She pressed her lips together and stuffed her hands in her pockets. “What do I owe you?” He looked so natural standing there in her kitchen. Maybe she was ready for a man in her life.
His voice dropped to a husky whisper. “A date.” He turned to face her. He gazed into her eyes, then took a step toward her.
She hadn’t been on a date in so long, she could barely remember what they were like.
He reached out and cupped her cheek in his hand. “I’d really like to get to know you better.”
She swallowed hard, nodded, then raised up on her toes as he lowered his head. Their lips met and she pressed her body against his. Feeling playful, she flicked her tongue against his lips. He groaned and pulled her closer.
“Hey, Mom, I need a drink of water.”
Gina stepped back and blinked away the fog of desire. “Okay, sweetie.” She opened the cabinet door and pulled out a plastic cup.
She glanced over her shoulder to see Toby staring up at Aidan with round eyes. “You’re the cowboy that let me ride the steer.”
Aidan’s eyes widened and he looked quickly at Gina. Toby still had a band-aid on his chin from the tumble he took. Aidan shifted from foot to foot under her gaze.
Gina handed the cup to Toby. “Okay, drink up, then you need to get back to bed.”
Toby tipped the glass up and drained it. He started to put it on the counter, then stopped and looked at the dishwasher and the tools scattered on the countertop. He turned and fixed his gaze on Aidan. “Mom said we can’t afford to fix the dishwasher. Did you fix it?”
Aidan nodded. Gina blushed at her son’s confession.
Toby frowned, forming twin furrows between his big, blue eyes. “Okay, you can stay.” Abruptly, he turned around and disappeared down the hallway.
Gina’s mouth dropped open. Life was so simple for Toby. She wished that were so for her, too. She turned back to Aidan and shrugged. “Kids, huh?”
He nodded toward the hallway. “I haven’t been around many kids, but he seems okay.”
She studied his face. He had to be weighing whether or not to date her, given the fact that she had a child. A relationship with her was more complicated than most.
He swept his hat off the counter and settled it on his head. “I should get going.” He glanced at the hallway. “Not keep Toby awake.”
She reached out and touched his forearm. It was firm and well-muscled, covered in a dusting of dark hair. “He said you can stay.”
Aidan’s mouth quirked up. “I know, but he’s probably got to get up and go to daycare and you probably have to get up and go to work, just like I do.”
She dropped her hand and caught her lower lip with her teeth. He was right. She hoped that was all it was. “I’ll see you at the barbecue, though, right?”
His lips parted in a full-grown grin, deepening his dimples. “Absolutely.” He bent and brushed his lips against hers, then pulled back and looked deep into her eyes. He took her hand in his and ran his thumb over the back of hers. “I’m looking forward to it.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Money
Gina’d given Midge the day off, but Midge appeared shortly after 12 noon with a paper bag from McDonald’s. She plopped it on the center counter and pulled two sandwiches out, and slid one across the counter toward Gina.
Gina grinned, “What? No fries?”
Midge winked and pulled out two small fries, “Of course I got fries. One for you, one for me. And they are small, off the value menu, so no guilt whatsoever.”
Gina reached under the counter and yanked two paper towels off the roll, kept one and handed the other to Midge. As the two caught up, Gina continued to jot notes. Midge reached across and tapped Gina’s notes.
“Looks like you’ve been doing a lot of planning and figuring.” Midge arched her thin eyebrows and said, “Well? What’s the verdict?”
“It’s not good. I’ve got sixty days and then my rent jumps up to five hundred bucks a month.” She shrugged, thinking that the rent might as well be a million dollars a month, even though, as Jed so politely and helpfully pointed out, that included all utilities.
Midge whistled softly. “Okay, so, that means we’ve got some planning to do.”
Gina rolled her eyes, “It doesn’t matter how much planning we do. I can’t do it. I’m going to lose the store unless I come up with another revenue stream.” Her shoulders drooped under the weight of worry.
Midge grabbed Gina by the arm and looked her in the eye. “Listen to me and you listen good. You are not going to lose this store. Not without a fight. We’re going to tackle this like we do every other problem that life throws at us.”
Gina shrugged. “And how is that?”
“With vodka,” Midge declared. “Tonight is Steve’s night to have Toby, right?”
Gina nodded, unable to suppress the ghost of a smile that threatened to break out into a real grin. She’d kept quiet about Aidan, afraid she might jinx things by talking about it.
Midge continued with her head held high. “Then tonight we plan. I’ll be at your house at 7. You order the pizza.”
Gina shook her head, but she couldn’t help but be buoyed by her friend’s enthusiasm. “Pepperoni with extra cheese?” Perhaps there was a way to make this happen. Maybe, just maybe, she just needed to be a little more creative, work a little harder, expand the store’s offerings.
“Just wait and see what I come up with.” Midge’s blue eyes narrowed and she pressed her thin lips together, then pushed to her feet and walked toward the store room. On her way through the swinging door, she hollered out, “Can you handle the place on your own for the rest of the day?”
She disappeared through the back without waiting for a response, then Gina heard the back door open and close. In spite of herself, a smile curled her lips. How could she fail with friends like that?
The rest of the day was a struggle for Gina. She felt pushy with every customer, and worried she was smothering them with attention. Every sale seemed to carry the weight of the store, and she greeted each customer at the cash register with the refrain, “Do you need any adhesives with this today?”
To her surprise, it worked. Nearly all of the customers said yes. It wasn’t a big sale, but every little bit helped. Perhaps she really could do it, if she just took the time to strategize a bit more. This was a simple thing, and it worked. Suddenly, she couldn’t wait for the day to end so she could get home, see Toby off and get to the heart of planning and brainstorming with Midge.
When the clock chimed six that evening, there was one customer left in the store. There was a note of irony in that it was Jed’s second ex-wife. She was young, had been way too young for him right from the start, and was already seeing someone else. Her new someone else was active in motorcycle racing, the motocross kind of stuff, and she was searching for embellishments for an album she was doing for him. Gina chatted with Sarah for a few minutes as they held up various ribbons and buttons to the dirt track crisscrossed papers that Gina had ordered in special for Sara.
A flash of inspiration hit Gina and she exclaimed, “I’ve got it!”
She led Sarah to the opposite side of the store where she pointed out some Tim Holtz grunge paper, Distress Inks and some Distress Stickles, all in grungy colors like dark browns and greens. Gina said, “This’ll add texture and color to your layouts — it’ll highlight the dirt, not cover it!”
Sarah picked up several items from the Tim Holtz line and dropped them into the basket hooked over her arm. She grinned. “Gina, I know I tell you this all the time, but you are so talented! You have such an eye for design!”
Together, the two women walked to the center island with the cash register. Sarah sat her purchases on the counter, then pulled her billfold out of her Michael Kors purse. Gina rang the items up, hesitated just a moment, and asked, “Do you need any adhesive with this?”
Sarah smacked herself in the forehead with an open palm, and pulled two adhesive refills off of the
revolving rack on the corner of the counter. She said, “I almost forgot! See, you think of everything! I’d forget my head if it wasn’t attached.”
They finished the transaction, Sarah left and Gina locked the door behind her. She finished closing out the store in record time, put the cash in the drop safe in the back office then dashed out the back door. She set the alarm and locked the door behind her, then jogged down the alley to where her car was parked on the side street. It only took her ten minutes to get home, one of the advantages of living in a small town like Wilder.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The Watch
Gina unlocked her back door and walked into the kitchen. Sandy and Toby were at the kitchen table, playing a game of Chutes and Ladders. Toby slid off his seat and ran to greet her, wrapping his arms around her and squeezing with all his might. She felt her heart melt as he whispered in her ear, “I love you, Mom.”
Her little boy was growing up. He had stopped calling her Mommy shortly after he started Kindergarten. The good part about him getting bigger was that she didn’t worry about him quite as much when he went with Steve. At least she trusted him to call her now if Steve did something inappropriate. At the thought of Steve, she glanced up at the clock on the microwave.
6:42 p.m.
He was late again. He was supposed to have been over to pick Toby up at 6:30. Of course, she was late, too, and given that fact, she was glad her ex was running late so she could have a few precious moments with her son before he left for his overnight with his daddy.
As if conjured by her thoughts, the back door swung open and Steve stepped into the kitchen. Toby pulled away from her and ran toward his daddy, then wrapped his arms around Steve’s legs in a hug. Steve didn’t bend to meet him, nor did he hug his son. Instead, he patted the boy on the back. She knew he loved his son, and for that she was thankful, but wished he was more demonstrative about it. Men showed affection differently, though. She knew that.
But she didn’t understand it.
Steve said, “Go get your backpack, buddy.”
Sandy scooted her chair back from the table and began putting the game away.
Steve took a step toward Gina, then laid an envelope on the kitchen counter and slid it toward her. He murmured, “Toby told me about the dishwasher. Here’s a little extra to help out.”
She frowned and took the envelope, then lifted the flap and looked inside. She flipped through a stack of hundred dollar bills and her eyes flew to Steve’s. He was grinning that same lop-sided grin that had first attracted her to him. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the money again, then back at him. A reflection on his wrist caught her eye. He was wearing a watch.
An expensive looking, very nice watch.
Not the crappy Velcro strap thing from Wal-Mart that he usually wore.
“Where’d you get this?” she demanded, pointing at the watch.
“Job I did,” he said, the grin fading. He looked away.
She narrowed her eyes and cocked her head. “What kind of job?”
Sandy grabbed her purse off the floor by the coat tree, hurried toward the door, apparently anxious to escape the tension building in the room, and said, “I need to get going. Tell Toby—”
Toby appeared in the doorway and asked, “Tell me what?”
Sandy blew him a kiss and said, “I’ll see you Friday, okay?”
The little boy’s chubby cheeks turned pink and he waved her kiss off. “Friday.”
Sandy stepped out the back door and pulled it shut behind her. Toby walked over to stand next to his daddy. Gina looked at Steve, still clutching the envelope in her hand, but he kept his focus on Toby. He bent down and asked Toby about his day. Suddenly, his little boy was the most important thing in the world. And that made her even more suspicious.
She cleared her throat. “Toby, why don’t you go check and make sure your bedroom is picked up?”
He frowned at her. “It is.”
She leaned forward, hands on her knees, so she was looking at him face to face at his height and said, “Just go check for me, okay?”
He dropped his backpack on the floor and flapped his arms in an exasperated expression, then stomped off down the hallway. As soon as he was out of the kitchen, Gina cocked one hand on her hip and said, “Okay, spill it, Steve.”
He did his best to look innocent, but didn’t quite pull it off. Gina had known him too long to fall for that. He said, “What do you mean, babe? I just wanted to help out.”
She frowned, but picked up the envelope of money and tucked it into her purse. Given her current financial situation, she couldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
At least not yet.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Old Trucks
Aidan stepped on the gas and the old Chevy hesitated, motor revving, but the wheels didn’t move. It finally clunked into gear and lurched forward. Beau glanced sideways at him.
Aidan kept his eyes forward, but felt Beau’s eyes on him. He worked so hard to do things without relying on his family’s money. The last thing he wanted to do was dig into his trust fund to fix his pickup. He could imagine his father’s reaction, could hear his father’s deep voice. Just go buy a new truck. His chest rose and fell with a sigh. He hadn’t dug into his trust account yet, and didn’t want to start now, unless it was for something big like his own place.
Gina’s little boy had made a comment about Gina not being able to afford to fix the dishwasher. That was rough. He was glad he’d been able to fix it for her. He’d thought about buying her a new one, but she seemed proud. It must be tough to be a single mother, especially running her own business.
He knew he was lucky to have a safety net, but he liked his old truck. It fit him. But like it or not, the thing needed work. Major work. And his salary as a ranch hand didn’t allow him to save much.
His thoughts returned to Gina. He felt a strong attraction to her. There had been a definite spark when they kissed. He looked forward to getting to know her better, but he was worried about the instant family. Was he prepared for that, if things got serious?
Beau finally broke the silence, and said, “You know Cletus in town works wonders on automatic transmissions. Bet he could rebuild this one for you for a good price.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Girls’ Night Out
The evening began with Midge mixing dirty martinis for them, then they moved into the living room, both sitting with their legs curled under them. Midge had brought a legal pad and she jotted notes as they brainstormed ways to improve customer traffic in the store. They came up with some great ideas, including monetizing their blog, setting up a store on Etsy, and having an overnight fundraiser for the 4-H club– that would bring in parents and club members, plus they would get exposure in local media that wouldn’t cost the store a dime.
“Smart idea!” Gina exclaimed when Midge explained the idea. She tipped her glass up and emptied it, then held it up to the light. “And so was this!”
Midge grinned, “I know. But I was afraid we might forget some of our great ideas, which is why I brought along this.” She pointed to the legal pad in her lap.
“I knew I liked you for some reason,” Gina said.
Midge laughed. “You like me ‘cause I can mix a mean dirty martini.”
“Yeah, you do.” Her voice trailed off when she noticed Midge’s watch reflect the light. It reminded her of Steve’s watch. “Hey, have you heard any rumors lately about Steve?”
Midge’s grin faded and her voice grew serious. “What kind of rumors?”
Gina stood up and took her friend’s glass, giving herself time to decide how much to share with her friend. She opted to procrastinate. “Here, I’ll refill our drinks.”
She walked into the kitchen and poured the remaining contents of the cocktail shaker into their martini glasses. She handed Midge her glass, sat her glass down, then went to the kitchen and pulled the envelope of cash out of her purse. She sat down on the couch, opened the en
velope and riffled the bills.
Midge’s eyes about popped out of her head. She stared at the cash, then at Gina. “Where the heck did you get that? You didn’t rob a bank or something, did you?”
Gina muttered, “No, but I’m worried that Steve might have.”
Midge’s brows knit together and she asked, “Seriously?”
Gina put the cash back in the envelope, tapped it thoughtfully against her hand and said, “No, I don’t think he’d ever rob a bank, but I’ve got to wonder what he’s into. He told me the other night that he had a job to do. Then he showed up tonight with this stack of cash for me—”
Midge interrupted, “How much, if you don’t mind me asking?”
Gina said, “A thousand bucks.”
“Wow.” Midge’s eyes widened as she took a sip of her martini.
Gina said, “I’m afraid he did something stupid.”
Midge narrowed her eyes and looked at Gina, then said, “And?”
Gina sighed and chewed on her lip a moment as she considered what to say. How much to say. She said, “And he was wearing what looked like a very expensive watch tonight.”
Midge laughed, then pointed at her purse. “See that? Fake Coach. I picked it up at a flea market off of I-44. And my daddy still has the Rolex that Mom got him when she was in New York City a few years ago – on a street corner for twenty bucks.”
Gina blushed and said, “I know. There are fakes all over the place. But this looked real.”
Midge pursed her lips and shrugged. “Maybe it was real. He definitely got an infusion of cash from somewhere.” She nodded toward the cash in Gina’s hand.
Gina stared at Midge’s fake designer purse and murmured, “But where?”
Midge pushed to her feet and held out her hand. “Doesn’t matter where he got the money.”
Gina took her friend’s hand and let herself be pulled to her feet. “What do you mean it doesn’t matter? It does to me.” Her eyebrows pulled low over her eyes as she dropped Midge’s hand.
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