Always For You (Always Love Book 1) (8 page)

For a minute, Meghan stood silent, indecision written all over her face. My stomach was churning; the last thing I wanted was for Maureen to start dating other guys. I knew I should’ve come clean earlier. I opened my mouth to say something—I wasn’t sure what—but before I could, Meghan grabbed my arm.

“Can you take those dishes to the sink, please? I’ll bring the last few.”

I pivoted back toward the kitchen, irked at the direction the night was taking. I’d hoped meeting Maureen’s family and friends would move us closer together, not convince her to start running wild with other guys.

“I’m sorry about that.” Meghan came up next to me and slid two more plates into the sink. “But trust me. If you come at Reenie now with a big declaration of how you feel, she’ll never believe it. You’re going to have to show her how you feel.”

“Uh-huh, and you want to tell me how to do that? We’ve known each other for almost ten years, and all that time I’ve been trying to show her. It hasn’t worked. I’m thinking the time has come to be brutally honest.”

“Sure, that’s one way to go.” She dumped forks into the silverware tray of the dishwasher. “If you want her to doubt everything you say and think you’re only asking her out because she’s about to start seeing other guys. Yup, that’s great. Try that.”

“Then what do I do?” I dropped the last plate into the dishwasher and shook my wet hands over the sink. “You tell me. How do I make her believe me?”

“Start small. Touch her, just a little. You know . . . brush back her hair. Put your arm around her. Hug her a little longer.” Meghan shut the door to the dishwasher and turned it on. “And for the love of all holiness, stop talking about what great friends you are. Banish the word ‘friend’ from your vocabulary, when it comes to Maureen.” She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. “And then, when you’ve opened her mind to the possibility that you’ve wanted more from her all along, then and only then can you tell her how you feel. Got it?”

“Yeah, I got it. But what am I going to do about her dating? Just sit back and wait for her to get it out of her system?”

Meghan shook her head. “No, you . . .” Her eyes narrowed, and her lips curled into a smile that kind of scared the shit out of me. “You know, Flynn seemed pretty worried about Maureen dating. It would only make sense, since you’re living there, for you to offer to look out for her. Meet her dates. Make sure they’re all good enough for her. Don’t you think?”

I wasn’t sure I followed her. “Okay. I guess. But how’s that going to help me?”

She sighed impatiently. “It’s going to help you know who she’s seeing and how you can work against him. You’ll have the inside track on the competition.” She squeezed my shoulder. “Trust me, Smith. It’s going to work. I’ve got your back, and I’ll help you. But you need to follow my lead, okay?”

“Whatever you say.” I nodded. “But what if she really likes one of these other guys? What do I do then?”

“She’s not going to fall in love with anyone else, dude, because she’s in love with you. She’s convinced herself that starting to see other men will help her get over you. It won’t. And you’ll be there all along, reminding her—subtly—why she loves you. Now would you carry in some of these coffee cups?”

The conversation had shifted by the time Meghan and I brought in the coffee and a plate of cookies. Ali was telling a story about riding the subway in New York, and her brother was laughing.

“I wish I could see you in the big city, Ali. Sometimes it scares me to think of you and Bridge wandering around up there.”

Ali stuck out her tongue at him. “Like you’d do any better. You’re a small-town Georgia farm boy, just like I’m a down-home girl. But I like New York. It’s more manageable when you just take it neighborhood by neighborhood. I love where our little apartment is. I have a grocery store right downstairs, and Bridge and I do our shopping every day. Then there’s a vegetable market at the corner, and a coffee shop. Oh, and we’ve even found a wonderful homeschool group.” She lifted one shoulder. “I’ll always be that down-home Georgia girl. This is my home.” Smiling at Flynn, she lifted their linked hands to her cheek. “But wherever this guy goes, that’s home, too. It’s all about the compromise.”

“That’s exactly it.” Flynn kissed her cheek. “But you get me, Sam, right? You worry about your little sister. Don’t you think I have the right to be concerned about Maureen dating strange guys?”

Reenie groaned. “Oh, give it up, Flynn. I’m not your little sister. I’ve been fighting your battles for you as long as I can remember. And Sam knows I’m capable of taking care of myself. Right, Sam?”

Sam’s eyes darted from Flynn to Maureen, like an animal cornered by two predators. I decided to come to his rescue.

“Hey, I had a thought.”

Everyone looked my way except for Maureen, who stared down at her coffee cup.

“I’m living upstairs from Maureen. I can check out all her dates, make sure nothing and no one’s weird. And if they know I’m keeping my eye on them, they might be less likely to do anything they shouldn’t.” I patted Reenie’s shoulder. “I’ll be like your live-in big brother.”

From her seat at the other end of the table, Meghan choked on a cookie, making a noise somewhere a growl and a cough.
Shit
. I’d already broken rule number one.

“Not that I think of myself as your brother or anything.” I amended my statement hastily. “Because I don’t. But I could still screen the dates.”

“If I don’t want Flynn playing babysitter, what makes you think I want you, Smith? Despite what everyone here seems to think, I can run my own life and make my own decisions.”

“But we’d all feel much better, knowing Smith’s on the case.” Flynn nodded. “I mean, Reen, I’d hate to tell Mom you’re planning to meet up with strange guys. She’d freak out.”

Maureen leveled a steely gaze at her brother. “You really think you can use tattling to Mom as a way to manipulate me? Get real. Two can play at that game.”

Flynn smiled, his eyes crinkling in the corners. “Oh, sis, all my dirty deeds are out in the open, and Mom knows the details. Whereas I’m pretty sure she still doesn’t know what happened to the taillight on her car back when you were a junior in high school.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Let Smith meet all your dates. Just at the beginning, so if you disappear, he can give the cops a description of the guy who’s chopping you up in his basement. Please. Humor your poor brother.”

Maureen sat still for a few minutes. I could practically see her mind working, and I held my breath. Finally, she sat back in her chair with a huff. “Fine. Whatever. But you have to promise not to mess anything up, and no matter what, I get the final word.” She cocked her head at me. “Are we clear?”

“Crystal.” I nodded, forcing a sober expression. “Believe me, Reen. My only interest in this whole thing is making sure you make up with the right man. The one who’s perfect for you. The one who’ll love you forever.” I caught her eye and held it. “Whoever that might be.”

O
NE OF THE FIRST THINGS
I’d fallen in love with at my new home was the side porch. It was a little section separate from the wide one in front, only reachable from the outside of the house. Just about wide enough for two rocking chairs, I imagined that over the years, it had given courting couples some extra privacy, and maybe tired mothers a place to nurse babies away from the bustle of the family at large.

My mom had given me a big wicker rocker from home when I’d moved in, and that was where I was sitting now, relaxing with my feet up on the railing of my private porch, looking over the green of late summer in Georgia. My nearest neighbors were the Carpenters, and they had a huge vegetable garden. From here, I could just about see the winding pole beans, the branchy tomato plants and the herb border. The thoughts of being able to grab a tomato from just outside my kitchen door inspired me to plan my own garden for next year.

“I could do a fall planting, though.” I cast my eyes upwards, trying to remember what plants Ali used to talk about growing in the autumn. Seemed to me squash and maybe some lettuces were in the mix.

“You know, talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity.” Ali came around from the front of the house, grinning at me as I startled a little.

“Maybe I wasn’t talking to myself. Maybe I was . . . communing with nature.” I arched one eyebrow her way. “And you interrupted.”

“Communing with nature sounds like a fancy way of talking to yourself.” She dropped onto the top step of my porch. “You could fit another chair up here, I’m thinking.”

“I could, but since it’s
my
spot for quiet and contemplation, I feel one is perfectly fine.”

“Hmmm. What good’s a courting porch with just one chair?” She studied my rocker thoughtfully. “Though you know, that’s almost big enough for two, provided the guy isn’t huge. For instance, Mason would be too big to sit there with you.”

“Which is fine, because why the hell would I want to sit here with Mason?”

Ali continued talking as though I hadn’t interrupted. “But it’d be okay for him and Rilla, since she’s so tiny. Well, not so much now, but she was and she will be again. But you’re not tiny—”

“Thanks, Ali. So glad you could stop by today. You’re always good for my self-esteem.”

“Would you shut up? I mean, you’re the perfect size to cuddle in this chair with an average-sized guy. Like, say, Tim Clark.” She leaned back with one hand on the porch floor. “Speaking of Tim, what’s happening there?”

I rolled my eyes. “Nice segue. You’ll be happy to know that your little plan went off without a hitch. I went into the school to pick up Graham, thanks to you and my older sister and your conniving ways.” I paused a beat to let that sink in. My sister Iona apparently been dragged into Operation Maureen Match Up. She’d called yesterday, asking if I could possibly pick up her son Graham from school on my way home from work, because the baby had a cold and she didn’t want to take him out. Not that I minded helping, of course, but it was unusual for her to call me before our mother. I’d smelled a rat, no matter how much she protested to the contrary.

“And as arranged, Meghan just happened to be there waiting with Graham, along with the new SLP. Meghan introduced us, and she must’ve prepared him that this was a set-up meeting, because he immediately asked if he could call me some time.”

Ali shrugged. “Or he was overcome by your beauty and lust for life and couldn’t wait another minute to make you his own.”

“He called me to see if I wanted to get coffee some time. That’s hardly making me his own.”

“It’s the first step. And it’s a good one.” Ali nodded, satisfied. “When are you going?”

“Actually, we already went. Today over his lunch break, I met him at Kenny’s.”

“I thought you’d promised Flynn no dates before Smith checked out the guy. If you weren’t at the clinic, Smith had to be, so how did that work out?”

I shrugged. “It was just coffee, Ali. And Meghan knows Tim, so I figured I was safe. Don’t go ratting me out to my brother, please. I don’t need him making a fuss.”

“No, I won’t say a word. So tell me. How did it go? Did sparks fly? Are you seeing him again?”

“Well . . .” I hesitated. “It went fine. Sparks didn’t exactly fly. I mean, he’s a nice guy, seems passionate about his work, loves his grandmother and likes living in Burton. But it wasn’t like I wanted to jump his bones right there in the diner.”

Ali nodded. “Sometimes the spark takes time. It doesn’t always happen that you meet the guy and think,
I can’t wait to do him seven ways to Sunday
. Look at Meghan and Sam. They hated each other the first two times they met.”

“Yeah, maybe. But with those two, I think they both felt the spark but didn’t want to, so they fought it. And that’s why they claimed they hated each other. Hate, love . . . both are passionate emotions. Totally the opposite of indifference.”

“Did you feel indifferent toward Tim?”

I chewed the side of my lip. “No, not really. I know it’s crazy, but I could see him being a good father. A decent husband. I think he’s the type of guy who’d settle down with a woman and start raising family. I get the feeling he’s ready to start the next phase of his life, and I’d fit pretty well into the spot he’s designated as ‘appropriate wife’.”