An hour later, he stared across the table at the beautiful, raven-haired beauty with the heart-shaped face. There was something about her that made last night's glow of accomplishment after making jam look pale compared to her radiance tonight. Her hair was curled, and she wore makeup today, but her beauty tonight radiated from within.
Mom kept Eden talking so much she hardly had a chance to eat her food.
"So Miss Hattie decided having a website couldn't hurt as long as it didn't require any extra work from her, and she agreed to let me start selling the crafts online after I get permission from all the artisans." Eden met his gaze for a moment before pushing her fingers into her hair and flipping it to partially block her face from his view.
He probably made her uncomfortable with his staring, but he couldn't help wondering who this woman was. What had happened to Kennedy's snooty friend who turned her nose up and said, "That's it?" the first time they took her on a drive through Providence?
"I'll have to reach out to some of my old contacts to find someone who can build a website," Eden said before taking a bite of her chicken and rice casserole.
"Rudy can do that for you," Mom smiled at him. "Can't you?"
Rudy's chicken stuck in his throat. Sure, he could do it, but why was mom encouraging Eden at all, let alone trying to get him involved in her craziness? People like Eden didn't stick around small towns like this. This little pet project was probably just to keep herself from getting bored.
"He created the new website for the repair shop a few months ago."
Eden turned wide eyes on him. "You know how to build websites?"
He shrugged. "It's not that hard. There are plenty of tutorials online."
Some were even created by him.
Her lips turned up in a slow grin as she stared at him. "So, you're a geek too?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." She gave a slight shake of her head, but her smile remained. "Would you mind helping me build a website for Miss Hattie's Boutique?"
He gave her a lazy smile. "I never mind, just ask my parents."
"Of course, he'll help you," Mom said, giving him the look that said behave and obey.
I haven't seen that look for years.
The smile he gave Eden tightened. "I'd be glad to help you."
That's how he found himself twenty minutes later secluded in his room with Eden. No, they weren't secluded, because Mom never allowed them to have the door closed when they had a member of the opposite sex in their room. So, not only was the door open, Mom had already walked into her bedroom across the hall twice and back out again.
Eden sat right next to him, however, in a dining chair. Close enough he could smell her coconut shampoo mixed with a subtle floral perfume.
Rudy listened to Eden talk for a few minutes about what she had in mind for Miss Hattie's website before opening a browser.
When it came time to pay for a domain, Eden cringed. "I forgot to talk to Miss Hattie about that part. I'll just pay for it for now." She got to her feet then froze. "I um... I don't have a credit card anymore."
Rudy's brows rose. "Why not?"
She dropped back into her chair. "My dad uh...froze my credit cards."
He leaned back in his chair and studied her face. "He cut you off, so you quit your job and left town?"
Sounds like a massive tantrum to me.
"No, he...cut me offafterI refused to...compromise myself and bend to his will. Quitting my job was something I should have done a long time ago."
Compromise herself? What was her dad trying to get her to do?
He continued to stare at her until she flipped her hair from the left side to the right, shielding her face from him.
"And you have no intention of going back to work for him again?"
