AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Interesting,” he said. The image favored Waverly with her dark hair and large oval eyes.
A grandfather clock chimed noon. Waverly sighed and rose to her feet. Everyone stood with her. “I can’t thank y’all enough for sharing your history with us.”
Dominic glanced at his phone and noted a storm was predicted to hit Southwood before nightfall. Fannie and Stan bade the two of them goodbye, waving them off and watching as Dominic secured the outfits in the trunk of the car. Waverly sat in her passenger seat with her legs crossed and had never looked sexier.
“Why did you allow your mother to think you were alone for Thanksgiving?” Dominic asked Waverly as he pulled the old car onto the road. “Serving vets was a prime opportunity for the pageant board to see you in your element.”
Beside him, Waverly shrugged. “According to my mother, if the cameras aren’t on, it’s not worth it.” She sighed heavily and twisted her slender hands together in her lap.
Dominic gripped the steering wheel tighter. Proud of himself, he owed himself a beer for behaving right now. Didn’t Waverly realize what a temptation she was? “Your mom sounds, ah, interesting,” he said for lack of a better word. He couldn’t say what truly came to mind: controlling and domineering.
“I’m her only daughter,” Waverly said. “I’ve gone further in the pageant circuit than she has, and so I believe she’s living vicariously through me.”
“Serving veterans as a regular person instead of as Miss Southwood wouldn’t please her?” Dominic asked, cutting his eyes over.
“In Jillian’s book, anything other than pageanting is pathetic, especially with the runoff coming up.” Waverly flashed him a sly smile. “I serve because it’s the right thing to do. I didn’t ask for publicity like Vera did down in Savannah. My father was in the Marines. I knew I’d be by myself this holiday. When I started feeling sorry for myself, I thought about all
the soldiers away from family. I had to go down and serve. The lunch was for them, not to spotlight me.”
The distant sound of imaginary wedding bells rang through his ears. Dominic couldn’t wait for this pageant crap to be over with. Concentrating on the road, he took the exit leading north. Waverly cocked her head at him.
“We have one more stop before I bring you home,” Dominic explained.
Waverly’s large brown eyes widened. “What kind of stop?”
“I’m getting you a proper Christmas tree for your place.”
Dominic veered off the interstate toward a sign offering the state’s best trees. This morning his strict instructions had been to take Waverly upstate to the Harveys’ and get the wardrobe. Mission accomplished.
“I really don’t need a tree,” Waverly argued.
“Sure you do. Let’s go.”
The lot allowed people to come and chop down their own trees once they found the right one. He pretended to allow Waverly to decide what kind she wanted, and she at last chose wisely with each frown he gave. Finally Waverly picked the right one and Dominic got the chance to show off his brawny skills by chopping down the tree and bringing it back to the car. However, he had to eat crow when they drove down the road a bit and the tree slid off the roof as Dominic swerved to avoid hitting a deer.
* * *
“Far be it from me to be the one to say I told you so,” Waverly said as she leaned her tan-skirt-clad hip against the side of the Packard. Before they left the parking lot, Waverly strongly suggested he cross the ties for a securer hold. But he knew what he was doing. She pressed her lips together to keep from actually saying, “I told you so.”
A spot of black grease was streaked across Dominic’s face. The sun had long ago sank and the moon had appeared. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”
Waverly batted her lashes. “And I am an able body, too. Please let me help.”
“I’ve got this.” Dominic grunted and spun the wheel of his iron to change the tire. “You can help me when my brothers come to town and it’s time to decorate the tree.”
For a moment she imagined a Christmas tree at Dominic’s house decorated with spark plugs and lug nuts. She recalled the photo of the twins from Dominic’s wallet the first night they kissed. Heat rose from her collarbone from the memory. Focus on something else, Waverly willed herself. Not the way Dominic’s muscles rippled in the moonlight. For some reason, changing a tire meant having to take off his shirt. Not like she was complaining. Dominic’s shirtless frame was a sight for sore eyes. The man was a sculpted god.
Waverly cleared her throat. “When are they coming?”
“Probably in a week or so, when school gets out,” said Dominic. The wheel came loose and he made the change while he talked about Alisha taking classes in the spring. Waverly thought about the things she was going to miss as she focused on Miss Georgia. Listening to the Harveys today had left Waverly’s heart heavy. She wanted that kind of love, the kind that transcended history. But time wasn’t on Waverly’s side. The runoff, Miss Georgia and then Miss USA were right at her fingertips. Did she expect Dominic to wait that long?
Waverly turned her head to the side and watched the muscles in Dominic flex. He cursed and grunted but finally got the old tire changed out to the new one. Pine needles were scattered across the top of the car. From the incident, the road rash had resulted in a half-bare tree.
Standing, Dominic wiped his hands on the back of his jeans. His six-pack abs flexed and Waverly averted her eyes toward the tree. The timber was safe from getting run over, thanks to the back road Dominic had thought to take. His eyes followed hers. “I’m getting you another tree. We’re tossing this.”
Before he took another step toward the road, Waverly reached for Dominic’s arm. His biceps twitched beneath her palm. “I don’t need a tree.”
Dominic paused for a moment. Their eyes locked. Suddenly the tree was no longer in question. Waverly’s heart raced. Her feelings, jumbled with the longing for what the Harveys had and wanting it with Dominic, came to mind.
