Free Simple Gone South (Crimson Romance) by Alicia Hunter Pace

ruining her life. He seemed to have forgotten that he was even in her presence, so enthralled he was with lavishing attention on that dog.
    Careful, Eller, he’ll dangle his magic in front of you and then snatch it away
.
    Telling Miss Caroline would be hard. She had been so pleased with Lucy’s enthusiasm. But she would move on. Strong women like Miss Caroline did. She’d use her contacts and come up with someone else in no time—probably some tall, thin sophisticate who would rent one of those soulless sterile condos out at the lake for the duration of the project. Winter at the lake. Frosted over windows and a gas log fireplace. Brantley would be glad to make the twenty-minute drive out there to work. He might even get snowed in. Tiptoe Watkins had told Lucy last week that they would for sure have snow this winter, because the skins of the apples were tough. That was good. That demon woman who had stolen her job would cut her hand when she tried to make Brantley an apple pie. She wouldn’t die or even lose a finger—just hurt a little and ruin the pie. Oh, and maybe she would bleed all over their plans, so they wouldn’t be able to win any awards. She deserved ruined plans for stealing Lucy’s job and Brantley deserved a ruined pie for ruining—well, everything.
    Miss Caroline would not understand. She was not the kind of woman who let people ruin things for her. It wasn’t fair.
    Brantley pushed his silky moonbeam hair out of his eyes.
    “I need a haircut. Can you cut my hair? Just trim it up a little?” He was teasing her now and his smile was way too sweet.
    “Sure,” Lucy said. “Let me just get my hacksaw.”
    He laughed. “Lucy Mead, I don’t like the sound of that. Maybe I’ll just go lie in the road and let a possum gnaw it off.”
    “Maybe you will.”
    And maybe I won’t let you ruin this job for me
.
    That was a new thought. Her heart rate picked up. It had to stop sometime, didn’t it? She closed her eyes and saw herself fleeing town on a Rascal because Brantley was coming to Missy’s ninety-fifth birthday.
    “I have decided to go ahead with the job,” she announced formally. “We can work together.”
    His head snapped up. Of course he was surprised. No matter what she’d said, he had not seriously considered that exactly what he expected to happen, might not.
    “That’s good news,” he said, like it was new news to him.
    “I will not kowtow to you,” she said.
    “No one ever does.” He got to his feet. “Okay. I need to move a few things into the carriage house, plus let my dad and grandmother know I’m here. I’m going to need to leave Eller here with you while I do that.”
    “No.”
    “She’s no trouble. She never poops or pees on the floor. And I’ve got some dog food in the car.”
    “I didn’t think she was trouble. I think
you
are. But you aren’t going to be my trouble.”
    “Please, Lucy. What if she got hit by a car during all the chaos of unloading my car? That would be terrible.”
    Lucy looked at the little ball of white fur. It would be terrible.
    “Put her in Miss Caroline’s house.”
    “She’d be better off taking her chances in the street than dealing with that monster cat from hell of my grandmother’s—meanest animal on four legs. Come on, Lucy.” He smiled. It wasn’t fair when he smiled. “It won’t be for long. I don’t have much stuff.”
    Lucy hesitated. She ought to make him take the dog to Missy. Or his dad’s house. Anywhere.
    “All right. But you come and get her as soon as you’re done. I mean it.”
    “I will. Then I’ll pick you up at six. I can’t stay out late because I’ve got to fly to San Francisco early in the morning for some PR and glad handing for the project I just finished. I’ll be gone about a week.”
    “Wait! Hold on! What do you think you are picking me up
for
?”
    “Our date. I am taking you out.”
    “No.”
    “I told you that you were going to hear from me. I made that clear.”
    “I am not