His eyes were warm and friendly, so damned attractive in the way they looked direct and deep into hers. she felt that little click again, sharper this time.
"Go away, Nathan."
"Okay." Before either of them could think about it, he dipped his head and touched his lips lightly to hers. Then touched them there again, a little longer, a little more firmly. Warmer than he'd expected, he thought, and more arousing, as she'd kept her eyes open and unblinking on his throughout. "You shivered," he said quietly.
"No, I didn't."
He skimmed his thumb over her jawline before he dropped his hands. "Well, one of us did."
,And she was mortally afraid she would do so again. "You're not going away."
"I guess not-at least not the way you mean." He pressed his lips to her forehead this time. she didn't shiver, but her heart lurched. "No, definitely not the way you mean."
When he left her, she turned to the window, hurriedly unfastening the shade to throw it up and the window behind it. she wanted air, air to cool her blood and clear her mind. Even as she gulped it in, she saw the figure standing near the edge of the dune swale with the wind breezing through his hair, fluttering his shirt.
Alone, as her father was always alone, with every person who would reach out closed off behind that thin, invisible wall of his own making. With a vicious pull, she slammed the window shut again, shot the shade down.
Damn it, she wasn't her father. she wasn't her mother. she was herself And maybe that was why there were times when she felt as if she was no one at all.
iffwas whistling again. Nathan tried to identify the tune as he tackled his French toast at the breakfast counter, but this one eluded him. He could only assume Gaff had wandered too deep into country-western territory for Nathan's limited education to follow.
The man was certainly a cheerful worker, Nathan mused. And apparently he could fix anything. Nathan was certain it had taken absolute faith for Brian to ask Gaff to take apart the restaurant's dishwasher in the middle of the breakfast shift.
Now Brian was frying and grilling and stirring, Giff was whistling and tinkering with dishwasher guts, and Nathan was downing a second helping of golden French toast and apple chutney.
He couldn't remember when he'd ever enjoyed a meal more.
"How's it coming, GifP" Brian stepped around Giff to set a completed order under the warmer.
"Fair to middlin'."
"You don't get that thing up and running by end of shift, Nate here's going to be washing those dishes by hand."
"I am?" Nathan swallowed the next bite. "I only used one."
"House rules. You eat in the kitchen, you pick up the slack. Right, Giff)
"Yep. Don't think it's going to come to that, though. I'll get her."
He glanced over as Lexy swung through the door. "Yep," he said with a grin, "I'll get her, in my own time."
she spared him a sidelong flick of lashes, annoyed that he managed to look so cute in a silly baseball cap and grubby T-shirt. "Two more specials, one with ham, one with bacon. Two eggs over light, bacon, side of grits, wheat toast. Giff, keep your big feet out of the way," she complained, stepping around them to pick up her orders under the warmer.
Gaff's grin was already spreading wide as she swung out the door again. "That sister of yours is the prettiest damn thing, Bri."
"So you say, Giff." Brian cracked two eggs, slid them into a skillet.
"she's crazy about me."
"I could tell. The way she bubbled over when she saw you was embarrassing."
Giff snorted, tapped the handle of his screwdriver against his palm. "That's just her way. she wants a man sniffing after her like a puppy, gets her nose up in the air when you don't. she'll come around. You just got to understand how a particular female works, is all."
"Who the hell understands how any females work?" Brian gestured with his spatula at Nathan. "Do you understand, Nate?"
Nathan contemplated the next bite of French toast, watched the syrup drip lazily. "No," he decided. "No, I can't say that I do. And I've done considerable studying on the subject. You could even say I've dedicated a small portion of my life to it, with mixed results."
"It's not a matter of how they all work." Patiently Giff began replacing screws. "You gotta focus in on the one. It's like an engine. One don't necessarily run the same as another, even if they're the same make and model. They've just got their particular quirks. Now, Alexa . .
He trailed off, carefully sending another screw home, selecting the next. "she's almost too pretty for her own good. she thinks about that a lot, worries over it."
"she's got enough glop on her bathroom counter to paint up a Vegas chorus line," Brian put in.