Under a Georgia Moon: Georgia Moon Romance Book 1 (13 page)

No wonder Cinderella married the prince.
Well, that and the fact he was handsome, rich and would get her out of indentured servitude.
Addie never dreamed having a shoe put on your foot could be so…sensuous.

Dropping his hand, she drew in a quick breath and gave him a shy smile. “I guess we should probably go in.”

His lazy grin set off a flock of butterflies in her stomach. “I guess we should.”

They walked side by side, not touching, yet Addie could almost swear she felt the heat from his arm. Something had just happened between them but she wasn’t ready to examine what that was. They entered the heavenly scented kitchen and Addie placed her purse on the countertop.

“What can I do?” Chase asked, placing his hands low on his hips.

Just stand there and look gorgeous?
There was something hot about a guy wearing a tie and a dress shirt—a shirt Chase filled out extremely well. She dragged her eyes away and retrieved three plates from the cupboard. Turning around, she held out the dishes. “If you could put these on the table that would be great.” Her voice sounded as flustered as she felt. Hopefully, Chase hadn’t noticed.

His mouth quirked up in a half grin. “Sure.”

He moved toward her and took a hold of the plates, but Addie didn’t let go of her end. She couldn’t. She was too caught up in staring into his amazing eyes. This close up, she noticed a thin blue circle around the edge.

“Did you know your eyes are outlined with blue?”

Had she really just said that out loud?

“I wear contacts.”

“Oh.” She held in a sigh as she visualized Chase wearing glasses, looking like some sexy-professor-scholarly type. Drawing in a mouthful of air, she let go of the plates and braced herself against the countertop. “I, uh, guess I’ll turn the oven off.”

He held up the dishes. “I’ll go ahead and set the table.”

“Thank you.” She picked up the oven mitt. “I’ll turn off the oven.” Shoot, she’d already said that. And why had she picked up the oven mitt? “Um, maybe I’ll take the chicken out.”

A slow smile spread across his face. “Good idea.”

That delicious southern drawl of his made her feel dizzy. Addie turned away from him before she said anything else stupid, like asking him about the tiny scar she noticed on his chin. Heat rushed out when she opened the oven door. She pulled out the roasted chicken and set it on the stove. Removing the oven mitt, she grabbed three glasses out of the cupboard and swiveled around to face him.

Chase took two of the glasses. “Something sure smells good.”

“Don’t look at me. I only know how to cook things with S-U-G-A-R in them.”

“Ahh. I remember that.” He placed the glasses next to the plates. “But don’t you mean bake?”

“I can’t believe you know the difference.”

“Hey, I’m very good in the kitchen.” He lifted one eyebrow up. “And remember I grew up in a house full of girls. They taught me a lot of things most guys might not know.”

“I’ll bet.” Addie handed him the last glass. “I hope you use your knowledge for good and never evil.”

He grinned wickedly. “Of course.”

“Uh, huh.” A tiny smile escaped before Addie whirled around to get the silverware. She was going to have to be so careful around this one. His likeable factor was a ten out of ten. “So,” she said when she turned back around. “Where do you work?” She laid the fork and knife next to the plate, pleased with how normal her voice sounded. “I think I remember you saying something about an office.”

“I work for a large marketing firm as a graphic artist and web designer.” He took the remaining silverware out of her hands, placing it next to the last plate.

“Do you like it?” she questioned, taking a seat at the small table. His job sounded much more creative and fun than accounting.

“Well, you already know how I feel about my boss.” Chase scooted his chair next to Addie and sat down. “But I do like what I do. Plus, it’s a job I can do anywhere and allows me the freedom to put in my own hours, especially if we have a gig booked.”

 “Oh, yeah,” Addie said, sliding her finger along the edge of her plate. “I think I heard you tell your fan club you have one this weekend.” She desperately wanted to be invited to hear him. As his girlfriend, shouldn’t it be a given?

Sitting back a little, he regarded her with an amused smile. “My fan club?”

“Yes. You remember the swarm of girls hovering around you after church today?” Great, now she was the one that sounded jealous. She shrugged. “I’d just like to hear you guys perform before I go home.”

“We’re playing at a local bar this weekend, and I’d love for you to come.”

A bar?
She gave him a hesitant glance. There were a few bars in Daisy Springs, and none of them were establishments Addie would ever go to. Like The Tin Can, a popular bar on the outskirts of town with a lighted billboard featuring the names of the girls that would be dancing that weekend. “Uh, I don’t know…I…”

His smile faltered. “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”

“I don’t drink.”

“Neither do I.” He reached out and fingered the napkin that edged his plate. “Sydney doesn’t either and she’ll be there.”

“Are there dancers?”

He quirked a brow. “People usually like to dance, but you don’t have to. Syd usually just orders dinner and watches the show.”

Addie couldn’t imagine someone as refined and beautiful as Sydney McCall in some sleazy bar.

“Gracie’s Haven is an exclusive club, and has amazing food. But you really don’t have to go,” Chase said with a definite apology in his tone.

Ohhh
. So it was more like a nice restaurant.

Addie felt stupid, and reached over and placed her hand on top of his. The intent was to reassure him, not make her heart try to pound its way out of her chest. “I’m sorry. I really do want to come. I’m just from a little town in Idaho and the bars there are the kind you see in the seedy side of town with dark windows and lighted signs with enticing messages about the scantily clad entertainment they provide.”

One corner of his mouth lifted. “I promise I would never take a lady to a place like that.” He turned his hand over so their palms were pressed together. “So you’ll come with me?”

“Yes, I’d like that.” Her words were soft and airy due to her shallow breathing. Chase’s touch was seriously impeding her respiratory efforts.

“You can sit with Sydney.” Chase had slid his hand around hers and was now making circular motions with his thumb in the center of her palm. Addie could hardly think straight.

“Who?”

“Sydney.” Chase grinned. “You sat with her in church. She’s married to my friend Jackson.”

“Right. I did meet them. And I still can’t decide who’s prettier—Sydney or her husband.”

Laughing, Chase laced his fingers with hers. It didn’t look like he was going to relinquish her hand anytime soon. “That’s a good one. I can’t wait to tease Jackson about being prettier than his wife.”

Addie gasped. “Please don’t tell him I said that.” She tried to tug her hand free, but he kept hold of it.

“Don’t worry.” His green eyes softened. “I promise I won’t say anything.”

“Promise?”

He nodded his head slowly. “Cross my heart.”

Only he didn’t cross his heart. His eyes were locked with Addie’s and he still held her hand. Neither of them moved, until she heard her aunt’s car door slam. Addie pulled her hand free just as her aunt came in the kitchen.

“Sorry I took so long. Did y’all have fun?”

Chase stood up and chuckled softly. “I know I did.” He looked at Addie, tilting his chin down. “You?”

“Um, yes. We were just discussing the difference between the bars here and the bars in Daisy Springs.”

Her aunt raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been to a bar in Daisy Springs?”

Addie’s face went hot. “Well, no. I…” She could hear Chase laughing at her. The least he could do is help her explain. “I’m going to hear Chase play next weekend in a bar, only he explained to me that it’s more like a nice restaurant. That’s what I meant. I don’t go to bars. I’ve never stepped foot in one. And I—”

Aunt Janie held her hand up. “Okay, sugar. I get it. You’re not a barroom maid.” She patted Chase on the arm. “Didn’t I tell you she was a nice girl?”

“Yes you did,” he drawled, grinning at Addie with an impish glint in his eyes.

With her aunt’s back turned to her, Addie stuck her tongue out at Chase, making him laugh even harder.

Chapter Ten

Chase
held his guitar as he sat perched on the end of his bed. His fingers plucked at the guitar strings, creating the melody he’d had in his head since seeing Addie this morning at church. It was easy to picture her in the lacy dress she’d worn, including the high heeled shoes that had left an impression on him. Up until today, he’d never found feet to be so sexy.

Strumming a few more chords, he heard a loud rap on his door. “Chase,” his sister Ashlee yelled. “Mama wants you upstairs to wait for your guests.”

He glanced at the clock, surprised to see it was time for Addie and her aunt to arrive for supper. It was easy to lose track of time when he was in the zone.

“Coming,” he hollered back as he carefully laid his guitar on the bed. He crossed his bedroom floor and opened his door. Ashlee had already disappeared.

She was pretty mad at him right now since he’d nixed any hope of her coming to their gig this weekend. All it had taken was a few well-placed concerns voiced to his mother to silence Ashlee. Once their mother made up her mind there was no changing it. Ashlee was smart enough to know this but she was furious with Chase. She’d even gotten Taylin on board the I-hate-Chase train. While his sisters would be polite to Addie, he was afraid they might purposely sabotage the evening by bringing up some of the stupid things he’d done in the past.

Chase found his mother in the kitchen. She had her back to him, drizzling melted butter over the top of rolls fresh out of the oven. She glanced up at him when he walked in. “Hey, sweetie.”

“Mmm, supper sure smells good,” Chase said, peeking over his mom’s shoulder.

He started to reach for a roll when his mother swatted his hand. “Chase Nichols, you know better than that.”

“Yes, ma’am, I do.” He kissed his mom on the cheek. “By the way, did I ever thank you for making sure I had good manners?”

She looked at him askance. “No. In fact, I think you’ve complained about it your whole life.”

“Well, just for the record, thank you. I’ve appreciated it the past the couple of days.”

She turned and gave him a soft smile. “Well, I’m glad I did something right.”

The doorbell chimed and Chase couldn’t hold back his grin. “And that would be our guests.”

She arched an eyebrow. “You really like this girl, don’t you?”

Chase didn’t have to pretend too hard that he was into Addie Heywood. Truthfully, he didn’t have to pretend at all.

“Yeah, I do.” He gave his mom another smile and jogged out of the kitchen. “Be right back.”

Just as he made it to the entry way, his father opened the door. “Hayden, how are you?” he heard his father say.

Chase’s blood chilled.
Hayden?
It was too late to backtrack to the kitchen. Hayden spotted him and waved, her generous mouth tilting up in a seductive smile he was all too familiar with. “Hey there, Chase.”

“Come on in, Hayden,” Charles invited warmly, closing the door behind her.

Chase’s footsteps faltered as he stifled a groan. Now that she was inside, it would be difficult to get her to leave. He stepped in before his dad did something worse like invite her to stay for supper.

“Did you need something?” Chase didn’t bother hiding the irritation in his voice.

His dad looked at him with both eyebrows raised high on his head as he walked by and left them alone.

Hayden ignored Chase’s obvious aggravation and sidled up close to him. “Well, hello to you too.” She scrunched up her nose, her lips pursed into a pout. “Can’t a girl stop by to say hey?”

His scowl deepened. “Hayden, what’re you really doing here?”

“I told you.” She reached out and wrapped her fingers around his arm. It reminded him of a snake coiling around its prey. “I stopped by to say hello. After last night, I missed you.” She slowly circled her finger on the bare skin just below his rolled up sleeves.

Chase could feel the muscles in his jaw tighten as he ground his back teeth together. He stepped away from her, making her hand drop to her side. “I left early because Tate’s daughter never showed up, and after I left, you were supposed to make sure your parents—and anybody else you’ve misled—knows that we aren’t together.”

“Dana did show up.” There was an edge to her voice. “It was humiliating trying to explain why you weren’t still by my side.”

Chase didn’t know whether or not to believe Hayden. Even if it was true, he wasn’t getting sucked into Hayden’s game again. He couldn’t believe he’d agreed to the whole thing in the first place. Besides that, Reggie had texted him early this morning that a rep from a smaller record label, Country Sounds Music, might show up at Gracie’s Haven this weekend.

Hayden moved in close again, brushing her body against his. “If you play your cards right, she can still get her daddy to listen to you.” She looked up at him through her thick lashes, and her lips parted in an invitation.

He didn’t want to kiss Hayden, and felt somewhat comforted by the fact that her touch didn’t set him on fire anymore.

He jerked the front door open. “I’m not interested.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I’m sure you don’t mean that.”

Chase sucked in a deep breath. He needed to redirect the path of this futile conversation. “Hayden, I already told you I’m seeing someone right now. I like her and I don’t want to blow it.”

He moved outside, relieved when Hayden followed him. “Who is she again?” Her voice sounded unnaturally high.

Chase pulled the door closed and started toward Hayden’s red sports car. “Her name is Addie.”

“And when did you meet her?”

“I told you that I’ve known her since I was fourteen.” He really hoped she didn’t press him for more details, and decided to be as honest as he could right now. “Look, Addie and her aunt are coming for supper. I really don’t want you to be here when they do.”