The Heart Knows What the Heart Wants (15 page)

When Star got home from Everything Under the Sun, she got started sketching new designs and worked on several new creations she could make with the supplies she'd purchased in Hannibal. She allowed herself to be cautiously optimistic about her new endeavor.

It was just after midnight and she was intently focused on the task at hand, chewing on her lower lip as she sketched. The phone buzzed with an incoming text, and her breath caught in her throat. She didn't want to look in case it was Derek, but she didn't want not to look in case it was Shane.

She blew out a noisy breath and massaged her shoulders; they were tense from being hunched over the desk for so long. She scooted her chair out and stood to stretch. The phone vibrated a reminder, and she reached for it. Her heart squeezed inside her chest when she saw that it was a message from Shane:
Sweet dreams Beautiful. C U 2morrow
.

She replied with a goodnight and though he couldn't see it, she wore a face-splitting grin. She liked him -- maybe too much -- and she didn't think she could stop her growing feelings for him, she wasn't sure she would if she could.

The next morning Star woke bright and early, showered and dressed in a pair of black leggings and a navy blue tunic, pulled on her black boots, and admired her the new Star in the full-length mirror.

She gathered all of the jewelry she'd created, except for one or two special items she intended to give as Christmas presents, and carried the box downstairs. She was surprised to see Neona at the kitchen table drinking coffee when she walked in.

"Good morning, Neona," she said cheerfully. "You're getting around a lot better with those crutches."

"That I am. Now that the doctor is finally giving me a boot to wear instead of this damn cast, I'm getting the hang of those awful things." She huffed and shook her head. She nodded toward the box in Star's hands and asked, "What do you have there? You're not moving out on me already, I hope?"

"Ha! Not a chance," Star said. She sat the box on the table, took out a couple of pieces that she was especially proud of, and showed them to Neona. "I'm taking these to Everything Under the Sun. Piper's going to sell them for me."

"Where did you get all of this beautiful jewelry?"

"I made it," Star said proudly. "Do you like it?"

"Darlin', this stuff is just gorgeous. It's going to sell like hotcakes. Especially with Christmas just around the corner. Piper'll see to it you get paid the best possible price for it, too. Savvy businesswoman that one," Neona said.

Star poured herself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Neona. "Did Michael tell you he thinks I should reconsider working at the store? He's worried that Derek might show up while I'm there, since it's on the main north-south route."

"Yes, he mentioned something about that. You're welcome to keep working there, but I think he's probably right," Neona said. She took a sip of her coffee and stared out the window. "I'll be able to go back to work in a few more days, so you needn't worry about that. But it's entirely your decision. Ami will be taking some time off soon to have her baby, so there will still be plenty of room for you to keep working there. I just want you to be safe."

Star looked up at the ceiling, her stomach knotted with indecision. "I'd like to tell you I'm not afraid of Derek. But that would be a lie. Truth is, he still scares the hell out of me."

Neona put her hand on top of Star's and patted it. "I know. You don't have to make up your mind right this minute. I want you to do what your gut tells you to do. Things have a way of working themselves out, but I have a bad feeling. I'd be willing to bet you haven't heard the last from Derek."

Star pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath. "I know. I have that same dread sitting like a bag of bricks at the bottom of my stomach, too."

"It'll all come together like it's supposed to, dear. I have a feeling he'll get what's coming to him, you'll see. Karma's a bitch."

Star smiled weakly as she finished the rest of her coffee. After she topped off Neona's cup, she put on her coat and picked up the box to leave. "Talk to you later, Neona. Thanks for everything."

Star spent the morning at Everything Under the Sun helping Piper display her jewelry pieces. She had a hard time not rifling through the overflowing racks of vintage clothing. She didn't want to spend all of her commission before she earned it.

"You know, I got to thinking last night," Piper said.

Star tilted her head sideways. "About what?"

"If you ever get tired of working at Harper's, you can always come to work here with me. You've got a natural flair for setting up attractive displays and your jewelry designs are going to fly off the shelves. I've got a spare room. Well, it's a closet, really, but you could create your stuff here and do a few readings on the side," Piper suggested.

Star beamed at her newfound friend. "You mean it?"

Piper nodded enthusiastically. "Yes. Now you think about it and make sure if you do decide to come work for me that you let Neona know it was all
your
idea, that you begged me for a job. I don't want her to think I'm in the business of stealing her employees."

"Okay," Star said, unable to stop grinning. "I'll sleep on it and let you know."

"Sure. We'll work out all of the details later, if you decide you're interested," Piper told her.

Star left Everything Under the Sun with a true sense of accomplishment and purpose. Truthfully, there wasn't anything to think about. More than anything, she thought the idea of working with Piper would be perfect for her. With Neona able to go back to work soon, it would be a great way for Star to feel useful doing something she loved to do.

***

After Ami greeted her warmly, Star hung her coat in the back room and grabbed her work smock. When she came out, Ami was giving her a funny look. Star's eyebrows dipped together, and she said, "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're glowing. I can't believe you're the same girl whose car broke down on the highway a few weeks ago. You look fabulous, Star. Love does that to a person," she commented.

Star's eyes bugged out. "What? Love? Oh no. Not me. Once bitten, twice shy."

"Oh, come on. I see the way you and Shane all but undress each other with your
smoldering
looks." She giggled.

"
Smoldering looks
? You've been reading too many romance novels, Ami," Star said, rolling her eyes. "I like Shane, he's a great guy."

"Why do I sense there's a 'but' coming here?" Ami asked.

Star shrugged her shoulders exaggeratedly. "I like him. I like him a lot. But in case you haven't noticed, there's a pretty significant age difference between us."

Ami wrinkled her nose. "So? True love knows no age."

"God, Ami, what
have
you been reading? Seriously. Shane's got his whole life ahead of him. Me? Not so much. If we were to get together, he'd only end up resenting me later on down the road," Star reasoned.

"Resenting you? For what? Girl, he can't keep his eyes -- or hands -- off you," Ami said.

Star stared down at the floor. "It's complicated, Ami. Sometimes love just isn't enough."

"When exactly isn't it enough? Tell me," Ami asked, folding her arms and resting them on her belly.

"What if he wants children some day? Then what? That's something I'll never be able to give him," Star said quietly.

Ami moved beside Star, she gently grabbed her shoulders to get her to look up. "Okay, here's the thing about Shane and kids. Shane doesn't want them. He's terrified of kids. He doesn't even like them. I'm not even kidding."

Star's jaw unhinged, and she stared speechless while Ami's mouth twisted into a smug smile. "Who doesn't like kids? Everybody likes kids," Star said.

Ami burst out laughing. "Everybody
except
Shane Harper. He refers to them as little aliens from another planet. Creatures sent here to secretly take over the world. You ask him if you don't believe me."

"Oh, my God," Star murmured.

"Yep. So, there you are. Nothing standing in the way of true love, girlfriend. If you want my advice, I'd say go for it," Ami said matter-of-factly. "Now, I've got to get home before this snow gets any worse. You have a great afternoon fantasizing about what you'll do the next time you're alone with Shane...now that you don't have any more excuses to hold you back. You can thank me later."

Friday night when her shift was about to end for another week, Star busied herself by restocking the coolers for Shane. She remembered how grumpy he got if he had to do it when he came in to work. She was buried in the back of the cooler when she heard the front bell ring.

Without thinking, she combed her fingers through her wavy hair and tied it loosely at the nape of her neck. She chewed on her lower lip anxiously and peeked between the shelves, desperate for a glimpse of tall, blonde, and gorgeous himself. Her eyes narrowed when she saw that it wasn't Shane, but Megan, one of the high school girls who worked weekends.

Star pushed to her feet and wiped her hands off on the front of the smock. "Hi, Megan, I was expecting Shane," she called to the girl, who was stowing her purse beneath the counter.

"He asked me if I'd work for him tonight, said he had a hot date." Megan shrugged.

Star felt the bottom fall out of her stomach, and the blood drain from her face. "A date?" she repeated, half to herself half to Megan.

"Yeah, not surprised. He's a total hottie. All the girls were after him when he was in high school," Megan gushed.

Star swallowed and forced a smile. "I'm sure they were."

Megan pushed up her thick glasses on her nose and sighed. "Way out of my league. Not that he noticed anyone but Lila Walker, anyway. They dated all through high school. He sort of had a major meltdown after the accident and all."

Star found herself listening intently while Megan rambled on about the Shane she didn't know anything about. How horrifying it must have been for him to lose someone so special in such a horrifying way. She gave Megan a tightlipped smile and put on her coat. The snow that had started to fall earlier was still coming down, and the forecast called for up to a foot of the white stuff before it was all said and done late Saturday.

She wound her scarf tightly around her neck and pulled on her mittens. "Have a good night, Megan. Hopefully it won't be too crazy busy with the weather the way it is," Star told her as she pushed out the door. She unlocked her car and reached to open the door. Ice cold hands covered her eyes from behind, and her heart nearly burst out of her chest from panic.

Warm breath fanned across the sensitive skin beneath her ear. "I've got a surprise for you, Beautiful," he told her.

All tension left her shoulders, and she sighed in relief. Turning around to face him, she tried to act mad, but seeing his sexy face and the way the wind was whipping his silky hair around, she lost her anger. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" she shouted at him.

"Yes. So I could massage your chest and give you mouth to mouth," he teased.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Massage my chest? Is that how it's done?"

He grinned, tugged her against him, and buried his nose in her hair. She smelled like vanilla ice cream melting on warm apple pie. "Come upstairs with me, I have a surprise for you."

"I thought you had plans tonight." She scowled, folding her arms in front of her chest.

"What are you talking about?" he asked, tilting his head to the side to study her face.

Star thumbed over her shoulder toward the front door of the store. "Megan said she was covering your shift tonight because you have a hot date."

"Hello?" He knocked lightly on her head. "Silly woman,
you
are my date."

"Oh," she said. The tips of her ears reddened in embarrassment from her assumption.

He tipped her chin up with a finger. "There is no one but you. Now come on. It's snowing, and you have far too many clothes on."

"God, you have such a one-track mind," she said, shaking her head. She locked her car and trudged through the snow behind him.

"Close your eyes," he told her once they reached the top of the stairs.

Her nose crinkled, and she asked, "Why?"

"Please just cooperate for once?" He chuckled. "Come on, close them,
please
?"

"Fine." She relented and did as he asked.

Just to be sure, he pressed one of his hands over her eyes and pushed opened the door to his apartment with the other. He nudged her across the threshold and kicked the door closed behind them. "Ready?" he murmured in her ear. She nodded, and he slowly dropped his hand away. "You can open them now."

Her eyes widened in awe as she stared around the room. There were candles, literally hundreds of them, in every shape and size illuminating the entire apartment. She swallowed down the sentimental lump forming at the back of her throat. She turned to him, and saw that his eyes were twinkling in the candlelight. "What is this music?" she whispered.

"Harry Chapin," he said. His mouth twisted into a smirk. "Here let me take your clothes...I mean your coat."

She handed him her coat and kicked out of her boots. She sat them beside the door, staring, wondering what else he had up his sleeve for their night. He made her feel as though she was the only woman in the world. His spur-of-the-moment idea had taken her by surprise, making her feel completely adored.

Not so very long ago, she'd been like a scared little rabbit, ready to jump out of her skin at every sound. Now, she was slowly relaxing and becoming whole again. She owed so much to Shane. He hadn't given up on her, even when she'd wanted to give up on herself.

She flung her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shirt. She loved his scent of leather and Irish Spring soap. "You're too good to me. Why are you so good to me, Shane? I don't deserve this."

"Yes, you do," he said. He rested his chin on the top of her head and began to slowly sway to the music. "Dance with me, Blue."

Her body molded against his as they danced together, moving in lazy circles around the room. They got lost in the moment with each other, not really hearing the song in the background. She leaned back and stared up into his eyes. He was truly a gorgeous guy, inside as well as out. He treated her better than she'd ever imagined being treated, and he was so unselfish and giving.

Long after the song ended, they continued to sway in each other's arms, reluctant to let go. "You hungry?" he finally asked.

"Hmm, a little," she admitted.

He took her by the hand and led her over to the kitchen. "I hope you like chili. It's not exactly romantic as far as candlelit dinners go, but it is most definitely chili weather outside tonight." He took the lid off the pot, and the aroma made her mouth water.

"It smells delicious," she admitted.

When they'd finished eating, she helped him clean up. He washed the dishes, and she dried. She stared out the kitchen window at the falling snow. He stood beside her at the counter and said, "It's not supposed to stop until tomorrow afternoon sometime. Guess we're stuck here."

I could think of worse fates
. "Guess so."

They snuggled under a blanket and watched a scary movie.

"I ran into my old high school basketball coach today," he said.

She peered sideways at him. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "He wants to talk to me about possibly helping him out with the team this season."

She turned to face him. "You're going to do it, right?"

"I'm considering it, yes." He nodded with a smile. "Man, I used to eat, breathe, and live basketball. It was in my blood, ya know?"

She put the palm of her hand against his cheek and leaned to kiss him. "That's good news, Shane. Really. You need to do this."

"I think you're right, Blue," he agreed. He pulled her into his lap and kissed her deeply. Not hard, not soft, but with an unspoken need. He craved her, and he couldn't get enough of how alive she made him feel whenever they were together.

She recalled a conversation they'd had in this very room, not so long ago. How he'd all but predicted she'd fall madly in love with him. She knew if she wasn't careful, she was going to fulfill that prophecy.
If she hadn't already
.

They made out like two teenagers for quite a while before she urged him off the couch. "Let's go to bed, Romeo."