Not So New in Town (6 page)

Eight hours. Lucy had been in town eight long hours, and she wanted to run screaming for the hills. Preferably Blowing Rock, North Carolina, where her dad owned a small house with a glorious vista of majestic Grandfather Mountain.

“Lucy, wait up.”

No. Not three times in one day. She didn’t have this many Brogan sightings when she used to stalk him back in high school. All these years later, she still felt gawky, and the familiar butterflies marauding her stomach had worsened and not receded at all.

“Where you rushing off to?” Brogan caught up with her.

Lucy spoke without stopping or looking his way. “Need to check on Julia and Parker.” Parker had ignored Lucy all through dinner. Trying to gain his trust, Lucy had said he could stay up a little longer if he promised to be in bed by eleven. The ice in his gaze seemed to thaw a little after that, and Lucy had left him entranced in video-game heaven as she scooted out, needing to escape the confines of the house for a few minutes. She’d walked around the neighborhood, waving to some of her old neighbors sitting out on their front porches, until she found herself standing in front of the Dog. Deciding a drink would go a long way in calming her frayed nerves, she’d ventured inside.

Brogan shortened his long, easy stride to match hers. “I’m sure they appreciate all you’re doing.” Lucy wasn’t sure of anything these days.

Her phone vibrated for the millionth time, and she read the text. “Sheesh, I’m coming. Don’t have a wedgie,” she mumbled as she tapped back a message.

Brogan touched her elbow, sending tingles down her arm as he guided her toward the alley next to BetterBites.

“Hey! What are you doing? You’re not taking me inside BetterBites and forcing alfalfa sprouts down my throat, are you?” Lucy squirmed, trying to free her arm from his now firm grasp.

“Don’t have a wedgie,” he mimicked, pulling her along, exerting no effort. “Besides, I have better things to force down your throat than alfalfa sprouts.”

Oh my. Lucy gulped, willing her mind not to think of what
better
things he had in mind and failing miserably. She hoped hers was the only dirty mind between them, picturing naughty,
better
things.
Back
off, baby sister.

In the alley behind his store, his convertible sat with the top up, and Brogan held the car door open. “Hop in.”

“Ooo, two rides in one day in this slick car. I feel special. What more could a girl ask for?” He slid behind the wheel and opened his mouth. “Don’t answer that. It was rhetorical.”

Crooked white smile and crystal green eyes glowed in her direction from the dashboard lights. Hint of coffee and expensive leather tickled Lucy’s nose. Good smells. Yummy, rich smells. He flicked something at her. A crumpled ten-dollar bill landed in her lap.

“Your tip from the bar. Thought you might want it back.”

“Why? I left it for Hank.”

“I took care of Hank. Just thought you might need it. Maybe put it toward a new radiator or something.” Like a new car? Lucy hated she’d let things get so bad. It reminded her of how she’d been ignoring her life and not taking care of her needs.

“Thanks. But I’m afraid even Grady’s rates have gone up. And Grady’s gone fishing. I’m gonna have to drive her into Raleigh for service.” Grady’s Gas & Bait repaired cars and had serviced Harmony for as long as Lucy could remember.

“I’ll take care of it for you.” Startled, Lucy jumped as he reached across her, brushing her chest with his forearm. “Buckle up,” he said, pulling on her seat belt. Stunned both by his actions and his offer, she allowed him to fasten the clasp into the buckle. Goose bumps broke out on her skin. She rubbed her bare arms, hoping he didn’t notice.

“Thanks, but I can handle it. Probably only needs coolant.” And maybe new brake pads and, uh, a new engine.

Brogan flashed his wonderful smile again. “You know where to put the coolant?” Her look of confusion must’ve tipped him off. “Didn’t think so. We’ll take care of it tomorrow.” Lucy appreciated his offer. But she didn’t want to spend another day with Brogan Reese, who still carried a torch for Julia. And she didn’t relish Brogan witnessing the shambles her life had become these last few months.

“Where would you like to go?” Again, that melting caramel voice, making her resolution to avoid him darn near impossible.

Vegas. Key West. San Francisco. Top down. Hair blowing. And Brogan Reese behind the wheel. Her heart leaped and then plummeted. “Home. Julia is having another pillow crisis, or there’s one too many ice cubes in her water. Something earth-shattering.”

“Home it is,” he said, shifting into reverse and backing out. “If I remember correctly, Julia thrives on crisis. Lots of drama. It’s the way she deals. Don’t let it get to you. Once she figures out you’re not available 24-7, she’ll stop demanding your attention.”

She speared him with a sharp look. Spoken like a true expert. “That’s just it. I
am
available 24-7. I don’t have any other job at the moment, and she knows it.” More like a failing career needing a steroid shot to wake it up.

“Maybe we can fix that.”

“Huh? Here you go again with ‘we.’ What does that mean?”

“You. Me. We. As in you and me together.” His lips twitched with an effort not to smile.

Fried frog legs!
Lucy’s eyes widened. She didn’t have the strength to play games with him. He’d see straight through to her soul in less time than it took to consume a bag of Lay’s potato chips. She leaned forward, pointing a finger at him. “No
we
. You and I don’t do we. Got it? Besides, I’m on a break. Eight months of Anthony Tiger is enough to turn any woman off.”

“Anthony Tiger? What are you talking about?”

“Anthony, my ex-boyfriend.”

Brogan came to a stop at the intersection of Main and Carver. The street and sidewalk were empty of cars and pedestrians. The late summer air hung heavy, thick as peanut butter, but the air-conditioning inside Brogan’s car blasted arctic temperatures.

Despite the cold AC, heat prickled her neck and attacked her cheeks at Brogan’s surprised stare.

“You dated Tony Tiger? As in, ‘They’re grrreat!’”

“That’s original.” She didn’t hold back the exaggerated eye roll. “Yes, I dated Tony the dipweed Tiger.”

“Did he eat Frosted Flakes?” Brogan grinned, enjoying himself a bit too much at her expense.

“Ha-ha. You’re a real comedian. Look, in my defense, my work schedule was beyond chaotic, taking temp jobs when we were short staffed while trying to keep up with all the marketing. I took the safe way out on relationships. I wanted easy and predictable.” Lucy stopped. What had possessed her to babble about her personal life in front of Brogan Reese? Like he was her shrink…not the crush-gush that got away.

The car idled at the four-way stop. “Uh, maybe we should go or something.” She motioned toward the windshield. Brogan crossed the intersection instead of turning left onto Carver, which led to her house. He kept driving down the winding road until he pulled into the side parking lot at the high school. Easing to a stop between two light posts, he shifted in his seat and faced her. The three-story stone school building loomed to her right, and the car faced the two-story detached gymnasium. Strategic spotlights on the sides of the buildings lit part of the school grounds for security, but it was still too dark and intimate for Lucy’s liking, conjuring up memories best left buried. Like how Lucy used to wait for Brogan behind the pillars. Invisible. After every home game, win or lose, just to make sure he was okay.

“What are you doing?” Panic worked its way from the pit of her stomach as she wondered if he remembered too.

“Parking.”

Lucy gulped. “Er, in case you’ve forgotten…this isn’t where kids go to make out. That would be down by the lake. Remember?” Not that she’d ever made out by the lake. She’d spent her junior and senior year in Chattanooga with her grandparents. A self-imposed ban from her home. Away from Julia.

But a few times, sophomore year, she’d snuck down to the lake with her best friend Wanda Pattershaw…to spy. On Brogan and Julia. She squirmed in her seat at the memory. From what she could see hiding in the brush, Brogan took kissing to a whole new level. Deep, slow, lazy kisses. Not awkward and jerky like the other boys. Yuck.

Humor lit his clear green eyes as if he’d read her mind. He made a slow top-to-bottom survey of her person, grinning like a naughty boy finding his dad’s secret stash of porn.

“Don’t get any ideas!”

“Awww, you’re no fun.” He patted the top of her leg in a buddy way, but her thigh prickled in a not-so-buddy way. “Finish the story. I want to hear about Tony Tiger.”

She groaned. Why had she opened her big mouth? “If I tell you the embarrassing story of my life, will you take me home?”

“If that’s where you really want to go.” He made it sound like she had choices. She had a worthless business contract, a depleted savings account, her poor baby broken down on the side of the highway, and her commitment to Julia and Parker. Kind of limited in those choices.

“We dated for eight months. Three weeks ago, during one of our business meetings to discuss the new partnership we’d be forming…with me, Anthony makes a huge announcement. The usual suspects were there: Anthony; his accountant; his new assistant, Shannon; and me. Anthony and I had made big plans to partner and expand the business. I had invested time, energy, and funds toward our new goal. The money wasn’t huge, but for me it was a lot.”

Lucy took comfort in the concern etched on Brogan’s face. He didn’t like the direction this story was heading any more than she did. “I won’t bore you with the humdrum details, but Anthony cut me out of the deal. He announced his wonderful news like I was supposed to be thrilled or something.”

Brogan gave a sympathy nod, but his eyes had narrowed, and his jaw hardened as she continued the story detailing her complete humiliation. “He joined forces with another agency…and Shannon. And yes, they’re sleeping together.” Brogan had the decency to flinch. Lucy loved him for that. Okay, not love like
in
love.

She fiddled with the braided leather strap on her handbag. “Yep. I’m a cliché.”

“What do you mean?” His voice was low and soothing.

“What’s the saying? The wife or girlfriend is always the last to know.” She snorted in disgust. “I think I’m more ticked at losing out on the partnership than being jilted. Dumb, right?”

“Not at all. This whole thing sucks…big time. You have every right to feel mad and angry. For the record, Tony the Tiger is a class-A jerk, and you’re better off without him. Wish I’d been there. I would’ve kicked his sorry ass.”

Lucy would’ve paid good money to see that. With a wry smile, she said, “I should’ve known.”

Brogan shook his head. “He hid it well to keep you off track. He played you, Luce.”

“I know that now. I meant while we were dating. I should’ve known. All those months, I kept wondering why he wasn’t interested in…er, well, you know”—she fluttered her hand between them—“we never actually…”

“
What?
Come on now, you’re joking.”

She chuckled at his flabbergasted expression. “Nope.”

“Stop. You mean to tell me you dated a guy for eight months and you never had sex?” The horror on Brogan’s face was almost comical.

She shrugged in her defense. “I stayed busy marketing and increasing the agency’s numbers, because I was working toward a partnership. At least I thought,” she mumbled. “The more jobs we filled successfully, the more referrals we got, and the higher our rankings shot up on all the job sites. By the end of the day, I was so pooped I had no energy or desire to work on the relationship. Exhausted. Fried. Unexciting. No wonder he ditched me.” Lucy slumped against the seat.

“Come on, Lucy. You’re not allowing that creep to mess with your head, are you? Consider yourself lucky.” She glanced in his direction. Brogan’s brows had hiked up and hid under the tawny wave of hair that fell across his forehead. “You did nothing wrong except believe in someone you thought had your back. Face it, Lucy, Tony the Tiger is a dick.”

Amen to that, brother. Relief washed over Lucy, making her feel lighter than she’d felt in weeks. Knowing Brogan staunchly defended her side brightened her world. Even if only for a few moments, it was something to Lucy.

Brogan’s smile turned friendly. “Look, you may feel exhausted or fried. But there’s no way you could ever be unexciting. Not a chance.”

Lucy sighed. What a nice guy. She remembered that about him. He’d always spoken to adults in a polite manner, and he’d never made her feel insignificant those rare moments he’d happened to notice her. Brogan was as steady as the Rock of Gibraltar. Why hadn’t she met someone like him over the years?

“Nice of you to say, but I’m afraid I was terribly uninteresting and dull. I stayed busy, helping the bottom line, marketing day and night, and sometimes filling in when we were short temps.”
Not
working on her own career plan, like she should’ve been.

“Were any of the jobs interesting?” Brogan fiddled with the nautical rope bracelet he wore on his right wrist.

Some of the more off-the-wall jobs came to mind and made her chuckle. “You could say that.”

“Like Stanley Cup Keeper? Paper Towel Sniffer?”

“No, but I handed out jocks and socks at the gym one semester at Georgia Tech.”

“The guys must’ve loved that.” He laughed. “What about golf-ball diver?” he asked “You ever done that?”

“No, but I clipped coupons for my old neighbor, Mrs. Bunkins. She’s really loaded, but you’d never know it. Made me go through everyone’s recycle bins, hunting for coupons. She never spends more than forty-seven cents on groceries each week.”

Brogan shook his head in disbelief. “Just my kind of customer. Hey, ever been a pet-food taster?”

“No. But golf-ball diver sounds kind of fun. Don’t know if I could stomach pet-food taster. Has to be disgusting.”

“Not any more disgusting than what you put in your system,” he said under his breath.

“As opposed to garbanzo beans and nasty tofu?”