“It looks nice. Chip has cut my dad’s and brother’s hair for years.” Oh, my God. Just shut up Alexis McKinley. “I was just heading over to watch the Dragon’s kick some ass, you want to tag along?” What?! I said shut the hell up!
Cory thought momentarily and replaced his hat. “Thanks, but I really can’t tonight, I’ve already got plans.”
Alexis faked a smile and pushed in the clutch. “Okay, I’ll see you around,” she said with a fake smile, trying not to sound disappointed. Wait. She wasn’t disappointed. Was she? Jesus, God. What the hell was this guy doing to her? She drove over to the school, wondering what other plans he might have had. It wasn’t like he knew anyone around there. Something told her it was one of the cute little nurses from Canterville. Good. That was great. She didn’t need some good-looking doctor coming in and messing everything up. It was best he went on with his other plans. Whatever. Stupid boy.
Alexis arrived at the school before Bernie. Not that it surprised her. Bernie would be late for her own funeral, just like she was her own wedding. Nonetheless, her family had already claimed the bleachers behind the cheerleading squad. Alexis avoided her brother Mike and sat beside her sister Pat. She wasn’t ready to look at Paige’s dad yet. Mike could look at her and tell she’d been up to something. He was always busting her and Bernie for something growing up. Her brother Tom and his wife, Amanda, were already there, too, and within thirty minutes, the entire McKinley clan had arrived, including Walt and Lola.
“Thanks for leaving early to save our seats,” Alexis taunted with a frown, sliding over for Bernie and standing to hug her long lost husband. “Hey, Travis. How are you?”
Travis opened his arms for a hug, lifting her feet from the ground, and squeezing hard enough to permeate a grunt. “I’m married to Bernie, how the hell do you think I am?”
“Good point,” she agreed.
“I am right here, you know. Taylor, put your jacket on,” Bernie said, tossing the little guy his jacket.
“No, Travis said this was enough,” little Taylor argued back with a mean look, sliding his hands into the pocket of his cute little Dragons’ hoodie.
Just like she knew she would, Alexis forgot all about Cory Baker. Busy with her family and friends, she fell back into her happy life. This was all she needed. Nothing more, nothing less. These people were what made her happy.
The band started across the field playing, “The Eye of the Tiger” and the home team fans went wild. The entire home bleachers sang to the tune, stomping their feet with the beat of the drums when the band moved right to, “We will rock you.” Everyone was on the edge of their seats the entire game. Every quarter was the same—neck and neck, all the way. Alexis’s voice had gone hoarse by half time from all of the screaming. That didn’t stop her from screaming louder with the rest of the crowd during the last few seconds, though. The crowd went silent as they prayed for one last chance to beat the Rockford Bulls. Jordan Casino had the ball and couldn’t get a pass. His eyes darted back and forth on the field, looking for an open player. There wasn’t one. The Bulls had every member covered. All of a sudden he had an opening but not for a pass, he ran it, ten, twenty, thirty, forty yards for a touchdown. The crowd went crazy, absolutely nuts.
They were still talking about it in one big cluster while making their way back to their cars.
“Don’t you let her get drunk. It’s supposed to be really nice tomorrow and I’m painting, I am not covering for her,” Alexis ordered Travis with a straight finger.
“Paige!” Bernie yelled to the sky with her head tilted back, cupping her mouth with both hands.
“No, Bernie, Paige is not going to save you. She’s coming in the afternoon, and you are opening,” Alexis demanded jokingly, but serious. “Travis?” she questioned with a straight, serious face, looking to him for help.
“I promise she will not get drunk and she will be on time, Scout’s honor,” he promised with one finger, crossing his heart.
“You were never a Scout, were you,” Alexis joked.
“That’s not the scout’s honor sign, is it?” Travis asked with a smirk.
Taylor chimed in with a cute little giggle. “No, silly. It’s like this,” he explained, placing his thumb over his pinky and holding up three fingers awkwardly.
“Oh yeah, smarty pants?” Travis grabbed him up and tossed him over his back. Six-year-old Taylor laughed and squirmed, being carried upside down by his ankles.
Alexis smiled in admiration. She was so happy Bernie had him and that he was so good with Taylor. Bernie’s track record with men hadn’t been what you would call pleasant. Except for Travis, of course. He was the best thing that ever happened to that girl and her little boy. Travis loved him as if his own blood pumped through the little guy’s veins. Anyone that witnessed the two of them together could see it. Travis and Taylor were a team.
“You want some help painting tomorrow, Sputter Bug?” Walt asked as his feet scuffed toward Alexis and an arm dropped over her shoulders.
“No, I’ve got some help coming.”
“So I hear.”
“Huh?” Alexis questioned with raised eyebrows, looking up at his tall frame.
“I’m a phone call away if you need help.”
“Okay, but I’ve got it,” Alexis assured him with a frown. What the hell was he talking about? For a second, she was concerned about his mental state. It wasn’t like Walt McKinley was a spring chicken anymore. Hence the reason she didn’t want his help. Working on that farm all those years did a number on his aging body, and his doctor had been trying to talk him into a hip replacement for months. He wasn’t having it. The heating pad and tube of Ben-Gay was all he needed.
***
Alexis woke to Mr. Dog going berserk, barking downstairs. It took her a second to comprehend what was going on, and then she heard the knocking. Her bare feet hit the cold hardwood floor, and she instantly became pissed. That was the thing about Walt, well, all of the McKinleys really. They all had a mind of their own, including her—stubborn as all get out. It didn’t always work in her favor.
“Dad, I told you—”
“I didn’t know if it was BYOB or not. Get it? Bring your own brush?”
“Cory, hi. What are you doing here?”
“I came to work. If I have to work to get to spend any time with you, then that’s what I am going to do.”
“Stop it!” Alexis yelled with a stern tone, turning back to Mr. Dog still barking at the tall, dark, handsome stranger. Oh boy.
“Do you always answer the door like that?” Cory smirked with that damn dimple, moving his eyes down her bare legs.
Oh crap! Alexis tugged on the bottom of her shirt and backed up, speaking with all nerves. “I thought you were my dad. I’ll be right back. I’m going to get dressed. You be nice,” she ordered with a straight finger directed to her unhappy dog. He made a growling noise and then plopped his head back to his rug in front of the fireless fireplace, keeping one eye on the stranger on his porch.
Alexis had a million thoughts running through her mind as she threw on a pair of jeans, a bra, and a tee shirt. What the hell was he doing there? How the hell did he know where she lived? Did she let him stay or make him leave? She hesitated on whether or not to put on better clothes but decided against it. “Never change you,” she told her reflection in the mirror in front of her. She brushed her teeth, washed her face, and debated on makeup, deciding against that, too. She pulled her hair up in a messy bun and gave up. This was her. This was Alexis McKinley, and if there was one thing her parents taught her, it was to be her. Always be yourself. Her mother’s words of wisdom reminded her of that. Lola believed that pretending to be someone you weren’t was the same as a lie, and that lie would eventually come out.
Cory was still on the front porch when she returned. Ugh. What an idiot. She hadn’t even invited him in. Alexis let Mr. Dog out and Cory in. “I have to have coffee. You might as well come in.”
“Well, since you put it that w
ay.”
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t expecting this.”
“I told you I was coming. Can I put some groceries in your fridge?” Cory asked with a smile. The same smile that revealed the one little dimple. This could be bad. This could be really, really bad.
Alexis smiled back with a twisted grin, knowing exactly what he was up to. “Did you go shopping before you came to work?”
“I told you I was going to cook for you, too, remember?”
“But I told you no.”
“I’ve never known what that word means, just ask my parents.”
“Get your groceries, Doc. I’m going to make coffee.”
Alexis turned to face him after starting coffee, using the counter for support for her trembling knees. She may need a lot of that before the day was out. “Have you had breakfast?” she asked while he put his food in the refrigerator.
“No, but I am okay. I would like a cup of coffee however.”
“I have to eat breakfast. You might as well eat, too.”
“If you insist. Besides, had I known you were going to sleep until noon, I would have eaten.”
“Noon? It’s eight-thirty in the morning.”
Cory studied her while she retrieved the breakfast essentials, and she hated it. Alexis tried to replace the uncomfortable feeling from his stares by creating small talk.
“You missed a good game last night,” Alexis informed him of his misfortune with a smirk. It was more of a manipulative way to find out what he’d done that was more significant than the football game.
“You like football, huh?”
“Not really. I don’t watch it on TV much, unless it’s the Steelers.”
“I have to go,” he joked while he pushed himself from the table.
“Why, because we beat the Chicago Bears last time?”
“I don’t know if that is true.”
“It is,” she said matter-of-factly. “What do you drink in your coffee?”
“Just a little bit of milk, if you have it.”
“You put the milk in.” Alexis set a pint-sized carton of milk in front of him. Cory eyed the small container of milk with a peculiar look. What the hell? Did he expect French Vanilla? This wasn’t some bistro by the Chicago River.
“This is a lot for one person,” Cory commented with raised eyebrows, looking around her place. “I love it out here, but it does seem like a lot for a single woman to take care of. Tell me the story, how did you end up with a farm?”
“I will tell you how I got my farm if you tell me how you found my farm,” she negotiated.
“I followed you home a few times.”
“I hope you’re joking.”
“I am. I ran into Bernie Thursday morning at the bakery. She gives magnificent directions. I think she would have personally driven me here herself.”
“You don’t know how right you are. Thursday, huh? That’s very unlike Bernie. She’s one of those people who tells you what she bought you for Christmas. It’s not like her to keep a secret for that long. I can’t believe she didn’t tell me.” Alexis stood to check on breakfast. Really? Bernie knew? Wow. That needed to go on the calendar. Bernie kept a secret.
“I asked her not to.”
“I give her about ten more minutes before she is calling.”
Alexis topped off Cory’s coffee, feeling that unfamiliar sensation again when their eyes met. Why her? He was so good looking. What would a handsome doctor like Cory Baker be chasing her for? It didn’t make sense. She was just plain Alexis, born and raised on a farm. He was way out of her league.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Eggs okay?”
“Sure, and you were about to tell me how you ended up with this place.”
“It’s a long story.”
“I have time.”
“Sure you do.” She smiled with her flirty eyes, cracking eggs.
“Come on. You’re stalling.”
“It’s a very boring story.”
“I’m a boring guy.”
“Yeah, I bet,” Alexis retorted, doubting that to be true. “Fine. The man that owned this house went to our church. I’ve known him since I was born. He was a very private person and never talked much. He was known around town as Grouch-Ass-Tate. When I was about six or so, I snuck off from home because I wanted to go fishing. My dad said he would take me, but then one of the farm tractors broke and he couldn’t. I snuck out with my fishing pole and a handful of worms. I walked the river for a long time, looking for the fishing hole that my dad claimed was the best.”
Alexis talked while preparing their breakfast and then sat, placing his plate of bacon and eggs in front of him.
“Looks good. Go on,” he coaxed with food in his mouth, circling his fork for her to continue.
Alexis took an exasperated breath and continued. “Well, while I was walking, I saw this big oak tree with branches made just for me. I climbed as high as I could go, and when I started back down, I was so high I was too scared to move. I was stuck in that tree for three hours before Mr. Tate found me. The whole town and my entire family had been looking for me. I heard them calling my name in the woods once and I yelled back as loud as I could, but they were heading in the wrong direction and didn’t hear me. Mr. Tate found me and talked me down. Mind you, he was already an old man at that time. There was no way he was going to climb up after me. He wrapped me in his arms and told me that my dad was worried sick. We walked back to his house and he phoned my dad.”
“I don’t get it,” Cory questioned confused.
“What?”
“What does you being a juvenile delinquent have to do with your house?”
“I was not a juvenile delinquent. I was six, and I have to tell you the whole story.”
Cory chuckled. “I’m sorry. Please continue with the whole story.”
“I’m not going to tell you if you’re going to laugh at me.”
“I am not laughing at you. I’m laughing with you.”
“I’m not laughing,” she chided. “Now shut up and listen.”
Cory pretended to zip his mouth from one corner of his lips to the other. Of course, that brought Alexis’s attention to his lips.
She shifted her eyes quickly back to her plate. Dammit. “So, anyway, I was sitting on the porch with Mr. Tate while I waited for my dad. He gave me a glass of lemonade and I sat on the steps, the exact same steps that are there now,” she added with a nod toward the porch she should have already been painting. “I started asking him a bunch of questions.”
“Where are your kids?”
“I don’t have any kids, drink your lemonade.”
“Where is your wife?”
“I don’t have one of those, either, stop asking me questions.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t want no kids or no wife, now stop asking questions or I’m going to put you back in that tree.”
Cory sucked his lips between his teeth and bit down to keep from laughing at the grouchy old man imitation.
“You’re asking for it,” Alexis warned with a pointed fork, straight between his eyes.
“I didn’t say a word. I love it. Keep going.”
“I had never seen my dad so mad in all my life. He was furious.”
“You’re whole six years?”
A look was all that was needed that time. Of course, it was followed by a smile. She couldn’t help it. He was just that kind of guy, and his personality forced smiles from her. Alexis stood to clear the table and Cory followed. The feelings she felt when he was that close to her returned and it took her a moment to regain her composure.
“Keep going,” he quietly spoke in some sort of wicked, soft, sexy—oh man. She was falling for this guy. She was falling fast and hard at an alarming speed. One that was going to leave her splattered all over the pavement. She could feel it and everything in her screamed “Run!”
“My dad stomped up to the porch. I just knew I was in for a good old-country ass bea
ting.” Cory smiled at her choice of words but refrained from interrupting. He heated the warm coffee with fresh, hot coffee and they sat.
“I started crying, hoping to soften his heart before he reached me. It didn’t work. He grabbed my little arm to keep me from getting away from him and spanked me eight times.”
“You sure it was eight?”
“Yes, I counted, now stop making fun of me.”
Cory placed his hands up in the air, surrendering, and pushed his chair out from the table a little. He crossed an ankle over his knee and apologized. “I’m terribly sorry. Continue.”
Alexis was taken aback briefly, “Hike for a Cure” in brown lettering scrolled across his broad chest, and for the first time in a very long time, she wondered how it would feel to touch him there. The watering mouth was another new one. What the hell was that?
“Lex?”
“Huh?”
Really? Oh my God! She’d become a blubbering mess around this guy. Thank God for ringing telephone, more than likely her meddling best friend.
“Bernie,” Alexis announced, relieved for the interruption. She picked up the cordless phone from the wall, happy for the opportunity to turn her rosy red cheeks away from him.
Cory stared with amusement while trying to keep his eyes from those jeans. Jeans suited her much better than khakis—much better.
“Shhh,” Alexis cautioned with a finger over her lips. She smiled to herself when she saw his eyes quickly shift from her ass.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning. Are you painting?” Bernie questioned, unaware of the speaker phone
“Not yet, getting ready to, though, as soon as I finish this cup of coffee.”
“Do you have any help?”
Cory and Alexis smiled at each other while she kept it going.
“No. Why do you ask?”
“I was just wondering if you were alone.”
“I’m never alone. I have Mr. Dog.”
“Well, I must go to work before my boss fires me, call me if you get company.”
“Why would I get company?”
“Just call me if you do, gotta go.”