A Hero for Tonight Read online

  “Hey, do you know if Krista’s seeing anyone?”

  He swung his head around at Dave’s question. “Why ask me?”

  “My cousin’s in town this weekend, and I thought maybe I’d introduce them.”

  “Who? Ken?” Shane snorted. “She’d never go out with Ken.”

  “Why not?” Dave frowned. “What’s wrong with Ken?”

  “Nothing. That’s the issue. He’s got nothing wrong with him; nothing she can fix. Krista likes the damaged guys she thinks she can change.”

  Dave drained his beer and set it on the rail. “Maybe she just hasn’t met the right guy yet. I think I’ll give Ken her number.”

  “Your call, but I don’t see why you have to ruin Ken’s life.”

  “Krista isn’t the witch you like to think she is. She’s got a great personality, she’s fun to be around, and isn’t hard on the eyes either. You’re just biased.”

  Shane finished his beer and pointed the empty bottle at his buddy. “Familiarity breeds contempt. Want another?”

  “Yeah. How about pizza? No clue what time Karen will get back.”

  “Works for me.”

  Dave’s phone chimed as Shane walked through the sliding glass door to the kitchen. When he heard him talking with Karen, he decided he better wait before ordering the pizza.

  “Hey, Shane. Karen’s at the sub shop already; you want her to bring you one?” Dave called through the back door.

  “Nah.” He picked up two more beers and walked back on the deck as Dave hung up the phone.

  “You sure? She’s still in line; said she’d grab one for you.”

  Shane twisted the top of his beer and set it on the deck rail. “Had one for lunch. I’ll go into town and see what the special is at the diner.”

  Dave tipped his beer back. “This thing with you and Krista—”

  “There’s no thing.”

  “You know what I mean, this animosity you have for her. Do you ever wonder if it’s just something you do because you’ve always done it?”

  “What are you talking about?” He furrowed his brow.

  “Karen says she thinks you and Krista have this thing between you because it masks your secret attraction to one another. You don’t want to like her, and she doesn’t want to like you, so you play up this hatred thing.” Dave looked uncomfortable, as if the conversation was too touchy feely.

  Which of course it was. Shane was tired of everyone trying to figure him out.

  “Just because she’s a school guidance counselor doesn’t make Karen a psychologist. I’ve had enough of them trying to poke around in my head after the deployment. Believe me, if the marines can’t find anything wrong with me, there’s nothing wrong with me.”

  Dave laughed. “She didn’t say there was anything wrong with you, just that it’s bizarre how much you two rub each other the wrong way.”

  “Why can’t two people just not hit it off? Krista’s a pest, annoying, always under my feet, and a pain in the ass.”

  “You have noticed that she’s not ten years old anymore, right?”

  Shane scowled.

  Dave waved his hand in the air. “Okay, okay, whatever. Not my issue.” A car pulled into the driveway next door, and he turned his head. “See what Melissa thinks about next weekend and we’ll go out.”

  “Yep.” Shane lifted his hand to wave at Karen as Dave walked across their joined back yards.

  He watched his buddy reach into the car, and in a few seconds, emerged with a little boy in his arms. It sure wasn’t right; those two were so eager to be parents, even looking the part with the house and the yard. Still, two years later, everyone around them shared their heartache as no baby seemed to be on the way.

  Weird how he and Dave were the same age, yet the last thing Shane was thinking about was having babies. Then again, maybe he just hadn’t yet met the woman who made him want a family. He’d watched marriages come up so fast in the military, and end just as quick. Rash decisions based on hormones or emotions heightened due to deployment.

  He ran his hand along the back of his neck as his stomach growled. Should he call Melissa and see if she wanted to grab dinner? He had a feeling she’d probably be happy to hear from him, although he’d told her that he’d be gone all weekend. The honest truth was, he had no interest in trying tonight. Trying to make conversation, trying to make a relationship, trying to find some spark of desire between them. The few light kisses they’d shared had left him cold.

  Dumping his half-empty beer, he grabbed his coat and headed back into town to the diner. But once inside, he immediately regretted the decision. The place was standing room only, even the counter was full.

  He was just about to turn and leave when he saw Krista in a booth by herself. She looked up and caught his gaze before he could turn away.

  “Shane, it’s going to be at least half an hour or more.” The hostess and diner owner, Annie, reviewed the list of names on her podium. “Krista’s in the back by herself, why don’t you eat with her?”

  He started to say no, but the hard rumble of his stomach and smell of fresh baked bread warred with his desire to leave and find something else. “Yeah. Thanks.” Besides, as much as Krista annoyed him, he annoyed her just as much. Might as well ruin her night, too.

  He made his way to the back and slid in across from her without waiting for an invitation. “It’s your lucky night.”

  Krista paused in the act of lifting her water glass to glare at him. “How’s that?”

  “You get to eat with me.”

  “What if I’m waiting for a date?”

  Shane snorted. “Not likely.”

  Setting her glass down, she flipped open her menu and studied the selections. “You don’t know that I’m not waiting for someone.”

  “Sure I do. Only one water glass and one menu. You’re eating by yourself. Again.”

  She snorted and looked up once more. “Don’t make it sound pathetic. You’re by yourself, too.”

  Annie dropped another menu on the table and a full water glass. “Sorry for the crowds tonight, guys, but this time of year is always good for business.”

  “Leaf lookers?” Shane asked.

  “Yep. They build up appetites driving around looking at colored leaves. I don’t get it, but as long as they come in and eat something other than pie, I don’t care. Be right back.”

  She hustled away, and Shane pushed his menu aside. “I’m by myself because I choose to be. I had other offers and other options.”

  “I didn’t ask.” Krista closed her menu neatly.

  “You implied that I was the same as you. No one to eat with.”

  Wary eyes stared back as if he was a bug and she was considering whether to squash him or not. “You think you have it all figured out, don’t you?”

  “What figured out?” Shane spread his arms along the back of the booth.

  “Me. My life. You think you know it all.”

  “Frankly, I don’t spend any time thinking about you or your life.” Lifting his chin, he gave a brief smile of greeting as the lady from the bank waved to him from across the diner. What was her name again? Betty? Bonny? Something B…

  “That doesn’t surprise me. You don’t spend much time thinking of anyone but you.”

  His gaze jerked back to her face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  She shrugged. “Just saying.”

  Annie showed up again with pencil and pad in hand. “Shane, steak sandwich, extra fries, and a large cola?”

  He nodded.

  The waitress glanced at Krista over her glasses. “Chicken and biscuits with a side salad, Greek dressing, no chick peas?”

  Krista nodded.

  “That it? Anything to drink?”

  “Water’s fine. Thanks, Annie.” Krista shook her head.

  The silence between them stretched. Shane looked around, trying to focus on anything but the woman across from him. Dave’s words from earlier rang in his ears and drew his attention back to he
r. Tonight, she had on a green, short-sleeve sweater. The material looked soft and snuggled her breasts, drawing his gaze. Why the hell every time he saw her lately did he notice her curves? He’d gone for years doing his best to ignore everything about her, but the past few weeks every time he saw her it was as if she was someone else, not the Krista he grew up with, who got on his nerves.

  Her hair bounced on her shoulders, shimmering soft and shiny as if she’d just washed it. Usually, it was up in some haphazard ponytail. She even had on a trace of lipstick and earrings. Why did she look so good tonight? Was she serious that she had a date? Had she been stood up? That should have amused him, but for some reason, his gut clenched, thinking some guy would do that to her. Of course, knowing the guys she usually dated, it shouldn’t surprise him.

  He shifted forward in the booth. “So, you were eating alone, right? You weren’t, like, waiting for someone?”

  “Now you’re worried?” She lifted one eyebrow. “Relax. I had a meeting in the city and didn’t feel like going home and cooking, that’s all.”

  “A meeting? What kind of meeting?”

  Her face flushed, and she picked up her water again and drank before answering. “Nothing to do with you.”

  “You weren’t visiting some old boyfriend in jail again were you? I told you, if they go to jail, it’s a big hint you need to give up on them.”

  “You’re an ass.” She rolled her eyes.

  “So you’ve told me.”

  Her breath came out on a long, disgusted sigh. “Never mind. I can’t believe I was even tempted to talk to you about this.”

  Shane’s curiosity was piqued. “Tell me what then?”

  Stubbornly, she ignored him.

  “Fine. Don’t tell me. We can just sit here and ignore each other.”

  “Works for me.”

  Why was it so hard for him to be nice to her? There really wasn’t anything Krista had done to cause his animosity toward her. Maybe it was like Dave told him. He was simply so used to her being the pesky neighborhood kid, always hanging around and bugging him, that he’d just accepted it. Even when he’d come home after a tour in Iraq, it wasn’t as if he suddenly saw her as all grown up. She was still Krista, always at his folks’ house, always getting in his business.

  Annie came by and set a salad down in front of her along with a small basket of bread.

  Krista picked up her fork. “Where are you drilling this weekend?”

  Shane grabbed a piece of bread and buttered it. He didn’t bother to ask how she knew it was a drill weekend; his mother would have informed her. “Fort Drum.”

  “How long does it take to get up there?”

  He took a large bite of bread. “Three or four hours. Depends on the weather and who’s driving.”

  “Do you enjoy it still? The reserves, I mean?”

  “It’s no big deal.” Shane reached over and plucked an olive out of her salad. She didn’t stop him.

  “Remember when we were little and all you ever wanted to do was play war?”

  He grinned. “Yep, I always made you one of my prisoners. I’d torture you, trying to get you to tell me all your secrets.”

  “By holding worms over my head! And the only secrets I had to tell were where your mother had the candy hidden.”

  “Yeah, but Dave couldn’t be trusted. The minute he was the prison guard, he’d always let you escape.”

  “Dave’s always been a sweetheart.”

  Annie appeared once more, set a bottle of ketchup on the table and refilled Krista’s water glass before hustling away again. The silence between them was tense, and Shane wondered why he felt the need to converse with her. It wasn’t the first time they’d sat together and didn’t talk.

  “So anyway, tell me about this meeting you had,” he ventured again.

  Krista hesitated, glanced at him and then back at her plate. “I’ve been thinking of expanding the Apple Basket.”

  “Expanding?”

  Her eyes sparkled and she leaned forward as if it was a big secret she couldn’t keep to herself any longer. “I’d like to open the farm market in March and stay open until the end of the year. Only close in January and February.”

  “Mom wants to be open that much?” His mother had never mentioned to him about wanting to be there more. In fact, he distinctly recalled her saying something about not sure how many more years she wanted to continue.

  Krista drew her bottom lip into her mouth, drawing his gaze. Her lips were full and pink with only a hint of lipstick. Melissa’s lips were always covered in some type of glossy goo that tasted like a cross between salad oil and cough medicine. Krista’s mouth looked like it would taste only like her, not some cosmetic.

  “I haven’t talked to her about it yet. I wanted to get all the details worked out before I said anything. I know she doesn’t have any interest in the store being opened more than it is. I would do it on my own. The last thing I want is to put any type of pressure on her.”

  “But aren’t you two partners? Wouldn’t she have to be involved if you did this?”

  Fear replaced the excitement in her eyes. Obviously, it was something she’d been wrestling with.

  Her cheeks tinged pink. “Actually, my hope is that she’ll let me do this on my own, but still stay in it with me, especially in the fall.”

  “That will never work; she’ll never let you go it alone.”

  Krista nodded. “I know. That’s the part I don’t know how to fix.”

  She lifted her gaze to his, and for a crazy moment their eyes locked and held. Shane swore his heart skipped a beat. Her eyes were incredibly green; the color no doubt intensified by the sweater, but for some reason tonight, they were mesmerizing. He swallowed.

  “What do you think I should do?”

  Her question brought him out of his fog. He broke the contact and picked up another piece of bread, glancing up in hopes Annie was bringing his own dinner soon. “How the hell should I know?”

  He heard her breath catch, and he instantly felt bad that he’d snapped.

  “Thanks. I don’t know why I even thought you could help.”

  Shane forced his gaze to hers and tried to look sympathetic. “Sorry. Tell me some more, and I’ll see what I can do.”

  She pushed her empty salad plate away and picked up her water. “No, thanks. I’ll figure it out on my own.”

  “You’ll have to figure out a way to make it seem as if her not doing this is the best option. I have no clue how you’re going to do that, though,” he finally offered.

  Annie appeared and set full plates down in front of each of them. “Anything else right now? I’ll bring you a refill.” She picked up Shane’s empty cup and looked from one to the other.

  His stomach grumbled with anticipation. “Thanks. I think I’m all set.”

  Krista nodded in agreement, and Annie bustled away.

  The aroma of her dinner drifted to his nostrils, and for once, he wished he’d decided to change his order. He was stuck in a rut with always getting the steak sandwich. Hell, it just mirrored his life; stuck in a rut. He scowled. Now where had that come from?

  “I was thinking of telling your mom that I want to be a business woman on my own; see if I could do it alone type of thing.” Her words poured out in a rush as if she couldn’t seem to stop herself from asking his opinion. Probably, she had absolutely no one else to bounce it around with.

  Shane chewed his first bite and waited until his mouth was semi empty before commenting. “If you do that, she’ll feel like you don’t want her.”

  “No matter what I tell her, she’s going to feel that way. It’s what’s held me back from doing it.” She picked up a forkful of mashed potatoes, and Shane watched as she mixed it with some chicken and gravy.

  “Tell her you’re bored and need an outlet.”

  Krista’s mouth dropped open, and she shook her head. “You really think I’m useless, don’t you? I mean, you have this image that I sit around all year until the store
opens, and then I start working.”

  “I suppose you have some secret career that I don’t know about? Be careful, because as you know, there’s very little I don’t know about you, thanks to my mother.” He took a large bite of the greasy sandwich.

  Her eyebrows arched, and she studied him for a second. “Really? For your information, I’ve been designing websites for small companies for the past five years.”

  He knew she was working on the website for the Apple Basket, but there were websites everywhere; how hard could it be to toss a few images up on the computer and hook up an email? He never really thought it a big deal. “What companies?”

  Krista lifted her chin. “Well, I did the website for the recreation club and for the new day spa.”

  “A day spa? You mean the new beauty parlor on Elm Street?”

  Krista gave a humorless, short laugh as if he was an idiot. “These days, everything is a day spa; it sounds more glamorous than beauty shop.”

  “I’m sure if I walk in there, it still smells like ammonia from the hair goo mixed with coffee.”

  “Yes, but they also have massages, facials, and pedicures. Pampering for ladies. I took your mom for her birthday. She loved it.”

  He’d given his mother flowers like he always did. He never would have thought to give her a spa treatment, but then, he was a guy—what did he know about facials and such. “She loves anything you do.”

  “I know it annoys you. My relationship with her, that is, and you think she’s a substitute mother, but she’s my friend. I enjoy her company.”

  “It’s not like I’m jealous of it or anything. Hell, I don’t want to go to a day spa with her.” Shane poured ketchup on his fries and then sprinkled them liberally with pepper.

  “No, but you could do other things with her. I know she misses you.”

  His head jerked up, and he frowned. “Misses me? I’m there for dinner at least three times a week.”

  “Yes, it’s very nice that you allow her to cook for you.”

  Annoyance crept up his spine. Here they were having a nice meal, and she had to go and, well, go and be herself. “If you knew my mother the way you think you do, you’d know that she’s only happy when she’s taking care of people and feeding them, especially feeding them.”