They got home with plenty of time to spare before the guests were due back. Kate treated herself to a long hot shower before getting back to work. She threw on some mascara and lip gloss and a light sundress and headed downstairs to prepare for dinner. She was surprised to find Rick in the kitchen putting away the clean dishes that were in the dishwasher.
Kate stopped in her tracks. “What are you doing?” It sounded more like an accusation than a question.
“I’m helping.”
“But why?” she asked. “You’re the guest; you’re not supposed to be doing chores around the house.” She pointed toward the living room. “Go read a book or watch a movie,” she ordered. “I’ll take over from here.”
Rick looked amused but he didn’t stop. He glanced at his watch. “You’d better get moving,” he said. “The guests should be back any minute now and they’re going to be hungry.”
Kate went over to him and playfully pushed him out of the way. “I will not have my guests doing manual labor.”
She gasped softly as he stepped behind her and reached around her to put the serving tray back in the cabinet. Her back was pressed against him and she was instantly suffused with heat. He lingered a second longer than necessary and Kate suddenly found it difficult to breathe. She was glad he couldn’t see her face. When he took a step back, Kate whirled around, intending to go to the other side of the room until her heart stopped racing. But when she turned, she found herself face to face with him. He had merely backed up a couple of inches and he made no attempt to move out of her way.
“I have work to do,” Kate uttered softly. It sounded embarrassingly like a plea rather than a statement.
Rick’s hand reached out to smooth a lock of hair that had slipped out of her ponytail. His hand lingered against the side of her face before sliding down her neck. Kate shivered involuntarily at the intimate touch.
“Kate,” he groaned.
****
Kate lost her mind. That was the only explanation for what happened next. Without thinking, without even knowing she was going to do it, she crossed the inches that separated them and touched her lips against his. The kiss was gentle and tender and could have gone on for eternity if Rick hadn’t pulled away from her. Kate blinked rapidly as though trying to wake herself from a trance.
Rick was watching her closely; he seemed to be looking for something in her eyes, in her face. Heat flooded Kate’s cheeks and she couldn’t bring herself to meet his gaze.
“I-I’m sorry,” she stammered. Her voice was frustratingly husky. She cleared her throat to try again but he stopped her. He lifted her chin gently so she was forced to look at him. He smiled wryly. “Please don’t apologize,” he said. She tried to turn her head but his hands wouldn’t allow it. “That was… amazing.”
Kate squirmed out of his grip. She was flooded with shame at her actions. And then to have him pull away? She was mortified.
“Kate, that was truly amazing but…” He exhaled on a sigh. “I’m trying to be a gentleman here. You made it clear that you don’t want our arrangement to be real and I’m trying to respect that.”
Kate looked down at the floor. Reality came back to her with a sickening jolt. He was right. That’s what she’d said she’d wanted. What was wrong with her? Talk about sending out mixed signals. “You’re right,” she said. “I-I’m sorry.”
He groaned and Kate looked up. She was surprised by the mix of emotions in his eyes. She realized that stopping had been just as hard for him. He was looking at her now as though he wanted to pick up where they had left off but he kept his distance.
“I’m sorry I’ve been sending mixed signals,” she said. She was distracted by his unreadable expression. “I’m sorry,” she repeated.
“Don’t,” he bit out.
“What?”
“Please,” he said. “Don’t apologize. I don’t know what it is between us, Kate, but it’s undeniable. Please don’t apologize for it.”
He was right. There was something there and it was useless to try and reason their way out of it. She swallowed down a sense of panic mixed with excitement. “Maybe,” she started. “Maybe we could…”
His eyes narrowed as he searched her face. He leaned in closer and her breath caught in her throat. Reason warred with instinct as their breath mingled, their faces mere inches apart. “What, Kate?” he asked. His hand reached out and brushed her cheek. She opened her mouth to answer as he leaned in. Her eyes fluttered shut as she offered up her lips.
“Oh, uh, I’m sorry,” Ellen’s voice shattered the silence. Kate and Rick spun around to see Ellen, Glenda and Shelley in the doorway to the kitchen. Ellen looked sheepish but the older women looked pleased as punch.
“Don’t let us interrupt, dear,” Glenda grinned.
“Yes, don’t mind us,” Shelley added. Her eyes were twinkling with mischief. “We remember what it was like to be young, don’t we Glenda?”
Kate’s cheeks were burning. “I’m sorry,” Ellen mouthed as she shepherded the women into the living room.
Kate dropped her head in her hands and groaned in misery after they left. Rick laughed and pulled her hands away from her face. “Well, if they didn’t know before, I guess they know now, huh?” he asked.
Kate looked at him in exasperation. “You can laugh,” she said. “You’ll never see these people again once your filming is over. But me? I’ll have to listen to their teasing for years to come.”
Her words wiped away his laughter. “Well, I guess I’d better get out of your hair,” he said. “I’ll let you get to work.”
Kate nodded. She wished she hadn’t mentioned him leaving but it was no use trying to take it back now. “Dinner will be ready in an hour if you want to join us.”
An hour later the dining room was filled with laughter and chatter as the two groups told each other about their outings. It seemed Tony’s group had quite the adventure in the woods and they were eager to share their stories. Glenda’s husband was in the middle of telling them about the baby fox he’d spotted when a shocked silence fell over the table.
“Sorry I’m late,” Evangeline purred. “Is there room for one more?”
All eyes turned to Kate, whose mouth was hanging open in surprise. She hadn’t seen the other woman since early that morning, and she had been sure that she wouldn’t deign to grace them with her presence. She hadn’t seemed overly eager to mingle with the common folk since she’d arrived.
But here she was, resplendent in a little black dress that gave new meaning to “little.” Her hair was twisted into a bun at the nape of her neck and her red lipstick added the final touch of glamour. Kate suddenly felt like a frumpy backwoods clod in her plain sundress. Evangeline was staring at her, an amused look in her eyes as she waited for a response.
“Oh, uh, of course,” Kate said. She gestured toward an empty chair at the other end of the table. “Make yourself comfortable while I fix you a plate.”
By the time Kate returned, the guests had resumed their lively chatter and she noted with surprise that Evangeline was laughing and chatting along with the rest. She cast a glance at Rick to see how he was handling the new arrival. She tried to swallow down the sudden overwhelming jealousy when she saw that his eyes were fixed on his former love. Or maybe not so former, she thought to herself. He talked a good game about how little she meant to him now, but from where she was sitting it was quite obvious that he couldn’t take his eyes off her. And Kate had an unpleasant suspicion that Evangeline knew it. She kept her eyes fixed on Vera, who was regaling them all with a funny story about her children, but Kate could see that she was very aware of the pair of eyes that bore into her from across the table. She knew better than anyone the intensity of those eyes, the way they could penetrate and cause a normal woman to go temporarily insane. But Evangeline didn’t look nonplussed. She looked as though she were reveling in Rick’s spotlight.
Kate’s food lost all taste after Evangeline’s arrival, and the atmosphere in the living room was suddenly stifling and overbearing. She wished that she could escape but she had a job to do and she was determined to do it with as much grace as she could muster.
She was trying to focus on what Shelley was saying to her when Evangeline’s cool, sultry voice interrupted. “This is such a lovely home you have here, Kate.”
“Thank you. It’s been in our family for three generations.” Kate noticed that everyone had quieted down and they were rapidly gaining an audience. Rick, she could see, was watching Evangeline carefully.
“It’s so… quaint,” she said, as she gazed around the spacious dining room. Somehow she had managed to make the word quaint sound like an insult. Kate bit back a caustic response.
“Thank you, Evangeline.”
Kate thought that the exchange was over and made a move to start clearing the tables when Evangeline spoke again. “It’s so charming here,” she said. “But certainly off the beaten path. It’s a wonder anyone could find this place”
“Some might say that’s its charm,” Ellen responded. “People come here to get away from the crowds.”
Kate flashed Ellen a grateful look. She didn’t feel equipped a deal with Evangeline’s barely veiled cattiness on her own.
“Of course,” Evangeline said. “It’s just so lucky that Rick stumbled upon this place.” She turned her attention to Rick, who was scowling at her across the table. “Tell me, Rick. How did you find this charming little place?”
“Someone recommended it,” he said. He was casting Evangeline a menacing look. Kate had an uncomfortable feeling that she knew where this was heading. She tried to intervene. “Who’s ready for dessert?” she blurted out.
The guests looked at her in surprise. She supposed she had jumped up rather abruptly. Several of the guests were still eating.
Evangeline smiled and Kate was reminded of the expression old expression — the cat that ate the canary. She had the distinctive feeling that she was the canary in this situation.
“Who recommended it?” she asked. She was not going to drop it. By now all of the guests were paying close attention.
“My sister,” Rick said.
Evangeline feigned surprise. “Really?” she said. “Why that’s marvelous. But, how on earth did your worldly sister hear about a little place like this?”
Kate clenched her fists. How could Evangeline take an everyday word like “place” and make it sound so derogatory?
Rick opened his mouth to answer but Shelley beat him to it. “Oh, didn’t you know? Rick’s little sister is great friends with Kate.”
“Is that right?” Evangeline asked. She looked toward the older woman with interest. She looked pleased as punch and Kate wished she could somehow will Shelley to stop speaking. But the older woman was never one to keep quiet when there was gossip to be relayed.
“Oh sure,” she said. “They go way back. They went to summer camp together every year since they were in grade school. Isn’t that right, Katy?”
Kate nodded and peeked a glance down the table where Rick was seated. He was gripping his fork as though he might break it in two. She tried again to divert the conversation. “Shelley, why don’t you tell Evangeline a little about the history of Rockville,” Kate said. “I’m sure she’d love to hear about the fire of 1805.”
Shelley’s eyes lit up as she turned to Evangeline. “Would you like to hear the story, dear?”
Evangeline’s lips curled but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Another time perhaps.” She turned to Rick, who was openly glaring at her. “Tell me, Rick. How is your sweet little sister? I haven’t seen her in ages. Not since our last trip to Paris — when you proposed.”
All eyes flew to Kate, who had choked on the water she was drinking. Ellen patted her back. “Are you all right?” she asked.
Kate nodded. “Fine,” she said, still gasping for air. “Just went down the wrong tube.” Evangeline was smiling at her in unconcealed triumph. She knew that this was the first time Kate was hearing about any engagement. Kate looked to Rick but he was staring at his plate in apparent fascination and she couldn’t read his expression. After she shook off the initial jolt of jealousy with a reminder that it was unwarranted, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. It couldn’t be easy to be reminded of such happy times from their past when he was trying so hard to get over her.
Evangeline smiled. “I would love to have seen her as a young girl. I’m sure she was adorable.”
“Oh, she was,” Shelley chimed in. “Such a sweet little girl, wasn’t she Amos?”
“Oh, so then she’d visited Rockville before?” Evangeline said. “When she was a young girl?” She was looking at Rick.
“Yes,” he said evenly. “She thought it would be the perfect location for my film and she was right.” Rick smiled and Kate was reminded of how charming he could be, even under the worst of circumstances. “I’m forever in her debt for finding such a perfect town.” His words were like an elixir to the townsfolk at the table. They exchanged proud looks and Shelley openly winked at him. The conversation quickly turned to the town and Kate breathed a sigh of relief. Rick had managed to deftly divert the conversation. Evangeline, however, was watching Rick closely with barely disguised curiosity. Kate wondered how much Evangeline knew about his little sister. She knew that the two had met several times over the years but she also knew that Rick and Sam were both intensely private people. She couldn’t imagine Rick sharing his sister’s secrets and she highly doubted that her friend would choose to confide in Evangeline, even if she had been on the verge of being her sister-in-law.
After dinner the party moved to the living room, where the guests enjoyed coffee and dessert. The group naturally divided as the night wore on. A few moved to the den to watch a movie while the rest divided themselves into groups. The older men sat down to a game of scrabble while new best buddies, Shelley and Glenda, sat in the corner and chatted like schoolgirls. Every once in a while Kate would hear a burst of giggles coming from their side of the room. She found Rick in the kitchen, leaning against the counter staring into space as he sipped his coffee.
“Are you okay?” she asked. He smiled and pulled her to him. He held her there with one arm. She couldn’t summon the energy to resist or pull away. She was tired of fighting their attraction. So instead she let herself do what her body was aching to do. She rested her head against his shoulder and snuggled up against his side. He lowered his head to nuzzle her ear and the side of her neck.
“Mmmm,” he murmured in her hair. “This feels nice.”
Kate tentatively reached out a hand and ran her fingers over the hard muscles under his shirt. She felt a surge of pleasure at his sudden intake of breath. He caught her hand with one of her own to still its movement. “Little minx,” he growled in her ear. Kate shivered and giggled in spite of herself. She tried to pull away but he held her tight.
“I should get back to my guests,” she protested.
She looked into his eyes and felt the air rush out of her lungs at the look she saw there. “I have to go.”
He released her at once but she had a hard time stepping away.
The rest of the night seemed to last an eternity as far as Kate was concerned. Rick disappeared into his room and Kate stayed up until the last of her guests went to bed.
She went around the downstairs, turning off lights and straightening up. She took her time about it, using the time alone to calm her nerves. She knew what lay in store for her and she knew there was no turning back. She was making the decision to enter into a casual relationship with this man – a decision that could only end in heartbreak for her. But did she even have a choice anymore? She asked herself. She could no longer deny it to herself. She had fallen in love. No matter how this ended, she was bound to lose her heart. Why not let herself enjoy this time with him while she had the chance?