Deep Down (Lockhart Brothers #1) (7 page)

“Well, it was five years ago. We were both fresh out of college. I think we’ve both moved on.”

I scanned the menu, hoping he’d get the hint that I wanted to order.

“Did ya at least get the ring back?” Mack asked.

“I didn’t want it back.”

“So which one are you? The youngest?”

I exhaled with aggravation. “I’m the next to youngest.”

“You here visiting your folks?”

“I’m moving back to Lovely, actually. I’m an attorney and I’m joining my dad’s practice.”

Mack smiled his approval. “Tall, handsome guy like you who’s an attorney? You’ll snag some nice Lovely girl and have a house full of kids in no time.”

This guy couldn’t take a hint, so I decided to end the conversation on my own. “Can I get four Mack Attacks with pickles and chips? And four bottles of water.”

“You got it. Where you movin’ to?”

“The apartment above the office.”

“We’re practically neighbors! Hey, maybe I can get your advice on a parking situation I’m having.”

“Uh . . . I’m not familiar with Lovely’s codes. I really couldn’t give you any legal advice on that.”

Mack grunted and turned to pass my order through an open window to the kitchen. I scrubbed a hand over my face and left the counter to wait at one of the tables, hoping that would keep Mack from striking up another conversation.

When my order was done, I took it back to my new place, jogging down the alley and up the wood staircase in the back of the brick building.

My parents and one of my older brothers, Austin, were all unpacking boxes in my new living room. My black lab Snoop ran toward me as soon as I walked in, dragging a piece of brown packing paper in his mouth.

“Hey, buddy,” I said, setting the food down on the counter so I could scratch his ears. “You like our new place?”

“We may have to eat around the coffee table,” my mom said. “The kitchen table has boxes of dishes on it.”

“You guys don’t have to stay and work here all day,” I said. “I can get all this unpacked.”

“Nonsense.” Mom furrowed her brow. “My fourth son is back home for good. I want to help you settle in.”

Austin was flipping through one of my old Lovely High School yearbooks. Once Mom and Dad had moved out of earshot, he spoke in a low tone. “Did you know Meredith moved back?”

“No.”

“Yep. Guess it didn’t work out with her and the new guy.”

I grunted dismissively. I’d heard from friends that my ex-fiancée got married a month after she called off our wedding.

“She joined Mom’s knitting club even though Mom’s not her biggest fan. I was over at Mom and Dad’s house with Hannah last time they did the knitting thing and I heard Meredith getting all excited when she found out you were moving back.”

“Jesus, man. You go to knitting club with your wife? How pussy-whipped are you?”

My brother shoved my shoulder. “I just went to hang out at Mom and Dad’s. I drank beer and talked to Dad the whole time.”

“Or did you knit a pink sack for Hannah to carry your balls around in?”

Austin glanced over his shoulder, checking to see if Mom was within earshot. “Fuck you,” he said in a low tone after he saw that she was in the kitchen.

“With a ribbon to tie it shut?” I continued. “Bet that bag’s in her purse right now.”

“Hannah’s not like that, asshole.”

“I didn’t say Hannah’s like that. Marriage is like that. There’s no way you get to play as much basketball as you used to. Or go have a beer anytime you want. Or take a week long hunting trip if you feel like it.”

“We’ve got a two-year-old and Hannah’s pregnant. My life’s not all about me anymore.”

I gave him an apologetic glance. “I know. And I know you’re happy. I hope to have what you do when I get older.”

“You’re only twenty seven. There’s no hurry.”

“You were younger than that when you got married.”

Austin smiled. “Yeah. But I knew Hannah was the one. You should never get married because you think you’ve reached an age where you’re supposed to. Otherwise you might end up like Kyle.”

A few seconds of silence lapsed as we both thought about our oldest brother. He’d married his high school sweetheart, Kim, right after they’d graduated. She’d insisted that if she was going to stick by him through his college and med school years, they needed to be married. And now, seventeen years later, none of us envied Kyle’s marriage. The tension between him and Kim was obvious. She seemed resentful, but he didn’t seem to care anymore.

I SPENT THE REST
of the weekend unpacking and catching up with my family and a few friends from high school. I’d thought I was leaving Lovely for good when I went away to college and then to law school. But the place looked different when seen though adult eyes. The small-town feel I’d wanted to get away from as a teenager didn’t seem so bad now.

My first morning at Dad’s office was busy. It was full of clients and walk-ins who wanted to drop in and meet me or see me again. My kindergarten and fifth grade teachers were included in the parade of people who came through. Seeing everyone reminded me that I was home again.

“Is there a special lady in your life?” Dad’s client Mrs. Lovitz asked as she embraced me in our office lobby. She was a wiry older woman with a helmet of gray powder-scented curls. Lena, our receptionist, swiveled her head in my direction. She was Meredith’s older sister, so I’d have to watch what I said around her.

“No, I’m still holding out hope for you, Mrs. Lovitz,” I said, grinning.

She laughed and laid her bony hand on my chest. “Such fit bodies on all you Lockhart boys.”

Dad was giving me an amused glance from the doorway of his office.

“I’m ready for you, Mrs. Lovitz,” he said, saving me. Mrs. Lovitz squeezed my pecs before walking away.

Dad closed the door to his office and Lena laughed from her desk. “She’s been lonely since Mr. Lovitz passed away. So, you aren’t seeing anyone?”

“I don’t have the time or the interest. I’ll be working, playing basketball or boxing in all my free time.”

“You still box with your brothers?”

“Who else?” I said, smirking. “There’s no one else I’d rather punch in the face.”

On cue, Austin walked in the front door.

“I heard a nasty rumor that the best looking Lockhart boy is back in town but, the thing is, I never moved away,” he said to Lena.

“You already peaked, man,” I said. “You’re an old married guy in your thirties. Plus, I’m taller.”

He scowled at me. “By an inch. Let’s go get lunch. I’m starving.”

“You burn lots of calories punching buttons on your calculator?”

“My day starts at six am, not nine like you lazy attorneys.”

“Let me get my jacket and we can go.”

Downtown Lovely was decorated for fall, with pumpkins and corn stalks adorning every light pole. Austin’s office was not far from the law office and as we walked past I noticed there was a scarecrow perched outside the door, his arm raised in a perennial wave.

“You wanna go to Gene’s?” he asked as we walked down the main street.

“Sure. I haven’t been there since high school.”

“So, how’s it going so far? You miss the big city?”

I shook my head. “St. Louis never felt like home. It’ll be an adjustment being back, though. I was working on a murder case at my old firm and the work’s a little different here. Dad said the public defender needs some help, so I might do that part time.”

I glanced at my watch as we walked into Gene’s. It was a little after one, but the place was still packed. The savory scent of grilling burgers was just as I remembered it.

Austin found us a small two-person table by a window. I squeezed my big frame in, my long legs bumping into my brother’s beneath the table. When I scanned the menu, I saw all the downhome food I’d been missing.

“Hi, what can I get you two to drink?” a waitress asked. I looked up and met blue eyes framed by dark auburn lashes. Her long hair of the same color was pulled back in a ponytail.

The word beautiful didn’t do this woman justice. She was tall and lean. Fair, with pink lips and a smile I couldn’t look away from. I was probably grinning like a dumbass, but with those sky-colored eyes on me, I couldn’t bring myself to care.

“Reed.” Austin kicked me under the table. “What do you want to drink?”

“Oh.” I shook my head to clear it. “Water’s good.”

“Be right back with those.” She turned and her ponytail swung, revealing the back of her neck. My gaze inadvertently traveled lower, to her perfect, toned ass.

“Jesus, put your tongue back in your mouth,” Austin said.

I turned to him. “Sorry. I just . . . who is she? I was expecting Tammy or Margie.”

Tammy was a fixture at Gene’s. She was a waitress with no teeth and a large, hairy mole on one cheek. Though it was hard to understand what she was saying sometimes, she was one of the nicest people in Lovely.

“I think Tammy moved away a couple years ago,” Austin said. “That’s Ivy.”

“She’s gorgeous. I didn’t mean to stare like that, but . . . wow.”

Austin shrugged. “I think she’s used to it.”

“What’s her story?”

“I don’t know. She’s worked here since right after I moved my office downtown, so . . . three years? I see her around town sometimes with Gene and Margie. She’s a single mom. Has a little boy.”

“Is she seeing anyone?”

Austin shook his head. “I know a couple guys who asked her out, but she says no every time.”

We both quieted as she returned with our waters.

“What can I get you guys?” she asked.

“Ivy, this is my brother Reed. He just moved home to join our dad’s practice.”

She smiled my way. “Nice to meet you, Reed. Welcome home.”

Damn, I loved the sound of her saying my name. I’d never had such a strong, immediate pull toward a woman.

“Thanks. If you, uh . . . need an attorney for anything, you know, I’m just down the block.”

She arched a brow with amusement. “I try not to do anything that would require a legal defense.”

“Oh, right . . . no, I didn’t mean it like . . . I probably sound like an ambulance chaser right now. I do criminal defense, but I wasn’t trying to insinuate you’ll need one.” I blew out a breath and grinned. “Sorry.”

“Jesus, just order some lunch,” Austin muttered.

“The special is meatloaf with a side of mashed potatoes,” Ivy said. Her pen was poised over her notepad as she looked at me.

“Is the meatloaf any good?” I asked her.

She paused for a beat. “Uh . . . A lot of people seem to like it but, I have to say, you can’t beat Gene’s burgers.”

“Got it. I’ll take a cheeseburger and fries.”

“Same,” Austin said. “Thanks, Ivy.”

She nodded and turned. I scrubbed a hand down my face to clear away the daze she’d left me in.

“Been a while, I take it?” Austin asked.

I shrugged. “Couple months. But I didn’t make an ass of myself like that because I was hoping to hook up with her. It’s just . . . she’s just . . .”

“Yeah. But I don’t think she dates. You gonna give Meredith a call?”

The mention of my ex-girlfriend’s name made me grunt in distaste. We’d been minutes away from being married in front of half the town when she just never showed up. Turned out she’d met an older guy with a yacht and she decided to take a chance on him. I hadn’t realized it at the time, but she’d done me a huge favor.

“No. We’re over and I plan to keep it that way.”

“Just for a casual thing, I meant. So you can stop drooling over waitresses when you go out for lunch.”

I shook my head adamantly. “I’m not interested in Meredith. I’m over her, anyway. I work late and go to the gym every night. I don’t have time for women.”

“Bet you’d make time for the right one.”

I said nothing, my gaze following Ivy across the diner. She was quick and graceful, evading the guy who shoved his chair out without looking behind him, nearly hitting her. Her smile made everything else in the room look dull. An older man standing at the cash register said something to her and she laughed and gave his shoulder an affectionate squeeze. Lucky bastard.

Yeah. If she’d agree to a date with me, I’d definitely make time.