Indomitable Spirit (9 page)

Kym bowed her head. Now she’d been put in hers.

When her limbs had gone numb from the cold she headed back inside. Someone would come to take over or lock up, she was sure. But she’d stay until they arrived.

A car started up the road toward the bakery. That moment made her realize that she was there to help now. She’d had enough practice during the morning rush, she could help anyone that came into the shop.

A few minutes later an enormous man climbed out of a mini-van and headed for the door. She wanted to laugh. Was it the water in the town that made the men here so gigantic?

“Oh, hey,” he said as he let the door close behind him. He let the zipper down on his jacket a little and a tiny head peeked out. “Got damn cold out there this morning, didn’t it?”

She wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or the baby he’d bundled up in his jacket.

The man looked up at her. “You own the karate school don’t you?”

She smiled. “Yes. I’m helping out this morning I guess. Malory went into labor.”

The man’s eyes grew wide. “No kidding.” He laughed a deep laugh. “I’ll have to give Chris hell now. Wait till that little guy pukes on him one time. Poor Wil. She’ll have her hands full.”

Kym now knew this man was an Aspen Creek native. Depending on what one called Malory it gave away the truth to whether you came from the town or were transplanted there.

The man balanced the infant against his shoulder and held out his hand to her. “I’m Cade Carter. My wife Olivia and I grew up with Chris and Wil.”

“Cade Carter?” She shook his hand. “You played football.”

He nodded. “That seems like a long time ago.”

“My brothers watched you.”

“You don’t watch football?”

She shook her head. “I train too much to watch other sports.”

“Too bad.” He gave her his order and then bounced the baby on his shoulder as she retrieved his coffee. “So how’s the school?”

“It’s going well, thank you,” she said as she put the lid on his coffee.

“I took a few lessons there when I was a kid and did some training in Wisconsin, but never really pursued martial arts.”

Kym set the cup on the counter and went to wrap up his muffin. “It’s hard getting it going again after most of the students left. But we will make it.”

“You know, I teach gym over at the high school. I’ll bet we could work you into the curriculum one week. The kids could learn some self-defense. They won’t be in this town their whole life if they’re lucky.”

“I don’t know.”

“Really. We could do it on all levels. The schools are all in the same place. Why don’t we talk about it? Maybe it’ll help you get a few students and it’ll be something useful for the kids to learn.”

Kym smiled. “I’d like that.”

She set his bag on the counter and gave him the total.

“Dang. Wallet’s in the car.” He lifted the baby off his chest and dangled him over the counter. “Here, hold him. I’ll be right back,” he said as she took the baby. As Cade opened the door John barreled through.

“Are you crazy leaving her with him? She doesn’t have the first clue as to what to do,” he snarled and proceeded to walk toward the area with the plastic sheeting and set down two cans of paint.

Cade laughed and continued out the door.

Kym, desperate to not look like an idiot, pulled the tiny boy to her chest and gently patted his back.

John walked up next to her and took the baby from her. “Hold his head. He’s too little and you have to protect his head.”

He held him in his enormous arms and rocked from side to side.

There was a side to this man that came out at the strangest of times. The door opened again and Cade walked back through.

“Leave my son with a pretty woman for one second and you steal him away.”

John shifted his eyes at him and Cade offered a glance that begged for forgiveness.

Kym finished the sale and handed Cade back his change. John smiled at the baby one last time and handed him back to Cade.

“How is Olivia?” John asked

“Back to work. I’m headed in to town to take him for his checkup since my first class doesn’t start until ten. Parker has been real nice about letting her take him in with her.”

“He was always a decent guy,” John added.

“Yeah. Hey give Wil my best if you see her. I’ll try to stop by and visit when I know the baby is here.”

“You won’t be waiting long,” John said as he headed toward the cans of paint. “Water broke before I got her to the hospital. Chris nearly passed out when he saw her. He’s such a wimp.”

Both men chuckled.

Cade balanced the baby tucked into his coat with one arm and his bag and cup in the other and walked out the door.

When the door shut the air grew thick. Kym was all aware that it was only her and John in Malory’s bakery, only now she knew the truth behind John Larson.

“Are you going to paint now?” Her voice shook as she asked?

“I was only waiting on Wil to get out of here for a few days.”

“Can I be of any help?”

He didn’t look up at her. “You got a job to do right there for a few more hours. She called in the old owner who will help out for a bit after tomorrow. But for now she needs you right there. Unless you have other things to do.” He never looked up from the paint can, which he’d opened and begun to stir.

“No. It’s Wednesday. It’s my day.”

“Right. You’ll want to go train or something.”

Kym tightened her fists to her side. It was already eleven o’clock and Malory’s bakery usually died down until after lunch. Her business was morning treats and bread on the way home. Lunch belonged to the diners in town.

She sucked in a few breaths of courage and walked toward the table she and Malory had occupied earlier. “Can I get you something to drink?”

“She doesn’t carry anything I’d need at this moment.”

The fury he caused in her was starting to erupt inside of her. “In other words you need something a little stronger than coffee to deal with me?”

That had his head shoot up. “I find it better to just avoid you all together. But since you’re a healthy young woman, who isn’t pregnant, I’m going to paint today so I’m done when Esther gets here tomorrow. She’s about eighty and doesn’t need this stuff being done around her either. As you can see, I’m on a deadline.”

“Well, I certainly wouldn’t want to bother you any more then.”

She picked up the mug and the water glass from the table and started toward the kitchen. As she set them in the sink and turned around to retrieve the plate she nearly ran right into the wall that was John Larson standing right behind her.

“You want to know what a bother you are? You have my kids doing chores that I never could get them to do. You have this voodoo magic over everyone in this town and it has them doing things they wouldn’t do.”

“Such as?”

“Such as offering to fix crap.”

“You offered that.”

“I know I did. I don’t do that.”

“Well then I think you have the problem not me.” She tried to go around him, but he shifted, cutting off her path.

“You are my problem.” He stepped in closer to her just as he had last night. “You know damn good and well you were moving in to kiss me last night too.”

“I shouldn’t have.”

“You say that because you were in a position of authority last night. I get that. But telling me not to embarrass you, that was crap.”

“I’m sorry.” Her stomach had turned over from the guilt of that moment, but mixed with the beating of her heart and the heat of her skin she wasn’t so sure she wouldn’t collapse on the floor. Would he catch her as he’d caught Malory, she wondered.

“Sorry for what? Almost kissing me or for making me feel horrible about wanting to kiss you?”

She could feel his breath on her cheek. His enormous body had moved in so close she was now pinned against the counter. Was he only making a point or had she been on his mind too?

“What is it?” His voice was deeper and airy. Her eyes had closed and she could feel her lungs working double time trying to keep breath in her.

She forced her eyes open. “I didn’t want to be a home wrecker.”

He stopped moving in to her and pulled back. His eyes were wide. John bit down on his lip and cleared his throat.

“Home wrecker?”

“I didn’t know about Abigail until this morning.”

He stepped back and rubbed his chin with his hand. “You didn’t know I was some poor old widowed slob, huh?”

“I don’t think of you like that.”

“Right. I’m the nice guy who was sweeping you off your feet.”

He was very good at this guilt thing. “You’ve been on my mind a lot. I was heartbroken when I found out Abby and Jacob were your kids.”

“I’m that bad huh?”

Kym stepped toward him and rested her hand on his arm. “No. I just figured I was too late.”

John turned to her again and now was right in front of her. His enormous hands had come to her waist.

“Too late for what?”

He made her so nervous. If he were attacking her she could deal with it. But he was holding her. His large fingers played with the nerves on her hips. His chest was working as hard as hers to keep his breath moving. What did she have to lose at this point?

“Too late to fall for you.”

“Fall for me?”

She couldn’t say she loved him, that would make him run. She only nodded and a groan came from him as he moved her back to the counter.

“You hate me.”

She shook her head. “I want to.”

“I’m not very nice.”

“You have reason, but I don’t think you’re too bad.”

He’d pushed himself to her and now she felt every hard part of his body pressed against her.

Kym raised her hands to his chest as his head lowered to her ear.

“I have four kids.”

“I know,” she whispered as she closed her eyes and let the moment wash over her with his breath in her ear.

“They come first.”

“They always should.”

She felt him swallow hard and his fingertips began to dig into the flesh on her hips.

“I’ve been losing a lot of sleep over you.” His breath was hot against her neck. “I take relationships very seriously.”

Relationship. Was this what she wanted? She didn’t know him—but she wanted to. She sucked in a deep breath. “So do I.”

He pressed his body closer to her. “If I kiss you, it means you’re mine.” He took a breath. “It means all my crazy life is intertwined with yours. It means…”

“It means I’m an adult and I know what I’m getting myself into,” she said as she reached her arms around his neck and brought him to her mouth.

Kym’s mouth was on his and her fingers were now in his hair. He moved one hand to the counter to brace himself as she slid her tongue past his lips and into this mouth.

John’s head spun. It had been years since he’d kissed a woman and it hadn’t quite had the same effect on him as it was right now. His mind was going a million different places. He thought he should stop her—he was a cranky old man.

Oh hell, maybe this was why. He’d needed more kisses.

He should stop her, because it was disrespectful to the memory of Abigail, but her teeth on his lips made him think otherwise. Abigail would want him to fall in love again.

Then there was just that…falling in love. Could he do that? Did he have it in him?

He pushed against her harder. His body was taking over.

Their breath was growing thick—together. Their hands were searching each other—together. Their lips, their tongues, their thoughts—were together.

It could have been only seconds or perhaps it had been minutes, but finally, out of breath, Kym collapsed against him resting her head to his chest.

He held her close. He didn’t want to see disappointment in her eyes. He didn’t want to face reality of what this meant—not just yet.

Chapter Nine

John had taken Kym up on her offer to help him paint Wil’s remodeled area. It wasn’t that he’d needed the help; he just wanted her near him.

They were nervous around each other. He’d asked her about her family and she’d gone into long detail about her Korean mother and her Irish father and her two brothers. He had to admit he was envious that she’d lived in so many places. And likewise she’d shared that she was envious that he had such stability having lived in the same town his whole life.

The call had come in from Chris just as they were finishing that he was the proud father of a baby girl.

John had laughed right out loud and said, “Well, my friend, girls play a mean game of hockey too. Your wife did just fine in net.”

He’d noticed Kym grow quiet after that and he hadn’t wanted to ask her why.

When they were done painting there was an awkward moment between them when neither of them knew what they were supposed to do next.

“Do you pick up the kids from school?”

He shook his head. “No. Usually I’m working so they walk home. Or go to your school.”

“Right.” She smiled and tucked a fallen piece of hair behind her ear. “I guess on Wednesdays they’re all home waiting for you, huh?”

“Yeah.” It was the most pathetic conversation they’d ever had. They were better off when they were yelling at each other.

“Grandfather and I eat dinner together on Wednesdays, though since he’s become a regular at Maggie’s he hasn’t been hungry for dinner too often.”

John had laughed at that. “She makes the best grub around. But from what I hear, your grandfather has made many friends around town. Even my mother told me yesterday that Mrs. Clemens was going to fix him dinner.”

“He might have mentioned that,” she said, but not as humored as he’d been by the thought.

They cleaned up the paint and after she’d closed for the day. Maggie showed up to clean up the bakery and get ready for the next day.

John offered to stay and help her, but Kym had taken the opportunity to duck out. He’d walked her to her car when Maggie had gone in back.

“I wonder if I should come by in the morning and help,” she said as she ducked into her car, started the engine, and then came back out to talk to him.