“Good luck.”
She needed it—with both of them. “Thanks.”
“You didn’t see that car today, did you?”
“Not that I noticed. Don’t worry about it, Trent, I’m sure it was just a weird coincidence. Those things happen.”
“Are your doors all locked now?”
“Every door and window,” she assured him. “I checked.”
“You aren’t nervous about being there alone?”
“No,” she answered honestly, still a bit embarrassed that she’d caused such a fuss last night—even though she couldn’t regret how the night had ended. “If I hear any noises in the backyard tonight, I’ll know it’s Bozo.”
“If you hear anything you can’t explain, you get on the phone, you hear? Call the cops and call me. Don’t worry about being embarrassed.”
Unsurprised by this latest demonstration of his mind-reading ability, she merely said, “If I think there’s any reason to call for help, I will. I’m not stupid, Trent.”
“I know.” He sounded suddenly wry. “You’re probably one of the most independent and self-sufficient people I’ve ever met.”
The words pleased her even as they puzzled her. He hadn’t made them sound like a compliment, exactly. “Um—thank you. I guess.”
“I’d better let you get some sleep. Call if you need me.”
“I will. Good night, Tr—” A dial tone cut off her words.
Making a sound of frustration, Annie slammed the phone down and fisted both hands in her hair. The man was driving her insane. When she wasn’t thinking about making love with him, she was fantasizing about strangling him. She simply didn’t understand his erratic mood swings, or his unpredictable behavior.
He had rushed to protect her last night when he’d thought she needed him. He’d made love to her so beautifully, so perfectly last night. He’d obviously spent hours building a safe place for the stray dog she had taken in. And then he’d practically hung up on her after calling to make sure she felt safe tonight. He was just strange, she told herself.
But she’d gone and fallen in love with him, anyway.
She sank back into the rocking chair as the word echoed in her mind. Love. Oh no, surely not.
But she knew herself well enough to recognize the truth when it slapped her in the face. After running away from a father who wanted to control her and a fiancé who wanted to use her, she had fallen in love with a man who completely confused her.
Just what kind of masochist was she?
BY TUESDAY EVENING, Annie was about ready to track Trent down and hit him with one of his two-by-fours—just to get his attention. He couldn’t have held her more effectively at a distance if he’d built a wall around himself. Oh, he was polite enough—for Trent. He’d called both of the last two evenings to make sure she was safely locked in her house before bedtime, though he hadn’t lingered long on the phone. He’d left a pleasantly worded note to greet her when she’d arrived at his house to clean this morning, explaining that he wanted to get an early start at her place. He’d accomplished an incredible amount of work today, but he’d left before she’d gotten home. He’d even built a doghouse for Bozo.
But she hadn’t seen him, not even in passing, since they had fallen asleep in her bed very early Saturday morning. He hadn’t even mentioned what had passed between them.
It was obvious to her that he had retreated in panic. But just how much space should she give him before she went after him? Because she had no intention of letting him get away completely—at least not this easily. The new Annie Stewart was willing to fight for what she wanted. And she wanted Trent McBride. He wanted her, too—if the mule-headed man would only admit it.
When her phone rang just after she walked into the house, she answered it eagerly. “Hello?”
She had hoped it would be Trent. She had never expected it to be his mother.
“Annie, it’s Bobbie McBride.”
It said a lot about Annie’s emotional state that her first thought was that something was wrong with Bobbie’s son. “Mrs. McBride—is there something I can do for you?”
“I hope so. The pianist at my church fell and broke her leg this morning. She’s going to need surgery in the morning.”
Relieved that the call wasn’t about Trent, Annie murmured, “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“It’s a very bad time for this to happen, of course, with Easter only a few days away.”