The gangly, cute boy she’d once known had turned into a sinfully handsome muscled power-house. Dark, military cut hair, piercing mahogany eyes, broad across the shoulders and trim of waist. It was all sigh-worthy. But the rest of him?Whew.Bobbie might hate the man, but she wasn’t dead. His brawny thighs filled out his jeans in an eye-popping way, and that fine, Sothard ass that all his brothers sported, looked especially good as he’d turned to go.
And why was she noticing? Bobbie berated herself. The last thing she should be checking out were his attributes, but…
Her lady-parts, long dormant, were twitching; sitting up and taking notice.
Oh, hell no.
Down girl. Down.
There was no way she was going to let herself be attracted to that asshole again.
CHAPTER 3
Buck sat in his van,flustered. Mad. Confused.
He’d never expected to see Bobbie today. Hell, he’d never expected to see her, ever again. Whether his family had stayed in touch with her or not, he didn’t know, but they’d made it a point never to mention her name in his presence.
Had Spencer known that Bobbie ranRoberto’s Catering? Had he set Buck up?
Because if it hadn’t been his brother, that meant…
Yup.Buck sighed, seeing the truth in his encounter. This had Ellen Sothard written all over it.
Buck’s mother couldn’t stand a feud of any kind, and wasabsolutelythe one who would have hired Bobbie’s company to do the wedding. Now that Buck was home for good, she’d want to manipulate circumstances to see if she could somehow get Bobbie and Buck together to mend fences.
Spencermighthave been in on it, but Buck tended to think not. Spence had been at sea for a number of years, just like him, and out of the loop. Since opting out of the Merchant Marine, Spence had been fixated on his fiancé, Tabbi. There was very little likelihood Spencer would be looking beyond his own nose at this point in time.
Buck’s fingers itched to call his mother and confront her, but he decided against that. He didn’t want to stir any pots and do anything that might ruin Spencer’s wedding. Still, he could certainly feel out his brother regarding the awkward situation.
As Bobbie’s workers loaded up Buck’s van, he called Spence.
“Hey, bro. You at the caterers?” Spencer questioned before Buck even got out a greeting. “Is everything cool?”
“I am, and it is.” Buck then got straight to the point. “Did you know that Roberto’s Catering should actually be calledRoberta’s?” He dropped the bomb. “It’s owned by Bobbie Follster.”
“Oh… No shit,” Spencer hissed. “Man. Ididn’tknow. And I sent you there. I’m so sorry. You got blindsided. Fuck. You know Mom has to be…”
“Yeah. Mom,” Buck agreed when Spencer trailed off. “I don’t know why she thought this would be a good idea, especially with your nuptials going on, but it’s already taken a predictable nose-dive. Bobbie could hardly look in my direction without baring her teeth. I hope it doesn’t make things awkward for your wedding.”
“Buck, it sucks. That’s for sure,” Spencer responded, “but it’ll be fine. Just stay out of the kitchen tonight and tomorrow, and avoid the tent area where she’ll be setting up her steamers and such. I’m sure your paths won’t have to cross again.”
They wouldn’thaveto, but…
It was time for a little honesty.
“That’s just it, Spence. Now that I’ve seen her, Iwantour paths to cross. You know as well as I do that she’s blamed me all these years for what happened. I need to freaking talk to her to straighten things out.”
Spencer coughed. “Uh, bro? I don’t think that’s happening. If she’s thought the worst of you for fifteen years, one conversation isn’t going to make it all go away. And why do you care, anyway?It’s not like you’ll have to run into her every day from here on out. Our business will be based in Hampden, and I assume you’ll want to find a place to live there, just like me and Tabitha, so…different towns, bro. And as for Mom? We’ll shut her down. We’ll make sure this is a one-and-done catering gig that Bobbie’s doing for our family.”
Buck sighed. “You know how it is, Spence. Separate towns, sure, but they’re all small. The chances of me avoiding her from here on out are practically zero. We’ll run into each other at the market, at a band concert, at the beach. It’s going to suck. I can’t live my life like that, worrying that I’ll go around a corner and there she’ll be.”
“Uh, Buck?” Spencer’s voice sounded tentative.
“Yeah?” Buck responded. “You’ve got something to say, Spence? Spit it out.”
“It’s, um, more like a question,” Spencer hemmed.
“So ask.” Buck was keeping an eye on the goods being loaded into the back, and he figured it would only be a few more minutes before he could leave.
