He could count on Maddie Winslow. And he intended to show her through their joint project that she could count on him, too.
Chapter Three
Maddie and Leo sat opposite each another at a table in the corner of a quaint little sandwich shop near Abbott College.
The fact that this lunch felt very date-like to Maddie was an aberration brought on by her own wishful thinking.He’s your deceased friend’s husband. We’re here to plan the garage sale! Nothing more!
“Are you sure your parents won’t mind hosting our garage sale at their house?” Maddie asked. They’d already determined that her apartment wouldn’t work and that his house, which was situated ten minutes outside of town, was too remote.
“I’m sure,” he said. “I talked it over with them. Their house is in town, and they have plenty of room on their driveway and in their garage. My sisters will help. It should work out well.”
“Okay, perfect.”
Their food arrived. Since she was celiac and couldn’t eat gluten, she’d opted for a soup, salad, and chips combo. Her mouth was watering, especially due to the potato chips. Potato chips were her favorite food group. She took out her phone.
“Are you taking a picture of your lunch?” Leo asked with bemusement.
“I am. I’m a fan of Instagram. Are you?”
“No.”
“Are you on any of the social media platforms?”
“I have a Facebook account that I haven’t checked since 2016.”
She felt her dimples crease her cheeks as she adjusted her phone, trying to achieve just the right lighting and angle. “Well, I love looking at pictures on Instagram and sharing my own. Since I don’t get out that much and since this lunch is so very pretty, this photo is too good to pass up.”
“I see. Do people like looking at pictures of food?”
“Indeed.” She ended up having to stand and hover over her lunch like a praying mantis in order to capture the right shot. “Got it.” She lowered into her chair.
He was looking at her as if entertained. “Are you going to post that now?”
“No, no.” She waved a hand. “I’ll post it later.” She realized he hadn’t made a move toward his food. “Please don’t let me hold you up.”
He picked up his sandwich. A man who ordered a ham and Swiss on rye with lettuce and tomato was a very reliable type of man.
Also, looking into his gray eyes was muddling her thoughts and tempting her to imagine that theywereon a date.
You’re not!
But it sure would be nice if they were . . . if he’d never been married to Olivia and she was someone he’d just met, instead of a friend of his wife’s he’d known for years.
As they ate, they talked through their plans for their garage sale.
Once they’d covered everything, Maddie decided to venture a personal question. A this-isn’t-a-date type of personal question. “When you moved to Merryweather last summer, I assumed thatyou did so to be near your parents and Olivia’s parents. Is that why you moved?”
“Yes.” Leo sat back a few degrees in his chair. “Soon after Olivia died, I realized that it would be best for Charlie and me if we could live near his grandparents, but Abbot didn’t have any openings in my field at the time.”
Abbott College had been founded in the mid-1800s. Its campus brimmed with historic buildings, jade lawns, and the rarified air of advanced education. It was the pride of Mason County.
“A year ago, they finally posted a position that I had the qualifications for. The search committee called me in for an interview last February.” He ran a hand through his sandy hair, which left sexy furrows. “I wanted the job for Charlie’s sake, as well as mine, so I was nervous going in. Afterward, I worried that I might not get it.”
“I’m so happy that you did, Leo.”
“Me too. Abbott’s enrollment is less than fifteen hundred so most of my classes have fewer than twenty students, and they have on-site day care so I can go over between classes and push Charlie on the swings.”
She ate a bite of pickle. “How’s it been living near Olivia’s parents and yours?”
