Chasing Perfect Read Free Page A

matter?”
    â€œBecause it does.”
    â€œFine. I like her. Are you happy?”
    â€œNo, but it’s a start.”
    He was used to the matchmaking. It went with the not very subtle invitations. He supposed if a man had to live under a curse, his was easy to live with. Too many women all offering whatever he wanted. Too bad being with them didn’t fix what was really wrong with him.
    He stood. “I said I’d watch out for her and I will. I don’t know what you’re worried about. This is Fool’s Gold. Nothing bad happens here.” Which was why he’d come home. This was a great place to escape. Or it had been. Lately it felt as if his past was catching up with him.
    â€œI want Charity to be happy,” Marsha said. “I want her to fit in.”
    â€œThe longer you don’t tell her the truth, the more pissed she’s going to be.”
    Marsha’s mouth twisted into a frown. “I know. I’m waiting for the right time.”
    He crossed to her, bent down and kissed her soft, wrinkled cheek. “There’s never a good time, kid. You taught me that.”
    He straightened and headed to the door.
    â€œYou could take her out to dinner,” Marsha called after him.
    â€œI could,” he agreed as he left.
    He could ask out Charity, but then what? In a matter of days she would have heard enough about him tothink she knew everything. After that, she would either be eager to find out if all the talk was true, or she would think he was scum on the pond of life. Judging by her sensible shoes and conservative dress, he would guess she would put him on the side of scum.
    He crossed through the lobby, ignoring the glass case off to the side, the one containing the yellow jersey he’d won during his third Tour de France race. He stepped out into the sunny morning, then wished he hadn’t when he saw Ethan Hendrix getting out of his car. Ethan who had once been his best friend in the world.
    Ethan moved with ease. After all this time, the limp was nearly gone. For anyone else, it wouldn’t even be worth noting. But Ethan wasn’t like everyone else. He’d once been a ranked cyclist. He and Josh were supposed to take on the Tour de France together while they were still in college. They’d spent hours training together, shouting insults back and forth, each claiming he would be the one who would win. After the accident, only Josh had entered, becoming the second youngest winner in the history of the race. Henri Cornet had been younger, by all of twenty-one days, back in 1904.
    Ethan looked across the street and their eyes met. Josh wanted to go to his former friend, to tell him that enough time had passed and they both needed to get over it. But despite the phone messages Josh had left, Ethan had never once called him back. Never forgiven him. Not for the accident—Ethan had been at fault. But for what had happened after.
    In a way, Josh couldn’t blame him. After all, Josh hadn’t forgiven himself.
    Â 
    T HE NEXT DAY , Charity unpacked her small box of personal items, then dove into her morning. She had brainstormed several ideas to bring businesses to Fool’s Gold, and wanted to run them past the mayor. After printing out her preliminary reports, she familiarized herself with the city’s cranky e-mail system and was surprised to look up and see the mayor standing in her doorway.
    â€œIs it eleven-thirty already?” Charity asked, not able to believe how quickly the time had flown by.
    â€œYou look intense,” Marsha said. “Should we delay our lunch?”
    â€œOf course not.” Charity pulled her handbag from the bottom drawer of her desk, then stood and straightened her tailored jacket. “I’m ready.”
    They walked down the wide staircase and out onto the sunny street.
    City Hall was in the middle of downtown, with old-fashioned street lights lining the wide sidewalk. There were mature