Just Say Maybe: A Thistle Bend Novel (11 page)

He glanced over to see the silhouettes of two people in the SUV. They weren’t fully visible through the rivulets of rain on the windows, so neither were he and Holly. Even so, if the people in the SUV had been curious, they could’ve easily figured out what was going on.

Holly kissed him on the cheek and carefully slipped back into the passenger seat. Bryce gripped the steering wheel and shook his head, grinning. “What are the odds?” He sucked in a deep breath and blew it out, working to regain control over his body.

“Guess we’re going to have to do the next best thing,” Holly said.

Bryce gazed at her and raised his eyebrows. “What’s that?”

She lifted one shoulder and gave him a sly smile. “Go eat pizza.”

“This place has been my favorite since they opened—right after I graduated from law school.” Holly sat across the booth from Bryce, trying to remember ever feeling this nervous at Pie in the Sky. She loved the Bohemian décor—eclectic and whimsical, with bright gauzy curtains, colorful lanterns, and pillow-stacked seating. Alternative music played low in the background. Despite the familiar surroundings, the vibe in the place was different this late afternoon. It wasn’t every day that she showed up in town with a super-hot stranger like Bryce.

Or every month. Or every year.

For the first time since their awkward meeting in her office they sat face-to-face, and Holly had to force herself not to stare. Up close and across from her, Bryce’s shoulders appeared sturdier, his eyes greener, his jawline more chiseled. Everything she already liked, in HD. Locals who knew her were stealing glances at him, their expressions curious.

Holly couldn’t blame them. “I should’ve warned you that you’d be the center of attention, at least for the locals.”

But probably for everyone.

“Is it my outfit?” he joked, flattening his palms beneath his collarbone and smoothing them over his pecs and abs. Of course he’d been referring to his flannel shirt, but Holly couldn’t tear her thoughts away from what was underneath. From how his smooth, tight pecs had felt beneath her fingers.

She grinned. “Most people in Thistle Bend like to know everything about everyone, and this unusual occurrence will certainly have people chattering.”

“Unusual occurrence?”

Holly shot him a gaze that told him he already knew what she meant. “You. Me. Eating together. I’m not saying this is an official date, but whatever it is, they’re not used to seeing me with a sexy stranger.” She could only hope they’d contain their curiosity, and save their questions for another time and place. “Don’t be surprised if they interrupt our dinner just to find out something they can tell.” Better to warn him than allow him to be blindsided. She lifted her shoulders. “They’ve been known to be impatient when it comes to juicy news. That’s what you get in Thistle Bend. We’re like one big family.”

“Sometimes dysfunctional?” he teased.

She lifted her glass of beer. “Charmingly, but yes.”

Bryce toasted her, took a swallow of his beer, and licked his upper lip, which increased her appetite for more than just pizza. Awareness swirled through her. She could stare at his kissable lips for hours, yet this time she risked only seconds and looked away.

“Back to that sexy-stranger thing.” He pressed his shoulders back and nodded. “I kinda like that.”

The guy had every reason to be cocky, as far as Holly could tell, yet he seemed to keep his ego in check. That worked fine for her—she didn’t want a guy she had to build up. She wanted a man who was fully constructed. Confident and smart. Self-reliant and kind.

A man just like Bryce.

“And back to you not calling this an official date.” He reached across the table and smothered her hand beneath his.

Strong and warm and raspy.

Holly’s thoughts blurred as she imagined his hands all over her—the ways he would’ve touched her had the people in that SUV not arrived at Turquoise Lake.

“Do we need a notarized certificate to make it official?” he teased, brushing his thumb against her palm.

“I think a handshake agreement would suffice.”

“That’s not very lawyerly.”

“Busted,” she said, working up her nerve. She massaged one of his fingers, her touch featherlight. “It’ll definitely take another kiss.”

Holly knew better than to tease about a kiss—at least the kind she had in mind. Their kisses were starting to lead somewhere, and offering him another of them only tempted her to go further with him.

His eyes widened a little, then settled, his lips curving up at the corners. “I like the way you do business, counselor.”

She gave him a wisp of a grin. “Only with select clients.” She tipped her head toward the other diners. “And not in front of an audience.”

Beneath the table, he nudged his ankle against hers, and left it to rest there. “Maybe we should skip the pizza and go straight to dessert.” He winked.

“Not a chance.” She was craving comfort food, and pizza always did the trick. Not only was she hungry, she also needed something tangible and familiar to ground her while her routine life was becoming anything but. Meeting Bryce had quickly altered her reality. But wasn’t that what she had hoped for all these years?

Sure, she had doubts. But men like Bryce rarely came along anywhere, much less in Thistle Bend. If she ignored their chemistry, she’d never know what might have been. She could work through her issues with the lodge, and she hoped everyone else could, too. Bryce seemed to have the best interests of the place and the townspeople at heart. The least she could do was support him.

As if on cue, the waiter delivered their pizza—a thing of beauty with lightly browned crust and oozy cheese, half pepperoni and half pineapple.

“Wow.” Bryce leaned forward and inhaled. “Mmm, spicy pepperoni.”

Holly mirrored him, drawing in a deep breath. “Mmm, sweet pineapple.” She served up the slices. “No compromise on pizza toppings?”

“Never. Especially when it involves pineapple.” He shook some parmesan cheese onto his slice. “No fruit on pizza.”

Holly cut the pointy end off her slice and ate it. Tipping her head back, she closed her eyes for a second, savoring the sweet-and-salty combination. She swallowed reluctantly, looking forward to her next bite. “You don’t know what you’re missing.”

Bryce gave her a sultry look that had her heart clamoring. “And I’m dying to find out.”

He almost had her asking for a to-go box right then and there. If she wanted her fill of fresh pizza, she’d best dial back the flirting.

Holly made a sweeping gesture with her hand. “This place used to be the company store for Colorado Fuel and Iron back in the mining days.” She doubted Bryce could come up with a flirty retort for that. “But it wasn’t like a lot of small mining-town company stores that had a corner on the market on all the goods and groceries, and they could rip off the miners. There were other merchants already established in Thistle Bend, selling stuff people really wanted, like dry goods, food, and beverages—so this company store had competition. The miners didn’t trust Colorado Fuel and Iron, so they were happy to support the mom-and-pops. That helped keep more businesses open in town, and kept the company store’s prices down.”

Bryce chewed thoughtfully, seeming interested. “Does everyone around here know the history of this place—even back to the mining days?”

“A lot of us do. Most of us love living here, and we can’t believe how lucky we are that the town didn’t die when the mines closed, like so many other small towns in the area did. Believe it or not, some buildings in Thistle Bend were moved here from nearby towns that were abandoned by nearly everyone. Now they’re just a sign along a dirt road, and maybe a few cabins.”

Bryce took a swallow of his beer, nodding. “It’s too bad about those towns. But I like that people here have deep connections to Thistle Bend. A sense of history and roots is important in a community.”

Holly couldn’t help but think that he’d rather the townspeople not have such vivid memories of the lodge, but she wasn’t about to say so. She’d had enough of thinking about the lodge for a little while. Right now she preferred to focus on Bryce.

“Is it like that in Costa Rica?” She took a bite of pizza.

Something beyond her shoulder caught Bryce’s attention. “Incoming,” he muttered through a mouthful.

Old-timer Dean Dooley stepped up to their table, standing back a bit to give his protruding belly some space. Holly’s heart warmed at the sight of him—short and stout, with jolly cheeks and a permanent smile. His slicked-back wavy hair still had some blond in it and, at his age, Holly guessed he was helping it along.

“Fancy seeing you here, Holly,” he said, his tone implying that it was remarkable that she was there
with an unfamiliar man.

Holly shot Bryce a told-you-so look. She held up her finger, chewed quickly, and swallowed way too fast. “You too.” Hating to disentangle her feet from Bryce’s, she slipped out of the booth and gave Dean a hug.

“Dean Dooley.” She gestured toward Bryce. “This is Bryce Bennett.”

Bryce extended his hand and Dean studied him closely as he shook it.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Bryce said.

Dean nodded.

Holly placed her hand on Dean’s shoulder. “Dean’s been my grandpa’s best friend ever since they were kids. Dean and Fred—they’re the original odd couple, but you rarely see them apart. He’s like my second grandpa.” Lindsey had always said he reminded her of the Cowardly Lion from
The
Wizard of Oz.

“That’s cool.” Bryce smiled, seeming genuinely happy to meet someone close to her family. “It’s rare to find lifelong friends like that.”

“It is.” Dean shifted his weight from foot to foot. “You’re the young man who’s buying the lodge,” he said pointedly.

Holly tensed at his tone, one she’d rarely heard in his voice.

Bryce blinked a couple of times. “Yes, sir.”

“Heck of a project you’re taking on.” Dean tugged at the hem of his untucked shirt, pulled it down over his belly, and shoved his hands in his pants pockets. “Any idea what you’re getting into?”

Holly blanched. “He’s got some exciting plans to make the lodge much different than it used to be,” she said, hoping to save Bryce from answering. “I’ll be representing him at closing.”

“So your grandpa said.” Dean shook his head ruefully. “Been on his mind twenty-four/seven ever since Carden brought that manure over and finally got you to admit which property Mr. Bennett is buying.”

Bryce caught her gaze and lowered his eyebrows.

Holly’s pulse pounded. She had never known Dean to be anything but cordial to newcomers. His reaction to Bryce was totally out of character, as were his sharp admonitions toward her.

“I wasn’t hiding it.” She struggled to keep her tone even. “I just thought there might be a better way to tell him…A better time.”

Dean leveled his gaze on her. “The only better time I can think of is
never.
It’s bad enough that miserable place is coming back to haunt us all, but even worse that you’d be so closely involved in making it happen. Imagine what your poor grandma would think.”

Holly stood there silently, heat rising in her face. She
had
imagined what her grandma would think. The idea that the lodge was reemerging would kill her grandma if she weren’t already dead—but only if a man like Adam Evanston was buying it.

Bryce was no Adam Evanston.

Holly believed that Bryce sincerely wanted to turn the place around, and make the lodge a source of pride in Thistle Bend. By representing him, she’d be doing something to help everyone heal—including her grandpa and herself. Surely her grandma would support her decision. Holly was certain Grandpa would see things the same way, once she had a chance to talk with him about it now that she’d sorted through her emotions herself. But there was no way she was going to address any of it with Dean, in front of Bryce and all the diners in Pie in the Sky.

Dean put his arm around her. “I hate to be harsh, sweetie, you know it’s not like me. But the return of this lodge business has really thrown your grandpa for a loop.”

Holly swallowed hard as guilt gripped her and held her tightly in its grasp. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt her grandpa. She should’ve talked things through with him as soon as Carden left the farm after the subject of the lodge came up. “Thank you for letting me know,” she said, although she’d guessed how her grandpa felt by the way he had reacted after hearing that her client was buying the lodge. “I’m going to the farm tomorrow to help him plant another section of the garden. Hopefully I can ease his mind then.”

Dean brought his arm back to his side and shook his head. “They should’ve razed that place when they had the chance. It would’ve settled things for good.”

Bryce sat there, spine straight, the look in his eyes changing from moment to moment.

Shock.

Dismay.

Anger.

At least that’s what Holly read in them. She sat and slid to her spot in the middle of the booth, hoping Dean would take the hint and leave. She didn’t dare nudge Bryce’s ankle.

Dean reached into his pocket, pulled out a stack of cash clasped in a shiny silver money clip, and tugged a crisp fifty from the middle. “Sorry I ruined your dinner by sayin’ my piece.” He put the fifty on the table and pushed it toward Holly. “The least I can do is pay for it.”

Bryce glanced at the money and then at Holly, but she couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze.

“We can’t let you do that.” She slid the bill to the edge of the table. “I know you’re just looking out for Grandpa. It shouldn’t cost you to take up for your friend.”

Dean left the fifty on the table, and said to Bryce, “I wish you good luck, young man. And I wish you weren’t buying that lodge.” He nodded at Holly. “You take care.” He stepped away from the table and out of her sight.

Bryce stared at Dean’s back as he walked away, then he leveled his gaze on Holly.

“Sorry about that,” she said quietly.

Bryce tapped his index finger on the tabletop, the crease between his eyebrows deepening. “I can get another lawyer to do the closing. But there seems to be way more to this situation than that.”

Holly focused on her pizza, which appeared to have gotten cold. Normally she’d be bummed, but the confrontation with Dean had stolen her appetite.

“There is,” she said. “Way more.”

He reached over and grasped her hand, surprising her since her family’s friend had been so rude, and Holly was clearly withholding things from him. “Want to tell me about it?”

She needed to tell him at some point, or delay until he found out from someone else. By that time, he might’ve lost faith in Holly’s willingness to disclose things to him. If they were going to develop a relationship, that wasn’t a healthy way to start.