He unzipped his leather jacket, exposing the shirt of his khaki sheriff"s uniform and leaned against the counter. "Was that a no?"
"To what?"
He looked hurt. "My illicit offer to run away."
She laughed. "What would Sandy say?"
"Oh, we"d have to bring her with us. Otherwise, she"d get really mad."
"As tempting as that sounds, I"m going to have to pa.s.s."
He winked. "Let me know if you change your mind." He glanced around the store. "Great place. Do me a favor. If you see Sandy coming, close up shop. I don"t mind spending the money, but I know she"s going to talk me into doing work."
Holly laughed. "You could always hire someone."
"Jordan"s got the best help already. Where does that leave the rest of us?"
It took her a moment to figure out what he was saying. "Oh, well, I won"t be working on his house too long." She felt her smile freeze on her face. Did he know that she was going to be living with Jordan? Well, not exactly living with him. They would be in the same house but not living together.
Kyle glanced at his watch. "You close at five, right?"
She nodded. There weren"t any customers in the store, so there was no point in staying open late.
"Are you packed?" he asked.
"P-packed?" She had the answer to her question.
"That"s why I"m here. Jordan asked me to help you move your things." He glanced down. "There you are, sweet girl. I"d wondered where you"d run off to." He bent over and picked up Mistletoe. "Jordan said you were a miserable excuse for a cat, but you"re just picky about who you like, aren"t you? You have excellent taste." As he spoke, he stroked the cat"s gray ears and under her chin. She purred her pleasure.
"It"s really not fair," Holly said, watching the two of them. "Jordan saved her life, but she doesn"t care."
"It"s a personality thing. My brother doesn"t have any."
Holly bristled. "He does, too. Jordan is very nice. Charming, funny, sweet..." Her voice trailed off when she realized Kyle was staring at her.
He raised his eyebrow, then spoke to Mistletoe. "We think Holly likes Jordan, don"t we?"
Mistletoe declined to comment.
"You tricked me," Holly muttered, wondering if he thought she was a fool.
"Just doing a background check," Kyle said, his voice kind. "Jordan"s been out of the mainstream for a while. We were all surprised to hear about you."
"I"m not... We"re just ... friends."
He set Mistletoe on the counter, then leaned close. "It"s okay, Holly. You don"t have to explain anything to me. And for what it"s worth, Jordan likes you, too. Now, go pack your things."
It only took her about fifteen minutes to gather her few belongings together. Kyle carried them to her car, then put Mistletoe in her basket. He set the cat carefully on the front seat.
"I"ll follow you over to Jordan"s and help you unload."
"You don"t have to do that," she protested.
"I want to." He closed the pa.s.senger door.
Holly started the engine. Confusion clouded her mind, and she drove automatically.
Kyle had said that Jordan liked her. Was it true? Did he? And if he did, what did it mean? Her stomach tightened with nerves. Oh, my, if he liked her, she couldn"t live with him. But she wanted him to like her - didn"t she?
"Now what?" she asked aloud.
It didn"t matter. So what if they liked each other? They were friends, nothing more. They certainly weren"t going to have a relationship. Jordan wouldn"t want a woman like her. He would want someone sophisticated and experienced. Besides, she didn"t want a relationship, either. People had always let her down. An emotional commitment would require trust, and she wasn"t ready for that. She might never be ready.
But he"d kissed her.
That kiss. She couldn"t forget it. Last night it had haunted her dreams, awakening her time and again. She"d lain in bed listening to her heart pounding, feeling strange heat in her body, fighting a restlessness she didn"t understand.
That kiss had been the most amazing thing she"d ever experienced. However, she didn"t have a whole lot of experience. This was the nineties. People kissed all the time. Jordan had probably forgotten that it had happened. She would be foolish to think it made any difference.
By the time she arrived at Jordan"s house, she"d nearly convinced herself that was true.
Louise met them at the door. "Jordan"s asleep," she said, then pressed her finger to her lips. "He spiked another fever today. He"s been grouchy as a grizzly, so I"ll thank you to be quiet. The longer he sleeps, the better for me."
She looked at Holly. "I can"t tell you how happy I am that you"re going to be here. I"ll still take care of him, but I"m sure he"ll be in a better mood with you around. Your bedroom is through here."
She led the way up the stairs. The third door on the left was open. Holly stepped inside and gave a start of surprise. The room was beautiful.
Original wallpaper - a pattern of cream background covered with pale blue roses - gave the room a cozy feel. A nineteenth-century four-poster bed stood in the center of the room. The dresser matched. There was a tall wardrobe instead of a closet, and several throw rugs on the hardwood floor. A small table and two chairs provided a conversation area in front of a window.
"It"s stunning," she said softly.
"I thought you"d like this better than one of the remodeled bedrooms."
Kyle entered and set her suitcases on the bed. "You really want to sleep with all this old stuff?" he asked.
Louise slapped his arm. "You"ve always had more charm than sense."
"That"s why you love me." He leaned down and kissed Louise"s cheek.
She made a humph noise in her throat. "Get on back to your family."
Kyle walked over to Holly and gave her a quick hug. "Call me if you need anything."
He left the room.
Holly stared after him amazed that she"d been accepted as easily as that.
"The bathroom is new," Louise said, pointing to a door on the left side of the room. She crossed to the bed and opened the basket. Mistletoe stuck her head out. "I"ll bet you"re hungry."