“Well, then I’ll leave it up to you, Mitzi. I feel something with you that I’ve never felt with another woman, not even Rita. I’m comfortable with you, and yet there’s a spark of electricity that’s brand new to me. But if you need time, then you’ve got it. When you get everything all analyzed out, you let me know. Call. Text. Come by the house. I hope you feel the same as I do, but if not, then you’re probably right about not taking this to the next step. I won’t bother you until you get things figured out.” He took a step back without kissing her, even though he wanted to very badly.

“Did she say yes?” Dixie asked the minute he was in the truck.

In that moment Graham could understand why Mitzi said no, because he hated to tell them the truth, so he stretched it slightly. “She’s got a lot going on for the next couple of weeks, as y’all well know. We’re going to talk about it later.”

“Then we’ll help her out a lot this next week so that y’all can talk real soon,” Tabby said.

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

You did what?” Jody almost dropped her glass of sweet tea when Mitzi told them about what had happened.

“I figured out that I was having more fun watching the girls play in the water than I was having watching him. And besides that, I like him too much to get into a relationship and then ruin things with everyone,” Mitzi said.

“You look miserable,” Paula said. “In my opinion, you’re overthinking things.”

“In mine, you’re afraid to get hurt, and I hope my situation isn’t causing you to back away from a good relationship,” Jody said.

“I am second-guessing myself,” Mitzi admitted. “Graham may be the best thing that ever happened to me. I know I’m making up excuses not to get into a relationship with him, because if I do and he breaks my heart, I might not ever get over it. And I am worrying so much about the future that I’m giving up the future. But I need to get this settled, so we need some time.”

“We’ll stand by you no matter what you decide,” Jody said.

“Thank goodness we’ve got lots of business the next couple of weeks. I think best with a sketch pad and pencil in my hands,” Mitzi said.

“Like I do with a needle,” Jody said as she reached for the ringing phone. “The Perfect Dress.”

“Hello, Jody, this is Quincy. Will you go to dinner with me? Any day this week would be good,” he said.

“Are you going to stop calling me if I say no?” she asked.

“I am not,” he answered.

“Well, then here’s my cell number.” She rattled off the numbers. “You have a nice evening, Quincy.”