Secretly Yours: A Christian Valentine's Day Romance (Riverbend Romance Novella Book 1) Read Free

but he’d simply dismissed her concern saying she’d just forgotten how to drive. Being as he wasn’t completely wrong, she hadn’t pushed it. Still, it would be nice to drive to and from work… at least if Greg let her use the car. Yeah, wouldn’t happen anyway.
    A man in a fluffy down jacket and a knitted toque and scarf straightened from where he’d been leaning against the patio post. “Lindsey?”
    The panic disappeared as quickly as it had surged, replaced by wariness. Seriously. What was Nick doing here?
    “Can I give you a ride home?”
    Half an hour walking down slippery sidewalks, some not even shoveled, freezing to death. Three minutes in a warm car. Walking sounded good.
    He chuckled. “Promise I won’t bite.”
    A gust of wind blasted past the edge of the restaurant, whipping her coat and hair.
    She was being ridiculous. “Whatever.” Whoa. That had been rude. Lindsey took in a long breath and let it out slowly. “Thank you. But why are you here?”
    He held her arm as they descended the few steps to the parking area. “I wanted to talk to you.”
    The nerve. Lindsey pulled away. “I’ve already said no.”
    “Madison tells me she’s asked you to consider being the lead cook for the Valentine’s Day banquet.” He opened the passenger door of a compact black car.
    Lindsey closed her eyes for a second as she slid into the upholstered interior. He must think her a total idiot. Of course he wanted to talk about the banquet, not about taking her out. She waited until he’d rounded the car and buckled himself into the driver’s side. “Yes, she mentioned it. Did she over-step?”
    Nick turned the key in the ignition. “Not at all. We’d talked options at our last banquet committee meeting.” He grinned. “Your sister thinks a lot of you.”
    Yeah, and she seemed to think a lot of Nick, too. Plus determined to get them together.
    “I did talk to my boss. I was afraid he might see it as conflict of interest.” Maybe even hoped it.
    He shot her a sidelong glance as he backed out of the parking spot. “And?”
    She shrugged. “He wants to approve the menu, to be sure it represents the Water Wheel well. He’ll provide ingredients at cost to help with expenses.”
    “Oh, that’s awesome!”
    “Yeah. So, I guess we need to talk.”
    Nick’s grin widened as he turned north on River Way.
    Great. She narrowed her gaze at him. “About the banquet.”
    His smile didn’t dissipate. “Of course. What else?”
    Lindsey’s jaw tightened. “I’m not going out with you.”
    “So you said on the phone.”
    And he’d accepted it just like that? Then why did he keep grinning? He didn’t add up. She brushed her hair from her cheeks with a mittened hand.
    “Those look warm.”
    Nothing showed on his face but a passing interest in a pair of knitted mitts.
    “They are.” Should she poke a bit more? Why not? She held up both hands. “A gift from a secret admirer.”
    “No way.”
    “Yes way.” Wind blew snow across the front of the car. A good evening to have a ride instead of walking.
    “Well, congrats. I should’ve guessed there was someone in your life.”
    “A secret admirer, by definition, is someone I don’t know.”
    He chuckled. “Oh, you probably do know. A pretty woman like you… lots of men must be lined up for your attention.”
    “I’m back in Riverbend for Madison’s sake. Her father—” No. Nick didn’t need the family history.
    “Condolences on the loss of your mother. It’s been hard on your sister.”
    Of course, he already knew. He was Madison’s youth pastor. Too strange. “Thanks. Yes, it’s rough for her.”
    Rough for Lindsey, too, even though her mom had lingered in a coma for months after the accident. And Greg, who’d never been the most stable man, had been floundering ever since. Madison should have been able to count on her father, but it hadn’t happened.
    “When can we get together and talk about the menu?”
    Lindsey’s thoughts derailed.