Chapter 5
Violet heard Leo in the kitchen, starting breakfast, as she climbed off the futon in his guest room. They’d stayed up late—way too late considering that tonight was a game night—chatting on the couch for hours. They’d bared their souls, and it felt like he’d told her stuff he’d never told anyone else. He’d poured out the whole story, in her opinion a heartbreaking one, of how he’d joined the pro rodeo circuit to save the family ranch. He’d given up scholarships and his dream of going to college, staying in the dangerous sport to ensure his three siblings could grow up on the same land he had.
Her growing crush on him certainly wasn’t going anywhere now.
And that spelled trouble, didn’t it? He was looking for Business Barbie to be his bride, and Violet was looking for a man who wanted to put down roots.
It was her friend Hannah’s birthday, and she gave her a quick call. Of course Hannah Murphy, back in Sweetheart Creek, had somehow learned where Violet had spent the night, and between telling her son to stop chasing the dog, had drilled her with a hundred and one questions.
Just friends. Just friends. Just friends.
Was there a worse expression in the English language?
In return Violet teased her friend, saying that the For Sale sign next door to her was soon going to turn to Sold, and that Mr. Dreamy Pants would be moving in to sweep her off her feet. Her divorced friend had choked with laughter and referenced something about Florida freezing over before that ever happened.
Violet ended the call, sighing loudly as she headed to the bathroom. Love. It was so hard to find.
The bathroom was steamy and warm from Leo’s shower, and she longed to soak in the tub and let her problems wash away.
“Hungry?” Leo called, coming down the hallway to look for her.
She opened the bathroom door.
He had a frying pan in hand. “Breakfast is almost ready…” His voice faded as he took her in.
“Ugh, don’t look at me.” She covered her face. Her eyes always looked especially puffy right after she woke up.
“You’re a cute, grumpy little panda first thing in the morning.” He was using an adorable, annoying cutesy voice and she rolled her eyes. And he was sticking with the panda bear thing, too, but somehow she didn’t mind. It made her feel special that he’d given her a nickname, even though it wouldn’t have been her first choice. “No makeup on your sleepy face. And look at your perfect black hair. Cutie-patootie.”
“You’re going to die. You know that, right?”
“Breakfast?” He held up the pan of slimy, half-cooked eggs.
She peered at his offerings and grimaced. “Are you going to cook those some more?”
“Of course. I just didn’t want them to burn.”
“Well, this far from the stove I don’t think that’s likely.” She went back into the bathroom. What was it about dealing with that man? It felt like she was flirting, then snarky all in one breath.
“Ready in two minutes!”
She washed her face and changed out of her PJs. She heard a blender go on in the kitchen and meandered that way, secretly loving that he’d made them breakfast.
Buttered toast, eggs and fruit were set out, and she took a spot across from where she assumed he’d be sitting.
“Game day.” He lifted the blender, which held something green and gross looking. “I love saying that. Do you have a special game day breakfast?”
She gave a shake of her head, watching him pour the contents into a tall glass. “Does Athena make you drink those?”
“Yup.” He swallowed half of it. “Best if you down it fast,” he said, his voice choked.
“Worth it?” she asked, when he set down the empty glass, then turned to chug water.
“I love being part of a team. I can lean on these guys, you know?”
“You couldn’t in rodeo?”
“Oh, yeah. Those guys will always be anywhere you need them in a heartbeat.”
“Did they tease as much in rodeo?” she asked, thinking of Dylan O’Neill and the weird vendetta thing between him and Leo.
“Sure. Rodeo’s family. So’s hockey. But it’s different.”
“Which do you love most, or is it too early to tell?”
“I love ‘em both, but I have a feeling I might come to love hockey even more.” He winked at Violet and she felt the heat hit her hard. She reminded herself that him coming to love hockey more would have nothing to do with her involvement in the sport. It was about the game, plain and simple.
“What time do you have to be at the rink?” she asked, trying to focus on eating.
“We have lots of time to go to the parts store. The limo will be here in forty-five minutes. I hope that’s okay?”
She nodded and tipped her head down, busying herself with spreading jam on her toast.
“How is it?” he asked after a few minutes.
“Good.” Her eyes darted upward, raked over his broad shoulders, then dropped back to the plate. Man, he was hot. And this moment felt so…weighted. Domestic.
Something she wanted and could get used to.
She’d known she was lonely, but this…this was really stirring it up. Normally, she would be tired out after spending so much time with someone she didn’t know very well, but Leo was different. She felt like she could spend eons with him and never need her own quiet space to think and recharge.
“How many stars?”
“Oh. Um. The meal? Four and a half.”
“Nuts. I was hoping for a perfect five.”
“I prefer rye toast.”
“Really?”
She shook her head. “I actually like cinnamon-raisin best.”
“Hey, I made coffee and tea. Want some?”
“There’s both?”
“Yeah. I didn’t know what you preferred in the morning.”
She got up and poured herself coffee, then sat again. Deliberately swallowing her shyness, she teased, “Look at you, working those wooing tricks. Be careful or you’ll have me stalking you, lurking around and expecting all this special treatment.”
He laughed. “Get used to it. You’re my practice girlfriend.”
She coughed in surprise. “Your what?”
“You know, to practice all those things you taught me last night. Compliments, gifts, doing nice things for you and such.”
Right. She’d told him to do that.
With Christine.
He spoke his next words carefully. “We’re still helping each other, right?”
Her shoulders drooped. She wasn’t sure she could handle a man like Leo turning all his charm on her without feeling it was genuine and truly meant for her. She already had enough issues, seeing what wasn’t there between her and nice guys, without having a hottie like him pouring it on thick.
“We don’t have to,” he said quickly.
“No. No. It’s fine.” Violet rested her elbows on the tabletop, her chin on a fist. She needed to figure this out. She wanted to help Leo. And honestly, the sooner she got him married off, the sooner she could outgrow this somewhat inappropriate crush on her friend and head off to meet Mr. Right. “I’m just tired.”
“Oh man, me, too. I hope I don’t crash during tonight’s game. I haven’t stayed up talking like that in…well, ever.” He pushed a hand through his hair and his eyes met hers. “There’s something about you where I pour it all out, you know? You’re safe.”
“Thanks.” She felt heat spreading across her cheeks and her jaw locking up on her.
“And it was nice having company. If you ever want to stay here instead of traveling home after a game, just say the word.”
She shook her head.
“No, the offer’s genuine.”
She gave him a sly smile, forcing back her shyness. “I couldn’t, because I’d soon be cramping your style.”
He laughed, lifting his glass of water to her coffee cup in a toast. “We can only hope.”
Violet couldn’t believe Leo had actually rented a limousine to take them to the parts store. This man who drove a beater like her, because he couldn’t bear to pay for something new, had hired a limo. When his own car was right there in the parking lot, ready to go. She couldn’t wrap her mind around it. Leo was unlike any man she’d ever met. He was serious, focused and driven. But he was also playful and fun. He was up for an adventure, but also balancing life and responsibility in a way that looked easy. It looked like something she wanted.
“Drink?” he asked, opening a side panel near the limousine’s rear seat. She’d overlooked it, assuming it contained a fire extinguisher or fuses. But inside was a minibar.
“No way! That’s a fridge?” Violet slid forward on the soft leather, the lack of restraint causing her to hesitate for a second. Why didn’t people have to wear seat belts in a limo?
On the lookout for other secrets and surprises, she glanced around the interior, feeling like a kid again. She loved stories where the characters discovered hidden passageways or compartments, and she’d spent hours on her backyard swing imagining and willing her home to reveal secret passages to her. A stairway, maybe a half door hidden in paneling, a room revealed only if you pulled the right book from the bookshelf. Even a safe tucked behind a portrait would have been satisfying.
“I want this to be my next car!” she squealed when she pressed an indentation in the armrest and a lid popped up, revealing stereo controls. She touched a few buttons and soft music came through the speakers.
Leo laughed and held out a mini bottle of champagne as the limo glided down the city streets. “It’s game day, so I can’t drink, but you can.”
“Leo! It’s nine in the morning.”
He shrugged. “Limo life.”
She shook her head, unable to come to grips with the thought that champagne and limos were the norm for some. “It’s game day for me, too.”
“Did they give you a diet plan? Athena’s been brutal with us, like she thinks what we eat can bring us together as a team and earn us some wins.”
“Mascots don’t have to perform at quite the same level. No fancy dietary plan for me.”
Leo offered her an iced tea, which she accepted. She leaned back in the seat with a happy sigh, the cold bottle clutched in her grip. “I could get used to this.”
“Me, too.”
“Then why don’t you? You have the means.”
He shrugged.
After last night’s heart-to-heart, she understood that he was like her, responsible and sometimes too serious. They’d both been raised that way—her by a strict Korean mother, him by a strict cowboy father. But she’d learned last night that he’d taken his sense of responsibility to the extreme with pouring his pro rodeo income straight into the family ranch rather than living high off the hog.
She gripped the cap on the iced tea before realizing she didn’t know what it cost. In a limo a drink like this could easily run them double digits, couldn’t it? She put it back in the fridge.
“What are you doing?”
She waved away his questioning look.
“You’re not thirsty?”
“I’m good.”
“Is this your first time in a limo?” he asked.
She nodded.
“You didn’t ride in one to your—”
Wedding.
It was sweet that he caught himself mid-sentence.
“To my wedding? No. And I didn’t ride in one to my prom, either. Did you?”
“Nope.”
Violet noticed a glimmer of sadness in his eyes, and murmured, “There’s so much I still don’t know about you.”
“Let’s play Twenty Questions.”
She smiled and snuggled deeper into the warm leather. She was familiar with the old game, and was pretty good at winning. “You’re going first? What do you have in mind? Animal, vegetable or mineral?”
“No, not that version.”
Her muscles tensed. At the girls-only engagement party they’d thrown for her friend Jackie Moorhouse, they’d played a version of this game. It was like a dirty adaptation of Truth or Dare, just no dares. And all questions about experiences with men. Her friends had hooted with laughter, each one comfortable being an open book, while she’d wanted to melt into the floor.
“If we’re going to hang out, you need to relax and trust me.” Leo’s tone was amused and he gave her knee a quick squeeze.
“I trust you,” she squeaked.
“You totally do not.”
“I’m trying.”
He studied her for a moment. “Fair enough. But you hardly ever tell me stories about you. You’re very private.”
“It’s something I’m working on.”
“Twenty Questions is a fast way to get to know you.”
“Um…” She wasn’t so sure about this.
“Trust me!”
She unclenched her fists from where they were bunched in her lap, and exhaled slowly. Violet couldn’t believe she was agreeing to this. It was going to be humiliating and embarrassing just asking questions, let alone hearing the answers or giving them.
“Your first job?” he asked.
Her mind went blank and her cheeks went hot. She was not going to talk about jobs. She peered out the window, wondering how close they were to the store. Surely it wasn’t that far from Leo’s apartment.
“In high school? Babysitting?” he prompted.
She wanted to die. Just keel over, maybe be resuscitated. Maybe not.
Wait.She glanced at Leo, taking in his meaning.
“Do you mean like…work?”
“Yeah.” He was watching her, head tilted, mouth quirked in a curious smile.
Now she could die. He didn’t mean something sexual like hand jobs or…other kinds of jobs. What was it about this man that sent her mind down all sorts of crazy avenues?
Answers flew from her mouth, one on top of another. “Dog-sitter, paper route, tutoring, lifeguard, more tutoring.”
“Lifeguard? That’s cool. In Sweetheart Creek? No. You grew up somewhere else, right?”
She nodded. “And what about you?”
“The ranch. But it wasn’t paid work. Does that count?”
“Yes. But question one, subsection b is what was your first paying job?”
He paused for a second, a grin spreading across his face. “Pulling cars out of the parking lot at an outdoor concert after a big rainfall. The lot was just pasture, and it turned into this massive mud pit. All these cars kept getting stuck, and the more they spun their tires the worse it got. So I drove over there with my dad’s 4x4 and started towing people out of the mud for ten bucks.”
“How old were you?”
“Fourteen. I made over a hundred dollars.”
“Fourteen! That couldn’t have been legal.”
He shrugged, rewarding her with a casual smile that made her stomach do funny things.
She shook her head. “Living in the country is very different from the city. The other day I saw this kid driving a big green truck. Whenever he had to shift gears, he would literally disappear under the dashboard. I’ve never been so afraid for my life as I was while sharing the road with him.” When Leo failed to look perturbed, she added, “He was oncoming traffic. The driver literally vanished!”
Leo laughed, and she smiled, realizing that maybe she could tell funny stories about herself, and Twenty Questions could, in fact, be harmless fun. Usually she felt as though she wasn’t interesting enough, and that people were always thinking she was weird or boring. But not Leo. He almost made her feel as though she wasn’t introverted and self-conscious, but an interesting person he genuinely wanted to get to know better.
“Speed round,” he announced. “Most random class you’ve ever taken?”
“Random?”
“Odd? Unexpected? Your choice. Surprise me.”
“Cake decorating with a bunch of gals from town.”
“Not weird. Handy.”
“I’m not baking you a cake.”
“Fine.” He gave a dramatic sigh. “It’s not on Athena’s diet plan, anyway.”
“How about you? Most useless class? Oddest? Maybe an unusual niche class?”
“How to ride an angry bull and not die.”
She raised her hands in surrender. “You win.”
They sat sideways on the bench seat, knees touching, watching each other as the limo purred toward their destination.
“Strangest skill you have. No, best skill.”
“I’m good at math.” She smirked, figuring that he would assume she was telling the truth due to her Northeastern Asian heritage.
He narrowed his eyes. “You lie.”
She giggled. “True. I’m average.”
“Did I not mention in the rules that lying isn’t allowed?”
She batted her lashes. “There are rules?”
“Are you flirting, Vi?” He leaned close, his warmth reaching her through the fabric of their clothes. She felt the terrifying heat, but fought it. Fought it hard. He was just a friend. She could totally handle this.
“You should be so lucky,” she breathed, dropping her gaze to his lips.
He gave a low chuckle that tightened a cord inside her. She leaned forward, aiming for a mysterious, seductive tone as she said, “My odd skill is tango dancing.”
His mouth was close to hers. “I said no lying.”
“No lie.”
He was silent for a long beat. “Teach me.”
She laughed, leaning back in the seat. He was so earnest, so genuine. “A cowboy learning the tango?”
“I can do more than just ride around on animals.”
“Fair enough.”
“This is a deep one. Are you ready for it?” He leaned close again, and she felt as though the moment was a tipping point, that if she leaned forward herself they might kiss. Which was ridiculous. He’d reminded her only an hour ago that they were friends helping each other.
He was a nice guy. Definitely willing to help her. The last thing he needed was to have her swooning over him and making things awkward.
“Do you still believe in love after all you’ve been through?” His eyes were kind, his long lashes glorious. A man like him, moments like this…they made Violet believe the world was a good place, where women like her found lasting love.
She took her time, weighing the question as well as her response. She knew it was overly optimistic and possibly naive for her to still believe in love, and to relish that inkling of hope that flared up from time to time. Finding lasting love was still such a long shot. But if she could overcome her obstacles and get to where her life clicked into place, she felt she could have the things she wanted, such as family and a deep happiness.
“I believe in change,” she said.
“That wasn’t the question.”
“But that’s the answer.”
“How so?”
“To believe in love, I have to believe in change. I have to believe that I can become someone who deserves it.”
The muscles around his mouth tightened. “You do deserve love. No changes required.”
“I will always be me,” she said carefully. “But I can improve upon the parts that prevent me from having what I want.”
He massaged his right knee as though it ached, his thumb digging into muscle.
“It’s not that different from what you’re trying to do,” she pointed out.
He inhaled slowly, and the hard lines of his jaw, the tightness of his shoulders began to relax. “Fine. Fair point.”
He met her eyes, but she couldn’t sort out what he was thinking.
“So you believe?” he asked.
“Yes.”
But what about him? He’d said he didn’t fall in love. As if it was something he could prevent with sheer willpower.
“Leo?” She hesitated, summoning her nerve. “Do you believe in love?”
“It looks like we’re here,” Leo said, sliding forward in his seat, oddly relieved that the timing of their arrival prevented him from having to answer Violet’s question. He wanted to believe in love. It felt like something he should want to believe in and have.
But so far love hadn’t even thought of sneaking up in his rearview mirror, let alone sit on him with its two-ton weight. Why should he be so bold as to think it might happen to him? He didn’t know how to fall in love.
He hopped out of the limo before the driver could come around, and reached inside for Violet’s hand. She didn’t budge for a few beats, and he thought she was going to refuse to leave her seat until he provided an answer.
“Well? Do you?” she asked pointedly, as though she understood just how deeply her question was stirring him up.
He tapped the face of his watch and shifted. “It’s game night. We’ve got to keep moving.”
“You’re afraid of love!” she exclaimed with wonder, scooting out of the car, ignoring his offered hand. She was shorter than him by more than half a foot, but at the moment she somehow seemed taller.
“I’m not afraid.”
“So you believe?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Then what are you saying?”
He shifted onto his heels, unable to find words to describe that slightly desperate feeling of loss whenever he thought of his colleagues and their marriages.
“Okay.” She placed her palms together, like she was going to pray. “Do you love your family?”
“Of course!”
“So you believe in love.”
“That’s not… That’s not the same. It’s different from what you’re asking.” He knew she was asking about that deep romantic love she was seeking.
“How is it different?”
“You’re a real pest.”
“I know.” She nodded, her long black lashes fluttering as she blinked at him, unflappable in her dedicated persistence.
“Familial love is… You make sacrifices for family that go beyond obligation or duty. It’s different from the love I would share with my wife.” He wanted a family someday, and he assumed that would come with a whole lot of it. So why couldn’t he just say that to Violet?
“Okay, and what’s romantic love to you?”
“We’re strangers who pass each other in the dead of the night. Unseen, unnoticed.” Forgotten.
“But one day you might get noticed? By love?”
He guided her toward the store’s entrance. “I’m regretting how comfortable you’ve gotten with talking to me.”
“I know.” She gave him a sunny smile, but refused to step into the store despite him holding the door for her and making an exaggerated sweeping motion with his arm.
“So you want love, but think you can’t have it?” she asked.
Unrelenting.That was his current word to describe Violet.
“What year is your car again?”
She wouldn’t budge.
He sighed. “Fine.”
She gave a small bounce in place, aware that she’d won. She was adorable.
“I’d love to be married. Have a family. The whole happy package.”
“I knew it!”
“But not yet,” he warned, following her toward the shelves of batteries lined up on the north wall of the store. “I need to have a house that’s paid for, and my retirement settled. I need to be done with hockey so I have time. So I can be attentive.”
“You can be attentive during hockey.”
He snorted.
“So basically you’re going to be one of those eighty-year-old men marrying a woman in her twenties. I never quite pegged you as the type.”
“Ew. No.” He should have kept his mouth shut.
He was reading the labels on the wall to find the correct battery, but she stepped in front of him. “What’s this that we’re doing right now?” she asked.
“Me trying to get your car running.”
“No, in the rules for wooing women.”
“Quality pestering-me time. Move.” He gently pushed her aside and reached for the battery she needed.
She pressed her way in front of him again, and he sighed, straightening.
“We’re spending time together,” she insisted. ”And you’ve been attentive. This is like marriage. If we were married, this would be us enjoying domestic moments and a morning together. Breakfast, running errands…”
He knew he shouldn’t imagine it—what it would be like to be married to Violet. How easy and fun it would be. That smooth, comfortable feeling of having a friend you loved in your house in the morning. Sharing moments, making memories out of the small things in life.
And there was that brief moment in the limo when he’d thought they were going to kiss…
“You have to have your affairs settled before you bring children into the world,” he grumbled, grabbing the battery.
“Life is for living.”
“I’m living it.”
“No, you’re putting off the best parts for later. When you feel you deserve it, when you feel you’re ready.”
He inhaled sharply.
“I’m just saying.”
“Fine. So what if I am? I know what I’m doing, Violet.”
She turned her beautiful dark eyes on him, then finally reached for the battery in his arms. “Here. Let me.”
“I’ve got it.”
She tried to worm her fingers under the battery, trying to take it from him. “Look at my arms, Vi. It’s heavy.”
She glanced at his bulging muscles, and relented. He used the distraction to stride past her, eventually plunking the battery on the counter by the cash register.
“I’ll pay.” She whipped out her credit card. “It’s my car.”
The limo ride back to his place seemed swift, and before long they were in his car, heading to Sweetheart Creek with Violet’s new battery and her overnight bag, and a lot of questions whirling through his mind.
Life. Love.
What he truly wanted, as well as what he thought he deserved.
And then a few thoughts about whether during his wooing training he’d need to practice kissing Violet.
The silence in the car was a relief. It gave Violet time and space to think, to talk herself down. Leo was a nice guy, and she was starting to feel things for him, and it seemed a bit like he might be feeling some things as well. Which meant she was doing it again—seeing stuff that wasn’t there. And really, who was she to flirt with him? He was a friend. She needed to get a grip on herself.
“Mind if I play DJ?” she asked, buying more time with her thoughts through music.
Leo nodded and gestured to his car stereo. His T-shirt molded to him like a glove and she wondered how much he worked out. It was one of the many questions she feared asking. Because complimenting a man’s physique, or at least noticing it, showed possible interest. Didn’t it?
Or was she thinking too much again?
She played an ABBA song and Leo said, “I haven’t heard this one in a long time.” His smile warmed her gut, and she wished she’d feigned napping instead of playing music.
She chose Metallica next, figuring the cowboy wouldn’t have a connection to the band or song and she would be safe from lovely smiles.
Leo laughed when the opening cords rang through his speakers. “I haven’t heard this one in eons, either. I had this friend who wanted to listen to this song nonstop, all the time.”
“Cowboys listen to heavy metal?”
“Some do.”
“What do you think about Taylor Swift or Miley Cyrus? A fan?”
“Love them both. I actually met Miley once.”
“No,” she breathed. “You didn’t!”
“I did. At a rodeo. She’s nice.” He grinned. “We exchanged autographs.”
Violet shook her head. This man lived in a completely different world than she did.
The more songs she played from her teenage years, the more memories Leo shared from his own.
“I used to listen to this song on the way to rodeos,” he said when she played Queen. Was there anything on her playlist that he didn’t like?
“I listened to it while I studied,” she replied.
“I guess it’s good for getting your head in the game. Did you study a lot?”
She nodded. “Is there any music you don’t listen to?”
He shrugged. “Did you like college?”
“Yeah. Do you wish you’d gone?”
He looked out the window instead of at her.
“You seem like the type who would have loved to go just for the thrill of learning something new.”
He remained silent.
“Would you go now?” she pressed.
“Oh, you know.” He flipped a hand off the steering wheel, a casual gesture. “Pretty busy.”
“True. At least your reason for not going isn’t the usual answer.”
“What’s that?”
“You got a gal pregnant and were busy being run out of town.”
He almost choked on a burst of laughter, brightening his entire expression.
They rode, not speaking for a few more minutes, while the warm feeling in Violet’s gut spread. She really enjoyed hanging out with Leo and she hoped they’d remain friends even after he found the Business Barbie of his dreams.
“Are you going to the gala next month?” he asked.
“The one Miranda was talking about in orientation?”
“Yeah, for the charity.”
Violet scrunched her nose and shook her head. Black tie. A room full of wealthy people? Tons of hockey hotties? She wouldn’t be able to make a peep all night.
“Why not? It’s for a good cause.”
“Daisy-Mae’s going.” The woman was head over heels for Maverick—a man so unattainable he’d declared his ranch a woman-free zone. Sure, she, Jenny and Daisy-Mae had been invited for Thanksgiving there, but that was because of his mother’s influence. Despite Maverick’s casual attitude, Violet had a feeling he was falling for Daisy-Mae as well. At least she hoped so.
“You can’t go if she is?”
“Of course I can. I’m just not.” Violet slumped in her seat.
Did she want to relive what it felt like to go to high school dances? No. She’d never been invited by a guy, and when she’d gone with friends—after sneaking out, of course because her mom thought dances would lead to trouble—she’d often sat alone because they were busy dancing. It had been awful, and she had a feeling the adult version wouldn’t be much different.
But to get all dressed up and feel like a princess for one night? She longed for that. Even though she knew it was frivolous. Even though she’d been raised to know that pennies were to be saved, not poured into an expensive gown she’d wear only once.
And yet, the idea was nerve-wracking, too. To be in the same room with hockey stars and San Antonio’s wealthiest members during a black-tie affair, acting like she belonged there? It made her palms sweat. But it would be good for her, too—a giant push out of her cozy comfort zone.
“It’s always more fun if you have a date,” Leo said.
“Have you asked Christine?”
“I told her I have a spare ticket.”
Violet winced.
Leo chuckled. “I asked her nicely, I promise. I was casual. You know—played it cool. Said I had an extra ticket and would she like to come with me.”
“And?”
“She’s going with her sister.”
“Her sister?” Violet scrunched her face. “Ouch.”
“They’re close.”
“You mean she’s Christine’s shield to ward off wooing men?”
“Maybe.”
“So are you going?”
“Yeah. Alone, I guess. I need to rub elbows with some mucky-mucks. Win them over with my extreme modesty and good guy charm.”
“Why don’t you ask someone to go as your date? If you don’t want to go alone, that is.”
“I don’t want to go with a stranger and feel like I have to babysit her all night because she doesn’t know anyone. It’s easier going alone.”
“Don’t you worry about standing around by yourself?”
“There’ll be other guys from the team there. Do you want to come with me? You can be my shield annihilator!”
“I don’t have a dress.”
“And I have a solution for every problem. Are you in?”
“You’re going to find me a dress?”
“Are you in?”
“Sure. Find me a gown and a pair of shoes and I’m in. A suitable ensemble.”
Leo grinned and Violet realized she had a date—a platonic one—with an NHL player to a black-tie event. And like a rags-to-riches, Cinderella kind of story, he was going to find her a dress.
Unsure what to say, Violet selected the next song from her playlist. Soon they were both bellowing the lyrics to “American Pie” with the windows down, the cab howling with the chilly November wind. Leo had a surprisingly good singing voice, a rich warm sound that seemed to wrap around her with every cord. She knew she was smiling like a crazy person, but couldn’t help it. This ride was one for the memory banks.
When Leo pulled down Violet’s driveway, a cat came running, its tail straight up.
“That your cat?” he asked.
“Yup.”
“What’s its name?”
“One.”
“One?” What kind of name was that? “Starting with a W or with an O?”
“As in the number.”
Leo watched Violet for a long moment, his hand still on the gearshift after he parked his car near hers. There had to be an explanation for that moniker. But she was bent over, stuffing her water bottle into the shoulder bag at her feet.
“You have to tell me the story of how he got his name,” he said.
“Nothing to tell.” She flashed a smile and opened her door, just about tumbling out when her foot got caught in her bag’s strap.
“You’re a horrible liar, Violet Granger,” he declared. He was learning her tells when she was pulling his leg. Her voice rose a little higher and she tended to hide her face so her expression wouldn’t give her away.
He got out, reaching for his jacket, then watched her over the car as she yanked on his locked trunk.
“Tell me.”
“Pop the trunk.”
“Story first.”
She gave him a glare without any bite. “You really want to know?”
“Yes. Especially if there are deep, dark secrets involved.”
She snorted, delighting him. It was so un-Violet to snort.
“Well, Leo.” Uh-oh. There was something in her tone that made him wary, as if he’d unwittingly stepped into a stupid-man minefield. “There comes a point in every woman’s life when she begins to wonder if she’s going to have a family.”
Yup. He really wished he hadn’t pushed this one. Violet’s current word: Scary.
And his? Uncomfortable.
“I’ve reached that point.”
He nodded silently, hoping to keep himself out of trouble.
“So I decided to become a cat lady.” She gestured to One, which was now winding his way between her legs in welcome. “This is the first of what will likely become many cats.”
Leo wasn’t sure how to respond, but had some doubt that she was serious. Violet might throw out the odd inaccurate statement here and there to get him off her case, but didn’t make up stories.
“One…” he said thoughtfully.
“The next cat will be Two.”
“How many will you have?”
“That’s yet to be determined. Pop the trunk?”
“But you still believe in love. You want help to find… You want marriage.” He shoved his fingers through his hair in confusion.
She needed him to find her someone suitable—and soon. He couldn’t let her become a reclusive cat lady. She was already a quiet introvert, happy to be alone and living off the beaten path. Plus working away. And working in a costume where nobody could really see her or connect with her… It wouldn’t be a long or difficult slide into the new identity of recluse.
The sound of laughter pulled him from his thoughts. “Gotcha!”
He stared at her for a moment, then blinked. She had been teasing him?
“Do I really look like someone who would freak out because I wasn’t married yet?” She was at his side now, pulling on his arm.
“I don’t know. Maybe. You’re very private.” He’d walked right into that one.
“Leo! You know me better than that.”
“Remember I’m a naive man who knows very little about women when it comes to these sorts of matters. You might actually think that way. I don’t know!”
He stared at her, intrigued. The more he got to know her the more outgoing and playful she acted. Violet was bright, quick-witted and a lot of fun. He could spend a week hanging out with her without missing the rest of the world.
Her amusement softened into something more contemplative. “Sure, I want the whole package. A lot of women do. Some get it, some don’t. I’m not going to throw myself off a bridge or start eating bonbons and collecting cats just because I don’t get it when and how I want it.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “Okay, good.”
“When the time is right, it’ll all fall into place. In the meantime, I’m doing what I can to increase my opportunities.”
Leo groaned. The stupid Dragon Babes thing. Didn’t she realize just how dumb that idea was?
Then again, she’d pointed out that his idea to woo Christine was dumb, too.
He supposed they could be dumb together, and maybe that was part of why they clicked as friends.
“I’m working on myself and trying to let go of the things that hold me back. Maybe I’m not actually that super-responsible person who invests every dime. Maybe my habits are merely a product of my strict upbringing. Maybe I’m actually a woman who likes to buy pretty shoes she’ll never wear.”
“And are you?”
She sighed, looking slightly forlorn. “They hurt my feet.”
He chuckled. “Well, I guess now you know, right?”
“I really resent that I spent money on them.”
“Yeah?”
She pulled him toward the trunk of his car. “Now, help me become an independent woman. Show me how to replace a car battery without electrocuting myself.”
How was it that when he thought he finally had Violet figured out she took a left turn? Why any of her exes had ever let her go was a mystery to him.
He hefted the new battery from his trunk, and she marched over to her car with authority, confident he would follow.
He hurried to catch up.
The cat ran alongside her, and she slowed to pick up the furry beast with the clear amber eyes. She carried it so its paws rested on her shoulder and it watched Leo with its small nose pushed deep into a patchwork of thick, dark wooly fur. The cat looked like it had tried to work on Violet’s car and had the electrifying experience of failing.
“Where did One really get his name?”
“From Brant.”
“Brant?” Was that her ex-fiancé? No, that was Wyatt.
“Brant Wylder. He’s a vet who rescues animals around here and gives them odd names.”
“So you didn’t name One?”
“Nope. And One is short for Onesie.”
“As in the legless T-shirt thing babies wear?”
The cat, as though sensing they were discussing him, stared at Leo with those crazy amber eyes before rubbing his head against Violet’s shoulder. “He was wearing one.”
Leo waited for her to say more, then finally asked, “Why?”
“His fur was matted, full of burrs and bugs. The lady who found him shaved him, but then worried he’d get a sunburn. So she put him in a onesie and called Brant to come find him a home. Apparently, One held a grudge against her after the shave.”
“No doubt.”
“He’s still a little weird around laundry left on the floor and electric toothbrushes that make that buzzy razor sound.”
“So you’re not actually a cat lady?”
“Not yet.” She flashed him a smile that had him wishing their day wouldn’t end.
Violet tried to focus on what Leo was doing to her car. But try as she might, her attention kept straying to his hands and the flexing muscles in his forearms. He’d discarded his jacket so as not to get it dirty, and she had a pleasant view of his arms, rendering it nearly impossible to concentrate. Then again, she was focused there because when she looked up she was struck by how close together they were standing. The flecks of green in his blue eyes were mesmerizing.
It didn’t help that he was strong, tanned, and confident doing mechanical things that, frankly, were beyond her comprehension.
But the mind-baffling actions weren’t just limited to working on her car. He’d had all sorts of adventures that freaked her out. She liked to believe that she, too, led a life of adventure, but compared to him, her so-called big moves paled. For one, she couldn’t imagine getting within six feet of a bull, let alone climbing on top of it to see how long she could stay there. And then there was his hockey career. She couldn’t imagine facing off against some of the NHL’s greatest players, trusting them not to hurt her as they slammed each other into the boards at high speeds.
Leo could get hurt. So hurt.
“And there you have it.” He stood back and dusted his hands together. “Pretty easy.”
“That’s it?” she asked. It had been embarrassingly fast. If she wasn’t so afraid of electricity, she could have watched an online tutorial and done this herself.
The job would have gone even faster if they hadn’t had to run down to Ryan Wylder’s to borrow a wrench, since Leo’s had gone missing from his tool kit. Luckily, Ryan lived just across from the school, less than half a mile from her place, and had actually been home and not out with Carly Clarke on her ranch.
He’d been home, fretting over a certain piece of jewelry he planned to give his girlfriend. Ryan had held his breath as he’d shown it to Violet, seemingly worried she’d tell him it was awful. She assured him it was lovely and very much Carly’s simple style.
“Want to see if it’ll go?” Leo asked Violet.
Violet got behind the steering wheel and cranked the engine. It started without a problem, but she hesitated before turning it off. She leaned out the open window to call, “Should I keep it running?”
“Nope. You should be good now.”
Grinning, she rejoined him in the driveway. “Thank you. I can’t believe the job was so simple.”
“Next time you need something, call me before you pay a mechanic.” Leo slammed the hood and leaned against the car’s front panel.
“Clint has really reasonable prices.”
“Good. But if the problem’s small, I can teach you how to solve it yourself. It’s good to know a bit about cars.”
She leaned against the panel beside him, feeling the November midday sun warming her back. They’d have to return to the city in a little while for tonight’s game, and Violet marveled at how fast the past fifteen hours with Leo had spun by. At the same time, last night’s Thanksgiving dinner felt so long ago.
“I can’t remember the last time I spent so much time with one person and didn’t mind,” she mused.
“True introvert, huh?”
“Sometimes. Some people are fun, but draining. Not in a bad way, though!” she said quickly. “I just get tired.” She tapped his forearm, making sure she touched fabric and not skin. No need to combust on the spot by contacting that fine, golden flesh. “You’re easy to hang out with.”
“Thanks. So are you.”
“What do you normally do when you have time off?”
A slow grin spread across his face. “Violet Granger, are you trying a pickup line on me?”
“No!”
He laughed as she ducked her head. “You’re so easy to tease. Lately, I’ve been helping Maverick over at his new place. It was a real wreck when he bought it.”
“It seemed okay last night.” The old farmhouse still needed some work, but the wood floors had obviously just been refinished and looked amazing.
“There’s a reason for that. But yeah, I mostly hang out with the guys and work out. Buy groceries.”
“An exciting life.”
“Hey! Tell me yours is more action-packed.”
She laughed. “I bake and garden. But it’s November now, so mostly I bake.”
“And you tease me.”
“A new favorite pastime.”
“What else?”
“I learned to scuba dive a few months ago,” she said, eager for him to notice that she was more than a homebody waiting around for a husband. She went out and had adventures and pushed her limits sometimes.
“Really? Me, too!” He pointed to his chest. “Well, a few years ago. Next time we’re near some good water, you and I should go out together. Will you be my scuba buddy?”
She almost cracked a lame joke related to a pre-dive safety check between scuba buddies, but caught herself as the joke wasn’t very funny. “Um, I’d love to.”
Look at that. She was already less cringey. She could flirt and tease a bit and catch herself before saying something lame. Hanging out with a hottie was doing wonders for her confidence.
“You will BWRAF me?” Leo said, making the scuba buddy safety check acronym sound almost like he was a little kid asking her, “You will be with me?”
“I was going to make a scuba joke, but thought it would be lame.”
“Ouch!” He shifted closer, his focus on her face. “Are you calling me lame?”
“Um, yeah.” She smiled briefly. “What are you going to do about it?”
The air grew quiet and their attention narrowed to just the two of them.
Leo slowly lifted a hand, reaching for her face. She tensed, certain he was going to cup her cheek and kiss her. Should she keep breathing? Stop? Close her eyes?
She wasn’t ready for a kiss.
No, she was ready. And that was what freaked her out.
“You have a bit of dust here,” he said. His thumb ran across her cheek, gently brushing away what must be invisible dirt, as she hadn’t been anywhere near the repairs.
Violet almost ducked her head, but remembered she was trying to be bolder and braver. She held Leo’s gaze, doing her best not to look away as he came closer, angled her jaw higher.
They leaned in. Her eyes drifted shut.
Meow.
Something bumped Leo, breaking his gentle grip. Onesie was nudging against him, trying to climb into Violet’s arms.
The more time she spent with Leo, the more questions Violet had. And the current one was why she was a cat person.