Kyle wasn’t certain if it was the taunt or Eliza’s hunger that garnered her agreement. He didn’t care. He was looking forward to sitting across the table from another adult, rather than eating out of a bag on his bed in a small motel room.

“Hey, Shaw,” he called out. “Food is ready.”

“Did I hear my name?” Eliza strolled into the room.

She still wore the same tight dark pants and black sweater with straps that crisscrossed at the neckline. The heels were gone, replaced by red ballet slippers. Her hair, previously pulled back from her face with stylish clips, now hung loose to her shoulders.

Kyle lifted a large wooden spoon in greeting before using it to stir the contents of a pot on the stove.

Eliza gazed curiously at the stove. “What are you making?”

“Gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato basil soup.” While she watched, Kyle set the spoon down, picked up a spatula and expertly flipped the sandwiches.

“I like grilled cheese.” She moved to the stove, clearly curious. “What pushes these into the gourmet category?”

“For starters, Gouda and provolone, instead of American cheese. The artichoke hearts, for another.”

“I like artichoke hearts,” she admitted reluctantly.

Kyle hid a smile. While he’d purchased the cheeses at the market yesterday, the artichokes were from her stash of groceries.

“Is the soup from a can?”

“It’s Wolfgang Puck’s.” He shrugged. “Making it from scratch would have taken too long. Trust me, this is as good as homemade.”

“My father or brother wouldn’t be caught dead in a kitchen.”

“I don’t mind it if I have the time. My mother was determined I know more than how to nuke a freezer dinner.” He slid one of the sandwiches, grilled golden brown, onto a plate and handed it to her.

Kyle was pleased when she held out a plate for his sandwich. Teamwork. Perhaps there was hope for a peaceful coexistence, after all.

“How about you?” He reached for the ladle.

Eliza, busy setting the plates on the table, looked up. “What about me?”

He inclined his head. “Do you do much cooking?”

“More than you probably think.” She took the soup bowl from his hand and carried it to the table.

Seconds later, he joined her.

“Some people think it’s not worth it to cook for one.” She dipped her spoon into the soup and tasted. “You’re right. This is good.”

He gestured with his own spoon for her to continue. “You like to cook?”

“I prefer eating at home.” Instead of lifting the sandwich to her mouth, she forked off a bite, and the cheese oozed out. “If it costs me a little more time to eat what I want at home, I’m okay with that.”

She closed her eyes and moaned while she chewed and swallowed. “This is positively orgasmic.”

Kyle felt his body harden and was grateful he was sitting down. The look of absolute pleasure on her face had him wondering about things he had no business wondering about.

If he and Eliza were going to survive the upcoming weeks together, it was important not to muck it up with sex. “Tell me about the projects you’re working on.”

Smoky gray eyes opened, then narrowed.

He chuckled. “No ulterior motive, just a feeble attempt to get better acquainted.”

Lifting his grilled cheese, no knife and fork for him, Kyle took another bite.

As they ate, he encouraged Eliza to talk about herself. Each time she attempted to redirect the conversation to him, he asked her another question.

She told him all about the Cherries and the plans already in place for the May Day and Independence Day festivities. By the time she finished telling him about the vintage baseball games played over the Fourth, the food was history.

Kyle caught her eyeing the doorway. He was enjoying the conversation too much to let her skip out on him. “Any other projects in the works?”

Something sparked in her dove gray eyes. “I’m spearheading the upcoming Ready, Set, Wed event. This is something new. We’re hoping it will bring a lot of publicity to the peninsula and Good Hope.”

“Ready, Set, Wed.” Kyle sat back. “Sounds like a bride thing.”

“It is.” She gave a little laugh, and her cheeks flushed with becoming color. “The project has so much potential. I could talk about it all night, but I’ll spare you the agony.”

“Actually, I’d love to hear more.” He rested his elbows on the table and leaned forward. “Make sure you don’t leave out any details.”

* * *

Eliza couldn’t recall the last time a man had looked at her so intently. While she and Jeremy had often discussed business, they’d both been so familiar with the projects that conversations were usually brief and to the point.

“You asked for it.” While Kyle was undoubtedly only being polite, Eliza hoped verbalizing the plans would bring out any flaws that needed fine-tuning. Shoving her chair back, Eliza stood. “Being bored silly will go down easier with a glass of wine.”

She showed him the wine refrigerator, and they agreed on a Shiraz. He expertly uncorked the bottle, then followed her into the parlor. The fact that this evening had been so pleasurable concerned her.

Eliza didn’t want to get used to having someone around. She’d been on her own since college and liked her solitude.

In the parlor, she took a seat in the chair she considered hers while he dropped onto the sofa. Now that each of them held a glass of wine, she didn’t delay. “You were right when you said Ready, Set, Wed sounds like a bridal thing. More specifically, it’s a wedding competition between Good Hope, Egg Harbor and Sturgeon Bay.”

“Is it going on now?” Kyle sipped his wine, his eyes focused firmly on her.

“The competition kicks off at the beginning of April.”

His lips twisted in a sardonic smile. “You’re starting a competition on April Fool’s Day?”

That point had been brought up before. “We’re starting at the beginning of April,” she repeated.

“What’s the difference?”

“Semantics.

The comment made him grin.

“There are four categories—dress, cake, hair/makeup and reception venue.”

His gaze remained puzzled. “And the purpose of the competition is to see which town can plan the best wedding?”

Eliza realized she needed to come up with talking points. Part of getting the community excited about the competition would be in clearly articulating the process.

“Let me lay it out for you.” She leaned forward, forgetting her resolve to keep her distance. “Vendors in each category are chosen in their respective communities to participate. They each work with the bride and groom in coming up with a wedding plan. This plan is part of a showcase in each community.”

“Showcase?”

“It’s like a mini-wedding. The groom and bride, along with a single attendant, are dressed for the wedding. A reception is set up at the chosen venue with the cake on display. After attending the three showcases, a producer will choose which town wins. That bride and groom will get an all-expense-paid wedding that will be televised.”

Eliza was out of breath by the time she finished. She took a long drink of wine and sat back.

Kyle rubbed his chin. “Televised?”

“We already have buy-in from the Wedding Channel.” Eliza toyed with the glass in her hand, twisting the stem back and forth between her fingers. “The goal is to boost Door County as a wedding destination nationally. My goal is to boost Good Hope.”

“Who’s the Good Hope bride and groom?”

Eliza fought back a surge of annoyance. “The couple we had in mind eloped last week.”

“Shouldn’t be difficult to find a replacement.”

“I’ve interviewed several possible replacements but haven’t found a good fit. It can’t be just any couple.” Eliza considered being politically correct but laid it on the line instead. “They have to be attractive, appeal in some way to television viewers and be articulate spokespersons for Good Hope.”

“Plus, be willing to plan their wedding—and eventually be married—in a goldfish bowl.”

Eliza nodded. “Exactly.”

“It’s too bad your friend isn’t getting married sooner.”

“What friend?”

“Lindsay.” Kyle placed his empty wineglass on the burl-wood coffee table.

Immediately, Eliza leaned forward and slipped a coaster under it. But her mind was no longer on a possible water stain.

“You’re right. Dan and Lindsay are both attractive. She’s a working woman with a job as a floral designer. That’s a nice wedding tie-in.” Eliza tapped a finger against the table and considered. “I’m not sure how much appeal a minister will have for television viewers, but Dan is young and handsome and not the preachy sort.”

She caught the flash of Kyle’s grin and pursed her lips. “All factors have to be considered.”

“They might not be interested.”

“True. But it doesn’t hurt to ask.”

Kyle cocked his head, his gaze sharp and assessing. “Will you push?”

Eliza lifted a brow. “What do you think?”

“I think you’re a woman who knows what she wants and goes after it.”

“You appear to me to be a man who also goes after what he wants.” Eliza kept her tone light, but the warmth of only moments earlier had disappeared. “On second thought, maybe not.”

A wary look crossed Kyle’s face. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“That whole situation with Jeremy. You want him to do the DNA test, yet you wait and do nothing.”

The muscle in his jaw tensed, telling her she’d struck a nerve.

Good, she thought. She’d judge him as harshly as he judged her.

Kyle Kendrick didn’t have the slightest idea what made her tick. If he did, he’d know she’d never push Lindsay to do anything against her will.

Her father always thought he knew what she was thinking, what she wanted, what was best for her.

He’d been wrong, too.

“Jeremy is getting married in two weeks.” Kyle’s words broke through her mounting anger. “I didn’t want to pressure him.”

“It’s a swab in the cheek. It takes two seconds.” Eliza fluttered a careless hand in the air. “Frankly, I don’t care what you do. I’m bored.”

With an effortless grace honed from years of yoga, she rose and didn’t turn until she reached the doorway. “Turn out the lights when you go to bed. Oh, and thanks for the meal.”

* * *

Eliza had to admit Fin’s bridal shower was a cut above any she’d recently attended. Ami had decorated her home with the requisite balloons. However, she—or one of her sisters—had taken the extra step of covering the balloons in lavender and pink tulle to add a romantic feel.

And then there was the mimosas made with exceptionally fine champagne…

Eliza had just taken her first sip when Ami clapped her hands.

“Time for games.” Ami glanced at the bride-to-be and smiled. Once again, Eliza was struck by the resemblance between the two women. Ami and Fin could have easily been twins. Same light brown hair streaked with blond, same vivid green eyes, same hint of freckles across the bridge of their nose. “Fin reminded me she’s not a fan of games, but I assured her these are fun. So, everyone, prove me right and pretend to enjoy yourself.”

As anticipated, the comment drew some chuckles.

Eliza selected a chair between Jeremy’s grandmother Ruby and Lindsay.

Ruby immediately clasped her hand and gave it a squeeze. “I love games.”

Well, Eliza thought, that made one of them. But the fact that Ruby loved games as much as Ami likely explained why Fin had agreed to have them at her bridal shower.

Everyone in Good Hope knew Jeremy and Fin adored his grandmother. Ruby was a petite firecracker with hair the color of champagne and bright blue eyes. She’d “retired” from the Cherries several years back but remained one of the organization’s staunchest supporters.

Fin’s sister, Prim, passed out sheets of paper and pencils. Though her smile was bright, lines of fatigue edged the strawberry blonde’s eyes. Some of it likely had to do with having eight-year-old twin boys at home. Most of it had to be the fact that her baby was due any day.

The child, reportedly a girl this time, kicked Eliza’s arm as Prim leaned over to hand her a pencil.

Eliza jerked back.

Prim smiled apologetically. “She’s practicing her kicks so she can hold her own with her brothers.”

Ruby patted the huge belly that was now in front of her. “Such a blessing.”

The soft smile Prim offered said it all.

Eliza felt a twinge. She’d once thought she’d have a child someday. But the prospect of marriage and children had never seemed further away. She wasn’t sure she’d be good with kids, anyway.

“Read the sheet, the one marked He Said, She Said at the top.” Despite the muted conversation between guests, Ami’s strong voice carried easily through the room. “Your job is to guess whether Fin or Jeremy said or did what’s listed below.”

Glancing down, Eliza frowned. The questions seemed much too personal. Who said I love you first? Who takes up most of the bed?

The one time she and Jeremy had made love, he hadn’t spent the night. And he’d never told her he loved her.

Not caring if she won, Eliza quickly went through the questions. Once everyone was done, Ami gestured to her sister.

“Fin, it’s time to come clean and dish.” Ami motioned for her sister to stand.

With a smile, Fin rose to her feet. For a second, her eyes met Eliza’s. Animosity was replaced by a look of apology.

That was even worse. Eliza didn’t want anyone’s pity. She stiffened but kept the smile plastered on her face as she calculated how much longer she needed to stay.

“Jeremy was the first to say I love you.” Fin blushed prettily. “He was sixteen. I was fifteen. We’d been together for three months at that time.”

“I knew the first time he brought you to the house to meet Eddie and me that he loved you.” Ruby punctuated the pronouncement with a nod.

Fin’s lips curved as she continued down the list. “I initiated the first kiss, but he was the one who proposed.”

The answers only solidified to Eliza that, while she might have once loved Jeremy, he’d never been hers. He and Fin had forged a bond during those early high school years that had been strong enough to withstand years of time and distance.

They finished the game segment—thank God—and were in the middle of the make-your-own-tart portion of the afternoon—another activity Eliza could have done without—when the men returned from a basketball game at the Y.

They tromped in through the front door, laughing and exchanging insults. Eliza recognized Jeremy’s voice immediately. His gaze swept the room. When he spotted Fin, his eyes lit up. He moved to her, pulling her into his arms for a kiss.

Gladys Bertholf, one of Ruby’s friends, hooted and clapped.

Jeremy and Fin together, as it should be…

The rightness of it all washed over Eliza. Somehow, while adding kiwi and blueberries to the tart, she’d turned that final corner. Though she’d convinced herself months earlier that she was over Jeremy, she realized a tiny bit of resentment and wishing for what might have been had lingered.

Still, as she walked home, she found it difficult to appreciate the beauty of the blue sky and the warmth of the sun against her face. For so many years, getting Jeremy to love her had been the goal.

Now, at thirty-one, she was starting over.

Eliza shook away the melancholy that wanted to settle. She had more important things to worry about than dating.

The need to reclaim what was hers slapped Eliza in the face when she approached her house. Kyle was bent over retrieving bags from the backseat of his truck. Beside him, a dark-haired girl in an unflattering puffy coat, watched.

Eliza slowed her steps. She could have stayed longer at the bridal shower. Perhaps, she should turn—

She dismissed the thought before it could fully form. Running had never been her style. Besides, Kyle had spotted her, lifting one hand in a gesture of greeting.

The girl turned then, too.

Offering a smile, Eliza swept forward to meet the second Kendrick to invade her home.