Jill appeared beside her, a vibrating laser beam already set on stun. She wore a slip dress that proved she had way more curves than Vicky and little hesitation in showing them off. “Your studly brother didn’t come with?”
“No. You know he’s not in town now. Stop trolling.”
Jill’s laugh made Vicky impulsively draw her into her arms. Jill hugged her back. “Hey, what’s this for?”
“I needed a hug.”
“You okay?” Jill stepped back. “We’ve been running around trying to get this place ready, and there hasn’t been much time to talk lately.”
Vicky smiled and wrapped an arm around Jill’s shoulders. She truly was the little sister she’d never had and she’d break the fingers of any man who ever hurt her. “I’m fine. You’re sure you can handle all this?”
Jill gave her a thumbs-up. “Under control, boss. Are you sure you have to go?”
“I have a whole wardrobe of bikinis that say yes.” Vicky grinned and stepped away. “Thanks for taking care of this. You’re the best.”
Jill nodded, her blue eyes surprisingly bright. “Look, you know I hate mush, but I wanted you to know that I appreciate your trying to stand in for my mom. You don’t have to do it, and you never give up even when I make you crazy. I love you, Vick.” She sighed heavily. “I promise not to do anything bad while you’re gone. Well, within reason.”
Vicky guffawed out a laugh and drew Jill into a hug. “You silly girl. I love you, too.
Jill edged back and glanced at her watch, a rare move for her party-all-the-time best friend. Time usually meant little to Jill. She reminded Vicky of how she’d been as a girl, and the parallels really made her nervous. The cops still foot-patrolled the water tower. Maybe because of her.
Probably because of her.
“Shouldn’t you be going? It’s getting late.”
Well, yeah, she had been about to head home, but why did it feel like Jill was hurrying her to leave? “I still have hours until—”
“There are new regulations. If you’re late to the airport, you never know what will happen with the security peeps.” Jill tugged on her arm. “You better hustle.”
Shaking her head, Vicky grinned. Maybe Jill really was that worried she’d miss her flight. How cute. “Fine, I’m outta here, brat. Be good.”
She rushed home to finish packing. She’d gotten a good start on it last night. Now if she could just find her white slip-on shoes, she’d be all set.
At a loss, she shimmied under her bed to see if they were there. Instead, she found an unsticky sticky note bearing familiar handwriting.
Hey babe, so sorry I couldn’t talk to you before I left. There’s a problem that can’t wait, and I didn’t want to wake you. I wore you out last night. Call me when you get up, okay?
And then the pièce de résistance—a smiley face. From Cory.
Her throat clogged and she rolled on her back, holding the note to her chest. This changed things. It wasn’t a declaration of love, far from it, but he’d tried to keep the lines of communication open. He hadn’t just ditched her as if nothing important had happened the night before.
Dammit, she needed sticky notes that actually had some sticky left. That’s why this one had ended up under the bed.
She got to her knees and glanced at her watch. The party for his parents had just started, and her flight was only a few hours away. Maybe she should just let sleeping moguls lie and deal with this when she got back. Perhaps by then she’d have come up with an idea of how to proceed.
She puttered around for a bit, making sure the plants were watered and the stove was off. Then when there was nothing left to do, she got her overstuffed carry-on bag and turned out all of the lights except the one in the living room. She gazed at the couch, remembering the night almost four weeks ago that Cory had appeared at her doorway with his insane plan. That had become her plan, then theirs. She’d told herself she was going to launch this all-out bid to seduce him, and instead she’d been seduced herself. The loss of control had been staggering—and freeing. He’d told her he had her, and maybe he did. Maybe he would, if she let him.
Sighing, she turned off the last light and headed to the front door. Her reluctance to leave didn’t make sense. Cory wasn’t coming to make some declaration. He wasn’t that sort of man. If she knew anything, she knew that much.
When the doorbell rang, she startled. Whoa, active fantasy life. Then it rang again and she blinked, wondering what twilight zone she’d tripped into.
She slapped on the porch light and grabbed the knob, a smile already curving her mouth. Could she have been wrong? Could Cory really be on the other side? Pulling the door open, she readied herself to launch into Cory’s arms—only to see the glowering face of her brother.