An Unlikely Match

of those events felt justified at the time. Looking back, he should have avoided the fights.
But for the sisters to question Evelyn’s safety left Jayce feeling sour, and a bad attitude had snuck into his psyche. Heliked Lizzie and Esther, and he wanted them to respect him for the man he wanted to be. It made sense they would worry aboutEvelyn, but it stung to hear them voice their concerns. He almost wished he could cancel the outing, but the alternative wouldbe worse. Spending the day totally alone, or being forced to be around his father and some of the other crew members he coulddo without.
He almost dozed off but jumped when he heard horse hooves coming up the driveway. He pushed his feet into a pair of flip-flopsand headed downstairs, thankful the living room was empty. He wasn’t in the mood for conversation with anyone, and he wasalready feeling sorry for Evelyn because of it.
He crossed through the front yard and waited for her to pull up. This buggy didn’t have a top on it.
“It’s such a beautiful day, I thought I’d bring the spring buggy.” She smiled before she glanced at her horse. “Millie seemedto like you the other day. Do you want to drive?”
“Nah, that’s okay.” He walked around to the other side and climbed in beside her, hoping his bad mood would take a hike.
They rode mostly in silence with a few more comments about the weather. The night before hadn’t felt awkward. Today did.
Evelyn turned on the next road, a dirt road not much wider than a walking path. She pulled back on the reins and the horse came to an abrupt stop. Then she twisted to face him. “You’re not acting normal.”
“You don’t know me, so how do you know what normal is?” It was a mean response, and he regretted it right away. He openedhis mouth to apologize, but horror gripped him when her eyes filled with tears.
“I’m so sorry!” she said. “I have no idea what came over me. I’ve never been that forward with a man.” She covered her faceand shook her head, sniffling. “I’m so embarrassed, and I won’t blame you if you want me to take you back to the inn.” Shefinally uncovered her face and met his stupefied gaze. “You must think I’m . . . trampy.”
Jayce covered his mouth to stifle a grin. He felt awful that she was crying, but if she thought a quick kiss was trampy . . .Wow. She’d think some of the women he knew were downright ladies of the night.
He uncovered his mouth, still struggling not to show his amusement. “Evelyn.” He stared into her eyes. “I do not think youare trampy.” It was an odd word, and he laughed. “Not at all.”
“But I kissed you!” she shrieked. “And it wasn’t even a gut kiss.” Throwing her arms up, she shook her head. “I don’t even know you.”
“Nope. You don’t.” More tears pooled in her eyes. “Evelyn, listen.” He reached over and clutched her hand, a little surprisedshe didn’t pull away. “Are you attracted to me?”
She didn’t move. Jayce wasn’t sure she was breathing. He took a deep breath. “I’m attracted to you. Very much. And you seem like a nice person. I can tell you all of that because once you find out who I really am, you’re never going to want to hang out with me again. So don’t give the kiss a second thought.” He paused, smiling. “Although, that kiss is pretty much all I thought about last night.” He was happy to see a small smile from her, but it was going to fade quickly. “I was in jail recently. I beat up a guy because he talked bad about my mother. And that wasn’t the only time I’ve lost my temper or been in jail.”
Her mouth hung open.
“So there’s no need to worry about a spontaneous kiss. You’re not . . . trampy.” He still fought a smile when he said theword. “Your reputation is fully intact. Unless you keep hanging out with the visiting bad boy. Then there might be talk amongyour people.”
He waited for her to let all that soak in. Millie kicked at the dirt like she was ready to go again.
A slow smile spread across her face. “You thought about the kiss all night?”
Jayce laughed. “I just told you that you’re hanging out with the visiting bad boy, but you want to know about the kiss?”
She continued to smile as she nodded.
“It was unexpected. It was nice. And you shouldn’t feel bad about it.” He paused as her expression shifted to a more seriousone he couldn’t read.
“It wasn’t a gut kiss. I know that. I practically slammed my mouth into yours, then ran to hide like a young girl.” She chewed her bottomlip.
Jayce’s sour mood had fled. This woman amused him. “What are you saying? You want to try again?”
She shook her head, eyes wide. “Nee. Nee. It was inappropriate the first time. I’m just saying that’s not how I would normally kiss a man. Or how he would kiss me. Not that I would let a man kiss me on a first date. I’m not like that. I’ve never—”
“Evelyn.”
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
Jayce pushed his hair out of his face. “Do you want to take me back to the inn now that you know I’m tarnished?”
She shook her head. “Nee.”
“Like you said, it’s a beautiful day. I’d like to spend it with you, but when Lizzie and Esther heard I’d been in jail, theyshowed some concern about your well-being, and it left me feeling weird. So if you want to take me back, I’ll totally understand.”At that moment, he realized how disappointed he would be if she chose to take him back to the inn. And she seemed to be takinga long time to answer.
“I’d like to spend the day with you too.” Her eyes gleamed with interest. “There’s just this one thing.”
Jayce waited.
“Can you maybe not beat up anyone today?” She pressed her lips