03_A Family To Call Her Own (6 page)

Laura looked back at Rebecca, her eyes shining. “Yes,” she replied softly. “Our first little one is on the way.”

Rebecca reached over and took Laura’s free hand. “I’m so happy for you,” she told her sincerely, her gaze encompassing them both. “When’s the big day?”

“October 4, according to the doctor. It seems like such a long way off, but I know the time will fly. And I can’t wait to decorate the nursery!”

Rebecca felt her throat constrict at the glow of happiness on Laura’s face, and she blinked rapidly. She was thrilled for Laura, of course. Just as she had been for Sam. But once again, being in the presence of such a committed, loving couple only served to remind her of her own solitary life. She forced herself to smile, and with one final squeeze of Laura’s hand, she stood up. She needed to escape to the kitchen, take a moment to compose herself.

“Well, I’ll leave you two alone to celebrate. You obviously have lots of exciting things to discuss.”

Nick stood up, as well, and took Rebecca’s hand. “It was wonderful seeing you again,” he said warmly. “And the food, as always, was superb.”

“Thank you, Nick.”

“Keep in touch, okay, Rebecca?” Laura requested.

“Of course. And if nothing else, I’m sure I’ll get regular updates from Brad and Sam. Good luck, Laura. I’ll keep you in my prayers.”

“Thanks, Becka,” Laura replied warmly, reverting to her friend’s childhood nickname.

Rebecca turned away and walked unseeingly toward the kitchen, struggling to hold her tears at bay, berating herself for indulging in such blatant self-pity. She had so much to be thankful for. It was wrong to feel sorry for herself. Just because she’d never found someone who had the key to unlock her heart didn’t mean…

“Hello, Rebecca.”

Rebecca stopped abruptly and glanced toward the voice that had haunted her dreams for the past week. Zach Wright was sitting alone at a secluded corner table. She swallowed and brushed her hand across her eyes before moving toward him, trying to compose herself and discreetly erase evidence of her teary state. Which was difficult to do when her respiration had suddenly gone berserk and her eyes still felt misty.

Zach watched Rebecca approach, his discerning eyes missing nothing as they raked over her face. She was upset. Almost in tears, in fact, although she was struggling mightily to conceal that fact. He’d watched her interacting with the couple at the table across the room, and she’d been smiling and happy then. Their parting had been warm and amicable, as well. But something had prompted this sudden change of mood. He rose as she approached, and indicated the extra chair.

“Could you join me for coffee?”

Rebecca ran her damp palms down the front of her simple, tailored black skirt, trying to still the erratic beating of her heart. Now she was doubly sorry she hadn’t taken the time to check the names on the reservation list. It would have been nice to have some warning of Zach’s presence. She knew he’d come in for lunch several times since arriving a week ago, but she’d gone out of her way to avoid him, much to the dismay of Rose and Frances. The simple fact was he made her nervous.

Rebecca knew, instinctively, that Zach was way out of her league in the arena of man/woman relationships. Smooth, fast, a man of strong passions—those were the words that came to mind when she thought of him. And she simply wasn’t equipped to deal with someone like that. Especially not now, when her emotions were so near the surface. She’d just have to find an excuse of some sort to decline his offer.

“Thank you,” she said, her voice sounding shaky even to her ears. “But there’s so much to do in the kitchen that—”

“Nonsense, my dear,” Rose declared briskly, pausing to refill Zach’s coffee cup as she bustled by. “Everything is under control. You sit down and have some coffee with this nice young man. You’ve been on your feet all day.”

Rebecca looked at Rose in dismay, then turned to find Zach watching her expectantly.

“I won’t take up much of your time,” he promised with an engaging smile.

Rebecca sighed. She might as well give in. Rose had invalidated her best excuse to decline his invitation, and nothing else came to mind. “All right. For a few minutes.”

Rose waved to Frances, who hurried over to place a cup of coffee in front of Rebecca. “Now isn’t this cozy?” she asked with a satisfied smile.

Rebecca gave the hovering sisters a withering look, but they seemed oblivious.

“If you need anything else, you just let us know,” Rose told Zach.

Zach watched them depart, then turned to Rebecca. “They seem very nice,” he remarked, his eyes glinting with amusement.

“Oh, they are. Just a little too motherly at times,” Rebecca replied wryly. “For two women who have been single all their life, they take an inordinate interest in my—” She started to say “love life,” but caught herself, a flush creeping across her cheeks as she gazed at Zach. She had the uncomfortable feeling that he knew exactly what she was going to say, but at least he didn’t pursue it.

“Well, I like them,” he declared. “But I do feel a little guilty. I didn’t mean to railroad you into having coffee with me. I hoped you might
want
to, but I have a feeling I may have caught you at a bad time.” He paused and stirred his coffee, frowning slightly. “I hope you won’t think I’m being too personal, but you seemed…upset…when I stopped you. I thought maybe you had some bad news from that couple over there.” He nodded toward Nick and Laura.

“Oh, no, not at all,” Rebecca assured him. “Just the opposite, in fact.” She gazed back at her friends, who seemed oblivious to their surroundings as they sat close together, talking and laughing softly. “I just found out they’re expecting their first child, and I’m very happy for them.”

“I see.” Zach thought there was more to it than that, but he wasn’t going to push. Rebecca struck him as a very private person who might easily back off if she felt he was encroaching on her turf.

When her gaze returned to his she found him studying her speculatively, and she dropped her eyes self-consciously, tracing the rim of her coffee cup with one finger. “I’d like to thank you for the flowers,” she said softly. “They were beautiful. But it wasn’t necessary.”

“I wanted to do it. You took a risk, stopping to help a stranger, and I appreciate that. Besides, I still feel badly about the bruised jaw. Sending flowers was the least I could do.”

Frances was walking by at just that moment, and she stopped in her tracks. “So those beautiful roses were from you!” she exclaimed. “Rebecca just loved them! She even kept one to dry.”

“Frances!” Rebecca rebuked the older woman, blushing furiously.

“Oh, my, I guess I shouldn’t have said anything, should I?” Frances murmured contritely. “You’re always supposed to keep the gentleman guessing, aren’t you? Well, I’ll just leave before I put my foot in my mouth again.”

Zach chuckled as he watched her hurry off. “I see what you mean about the sisters,” he acknowledged.

“Listen, I’m really sorry about that,” Rebecca apologized, her face flaming. “Just because a man sends me flowers and then asks me to have coffee, they’re jumping to all sorts of conclusions. Most of which are wrong.”

Zach took a sip of his coffee, carefully set the cup down and leveled a direct look at her. “Are they?”

Rebecca stared at him. “What…what do you mean?” she asked, her voice quavering.

Before she could anticipate his intent he leaned forward and laid his hand over hers. “Exactly what you think I mean,” he said evenly.

Rebecca swallowed with difficulty. She’d never met a man quite this…frank…about his interest. It was just as she suspected. He was fast moving…and smooth. “Look, Zach, I…I don’t date, if that’s what you’re after.”

“That’s exactly what I’m after,” he confirmed. “Why don’t you date?”

For a lot of reasons, she thought silently. None of which she wanted to go into, especially with a man she hardly knew. “I just don’t.”

“Well, I’m not the kind of guy who gives up easily. Do you mind if I keep trying to convince you to make an exception in my case?”

Rebecca glanced down at the strong, tanned hand, flecked with dark brown hair, that covered hers. She’d like to get to know him better, actually. There was something about him that she found appealing. But despite the promise she’d made to herself on Valentine’s Day—to allow the possibility of romance into her life—she wasn’t yet ready to deal with someone of Zach’s determination and almost tangible virility. It frightened her. Besides, getting involved with a man who was just passing through wasn’t at all wise. She could be too easily hurt.

“You’ll be wasting your time,” she told him with a soft sigh, keeping her eyes downcast.

Zach squeezed her hand, then leaned back and picked up his cup. “Well, I must admit that this isn’t exactly great for my ego. You avoid me whenever I come in for lunch, and you won’t go out with me. Don’t you like me, Rebecca?”

“You seem nice,” she hedged.

“‘Seem.’ An interesting choice of words,” he mused. “Do I detect a note of caution in that comment?”

She shrugged. “You know what they say. A woman can’t be too careful these days.”

“Unfortunately, that’s true.” He paused and took a sip of his coffee. He sensed there was more behind Rebecca’s wariness than mere caution, and he was determined to get the whole story before he gave up on her. “Well, we could bring along a chaperone. How about Rose or Frances?”

Rebecca smiled despite herself. “Now that would be something, wouldn’t it?”

“Hey, if it makes you more comfortable, I’m game.”

For a minute she was actually tempted. But the fact remained that soon he would be returning to his life in St. Louis, and while St. Genevieve wasn’t that far away in distance, she suspected that once enmeshed in his life in the city, it would seem like another planet to Zach. He would forget the small town—and the woman named Rebecca who had simply provided a pleasant diversion while he was stuck there.

Regretfully she shook her head. “I don’t think so, Zach.”

He looked at her, letting a few moments of silence pass before he spoke. “I’d still like to keep trying.”

“Why?” she asked curiously. The man certainly didn’t discourage easily, she’d give him that.

“Because I find you attractive. Appealing. Interesting. And very intriguing. And I’d like to get to know you better. So…do you mind if I keep at this for a while?”

Rebecca couldn’t help but be flattered—and a little overwhelmed—by his compliments and his determination. “Does it matter if I do?” she asked faintly.

He looked surprised. “Of course. I’m not into harassing women. If you want me out of your life, I’ll be gone. But I think there’s a spark between us. I sure feel it, and I suspect you do, too, whether you’re willing to admit it or not,” he said frankly. “I’d like to see where it leads. And I’d like to keep trying to convince you to do the same.”

This was her chance. She could just tell him to get lost, and he would. He’d said as much. And she suspected he would honor his promise. She opened her mouth to decline his pursuit, but to her surprise different words came out instead. “I just hope you’re not disappointed.”

Zach smiled, and though his posture had seemed relaxed throughout their conversation, she could feel an almost palpable easing of tension. “I’ll consider that a green light. And as for being disappointed—well, let’s just say I’m not worried.”

“Maybe you should consider it a yellow light,” Rebecca countered, “as in ‘proceed with caution.”’

“Okay, a yellow light then,” he said, laughing.

Rebecca looked into his warm and insightful eyes, and felt her heart stop, then rush on. Zach said he wasn’t worried. And she believed him. She just wished she could say the same about herself.

Chapter Three

Z
ach turned up his collar and took another sip of steaming coffee from the paper cup. The Red Cross tent offered an oasis of light but only marginal protection from the cold drizzle and bone-chilling wind that sliced through the darkness. It had been raining steadily for the past three days, and the river was rising ominously, edging precariously close to danger levels. An urgent call had gone out two days ago for volunteer sandbaggers, and it seemed just about everyone in town had turned out to help with the hard, messy work. Zach had interviewed a number of volunteers as well as National Guard and Red Cross spokespeople, and he was just about to call it a night.

But though he was tired and cold, he was also impressed by the spirit of generosity and selflessness he’d discovered during his ten days in the small community. Having dealt for so long with the selfish, unethical side of human nature, he’d almost forgotten there was a generous, moral side. His experience in St. Genevieve had certainly given his faith in humanity a much-needed boost.

Zach drained his cup, then turned to toss it into a trash container, colliding with a passing volunteer in the process. His hand instinctively shot out to steady the middle-aged man, who was wearing horn-rimmed glasses.

“Sorry about that,” Zach said contritely.

The man waved aside the apology. “I’m sure it was my fault. These glasses are so fogged up and wet I can hardly see where I’m going.” He took them off and carefully wiped them on a handkerchief, then reset them on his nose and grinned at Zach. “That’ll help—for about two minutes.”

Zach’s mouth twisted into a wry smile of acknowledgment. “Nasty night.”

The man looked out into the darkness and nodded. “It sure is. I just hope we can keep up with the river.” He turned back to Zach and held out his hand. “I’m Phil Carr. English teacher at the high school.”

Zach returned the man’s firm grip. “Zach Wright from St. Louis. I’m a reporter, here to cover the flood.”

“Oh, yes, Mark Holt mentioned your name.”

“You know Mark?”

Phil smiled. “This is a small town. I know a lot of people. Besides, Mark lives down the street from me.” He hesitated and looked at Zach earnestly. “I was actually hoping I might run into you.”

Zach’s eyebrows rose quizzically. “Why is that?”

“Well, I hope you won’t think this is too much of an imposition, and I’ll understand if you can’t do it, but I teach composition and it would be a real treat to have a reporter from St. Louis talk to one of the classes. Do you think you might be able to spare an hour or two before you head back?”