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  She rubbed her hands together in anticipation. “So, Suzy, give me a list of all of the eligible men that you know. If any of them are divorced, I want to see the decree and three sworn statements to that fact.”

  “Single men? Gee, I don’t know. All of Doug’s friends are married or oh-so-wrong for you.”

  She blinked. “What does that mean?”

  “It means that I just can’t see you involved with some forty-something, balding, overweight guy who sells chain-link fences for a living, that’s all.”

  Her brows shot up. “Are you saying I’m shallow?”

  “No, not at all.” Suzy chuckled and reached over to pat her hand. “Lynsey, you’re oblivious to the commotion you cause around you. As you walked up the street, there were nearly two car accidents caused by men who turned around to look at you. I swear that one guy on the street stared so hard at you he nearly dropped into an open manhole.”

  Lynsey took a sip of her iced tea, feeling a blush creep up her cheeks. She wasn’t sure she believed her longtime friend, but she took her teasing good-naturedly. When the waitress brought their salads to the table, she decided to approach the subject in a different manner. “What about Evan Monroe? We email from time to time. I know he split with Karen Elroy after his accident.”

  She was curious about Evan. He had been engaged when he was nearly killed in an accident and his fiancée bailed on him. About Nick’s age and unmarried, he had always been a friendly, good-looking, quirky kind of guy, and now, available again. In other words, Evan was perfect potential husband material.

  “Evan?” Suzy stirred sugar into her iced tea. “I believe the only women he’s interested in these days wear nurse’s uniforms. I think he’s still pretty banged up from his accident. I know that he just recently had another major surgery on his leg.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad.” She frowned. “I got the impression from Evan’s emails that he was well on the mend.”

  “I don’t know.” Suzy shrugged her thin shoulders. “You should ask Nicky. They’re very close.”

  Lynsey speared a wedge of tomato from her salad. “What do you know about Owen Mitchell? We exchanged a few friendly words at Kelly’s funeral.” She had been intrigued by the tall, dark-haired detective.

  “Oh, gee, Lynsey. What a story to tell people. When they ask where you met, you can say, ‘Well, I picked him up at the cemetery over an open grave.”

  “What can I say? He’s cute. I can’t help where we met.” She strained to keep the giggle from her voice.

  “All I know about Owen Mitchell is that he came to Unity from the city to accept a detective position with the police department. I don’t see him around very often. He pretty much keeps to himself. He seems…weird, you know? Standoffish.”

  Suzy didn’t seem a bit interested in gossiping about the single men of Unity. After all, she was a married mother of four, not a teenager anymore. Lynsey decided to drop the subject.

  “It must be nice that all your kids are in school now. You have some time to yourself.”

  “Are you kidding me?” Suzy looked up from her salad. “As the kids get older, they demand even more from Doug and me. It’s always: get me, give me, I want. I’m supposed to be available around the clock to be their personal cleaner, chef, and chauffeur all in one.”

  Suzy must be tired, Lynsey thought. She wasn’t usually so surly— especially when it came to her children.

  “Listen, Lynsey, I know I’m bad company today. I’m just tired, that’s all. Doug has been gone from home with work more and more, leaving me to deal with everything concerning the house, the bills, and the kids. That’s the reason I suggested you stay with Nicky instead of us. My house is in a constant state of chaos.”

  “You don’t need to explain.” Lynsey reached across the table to give Suzy’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “If there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know.

  Chapter Two

  Nick walked into his house at 6:00 p.m. after a long, muggy day in his patrol car. All he wanted was a nice, cool shower, a sandwich for dinner, and a late season baseball game on TV.

  What greeted him in his kitchen was Lynsey, looking exceptionally lovely in a pink summer dress. He could very easily get used to coming home to her. But he reminded himself that she was not there for him. She was merely a guest in his home for a few weeks. Soon she would be off in her new home, making a new life for herself.

  She smiled and his knees weakened.

  “If you’re not too tired, how about you take me out for that dinner you promised ? We can just stay local. I crave pizza.”

  How could he refuse that request? “Sure, just let me get a shower and a quick shave and we’ll go,” he answered, grateful not to trip over his tongue.

  After stepping out of the shower, Nick dried his hair, ran a razor over his chin, and then dropped the towel tied around his waist. As he stood in front of the full-length mirror in his bedroom, he clinically inspected his body.

  No real gray hair yet. But he was blond; maybe the gray just didn’t show up as clearly as it did on someone with dark hair.

  He sucked in his breath and held it for a few seconds. He swore quietly and slapped his belly. His weight hadn’t changed since his late twenties, but it seemed now that he was forty, the weight had started to redistribute itself.

  At the start of the year, all of the officers and detectives in the department were offered a free membership at a new gym in town, as part of a shape-up initiative. While most of his colleagues now sported ripped bellies and bulging biceps, he was going soft.

  ***

  Lynsey insisted that she wanted pizza, so they opted for The Lovin’ Oven. The Lovin’ Oven was mostly a take-out pizzeria, but did have a few tables with mismatched chairs, with red checkerboard tablecloths and melted-down chunky candles for sit-down service.

  The same people owned and ran the restaurant for more than a quarter of a century. A part of The Lovin’ Oven’s charm was that over the years, the patrons carved their names into nearly every square inch of the restaurant, including the walls. A few brave souls even decorated the ceiling.

  They took a seat in the back of the restaurant and ordered a pizza with mushrooms and pepperoni. Lynsey ordered a glass of wine, while he opted for an iced tea.

  “In case I haven’t mentioned it before, Nicky, thank you so much for letting me stay with you while my house is being worked on. I promise that I’ll be out of your hair as soon as it’s finished.”

  He cast his gaze across the table at the most beautiful creature he had ever been with. Her mane of long, straight black hair moved like liquid silk. Her lips looked full and luscious and he felt he could lose himself in those incredible wide brown eyes.

  A part of him wished she would stay with him forever, while another, stronger part knew that wasn’t possible. She would move into her new house where she would be romanced by her choice of Unity’s bachelors. When she picked one to be her husband, he only hoped she made the right choice.

  “You, my lovely, can stay with me for as long as you like. No thanks necessary.”

  “Thank you . You’re so sweet.” She smiled.

  He groaned inwardly. A man didn’t want to be told that he was sweet. “Sweet” usually translated to “worst.” “So, would you like to immortalize yourself tonight?” he asked, pulling a pocket knife from his jeans. He opened it and carefully handed it to her across the table.

  After Lynsey carved her name into the tabletop, she handed the knife back to him. “Your turn.”

  “Nah, they only want your autograph here, Lynsey. You’re Unity’s brightest star. You are a woman who left this town and retuned to it a success.”

  “No, actually I’m a stranger here now,” she said softly.

  There was a distinct
change in her attitude; she seemed sad. Was she having second thoughts about leaving her old life in Miami? He wouldn’t blame her if she did. He couldn’t understand why she would leave that jet set life behind for sleepy little Unity. He figured she would last a year or two before she realized the gravity of her mistake, and ran screaming back to Florida.

  “You’re not a stranger, honey.” He dared to reach for her hand, and felt pleasantly surprised when her slender fingers closed around his. “It’s just a readjustment to life here. A new life with a new home and new friends, I’m sure.”

  She squeezed his hand. “And old friends that I dearly love.”

  For a brief moment when her brown eyes connected and held his blue ones, he could almost believe that there could be something special between them again.

  “Speaking of readjustments, Nicky, how are you? I mean, it’s been over a year since Kelly’s been gone.”

  And just like that, all hope fizzled and faded away. She saw him as a lonely widower in need of comfort and protection— a friend or maybe a surrogate brother.

  “I’m absolutely fine, Lynsey.”

  “Good, I’m really glad to hear that.”

  Before she could say anything more, the waitress appeared at the table with their pizza, and Lynsey gently extracted her hand from his.

  When they finished, Lynsey dabbed at her mouth with a paper napkin and pushed back her chair. “I’m going to use the ladies’ room. Would you order me a cup of coffee and a slice of cheesecake?”

  “Of course,” he said.

  As she walked away from the table, her hand subtly brushed the top of his and sent an electric jolt through him. It had been nearly twenty years and she still had the same affect on him. Unconsciously he shook his head. Oh, the mistakes he’d made.

  ***

  Lynsey stood in front of the cracked mirror in The Lovin Oven’s ladies’ room and reapplied her glossy pink lipstick.

  It had turned out to be a lovely evening with Nick. She hoped that they could do it often. Of course, she secretly hoped that sometime in her near future the perfect man would appear, and a family would soon follow to make her life complete. A man who was just like Nick. How she wished things would have turned out differently for them.

  But it hadn’t, and she needed to remind herself that life had given her precious opportunities that few others had. She was fortunate enough to be educated in Europe. She had a wildly successful career that she loved, which afforded her a beautiful brand new home.

  Emerging from the ladies’ room, she had made a beeline toward the table when, a man at the take-out counter turned suddenly and stepped into their path. His tall, solid body collided with her petite frame and sent her spinning.

  The man reached out and grabbed her shoulders to steady her. “I’m sorry. Are you okay?” he asked.

  Regaining her balance and her senses, she looked up into a pair of very familiar gray eyes. She had only known one person in her lifetime with gray eyes. When she saw the red hair, she knew this person was one and the same.

  “Is it you?” he asked in disbelief.

  “My goodness, Caleb, it’s so good to see you after all these years.” She reached up to embrace him.

  “Lynsey, what are you doing back in Unity?” I never thought I would see you again.”

  “I live here now. Well, I will be living here. I bought a house in the Sugar Creek subdivision.” She couldn’t hide her smile. Caleb Smith’s youthful appearance belied his age, which she guessed was about forty-five. He looked quite prosperous in his hand-tailored suit.

  “How are you?” she asked.

  “Me? I’m good…fine, I guess. I just made detective…finally.”

  “Wow, you’re a detective! I’m impressed. Congratulations!” She was truly happy for his success.

  “They make the rookie do the pizza run. I usually despise doing it, but tonight, it’s been a marvelous stroke of luck. Are you here alone?”

  “No, I’m having dinner with Nick Lincoln. I’m actually staying with him for a few weeks until my house is finished.”

  Caleb cut his gaze toward the table where Nick was. “His eyes are glued on you. It’s twenty years later, and he still has a thing for you. Well, at least this time he isn’t married.”

  Lynsey didn’t turn to look at Nick, nor did she acknowledge Caleb’s comments. It may have been twenty years later, but from the sound of Caleb’s blistering tone, he and Nick still didn’t get along.

  Perhaps that was her fault.

  “Listen, Lynsey, I need to get back.” He removed a business card from the inner pocket of his jacket and began to write on it at the counter. When he finished, he put the pen back in his jacket and handed her the card. “I’d love to catch up with you over dinner. Call me. Soon.” With a dazzling smile, he lifted his pizza boxes and headed for the exit.

  At the last second, he turned back. “Lynsey?” he called.

  She walked toward him.

  “Could I call you at Nick’s?”

  He was anxious. She liked that. “Of course. Call me anytime.”

  As she walked back to the table, she couldn’t believe that she had forgotten all about Caleb Smith. Then a memory jolted her and she remembered why he wasn’t on the list of Unity’s eligible bachelors. The last she heard, Caleb was married. If he was married, their contact as anything more than friendly acquaintances would stop. She had her share of married men to last her a lifetime.

  ***

  Lynsey sat at the kitchen table sipping a cup of instant black coffee while paging through her email on her Blackberry.

  Although she had promised herself a long, vacation from work to get set up in her new home, there were things that simply could not be put off.

  There was an email waiting from Aaron Preston, a successful screenplay writer she had considered working with .

  Aaron wrote to let her know that he secured the rights for them to adapt Distant Star into a screenplay. The book was based on the tragic life of a young Russian model/wannabe actress named Lilia, dragged down by her drug-addled boyfriend into the murky world of drugs and prostitution. Before her career could take off, she was murdered. Poor Lilia had achieved the stardom she so desperately sought only after her death.

  The book’s author had recently given birth to her first child and wasn’t interested in developing the screenplay. Lynsey felt the screenplay could become a successful movie. If she was right, the screenplay would also keep cash flowing into her bank account for a long time .

  Aaron had a reputation for being a bit of a pig, but she could handle him; she really wanted to write this screenplay.

  “Good, good, good,” she whispered and hit reply.

  “What’s good, good, good?”

  The sound of Nick’s voice behind her caused her heart rate to skyrocket. She was so absorbed in the email she didn’t hear him come downstairs.

  “Oh my, you scared me, Nicky.” She clasped her hand over her heart. When she caught glimpse of him, he was bare-chested and barefoot, dressed only in a pair of dark-colored shorts. She tried hard not to look…or yearn. “A writer acquaintance of mine secured the rights for a screenplay we want to work on together,” she explained.

  “I’m sorry, honey. I didn’t mean to sneak up on you. I couldn’t sleep. I just came down to get a glass of cold water from the refrigerator. I’ll go back upstairs and put a shirt on first.”

  “Why?” She was truly puzzled.

  “I don’t want to offend you by walking around half-naked.”

  “You’re not half-naked.” She chuckled. “It’s a really warm night, and I’m not wearing very much myself.”

  His eyes swept her figure, which was clad in a little cami and form-fitting short-shorts. “You have a beautif
ul body. I should keep mine covered.”

  “You look great,” she insisted. She prayed he couldn’t hear any trace of longing in her voice. “Besides, you should see the things that jiggle on me that didn’t a few years ago.” She bit her tongue. Now he would be watching for the extra bounce in her walk.

  “Are you drinking coffee? No wonder you’re awake at two a.m.,” he said.

  “I do my best work at night.”

  “I thought you were going to take some time off from work and just relax.”

  “I am, but I own a house with a mortgage now, and I intend to keep it.”

  He went to the refrigerator, retrieved a pitcher of cold water and poured some into a glass. “Well, I’ll let you get back to it. If you’re up to it in the morning, I’ll take you to visit Evan.

  Chapter Three

  “Are you sure that Evan expects us? Maybe he isn’t home.” Lynsey twisted her hands in front of her as she and Nick stood outside Evan Monroe’s impressive two-story home that sat off the main road, hidden by trees.

  “Evan wears a metal thing on his leg since his last surgery. I think it’s called an ‘external fixation.’ It takes a while for him to get around. Just give him some time; he knows we’re coming,” Nick said.

  Lynsey wasn’t quite sure what to expect when her old friend opened the door. Less than a year earlier, Evan, hit by a car as he crossed a street in downtown Unity, was severely injured, and almost died. Now Lynsey feared what he had become since the accident. Had he changed? From his emails, he seemed like his old, always upbeat self.

  “He’s fine, Lynsey,” Nick said as if reading her mind. His hand closed around hers. “He is the same Evan you remember.”

  As he finished saying the words, the front door opened and the man himself stood in the doorway.

  Nick had been right. Although he now wore glasses and sported a scruffy but sexy beard, Evan hadn’t really changed very much over the years. She had to admit he was a bit thin and pale, but he had been through a traumatic event. He was on crutches, and the lower half of his left leg was encased by a metal cage-like implement that screwed through his skin and directly into the bone. It looked positively medieval—like some sort of torture device. She swallowed hard and averted her eyes.