“Good eye,” Gabi told her.
“This is Francesca Daniels, better known as Frankie,” Wade said. “She was in the class ahead of me in school.”
“Since we didn’t go to school over here, I didn’t know that many of the locals, even though I was around every summer,” Gabi said. She glanced from the woman to Wade and back. “Were the two of you close?”
Frankie laughed. “No way. Wade only had eyes for one girl back then.” Suddenly at a warning look from Wade, her expression turned solemn. “I’d better get your order in before the kitchen closes,” she said hurriedly.
After she’d gone, Gabi studied Wade. “She certainly took off fast. What was it she almost said that obviously bothered you? Was it about whoever you were interested in back then?”
“It doesn’t matter,” he said.
She could tell from his expression, though, that it did. “Secrets already, Wade? Come on. You know mine. Fill me in on yours. Was the relationship back then serious?”
“Probably not so serious in high school,” he admitted with obvious reluctance. “But we stayed together.”
“For how long?”
“Until a couple of years ago,” he said, then lifted his gaze to meet hers. “When she died.”
Gabi felt her heart plummet. “Oh, my God, I had no idea. I’m so sorry.”
“We’d been married, though briefly. Kayla was pregnant. Right before the baby was due, there was an accident. Neither of them made it.”
He made the recitation in a calm, matter-of-fact tone, but she could see the turmoil in his eyes. “Oh, Wade,” she whispered, and reached for his hand, twining her fingers through his. He pulled away.
“I don’t talk about it,” he said flatly.
She frowned at that. “That can’t be good. Not that I think you should pour out your soul to everyone you meet on the street, but this was a huge deal, Wade. It had to be devastating.”
“It was,” he said simply.
When she would have said more, he held up a hand. “We put the baby and your job off-limits for tonight. Let’s add this to that list.”
“But it’s obviously part of who you are. How are we supposed to get to know each other if all the important stuff is off the table?”
“For tonight,” he said emphatically. “Tonight the goal is to distract you from your problems, not to saddle you with mine.”
Gabi heard not only the warning note in his voice, but the plea behind it. Obviously his emotions were still raw. While she’d never been through anything as terrible as what he’d faced, she understood all about it being too soon to discuss some topics.
“Fine. I’ll drop it for tonight,” she agreed.
But something told her that until they could talk about it, there would be a huge part of Wade Johnson she couldn’t possibly understand. The fact that she was suddenly a little more intrigued than she’d expected to be was definitely disconcerting.
* * *
Relieved to have killed the subject of his marriage for the moment, Wade hurried Gabi through their meal, claiming he needed to get her home so she could get some rest. In truth, he needed some time to settle down, remember this was about distracting Gabi from her problems, not letting her get inside his head. It most definitely wasn’t supposed to be about seducing her, which seemed to be all he could think about at the moment.
Good grief, the woman was having another man’s baby, and his mind was on sex. It had been on sex since he’d first laid eyes on her months ago. He needed to make a few adjustments for the current and very unexpected circumstances.
When they walked outside, she looked up at the sky full of stars, her expression enchanted. “The sky never looks like this in Raleigh,” she said. “Too many city lights.”
“I’ve never known anything else,” Wade said. “Lived here all my life, and not much interest in trying anyplace else.”
“You didn’t go away to college?”
He shook his head. “I knew early on that I wanted to work with wood. My dad taught me custom cabinetry. He’d made a good living at it and claimed I had a knack for it, too. I just eased into the business, then took it over from him when he retired.”
“Boone says you’re the best around,” Gabi told him.
“He seems to like the work I’ve done for him.”
“So did Cora Jane.” She grinned. “At least, I assume that’s why she kept dreaming up jobs for you to do at Castle’s.”
He laughed. “Sweetheart, that was all about keeping me firmly planted in your path. She assumed if we brushed past each other enough, sooner or later we’d set off sparks.”
She winced. “You knew that? How embarrassing!”
“I didn’t object. You were just about the prettiest woman I’d seen in a very long time. The work was easy enough. The eye candy was something special.”
She frowned. “Thanks, I think.”
“Trust me, it was a compliment.” He noticed she was still staring up at the stars. “Want to walk along the docks before we head back to your place?”
“Yes,” she said eagerly, heading for the closest one in the marina.
She stumbled slightly at the edge. Wade caught her hand, then kept it securely in his. “You warm enough?” he asked, almost hoping she’d say no so he could justify putting an arm around her.
“Perfect,” she assured him.
“No doubt about that,” he murmured before realizing he’d spoken aloud.
Gabi regarded him worriedly. “Wade, I’m far from perfect.”
“Not from where I’m standing,” he insisted.
She regarded him with frustration. “This can’t go anywhere. You know that, right? Things in my life are just too complicated. I’ll go back to Raleigh eventually, start over.”
“Maybe,” he agreed. “Nothing says we can’t be friends, though, right?”
“I got the feeling just now that you might want more,” she admitted.
“You’re a beautiful, smart, funny, desirable woman,” he said solemnly. “Any man who didn’t think about having more
