Gabby Revealed (Finding Perfect) (10 page)

Chapter Fifteen

Whistling as he took the steps two at a time, Tyson avoided the creaking board with his work boots. “I have got to talk to them about replacing this porch.” He grinned. Something about this well-loved
, old Victorian, the larger than normal piece of land it resided on in the middle of town, it was home to him. Though he hadn’t technically lived at the Renlend Square Bed and Breakfast long, it was the first place he’d ever left his heart. He had a small apartment over one of the businesses down the block, but this would always be home.

Opening the door, there she was, the reason his heart remained inside this old mansion.
Her sweet smile as she spoke to the visitors stopped him in his spot, and he could do nothing but stand staring at her. Dianna Lane was beautiful. Not in a runway bombshell way, more like she reminded him of a living porcelain doll. Her features so soft and perfect. Tyson adored her expressive green eyes and the dark auburn curls that tumbled down her back, today they were pinned up, yet more and more escaping as the morning went on. Tyson had been around the world, met thousands of people. No one was perfect. He learned the hard lesson younger than any child should ever have to. Dianna was though. She was perfect, in every way.

Her soul was so pure
. She was his siren pulling him toward her with a magnetic force he couldn’t deny, yet she seemed to not understand. She was all the more precious to him for it. Tyson had kept his childhood to himself. Her father had been the first person Tyson had met when he pulled into town, his motorcycle on fumes. He gassed up intending on hitting the highway, headed for the wide-open freedom of Montana. His body demanded a decent night’s sleep and a scalding shower. Fate delivered him here, to the B and B. His army duffle had been his tell and her father took to him like a long-lost son. He’d gotten the long-lost part right for damn sure.

Tyson couldn’t pull himself away from leaning on the doorframe. He drank in every move she made as often as he could. In the two years since his unexpected ending to his road trip, Tyson had yet to see or hear of a man in her life. Her father kept him apprised of all Dianna’s likes, dislikes, moods, and personality traits. Not once had he mentioned a man either. Confusing and thrilling at the same time, Tyson couldn’t peg the reason as to why not.

She reached over the wooden counter, handing the man, woman, and little girl their room key with the sweetest smile. Tyson loved those smiles. He loved them more when directed at him. She turned catching his line of sight, she bit her lip and busied herself with the logbook he knew she had in front of her.

Dragging in a long breath, Tyson lived to see the stain on her cheeks. Leaving the door open to the fresh air, Tyson teased her as he walked across the floor. He knew she could hear his work boots coming nearer because her cheeks were getting pinker.
Placing his forearms on the counter, he leaned over it, kissing her forehead as he often did.

She didn’t look up, only
whispered his name, “Tyson.”

“Dianna
,” he replied, drawing out his response. “Cable outside is fine.”

She g
lanced upward, without moving her head, once she realized he’d seen her, her gaze darted back to the book and papers in front of her. “I knew it was. My father—”

“
Is awesome.” Dianna did look up, her head tipped to the side with a cheeky grin she was failing miserably at hiding from him. “It’s true, and you won’t deny it.”

“No. I won’t. But he drags you over
here for the lamest of excuses all the time. I swear on a daily basis. Then you won’t bill me, and it does not help Drew’s business one bit to have you pulled away like that—for no reason. How’s he supposed to keep paying you, when you’re not doing anything here?” Picking up a pencil, she went back to her paperwork, erasing a line.

“So you know it’s a conspiracy…when are you going to give in?” He moved across the counter, running his forefinger down the side of her cheek. In his entire existence, he’d never felt something softer.

***

Shane
kept his movements light as to not startle Gabby. She’d been so broken and vulnerable when he’d left. Against his better judgment, Shane made good on his promise and had given her ample time, in his opinion, to pull herself together. He couldn’t stay away a minute more. Without bothering to knock, he gently turned the doorknob, hesitant on what he’d find on the other side.

Qui
et but frantic tapping drew his eyes to her back. She sat, in the same clothes, her hair still unbrushed, typing. As her agent and her friend, he understood instantly. As not to disturb her, Shane found a pen and paper. Jotting a quick note to remind her he cared, he let her know he was going to shower and change, and then he gave her the one thing he could—space.

Shane trudged into Dianna’s bed and breakfast dragging his two rolling bags behind him with his laptop bag weighing down his left shoulder. He prayed the five boxes he’d shipped had arrived and wondered about his furniture, hoping it was in town and the owner of the storage unit he rented had locked it up for him. Fuck it. He was too tired to care. All he needed was a shower.

“Shane? You’re just now getting in? I thought you were due in yesterday?”

Dianna was exactly the type of woman Shane had always pictured in his mind when it came to small towns. Quiet, sweet to a fault
, and more courteous than any other human he’d ever encountered.

“I
—” How did he explain he’d spent the night at Gabby’s without all the assumptions? “Um.”

“You must be Shane?” Turning,
he let out a deep sigh of relief when he saw the outstretched hand. “I’m Tyson Ellison, a friend of Dianna’s here.”

Even with little rest under his belt Shane picked up on Tyson’s flirting, glancing at Dianna’s stained cheeks confirmed it.
Shane glanced between the pair without trying to stare. They were polar opposites, conservative, sweet, with soft features and large, muscled and tattooed. Both attractive, yet not two he’d place together. Coming from the book world, Shane couldn’t help but think of Beauty and the Beast, not that Tyson looked like a furry monster, but so very different than what he would expect Dianna to be drawn toward. There had to be secrets behind him, probably several linked to the military looking tattoo on his shoulder. Dianna seemed too skittish for a man Shane knew had to of seen more than one lifetime’s amount of pain.

She may be bashful as all hell, but her shy smiles and peeks at the man on the other side of her counter were obvious to
even him, an out-of-towner. Shane exhaled, thinking of his own woman from here, hoping she’d look at him longingly like that, wishing he could make things easier for her. Wanting her for his own.

“Um, yes. My dad insisted Tyson make sure the
Internet was working properly in your room,” she replied quietly, rolling her eyes.

“Yeah, cause that’s what I do best.”
Laughing, Tyson grinned at Shane. “Her father isn’t the only matchmaker in this town I hear?”

Happy and sad at the same time, flashes of his last dinner at John’s came to mind. He remembered the elderly man’s schemes and not-so-subtle hints. “Yeah…I guess not.”

“John was a great old man. Gonna miss that prankster.” Tyson shook his head.

Dianna blinked back tears. “I set you up on this floor, if that’s
all right?” Tyson ran a knuckle under her eye.

“
Wherever is perfect. I’m just going to grab a quick shower and head back to check on Gabby. When I left her breakfast on her desk she was—” He caught himself midsentence. “Um, working. Paperwork stuff. So I thought I’d open the store for her so she could finish. I just need to see if I can grab her keys and the alarm code.”

Shaking his head,
Tyson clasped Shane’s shoulder. “Man, no alarm necessary. And I’ll call her folks for you.” He dropped his hand. “I’m sure on of them would be happy to meet you to let you in.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that.”

“Na. Don’t mention it.”

Shane gladly accepted the
room key from Dianna, a real key, not a swipe card like he was used to. “Thank you so much, and it was nice to meet you, Tyson.”

“You as well. I’m sure we’ll be running into each other on a regular basis.”

Shane turned, but not before catching Tyson winking at Dianna. Yeah, Tyson wasn’t talking to him. With his bags rolling behind him, he took a deep breath, heading for hot water.

Chapter Sixteen

“What the hell?” A shooting pain ran from
Gabby’s neck down her back. “Ouch. Crap.” Stretching her neck side-to-side, Gabby glanced around, feeling a tad disoriented in her own space. Shane would probably be back any moment with coffee and—on the small table next to her desk was not only cold coffee, but also two donuts, soup, fries, a small pepperoni pizza…all with bites taken out of them. Nothing completely eaten, but an attempt that she had absolutely no recollection of. Looking at the windows facing the square, it was no longer morning—or hell, late afternoon—but dark out.

Rubbing her eyes, her jaw almost hit the desktop as she read the clock
on her laptop. Ten after eight. P.M. And she had never moved, never even showered or put on clean clothes. Shit. She’d never opened the store. Gabby had spent the entire day typing without noticing anything around her. It had to have been Shane who brought her food. Her parents would have interrupted her to “check on her.” Shane obviously understood her concentration, and only someone who worked in her world would appreciate that kind of focus.

“Guess I better check on the store
,” she mumbled to herself. There would be at least seven boxes coming on today’s UPS truck. She needed to get them in the back room, in case it decided to rain overnight. Moving the stapler, Gabby reached for the ponytail holder left there days before. Twisting her hair into a messy bun as she walked, she headed down the back staircase sock footed and yawning.

“W
here in God’s name?” Gabby looked around to see if the driver had placed the boxes out of sight, but they were nowhere to be found. Placing her palm on the doorknob, she realized she’d forgotten her keys too. “Shit.” Noise stopped her, voices muffled. Leaning her ear against the door, Gabby could swear they were coming from inside her store.

Trying the handle it was indeed unlocked. Inhaling deeply, she lifted up and twisted it, pushing it open as quietly as she could, hoping to catch whoever was stupid enough to fuck with her.

Surprisingly, all the lights were on. As she shuffled through the maze she saw two of the seven boxes she’d been waiting on, a third sat opened and half unboxed. This was getting weirder and weirder. Still trying not to alert anyone to her presence, a loud laugh sent a cringe down her spine. “Old bat Murrey?” Gabby mouthed to herself. Tiptoeing past her office, she got to the doorway in time to see Shane, in jeans, which were pretty damn hot on him if she had to admit it. He was talking to the old bitty who drove Gabby crazy. Standing behind a shelf, she bit her finger—hard—trying to keep her laughter contained.

She had warned his ass the last time he was in town. Gabby had even gone to great lengths to hide him from the nosy old gossip. To Shane’s credit, he was trying to ease the woman back toward the front door, but it wasn’t a quick exit by any means.

“I promise, Mrs. Murrey, I will have Gabby call you.”

“But that girl—”

“Is very busy, I know,” Shane said over the insult Gabby knew was about to fly out of the hag’s mouth.

She and that crab had never gotten along, but her heart melted a little hearing him stand up for her. Gabby’s own parents always said she had to ignore it
. She was the customer. “Fuck that,” Gabby whispered.

“I was going to say—”

Shane once again stepped in, “That Gabby works harder than anyone you know? That she does, you’re very right.”

“No.
That’s she’s rude. It’s been nice dealing with you, but now I see she’s rubbed off on you.”

“
I take that as a compliment. Well, it’s been a real treat chatting with you, but I need to get the drawer counted down so I can go get Gabby some dinner.” He gave her a gentle shove through the front door he held open with his other arm and Gabby’s eyes went wide.

Everyone in town seemed to be afraid
of the battleax, but not Shane, and definitely not Gabby. Maybe she did have someone in her corner? Maybe she hadn’t given him enough credit.

As soon as her too large behind cleared the threshold, Shane shut and locked the door, turned the sign to closed
, then leaned against the glass. “What an old bitch.”

Gabby slapped a hand over her mouth hearing the curse word flow so easily f
rom his mouth. Not once had he been so much as anything but proper with her. She snickered, and they instantly made eye contact. The corner of his mouth quirked, but then was gone as he quickly closed the space between them. Her laughter died seeing the intensity in Shane’s body language, the strength of his movements, the fire in his eyes. Nearing her, he slid his hand across her cheek, searching her eyes for something. Gabby didn’t dare move, but her questions deepened the crease between her brows. Before she could ask him what was wrong, he enveloped her, crushing her against his chest, holding onto her as if he’d been afraid he’d never see her again.

She wanted to stumble backward
. She should push off of him. She should run the other way. He deserved better than her, instead, Gabby sagged against him, hugging him back for the first time.