RAINBOW’S END: FOUR-IN-ONE COLLECTION Read online

  Kirk was so busy soaking up the sight of her, he hadn’t even noticed.

  She laced her hands together on the desktop. “What have we—I mean, you—got?”

  No rings on her left hand. So far so good. Kirk passed her the sketch he’d been working on. She’d so filled his mind the whole time, it was a wonder he’d managed to remember the key points of the ad. “How’s this?”

  Lyssa’s shoulders straightened as she examined it. “Really? It looks great. I was hoping you’d come through.”

  Did she mean him, or the ad?

  “Your brother was okay with the coupon?”

  Oh. Dale.

  Kirk shrugged. “I haven’t had a chance to run it by him. He’s up in St. Louis for the next week or two, packing up his house.” His and Debbie’s house. “He’s been kind of … busy.” It wouldn’t be an issue, though. Dale had trotted off to church with Debbie nearly every week for years.

  Lyssa raised sculpted eyebrows. “But he’ll want to have input, won’t he?”

  “It’s okay. We agreed I should start some advertising for the grand opening. The timing is super, as we wanted to kick things off the week before Father’s Day.”

  “That sounds perfect. You wanted this on the inside flap, then?”

  “Yes, please. If it’s still available.” She nodded.

  Kirk pulled out the Communication Location’s checkbook and patted down his pocket for a pen. “If we want to make an additional donation, would you prefer a separate check?”

  Lyssa’s shocked eyes met his. Sparkling brown, with highlights that reminded him of the topaz lamps his mom had given him for commencement. “That might make bookkeeping easier.”

  He wrote out two checks and tore them from the stubs. “Well, that’s business accomplished.” But he had more on the brain than that. She seemed so shy. What was holding her back, when it appeared she felt the same pull he did? “Would you like to do dinner and a movie?”

  She dropped the checks as though they were on fire, and her hands jerked into her lap. “I have plans.”

  But he hadn’t even specified which night yet. She couldn’t be busy all of them, unless she had a boyfriend. He had to know.

  “Is there someone else?”

  Her face flushed, but she didn’t meet his gaze. “No one. I’m just busy.” She got to her feet.

  Dismissal.

  What had he said wrong? He couldn’t have been imagining how aware she was of him. Maybe he was just moving too fast for her. At twenty-nine, he was ready to find the right woman and settle down. Well, he could take some time. He’d be in Osage Beach all summer.

  Chapter 2

  You’ll never believe who’s in town.” Lyssa hung her leather purse on its hook behind the townhouse’s back door and turned to the kitchen. Her roommate glanced up from chopping asparagus at the peninsula counter. “Hmm?”

  “Kirk Kennedy.” When Jeannie’s brown face registered nothing, Lyssa added, “Professor Kennedy. From Lincoln University.”

  “Oh, really?” Jeannie slid the spears into the sizzling wok. “Wonder what he’s doing here. Not that we’re so far from Jefferson City, but still.”

  “Messing with my mind, that’s what,” muttered Lyssa under her breath.

  Jeannie turned. “What?”

  Never mind. “Have you seen that new business just off the parkway? Communication Location?” Lyssa poured herself a glass of sweet tea from the fridge.

  Her roommate shook her head, black curls swinging. “Can’t say that I have.”

  Figured. Jeannie drove west across the Grand Glaize Bridge to work, not north. “Professor Kennedy’s brother is the owner.

  It’s a shop that carries cell phones, GPS units, and … I don’t know. Games and stuff, I think.”

  Jeannie grated garlic into the wok with a little extra energy. “Weird. Wonder if he quit teaching. Maybe he got fired.”

  Lyssa hitched herself onto a stool across the peninsula and snagged a slice of red pepper from the cutting board. “Probably not. He said he’s helping get things going at the store.”

  “How’d you run into him?”

  “It’s your fault. You made me volunteer to help Noah with the treasure hunt.”

  “Serves you right, then.” Jeannie stirred the wok’s contents. “God knew you needed a good challenge right from the get-go. You went in there looking for donations?”

  “Yeah. There’s no way I’d have gone in if I knew he’d be there. Not after what he put you through in college, class after class.”

  Jeannie grimaced. “He certainly kept me on my toes.”

  “That’s not the weirdest thing. He didn’t make a single snide comment about the event being church sponsored. Not one.” Lyssa still couldn’t figure that out. She crunched through another piece of pepper before Jeannie whisked the rest into the wok. “He made a good-sized donation on top of the prime ad.”

  Jeannie set the spatula on the counter and parked her hands on either side of it. She leaned across the peninsula toward Lyssa, dark eyes wide. “He what?”

  “You heard me. He’s our biggest corporate sponsor.”

  “Let me get this straight. Professor Kirk Kennedy, Humanities 237, Lincoln University, Jefferson City, Missouri? We’re talking about the same guy here?”

  Lyssa pointed at the smoke curling from the wok. “Stir supper, if you don’t mind.”

  Jeannie whirled back to the range. “He called Christianity a residue of the Dark Ages. A crutch for feeble minds. Church was—”

  “‘A social club for pansies,’ I believe were his exact words.” Lyssa remembered all too clearly.

  “Yeah.” Jeannie poured a shot of lemon juice into the wok and turned the element down. “He had no respect.”

  “You’d never guess it was the same guy, but there’s no doubt.” He was just as hot as he’d ever been, for starters.

  “I don’t understand, Lys. He knew it was for a church event?”

  “Yep. He even came by the office to drop off two checks and the ad copy. Probably the first time in his life he stepped foot in a church. And never a word.” Not about that, anyway.

  Jeannie tossed two catfish fillets in cornmeal then into another fry pan. “Wow. He almost did me in, back in the day.”

  It wasn’t “almost” for Lyssa. “I hated him for what he did to you.” Hated herself for being too chicken to stand up beside Jeannie.

  Hated herself for thinking he was cute anyway.

  “I can’t say I looked forward to humanities, but being challenged did make me understand better what I believed and why.” Jeannie shot a look at Lyssa. “It was probably good for me.”

  No answer to that. The sweet saltiness of frying fish wafted to Lyssa’s nose. “Is that your mama’s recipe? Smells awesome.”

  “Sure is.” Jeannie flipped the fish. “Almost ready.”

  “You’re lucky I came home to eat. If you hadn’t told me your brother dropped off the catfish, I might’ve stood you up.”

  “Uh huh. Like you have a life.” Jeannie plated the fillets.

  “I was invited out for dinner.”

  “Oh, yeah? By whom?” When Lyssa didn’t answer, Jeannie looked up, a scoopful of stir-fried veggies in midair.

  Lyssa couldn’t help smirking. “Professor Kennedy.”

  Asparagus and spoon clattered to the floor. “Oh, no you don’t. Just because I’ve been encouraging you to get out of your shell doesn’t mean I think dating him is a good idea.”

  “Relax.” Lyssa reached for a cloth to wipe up the mess. “I said no.”

  Changing a few words on the coupon layout was a slim excuse to swing by the church, but Kirk couldn’t help himself. She’d turned him down for dinner the other day. Had she been trying to get rid of him, or was her excuse legit? Somehow, he had to know.

  School-aged kids seemed everywhere in town today, so he figured classes must be out for the summer. And that might mean Lyssa would be at the church, working on the treasure hunt. It was worth a
shot.

  He pulled into the parking lot in time to see her exit the building in knee-length khakis and a striped tank, pulling her luxurious thick hair through the back of a baseball cap.

  “Lyssa?”

  She froze then glanced his way. “Um, hi.”

  He waved the paper. “I guess this isn’t a good time to go over the ad copy?” He tried for his most charming smile.

  “I can take a quick look.” She headed toward him, a picture of grace.

  “Going somewhere? I don’t want you to be late.”

  “Oh, it’s okay. I was just headed up to the park to hunt down a geocache. A couple of people noted on the website that they couldn’t locate it, so I wanted to double-check it hadn’t gotten trashed before the treasure hunt lifts off.” She slipped the paper from his fingers and looked it over.

  “You’re going hiking alone? Isn’t it … dangerous or something?”

  “Dangerous? Why?” She flashed him a grin.

  He’d do nearly anything to see that again. “Snakes. Skunks.” He waved his hand. “I don’t know. You might trip on a root and sprain your ankle.”

  Lyssa laughed. “Anything is possible, but highly unlikely. If I waited until a friend wanted to go hiking, I’d spend far too much time sitting around the condo. So I’m just careful.”

  The best opening he’d found yet. “How about if I come with you?”

  Her eyes widened, and then she glanced away. “Oh, I’m sure you’re much too busy for that. I’ll be fine.”

  “Why not? I’m not expecting any new freight today, and Dale won’t be back until later this week. It might be the last chance to do something spontaneous before the grand opening.” He gestured at his white button-up shirt and dark slacks. “I’d probably want to change first, though.”

  “Yeah, you would.” She sized him up uncertainly.

  “My apartment is on the way to the park gates. I promise not to hold you back.” With those long lean legs of hers, she was probably in great shape. Hopefully all that jogging he’d been doing would make a difference.

  Lyssa broke their gaze and glanced back at the paper he’d handed her.

  “I could use the escape.” Kirk touched her arm. “Besides, I was serious when I asked you out the other day. I’d like to get to know you better. If you’re interested.” He held his breath.

  Her hand clenched around the paper, crumpling it slightly.

  Somehow that gave him a perverse hope she wasn’t as immune to his charms as she pretended. Been a while since a woman had that kind of effect on him. Like, never.

  Lyssa peered at him through long lashes. “Really?”

  She didn’t seem to know how attractive she was. Kirk vowed to wipe the uncertainty off her face. “Really.”

  “Okay.” Lyssa pulled a deep breath. “No point in taking two cars. You can ride with me.”

  The only vehicle in the parking lot besides his, a green hatchback, had seen better days. Besides, it was only chivalrous for him to do the driving. But the wary expression in her eyes cut off his protest before he started. He shrugged. “Sure, no problem.”

  “I’ll just run back and set this on my desk for later.” She pivoted and jogged for the church door.

  Heart lifting, Kirk watched her go. He shoved aside the question of what his brother would have to say. Dale had been after him for years to meet a great girl. It wasn’t Kirk’s fault Lyssa arrived right on the heels of Dale’s big loss.

  Chapter 3

  Why had she insisted on taking Kermit? Lyssa eyeballed Kirk’s car across the parking lot of the lavish complex he called home. It was probably ten years newer than hers. Her fingers tightened on the familiar wheel. It was just a small something she could control, when she had no clue why he seemed so different than her memories of him. But until she figured out what had caused the sudden alteration, she didn’t want to be stranded in the backcountry without her own wheels.

  Kirk jogged out of the complex in hiking shorts and a navy Lincoln Tigers T-shirt. He tossed a small daypack onto the backseat and slid into the passenger side, brandishing a bottle of mineral water.

  Lyssa sighed. No good could come of this outing. So he was cute and interested in her by a flattering amount. But in the not-so-distant past, he’d been vehemently opposed to Christianity. There wasn’t any recent evidence to back that up since she’d met him at Communication Location last week, but still. She must’ve been nuts to accept his company. She shook her head and shifted Kermit into reverse, her hand skimming the hair above Kirk’s knee. Best not to think about that, either, though her fingers tingled.

  She drove north on the parkway. What to talk about? She certainly couldn’t admit to how unsettled his presence made her, though he probably guessed. She’d just make him do the talking.

  The silence lasted only seconds.

  “Tell me about yourself, Lyssa. Have you been teaching long?”

  This could be neutral ground. “Three years. A lot of it has been substitute teaching.”

  “Takes a while to break in?”

  “Seems so. I covered a maternity leave this past term, and that’s given me good experience. And confidence.” At least in some areas.

  “Are you from Osage Beach, then?”

  Lyssa clenched Kermit’s wheel. “No. My best friend grew up here, though. It seemed as good a place as any to get established, since she needed a roommate and I had nowhere else I’d rather be.” She’d certainly had enough of living near her father. “How about you?” She glanced over her shoulder and merged into the exit lane for Lake of the Ozarks State Park.

  He stretched his legs as much as Kermit’s space would allow. “I grew up in St. Louis, but I’ve lived in Jefferson City for”—he paused then whistled—“more than ten years now.”

  Not that she’d doubted his identity, but somewhere deep inside the part of her that hoped this guy was just Professor Kennedy’s doppelgänger—conveniently with the same name—died. “What do you do there?” As if she didn’t know.

  “I’m a humanities professor at Lincoln U.” He tugged his T-shirt so she could see the tiger emblem.

  This was where she should say Lincoln was her alma mater.

  Lyssa stopped herself from physically shaking her head. “That sounds interesting. What’s the best part of your job?” Poking fun at Christians, maybe?

  “I love helping shape young people’s perceptions of the world around them.”

  Her mind screamed at her to challenge him, to tell him she’d sat in his class and hadn’t seen his attitude as a positive influence. How could this friendly, fascinating man be the same guy? Kirk didn’t add up. “And here I thought you wandered around the state, opening up electronics stores.”

  He laughed, a nice, easy sound. “No, that’s a new hobby of mine. Blame it on my brother.”

  “Why here?”

  “My grandparents had a cottage along the lake. My brother and I used to spend summers with them, so we have a lot of good memories of the area.”

  More money than she’d ever had, then. No surprise, considering his condo and his car. “You and your brother must be close.” She glanced over in time to see his jaw clench for a brief instant.

  “He’s a couple years older. Yeah, we were close.”

  Were?

  “It’s been rough lately.” He paused. “His wife died six months ago.”

  “That’s too bad. He’s lucky to have a brother like you.” Drat. She was too forward, by far.

  Kirk shot her a sidelong glance. “It doesn’t always seem that way. But families stick together, right? I mean, that’s what they’re for.”

  “You’d think so.” Lyssa pulled into the parking lot at the Trail of the Four Winds. Good timing. “Ready?”

  Kirk grinned as he got out. “So ready.” He leaned against the car and stretched his hamstrings.

  Lyssa turned away as she adjusted her daypack. The Kirk she’d met in Osage Beach did not jive with the college professor she’d known in Jefferson
. This Kirk had muscular legs and looked great in shorts. She’d never daydreamed that about him back at Lincoln. Why did college feel like a lifetime ago? It seemed it had happened to different people.

  She cast him a sidelong glance as he locked his fingers behind his head and stretched to his left.

  Maybe it had happened to someone else. On both sides. But how would she ever know if she couldn’t get up the courage to ask?

  Lyssa shuddered and began her own stretches. That question required an openness she wasn’t prepared for. She didn’t want that old Kirk back, no way, no how.

  “So, show me how this geocaching thing works.”

  His words returned Lyssa to the present. The new Kirk was here, interested in many of the same things she was, or so it seemed: the outdoors, hiking, geocaching. She pulled her GPS unit out of her pants’s cargo pocket. “I know where the cache is, but I think the coordinates are still in memory.” She logged into the handheld and waited for the list to refresh.

  Kirk moved in behind her, peering at the unit. His T-shirt brushed her arm, and his breath warmed her cheek. The scent of his spicy cologne filled her senses.

  Lyssa shifted slightly away. She couldn’t let him get to her. “These are the coordinates, and here’s where we are now. We follow the trail until we get close then use the hints to zero in.”

  He leaned closer. “Basically, we’ve got a couple of miles to go up the trail first.”

  She nodded.

  “What kind of hints do you mean?” He took the GPS from her and examined it.

  “In this case, it’s a poem. Just scroll down.”

  Kirk read the verse out loud.

  “Trails of the Four Winds—

  North, East, South, and West.

  Hike until the numbers match;

  See where the view is best.

  Limestone low and grasses blow;

  Oaks have tumbled down.

  Cedar roots bind the spot;

  Flowers act as crown. “

  He grimaced. “Does it have to be so cryptic?”

  A wave of heat shot up Lyssa’s cheeks. “It’s a hunt, after all.” She turned away and adjusted the straps of her pack. “You don’t tell people ‘third rock from the left’.”