Queenie's Cafe (11 page)

“Well, better late than never.”

“Sassy little thing, ain’t ya.”

“And smart,” she teased. “I’m only twenty and I own my own business.”

Jay’s laughter followed Laura back to the kitchen. So Jay Fisher had an ornery streak. He was about five-ten, with little lines around his eyes and a hat ring embedded in his short blond hair. His whole face lit up when he smiled. Laura liked Jay already. She hoped he knew his business, since he’d be the one doing the work if she decided to go ahead with this partnership and remodel project.

Did she really want a partner?

Did she have any choice?

Chapter Six

L
uke met with Jay and Laura at the café the next afternoon to talk about the motel project. Laura dropped into a chair.

“Tired?” asked Jay.

“Exhausted. Running your own business isn’t easy.”

Luke felt a stab of guilt when he realized why Laura was so tired. “You’re not trying to do three meals a day, are you?”

“How else am I going to pay my bills?”

“Damn it, Laura. I didn’t mean for you to work yourself to death. Hire some help.”

“With what? I have to make money before I can hire anyone.”

“What about Ivy?”

“She helps at the motel and cleans the bathrooms and floors here every night after I close. She’s earning her keep.”

“Hire some help. I’ll give you the money.”

She met his gaze with eyes of steel. “You mean
loan
me the money?

“Okay, loan you the money.”

“No thanks. I owe you enough already.”

Jay grinned. “Still sassy.”

“And smart, too.”

“Shall we look at Jay’s figures?” asked Luke.

“We can look, but no promises.”

Luke gazed into Laura’s smoky gray eyes. Jay was right, she was sassy, but that stubborn determination was there, too. In some ways, he admired it, but she went way beyond what was sensible. No one could work this many hours every day without consequences. He didn’t want her to burn out, and he didn’t want her to destroy her health just to pay for the new flooring.

They sat and talked about options and costs for the remodeling project on the motel. Laura asked Jay about the roof.

“I got estimates on several different products from three roofing companies, but you’ll have to decide what you want before I can pin down the cost. It’s all right here.” He handed her a paper with the roofing information. “I got samples in the back of the truck.”

Laura glanced at the paper and handed it to Luke. She probably didn’t know anything about construction or roofing.

“What’s next?” she asked.

“An appraisal to establish current value,” said Luke.

“Do you want me to find an appraiser?”

“If you want, but I know someone in the business.”

“Then you take care of it.” She walked toward the back.

Jay breathed deeply. “Somethin’ sure smells good in here.”

She turned to face Jay. “Are you going to mooch another meal off me?”

“I don’t know. Am I?” he asked, eyebrows raised in a questioning look.

She pointed at him. “Don’t push it.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Luke shook his head. “Are you giving away all the profits already?”

“They’re my profits and I’ll give them away if I want.”

“Some partner you’re going to make,” he muttered. This project got more interesting every day. It wasn’t just the food that brought customers into this place. She’d already won Jay over, as she had everyone else who came to Queenie’s Café.

She lifted her chin. “I didn’t say I’d be your partner, did I?”

Jay laughed. “You two sound like an old married couple.”

“Too bad you’re too old to marry, Jay. You’d make a wonderful husband. At least you know who’s in charge.”

“My ex-wife wouldn’t agree with that.”

“What does she know.”

“Honey, if you’re proposin’, the answer’s yes,” Jay said with a big grin.

“I’m not proposing to anyone. I’m staying single. I don’t want anyone telling me what to do.”

Luke lifted his chin. “Not even a partner?”

“Especially not a partner. Isn’t this where that silent part is supposed to come in?”

“That depends on what percent I own.”

She crossed her arms. “Then I won’t take less than fifty-one percent. That way I’ll always have the final say.”

Jay looked at Luke and motioned with his head at Laura. “She’s gonna be a handful. Sure you can handle her by yourself? She’s sassier than my ex-wife.”

“And busy,” said Laura. “I have to get to work before the dinner crowd gets here.”

Luke stood. “I’ll help.”

“What can you do in a kitchen?”

“You’d be surprised,” he muttered.

Jay laughed. “Call me when you decide what you’re gonna do with the motel.”

Luke knew what to do with the motel, but Laura didn’t seem so sure. If she didn’t make up her mind soon, he’d have to move on to another project.

Luke and Laura worked together in the kitchen, making salad for the dinner shift. She kept turning and running into him. “Sorry. This place wasn’t meant for two cooks. Queenie used to call it a ‘one-butt kitchen’ and hers was big enough to fill the room.”

His gaze slid from her eyes to her lips and back. Laura turned away, her face burning. Was he going to kiss her?

“You don’t want me to kiss you?”

When she turned back, his gaze burned into hers and she couldn’t look away. “Is that part of the partnership deal?”

“Do you want it to be part of the deal?”

“I don’t want anything messin’ with the business. No strings, no promises, nothing personal.”

His wet hands gripped her shoulders, soaking her uniform sleeves, but when his warm lips covered hers, she didn’t care about her uniform. At that moment she didn’t care about anything but his kiss. Her knees turned to rubber and the warmth that spread through her body had nothing at all to do with the temperature in the café.

“That wasn’t business,” murmured Luke, as the bell on the front door rang. “That was all pleasure.”

“Customers,” she whispered, pulling away.

What did a rich businessman see in her? In school, the boys always went for the pretty girls, and she wasn’t anything special. Nobody had ever told her she was pretty, and aside from talking and flirting with customers, she didn’t know how to socialize. Until she left Kingston, she’d only been kissed a half dozen times. The one high school dance she’d gone to, Freddie Buttons stuck his tongue in her mouth and groped her breasts. She kneed him like her father taught her and he let go. But Freddie hadn’t made her feel like this. Nobody had ever kissed her like Luke, not even Corbin, and he’d kissed her several times. There were no sparks with Corbin, and although she enjoyed their dates, she was always glad when they were over.

Dinner was always easier with someone to help, but Luke did more than help. He made the time pass more quickly. She did need help. Her spirit was willing, but her back and legs complained constantly from spending fifteen or sixteen hours a day on her feet. How long could she keep doing everything herself?

Was Luke right? Should she cut it down to two meals a day? No, at that rate, she’d never be able to pay off her bills, and she hated owing people money. Maybe Dad’s obsession with money had rubbed off on her.

What Laura thought was opening day curiosity had turned into normal business. She never served fewer than thirty people a day, more than Queenie ever had. She’d make a success of this place with Luke’s corporation or without it, if she had enough stamina to stay on her feet for this many hours every day.

Finally the last customer left. Luke twisted the lock on the door, put the CLOSED sign in the window, and turned out the lights in the dining area. “I’ll finish up here, Laura. You go take a hot shower and put your feet up. I’ll be over in a few minutes.”

Tired and sweaty from working all day, Laura walked back to her little apartment, trusting Luke to lock up for her. A hot shower would help ease her aching back and soak away the tension in her shoulders.

She was in the shower when he came in, calling, “Do you always leave your doors unlocked?”

“Just when I’m expecting someone.”

She turned off the water and reached for a towel, but instead of the towel, she was surprised to find Luke standing there. Clutching the shower curtain, she said, “What are you doing in my bathroom?”

“You left the door open.”

“Please hand me the towel.”

He held the towel out of her reach. “Turn around and I’ll dry your back.”

“Just hand me the damn towel and get out of here.”

He handed her the towel. “No help wanted?”

She stood in the shower looking like a drowned cat and he had the nerve to stand there smiling? “Would you please get out of my bathroom while I get dressed?”

He took the terry robe off the hook and handed it to her.

After wrapping her hair in the towel, she pulled the robe over her damp body and stepped from behind the shower curtain.

“Is it my turn now, Laura?”

She wanted to ask him why he didn’t go home and shower there, but she didn’t. “I’ll get you a clean towel.” Aside from a little harmless flirting with the customers, Laura didn’t have much experience with men. Until today, her relationship with Luke had been strictly business, so she wasn’t quite sure what to think. Why was he here?

Minutes later, he came out wearing the towel and nothing else. She was embarrassed to see him like this, yet she couldn’t take her eyes off him. He was tanned all over, at least the parts she could see. His muscles were well developed and his body was solid and well-proportioned. He was the most handsome man she’d ever seen with his clothes on, but seeing him this way took her breath away. “Please put your clothes on, Luke. You’re making me uncomfortable.”

He moved closer. “You make me uncomfortable, too, but we can fix that.” He put his hand on her shoulder and, with his eyes still on hers, slowly opened her robe and pulled her against his bare chest. When her breasts touched his chest, her body caught fire and her heart thumped wildly.

He leaned down and kissed her gently, releasing the liquid heat in her body and erasing the question of why he was here.

“I can’t do this, Luke.”

He stepped back and she quickly pulled her robe closed. The moment was over, and she was both disappointed and relieved. He came here expecting sex and the thought alone embarrassed her.

Most women her age had had numerous boyfriends, and she could still count the number of times she’d been on a date. Luke was obviously experienced, but she wasn’t, and she didn’t know what to expect or how to act. What if she did something wrong and he laughed at her? She’d die of embarrassment and he’d never want to kiss her again.

Or do business with her.

Luke saw the confusion in Laura’s eyes. She was giving him mixed messages, saying one thing and telling him something else with her kisses. He wouldn’t push. He’d never had to push a woman to make love with him. Women usually came on to him, especially after they learned about his mother winning the lottery.

“I need to sleep, Luke.”

“Then go to bed. I’ll lock up.” He gave her a goodnight kiss, and she disappeared into the bedroom and closed the door.

He should find himself a girlfriend and forget Laura Whitfield, but he was tired of the women he’d been dating. It was always the same thing with them. After a few dates, they’d suggest marriage, travel, and a lazy, comfortable life. Of course, they expected his mother to pay for it from her lottery winnings. He wouldn’t ask his mother to finance a life of ease, not when she’d worked so hard all her life. He had all the things he’d ever wanted, including a well-paying job he loved. What more did he need, except a woman?