Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
A my woke up and blinked, staring at the bedroom ceiling. She heard movement beyond her bedroom wall and realized Dexter was up and moving around. The best part of his being an early riser was that coffee would be waiting for her by the time she got out of bed. The worst part was that she hadn’t gotten to sleep late for the entire time she’d been sharing the little home with him.
As she always did, Amy thought through everything she would need to do for the day. She was scheduled to interview the mayor for an article about spring events. Cassie would be there, too, because she was taking a bigger hand in most of the events here. A wedding planner and an event planner seemed quite close in job descriptions.
A door closed, and then she heard water running as the shower came to life on the other side of the wall. This small house was adorable but a little too tight of quarters for her. After his shower, he’d start working. Being a blogger who writes about small towns meant he could work anytime he wanted.
Amy rolled over and pulled the pillow over her head, but the fluff didn’t muffle the water. Besides, any minute now, he would break into his rendition of Hound Dog, which didn’t compare well to the original.
As her eyelids started drooping, the song’s first words exploded through the wall. She bolted upright and sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing her bleary eyes. What Dexter lacked in skill, he made up for with volume.
Last night, she must have spent an hour or two nodding off and immediately waking up again as she pictured being proposed to for the first time. By someone who didn’t actually want to marry her.
In her last relationship, she’d expected and hoped for a proposal from Logan for months. Make that close to a year. All for nothing.
And now she’d actually receive one.
Be careful what you wish for, Amy.
She grabbed a robe, slipped her feet in her bunny slippers, and shuffled off to the kitchen to get some life-giving elixir. With a steaming mug of coffee in her hands, she leaned forward and breathed in the scent, already feeling more awake.
Forty minutes later, she had showered, dressed, and driven to the newspaper office. She went through her list of articles for this week, satisfied that everything was under control. Not much happened in most small towns. Two Hearts was no exception.
Her phone rang with a call from Scott.
“Do khaki pants and a navy blue button-down sound okay for a proposal?”
She grinned. Before she could reply, he added, “I may be obsessing just a little. I’m new to this.”
“That makes two of us. Your outfit sounds fine, and I’ll wear something to coordinate with you so we make a good couple in the picture.”
There was such a lengthy pause with no response that she was about to check her phone to see if he was still there when he said, “You’ll pick me up in an hour?” Then he added, “I’m sure I’ll get better after this first proposal.”
If she had to be proposed to, Scott seemed like a good person to do it. He had a mixture of seriousness and comedy about him that should make today go more smoothly.
“I’m over at the newspaper office. Paige says she could meet us out there at about noon, so I’ll get some work done here, and then I’ll swing by to pick you up.”
He whispered into the phone, “Just a second.” Then she heard footsteps and a door opening and closing.
“Mrs. Brantley was in the other room, and I was afraid she would overhear us and give me things to fill my day.”
Amy laughed.
The man was definitely perceptive. He’d figured out Emmaline Brantley’s personality right away.
“I’m going to take a long walk and meet you at your office.”
“You know, you could tell her you’ll take Cookie for a long walk first. She loves her dog, but I don’t think she has time to walk him as much as she’d like to. Then you won’t seem to be sneaking out.”
“Good idea.”
She heard the door open again, then footsteps as he must have been returning to the house’s main living area. He whispered, “Thank you,” before hanging up.
To her surprise, just after eleven o’clock, Scott walked in the door. The room instantly felt smaller.
“Please tell me you have something I can do to help you.” He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “That woman plans everything to the second. I’ve got to be able to explain my time.”
Grinning, Amy pointed to the desk at her side. “First, sit down. Give me a second. I can probably come up with something for you to help me with.”
“Bless you.”
He sat down and leaned back in the chair. “Mrs. Brantley is one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. She’s kind and helpful, but I don’t know how Greg and his sister survived growing up with her. Everything must have been incredibly organized—and by the minute.”
“Being mayor is still new to her, so I think her being super organized helps. She probably wasn’t that way before.”
“You’d be wrong in that. Greg said she organized their Cub Scout troop better than anyone else. He also said they had a lot of fun. Maybe I should just let her take over and plan my stay.”
She watched him for a second before replying. She wasn’t sure she should say this but realized it would be fine.
“I think you’re an introvert by nature, so being pushed out and on a regular timetable is hard.”
He stared at her.
Amy gulped. Maybe she’d gone too far and said something too personal.
“You’re right. Most people don’t see that because I can act like an extrovert, but I’m really not. I prefer being on the computer.”
“For me, it’s a good book every time. I use the computer, of course. I have to for my work and life. But I love books.”
He looked around the room. “You need to have bookcases somewhere.”
She sighed. “When I get a place of my own, I’ll bring my books out of storage.” Her parents would be very glad to get everything that belonged to her out of their garage.
“So what would you like me to do?”
Amy frowned. Unless Scott wanted to be interviewed for an article—and Amy knew he didn’t—she didn’t need much. Then she looked at the computer in front of her, and an idea came to mind.
“You said you’re in IT now?”
He shrugged. “I can do pretty much anything. I write code, do deep-dive internet searches, and use a bunch of programs. What do you need?”
She brought up the program she used to put together her newspaper. “Can you help me format the newspaper while you’re here? I always do it, but that piece of publishing isn’t my favorite. I would love to have a break.”
He leaned over to see her screen. “Sure, I know that well.” Scott reached into the backpack he had set beside him on the floor and pulled out a laptop.
Amy laughed. “Don’t leave home without it?”
“I told you I was a computer geek.”
“I don’t have a budget for buying the program for you, though.” She frowned.
“No worries. I already own it.”
She stared at him with suspicion. Was he trying to humor her and pay for the program himself?
He held up both hands. “Don’t worry! I do actually own it. I like to play around on the computer. I’ve even designed a few things for the police department with this.”
She shared her work with him and explained what she needed, and he got right to work. As she edited an article, he worked on the rest of his part. “Oh no.”
He jumped in his seat. “What happened?”
“I just realized I’m going to owe you for two things. You’re already helping me with the proposals, and now you are helping me with my newspaper.”
Scott leaned back in his seat and grinned. “But by doing this, I’m avoiding a tour of a wedding shop. I would do a lot more to avoid the tour.”
When that man smiled, her heart did a double beat. Not good. The last thing she wanted was a romance, especially with someone who would leave soon. But even if he didn’t, she was years away from being ready to have another man in her life.