“The jerk,” she muttered. “He did that on purpose.”
The doorbell rang and Joy went rigid. If it was Lonny again, she didn’t want him seeing her like this. She was an emotional mess. And even though she preferred to blame him for that, she knew she couldn’t.
“Who is it?” she called out.
“Petal Pushers,” Jerry Hawkins shouted back.
The local florist shop! Surprised, Joy unlatched the dead bolt and threw open the door to discover Jerry standing on the front step, holding a lovely floral arrangement protected by cellophane. “Mom asked me to drop these by,” he explained.
Sally owned the shop and her son made deliveries after school.
“Who’d be sending me flowers?” Joy asked. Considering her previous thoughts, she was all too conscious of the irony.
“Mom said they’re from a man.”
Joy’s eyes widened as she accepted the arrangement. It consisted of pink lilies, bright yellow African daisies, sweet Williams and gladioli, interspersed with greenery and beautifully displayed in an old-fashioned watering can.
“Do I need to sign anything?” she asked.
“No,” Jerry was quick to tell her. “Enjoy.”
“I will, thank you.” She closed the door with her foot and carried the large arrangement into the kitchen, placing it on the counter. As she unpinned the card from the bright yellow ribbon, she shook her head. The flowers had to be from Josh.
She was right. The card read: I’m looking forward to this weekend. Josh.
Until that very afternoon, Joy had been looking forward to seeing him, too. No—she still was, but not with the same unalloyed pleasure. She put the formal arrangement next to the glass jar filled with the wildflowers Lonny had brought her. Once again, the irony didn’t escape her. Businessman and rancher. One as polished and smooth as the satin ribbon wrapped about the watering can and the other as unsophisticated as…the plastic grocery bag in which he’d presented his flowers.
These were the two men in her life. They didn’t know it, but they were fast coming to a showdown. Josh would arrive for the school carnival and, sure as anything, Lonny would be in town at the same time. Already her stomach was in knots. Joy had no idea what to do; the only person she could talk to was Letty.
She waited until she’d calmed down before she reached for the phone and hit speed dial to connect with Letty, who answered on the first ring.
“Joy, it’s so good to hear from you,” she said enthusiastically.
“Can you talk for a minute?” Joy asked, too unnerved to bother with the normal pleasantries.
“Of course.” Letty’s voice was concerned. “Is everything all right?”
“No…I don’t know,” she mumbled before blurting out, “Lonny came by earlier.”
Letty’s hesitation was long enough for Joy to notice.
“He brought me a bouquet of wildflowers and, Letty, it was just so sweet of him.”
“Lonny brought you flowers,” Letty repeated, as if she had trouble believing it herself. “Really?”
“Yes. I’m looking at them right now.” She didn’t mention the second bouquet she was looking at, too. Sighing, Joy sank into a kitchen chair and propped her elbow on the table. She supported her forehead with one hand as she closed her eyes, suddenly feeling tired. “I should’ve told him Josh was coming. I wanted to, but I didn’t.” Granted, it would’ve been a bit awkward when she was in his arms kissing him. Not that she planned to mention that scene in the kitchen.
“Joy,” her friend gently chastised, “don’t you realize how much my brother cares about you?”
She swallowed hard because she did know and it distressed her. “I sort of guessed…. The last couple of times we’ve met, he’s been so cordial and polite. He’s even told me he feels sorry about our disagreement, and I never thought he’d do anything like that.”
Letty released a deep sigh and said in a soft voice, “I didn’t, either. Oh, dear, I feel terrible.”
Joy’s eyes flew open. “Is it the pregnancy?”
“I’m perfectly healthy. No, this has to do with Lonny. He…asked for my help.”
“Your help in what?” Joy was already confused and this wasn’t making things any easier.
“My brother asked for my advice on how to win you back and…I’m the one who suggested he bring you flowers.”
“Oh.”
“Lonny’s always cared about you, only he was too stubborn to admit it. Now it’s hitting him between the eyes. Josh wants you back, too, and you’re going to have to make a decision. Either way, someone’s going to be disappointed.”
“You’re right.”
Silence fell between them as they both mulled over the significance of this. Letty spoke first.
“Listen, Joy, you’re my friend but Lonny’s my brother, and I don’t think I’m the best person to be talking to about this,” she said.
“There isn’t anyone else,” Joy cried. “Letty, please, just hear me out?”
“I’ll try, but you need to know I’m not exactly a neutral observer. It’s a mess,” she said, “and to some extent I blame myself.”
“You didn’t do anything.”
“I did, though,” Letty confessed, sounding thoroughly miserable. “I encouraged Lonny, built up the idea of a relationship with you. You know I think the world of you and in my enthusiasm—well, never mind. None of that’s important now.”
“Oh, dear,” Joy murmured. Things seemed to get more complicated all the time.
“Do you still have feelings for my brother?” Letty asked, her voice elevated with what could have been hope.
That was the million-dollar question. “I…I’m not sure.” At the moment, Joy was too bewildered to know how she felt about either man.
“Okay, fair enough,” Letty said, exhaling a lengthy sigh.
“The thing is, Josh is coming this weekend.”
“Believe me, I’m well aware of that,” Letty said.
Joy pressed the phone harder against her ear. “I don’t want any trouble.”
“What do you mean?”
“Lonny’s going to the carnival, isn’t he?”
“Of course.”
“Is there any way you could distract him?” Joy pleaded. “Keep him away until after Josh leaves?” As soon as she said the words, she realized how ridiculous that sounded—as if these two men were a couple of bulls or stallions that had to be separated to prevent a dangerous confrontation.
Letty gave a short, cheerless laugh. “Lonny won’t cause any trouble, if that’s what you’re thinking,” she assured Joy. “That’s not his style. Besides, he already knows.”
“Lonny knows? About Josh?”
“Yes, I told him.”
Involuntarily her foot started tapping. “That explains it, then.”
“Explains what?”
“The flowers, the apology, everything.” So Josh’s pending visit was the reason for Lonny’s abrupt change in behavior.
“You’re wrong,” Letty insisted. “He came to talk to me before he knew about Josh.”
“He did?” That didn’t really improve the situation; however, at least it cleared up his motives. “Oh…”
“What?” Letty asked.
“Nothing. Just…he has a wonderful idea for the ranch. He wanted to hear my opinion before he brought it to you and Chase. I think it’s brilliant.”
“What is it?”
“I can’t tell you. Lonny will when he’s ready. I like it, though, I really do. I even told him I’d be willing to help. I was sincere about that.” However, if her relationship with Josh progressed the way she’d once hoped, that would be impossible. For the first time since he’d contacted her, Joy regretted that he was coming to Red Springs. His timing couldn’t have been worse—or better. The problem was, she couldn’t decide which.
Letty added, “Don’t hurt my brother, Joy. He might be the most stubborn man you’ve ever met in your life, but he’s decent and hardworking and he genu
inely cares for you.”
“I know,” Joy said, and she meant it. “I’ll talk to him tomorrow.” She needed time to work out what to say, and yet, no matter how prepared she was, this would be one of the most difficult conversations she’d ever had.
Seventeen
T he next evening, Lonny reflected that his day had gone very well indeed. He’d awakened in a fine mood and it was still with him. He felt inspired, motivated and challenged, all at once. His goal was to win Joy’s heart, and he believed he’d made some strides toward it. He wasn’t going to let some fast-talking businessman steal her away, even if he was an old boyfriend. Lonny didn’t know exactly what Josh did for a living but picturing him as some high-and-mighty company mogul suited his purposes.
Joy loved him. She might not realize it yet, but she would soon. His mission was to convince her that she belonged right here in Red Springs—with him.
Lonny hadn’t fully appreciated his sister’s dating advice until yesterday. Those wildflowers had worked better than he’d ever imagined. He could almost see Joy’s heart melt the instant she laid eyes on that bunch of flowers.
After dinner, feeling good about life in general,
Lonny sat out on his porch, in the rocking chair that had once been his father’s. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d lazed away an evening like this. He sometimes joined Letty and Chase on the porch over at their place, but he seldom sat here on his own. Music sounded faintly from inside the barn, where Tom was practicing his dance moves. Given all the time and effort the boy had put into getting ready for this dance, he should be pretty confident by now.
Lonny relaxed and linked his fingers behind his head. He was feeling downright domestic. He’d waited a lot of years to consider marriage. He hadn’t been in any rush to settle down, because marriage meant responsibilities, and he already had enough of those.
Funny, he didn’t think like that anymore. He was actually looking forward to living the rest of his life with Joy. Marriage to her was bound to be interesting, not to mention passionate and satisfying in every conceivable way.
So far, his sister’s advice to “go slow” had been right on the money. Come Friday, he’d be in town for the carnival and later the dance. He could visualize it now. By this time tomorrow night, he’d be holding her hand and later he’d be dancing with her, and that was all it would take to tell everyone in Red Springs how he felt about Joy Fuller.
A cloud of swirling dust alerted him to the fact that there was a car coming down the long driveway. Lonny stood, and when he did, Joy’s PT Cruiser came into view. A sensation of happiness stole over him. The last person he’d expected to see here, at his place, was Joy, and at the same time, she was the one person he most wanted it to be.
He’d hurried down the steps and was walking across the yard as she parked. At that moment, Tom stuck his head out of the barn. He smiled at Lonny and gave him a thumbs-up, then returned to his practicing.
Lonny greeted Joy from halfway across the yard. “This is a pleasant surprise.”
Her eyes didn’t quite meet his. “Would it be all right if we talked?”
“It would be more than all right.” With his hand at the small of her back, he steered her toward the porch. “My parents used to sit out here in the evenings. I’d consider it an honor to have you join me.” He hoped she picked up on his subtle hint about the two of them sitting together in the space once reserved for a long-married couple….
Lonny reached for the second rocking chair and dragged it closer to his own. “Can I get you anything? A pillow? Something to drink?” he asked, minding his manners in a way that would’ve made his mother proud.
“Nothing, thanks,” she said before sitting down.
She seemed nervous, but Lonny wanted her to know there wasn’t any reason to be. He sat next to her and they both rocked for a few minutes.
“It’s quite a coincidence that you should stop by,” he commented casually. “I was just thinking about you.”
“You were?”
“Yup, I spent most of my day thinking about you.” He’d dreamed about her, too, and awakened with the warmest, most delicious feeling. He couldn’t recall everything his dream had entailed, but he remembered the gist of it—they were married and there were three youngsters running around. Two boys and a cute little girl. He was feeding the youngest in a high chair, while Joy was busy getting dinner on the table for the rest of the family. She interrupted what she was doing to kiss him—and then the alarm blared.
She frowned. “Lonny, please just listen.”
“I’ll listen to anything you want to tell me,” he said, matching the seriousness of her expression.
She closed her eyes and kept them tightly shut. Lonny turned his chair so they sat facing each other, their knees touching. He took both of her hands and held them in his.
“Joy?” he asked. “What’s wrong?”
She opened her eyes and gave him a tentative smile. “You know Josh Howell’s coming to town, don’t you? My college boyfriend?”
He nodded. “Letty mentioned it.” He didn’t care. Joy loved him—didn’t she?—and he loved her. As far as he was concerned, the other man was a minor inconvenience.
“But—”
Rather than listen to her extol Josh’s virtues, or even say his name, he leaned forward and gently pressed his lips to hers. Her mouth softened and instantly molded and shaped to his, as if she wanted this as badly as he did. Cradling the back of her neck, he deepened the kiss. The tantalizing sensations tormented and delighted him. Joy, too, he guessed, because after a moment, she twisted her head, breaking the contact.
“I need to talk to you and you’re making it impossible,” she moaned.
“Good.” He wanted her as caught up in this whirlwind of feeling as he was. More importantly, he wanted her to understand that they were meant to be together, the two of them. Josh might be her past, but he was her future.
“Please, Lonny, just listen, all right?”
“If you insist.” But then he brought his lips back to hers. This second round was even more delectable than the first….
“Please stop! I can’t think when you’re kissing me,” she pleaded and seemed to have difficulty breathing normally.
She wasn’t the only one. “It’s hard to refuse you anything, but I don’t know if I can stop.”
“Try. For the sake of my sanity, would you kindly try?”
He pushed his chair back and motioned for her to stand. When she did, his arms circled her waist and he pulled her into his lap. Her eyes widened with surprise. She hardly seemed aware that her arms had slipped around his neck. She stared at him. “Why did you do that?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” He longed to have her close, needed her close. She must know how deeply their kisses had affected him.
“I have something important to tell you,” she said but without the conviction of earlier.
“Okay,” he murmured as he spread soft kisses down the side of her neck. She sighed and inclined her head. Apparently what she had to tell him wasn’t that important, after all.
“I’ve reached a decision….” Her voice held a soft, beseeching quality.
A sense of exhilaration and triumph shot through him. “Okay, no kissing for…” He checked his watch. “Five minutes, and then all bets are off.” He returned his mouth to the hollow of her throat, savoring the feel of her smooth skin.
Joy moved her head to one side. “That’s kissing,” she said breathlessly.
“I’m staying clear of your lips. Tell me what’s so important that you had to drive all the way out here.”
She caught his earlobe between her teeth. Hot sensation coursed through him like a powerful electric shock. She was quickly driving him beyond reason, and in self-defense, he seized her by the waist. To his surprise, his hands came upon bare flesh. Her light sweater had ridden up just enough to reveal her midriff. Her skin felt so smooth, so warm…. He’d never intended to take things this far, but now the
re was no stopping him. He slid his hand higher and cupped her breast. As his palm closed around it, he heard her soft intake of breath.
Joy buried her face in his neck and took several deep breaths. His own breathing had grown labored.
“You keep doing that and I’m going to embarrass us both,” he said.
She instantly went still.
“Joy,” he said, although he found it difficult to speak at all. “I don’t care why you’re here or what you came to tell me. I love—”
She brought her index finger to his lips. “Don’t say it.” Pain flashed from her eyes.
“Okay.” He sobered. “I think you’d better explain.” He made an effort to focus on her words.
“Josh Howell is coming tomorrow,” she said.
“Yes, I know. We talked about that. I’m not worried.”
“I’ve decided not to renew my teaching contract. I’m moving back to the Puget Sound area.”
A sense of unreality gripped him. He blinked. “What?”
“I—I’ve decided not to renew my teaching contract.”
When the words did sink in, he stared into her eyes, but she couldn’t hold his gaze.
“Say something,” she pleaded. “Don’t look at me like—like you don’t believe I’ll do it. I’ve made my decision.”
“Okay,” he said, his thoughts chaotic. “That decision is yours to make. I don’t want you to go, but I can’t kidnap you and keep you in the root cellar until you change your mind.”
She frowned unhappily. “I know this upsets you. I haven’t told anyone else yet. I wanted to tell you first.”
“Any particular reason you’re confiding in me?”
She nodded several times. “Considering everything that’s happened, I felt I should.”
“So you’re in love with Josh?”
Joy bit her lip. “I don’t know.”
“But you’ve already decided you’re leaving with him?” Lonny asked, not understanding her logic. Joy didn’t seem to notice that he was still caressing her back.
“I won’t leave right away.”
“Of course,” he agreed quietly.
“Josh and I…we’ve been talking and e-mailing and—” She let the rest fade.