Sweet Serenade (Riverbend Romance 3) (7 page)

“Didn’t you see the posted sign? Use at your own risk. Riverbend assumes no liability for anyone using these ponds.”

“I think I’d rather swim in the river, myself.”

Reed’s grip on her hand tightened. “That could be arranged.”

Carly nestled against him, pulling their joint hands behind her. By the surprise on Reed’s face, he hadn’t expected her ploy. They stared at each other from mere centimeters apart. “Want to?” she whispered at last.

He swallowed hard. “Maybe not tonight.”

Chapter 8

“You’re a million miles away.” Evan sculled his canoe closer to Reed’s.

Reed blinked, bringing the tourist in his bow back into focus. Paying customers should get his undivided attention. What he wouldn’t give for a few river-rafting gigs right now, though. There’d be no time to daydream about Carly while riding a flexible bronco down the river.

“You been seeing Carly?”

He shot a furtive glance at his buddy. What would he see? Mockery? Jealousy? No, only mild curiosity. That was a help. “Yeah. Some.” Every evening after work all week.

Evan chuckled. “You’ve got it bad.”

Reed shrugged, dug his paddle in harder, and pulled away from Evan. This was all so new. So unexpected. What did he really know about Carly? She’d lost both parents, had a lot of experience canoeing, loved the outdoors, followed Jesus. Oh, yeah, and they shared some radical chemistry.

It was the chemistry that scared him. It pulled him out of his shell and made him think he was invincible. But stuff with girls could flip a man into churning icy water in no time flat. It was hard to remember when she gazed at him trustingly with those sparkling blue-green eyes and smiled at him with that tempting mouth.

Reed shouldn’t have kissed her on Sunday, but she’d been in shock and the kiss catapulted her out of it... and slung him in. He wasn’t sure the trade-off was worth it. She’d have eventually regained control, and he wouldn’t have been left with the memories of her lips under his.

“This is so peaceful,” one of his canoe’s inhabitants murmured.

She wasn’t privy to the inside of Reed’s head.

~*~

Friday at last.

Carly couldn’t quite wrap her brain around why Reed had said he wanted to go swimming, but they hadn’t headed to the river any evening this week. Instead, they’d wandered the park for hours, kicked water at each other in the shallow ponds, and enjoyed a couple of picnics from Loco-To-Go.

He obviously wanted to spend time with her. Was obviously as attracted to her as she was to him, but something held him back. His words after their dunking last weekend filtered through her mind. How could a man say he respected her too much to kiss her?
 

She’d met guys that could have respected her more, but that was in her past.

Last week, Reed seemed to make sense. Sort of. But now, nearly a week later, he still side-stepped—sometimes literally—her efforts to snag another kiss. Even a brief one. But she wanted more than that.

Carly glanced at Reed across the console of his truck cab as he maneuvered the vehicle around the deepest potholes on their way to the swimming hole. She’d count this more of a victory if it were just the two of them, but the whole gang was meeting at the river. Brittany was ahead of them riding with Joseph. She’d been out with him a lot lately.

All Carly cared about was Reed. It wasn’t that she wanted to push him too far, but kissing didn’t have to go too far.

He looked so good tonight... not that that was any different from any other evening. Short dark hair she’d love to run her hands through more often. A chiseled jaw. A slim physique, but that was misleading. She knew the strength in his wiry muscles.

Reed glanced her way, and a smile curved his mouth upward until that dimple appeared. His gorgeous eyes glimmered, and he laid his right hand palm-up on the console.

See? There had been progress. Carly slid her hand into his, and their fingers tangled together with a strong grip. Maybe taking it slow was okay, so long as they were moving forward. There couldn’t be anyone else in his life, the way he looked at her.

The truck lurched, and Reed withdrew his hand. “Sorry. I guess I should be paying more attention to the road.”

She grinned back. “Maybe. So will tonight be like the other times?”

“Mostly. With maybe one difference.”

Carly tipped her head to the side. “Oh? What’s that?”

He shot her a dimple-filled smile. “I’d rather you sat beside me than beside Evan.”

“Um...” She tapped a finger to her jaw as though it required a great deal of thought. “That could possibly be arranged.” She filled her gaze with his face. “So you don’t mind if everyone sees us together?” Probably word had already reached the group. Carly was pretty sure Brittany couldn’t keep a secret to save her life.

“I don’t mind a bit. What about you?”

Carly shook her head. She reached for his hand again, but the tires hit a deep rut and required his attention. She waited a second, but he didn’t look at her. “I do have a question, though.”

“Oh?” He glanced over, eyebrows raised, then back at the road.

Her heart hammered. “Does this mean... we’re a couple?” Man, she wasn’t used to being this brazen.

Reed’s jaw flexed as he swallowed. A moment later the truck veered onto the grassy verge. He shifted into Park and turned to face her, brown eyes searching her own as his hands stretched toward her.

She wasn’t launching over the console without knowing that’s what the invitation was for. She placed her hands in his, and his thumbs rubbed over them.

Oh, the intensity in his eyes. “Carly, this is such new territory for me. I’m sorry if I’ve been sending you mixed signals. That’s never been my intention.”

What was she supposed to think? Carly bit her lip but kept her eyes on him. That’s how she noticed his gaze slid to her mouth, but only for a second.

A sideways grin pulled up his dimple. “Carly, going out together sounds so... so high school. But I do like you.” He swallowed hard. “A lot. I’m just not a man who goes making promises he can’t keep. I value you far too much for that. More than I’ve ever cared about a woman before. I’d like to keep moving forward, praying about our relationship and letting God lead us.”

Her hands were going to be numb for a week if he tightened his grip anymore.

“I don’t know what your experience has been in... in love. In dating. I’ll be the first to tell you I haven’t ever been attracted to a woman. Not like this.” So much more came through his deep brown eyes.

“I’ve dated quite a lot.” She grimaced. “But nothing remotely serious in the past few years. As for the attraction thing, yeah. You’re something new for me, too.”

He untangled one hand and reached for her face. Cupped her jaw.

Carly leaned into his hand. It was too much to hope he’d lean that little bit further and kiss her but, for now, she had her answer. She could be patient, knowing he cared about her, knowing he wanted to be sure. That was admirable, really.

Reed’s fingers caressed her cheek.

The honk of a passing SUV broke the spell. A girl leaned out the passenger window and waved, grinning.

“Guess everyone will know now, for sure.” Carly winked.

His slow smile squeezed her heart. “Guess so.”

~*~

Reed sat on the ground near the fire, leaning against the log between Carly’s knees. He reveled in the brush of her legs against him, of her hands massaging his shoulders. She must have figured out the strength of her thumbs, because she wasn’t digging in as deep tonight. More like lazy circles.

He’d kept her close to his side while the gang dived and splashed in the swimming hole, and received furtive winks and thumbs-up from some of the other fellows. He didn’t much care whether they approved or not, but at least they’d respect him and not try to push between him and Carly.

Across the fire, Peter began plinking on his guitar. Eli challenged him a moment later with Dueling Banjos. The segues rolled back and forth between the two guitars with increasing speed until everyone was laughing.

Reed leaned back against Carly and closed his eyes as the music headed into a set of rousing praise choruses. His fingers itched for his harmonica, but he didn’t want to move. Didn’t want to leave the comforting awareness of Carly’s nearness.

She sang along softly with about half the songs, probably the only ones she knew. Her pleasant alto washed over him, adding to the ambience of the campfire’s crackle.

He never wanted this evening to end. How much more perfect could it be? They’d openly acknowledged their attraction to each other and been recognized by the gang as a couple. The cold river had washed away the heat of the day.

Next to Carly, Evan cleared his throat. “Anyone have something they’d like to share? What’s God been teaching you lately?”

Peter shifted seamlessly into a backdrop of fingerpicking.

“God’s teaching me patience.” That was Steph from the worship team. Had Carly met her yet? “Used to be I wanted patience right now, you know what I mean?”

Several chuckles sounded around the fire. Carly’s hands stilled on Reed’s shoulders.

“But the more time I spend in the Word, the more I realize God’s got it. I don’t need to worry about stuff and try to make it happen.”

“I totally get that,” Eli said. “I wanted to move back home in the worst way. Well, not with my parents, but you know what I mean. Back to Riverbend. This place really grows on a person.”

Carly’s fingers tangled in the hair at the base of Reed’s neck. He felt the warmth of her breath as she leaned closer. “It sure does,” she whispered.

He tilted his head all the way back into her lap and looked up at her in the light of the fire.

Carly touched his face as her gaze locked on his.

His gut tightened. What had Steph said about patience? Reed didn’t want patience. He wanted to gather Carly up in his arms and kiss her. He wanted more than that. A lot more.

Evan began singing
While I’m Waiting
. As the songwriter said so poetically, there were many things to do while one waited. Keep serving God, keep moving forward... but still waiting.

Reed reached up and touched Carly’s face, hoping she could see the promise in his eyes. She knew why he was holding back. He didn’t want any regrets between them. No regrets of any kind.

Several of the group members sang along as Peter and Eli played, fixing John Waller’s words in Reed’s memory. What was Reed going to do with his life? Would Sandon Adventures and building canoes provide enough time and a steady income for a family?

He searched Carly’s face as she stared into the fire.

Was he crazy to have such thoughts? No. Better to think things through before kissing her. Before making promises he couldn’t keep.

“Hey, Daniels!” called Peter. “Got your harmonica along tonight, or are you just gonna listen to music the rest of us can’t hear?’

A few people snickered.

Thankfully no one could see the heat he felt rising in his cheeks as he straightened—but not before catching Carly’s little grin.

“It’s in the glove box in my truck.”

“Lemme get it for you, dude.”

A minute later his harmonica dropped into his lap. Maybe the music in his head would come out where he could share it with everyone.

Especially Carly.

Chapter 9

“Can’t believe it’s July already.” Carly angled a glance at Reed. How could this man possibly look better every single time she saw him?

He grinned down at her and tightened his fingers around hers. “It’s been nearly a month since we met.”

Her heart skipped a beat. Twenty-six days, to be precise. It seemed like much longer. She’d never been more comfortable around a guy. Well, more comfortable might not be the right term. He also unsettled her like no one else ever had.

On how many of those twenty-six days had they spent the evening together? Wandering the park, taking his canoe out to the lake, or hanging out with the group? Most of them.

Now Carly squeezed through the crowd at the farmers’ market, clinging to Reed’s hand. “There must be eighty vendors here. They’ve got everything.”

He leaned closer so she could hear him. “The Sandon Valley is one of the few pockets of agricultural land in the interior of BC. We do grow practically everything. Haven’t you been to the market here before?”

She shook her head as they found an eddy in the stream of people. “I’ve worked Wednesdays and Saturdays when the market is on, but I didn’t know what I was missing.”

“Nice of Neil to give you Canada Day off, and handy it’s a Wednesday this year.”

She swung Reed’s hand, barely missing the head of a kid dashing by, hot on the trail of who-knew-what. “He’s just too cheap to pay me double time to work on a holiday. We had requests for tours today.” She eyed Reed. “Didn’t you guys?” Sometimes it was weird knowing he worked for the competition.
Was
the competition.

“My uncle has no trouble saying no. He’s on the committee that organized the Canada Day events.”

“It looks like they kept busy with their planning then. The day’s agenda looks jam-packed.”

“And for that we need sustenance.” Reed winked and grinned.

That dimple. She reached up and slid her finger across the crease of it. The crowd drifted away in a gray fog.

Reed’s intense eyes burned into hers for a long moment and his fingers tightened their grip on hers. Then he blinked and broke the spell. “Yellow Bus has great food. Hungry?”

Carly swallowed hard and looked down. What had just happened there? “Sure. Sounds good.” Even her voice came out a little shaky.

She’d wanted to trace that dimple for the longest time. Probably twenty-six days. Why had she gone and done it here on the edge of a crazy busy farmers’ market, with live music blaring over the crowd’s chatter and a million jumbled aromas swirling past them? Where half the population of Riverbend surged by on their way in or out of pathways lined with white tents tucked beneath tall trees?

“You okay?” Reed’s voice came through a long tunnel.

Barely. She wanted to kiss this man, right here, right now. Crowd notwithstanding. Twenty-six days. He was right, though. They knew each other a lot better than they had, but it was all still so new. Maybe she’d have the rest of her life to kiss him. Now that was a daring thought to have about someone she’d met less than a month ago.