She sighed and shook her head. “You’re right.”
“So we keep on keeping on. We’ll go to Nathan’s class Saturday and learn how to beat the snot out of anyone who does mess with you, and hopefully this will all turn into a non-issue.” Sharon paused. “You need to tell Nathan. It can’t hurt to have a strong guy like him on your side.”
That had one corner of Lynn’s mouth inching upward. “No, it certainly wouldn’t. We’re having dinner Sunday afternoon. I’ll tell him then.” Only she wished they didn’t have to meet somewhere in public. The thought that someone might be watching them sent shivers down her spine.
She just had to keep her cool. If it was simply an anonymous fan, Lynn couldn’t let him mess with her life. She’d worked too hard to rebuild one to let it slip through her fingers.
~*~
After everything that happened at the wedding, Nathan found seeing Lynn briefly at the Little Lambs each day wasn’t nearly long enough. He’d spoken with his family. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t be able to take Lynn on a proper date until Sunday afternoon.
Nathan wanted it to be just the two of them, and Saturday night would’ve meant inviting her to join them at family dinner. He took some solace in the fact that Lynn seemed just as disappointed in the delay as he was.
So he’d wait. At least he’d see her at class on Saturday, which was something. But by Thursday evening, he decided he didn’t want to wait any longer.
That evening he accepted the diaper bag from Lynn. Before leaving with Mia, he cupped Lynn’s elbow in his hand. “Will you meet us at the burger place for dinner tonight?” He didn’t expect the flash of hesitation in her eyes that triggered a burst of apprehension in himself. “No pressure at all. We were going there to eat and thought you might be in the mood for a burger, too.”
Great job, Nathan. Nothing like being too pushy.He’d thought the offer was a good idea. Now he wasn’t sure after her unexpected reaction, and he wished he’d kept his mouth shut.
Lynn shook her head. “It’s not that at all.” There was an almost unnoticeable pause. “I’d love to meet you over there.”
They settled on a time, he squeezed her hand, and headed out with Mia.
An hour later, he’d claimed a table for them, and they only had to wait a few minutes before Lynn walked through the door. She seemed to scan the room for several seconds and headed their way.
She raised a hand in greeting and smiled. “Hey, guys. It’s busy in here tonight.” She glanced around the room again before sitting down with them.
“We can order to go and eat at the park or something instead. It is a little noisy.”
He thought she was going to agree before she finally shook her head. “No, this is fine. Thanks, though.”
Lynn told him what she’d like, and he left the girls at the table to place their orders at the counter up front. When he returned with their drinks, Lynn was still looking nervous.
He slid into the seat beside her. “You okay? Did something happen at work today?”
“I’m sorry.” She took one of the cups he’d offered. “It’s just been one of those days. How about you? Did anything interesting happen with classes?”
She was clearly deflecting. But if she didn’t want to talk about it now in a room full of noisy people, he was going to respect that. Nathan told her about one of his new students as they ate their dinner.
The evening went by way too fast and before he knew it, they were walking back out to the parking lot together. He held her hand in his and noticed her grip tighten a little as they crossed the lot to her car. She pulled her keys out and quickly unlocked it.
“Thanks for suggesting this. It was nice to see you for more than a few minutes at a time. It seems like forever since the wedding, doesn’t it?”
“Yes, it does.” Nathan shifted a squirmy Mia from one hip to the other. His daughter wasn’t going to wait much longer to get down and run around. He placed a hand on Lynn’s shoulder and leaned in close. When she tipped her chin up a little, he kissed her, enjoying the way her soft, warm lips felt against his own. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning, and I’m looking forward to this weekend.”
“I am, too.” She leaned in for one more brief kiss. “Thanks again for dinner.” She reached for Mia’s hand. “Bye, bug. Be good for your daddy tonight.”
With one more wave, Lynn got into her car and soon disappeared from view.
Nathan felt better after spending a little extra time with Lynn. But he couldn’t help but feel there was something going on. He could only hope she’d open up about it on Sunday.
~*~
Anger coursed through Jeb’s veins as he watched Bethany kiss the man she’d been with at the church. How dare she? Especially after knowing that Jeb was back in her life again?
Maybe he’d been too subtle in his attempts to reach her. There’s no way Bethany would be with that guy if she really knew he was there.
Jeb needed to do something more obvious, but what?
