Hard Hat Man (3 page)

“
Sounds fine.
”
Jan picked up a brown leather purse and looked at her mother.
“
Ready, Mom?
”

They walked outside to his
car
.
He heard
Laura
hiss,
“
Call me
Laura
, not Mom.
”
So, mom didn
’
t like being reminded of her age, eh?
Hiding a grin, he opened the back door
of his older model Buick, wishing he could impress them with a more expensive vehicle
.
Why did it irritate him that Jan was ignoring him? He’d only see her for a few days and then she’d leave. No skin off his nose if she didn’t like him. Or did she remember him and was ignoring him to pay him back for torturing her back then? Somehow, that idea pleased him. If it was true, it would mean she did remember him.

Laura
stepped ahead of her daughter and got in, saying,
“
You sit up front and get acquainted, dear.
”

Jan frowned, but
obediently
got into
the front
bucket seat
.
He got
beh
in
d the wheel
, glancing over to be sure she’d buckled up. She had.

On the short drive to the restaurant,
Jan
said little, and he sensed some hostility.
Was she only resenting her mother
’
s obvious push in his direction?
Or was she against the sale of the property for some reason?

That thought made him nervous and more determined to make her like him.
Sending her a friendly smile, he asked,
“
Did you have a
nice
drive down?
”

“
Not really.
It poured most of the way and I got lost twice, which was why I arrived late.
”
Her soft red lips twisted in a wry smile.

“
Oh.
I’m sorry to hear that.
”

“
No harm done.
I found
Lakeview
, eventually.
”

“You don’t have a G
PS?”

“No. Never tried using one. I usually Google my route before I leave home and that works pretty well. I just missed a couple of road signs in the rain, so went straight when I should have turned.”
She glanced at him.

He met her blue eyes and couldn
’
t look away.
Heat sizzled between them.

Her eyes widened in surprise.
For a long moment her gaze remained locked to his.
He could feel his heart speed up.

Then he swallowed and jerked his gaze back to the road.
What had that been all about?
He glanced in the rear view mirror to see if her mother had noticed.

But
Laura
seemed to be interested in the passing scenery, paying no attention to him or her daughter.
Jan was looking out the side window now.
Maybe he
’
d imagined the heat in her gaze.
But he hadn
’
t imagined his own reaction.

He
’
d better stick to business if he wanted to keep his company afloat.
This was no time for romantic side trips, no matter how tempting the woman was!

***

Jan
worried
her
lower
lip and turned to stare at the neat one story homes lining
Lakeview
’
s
streets and the children playing hopscotch on the sidewalks.
Whatever was the matter with her, to react like a lovesick schoolgirl to this
man
?
Sure, he’d shared a classroom way back when, but he was essentially a
stranger
now, wasn’t he
?
Her face
heated and
her
heart pound
ed
.
Honestly, was that any way for a schoolteacher to behave?

He didn’t look at all like the boy who’d enjoyed teasing her in school
.
She hid a smile, remembering his red face when he’d had to stand at the blackboard and write his one hundred sentences.

She swallowed and kept her eyes turned to the side window.
Oh, she remembered him all right. But he was grown up, now and she knew nothing about him as a
man.
So he was a handsome specimen, as far as men went.
But how did she know what he was really like?
Time would tell whether he was worthy of her attention.
Not that she meant to spend enough time here to pay attention to anyone.
She
’
d be in and out of this little burg before
the
week was up.

He parked the car at the curb and came around to open the door for her and her mother.

The restaurant he escorted them into was large and busy.
Still, there was a subdued, elegant air to the room.

Oriental scenes predominantly painted in reds and yellows hung on the walls and the waiters hurried about carrying trays. The scents of fried
chicken and shrimp
filled the air, making her mouth water and reminding her she hadn’t eaten since breakfast.

The hostess seated them at a table near the window overlooking a lovely flower garden with a bird feeder and fountain with a bird bath below it.

“
My, this is restful,
”
Laura
enthused.

“
Isn
’
t it?
”
Kyle agreed.
“
I enjoy coming here.
”

Jan found herself seated opposite Kyle, where she couldn
’
t help but notice every little move he made.
Why did he make her nervous?
He wouldn’t pull her hair now. And he wanted their cooperation on the farm sale, so she could count on him being a gentleman.
She did her best to appear calm and controlled.

A waitress brought them hot tea and took their orders.

As they were attempting to get acquainted, a large, well-dressed lady rose from a table across the room and approached them.
“
Hello, Kyle!
Are these the ladies you said I
’
d need to see about Horace
’
s things?
”

Jan heard Kyle groan softly before he answered,
“
Hello, Mrs. Robards.
Yes, this is
Laura
Johnson and her daughter, Janita Kerry.
Louise Robards, of our county
’
s historical society.
”

They exchanged greetings while Jan wondered why Kyle was upset.
Did he dislike interruptions or
just
this woman?

“
I
’
m interested in whether you
’
ll consider donating some of Horace
’
s antiques to our collection,
”
Mrs. Robards said.

“
Oh, I hardly think Horace would have anything your historical society would want,
”
Laura
said with a laugh.

“
But, I thought....
”
Mrs. Robards frowned, looking shocked.

“
I
’
m afraid this discussion is a bit premature,
”
Jan put in.
“
We
’
ve just arrived today.
We haven
’
t had time to inventory anything yet or to decide what will be done with it.
However, if you
’
ll give me your card, I
’
ll be happy to call you if there
’
s anything we don
’
t want that your society might wish to have.
”

“
Thank you, my dear.
”
Mrs. Robards smiled and handed over a business card before wending her way through the tables back to her dinner companions.

“
Why did you tell her that?
”
Kyle asked.
“
You
’
ll have the woman haunting us for weeks.
When Louise gets wind of a possible donation, she
’
s like a bloodhound in search of prey.
”

Jan raised her eyes to meet his warm brown ones.
She liked the way his dark brown hair waved back from his face.
But at the moment, his rugged features held an irritated look that raised her ire.
“
What a thing to say,
”
she said.
“
I
’
m sure she
’
s only trying to do her job.
”

Kyle
’
s mouth twisted in a laugh.
“
You don
’
t know her like I do.
”