“Just fooling around, huh? You just happened to be drawing a picture of me, even though you could have drawn anyone else? Erma, or one of the Bosom Buddies?”
“Stop being a jerk.” She couldn’t keep from giggling as she reached for it. He was only a few inches taller than her, but his arms were much longer, and the book was well out of her grasp.
He held it above his head. “I will, on one condition.”
Her guard came up again. She didn’t like conditions. But the teasing glint in Hayden’s eyes tempered her automatic reaction. “What?”
“Have dinner with me tomorrow night. Not a date—I’ll make that clear. Just two friends getting together to discuss their ideas for Maple Falls. How does that sound?”
She paused. That actually appealed to her. As they were looking at the sketchbook earlier, she’d gotten excited again, like she had in the shop when the idea first struck her. Besides, agreeing to dinner seemed like the only way she was going to get her sketchbook back. Unless she tackled him to the ground and took it, which wasn’t going to happen. He was too big, too strong—and she was too weak to resist the thoughts that instantly traveled to an intimate place she couldn’t risk dwelling on, not with him standing a few inches from her and her resolve wilting.
“Fine,” she said, trying to sound casual. “What time?”
“I’ll pick you up at five thirty tomorrow night. There’s a steak joint a block down from the ice cream shop. They have decent sirloins and a gigantic food bar.” He frowned. “Don’t tell me you’re a vegetarian.”
“Definitely not.”
“That’s a relief.” He handed her the sketchbook. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” He grinned at her, then turned and jogged back to the dugout to collect the softball equipment.
She clutched the sketchbook and walked to Mimi’s car, got inside, and drove home in a daze. As usual, Mimi was sitting in the recliner watching TV and working on a crochet project when Riley walked inside. Riley paused, ready for Mimi to ask what took her so long to get home.
“You’re blocking the TV.” Mimi raised her crochet hook and waved Riley away, then slipped a loop of yarn over the hook. “I’m just about to find out who the killer is.”
“Sorry.” Riley nodded, relieved that her grandmother hadn’t asked any questions. She went upstairs and sat on the edge of the bed, finally allowing herself to think about what Hayden had said. That he had noticed her in high school blew her mind. That he thought she was special blew it even further. Remembering his words and the honesty in his eyes warmed her to her toes. She grabbed a pillow and squealed into it, feeling like a teenager again. Except she had never felt like this in her teens—or ever.
Her clothes were still in her suitcase. She’d refused to unpack, not wanting anything about her time here to feel permanent. Did she have anything suitable to wear to a steakhouse? She would have to make do since there wasn’t any time to shop.
Riley ground her thoughts to a halt. This wasn’t a date, so it didn’t matter what she wore. And that’s how it should be. Like Hayden said, they were two friends discussing ideas. Nothing more.
But for the first time in her life, she wished she owned a skirt.
***
The next morning, Riley was working at Knots and Tangles, trying to focus on boxing up some old yarn Mimi had agreed to donate to an online knitting group. She was also trying to keep her thoughts off her upcoming supper with Hayden.
Her grandmother’s doctor had called earlier and canceled Mimi’s appointment but rescheduled it for tomorrow. Mimi wasn’t happy with that, of course, but after pouting for a little while, she called Bea and they made plans to spend the day together.
Riley glanced at the clock on the wall above the counter for the tenth time. Barely eleven thirty. She had been sure it was past lunchtime. The day was crawling, and she could hardly keep the mix of nervousness and excitement at bay.
She heard the bell above the front door and turned around. Harper walked inside, dressed in a sharp royal-blue pencil skirt and white blouse, her thick blond hair tousled strategically over her shoulders.
“Hello!” she said, grinning brightly. “I brought some goodies for you.”
Riley froze in front of the box. “What?”
Harper set a large white shopping bag with two handles on the counter. “When you said you weren’t free for dinner tonight when I called you earlier, I put two and two together.” She placed her hands on her slender hips. “You and Hayden are going out, aren’t you?”
“Uh...” Riley felt the sting of embarrassment fill her cheeks. “Notoutexactly—”
“I knew it. When you two were hanging out after practice yesterday, I suspected something was up.”
Knowing she had to nip this in the bud, Riley said, “It’s not a date. Seriously. I have some plans for Knots and Tangles, and I wanted to run them by him. He...” She wondered if she should say anything about him wanting to improve the town, then decided against it. “That’s it. We just agreed to have supper at the same time. We both have to eat, you know.”
“Right.” Harper eyed Riley’s clothes, the usual plain T-shirt and jean shorts. “You’re not wearing that, are you?”
“No,” she replied, feeling somewhat defensive. “I’m going to change into jeans.”
Harper sighed. “I was afraid of that. Friendly dinner or not, it won’t hurt for you to dress up a little. I brought some things that might work for you.”
