“Now for the best part of the meal.” Travis opened the box and took out one with sprinkles.
“Same,” Grace agreed as she picked up her favorite—one with maple icing. “What are you going to do with all the leftover pizza and breadsticks?”
“I’ll have Calvin and Delores box it all up and take it all down to the kitchen for everyone to snack on all afternoon,” he answered. “That’s what we did with all the leftover doughnuts from the taste test, and there wasn’t a single one left at the end of the day.” He lowered his voice and leaned over the table. “But the first-floor kids insisted on taking those from your shop right to their floor. They don’t play well with others,” he said with a deep chuckle.
“Who are Calvin and Delores?” she asked.
“Calvin is my CEO, but he’s also my best friend and has been since we were babies. We grew up in this building, went to the same schools, and came back here to work after we graduated college. Delores is the woman behind the scenes for Butler Enterprises. She’s actually the COO, though she doesn’t like titles. She knows everything about everything. She began working here before I was even born. She’s probably seventy-four years old, and I hope she lives to be a hundred—not only for what she does for the company but because I love her that much,” he explained.
Not many men would use those words to describe an employee, even their CEO and COO,Grace thought. They also wouldn’t have that look of happiness on their faces when they talked about a friend. Or, for that matter, they wouldn’t have been so gracious about lettuce in their teeth, either.
“And your parents now?” Grace asked.
“They have several homes, and right now they’re in London,” he answered. “They get back to the States a couple of times a year—usually around Christmas and sometime in the summer.”
For her second doughnut, Grace opted for one with chocolate icing. “That sounds like a very good retirement. Please don’t advertise the offer to buy our land until it is a done deal,” she continued, “because I don’t think we’ll be interested in selling, and it will just stir up more drama and rumors in Devine.”
“I won’t, but you didn’t answer me about dinner on Wednesday evening,” he said with another smile.
The way he paid attention to her and respected her rejection made Grace like him—especially when she remembered how his hand had felt on her back. She shouldn’t accept his invitation. She’d turned him down for a dinner date once, and after the way Neal had pulled the wool over Macy’s eyes, she wasn’t sure she should trust any man—especially one who had his mind set on buying her business and land.
“Well?” he asked.
She meant to tell him no, like she did the first time—she really did—but when she opened her mouth, she said, “Yes, I’ll go to dinner with you, but it has to be on my terms. We aren’t going to discuss business, and it can’t be at a fancy place. Maybe just a burger and fries—but not in Devine. There’s enough talk going around down there without me fanning the fires.”
There,she thought.That should make him back down for sure.
“Sounds good.” He flashed another one of his brilliant smiles. “We’ll go to the Dairy Queen down on the Riverwalk. No talk of business. I promise.”
“I’ll meet you there,” she said and pushed back her chair. “I should be going. You’ll need to get back to work.”
“Why?” he asked. “I’d planned a two-hour lunch. We’ve still got an hour left, unless you have plans and need to get home.”
“Nope, I don’t have plans,” Grace answered and pulled her chair back up to the table.
He chose another doughnut from the box—a strawberry-filled one.
“Did you ever want to be anything other than a baker?” he asked. “Not that I’m complaining. These doughnuts are really good.”
“Nope. How about you?”
“I thought I’d like to be a rancher like my grandpa,” Travis answered. “Sometimes, I still do. I loved running wild on the ranch as a child, and helping my grandpa with the cattle and the chores, but I’m an only child, and the business needed me. I was groomed from a young age to take the reins, and by the time it was my turn, I had learned to love this as much as ranching.”
Silence settled around them, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Grace didn’t feel like she needed to fill the emptiness with words, so she finished her doughnut and refilled her glass with the last of the tea in the bottle.
“My biggest regret is that my folks haven’t gotten to enjoy grandchildren,” Travis finally said. “I always thought I’d get around to having a family, but ... I’m in my forties. I wonder if that ship has sailed.”
Grace hoped she didn’t have chocolate on her teeth when she smiled. “Don’t you know that forty is the new thirty? You’re still young enough to start a family if you don’t linger much longer. And now, I thank you for the lunch. It was amazing, but I should be going.” She pushed back her chair and stood up. She had learned enough from Macy’s mistake to know that a man could worm his way into a woman’s heart by telling her about his hopes and dreams—and maybe not just Macy’s but her own experience with Justin and Sarah’s with Joel. Then, when he had her hooked, he would get what he wanted and leave her high and dry.
“I’ll walk you out to your car,” Travis said. “After that meal, I should walk around the block a few times, but I’ve got a meeting scheduled for three.”
He ushered her into the elevator with his hand on her back again, and tiny bursts of heat did their little dance up and down her spine.Grace was not a poor person, despite her appearance that day, but why would Travis be interested in her?
Stop it!her mother’s voice scolded.You are not the first woman to have a child without the benefit of a marriage license, and you won’t be the last. Get off the guilt wagon and quit being ashamed of your past. It is what it is, and there’s no changing it. You’ve been a good mother, and this man would be lucky to even be allowed to buy you a burger.
“Thanks, Mama,” she whispered.
And don’t let that man buy my recipe, your land, or your soul,her mother’s voice said loud enough in her head that she could hear it above the sirens only a few blocks away.
