Page 13 of The Moment He Saw Her

So it was just Libby he didn’t like. Excellent, just what her morale needed.

“But as the eldest, I’ve had to watch all of them fall in and out of trouble. I don’t like it, so where I can, I preempt it.”

“I bet they love that,” she muttered, looking at the large pastel pink building they were approaching. A sign above the front door said Circle Left, much to her relief.

This town had odd names; she’d noticed that as her car had limped down the main street to stop outside the Swing Through Cafe.

“No, they hate it, so I mostly do it with subterfuge,” Sawyer Duke said. “Do you have family, Libby?”

“Yes.”

“And where are they?”

“Not here,” she said as the SUV stopped. “Thank you for the ride, and I assure you, I have no intention of hurting your brother in any way. Nor will I steal from him.”

“Okay.” He held out his hand.

Libby looked at the huge hand like one would if a bear put out its paw.

“You can shake it. I don’t bite.”

She looked him up and down.

“Even though I look like I do,” he added with a small smile. “Have you spent much time in small towns, Libby?”

She shook her head.

“Well, I’ll give you a heads-up. The people in this one like to get in your face and know your business, so if you don’t want them to know it, keep your distance… which unfortunately isn’t easy, especially when it comes to the old people in town. They also shake hands.”

“Don’t they mind you calling them old people?” Libby put her hand in his, and he shook it gently before releasing her.

“No. They’re fitter than pretty much everyone else and run the place, so nothing much bothers them. Not that I call them old to their faces,” he said.

He got out of the driver’s side then, and she got out too. Sawyer Duke took her case out of the back seat.

“Thanks,” she said, holding out her hand. He walked by her, and she followed. “I got it.” He ignored her and opened the door. Placing it just inside, he then looked at her.

“Now you go on in out of the cold, and I’m sure I’ll see you around, Libby Gulliver.”

Hopefully not, Libby thought.

Chapter4

The Swing Through Cafe was Ryder’s baby. He’d purchased the building from Larry Limpet, who had basically kept it so he could play cards with his buddies away from his wife and not actually offer anything that anyone would want to eat for sale.

Run down, the place had needed gutting, and with hard work, his family, and some tradespeople, he’d done it.

Lyntacky was small, but they had tourists year-round for winter and summer sports, and the locals were in and out constantly. It had taken him time to earn their trust because like in a lot of small towns, they weren’t good with new things—even though his family had lived in Lyntacky their entire lives.

“Ryder, that soup was just about the best I’ve tasted, but don’t tell my sister that.”

“Thanks, Bart.”

The man was one of the octogenarians in town, and as far as Ryder was concerned, one of the only good things about winter was that Bart couldn’t wear his short shorts when he was walking. He was a man who loved fitness—his shorts, not so much. He’d exposed himself in the name of exercise to pretty much everyone in Lyntacky.

“Right, I’m off for a walk. I’m going to win the walking race.”

“They put that into the Lynpicks?” Ryder asked.

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