Deb Kastner - The Soldier's Sweetheart

And now this military man had suddenly appeared, asking for her by name. Didn’t the Army send a guy out when—

Oh, God, she pleaded silently, her heart pounding in her ears as she gasped for breath. No, no, no. Dear Lord, please don’t let this be about Seth. Please don’t let him be wounded.

Or worse.

Samantha gritted her teeth and shook her head. This couldn’t be happening. Not to her sweet, charming baby brother, who’d always been the life of the family.

“Is Seth...?” she started to ask, her raw voice cracking under the strain and tears burning in her eyes. The man wasn’t in uniform. Wasn’t he supposed to be in uniform? “Where is he? Is he okay?”

Confused, the man’s dark blond eyebrows dropped low over his eyes, but then his gaze suddenly widened in comprehension. His throat worked as he searched for words.

“No, ma’am. I mean, yes, ma’am. Seth is fine. That’s not why I’m here at all.” One side of his mouth twitched with strain as he lifted a hand and shook his head. “I’m sorry I gave you the wrong impression. I can see that I’ve unintentionally frightened you.”

Frightened her? He’d scared her half to death with his sober expression. Her heart was pounding so hard she thought he could probably hear it from where he was standing.

“Seth is enjoying his tour of duty—or, at least, as much as a person can find pleasure in their deployment. He was born for military service, as I’m sure you’re well aware. He excels in the infantry.”

Relief washed over her in waves. This soldier had seen her brother, and Seth was safe and sound.

Thank You, Lord.

“Actually,” the man continued, shifting from one foot to the other and clearing his throat, “Seth is why I’m here, although not for the reason you supposed. I assumed...” He cleared his throat again. “Although in Seth’s defense, everything happened rather quickly.”

Samantha’s relief turned to bewilderment.

What had happened quickly? Seth could be airheaded at times, but forgetting to mention he was sending a soldier to their town defied being a card-carrying space cadet, even for him.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand.” A gross understatement, but a place to start. She leaned forward on her elbows and clasped her hands before her. “Obviously, I’m confused here. Can we begin again?”

The man took a step back and squared his already taut shoulders, as if she’d just invaded his personal space. Or maybe it was a figurative movement, a physical gesture indicating that he was preparing to start their encounter all over again.

“I’m Corporal—er—William Davenport. I’ve obviously caught you off guard with my arrival.” His eyebrows lowered as he tilted his head toward her. “You don’t know why I am here, nor were you aware that I was coming.”

It wasn’t a question, but Samantha shook her head, silently reevaluating the figure of masculinity blocking the stream of sunlight pouring in from the front glass window. “I’m afraid not, Mr. Davenport. I believe I’m at a distinct disadvantage here.”

But she was quickly coming up to speed. Seth, easily diverted, had forgotten to call and let her know that his friend was coming to Serendipity to...

What?

Visit? Pass through town on his way elsewhere? Get some country air before returning to active duty?

It’s too bad her parents’ bed-and-breakfast wasn’t up and running yet. If it was a little closer to their grand opening, this soldier might have been their first paying customer.

Now that Seth’s safety wasn’t an issue, she realized there was more her brother had neglected to mention—like how easy William Davenport was on the eyes. Even the scar marring his upper lip gave credence to his rough-cut masculinity. Her best friends, Alexis and Mary, would turn green with envy when she told them about her encounter with the man. If she could unobtrusively snap a picture of him with her cell phone before he left, even better. Then she’d really be able to rub it in.

“Please, call me Will,” the man continued, breaking into her thoughts. “I’m recently retired from active duty—a civilian now.”

Will. It was a strong name, fitting for the sturdy man before her. His voice had lowered with his brief explanation, and she had the distinct impression that he was uncomfortable with the civilian status he was declaring.

“I’m here to fill the position you have open.”

“I’m sorry?” Samantha queried, so taken aback by his statement that she jerked upright, sending both the dry-goods inventory and her briefly forgotten corporate letter flying. She watched in horror as each piece of paper floated slowly and in what felt like an intentional and deliberate way to the floor—directly in front of Will.

Her chest tightened. Maybe it was silly, but she had her pride, and she didn’t like anyone reading her private business. But it had very literally landed at his feet, and there was nothing she could do about it.

It was a given that he had to go and pick up the papers off the floor. What else was there for him to do, since the Stay-n-Shop missive covered the tip of one of his meticulously shined black cowboy boots?

Samantha couldn’t tell whether or not he glanced at the letter as he scooped it up. He gave nothing away in his expression and his eyes were dark and unreadable. She fought the urge to reach out and snatch the paper out of his hand, and then decided that would be too obvious a move, calling attention to the fact that she was uncomfortable with him reading the letter. Instead, she stood frozen, her hands fisted at her sides.

Without a single word, he turned and reached for the other piece of paper. Samantha quietly sighed in relief when he placed the grocery inventory over the legal missive. He spent a good deal more time looking at the dry-goods register, which made her almost as uncomfortable as the thought of him looking at the Stay-n-Shop letter.

His lips pursed briefly, his right eyebrow twitching once before his expression returned to stone. Had Samantha looked away even for a second, she would have missed the odd mix of emotions that momentarily registered on his face.

He lifted his gaze from the inventory and took a long look around the store, apparently taking stock of what Sam’s Grocery carried, glancing back and forth between the products on the shelves and the list he still carried in his hand.

Was he judging the place? He gave no further indication one way or another of what he was thinking as he perused the shop.

“This is it, then? Your whole dry-goods inventory?” he asked, handing both pages back to Samantha as if they’d been his to begin with. He had a commanding air about him that Samantha didn’t particularly care for. She considered herself a friendly and easygoing woman, but when it came to Sam’s Grocery, she was used to being in charge, and she certainly wasn’t used to being questioned about the state of her dry-goods inventory—especially by a stranger. Add to that the fact that she’d already had a long and stressful afternoon, and she was ripe for contention.

“Yes,” she answered brusquely, not that it was any of his business. “So?”

“I am—I mean, I was—a unit supply specialist in the Army. I’m not sure how well that experience is going to segue into working for a small-town grocery, but I’ll do my best. You’ll find I’m quite diligent in my work habits.”

“Yeah—about that.” She jumped in before he had the opportunity to elaborate on why he was qualified for this job—the one he mistakenly thought was on the table for him, or worse yet, thanks to her capricious brother, believed was already a signed-and-sealed deal. She was still a little unclear on that point. “I’m not quite sure I understand which position, exactly, you think we have open. As you observed, Serendipity is a small town, and this is a family grocery. We don’t have much occasion to hire help here.”