Sandpiper Way (Cedar Cove #8)(71)

Pete finished his sandwich and soup and reached for the bill. “My treat.”

“Thank you,” she said, feeling a little chagrined. She hadn’t been good company, especially with her mother phoning in the middle of their lunch. She realized a lengthy conversation at a restaurant was rude, but she couldn’t seem to do much about it. Pete, however, didn’t take offense easily.

“I’d better get that part my brother needs and head back to the farm,” he said.

He’d driven the hour into town to pick up a tractor part Dennis Urlacher had ordered for them. Linnette knew he jumped at any excuse to come to town—because of her. Frankly she enjoyed his visits. Pete had made his feelings plain and she felt comfortable with him. It was too soon to make a commitment, although she sensed he’d like that. They were still in the getting-to-know-you stage, and Linnette was in absolutely no rush to leap into another relationship as intense as the one she’d had with Cal.

“The movie’s changing this weekend,” Pete said. He pulled his wallet out of his hip pocket and placed twenty dollars on the table. “Are you interested? I’ll buy you the biggest popcorn they have.”

“You don’t need to bribe me, Pete. I’d love to go to the movie.” The theater only had one screen, unlike the multiplex in Cedar Cove, and the movies were often second-run, weeks if not months behind the major markets. When she’d first moved to town, Linnette had been amused to see the theater playing shows that were just a week or two from being released on DVD.

Pete’s grin was as big as if she’d announced he’d won the state lottery. “I’ll pick you up at Hassie’s around six.”

“Perfect.” He took her long wool coat from the back of her chair and helped her into it. Linnette wrapped her scarf around her neck twice, then slipped on her hat and gloves. The winters in North Dakota were frigid; she needed a heavy coat, boots and all the other cold-weather paraphernalia, even if she was only walking from Three of a Kind to the pharmacy, a distance of less than one block.

Stepping outside, Linnette accompanied Pete to his truck. This was a new model and although it was just a few months old, it already had several scratches and dents. She’d been upset when she saw the first minor dent, but Pete had said this was a working truck and a few “dings,” as he described them, were to be expected.

He touched her face briefly. “I’ll see you Saturday, then.”

“Okay.” She hunched her shoulders against the sharp wind.

“Call you later,” Pete said.

She nodded.

He seemed reluctant to leave her. “You can spend Christmas with me, you know.”

“Pete, stop it. Hassie and I will be fine. It’s not that big a deal.”

“I know.” He sighed. Looking around to be sure no one was watching, he kissed her. Not a deep or lingering kiss, but a very nice one nonetheless.

Pete didn’t normally display his affection publicly, and the gesture surprised her. She smiled up at him. Then, with a quick goodbye, she hurried down the street to the pharmacy.

Hassie was all smiles when Linnette got there. “I heard from the state. We got the funding for the clinic!”

Linnette clapped her gloved hands together. “That’s fabulous!”

“I’ve already got the word out.”

Her head was spinning. “I didn’t have any idea it would happen this fast.”

“That—” Hassie winked at her “—is because I know the right people in Bismarck.”

“You certainly do.”

An hour later, Linnette was over at the abandoned house that would become the new clinic. Men from town, including Buffalo Bob, had started to arrive, and before long an entire wall was down. The renovations had begun. When school ended for the day, a group of teenagers came by to sweep up and carry out debris. Several times, Linnette found herself in the way, more of a hindrance than a help.

As dusk fell, everyone else left. She parked the broom and dustpan in a corner, glancing around the large front room with satisfaction. An astonishing amount of progress had been made in just half a day. Her cell phone rang and she scrabbled for it in her coat pocket.

“Hello?”

“It’s Pete.”

“Oh, Pete, guess what?” The sound of the door opening made her turn, and Pete Mason walked in. She laughed, closing her phone. “You heard?”

He nodded. “Congratulations! But that’s not the only news.”

“Oh?”

Pete brought her close, his hands on her shoulders. “You’re going home for Christmas.”

“I’m what—I can’t possibly leave, Pete, especially now.”

“I’m driving you. Everyone’s pulling together and all the supplies can be delivered by the weekend. We should have the renovations finished within ten days if we work weekends. Then as soon as everything’s done, you and I are taking off.”

“Taking off?”

“We’ll drive straight through to Cedar Cove so you can surprise your parents.”

Emotion welled up inside her. “Oh, Pete.” She threw her arms around him and hugged him with all her might. “Thank you,” she whispered, “thank you, thank you, thank you.”

His arms slid about her waist. “I’m looking forward to meeting your family,” he said.