Her Last Love (Small Town Hearts Trilogy #1) (6 page)

"Oh, yeah. She's still got all that long red hair, the big green eyes, and let's just say that military life seems to have agreed with her. She looked great." Which had done nothing to help stop the dreams he was having about her, he thought.   

"Nice." Kyle grinned again. "You gonna ask her out, or what?"

"Ask her out? Geez, she and I, we're barely even friends, man. It would be too weird. Not that I wouldn't want to, but the timing's all wrong." He tilted his chair back, considering. "I wouldn't mind getting to know her again, though."   

"Get to know her, or 
get to
 
know her
?" Kyle laughed.   

"Shut up" Carted shook his head, laughing again as he set the chair back down on all fours. "Somebody deal the cards and let's play poker."  

5

Lynn had been back home a short time, only a few weeks, but things were coming together better than she’d hoped. The house she'd wanted had become available, so she had spent the past weekend moving her few belongings to their new home. As she was still waiting on the remainder of her belongings to arrive, Lynn was living in a house that was close to empty. Her parents had loaned her an air mattress while Bethany and Kari had made sure she had dishes and cooking necessities. Lynn had roughed it before, and in much worse conditions. She would be fine until her things were delivered.

For now, though, she had a job interview to get ready for. Which is why on Monday morning, she stood, in her underwear, in front of a closet that held maybe a third of her clothes. She agonized over what to wear since she hadn't been on an interview since she was eighteen. Other than the military, this would be her first real, 'grown up' job. If she got it, and she wanted it in a desperate way. The position was in the human resources department of Riverview Regional Medical Center. And while the job duties and responsibilities were different in the civilian sector, this job was close to what she had been doing in the service. Lynn was nervous about the interview, but excited at the possibility of doing a job she'd be good at, and missed.   

After twenty minutes of debating, she settled on black slacks, and a crisp white blouse, which she would throw a suit jacket over when she got there. She dressed quickly and went into the bathroom to do her hair and makeup. Out of habit, she twisted her hair into the tight knot she had worn for years on active duty, then she applied her makeup, keeping it light and professional. She checked the mirror, making sure her jewelry was understated, before she slid her feet into plain black pumps and grabbing her jacket and purse. She locked the front door behind her, went to her car, slid behind the wheel, and headed towards the hospital.   

 
* * * 

Two hours later, Lynn was officially the newest member of the personnel management team in the Human Resources department. Next week, she would be the one to deal with processing financial paperwork, handling timesheets and vacation requests, and helping to place temporary employees into the positions that needed them the most. The interview had gone amazingly well, and she liked the director who had done her best to put Lynn at ease from the moment they sat down in her office. Lynn was given a brief tour and had met some of the people she would work with every day.   

She couldn't wait to get started.   

For now, though, she would settle for grabbing some early lunch. She wanted to share her news with someone in person, and opted for going to Kari's Café over the more convenient hospital cafeteria. Lynn had the feeling she would eat more than her fair share of lunches in that cafeteria soon. She checked her phone on her way to her car and noticed that Kari had already sent her a text.

How did it go? Dying to know!
    

Lynn smiled to herself, thinking of how she wanted to reply without giving away the news.    

I'm on my way to see you. Are you at the café?
   

Yeah. Tell me. Good news or bad?
   

Tell you soon. See you in a bit.
   

Lynn clicked off her phone and tucked it into her purse before she climbed into her car. The vague text would drive Kari up the wall, but that would only add to the fun of telling her about the job.   

Spirits high, she cranked up the radio and sang along as she made the quick drive to the café. She arrived late for the breakfast crowd and early for the lunch rush, but was grateful for it since it would give her more time to chat with her friend. The bell above the door jingled as she swung it open. She all but bounced to the counter and took a seat on one of the high stools.   

Kari came through from the kitchen, distracted by the papers she held in her hand. She glanced up to take stock of what was happening in her dining room, and did a double take when saw Lynn sitting there, going over the menu.   

"You sneaky little wench." Kari walked over and tossed the papers on the counter in front of Lynn. "You weren't going to let me know you were here?"   

"Just got here less than sixty seconds ago." Lynn read over the list of sandwiches, decided that the club sounded good. "Can I get the club sandwich with a sweet tea, please ma'am?"   

"Sure. As soon as you tell me how the interview went."   

"The interview went fine."   

"And?"   

"And the director was a very nice lady."   

"
And
??"   

"And I start next week!"    

"That's great news!" Kari clapped her hands together. "We should celebrate."   

"That's unnecessary."   

"It 
is 
necessary." Kari looked across the counter at her friend as her hands made their way to her hips. "I realize you don't like a lot of fuss. So we'll keep it low key. Bethany's been itching to have a bonfire. That's right up your alley!"   

"Kari, I appreciate the thought, but I really don't need a celebration."   

"Well, she will have a bonfire anyway." Kari moved to get Lynn's tea. "Can we at least toast to the new job that night?" She set the glass of amber liquid, garnished with a bright yellow lemon slice, on the counter.   

"Yes, we can toast." Lynn slid the straw between her lips and sipped the drink. "That I can live with."   

"I'm not sure who all she is inviting, but maybe she can invite Carter to come keep you company." Kari wiggled her eyebrows as she heard the bells over the door jingle. Looking up to see who her newest customer would be, one of those brows arched higher onto her forehead. "Well, well. Speak of the sexy devil."   

Lynn swiveled on her stool to see who had come in the door. Sure enough, there stood Carter just inside the doorway, his gaze on her. She gave him a small smile and wave, and turned back towards the counter to give Kari a distressed glance.   

"Whatever you do, do 
not 
call him over here." Lynn’s voice was now a whispering hiss. "We're barely friends, and it would be awkward."   

"Well, prepare for awkward. Because here he comes." Kari patted her friend's hand as Lynn closed her eyes and gave a low groan. "I'm going to go put your sandwich order in with the kitchen." She swept up the papers and went through the doors that led to the kitchen. 

Feeling abandoned, Lynn pulled out her phone to check for messages. Hoped, prayed that there was something there that could be a distraction for her. But the screen was blank.   

"Hey, Lynn." Carter's deep voice resonated from behind her. She took a breath and fixed a smile on her face before she turned to face him. And immediately felt her mouth go dry. He stood before her, wearing jeans, a snug tee shirt that hugged his muscles, and battered work boots. A baseball cap covered his curly brown hair. All of which carried smudges of grayish-black coal dust. She couldn't say she'd ever had a thing for guys who sported the rough, dirty style, but it was working for Carter. And she wasn't the only one who noticed. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see other women in the café checking him out and whispering to each other.

"Carter." She had to keep herself from clearing her throat. She reached for her tea, took a healthy swig to wet her parched tongue. "How are you?"   

"Not bad. Just stopping in for a bite to eat." He took in her appearance, all nice and tidy in her suit. "You look nice."   

"Thanks. Job interview." She gave her shoulder a slight hitch. "You look...."   

"Dirty." He laughed as he spread his arms wide and looked down to survey his clothes. "I know. Actually, this is not bad compared to most days." He tilted his head, as if considering an idea. "Listen, I don't know how much time you have, but would you like to eat with me? I was just going to grab something to go, but I can hang around if you have some time."

"Well." Indecision tugged at her. She wanted to take him up on his offer so they could talk and get reacquainted, but didn't want to sit in an awkward situation if the conversation stalled. Curiosity won. "Yes, all right. I've already ordered, but Kari or one of the waitresses can bring it over if you want to sit at a booth."   

Carter held out his arm in invitation so Lynn, grabbing her purse and drink, slid off the stool to precede him. The booth they'd sat at a couple of weeks ago was empty, so they each slid into the seats they'd had before.   

"So, job interview, huh?" Carter asked as he picked up the menu from its stand at the end of the table. "Where at?"   

"Riverview Regional."   

"Nervous?"   

"No." She smiled as he glanced at her over the top of the menu. "The interview was this morning."   

"Really?" Carter set the menu aside, giving her his full attention. "How'd it go?"   

"I guess it went pretty well, since you're looking at the newest employee in Human Resources."   

"Congratulations!"    

The waitress chose that moment to come over and take Carter's order. After listening to him order his cheeseburger and fries, Lynn told the waitress she'd already ordered at the counter. After assuring her that her order would be brought to the table, the waitress disappeared into the kitchen.   

"So, when do you start the job?"   

"Next week." She toyed with her straw, poking at the ice cubes that floated in her drink. "I'm looking forward to it, working in an office again. It'll be a little different from what I'm used to, of course, but the job is basically the same."   

"I'm sure you'll do great."   

"Thanks." Pushing her straw to the bottom of her cup, Lynn took a sip and looked at Carter. "Enough about me. Tell me something about you." The waitress came back, setting Carter's drink and straw on the table beside him before disappearing again.   

"Well, there's my boys. They're pretty much my life." He slid his phone out of his shirt pocket, he flipped through his pictures to find one to show her. When he did, she saw the faces of two adorable boys. Arms around shoulders and looking into the camera, one had a mischievous grin, the other a shy smile, and both with blue eyes like their dad.   

"They look like you." Lynn smiled as she studied the picture. She was right, they favored their father, except for the older boy's reddish hair.   

"Yeah, and my mom says they are just like I was at their ages." His wry tone made her chuckle. "So there's that to look forward to," He slid the phone back into his pocket.   

"And how's everything else going?"   

"If by everything else, you mean my marriage?" He shook his head as he looked down at the table. "It's not."   

"Carter, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry."   

"You're not." He looked back up, into her face. "We've been in marriage counseling since the start of the separation. It's not working. In fact, things just keep getting worse." He took a deep breath, released it in a big puff. May as well get the rest out there. "I actually filed for divorce a few weeks ago."   

"I'm sorry to hear that. It can't be easy."   

"No, it's not." He fiddled with the straw wrapper, pulling off tiny pieces of it as he talked. "But it's better this way. We were both miserable together, and it affected the boys. They seem to be happier now. I'm getting there."   

"It takes time," Lynn murmured.   

"Yeah. We've been separated for over six months now. I think I realized around month three or four into it that there was no saving the marriage. But I kept trying, for the boys. And for myself, so that if I had to let it go, I could say I had given it everything I had."

Lynn nodded, not sure what to say. The waitress reappeared with their food, so no words were necessary. They were doctoring their sandwiches, him with ketchup, her with mayo, when Lynn caught sight of Kari out of the corner of her eye. Kari held out a hand, using gestures to ask how it was going. Lynn replied with a slight shrug and head shake before turning back to her meal.   

"So." Lynn cleared her throat as she picked up a triangle of her thick sandwich. "Kari tells me that Bethany's planning a bonfire."

"Yeah, she's done one every year for quite some time now. Except for one."   

"The year that Shane died."   

"Guess it was too hard for her, being surrounded by all his work buddies. A reminder of what happened, and who it didn't happen to." He grabbed a fry from his plate, munching as he remembered.    

"After the funeral, when I had to go back to Germany, she and I did a lot of talking on the phone." Lynn thought back to that dark time in her friend's life. "A lot of emails, letters, texting. I felt awful not being able to be here for her, in person."   

"I'm sure she understood."   

"Yeah, but still, I felt like the worst friend." She pulled a piece of bacon from her sandwich, gesturing with it before popping it into her mouth. "I'm glad she's doing better and back to hosting those bonfires. They were always so much fun, and she enjoyed having everyone around her."