and a whole lot of attraction. He swallowed, noticed the room had grown quiet and warm. “I want to name this development something unique and different, something meaningful. I guess it’ll come to me sooner or later.”
“I need to know what to call it—for the article,” Alice replied, obviously oblivious to the buzz of electricity that seemed to hiss through the air around them. “And right now, I’m feeling either Pipe Dream or Scam City. How does that sound?”
“Alice!” Dotty’s shrill voice broke the tension in the room. “Do you want this story or not, ’cause I can assign it to Scooter if you don’t.”
Alice scowled at Dotty. “Scooter? He’s an intern. He couldn’t do this story justice if it came to him complete in a dream.”
“Exactly. But he might have a more professional attitude, if you get my drift.”
Jonah was getting her drift, all right. Dotty looked as tough as nails in spite of her bright-colored, abstract silk blouse and pink fingernail polish. But Alice seemed every bit as formidable in her white sweater and blue button-up shirt and crisp khaki work pants. Coupled with that chip on her shoulder, of course.
“I’m sorry,” Alice said, looking contrite. “I’ll do the story,” she added, her blue eyes tinged with fire. “But I want all the details, everything. I owe it to the people of this town to give them the truth. And I do mean the whole truth.”
“You’ve got it,” Jonah said, reaching out to shake her hand. “I’ve got nothing to hide.” At least work-wise, he had nothing to hide.
Alice took his hand and gripped it with all the strength of a vise. “Don’t make me regret this,” she told him, squeezing his fingers together, her smile so pretty no one would know she was trying to cut off the circulation to his arm.
“You won’t regret it,” he promised with a prayer. After Alice released his hand, he said, “I’ll show you I have good intentions.”
Dotty stood up. “Okay then, we have four weeks until we go to print. Let’s get cracking.”
Jonah stood and shook out his fingers. “When do you want to get started?” he asked Alice.
“Now’s as good a time as any,” she said. “Let’s start with those reports and plans you mentioned.”
Jonah nodded. “Want to meet me over at the Bayou Belle Café? I’ll buy lunch.”
“I’ll be there in five minutes,” she said, her look sweeping over him with a dare. “And I’m always prompt.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
He nodded to Dotty—who was still very amused—then stepped out into the glaring fall sunshine. Why did it feel as if he’d just been handed a sentence to be executed?
But when he glanced back through the big window and saw Alice staring out at him with that deadly blue intent in her big eyes, he understood. He was afraid of how this woman made him feel—threatened and exposed and…longing for something he couldn’t have. He was about to share his hopes and dreams with her. And she was all geared up to stomp them flat with her bitterness and her distrust of men coming to town bearing hope. He didn’t need that kind of distraction on top of all the others things he had to deal with right now.
Telling himself to stop being defensive, Jonah vowed to stand his ground. His plan was solid and he needed to concentrate on that. His personal reasons for being here weren’t part of the deal and his life wasn’t any of Alice Bryson’s business. He’d stick to the plan and be professional, show her this was a win-win situation and he’d get the job done.
And in the meantime, he’d hoped he’d be able to find out more about his real mother. Which left him wondering if he’d wind up being the one to regret this.
Chapter Four
The Bayou Belle Café was buzzing with the lunch crowd. The curious lunch crowd.
“We probably should have stayed at the magazine office and ordered in,” Alice said on a winded whisper as she settled into the booth with Jonah. “People are staring.”
“Maybe they’re shocked to see you with me.”
Alice shot him with a lengthy look. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
His expression went from smiling to red-faced. “I mean, maybe they’ve heard already that you don’t like me.”
Now it was her turn to be embarrassed. “I never said I didn’t like you. I said I don’t trust you.”
“Same difference.”
“No, I like you just fine so far. I just don’t know how I feel about this elaborate plan you have for my town.”
“I’ll show you my plans after we eat. I’m starving.”
She looked him over. “You seem healthy enough. Looks like you get enough to eat, at least.”
“Is that required in men you don’t trust?”
His grin saved her from hitting him with a scathing retort. “Okay, I guess I’ve been a little antisocial with you. And you’re probably right about folks—they’d be shocked to see me with any new man in town. I’m a jilted bride.”
He tried to look surprised, but his expression didn’t quite make it in time to rescue the traces of sympathy and concern in his eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that.” Even his comment was lame and pathetic. Or maybe she was the pathetic one.
Alice shook her head. “And don’t even tell me you had no idea. I love Jimmy and Paulette like family but they sure love to gossip.”
“They just like to make small talk with their customers.”
“Yeah, lots of small talk about big things—such as me standing in a white dress in my backyard, watching the man I thought I was going to marry driving away. He got the impression I was gonna call the police on him.”
“Why didn’t you—I mean, if he did the things I’ve heard he did?”
“I didn’t tell him, but I’d already reported him to the local authorities minutes before we were supposed to get married,” Alice replied, memories moving through her mind with the crackling intensity of those falling leaves outside the big window.
Somehow, Jonah knowing all the intimate details of her sad life didn’t bother her as much as she would have thought. Had she become that numb to feeling things, or was she just glad someone else had spared her the humiliation of telling him herself?
“I told Ned the wedding was off and if he didn’t get out of town, I’d call the sheriff. My brother-in-law, Jay, backed me up on that and then we watched him leave. But Ned was long gone by the time the sheriff got out to our house and we haven’t seen hide or hair of him since. But he’ll mess up one day. He’s a wanted man now and justice will prevail.”
“I sure hope so.” Jonah smiled up at the waitress. “I’ll have the Jimmy burger with all the works. And for the lady—?” He glanced over at Alice. “What would you like?”
Alice greeted the waitress then said, “I’ll have the Cobb salad and iced tea.”
He waited until they were alone again. “I really am sorry about what happened to you. But I’m not a con artist. I came here with a whole different set of goals than those of your runaway groom. Will you hear me out?”
Alice watched his face, wondering if her scam-radar was working correctly. The man seemed genuinely passionate about his work. And the way his eyes had grazed over her just now with such a hungry eagerness made her think she might have misjudged him.
“I’m willing to withhold judgment so I can get the best story,” she finally said. “I’ll be objective in the article, but that doesn’t mean I have to agree with you.”
“Fair