Chapter Five
Lucy
I was so done with that diner by the time I walked out. Thank God Kevin let me off earlier than I was expecting. Busy days like this were great because my apron would be full of wads of cash in tips, but my feet ached, and I was ready to soak them in a tub full of hot water and bath salts. I never did ask Angie about the dating world she lived in, nor did I try anything else with the good-looking man with hazel eyes. I figured I would know when I was ready to date and that no one, not even my own sister, should pressure me into something like that.
Sighing with relief, I pulled into the driveway of my little one-bedroom home. It wasn’t much to shake a stick at, but it held wonderful memories for me and had a beautiful backyard view. I noticed something different, though. There was someone unloading a car into the house next to mine.
It’d been vacant for a few months after the owners moved, and I’d talked to them when they had decided to rent it. I told them I was wary about having strangers in and out of that house all the time, especially since I was living alone now. They understood and told me they’d take into consideration applicants before they put someone next to a single woman, and boy, did they ever keep their promise.
The man unloading the truck was very nice to look at. He had dark hair painted to his face with sweat, and his stature was tall and broad. I watched his arms flex their strength whenever he’d pick up a box, but when a little girl darted from the house to grab something from the back, I couldn’t help but giggle. Her beautiful black curls were flying everywhere because of the wind, and I decided to get out and introduce myself.
I mean, who wouldn’t be curious as to what the new neighbors were like? Obviously, the little girl was full of spunk and attitude. She kept shoving past the man’s leg, and he’d just look down and smile at her. She couldn’t have been any older than three or four, and as I walked across the lawn, his eyes raised up and hooked onto me.
The sweat from hauling boxes had caused his T-shirt to cling to his muscles, displaying every ripple and divot the fabric clung to. His chiseled abdomen flexed with a small laugh when the little girl pushed by again, but his deep blue eyes sizzled with secrets and salaciousness. His large hands clamped down onto another box, and he took it inside quickly before he came back out with the little girl.
“Hi!” she said.
“Well, hello there,” I said, smiling.
“I’m Jenna. What’s your name?”
“Lucy,” I said. “It’s very nice to meet you, Jenna.”
“Daddy, I did the in-too-duce.”
“Yes, you did, princess. Good job.” His voice was deep and smooth, like melted dark chocolate running over the skin of your stomach. His smile gleamed when he looked at his daughter, and their relation was without doubt. They had the same eyes and style of hair. The sweat was drying on his forehead, curling his hair back onto itself, and something in my gut urged me to reach out and touch it. His strong jaw showcased the beautiful smile that followed his daughter all the way back into the house, and as he turned to watch her, he revealed the sculpted muscles of his strong, rippling back.
He was an incredibly handsome man, and he was going to be my neighbor.
“I’m Jason,” he said.
“Lucy.”
“I know,” he said with a grin, “and it’s a beautiful name.”
“Thanks. So, what brings you to this small Washington town?” I asked.
“Just lookin’ for a nice change. Seemed to have found it here. I’m a mechanic not too far up the road. What about you? You always lived here?”
“Yep. Born and bred. I’m a waitress at the diner in town. Kevin’s Place,” I said.
“Then, they raise them beautiful here, I see. I bet the men come in just to take a look at the view.”
His eyes raked up and down my body, and for a split second, I wondered if his wife knew he talked to women like that. His eyes stopped to gaze at my breasts before he finally made it back up to my eyes, and something inside of me grew hot with anger. I bet if she knew, she wouldn’t be too happy. Instead of making a scene, I steered the conversation in a direction that would provide no room for flirtatious advances.
“How old is Jenna?” I asked.
“Three. She’ll be four just after the turn of the year.”
“She’s beautiful,” I said. “I bet she looks a lot like her mother.”
“You have no idea,” he said. There was a twinge of something in his voice, but I couldn’t quite place it. It seemed almost familiar, but I shook the thought from my head when the little girl with the beautiful curls in her hair came bouncing out of the house again.
“When’s my bed stuff gonna be here again?” she asked.
“Tomorrow, sweetie. We’re campin’ out tonight, remember?”
“Pizza!” she exclaimed.
I couldn’t help but giggle at her excitement over pizza. The way his entire demeanor changed from flirting married man to devoted father was a shift that brought me a bit of comfort. Maybe he wouldn’t openly flirt with other women in front of his daughter. That would provide a much better role model than the one I’d just experienced. Jenna picked up another stuffed animal and rushed back into the house, and my eyes followed her until she disappeared behind the door.
“She seems like a handful,” I said.
“A massive ball of energy that stole my heart the day she was born.”
“Tell your wife I keep wine stocked in case she needs a drink.” I figured my comment would get some sort of a rise out of him, but when I panned my gaze over, I found a very distant look on his face. I recognized that look. That was the look of someone who had lost a person who was dear to him. My heart reached out to him, and suddenly, I wanted to tell him I understood. I didn’t know what it was like to be left by someone, but I knew what it was like to permanently lose someone. I had this urge to put my hand on his arm and let him know he wasn’t alone, that I was here if he wanted to talk about it.
But all I did was stand there and wait for the look to pass off his face.
“I’m not married, and it’s not really somethin’ I talk about,” he said.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up any bad memories,” I said.
“No worries.”
“Daddy! When’s the pizza coming?”
“When I can get it ordered, princess!” he said.
“Well, when’s that?”
I threw my head back in laughter just before the chilly autumn wind kicked back up. The smell of apples wafted into the yards, and that’s when it hit me.
“Oh! Beyond where our yards stop are tons of wild-growing apple trees. Wanted to let you know they’re safe to eat, in case Jenna comes back with one in her mouth.”
“Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind,” he said. The light in his eyes had dissipated and gone was the flirtatious advances he’d been making earlier, so I figured I’d overstayed my welcome. I nodded before I bunched my arms up to brace for the second flutter of wind, and then I nodded my head as he grabbed another box.
“Well, I live just next door, and I promise I’m quiet. If you need anything, just knock on the door and ask.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, thanks.”
I made my way back to my house and stopped on my porch to look at him one last time. His lightly tanned skin was not something he’d be able to keep up in Washington, and it made me curious as to where he was from. How long had he been a mechanic? What happened to Jenna’s mom? Did he plan on staying long?
But when he came back out to the driveway and peeled his sweating shirt off to trade it for another one, I couldn’t help sitting on my porch and staring. The way his skin wrapped around his muscles beckoned to my fingertips, and for the first time in years, I felt a tingling sensation rise up in my stomach. There was no denying how handsome of a man he was, but I knew I was in trouble the moment he looked back over to my house and connected his eyes again with me.
I could’ve sworn I saw a smirk appear on his lips.