‘Can we talk somewhere?’
‘What about?’ Her hackles rose on the back of her neck. She wanted to say something snarky, but this was Adam Klein.
Adam bloody Klein. She should be fangirling at his feet or something.
His face twisted, as though he was thinking something through. ‘I guess here will do,’ he said. ‘I know Mia and Everett are out, I asked Annie. And my dad’s visiting my mom in hospital, so nobody will interrupt us.’
She glanced back at Jonas’s door. ‘If we keep our voices down, maybe we won’t wake the kid up either.’
For the first time since she’d met him, he unleashed a smile on her. And boy, was it glorious. One of those all-American, handsome grins that made you weak at the knees.
Or they did if you were into that kind of thing. Which Kitty wasn’t. Not at all.
‘I owe you an apology,’ Adam said, reaching out to lean casually on the wall beside her. ‘I said some things I shouldn’t have, and I definitely said them in a way I shouldn’t have. I’m sorry.’
Well this was unexpected. Kitty couldn’t think of a single word to say in response. It was as though somebody had taken her brain and replaced it with a giant ball of cotton.
‘So will you forgive me?’ Adam prompted.
Kitty’s eyes felt as wide as a ten-ton truck. ‘OK?’
‘Is that an “OK, I forgive you” or “OK, I’ll say anything you want if you’ll just leave me alone because you scare the shit out of me”?’ Adam asked.
‘Um, a bit of both, probably.’
He laughed, and it animated his whole face, crinkling the skin between his eyes, and caus
ing his cheeks to rise up. He was horribly handsome. No, not horribly, just handsome. God only knew how much better he looked without the overgrown beard.
‘I guess I’ll take it, then.’ He pushed himself off the wall, giving Kitty the space she didn’t realise she needed. Her body sagged with relief. ‘I really am sorry, I’m not normally such an asshole, at least I never used to be. I promise that next time I see you, I won’t snap your head off. Goodnight, Kitty.’
There was going to be a next time? Oh boy. Kitty wasn’t sure whether that thought excited or terrified her.
A bit of both, probably.
8
I desire to hear her speak again,
and feast upon her eyes?
– Measure for Measure
From his vantage point inside the treeline, Adam stopped to catch his breath as he watched Everett climb into the black sports utility vehicle, holding his phone to his ear as though it was some kind of body part. Waving absent-mindedly at his son who was standing beside Annie Drewer, Everett barely even looked at Jonas, too busy shouting orders into his mouthpiece to notice his son’s expression of disappointment.
That’s when Kitty came running out, coming to a stop where Jonas was standing, looking sad. Heading back towards the boy, she scooped him up into her arms, tickling his sides and blowing raspberries on his neck.
Adam found himself smiling when he heard his nephew’s high-pitched giggles – his hysteria was just on the right side of humour. It teetered on the edge, threatening to become tearful, but the girl whispered in Jonas’s ear, bringing another smile to his face.
The next moment she looked up, her eyes scanning the treeline, and Adam found himself stepping back, as if to avoid her gaze. He couldn’t help but stare at her sculpted cheeks and full lips, admiring the way her ice-blue eyes flashed. She sparkled like a jewel beneath the cold winter sun. He tried to swallow down the flash of desire that shot through his body. It was just the abstinence talking, after all.
‘Are you ready, Kitty?’ Everett shouted from the back seat of the Escalade, pulling his cell phone from his ear long enough to show his displeasure. ‘We need to leave now. I’ve a plane to catch.’
Kitty ran to the car, a flustered expression on her face, while Everett shut the window, tinted glass obscuring his face.
The engine sparked to life, growling like a hungry lion, and Kitty pulled the car away slowly. Adam watched them turn the corner onto the main road, following their progress until they disappeared around the bend, the low hum slowly dissipating to nothing.
He was about to restart his run when he heard Annie’s shout. ‘You can come out now.’