Jace still had both his parents. He couldn’t imagine losing either of them, let alone at the same time. “I’m glad to have assisted you helping you stay in here. I’d be happy to help again.”
She popped a cheese puff in her mouth. “I bet you would. But if we take this back to my place, I could make us something to eat after.”
“You know food is the way to a man’s—” He stopped himself.
“Well, my food isn’t gourmet and homemade. More like a boxed meal.”
“About that. Tonya didn’t actually make me lasagna.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“She claimed the sub was from her.”
Claire’s eyes widened. “The one I brought you.”
“Yeah, she—”
“Why would she do that?” Claire interrupted.
“I don’t—”
“Ah, I know. Silly me. She told me how much she wanted you and I bet it’s all in a ploy to seduce you.” Claire laughed. “Guess I beat her to it.”
“Wait. What? Is this some sort of bet or something?” Anger flooded him.
“No. Don’t start getting an ego. I told her she could have you.”
Jace wasn’t feeling much like going back to Claire’s cabin at the moment. And he was glad they hadn’t slept together. The feelings he had for her weren’t returned. “I should go.”
As he stood, she reached out and wrapped a hand around his wrist. “I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just when she approached me about it, I didn’t think you were interested in me.”
“Of course I was. I had the hots for you in high school. But you never noticed me and why would you? You were too busy making sure everyone noticed you.” He regretted the last part the moment it left his lips.
Claire released his arm. “It’s probably best you go. It seems like we keep going in circles with one another.”
He grabbed his shirt off the couch and put it on. He had to agree with her. One moment they were hot and heavy, the next…well, he wasn’t quite sure what had happened.
“I’ll see you in the morning?” he asked.
“You bet.”
He looked at her once more, at her blond hair a mess from fooling around. She was the sexiest woman he’d ever laid eyes on. And yet, she seemed to be just out of reach.
* * *
“So you think you have a lead, but you can’t share it?” Claire pushed her way through the glass door, tray of coffee in one hand, cell phone in the other. “I wish you could give me something.”
“I know. And as soon as I have anything solid, I’ll tell you,” Seth said on the other line.
“Hopefully this will all be settled soon and it can be put behind me. I’m itching to get Honeycreek open. Winter is coming and I want to see this place filled up the way it used to be.”
“Same here. Say, did you give Mark Thomas a call like I suggested?”
“No, not yet. I’ve been a little preoccupied. Where does he work again?”
“Country Furniture,” Seth said.
“I might need to stop by there. I want to put in a few new beds.”
“He’s your man.”
She glanced over her shoulder and saw Jace in his office. That was her man—maybe. “I need to go. Work calls.”
Seth chuckled. “I still can’t believe you’re working with Jace. Even more, I’m surprised the people at the tax office haven’t started to make a stink.”
“It isn’t illegal. Besides, Jace has kept the files that have to do with Honeycreek away from my greedy hands. I couldn’t look at them if I wanted.”
“Smart man.”
“Yeah, I guess. Keep me up-to-date.”
“Will do. See ya.” Seth disconnected the phone call.
Claire set the phone and her purse on the desk. She debated bringing Jace his coffee, but decided to wait. Typically she always felt confident around a man, but there was something about Jace that threw her off her game.
She had to admit she was an attractive girl. She grew up doing pageants and in return had gotten full of herself. She’d yet to have a real solid relationship because she always knew she could get someone else whenever things went sour. But when she lost her parents, her thinking changed. She realized how shallow a person she was. And that wasn’t who she wanted to be. Life wasn’t about being the beauty queen. That didn’t get anyone far—unless you were Miss. America.
And Jace brought on a whole new set of feelings she’d never experienced before. The way he looked at her made her feel something she couldn’t describe. She couldn’t pinpoint how he made her feel, but being in the same room or even within a distance of him put her stomach in knots. Was this love? Was it possible for it to happen so fast?
She took a seat at her desk and decided to get started on the tasks she needed to do that day. She’d made a few notes the day before on things Tonya could do, but since they’d closed down early, she’d go ahead and do the work.
“Hey,” Jace said.
“Coffee.” She pointed.
“Thanks. I’ve got to be at the courthouse today. Can you handle everything until Tonya comes in?”
“You’re leaving?”
“I am a lawyer and I’m due in court.” He set a key on her desk. “If you need to leave for whatever reason, this goes to the front door only.”
“All right. I’ll see you later, I guess.”
He nodded and grabbed his coffee. At the front door he turned back toward her. “Want to get dinner tonight? I feel like I owe you.”
“You don’t owe me.”
“I’d still like to take you out,” he insisted.
“Sure.”
He grinned. “I’ll pick you up.” And he was out the door.
Claire took a long drink of coffee as she watched him walk out the door. She sighed knowing the morning was going to be long and boring. She’d have her work done in no time and then perhaps a few interesting phone calls would come in to pass the time.
By the time one o’clock rolled around, Claire was ready to get the heck out of that place. If she knew Tonya had a key, she would’ve taken off an hour before.
Finally, the perky girl came in, carrying an oversized lunch box. Today she wore a tight dress that hugged her body like a glove. Her light hair was curled tightly and she had a slight Marilyn Monroe look to her.
“Good afternoon.” Tonya eyed Jace’s door.
“He’s out for the day. He’s in court, I guess.”
Tonya stuck her bottom lip out. “Shucks. I brought him lunch. Today I made homemade chili.”
“You mean you actually made something? You didn’t just claim to.” Tonya glared at her and Claire did her best to keep a straight face. “You know, if you’re interested in Jace, honesty is key.”
“I didn’t think he’d find out,” Tonya said very matter of factly.
“He might not have if he hadn’t spent the afternoon with me yesterday.” Claire knew adding that last part was the kicker, but she needed to put this girl in her place. She wasn’t happy that she’d pretended she’d brought the sub and lied about the lasagna.
“What do you mean Jace was with you? He closed early.”
“He did. And he came out to Honeycreek and we spent the afternoon together. He’s also taking me to dinner tonight.”
Tonya looked as though she might actually turn red. “You told me you weren’t interested.”
Claire stood and started to gather her things. After she placed her purse on her shoulder, she said, “Things change, I guess.”
“I guess so.” Tonya spun around on her heeled foot and went back out the door she’d come in.
Claire followed her and hollered, “Where are you going? It’s your shift.”
“I quit!” She kept walking.
Claire moaned. She really should’ve kept her mouth shut. Now she had several more hours of boredom ahead of her. One day she’d learn, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all”.
* * *
Jace parked his car in front of Claire’s cabin. As he climbed out, he glanced toward the inn. He couldn’t wait to see this place open again. Even though he grew up in Brookfield, he’d spent a lot of time here. His dad loved hunting and the wooded area behind Honeycreek was perfect.
As he was about to knock on her cabin door, he heard the sound of rocks crunching. Looking over his shoulder, he saw her pulling up. She was still dressed in what she’d worn to work today. And as she made her way in his direction, she didn’t look happy.
“I need your cell number for the future.” Her tone was full of irritation.
“What happened?”
“Tonya quit.”
“She what? Why?”
Claire unlocked the door and he followed her in. Claire stopped so suddenly that he bumped into her.
“Sorry,” he said but then froze himself. “What the hell happened?”
He gently pushed Claire forward so he could get a better look. Someone had been by and torn her place apart.
“Who would do this?” he asked.
Claire spun around and glared at him. “Whoever wants my property. I was angry before, but now I’m pissed.” She pulled her phone from her pocket and he had a pretty good idea that she was calling Seth.
Chapter Six
“Nothing missing. That’s a plus.” Claire plopped down on her couch.
Seth and Jace joined her. The police had come, taken pictures, dusted for fingerprints. And like usual, as soon as they knew anything, they’d get back in touch with her. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that whoever wanted her property was behind this. But what were they looking for? Or was it just a plot to scare her?
“I can’t believe someone would do this,” Jace said.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find this person on top of whoever is after your property,” Seth reassured her.
“It’s the same person,” Claire snapped and tossed her hair behind her shoulders. “This is Brookfield, for heaven sakes. Crime is low. I doubt that I have more than one enemy.”
“I’d have to agree,” Seth said.
“Well, you aren’t staying here tonight,” Jace chimed in.
Claire huffed. “Yeah, and where the hell would I stay?”
“With me,” Jace said.
“You’ve got to be kidding.”
Seth chuckled as he stood. “I’ll let you two fight this out. Before I go, is there anyone else you can think of that might have done this? I know we should focus on this as a whole. But did you piss anyone off recently?”
“Tonya Wilkins. I kinda couldn’t keep my mouth shut and made her mad, causing her to quit today.”
“I’ll add her name to the list of people to talk to.” Seth wrote on a small pad and then placed it back in his pocket.
That would really piss Tonya off. “Good, because the more I think about it, if she can lie so easily, she might be behind all of this.”
Jace was the one laughing now. “She’s barely twenty. What the heck would she want with Honeycreek?”
“You never know.” Claire crossed her arms.
“Well, if you think of anything else, let me know, Claire. I’ll see you around, Jace.” Seth grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair and left.
Claire slumped farther into the sofa. Maybe it was silly to think Tonya had anything to do with this, but one should never underestimate a scorned woman. And Tonya hadn’t been happy to learn about Claire’s time with Jace. It was possible that Tonya came over here.
Then again, Tonya had no idea that Claire was staying in the cabin. The police had checked out the inn and other cabins. Untouched.
“Want to pack a bag?” Jace asked.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m not. You can’t stay here.”
“I’m not getting chased from my home,” she argued.
“Then I’m staying here because you’re not spending the night here otherwise.”
“Fine.” Claire stood and started to put her place back together. “You better put the whole couch back together, because that’s where you’ll be sleeping.”
He snickered, but didn’t say anything.
An hour later, she was thankful her place was tiny. It wasn’t back the way she wanted, but much better than before. Jace had helped the entire time, but hadn’t pushed her to talk. She liked that he understood her need to think.
She grabbed an extra set of sheets and pillows from the linen closet and tossed them onto the couch.
“You got anything to eat, or can I still take you out?” he asked.
Claire glanced around. “I’m up for going out.”
“Good, because I need to stuff my stomach before I can sleep on that couch.”
She laughed. “Let’s go.”
“I’ll drive.” He opened the front door and held his arm out to her.
* * *
“So, are you mad at me for Tonya quitting?” Claire asked and took a bite of a meatball.
“No. I would’ve had to fight her off all the time with a stick.” Jace picked up a piece of garlic bread.
“She was very interested. I’m surprised you weren’t.”
“I’ve got my eyes on someone else.” He gazed at her.
Her cheeks flushed, and for once she was silent. Something he didn’t think he’d ever seen.
“I never asked, but I assume the answer is no. Are you seeing anyone?” he asked before taking a bite of the bread.
“Let’s hope not, since we got hot and heavy the other day.”
“Good. I was worried a jealous boyfriend might hunt me down.”
She twirled more spaghetti around her fork. “I’ve never been good with relationships.”
“How come?”
She set her fork down and pushed her hair behind her ears. “I never cared to in the past.”
“But…”
“No but.”
“Sounded like you were about to say one.” He had hoped at least she was about to tell him she wanted a relationship in her future. The very near future.
She took another bite of her spaghetti. “I don’t know if I’m ready. I wouldn’t mind having a little fun though.”
“And I won’t settle for just fun.”
She grinned. “You’re not like most men, are you?”
“I wouldn’t say that. But to you, I don’t want to be like most men. I want to be your man.”
Claire stared at him for a moment, then picked up her drink and turned her head to look around the restaurant.
Jace loved Luigi’s. It was the best Italian he’d had in his life. He traveled a bit a few years ago, and no one’s marinara sauce could touch Luigi’s. He often thought this was Brookfield’s best-kept secret. Then again, so many of the small shops here were superior to any place he’d been. Perhaps it was Brookfield that was the secret.
“Thank you for bringing me to dinner. Before all of this happened, I was really excited about it,” she said.
“Oh yeah?”He raised an eyebrow.
“Yes. It isn’t that I don’t like you. I’m just not looking for anything serious right now. You have to understand, I have a lot of drama at the moment. And once it gets settled, all my attention will be on getting Honeycreek up and running. It wouldn’t be fair to you.”
“Why don’t you let me decide that?”
“Jace.”
“I’m a lawyer. It might be for this small town, but I have weeks where I work into the night. Yet I think you’re special enough to try with.”
“You barely know me.”
“But from the moment you entered my life, it’s felt complete.” Reaching forward, Jace took her hand that sat on the table. “It’s why I can’t settle for fun. You deserve something real, not part time.”
She pulled her hand away. “I need a to-go container. What about you?”
Jace chuckled. “This is the first time I didn’t finish my meal here.”
Once their food was packaged and
paid for, they headed out front. The air was cool and the sun had set. The streetlights were on, but the town was mostly dead.
“Want to go for a little stroll?” he asked, offering his arm.
Claire gave him a stern look before intertwining her arm with his. They walked at a slow pace and neither of them spoke. A few of the shops, such as The Cookie Jar and The Roasted Cup, still had OPEN signs lit up. But other than that, everything was closed.
They stopped in front of The Reading Corner. The lights were dimmed. Jace had met the store owner Alyssa Duncan a time or two, but he mainly knew her brother Cody, who was typically at Seth’s side when on the job.
They turned and started to head back up the street. They stopped at the crosswalk by Queens Ave. That road was currently the deadest road in the town. The local church was at the end, and on Sunday’s the road was like a parking lot.
“Nothing has changed much,” Claire said.
“Nope. It seems to always stay the same here in Brookfield, Wyoming.”
“That’s good. I like that about this place. It’s the perfect place to raise a family.”
Her saying those words tugged at Jace’s heart. He was so attracted to her, not only physically, but emotionally.
“I guess we should be getting back.” He led them back toward his car.
“Jace,” she said as they got there.
“Yeah.”
“Do you really have no idea who would be after Honeycreek? You’ve been around here and I’ve been gone. No rumors or anything?”
Jace sighed. “I wish I had some sort of idea, but I don’t. Whoever did this kept their mouth shut. This town is small. It shocks me to not have an idea.”
* * *
Claire unlocked the door to the cabin. She wasn’t tired. Not. One. Bit. Her body was on fire after that walk with Jace. Touching him and being so close. It had taken everything in her not to kiss him when they’d gotten back to his car. When she’d first said his name, she was certain she would. But something stopped her. Oh right, she’d chickened out.
She glanced at the couch. The place he’d be sleeping. She’d be in her room, wishing she was out here with him. She eyed him as removed his jacket. His hair was a mess from the slight wind tonight. But damn, he was sexy. She wanted to run her fingers through it as she explored him.
“You really don’t have to stay here,” she said.
“You’re not getting rid of me. I’m staying.” Jace sat down on the couch. “The only way I’ll leave is if you come back to my place.”
“Oh yeah. I don’t feel much like sleeping on a couch.”