“Yes, the old one broke yesterday, and since I’m saving some money by not paying you…”
He slanted a glance at her. “I didn’t know about the cape.”
She laughed. “Too late. Besides, you said the navy won’t let you accept payment.”
“They won’t, not without asking for permission, and that’s a lot of red tape I don’t want to get into. Volunteering, however, is fine.” He removed a pocket knife from his pocket and sliced through the tape on the coffee machine box. “Would you like it on the counter?”
“Please.” Sara opened a nearby cabinet and pulled out a bakery box, along with some napkins and small paper plates.
“I’m surprised you let people eat in the library.”
“Well, they can’t eat in the main library, but we do make an exception in the conference room. It has a big glass window running along the upper half, so the adults will be able to watch the kids but still have a moment to themselves. It gives them a chance to talk to each other and builds a better sense of community.”
Grant slid the machine out of the box and onto the counter. “You’ve thought of everything.”
He plugged in the coffee maker. Her attention was once again drawn to his strong hands. She’d never noticed a man’s hands before, but Sara was beginning to wonder if it was some kind of weird obsession. Or if it was just a Grant thing.
He turned and leaned against the counter. “Oh, while we have a minute, I wanted to talk about your car. The water pump is busted. I can fix it for you this afternoon, provided the part is in stock and doesn’t have to be ordered.”
“You’ll have to go to the next town for parts. There’s no mechanic in Hidden Hollows.”
His brows arched. “No one’s running my dad’s old shop?”
“Closed down last year. The man who owned it—Mr. Howard—retired. No one has bought the business from him yet. I’m surprised your mom didn’t tell you.”
He shook his head, a funny expression on his face. A mix of shock and grief, and Sara felt bad for springing the news on him. Grant and his father had been incredibly close. Maybe that’s why his mother hadn’t told him. Perhaps the subject was too painful.
“I don’t want to put you out, Grant. You’re already doing so much by helping with the after-school program, and you fixed my sink yesterday.” She edged closer. “Ben thinks you hung the moon, by the way. He gave me a play-by-play about how you let him help repair the faucet last night.”
“He’s a great kid, Sara. You’ve done an amazing job with him.” He lifted his gaze to meet hers. “I don’t mind fixing your car or helping out. Honestly. I meant what I said yesterday. The issue is mine to deal with.”
“That’s not exactly true.” Her heart pounded in her chest, and the butterflies in her stomach took flight. “I’m attracted to you too, Grant.”
Grant stiffened, and his brow creased as he scanned her face. “Since when?”
“Since you arrived in town. I was trying to figure out how to tell you yesterday, but you cut the conversation short. And the truth is, I don’t want to screw up our friendship either.”
He turned away and took a couple of steps across the break room before spinning back to face her. “So where does that leave us?”
“In a more honest place, for starters.” She let out a breath. “Here’s the thing. You’re not going to be in town for long, so there’s no place for this to go. A serious relationship is out of the question.”
He nodded. “I agree.”
She wrapped her arms across her midsection. “The truth is, Grant, a part of me would like to move on and date someone new. I loved Jared with everything I had, and his death wrecked me. If he were alive now, I have no doubt that we’d still be happily married. But he’s not and…”
Unexpected tears burned the back of her eyes. She blinked them back and swallowed past the lump in her throat. “I think about spending the rest of my life alone, and it’s depressing. It’s not what Jared would want for me, but I also don’t know how to take that first step forward.”
She felt rather than saw Grant come up next to her. Her skin prickled with the nearness. She didn’t dare look at him. Instead, she kept her gaze locked on the counter.
“What are you asking for, Sara?”
“I don’t know exactly.” Her cheeks heated with embarrassment. This was a lot harder to say out loud than it had been in her head. “A friendship with flirting? Nothing serious or complicated. Just two friends who like hanging out and having fun together.”
Grant reached up and hooked a finger under her chin. He lifted her face until she was looking into his eyes. Buried in those familiar blue depths was a completely foreign emotion, something Sara had never seen when Grant looked at her. Until now.
Desire.
His lips curved into a devastating smile. “Friends with flirting, huh?
“Y-y-yeah. Something like that.” She leaned into his touch. “You’d be saving me a world of trouble. Every busybody in town has been trying to set me up for the last two years.”
He chuckled. “Fix your sink, repair your car, help you save the library, and be your fake boyfriend.”
“I’m asking a lot, I know.”
His thumb caressed the curve of her jaw. “I’m not complaining.”
His voice was low and husky. It twisted Sara’s insides in mysteriously pleasant ways, and the heat of his touch seemed to sear straight through her.
Grant dropped his hand and took a step back, grabbing the bakery box off the counter. “I’ll take these to the conference room.”
She swallowed hard. “Thanks.”
Sara watched him walk out and then pressed a hand to her chest. Talk about swoony. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, and Grant had barely touched her. But it didn’t leave her feeling weird or guilty. It was…fun. And exciting.
She
