Missy Tippens - Georgia Sweethearts

Apparently, Aunt Talitha’s record keeping left a lot to be desired. Nothing had been computerized. She’d thrown receipts in large manila envelopes and just filed them away at the end of each month. Mr. Andrews, a kind, elderly man who had patted Lilly’s hand and tried his best to reassure her, said that Talitha had piled everything in a box and brought it to him to deal with quarterly.

He’d then calmly informed her that he’d had to file for a tax extension while her great aunt had been sick, and that if Lilly would pile everything in a box and bring it to him, he would take care of it.

Her heart raced from thinking about it again. Lilly couldn’t afford to pay him for the hours it would take to wade through hoards of receipts. She needed to get a handle on the finances herself. Pull together the sales numbers and receipts into a file and then take it to Mr. Andrews to prepare the tax forms.

She took a deep, slow breath and tried to push away the worry.

One step at a time. Her job for the afternoon was to dig through all the records and come up with a new bookkeeping system. But only after feeding Will and—

A knock on the car window made her jump.

Daniel. Smiling at her.

His perfectly even, white teeth and movie-star-blue eyes set her on edge. Made her want to temper her own smile to hide the fact she’d never had braces to fix the slight overlap of her two front teeth.

She fumbled for her keys so she could get power to roll down the window. She still couldn’t figure him out—his good humor, his laughter, even when she hadn’t exactly welcomed him.

He’s offered to do the work I can’t ask Ned to do now that he’s left Jenna. She’d tried not to panic since Jenna had dropped the bomb about their separation. And now they had the additional worry over possibly having to pay an accountant for more hours than they’d anticipated.

“Sorry I startled you again,” he said as the window slid slowly downward.

“I didn’t see you standing there.”

“Hey, buddy,” he said when he spotted Will. Then he leaned down to look at her. “So what’s got you tearing out your hair?”

Oh, no. He’d seen her fit of frustration. How embarrassing. “A meeting with Aunt Talitha’s accountant. But it’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Are you headed to the shop?”

“I’m about to take my nephew to lunch. This is Will, Jenna’s

baby.”

Daniel stuck his head in the window to look across the headrest into the backseat. “Hey there, Will. I’m Daniel. How old are you?”

Lilly drew away. The man was way too close. And smelled way too good, like shampoo and some expensive cologne. “He’s ten months, Daniel. Sorry, but he’s not going to hold a conversation with you.”

Her comment drew a laugh...and attention from those baby blues. Too close. Entirely too close. And smiling like he cared. Right there in her face, so close he could shift by mere inches and touch his lips to hers and—

She scooted toward the steering wheel, placing herself at an odd angle, but at least putting distance between them.

Thankfully, he had the sense to know he had invaded her space and hauled himself back out of the window.

She slumped into her seat and nearly gasped out loud as her lungs sucked in air once again. She’d never experienced anyone filling a space quite like Daniel Foreman. Had never had anyone affect her so. And yet, despite his charisma, his regard made her feel...significant. As if he wasn’t just trying to charm her, but truly cared.

“Lilly, let me take you and Will to lunch. I’d like to discuss something with you.”

Visions of baby food splattering on her face—or, worse, on his—sealed her decision. “Thanks, but no. We wouldn’t be good company. Landing food into his mouth can be a challenge.”

His eyes sparkled and the faintest of lines crinkled at their edges. “Oh, but, Miss Barnes, I thrive on challenges.”

A shiver slid through her—from the cold March air blowing inside, of course. Not the deep timbre of his voice or the fact he seemed to dare her to join him.

She resisted the urge to roll up the window and escape. “I planned to make it quick. I have to get back to the shop to help Jenna.”

“I can do quick. I promise not to take much of your time. I’ll even help with Will.”

Spoken by a man who thought a ten-month-old could tell him his age.

Should she do it?

You’re a businesswoman, Lilly. No longer the shy schoolgirl who hid from handsome guys. “If you can promise me that we’ll be done in less than an hour, we’ll join you.”

Victory flashed across his face. Or perhaps hope.

“I promise.”

“Climb in. I’ll drive.”

“No need. We’re walking over to Frank’s. You like pizza?”

He didn’t even give her time to answer before he opened Will’s door and reached in to get him. He struggled with the buckle a bit, obviously not an expert at child restraint systems. She was about to ask him to move out of the way when the clasp released. Instead of fussing, like she expected Will to do when a total stranger reached for him, he let out a giggle and gave Daniel a slobbery pat on the face.

The little traitor.

“He’s cute.” Daniel handed Will over and casually wiped his face on the shoulder of his expensive-looking, light tan microfiber jacket, leaving a wet ring. He grabbed the diaper bag. “Need this?”

She took the bag from him and slipped the strap on her shoulder. “Sorry. He’s a drooler.”

“No problem.” He led the way across the street past the courthouse. Frank’s red-and-white-striped awning and flashing neon open sign welcomed them.

Once they were seated in a booth in the back corner and had placed Will in a high chair on the end, a man barreled toward them, arms spread wide in welcome. “Daniel, my boy! Who do we have here?”

“Frank, I’d like you to meet Lilly Barnes. Lilly, this is Frank Dellano, the member of my church I told you about.”

“Aah, Lilly, nice to meet you!” He warmly gripped both her hands in his and stared into her eyes, his own brown ones encircled by evidence of years of laughter and smiles. “Any friend of Daniel’s is a friend of mine. Enjoy your lunch.”

“Great place you have here. I’m sure I’ll love it.”

The waitress, a young, friendly female replica of Frank, took their order, Daniel asking her to put a rush on it if possible. Then he leaned his forearms on the table. “I’ve been studying your shop.”

She dragged away her gaze from his and focused on jars of baby food, opening them. Snapping a bib around Will’s neck. “Oh?”

“I noticed you don’t have a website. Could really use new, more visible signage. Need to advertise.”

Each word out of his mouth shot up her blood pressure another notch. So much to do and with limited funds.

He slid a list toward her. “I can help you increase your business traffic.”

The worst part was she suspected she might need help. Though her aunt hadn’t been much of a businesswoman, she’d been loving, fun, generous—and talented. Talitha herself had been the business’s biggest asset.

A cold fist squeezed inside Lilly’s chest. She could never take Talitha’s place.

A blob of green beans dripped off Will’s chin onto her thumb.

Daniel took hold of her hand and swiped it off with a napkin. Contact with his hand shut out everything else around her. Made her zoom in on the spot where they touched.

That level of awareness disturbed her. She pulled away her hand. “I can clean off my own baby food.” When she realized how ridiculous that had sounded, she laughed. “I mean, clean it off myself.”

His expression teased, almost as if he understood how he’d affected her. “Just trying to help.”