“Oh, you’re good. Wow.” She shook her head. “I almost fell for your whole nice-guy schtick. Nicely done, but no thanks. I’m not going to win the contest only to have you call me out for a breach of contract.”
“What? I wouldn’t do that.”
“Right.” She patted his arm. “I heard what your friend said. You’re the ‘honorable’ one.” Her tone said We’ll see about that. “It doesn’t matter. It could be anyone who called me out. No, I’m going to do my morning chores and then work at the farm stand in the afternoons.”
“Selling glasses of frozen lemonade for a buck?”
“That’s just a front, silly.”
As they neared the town of Jackson, more strip malls popped up on either side of the highway. “What does that mean?”
“Remember I told you I had one customer this morning? She knew Kurt and told me all kinds of stories about him. So, I figured what better way to learn about him than talking to the people who knew him? And I’ll replace the lemonade I use, so don’t worry about the festival.”
“It’s none of my business what you do. You’re welcome to anything in the house. I’ve got no rights to any of it.”
“And take lemonade out of the mouths of parched festival-goers? Heavens, no. But guess what?”
Her exuberance made him smile. “What?”
“That lady I met this morning? She invited me over. She’s got pictures and stories.”
Huh. Looks like I’ll need to step up my game.
“You look surprised. Did you think I’d spend the month shopping online and painting my nails?”
“Not after our conversation last night.”
She tipped her head back and groaned. “A gentleman’s not supposed to remind a lady of her embarrassing moments.”
“What gave you the idea I was a gentleman?” He pulled into a giant parking lot. “You’re in Calamity now. This area was built by outlaws. If you’re looking for polite behavior, you’re in the wrong place.”
“Right. I forgot who I’m dealing with. Rugged cowboys and badass hockey players.” She sat up when she saw the massive store. “This is where I’m buying clothes?”
Had he gotten it wrong? Maybe they had different ideas of being broke. “You’re not going to find designer clothes here, but they’ll be cheap.”
“No, that’s fine. It’s probably just like an ASDA.” As soon as he cut the engine, she got out and met him in front of the car.
“What happens to your diner job if you’re here for a month?”
“Oh, I quit already. They’re not going to hold that open for me. Besides, I hope to get a salary from the foundation where I work.”
“Foundation?”
“I put together auction items for an annual fundraiser. I’ve always volunteered, but this year, I’m asking them to hire me.” Her gaze connected with him, as though she thought he might be judging her. “I’m actually quite good at my job.”
“I’m not surprised.” Why did she sound defensive? “Are you not supposed to ask for money?” They wove their way through parked cars.
“Oh, God, no. My mum and I have always volunteered at several philanthropies. It’s what a Crutchley does. But I need the income, and if they value me as much as they say they do, they’ll hire me. All foundations have a staff.”
As they entered, Phinny breezed right in. He suspected she wasn’t used to shopping in places that had carts, so he grabbed one for her and followed along as she touched every single item in the store. Bath towels, coffee mugs, wreaths, nail polish in every color of the rainbow and…dear God. The woman loved candles.
“Mm.” She closed her eyes and inhaled. “This one’s lovely.” She offered it to him.
He held up a hand. It was the thirtieth one she’d tried. “They all smell the same at this point.” She laughed, and he felt it in his bones. A softening, a lightening. It was unreal what she did to him. “But if you’re not buying any, maybe we should move on.”
“No.” Reluctantly, she set it back on the shelf. “I can’t spend money on them.”
“Right, so let’s hit the clothing section.”
An hour later, she’d tried on every single color and various sizes of T-shirts, shorts, sundresses, and jeans. After she’d finished, she sorted through each piece of clothing she’d piled into the cart and checked the price tags. “Let’s see. Three-ninety-nine times three…you know what? I don’t need three pairs of shorts. It’s just a month, and I can wash everything.” She lifted all three pairs out of the cart, deciding which to return. “I really like these. My butt looks good in them, doesn’t it?” She actually looked to him for a response.
“Phinny, your ass looks good in anything.”
Her cheeks pinkened, and she held the shorts to her chest. “Thank you.” She said it breathlessly, and he honestly couldn’t believe this gorgeous woman didn’t know she was hot.
Her ex is an asshole.
“You know what? They’re on sale, so I’ll get all three.” She picked up a vintage-style T-shirt. “This is cute, right?”
The graphic was for Wild Billy’s restaurant and bar. Orange rhinestones outlined the cowboy riding a bucking bronco. His silver hat glittered. “Sure.”
“Was Wild Billy’s around when I was a kid?”
“Oh, yeah. It’s been around for a hundred years.”
“I don’t remember Kurt taking me there.” She tossed the shirt and shorts back into the cart. “Of course, I was only five the last time I was here.” She took over pushing the cart.
“You have to remember he was a celebrity. He couldn’t go anywhere without people asking for autographs. He never talked about it, but I’ll bet he had so little time with you that he wanted you to himself. Either way, Kurt wasn’t an asshole. He didn’t try to make your visits bad.”
“You have a nice way of thinking about it.”
His heart wrenched at how wounded she looked.
“If I’d said that same thing to my mum—that Kurt had never taken me there—she would’ve said, Well, Kurt was an asshole. God forbid anything take him away from his precious ranch. Or something like that.”
He didn’t know what to say. “I guess she had her own experience with him.”
“Maybe that’s why he wanted me to stay here for the month.”
“Makes sense he’d want you to form your own opinion about him.”
“They were just so different, Kurt and my mum.” She wore a thoughtful expression. “It’s a wonder they got together at all.”
“What’s she like?”
“Oh, my mum’s a force. She’s on the go all day long.”
“She works?”
“She volunteers quite a bit, but mostly she shops, goes to meetings and luncheons. My parents go out six nights a week.”
“Yeah, Kurt wasn’t into any of that. He didn’t do dinner parties, and he only shopped for what he needed. And his gifts were quiet.”
“Quiet?”