Small-Town Bachelor

“Of course not! I’ll finish sweeping the deck and give you some privacy. I’ve got to take off for work in a little bit anyway.”

Before he answered, Reed admired her as she disappeared outside. The phone rang again.

Boss. Phone. Right.

“Reed here.”

“Hey, how far have you made it?” John’s hearty voice was the healthy dose of normal Reed needed. Fifteen years older than Reed, John Dalton was more a mentor and friend than boss. “You must be in Minnesota by now, or wait, North Dakota.”

“Change in plans.” Reed winced as he shifted to sit up. “Get this. A tornado roared through town Friday night. No wedding. And no Alaska.”

“What? Why?”

“Broken leg. I’m hanging out in Lake Endwell a week or so. Just until I’m out of the wheelchair.”

“Wheelchair?” John sucked in a throaty breath. “I can’t believe it. Everyone else okay?”

“Yeah, I heard the town got hit pretty hard, though, so I’m going to do what I can to help organize crews until I get back. You have any leads for this area?”

“I’ll look into it.” Papers shuffled in the background. “How are things with your dad?”

“As awkward as usual.”

“Sorry. For what it’s worth, I give you credit. Maybe you’ll work it out while you’re there.”

“I doubt it.” Reed flexed his fingers. “You might as well have Cranston send me the monthly reports. Oh, and the forms he told me about. It’ll give me a chance to get familiar with the new position. If I’m stuck on the couch, I want to be doing something.”

John chuckled. “Always working, aren’t you? I’ll send them, but focus on getting that leg healed. And I’ll call you when I get more info about contractors down there.”

They said goodbye and hung up. Reed tapped the phone against his chin. Two raps on the glass door had him hitching his chin for Claire to enter.

“Well, my work is done here.” She grinned and dusted off the front of her shorts. “Anything I can get you before I head to work?”

“Should you be working today? You’re still pretty beat up.”

Her cheeks sagged. “My boss expects me there. But I’ll come back over tonight.” She drifted to him, and he found himself holding his breath. What was she doing? She grabbed his cell phone, swiped it and a minute later, set it on the coffee table. “There. I programmed my number. You need anything, text me, okay?”

“Wait.” He didn’t want her to go. Not yet. “Have you seen the restaurant?”

“No.” She frowned and sat in the chair. “The dining room survived, but not much else. At least that’s what I’m hearing. I’m not sure I want to see for myself.”

“I’m glad part of it is still standing.”

“I am too.” Uncertainty shone in her eyes. “What if it needs to be torn down? I don’t like to think of it in shambles, but I’ll take shambles over nonexistent.”

“A good builder wouldn’t tear it down unless it was absolutely necessary.”

“That’s what I’m worried about.” She twisted her hands together and bit her lower lip. “If I asked for a favor...”

A favor? What kind of favor? His stomach tightened, but her pleading eyes broke through his defenses. He wanted to help.

“I know you’re hurt and won’t be here long, but could you help Aunt Sally and Uncle Joe find a good contractor?”

He exhaled in relief. “If they need help, of course. I’ve worked with disaster relief crews in the past, and red tape can hold up projects for months.”

“What do you mean by red tape?”

“Getting the insurance adjusters, builders and business owners to agree on costs and schedules is no easy task.” Pain spread from his ankle again. “Let’s hope there won’t be any problems, and the work will get started right away.”

Claire stood, rubbing her arm. “But what if there are problems?”

“I know how to get things moving.”

Smiling, she grazed his hand with her fingertips. “Thank you. And I insist on helping in any way I can.” She checked her watch. “Oh! I’ve got to go. Get some rest, okay?”

She glided through the kitchen and let herself out.

He lay back against the pillows. The thought of working with Claire set off warning alarms, but he dismissed them. He’d be back home in a week. All he had to do was focus on rebuilding the town, and no one would get hurt.

Chapter Three

“Really, Claire? I shouldn’t have to tell you this.”

Claire took a deep breath before turning to Tammy Lathrop—Dr. Tammy—the boss she never seemed to please. The small examination room at the clinic smelled of wet dog, cleaner and dog biscuits, which usually didn’t bother Claire, but today the medley of scents closed in on her. The fact that she should have been home thirty minutes ago didn’t help. Eight hours on her feet every Monday was bad enough—today’s tally would be closer to nine.

Tammy gestured to the bottle of cleaner in Claire’s hand. “You know we use the sanitizer solution with bleach to clean the examination tables.”

“This is the sanitizer solution with bleach.” Claire tried to remain pleasant.

“No, it isn’t. That’s the blue bottle. You need to get the purple bottle.”

“They repackaged it.” She held it up. “The bleach solution looks like this now.”

Tammy stared, her jaw tightening. “Let me see it.” She waved two fingers for Claire to hand it to her. After reading the label, Tammy thrust it back in Claire’s hand. “Fine. But wipe it down twice. It looks like you missed a spot over there.”

Claire strangled the paper towel in her hand until her boss exited. She couldn’t do this much longer. She never minded cleaning up after patients, but when her every move was judged and criticized, it killed her morale.

Tammy hadn’t even asked about her black eye or scratches. There had been a time Tammy would be the first to show concern. She probably would have urged Claire to take the day off. But those days had disappeared long ago when Tammy started seeing Mark Calloway, aka Dr. Jerk Face.

So Claire had worked for Mark before Tammy. Was it really that big a deal that Claire dated him briefly? Apparently. But Claire had dumped him, not the other way around, and Mark had promptly spread rumors about her around town. No doubt, Mark filled Tammy’s head with the same lies. An ex ruining another good thing in her life—a friendship she’d cherished. A job she liked. It still hurt.

Not that Tammy was worth it if she believed everything he said.

Claire sprayed and wiped the examination table. Getting Reed settled next door this morning had taken her mind off the job opening at the zoo. Last night, after she, Dad and her brothers cleaned up the yard for the otters, Claire had finished her online application. The only red flag? The omission of recent job references. Mark certainly wouldn’t give her one. And Claire didn’t want Tammy to know she was actively job hunting. Hopefully, her volunteer work at the zoo and the letter from her friend, Lisa Jones, who owned the animal sanctuary where Claire gave free checkups to injured birds and animals, would be enough.

Submitting the application had been exhilarating, but now the giddiness melted into anxiety. Were her qualifications enough? Had she answered the questions correctly?

One of the zookeepers had texted her at lunch. Did you put your app in yet? I heard Tina say she has 30 in already.

Claire continued wiping the surfaces. Thirty applications. And the job had been posted on Friday. Steep competition.

Working quickly and methodically, she finished cleaning the room. She put the supplies away and found her purse, and she and the receptionist left together. A blast of moist heat hit her as she made her way to her bike. A breeze to keep her scrubs from clinging to her skin couldn’t be too much to ask for, could it?

She pedaled down the side street to a back road—her favorite route home. Varying shades of green leaves dotted the woods on either side, and a pair of mourning doves swooped ahead of her. Her legs tightened, burned, but she forced them to keep pumping up the hill. The exertion burned off some of her earlier resentment.

After she’d changed into shorts and fed the otters, Claire stood outside Granddad’s cottage. Aunt Sally had texted her earlier to say she had plans tonight but that she’d left stir-fry ingredients in Reed’s fridge.

Preparing dinner for Reed didn’t sound like a good time. For one, she was a lousy cook. Two, making food seemed intimate, and after this morning when her treacherous body betrayed her—she’d practically gotten shivers putting her phone number in Reed’s cell—she’d promised herself to be nurselike. Detached.

One-on-one interactions with a devastatingly gorgeous guy? One on his way back to Chicago soon? Not smart.

She knocked and strolled inside. From across the room, she noted Reed’s paleness. Reclining on the sofa, eyes closed with his cast up on her yoga blocks—Aunt Sally had hit a home run again—Reed’s slack face looked haggard while he slept. Poor guy.

As quietly as possible, she padded to him and pressed the back of her hand against his forehead. No fever. But his shallow breathing indicated his discomfort even in sleep.

She retreated to the kitchen and cut up the vegetables. Started the rice. Heated oil in the pan and added chicken breast chunks. When they began to sizzle, she seasoned and stirred them. A moan from the couch spun her attention to the living room.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Claire set the spatula on the counter and went to Reed. “What can I get you? Do you need help with anything?”

He blew out a breath and ran his hand through his hair, leaving it more rumpled than before. More tempting. “The chair. Help me into the wheelchair.”

She kneeled, setting his arm around her shoulder as he swung his legs to the side. He hissed.

“I’m sorry.” She touched his hard, muscular biceps. Big mistake. Warmth pooled in her stomach. “Did I hurt you?”

“No,” he said through clenched teeth.

It took a few minutes and more exertion than she anticipated, but they succeeded in getting him into the chair. He slowly wheeled down the hall.

“Do you need me to help you?” she called after him.

“No. Got it.”

An acrid smell came from the kitchen. She jogged to the stove. The chicken had taken on a dark brown hue, but the chunks weren’t officially burned...just well done. Very well done. Stirring the rice, she realized she’d forgotten to cover the pan or put it on low, so a crispy layer coated the bottom.

She broke up the chunks, added a bit more water and hoped it would be edible.

Several minutes later she spooned rice and the chicken-and-vegetable mixture onto a plate, then shimmied past the counter to see what was keeping Reed.

“Are you okay?” She stretched her neck to see down the hall. Empty.

“Fine.”

“Need me to help?”

“No.” His voice sounded strained.

Should she stay? Help him? Or set the food on the table and leave?

“Your dinner is on the table,” she called.

“Okay.”

“Want me to stay?”

A clamor came from the hall. Reed wheeled back to her, the paleness in his face replaced by brick red. “You don’t have to. I’ll be fine.”

She hesitated. He didn’t look fine. But she didn’t want to intrude. And as much as her nursing instincts prodded her to monitor him, her feminine instincts hollered to get back home. Stat.

“I’ll eat with you and get you settled.” She pulled another plate out of the cupboard. Reed moved to the end of the table where she’d set his food.

Joining him, she bowed her head, said grace and motioned to his fork. “Go ahead.” She bit down on a too-crunchy piece of broccoli. The flavors in her mouth created an odd mixture of char, salt and teriyaki sauce. She almost spit it out. “This is disgusting. I’m making you a sandwich.”

He’d paled again. But he hadn’t touched his food, so dinner wasn’t to blame.

“Maybe you should lie down.” She bit her lower lip.

Nodding, he pushed himself back to the couch. She helped him get settled. He winced as she set his cast back onto the yoga blocks. “I’ll let you rest.”

“No, wait.” His hand darted out and clasped her wrist, sending awareness up her spine. “Stay.”

How could she refuse an injured man? One with eyes the exact brown of Gretel’s fur? Who’d put his life at risk to protect her? She gulped. One who...needed her?

Her downfall.

There went her good intentions to be nurselike. Detached.

Because being needed was her weakest spot. Always had been. Always would be.

* * *

Reed groaned. Why had he asked Claire to stay? When he was supposed to be focused on anything but her?

He was a needy mess, that was why.

“Of course I’ll stay.” Claire adjusted the pillow behind his neck, then sat in the leather chair. “Tomorrow, I’ll take you out on the deck. The fresh air will do you good.”

Fresh air or a slap in the face. Anything to get him rational again.

He searched for a safe topic to discuss. “What’s it like living here?” There. He’d be reminded of why Lake Endwell was the last place on earth he belonged. No skyscrapers, Wrigley Field, world-class museums—not that he ever went to any—gourmet restaurants or the Chicago Bears.

Claire smiled at him. “Good question. I’m not sure how to answer. It’s home. Dinners with my family right here in this cottage. Aunt Sally and Uncle Joe always cook. It’s barbecues, boat rides, bicycling around town. Ice cream at Tastee Freeze. Fourth of July picnic. A big Christmas tree–lighting ceremony in City Park by the gazebo.”

“Sounds idyllic.”

Her eyes twinkled. “When we were little, Dad took us kids to Cookie’s Diner on Saturday mornings. I always got hot chocolate and toast. I’d spread grape jelly on one slice and strawberry on the other. Cookie’s went out of business, so we all go to Pat’s Diner now. It’s one of the few buildings unaffected by the tornado. Thankfully, the church didn’t get touched either.”

“Do you still get hot chocolate and toast?”

She laughed. Reminded him of little bells. Happiness. “No. Omelets or pancakes for me. With a side of bacon. And coffee. Lots of coffee.”

“My kind of breakfast.” His leg hardly bothered him now. If she would just keep talking... “Tell me about the town. How bad does Main Street look?”

She shook her head, lifting her eyes to the ceiling. “Terrible. I don’t know how to process it. My favorite places are surrounded by piles of bricks and smashed windows. I mean, I got my ears pierced at JoJo’s Jewelry. Mom and Aunt Sally took me, and boy, was I excited! Mom held my hand the whole time. She died giving birth to Libby. It’s hard to have another link to her disappear, you know?”

Yeah. He did know. “My mom died when I was seven.” His links to her were long gone, and his memories weren’t that great to begin with. “How old were you?”

“I was six. You lost your mom too? Mine died of a postpartum hemorrhage. I still miss her. What happened to yours?”

“Car accident.” He’d learned to keep the story simple. It had been bad enough getting badgered by his classmates at school. Everyone whispered about it. The paper had spared no gory detail. Except no one knew the real reason why. Just him and Dad. Kind of.

She leaned over and squeezed his hand. He felt her touch all the way to his heart.

“I was blessed to have a little brother and baby sister to take care of. After the funeral, I promised to be the mom Libby and Sam needed. I tried to help my older brothers too, but the little ones needed me more. Aunt Sally really stepped in for us. She made sure we had the advice Mom would have given. I don’t know what I would have done without her.”

“You were a little kid. No one expected you to be their mother.”

She shrugged. “I know. But I had six wonderful years with Mom. Those two didn’t know her. I wanted to be there for them—for her sake. Did you have family step in and help out after your mom passed?”

He shifted his jaw. Usually, this was the point in the conversation he cracked a joke and changed the subject, but maybe it would be better for Claire to know the truth. Part of it anyway.

“No, they didn’t.” He folded his hands, let them rest on his abdomen. “In fact, after the funeral, Mom’s family acted like I didn’t exist. No more birthday parties or family get-togethers. My grandmother, who I spent a lot of time with as a kid, pretended she didn’t know me one day when we ran into her at the grocery store. We moved to another town a few months later.”

Claire’s mouth dropped open. “What? How could she? You were a little boy. I want to go there and give her a piece of my mind.”

He hadn’t expected her righteous indignation. “You can’t. I heard she died a few years ago. I got over it.”

“Well, I’m not getting over it. Families are supposed to stick together and support each other.”

“That’s why I don’t do families. I like being my own person. And I’ve worked hard to move up in Rockbend Construction. Chicago is big and fun, and I belong there. It’s home for me the way Lake Endwell is for you.”

Claire crossed one leg over the other. “So you’re not into family? What about your dad and Jake?”

“Jake’s great. Best kid in the world.”

“And your dad?”

He hesitated. How much should he reveal to her? “We’re fine. Not close, but we’re fine.”

“Well, someday you’ll want a family of your own.” She stared out the windows at the lake.

“Nah, I’m good.” He’d lost people who had meant the world to him. Mom would never come back. Her family refused to acknowledge he existed. Dad barely talked to him after her death. And then there was Collin.

She gave him a sharp look. “Really?”

“Really.”

Her shoulder lifted. “I feel the same. I’ve got all I need.”

“You? Not having a family of your own?” He guffawed. “I find that hard to believe.”

Sadness draped her eyes, but she hid it quickly. “Believe it.”

“Why?”

“One, I’m not moving again, and the pickings around here are slim. And two, I have high expectations. I haven’t met a man willing to put me first. Anyway, I’m happy with my life the way it is.”

Her first reason put the brakes on his speeding attraction. The second? Made him squirm. She deserved to be first in a man’s life.

Too bad he wasn’t capable of being that man.

Chapter Four

Claire tossed her keys on the kitchen counter, tried to work the kinks out of her neck and strode to the patio door. Another boring Wednesday at work, and now she had to come up with something edible to bring to Reed’s. Why had Aunt Sally chosen tonight to get her hair trimmed and colored?

“Hey, babies, where are you?” Claire called. The otters raced to her, their long bodies undulating across the lawn. She gave them each a carrot and stroked their thick, soft fur. Their mild scent teased her nose. Gretel got up on her hind legs and sniffed, then made a funny snorting sound. “No, you get one carrot tonight, little lady. You know the drill.”

They loved fresh vegetables and fruits, but their main diet consisted of fish supplied by the zoo, with an occasional crawfish, frog or boiled egg. Gretel nudged Claire’s hand with her nose. She laughed, shaking her head. “I’ll bring you apples tomorrow. You’re incorrigible.”

Claire lay back in the lounge chair and mindlessly observed the clouds drifting across the sky. Spending time with Hansel and Gretel made up a little for what she’d had to deal with at the clinic today. Once again, passed over to assist Tammy in an operation. Put on cat-cage cleaning duty. This made three weeks in a row.

She blew out a breath. She deserved better. If she didn’t get the position at the zoo, she would have to make some changes. Life was too short to work for someone who treated her like garbage.

The otters stretched out in the sun for a nap. She’d wasted enough time thinking about her thankless job. A more important topic loomed.

Reed. She’d checked on him the past two evenings, but Aunt Sally had been keeping vigil, and Reed had been asleep both times. Her dad helped Reed with basic care off and on during the day.

Claire couldn’t get Reed out of her mind. And she needed to. He’d made it clear his home was in Chicago.

What he’d revealed about his mom’s death—how his family treated him—still filled her with indignation. How could anyone disown a child? How painful it must have been for him to lose his mom and her family.

Her chest burned the more she thought about it. No wonder he wasn’t into families. She probably wouldn’t be either if she’d gone through what he had. And it made her wonder about Reed’s dad. Roger hadn’t come over to check on Reed. Aunt Sally said Jake stopped by last night. But not his own father? Strange.

Claire plodded inside to change. Her cooking skills clearly qualified her for the title of Worst Cook in America. At this point, a grilled cheese might be too much to hope for.

The phone rang as she shimmied into her khaki shorts.

“How’s my favorite niece?” Uncle Joe asked, not waiting for her to answer. “Sally got home early and made you and Reed dinner if you want to swing by and pick it up.”

Claire almost purred. “You two are lifesavers. How did you know I dreaded having to deal with dinner?”

“You never want to deal with dinner.” His raspy chuckle made her smile. “And you know your aunt. She lives to feed people. With the restaurant shut down, she’s going crazy. If she’s not cooking, she’s pestering.”

“Well, tell her not to stop,” she said. “I’ll be right there. Don’t let any of my cousins steal my food either. I know how they are.”

Claire slipped into her favorite sparkly black flip-flops, grabbed her purse and drove the mile to Uncle Joe and Aunt Sally’s house. Nestled on a wooded property, the ranch-style home hid behind a grove of evergreens. Claire parked next to her cousin’s beat-up truck and then loped to the front door. With a quick knock, she let herself in, calling, “It’s me.”

“Come on in.” Aunt Sally beamed from behind the kitchen counter. The smell of fried chicken made Claire’s stomach rumble. Aunt Sally pushed a plate of cheese and crackers toward her. “Don’t worry, I didn’t let Braedon touch your takeout containers.”

They had a running joke that Braedon, her twenty-five-year-old cousin who regularly stopped by for dinner, could eat a sumo wrestler under the table. Claire nibbled on a cracker. “Your hair looks fabulous. Have you heard anything about the restaurant? When do you think it will reopen?”

“Thanks, hon.” She fluffed her bangs. “The insurance adjuster hasn’t been out, but he told us to use their contractor. We’ve called the guy and keep getting a machine. I don’t like that we can’t pick our own builder. We need the restaurant up and running. Where will everyone go for Friday fish fry? And now that the weather’s gotten nice, people are looking to eat on the patio by the lake. I don’t know what we’ll do if we can’t get opened again soon.”

Claire hated to think of the restaurant shut down indefinitely, but she hadn’t gotten the nerve up to go back and see the damage for herself. The other night a sound from the television reminded her of the roof tearing off, and it had taken her ten minutes to calm down. “I’m praying.”

“Thanks.” Sally sniffed. “We don’t have it as bad as most of the folks around here. Lois and Herb moved to a hotel twenty minutes away until their house gets fixed, and I don’t know how those Riley sisters are doing it, living with half a roof. Don’t get me started on Miss Gert.”

“Miss Gert? Is Whiskers still missing?” Claire selected another cheese cube. “I thought Dad formed a search party.” Miss Gert was eighty-four, lived in a house so old it could have been built by Christopher Columbus himself and doted on her long-haired, extremely pudgy cat.

“Oh, they found him all right. Eating a dead bird in that ramshackle barn behind her place. But she can’t keep Whiskers inside with her back room damaged. She’ll have a heart attack worrying. I told Dale to get some of the boys together and patch it up for her, but she thinks the noise will hurt poor Whiskers’s ears.”