“We could sell that one pretty high.”
She sat down and nudged him with her shoulder. “We could give classes to towns that don’t have the experience Bloom does. Cricket could work up a syllabus and help teach it. Did your mama like gossip, too?”
“No, ma’am,” he said quickly.
“Then you must be more like her.”
“Pretty much, but sometimes Dad comes out in my attitude if I’m brooding about something. What about you?” He couldn’t see much of either of her parents in her. Not the uppity Charlotte or the philandering Dill. He drew his eyebrows down into a frown, wondering exactly how those two ever made a child so different from them both.
“They say I’m like Granny Baker. She was gone before I was born, but I get told that I’m like her pretty often, mostly when Mama is scolding me about something.” She stood up and walked across the green grass to the edge of the water and stuck a bare toe in it. “Man, it is cold, but it feels so good. I’m going to come out here someday and go skinny-dippin’. I’ll tell you beforehand so you can guard it for me.”
“What makes you think I’ll stand guard? I might sit right here and enjoy the sight.” Immediately he wondered if he’d been guilty of saying words out loud that he shouldn’t have even thought.
“Are you flirting with me, Rick Lawson?” she asked.
“Maybe. Probably. Is that okay?”
“Well, when you make up your mind, I’d like to know.” She stuck her whole foot into the water and then the other one, only sucking air a little bit. Then she waded out ankle-deep and inhaled. “It smells wonderful. So fresh and clean, and there’s little minnows in here, Rick. If I owned this place, I’d build a house right there where you are sitting, and I’d never leave. If I needed anything other than what is grown here, I’d pay someone to deliver it.”
He walked out to the edge of the water and extended a hand. “It gets slippery right at the edge.”
She put hers in his, but when she took that final step, she faltered and started down into the icy water. To prevent that, he grabbed both her arms and jerked her toward him. He ended up flat on his back with her on top of him. From the waist up, they were on dry ground, while below, the cold water rushed around and over them. Thank God for the cold water or else she would have known exactly how much she affected him right then.
“Are you all right?” he panted.
“I think so. Did I break your back?”
He should sit up and help her, but he liked the way her body felt. “I don’t think so.” His hands went up to cup her cheeks. “I’m flirting now.”
“Okay,” she whispered when she realized he was about to kiss her.
Then their lips met, and the whole earth stood still. Maybe he had died, and this was his first taste of heaven. As suddenly as it started, it was over. She rolled off him and lay on the grass, staring up at the limbs of the old oak tree.
“Rick, I’ve had boyfriends. I’ve had a husband. I like you better than any of them, and I’d never ruin what we’ve got for a fling,” she told him.
“Who says it’s a fling?” he said.
She sat up. “You make me feel special, but you don’t know everything about me.”
He pulled himself up to stand above her and offer his hand. “You are very special, Jennie Sue.”
She put her hand in his, and warmth filled his whole body.
“Thank you. Oh, no!” She squeezed his hand.
“What? Did you break something after all? Are you hurt?”
She pointed toward the house. “I hear a vehicle. Cricket must be home. I’m serious, Rick. I don’t want to cause problems.”
He kept her hand in his as they started walking toward the house. “It’s okay. Don’t worry about it—I don’t need Cricket’s blessing to flirt with you.”
Her eyes searched his for several seconds. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.” He bent slightly and kissed her on the tip of the nose.
When they rounded the bend, they could see the silhouettes of two people on the back porch. There was no doubt that the one with crutches was Cricket, and the other one had to be Lettie.
Rick waved when they drew closer as if it was completely normal for him to be holding Jennie Sue Baker’s hand. When they were close enough that he could actually see his sister’s expression, he had no doubt that Cricket was about to explode.
“I’ve been wading in the most amazing little creek,” Jennie Sue said, but she didn’t let go of his hand even when they were at the porch. “It’s cold as ice and clear as glass. I helped Rick bring in tomorrow’s deliveries, so Cricket doesn’t have to feel guilty about not being able to help. Could you take me home, Lettie? That way Rick won’t have to drive back into town.”
“You said you wouldn’t come back out here.” Cricket ignored her statement.
“Changed my mind. Women do that sometimes. Besides, you weren’t here, so?” Jennie Sue said just as frankly.
“I don’t want you here,” Cricket said.
“That is enough,” Rick said. “This is my home, too, and if I want to spend time with Jennie Sue, then I can invite her here. You bring your church ladies out here and they drive me crazy, but I don’t tell you that you can’t host meetings here.”
“This is different,” Cricket said.
“This is clearly something that Jennie Sue and I don’t need to be in the middle of. Y’all can straighten it out without us.” Lettie turned toward Jennie Sue. “You can drive. Rick, I could use a bushel of cucumbers this week. I’d like to make some bread-and-butter pickles before the end of the season. They make wonderful Christmas presents.”
“Sure thing. How about tomorrow mornin’?” Rick tried to keep his voice completely normal as he let go of Jennie Sue’s hand, but it wasn’t easy. “I’ll call you, Jennie Sue.”
“I’ll be at the bookstore. Stop by if you have time.” She rolled up on her toes and brushed a kiss across his cheek. “And thanks again for saving my life.”
“You can’t drown in a foot of water,” he told her.
“If I hit my head on a rock and landed facedown, I might,” she argued. “See y’all later.” Jennie Sue followed Lettie around the house to the front yard, where her truck was parked.
“Okay, young lady, you are glowing,” Lettie said as she got in and fastened the seat belt. “What happened here today?”
“I slipped as I got out of the creek, and wound up on top of Rick, and he kissed me,” she said. “I liked it, Lettie—a lot. But I like him too much to ruin a friendship with a fling, and I told him so.”
Lettie clucked like an old hen calling in her chickens. “Rick Lawson is the salt of the earth. He’ll do right by you in any relationship.”
Jennie Sue had no doubt that Lettie was speaking the absolute truth.
Chapter Fifteen
Jennie Sue shook out her umbrella and took a deep breath, sucking in the aroma of fresh rain one more time before she went inside the bookstore. With the rain and it being Wednesday, she didn’t figure there’d be many people out and about today, which was fine with her—then she could get the store in shape. Already her efforts were paying off, because they’d sold a lot of romance novels last week.
She used her key to open the door and went straight to the thermostat to adjust it to a cooler temperature before she flipped on the lights and headed to the office to start the coffee and hot water for tea. Once that was done, she started to work on the mystery section, arranging the authors alphabetically by name. She’d only gotten the first shelf cleared off and dusted when she heard the bell above the door.
“Good mornin’.” Nadine’s voice carried through the store. “Where are you? Is there coffee? I brought doughnuts from the café to share with you.”
“Good mornin’ to you. Come on in out of the rain. Coffee should be ready. Thanks for bringin’ doughnuts. I only took time for a glass of milk and a cookie this morning,” Jennie Sue said.