The Accidental Encore (23 page)

“You think Leah will keep her mouth shut? Not a chance.”

“That's why it's your call,” Mark said. “Listen, I've got a
meeting. I'll have her ready on Saturday.”

***

Allie reluctantly answered an email from LoveFinders when
half the week had gone by and Craig hadn't called. She needed to get over her
fascination with him and move on with her life. Greg Wallace, a six-foot-three,
brown hair, brown-eyed environmental engineer seemed as a good a way as any to
stop obsessing about Craig.

Why wouldn't he call? The better question, the one she knew
she didn't want to answer, was why she wanted him to call. He'd been so
compassionate with her at the wedding, admitting his most tortured secret to
ease her embarrassment and pain. He was alone by choice and, if the
circumstances were reversed, she might very well have chosen the same. Their
circumstances weren't the same, and she wasn't about to turn her back on the
possibility of love. Suffering through bad and mediocre dates was a small price
to pay for finding love at the end of her rainbow. Her date with Greg, so far,
hovered somewhere around the vicinity of mediocre.

“So what does an environmental engineer do, exactly?” she
asked over a late afternoon coffee.

“I'm basically a consultant. I mainly work with the oil and
gas industry and help them navigate the myriad of governmental regulations.” He
took a sip of his black coffee and chuckled as he set the cup on the table. “I
don't know how you lean politically, but the current administration has been a
boon to our business.”

Allie cringed. A disagreement about politics could end the
afternoon fast. “I try not to discuss politics on first dates.”

“That's probably smart. I'm all about saving the
environment—obviously—but some of these regulations are down right
crazy. The oil industry in particular is getting hammered. If I didn't have
family in Louisiana who worked off shore and know first hand how the oil and
gas industry supports entire towns and regions of the country, it'd be easy to
shake my fist at the big corporations. As it stands, I just keep my head down
and try to do my job the best I can. I figure, hey, I'm not the one writing the
regulations, I'm just trying to help companies operate within their boundaries.
I wish my family felt the same.”

“That's got to be tough, Greg. Do they give you a hard
time?”

“Yeah, but then I come home in my new Mercedes and suddenly
saving the planet is cool again.”

Oh, goodness. That was the second time he'd mentioned his
car. Not another one of those guys. “So you're from Louisiana?”

He nodded. “Went to LSU. Geaux Tigers!” He raised his fist
in the air.

Allie wouldn't have been surprised if he'd had Les Miles’
head tattooed on his forearm. She hoped never to find out. “How'd you end up in
Atlanta?”

“I did my graduate work at Georgia Tech and interned for the
company I'm with now.”

“Do you think you'll stay in this area?”

“I kinda have to,” he shrugged and lowered his eyes to the
container of sugar packets on the table between them. “With the kid and all.”

Allie's stomach dropped to her knees. “Kid?”

“Oh,” he said and gave that jug head chuckle once more. “I
haven't updated my profile yet. Just found out an ex-girlfriend named me in a
paternity suit. I can't even think about leaving town until I get that squared
away.”

“What are you going to do if the child is yours?” she asked,
although she couldn't have cared less. Greg, with the warm brown eyes and
barrel chest, had just eradicated any prospect of a second date.

He shrugged. “Get a lawyer.”

Get a lawyer
! How about get a life. Allie slammed her silverware drawer
shut and measured honey into a spoon. She knew she was overdoing it on the
caffeine, but she couldn't shake the chill that had stayed with her since
fighting the biting wind back to her car after her date. She brought her mug of
tea to the table where her latest project for hire sat scattered along the
surface. She needed to get this latest piece finished and off to the composer
before her next project showed up on Monday as expected.

Her indignation about Greg's situation wouldn't let her go,
and she needed to vent. She thought about calling Craig, but didn't want to
sound desperate and alone on a Saturday night when he was probably out enjoying
himself. She called Melissa instead.

“Hey, what are you doing?” she asked.

“Just walking out the door. I'm coming,” Melissa said before
apologizing. “Ben's heading for the car, threatening to leave me.”

“Go on then. I'll call you tomorrow.”

“What's up?” she asked. “You sound weird.”

“I'm fine. Where are you headed?”

“Date night,” Melissa squealed. “My mom said that since
Henry is on a regular sleeping schedule, she wanted Ben and me to spend some
regular time together. He's honking. I've got to run.”

“Have fun,” Allie said before hanging up the phone. Her
married friend was having date night and she was all alone. Better than being
with Greg, she told herself and got back to work.

An hour later, with the project done and tucked neatly in
the mailing envelope for her to send on Monday, she looked around her den. She
could practice the music she was playing at church the next morning, but she'd
played it a hundred times over and knew each keystroke by heart. She could call
her friend Beth. They'd reconnected at Sharon's wedding and she'd said she'd
call so they could go out. Beth, with her steady boyfriend, held little appeal.
She eyed the phone and walked around the den, straightening magazines and
folding the throw she'd left tossed in a heap on the couch. Her house could
certainly use a good cleaning, but even wallowing seemed a better use of her
time on a Saturday night.

“What the heck,” she said and dialed Craig's number. She sat
on the edge of the couch with her free hand sandwiched between her knees. When
a voice on the other end of the line said, “Hello,” a voice Allie didn't
recognize, a decidedly female voice, Allie blurted, “Wrong number,” and tossed
the phone away as if it were toxic. Oh crap, she thought and pulled the neatly
folded throw over her head.

***

Craig watched the popcorn swirl around and around his
microwave, listening for the pops to stop before the buzzer went off and burned
the bag. Leah had already started in on him about the movie and he hadn't made
up his mind about whether he'd let her watch it. They'd seen that stupid
vampire movie, for God's sake, so how much worse could this one be? At least
the characters were human. Of course, he hadn't had to worry about Carolyn's
wrath back then.

He'd let Leah sweat it out a little longer.

He shook the popcorn into a bowl, poured two sodas, and
called Leah to the kitchen for a hand.

“Allie called you,” Leah said as soon as she walked into the
kitchen.

“I didn't hear the phone ring,” he said. Craig threw a piece
of popcorn to Blackjack, who’d waited patiently for it to pop.

“I answered when I saw her name on the screen, but she said,
‘wrong number,’ and hung up. Why would she do that?”

Uh oh. “She probably thought you were a woman and she didn't
want to interrupt.”

“Like a date?” Leah giggled.

“Yes, squirt.” He ruffled her hair and gave her armpits a
poke with his fingers. “A date. I do that every now and again.”

“Why don't you date Ms. Allie?” she asked as she carried the
sodas to the den.

“Are you and your dad tag teaming me now or what?”

“Huh?”

“Never mind.” He took a fist full of popcorn and tossed a
piece into his mouth.

“Are you going to call her back?” Leah crossed her feet on
the coffee table, mimicking Craig's posture.

He shrugged and began flipping through the list of movies
they could order on the screen. He wasn't sure which topic would cause him more
grief—the movie selection or discussing Allie. “I don't know.”

“She called you for a reason,” Leah pointed out. “Aren't you
curious what it was?”

Unfortunately, his thoughts of Allie had moved well beyond
curiosity, but he wasn't going to admit that to a twelve-year old. “Not
really.”

Leah held the phone in his face, blocking the screen. “Call
her back, Uncle Craig. Tell her it was me and invite her over to watch the
movie.”

“You want me to invite her over? I thought you were looking
forward to some special time with your uncle?”

“It won't be any less special with Allie here.” She shook
phone before his eyes. “Call her.”

Craig sighed dramatically and took the phone from her hand.
He went through his call history, saw her name, and hit talk. The phone rang
three times before she answered.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Blondie. Did you call?”

He thought he heard her swallow. “Yeah, but it wasn't
important. You can get back to your date.”

He snuck a glance at Leah and lifted his brows suggestively.
“My date's the one who insisted I call you back. She's pushy that way.”

“I'm so sorry for interrupting, Craig. It was nothing, just
another miserable date I thought you'd get a kick out of.”

“What happened?” he asked.

“Go back to your date, Craig. This can wait.”

“She's in the bathroom.” He held his finger up to his lips
to keep his giggling niece quiet. He may as well have a little fun with both of
them. He tossed some more popcorn to Blackjack. “I've got some time.”

“Craig, really. I'll call you later.”

“Allie, really. Tell me what happened.”

When she huffed into the phone, he knew he wouldn't have to
ask her again.

“I've gone out with some idiots before, Craig, but this one
takes the cake. He's just been named in a paternity suit with an ex-girlfriend
and he doesn't even have a lawyer. He's got multiple graduate degrees, but not
a lick of sense. Of course, he hasn't updated his profile to mention any of
this, so us unsuspecting women wade into the mess he's made of his life. I
mean, really, in this day and age, if he didn't wear a condom or ask if his
girlfriend was on the pill, then he deserves the mess. I mean, I'm on the pill
and I can't even remember the last time I had sex. The one I feel sorry for is
the kid.”

He didn't hear a thing but the word sex in her righteous
tone. “Would you like to come over?” he asked to stop her tirade. “My date
insists.”

“What? Are you kidding? No.”

“It's Leah, Allie. We're just trying to pick a movie. We
could use a tie breaking vote.”

“What are the choices?” she asked.

“One for the Money and Joyful Noise.”

“I'm sure Joyful Noise is more appropriate—”

“I didn't ask which was more appropriate. Which one do you
want to see?”

“Katherine Heigl or Dolly Parton? Do you really have to
ask?”

“So which is it?” he had to ask.

“Katherine Heigl,” she said. “So who's my new best friend?”

“We both are.” He flashed a thumbs up to Leah. “But we may
have to use you as cover for Carolyn.”

“Understood. Popcorn?”

“Already popped.”

“Twizzlers?” she asked.

“Uhhh...”

“I'll make a quick stop. Any requests?”

“Only you,” he said and hung up the phone.

“Is she coming?” Leah asked.

“What can I say, squirt? I'm irresistible to women.”

Chapter 25

Allie pulled the sheet music from her bag and rested it on
the stand in front of Leah.

“What's this?” the girl asked.

“A little something I thought you could work on. It's
challenging, but I think you can handle it. I'd like you to try and work on
this for the recital.”

“The recital? I already have my recital song down.”

“Exactly. You won't continue to progress if you don't keep
pushing yourself. I know you can do this, Leah, and you're ready to perform
more than one piece at the recital.”

“Urggh,” Leah groaned. “Can you play it first?”

“I'd be happy to.” They swapped places on the bench and
Allie opened the sheet music. She'd chosen this song, a song she'd mastered as
a girl, especially for Leah. Like it or not, she and Leah had formed a special
bond thanks to Craig.

Mark walked in the door as Allie finished playing the tune.
He stood in the foyer in the exact spot Craig used to stand and clapped his
hands. “Wow. That was beautiful.”

Carolyn came out from the kitchen. Her white blouse had a
splash of sauce on the front. “I didn't expect you home,” she said and popped
up on her tippy toes to kiss him.

“Speaking of beautiful.” Mark wrapped his arm around her
waist and held her there while he deepened the kiss.

Allie felt her cheeks heat and whipped her head around to
face the piano. Leah made a gagging noise while Allie hopped up and took her
seat in the chair. “Now you give it a try.”

Leah puffed out her cheeks, placed her fingers on the
keyboard, and slowly began sight reading the piece. Allie kept time with a pat
on her leg while her mind drifted back to the scene she'd just witnessed in the
foyer. They were so in love. Mark, with his bright blonde hair and sunny
personality, seemed to shine all of his light on dark and unsure Carolyn. The
woman seemed to glow under his adoration. How could Craig not want what his
brother had for himself?

She wasn't going to think about Craig. Not tonight.

By the end of the lesson, Allie knew Leah could easily
perform the song in the Christmas recital. “Very good. I think you'll have this
mastered in plenty of time.”

Allie put her coat on.

“You're not staying for dinner?” Leah asked with a plea in
her voice.

“Nope. I've got a date.”

“With Uncle Craig?”

Allie placed her hand on Leah's shoulder. “Leah, you know
we're just friends.”

“You don't like my uncle?”

“Of course I like your uncle. That's why we're friends.”

“But you're not going to date him?”

“No.” Allie stepped into the foyer and peered into the
kitchen. She didn't want to leave without saying goodbye, but she also didn't
want to interrupt whatever was going on in the kitchen.

“Why not?” Leah asked.

“Why not what?”

“Why aren't you going to date my uncle?”

Allie sighed and gathered her patience. “For one thing, he
hasn't asked.”

“What if he did?”

“Leah, go tell your parents I'm leaving.”

“
She's
not my parent.”

“Fine.” Allie glanced at her watch. “Go tell your dad and
stepmom that I'm leaving.”

Carolyn came into the foyer wiping her hands on a dishtowel.
The splash of sauce had disappeared and was replaced by a water stain. “I
thought I heard you stop playing. Will you stay for dinner?”

“I'd like to, Carolyn, but I can't tonight.”

“She's got a date,” Leah offered. “And it's not with Uncle
Craig.”

“Oh, well,” Carolyn said, clearly unsure of how to answer.
“Have a good time.”

“Thanks. Leah did great. I gave her a new song and if she
practices,” Allie narrowed her eyes at Leah, “she should be able to perform two
songs at the recital.”

“We'll make sure she does.”

***

Leah grabbed the portable phone from the den and bolted up
the stairs after dinner. She closed herself in her room and dialed the number
she knew by heart.

“Allie's on a date,” she said as soon as her uncle answered.

“Hello to you, too.”

“Did you hear what I said? Allie's on a date.”

“So? She's a beautiful, single woman who's looking for love.
That's what they do.”

“You don't care?” she asked.

“About what?”

Leah sighed in frustration. She hated it when adults treated
her like a kid. “That she's going on a date and it's not with you.”

“Leah...”

“I know you like her. I don't understand why you don't ask
her out. When she left tonight, she said the only reason she's not going out
with you is because you haven't asked.”

“She said that?”

“Yes, so why haven't you asked?”

Leah heard him sigh as time stretched out. The second hand
of her cat clock went from the five to the eight before he spoke.

“We're friends, Leah. Friends don't date.”

“My friend Nicole's older sister dates a guy who used to be
her best friend.”

“Yes, and if I were in middle school, I might just have to
ask Allie out for that very reason.”

“Nicole's sister's in high school.”

“Drop it, squirt. Don't you have homework to do? Boys to
chase? A dad to pester?”

Why couldn't her uncle see how perfect Allie was for him?
“I've done my homework,” she lied. “I'm not old enough to date according to my
dad, and he's too busy playing kissy face with Carolyn to pester me.”

“Do you need me to come over and mess with you then?”

“No. I need you to ask Allie out on a date. Please, Uncle
Craig. Just one date. For me.”

“I'd do just about anything for you, squirt, but not that.
When your dad's done playing kissy face, have him call me, will ya?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Whatever.”

She turned off the phone and fell back on her bed. Nothing
was turning out the way she wanted.

***

Craig picked up the phone on the first ring. “Mark?” he
asked.

“Hey. Leah said you wanted me to call. What's up?”

“I'll tell you what's up.” Craig took a swallow of beer and
set the bottle down gently before he did something stupid and threw it against
the wall. He wasn't sure why he was so angry, but Mark was going to suffer the
brunt of his assault. “You and your daughter need to butt out of my life.”

“Excuse me?”

“B-U-T-T O-U-T,” he said slowly as if speaking to a toddler.
“I don't need either one of you trying to fix me up with Allie. What she does
on her own time is none of my business.”

Then why did he feel like she'd stabbed him in the back and
twisted the knife? “I don't have any idea what you're talking about,” Mark
said.

“Oh hell yes, you do. Your daughter called, announced Allie
had a date, and pleaded for me to ask her out.” But wasn't that why he felt so
betrayed? Because after the evening the three of them had spent together, he'd
spent a restless night dreaming of her? Because every time he logged onto that
stupid dating site, he ended up staring at her profile wondering which Bozo
would ask her out next? Because he couldn't get the image of her, snuggled up
next to Leah on his couch, under his blanket, out of his mind?

“I didn't know she'd done that, Craig. I'm sorry. I'll have
a talk with her.”

“And tell her what?” Craig demanded. “To stop doing the very
thing you do every time we talk?”

“Look—”

“No, you look. I'm sick of you two trying to set us up. I'm
sick of having to defend my friendship with her, and I'm sick of you and Leah
butting into something that is none of your business.”

“Okay,” Mark said. Craig could picture him standing
somewhere in the house, his hands raised in the air. “Did you and Allie have a
fight?”

“Urrrrrrgh!” Craig stomped into the den. “This is why I
don't need women friends!” He hung up the phone and gave himself major points
for not throwing it across the room and only dropping it on the couch. How dare
his brother and his niece gang up on him about Allie? What was so damn special
about her anyway?

Chapter 26

Being late for dates was the story of her life, Allie
thought as she sprinted up her porch steps and tried to jam the key in the
door. Something made her stop, stand up straight, and turn around. She walked
back to the steps and used her foot to test the landing. It didn't budge. She
grabbed ahold of the banister and tried to ease it back and forth. For all her
effort, it didn't move.

Late or not, she had a phone call to make.

Craig barked a greeting into the phone. Allie held the
receiver away from her ear before speaking nicely. “Hello, Craig.”

“Allie?”

“Yes, it's Allie. Where are you and what in the world is
that noise?”

“I'm at the house I'm renovating.” She heard the noise
recede into the background and recognized the strain in Craig's voice. He
sounded exhausted. “They're working on the floors.”

“Oh. Listen, I just got home and realized you fixed the step
and the banister. I wish I had something better to say, but thank you. That
was...” lovely, charming, and downright the sweetest thing anyone had ever done
for her, “really great of you.”

“It was nothing.”

“It wasn't nothing, Craig. When did you do this and why
didn't you tell me?”

“I stopped by yesterday. You weren't home, and I had my
tools in the truck. It pissed me off that you hadn't fixed it yet, so I just
hammered in a few nails. Like I said, no big deal.”

“Well, it is to me, so thank you.”

“You're welcome.”

He didn't seem inclined to say anything more, and she'd
missed the sound of his voice. “So, how are you?” she asked.

“I'm good. Busy, but good. You?”

“Good. Busy also, which is always good. I've been fighting
something for the past week or so and I finally got some antibiotics, so I'm
feeling better.”

“Sick to your stomach?” he asked.

“No, just a cold that morphed into a sinus infection. It's
almost gone.”

“You been on any more dates?” he asked.

At the word date, Allie glanced at her watch. If she didn't
hurry up, she'd never make it out of the shower before Jamie arrived. “Yes. As
a matter of fact, I've got one tonight.”

“First date?”

She let out a breath and said, “Believe it or not, this will
be our third.”

When he said nothing and the silence stretched out to an
unbearable level, she said, “Craig?”

“Yeah, I'm here.” She felt...uncomfortable talking to him.
For the first time ever, their discussions about her dating seemed forced.
“Third date, huh? Wow.”

“Yeah, wow.”

“Who's the lucky guy?”

“His name's Jamie and I didn't meet him online. Do you
remember that girl I introduced you to at Sharon's wedding? Beth Morgan?”

“The one in the red dress a couple sizes too small?”

She had to laugh. Only Craig would remember her that way. “Yes.
She and I met up over the weekend and we happened to run into her brother. We
got to talking; he invited me to dinner. We really connected. We're going to
the movies tonight, and on Saturday, he's taking me to Bones for dinner.”

“Get the ribeye,” Craig suggested. “You won't be
disappointed.”

“Ribeye,” she said. “Check. What about you? Any dates, past
or future, you'd like to share?”

“I've been too busy to do anything but crash when I get
home.” He ordered some guy to take his shoes off before going inside the house.
“Sounds like I'd better get busy or I'm going to need a date to your wedding.”

“Stop, please,” she begged. She was having a hard enough
time not getting ahead of herself with Jamie. “You do need to get out there,
Craig. It feels good to be dating a normal person for once. It kind of makes
all the bad dates worth the bother.”

“I'll have to take your word for it. You make sure he treats
you right.”

“He does, don't worry.”

“I mean it, Allie. Make sure he listens when you talk.”

Allie laughed. Oh, Craig, she thought. Sweet, wonderful,
misguided man. “He listens, and he doesn't stare at my chest or have any kids
or ex-wives.”

“He sounds perfect.”

“No one's perfect, but he's pretty darn close.” She leaned
on the banister he'd fixed without her even asking. “I spent all this time
looking, and when I'm least expecting it, there he is.” She sighed wistfully.
“I've got to go, Craig, but thank you so much for fixing my step and the rail.”

“It was no trouble. Have fun.”

“I will, thanks.” She hung up and ran her hand along the
wood. He'd done something nice for her. He'd stopped by and she hadn't even
asked him why. She didn't have time to call him back or even wonder why he'd
come to see her. She tried to tuck it away, through her shower, through her mad
rush to pick an outfit, even through the movie where Jamie held her hand and
bought her popcorn and Twizzlers. Craig Archer, with his pessimistic attitude
and nasty streak of kindness, was never far from her mind.

***

Craig dropped down on the couch and kneaded the sore muscles
of his neck. “Too much time on the damn ladder,” he muttered as he reached for
the remote. He flicked through channels with one hand and cradled his fourth
beer of the night with the other. He thought about stopping at three, but figured
what the hell. He had nowhere to go and nothing to do but watch TV with his
dog. At least he had his dog.

He eyed his watch. Nine-thirty on Saturday night. Bones was
probably packed with couples old and young, drinking expensive wine, eating
luxuriant food and the best steaks in town. He wondered if Allie would order
the ribeye like he'd suggested or be concerned it would send the wrong
impression to Jamie.