Читать книгу Single Dads Collection - Lynne Marshall - Страница 45

“Why don’t you put the tray of cookies over on that table against the wall?” Lucy suggested.

Tara rolled her eyes and Kate snorted. They’d both just come in the back door and Lucy was already in a panic because the community center wasn’t nearly ready for the Helping Hands open house. Why were they just standing there?

“What?” Lucy asked.

“You think we can just come in here and set up for the open house and we’re not going to address the fact that Noah was in Gallagher’s and did some male bonding with Gray?”

“By bonding, do you mean fighting?” Lucy countered. “Because I saw his face afterward.”

Kate’s eyes widened. “He came to your house after? Did you make him forget all about his troubles?”

Lucy picked up the tray and crossed the room. “I’m not discussing this with you two.”

“Why not?” Tara asked. “I’m sure you heard all about Gray losing his cool over Kate, and Sam nursing a beer all night.”

Lucy set the tray down and turned to face her friends. “Actually, I hadn’t heard about Sam at all. And I only got the abridged version of Gray.”

The fact Sam was nursing a beer at Gray’s bar wasn’t exactly news. For the past year he’d been somewhat depressed and Gray always had his back. Lucy wished Sam and Tara would make up, for the sake of their daughter for one reason. But she knew that not every marriage was meant to be.

“Why do you two keep going there?” Lucy insisted, more than happy to turn the topic to her friends. “Why taunt those men?”

“Sam isn’t always there,” Tara defended. “And when he is, he hugs the same bottle all night, so I know he’s not drunk. He doesn’t even look my way.”

But Sam knew full well his ex-wife was there dancing and having a good time. And Sam didn’t look her way because it hurt to see her. Anybody could understand his logic. It wasn’t just death that caused people to grieve.

“What’s your excuse?” Lucy asked Kate. “You know Gray has been half in love with you for years.”

Kate shrugged and smoothed her hands down her simple tunic. “He’s not in love with me or halfway there. He just sees me as a challenge.” She shrugged. “It’s not worth damaging our friendship to let him have his thrills.”

Lucy understood that logic, but at the same time, she truly believed Gray loved Kate. Maybe one of these days Kate would realize it, too.

“Let’s get back to you,” Tara suggested. “Noah is one hot guy. I hadn’t gotten a good look at him until he came over to our table last night.”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “We don’t have time for adolescent girl talk. We have people coming in thirty minutes and nothing is set up the way it should be.”

Kate, sarcastic as ever, pointed to the tray. “You just put those cookies in place.”

Pulling in a deep breath and attempting some sort of control, Lucy addressed her friends. “Let me make this brief. Noah and I are friends. He’s new on the force and is still making an impression. He has a child to look out for who just lost her mother six months ago. Rumors aren’t something he can afford right now. So let’s get the chairs moved out of the way so people can mingle, and get the new pamphlets on all of the tables so people don’t have to hunt for them. We also need to get the music going so it’s not so quiet and awkward when the first guests arrive.”

Kate and Tara exchanged a look, but Lucy was done with the grilling of her social life. How could she explain it when she truly had no idea herself what was going on with Noah Spencer? And, as much as she loved her friends, she also wanted to keep Noah to herself.

Lucy ignored Tara and Kate’s quizzical stares and circled around them to start setting up. They were expecting quite the crowd this evening. Their flyers had been up all over Stonerock for the past month. Their regular attendees had invited friends and family. They were hoping to spread the word that everyone could benefit from Helping Hands. If someone wasn’t going through a rough patch now, it might only be a matter of time. As depressing as that sounded, it was the reality. Everyone would experience loss at least once in their lives.

The main point of tonight was to see if there was a greater need. The loss of a family member or friend wasn’t the only thing that people grieved over. Sometimes it was the breakup of a marriage, the loss of a job, depression, anxiety. There was a host of problems people dealt with on a day-to-day basis, and Lucy didn’t want people to feel alone in their struggles.

She’d invited Noah, but he hadn’t acted like he’d make it. As much as he flirted and pretended to be fine, Lucy knew there was hurt just beneath the surface. He didn’t talk about his wife’s death at all, which only proved that speaking about it was too rough. And all of that was understandable because everyone moved at the pace that was comfortable for them. But at the same time, she truly wished he’d quit being so strong for everyone around him. They were friends—a little more than friends, if she were being totally honest—and she wanted him to trust her with his feelings.

As the first guests started to arrive, Kate, Tara, and Lucy greeted them. With a town as small as Stonerock, pretty much everybody knew everybody. Still, there may be some who brought friends from neighboring towns and Lucy wanted to make sure nobody felt left out. Wasn’t that the whole point of this group?

With the holidays only a few months away, it was important now more than ever to have support.

The St. John brothers came through with their wives and children. The dynamic family was a powerhouse in this town. Cameron was her boss, so she knew him well. His brothers were known because of their wild sides as teens and now for their involvement with the town.

Eli St. John was the town doctor, having taken over after his father retired. Their brother Drake was the chief for Stonerock’s fire department. They were one dynamic family in the small community.

Kate and Tara greeted the crew as Lucy refilled the coffee carafe. Lucy hoped this was a success in bringing hope to those who were struggling with loss, no matter how minor.

“This is wonderful.”

Lucy turned to see Tammy standing there with a wide smile on her face. “Thank you. I think it’s a great turnout.”

“I wanted to introduce you to my nephew, Todd. He lost his fiancée a year ago.”

The thirty-something man stepped closer to his aunt. “Pleasure to meet you.”

“I’m glad you could come out,” Lucy stated as she shook his hand. “You’re not from Stonerock?”

“I’m actually moving here soon. I’m from Nashville.”

Tammy patted Lucy on the arm. “I told Todd all about how you started this group and what a wonderful woman you are. I thought with him moving here soon, he may need a friend.”

Lucy saw exactly where this was going. This wasn’t the first time some well-meaning soul had tried to hook Lucy up with a family member.

“I’m sure you’ll fit right in here,” Lucy told him, dodging the obvious setup. “If you’ll excuse me, I see some other guests I need to talk to.”

“Maybe we can talk later,” Todd added before she could escape.

Lucy merely smiled. “Thank you both for coming. Tara, Kate, and I are here if you need anything.”

Okay, that kept things focused on the group. Lucy had never gone for being set up on a date. She’d been too busy with her job, her schooling and making sure Helping Hands served its purpose. She hadn’t even had the desire to date or even flirt with another man.

And then Noah Spencer had stepped into the back of the meeting with that black cowboy hat tipped low. A man with that type of presence, all menacing and mysterious, begged for attention. Her stomach knotted in a ball at the mere thought of him. That giddiness seemed to grow the more she was with him and the closer they became.

Lucy attempted to push aside her thoughts of Noah, though he always hovered near the forefront of her mind. She spoke with many people she recognized and met some new folks who were thinking of joining the group.

As the evening wore on, she couldn’t help but glance around to see if Noah decided to make an appearance. He never did. She’d be lying if she didn’t admit disappointment. Not that she thought he’d come for himself, but she’d hoped he’d come for her.

After all, they were friends, right?

Perhaps she was asking too much. They weren’t actually a couple or anything, so there were no expectations…only hope.

After everyone had gone and Tara, Kate and Lucy had cleaned up, Lucy headed out the back door to her car. Darkness had set in, but the community center parking lot was well lit with halogen street lamps.

Movement to her right had her jumping, until she saw that it was Todd, the man she’d met earlier. He’d been sitting on the bench between the community center and the entrance to the park.

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he stated.

He kept his distance, which helped because it was a little odd that he was out here waiting on her.

“It’s fine.” But still creepy, she silently admitted.

“My aunt obviously tried to play matchmaker and I wanted to apologize if you were uncomfortable.”

Lucy relaxed a little more. “Oh, it’s fine. I’ve been the target for many matchmakers.”

“She means well,” he added, shoving his hands into his pockets. “That being said, I wouldn’t mind taking you out when I get into town. If you’re free, that is.”

Todd was a handsome man, he seemed to be polite and Lucy adored his aunt. But—there was of course a but—she just wasn’t feeling anything toward him. Nothing at all in comparison to what she felt when Noah was near.

“Don’t answer now,” he went on when the silence stretched between them. “I’ll look you up when I get into town permanently.”

Lucy simply nodded and smiled as she headed on to her car. Todd turned toward the truck parked in the distance and pulled out of the lot. Even if Lucy were interested in Todd, she didn’t feel right about going out with him, not with the way Noah occupied her mind so much lately.

As Lucy pulled in her driveway minutes later, her text alerts went off from Tara.

Turning down a date with another potential new guy? Sounds like Noah is more serious than you let on.

So what? Lucy wasn’t even going to reply. No need to add fuel to the fire of her friend’s comments. They may be true, but Lucy didn’t have to acknowledge them.

Grabbing her purse and cell, she headed inside. She was due at work in a while and she wanted to go in and just relax until she had to leave again. She wasn’t positive, but she thought Noah was off tonight. Sometimes those nights dragged because she’d gotten used to hearing his voice over the radio. But when he wasn’t there, she could think. She could try to figure out just what she wanted and where she thought this relationship would go.

Because there was only so long she would want to stay in the friend category. And when she was ready to move forward, she hoped like hell he would be, too.