J.C. finally saw where this was going. And they said women were terrible gossips!
“Are you trying to protect Laura? Is that it?” he asked Cal.
“Well, sure. She’s well-liked around town, especially after she pulled off a coup the way she did with Saturday’s festival. They’ll be talking about this one for years to come.”
“Okay, but what does that have to do with me?”
“Not a one of those boosters of hers are going to be happy if she’s hurt.”
“Ah,” J.C. said. “Then let me assure you that I’m not planning on hurting her.”
Cal clearly wasn’t satisfied. “Because your intentions are serious and honorable, because you have no designs on her or because you think this is just a casual game?” he pressed. “I’m telling you again, if it’s just a game, it’s a dangerous one. There will be a frenzy. And having been at the center of one myself a few years back, I can assure you, you won’t enjoy it.”
J.C. regarded him with disbelief. “A frenzy? You can’t be serious.”
“Oh, yeah,” Cal confirmed. “I’ve already heard some muttering from my wife, who got stirred up by some of the other Sweet Magnolias who were on Laura’s committee.”
“Muttering?” J.C. repeated, bewildered. This was probably one of the reasons he was a terrible candidate for another marriage. The workings of the female mind eluded him.
“‘Hurt her and die’ comes to mind,” Cal told him. “Maddie was pretty emphatic about that one.”
Since Cal had only the tiniest glint of amusement in his eyes, apparently he was mostly serious.
J.C. shook his head, walked away, then came back. “I met Laura a couple of weeks ago. I’ve seen her maybe a handful of times, and those weren’t even dates. How did this get so crazy?”
“Because you’ve seen her a bunch of times in less than a month,” Cal explained patiently. “The way I understand the logic, an engagement should be imminent. That’s the generally desirable Serenity timetable.”
“The women in this town are crazy,” J.C. muttered.
Cal laughed. “You definitely don’t want to say that in public and especially not in front of my wife or the other Sweet Magnolias. You know you’re already suspect in that circle because you work with Maddie’s ex, right? They have a very low opinion of Bill Townsend.”
“So I’ve gathered, but he’s a good doctor,” J.C. said, feeling compelled to defend his business partner. “And he’s straightened up his life.”
Cal nodded. “I can see that, too. The women, however, have very long memories.”
“So I’m never likely to get their stamp of approval because of Bill?” he asked, mystified.
“Never’s a long time,” Cal told him. “But it’ll be a process.”
J.C. shook his head. This sounded a whole lot more complicated than his quiet bachelor existence. “Not dating in this town is sounding better and better.”
Cal gave him a disappointed look. “If you’d walk away from a great woman like Laura because of a few little hurdles, then you’re not the man I think you are.”
“Then you’re encouraging me to date her?”
“Sure, but only if you’re serious,” Cal said. “At least I think that’s the message I was supposed to convey. I’m a mere man. I could have gotten it wrong.”
“Heaven help me!” J.C. declared.
“Yep, that’s pretty much what it’s going to take,” Cal agreed.
As soon as J.C. walked in the door at home, he dialed Laura’s number.
Once she’d picked up, he asked, “Have you noticed that people in this town are freaking nuts?”
She chuckled. “I think they’d prefer to be called ‘eccentric’ or ‘quirky.’ You’ve lived here for years. Is there any particular reason you’ve come to this conclusion now?”
“Cal Maddox lectured me tonight,” he reported, indignation creeping into his voice.
“About?”
“You.”
He heard her indrawn breath on the other end of the line.
“Me?” she repeated eventually. “Why would Cal be lecturing you about me?”
“Apparently there’s some sort of frenzy about the possibility that I’ll break your heart.”
“I see,” she said slowly, then chuckled again. “Sorry, but that is so typical. Nobody can spend five seconds with someone of the opposite sex in this community without everybody weighing in. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re not taking bets at Wharton’s.”