Page 59 of In Good Company

Mom listens to me. She doesn’t mention the money again. “Bye, Lu. Have a good day at work.”

I pull the phone from my ear and make sure the call has ended. Something in my chest feels lighter this morning. Ihadn’t realized how much I missed just having a normal conversation with my mom. As I grab my purse and my mesh bags, I make a mental note to have more conversations like today’s with her. It was good to get a glimpse of who she was before Dad’s heart attack.

I step out of the Bronco and slide my phone into the back pocket of my striped linen shorts. Paired with a baby tee and a pale yellow cardigan, it isn’t the most professional outfit I’ve worn to work, but I didn’t have time to do laundry over the weekend and was too busy doing other things with Cal last night to catch up either. Plus, he doesn’t seem like the type to really care about more professional work attire. I think we left any professionalism behind the moment he kissed me in the pool house.

The cool ocean breeze lifts my hair off my shoulders as I walk toward the farm stand. Dolores isn’t sitting in her normal chair keeping lookout, which means she must be busy helping customers.

I hear Dolores’s laugh before I see her. I don’t think I’ve ever heard her laugh so hard. It makes me smile as I walk up to the stand. I’m running through what items I might want to pick up for meals today when my footsteps falter.

My eyes connect withwhois making Dolores laugh like a schoolgirl.

It’s like he can sense me because Cal’s gaze finds mine immediately. I try not to melt at the slow smile that spreads over his lips.

God, why does he have to look so good all of the time? He’s still intently listening to Dolores, evident in the way he’s still responding to her, despite the fact that his eyes never leave mine. My feet stay planted as I work through the shock of seeing him here this morning. It’s early. While his schedulechanges day to day, he usually uses this time in the morning to go for a run or to work.

Not go to the farm stand.

He looks too good to be shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables. He wears a pair of light-colored pants that are perfectly tailored to his body and has paired it with a cream-colored knit shirt. Everything about him screams wealth. He looks out of place next to Dolores’s farm stand.

Speaking of, she notices that Cal isn’t looking at her anymore. She looks over her shoulder and smiles widely when she spots me.

“There’s the beauty we were talking about,” Dolores croons, gesturing to me to close the distance between us.

I smile shyly as I follow her request. “Good morning,” I mutter under my breath, looking between the two of them. I blink, wondering again if Cal really is here or if I’ve made it up.

No, he’s definitely here. The smirk doesn’t leave his face as he coolly tucks his hands into his pockets and keeps his attention on me. “Good morning, Lucy.”

THIRTY-TWO

CAL

“What a surprise it is to see you here this morning,” Lucy says sweetly, coming to a stop next to Dolores and me. She keeps blinking and looking at me, almost as if she’s trying to figure out if I’m actually here or not.

“I love a good surprise,” I respond. My fingers twitch inside my pockets as I focus on the woman who I couldn’t stop thinking about last night. In fact, she infiltrated my mind so much that early this morning, I woke with thoughts of her, of looking forward to seeing her. Eventually, I accepted I wasn’t going to be able to drift back to sleep, so I got out of bed two hours earlier than normal and went about my morning.

It’s worked out perfectly.

“Cal was just telling me that you were teaching him how to cook. That’s so kind of you, Lucy.” Dolores places her hands on her hips as she looks between me and Lucy with a smile on her face.

Lucy narrows her eyes on me. “Is that all he’s told you?” she asks, her face pinching together in confusion.

“Yes,” Dolores offers.

Lucy nods before rolling her eyes. “He seems to haveforgotten that the only reason he’s learning to cook is because he’s helping me.”

Dolores purses her lips as she stares right at Lucy. I smile, purely entertained by the interaction going on. Dolores shakes her head before she looks at me. “You seemed very interested in what Lucy likes to purchase and how often she’s here to be the one doing her a favor.”

I cough, not expecting to be called out. I go head-to-head with some of the most powerful men in the world and don’t bat an eye. Why is this woman who’s old enough to be my grandmother the one who’s able to catch me off guard?

“Was just making conversation,” I respond, looking over at Lucy. She stares back at me with her arms crossed over her chest and her eyebrows raised. It’s clear she’s still wondering why I showed up this morning.

I’m asking myself the same thing. All I knew was I wanted to see her as soon as possible. I didn’t want to wait until she made it to my house, so I drove to the farm stand.

“So, what are we shopping for today, Lucy?” I ask, tilting my head and watching her with the corner of my mouth lifted.

“I haven’t decided what I’m making yet. I was going to see what looks good here, unless you have any requests?”

I shake my head. “I’m excited to make whatever you want.”

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