfully nipped a bite off her fork when he’d already finished his, his eyes telling her he’d like to be taking a nip out of her. And that was before they’d even had their first kiss.

  There was no reason to be comparing this dessert experience with the last one. The whole point of this one was to eat sweets before dinner. To be able to be hungry enough to enjoy every last bite of the dessert. It shouldn’t matter that there was no one sitting across the table from her. This was all about her time to do what she wanted.

  Katie pushed the memories of Carter and tiramisu out of her mind and focused on her taste buds. When she took another spoonful, she closed her eyes and let the gooey mouthful send a wash of delightful sweetness to tickle her senses. So good.

  “Mmm.” She moaned, then her eyes flew open when she heard a chuckle. The elderly couple at the table next to her was smiling at her. They’d obviously heard her moan of pleasure. “Sorry,” she murmured.

  “Don’t apologize,” the woman said. “I was debating whether or not to have dessert, and you talked me into it.”

  “It’s very good.”

  “Dorothy, are you sure you should have all that? It’s so big, and you know the doctor wants you to watch your blood sugar.”

  “All right, Howard. You’re right.” The smile dropped from the woman’s face as her husband talked her out of having dessert. It might have been out of concern, but thank goodness it was something Katie didn’t have to worry about.

  She could enjoy a dessert or anything else by herself. There was no one to try to talk her out of it or remind her why she shouldn’t indulge on an overload of calories. It didn’t mean she’d make a habit of dessert first, or eating it at all most of the time, but she could if she wanted to. Even if she didn’t think Carter would ever stop her from eating dessert first.

  In fact, he’d most likely join her. He’d order his own, and they’d share tastes of each other’s. Or maybe they’d order one and split it, laughing as they fought over the last bite. She could picture him sitting across from her, picture the crinkles at the corner of his eyes when he smiled and teased her about her sweet tooth.

  Somehow again she was thinking about Carter instead of enjoying her my time. Katie brushed her fingers over the tattoo she finally was getting used to, as if that would activate its magical powers.

  Katie was stuffed by the time she left the restaurant. She turned on her phone when she got in her car, the take-out container of leftover pot roast on the passenger seat beside her. She’d missed a call from Sean, and the voicemail he left sent worry dropping like a rock into the pit of her stomach, even though there should have been no room left for it in there.

  “Mom, we need to talk.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  When Carter got back home Saturday afternoon, all he wanted was to see Katie. But he had responsibilities. Helped unload the damn trucks first of all. Finally talked to Sean, who’d been looking for advice. Had a long conversation with Lucy to catch up on work stuff. Then stopped by to see his parents when he heard Pop had refused to go into Colburn and Sons this morning. By the time he got home, he was craving a cup of coffee almost as much as he was craving Katie.

  He could see her through the screen door. She’d propped her arms on the table. Her hands cradled her mug as if she was trying to warm her hands. She stared into the cup.

  “Hey,” he murmured as he walked into the kitchen. The room smelled like Katie and coffee. His favorite things. “Are you okay?”

  Katie set her mug down and stood, revolving to face him in one smooth movement. “You’re back.” The joy and relief on her face slipped into anxiety. She looked like she had been going to take a step forward but then settled back on her heels.

  “Finally.” He caught her hand and tugged her close. Her arms wrapped automatically around his waist. “I’ve missed you. Am I allowed to say that?”

  “Last we talked, you weren’t too happy with me.”

  “I overreacted. And I still missed you.”

  She rubbed her cheek over his. “I’ve missed you, too.”

  Even though you were out with some guy at a bar? But he didn’t ask the question out loud. He’d thought he was over it, but maybe not. Still he lowered his lips to hers and tasted Katie again. Her lips were soft and pliant, and her body pressed up against him was, too. Heat flared, and his body harde
ned. Carter moaned, and his hands slid down over the small of her back, until he cupped her ass, pulling her up on her toes, rubbing against her.

  “God, Katie.”

  She buried her face into the crook of his neck, her lips wet, her breath warm. “Sean’s coming home.”

  He tightened his grip. “Tonight?”

  Katie nodded, her soft hair brushing against his jaw. “Yeah.”

  “For good?”

  “I don’t know.” She gently pulled away from him. “I don’t think he knows.”

  “I talked to him an hour ago, and he never said a thing about coming home.” Sean had sounded unhappy and told Carter he didn’t know what he wanted to do. Carter’s advice had been to take a step back and give himself some time before he jumped into any decisions.

  “I don’t think he’d decided for sure until about fifteen minutes ago. I just got off the phone with him before you got here.”

  “Did he tell you what was wrong? He wouldn’t tell me.” Carter crossed the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee to mask the hurt he felt when he thought about Sean not trusting him enough to confide in him.

  “No. Said he wanted to talk. He hinted that maybe college wasn’t the best place for him after all.”

  Was that what he’d wanted advice on? Carter wished Sean had told him that; although he doubted his advice would have been any different. “You think he wants to quit school already?”

  “I don’t know. I’m trying not to worry about it right now. Until he tells me what’s wrong, there’s nothing I can do to help him.”

  “Except be here for him.” Carter would always be there for him, too. He dropped into the chair next to Katie and took a long drink of dark roast.

  “Except that.” She grabbed a silver-wrapped chocolate from the dish, tossed it to him, and then took one for herself. “Well, maybe there’s one thing I could do.”

  He unwrapped the candy and popped it in his mouth. “What’s that, Katie Kat?”

  She licked a tiny bit of melted chocolate off her lips. He wished it had been his tongue. “If only I could find something to take my mind off my worries for a little while.”