Jane's Gift (Lone Pine Lake 1)

Great, so he was a serial dater. Was she just another woman to add to his list? And why would he choose her, considering all the baggage she came with?

Jane glanced around the room. She didn’t want anyone to hear her, especially Chris himself. “He’s the one who paid for our tickets.”

Mindy’s mouth dropped open and she stared silently for so long, Jane started to squirm in her seat. “So is this some sort of date or what?” she finally asked.

“I honestly don’t know.” Jane shrugged, feeling more than a little stupid. “Mac arranged for us to go to the fire station and Chris gave us the tour. He was so nice, so wonderful with the kids, especially Lexi. I wanted them to realize that fire wasn’t always a bad thing, you know? But they accepted the visit so easily. Mac came over a few days ago and lit a fire and it was no big deal. I…I wonder if I’m the one with the problem.”

“That’s okay. I mean, it’s expected. And the first part of conquering a problem is admitting you have a problem, right?” Mindy gently prodded. “So, that must’ve been some visit if you had Mister Hot Pants asking you out on a date.”

Jane’s cheeks heated and she waved her hand as if dismissing the entire thing. “Stop it. He seems like a great guy. He’s also really handsome; I can’t deny that. But I think he’s just being nice, you know?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, we ran into him at that little art fair last Saturday and he asked what I was doing this Friday night. Then he asked us to come here and offered to pay for our tickets.”

“Sounds like a date with the kids to me.”

“Well, kind of. Except he’s volunteering tonight.” She’d caught a glimpse of him working the room only a moment ago, a large silver pitcher clutched in his right hand, all smiles and friendly nods and full of hey neighbor greetings. Watching him serve drinks to everyone left her warm, a little giddy. “So really, it’s not a date. It’s just him being nice to the sad little widow and helping her during tough times. Getting her to come out and be social again.”

“Oh, God, only you would tear down a man’s intentions and make yourself sound like a charity case. Honey, what if he actually is interested in you?”

And with that question, Mindy had her. Okay, so maybe she wanted Christian Nelson to be interested in her. Because she was interested in him right back.

So much easier, though, to think he’d made his offer out of kindness. Then she wouldn’t be disappointed when she realized he wasn’t interested.

“No,” Jane finally answered with a quick shrug of her shoulders. “Okay, maybe? But I shouldn’t. Stephen hasn’t been gone that long.”

“And what, you’re supposed to shut off and live like a nun for the rest of your life? It’s been two years, Jane. You’re only twenty-eight. And you’ve made it, despite the odds. I think that’s plenty of reason for you to live a little.”

“By having a crush on a too-handsome man?” Jane’s nose wrin

kled and she glanced his way yet again. He was moving closer and closer to their table.

“Ooh, so you really do like him.” Mindy grinned and hugged Sophia close, who squirmed in her aunt’s embrace. “That’s so cute!”

“Keep it down.” Jane looked around yet again. “Listen, do you know anything about him at all? Does he go through women like wash rags or what?”

“From what I’ve heard, he’s friendly, hardworking, and has to fight off all the women who go ga-ga over a guy in uniform.” Mindy winced. Truth hurts and all. “But he’s also supposed to be a complete workaholic who’s married to his job. He dates, but not for long.”

“Where do you hear all this?”

“Honey, this town is small and he’s still considered new here. Us natives like to speculate and gossip about the outsiders, especially when one is young, good-looking, and unattached.” Mindy rolled her eyes. “You know how it goes.”

Jane stayed quiet, processing everything Mindy had revealed. Chris dated but he wasn’t serious about it. And he was married to his job. Her husband’s career as a headhunter for a large banking corporation had been the most important thing in his life too, and sometimes Jane had felt like he neglected her and their children. He did it for them, he’d always said. He needed to make sure his family was well taken care of.

Never again would she sacrifice herself and her children for a man’s job. She hadn’t found fault in Stephen for too many things, but his lack of time for his family had always been an issue. If he knew his life would be cut so short, would he have devoted so much time to his career? Or would he have spent more time with his wife and children?

“Well, I’m sure it’s completely farfetched to think he’d want to date me,” Jane said, nerves starting to clamor again in her stomach. Gosh, he was so close now she could practically feel him. And here she worried over Chris being a workaholic like Stephen, when what she really couldn’t forget was how dangerous his job was, too…

“You never know,” Mindy said with a sly smile. “And here comes trouble now.”

“Hey.” A warm hand touched her shoulder briefly and she knew without looking who that hand belonged to.

Christian Nelson stood directly behind her. It still felt as if he touched her—he was so close—and Mindy stared up at him, a slightly dazed expression on her face.

“Hi,” Jane said. She watched as he pulled out the empty chair next to her and sat on the edge, the shiny silver pitcher still clutched in his hand.

“How are you?” he asked. “You get in okay? They didn’t hassle you, did they?”