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

  “But still. Hokey poetry? The rhythm is off.”

  “It has to get the information in there, okay? Sorry it doesn’t meet with your expectations.”

  “Whoa.” He put his hand on her arm and turned her to face him.

  Didn’t mean she had to look in his eyes. “It sounds like somebody is a tad sensitive over this. Why would that be?”

  Lyssa pulled back far enough that he dropped his hand. “Aw, Lyssa. You wrote it, didn’t you?”

  She motioned toward the trailhead, not meeting his gaze. “You ready to hike?”

  “Tell me I’m right.” Kirk fell into step beside her and elbowed her lightly.

  Why couldn’t he leave well enough alone? Lyssa picked up the pace. Maybe he’d get the hint, sooner or later. Not that he ever had in class, but at least now he wasn’t being mean. Much.

  It didn’t take long for him to catch on. “I was making fun of you. I’m sorry.”

  Lyssa couldn’t stay angry when he sounded so contrite. “It’s okay.” She kept a wary eye on the clouds scuttling overhead as she hiked up the rocky trail. The weatherman had forecast late-evening showers, but they should get back in plenty of time. In the meanwhile, the cooler breeze cut the heavy aroma of wild roses and swept mosquitoes away, making the hike delightful. Or was that the presence of the man behind her on the narrow path? She glanced over her shoulder at him.

  Kirk was practically on her heels. “So, do you have any siblings?”

  That’s what she got for meeting his gaze for an instant. “Two younger brothers.”

  His tone remained light. “That must’ve kept you on your toes. Or were you Daddy’s Princess and could do no wrong?”

  As if. “I was more like Cinderella in the before category—all the cooking and cleaning, minus the fairy godmother.” Minus the handsome prince, too.

  Kirk’s tone softened. “Your mom?”

  Lyssa stopped in the middle of the trail and met his gaze. “She walked out when I was twelve and hasn’t been heard from since. My dad had no clue how to raise kids and didn’t bother figuring it out. He was focused on his own stuff.” Trying to save the whole world and not caring—or noticing—he’d lost his family.

  Kirk caught her hand. “I’m sorry. I can’t even begin to imagine how hurtful that must have been.”

  She pulled away. “I’m getting over it. Check the GPS. How close are we to the cache?”

  He held her gaze for a long moment, like he understood how much even that bit of honesty had cost her. He couldn’t get it, of course. Not unless his family was as dysfunctional as hers. Finally he lifted the unit and examined the screen. “Not too much farther. I think.”

  “Let’s go then.” She pivoted and headed up the trail. What guy in his right mind would stick around a girl like her? And he didn’t even suspect there was more to her reticence. Did he?

  Chapter 4

  Kirk studied Lyssa sitting across from him at On the Rise Bakery & Bistro. “I would have been happy to pick you up.”

  Was that guilt in her eyes? “No problem. I had some errands to run. There wasn’t any point in you making two trips to my place when I had to come across the bridge anyway.”

  He couldn’t decide if there was more to it than that. “You mentioned you have a roommate?”

  Lyssa toyed with her Java Chiller, not meeting his gaze. “Yes, a friend and I rent together. She works over at city hall.”

  Wow, she’d actually volunteered some information. “Cool. Someone you’ve known a long time?”

  “We were college roommates.”

  Now they were getting somewhere. “Where did you go to school?”

  She took a long sip of her mocha. It hadn’t seemed like an awkward question to him. Lyssa looked past him, and her face brightened. “Hi, Kelsey!” A little girl dragged a woman over by the hand. “Ms. Quinn! I didn’t think I’d get to see you all summer long. I miss you.” Lyssa hugged the child to her side. “Osage Beach isn’t that big. I told you we’d probably see each other sometimes and, look, here we are.”

  The woman laughed, resting her hand on the wrought-iron back of Lyssa’s chair. “All Kelsey ever talks about is Ms. Quinn said this and Ms. Quinn did that. Thanks for giving her a great school year.”

  “It was my pleasure.” Lyssa wrinkled her nose and grinned at the girl.

  Kirk’s heart flipped. Maybe someday she’d look at him that way. Of course kids adored her. He was rapidly getting to that point himself.

  “Will you be my teacher again, Ms. Quinn? Please?” Kelsey twisted her hands together. She tilted her head and batted her eyelashes at Lyssa.

  “I’d love to, but I’m not sure what will happen. Maybe I’ll sub in your grade sometimes.”

  “The school district should give you your own class, Ms. Quinn.” The mother took the girl by the hand. “You’re the best teacher Kelsey’s had yet.”

  Lyssa flushed a becoming shade of pink. “Thank you. One of these years I’ll get a permanent spot.”

  “Come along, Kelsey.” The woman cast an appraising eye over Kirk as though determining if he was worthy to be seen with the hallowed teacher.

  Did he pass inspection? He met the mother’s eye and nodded in acknowledgment.

  The girl blew a kiss at Lyssa then skipped away, clinging to her mom’s hand.

  Still watching them, Lyssa raised her glass, and Kirk reached across the table to clink his against hers. “You must be a great teacher.”

  Lyssa focused on him, her face still bemused from the encounter. “I love the kids and try to make learning fun.”

  “It shows.” As did the complexity that made up the woman across from him—a woman he wanted to get to know better. “You made geocaching fun, too, but I’m pretty sure I haven’t learned enough to pass the final exam. When can we go again?”

  He waited, practically holding his breath, while she appeared to weigh a decision.

  “You’ll be busy getting the store ready to open.”

  “That’s still a couple of weeks away. Deliveries tend to be in the morning, so I can get away nearly any afternoon.”

  Lyssa turned her Java Chiller in circles on the wooden table top. “Well, we could go Thursday afternoon. I do have to set up another cache toward Lakeland.”

  “Great!” Even better than he’d hoped. “I’ll bring some stuff to put in it.”

  “I can’t believe you’re going out with Professor Kennedy.” Jeannie planted both hands on her hips and stared Lyssa down.

  “Again.”

  Lyssa jingled Kermit’s keys and reached for the doorknob. “We’re not going out out.” Probably sounded as lame to her roommate as it did to her. “It’s just a geocaching hike. You’ve told me before that it’s silly for me to go alone, so don’t complain when I have someone for company.”

  “Just? How many of these have you gone on now? With him, I mean.”

  Trust Jeannie to be keeping score. “Well, there was the one on Trail of the Four Winds.”

  “After which he invited you to On the Rise, and you went.”

  Of course she’d gone. It had seemed rude not to, and besides, she hadn’t wanted the idyllic afternoon to end. Maybe … she eyed Jeannie. “Are you jealous?”

  Jeannie dropped her chin and looked at Lyssa with widening eyes. “Get serious. Not a chance in the world. The man was a jerk in college, and I’m sure he still is. Why would I envy you?”

  Because he was an attractive man who was fun to be with? Not that she could explain it to Jeannie. Not that Jeannie would buy it.

  “And then there was the hike in Lakeland. Today you’re going … where? Ha Ha Tonka State Park on the other side of Camdenton?”

  “Rainbow’s End Treasure Hunt covers the whole lake area.” Besides, she loved wandering around the castle ruins there, and Kirk had said he hadn’t been since he was a kid. She couldn’t wait to see it anew through his eyes. “Kirk found some miniature shields and castles to tuck into one of the caches there.”

  “I
hope you remember you’re playing with fire, Lys. Have you talked to him about God yet? Confronted him about the things that happened at Lincoln U?”

  “Not yet. It’ll be fine. You’ll see.” If only she could convince herself.

  “How come you’re meeting him at the church instead of letting him pick you up here?”

  “I—uh … I have some paperwork to drop off there anyway.” Lyssa held up her pink pocket folder.

  Jeannie snorted. “Nice try. You’ll be going into the office tomorrow anyway. You just don’t want me to meet him.”

  “You’d confront him.”

  “You bet I would. It’s high time somebody did. I’m not a college kid anymore. I’m not a captive audience to someone with the power to give me a bad grade.”

  “I–I’ll talk to him. Sometime. It’s too soon.” Lyssa pulled the door open. “I need to get going.”

  “Lys? It’s okay to talk to people about their faith. Just because your dad shoves his beliefs down the throat of anyone who’s breathing doesn’t mean there isn’t a middle ground. You can’t go dating a guy who doesn’t love the Lord.”

  “We’re not dating.”

  “Nice try, Lys. I’ll track the guy down myself one of these days and find out what his intentions are. You be careful.”

  Kirk let himself into the apartment at the end of a starlit evening. He’d never met a girl as intriguing as Lyssa before. On the one hand, she obviously felt an attraction to him. On the other, something was holding her back. Something major. So she was a Christian. He knew it, and she knew he knew it, so it couldn’t be that. One of these days he’d ask her about her faith. Was she strong like Debbie?

  He rounded the corner into the dining room, shocked to find the chandelier on and Dale seated at the table. Paperwork lay strewn across the surface, obscuring every hint of wood.

  His brother glanced up. “Finally home? Where have you been?”

  “Dale! Thought you weren’t coming until tomorrow.” Kirk crossed to the kitchen and grabbed a cola from the fridge. He straddled a maple chair and looked expectantly at his brother. Right in front of Dale, on top and dead center, lay the receipt from Osage Beach Community Church.

  Dale’s eyes narrowed. “Since when are we giving money to some religious organization?” He cocked his head. “Tell me, is she cute?”

  Kirk choked, spraying soda. “Is who cute?” “The girl who talked you into this donation.” Dale tapped Lyssa’s round signature on the receipt. “It’s not that way at all.” “Right. Not hearing a denial.”

  Sometimes Kirk hated being the younger brother. Even two years was a huge gap between them. He took another sip, stalling for time.

  Dale leaned back and crossed his arms, quirking an eyebrow.

  “Yeah, she’s cute, but that’s not why—”

  Dale slammed a fist onto the table. The paperwork jumped. “Start thinking with your brain, not your body. What made you think I’d want to give money to some church thing?”

  “We talked about adverti—”

  “Yeah. Ever heard of newspapers and radio?”

  Anger churned in Kirk’s gut. “Ever heard of word of mouth? Lyssa says—”

  “She has a name, does she?”

  Kirk surged to his feet. “They’re expecting hundreds of people to sign up for this event. What’s not to like about that many people knowing Communication Location has the gadgets they need?” His fingers tightened around the can until it crackled. “What’s not to like about getting in a small town’s good books? This isn’t St. Louis or Chicago. Things are different here.”

  “I doubt it. You’re just a sucker for a pretty face.”

  Making it sound like he had a new girl every week. So untrue. He hadn’t dated in several years. Kirk narrowed his gaze. “You’re not hearing me. You’re focused on the least important part of that ad agreement.” Not the least important part of his past week, however, but his brother didn’t need those details. At least not yet. “It’s an inexpensive way to get our business in front of hundreds of residents and tourists alike.”

  “Inexpensive? You’re offering who-knows-how-many people 10 percent off their purchase?”

  “And three of our suppliers already agreed to give us discounted product for our grand opening. It’s not coming out of our pockets.”

  “You’re absolutely right it isn’t. You can call that cute girl right now and tell her to pull the ad. I’m having nothing to do with a church event.” Dale rested both hands on the table and rose, leaning toward Kirk. “We’ll run our own grand opening sale, and if some of those church people want to come spend their money in our store, I’ll gladly take it. But I sure as shootin’ am not going to link my business name with any religion.” He shoved forward, his nose almost touching Kirk’s. “So deal with it.”

  He’d blown it. He’d suspected Dale wouldn’t be thrilled, but he thought his brother would see the wisdom and economy of this venture. He’d just been following instructions. Mostly.

  Kirk stood his ground and stared into his brother’s cold blue eyes. When had Lyssa said the printer’s deadline was? The cut-off loomed for getting her glossies printed on time for the treasure hunt kickoff. Surely Dale wouldn’t require pulling the ads once the brochures had been printed. But by the look on his face, Kirk couldn’t bet on it.

  “Bottom line, Kirk, it’s my business. I appreciate that you’ve invested some cash. Thank you for giving your summer to help me get things off the ground. If it were any other organization, I’d be faster than you whipping out the checkbook. But not a church. I can’t do it. I just can’t.”

  “Since when? You went to church with Debbie. I had no clues you’d changed your mind. You could’ve given me a heads up.” Not that Kirk had been bringing up religious topics, either, but still.

  “In case you hadn’t noticed, God took my wife, and all the preacher could say was that it was God’s will.” Dale snorted. “I have no use for a God like that, and I won’t support preachers deluding other poor souls.” He spun away. “You’re not changing my mind, Kirk. Call up that cute girl and tell her no. I’m done with God, and I’m done with church, and I’m done with everything it represents. I won’t have my name attached, and that’s final.” He stomped down the hallway. A door slammed.

  The receipt fluttered to the tile floor in Dale’s wake. Kirk picked it up and stared at Lyssa’s round handwriting. Had his brother left him any options? Dale’s mind was cast in concrete. His business name would not be on the brochures. How could Kirk possibly have guessed?

  Kirk hadn’t even told him about the five hundred straight-up donation. At least he could put that in his own name instead of the business. But what to do about the ad?

  What to do about Lyssa? She already didn’t easily give trust. After this, she’d probably never speak to him again. And that he couldn’t live with. He’d call her in the morning. No sense in both of them losing a night’s sleep over it.

  Chapter 5

  Here you go, Lyssa.” The church receptionist rounded the corner into Lyssa’s office and set an open box on her desk. “The guy from the printer just dropped these off. Don’t they look great?”

  Lyssa peered in and picked up the top brochure. The front of the trifold declared the Rainbow’s End Treasure Hunt. She turned it around to see the church photo displayed with the address and phone number plus a list of sponsors. On the inside flap was the coupon from Communication Location; then it opened to a full-page spread with details about the hunt and how it worked. This beat making third-grade bulletin boards all to bits, though she was mighty good at those, too.

  “Thanks, Melanie. These turned out just how I’d hoped.” Melanie beamed. “You’ve done a good job laying these out, girlie. And here you were reluctant to take on the project.”

  Lyssa grinned. Even going around to the various businesses hadn’t been so bad once she’d discovered the managers were pleasant. Getting past Kirk had been a big boost to her confidence. The rest of the sponsors had
been a snap in comparison. Her cell phone rang.

  Melanie fluttered her fingers and turned to the door. “I’ll leave you to it.”

  “Hello?” Lyssa propped her cell up against her ear, feeling the kink in her neck from doing it too many times. She really ought to stop by Communication Location and buy a headset. Not to see Kirk, of course.

  “Lyssa?”

  Oh, no, she only had to think of him and he called. Hopefully, she could keep her voice calm. “Speaking. How can I help you?” Maybe if she didn’t let on she knew it was him …

  “It’s Kirk. I don’t know how to say this, but something’s come up.”

  Like he already had a wife somewhere that he’d forgotten about in his zealous pursuit? “Oh?” she asked cautiously.

  “My brother got back from St. Louis yesterday, and we went over the accounts last night.”

  Lyssa’s gut tightened. He was going to say they’d overextended, that the check would bounce. But no. It had already cleared.

  “He—I never expected it to be an issue, but he wants to cancel. I mean, he used to go to church with his wife, so this is a surprise to me….”

  She gripped the phone. Kirk’s brother wanted to withdraw on account of it being a church affair? When all along she thought Kirk himself was the one with issues against Christians? Not that he’d shown any sign of it in the few weeks since they’d met—or remet—but she knew his past, even if he didn’t know she knew.

  Complicated.

  “Lyssa?”

  Right, she hadn’t answered him. She ran her fingers over the brochures on her desk. “It’s kind of too late. Everything’s back from the printer.” Her mind boggled to think what it would entail to redo everything. He couldn’t possibly mean it. “Back?” His voice caught. “Already?”

  “I e-mailed the files yesterday morning. They knew we needed a rush job so, yes, the printed copies are sitting on my desk this very minute.” She couldn’t keep the bitterness out of her voice. Not that she was really trying. “All two thousand of them.”