Leaving Liberty (27 page)

           
“Reading, of course.” Lane chuckled and Daisy had to sneak a glance. She loved
that smile, those dimples.

           
“Okay, we’re off to Brenda’s.” Daisy gave Breezy a quick hug. The girl felt
more fragile than she appeared and after a few seconds, Breezy returned the hug
fiercely.

           
“Thank you,” she whispered.

           
“Welcome,” Daisy answered, but the words were lost in the tightness of her
throat.

           
Lane turned to shake hands with a young man with a crew cut. He leaned forward,
eyes assessing Daisy. “So this is our librarian? I keep meaning to get over
there. I’m Butch. Anything you need, you call me. Rookie here is a good
chauffer, but if you need the real tour, you let me know.”

           
Daisy noticed the irritation in Lane’s eyes and grinned. 
Rookie?
She wanted to laugh. Lane must be at least five years older than this kid,
probably more.

           
“Thanks, Butch. We’re planning a festival as a fundraiser soon. Maybe you can
help out at one of the booths.”

           
Butch nodded eagerly. “Whatever you need, I’ll do it.”

           
“See you later, Butch.” Lane took her hand again and they walked toward the
door, greeting people as they passed.

           
As the door swung closed behind him, Daisy turned. “You’re asking for trouble
with this.” She lifted their hands, fingers laced together.

           
His brows drew down and his eyes narrowed. “How so?”

           
 “They all took one look and started counting down the days to the wedding
invitations.”

           
He let out a short laugh. “True. I know it must be hard for you to be in Liberty.
The woods, the cabin, the library, those are all okay. Sal’s Diner is probably
not
on your top ten list of great hang outs. I didn’t want you to feel like you
were walking into the lion’s den without anyone at your back.”

           
She didn’t know what to say to that. She wanted to tell him she was strong and
competent and not at all unnerved by a greasy diner full of old folks having
the senior special at four in the afternoon. But it would have been an outright
lie.

           
  Opening the passenger door, she swung onto the seat. The only person
who’d ever stood at her side was Marie and Marie was gone. She’d never thought
there could be another person in Liberty that would come close. But somehow, it
had happened. There was someone beside her who didn’t owe her a second of his
time but was walking her through this town like it was a stroll in the park. He
did it effortlessly, holding hands with the angry loner, the misfit, the
neglected kid whom no one expected to succeed.

           
 Why would Lane go so far out of his way for her? She wanted to trust him,
to accept his generosity with a smile. But she couldn’t. Sometimes the wounds
were too deep and too painful to forget. She took back her hand and stared down
at the worn teddy bear on her lap.

           
 “Always the hero.” Aiming for off-hand, it came out sounding bitter.

           
He didn’t step back. “It’s not such a big sacrifice.”

           
Of course it was nothing to him. She shrugged and waited for him to move away.

           
“Daisy,” he said. She glanced up and for a moment their gaze locked. His eyes
had gone soft. Leaning forward, the shadow from his hat falling across his
face, he seemed to be waiting for her to say something.

           
She could smell the soap he used and the warmth of his skin. Her eyes went wide
as his gaze dropped to her lips. She fought back the urge to grab the front of
his shirt and drag him close. He was about as close to perfection as a man
could get and the memory of their kiss flashed in her mind. A second later,
panic joined the desire. Perfection or not, there was no future for her with
Lane. “You better watch out. You’re going to ruin your good reputation.”

           
“I’ve never been particularly worried about my reputation.”

           
She should sit back and put on her seat belt, but instead she leaned forward
into him. Her hand dropped to his arm and warmth radiated through the fabric of
his shirt. His eyes went half-closed and he dipped his head, lips brushing
along her cheek, whispering something she couldn’t hear over the pounding of
her heart.

           
“Lane!” A woman’s voice cut across the moment and he straightened up, swiveling
around.

           
A woman strode toward them, deep auburn hair flowing in long, loose curls
behind her. Bright pink tank top and white shorts were perfectly casual summer
wear but her heavy make-up said she was a girl in search of a party. “Lane!”
she called again, waving her hand.

           
Daisy glanced at his face and saw emotions pass over it faster than she could
track.

           
“Hey, Tara.” He cleared his throat, shooting a look at Daisy and then back to
Tara. “I didn’t know you were back in town.”

           
Daisy felt her heart stutter to a stop and slide sideways, settling at an
angle. Tara. The ex-girlfriend. All her self-admonishment over getting too
close to Lane and complicating their friendship was for nothing. All she really
needed was to see Tara in the flesh to realize Lane would never fall for a girl
like her. If Tara was his type, then Daisy didn’t have any worries. Daisy had
always been bean-pole thin, scrawny, awkwardly long-limbed. The woman coming
toward them was curvy and soft in all the places a woman should be. She was
petite, womanly, and feminine.

           
Tara squinted into the truck. “You still have this old thing? I thought you got
your promotion.”

           
There was a beat of silence. “Sure did. But I like my truck. Didn’t see the
need to change.”

           
“Oh, honey,” she laughed, putting a hand in almost exactly the same spot that
Daisy’s hand had just vacated. “You need to put more effort into your
appearance. You’ve got to look the part or you won’t ever be really
successful.” She brushed her hair back and gazed up at him. “You’ve got
everything else. You just need to show the world you shouldn’t be ignored.”

           
Daisy wanted to roll her eyes. That was kind of rich coming from the girlfriend
who dumped him.

           
 As if she’d actually made a comment out loud, Tara looked over and her
mouth made a little ‘o’, seeming to notice Daisy for the first time. “Why,
hello there.”

           
Lane cleared his throat and motioned between the two. “This is Daisy McConnell.
She’s our librarian for the summer.”

           
“Just the summer?” Her eyes flicked up and down Daisy’s outfit. Daisy had felt
summery and dressy earlier this morning, but now her khaki skirt felt drab and
old-fashioned.

           
“Right. I’ll be back in Fresno in the Fall.”

           
“Well, nothing like a little vacation in the country, right?” She didn’t expect
a response since she was already turning back to Lane. “Sweetie, are you free
this weekend? I thought we could catch up.”

           
He shook his head. “Sorry, maybe another time.”

           
Tara flicked her gaze to Daisy and back. “Busy?”

           
“Yup.” He softened the word with a smile. She was fishing for information and
it didn’t look like Lane was ready to share.

           
It occurred to Daisy that Lane really did have other plans, maybe even a date.
Then she rejected the thought. He wasn’t the type of guy to be dating one girl
while kissing another. And since his lips had made direct contact with her skin
just seconds before Tara showed up, she was pretty sure he didn’t have a date.

           
“I’ll give you a call and we can do lunch.” Tara rose up on tiptoes and gave
him a kiss on the cheek. Wiggling her fingers at Daisy, she turned and sashayed
away down the sidewalk.

           
Daisy fought back the urge to throw her shoe at the back of Tara’s head.
Letting out a breath, she forced a bright smile. “Ready to go?”

           
He cocked his head and leaned against the truck door frame. A small smile
touched his lips. “Aren’t you going to ask what I’m doing this weekend?”

           
 “No. I’m sure you have a very busy social life.”

           
He snorted. “Uh-huh. All my summer flings.”

           
Her face went hot as she remembered the last time they’d talked about summer
flings. That kiss in the driveway stood out in her memory like a neon sign.
Unforgettable and inescapable.

           
Laughing softly, he leaned closer. “I was hoping you might come over for dinner
on Sunday.”

           
Oh, yes! Or maybe not. She chewed her lip. She’d agreed to let him cook for her
some night but that was back on their trip to Denver. It seemed ages ago. “I’m
not sure if that’s a great idea.”

           
“It’s not. Otherwise I would have asked you over a lot sooner.” His eyes were
in shadow under his hat, but she could tell he was serious.

           
“Just us?” The idea filled her with a potent mixture of excitement and anxiety.
“Oh, wait. What about Ana?” She felt ridiculous admitting that she’d forgotten
her best friend was in town and staying at the cabin.

           
He grinned. “Ana, too. I’ll invite Jamie and her husband and their kids.”

           
She couldn’t see the harm in it, really. There wasn’t any way she could live in
Liberty and avoid him completely. And Jamie seemed like a really nice person. A
small part of her knew she was rationalizing, but she was tired of fighting.
She liked Lane. She wanted to be near him, to spend time with him, to get to
know his family. If that meant breaking her heart a month from now, she wasn’t
sure she really cared.

           
“Okay,” she said, and looked over in time to see his smile widen. Her breath
lodged in her throat. He was one of the most attractive men she’d ever known,
but when he smiled like that, he was heart-stopping. Happiness showed in the
tiny wrinkles around his eyes and her heart couldn’t help but respond with its
own jolt of joy.

           
“Excellent. Now let’s go deliver Kayla, Warrior Princess to her rightful
owner.”

                                                                                                                                                                                   
                       
              
  ***

           
Lane drove down the long dirt road to Brenda Knopp’s daycare. So maybe he’d
held her hand in front of half of Liberty. And maybe he’d let his heart talk
over the warning sirens in his head and got closer than he should have. And
then just maybe he’d pulled an about-face and decided it wasn’t a terrible idea
to spend some time with Daisy, bringing together her friend and his family.

           
He glanced over at her, wondering at the fragile smile that touched her lips.
How did it happen? In a seemingly insignificant tug, a half a moment, she was
right back in the center of his life.  Forcing Daisy to the edges was like
trying to push the sun out of its orbit.

           
Parking in the gravel next to the house, he set the brake and turned to Daisy.
“Ready?”

           
“Absolutely.” She didn’t move. Holding up the little bear, she pointed at the
purple markings. “Funny, these look like fairies. At least to me.”

           
Lane took the floppy-limbed creature and squinted. “Maybe.” Then he sucked in a
sharp breath of surprise.

           
“What?”

           
“Her mom had a fairy tattoo, I think.” He was almost sure he’d seen it once
when Jasmine’s mom had worn a tank top on a hot summer day a few years ago. The
next summer she’d been too sick to get out much. By the winter, she had passed
away.

           
Daisy cleared her throat. “Watching you give her this bear is going to be the
best thing I’ve done all summer.”

           
They followed the broken flagstone path to the front door, stepping over a
scooter and scattered sandals. Lane knocked and the door swung open. Brenda’s
bright blue eyes went wide. “Is everything okay? Has there been an accident?”

           
“No, no. But we have a surprise for Jasmine.” He wiggled the bear and she
clapped a hand over her mouth.

           
“Come on in!” She was giddy with excitement, untying her apron and calling out
to the kids in the room. “Somebody go get Jasmine. She’s in the tree house,
reading.”

           
A blond haired boy ran out the back door, yelling for Jasmine. Several
comfortable couches, mismatched chairs and brightly colored posters furnished
the living room. Two little boys zoomed cars around a cardboard track and an
older girl sat at the long wooden table, a schoolbook open in front of her.

           
Seconds later, Jasmine appeared, book in hand. “Hi, Officer Bennett! Hi, Daisy!”
Her gaze dropped to the bear in Lane’s hand and she let out a squeal. “Where
did you find her?”