Twilight at Blueberry Barrens (Sunset Cove #3)(51)
He told himself to shut up and escape with his dignity, but he was never one for playing it safe. “Never been engaged?”
She shook her head. “I got sick, and what guy was going to be interested in a girl who might die? I mean, what a way to take off the bloom of romance.”
The thought of her lying lifeless in a casket closed his throat. “But you’re okay now.”
“I’m also thirty-one.” She shuddered. “It’s hard to even say that out loud. Most of the eligible men have been taken or moved away.”
“There are always new ones coming into town.” He sat up and took her hand. “Let me take you to dinner one night. I’ll get Dixie to watch the girls.”
Her fingers closed around his, and her blue eyes were as bright as the sun above until they dimmed as quickly as they’d glowed. She pulled her hand away. “I don’t know, Drake. You might not want to yell at me if we went out. I’d never know where I stood.”
“I’d make sure you knew. Think about it.”
She looked down at her hands. “You’re not married either.”
So she noticed. “Nope. But I’d like to change that someday. A houseful of kids is a happy place. First school and then my career took all my attention. It seemed I had all the time in the world to date and find a life partner. But Heath’s death was a wake-up call for me that I’m not getting any younger. I’m thirty-two.”
“I’m hardly your type, Drake. I never even finished college, and you’ve got more degrees than a thermometer.” She rose and brushed the debris from her white shorts. “I’d better check on the kids.”
He stared after her. What had caused her smile to vanish and the frosty glaze in her eyes to appear?
TWENTY-FOUR
Kate’s face felt windburned as she mounted the steps to Claire’s house with Jackson. Her sister had finally moved back home two days ago after a report that Paul had been spotted in Canada. Kate felt as upside down as a broken top. She’d been rolling Drake’s invitation around in her head for a couple of days, and she wasn’t sure how to respond.
Luke answered the doorbell. He wore pajama bottoms with no shirt. “Kate, is everything okay?” He opened the door wide.
“I’m fine, but I just needed to talk to Claire. Is she still up?” Her face heated. They were newlyweds, so what was she doing barging in without a call at eight o’clock at night?
“She’s in the kitchen making some chamomile tea. Go on in. I won’t bother the two of you. Hey, Jackson, let’s go throw the Frisbee.” The dog’s ears went up at the word. He loved Frisbee and trotted happily outside with Luke.
That wonderful man understood. Kate kicked off her sandals and went across the polished floors in her bare feet. She caught the scent of an apple candle and the aroma of something peanut buttery. Claire stood in the kitchen with her back to the open doorway as she filled the bright-red teakettle.
“Hey, I’ll take some of that.”
Claire turned with a smile. She wore the pale-blue negligee Kate had gotten her for the bridal shower, and she looked so pretty with her blonde hair spilling onto her shoulders. “This is a surprise.”
An easel beside the table held a partially finished painting of Drake’s nieces. Kate paused and studied the likenesses. “This is wonderful, Claire.”
“It’s for you. I’ll have it done in a few days.” She eyed Kate. “Is everything okay?”
“Your husband just asked me the same thing.” She went to Claire’s new white kitchen table and pulled out a red chair. “Drake asked me out. I haven’t had a chance to tell you, and I was trying to figure it out myself, but I can’t.”
Claire chuckled and grabbed two mugs from the cupboard. “And that’s the reason for your woebegone expression? That’s wonderful!”
“He said he wanted a houseful of kids!” Kate put her face in her hands. “I didn’t have the heart to tell him that’s the main reason he wouldn’t want to develop feelings for me. I can’t give him that.”
“That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t understand. Any man who really loved you wouldn’t let that stop him. Drake seems to be one of those guys who lets things roll off his back. And besides, he already has two girls to raise. That’s a pretty good start on a houseful. It might be enough.”
Kate shook her head. “I think his biological clock is ticking. The phenomenon doesn’t just happen to women. His brother’s death shook him up.”
Claire bit her lip. “Give him a chance, Kate. Don’t sell him short. It wouldn’t hurt to go out with him.” She picked up the mugs of tea and went to the table.
“It might hurt a lot. I’ll be honest, Claire. I’m already halfway in love with him. I’ve gotten to know him so well from watching the girls. He’s a really great guy. Kind, smart, funny. I like being around him, but I keep reminding myself he’ll soon be back in his real world, and a dalliance with someone like me isn’t going to last. It’s already August. They’ll be heading back to Boston the end of the month.”
Claire stirred sweetener into her tea. “You don’t see yourself clearly, Kate. You let your old illness define you, and it shouldn’t. You have so much more to offer than bearing a child. You’re beautiful and loyal, and you know a lot about so many subjects. Just like your precious puffins.”