He glanced over his shoulder. “Dani said to tell you she’d be by later.”
“Oh, good. Thanks. Feel better, Penny.”
“Not possible. I’m never going to feel better.”
An older woman laughed softly. “I felt the same way with all three of mine,” she said with a sigh. “Of course that was a long time ago. You have a lovely family.”
Elissa opened her mouth to explain they weren’t her family, then she decided to just smile and say, “Thank you.”
WALKER MOVED SLOWLY beside Mrs. Ford.
“I don’t usually bother with this,” she said as she leaned on him and steadied herself with a cane. “I was concerned with the crowd and getting jostled.” She gave him a teasing smile. “I knew if I asked you to protect me, innocent people would be risking life and limb. You’re just so strong.”
“Are you flirting with me?” he asked.
“Maybe a little. Although I know where your real interests lie, don’t I? With our pretty neighbor.”
“Elissa and I are friends,” he said, ignoring what had happened the previous weekend and how much he wanted to be with her again.
“Good friends.” Mrs. Ford sighed. “I used to have friends like that when I was younger. But after eighty, it’s nearly impossible to get a man. Still, I’m happy with my life. Not everyone can say that.”
He kept his left hand on her elbow and offered as much support as he could. It was warm and crowded and he didn’t think this was a good place for a woman well into her nineties. But Mrs. Ford had insisted and arguing with her was like reasoning with a tornado.
“Maybe if you weren’t so closed off emotionally,” she said. “I can certainly understand why it would happen. You’ve seen some horrible things. War has a way of changing a man.”
Honest to God, he didn’t know what to say to her.
“I’m only afraid that you’ll miss a perfectly wonderful opportunity with Elissa. She’s not like other women. You’re not likely to do better.”
“I’m not interested in doing better.”
“Then what’s the problem? You should have had her in bed by now. There’s nothing like a fabulous few days in bed to turn a woman into putty.”
He swore under his breath. “Did you want to do any shopping?” he asked, motioning to the crowded booths on either side of them.
She glanced at a display of kites. “I don’t think so, but you’re very sweet to offer. I know shopping is rarely a man’s first choice as a way to spend his free time. Do you think it’s a traumatic event from your past, or the way your mind works, or do you simply prefer being single?” She glanced at him. “I can’t imagine it’s being single. You strike me as someone who cares about family.”
“I…”
Words failed him. Until this moment, he’d always really liked Mrs. Ford. This was the first time she’d tried to interrogate him. And as they hadn’t even reached Elissa’s booth, he was well and truly trapped.
“I’m not going to go running to Elissa, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Mrs. Ford said with a smile.
“I…”
Just then he spotted Dani with Ryan and called out to them. Dani turned and smiled. As they approached, Walker noticed they were holding hands. Apparently things were progressing.
He wasn’t sure how he felt about his sister getting involved so quickly after the end of her marriage. Not that it was his business or that she would listen to anything he had to say on the subject.
“Mrs. Ford, this is my sister, Dani, and her friend Ryan. This is Mrs. Ford, one of my neighbors.”
“Hi,” Dani said. “Nice to meet you.”
“And you, dear.” Mrs. Ford eyed Ryan. “What do you do?”
“I’m the general manager of The Waterfront,” Ryan told her.
“Your restaurant,” Mrs. Ford said to Walker. “Dani, do you work there, as well?”
“Yes. That’s where Ryan and I met.” She looked at Walker. “Now it’s your restaurant?” she asked, her voice teasing.
He groaned. “Give me a break.”
“How lovely.” The old lady sighed. “An office romance. I always wanted an office romance. Of course I never really had a job, which made the situation more challenging. Oh, I worked on an assembly line during World War II, but there weren’t very many men around and as my husband was off serving his country, an office romance would have been unpatriotic, don’t you think?”
“Are you enjoying the craft fair?” Dani asked Mrs. Ford.
“Very much. Walker is quite patient with me.”
“Really?” Dani eyed her brother. “Lucky you. Ryan only recently moved to Seattle. This is his first time here.”
Mrs. Ford turned to Dani’s date. “What do you think of our city?”
“I like it,” Ryan said.
Dani released his hand and stepped close to Walker. “This is new. I don’t remember you volunteering with seniors before,” she said in a low voice.
“She wanted to come see Elissa’s booth.”
“Uh-huh. You’d better be careful or we’ll all think you’re turning into a nice guy.”
“Anything but that,” he muttered. “So how’s the new guy?”
“Good. I’d thought I needed time to get over my divorce, but maybe not.”
Walker looked at his sister. “It’s serious?”
She smiled, then blushed. “Maybe. I don’t know. I really like him and he’s a good guy. I know this is fast and I want to stay detached, it’s just…I can’t seem to.”
He wanted to tell her to be careful, but who was he to give advice about personal relationships?
“I’m glad you’re happy.”
“Really? You’re not going to warn me or anything?”
“Nope.”
She grinned and leaned against him. “Did I ever mention you’re my favorite brother?”
She and Ryan said goodbye, then strolled off. Mrs. Ford watched them go.
“Now where were we?” she asked as they once again started for Elissa’s booth. “I believe we were discussing your inability to commit. Do you have any thoughts on why that is?”
BUSINESS CONTINUED to be good, Elissa thought happily Sunday afternoon as she made change, then bent down to collect more inventory. She was still selling at a brisk pace and this was only day two. Tonight she would go over her receipts and figure out if she could actually increase her profit estimate. The thought of how much easier life would be with a bit of a financial buffer in the bank nearly made her giddy.
She straightened and put a dozen or so boxes on her table, then froze as she heard a familiar and incredibly unwelcome, “Hey, babe.”
Despite the near ninety-degree temperature, her entire body went cold. She felt her breath catch in her throat and a shriek building up inside as she fought against the need to scream against the unfairness of it all.
She turned slowly, hoping she was wrong, then nearly collapsed in disappointment when she saw the tall, painfully thin, shaggy-haired man standing in front of her booth.
“Neil,” she said, wondering if this was going to be a never-ending nightmare. “This is an unpleasant surprise.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Elissa asked, keeping her voice calm. Neil was like an injured wild animal- dangerous when cornered and sensitive to any sign of fear.
“I came to see my girl,” he said with an easy smile. “A buddy I know got a bunch of gigs here and in Portland. His bass player couldn’t make it, so I said I’d fill in. I knew it was a chance to catch up with you.” He moved closer
