Just a Kiss in the Moonlight: Georgia Moon Romance Book 2 (10 page)

Instead, he followed Zach to a table toward the front of the room and took a seat with a few other employees from the women’s floor. They all wanted to know which pumpkin displays he and Zach had entered, but neither of them gave up their secret.

Reece stood up to welcome everyone and then proceeded to outline the evening. While the crowd filled up their plates at the buffet table, the selected men and women from the Harmony Springs Resort and Spa would judge the pumpkin displays.

Zach and Luke followed their group to the nearest buffet table. He still felt a little out of place. These people had been working together for more than three years, some longer, and knew each other well.

As he came to the end of the line, he glanced over at the other buffet table and saw Taylin. But the guy she’d been with earlier had his arm around another woman. Taylin talked with the couple, and Luke concluded that she wasn’t on a date after all.

Part of him hoped Taylin would look his way again, but she didn’t. Conflicted about his feelings toward the pretty blonde, he made his way back to the table. Melissa, the other CRNA, was seated there. Since she was working, she was dressed in her scrubs.

“How come I didn’t get in on this bet?” she said when Luke and Zach joined her at the table.

“Sorry, it just kind of happened,” Luke said.

She shrugged. “Oh well, it’s not like I would’ve done a good job. My husband carves the pumpkins at our house.”

Luke enjoyed talking with the others and took their harassment about his cowboy getup in stride. Zach was making everyone laugh with his quotes from Nacho Libre. A few times Luke glanced over at Taylin, hoping to make eye contact, but she was always looking somewhere else. For a guy who vowed he wasn’t ready for a relationship, it surprised him how much it bugged him when she talked with other men.

The microphone screeched as Reece picked it up to get everyone’s attention. “Okay, I know y’all are anxious to hear who the lucky winner is.”

There was a lot of clapping and a few whistles from the crowd. She waited until the noise died down before introducing the silver haired man standing next to her. “This is Mr. Michael Bradley, owner of Harmony Springs Resort and Spa.”

More clapping followed as Mr. Bradley took the mic from Reece. “Thank you,” he said when things were quiet again. “As many of you know, Harmony Springs has recently undergone a major renovation. We now have state of the art facilities to meet all of our guests needs.”

He went on for several more minutes telling them all about the different amenities. The only things Luke was interested in were a massage, horseback riding and soaking in the hot pools. The other stuff had more to do with body shaping and skin treatments for wrinkles. Of course, if he won, he was gifting the weekend trip to Dave and Rachel so what he liked didn’t matter.

Mr. Bradley invited a woman who was one of the judges to come up on stage. “This is Jennifer Dawson, our marketing director at Harmony Springs. She’s going to reveal our winner.”

Jennifer opened up the envelope and withdrew a slip of paper. Mr. Bradley held the microphone for her as she leaned over to speak. “Well, y’all, we actually have a tie. We tried to do several final votes for only one winner, but it was always a draw.”

She glanced over at the hospital CEO and smiled. “Bob Denney suggested the spa package be split up and Harmony Springs will put each winner in their own suite.”

Whistles and clapping from the audience showed their approval. Luke was disappointed when Jennifer explained the winners would not be able to bring a guest, but emphasized how exciting it was to have two winners instead of one.

It was no surprise when the first winner named was Taylin Nichols for her entry of the baby carriage and baby pumpkin. While she made her way up to the front of the room, Zach leaned over and whispered, “I sure hope they call my name, because that girl is hot.”

Luke shot his colleague an annoyed look. “You won’t be sharing a room.”

Zach grinned. “I can dream, can’t I?”

Irritation worked its way through Luke. “Not gonna happen, dude.”

“We’ll see,” Zach said with a laugh.

They both turned their attention back to Ms. Dawson. “Our second winner is Luke McKay for his pumpkin hamburger meal.”

“You lucky son of a gun,” Zach said, smacking Luke on his back. “Bet you’re wishin’ y’all would be sharing a room now, right?”

Ignoring Zach, Luke scooted his chair back from the table and stood up. As he walked toward the front of the room, several people congratulated him, including the CEO. Luke tried to smile, but he hadn’t entered the contest to win the trip for himself. Splitting the prize with someone else meant he wouldn’t be able to gift his win to Rachel and Dave.

Before he reached his destination, he glanced at Taylin. While they wouldn’t be sharing a room, they would more than likely end up seeing each other. It annoyed him how much he liked that idea.

T
aylin watched
as Luke made his way toward the front of the room. She could tell he wasn’t thrilled about winning, or maybe he wasn’t thrilled she was the other winner. Still humiliated about the kiss they’d shared at his house the week before, she felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment.

Here she’d just received the most unbelievable kiss of her life, and then the guy apologized for it. To make it worse, he’d completely ignored her at work this past week. At least that meant he’d leave her alone when they were at the resort. She’d make sure of it. Even if she couldn’t go with her sister, Taylin was determined to enjoy every second being pampered at the spa.

Jennifer, the marketing director grinned as Luke finally made it. “Congratulations.” She waved Taylin over to stand next to Luke. “Come on over here, sugar.”

Taylin reluctantly moved next to Luke. He looked pretty sexy in his cowboy hat and boots. The dark whiskers on his jaw gave him a bad-boy, brooding male look, which totally worked for him. He smelled good too.

Jennifer had two of the other judges hold up the winning pumpkins for everyone to see. “Aren’t these both amazing?”

Once the applause died down, Jennifer continued. “Congratulations to both of you. As you know, the winner will be featured in our newest ad campaign for both social media and television.” She turned and winked at Taylin and Luke. “Since there are two winners, y’all are gonna be in our new commercial that we’ll film while you stay at the resort.”

Taylin looked at Luke sidelong and caught the look of terror on his face. Had he missed the fine print about being in the commercial? Or maybe he was worried about being with her and that she might get the wrong idea about their relationship. He didn’t need to worry. She wasn’t falling under his charm again. In fact, she’d find an opportunity to remind him he wasn’t her type. And this time she meant it. A guy who kissed a girl so sweetly and then regretted it right after was definitely not her type.

Reece Watkins, who looked anything but happy about the situation, took over the microphone and announced they had consolation prizes for some of the other entries. While she read the first name, Jennifer guided Luke and Taylin off to the side to discuss their itinerary.

“I guess the first thing I need to find out is if y’all are married or have a significant other?”

“Why?” Luke asked incredulously.

Jennifer laughed softly. “I just need to know whether or not I’m gonna have an angry spouse upset with me for being left out.”

Luke glanced at Taylin and then back at the marketing director. “I’m not married, and I’m not dating anyone.”

Jennifer lifted a brow, like she found it hard to believe this gorgeous man was single. “Great.” She smiled at Taylin. “How about you, sweetie?”

Taylin really,
really
wanted to say she had a boyfriend. Unfortunately, Luke knew the truth. “No husband for me.” Her hand clutched the long string of beads around her neck. “And no boyfriend either.”

“Excellent,” Jennifer chirped happily. “Y’all are gonna be perfect for the commercial.” She handed an oversized white envelope to each of them. “I’ll need this paperwork emailed or faxed to me by Monday. We’d like to shoot the commercial as soon as possible. When do y’all think you can do it?”

Taylin clutched the beads tighter. She did not want to look at Luke for an answer. Winning the spa package wasn’t going to be as relaxing as she’d first thought, and shooting a commercial with Luke pretty much nixed her plan to ignore him.

Jennifer looked between Taylin and Luke. Finally he answered. “I have the upcoming weekend off if Miss Nichols is free to go at that time.”

So she was back to Miss Nichols. Awesome.

“That should work for me,” Taylin said.

“Okay.” Worry entered Jennifer’s eyes, and two little lines dented her forehead. “We’d really like to shoot the two of you, like y’all are a couple enjoying your weekend at the spa. Is that gonna be a problem?”

This time Taylin didn’t wait for Luke. She dropped the death grip on her necklace and smiled brightly. “No, ma’am. That won’t be a problem for me.” She turned toward Luke. “Are you okay with that, Mr. McKay?”

The brim of his cowboy hat shadowed Luke’s eyes as he stared at Taylin. She could see the muscle in his whiskered covered jaw tighten. “Sure. No problem for me either.”

Yeah, right. She wouldn’t be surprised if he opted out somehow.

“Fabulous.” Jennifer grinned. “Y’all will be the best of friends when we’re done.” The woman meandered over to her CEO and whispered how excited she was about the winning couple.

They weren’t a couple. Clearly, Luke felt the same way by the tension radiating off of him. He was more stressed out than a first-time father holding his baby. Taylin should let him off the hook. In his defense, he’d had a terrible marriage. Although she still didn’t have all the details, she knew enough to know his unfaithful wife had really done a number on him.

Feeling compassion, she offered him a soft smile. “Hey, relax. I’m not lookin’ for a relationship and neither are you. We’ll just have a fun weekend and only spend enough time together to satisfy our sponsors.”

Those gray eyes of his studied her intently. Then a small smile edged up one side of his mouth. “Sounds like a plan.”

Did he really have to agree so quickly?

“Okay.” She took a few steps away from him, making the layers of her flapper-girl dress shimmy. Luke’s eyes followed the movement, and his jaw tightened again.

Taylin bit at her bottom lip to keep from smiling too wide. Luke McKay was attracted to her. He was very good at hiding it, but he liked her. And, much to her annoyance, she liked him too.

As soon as Reece finished up with the consolation prizes, Taylin watched Luke leave the party. She only stayed for fifteen minutes longer. She could hardly wait to get home to talk to her sister. They had some shopping to do. If Taylin was going to be on television then she wanted a new swimsuit. It had absolutely nothing to do with a handsome cowboy.

T
wo days later
, Taylin and Ashlee hit the mall to search for an evening gown and the prefect bathing suit. Realistically, she didn’t need another swimsuit since she and Ashlee had purchased several before their trip to Hawaii, but Taylin wanted to feel confident, and a new suit would help her do that.

“This one is gorgeous,” Ashlee said, holding up a turquoise bikini.

Taylin loved the color, which would make her eyes stand out, but the lack of material made her shake her head. “Pretty color, not enough coverage.”

Ashlee rolled her eyes. “It covers the important parts.”

“I’m gonna be on TV, Ash, and Daddy would throw a fit if he saw me wearing that thing.”

“Fine.” Ashlee hung the suit back on the rack. “But our choices are pretty limited since it isn’t swimsuit season.”

There were two racks of suits in the upscale department store, so Taylin was sure they could find something. Ashlee found three more bikinis that were better than the turquoise one, but Taylin found a hot pink tankini she wanted to try on.

She tried on the bikinis first and only liked one of them. The moment she put on the pink tankini, she knew it was the perfect swimsuit. The halter-top with the sweetheart scoop neck accentuated her curves perfectly. There had been two different options for the bottoms, and Taylin chose pink and white polka dot boy shorts over the solid pink bikini bottoms.

“What do you think?” she asked Ashlee, coming out of the dressing room.

Her sister lifted one eyebrow. “I have to admit you look pretty sexy. It leaves more to the imagination than just flaunting what you’ve got.” She made a motion with her finger for Taylin to turn around. “Wow, Tay, you should see how cute you look from behind. Let’s just say those squats you do on a daily basis are working.”

With Ashlee’s stamp of approval, Taylin purchased the swimsuit. The store didn’t have an evening dress either girl liked, so they made their way to the other end of the mall. After searching four other stores, they left the mall and found the perfect dress at a little boutique Ashlee knew about. The light teal colored dress had a curve-hugging bodice made of satin, while the flirty skirt, that landed a few inches above her knees, was made from chiffon.

The entire time they shopped, Ashlee gave out tidbits of advice on how to get a guy to fall in love with you. Taylin might try a few of her sister’s suggestions… if she wanted Luke to fall in love with her. Her feelings for him were ambivalent. Sure she was attracted to him, but right now, she didn’t like him very much.

“Taylin, promise me you’ll give Luke one more chance,” Ashlee said as they left the boutique. “I mean, y’all are gonna be on a romantic getaway for two. It could be so magical.”

“I don’t think he wants another chance.” Taylin found her keys and unlocked the car doors. “His divorce was ugly, and he said he’s not ready to start dating again.”

A twinge of angst gripped her around the middle. What if her inability to find a good guy was because of her? Maybe she just wasn’t wife material.

She opened the back door and carefully hung the dress bag on the little hanger above the door. Ashlee was already seated in the passenger seat when Taylin climbed in behind the wheel.

“I’m going to have a fantastic time, Ash. The only thing that would make it better is if you could come with me.”

“Maybe I’ll try to get a job there,” Ashlee said, clicking on her seatbelt. “Then I can get us discount passes or something.”

Taylin turned toward her sister. “That would be a long commute. Besides, I thought you liked your job, and Grayson.”

Ashlee sighed dramatically. “I, uh, dumped Grayson and quit my job yesterday.”

Not again. Why couldn’t Ashlee just stick to one job for longer than a few months? She and Grayson had been inseparable since they’d started going out two weeks earlier.

“Why? What happened?”

One of Ashlee’s shoulders rose up. “He was getting too serious way too fast.”

“Define serious,” Taylin said, pulling out of the parking space.

Another sigh escaped her sister’s mouth. “He told me he wanted to date me exclusively, and hoped I felt the same way.”

“How do you feel about him?”

“He’s incredible. I wish I could set you up with him. He’ll make someone a great husband someday.”

Taylin didn’t want to date Ashlee’s cast-offs. They’d tried that once in high school, and it didn’t work out so well. Ashlee liked giving out kisses a lot more freely than Taylin did and the boy had expected to pick up where he and Ashlee left off.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Several seconds of silence passed between them. Finally, Ashlee said, “I think I could fall in love with him too easily… it scared me.”

Taylin felt bad for Grayson. How many guys had Ashlee left in her wake? “Is there more to it than that?” Taylin asked.

“Yeah.” She moaned dramatically. “I know how stupid this sounds, but he’s not Beau.”

It always came back to Beau. “You know,” Taylin said as she merged onto the highway, “Beau will be home soon. I think you should just flat out kiss him. For all you know, he might be a terrible kisser.”

Ashlee laughed. “I think I might just do that.”

The rest of the way home Ashlee talked about job possibilities. Taylin doubted her sister’s employer would give her a very good reference since she just up and quit her job. Ashlee assured Taylin her boss wasn’t mad. He had a niece who wanted to work for him, but he didn’t have the headcount.

They arrived home, and were carrying their packages in when Taylin’s cell phone began vibrating in her pocket. She dug it out and looked at the screen. The number was unfamiliar, but she answered it anyway.

“Taylin, this is Anne Tilley from work.”

Taylin had only met Anne a few times and didn’t know her that well, but she sounded really stressed. “Hey, Anne, what’s up?”

“I have my birthing class tonight, but my mother’s neighbor just called and said my mom fell and broke her hip. I don’t have any siblings in the area and my dad isn’t alive anymore, so Mama needs me. Is there anyway you can cover the class for me? We’re talking about pain management during labor. Zach is coming in to talk about epidurals and spinals, so you won’t have much to do.”

Taylin wasn’t entirely comfortable talking about labor since she’d never experienced it, but she wanted to help out. “Sure. When does it start?”

Anne gave her all the details and thanked her multiple times before hanging up. The class started in an hour, and since Taylin wanted to go over the material before the couples arrived, she only had time to change her clothes and grab a quick bite to eat.

Fifteen minutes before the class started, she found Anne’s lesson plan and notes in the supply closet. Taking the stairs, she went to the first floor and located the classroom. Someone from the kitchen was there setting up a cart with drinks and snacks for the couples.

Taylin took a seat at the small table and read over the notes. She’d gone over it two times when the couples started trickling in.

“Hey, y’all, I’m Taylin, and I’ll be filling in for Anne tonight.” She pointed to the food cart. “Y’all can grab a drink and a snack before we get started if you want.”

The pregnant women didn’t need to be told twice and made a beeline for the snacks. There were five couples in all. After they were all seated, Taylin asked if any of them planned on getting an epidural. Three out of the five women raised their hands.

Taylin nodded her head. “Since all of you will more than likely experience labor pains before you receive an epidural, let’s talk about different ways to manage the pain.” She looked at the two women who hadn’t raised their hands. “Anne will be talking about natural birth more extensively next week, but it’s good to know all of your options.”

She discussed the advantage of having a birth plan written up and stressed the importance of being flexible since the safety of the baby and mother may require changes. The women, and some of the men, asked a lot of questions, and Taylin was glad she could answer them.

By the time they’d discussed all the techniques to help manage pain without medication, it was time for Zach to come and talk to them about the difference between an epidural and a spinal block.