Mary had never been attracted to a military man before, but she had to admit, Jake Taylor was hot. And solid—in more ways than one.
Shaking off her daydreams, she searched for Wisconsin cases of farm takeovers. She sent herself several links to review in her spare time.
But before she logged off, she clicked again on Jake’s photo. Then she sent it to herself and saved it in her camera roll. “Research,” she told herself.
Chapter 28
Dot laced up her sneakers and put on a slim puffy vest in hot pink over her white long sleeve running shirt. She grabbed a royal-blue For the Win baseball cap and pulled her blond ponytail through the back opening. After patting down her pockets to make sure she had her lip balm, phone, credit card, and an emergency twenty-dollar bill, she looked in the hallway mirror and thought, “Feet, don’t fail me now.” She was due to meet Danny Dawson at Reader Falls in twenty minutes.
She hadn’t been running as much as she had in New York. Her schedule at the FTW offices plus the weather had kept her from getting out. And running on the treadmill at the house wasn’t the same. She hoped she could keep up with Danny and not die on the first hill.
When Dot arrived, Danny was already inside the bookshop chatting with the Jankowskis. She observed them from outside the door for a moment. Danny towered over Ted and Jeanie. Jeanie held her husband’s hand and had her other hand on Danny’s forearm. He wore medium-length running shorts and a white T-shirt under a red University of Wisconsin hoodie. On his head he wore a green “Dawson Construction” cap, and his black hair curled up under it. “Wow, he’s so cute,” she thought.
“There she is,” Ted said when the bell rang, announcing her arrival.
“Don’t you look darling, Dot!” Jeanie said. “Isn’t she darling, Danny?”
His cheeks reddened at his older friend’s obvious attempt to push him toward his running date.
“Right as always, Jeanie.” He smiled shyly at Dot, knowing full well what was up.
“Love your shoes,” Dot said, pointing to his New Balance 9060s, feeling awkward with the heavy-handed hints by Jeanie.
“It seems we both have good taste,” he said, pointing to her sneakers. They wore the same brand.
“Great minds think alike.” She smiled and casually leaned toward the “New Release” table to rest her hip against it but misjudged the distance and nearly fell over. Danny reached out and caught her.
Embarrassed, she looked up at him through her top lashes and said, “Thanks. I promise I run better than I walk.”
His hands were strong and warm, and he held her a few seconds longer than necessary to ensure she was secure on her own two feet.
“I’ll be there in case you need me,” he said. “Besides, it’s good to test my reflexes.”
“Looks like you’ve not lost a beat,” she said.
“Oh, you’ve still got it, Danny,” Ted said. “I’m the one that’s losing my grip! I can barely unscrew the pickle jar anymore.”
Danny casually put an arm around Ted’s shoulders and turned to Dot.
“So, just before you arrived, these two were telling me about a polka competition they’re going to in a few weeks down in Monroe,” he said.
“Polka competition? That will be amazing. Next stop,Dancing with the Stars!”
“More like dancing to the oldies,” Jeanie said, laughing. “The only thing is that we can’t close the store during tourist season.”
Dot didn’t hesitate. “I could cover for you. I’m sure Harper would pitch in as well. You wouldn’t have to worry about anything—we’d just need to learn how to ring up the sales.”
“We couldn’t ask a young woman like you to do that. You have a life to live. And parties to go to,” Ted said.
“You overestimate my social life, Ted. I love this store. It reminds me of my grandmother. Plus, I could meet more people in the area, which would be good for me and For the Win. Please just say yes.”
“I think you should take her up on it,” Danny said.
Jeanie ran a hand over her hair to smooth it. “Well, Ted. What do you say? One more polka before they put us out to pasture?”
“It’s very kind of you, Dot. I’m inclined to say yes,” Ted said.
“Great! I’ll stop by this week after Harper’s reading hour and go over the details. I’m excited. This will be so fun.” She hugged the Jankowskis with enthusiasm.