“Then she has good taste,” Crystal said approvingly. “He’s a cutie.”
Cute did not begin to describe him. The casual cotton T-shirt he wore delineated his muscular arms and chest far more than the crisp polo shirt she’d last seen on him. And she felt foolish for noticing that in the full sunlight, his thick hair wasn’t simply black. Half a dozen subtler hues threaded through it.
She was not interested in the sheriff’s hair. Or his muscles. Mostly, she just wanted to make sure Luke behaved today and didn’t further damage his reputation with the sheriff—or any of the other guests, for that matter.
“One of my boys played soccer in the spring with Mandy Trent,” Crystal said. “The sheriff’s got his hands full, but he seems like a good dad. And he’s considered quite the catch among the women in town. Or would be, if anyone could catch him.”
“So he’s not seeing anyone?” Kate wished she could take back the impulsive question. The sheriff’s dating life was none of her concern.
“I don’t think he’s gone on more than three dates with the same woman since his divorce, which was years ago. Popular opinion is that Becca Johnston will wear him down eventually—unless he gets a restraining order. Becca’s relentless, never takes no for an answer. Every time she calls, I get sandbagged into chairing some PTA committee or local food drive. If you want to volunteer for something like the Watermelon Festival in order to meet people, you should talk to her. If not, avoid her like the plague. And speaking of plague, I’d better go check my sick kids.”
As Kate was replacing the cordless phone on its charger, the front door opened.
“Katie?” Gram’s tone was rueful. No doubt she felt guilty for the way she’d ambushed Kate with Cole’s presence. “Are you rejoining us?”
Like I have a choice? “You raised me better than to hide in the house just because there’s someone I’d rather avoid. I was talking to Crystal. She had to cancel because they’re dealing with a stomach bug.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. She was excited about seeing you again.”
Kate shrugged, trying not to look as disappointed as she felt. “Sick kids come with the parenting territory. I’ll see her soon.”
“You know, I thought there was a chance Cole might have to cancel,” Gram said. “As sheriff, he’s got a lot of responsibilities. Just keeping the Breelan brothers under control is practically a full-time job. As fretful as you were about seeing him again, it seemed unkind to worry you needlessly in the event he couldn’t make it.”
“As opposed to giving me time to mentally prepare myself?”
“Well...we did both agree that it would be best for you to encounter him sooner rather than later,” Gram said, taking some creative license with the conversation they’d actually had. “Please don’t be angry. His mother is a close friend. Your paths were bound to cross. Give him a chance.”
A chance to what? “I’m not angry, Gram. You invited his family before you knew Cole and I had shared an awkward run-in. I’m sure he’s a nice man. But, at the risk of being repetitive, I really don’t—”
“Oh, I just remembered! I need to stir the beans so they don’t burn on the bottom. Excuse me, dear.” Gram moved with impressive speed for a woman over seventy. “Will you let our guests know I’ll be back in a moment?”
“For the record,” Kate grumbled with wry amusement, “I know perfectly well I’m being manipulated.”
Gram flashed a cheeky smile over her shoulder. One thing was for sure, living with a crafty grandmother and an unpredictable teen would keep Kate on her toes.
* * *
LUKE JAMMED HIS hands in the pockets of his cargo shorts, wishing he could disappear. With his mom and Gram both inside the house, he didn’t know any of the other adults. Except the sheriff—and Luke would rather not face him.
One of the sheriff’s daughters was pleading with her dad to kick a soccer ball back and forth; the other girl had gone off by herself. In Luke’s opinion, she had the right idea. He suddenly found himself walking in that direction.
Although the twins were technically identical, they were pretty easy to tell apart. The one beneath the tree had a pink backpack and her hair was braided the same way it had been yesterday; she was the one who’d wanted the candy bar. Alyssa, her dad had called her.
She glared when she saw him coming. “I don’t like you.”
A common opinion. Luke wasn’t sure his mom liked him, either. Sometimes, he wasn’t even sure he liked himself. “Whatcha got there?”
“Nothing.” She hunched forward, protectively. He couldn’t see what she was drawing, but he could tell she had a sketch pad in her lap. Crayons spilled from her open backpack across the grass.
“What are you drawing?”
“Go away.”
The side of his mouth lifted in a grin. For a little kid, she certainly wasn’t intimidated by a teenager twice her height. “I didn’t mean to get you in trouble yesterday.” Despite the way his stomach had hurt when he’d seen the Trents in the yard, now he was kind of glad they were here. The chance to apologize was an unexpected relief. “I’m sorry. Really.”
Her head lifted, and she studied him for a long moment.
“I was just trying to do something nice,” he added. “I thought he should have bought you the candy bar.”
“You made a poor decision.” The way she said it sounded like she was imitating an adult. Her dad, probably.
Jealousy pinched Luke’s insides. It caught him off guard whenever he felt this—envy for all the regular kids who still had fathers. It wasn’t as if he wanted anyone else’s dad to die. He just wished his own was still around. Sometimes Luke could hear his dad’s voice so clearly he could almost pretend they were on the phone. Other days, his dad’s voice was faded and distorted, like bad audio on a corrupt game file.
His throat burning, he backed away from Alyssa. “I’ll leave you alone.”
“Wait! It’s a horse.” She held up the pad. “But it’s not very good.”
It was terrible. The legs weren’t the right scale to the rest of the body, the neck was weirdly lumpy, and the nose looked like a crocodile snout. Plus, horses shouldn’t be purple. But he didn’t want to hurt her feelings. What if she cried again?
“Keep trying. With enough practice, you could get so good you surprise yourself.” He’d heard his mom say that to music students. He hoped it would be enough to make Alyssa feel better about her mutant horse. He stared at the picture, trying to find a positive. “The tail looks right.”
“Thank you.” She brightened a little. “My nana said this is a farm. Do you have horses?”
“No. There are goats, though.” Taking her toward the barn to look for the goats would kill some time until the food was ready and keep Luke away from the sheriff. “Wanna go see them?”
“Okay.” She picked up her backpack, frowning as she zipped it. “But don’t you dare stick candy in my bag.”
He recalled his mom’s stern warning. Do not screw this up. Everyone thought he was too stupid to learn from his mistakes. “I said I was sorry.”
“Then I guess you can be my friend.”
“Gee, thanks.” His first friend in a new town, and it was a five-year-old girl. Still, as they headed to the barn, he had to admit it was kind of nice not to be walking alone.
* * *
COLE HAD JUST retrieved the soccer ball from some rose bushes at the side of the house when his dad clapped him on the back.