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“He’s beautiful.” She crossed the room and bent low to pet the dog. She smelled of cinnamon and evergreen, a delicious combination, the scents drawing him in as if her effusive personality and good looks weren’t enough.
She’s beginning her life. You’ve seen half of yours and messed up a good share of that. Leave her be.
He should. He knew that. But when she slanted a look his way, a look that brought her cheek dangerously close, he had to reach out. Brush tendrils of hair back behind her ear. See if the soft skin of her cheek was velvet or satin.
A little of both, he decided, smiling at her.
The dog rolled, pawed the air, groaned and woke Tyler with his movement.
“Oh, that’s funny!” Todd fell down laughing at the sight of the big dog groaning in his sleep as Tyler slid off to the left.
“Ouch.”
Brett reached out an arm to Tyler, scooped him up and rubbed the spot that landed on the rug. “Rough way to wake up, huh? Did you have a good nap?”
“I don’t take naps.”
“As a rule.” Brett carried him into the kitchen and set him on the counter. He examined Tyler’s head and stepped back. “I don’t think it needs ice, do you?”
The boy contemplated the question, then shrugged. “Naw. And Derringer didn’t mean to do it.”
“No.”
“He was just rolling over, right?”
“Right.”
“And he likes kids.”
“Hasn’t eaten one yet.” Brett offered that response with an easy grin.
Tyler replied in kind. “But the day ain’t over.”
“You’re learning, kid. Hey, how about you and Todd set the table so we can have some supper?”
“Oh, Brett, thank you, but—” Haley offered the protest, but he’d already figured out she didn’t accept help easily and that probably had a story behind it. Well, who didn’t have a story? Considering her current circumstances, he was determined to help because it was advantageous to her and...
If he was being honest with himself...
Just being with her felt good to him. End of discussion.
“No buts.” He flashed an over-the-shoulder smile her way, but didn’t pretend he’d take no for an answer. The boys had to eat and so did she, even if resistance was her first line of defense. For an established soldier like him, it wasn’t much of a battle. “If your entrepreneurial nature must be kept busy 24/7, then help the boys set the table. Plates are there.” He shifted his chin up and to the left. “Silverware in the drawer next to the sink. And cups are above the plates.”
“But—”
He sent her a look that quashed her protest much like it had with troops at home and abroad, and decided that look might come in handy. Or maybe he hoped it would come in handy. Either way, her response was to help the boys while he poured pasta into a pot of salted, boiling water.
“You cooked for us?”
“Way easier than cooking for a legion of troops.” He handed her a loaf of crusty bread from the deli area of the store. “And I did that often enough as I worked my way up the ranks.”
“You served.”
“Twenty-five years.”
“Army?”
“Yup.”
“Wow.” She turned and stared straight at him, and a part of him hoped the surprise wasn’t because that made him seem really old. Because no way did he want her thinking he was too old. Or off his game. Which was ridiculous because he was both, but right now, here, with her, he didn’t want to be.
She stepped his way and lay a cool, slim hand against his cheek. “Thank you for doing that.”
“I was young when I signed up.”
His words made her flash him a knowing smile. Kind of flirty. And fun.
“Real young.” He added the qualifier in a deep, rugged tone, driving his point home. It worked. She grinned.
“Barely out of diapers, no doubt.”
“Well.” He hedged that one slightly. “Barely old enough to drive, at any rate.”
“So I shouldn’t think of you as old,” she mused aloud as she set out silverware. “Just seasoned.”
“Exactly.”
“Or aged, like vintage wine.”
“I like seasoned better.”
“So do I.” She turned and met his look full on and he realized right there and then that his age meant little to her and that felt good. “My mother used to say I was like a little old woman, old before my time.”
“Was that a compliment?”
The look she sent him said more than the word. “No.”
“Ah.” He brought over a big bowl of red sauce and meatballs, but decided they’d share stories another time. Maybe. “Luckily I like mature women.”
She laughed out loud.
He liked that she let herself react to a given situation. She didn’t mince words or pretend, she reacted, and while these days that wasn’t considered socially advantageous, he found her spontaneity contagious. And inspiring.
“I’m so hungry.” Tyler sucked in a deep breath of sauce-scented air. “Brett, I think you’re a really good cooker.”
“Well, thank you.” He pulled out a chair for Haley and that simple, gentlemanly gesture delighted her. He read it in her face, her smile, her eyes. Her look of pleasure made him feel taller. Broader. Nicer.
And somewhat adolescent.
He helped Todd settle himself into the chair, then drained the pasta into a strainer too small to hold the whole pot.
“Not exactly accustomed to cooking for a crew, huh?”
He shot Haley a grin. “As you’ll note by the mismatched plates and silverware, LuAnn outfitted me with whatever leftover spoils she had in her kitchen. When you’re on your own, it doesn’t make sense to spend money on things. If I’m eating alone, I can pick any plate I want and it doesn’t need to match anything else.”
“Matching is overrated,” she assured him as she held up her fork and her knife.
“Good girl.”
She preened his way and he had to stop himself from reaching out. Touching her. Damp tendrils of hair were drying in the heat of the small kitchen, leaving curls in their wake, and the sight of those curls made him wonder what it might be like to have a little girl some day, a tiny girl with a head full of blond ringlets. And because he’d never in his life entertained thoughts like this, the fear might have overwhelmed the enticement of home, family and forever if she hadn’t held his gaze with the warm, open smile that was simply Haley Jennings. But she did and he felt like a superhero as a result.
“I love sketti.” Todd started to dive into the bowl of pasta before him, but Haley held up a hand of caution.
“Grace first.”
“Aww...”
“Do we—”
Brett solved the objections by taking Tyler’s hand on one side and folding Haley’s into his on the other. Soft, slim and tapered, her fingers fit as if meant to be tucked inside his bigger, broader hands. Once they’d completed the circle he offered a quick grace, pretty sure starving boys wouldn’t sit still for a longer version.
“Nice timing.” Haley confirmed his decision with a quick glance toward Todd. He was busily scooping bow-shaped pasta as fast as his spoon allowed.
“Makes me glad I didn’t pick real spaghetti.” Brett indicated Todd with his look. “Although that would be a camera-ready event, I expect.”
“I’m sure you’re right.” She took another forkful of pasta and meatballs and sighed. “Brett, thank you for this. And for last night. And for just being you.”
Brett shrugged off her thanks. “None needed. Had to welcome our two little guys, didn’t I?”
Her quick smile lit up a dusk-filled corner of his heart. Maybe his soul. Although he wasn’t sure he had one anymore. Not that he wasn’t a praying man. No one faced the enemy as often or as steadfastly as the United States Army, and that made a man take mortality seriously. And God more so.
But while God had kept him safe from harm, his love of the military inspired two people to enlist. Both had lost their lives. Not God’s fault. Not the army’s fault either. But he should have known better. As the older brother of one and the father of the other, he bore the weight of both.
“You look tired.” Haley’s blue eyes softened, then crinkled in concern. “Are you okay?”
“Missed some sleep last night. Nothing strange about that.”
“There was no fire call last night.”
He sent her a look that wondered where she got the information and drawled out his response. “True.”
“I know that because Lisa Fitzgerald has a Christmas greens store in the co-op and I asked her about you. Because that’s what girls do,” she explained, smiling. “Who needs Google when we’ve got small-town backyard gossip?” She ignored his little groan, ate another spoonful, then went on. “The Ladies’ Auxiliary teams up with Lisa for all kinds of things. Weed stealing. Pink parties. Flower sales.”
“So you were on an info mission?” He tipped a grin her way. “Find out anything that put you off? Although Lisa actually likes me because I let her use the corner spot to sell flowers in season and that way she has both sides of town covered for the interstate access. And that weed-stealing crew is nothing to mess with. You can’t find a better bunch of people who get the job done, no muss, no fuss. But I still find it noteworthy that I became the topic of conversation, Haley.”
She smiled as if talking about him meant something. But in a small town, everyone talked about everyone. Except him. Which made this concept intriguing because women could ferret out covert information faster than Fort Bragg’s finest.
“We were just talking and your name came up.”
“Because?”
Her deepening flush inspired his grin and Brett had a hard time remembering the last time he grinned at a pretty girl on purpose. He’d kept himself off the beaten path since retiring from the army, and in spite of no small number of casseroles, brownies and invites finding their way to his door, he’d managed to stay beneath the radar.
Currently being in the radar’s scope didn’t seem all that bad. But the very thought of her being interested in a crusty curmudgeon like him bordered on ludicrous. Crazy, even. At least highly unlikely.
One glance into her sparkling eyes said it might not be all that implausible.
That’s lack of sleep talking. You’re old, she’s young. You’re hardened, she’s ingenuous. You could use a shower and a shave and she’s, well...beautiful. Sweet. Clean. Fresh.
All reasons enough to steer clear of Haley Jennings and her two protégés. He had plenty on his plate right now. More than enough. His business. His current task as fire code inspector. His work as a volunteer fireman. His ongoing problems with his mother.
That reality darkened his mind and the thought must have shaded his face because Haley leaned over, concerned. “I am grateful, Brett. For your kindness and your time. Your generosity last night, even though I thought you were pretty handy at giving away Charlie’s stuff.”
He grinned and shrugged. “No big deal, Haley.”
“It was to me.” She lay her hand over his and held his gaze. “It was the light I needed in a convoluted day.”
Her words touched him. Coupled with the soft grasp of her fingers against the back of his hand, warm emotion multiplied by a factor of at least eight. He stowed the emotion and tipped his gaze.
He longed to be a light in someone’s day, but hadn’t realized it until Haley slipped into his life on a cloudy, windswept Thanksgiving. He shrugged one shoulder, refusing to make a big deal out of common courtesy. “Then I’m glad.”
He waved off her help after dinner with a look in the boys’ direction. “You’ll have enough to do once you get them home.”
“We don’t have a home.”
Tyler’s words hit their mark. Haley’s face paled. Todd’s lip trembled. And Brett realized how vulnerable these two little fellows were right now, so he bent low and drew Tyler up into his arms. “It feels like that now, Ty. But give it time, okay?” He headbutted the little boy gently. “We’ll give it time together and we’ll play and pray and eat and have fun and after a while it will feel more like home. I promise.”
The boy’s face said he longed to believe but didn’t dare, and Brett understood his reluctance. When dreams get knocked down regularly, it’s hard to grasp hold. But Tyler was young. They’d convince him.
Haley reached out a gentle, practical hand. “You’re right, Brett.” She palmed Tyler’s cheek and smiled. “‘To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven.’” She stretched up and whisked butterfly kisses along Tyler’s cheek. “Time helps, Ty.”
The little guy didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t look combative either and that was a step up. Brett walked Tyler out to Haley’s car. The rain had let up slightly, but the steady drizzle was still enough to soak his sweatshirt while Ty and Todd got buckled.
“Thank you, Brett.”
The smile she sent him over the hood of the car said more, but Tyler’s words made him realize they needed to ease their way because these boys had already lost so much. He waved and backstepped his way toward the house behind him. “Get in. Get home. Dry off. Again.”
She ducked into the car, put it in reverse and backed out of his drive, but he took sweet comfort in the fact that she traveled only four hundred feet down the road before turning into the back entrance of Bennington Station. Knowing she was this close? That he could be of help at a moment’s notice?
He liked that proximity. A lot.
Chapter Six
“You’re kidding, right?” Haley stared at the woman in the main office of the Jamison Central Public School and prayed she’d heard wrong. “I can’t just sign Tyler up for school?”
Tyler’s expression said he wasn’t surprised. For a little kid, he’d been refused and rebuffed for months. Why should today be any different? And why didn’t she think of finding someone to watch them this morning? She’d figured she would march in here, fill out papers, hand Ty his lunch and be on her way.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.
