by Gina Wilkins
“You’ve had a lot of jobs,” she said somewhat lamely.
“I guess you could say I have a short attention span,” he remarked, which made her swallow hard. If she’d needed more evidence that she shouldn’t take his flirting too seriously, he’d just offered it to her.
Keep the conversation light, she reminded herself. Friendly. “You went from working as a foreign correspondent to writing travel articles for a small, regional magazine. Quite a change, wasn’t it?”
“Quite a step down, you mean?” he asked, raising an eyebrow as he studied her.
She felt as though she was being tested in some manner, and she didn’t like the feeling. She certainly wasn’t judging his choice of career. She was simply curious about why he’d made such a drastic change. “I’m sure you had your reasons for accepting your cousin’s offer,” she said somewhat stiffly.
“I did.” But he didn’t offer an explanation. Not that he owed her one, of course.
“So, what’s next?” she couldn’t resist asking. “Planning to move into management at the magazine or focus on that book idea?”
“Management doesn’t interest me. I have some other projects I’m considering. Nothing definite at the moment, though whatever I do, I’m sure I’ll still be writing. That’s my real passion.”
Interesting. She would like to hear all about Dan’s, um, passions, she thought, clearing her throat. She should probably change the subject—after all, none of this was any of her business—but she couldn’t resist trying to learn just a bit more about him. “Do your parents still live in Alabama?”
“Yes. They live in Hoover, not far from my cousin’s place.”
She remembered his hint that his parents weren’t particularly proud of him. At least, that was the way she’d interpreted his ambiguous comment at the cafe. Was it because of the restless spirit he’d alluded to? If so, how sad that he didn’t feel as if he had his parents’ support. No matter what they’d endeavored, she and her siblings had always had the security of knowing they had their mother’s and each other’s full encouragement, even if their father had been conspicuously absent. “How do they feel about your globe-trotting?”
“My parents haven’t been pleased with any of my choices since I hit my teens,” he answered drily.
She frowned, sensing old resentment in his words, despite his attempt at a joking tone. “Then they must be very hard to please,” she said quietly.
He sighed. “They are. In a nutshell, my parents never particularly wanted kids. They hired a series of nannies to raise me after they had me, then they wanted me to fall in line and do everything they wanted once I was old enough for them to take an interest in me. I’m trying to keep up a relationship of sorts with them, but it still isn’t easy. And I’m not even sure why I’m telling you all this. I guess spending time with you and your siblings this evening has made me think about my own very different family.”
She bit her lip, not quite sure what to say.
Dan frowned suddenly and looked beyond her. “That’s enough about me. Is that a ghost I see over there by the trees?”
She was startled into turning to look.
He laughed. “You had to check, didn’t you? Maybe you put more credence in the old legend than you think.”
She frowned at him. Obviously, he wanted to change the subject, but she couldn’t say she appreciated the way he’d gone about it. “Very funny.”
He chuckled again, then motioned toward a little wrought iron bench near the fountain, a look of question on his shadowed face. After only a brief hesitation, she sat on one end, and he took the seat beside her.
As he had earlier that day, he reached out to brush a strand of hair from her face. And just as she had before, she felt a little ripple of electricity radiate from that light contact. Water splashed against the stone fountain, providing a musical score for the singing nightlife. Small spotlights were trained on the cascade, making the water glitter as it fell, causing the shadows to dance on the walkway. The fragrant scents of the garden enveloped the little bench, enclosing her and Dan in a cozy little bubble. It was too easy to forget that an inn full of people was only a few yards away. Entirely too easy to forget that she’d known this fascinating man on the bench with her for only a few hours.
His voice was a sexy rumble in her ear. “You really have no sense of whimsy, Kinley?”
She cleared her throat, trying to bring herself back to reality. “So I’m told.”
He slid his hand very slowly along the line of her jaw, then traced her lower lip with one fingertip. He was free with his touches—yet from Dan, she didn’t mind at all. Perhaps because she sensed that all it would take was a signal from her and he would back off immediately. A signal she didn’t particularly want to give at the moment.
“Do you agree with that assessment?”
“Pretty much. That’s just the way I am. I believe in what I can see and touch—and prove with my ledger sheets,” she said in an attempt at a jest, even though her heart was suddenly beating so quickly in response to his light caress that it made her voice emerge a bit breathlessly.
“Not very romantic,” Dan chided, his smile gleaming in the shadowy light.
“I guess I’m just not the romantic type.”
“No?”
“No,” she whispered.
He leaned his head down to hers as he studied her, his smile so close to her mouth that her parted lips longed to taste him. God, she thought dazedly, when was the last time she’d sat beside a man who made her toes curl?
Much, much too long.
She rested her hands on his shoulders, fingers flexing into the muscles there. “I really should go,” she said as much to herself as to him. “I have another two or three hours of work to attend to before I get any rest tonight. And I have to be back early in the morning.”
“All business.”
Though she knew he was teasing, she nodded. “Exactly.”
“I’m not at all sure about that,” he said, leaning even closer. “Maybe just a little test….”
A tiny sound of startled pleasure escaped her when she leaned in and her lips covered his. She made no effort to draw away. Just a taste, she promised herself. Just this one moment of weakness.
The kiss was as spectacular as she would have expected from him. Skilled, thorough, generous, enthusiastic. Despite the cool night air, his lips were warm, and a little extra heat seemed to radiate through his clothing. Pressed against him, she could feel for herself that he was as strong and fit as he’d looked from a distance. It wasn’t hard to imagine how the rest of that warm, solid body might feel against her own… In fact, the pictures swirled rapidly in her head, adding to the slight dizziness she’d been feeling since they’d walked out into the garden together. If she hadn’t known better, she’d have sworn her sister had spiked the lemonade.
Dan groaned softly in protest when she drew back, slowly breaking off the kiss. “Already?”
She drew a deep, slightly ragged breath. Maybe later she would regret uncharacteristically giving in to temptation, but it had definitely been nice while it lasted. “Yes. I have to go.”
He sighed, but released her without further argument. Still, she couldn’t help but be pleased that he looked so very reluctant to do so.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” he said.
She stood, her knees a little shaky but otherwise reliable. Dan rose with her. She sighed, then frowned up at him.
“That had nothing to do with either of our work,” she reminded him. “It was merely an aberration. Blame it on the moonlight.”
“It never would have occurred to me that you’d be anything but professional,” he assured her, his easy smile returning, though his eyes still seemed to glow in the darkness.
She nodded and made herself turn away. For some reason, she avoided looking at any dark-shadowed corners of the garden. Not that she expected to see anything out of the ordinary there, she assured herself. “Feel free to look in on t
he activities in the parlor this evening. Bonnie always sets out tea and light snacks for the games. I have a feeling no one will mind if you snap a few photos for your article.”
“I’ll be sure and ask.”
She was already moving toward the inn. “Don’t forget we serve breakfast from seven until nine. If you have any special requests, please let Bonnie know this evening.”
“So serious again,” he teased from behind her. He reached out to catch her arm just as she reached the bottom of the stairs. “I wonder, Kinley. After I’ve submitted my article, when you don’t have to fret about what I’ll write, is there any chance you and I could maybe have dinner or something? The real you, not the vice president of marketing.”
“That’s not my title,” she protested automatically, perhaps to give herself a chance to process the request. “And don’t you have someplace else to be after you’ve finished your article?”
“I could make a little extra time.”
She glanced up the stairs toward the door to the inn. “You might be disappointed to find out that you’ve already met the real me,” she said. “With the exception of this uncharacteristic episode, you’ve seen me pretty much as I am. All business, all the time, as someone once described me.”
“Someone who hurt you?”
“Someone who knew me,” she corrected evenly.
After a moment, he shook his head. “I’m not sure he did.”
“I didn’t say it was a he.”
“You didn’t have to.”
Uncertain what to say to that, she hesitated. His gaze held hers and for just a moment, she couldn’t seem to make herself move away from him. Dan looked away first, releasing her from the odd spell that she—who did not believe in ghosts or magic or whimsy—seemed to have fallen into for the second time that evening. Maybe she was more tired than she had realized.
“Good night, Kinley. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Swallowing, she nodded, then turned and walked up the steps with Dan close behind her.
Chapter Five
Even as tired as she’d been, Kinley slept restlessly Thursday night. She told herself it was because she had so much to do in the next couple of days and was having trouble shutting down her thoughts. She didn’t want to accept that her sleep was disturbed entirely by thoughts of Dan Phelan, by mental replays of the time she had spent with him that day. The first unexpected glimpse of him. The smiles he’d given her over the lunch table. The way he’d instinctively moved in front of her when Ninja had appeared ahead of them. The way he’d brushed her cheek in the night shadows of the garden. The kiss they had shared by the fountain—a kiss that she had initiated. The way he gazed into her eyes and made her suspect he saw things in her that she’d buried long ago.
As she carefully applied concealer and makeup to hide any evidence of her disturbed sleep, she told herself she must have been working too intensely lately. Maybe she needed to take a couple of mental health days, something she’d been urging her siblings to do for the past month or so.
Now that the inn was starting to show a profit most months, surely they could all relax just a little—though she, for one, always had a bit of difficulty with that concept. It seemed that she was always working, just as she knew Bonnie and Logan were. None of them had much, if any, social life these days. They should do something to correct that. Not that she saw any future for herself with Dan, of course, but the fact that she had overreacted so much to his flirting was probably an indication that she’d been neglecting that part of her life. How else could she explain the fact that she had planted a kiss on the man the very same day she had met him? she asked herself with a groan.
Because she was awake early, anyway, she arrived at the inn ten minutes before breakfast service began. She had chosen her clothing carefully for the day’s events, donning a sleeveless shift dress in bright coral with a narrow cream belt, another three-quarter-sleeve cardigan—this one cream—and a comfortable pair of beige shoes. A discreet flesh-colored bandage covered the healing cut on her index finger.
She’d spent the short drive from her house steeling herself for seeing Dan again, assuring herself she could stay professional today. She’d never really given him an answer about whether she would see him for dinner after his assignment ended, but maybe it was best that she’d waited on that. As tempted as she was to agree, it was always possible that one or both of them could rethink the invitation after spending another day or two together.
She was relieved to see Rhoda had arrived on time that morning, and without destroying more of the inn. Logan and his crew hadn’t yet painted the post, other than the initial coat of flat white primer, but already the front looked much better than it had the morning before. The mouthwatering scents of coffee, warm cinnamon and maple syrup greeted her when she walked into the dining room where Bonnie and Rhoda were setting up for breakfast service. Baked cinnamon French toast was today’s breakfast casserole offering, with fruit compote and the usual assortment of pastries, hot or cold cereals and yogurt. Her mouth watered in anticipation when she helped herself to a steaming cup of coffee.
“Looks great,” she told her sister, who was lighting votive candles in glass holders tucked among arrangements of fresh white roses. Kinley was known as the family perfectionist, but she thought Bonnie was just as concerned with detail, paying careful attention to every aspect of her hostess duties.
Bonnie smiled with a flash of dimples. “Thanks. I promised Serena I’d keep pastries out for an extra couple of hours for her arriving guests.”
Kinley plucked a fat strawberry from a bowl and popped it into her mouth. “I’ll start calling subcontractors as soon as I’ve finished breakfast,” she said after swallowing. “Just to make sure everything’s on track for this evening and tomorrow.”
Bonnie nodded absently while running an eye over the dining room to check for any last-minute adjustments. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Eva’s already started calling them.”
Kinley winced. Eva had already fired a photographer and alienated several local vendors. Serena had finally forbidden her mother to make any more calls, insisting she allow Kinley and Bonnie to handle the details, but it would surprise no one if Eva reneged on that agreement. Thirty-six more hours, give or take an hour or two, and this wedding would be over, Kinley reminded herself with a bracing inhale. There could be a permanent hole in her tongue from where she’d bitten it to keep herself from telling Eva exactly what she thought of her at times, but she was determined to get through the remainder of this arrangement without conflict. She wanted good reviews from both Serena and Eva after the wedding.
She sipped her coffee, then asked, “How did things go here last night? Did anyone show up for game night?”
Bonnie turned to walk into the kitchen and Kinley followed. “Oh, yes, almost everyone,” Bonnie said over her shoulder. She opened the refrigerator to take out a pitcher of fresh-squeezed orange juice. “The Mayberrys and Travis and Gordon played Scrabble while Dan and I played as Spades partners against that nice couple that checked in yesterday afternoon, the Zakrzewskis. We had a lovely evening.”
“Did you?” Kinley frowned into her coffee cup.
“Yes. Dan’s quite the card player.”
Had Dan flirted with Bonnie? Maybe hinted to her, too, about having dinner sometime? Was that the real game he played?
“It was rather funny how many times he found a reason to casually bring up your name,” Bonnie added teasingly. “I think you’ve made a conquest, Kinley.”
Kinley forced a chuckle and spoke lightly to prove she wasn’t taking her sister—or Dan—too seriously. “He’s only going to be here for another couple of days. I’m much too busy right now for anything but work. We have that meeting with the new prospective bride this afternoon, the rehearsal and dinner this evening, the wedding tomorrow—not to mention I’ve got a real-estate deal to attend to later this morning.”
“All you ever do is work,” Bonnie chided, shaking her head in di
sapproval.
Kinley cocked an eyebrow. “Said the pot to the kettle. Who’s the one who actually lives at the inn 24/7, hmm?”
Bonnie laughed ruefully. “Well, there is that, but at least I’d be open to an evening out with a good-looking single guy if one were to ask. This particular good-looking guy just happens to be more interested in you.”
“And just how do you plan to meet a good-looking single guy when you hardly ever leave the inn?” Kinley retorted, ignoring the anything-but-subtle teasing about Dan. “You’re the one who should get out more, Bon.”
It actually surprised her a little when her sister nodded. “You’re right. I should. I have no regrets at all about the two years we’ve dedicated almost exclusively to this place, but maybe I need to expand my horizons now. I haven’t been on more than a handful of dates since we moved here. I should remedy that.”
“Yes. Yes, you should. In fact, I know a few—”
Bonnie cut her off with a quick, “Don’t even think about it. I am not commissioning you to set me up with anyone, Kinley. When it comes to my love life, you are not in control. Got it?”
“You have a love life?” Rhoda asked quizzically, entering from the laundry room with an armload of clean kitchen towels just in time to hear Bonnie’s ultimatum. “First I’ve heard of it. Far as I knew, both you girls could use a little nudge in that direction.”
With a little growl, Bonnie picked up the orange juice pitcher. “It’s time to start the breakfast service. We’ll worry about our love lives—or lack thereof—later, shall we?”
That sounded like a very good suggestion to Kinley, who didn’t really want her own so-called love life examined too closely at the moment. Just thinking about that reckless kiss in the garden last night made her skin warm uncomfortably, a fact she tried to hide from her sister’s too-perceptive eyes.
She moved into the dining room to greet guests as they entered for breakfast, some bright-eyed and eager, others a bit sleepy-lidded and heading straight for the coffee.
