As he worked through the afternoon, mounting shelving to the walls, he listened. With the door open, he could hear her voice as she chatted to customers. He liked listening to her, knowing she was near.
Last night had been the most incredible one of his life. His cock pressed against the placket of his jeans, thickening and lengthening in agreement.
He’d always been honest with himself and he knew that being with Linda had changed him. He’d always been a loner. Sure, he’d had drinking buddies in the army and guys he hung around with, but not many friends, except Jonah.
Since he’d arrived in Jamesville, he’d found himself being drawn into a circle of good folks—Jonah and his wife, Cyndi and Shamus O’Rourke, Shamus’s brother, Patrick, and his wife, Shannon. Levi stayed on the edges, mostly watching, as was his way. But he liked it here. He liked them.
Most of all, he liked Linda. A lot.
He wasn’t sure if he loved her. Wasn’t even sure he knew what love was. All he knew was he wanted to be with her all the time, loved to talk to her, to listen to the sound of her voice. He’d watched her sleep last night, marveling at how beautiful she was. She soothed the bad thoughts that sometimes haunted him in the dark of the night.
She was too good for him, but he’d take whatever he could get for as long as he could get it. And he would protect her, whether she wanted him to or not.
His eyes narrowed as he thought about that letter. He’d already started researching, digging into the lives of her parents and brother. He wanted to know everything about them, just in case. He’d always been a planner. Success was in the details.
He glanced at his watch. Speaking of details, he had to go shopping if he was cooking dinner for them again tonight. He’d done some research online while he’d wolfed down a sandwich for lunch, checking out ulcers and the foods that would be better for her.
Standing back, he admired the final shelf. The pine was thick and strong. Levi had sanded and varnished it so the wood grain shone. It might only be a storage room, but he wanted it to be perfect. It would hold everything from dishes to toys to whatever else Linda needed.
He’d bring up the boxes from the basement for her tomorrow and help her unpack them. He loved to watch her with her antiques. The joy in her face as she examined the stuff was something to behold. He didn’t know much about antiques, but he was learning. Partly from being around Linda and partly from the research he was doing online. A lot of the stuff he could do without, but some of the furniture had good, clean lines that he liked.
Maybe he should invest in a few pieces. He hadn’t missed the look on Linda’s face this morning when she got a good look at his thrift-store bedroom furniture. Not that she’d said anything. She was too classy for that. His furniture was functional, which was fine by him, but she was used to finer things. If he wanted her to be comfortable at his place, he should make a few changes. There was no reason he couldn’t buy some new furniture, make the place nicer for her.
Something to think about.
He shook his head at his musings. His buddies in the Special Forces would laugh their asses off if they could hear his thoughts. In all his years, he’d never once worried about furniture. He hadn’t had much growing up or during his years in the army. As long as he had a bed to lie on and a place to put his stuff, he was happy.
But that was then. He winced as he thought about his faded sofa and the chair with the duct tape. He definitely needed some new stuff. What was okay for him wasn’t anywhere near good enough for Linda.
Packing away his tools, he headed upstairs to get cleaned up before hitting the grocery store. Linda was busy with a customer, but she saw him and smiled as he was leaving.
She hadn’t agreed to sleep with him again, but she hadn’t said no either. Her smile was warm and inviting. It was enough. For now.
Chapter Six
The next few weeks flew by at the speed of light for Linda. Past Promises was doing a brisk business as word got around about her shop and the number of tourists passing through Jamesville increased. Cyndi was promoting Past Promises at her B&B, Stone Manor. The two of them had worked out an advertising campaign where anyone who stayed a night at the B&B got a discount at the store. In return, Linda handed out brochures for Cyndi’s B&B to all her customers.
She’d also hired her first employee. Dana Sampson was finishing her last year of high school. The girl had presented herself the first week the business was open. Quiet but competent, she’d handed Linda a resume and told her she was available to work weekends now and full-time in the summer and maybe beyond. Dana was looking for a job to earn some money while she pursued her passion of painting. She could have had a reception job at her father’s auto body and repair shop, but she didn’t want that. It was the only time during the impromptu interview that Dana had acted like a teenager, screwing up her nose at the thought of working in her father’s garage.
Linda appreciated the girl’s honesty and had hired her a few days later. The girl had immediately become invaluable. She had a wonderful eye for display, was punctual, could follow instructions and was surprisingly good with the customers. The fact that Dana had grown up in Jamesville meant she knew everyone in town and the surrounding area.
As Linda had settled into a routine at work, she’d found time to socialize, getting together with her friends on several occasions for lunch or dinner. Amanda had tagged along with her last weekend when she’d gone to an estate sale an hour’s drive away. Both of them had scored big. Amanda had been in raptures over the boxes of books she’d bought. Linda recognized the enthusiasm in herself. They both loved the old and the unique. She’d taken home four boxes of china and trinkets herself, along with some good costume jewelry, two chairs and a small table.
People in town were beginning to know her on sight now, calling out a greeting to her as she picked up her mail or shopped. It felt…nice.
Linda glanced at the clock. It was almost time for her to open for the day, but she still had a half hour to enjoy her tea. She closed her account book, leaned back in her chair and stared out the front window of Past Promises to Main Street beyond. It was a beautiful May morning, the sun was shining and she was happy.
And Levi was a big part of that happiness.
Levi brought her lunch every other day, stopping to share it with her if she wasn’t busy with customers. He’d lugged boxes, made several furniture deliveries and put up several new shelves in the shop for her.
They spent evenings together just talking, watching movies or even playing board games. She’d discovered his passion for board games when she’d picked up a dozen at a yard sale and brought them upstairs one evening to check to see if they had all their pieces. The games were still being made today, but these were original ones and still in near-mint condition. She knew some collector would love them. They’d ended up playing two of the games. Levi was very competitive, but so was she. Linda had laughed until her stomach hurt.
Some evenings she had to work. With any business, there was always a ton of paperwork to be done. Levi would either leave her alone while she dug through the mounds of paperwork or he would sit in her living room reading or tapping away on his laptop. She had no idea what he was doing and didn’t feel she could ask. After all, they were having an affair, not planning a future together.
Partly, it was a defense mechanism on her part. She knew she was already half in love with Levi but had no idea how much longer he was going to be in Jamesville. She had no clue as to how much money he had, but even with the free rent he was getting from her for his work on the renovation, he had to be thinking about how he was going to live.