Though she wanted to find a nearby bench in the beautiful gardens at Brambleberry House and just collapse into a brainless, quivering heap, Melissa forced herself to keep walking toward the house, afraid Eli somehow might be watching.
The kiss they had just shared had shaken her to her core. The heat of it, the intensity behind it, the emotions stirring around inside her. Who would have guessed that Eli could kiss a woman until she couldn’t think straight?
Her knees were trembling like she’d just run a marathon, and it was taking every ounce of concentration she had to stay on the path and not to wander blindly into the lilac bushes.
Oh. My. Word.
Dr. Sanderson Jr. packed one heck of a wallop in his kiss. She had been so very tempted to stay there in his arms for the rest of the day and simply savor the magic of it.
He was right, though. Their kiss was a mistake that never should have happened. At the first touch of his hard mouth on hers, she should have come to her senses and realized what a disaster this was.
She still wasn’t sure why she hadn’t done exactly that. Maybe it was the adrenaline crash from working on Jim, or maybe it was the highly inappropriate dreams she was still having about him, or maybe it had simply been the result of the long week of doing her best to fight her attraction to him.
Regardless, their kiss had happened. How on earth was she supposed to face him at work all day without remembering the taste of his mouth or the salty, musky scent of him, or the safety and security she found in his arms?
She had a serious crush on the man. This morning hadn’t exactly helped her gain control of it, first watching him save a life and then sharing that amazing kiss.
As she headed with Fiona toward the house, Rosa walked out on the back porch to greet her. She could tell immediately that her friend had seen her and Eli together at the bottom of the garden. She must have been sitting here when they walked up, with a clear view down to the garden to the beach-access gate.
The only thing she could do was own it. “Yes. Okay. I just kissed my boss. We’re both determined to forget about it. I would appreciate if you would try to do the same.”
Rosa gave a laugh that she tried to disguise as a cough. “All right. Enough said. It’s none of my business anyway.”
Okay, she probably shouldn’t have said anything. Now she’d only made things worse by bringing attention to the kiss, like in high school when girls used to walk into class and announce to everyone that they had a new pimple.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
“Nothing to apologize for. I only came for my dog so you did not have to walk her up the stairs.”
“Thanks. You have no idea what kind of morning it’s been. Eli and I happened upon a tourist who collapsed from a heart attack.”
“Is that what the paramedics were doing? I heard the sirens and worried. How is he?”
“Better than he would have been if we hadn’t been there. Eli gave him CPR, then shocked him with the AED and he came back. It was amazing to see.”
“I can imagine. Good for Eli.”
“The kiss you saw. That was kind of a crazy reaction to what happened. The adrenaline rush and everything. We shouldn’t have... It won’t happen again.”
“We are not going to talk about that, though.” Rosa smiled and Melissa felt a wave of gratitude for her.
“When do you leave for your hiking trip?” she asked.
“The plan was to take off tonight and be back tomorrow night, but my friend just texted me and had an emergency in the family, so now we’re leaving tomorrow and will be back Sunday night. Fiona will be here until then, just in case you need her.”
“I might. Thanks.”
Fiona tugged at her leash, obviously wanting to be home, and Rosa gave the dog an exasperated look. “I’d better get her some water, then we’ve got to head into the office. Have a good day.”
“Same to you.”
As Rosa and Fiona headed up the stairs to her apartment, Melissa opened the door to her own.
Inside, she fought the urge to collapse on her bed for a few hours. Or maybe the rest of the day.
Rosa had wished her a good day. She had a feeling it would be anything but good. How on earth was she supposed to make it through, especially having to face Eli again after that stunning kiss?
She could do it. She had tackled tough things before and she could do it again.
No matter how difficult.
* * *
By some miracle, she and Eli managed to get through the day’s appointments at the clinic without too much awkwardness between them.
Melissa had decided on a strategy of avoidance. Though it was tough, she tried to pretend their kiss had never happened, that they hadn’t spent a glorious five minutes with their mouths tangled together and his arms tightly around her.
It was one of the toughest things she’d ever had to do. Every time she passed him in the hall or shared an exam room with him while he spoke with a patient, she had to actively struggle to keep from staring at his mouth and remembering the heat and magic of their embrace.
The only saving grace was the clinic’s caseload. They were both busy with patients all day and didn’t have time for small talk. She almost made it through her shift without being alone with him, until she waved goodbye to Carmen and Tiffany and headed out to the parking lot at the end of the day, only to find Eli walking out just ahead of her. She almost turned around to go back inside but couldn’t think on her feet quickly enough to come up with an excuse.
She found her urge to flee annoying and demeaning. So they’d shared a kiss. That didn’t mean she had to be uncomfortable around him for the rest of his time here in Cannon Beach.
She put on a cheerful smile. She could do this. “Do you have big plans for the weekend?” she asked, then instantly regretted the question. She did not want him thinking she was hinting that they should get together or something.
He shook his head. “Dad is hoping he’ll be ready to come home soon, so I’ll probably be busy making sure the house is ready for him. What about you?”
“Not really. Skye and I are running into Portland tonight to take Carol’s things to her. The hotel has already packed them all up for her.”
“That’s very nice of you.”
“It’s the least I can do.”
Jim had been airlifted to the hospital in Portland and Carol had flown with him, unwilling to leave his side even long enough to come back to Cannon Beach for their suitcases.
“What’s the latest? Have you heard? When I talked to Carol earlier, she told me he was likely going to need a quadruple bypass.”
“Then you know as much as I do. The surgery won’t be until tomorrow, from what I understand. I feel good about his chances, but it’s too early to say if he’s out of the woods.”
“At least he has a chance. He wouldn’t have, if not for you.”
“And you,” Eli said.
It was a shared bond between them, one she never would have expected when she awoke that morning.
He smiled a little, more with his eyes than his mouth. Melissa fought a shiver. She also wouldn’t have expected that kiss.
Why had he kissed her? And would it happen again?
She cleared her throat. “I’d better go. Skye will be waiting for me at the babysitter’s.”
“Right. Pizza night. Tell her I meant my invitation of the other day. The two of you are welcome to come to my dad’s house so she can shoot some pool. Nobody else is using it. Who knows, maybe she can turn into a pool shark and start fleecing all the tourists over at A Slice of Heaven.”
“You’re a bad influence on my child,” she said, shaking her head. And on her, she wanted to add, giving her all kinds of ideas she didn’t need complicating her world right now.
She had a weekend away from him to regain her perspective, and the sooner she started the better chance she would have of putting that kiss out of her head.
She gave him a wave and had started to climb into her SUV when another vehicle pulled into the parking lot—a flashy red convertible carrying two people, a blond male and a darker-haired, more petite female.
She paused, ready to explain that the clinic was closed. The convertible pulled up next to her. When the driver pulled off his sunglasses and climbed out with athletic grace, Melissa let out an involuntary gasp.
“Cody! What...what are you doing here?”
Her ex-husband beamed his trademark smile that had appeared on surfing magazine covers for more than a decade. “I told you I was working on coming back to Oregon. And here I am.”
“I didn’t realize you meant you were coming back immediately.”
“I wanted to surprise you, Missy.”
“I’m surprised, all right.” She couldn’t have been more surprised if he’d come back to town with tattoos covering his face like a Maori warrior. “Are you...moving back to Cannon Beach?”
“No. We’re just here hanging out with my buddy Ace. You remember him, don’t you?”
“Oh, yes.” Ace had been a jerk in high school and now had a string of used car lots along the coast. From what she heard, he was still a jerk.
“We’re going to settle in Portland, near my folks. Since I lost my sponsorship, I need to find a more reliable paycheck. Got that baby on the way and all. My dad’s been pushing me to join his office and this seemed as good a time as any.”
Now he wanted to be financially stable? For the five years they had been married, he had been perfectly content to let her support them with her nursing career.
“You’re going into real estate.” She tried to process that shocking information, but it was too much for her brain, after the day she’d had.
“I guess I have to pass some kind of class and stuff before I can actually do any selling. But I’m going to start small and see where it goes.”
Knowing her ex as she did, she had no doubt he would probably be brilliant at it. Cody had always been good at convincing people he had exactly what they needed.
After her dad died, Cody had been so sweet and attentive, making her feel like the most important person on earth. She had been grieving and lost, and he had helped remind her the world could still have laughter and ice cream and sweetness.
“You know how you’ve been bugging me to spend more time with Skye. This is my chance! We’re moving into one of my dad’s rentals in Portland and working out of his office there. We’ll only be a few hours away.”
“Great.”
“Amalia can’t wait to meet her. She’s been asking every day.”
“Amalia.”
“My wife. That’s one of the reasons I stopped by before we go out to dinner with Ace and his wife. I want you to meet her. Babe, get out here.”
A young woman who looked to be in her early twenties rose from the passenger seat of the convertible with a grace that matched Cody’s. She was dark and petite, tanned and fit and gorgeous. And very, very pregnant.
“Oh.” The word escaped before Melissa could swallow it down.
Cody glowed like he was the pregnant one. He held out a hand to the woman, who moved to his side looking elegant and beautiful—so different from the way Melissa had looked when she was pregnant with Skye, when her ankles had disappeared and all the baby weight had somehow settled in her hips and butt.
“This is Amalia. I met her in Brazil. She doesn’t speak much English.”
“Hello, Amalia.”
“’Ello.” The woman’s voice was low and throaty and exotic, though she looked nervous. Cody didn’t speak a word of Portuguese, as far as she knew. If his new wife didn’t speak much English, Melissa had to wonder how they communicated.
“Like I said, she’s been dying to meet Skye. Where is she?”
“Not here,” she said, pointing out the obvious. “This is my workplace. She’s at the babysitter’s.”
“Oh. Right.” He gave a little laugh. “I should have realized that. Where does the babysitter live? I can go see her there.”
Skye would be thrilled to see her father. She adored him despite his chronic negligence.
“It would be better if I picked her up. Why don’t you meet me at Brambleberry House in about an hour. Do you remember where that is?”
“I think so. Sounds good.”
He started to lead his wife back to the car, then apparently noticed Eli, still waiting and watching the scene beside his father’s Lexus SUV.
Cody’s gaze narrowed. “You look familiar. Have we met?”
Eli coughed politely. “Yeah. Eli Sanderson. We went to school together. You and some buddies ambushed me in the parking lot once during a school dance.”
Cody let out a rough laugh. “You’re kidding me. Why would I do that?”
Eli shrugged. “You apparently weren’t very happy with me for asking Melissa to dance.”
“Kind of a dick move, dude, asking another guy’s date to dance with you.”
“Sometimes. In this case, I guess I figured you wouldn’t care, since you had been ignoring her all night.”
Cody laughed out loud at that. “I was an ass in high school. I hope there are no hard feelings.”
He was still an ass, on many levels. She couldn’t believe it had taken her so many years to figure it out.
“Why would there be?” Eli said coolly. “It was a long time ago.”
She had completely forgotten about that school dance. As usual, Cody had abandoned her in the corner while he talked to his friends. She might as well have been invisible for all the attention her date paid her that night. That wasn’t a unique situation. Even now, she wasn’t quite sure why she had put up with it for so long.
“Anyway, we’re staying the night at Ace’s guesthouse, but I was hoping we could take Skye back to Portland with us tomorrow.”
“Why?”
“We’re buying some things for the new little munchkin, and I figured she might like to be involved in the whole baby thing.”
As usual, he didn’t think about anyone but himself. He didn’t consider that she might have plans with her daughter. They were just supposed to drop everything for him.
According to the Gospel of Cody, the world revolved around him and always would. She hated thinking of the years she had wasted trying to make things different.
She glanced at the pregnant young woman beside him, who looked at Cody like he was the sun and the moon and the stars, all wrapped up in one perfect man.
She wanted to tell him to forget it, that she and Skye would be busy, but her daughter truly did adore her father and she would be sad to miss the chance to spend time with him.
“I’m sure she will be happy to see you.”
The truth was, Cody wasn’t necessarily a bad father. He did love their daughter, she just didn’t come first, the way a child should.
“Perfect. We thought we would leave about eleven.”
“I’ll have her ready.”
“Maybe we’ll just wait until then to have Ami meet her. Save us time tonight, since we have to get ready for dinner. Does that work?”
“It should be fine.”
“Thanks, Missy. This is gonna be great. You’ll see.”
With that use of the nickname she hated, he helped his pregnant young wife into the passenger seat of his impractical little red sports car, hopped into the driver’s seat and pulled out of the parking lot, leaving Melissa feeling as if she had just been pounded by heavy surf against a seawall.
She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them, wishing she could have dealt with that encounter alone, without any witnesses.
“Well, that seems like a pretty sucky way to start a weekend.”
Eli’s dry tone surprised a laugh out of her. “Congratulations, Dr. Sanderson. You officially get the understatement-of-the-week award.”
“I was talking about me. It’s tough being confronted with the guy who once tried to beat me up.”
“Tried to?”
“I was tougher than I looked even when I was a tall, awkward geek.”
He had never been awkward. She remembered that now, too late.
“I studied jujitsu from about age nine and had a few moves that still serve me well.” He studied her. “I take it you’re not exactly jumping for joy about your ex-husband’s return. Is it the pregnant new wife?”
“No. Not exactly. Skye will be thrilled about having a new sibling to love and she’ll be over the moon that she might see Cody more often. She loves her father.”
“That’s the important thing then, isn’t it?”
His words struck with the ring of truth. “Yes. Thanks for the reminder.”
He studied her for a moment, blue eyes glinting in the fading sunlight. “You’ve got your hands full tonight and don’t need a trip to Portland. Why don’t you let me take care of Jim and Carol’s suitcases tonight?”
“I offered. It doesn’t seem right to hand off the duty to you simply because it’s become inconvenient.”
“I don’t mind. Max loves riding in the car, and it will give me the chance to check on my patient.”
He was such a good man. Why couldn’t she have seen past the skinny geekiness when she had been in high school instead of being drawn to the macho, sexy surfer type? She could have avoided so much heartache.
“That’s very kind of you. They were staying at The Sea Urchin. The innkeeper has already packed up their suitcases for them. Thank you, Eli.”
“It’s no problem,” he assured her. He gave her a smile that almost reached his eyes this time, and she surrendered even more of her heart to him.
He made it extremely difficult to resist him, and she was completely failing at the task.
* * *
“Didn’t you say he was coming at eleven? That was forty minutes ago. Where is he? Do you think he forgot?”
Melissa could feel the muscles in her jaw ache and forced herself to unclench her teeth. “He’ll be here,” she assured her daughter, though she wasn’t at all positive that was the truth.
As she looked at Skye watching anxiously out the window, Melissa was painfully reminded of all the nights she had waited for Cody to come home or call from the road when he said he would.
Cody was great at making promises and lousy at keeping them.
“He’ll be here,” she said again. “Let me text him again and see where he is.”
She quickly shot off a text, only refraining from swearing at him by the same superhuman effort she was using to keep from grinding her molars.
It took him several long moments to reply.
Running late. Waves too good this AM at Indian Beach. On way now.
That was more of an explanation than she used to get from him but still not enough to placate a girl who adored him.
“Looks like he’s on his way. Do you have everything you need to sleep over? Pajamas, a change of clothes, your emergency phone, some snacks, coloring paper and pens, your American Girl doll?”
“Yep. Got it all.” Skye gave her gap-toothed grin, and Melissa’s heart gave another sharp tug. She loved this kind, funny, creative little person with all her heart.
Her daughter was growing up. What would the future hold for this sweet, openhearted child?
“Why don’t you practice your reading with me for a few more minutes while we wait?”
“Okay.” Skye picked up the book she was reading about a feisty girl who resembled her greatly. They were both laughing at the girl’s antics when the doorbell rang.
“That’s him!” Skye exclaimed. She dropped the book and raced to the door eagerly.
It was, indeed, her father. Cody walked in with his exotically beautiful bride silently following along.
“Great place.” Cody gave an admiring look around the big Victorian, with its high ceilings, transom windows and extensive woodwork. “I remember this from when that old biddy Abigail What’s-Her-Name lived here. She never liked me.”
“It’s been a good apartment for us. The other tenants are wonderful and the landlords have been more than accommodating. It has worked out really well while I continue trying to save up enough for our own place.”
“When you’re serious about looking, make sure you let me help you. Who knows? I might even discount my commission.”
She dug her nails into her palms and forced a smile, when what she really wanted to do was roll her eyes and remind him that if he were more dependable with child support, she could have bought a house when she first came back to town.
“Wow. Thanks. You might want to get your real estate license before you go around making that kind of generous offer.”
“Working on it. Working on it. You ready, Skye-ster?”
“Yep.” She threw her arms around Melissa’s waist. “Bye, Mommy. Love you.”
“Bye, sweetie.”
“I’ll bring her back tomorrow afternoon. Not sure what time. I was thinking we could maybe hit a baseball game in the afternoon.”
No problem. She had nothing else to do but sit around and simply wait for him to drop off their child whenever he felt like it.
“Sounds like fun,” she said, forcing another smile. “When you figure out your plans, I would appreciate a text or call so I know roughly when to expect you.”
“You got it. Thanks, Missy.”
He picked up Skye’s suitcase and the booster seat she claimed she didn’t need anymore but legally did because she was small for her age. At least Cody didn’t argue about that as he led the way back to his flashy convertible. The booster seat barely fit in the minuscule back seat.
She stood on the sidewalk, watching as he helped Skye buckle in, opened the door for his new wife, then climbed in himself.
As Cody backed out of the driveway, Melissa whispered a prayer that her baby girl would be okay, then headed into her empty apartment.
Her remaining chores went quickly, especially without Skye to distract her with hugs and stories and eager attempts to help.
At loose ends, she couldn’t seem to focus on her own book or on the television series she was working her way through on Netflix. If only her mother were in town, they could go for a long lunch somewhere, something they never seemed to have time to do.
She needed physical activity but couldn’t summon the energy required for a run. After dithering for a few more moments, she finally decided to take a walk to deliver one of the loaves of banana nut bread she and Skye had made earlier that morning to her friends Will and Julia Garrett.
On impulse, she texted Rosa at work, asking if she was still around and, if so, could Melissa borrow Fiona for a walk.
Rosa immediately texted back a big YES with four exclamation points. Then she added, Both of us would thank you for that.
She smiled a little through her glum mood, grateful all over again that her wanderings had led her back here to this beautiful house and new friends.
She had a key to Rosa’s apartment, and Fiona jumped around excitedly when Melissa reached for her leash by the door.
“I’m taking a treat to the neighbors,” she informed the dog. “You can only come along if you promise to behave yourself. They’ve got that handsome Labrador who is nothing but trouble.”
Fiona shook her head as if she disagreed, which made Melissa truly smile for the first time since she had watched a red convertible drive down the road.
As she and Fiona walked down the stairs, she momentarily thought about inviting Sonia along, then remembered the second-floor tenant was out of town on one of the mysterious trips she took.
Every few months, an anonymous-looking car-service limousine would pick her up and Sonia would slip inside carrying a suitcase, then would return again by another limousine three or four days later.
Rosa had once asked her where she went, but Sonia, as usual, gave vague answers. She had offered some excuse about having to go away on a family matter, then had quickly changed the subject.
Considering she claimed she had no family, that excuse made no sense, but neither she nor Rosa had wanted to interrogate her about it.
The April afternoon was sunny and lovely, perfect for walking, with a sweet-smelling breeze dancing through the Brambleberry House gardens and the sound of waves in the distance.
She wanted to enjoy it and was annoyed with herself that she couldn’t seem to shake this blue mood.
Unfortunately, when she and Fiona walked the three blocks to Julia and Will’s beautifully restored home, nobody answered the door. She knocked several times but received no answer.
Too bad. She should have called first to make sure they were home. She could always freeze the banana bread, she supposed, though it was never quite as good as when it was fresh out of the oven.
She took a different way home, not realizing until she was almost to it that her route took her directly past Wendell Sanderson’s house. She wouldn’t have intentionally come this way, but apparently her subconscious had other ideas.
A sharp bark greeted them, and Fiona immediately started wagging her tail and straining at the leash when she spotted Max just inside the garden gate...in the company of Wendell’s entirely too appealing son.
She really should have taken another way. Oh, she hoped he didn’t think she was staking out the house in the hopes of seeing him.
She couldn’t just walk on past, as much as she wanted to. Eli watched her approach, a screwdriver in his hand and an expression on his features she couldn’t decipher.
“Hi,” he said.
She gestured to the gate. He was installing some kind of locking mechanism, she realized. “This looks fun.”
“Since my dad’s surgery, Max has decided he’s the canine version of Houdini. He’s learned how to open the latch and take off.”
The dog looked inordinately proud of himself.
“Oh, how sweet. I bet he’s letting himself out so he can go look for your dad!”
“That is entirely possible. Or maybe he just doesn’t enjoy my company.”
That is not possible, she wanted to say, but didn’t have the nerve.
“How is your dad? When is he coming home?”
“Not as early as he’d hoped. He’s been doing so well, we thought he might be cleared to come home tomorrow, but I guess yesterday he had a little tumble during physical therapy.”
“Oh, no!”
“He seems to be all right, but the doctor at the rehab center wants to keep him until at least Monday or Tuesday, to be safe.”
“I’m sorry. That must be disheartening for both of you, especially if he thought he was going home sooner.”
On impulse, she held out the loaf of banana bread. “Will you take this to him? Skye and I made it this morning for Julia Garrett and her family, but they’re not home. Your dad particularly enjoys our banana nut bread.”
Eli looked astonished. “Thanks. That’s very kind of you, but are you sure you don’t want to save it and give it to your friend later?”
“Banana bread is best when it’s fresh. When Skye gets home from Portland, we’ll make another batch.”
“Portland. I forgot she was going with her dad. How are you holding up?”
“Super,” she lied. “Except I couldn’t stand how quiet my house was, so I borrowed my neighbor’s dog and went for a walk so I wouldn’t have to be alone there.”
He smiled a little at that and patted Fiona, who gazed up at him with adoration.
She had been holding back her emotions all day, but the kindness in his eyes seemed to send them bubbling over. To her great and everlasting dismay she sniffled a little, a tear dripping down her cheek.
“Hey now. It’s okay,” Eli said, looking slightly panicky. “She won’t be gone long.”
“I know. She’ll be back tomorrow.”
Melissa felt so stupid! It was only an overnight visit. Fiona licked at her hand and it was the absolute last straw. She sniffled again and before she knew it, Eli had set the loaf of banana nut bread on top of the gate and reached for her, pulling her against his hard muscles.
“It’s okay,” he said again.
“She’s never been away from me. Not one single night. She’s seven years old and she’s never slept somewhere she couldn’t call out to me. Her father has taken her before but only for a few hours at a time. He doesn’t know that she needs a night-light on and she has bad dreams if she eats too much sugar past eight, and when she wakes up, she does this sweet little stretchy thing.”
“He’ll figure all that out. The important parts anyway.”
She let out a sigh, wishing she could stay here the rest of the evening so he could help keep her nerves away. “I know. You’re right.”
“Cody loves Skye, right? You said as much yesterday.”
“He does. He doesn’t always do things the same as I would, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t love her.”
“They will be fine. Skye strikes me as a clever girl. If there are any problems, she can always give you a call to come get her.”
This was dangerous, being close to him like this. She couldn’t help remembering their kiss the day before, and the way she had flung her arms around his neck and surrendered to her overpowering attraction toward him.
Holding him like this, being close to him and hearing his heartbeat against her cheek, was entirely too risky. It was making her think all kinds of wild thoughts. She was aware of a soft tenderness blooming to life inside her like the spring growth all around them. He was so kind, so concerned about her feelings. He made her feel like she mattered.
How was she supposed to resist that?
She had to. He was leaving again. He’d told her so himself. She couldn’t afford to lose her heart to a man destined to break it into a thousand pieces.
Though it made her ache inside to do it, she forced herself to step away. “Thank you. I’m sorry you had to talk me down off the ledge.”
“You’re welcome. Anytime.” He studied her. “You know what you need tonight? A distraction.”
For one crazy second, her mind went into some completely inappropriate directions. She could come up with some pretty delicious ways to distract herself involving him, but she had a feeling that wasn’t what he was talking about. “What did you have in mind?”
“Tiffany from work and her band are playing at The Haystacks tavern tonight. She gave me a flyer yesterday on her way out the door. I was thinking it would be nice to support her.”
Melissa tried not to wince at the suggestion. She adored the young CNA for many reasons, but her musical ability wasn’t among them.
“You haven’t heard her sing, have you?”
“Is it that bad?”
“Taste can be such a subjective thing.”
“In other words, you hate it.”
“I don’t hate it, exactly. Her band’s style is what you might call an acquired taste.”
“Well, hers isn’t supposed to be the only band. According to the flyer, there are two other bands playing after hers. Who knows, we might get lucky and one might even be tolerable. What do you say?”
Why was he asking her? Because he felt sorry for her? Was he only being kind, or did he also dislike being alone on a Saturday night?
Did his reasons really matter? She didn’t want to stay at home by herself watching television and feeling sorry for herself. He was offering a perfect distraction. If she didn’t go, she would be alone all evening, without even Fiona for company, since Rosa was leaving town.
“I suppose it would mean a lot to Tiffany if we both came out to listen to her.”
“There you go. A night on the town, plus supporting a coworker. You can’t lose.”
She wouldn’t go that far. There was always the chance she would end up letting down her guard too much and inadvertently reveal the big crush she had on her boss.
She would simply have to be careful that didn’t happen. The benefits of getting out of the house offset the small risk that she might make a fool of herself.
“What time?”
“Does eight work?”
“Yes. It’s a d—” She caught herself before she said a word that rhymed with eight. This was not at date. They were simply two coworkers going out on the town to support someone else who worked with them.
“Deal. It’s a deal,” she improvised quickly. “Eight works for me.”
“Perfect. I’ll pick you up then.”
“Great. Meantime, I hope your dad enjoys the banana nut bread. If you’re lucky, he might even share some with you.”
“I’ll keep my fingers crossed.”
She smiled, grabbed Fiona’s leash and headed back toward Brambleberry House, feeling much better about the world than she had a few moments earlier.