LIKE A PARCHED HORSE catching sight of a creek, Wes found himself drawn to the room at the end of the hall. What was wrong with him?
To his credit, when he had gotten home a few minutes earlier, he had done better than this. After calling out to Cara to let her know he was there, he had gone to take his shower. Had somehow managed to avoid walking down this hall. Those good intentions hadn’t lasted long.
Well, it was only polite to check in on her, wasn’t it? And to see if there was anything she needed.
Inside the office, half turned from the doorway, Cara sat cross-legged on the floor. Patty’s laptop sat on the dresser. A second computer rested on Cara’s lap. The wires of a pair of earbuds disappeared beneath her long hair.
He hovered in the doorway, not wanting to startle her. Not wanting to admit—again—he and Garrett had both been right. She was a good-looking woman. And he shouldn’t be standing here looking.
Bad enough he had spent so much time thinking about her the past couple of days. Even this morning, sitting alone in the truck before Garrett arrived, he’d acted like Mark, running through a never-ending list of questions about her.
What had she thought about finding the house empty? Where had she gotten to in her sorting and typing? Had she managed to start on the office closet? He looked across the room. The door was closed tight, which only led to more questions. Why did she seem so reluctant to go near it? And why couldn’t his curiosity let that fact alone?
Last time they’d talked, the conversation hadn’t ended well. How would she act around him now? Not that he’d lost sleep worrying about it. No matter what Cara thought, he always did his best for the kids.
Computer keys clacked beneath her flying fingers. She hummed a couple of times, then sang a few words under her breath. He recognized the lyrics. She sang off-key, making him want to smile. Instead, straight-faced, he cleared his throat and for good measure rapped a few times on the office door.
She looked up, giving him the smile he wouldn’t give her. And it was something to see.
He leaned against the door frame. “Thought you said you’d be leaving early today.”
“I planned to, but I want to get as much done as I can.”
He nodded as he glanced around the room. “How’s it going?”
“Good. I still need to start on a price list, then talk it over with Andi. But I’ve got everything in the room sorted and entered on the computer.”
“Everything in the room,” he repeated.
She glanced at the closet. Yeah, that closet... She’d definitely reacted oddly yesterday, nearly jumped backward out of it as if she’d stumbled across a rattler with its tail buzzing in the air.
“I’ll get to the closet,” she said.
Once again, he shrugged off his curiosity. The boxes and bins and dressers held larger crafts. Maybe she didn’t want to have to deal with a load of tiny clothes.
She would probably like another postponement. “There’s always tomorrow.”
To his surprise, she shook her head, sending her hair rippling against her shoulders. “Not tomorrow. I won’t be here. I’ve got good news. Andi called a few minutes ago to tell me she’s leasing a store.”
“Here in town?”
“Yes. She found an available storefront right on Canyon Road, prime real estate, she says.”
“Almost the only real estate, when it comes to local businesses.”
She laughed. “Andi said that, too. Anyhow, she’s insisting we have lunch in town tomorrow to celebrate, then go look over the store after she gets the keys. It’s right down the street from the Big Dipper.”
“That’ll make it handy for anyone who likes ice cream.”
“And you know I do. I told her that’s why she leased a place close by. She wants my help with the layout of the store, so she’s going to bribe me with ice cream.”
“Will that work?”
“I think you know the answer to that one, too.”
He did. He had learned a lot about her in such a short time. She was loyal to her friends. She loved ice cream, especially chocolate. She liked soft rock music and sang off-key. She wasn’t comfortable around kids but made an effort with his son. Despite their last conversation, that item alone had him feeling grateful to her.
“But don’t worry,” she added, her eyes gleaming, “I’m a good negotiator. I told her she’d have to throw in a dessert or two at SugarPie’s before I would agree to give her a hand. That sealed the deal. At least for as long as I’m still around.” She hesitated, then went on. “Give me a second to power down.” She returned her attention to the computer.
He couldn’t tear his gaze away from her. He had learned a lot about himself in this short time, too. He liked this woman’s gleaming eyes and golden-red hair. Her smile and her sense of humor. Her loyalty to her best friend.
When she closed the laptop, he reached out to help her to her feet and found more to like. Though her hand was small, her grip was strong. Her fingers, slim and warm, fit perfectly in his.
Part of him wanted to keep holding on. The sane part of him made him release her hand the minute she stood upright.
“Thanks.” She spent a while putting the computer on the dresser, settling it just so and fiddling with the lid—all unnecessarily, as far as he could see. Finally, she said, “I have to confess.”
That explained the delaying tactics. He waited.
“I’d have made even better progress if I hadn’t been online most of the afternoon.”
“Don’t tell me. You’re an internet shopper?”
“No.”
“A closet gamer?”
“No, not that.”
“Addicted to hanging out outline?”
“Not that, either. I’m looking for a job.”
“Sounds like you have one—with Andi.” He expected her to laugh or at least smile. Wrong again. Her expression suddenly turned solemn.
“No, that’s just temporary. I really need to get back home.”
Yet another thing he knew about her—where she lived. “What’s the attraction in Phoenix?”
Now she grinned. “Oh...the heat, the saguaros, the local petting zoo. Just think of all the animals Mark could find there to inspire his drawings. Where does he get his interest in art, anyhow?”
Nice. With one quick question—and that stunning grin—she had deftly turned the conversation away from a topic she evidently wanted to avoid. Unfortunately, she had also led them to one he didn’t want to discuss.
“Most kids like to draw,” he said simply. “And speaking of kids, I’ve got to head out to get my two.”
After collecting her laptop and a purse from the dresser, she left the room with him. “You go into town every day to pick them up? There’s no school bus that could bring them home?”
“No. They’re young for that, especially Tracey. And Rhea, the babysitter, runs the day care center from her house. No transportation provided. I drop them off in the morning and pick them up again in late afternoon.”
“That must interfere with your schedule.”
He shrugged. “When it’s especially busy, Rhea will take the kids earlier in the morning or keep them later for me. We make it work.” He halted at the bottom of the stairs, expecting Cara to leave through the front door.
She gestured to the kitchen. “I left a bag in the refrigerator. Paz sent along a lunch with me today. She doesn’t like seeing anyone go hungry.”
“Or thirsty. She sent some of her spicy hot chocolate over with Garrett.” Great. He hadn’t planned to mention his brother.
But Cara nodded. “I met him here this morning.”
“Yeah. He mentioned stopping by. I told him you were here sorting through Patty’s crafts, and that’s it.” And that I’ve got no interest in you.
“Well, if you’re wondering, I just said I’m staying at the Hitching Post.”
“And he didn’t get anything else from you? He’s good at sweet-talking his way around women.”
She laughed. “Not this woman.”
A surge of...something...filled his chest. Whatever it was, it was something he shouldn’t have let himself feel. Not for this woman, whose laptop and job search and hometown with all its attractions proved how much she liked her big-city lifestyle. Good reason for him to keep his distance. Her eagerness to return to that big city told him she would have no interest in small-town life.
He and the kids had been there, done that with Patty. He wasn’t going to risk putting them through it again.