Chapter 4
Four
Next time Chris saw Mindy Fenton, big sister of Jane Clark, he was going to give her a big hug and a bouquet of flowers. She deserved it for allowing him the opportunity to take Jane out on a bona fide Saturday night date sans kids.
Not that he minded the kids—okay, maybe they did make him sorta uncomfortable, especially after the outburst—but he wanted to get Jane alone so he could get to know her better.
The Lexi episode had thrown him a major curveball, had even made him waver.
Was this something he wanted to pursue? A relationship with a woman recently widowed, a mother with three small children who still missed their daddy and were most likely working through issues he couldn’t begin to comprehend?
But then he remembered, the second he saw Jane last night at the recreation hall.
Remembered how he’d turned into a fumbling fool.
Almost spilling the pitcher of water in someone’s lap, tripping over the leg of a chair—he’d earned more than a few stares and inquiries of whether he’d had a few to drink.
Embarrassing, but also revealing.
He’d never reacted to a woman like that before, not even when he’d been a walking, talking hormone in high school. When he’d sat next to her, caught a whiff of her scent, saw a flash of her sweet smile, he’d grown dizzy. The urge to touch her had been overwhelming. And so he’d gone for it.
At first it looked like he’d made her uncomfortable, but she’d eventually relaxed. And he hadn’t wanted to let go of her hand, had only done so reluctantly because he needed to get back to work.
And then there’d been that big blow-up with Lexi.
She’d been so upset, almost inconsolable.
He watched from a distance as Jane had talked to her, hugged her, held the little girl in her lap, and he wondered if he could ever be that good with children.
If he even wanted to take on that sort of responsibility—caring for another man’s kids.
He had never considered it before. Could he handle a readymade family? And what the hell was he doing, thinking about families and kids and that sort of thing? He hadn’t even gone on a real date with her yet.
Clearly his attraction for Jane had messed with his brain.
After he finished his shift, he’d been almost afraid to join Jane, her sister, and their children. But Mindy had waved at him. The look on her face brooked no argument, so he’d moseyed on over.
He enjoyed every minute with them, too. Mindy had a terrific sense of humor and with enough encouragement, she’d gotten Jane to joke with her, got her to laugh.
Mindy had even made Lexi laugh, too—no small feat.
He’d smiled at the girl a couple of times himself, but she refused to budge, turning away every time their gazes met.
It had been nice to see Jane relax and have a good time, especially since the last few occasions he’d been with her, she’d seemed so nervous and unsure of herself.
He’d assumed she would behave the same way that night, at least at first. And he hoped he’d be able to calm her fears.
Well, he wanted to do a lot more than that, but he knew that with this woman, he’d have to take it slow.
And he was surprisingly okay with that. He didn’t normally move slowly, but his gut told him to proceed with caution.
Now he had her in his car, sitting so close he could reach out and touch her. But he didn’t, instead keeping his hands firmly planted on the steering wheel as they headed down to Oakwood, the closest city to Lone Pine Lake. Though still small, it did have a movie theater, which Lone Pine didn’t.
“Anything in particular you’d like to see?” Christian asked.
“Um, I don’t know. It’s been a long time since I went to the movies.
” She nibbled on her lower lip as they drove beneath a street light and he thought yet again how beautiful she looked.
She wore a black turtleneck, a narrow denim skirt that hit her just above the knees, and black tights with black leather knee-high boots.
Simple, yet the breath had been knocked from his lungs the second she’d swung open the front door.
He never thought turtlenecks were sexy before, but the way the clingy shirt hugged her breasts made him think otherwise. And the black tights and boots only emphasized her long, slender legs. Legs he could imagine wrapped tight around his hips while he…
Yeah, he needed to stop. Wouldn’t do him any good to imagine at the beginning of their date all the wickedly sinful things they could do at the end. He’d find himself in a state of semi-arousal for the rest of the night…and it would probably freak her out if she knew.
Not that she’d ever know.
“What do you like? Comedy, drama, action?” Think about movies, not about taking Jane to your bed for the rest of the night.
“I wouldn’t mind a comedy. I’m in the mood for a few laughs,” she answered.
“Then a comedy it is. There’s one that just opened, I saw the trailer a couple days ago. Looked kind of funny.”
“Sounds good.”
Pausing for a moment, he decided to go for it. “So how’s Lexi doing?” He glanced at Jane and caught the smile disappear from her face. She glanced down at her lap, pursing her lips before she finally answered.
“She’s mad at me.”
Ah, damn. He didn’t want to come between this woman and her daughter. Had no clue if he was prepared to deal with something like this—let alone if he wanted to deal with it.
Hah. You have a clue. You don’t want to deal with something like this. It’s why you don’t usually get involved.
“If you feel better going back home, then maybe…” He had to make the offer, wouldn’t feel right if he didn’t.
“No.” She shook her head, smoothed her hair over her face. “I had a long talk with her today. I had a long talk with all three of my children, actually.”
“Is she angry at me?” He shouldn’t care. Really, he shouldn’t.
But he kinda did.
“No, not really. Her anger is all geared toward me.” Jane sighed, the soft sound wafting toward him, and it was full of so much weariness. And guilt. “She thinks I’m forgetting all about their father.”
“Jane—”
“No, it’s okay.” She shot him a tremulous smile. “She has to understand that I need some time on my own or with a friend like you. Going to the movies hardly compares to replacing her father.”
His ego deflated like a popped balloon. So she didn’t think of him in that way. They were just friends in her eyes.
Chris had looked forward to this evening like a teenager about to take his dream girl to prom. Anticipation sizzled through his veins all day, and he’d hardly been able to focus. Unable to do anything really but sit around and watch TV—and even then he couldn’t concentrate.
This sweet, shy woman had turned him into a bumbling, idiotic fool. Yet she didn’t feel the same way. He should be glad—she came with a ton of baggage. So why the fascination with her? The anticipation to see her?
He didn’t get it.
He parked near the theater and they got out of the car, walking across the vast lot at a brisk pace, since it was bitterly cold. Clouds hung low, clinging to the mountains that surrounded them. A storm was predicted to start late in the night and linger throughout the next day.
Chris hung back as they approached the theater and couldn’t help but admire Jane’s sashaying walk as she hurried ahead of him.
Her hips swayed the slightest bit, her legs long and sexy in those lust-inducing boots.
Her backside was nice, too, though she was still a little too thin for his taste.
A couple more pounds and she’d be perfect.
Shaking his head, he hurried his strides, frustrated at his straying thoughts. She’d already declared her feelings. Chris wasn’t even sure why he’d agreed to this. Setting himself up to fail wasn’t his normal MO.
He rushed to catch the door for her before she got to it and she shot him an appreciative smile as he held it open for her. The way her eyes lit up melted his hardened heart a little, even though he knew it shouldn’t.
The movie theater was surprisingly quiet for a Saturday night just before eight o’clock, and he figured the impending terrible weather had something to do with that. He approached the woman who sat behind glass selling admission tickets.
“You want popcorn?” Chris asked Jane once he’d bought the tickets. They went to the snack bar together and he heard her soft gasp as she studied the menu on the wall.
“I can’t believe what they charge for a bucket of popcorn and a medium soda. No wonder I never go to the movies.”
“My treat, remember? So load up on all the popcorn, candy, and soda you want.”
“I ate dinner with the kids,” she admitted, but he caught her admiring the glass-encased popcorn machine. He saw the longing in her eyes.
“You know you want some popcorn. I’m craving Milk Duds myself.” He approached the counter and placed his order. A box of Milk Duds, a large Coke, and a large bucket of popcorn—extra butter.
Jane’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “You’re going to eat all that?”
“No, you’ll be helping me.” He grinned and handed her the large cup of soda, which she clutched with both hands. He stashed the Milk Duds in the front pocket of his jacket and grabbed the bucket of popcorn. “Let’s go. We’re in theater number four.”
As they walked together in companionable silence, Chris vowed then and there to keep this evening light, friendly. That’s what she wanted and there was no need for him to get his insides twisted. Simply enjoy her company and leave it at that.