There he went again, thinking things he shouldn’t. She was just dumped. A person didn’t simply bounce back from that in a matter of days, even if the guy was obviously an idiot to let Regina go.
When Fern had mentioned a date, jealousy had bubbled up, and he’d mentally begun compiling a list of every bachelor in town who might’ve asked her out, along with what dirt he had on them. Not that he’d use it.
Most likely.
Unless he needed to.
He grumbled and leaned back in his chair. As if he hadn’t already been having enough irrational thoughts, Fern had added the remark about how Regina might not come back, and that’d fed a worry he didn’t realize he had. “This is ridiculous.”
The receptionist glanced up from her desk. “What is, boss?”
This town. His strong feelings for a woman he hardly knew. The fact that he suddenly wanted to blockade the roads out of here. He was losing his mind. “Nothing.”
“This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with the pretty woman you were teaching to shoot baskets last night, would it?”
“You too?” he asked. Usually Sarah remained neutral when it came to gossip. While he was sure she knew it all, she kept it away from work.
“All’s I’m saying is that you seemed happier this morning than you have in a long time. And if a certain brunette is responsible, maybe you should let yourself enjoy it.”
“And maybe the mistletoe hung all around town is going to everyone’s head. Did you know the plant’s a parasite that feeds on other plants? Doesn’t seem so romantic now, does it?”
Sarah simply smiled and began to hum a Christmas tune under her breath. With a sigh, Emmett dialed his sister and attempted to prepare himself for yet another woman in his life who’d inevitably tell him he should ask out Regina before he went and lost his chance.
Chapter Six
Regina couldn’t remember the last time she’d read a book in just two days. Most of the time she had far too much to do, but after spending most of her Monday with Callie, she now had a handful of outfits and a couple of paperbacks she’d picked up at the cute bookstore on Main. The nice thing about bookstores was how universal they were. You could almost always find a great mix of books.
Clothing stores were a bit trickier. Being on the tall side meant her legs and arms were longer than most. Callie’s clothes had barely fit, while still being on the too-short side, and apparently the clothing stores in town didn’t even have pants or sleeves long enough for Callie. Because the outfits also needed to fight off the cold, Callie had concluded the best—and only option, really—would be the sporting goods shop.
Regina was now the reluctantly proud owner of flannel and fishing logo shirts that she normally wouldn’t be caught dead in. At least they were comfy, if not terribly stylish. Perfect for lounging around and reading—she’d even started the last two mornings with a relaxing bath. While a hint of anxious energy still hung in the background, for the most part, it’d been extremely rejuvenating.
The rotary phone on the side table rang, and she eyed it suspiciously. Yesterday her cell phone had started buzzing with a stream of never-ending texts and messages. Everyone from friends and fam
ily to her coworkers who were just hearing the news wanted to know why and how and what’d happened after Steve said I don’t. In the mix was a text from Steve, saying he was sorry, and that when she was ready, they needed to talk. A big no thanks to that. She’d sent a text to her parents telling them she was safe and enjoying a getaway of her own, just in case they bothered worrying about her between yachting and dining on Italian cuisine, and then turned off her phone.
The ringing continued, past when voice mail would usually pick up, and Regina considered not answering. It’s probably just Fern being nosy about why I haven’t come out of my room except to grab breakfast to go.
Finally, she lifted the receiver off its cradle, idly thinking she hadn’t handled a phone this old or bulky in years. “Hello?”
“Regina, hey.” Emmett’s voice danced along her nerve endings, sending them into a tizzy, and now she was mad she hadn’t picked up sooner. She’d gone far too long without hearing his voice.
Whoa. It’s only been two days. Plus a half.
“Regina?”
Oops. She supposed she needed to make her mouth work, which was trickier than expected after two days spent in near silence. “I’m here. Not doing anything illegal, either, in case you were wondering.”
“I’m always wondering,” he said with a soft laugh, and butterflies stirred to life. While she told herself it was too soon to experience the floaty sensation overtaking her, it didn’t stop it from happening, and she wondered if she should simply enjoy knowing that she could actually feel that away again. That her failed nuptials hadn’t killed her ability to experience flutters.
Come to think of it, she couldn’t remember the last time Steve left her with happy tingles. Since thinking about him would be a downer, she focused on the guy on the other end of the line. “Well, I haven’t left my room in hours so, even if I had been getting into trouble, it’s not in your jurisdiction.”
“Wrong. Your room is in my jurisdiction.”
A tendril of heat unfurled in her chest, and he cleared his throat. “Anyway, I was just calling to check in. Callie said you two had fun the other day.”
“We did. We both got the giggles at my limited clothing options, and I’m putting it out there right now that I’m going to look mostly ridiculous for the duration of my stay, although I guess getting frostbite would be more ridiculous, if only slightly so.”
Regina might’ve tried prying out a little more information about Emmett, but Callie wasn’t spilling and instead turned the questions on her, which made her clam up. With overly personal questions off the table, they focused on shopping, and it’d been her most fun shopping trip ever. If Regina were going to be here longer than a couple of weeks, she could see herself becoming good friends with Callie.