Chapter Twenty-Two
Matt let himself into the kitchen. Pippa wasn’t there, but the fresh floral scent of her lingered and her fancy purse sat on the kitchen table. He shouldn’t be this anxious to see her. Her new job meant she was going away and soon. It didn’t bode well that after only a night spent without her, he was as excited as a puppy with a tennis ball, but she sat like an effervescent bubble under his rib cage and he scanned the kitchen for any further sign of her.
“Mathieu, darling.” Phi flung herself into the kitchen. She batted her lashes at Eric. “And your delicious brother.”
“Phi, you’re such a flirt.” Eric kissed Phi on both cheeks. “We both know I’m not man enough for you.”
“Sad, but true.” Phi twinkled up at him.
Eric never struggled to find something to say. He opened his mouth and some player-smooth comment drifted out. Damn, what Matt wouldn’t give for that gift. “Jo said you had no water?”
“Such a lovely girl, your sister.” Phi beamed at him. “She popped around this morning for a visit. It has simply been ages since I have seen her. And now I have two of her brothers in my kitchen.”
“The water, Phi?” Phi was as demanding as his mother, tying him up in the same sort of knots. But with Phi, it felt different. Across the kitchen she was giving him a coy look out the corner of her heavily made-up eyes, and he grinned. Sly, conniving, and kind enough to give you her last dime. How she made him smile all the time beat him. Pippa had that gift too. She could walk into a room, any room, and light it right up. Which was why she needed to get the hell out of Ghost Falls and stay out. This town was too small, too cramped for the arc light that was Pippa.
“Don’t you growl at me, Mathieu.” Phi batted her lashes. “I am tempted to pout at you.”
Matt’s belly gave an uneasy clench. Phi had been talking to Pippa. He so didn’t want to get into this with Eric watching like his favorite team was in the Super Bowl. “Phi, I—”
“I do not like it when my plans are overset,” Phi said to Eric. “All the careful planning and plotting required.”
Eric grinned. “What did he do?”
“I don’t think this is a big share session.” Matt tried to cut the whole thing off at the pass.
“He and Pippa have been wrenched apart.” Phi gave it some hand action to illustrate.
“Wrenched?” Eric raised an eyebrow over at him.
You couldn’t wrench apart what didn’t exist, but the explanation would be lost on Phi. He kept it cool on the outside, but inside he was a squirming mess. “Let me look at that water.”
“In Pippa’s bathroom.” Phi waved her hand in that general direction.
Matt knew he’d been had. He should be mad as hell at her. Firstly, though, he could never get mad at Phi and stay mad. Secondly, his brain locked onto Pippa and he took the stairs two at a time. He bypassed the bathroom and hung around the door to Pippa’s room.
She lay stretched out on the bed, tapping away at her iPad.
Matt drank her in. The way the sun hit her hair and turned it to copper flame. The long, lush lines of her body that no man with a pulse could resist. He kept it quiet so as not to startle her. “Hey.”
She jolted a little anyway and turned her head to him. “Oh, hey.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Are you here to fix the bathroom?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay.” She swung her legs over the side of the bed and sat up. “Jo must have called you.”
“She did.”
Damn, but he was like a dumbstruck teen with a huge crush.
“The bathroom’s through there.” She fiddled with the edge of her iPad, not quite meeting his gaze.
“I know.” He should go and fix whatever Phi had done to that pipe. Fortunately, the Diva didn’t know enough about plumbing to cause any major hassles.
Eric’s full-throated laugh drifted up from the kitchen.
“How are you?” he said. Jesus, his super-sharp repartee was getting marginally better.
“Fine. You?” She put her tablet down on the bed next to her and stood.
Her shorts left most of her glorious legs for him to drool over. Wrong thought, buddy. His body didn’t get the memo because even now he could feel the slide of her satin skin under his palm.
“Matt?” Pippa cocked her hip and stared at him.
“You’re beautiful.” The words jet-propelled out of his mouth before he knew he was even thinking them.
She blinked and raised her chin. “What the hell, Matt?”
“Yeah, I know. I shouldn’t have said that.” Damn, this was awkward. There was so much to say that needed to be said, but it jammed in his brain. He scrubbed his fingers over his scalp. “But for what it’s worth, it’s true. You are beautiful. Any man thinks that when they look at you.” And now he was babbling. “I still think that. Maybe always will.”
“Don’t do this.” Pippa took a shaky breath. “What you said before, about not getting in too deep, you were right. It’s better this way.”
“I know.” Then why didn’t it feel better? He took a couple of steps into the room. Honest to God, his feet moved without him directing them. This woman drew him, like she had a super power. “But I wish things were different.”
Pippa took a few steps and met him halfway. Her green eyes soft and reflecting back at him all the confusion he had going on inside. The need to hold her was like a physical ache.
She blew out a long breath. “So much for keeping it light.”
“Yeah.” He needed to get it together here. “I’ll go and see what Phi did to the plumbing.”
“She’s on a mission.” Pippa half followed him, and stopped in the doorway.
“I got that. She’s pouting.” Matt forced an easy smile on his face. It felt a bit fake from his end, but Pippa responded with a small smile of her own.
Pippa made a jerky motion toward the stairs. “I’ll be downstairs if you . . . need anything.”
You, naked, sweaty, and panting under me. So not the right answer to the question. He shook his head and backed into the bathroom.
* * *
Pippa crossed her arms over the hollow ache in her chest. She’d expected to see Matt after the scene with Jo and Phi, been braced for it. Then, he appeared in her bedroom doorway and she couldn’t breathe anymore. Couldn’t think straight.
He wasn’t making it easy, either.
She knew that look in his eyes. It had been beamed at her pretty constantly since she came home. Matt was still hot for her, and keen to scratch that itch. If she was really having this lighthearted, friends-with-benefits thing with him—no problem, right? They hook up, have a great time, and end of story. Not quite the way it was working out.
Friends with benefits didn’t cuddle and talk about their lives. Spend time with each other because it felt good, comfortable, safe. Those things got messy, fast. The sex was great, off the charts, but the connection . . . the connection was the biggest problem of all. He got her. A deep-down understanding of her that didn’t need words or gestures. And she got him.
Pippa took the stairs at a near run. If she gave herself half a chance, she’d be back up there with Matt.
Phi and Eric were making goo-goo eyes at each other over the kitchen table.
Eric was far more her type. Groomed, urbane, sophisticated, yet with that aura of I’m-so-much-trouble on the end of him. Why couldn’t she be attracted to Eric? She threw herself down on the bench beside him. Who knows? Maybe some of that hotness would trigger a response.
He smelled great. A touch of sandalwood overlying warm male. Pippa took an appreciative sniff.
Eric turned to grin down at her. “Are you sniffing me?”
“Yup.” She bumped his shoulder. “You smell great.”
“Smell.” Phi threw her head back and growled. “Such a raw, sexual response to a man.”
“I’m not having sex with Eric,” Pippa said. If Phi saw her plan with Matt heading south, she was very likely to switch targets. And that’s all they needed right now, Phi on a mission to fix her up with Eric.
Eric huffed a soft laugh. “Are you sure?”
“Quite.”
“Well, damn,” Eric murmured. His naughty eye twinkle must drive the girls nuts. “There go my plans for later.”
Wheels crunched over gravel outside and Phi raised her head. A smile bloomed over her face and she got to her feet and scurried for the door. “The lovelies.”
Seventy-eight and she still moved like a teenager. Pippa must have lost her mind to think Phi was losing her memory. As for Laura and Mom, they so needed to get over themselves. She needed to concentrate on her own mess right now. Work. She’d throw all this energy into the new project with Chris. Later.
“Darlings!” Phi sang out.
Pippa answered Eric’s questioning look. “Laura and her kids.”
“Laura?” Eric shifted on the seat and his gaze darted to the door and back to her.
Had his voice gone a little higher? Pippa studied his face. “That’s right, you and Laura were engaged.”
“Not officially,” he said, his eyes fixed on the door. “She broke it off.”
Seeing someone else squirm for a while eased her snarled insides. “And why was that? Laura never said.”
Eric raised his brow. His smooth, unreadable mask firmly back in place. “Then she must not want you to know.”
“Ass,” Pippa said.
“Maybe.”
Sam clattered into the kitchen, his hair windblown and his cheeks blooming. “Pippa,” he yelled. “Phi said you were still here. Mom said you would be gone, but I didn’t believe it. Daisy agreed with Mom, but she always does.”
He skidded to a stop right next to her chair and stood there, rocking from his heels to his toes.
“Hey, Sam.” Pippa cupped his chin. Her nephew was a great kid. Full of life and energy. His mouth firing off faster than a machine gun. She really should spend more time with them. “What have you been up to?”
Sam’s eyes went big, his mouth opened on a delighted inhale. “I have a new fort.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” He nodded and wriggled closer to her. His little body gave off a surprising amount of heat as he pressed against her leg and went into a description of the fort. It seems Blake had come up with the idea, and Aaron’s dad had built it. Something about Liam that she didn’t catch and Liam’s sister. Somewhere in the names flying at her, Pippa got lost.
“I’ll be back to fetch them in a couple of hours.” Laura hit the kitchen spewing instructions. “Make sure they eat a healthy snack. I’m not sure those cookies you had last time—” She stopped just inside the door and stared over Pippa’s head.
“Hello, Laura.” Eric stood. “Nice to see you again.”
“Eric.” His name came out in a garbled squeak. “H . . . hi.”
“Is this your son?” Eric motioned to Sam, who was staring at him and catching flies.
Laura nodded.
“Hey, Sam.” Eric held out his hand. “I’m Eric.”
Sam’s shoulders went back and he shoved his small hand into Eric’s large, tanned one. “I’m Sam.”
Laura dragged in a deep breath and dropped her head. When she raised it again, all the messy bits had been tucked away again. “And this is my daughter, Daisy.”
“Hi, Daisy.” Eric gave the girl a sexy-as-hell chin lift.
Daisy’s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened. Poor kid. Eric was a whole lot of man candy for a tween to take in. “Hi,” Daisy breathed.
“You look well, Eric.” Laura snapped her sunglasses shut and slipped them into a case.
A smile played around the corners of Eric’s mouth. “You look better than good.”
Laura went red. “Yes, well, thank you. I have a wonderful life.”
“I can see that.”
Eric was so playing with her sister. Pippa felt a small twinge of guilt, like maybe she should rescue Laura or something. This was way too much fun, though. It had been so long since she’d seen her sister anything less than poised and in command.
“I’ll go and fetch the toy box.” Laura jerked her head at the baize door.
Phi watched her with a smirk. “You do that, dear.”
“Right.” Laura squared her shoulders. “I’ll go and get it.”
“Need a hand?” drawled Eric.
“Not from you.” Laura went bright red. “I mean, no, thank you.”
The baize door swung shut on her twitching ass.
“Do you know my mom?” Daisy ventured closer to Eric. She flushed, as if she couldn’t believe her own daring.
Eric smiled at her. “I used to know her very well. I grew up here, I’m Matt’s brother.”
“Is Matt here?” Sam bounced on his toes.
“He’s upstairs in my bathroom,” Pippa said.
God, Sam must leave her sister wrung out by the end of the day. The kid gave off more energy than nuclear fusion.
“Cool.” Sam ran through the door and his feet clattered up the stairs. “Maaatt!”
Matt’s deep rumble sounded in response.
“It’s me, it’s Sam Johnson and I’m coming to help you.” Sam’s excited chatter drifted down the stairs.
Daisy rolled her eyes and slouched into the chair opposite. “My brother is so lame. He couldn’t help Matt if he tried.”
“We men like to pretend we know everything.” Eric winked at her. “I’m going to see if my brother needs a hand.”
Daisy kept her stare on him as he strolled out of the kitchen. “Did my mom, like, date him or something?”
“Your mom was engaged to him, or something,” Phi said.
“Nooo.” Daisy glanced at Pippa for corroboration. “What happened?”
“She liked your dad better,” Pippa said. Laura hadn’t met Daisy’s dad until a few years later, but a little lie sometimes didn’t hurt. And Laura had liked Patrick better; she’d married him and dumped Eric’s fine ass.
“Hmph.” Daisy shrugged, but a happy light danced in her eyes. “He’s pretty hot, for an old guy.”
“He most certainly is.” Phi clapped and smiled at Daisy. “What would you like to do today?”
“It’s Earth Day.” Daisy screwed up her nose. “Mom wants us to do an activity to show our appreciation for the earth.”
“What a lovely idea.” Phi rocked on her toes. “We would pick some fresh herbs from the knot garden, and dry them. They would look enchanting hanging from the rafters of the kitchen.” Phi’s eyes glazed over, lost in the beauty of her new plan. “We could pick them, dry them, and tie them with beautifully colored ribbons. Then we could get Matt to suspend them from the rafters.”
That would be quite some feat in a couple of hours. Pippa hid her grin.
Daisy leaped to her feet, another captive to the magic of Phi. “That would look so cool, like an old-fashioned kitchen.”
“Where is my gardening bonnet?” Phi glanced around the kitchen.
Daisy danced over to the row of pegs inside the laundry. “Here it is, Phi. Do I have to wear mine?” She reappeared with the object in hand. It had been a few years since Pippa had the misfortune of seeing the gardening bonnet. Carmen Miranda would have blushed at that one. A huge floppy-brimmed hat, festooned with ribbons and drooping under the weight of plastic fruit and silk flowers. There was even a honeybee on a stalk sticking out like an antenna on one side.
Phi placed it tenderly on her head and tied the wide yellow ribbon beneath her chin. “But, of course you must wear yours,” she said to Daisy. “I know we have Botox now to keep the march of years at bay, but a good complexion will keep you smooth and fresh for longer.”
“Mom says Botox is poison.” Daisy produced a pretty straw hat and dragged it over her hair.
“Poison for wrinkles.” Phi checked her reflection in the mirror beside the door and grabbed a wicker basket from the floor. “Now, let us gather roses while we may.”
“Herbs, Phi.” Daisy’s voice drifted back into the kitchen. “I thought we were picking herbs.”
The baize door opened and Laura edged back into the kitchen with her box of toys. She narrowed her eyes at Pippa as if Pippa had killed the lot of them and buried their bodies in the garden. “Where is everyone?”
“Sam went to find Matt. Phi and Daisy are picking herbs, and Eric went to see if Matt needed help.” Pippa kept the prickle out of her voice. Why did Laura always have to look at her like she was in trouble?
“What is Eric doing here?” Laura lowered her voice to a hiss.
“He’s home for Jo’s wedding.” Pippa leaned back in her chair, out of the arc of wrath beaming from her sister’s eyes. “Matt came to fix the pipes today and Eric came with him.”
“Did you invite him here?” Laura’s mouth puckered up.
Pippa stared at her. Laura was seriously losing it. Over Eric Evans. “Of course not. And even if I did, what’s the big deal?”
Laura reeled back and gathered up her purse. “You have no idea, Pippa. No idea what that man . . .” She twitched her dress straight and patted her hair into place.
“No, I don’t,” Pippa said. “Because you never told me why you broke off your engagement.”
Laura sniffed and grabbed the case with her sunglasses from her purse. She opened it and snapped the sunglass arms out. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
There you had it. The same response Laura had given her all those years ago. “Shouldn’t you be over it by now?”
“What?” Laura’s eyes bulged. “Of course, I’m over it. I’m a happily married woman with two wonderful children. Why would I give Eric Evans a second thought?”
“Why indeed?” Pippa let a smug smile creep over her face. It wasn’t often, if ever, she caught Laura on the wrong foot. No, it wasn’t nice, or even very grown-up. But damn, it felt good.
Laura nearly took an eye out getting her sunglasses on her face. “I don’t want to see him here again.” With that, she sailed out of the kitchen, leaving a trail of pissed-off behind her.
Interesting.
Pippa got up to see Laura stop and say good-bye to Daisy before getting into her car and spraying gravel as she left.
“Laura gone?” Eric’s voice came from right beside her, and Pippa jumped.
“Just what did you do to my sister?”
“Me?” He pressed a hand to his broad chest. “I’m the injured party. She dumped me.”
Pippa tried to see past the naughty glitter in his eyes. “Maybe,” she said. “But sometimes a man makes it impossible to stay with him.”
“You’ll have to ask Laura.” Eric folded his arms over his chest.
Damn. There went her chance of finding out anything. Laura would be ten feet buried before she gave Pippa any details.
“Okay, well that’s fixed.” Matt pushed open the baize door. He stood in the doorway, one hand still on the door, his other full of his toolbox. His gaze flickered from her to Eric and back again. “Everything okay?”
“Yup.” Pippa wanted to check if there was a smudge on her face.
Matt did not look happy about her and Eric chatting. “I guess I’ll see you around.”
“Okay.” Laura and Eric had been a welcome distraction, but the ache was back in full force.
Eric’s dark eyes gleamed as he looked from her to Matt. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing.” She and Matt spoke at once.
Eric raised his eyebrows. “There’s a whole lot of nothing in this room.”