Trust in Me (17 page)

All three swung their heads toward him. Claire smiled in a way that told him she was still thinking about their encounter that morning. Heat coiled low in his belly. He mustered a great deal of self-discipline and looked away before his body's reaction gave away their secret.

Ray gave him only a quick glance before averting his eyes and dropping his doughnut back in the box. He shifted his weight and rubbed the sugar off his fingers, looking for all the world like a kid caught with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar. Kevin didn't assume for a minute that Ray's guilty body language had anything to do with eating doughnuts on the sales floor.
Interesting
.

Lydia, who'd had her back to the door, faced him fully. "Sure, come in late then tell us we can't—"

A dramatic gasp accompanied the look of horror when Lydia saw his battered face. "Dear God, Kevin! What in tarnation happened to you!"

Lydia stepped forward to fuss over him like a mother hen, and from the corner of his eye, he watched Ray slink behind the counter and creep toward the back of the store.

"What do you mean?" Kevin shrugged away from Lydia's hands and strolled behind the register as casually as he could.

"Your face! What happened to your face? You look horrible!"

Kevin clapped a hand over his heart and scowled. "Gee thanks! You sure know how to hurt a guy."

He turned and used the shiny surface of an aluminum paint can to check his reflection. Now Kevin gasped theatrically. "Oh, my God! When did
that
happened?"

He staggered back from the paint can feigning mortal shock.

Lydia crossed her arms over her ample chest and frowned. "You're not funny, Kev."

But Claire muffled a laugh, and Ray, who'd stopped near the break room door to watch the turn of events, snorted and sent Kevin a suspicious look.

"Did you see a doctor?" Lydia asked, still glaring at him with concern and disapproval.

Kevin placed a hand on each of Lydia's shoulders. "I'm fine, Lyd. Honestly. The real question is—did you save me a doughnut?"

The motherly woman arched a penciled eyebrow. "Help yourself to the doughnuts, but tell me you at least gave the guy a dose of his own medicine."

"And what would that prove, except that I know how to hurt someone? I accomplished my goal without returning violence in kind."

Lydia grunted. "And what goal would that be, Mr. Turn-the-other-cheek?"

Kevin watched Ray slip into the shadows at the back of the store. "Why, giving you an opening to debate my beliefs, of course. Now if you ladies will excuse me, I'm going to check the delivery truck out back against our order form. Last month they shorted us a case of caulk guns."

As he approached the delivery bay, Kevin snagged the clipboard with order forms from the nail where it hung and scanned the storage area for Ray. The familiar squeak of the store's sole dolly called his attention to the open end of the delivery truck backed up to the loading dock.

Inside the truck’s cargo area, Ray wheeled a stack of boxes toward the open end of the truck. When he spotted Kevin waiting for him, the teen stopped in his tracks and tensed. Kevin waited for the smart-aleck comment sure to come, the glowering insolence, the snide wisecracks, but Ray only stared warily.

When I reminded him he could go to jail for what he'd done, he looked positively ill. Kevin, the idea scared him to death.

"I don't plan to file assault charges, if that's what you're waiting to hear."

Ray's muscles relaxed, his shoulders dropping as if a great burden had been lifted from them. But his face remained implacable. "Don't do me any favors, Fuller."

With a heave, Ray rolled the load of boxes down the ramp to the landing of the receiving dock.

"No, no favors. I won't even tell your father what happened."

Ray stopped again and sent a suspicious glare through narrowed eyes. "You won’t?"

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"Because you're going to tell him."

Ray chortled. "Like hell. He'll kill me. Probably take away my Vette."

"Losing your Vette for a while is better than serving a few years in jail, isn't it?"

Ray turned away, muttering a vicious curse. Then snapping a fiery gaze back to Kevin, he aimed a finger and snarled, "You asked for it. You practically begged me to throw the first punch."

"Maybe. Feel free to explain that to your father." Kevin shrugged. "As long as you also tell him
why
I provoked you. Oh, and that reminds me. You're also going to apologize to Claire for your behavior that night. And then you're going to stay the hell away from her. Understand?"

Ray gave him a put-out sigh.

"If you want your father to treat you like an adult, then it's time to start acting like one. A
man
owns up to his mistakes, takes responsibility for his actions and deals with the consequences without pointing blame elsewhere. A
man
treats other people with respect. Especially women. Your father will notice if you do the right thing, Ray. Trust me."

"Yeah, right. What do
you
know?"

"I know that you are lucky to have a father. I grew up without mine." Kevin turned and headed into the delivery truck. "And don't underestimate your father. He cares. Give him a reason to be proud of you."

After checking that the caulk guns missing from the last shipment had been included on the current delivery, Kevin made his way back to his office. He noted with interest that Ray had returned to work and was making progress emptying the truck.

In his office, Kevin shuffled the morning paper off his desk to make room for his work. The top section, he noticed, had been folded back to reveal a want ad, circled in red. Beside the ad, Lydia had written,
Perfect for you. Apply or I'll kill you
. The ad described an accounting position with Arrington Inc., a new industry moving their home office to a town near Grayson. Kevin's eyes widened when he reached the proposed salary and benefits package. The opportunity was too good to pass up. With a quick tap or two on the office computer, he printed a copy of his resume, a letter requesting an interview, and readied an envelope for mailing. With a job like this one, with a salary that would allow him to pay off some debt, get ahead a bit, maybe a future with Claire wasn't so out of the question.

Well, a guy could hope. A few weeks ago he'd have never imagined himself spending a whole night with Claire in his arms. Now that prospect didn't seem so far-fetched.

When his rumbling stomach sounded the lunch alarm, Kevin stretched his stiff muscles and went to check on Ray.

To his amazement, the teen had not only finished unloading the truck, he'd unpacked most of the boxes and had the stock ready to put out on the shelves that afternoon.

Kevin gawked at the neat stacks of inventory, while Ray tried, quite obviously, to act nonchalant.

"Good work, Ray. Real good work. Why don't you go on break early? You've earned a long lunch."

Now Ray gawked. "Really?"

"Really."

Gathering his practiced smugness and indifference, Ray abandoned the broom he'd been using and headed toward the break room. His typical saunter seemed more of a strut, and Kevin would have sworn he glimpsed a grin tugging the corner of Ray's mouth.

Kevin looked around at the neatly stacked and unpacked crates and shook his head.
Amazing
.

***

"All right. What’s going on? Are the planets all aligned for some great cosmic event or something?" Lydia ranted as she stomped up to the counter and scowled.

Claire glanced up from the scratch pad she was idly drawing on during a slow period that afternoon. Arching an eyebrow, Lydia pulled the pad toward her and looked at Claire’s drawing.

A heart. Claire grimaced. She’d been doodling little hearts and smiley faces. Good grief! She was acting like a schoolgirl with a crush. But what she had planned with Kevin that evening went far beyond schoolgirl crushes. What she had in mind involved commitment, serious emotional involvement. Making love connoted a deep level of intimacy, trust and...well, love.

Did she love Kevin? And more importantly, did he love her? How could she share her body, her soul with Kevin before she knew, without a doubt, how he felt for her? She had to be certain he loved her. Didn’t she?

 Yet he’d never offered her any such assurances. Claire’s stomach quivered at the thought she might be setting herself up for another heartbreak.

"Hel-looo?" Lydia waved a hand in front of Claire’s eyes, calling her back from her reverie.

"I’m sorry. What did you say?"

"I asked what the blue blazes is going on around here today? I just heard Ray say ‘Yes, sir’ to Kevin,
and
he’s actually got today’s shipment unloaded and shelved. You’re off in La-La land, and, after taking the first vacation day he’s used in years, Kevin—our resident peacenik—showed up this morning with a black eye and multiple other bruises. And despite his face decorations, he’s been walking around here wearing a sappy grin all day."  Lydia gave Claire a serious scowl. "Something’s up, and I want to know what it is." 

"Kevin’s been grinning? Really?"  Knowing that brought a smile to Claire’s lips. Of course, she couldn’t prove that
she
was the reason he was grinning. It could just as well be Ray’s new attitude that had made Kevin so happy today.

"You know something. I know you do."  Lydia aimed a finger at her. "If you’re my friend, you’ll tell what’s going on. It’s driving me nuts!"

"Hey, I’m as surprised by Ray’s turnaround as you are. And as far as why Kevin’s so happy, I— I can’t say for sure. Wish I knew."

She wished she knew a lot of things about Kevin. What he felt for her topped that list. His kisses that morning had told her he wanted her. But did what he wanted go beyond the physical?

She glanced toward Kevin’s office, and as if magically summoned by her thoughts of him, his closed door opened, and he stepped out. He divided a glance between Claire and Lydia.

Claire thought his gazed lingered a bit longer on her, that his eyes grew a tad smoky before he looked away. Or maybe she’d just seen what she wanted to see. Lord knows, just looking at him started all sorts of vibrations inside her. The air positively crackled with sexual energy when she was around him.

"Ladies, Mr. Lowery is on his way over. Show him straight back to my office when he arrives, please. Oh, and send Ray in along with his father. Okay?"

"Ray? Kevin, what's going–"

Kevin patted the doorframe with a staccato tap and winked at Lydia. "Thanks, Lyd. I appreciate it."

With one more hungry glance toward Claire and a sensual smile that made her body hum with anticipation, he ducked back in his office and shut the door.

"I saw that!"

Claire turned her attention from Kevin's door and faced Lydia's accusing finger. "Saw what?"

"That look he gave you. Like he could eat you for supper." Lydia's eyes darted over to the sketch pad and then back to Claire. "Sweet heavens! You two have got a thing going on, don't you?"

Claire felt her face heat, and she turned away, busying her hands by stacking a pile of pamphlets left by a farm machinery vendor. "I don't know what you mean."

"You don't? Then why are you turning the color of my boy's sunburn? 'Fess up, Claire. Are you and Kevin..." She finished the sentence by waggling her eyebrows.

Claire opened her mouth to deny it, but hated the idea of lying. Especially to someone who'd been as kind and supportive of her as Lydia had been. Besides Lydia knew Kevin better than almost anyone. They'd worked together for six years, been friends even longer. Claire furrowed her brow in thought.

"Lydia, can I ask you something?"

"Are you going to answer my question?"

"Sort of. Maybe. I—   Do you think Kevin is the sort of man who'd...well, who'd make love to someone if he didn't...care about them?" She took a deep breath. "If he didn't love them?"

Lydia's eyes glowed and satisfaction brightened her face. "Well, well. Guess I have my answer." She sobered a bit and leaned closer to Claire. "And to answer your question...he's no prude. I can see him sleeping with a woman just for the sex if both parties were consenting."

Claire's stomach twisted. Just sex. Was that what Kevin wanted?

"But–" Lydia lowered her voice to near a whisper. "I think he's been a lot more selective concerning women in recent years. His last serious girlfriend did a real number on him."

"Robin."

"Yeah, Robin. So you know about her?"

"A little bit. I know she hurt him."

"Yeah. So I doubt he'd stick his neck out, even for sex, if he didn't have serious feelings for a woman." In a motherly gesture, she placed a finger under Claire's chin and met her gaze evenly. "And judging by the way he looks at you, I'd say you have nothing to worry about. Kevin doesn't give his heart lightly, because he doesn't give it halfway."

Claire gave Lydia a grateful smile. Her heart pattered an exaggerated rhythm against her ribs. If only she could be as sure as Lydia was about Kevin's feelings. What Claire did know for certain was that at seven tonight, regardless of her uncertainty where he stood, she would keep her date with Kevin. And she would make love to him, even if it meant risking her heart.

Because her body ached for him. Because after this morning, there was no turning back. Because
she
was losing her heart to
him
.

***

Mrs. Proctor met Claire on the driveway when she pulled in after work that evening. Frowning, Claire studied the stubborn old woman plodding down the broken pavement with her cane. "Evenin’, missy. There’s iced tea brewing on the stove if you’d like to pour us both a glass. I’ll be in directly. Just getting the mail."

"I can get the mail for you. Why don’t you go inside and cool down."  Claire could see sweat already beading on the older woman’s brow.

Mrs. Proctor scowled at Claire’s offer. "It’s my mail. I’ll get it. I’m not so infirm that I can’t walk twenty yards."

The old woman seemed to push herself harder for several steps as if proving her point.