Page 174
She tucked the small point-of-sale device into her apron pocket while he unlocked the wheels on the cart. Together they piled the box of napkins and bakery tissue onto the cart, then he folded up the table. They started for the store.
She looked around. “This is an interesting town. I’m looking forward to exploring the different stores in The Wreath.”
“Did you try the fudge?”
She grinned at him. “I did, and it was addictive.”
“Good. So I was thinking I could come by after work and check out the Mustang. If that works for you.”
“Sure.”
“Want to grab some dinner?”
She hesitated only a second before nodding. “That would be nice.”
“I get off about five, so say five thirty. We’ll come up with a game plan on the car, then go get something to eat. You like Mexican food?”
“I do.”
“Then, we’ll go there.”
They reached the front of the store. Lawson held open the door. As she pushed the cart inside, he saw his sister behind the counter. Adien smiled at him but didn’t say anything. He set the folding table inside.
“See you tonight,” he said.
“You will.”
Although he wanted to linger, he forced himself to leave. Hanging around when she had things to do wasn’t cool. He would get some lunch, then get back to work. Tonight he would see Shaye. Over dinner, he would get to know her better. Assuming that went as well as he expected, he could start working on his plan to get her to stay in Wishing Tree.
Shaye wasn’t sure if she should dress for dinner or working on a car. She’d spent an hour sorting through all the parts and separating them by category. Then she’d watched a few videos on rebuilding the engine. Tomorrow she would tackle the hard work.
Around four thirty, she showered and put on a clean pair of jeans and a lightweight summer sweater. If she and Lawson ended up working on the car later, she could easily run upstairs and get changed. Once she was ready, she hesitated, not sure if she should wait for him downstairs or out in the garage. Finally she took her handbag and a book to the first floor, where she made herself comfortable on one of the sofas in the living room. A few minutes later, Kathy walked in.
“How are you doing, Shaye?” her landlord asked. “Getting settled?”
“Yes. I had fun at my shift with the food cart, and I’m getting to know your car. I’m going to start rebuilding the engine tomorrow. Um, Lawson Easley is going to help me.”
Kathy’s brows rose slightly. “Is he? That’s excellent. The boy knows what he’s doing. He’s been in love with cars since he was little. There’s no one I’d trust more.”
She waved. “I’m off to play bridge. You have a nice evening.”
“You, too.”
When Kathy left, Shaye picked up her book, but she was too nervous to read. She hadn’t been on a first date in a long time. Not that this was a date, exactly. It was more of a . . . Well, something.
Right at five thirty, there was a knock on the front door. Shaye opened it, then tried not to react when she saw Lawson standing there. By some quirk of fate, the man got better-looking every time she saw him. And when he smiled, which he was doing now, she felt flutters all over.
“Hungry?” he asked.
She laughed. “I am. Despite spending the middle part of my day selling hand pies, I forgot to get lunch.”
“Then, we’d better get you fed. We can check out the car after dinner.”
He waited while she closed and carefully locked the front door behind her, then he led the way down the front path.
“We’re close enough to walk to The Wreath,” he said. “This is a real nice part of town. The elementary school is only a few blocks to the south, so it’s a family-friendly neighborhood.”
She smiled at him. “Are any parts of Wishing Tree not family-friendly?”
