“Does the guy get the girl?” he inquired, sitting down next to her.
She looked up from the book, then blinked. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to see you.”
“I meant in the spa, during regular hours. Maddie will have a fit.”
“Actually I’m here with her blessing,” he said. He tried to hand her the flowers, but she ignored them. He gave up and set them on the table. “I brought bread pudding and scones, too.”
Her gaze narrowed. “From Sullivan’s?”
“Of course.”
“Whose idea was that?”
“A number of people reached a consensus,” he said.
“Meaning?”
“Ronnie suggested I grovel. Teresa mentioned the bread pudding and scones. Dana Sue added her two cents when I picked up the order. I spotted the flowers on my way over. I tried giving them to Maddie as a bribe, but she said I’d probably need them for you.” He studied her hopefully. “Is any of this working?”
She managed to keep her expression unyielding for another minute, but then she eyed the bag he’d set on the table. “Did you remember the ice cream on the pudding?”
“It might be soup by now, but I believe it’s on there.”
“Okay, then,” she said, reaching eagerly for the bag. She took a deep breath as she opened it, then sighed. “Is there anything better than the scent of cinnamon or freshly baked scones?”
“I think whatever that scent is you’re wearing is better,” he said candidly.
She looked startled by the compliment. “Lavender?”
“Is that what it is? I just know I’ve developed an affinity for it recently.”
“Tom, you have to stop saying things like that,” she said.
“Why? It’s the truth.”
“You’re very big on truth and honesty, aren’t you?”
“I try to be.”
“Which is why you warned me last night that your stay in Serenity is just temporary.”
He blinked at the accusatory note in her voice. “Is that what sent you flying out of there?” he asked incredulously.
She nodded. “For once in my life I have no intention of starting something that can only end badly.”
“It might not end at all,” he said. “We won’t know unless we spend some time together.”
“We do know!” she countered. “You’ve already said you’re leaving. Maybe not tomorrow or next week, but someday.”
“And if that time comes, what’s to prevent you from coming with me?” he asked, perplexed by her attitude.
“It won’t work that way,” she said. “You know it won’t.”
He held up his hand. “Slow down, sweetheart. We’re getting way ahead of ourselves here. How about we go on an actual date before we start discussing breaking up?”
“Because I can already see down the road and it’s not one I want to take,” she said stubbornly. “You want to be friends, I can handle that. Anything more, forget it.”
“I think those kisses we’ve shared prove there’s something more than friendship between us.”
“Come on, Tom. We’re both adults. We both understand how chemistry works. Maybe we can light up the night sky for a few weeks, but eventually it’ll die down. And one of us will get burned, more than likely me.”
“You are, without doubt, the most pessimistic woman I’ve ever tried to date.”
“With good reason.”
“So I take the blame for whoever’s mistreated you in the past?”
“Not at all. Just think of me as a woman who’s finally learned her lesson.”
He sat back. “You’re not going to bend on this, are you?”
“Nope,” she said, sounding proud of herself. “For once, I’m not.”
He wondered if she had any idea how seductive it was to hear her make such a claim. “That sounds an awful lot like a challenge,” he told her, then winked. “I’ve warned you about this before, but I’ll do it again. I have never turned down a challenge. I’ll be in touch, darlin’.”
He saw the quick flare of alarm in her eyes right before he stood up and walked away. Good, he thought. She was on notice. Changing her mind had just become his personal mission. He had a hunch it was going to be more fun than anything he’d done in years.
CHAPTER NINE
Jeanette listened as Mary Vaughn recited the list of attempts she’d made to get the town manager to notice her, all to no avail. Jeanette couldn’t help but be gratified that he wasn’t succumbing to the woman’s considerable charms.
Maybe his interest in her was serious, after all. She’d have to give that some more thought, she decided as she laid warm towels on Mary Vaughn’s face at the conclusion of a treatment.
“Do you suppose he’s gay?” Mary Vaughn said, her voice muffled a bit by the towels. “That would explain a lot, wouldn’t it?”
Even though Mary Vaughn couldn’t see her face, Jeanette had to turn away to stifle a laugh. Tom might not be right for her, but he was all male. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind about that. Those remarkable kisses they’d shared confirmed it. Maybe she should describe them in detail to put Mary Vaughn’s mind at rest.
Bad idea, she told herself at once. That news could feed the rumor mill in Serenity for a week.
Apparently, though, her silence had gone on too long, because Mary Vaughn took it for agreement. “You think so, too, don’t you?”
“No, not at all,” Jeanette replied. “In fact, I’m trying to figure out how you could come up with such a crazy idea. You can’t go around saying things like that about the man, Mary Vaughn. Who knows what kind of trouble you might stir up for him. This is a pretty traditional town.”
“Oh, hogwash!” Mary Vaughn retorted. “It’s not as if there’s anything wrong with being gay.”
“Some people might not feel that way, including Tom. My point is, you’ve jumped to this conclusion based on very little. You hardly know him.”
“I have good instincts when it comes to men,” Mary Vaughn insisted. “Besides, like I just told you, I’ve asked him out for lunch or for coffee or a drink a couple of times now and he keeps turning me down. Always
