Rocky Mountain Angels

by Jodi Bowersox [romance]

  Eli couldn’t help laughing at Mari’s turn of phrase that sounded like a euphemism of some sort. “I’m not really offended.” He brushed her tangle of curls over her shoulder then reminded himself not to touch. “Just feeling very transparent of late.” He swept a hand in front of him. “Ladies first.”

  She turned and stumbled on the very first step when the pig’s ears caught on the edge. Eli grabbed her waist as she reached for the railing. “Those swine want to kill you. Maybe you should take them off for the ascent.” Or let me carry you to the top, sweet Mari.

  “I think you’re right.” She pulled them off and continued in bare feet.

  They’d only gone a few steps when Eli’s curiosity got the better of him. “How did you do that in my room? I mean, I had no idea when I picked the stuff out...”

  She paused and looked back at him. “I had a class on the psychology of decorating.” She faced forward and continued to climb. “It’s kind of weird how the rules of color, balance, line, form, masculinity, femininity are perceived by most people even if they don’t realize or acknowledge it.”

  She reached the top and stopped, looking around while she slipped back into her slippers. “And you are obviously a student of design, so,” she said, looking his way when he reached the summit beside her, “why is your office so devoid of design?”

  “One class, you say? You took one class?”

  She turned at the top and stood looking into the large echoing third floor. “Well, it was part of a masters program. Wow, this is quite a... space. What are you going to do with it?” She walked forward to the ancient draperies partially hiding a set of French doors, so Eli followed.

  “Joe has plans for a master bedroom suite, I believe. There’s only one small bathroom up here, though, so we still need to work out the plumbing details. Ben said you have a lit. degree.”

  Mari pulled the draperies open and gasped at the mountain view. “Oh, Eli, do you ever get tired of looking at that, or do you natives take all this beauty for granted?” She turned to him with such a look of wonder that Eli stuck his hands in his slacks pockets to keep from taking her in his arms.

  He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Never. I think that’s one of the advantages of being a ‘student of design,’ as you put it. Beauty is always... appreciated.”

  Mari turned back to the view. “Good. Coming from the plains, I’d hate to think that you people don’t know what you’ve got here.”

  Eli continued to look at her profile. “I can’t speak for everybody, but this guy knows.”

  She stared out the window, seeming to soak in the scenery. “Our peace shall stand as firm as rocky mountains,” she whispered, then turned to see him staring at her and blushed. “I love that there’s a balcony up this high. If this were my house, I think I’d live out there.” She smiled. “When it’s warmer.”

  He walked with her to the opposite wall and another set of French doors that looked out onto a smaller curved balcony on the front of the house. “Who were you quoting earlier?”

  Mari sighed as she looked out, “Shakespeare.”

  Eli waited quietly by her side as her sparkling eyes took in the details of the railing. He’d put a lot of effort into making every spindle a work of art, using multiple colors to create a true “painted lady.”

  She turned to him, practically glowing, then moved past him to the door leading into the turret on this floor. She opened it to what looked essentially like all the other tower rooms, but the height and the view out of the numerous windows made it seem extra special. “A sitting room?”

  Eli shrugged. “I guess. It could be anything; we could install shelves on the flat walls and have a library or put in a jacuzzi or a small kitchenette.”

  Mari walked around the room, looking deep in thought. “A room with many possibilities.” Wandering back out to the main space, she took in the details which mostly consisted of crumbling plaster and creaky floorboards. “Well, it is certainly a space with lots of potential. Does Joe plan on ruling the roost from up here?”

  Eli laughed. “I imagine he and Beth together will do a pretty good job of it. By that point, though, Ben and I will have moved out, so they’ll have to create some subjects.”

  Mari stopped and turned before taking to the stairs again. “Beth? I didn’t know there was a Beth.”

  “Joe has been dating Beth Havland for six or seven months. She lives in Denver.” He put a hand out to stop her from going down. “Do you really trust those swine?”

  “No, I suppose not.” Mari removed the ridiculous footwear and started down.

  Eli couldn’t resist returning to an earlier topic. “So you have a degree in literature and a masters in design? Or is it in psychology?”

  Mari reached the bottom and sat to put on her slippers. Eli slipped down beside her in the narrow space. She didn’t look at him. “Both.”

  Eli hoped he didn’t look quite as surprised as he felt. “You have a bachelors in lit. and a masters in design and psychology.”

  Mari rose and continued down the hall. “Yep.”

  Eli rose and followed. “And now you are going to enroll in zoo classes?”

  Mari huffed out a breath before starting down the carpeted stairs to the ground floor. “Yes, Eli, that’s exactly right.”

  He followed and could see Ben through the window heading for the porch steps. “Can I come see your house?”

  “Now?”

  “As soon as you’ll let me.”

  “Why?”

  He grinned, still a few steps up. “I want to peg you.”

  Chapter 4

  “How much longer will your crew be working on the synagogue?” Beth’s blue eyes looked at Joe over the menu.

  Joe, across from her in the booth, folded his menu and laid it aside. “The finish contractors will still be working another couple weeks, but I’m ready to get going on the Marshall apartments. It will take a few days to get all the designs finalized. Then I need to line up the big equipment to break ground. I’m hoping for an early spring. If I have a gap between projects, I can always put in some extra time on the house.”

  Beth sighed and closed her menu. “But no matter what, you won’t be working in Denver anymore.”

  Joe nodded as he tried to catch the eye of the waiter. “Not for awhile anyway. It’s not that crowded in here for such lousy service.”

  Beth reached across the table to thread her fingers with his impatiently tapping. “We haven’t been here that long.”

  Joe glanced at his watch. “Well, I don’t have a lot of time today. Gary wanted me to approve paint colors, and he’s probably back with the samples by now.”

  Beth released his hand and sat back in her seat. “Joe, will you even miss me when you’re not working in Denver?”

  Joe’s brow pinched. “It’s not that far from the Springs, sweetheart. I will still come see you.”

  “But not nearly as often. I’ve seen you three or four times a week for six months. And I know you won’t let me drive to see you.”

  “Not often, unless you have a sudden new revenue stream.” Joe stretched to his full height, trying to get noticed by their unobservant waiter. “Good grief, he’s too busy flirting with the bartender to do his job.”

  Joe half rose and waved, and the faux-hawked twenty-something finally acknowledged that he’d seen Joe. He still took a moment to finish whatever he’d been telling the strawberry blonde working the bar. Joe was indignant. “This guy is getting no tip from me,” he informed Beth in a low tone as the waiter zigzagged his way to their booth.

  “Now, Joe—”

  “Have you two decided?”

  “Yes. Quite. Beth, what would you like?”

  Beth flipped the menu open and pointed. “I’ll have the soup and salad special with a diet Coke.”

  Joe gave her a quick scolding look before turning his attention back to the waiter. “I’ll have a grilled chicken sandwich and fries.”

  “Will that be all?”
/>   “Yes.”

  The waiter turned to go, and Joe leaned forward. “You did read the info I sent you on the link between colas and dialysis.”

  Beth blinked. “I did, Joe, and I promise I’ll cut back—I have cut back. I just need to find something I like equally well to take its place.”

  Joe wasn’t really satisfied with that answer but decided to let it go. He reached over and took her hand, running his thumb over her knuckles. “Now what were we talking about. Oh yeah, seeing you less often. I don’t suppose it can be helped, but I’ll get up here a couple times a week anyway.”

  “What if I moved to Colorado Springs?” Beth asked with a lift of her brows then bit her lip.

  “You have a great deal on that apartment. I doubt you’ll find something that cheap in the Springs that isn’t a falling down rat trap. I still don’t know why the rent is so low at your place.”

  “I know, but—”

  “And then there’s school. Aren’t you already enrolled for the spring semester at the university?”

  “Yes, but I’m sure my credits would transfer. And anyway, I don’t think I’m—” She cut off and took a long drink of her water.

  Joe squeezed her hand. “You don’t think you’re what?”

  Beth looked reticent. “I really didn’t want to bring this up today, but if I go back to school, it won’t be in accounting, anyway. I think I’ll take some art classes—expand on what I’m good at.”

  Joe released her hand and sat back in his seat. “You did turn in your project, didn’t you?”

  Beth nodded. “Yes. And I don’t think I did so badly on it that I’ll flunk, but that project showed me something, Joe. It showed me that I don’t want to do that for the rest of my life.”

  “So you don’t want to work with me.”

  “Oh, Joe, I wouldn’t really be working with you, and you know it. You’d be out on a job site, and I’d be stuck in an office somewhere with numbers bouncing in my brain until I want to scream.”

  Joe sighed. Women. Do any of them have a practical bone in their bodies?

  ***

  Mari stood at the side of her small living room in a plum sweater and jeans, biting a hangnail as Eli wandered around her space. He’d changed into jeans and a black t-shirt and still managed to look sharp, confident, and sexy. If he doesn’t say something soon, I’m going to burst.

  She had asked him to give her a couple of hours before coming over, and she had used that time to not only shower, dress, and put on make-up, but she also hung up some modern art prints and stashed the remaining boxes in her small garage.

  He had shown up with a pizza in hand, and they had chatted through lunch at her tiny kitchen table, with Eli covertly checking out her space. After the last piece was eaten, he pulled out a notebook and pen and announced that now he had to get down to serious business. Mari knew he was kidding, but she hadn’t pulled any punches in her assessment of Eli’s room, and she didn’t expect him to pull any here either. It was a game that she had started, but one she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to finish. My life has been evaluated far too much lately.

  Eli was playing the part to the hilt—looking at her living arrangement from all corners of the room, studying every piece of art, turning on the lights, turning off the lights.

  Mari took a step away from the wall. “Remember, I haven’t had a chance to buy any window coverings. That will make a difference.”

  He looked over at her and couldn’t keep a smile contained. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He wandered over to the side window then turned back. “In my personal opinion, however,” —he was doing his best to look serious— “you don’t really need anything on the windows. Look at all this gorgeous woodwork.” He ran a hand up the wide molding. “It would be a shame to cover this up.”

  Mari’s brow pinched as she tried to figure out Eli’s game. Coming closer she looked over his head and realized she could look into the second story tower windows. She could clearly see a springy desk light. A desk light she’d seen very recently. She gasped and brought her gaze back to his face beaming with pure devilment. “That’s your office.”

  Eli turned and looked. “Is it?”

  Mari whacked him on the arm, shaking her head, her mouth agape. He laughed then guided her to sit beside him on her wicker settee. He got a pained expression and shifted. “My heavens, woman, where did you get this torture device?”

  She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “It’s not very comfortable, is it? I just liked the look of it.”

  “Didn’t you sit on it at least once before you bought it?”

  She paused in thought. “You know, I don’t think I did. I got it on a garage sale. I saw it on my way to school, stopped, paid for it, stuffed it in my car, and went on my way.”

  “Well, now we know why it was for sale.”

  Eli sat silently for a few minutes, and Mari was dying of curiosity. “So...” Mari began, looking at him sideways, “do you have me pegged yet?”

  Eli shifted again and crossed his arms. “I can’t until I’ve seen it all.”

  She knew there was only one room he hadn’t been in yet, and turn about was fair play. “So go.”

  Eli jumped to his feet. “Thank goodness. A few more minutes on that thing, and I wouldn’t be able to feel my legs.”

  Mari let him look around by himself for a few minutes then followed and stood in the doorway, much as Eli had done in his bedroom.

  Mari’s room, like the rest of the house, was small, but with only a twin bed, a chest of drawers, and one small wooden chair, it didn’t feel cramped. At least it didn’t until Eli was a part of the setting. Suddenly it felt close, warm, and far too intimate.

  Eli had no such notion. He grinned, sat on the foot of her bed facing the door, and patted the spot beside him.

  “I think I’ll stay here.”

  “I promise I won’t touch you.” He scooted to the corner. “Come on. For what I have to say, you need to be sitting down.”

  Mari hitched a brow. “Oh really?” She crossed her arms. “I’ll risk it.”

  Eli let out a breath and rose. “Suit yourself.” Coming toward her, he grabbed her arm and turned her out of the bedroom. “Now, you did say you have a degree in design, right?”

  “I didn’t say that I was any good at it. My grades weren’t exactly stellar; there’s a reason I’m not really using it.”

  “Hmm. Well, you have the brightest colors outside of a circus between your kitchen pottery and living room art, which is probably either a reflection of your sunny personality or an attempt to create a sunny personality where none exists. I’m guessing the former from what I’ve seen so far, although I reserve the right to change my assessment as I get to know you better.”

  He gave her a wink and led her over to the bookcases. “Since I’ve not had ‘the class,’ I’m not sure whether to chalk this color arranging up to a real design style or obsessive compulsive disorder. Do you actually remember the colors of your books and dvds, so you can find them in this arrangement...?”

  She gave a tiny shake of her head.

  “That’s what I thought.” He pulled her toward the wicker settee, sat, and pulled her down with him. “Now, beautiful, I’m not sure what to do with this. This is the only thing to sit on in the room, but your TV is literally behind us.”

  “I know, but I really don’t watch TV very much, and like you pointed out, this thing isn’t very comfortable. If I want to watch something, I’ll just get some pillows and sit on the floor.”

  Eli nodded. “Okay, there’s some logic to that, but why are we facing this way?”

  She pointed to the window as if that were explanation enough.

  He looked puzzled. “Mrs. Shimmel’s peeling paint across the street is hardly what I would call a grand view.”

  “Don’t look so far. That bush at the edge of my yard is a lilac bush. It will be really pretty in May.”

  Eli gave her an indulgent smile. “So you’re planning
your seating arrangement for a sight that will only last a couple of weeks in the spring.”

  She pursed her lips and didn’t answer.

  He shifted and got a pained look on his face. “Please save my butt and come sit with me on the bed. I promise I’ll be good.”

  She quirked her lips to the side then stood and motioned for him to lead the way. He rose and took her hand as though she had offered it to him and pulled her the few steps to the bedroom. He sat on the side of the bed, close to her pillow, and she hesitantly joined him with a good foot and a half between them.

  Eli actually grew seriously serious. “Your style is all over the map. You’ve got quaint cottage going on in the kitchen, a mix of modern and garage sale in the living room, beach towels hanging in the bathroom, and in here, we have renaissance romantic crossed with—where did you get that awful cowboy painting?”

  “On a vacation in Texas.”

  “Sweetheart, your house is schizophrenic. You need to pick a direction.”

  Mari was peeved. “Would you have said that if I hadn’t told you about all my different areas of study?”

  Eli nodded. “I would. If I were trying to find your personality in your space... that was what you did in my room, wasn’t it?... I’d say you were fractured, confused, searching for something.”

  Mari rose and walked to the window. You pegged me very well, Eli Rhodes.

  Eli gave her a minute then came up behind her. “Did I hit a sore spot? For what it’s worth, you were right about me hiding, and you were right about my heart not being in my work.” He gently laid his hands on her shoulders and slid his thumbs up her neck under her hair. He felt her tense, but he continued the caress until she relaxed. After a minute or two, Eli knew he could pull her back against him, and she wouldn’t resist. And her bed is just three steps away. He gave her shoulders a squeeze and stepped back.

  “So, what you need to do is decide which part of your house and your life you like the best and build around that.” He sat again on the foot of the small twin bed.