Harlequin Special Edition September 2014 - Bundle 1 of 2: Maverick for Hire\A Match Made by Baby\Once Upon a Bride (2 page)

“Daphne,” he said, getting no response. “Daphne,” he said a bit louder, and nudged her arm. “I need to know which trailer is yours so I can help you inside.”

Five minutes later, he was headed back to the rooming house. As soon as he arrived, he picked up a text message for Maverick for Hire and returned the call. Nick much preferred sticking to business when he was doing handyman services. No need to muddy the water.

* * *

Cecelia must have fallen asleep, because the timer awakened her. Lifting her head from the table, Cecelia shook off her drowsiness and checked the cakes. They looked perfect, so she pulled them from the oven and put them on a cooling rack. The scent of cinnamon, apples and vanilla flowed through the air, calming her senses.

The back door opened and Nick strode into the kitchen. “Smells great. Can I have some?”

She shot a withering look at him. “Haven't you had enough sweets tonight?”

He returned her look with a deadly expression. “You know I wouldn't take advantage of a drunken woman,” he said. “I got her into her trailer and left. That was the plan.”

“Hmm,” Cecelia said and frowned.

“What?” he said. “A woman doesn't have to be inebriated for me to get laid.”

Cecelia winced. “That's a nice way of putting it.”

“Well, it's true,” he said and looked at the cakes. “Aren't they cool enough to eat yet?”

“Not unless you want to burn your tongue,” she retorted.

“I'm game,” he said. “I think you're too conservative.”

“Okay,” she said and cut a small bite then stuffed it into his open mouth.

His eyes bulged and he took several shallow breaths. He closed his eyes and made a choking sound.

Cecelia wondered if she should perform the Heimlich maneuver. “Need water?”

“Yeah,” he managed.

She filled a glass and offered it to him. “Here you go.”

He gulped the water then swiped his mouth. “Thank goodness. Give me more of that cake. Best. Ever.”

Cecelia couldn't help laughing. “But you nearly choked and burned yourself.”

“It didn't kill me,” he said. “Give me more.”

For one hot second, she wondered what it would be like for Nick to use those words
give me more
in a totally different situation. She felt her cheeks heat at the thought. “I need to let them cool. I want to put a caramel glaze on top,” she said and turned away.

“Whew,” he said. “I didn't think it could get better, but maybe...”

Cecelia smiled. She wouldn't admit it, but Nick's obvious craving for her baked goods made her feel warm inside. “Melba is going to serve some of it for breakfast tomorrow.”

“I'll make sure to get up early. This won't last long. You're a doggone good cook, Cecelia. You're gonna make some man a happy husband, and it will be a sad day for the rest of us.”

Cecelia rolled her eyes at his long face. “Something tells me you'll survive.” She lowered her voice. “Plus, there's no happy husband in my immediate future, so no worries.”

* * *

The next morning, Cecelia rose early and ate a quick bite of breakfast before she left to post signs for the food drive she had started for families still struggling after the Great Flood. Then she headed to one of her work sites to make sure the plumbers showed up for a house that needed massive reconstruction. As usual, the plumbers arrived late, but she pushed them to finish the job. After work, she drove throughout the county to post signs for the food drive. By the time she arrived back in Rust Creek Falls, it was dark. She headed to the Ace in the Hole just because she wasn't quite ready to go back to her room.

Nick waved at her from the bar. “Let me buy you a beer,” he called over the loud fray of the crowd.

“Buy me a water,” she said as she walked toward him. “I'm dying of thirst.”

“Done,” he said and waved at the bartender.

Seconds later, a glass of ice water appeared. She sat down beside him at the bar. “I'm working on the food drive. I hope people will respond. I'm posting notices everywhere. Ever since I learned that some of the kids in school weren't getting the food they needed months after the flood, I thought I should do something. Hopefully people will be generous. Their families still can't afford to buy what they need. Some people are still struggling to make up income since the disaster.”

“You're a good woman,” Nick said and lifted his beer to her glass of water.

She laughed and clicked her glass against his. “If you say so. I still think I may be heading back to Thunder Canyon soon. My time here may be just about done.”

Nick frowned. “No. The town still needs you. We all still need you.”

She leaned toward him and lowered her voice. “The truth is the pickings are a lot slimmer here than I anticipated.”

“For what?” Nick asked.

“Men,” she said.

“Ohhhh,” Nick said and leaned back in his chair. “Well, I told you that's because you've been approaching this all wrong.”

Cecelia shook her head. “There's nothing wrong with my approach. I am who I am.”

Nick sighed. “I told you before. You have to sell yourself.”

“I still say that sounds like prostitution,” she said.

“It's not,” he said. “I don't mean it that way. You just need to put on some lipstick and flirt a little. For starters,” he said and took a swig of beer.

“Why should I have to put on lipstick? Why shouldn't
he
have to put on some lipstick?”

Nick gawked at her. “Why would a guy wear lipstick?”

“That's not the point. Why should I have to work so hard to get a guy? Why shouldn't he have to work harder to get
me?
”

Nick shrugged. “Because a guy doesn't have to work hard. We'll eat beans and weenies and watch sports on television until some woman drives us from our cave.”

“That's ridiculous,” she said and took a long drink from her glass of water in hopes of cooling herself down.

“Ridiculous or not, it's true. You can fight it till the cows come home, but men love the chase. They love when a woman flirts and makes an effort to win them over.”

Disgusted, she barely resisted throwing her water at Nick. She really wanted to smack him, but Cecelia was generally against violence. “Then you and all your men friends are going to miss out on the best women they could get,” she said and rose and walked away.

The next couple of days, Cecelia avoided Nick. Every time she thought about his philosophy about how to catch a man, it made her brain fry. Late Friday afternoon, as she supervised a construction site, one of the men, Bill Dayton, approached her.

“Hey there,” he said, tipping his hat.

“Hi,” she said and nodded in return. Bill was a hard worker and had always been friendly to her.

“I was thinking you and I could spend some time with each other. You want to get together tomorrow night?” he asked.

Surprised by his invitation, she paused a half beat, then asked herself
why not?
“What did you have in mind?”

“Dinner and just hanging out at my place,” he said. “Would that work for you?”

Cecelia swallowed a sigh. She wasn't all that attracted to Bill, but she felt a voice on her shoulder urge her to give him a try. What did she have to lose? “Okay,” she said. “What time?”

“Four or four-thirty,” he said.

“That early?” she said.

He gave a sheepish grin. “Better to start early than late. I go to bed early,” he said.

Feeling a softening inside her, she smiled in response. “Well, thank you very much. Four-thirty will work for me.”

He nodded. “I'll pick you up at Strickland's.”

“That sounds good,” she said.

“I look forward to it,” he said and walked away.

The next day, Cecelia donned her nicest jeans, a new sweater and a peacoat as she tromped down the stairs to wait for Bill. Nick met her halfway down the steps and looked her up and down. “Where are you headed?” he asked.

“I have a date,” she said proudly.

Nick checked his watch. “It's kinda early.”

“Maybe he's eager,” she said.

Nick frowned. “Don't let him be too eager. Don't let him—well, compromise you,” he said.

“Compromise?” she echoed. “I'm not a teenager.”

Nick scowled. “Well, you're no loose woman either.”

Cecelia met his gaze. “Are you calling my morals into question?”

“Not really, but—”

“No buts,” she said, waving her hands in dismissal. “Go get your dinner from Melba or some other woman. I have plans for the evening.”

Nick stared at her. “Hmm.”

“Hmm, yourself,” she said in return. “Good night.”

She stomped the rest of the way down the stairs and took a seat on the sofa in the sitting room. One minute later, she stood and began to pace.

At four thirty-five, Bill appeared at the front door of the rooming house. “Hey,” he said with a dimpled smile. “You ready?”

Hoping this date would turn out well, she smiled in return. “I'm ready. What's the plan?”

“I thought I would take you to the grocery store so you could pick out what we would have for dinner,” he said as they walked away from the rooming house.

“Um,” she said, because she couldn't think of anything else to say.

“Yeah. I've heard you're a good cook, so this way, you and I can get the best food around,” he said.

“Oh,” Cecelia said, feeling a shot of disappointment. “I hadn't thought of that.”

“Well, you seem like a practical girl. You're a handyman and a cook.”

“Oh,” Cecelia said, feeling a sinking sensation in her stomach.

“You can cook our dinner then do a little cleaning.”

She blinked at him. Disbelief rippled through her. “Clean?” she echoed.

“Sure. If you can cook and fix a pipe, then you can clean.”

Cecelia could only stare at him in surprise.

“Yeah, and after you clean, maybe you and I can spend a little time in the sack,” he said with a wink.

Cecelia counted to five. Ten was far too long. “No way,” she said. “Never in a million years.”

“Hey, I've heard I'm pretty good in the sack,” he said.

She turned away and headed back to the rooming house.

Furious, Cecelia stomped the entire way to the Strickland's. She stomped up the stairs to the door and prayed she wouldn't run into anyone who would ask questions.

She was so blind with anger, she walked straight into a hard male body.

Cecelia swore under her breath.

“Whoa,” Nick said. “What's happening?”

“Nothing,” she said. “Absolutely nothing.”

“I thought you had a date,” he said, looking at her curiously.

“You were wrong. I was wrong. This wasn't a date,” she said, trying to conceal her fury.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I mean, this was not a date,” she said. “No date,” she repeated.

“But,” he said, “this was going to be your dream guy.”

“Shut up,” she said. “There is no dream guy. At this rate, there'll never be a dream guy for me.”

“Are you sure?” he asked. “That sounds kinda drastic.”

“Very sure,” she said as she stomped up the steps to her room, slamming the door behind her.

Cecelia was so upset she didn't know what to do. She'd been hoping that this date with Bill would turn out well. It wasn't as if she was in love with him, but she just needed a little encouragement. She needed to feel attractive. She needed to feel that it was possible for a man to want her.

Tears sprang to her eyes. Her frustration grew at the overwhelming emotions racing through her.

A knock sounded at her bedroom door. “Cecelia,” Nick said. “Are you okay?”

She sniffed, swiping at her tears. “I'm fine,” she said. “Just fine.”

Silence followed, and she took a breath.

“You don't sound fine. Let me buy you a burger at the Ace in the Hole. You need to get out.”

Cecelia glanced around her room and felt as if the walls were closing in around her. Maybe she should go with him. She was certainly in no mood to stay in her room all night.

Chapter Two

“C
ome on. Sit down and tell me all about it,” Nick said to Cecelia after he'd finally talked her into joining him at the bar on Saturday night. “I'll buy you a beer and a burger.”

Cecelia shot him a deadly look that might have made another man wince, but Nick had known her too long for that. “A beer isn't going to make this better. I don't like beer that much, anyway.”

Surprise rippled through him. “Oh, really? I wonder why I never noticed.”

“Because it would take too much effort to notice, and I'm apparently not worth the effort,” she said with a frown.

“Whoa,” he said, lifting his hand. “No need to club me. I'm on your side, remember?”

Cecelia shook her head, clearly contrite. “I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come. I'm not good company for anyone at the moment. I need to shake off this funk. Maybe I really should be making more firm plans to go back home.”

Nick hated it when Cecelia talked about moving back to Thunder Canyon. It wasn't as if he had any romantic feelings for the woman he'd known since childhood—she was practically like his little sister—but he knew he would miss her. Sometime along the way she'd become a buddy he could count on. “Hey, my coaching offer is still open. You could just give it a try. You could end up with better-quality dates.”

“Hmm,” she said and cut her eyes at him. “Speaking of dates, why aren't you out tonight?”

“I've got to be up early to help get a senior guy's house ready for his return from a physical rehab center,” he said.

“That's nice of you,” she said.

He shrugged, feeling a little self-conscious from the compliment. “Least I can do. You do more than your share of volunteer activities yourself,” he said. “But enough of patting ourselves on the back. Let's talk about fixing your dating life.”

She closed her eyes and sighed. “Okay, you're on. I'll give it a try. What is it that men want, anyway?”

“Well,” Nick said, studying Cecelia for a long moment. “Don't get me wrong. There's nothing wrong with the way you look. You've got all the basics covered. You got nice long brown hair and pretty eyes.”

“Need to check my teeth?” she joked.

He chuckled. “No. I've seen your teeth. You've got a nice smile. I think you need to try wearing more makeup. Lipstick. Red lipstick. Men love red lipstick.”

“Oh, that's ridiculous. I can't believe I'm going to get a date just because I change the color of my lips.”

He lifted his hands. “You asked. I answered. You could probably pick some up at Crawford's General Store.”

“They don't carry lipstick, do they? And how would you know if they did?”

“They carry a little bit of everything. If you don't believe me, I'll walk you over there right now and see. If they have red lipstick, then you have to put it on and come back here tonight while you're wearing it.” He paused, calculating that he might have to give her a little dare as a push. “Unless you're afraid.”

“I'm not afraid,” she said, bristling. “I'll walk over there with you tomorrow, then we'll come back to the bar.”

“All right then,” he said, and took a sip of his beer. “It's a deal then. You get red lipstick at the general store. Afterward, you test my theory at the Ace in the Hole.”

She hesitated a half beat, as if she didn't know how to respond to him, then lifted her chin. “Deal on,” she said.

The next afternoon, Cecelia met Nick inside the entryway of the rooming house. He opened the door for her in gentlemanly deference and she looked at him in surprise. That made Nick realize that maybe he'd been treating her like one of the guys a bit too much. Cecelia deserved better. She really was the best woman he knew. She was the one person he felt as if he could really trust. He could be himself with her. If he weren't so determined not to risk his own heart, she would be the kind of woman he would want. But Nick knew marriage wasn't in the cards for him. That meant he had to help Cecelia find a man if he wanted to keep his best friend in town.

“Well, that's new,” she muttered and led the way down the stairs.

They walked the few blocks through town to the general store, where Nick opened the door. It was a crisp fall afternoon that hinted at the chill that would soon envelop Rust Creek Falls for most of winter. Having lived in Montana his entire life, Nick was well accustomed to cold weather and snow. He also knew that some of the newer visitors, in particular the rush of women from out of town looking for men, would be hard-pressed to last the entire winter.

One thing about Cecelia was that she knew how to dress for chilly weather. The trouble was that she didn't dress at all sexily. Nick supposed it must be hard to bare much skin when it was cold outside. Still, other women managed it, so Cecelia could, too.

“Toiletry aisle,” Cecelia murmured as they headed in the same direction. “Razors, shampoo, hand lotion. Don't see any lipstick. Well, darn,” she said with a cheeky smile.

Determined, Nick wandered farther down the aisle. “What's this?” he asked, pointing at a small display of cosmetics.

Cecelia walked toward him and glanced at the shelves. “Looks like nail polish. And lipstick,” she added in surprise. “But no red,” she said as if she were relieved.

Nick knelt down to the bottom shelf and picked up a plastic-wrapped tube of red lipstick. He held it toward her. “Looks like red to me.”

Cecelia groaned. “I can't believe Crawford's actually carries hooker-red lipstick.”

“It's not hooker red,” he told her and pointed at the end of the tube. “Look. They call it Seduce Me Sin. That's what you need. A little seducing and a little sin,” he said, although the sin image bothered him a little bit.

“But red is so attention-getting. It screams
look-at-me.
Like I'm a tart,” she complained.

“Are you already welching on our deal?”

“Not at all,” she said, clutching the lipstick as she walked toward the register.

“I'll buy it,' Nick said.

“Not necessary,” she said and waited for the clerk to ring up her purchase.

“Pretty color,” the clerk said.

“Hmm,” Cecelia said in a noncommittal tone and quickly paid for her purchase. She walked toward the door then stopped abruptly. “I need a mirror,” she said. “Oh, wait, I can look in the window.”

Staring into the window, she applied the red lipstick then turned to Nick. “Does it look okay?”

“Yeah,” he said. “It's nice,” he said. “Very nice.”

At that moment, he felt her gaze on his and with her mouth uplifted, she was close enough...to kiss. Nick blinked. Weird thought. At the same time, he couldn't help inhaling her sweet natural scent. Cecelia really didn't need lipstick. She didn't need anything. She was pretty just the way she was. Unfortunately, she was competing with women who packed a lot more in their arsenal. At the same time that he knew he was helping her to attract a man, Nick felt reluctant about tampering with her natural beauty.

Cecelia sighed. “I guess we'd better head back to the bar so you can see that red lipstick isn't going to make a bit of difference in whether I get a date or not,” she said and led the way through the door. “Haven't you heard that expression about putting lipstick on a pig? Not that I'm a pig, but I'm just me. Plain ol' Cecelia.”

“You don't look like plain ol' Cecelia to me,” Nick said. “With a little more makeup and some different clothes, you could look like a model in an advertisement.”

Cecelia rolled her eyes at him. “Because makeup and different clothes make so much sense when I spend most of my time dodging sawdust, stomping past nails and screws and yelling over construction equipment.”

Nick shook his head. “You have a point, but you agreed to this experiment,” he said as he opened the door to the bar.

“Yeah, yeah,” she said and followed him to one of the few empty tables.

“Let me get you a beer,” he said.

“Thanks,” she said and drummed her fingers on the table. “How long do I have to wear this war paint?” she asked.

“The rest of the night,” he said firmly. She shot him what looked like a combination smile and snarl and he headed to the bar to get their drinks. Nick got stopped along the way by a pretty girl from Idaho and started flirting. Humming after getting her number, he headed over to the table Cecelia had nabbed for them, but stopped when he saw a man chatting with her.

He watched her slice her hand through the air and say no. The man appeared to walk away reluctantly. Nick walked the rest of the way to the table and sat down with the drinks. “What was that about?”

“Some guy came up. I didn't know his name. He asked if he could buy me a beer,” she said and took a sip. “I told him no. I don't know who he is.”

Nick groaned. “Cecelia, you don't just cut a guy off at his knees when he offers to buy you a beer.”

“But I didn't know him,” she said. “He could be an ax murderer. Or married.”

“I'm not sure which is worse,” he said, rubbing his chin. “But you're trying to get a date, so when a guy offers to buy you a beer, your answer should be yes.”

Cecelia frowned. “What if I don't want a beer? Or what if I don't like the way he looks?”

“Too bad. You have to at least give the guy a chance.” Nick shook his head. “This is going to take more work than I planned.”

“I'm not sure it's going to work, period,” she said.

“You put on the lipstick and a guy approached you. You can't deny that, can you?”

Cecelia nearly squirmed in her seat. “No,” she said in a low voice. “And I'm not wearing this lipstick to work.”

“A deal's a deal,” Nick said. “You agreed to try my plan in order to improve your nonexistent love life.”

Cecelia squinted at him. “You are hard on my ego.”

“I am not. You've got everything you need to make the guys come after you. You just need to learn a few tricks, and I can help you with that. Day after tomorrow, I want to take a look at what's in your closet. Do you even own a dress?”

Cecelia dropped her jaw. “Of course I own a dress. A black one for attending funerals.”

“Oh, Lord, I can imagine that's a hot number,” he said and waved his hand when she opened her mouth to protest. “Day after tomorrow.”

“If this is so important, then why are we waiting?” she asked.

Nick smiled. “Because I have a date tomorrow night.”

“Of course you do,” she said and took a sip of water. “What have I gotten myself into?”

* * *

Two days later, a knock sounded on her door and she opened it to Nick. “Hi,” she said. “How was your date?”

“The food was okay,” he said, squinting. “Chewy chicken, but she tried.”

“How soon did you leave after dinner?” she asked.

“Ten minutes,” he said.

She shook her head. “Oh, Nick, that was harsh.”

He shrugged. “I fixed a leak under her kitchen sink.” He stepped inside her room. “Show me your closet.”

Cecelia winced as she led him to the small closet in her room. She opened it and he immediately began to fan through her clothes...flannel shirts, jeans, jeans and more jeans. Jackets, jackets and more jackets. He paused at her long black dress and sighed then flipped through several more hangers.

“I'm not seeing anything that has a hem above your ankles except this funeral dress,” he muttered.

She shifted from one foot to the other. “Dresses and skirts aren't practical in my line of employment.”

“Well, you need at least a couple,” he said bluntly.

“That's ridiculous. I'll freeze,” she said.

“Wear boots and stockings, like other women do,” he said and shrugged again.

She frowned. “I don't have the budget for a new dress.”

“I do,” he said. “So either you pick it out or I will.”

She scowled. “I don't have to time for shop for a dress.”

“Then you'll get whatever I choose,” he said.

“Okay, okay,” she said. “I'll go into town next week.”

“How about now?” he asked.

She sputtered and crossed her arms over her chest. “I have things to do.”

“Like what?”

“Tomorrow I have to get up early to help with the kids' soccer games,” she said.

Nick tapped his watch. “It's five-fifteen,” he said. “I know you're not planning to go to bed before nine. Come on. Let's go to Kalispell. If we get moving we can knock this shopping off the list and be back in no time.”

“Won't everything be closed?” she asked, uncomfortable at the prospect of trying on dresses for Nick.

“They have a new department store that stays open till nine. Come on. Let's go.”

“You are really determined, aren't you?” she asked.

“I've never been one to back down from a challenge. Plus I don't want Rust Creek Falls to lose you just because we need to wake up a guy or two. I have a goal to get you a date. Or two. Or three,” he said. “We can grab a burger on the way.”

Cecelia joined Nick in his pickup truck and they squabbled over which radio station for a few minutes. Nick wanted to listen to college football and she wanted some music to calm her nerves. She was starting to wonder if she'd made a mistake by agreeing to follow Nick's advice to get a man. She sure hadn't counted on him giving her cosmetic and wardrobe advice. Jeez, she hadn't even realized guys thought about that stuff. Especially a man's man like Nick.

She stole a glance at his hard profile and sank lower in her seat. Well, her best friend, Jazzy, had gotten herself into a so-called pretend marriage that had become very real. Cecelia sighed. So, maybe she was going to have to be more open-minded. Even if it killed her.

A half hour later, Nick pulled into the parking lot of the nationwide department store. Her stomach took a dip. “Maybe you should wait here,” she said.