Finding Peace (Love's Compass #1) (9 page)

His eyes settled on Laurie. She was smiling as she spoke, nodding at something Grams had said. She had pulled some of her hair back, but even then ringlets escaped the metal clasp, curling at her cheeks. He cleared his throat and went to join them, accepting a firm handshake from Lance.

Tuck hooked an arm around Serenity’s neck and pulled her to him in a hug. “How’s the birthday girl doing?”

She ducked out from under his arm with a good-natured giggle. “I’m good. And yes, you guys may be excused to go play basketball.” She gave him a wink.

He chuckled. “Thank you.” He nudged Lance. “You up for it?”

“Definitely. Is Lexi joining us?”

“I’m sure. And I think Laurie is going to as well.”

Laurie raised an eyebrow and gave him a stern look. “If you really need someone who hasn’t played in years with a bum ankle, I guess I’ll come along. But you guys do realize that, if I beat you, it doesn’t say much about your skills, right?”

Lance laughed at that and shot Tuck a pointed look. “This is going to be interesting.”

They recruited Lexi and headed outside.

After splitting into teams, Tuck found himself on the same team as Lexi while Lance and Laurie were on the other.

Tuck watched as Laurie reached into her pocket and brought out a band. She gathered her hair into a high ponytail and secured it.

Her hair looked incredibly attractive like that. He took in that and the lip that she was worrying with her teeth. He stepped closer to her. “You know what they say about rubbing red hair for good luck.”

Laurie’s eyes widened. “It’s more of a copper and don’t you dare.”

“I think it qualifies,” he said, stretching a hand out towards her head in slow motion. The look on her face as she moved out of reach made it worthwhile.

Lexi jabbed him in the chest. “Come on, let’s get this started.”

The game went smoothly, and Laurie was pleased to find that her instincts kicked right in as soon as the ball was thrown to her. While her ankle bothered her a little, the brace kept it stable. She and Lance were a good team and she was relieved that Lexi was guarding her. She had no doubt that, if Tuck had the job, she wouldn’t have been able to see the basket, much less get the ball there with him looming over her head.

Everyone else gathered outside to watch. By the time the game was called, her ankle was starting to throb and she was feeling out of breath. In the end, her team lost, but it wasn’t by much. She sat down on the steps to rest her foot so she didn’t limp back into the house.

Lexi lowered herself onto the step next to her. “Nice game.”

“Thanks, you too. I haven’t had that much fun in a long time.”

“Then we’ll have to do it again sometime. Are we still going to see you this Sunday for dinner and the photo shoot?”

“Absolutely! I’m looking forward to it. I talked to Serenity earlier and we went over some clothing ideas. Can I bring anything to the dinner?”

“I think Mom’s making lasagna. Do you want to bring a salad?”

“Sure. I can do that. I’ve been craving cookies lately, but don’t dare make a batch just for me. Mind if I bring some?”

“Are you kidding? We may not let you leave if you do that.”

“Sounds like a plan. Thank you again for inviting me tonight. I hope Serenity had a good day.”

Lexi looked behind them as everyone else went inside again. “I hope she did, too.”

“I know it’s none of my business, but I sense some tension between you two. I’m not overly close to my sister, so I just wanted to say that I get it.”

“I appreciate that. It’s an old wound that never seems to heal. Every time it scabs over, one of us draws blood again.” Lexi glanced at the door to make sure it was still closed. “Gideon’s dad left before he was born. He and Serenity were so young and she was hurting so much. I was convinced that, once the baby was born, her boyfriend would come around and be a part of his son’s life.”

“And you tried to convince her of the same thing.”

“I got her hopes up. He didn’t come back. There’s such an age difference between us that she always insisted I tried to run her life anyway. She never forgave me for that.”

“Wow. I’m sorry.”

Lexi shrugged, but the sadness in her eyes revealed how much she did care. “We’ll iron it out eventually.”

“I hope so.”

“Does your ankle feel okay to go in?”

Laurie raised an eyebrow. “You’re very observant.” She started to stand and Lexi held a hand out to help her. “Thanks.”

They went back inside and visited for a short while before Laurie told them she was going to head home. Tuck offered to walk her out.

She rubbed her arms to ward off the cold air as she headed for her car. “I think we’re supposed to hit a new low temp tonight,” she commented. “I shouldn’t have left my jacket in the car.”

“You can borrow mine.” He had started to shrug his off, but she stopped him.

“I’ll be fine. Thank you, though.” She worked up the courage for her next words. “I think I’m going to pick that gun up this Saturday. I hate spending the money, but I think it would make me sleep better. Any suggestions on where the best place would be?”

“Did you decide on the Smith & Wesson?”

“Yes.”

“Let me make a couple of calls and I’ll get back to you tomorrow. Maybe we can go together Monday?”

Laurie tried her best to act neutral, but she wasn’t sure she had been able to mask the hope she felt with the idea. “I know you’ve been really busy. There’s no need for you to take time out of your day.”

“I don’t mind.”

Laurie couldn’t look away from his brown eyes. What she saw there made her inhale sharply. At that moment, she was sure that he felt the same attraction for her that she was feeling for him. The realization sent a shiver up her spine. Her gaze went to her hands. “Tuck, I…”

“Laurie.” When she looked at him again, there was a flash of something she couldn’t quite decipher. The awareness she thought she saw earlier was gone. “Don’t overthink this. Please. Let me go with you to get that gun. A friend helping a friend.”

She nodded and moved to get into her car. “I’ll wait to hear from you tomorrow, then.”

~

Laurie’s tail lights disappeared. Tuck could kick himself. When he said friends, the change in her demeanor was obvious. She had seemed so uncertain with his offer to take her to get the firearm, he had wanted to reassure her. Instead, he felt like he might have ruined something that hadn’t even had the chance to get started.

But wasn’t that what he had wanted? Avoid a relationship and keep everyone from getting hurt in the process? Then why was he feeling like such a jerk right now?

Clenching his fists, Tuck turned back to tell his family goodnight before heading home and nearly ran into someone. “Way to be subtle, Lexi.”

Her eyebrows flew upward. “Excuse me? Did you mess something up?”

Tuck glared at her. But it wasn’t her fault. “Yes, I sure did.”

“What happened?” Her playful expression turned serious.

He looked around to make sure no one else could hear and told her about his conversation with Laurie.

“You may be overthinking her reaction.”

Laughing dryly, Tuck shook his head. “That’s what I told her – that she was overthinking things.”

“Then it sounds like you’re a good fit for each other.” Lexi shrugged. “Seriously, Tuck. You’re sending mixed messages. Either pursue the lady or quit flirting and let her go.”

“Everything is always simple for you, isn’t it?”

Lexi snorted in an un-lady-like fashion. “Hardly. But I can tell you that, as a woman, she needs to know where you stand.”

“How am I supposed to know that after all of a couple of weeks?” Tuck groaned and tipped his head back to look up at the darkened sky. “I didn’t need this. I was doing fine before I met her.”

“And now?”

“Now I’m going insane.”

“Then take some space and figure it out, Tuck. Step back. Stay out of her world for a while and see what happens.” She gave him a pointed look.

“I don’t know if I could do that.”

“Why?”

“I would miss her too much.” As he said it, Tuck felt like he had been punched in the gut. It was true. It didn’t matter how hard he tried, he still ended up counting the hours and minutes until the next time he would get the chance to see Laurie again.

Lexi studied him for a moment. “I get why you’re so hesitant, Tuck. I do. But you’re making your decisions based on an experience that has nothing to do with Laurie. That’s not fair. To either of you.”

~

Friends. Laurie felt as though her heart had fallen into her shoes. She was such an idiot. Maybe she’d been reading him wrong. Maybe she had conjured interest where there was only kindness.

She blinked back tears. She had to get a grip. Tuck had only been trying to help her, to make sure she was safe. That was all. He was being a good guy and a good cop. Clearly, she was the one who had read more into it. How had she allowed herself to get to this point? She knew being on her own was better, anyway.

Now if only she could convince her heart of that.

Laurie spent most of the Monday morning torturing herself. One minute, she was staring at her phone waiting for Tuck’s name and number to appear. The next, she was tempted to call around and go get the gun herself.

By lunch, she had had enough of it. Locking up her studio, she walked down to Daisy’s. She seriously needed a change of scenery and some food. It was nearly one and the diner shouldn’t be too busy, which suited her fine.

Laurie stepped inside and Daisy was hurrying her way before she had a chance to spot an empty table.

“I’m glad to see you, Laurie! Come right in and have a seat.” She led the way to a quiet table by one of the windows looking out at the street. After placing a set of silverware on the surface, she retrieved a glass of ice water. “I’ll be back to get your order myself.”

“Thank you, Daisy.” Laurie smiled at the other woman’s antics. No one could say Daisy didn’t interact with her customers. Her stomach growling, she scanned the menu while she waited for her hostess to return. “I’ll have a cup of your vegetable beef soup and half of a turkey sandwich, please.”

“Of course! Let me go put that order in for you.”

Daisy was gone only a couple of moments before she returned, sitting in the chair across from Laurie.

“How have you been feeling, dear?” Daisy reached out to pat her hand.

“Fine. Just fine. My ankle is nearly healed up.” Which was the truth. Even after playing basketball last night, it hadn’t given her any trouble. She made sure to wrap it every day and that made the difference. She nodded toward a nearby table. “I’m glad the blood came out. I felt bad making a mess here. But I’m thankful to you for coming to help me.”

“Have they found the man who robbed your studio?”

“No, not yet. They have no evidence to work with.” Laurie shrugged. “They may never solve the case.”

“Well, I was happy to see you come in today because I needed to speak with you.” The serious note in Daisy’s voice put Laurie on alert. “Early this morning, I had a gentleman come in for breakfast. He ordered some French toast with a side of bacon and a scrambled egg.” Daisy looked at the ceiling as she ticked off the breakfast ingredients. “He could put the coffee away. Six cups in the two hours he sat here.”

Laurie held in a sigh. “That is a lot of coffee. What about him, Daisy?”

“Oh? Yes! He was asking all kinds of questions about your business. How you found your customers, where you advertised, how you kept track of returning customers. I didn’t have any answers for him.” Daisy motioned to the window. “He kept watching and I thought maybe he was waiting for you to open your studio. But when he finally paid his bill and left, he went the other direction down State.”

Laurie couldn’t put her finger on why, but the hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she felt a knot in her stomach. “Can you tell me what he looked like?”

“Pretty average. Dark hair and eyes, probably five feet seven.” Daisy shrugged. “I thought he might be a potential customer for you.”

Laurie seriously doubted that, but didn’t want to alarm Daisy. Why make the kind woman feel badly for trying to help? “If he is, I’m sure he’ll be back. Thanks for letting me know. I appreciate that.”

“You bet. Let me go check on your lunch.” The woman hurried away and she glanced out the window, half expecting to see someone watching her. The sidewalk was clear, but she shivered as tingles traveled down her spine.

~

Tuck had awakened that morning, intent on calling around about the gun that Laurie wanted to buy. Before he even had the chance, he was pulled into work.

A three-car accident had resulted in two men fist fighting over who had caused the wreck in the first place. There had been a lot of people to interview and photos to take. Thankfully, no one had been seriously injured. But he had a feeling the men were going to be filing assault charges against each other.

It was almost five before he even had a chance to breathe. He wrote down the names and numbers of the sporting goods stores in town. Letting Lance know he was going on a short break, he went out to his truck to make the calls.

Once he had finished, he dialed Laurie’s number. It rang four times before her voice finally came over the line.

“Hi.”

“Hey.” Yeah, this wasn’t awkward at all after yesterday. “I’m sorry I didn’t call sooner. It has been insane at work and I’ve been swamped. I did get a chance to locate the gun you want. You’ll be able to get it here in town.”

“It’s okay, I understand. Thank you for calling around.”

Tuck had a hard time picking out Laurie’s words due to some background noise. “Where are you?”

“Sorry, I know it’s loud. I’m at the duck pond. I have a lot of little feathered friends here talking to me,” she said with a chuckle.

Tuck pictured the pond. It was man-made with a fountain in the middle. There were a lot of ducks that called the small oasis their home. With a worn dirt path that went around the water, and numerous benches situated under trees, it was a peaceful place to visit. He had spent some time there himself when he needed to get out and think. “Good choice. It’s beautiful.”

“Yes, it is.” She paused.

“What’s up? Is everything okay?”

It was a moment before her soft voice came over the receiver. “I had lunch down at Daisy Belle’s Diner. She told me there was a man there this morning asking all kinds of questions about me and how I run my business. She thought he was a potential customer, but he never came by.”

Laurie’s words made Tuck’s mind race. Yeah, it might have been a random thing. It all depended on what questions were asked. And even then, his instincts told him that he needed to take this seriously. “Laurie, how long are you going to be at the duck pond?”