Page 18 of The Magical Tea Shop

Roman pulled her attention back. “I arranged for Kayley to bring our order out.” He put a plastic number seven on the table, and Ivy turned her focus to him. She would do this date properly.

She gave him a bright smile. “Tell me about your store.”

“Really?”

“You bet. We’re both business owners. I want to hear all about yours. Did you get all the inventory put away?”

Pleased, Roman launched into his day at work. It was interesting at first but somewhere amidst the details on the difference between number 45 screws and number 47 screws and the supplier mixing them up, Ivy’s mind began to wander, as well as her eyes. She could see Jaxon with the boys, laughing and joking. He was great with those kids, easygoing yet firm, letting them blow off steam but keeping it all under control.

She wondered why he didn’t have his own kids. He’d been married and seemed like the type. Perhaps he and his wife had run out of time. Ivy tried to concentrate on Roman, who was now talking about adding a home improvement section.

“That’s a great idea,” she said, and continued to picture Jaxon as a dad.

She wanted kids someday, after she achieved her other goals.

She blinked. Her goals, that’s right. She was here to make them happen. Ivy settled into hearing all about front doors, back doors, screen doors, and Dutch doors.

My, but this was going to be a long date.

*

Jaxon didn’t knowwhat to think. Ivy on a date with Roman? They made a handsome couple. But when did that develop? It had to be recent. Suddenly his whole baseball team was in love with his girl. The Rebels couldn’t get enough of Ivy’s cookies, her time, or her company.

He kept an eye on the boys busy blowing wrappers off their paper straws, aiming for each other’s heads. He let out a sigh. He’d waited too long to ask Ivy out, but it shouldn’t matter. He was moving to Boston, taking a job with the development company to design affordable housing.

Cookie-cutter housing.

His heart died a little at the monotony of it, but it was a means to an end. No matter that he had decidedly better ideas for affordable housing than what he was being hired for. Or that he could design more attractive units with the same budget. It wasn’t what his new employers envisioned, and they’d be paying him to do exactly what they wanted.

Candace always insisted they move away from Hazard. She’d hated the town, so they’d argued, often.

Vehemently.

Now, he saw her point. The way everyone treated him like a tragedy, well, she’d been right. No way could you remake yourself in a small town. He’d struggled to persuade her to move here. Candace, ever the city girl with an adventurous streak, she’d missed the weight machines at her health club, her sports supply store, and high protein takeout. She’d urged him to move to New York, but when Jaxon balked she’d set out to convince him to relocate to Jersey City. She’d only conceded to giving Hazard a try to make their marriage work. Of course, she made it clear he owed her. An adrenaline junkie, Candace loved city life and extreme sports vacations.

All he’d wanted was stability. His childhood had consisted of a dozen different schools, as his parents forever believed the next move would be the best. It never was. One crowded apartment complex led to another, until Jaxon ached for a community where he belonged.

But how had that worked out? After Candace died, he’d moved out of the small cottage they’d rented during his marriage into an upstairs apartment in his building. Back to living in a cramped space, he’d donated all her exercise equipment to Community Projects. They’d been building a life. Now, it was all for nothing.

Still, he loved working with the Little Leaguers. Leaving would be tough. He’d planned to coach them over the years. The kids finished eating and were whooping it up again, wadding up food wrappers to launch at each other. He stood to draw their attention. Once he got them organized, he had them start calling their parents for rides.

A successful day for the team, and apparently a successful date for Roman and Ivy.

She looked fascinated by every word dropping out of Roman’s big mouth. Jaxon had never thought Roman the most interesting of his friends. I mean, sure, as an architect Jaxon could appreciate hardware as much as the next guy, but Roman talking about ordering stock was a bore. But not to Ivy, or perhaps they were talking about something else. They might be making plans.

He needed to focus on his own plans. He still needed to find a neighborhood in Boston, one close to his new job, and near a park. Sighing at the number of details he still needed to work out, he put it out of his mind and thought about checking in on the sets he’d designed for the theater troupe instead. He should make sure they’d held up for opening night.

First, he needed to head home and take Montgomery for a walk. The little Scottie was supposed to have been Candace’s dog, a gift she’d detested. Jaxon gave one long, lingering glance at the fresh-faced, fascinating Ivy before he waved at the last Little Leaguer getting in his parent’s SUV.

*

A cool breezekicked up as Ivy sat listening to Roman expound on his business plans. She shrugged into her jacket, noting everyone else had left. Blue sky had dimmed to twilight. She rubbed her arms, hoping Roman would notice. At her hint, he ducked his head. “We should probably head out.” She nodded, relieved the evening was coming to a close. Roman was great to look at, but not much of a conversationalist. Well, unless hardware was your thing.

She could appreciate his enthusiasm for his future, but he’d shown no interest in hers. He hadn’t asked her a single question about her own business or plans. The entire evening had centered on her admiring his clever business acumen.

She waited while he got situated with his crutches on the uneven ground, and they took their time winding back to their cars. Wind tossed her ponytail, strands slipping free to spill across her eyes. Self-conscious, she sought to smooth it down.

Once at her compact car they’d stood, Roman leaning on his crutches. His eyes flicked to her wayward hair and lit up.

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