Ready for Love (2 page)

Chapter Two

LJ Evans spent the first years of her life in the west Texas town of Canyon where doors didn’t have locks and everyone knew everyone. When she was seven years old, her father’s promotion had the family moving to a small, but wealthy community just outside New York City where everything was different

As LJ entered the classroom on her first day of school, the teacher asked her name.

“My name is Lucinda Jane Evans.”

The teacher replied with a sweet smile and kind voice, “Nice to meet you, Lucy, I’m Mrs. Parker. Why don’t you take that seat over there?” She pointed to an empty desk in the front row.

LJ let her blue eyes pierce the teacher. “My name is Lucinda Jane, not Lucy!”

“Okay, Lucinda Jane, please take that empty seat.”

At recess later that morning, other kids from her class surrounded and taunted her by saying, “Lucy, Lucy is a goosey” and “My name is Lucinda Jane, not Lucy, Lucy.” The harassment continued during lunchtime. The fact she was only seven and in a fourth-grade class didn’t help.

When she arrived home that afternoon, Lucinda Jane crossed her arms and told her parents she would never return to that school. No amount of cajoling on their part would change her mind. By the next week she was enrolled in a school for exceptional children. There she thrived and made great strides intellectually. From the day she entered the school, she became LJ, and at the age of sixteen she legally changed her name. Her thick skin and aloofness remained intact until at the University of Texas she met and fell in love Holly Brown. They became friends, roommates, and then lovers inside of a year.

Holly was patient, kind, and loving. Soon she was able to break down all the barriers LJ had set up and found the way to her heart. They were both passionate about archaeology and spent many hours at the Tonkawa Indian tribe digs near the university. Holly was so full of life and so much fun to be with that LJ was certain she would spend the rest of her life with her.

They had been at the dig for four weeks, and it had been the happiest time of LJ’s life. She was doing what she loved—digging in the dirt and finding treasures—with Holly by her side. She looked across the expanse of the excavation area and saw her lover in what appeared to be a deep conversation with Evan
Baylock
, one of their professors.

Holly’s red hair fanned out from beneath her broad-brimmed hat. The sun had been brutal for the last month, and she grinned knowing that tonight when she counted there’d be a million new freckles on her arms and face. Holly was kind, gentle, and loving and she accepted LJ for who she was, unlike most people. No matter what happened LJ knew Holly would always be there for her.

“Hey, babe,
whatcha
doin
’?”

LJ smiled. “Thinking about you and how lucky I am to have you in my life.”

Holly’s eyes were wide with a look of amazement. “I’m about to uncover something. Do you want to help me?”

“Holly, it’s your find. I’ll watch you dig it out.”

“Please share this with me.” Holly grinned. “I can’t imagine sharing this with anyone else. I love you and want you there for my first significant find.”

“You are so wonderful. Come on, let’s go see what you’ve discovered.”

Holly and LJ lay side by side on their stomachs as Holly carefully brushed away the dirt from what looked like some sort of gold object. Word of the find quickly spread, and the others crowded around them. Once the top section was finally exposed, everyone gasped at what looked like a gold fertility idol Holly uncovered.

“Here, you dig it out.” Holly handed LJ the trowel.

“No, this is yours, not mine.”

“What’s mine is yours. Please, LJ.”

“Okay. Let’s see what you’ve got here.” She took the trowel in her hand and began to carefully remove the idol.

That night with everyone gathered around the fire an animated LJ was laughing and joking with the others. She and Holly sat wrapped in each other’s arms, basking in the shared glory of the find and their love.

†

“LJ, don’t!” Holly squealed the next day. “I promised Gretchen I’d go with her to the river while she takes a bath.”

“She can wait a bit longer, don’t you think?” LJ asked as she ran a finger lazily over a taut nipple. “You know you can’t resist my charms,” she purred.

Holly smiled while pulling the sheet up over their heads. “No, I never could.”

“Holly, are you ready?” a voice called from outside their tent. “It’s time to get out of bed, lazybones.”

Holly laughed. “I’ll be right out,
Gretch
. I need to get my shoes on.”

LJ collapsed on top of Holly. “Don’t go,” she pleaded.

“Tell you what. You hold that thought, and I will be back before you know it, and we can pick up where we left off.” Holly nuzzled her neck. “I’ll go so fast you won’t have a chance to miss me.”

LJ rolled over. “I’ll hold you to that, so I suggest you get a move on, ’cause I’m
timin
’ you.” Holly’s closeness caused a chill to run up LJ’s spine. “Hey, you want me to go with you?”

“Always my protector,” Holly whispered before giving her one last kiss “We’ll be fine. Go back to sleep so I can wake you when I return.” She winked before hurriedly putting on her clothes and shoes.

LJ stretched her long frame out and rested her head on the fingers linked behind it. A joyful smile crossed her face. She woke with a start when she heard a commotion outside the tent and sat up in alarm.

After quickly getting up and dressing, she exited the tent and began looking around the area. “Hey, what’s going on?” she asked another student, Sam, who was hurrying toward the river.

“Someone is drowning,” he cried. “Not sure who it is.”

LJ’s mind went on full alert as she scanned the area. “Holly….” Panic set in. “She’s not here. I need to find her,” she whispered before charging toward the river, pushing others in her path out of the way.

Five minutes later, she saw Holly lying on the bank with Gretchen trying to resuscitate her. Every fiber of her body wanted to push Gretchen out of the way, but LJ knew she needed room to work. For long, agonizing minutes, LJ watched in horror as Gretchen gave Holly her breaths.

“What’s happening?” LJ screamed.

“Hey, take a deep breath. She knows what she is doing,” Ed Munsey, one of the instructors, said. “They went to get the doctor.”

“She can’t die.” LJ wrapped her arms around her waist.

Holly finally coughed and water spewed out of her mouth, then she was breathing on her own. Once Gretchen was sure she was stable, several students carried her back to her tent.

With tears cascading down her cheeks, LJ held Holly’s hand while sitting by her side. Holly’s breathing was uneven, and gurgles sounded from her lungs.

If only I had gone with her. What an idiot I was to let her go without me.
“God, please don’t let her die.”

Holly opened her eyes and smiled up at her. “LJ,” she whispered.

“Holly, thank God.” LJ bent down and kissed her cheek. “You had me worried. You’re going to be okay. They’ve sent for a doctor and are getting some oxygen for you.” LJ’s tears fell harder. “When I saw you lying on the ground, I thought I’d lost you. God, I should have been there with you.”

“Is Gretchen okay? She was pulled under, and I tried to save her.”

“She’s okay.”

“Good, I’m glad. I was really scared for her.” Holly took LJ’s hand and whispered, “LJ, I love you. I’ll wait for you.” Then she gasped, closed her eyes, and stopped breathing.

“Help! Somebody help!” LJ cried before flying into action and straddling Holly’s body. She breathed into her mouth before starting chest compressions, then stopped for a moment, watching for Holly’s chest to rise. It didn’t. “Come on, baby, wake up and tell me this is all a nightmare.”

The tent flap flew open, and a man she didn’t know came inside. “I’m a doctor, let me help,” he said.

“She can’t die. Please save her.” LJ watched in stunned silence as he tried to revive Holly.
She can’t be gone. She was just speaking to me.

“I’m sorry. If we were in a hospital, it would be different. She’s gone. It was too much of a strain on her heart.”

And just like that, LJ was once again alone in the world. The loss of Holly hurt so much that she vowed never to let another in. Her work became her compensation for her empty life.

†

The summer’s dig in Peru was a great success. Because of LJ’s status as a leading expert of the Wari’ tribe they were allowed to bring some of the artifacts back to the US. LJ returned with a treasure trove of relics, the likes of which she had never seen. To her great dismay, her assistant of five months had quit, leaving her to fend for herself. She interviewed many people but never could quite find the right person who had a good work ethic and would do as she instructed. LJ didn’t think that was too much to ask, but Rob had other ideas when he approached his earlier that morning.

“Listen, you’re not going to get anyone to work with you if you’re so hard on them when they come in for an interview,” Rob said.

“I will not have some lazy ass work for me, Rob. All the applicants you’ve sent me think this is a no-brainer job. They are either stupid, don’t want to do the work, or both. I will not work with people like that, so I will keep interviewing until the right one comes along. My research is far too important to trust it to some idiot looking for a free ride.”

Rob shook his head. “Did it ever occur to you that you’ve spent so much time with the dead and in the past that you’ve forgotten how to be human? LJ, you are not going to find anyone if you treat them like you did your last assistant. Can’t you try a little kindness?”

“Look around you. Plenty of people here don’t have a problem with me.”

“Only because they have no direct contact with you.”

“Then replace me, Rob. I doubt you’ll find anyone more qualified.”

“I see your ego is intact. I guess that’s a plus.”

“Look, I’ve dedicated my life to this job and deserve your respect,” LJ snapped.

“You have my respect—you always have—but you need to work on your people skills.”

“Rob, I know what I need in the way of an assistant, and I am the one who should make that decision. Ideally, I should insist on a room full of helpers.”

“We can get some students from the university if you’d like.”

LJ glared at him. “There’s no way I’d let a room full of kids touch anything. I’d prefer to do it myself, but that’s impossible. And since we don’t have the resources to give me my own staff, I’ve agreed to have one helper.”

“You’re too generous. Listen, I have a meeting with a potential candidate at eleven, then I’ll send her down to you. You be nice. This one could be just what you need.”

She watched him walk away and muttered, “Like you have any idea about what I need.”

When the fax of the applicant’s résumé arrived, LJ looked it over quickly. “Wilcox. Hmm. Sure, Rob, someone with no experience is exactly who I need.” She shook her head while placing the paper on her desk before resuming her work.

†

Kylie walked down the long hall along the marble floor, looking at the room numbers until she found the correct one. The door was open, and she knocked on the doorframe before calling out, “Dr. Evans?”

From deep in the room, a strong voice replied, “Over here.”

She walked in the direction of the voice, navigating the maze of shelves and bins until she saw a tall woman with dark hair braided down her back. The desk she was sitting at looked so old that Kylie was certain it had many stories to tell.

“Dr. Evans?” Kylie smiled as she approached. She tried her best to sound casual in an effort to cover her nervousness. The woman was dressed in jeans and a gray t-shirt that hugged her body, but not in a sexy way. Inwardly Kylie chuckled when she saw the shirt had a dinosaur on it with the words
dem
bones
dem
bones
written under it. Since the doctor was the chief research archaeologist for the museum, Kylie had expected her to be much older. Instead, she guessed the woman to be in her mid-thirties and was impressed.
She must be really good at what she does.
Kylie thought about her woefully unimpressive résumé and knew she wouldn’t get the job even with a good recommendation from Rob.

The woman nodded. “Mrs. Wilcox, take a seat and we can get started.” She pointed to a chair next to the desk and gave Kylie a once-over, and Kylie thought she was sizing her up as she would an archaeological site. The no-nonsense tone of her voice diminished Kylie’s usual positive attitude.

“Certainly,” she said haltingly. She sat down on the hard wooden chair, folded her hands in her lap, and crossed her ankles.

The doctor shuffled the papers around on her desk before looking at Kylie. “I have your résumé here somewhere.”

Kylie laughed nervously, thinking the doctor might be the typical absent-minded professor.

“Ah, here it is.” Dr. Evans looked quickly over the document, then sighed before her gray eyes fixed on Kylie. “Tell me, Mrs. Wilcox, do you feel like a falling star?”