Close to You (18 page)

“
Do you want to tell me
about it?” he asked softly.

She stiffened, and anger she hadn’t
realized she still carried burbled to the surface. “That’s rather
presumptuous of you.”

He didn’t even blink. He simply
watched her kindly, waiting for her.

“
You don’t know me,” she
said tersely, surprising herself.

“
But I’d like to get to
know you.”

She gripped a fork in her hand. “I
don’t understand why. I’m not a good person.”

“
How about if I be the
judge of that?”

Growling, she let the fork clatter
onto the plate. “You sound so reasonable, but you don’t know. You
have no idea who I am.”

“
I think I have an
idea.”

She snorted in disbelief.

“
Margaret, you’re a kind,
lovely woman.”

“
No, I’m not.” She crossed
her arms. A kind woman wouldn’t have sabotaged an innocent young
woman for her own gain.

“
You feed that homeless man
every day.”

She froze. “You know about
that?”

Grant nodded. “For weeks I’ve watched
you leave food for him. Do you know how many people pass by him
without even seeing him? It takes a special person to do that. A
kind and compassionate person.”

“
I’ve done bad things,” she
whispered hoarsely.

“
I have a pretty good sense
of people, and I can tell that whatever you think you’ve done isn’t
as bad as you think.”

“
The hell it’s not,” she
said loudly.

The tables next to them glanced over
uncomfortably.

Oddly, for once, she didn’t
care. She leaned forward, feeling the eruption coming and unable to
stop it. “I’ve done bad things to my son
and
the woman he loves. I’m cold and
uncaring, and I have a black heart.”

Grant appeared to digest the words.
Then he shook his head confidently. “A woman with a black heart
wouldn’t give a damn about a man down on his luck.”

The sympathy in his eyes
nearly slayed her. She knocked her chair backwards as she stood up
to leave. “
Yes, I do
. You should run away now while you have the chance, before I
ruin your life too.”

Catching her hand, he stopped her.
“Margaret, I’m not going to run.”

She looked down at his hand as tears
flooded her eyes. “Then you’re a fool.”

“
Maybe a gambler rather
than a fool.” He smiled gently. “But I have a feeling the risk here
is worth the projected reward.”

“
That only proves you’re a
fool.” She tugged her hand free and rushed out of the restaurant,
chased by fears, regrets, and wishes she had no right
making.

Chapter Twenty-seven

Treat gazed sightlessly at the plans
he was supposed to be discussing with his crew manager Don. He knew
he needed to focus but he could only think about one thing. He was
in love with Eve.

He didn’t know when it happened. He
didn’t know how. But sometime between being bewitched by her shoes
and kissing her he’d fallen head over heels.

It made him feel warm.

It made him panicked.

“
Hey boss.” Don walked up
to the table and nodded at the blueprints. “You ready?”

He shook his head. “Just a
sec.”

Don stuck an unlit cigarette in his
mouth and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Woman
troubles?”

Treat smiled ruefully. “Is it that
obvious?”

“
Glazed look like you’ve
been hit over the head with a cast iron pan? Forgetting things?
Staring off into space?” The older man nodded. “Definitely a woman
involved. Maybe I should look at the plans myself before we build a
church instead of a daycare.”

Treat pushed the plans over. “Be my
guest.”

Don took the cigarette out and pointed
it at Treat. “You need to go take care of things? Because I’ve got
this covered. ‘Sides, you’re no good to us like this.”

He chuckled. “I’m that bad, am
I?”

His foreman shrugged. “We’ve all been
there. Last fight my wife and I had I got so worked up I lost my
wallet. You know where it was?”

“
Where?”

“
In the freezer, where I
keep my vodka.”

“
I didn’t take you for
vodka drinker.”

“
Whiskey’s my drug of
choice, but desperate times.” He stuck his fist out.

He bumped Don’s fist. “Amen to
that.”

His foreman waved his hand. “Go woo
your woman.”

Treat cocked his brow.
“Woo?”

“
Yeah.” Don looked at him
like he was a two-by-four short of a house. “By the look on your
face, this one’s important, so you’ve gotta woo her. Especially if
you’ve done something wrong and, let me tell you”—he leaned in—”it
doesn’t matter what happened,
you’re
the one who did something
wrong, if you know what I’m saying.”

The thing was, he
was
the one who’d done
something wrong. “Wooing it is.”

“
Good.” Sticking the
cigarette back in his mouth, he said around it, “Go conquer and be
a man.”

Clapping a hand on Don’s back, he
headed straight for his truck. It didn’t strike him until he was
halfway to Laurel Heights that he had no plan. Eve wouldn’t just
let him woo her, not after misleading her the way he
had.

What should he do?

He’d wing it, he decided as he
parked.

His cell phone rang as he walked down
the block. Because it was Rick, he answered it. “Do you have any
idea how to woo a woman?”

“
That’s when you buy her a
six-pack and invite her to take off her clothes, right?”

Treat shook his head. “It’s no wonder
you’re still a bachelor.”

“
The pot and the kettle, my
friend.”

“
Not for long, if I can
help it.”

There was stunned silence on the other
end. Then Rick said, “Damn.”

“
The thing is, I fucked
up.”

“
Of course you did. You’re
a man, so my sister says it’s a given. You’re going to see her
now?”

“
I have to convince her to
give me another chance.”

“
What’s the
address?”

“
Why?” he asked
suspiciously.

“
You’re going to need a
wing man. Someone to vouch for you, to assure her you aren’t
usually an asshole. What did you do, by the way?”

“
I’ll tell you later.” He
looked at the coffeehouse. “But if you want to support me, you need
to get here fast.”

“
Be there in five,” Rick
said after he got the address.

Nodding, Treat ended the call and
slipped the phone back into his pocket. Close enough to look into
the window of Grounds for Thought, he saw her smiling at her friend
Olivia. But even at this distance he could see her inner light was
dimmed.

He’d let that happen.

Never again.

He pushed open the door and walked
in.

The chill was immediate, mostly from
Eve. Olivia just watched him with pity.

“
You’re banned from this
coffee shop,” Eve said in almost a growl as he approached the
register.

He told himself that her being so
angry was a good thing. It meant she cared, and if the level of her
animosity was any indication, she cared a lot. “I have just one
thing to say.”

She crossed her arms, as thought
cutting herself off from him. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“
I do,” Olivia said
brightly, facing him.

He shook his head. “You’re enjoying
this too much.”

“
Someone has
to.”

Treat turned to Eve. The words stuck
in his throat. She looked so beautiful, he just wanted to take her
in his arms and kiss her and tell her he’d make everything okay. At
one time he would have cursed himself for that—that he felt the
need to take care of someone in that way. But with Eve it was
different. He knew she didn’t need to be taken care of. She was
fine on her own. Taking care of her was a privilege.

She tapped her foot. “I’m
waiting.”

He was thankful he couldn’t see her
feet to get distracted by her footwear. “I—”

The front door opened and Rick rushed
in, out of breath. “What did I miss?”

“
Nothing so far,” Olivia
replied. “You’re just in time.”

Rick brightened when he saw her and
went straight to her side. “Hello, gorgeous.”

“
Hello, yourself.” She
tilted a smile at him. “Are you here for tonight’s
fight?”

“
I heard it’d be a grudge
match.” He took her hand. “By the way, where have you been all my
life?”

Treat punched his supposed wingman’s
arm. “Lay off the charm and focus.”

Rick didn’t take his eyes off Olivia.
“Haven’t you wooed the girl yet?”

“
No,” he and Eve said at
once. She glared at Treat and added, “And you’re not,
either.”

Olivia nudged Rick with her shoulder.
“Come on. Let’s give them some special, and you can tell me all
about yourself.”

“
Excellent.” His best
friend beamed. “That’s my favorite subject.”

Treat took that as his cue to walk
around the counter.

“
What are you doing?” Eve
asked, panic in her voice as she backed up.

Good
. As long as he wasn’t the only one feeling it. “I have
something to say to you, and you’re going to listen to
me.”

“
I’m working,” she
whispered harshly.

“
Then you better stop
fighting and listen to me.” He cornered her, took her by the waist,
and lifted her onto the countertop so she was eye-level with him.
Bracketing her with his body, he leaned in to get her full
attention. “I only have one thing to say.”

“
Then just say it,” she
said, sounding more sad than aggressive.

He tucked her hair behind her ear and
cupped her face. “I’m sorry.”

She watched him, her gaze
wary. He wanted to take her in his arms, to kiss her and convince
her to take a chance on him. On
them
.

Finally she said, “That’s
it?”

“
That’s what’s at the
bottom of my heart. I only meant to protect you. I should have
trusted you instead.” Caressing her cheek one more time, he let go
and stepped back.

Woo her
, he heard Don tell him.

Taking a deep breath, he went balls
out. “Actually, what’s really at the bottom of my heart is you,
Eve. I love you.”

She gaped at him, her beautiful eyes
wide with shock.

“
It’s true. Deep down you
know I wouldn’t lie to you. My omission was wrong. I’m claiming
that. But you know this is true.”

It took all his willpower not to crush
her to him and force her to forgive him. “I’ll be here, waiting,
Eve. For as long as it takes.”

To keep himself in check, he stuck his
hands in his pocket and walked out of the café.

Rick followed him, falling into step
with him outside the coffee shop. “Come on. There’s a shot of
Jameson with your name on it.”

“
You’re on,” Treat said
grimly. Now he just had to wait and see if his gamble paid
off.

Chapter Twenty-eight

Margaret rearranged the flowers next
to the hostess station inside Crumpet one last time. She stood back
and looked at them dispassionately. Perfectly displayed. Warm
colors. Vibrant and inviting.

She could care less—about the flowers
or that Daniela Rossi was due to arrive in fifteen
minutes.

The only thing she cared about was
redemption—her own.

She hadn’t been able to sleep last
night, thinking about the way she’d acted with Treat, Eve, and
Grant. What had come over her? Even in the dark, she hadn’t been
able to face herself. She’d turned into something ugly.

Margaret touched her necklace,
remembering the look in her son’s eyes when Eve had accused him of
lying to her. That was all her fault. She winced, thinking of the
lost look on his face. She’d seen that look in the mirror, after
Harry had died.

Losing Harry had made her so afraid.
She tugged on the pearls, feeling like they were strangling her,
and looked around Crumpet, seeing it through fresh eyes. This
wasn’t what she wanted. The irony? In trying to protect it, she’d
lost everything that she really did want.

Like a relationship with Treat. And
Grant.

Her heart sped up with anticipation
and fear, but she was done letting those emotions rule
her.

Today was a new day.