He’d exchanged greetings with Sophie this morning, but their conversation didn’t hold any of the banter he’d enjoyed prior to her evening with Manfred. Kissing her the other night might have fulfilled a long-held desire on his part, but the wall his actions had put between them might never be scaled.
She stared out the window, bag clutched against her chest, but he could see the muscles in her jaw working, as if yet again she was forcing herself not to look in his direction. He reached up to straighten his tie before he remembered he wasn’t wearing one. Answering Sophie’s challenge about loosening up had him feeling as if he were missing something.
“So.” He cleared his throat and had to yell over the din of Roxanne’s engine. “You are all new couples today, unless otherwise requested,” he added when Manfred held up his hand. A hand that was firmly clasping that of Eleanor Clambert. At least he’d been right on that front. Eleanor and Manfred had hit it off immediately, and despite everything else going on around Gideon, that gave him something to smile about—and be proud of.
That was what happened when he paid particular attention to a problem. Things worked out.
“What I’d like each of you to do is tell your date one thing about yourself that isn’t on your questionnaire. Something that might surprise even me. We’ve got at least an hour’s drive ahead of us, so let’s make the most of it and get to know each other. I’ll make you aware when we’re about there.”
He headed to the back of the bus as the muted conversations began, some accompanied by nervous laughter. The smell of exhaust got worse the farther back he went, and he wondered if he’d ever see a school bus again without wanting to choke.
He took his time, making sure conversation was happening, making check marks next to those couples on his list who seemed to have an easier time of things than others. He kept his ears especially open as he reached Sophie and Chase, and tried not to notice how Sophie’s smile lit up her entire face. Her gaze skittered to his before she ducked her chin and shook her head, murmuring an answer to some question Chase had asked her.
She’d asked him to take more care, take more of a risk for her, and he had. Chase was a good guy coming off being blindsided with divorce papers from his childhood sweetheart. But it hadn’t taken much of a push to get him to fill out one of Gideon’s forms. Chase had agreed it was time to get out there again, and thankfully, he looked good on paper. Being the floor manager of one of the mills in town meant he was steady. Secure. Responsible. All things Sophie needed—and said she wanted—in her life.
Seeing them together on paper was one thing. Seeing Sophie smile at Chase was another. Gideon had to change his mind on where to sit and threw himself into the spot directly behind Sophie and Chase.
Sophie turned her head, eyes narrowing as she caught sight of him, but Gideon busied himself scribbling nonsensical notes on his clipboard and planned to listen to every word.
* * *
“SO, SOPHIE.” CHASE FOCUSED curious blue eyes on her and smiled as she struggled out of her down coat. The stifling air in the bus fogged the windows. She gave him a grateful smile when he lent her a hand.
Chase had that new-Hollywood look about him with piercing eyes and a jaw she could break a cinderblock on. Not that she was a good judge of men, but given the envious looks she’d received since climbing onto the bus ahead of Chase, she’d hit the jackpot when it came to handsome. “What deep dark secret are you keeping to yourself?”
She couldn’t help it. She laughed. “I’m a pretty shallow pool,” she admitted as the back of her neck prickled. What was Gideon doing sitting right behind her? There were plenty of other empty seats on the bus.
“Come on,” Chase teased. “I bet there’s something fun about you we don’t know. Like maybe you have secret fairies to help keep those flowers of yours happy so they magically bloom all year round?”
Sophie chuckled. “I only have one helper, and trust me, she’s not very magical.” Melanie would probably disagree. “Um.” She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to think of something. “Oh, okay. When I was a little girl, I used to ask my mom and dad to put twinkle lights up on my ceiling so I could pretend I was sleeping under the stars.”
“That’s cute,” Chase said. “And did they?”
“No.” Sophie barely registered the bitterness anymore. “They were always going to. But then my mom got sick and Dad took off. I found a box of lights in the garage a few years later. It was something.” It was a reminder that sometimes you didn’t get what you asked for—you had to make things happen yourself. “What about you?”
“Oh, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Try me,” Sophie prodded. “You seem normal enough. Just don’t tell me you know where there are buried bodies at the lumber mill.”
“No, no bodies. Not human anyway.”
Sophie’s smile dipped.
“Okay, here’s the gist.” Chase leaned over and she caught a whiff of his aftershave, something with citrus that made her nose itch. “I have a side hobby.”
“Okay.” And it had to do with...bodies? “So go ahead. Confess.” Oh, wrong choice of words.
“I’m a taxidermist,” he whispered.
Sophie managed a silent O as she blinked.
“Crazy, huh?” Chase leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest and grinned. “Birds are my specialty. I don’t kill them, mind you, but I do go looking for carcasses on my days off. I find it challenging, finding all the materials I need to match them just right. You’d be surprised what you can order on the internet. You know, the right glass eyeball makes all the difference...”
Sophie spun in her seat and glared at Gideon when she heard him snort. He covered his mouth as if he were coughing, those gorgeous blue eyes of his seeming torn between laughter and apology before he closed them and shook his head.
CHAPTER EIGHT
WHEN THE BUS bounced onto the unpaved road leading to Lake Wakanaba, Gideon took pity on Sophie and got to his feet. “Hey, Sophie, I could use some help if—”
“Happy to!” She shot up so fast she just missed cracking her head on the roof of the bus. “Sorry, Chase. I’ll be, um, back, okay?”
“Sure.” Despite appearances, Chase didn’t seem to be the sharpest tool in the shed. Near as Gideon could tell, Chase hadn’t noticed Sophie’s complete lack of interest in his hobby. “I can help, too,” Chase offered. “If you need.”
“It’s covered for now, thanks.” Gideon stepped back to let Sophie go ahead of him. “I am so sorry,” he whispered as they reached Carl. “I swear I didn’t know.”
“Might be time to revamp those questionnaires of yours.” Sophie sighed and dropped into the seat next to his backpack. “And maybe it’s time I admit defeat. I don’t have to date. I could be the lonely cat lady of K-Bay. I’ve always wanted a cat.”
She was joking, right? The image of Sophie as a reclusive feline fancier sliced through his heart.
“Let’s not go making drastic life choices just yet.” Gideon attempted to keep the tone light. “There’s probably a few more questionnaires—”
“Shouldn’t we have parked back there?” Sophie asked as she pointed to the sign Carl had passed.
Gideon cursed. “Hey, Carl, you missed the sign.”
“Nah. Saw it,” Carl insisted and pointed ahead. “I know a special spot closer to the lake. Great view from the get-go. Trust me.” He squinted and leaned forward to peer through the dirt-spattered window. “Only a little ways to go.”
Different gears ground under the bus as the tires and brakes strained. “Ty and Coop should have set up by the dock by now,” Gideon said. Why did he have a bad feeling about this? “I’ve been trying to call them, but the cell reception—”
“Please tell me there’s a bathroom close by.” Nadine groaned and crossed her legs. She wiggled
in her seat, her lashes coated so thick with mascara you could hear her blink. “I drank too much coffee.”
“There’s a bunch of porta-potties down a path,” Carl called over his shoulder. “I’ll show you as soon as I park. This time of year, we’re nice and early so they shouldn’t be, um, full yet. Save for fishermen, of course.”
“Of course,” Sophie said with a flinch. “I’ll be refraining from ingesting any more liquids for a while.”
“Okay, folks, listen up.” Gideon stood tall and faced the crowd. “As soon as Carl parks in his special place, I’ll have those who need restrooms get off first. When you exit—” he took a step back to peer out the fogged-up door and pointed to where he spotted Ty and Coop at the edge of the lake “—head on over to Coop and Ty. They’ve got a drink and snack station set up along with chairs, blankets and hopefully anything else we’ll need for the next couple of hours. The weather’s supposed to be pretty nice, actually, so no one should freeze.” And now the windup... “Those of you men willing to take the Polar Dip, stand by for instructions. Ladies, you’re certainly welcome to put a toe in the water, too.”
The laughter he received in response to his teasing was either a good sign or they were mocking him. In either case, at least it had broken the nervous tension.
“I’ve also got some extra towels stashed under the bus in case anyone forgot theirs. Manfred?”
Manfred pressed his glasses farther up on his nose. “I’ll need one. I was distracted this morning.”
Eleanor giggled and her face went fire-engine red as she clung to him.
Gideon stopped himself from smiling. “Noted. Hey, Carl, Coop’s trying to get our attention.”
“Almost there.” Carl jammed his foot on the brake and the bus shuddered to a stop. When he cut Roxanne’s engine, Gideon swore he heard the bus let out a sigh of relief. “The bathrooms are down that little trail right there—”
“Gotta go!” Nadine shoved past her date and hopped out of the seat, followed by a number of other women, who were bundled up in their down jackets and scarves despite the weather report for clear skies and unseasonably warm temps.
“Be careful, please,” Gideon warned. Carl opened the bus door and the women piled into the aisle.
“I can hear Coop calling your name,” Sophie said. She stood and joined him, touching his shoulder as she rose up on tiptoe. “He doesn’t look happy.”
“Coop always looks like that.” Then again, Coop was running toward them at a pace he hadn’t seen since their high school hockey days. “Hang on.” He held out his hand to Nadine, but she wasn’t about to wait. She ignored him and dashed down the steps and off the bus.
“Whaaaa!” Her scream was quickly followed by a squelching splash. The bus lurched to one side. The women behind Nadine didn’t have the chance to reach for something before they also toppled out of the bus and out of sight.
“Stop them!” Sophie hollered and grabbed one woman’s arm. “Stacey, wait.” Too late. Stacey went flailing after them.
Gideon pushed in front and stared down at the four, five...no, six women currently slopping around in one of the deepest mud puddles—please let that be mud—he’d ever seen. Nadine’s shriek of horror had him covering his mouth to prevent himself from laughing.
“Holy—” Chase had come up the aisle followed by some of the other men. “Let us through. We’ll help them out.” Before Gideon could argue, Chase and his fellow Galahads hopped out of the bus, but instead of helping, they ended up knee-deep in mud, slipping and sliding around the women they couldn’t grab hold of.
“It’s like wrangling greased pigs,” Sophie whispered with a hint of a giggle against Gideon’s back. The rest of the bus’s occupants gathered at the windows, laughing and shrieking in sympathy.
“Why didn’t you park back at the lot?” Coop yelled from the far side of the mud puddle, which Gideon now realized had been camouflaged with ice-caked winter grass.
“Stop!” Gideon yelled to the jostling group and shoved his clipboard at Sophie. “Everyone stop moving right now! Carl, start Roxanne. We’re headed back down that path.”
He bent and unlaced his new boots, tossing them under his seat before he stepped off the bus and sank ankle deep. Calf deep. Knee deep. Oh, no.
Everyone had stopped moving at least, but they were all clearly waiting for his instructions. As if he knew what to do. Coop stood at the far end of the pit—nothing puddle about this thing now—hands on his hips, his shoulders shaking so hard with laughter even Gideon started to grin.
“What the—” Ty abruptly halted beside Coop. “Gideon, I thought we discussed the parking lot—”
“Now is really not the time,” Gideon called out and took careful steps toward his mud people. “Stand up, everybody. Feet flat, stop flailing like overactive windmills and stay where you are.”
More squeals erupted as feet went out from under people. Mud sprayed as people struggled to adjust. By the time they’d crawled, stooped and clawed their way to where Coop and Ty were standing, there wasn’t an inch of bare skin—or clean clothes—showing.
Gideon slogged his way back to the bus, eyes narrowing as he caught sight of Sophie standing in the open door, eyes alight with humor as she doubled over laughing.
“You think this is funny?” Gideon asked as he dragged his legs through the mud.
She nodded and tears sparkled in her eyes. “I think it’s hilarious. Gideon Walker, methodical planner, control freak extraordinaire, is stuck in the mud.” She cackled and the sound shot straight through him. “Where’s my phone?” she added as he got hold of the bus and hauled himself forward. She squealed as he wrapped his hand around her wrist and gave her a jerk forward. “Don’t you dare!” she cried. But as she attempted to pull away, he tugged harder, his feet slipping out from under him. He felt himself falling back...with Sophie’s wrist in his grasp.
“Gideon!”
He came up sputtering in time to see most of her face go under. He shifted up as quickly as he could and held her against him. “You idiot!” she shrieked and slapped at him.
“Sophie, I am so sor—”
And then he saw her. Saw Sophie. Still laughing. Swiping streaks of mud across her cheeks and nose, sputtering sludge.
“You got her?” Coop called over to him as he finished pushing the last of the white knights onto firm ground.
“Oh, he’s got her,” Ty said. “Carl! Get that truck moving to the parking lot. Slowly! And don’t run over those two fools.”
“Tell me you brought a change of clothes,” Gideon said as Roxanne roared to life and Carl shifted the bus into Reverse.
“I’m always prepared.” Sophie grinned and shifted off him, but he lifted his muddy hand and stroked the side of her face, staring into her eyes. “What?” She blinked at him, her white teeth brilliant against her dirty face.
“Nothing,” he whispered. “Nothing except...I’m sorry.” He watched as understanding crept into her eyes. He wasn’t talking about the mud.
“I know.” Her smile was sad, though. “Guess what? I think I might want to jump in the lake after all.”
Sitting frozen in the mud, Gideon became certain of two things. One, he had no business being a matchmaker, and two, he’d just fallen head over heels in love with Sophie Jennings, Queen of the Mud People.
* * *
GIDEON GRIMACED AS the last of the couples trudged off the bus—Nadine and her extramuddy lashes included—later that afternoon looking completely spent, but with smiles on their faces. Total disaster averted.
They’d stayed at the lake longer than expected, mostly to accommodate Ty racing to the closest convenience store thirty minutes east to buy trash bags for muddied clothes, extra towels, thermal blankets, sweats, T-shirts and a couple of bottles of whiskey to top off still-steaming coffee back at the lake.
&n
bsp; Thanks to Sophie parading around in her mud suit looking as proud as if she were wearing a golden tiara, moods and attitudes shifted and improved. Within minutes, more people than expected were diving into the chilly lake—clothes and all—to join in the fun. Trinity Matchmaking’s Polar Dip was destined to be talked about for weeks, maybe months to come.
“Send me any cleaning bills,” Gideon told the couples as they filed out of the bus and into the Bar & Grill for a promised meal and recovery time. “Sophie, stop.” He hurried over to where she was lugging sopping piles of filthy towels and discarded blankets. “You’ve done enough. Coop and I will take care of that.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Coop grumbled as he sidled up to the bus, having parked his car. “If I’d known today would entail this much hard labor, I’d have hired out. You.” Coop pointed at Gideon. “No more outing planning for you. You’re done.”
“We’re done,” Gideon corrected. Tomorrow was Valentine’s Day. He was officially tapped out of romantic ideas for fledgling lovebirds. Well. Maybe he had one or two ideas left. “Sophie, can I talk to you for a minute?”
She blinked at him, making a kind of tsking sound with her tongue when Coop gently pushed her aside. “Sure.”
Gideon led her around the side of the building, his stomach dropping into a strange little jig he’d never felt before. “Look, I admit today was a bit of a disappointment.”
“It turned around.” She smiled up at him, her damp hair hidden beneath the wool cap Gideon always kept in his bag. She’d been the first one into the lake, and while her clothes had taken a beating, she’d managed to emerge as fresh faced as ever. Shivering perhaps, but smiling nonetheless, proof she could come out of anything unscathed. “About me and Chase.” She inclined her head toward the door. “I recognize you did try this time, but let’s face it. That’s four strikes. I’m out.”
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