‘Why not?’ she asked, her hands still wrapped around her Styrofoam cup. The band finished their song, and segued into a faster version of ‘White Christmas’. Dancers came out onto the stage.
‘I don’t know,’ Adam said. ‘Maybe I should have asked you. There’s a lot I don’t know about you.’ He paused for a second. ‘I’d like to know more.’
‘You would?’ It was her turn to be shocked. What happened to the guy who practically stalked off from her after giving her the best kiss of her life?
‘Why do you look so surprised?’ he asked.
‘I guess I didn’t think you’d be that interested in me.’ She stole his words, trying, and failing, to hide her smile.
‘What made you think that?’ He shook his head. ‘Was it the way I kissed you yesterday? Or the way I demanded you come and visit me in the cabin every morning? Or maybe it was the way I keep bumping into you accidentally. Yeah, I’m really not interested at all.’
She could feel her pulse drumming in her ears. This was completely unexpected. Welcome, though. ‘But you always seem so angry at me.’
‘It’s not you I’m angry at, it’s myself. I’m an idiot, and I’m an asshole, and I keep digging myself a hole I can’t climb out of. I’d really like to make it up to you.’
‘Make it up?’ she questioned.
‘Yeah, make up for being such an asshole. It was completely ungentlemanly of me to kiss you then ignore you. Especially after a kiss like that.’ He looked almost embarrassed, and completely adorable.
‘OK,’ she agreed, still wondering what he was getting at.
He blinked, like he was surprised it was that simple. What did he expect? Every time he’d shown her the slightest interest, she’d lapped it up like a hungry cat. Did he not realise how she felt every time he came close to her?
‘Will you come back to the cabin tomorrow morning?’ he asked her, the hope lighting up his face.
She bit her lip, looking over at Jonas. She could just about see the top of his head as he watched the show unfold in front of him. ‘I don’t know… there’s Jonas to look after.’
‘I’d say bring him down with you, but that would spoil the point of hiding the dog.’
‘Where is the dog, anyway?’ she asked him.
‘I’ve left him with Annie. Dad’ll take him back down to the cabin before you guys get back. The dog’s exhausted anyway, I took him out for a long walk this morning.’
She grinned at the thought of Adam taking the tiny ball of fur out in the wintry landscape. Seeing the two of them together would be enough to break hearts. A man with a puppy was only one step down from a man with a baby when it came to looking adorable.
‘I hope he’s not causing you too much trouble,’ Kitty said. ‘I really do appreciate your help with him.’
‘I’m kind of enjoying it,’ Adam told her. ‘I’ve been working on teaching him to sit and stay.’
‘Really?’ Kitty raised her eyebrows. ‘I’d like to see that.’
‘Come down to the cabin and I’ll show you tomorrow,’ Adam promised her. ‘And I’ll make you breakfast, too.’
There was a loud round of applause and whooping from the crowd as the dance recital came to an end. Jonas turned from his position on the bleachers and waved madly at Kitty. She waved back with her free han
d. ‘OK,’ she said, her body tingling at the thought of spending alone time with Adam. ‘I’ll come and see you in the cabin in the morning.’
17
Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none
– All’s Well That Ends Well
Later that evening the whole family, minus Adam, gathered around the polished mahogany table in the dining room for dinner. Mia had arrived home an hour earlier in a taxi, looking exhausted before she’d even walked through the door. Annie had slunk back into the kitchen as soon as she’d seen who it was, desperately trying to eke out the lentil casserole she’d made for Drake, while the rest of them would be satisfied with the beef stew she’d had simmering on the hob all day. ‘No red meat,’ she muttered to herself as she shuffled down the hallway. ‘She might as well be one of those vegetarians too.’
Dinner was an awkward affair, with Everett and Drake talking shop as Jonas tried desperately to get his mother’s attention. Though she’d listen to him, and smile in the right places, her attention never lasted for long.
‘Mom, did you hear what I said?’ Jonas asked her. ‘I was telling you about the parade. There was candy and everything.’