Page 3 of Summer in Paradise Valley
‘If you wouldn’t mind hanging around next door for when the taxi brings Lyndsey from the airport, that’d be great,’ Deke went on. ‘We don’t want her arriving tired and jetlagged to an empty house.’
‘Sure, I’d be happy to.’ An idea hit him. ‘Why don’t I simply pick her up at the airport?’
‘I couldn’t possibly ask—’
‘You didn’t. I offered. Give me her flight number, and show me a picture, so I don’t get arrested picking up some random woman.’
Deke pulled out his mobile and scrolled through his emails before stopping. ‘Here we go. I’m forwarding the email with her travel details. I don’t have a photo, but might be able to find one.’ He tapped some more then passed over the phone. ‘Here you go. That’s her website and her picture’s at the top.’
‘The Right Place?’
‘Yeah, she organizes people’s homes and whatever,’ he said, with a derisive laugh. ‘She better not start on ours, or there’ll be fireworks, and they won’t be up in the air.’
Griff peered at the screen. The statuesque woman with her cap of close-cropped jet-black curls, dark honeyed skin and sharp green eyes was night-and-day different from Becca. Deke’s petite wife with her pale freckled skin, wide blue eyes and flyaway blonde hair looked as if she’d blow away in a stiff breeze.
‘Wow, she’s stunning.’ He hurried to backtrack, in case his words were taken the wrong way. ‘I don’t mean Becca’s not—’
‘I know that, you idiot. We’ve all got different taste. Good thing, too,’ Deke said. ‘It’s a bit of a sad tale. Becca’s mom had Lyndsey when she was young, a few months after the father was killed in a traffic accident. When Lyndsey was a toddler, her mom married Paul Carne and they had Becca about six years later.’
‘Oh, right. Don’t worry, I’ll be at the airport in good time on Saturday ready to introduce Ms Lyndsey to the delights of Paradise Valley.’ They exchanged smiles. There were only five homes, including their own two houses, in their tiny community. The tour wouldn’t take long.
‘Thanks, I really appreciate it. We both do.’
‘Hey, that’s what friends are for.’
After Deke left, Griff abandoned his spot on the porch and retreated back into the house. A prickle of anticipation ran through him, although he couldn’t put a finger on why.
Chapter Two
Lyndsey scanned the arrivals area for the mystery man she was supposed to meet. She would’ve preferred to take a taxi to Becca’s house and get herself settled in peace, but was overruled by her brother-in-law. Now she had to be polite and quasi-friendly to their neighbor, Griffin Oakes. Without any sort of description from Deke, she’d formed a picture in her head of a grizzled old man with a thick, unintelligible Southern drawl. She’d no doubt be forced to graciously tolerate his astonishment at her Britishness.
‘Ms Carne? Griffin Oakes.’
She felt curiously light-headed as she glanced up.Not old or grizzled then,she thought. As she took the tall, lanky stranger’s outstretched hand, his strong grip sent a bolt of awareness zinging through her blood. Broad shoulders filled out a soft green collared shirt, and a wide embossed leather belt circled the dark jeans hanging on his narrow hips. The thick tawny hair fastened back in a neat ponytail emphasized his razor-sharp cheekbones, and she couldn’t pinpoint why his wide-set eyes struck her as unusual until she studied them closer. They were different colors — one a startling cerulean blue and the other a rich dark brown. Fixed on her now, their intensity made the skin on the back of her neck prickle with heat.
‘What’s your secret?’ he asked.
‘Secret?’
A slow smile inched up his lean face, deepening the laughter lines fanning out from his eyes. ‘Well, ma’am, you look fresh as the proverbial daisy and all these other poor souls look as though they’ve endured Dante’s nine circles of hell.’
‘I took a natural sleep supplement at Heathrow, hydrated well and ate my own nutritious snacks on the plane.’ She sounded prim, but couldn’t bring herself to lower her guard. Not when the man’s deep, syrupy drawl was doing things to parts of Lyndsey that had been asleep so long they might as well belong to Sleeping Beauty. ‘Would you mind very much if we got a move on, please?’
‘Don’t you have a bag to collect?’
‘Oh no, I never check in any luggage. It’s unnecessary if you know how to pack.’
‘If you say so.’ The casual response was laced with wry amusement. ‘It’s rush hour, so the traffic will be crazy until we get off the interstate. You want me to take that?’ He pointed to her roller bag and small backpack.
‘No thank you, Mr Oakes.’
‘Call me Griff. Everyone else does, and yeah, my mom had a thing for Greek mythology — especially griffins. I promise under this regular ole shirt and jeans, I’m not hiding the body of a lion, and last time I checked I didn’t have an eagle’s head.’
Lyndsey managed a tight smile and avoided commenting one way or another on his appearance. ‘Perhaps you can lead the way to your car?’
‘Yeah, I expect I can manage that.’ He sauntered off, leaving her to follow along behind. Despite his easy unhurried stride, people moved out of the way. Under the affable surface, something about his energy hinted he wasn’t a man to be messed with.
Outside the terminal building, the cool early evening air bathed her face, and she must’ve sighed, because her appointed chauffeur for the evening stopped walking.
