He got around to lifting his head. Eventually. She got around to opening her eyes. Eventually. They stared at each other like such a couple of shell-shocked teenagers that he had to smile. Eventually.
I didnt come here expecting that, he said.
I never thought you did.
I just came to make sure you were okay. Thats the truth.
I believe you, Andy.
Seems to me, chemistry that strong pops up out of nowhereits nothing you can trust, just asking for trouble.
I couldnt agree more.
Uh-huh. He zipped up his jacket, grinned at her. You can count on it. Ill be back.
Three
Maggie whisked the dinner plates into the dishwasher and sponged down the counters, but her gaze kept darting to the kitchen window. Predictably by the first of December, the sun had long fallen even this early in the evening. After two days of howling winds and incessant snow, the drifts swirled and curled in mystical shapes that looked like glazed icing in the moonlight. But her driveway was clearedand empty, except for her sisters car. Andy wasnt due for another hour, so there was no reason on earth for her to start looking for him this early.
She grabbed a dish towel to wipe her hands, half amused, half exasperated to realize how nervous she was. Men never made her nervous. Offhand, she couldnt think of much in life that had ever intimidated her...outside of the strange, unsettling nightmares prowling her sleep since the accident. But that problem had nothing to do with Andy.
She didnt normally volunteer a house tour to strangersmuch less expose her disastrously messy sleeping loft to a mans eyes. At the time...well, she hadnt known he was going to kiss her. Didnt know that kiss was going to knock her for six. But something had been kindling and simmering the two times shed been around him. And the mistakes Maggie had made with men in the past all had the same roots.
Most guys claimed to be comfortable around a strong woman, but they really werent. Someone looking for a vulnerable, traditional sweetie just wasnt going to find it in her. Shed been self-reliant and independent too long. These days, if there was even the tiniest hint of potential kindling, Maggie just believed in being frankly blunt about who she was. What you see is what you get. No faking it. Being nice just got in the wayif a guy was going to be scared off by her independence or messiness or anything else, better to know it and move on before either of them had a pile of hurtful emotions invested.
But Andy hadnt been scared off. At least not by anything shed shown him so far. And for Maggie, that was downright rattling. Men always had some sweet, macho protective thing to say about a woman alone living in such a remote location. They fretted about her safety.
Safety was a relative term, Maggie mused. Trussed and blindfolded, she could capably cope with a dead furnace in a blizzard or a wounded moose wandering in her backyard. Piece of cake. Danger never had been a common word in her vocabularyuntil meeting Andy, anyway. It struck her ironic humor buttons that something in those dark, sexy eyes made her feel distinctly unsafe.
And that was new and rattling, too.
Maggie, for Petes sake, I told you Id do the dishes. I was only gone for a minute! I didnt mean to leave you with all the work.
Maggie whirled around when her sister Joanna emerged from the bathroom. No big deal. The two of us didnt use enough dishes to take me more than two shakes.
But you made the dinner. And I really meant to help
So you can help next time. Although that would never happen, Maggie suspected. Growing up, the sisters had bickered like cats and dogs over stuff like this. Joanna was infamous for making the virtuous offer, but somehow always managed to be out of sight when it came time to do the dishes or the chore. But that was then, and this was now. I made a fresh pot of tearaspberry mint. You want a cup?
Maybe a short one. But I dont want to rush you on time. Whens the sheriff picking you up?
Not until seven. And I keep telling you, its no big thing. Andy just offered to take me car shopping. Maggie set a sturdy mug in front of her sister, feeling her heart catch just looking at Joannas face.
Any nerves about meeting Andy were backbumered. She was so worried about her sister that she could hardly think. Steve had died more than a year ago. God knew the two had been inseparably in love, but Maggie felt at an increasing loss for how to help Joanna move past her grief.
Her sister was five years older than she, and in Maggies view, the real beauty in the family. Now, though, Joannas long blond hair was lanky, her elegant features drawn, the huge almond-shaped green eyes deeply shadowed. Her slim white hands trembled even holding the mug of tea.
Maggie had always been the strong cookie of the pair. From the time her brother-in-law was diagnosed with cancer, shed naturally stepped in. Long before Steve died, shed had her sister over for dinner once a week, took her nephews all the time, stopped by the house whenever she could. But Steve had been gone a year now, and Joanna seemed more fragile instead of less. Increasingly everything seemed to throw her sister, from finances to leaky faucets to snowstorms. Joanna paced the floor at night, worrying about her two sons. She didnt sleep right, didnt eat right, didnt take care of herself.
Maggie could fix the stupid leaky faucets and sneakily pad Joannas bank account, but she didnt know how to fix her sister. The two may have fought ferociously growing up, but theyd also always been hopeless gigglers. Lately it was tougher than climbing a mountain to win a smile out of Joanna.
Hey, did I tell you how great Colins been to me? I dont know how many times hes been over since the accident. Shoveled my walk without asking, stacked my wood. Whats wrong with him? Maggie teased.
He always worshiped the ground you walked on. And youre terrific with both boys. I cant seem to get either one of them to talk to me... Joanna spilled a little tea. I dont seem to be doing anything right lately.
Maggie hustled for a cloth to wipe up the spill. Listen, you goose, youre doing fine. Quit being so hard on yourself. Do you remember either of us talking to Mom or Dad when we were teenagers? Theres just this stage where its hard to talk to a parent. But I do think you should get out more.
Mags, Im not ready to date anyone.
So dont date. But you could take up skiing, or aerobics... you love cards, maybe you could find a euchre club. Theres a dozen things you could do to get out, meet people again
Youve got ten times more courage than I do, Maggie. Im just not good with charging into things the way you do. Speaking of which...do you know this guy youre going out with tonight?
Andy? Nope. But being the sheriff, I think its a fairly safe bet he isnt a serial killer on the sly. And how well do you have to know someone to spend a couple hours car shopping with them? Maggie asked wryly.
I still dont know why you just didnt ask me. Id have taken you. Or you could have borrowed my car. You do so much for me all the time, Mags, and you never let me return the favor
Cripes, they were going down another long, mournful road. Come on, you, Maggie said humorously, I couldnt see turning down guy help. Not on this. What the two of us know about mechanics would fit in a thimble with room to spare.
Cripes, they were going down another long, mournful road. Come on, you, Maggie said humorously, I couldnt see turning down guy help. Not on this. What the two of us know about mechanics would fit in a thimble with room to spare.
Well, thats true. Clothes shoppingd be a lot more fun, Joanna admitted. For that matter, Christmas is coming and I havent even started that shopping yet.
Good. Neither have I. How about if we block off next Thursday morning and get a start on it together?
It took a while to get her sister on a more upbeat track. By the time she had Joanna bundled up and headed out the door, though, headlight beams were turning in her drive. Andy. And she hadnt had two seconds to brush her hair or yank on her good boots, much less slap on some lipstick.
Still, she stood freezing in the open doorway. Andy pulled up next to her sisters car and stepped out. The yard light didnt beam far enough for her to identify his vehicle, but it was something low and black instead of the car with the sheriffs logo. He stopped long enough to introduce himself to her sister and exchange a few words.
Before driving off, Joanna turned around to level her a look. Maggie knew That Look from their childhood. It meant shed neglected to tell her sister some critical tidbit of information...such as that her casual dont-sweat-it company for the evening was a priceless hunk, for example.
Which he was. He ambled toward the door, as lazy as a long, cool drink of something wicked, his boots crunching in the snow, his jacket open over a thick black sweater.
Her sisters car lights disappeared down the road, and then there was nothing but himand a wham-slam of magic that confounded Maggie. It was absolutely ridiculous for a practical, grounded, capable twenty-nine-year-old woman to feel bowled over by the look in a guys eyes. But there it was. She hadnt suddenly stopped worrying about Joanna; no problems in her job or life had instantly disappeared. But darn it, he was so darling she just wanted to sip him in.
His mouth kicked up a grin long before he reached her back porch. Those eyes of his were darker than a midnight sky. He gave the length of her a once-over, from the floppy socks to her jeans and navy angora sweater to her hair flying every which way. Maggie knew darn well there was nothing in her appearance to earn that sizzling spark.
Remembered anything yet that I need to arrest you for?
Sparks or no sparks, she had to laugh. I havent robbed any banks since the accidentbut thats all Im willing to swear to.
Uh-huh. That memory loss was the story you gave me last time. I was a little afraid youd extend that amnesia business to tonight, knowing how thrilled you were at the idea of car shopping.
If I didnt have to have transportation, nothing could talk me into domg this, she admitted. And I did think about cancelling. This is an awful thing to ask anyone to do, Andy.
As I remember it, I offered. Youre not putting me through anything I didnt volunteer for. And, speaking for myself, I think this is like toothpaste.
Shed just turned around to pull on her suede boots and grab her jacket and purse. Toothpaste?
Yeah. Theres just no point in getting all hot and heavy and involved with a woman, only to find out she squeezes the toothpaste tube from the top. I mean, where can you take a wild, immoral affair after that? You just know its going downhill.
Um...I take your point. I think. But Im not exactly sure how you got from toothpaste-tube-abusers to car shopping?
Car shopping with a woman, Andy informed her, gets all those down-and-dirty details out of the way right up front. If you go for the awkward first date, out-to-dinner thing, what do you ever learn? Nobodys honest. Both sides are too busy tiptoeing around each other, trying to be ultra nice.
I sure agree with that. First dates, youre just kind of stuck, being on your shaved and perfumed behavior, so to speak, Maggie replied with a chuckle.
Uh-huh. But if you do something like this, now... Andy thoughtfully scratched his chin. You find out what kind of car really seduces her. Like whether shes interested in looking under the hood or just goes for a showy exterior. Whether she wants to know all the safety features ahead, or thats just not a concern. How much power turns her onor off. Whether she likes a slow, steady acceleration or a fast, rough ride.
Whew. Maggie zipped up her jacket and propped her hands on her hips. That lazy, country boy drawl is really good, Gautier. For a minute there, I almost believed you were talking about cars.
I was, I was.
Uh-huh. And cats fly. For the record, I dont look under anybodys hood on a first date. On the other hand... Maggie threaded on gloves as she hiked past him. I think youve got a valid theory going. Id rather do this than the out-to-dinner thing any timefor your sake, really. If by some remote chance you can survive car shopping with me, the future probably stretches in front of us with limitless possibilities. At the very least, youll unquestionably earn hero status, sainthood, a couple medals for courage...
A drink when this is over?
That, too.
Well, hell. Lets go find you a chariot, maam, and get that little chore over with.
By the time they were belted in his dark car and winging down the road, Andy had conquered the urge to kiss her. Actually, the marvel wasnt that hed behaved himself. Hell, he always behaved himselfunless invited otherwise. But he wasnt expecting the power of that temptation. A divorce gave any man an instant Ph.D. in caution.
And he felt cautious with Maggie. The problem with fireworks was that they fizzled out so fast. A light show. Then phfft. So hed logically figured out that magical redhot sexual pull would settle down if he just saw her, spent some time with her again. Sizzle mattered. Sizzle was nicedeliriously nice, in her case. But Andy was wary of letting his hormones get in a dither before finding out if they had the kind of charge between them that counted.
That was the theory. A double-dose dither had turned out to be the reality. One look at those fading, vulnerable bruises and his first instinct was to pull her into his arms. One look at that soft red mouth connected directly to a hot wire in his groin. The way she cocked her chin, the swish of silken hair framing her face, the gutsy pride in the way she stood, the sparkle and devil in her eyes...hell, there was no one detail that heated his hormones to a bubbling simmer. It was just her. The whole package. No woman had tangled his nerves up like this in a long, long time. He couldnt stop wondering if shed take all that sparkle and devil and honesty with her under the sheets. Under his sheets.
Cars, he thought.
He needed to keep his mind on cars.
A lot of people out tonight, Maggie remarked.
Yeah. The early Christmas shopping crowd, Im guessing. His windshield wipers fretfully scraped a haphazard splash of snow. Main Street was well lit, but he could see pedestrians slip-and-sliding. The roads were icy slick and the temperature was pushing a mean subzero. Andy doubted most people would normally choose this season or time of day to car shop, but most people didnt see any accidents the way a cop did. Personally he thought it was an ideal time to test the mettle of any vehicle. So...are you ready to get down to brass tacks? Weve got three car dealerships in Silver Township. Probably help if youd give me a clue what youre looking for.