Maverick for Hire

“Yeah. Good weather. Not much sickness except for mine,” he said. “I’m glad you’re here. The wife, Sheila, is home with Bobby.”

“I’m sorry he’s sick,” she said.

“The doc says it’s just a virus. He should be better soon.” He pulled out a sheet of paper. “Here’s the schedule. It’s gonna be a long day.”

Cecelia alternated between timing and being a referee. Just as she finished her duties, she heard a male voice.

“Hi,” he said.

She glanced up from her time sheet. The man in front of her was young and attractive. “Hi,” she said. “Can I help you?”

“Yeah,” he said. “You want to go get some wings?”

She blinked at the invitation. She’d been helping at soccer games throughout the fall and no one had approached her for so much as a cup of water.

“I’m Brent Mullins. I coach for my son’s team,” he said.

She bit her lip and wondered if she wore a remnant of lipstick. “I... Uh. Are you married?”

He threw back his head and laughed. White teeth, she noticed. Very white teeth. “I’m divorced. It was friendly.”

Cecelia gave a slow nod. “Good,” she said and shrugged. “Wings sound great.”

About an hour later, Cecelia joined Brent as they walked toward Buffalo Bart’s Wings-To-Go. “How long have you been in Rust Creek Falls?” she asked.

“I’m a supervisor at the mill. My ex-wife has lived here a long time, but I’m not sure it’s the place for me. We split up a couple years ago and I moved away for a job.”

“Too small?” she asked, shoving her hands in her pocket.

“Something like that,” he said. “But I don’t want to be far away from my son, so I came back.”

“Tough decision,” she said.

“Yeah, but I don’t want to think about that every minute,” he said. “At some point, you just have to live your life.”

“Very true,” she said as they got in line at the wing shack. She took a sidelong glance at Brent. “Just curious. What made you ask me out for wings?”

He met her gaze and shook his head. “It’ll sound crazy.”

“Crazy, how?”

He shrugged. “Your smile,” he said. “You smiled at all the kids. And your ponytail,” he said and lowered his voice. “And your red lipstick. What a combination.”

Cecelia couldn’t help thinking of Nick. Oh, heaven help her. He was right. Lipstick mattered.

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