The Turnaround Treasure Shop (14 page)

‘I'll move the heavy gear for you.' Dan folded his arms on the table.

‘If you're sure, Lily,' Charlotte said. ‘I don't want to push you into this — although I want you to have everything that this offer means. Everything that goes with it.'

For all Lily's joy and surprise, anxiety hung in the air. She could practically touch it, not only sense it. ‘Do you think I can't do it?' She pumped her brain to figure out what the bothersome issue was. ‘I can still care for the children. I can do everything. They won't go without — and if the shop fails — well,' she breathed deeply, ‘then I'll find another job and forget about it. My kids will always come first.'

‘That's not what I'm questioning,' Charlotte said.

Dan took hold of Charlotte's hand. ‘Now
you're
getting scared, Red. Don't. Remember? It's for the rest of her life.'

Lily still sensed restraint from Charlotte.

‘Lily,' Charlotte said. ‘We want you to succeed. Away from here.' She indicated Kookaburra's with her hand.

‘Are you simply trying to get rid of me?' Lily asked, with a laugh.

‘Well, if you don't take the offer, we might have to fire you,' Dan said with a grin.

Charlotte said nothing.

‘Are you worried I won't be able to manage the lease afterwards?' Lily asked. ‘I will. I also intend to pay back any monies given as assistance. I won't have it any other way. In fact, I don't need assistance for 12 months, only for six.' There; she'd said it. She was going out on a limb and doing something rash —
please, God, let it be the right limb
.

Lily felt Charlotte relax. It wasn't only visible in the shift of her shoulders, her eyes sparkled and her natural ease returned.

‘Lily,' she said, ‘you are the best person in the whole world. You damned well deserve this and everything else that comes your way — and don't you forget it.'

Forget it
? How was that possible? She'd been handed her dream. There was no ‘everything else' she wanted.

***

Lily had been standing in her empty impossible dream for a full 10 minutes, just staring at the walls, the shop counter, the door where she was going to hang a little brass bell and the two shaded windows.

The wondrous trembling that had come over her on her way from Kookaburra's to her Turnaround Treasure Shop hadn't diminished a jot.

Turnaround Treasures — Second-Chance Love. Still caring, still adoring.

A dog barking outside, then the tinny beep of a horn she recognised, sent her to the window. She nudged the closed blind aside and smiled broadly.

Nick Barton, ex-Navy guy and amazing kisser and holder of women got out of her Orange Bullet — and was immediately attacked by Charlotte and Dan's dog. Lucy, an Australian Shepherd Charlotte has rescued when she'd first arrived in town, jumped at Nick, doing her best to lick his hand off. Nick scruffed the back of Lucy's neck and the dog twisted and turned, prancing and flirting with him.

Lily didn't blame her. She opened the door for him as Lucy charged off in another direction, looking for the next unsuspecting male to lick to death.

‘Close call,' Nick said, stepping inside and dangling her car keys in front of her.

Lily laughed and closed the door. With the blinds drawn, she happily went into his arms, ignoring the keys.

‘Well, this is pleasant. Two females in one day. What have I done to deserve it?' he asked, looking down at her. He pulled her further into his embrace. ‘I like holding you.'

‘Nick,' Lily said, desperate to tell him her news. ‘You'll never guess what.'

‘You want me to kiss you again.'

‘Stop teasing. This is important.'

‘And kissing me isn't?'

‘Nick!' She pulled from his embrace and took hold of his upper arms. Boy, his biceps were hard. ‘I got the shop.'

He paused, his grin fading to a smile. ‘Did you?'

‘It'll be part of the Support program. The program can help with the lease.'

‘That's great, Lily. You deserve it.'

‘That's what Charlotte said, and really — I don't know why I didn't ask about the program before. They might have been able to assist months ago because I'm practically ready, financially.'

‘I couldn't be more pleased for you.'

‘They're going to pay three-quarters of the lease for me, for the first six months.'

‘Six months?' He frowned. ‘Not the whole year?'

‘Do you see a problem?'

‘No — I just presumed a 12-month deal would be more beneficial to you than six.'

‘Actually they offered twelve months' assistance but I refused.'

‘Why would you do that?'

‘I hope to make enough over winter — now that I've got help with the payments — and that will tide me over. I should be able to pay the entire lease myself after the first six months.' She raised her hands, fingers crossed. ‘I hope.'

He laughed, and took her in his arms again. ‘Should have guessed.'

‘Guessed what?'

‘That you wouldn't take everything on offer.'

‘I won't take anything over what I feel I need or deserve, and I've told Dan and Charlotte that the program can expect the investment back. I'll repay it, Nick. I will.'

He pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. ‘Not good at receiving, are you?'

‘I wasn't until now.' She laughed and caught his hand, holding it by her cheek for a moment. ‘I've changed. I feel more…open to receive. This is a gift of luck and I'm not turning it down.'

‘How about celebrating with me?'

‘I need a sign. A big, wonderful shop sign to hang outside.'

‘And I need a kiss.'

‘You know the type? An old-fashioned metal sign, stamped with the name of my business.' Lily clapped her hands. ‘My business!' At last. Everything came to she who worked bloody hard while waiting.

‘Hey.' Nick nudged her with his elbow.

‘Sorry.' She laughed. ‘What were you saying?'

‘I was asking you on a date.'

‘Another road trip?' He'd give her a lift home, she knew it, and she didn't feel perturbed by it. The new Lily. Branching out to accept things. ‘Oh!'
What was she thinking
? ‘You fixed my car.'

‘All yours. Next job is the gearbox — that's real dodgy, Lily. Will you let me fix it?'

‘Yes.' Boy, this new Lily sure knew how to cooperate. ‘But I'll be paying.'

‘Whichever way. Just let me fix it.'

‘It'll last for a week?' She'd need the car to cart all the goods from home to the shop.

‘It'll be fine for a month. Not as if you're going to take it to Queensland. Now about that celebration.'

‘The road trip? Shall we go in my car? I'll chauffeur you about.'

‘I was thinking something more — personal.'

‘A date,' she repeated as she came back to real-time sense.

‘You think the townspeople don't see how much we like each other?' he asked, already a thought ahead of her.

‘They've pushed us together.' She glanced up. ‘You know that, don't you?'

‘I guessed. Any idea why, after so long?'

Lily shrugged. ‘Haven't got a clue. Perhaps it had something to do with the Ball next weekend. Perhaps they're doing a spot of matchmaking.' Her friends Charlotte and Sammy were certainly doing a spot of that.

‘Well, I'm glad they did. Now can I kiss you? And will you then come out with me on a proper date?'

‘I can't date. I have kids.'

He laughed, shaking his head with a sudden burst of exasperation. ‘It's Friday evening. Your kids aren't here. You're a free woman. You can date.'

Lily grinned. ‘I am, aren't I? What do you mean by “proper” date? It would be our
first
date.' Although it would likely be ‘proper', wherever they went. Maybe he'd take her to Cooma, to a restaurant. They couldn't suddenly rock up for dinner at Kookaburra's. That would create too much gossip for Lily to cope with and Nick probably wouldn't like it either. After all, their blossoming friendship and all the kissing they might not be able to stop themselves from doing would kind of come out of the blue to the townspeople. It had to Lily, and for the moment she needed to keep this secret to herself. Until she was sure it was
really
happening.

‘We've been dating for a year.'

Lily raised her brow. ‘We have?'

‘There are 52 weekends in the year,' Nick said, smiling down at her. ‘I've been meeting you for breakfast for over a hundred days. I like to think of that as dating you.' He took hold of her hand and kissed her fingers. ‘I know how to flip an egg. I don't need to buy my breakfast. I want to, because you serve it.'

Charlotte's words echoed in her mind.
He comes in to see you, Lily
.

‘If I thought I'd get away with having breakfast at Kookaburra's seven days a week without asking for gossip, I'd do it.'

‘That would cost you a fortune.'

‘Would be worth every dollar, just to look at you.' He dug into the pocket of his trousers. ‘Here.' He pulled out a 10-dollar note and slapped it onto the counter. ‘I'm buying. Your first sale.'

The joy in his tone made her smile. ‘For what?'

‘For looking at you.'

Zing
. Lily's heartstrings snapped to his.

‘What did you have in mind for our date?' she asked, shyness sweeping over her at the now sensual look in his eyes.

‘Well first, I can't get home without a lift. Don't fancy the walk. So you drive me home and I'll make you dinner.' He hooked his arm around her and pulled her in to him, his gaze turning smouldering. ‘And just so you know. I'm hoping to persuade you to spend the night.'

***

Getting out of town and the prospect of spending the evening with Nick — not that she'd made up her mind about staying the entire night, if that's what he really hoped for — had
almost
turned Lily into a bundle of nerves but excitement ruled, and that's the feeling she was running with. Main Street had been quiet when they left but Lily knew people would be at their shop windows, watching her leave with Nick. Noting that they headed out of town at the southern end. Together. She'd wondered how many would be waiting and watching for her return to town as she drove through it and out the northern end. To her house.

Driving the Orange Bullet, with Nick in the passenger seat taking up almost all of the space with his height and breadth, and exuding sexiness simply sitting there — as he did standing, or lifting heavy boxes come to that — filled Lily with tingling anticipation of him holding her again.

Just about anything he did made her feel like a star-struck teenager. She'd had to keep her focus on the road — and on managing the shonky gearbox — while he talked to her in his low-toned, easy manner, telling her about his house and how he'd only recently begun to make it into a home. Asking her to forgive him for the lack of homey furnishings and how he planned to change that. He'd talked about how he'd recently realised he needed to get involved with the town too. Because he was staying.

Later, sitting on a leather sofa beside him, Lily looked down at their linked hands. His mood had been easy and fun as he cooked them steak while Lily tossed a salad and buttered fresh, crusty bread. They'd finished their meal in a blaze of friendship and he'd been holding her hand for nearly an hour. They'd been chatting about life, then he'd asked her if she would tell him about her ex-husband and she found herself talking — really talking. It was hardly a first-date type of conversation, but he'd relaxed her completely.

Replete from more than a delicious meal, the evening air wafting in from open French doors, the buzz of insects and the glow of the moon had mellowed Lily entirely. ‘He only hit me once,' she said, answering another of Nick's questions. ‘I left immediately.'

‘Once is once too often.'

‘I know. I'm grateful I had the sense, eventually, to leave. Many don't.'

Nick brushed her hair from her brow. ‘Don't ever think I don't understand.'

‘How could you?'

‘I've seen abuse. In various forms. I don't know what it takes for a man to hit a woman, or to hit anybody — unless you're talking war. The victims are always weaker than the abuser. Not just physically, but emotionally. And they're weaker simply because the abuser has made them so.'

Lily nodded. ‘He abused me but not physically — apart from the black eye. His every word, every off-hand derogatory look told me I was a waste of space, but I had the children and I thought they needed a father.'

‘I know, darling.'

Darling
. Had he called his ex-wife darling? Lily somehow doubted it after what he'd told her. A wrong marriage, he'd said. A marriage he hadn't wanted once he was in it, and hadn't been able to fix.

Lily pulled her hand from his and checked her watch. ‘I ought to be going.'

‘Why?'

She couldn't meet his eyes in case he reminded her that he was planning on asking her to stay the night. She frowned as she caught a glimpse of her hands, sitting on her plain black skirt.

‘What's wrong?'

Work-roughened knuckles and nails kept tidily trimmed but unmanicured, that's what was wrong. She was wearing her waitress uniform. She hadn't had time to change into her ordinary clothes after the breathtaking news she'd received at Kookaburra's. She'd forgotten about the plain way she looked over the last couple of hours in Nick's company but now, trying to make a decision on whether she should go or allow him to persuade her otherwise, a few niggling anxieties crawled back. ‘Nothing's wrong, exactly. I just feel…'

‘Nervous about what's going to happen next?'

Going
to happen? Yes. The tension in her shoulders settled and relaxed. She wanted to stay. Wanted to be with him. Wanted to accept any compliments he might give her — no —
would
give her. ‘You're the most handsome man I've ever met, Nick.'