Finally Kelsey appeared behind Fee, kissed the top of her little blond head, and then came through the door, staying within arm’s reach of the knob. “Once again, you win. So make it fast, because I have nothing to say.”
Trip extended the bouquet toward her. He watched her brow furrow with concern when she noticed his bruised knuckles, but she quickly wiped her expression clean and tossed the flowers on the porch swing.
“Princess—”
“Oh, so you’re back to princess, now? Guess Boomerang got boring.” She looked away, nose tipped upward.
He deserved that, but he didn’t like it. “Kelsey, please stop. Just look at me for two minutes.”
To his surprise, she snapped her gaze to meet his, her tawny eyes looking as gray as the thickest ice on any cornice he’d ever skied.
It seemed the most natural thing in the world to reach out to touch her, yet unlike every other time, today she recoiled. He sighed. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you got caught in the middle between my brother and me. I should’ve done a better job of protecting you. Should’ve warned you as soon as I knew he was in town. I thought I had it under control.”
“Yes, by making sure your entire family thought of me as some kind of joke, or bimbo, or both. Thanks for that awesome protection.”
She’d almost managed the entire sentence without her voice cracking, but he heard it waver, which made him want to gather her up in his arms and whisper something soothing in her ear. Only her serious back-off vibes kept him from trying.
“Deb caught me off guard with her questions. I wasn’t thinking straight with everything happening at the hospital. I’m really sorry, except at least now you know to stay away from Mason so he can’t hurt you again.”
Kelsey laughed in his face. “Mason can’t hurt me? That’s rich!”
“What’s with the sarcasm?”
“He didn’t hurt me, Trip. You did. All Mason did was ask me out after learning you didn’t care about me. You, on the other hand, have been using me for weeks while joking about me behind my back.”
“Is that what he’s trying to make you believe?” Chaotic thoughts and a touch of panic danced through his mind wearing sharp heels. “Kelsey, please stay away from Mason. He’s not a good person. He’s not trustworthy.”
“Unlike you?”
“Damn right, unlike me.” Trip edged closer to her, determined to bust through the invisible wall she’d constructed, and tipped her chin up with his forefingers. He stared directly into her eyes while unfamiliar feelings and awkward words forced their way out of his mouth. “Look at me. I’m sick about the fact that you got hurt last night. I hate that what happened made you think for one second that I don’t care about you. Nothing is further from the truth.” He stroked her jaw with his thumb, like he was calming a skittish horse. “I care very much about you and how you feel. If you’d just take a deep breath and remember everything we’ve done and said to each other these past several weeks, you’ll believe me.”
And then, because he was only inches from her mouth and couldn’t help himself, he kissed her. Instead of kissing him back like always, she pushed away from him and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, which wrung out a little corner of his heart. “Don’t kiss me again. I told you already—whatever this was, it’s over. So is this conversation.”
“Hang on.” He rubbed his temple as he glanced around, groping for the right words. “Can’t we just rewind a week or two and start over? Especially now that you know Mason’s not going to be your future husband.”
“Oh, really? How do I know that? Because you say so? Because you’ve got some conspiracy theory drummed up instead of considering that maybe he actually likes me for who I am? That maybe, unlike you, he sees me as more than a friend with benefits?”
Whether it was her screwed-up thoughts, the bright sun, or the remnants of alcohol still swimming in his veins that had his body flashing hot and cold, he couldn’t quite say. He wiped his forehead with his shirtsleeve and tried to slow his heart rate.
“I sure hope you’re saying all this just to get my goat, because if you’re actually considering going out with my brother after the things I’ve told you about him—past and present—well, I’m just . . . I’m . . .” When he couldn’t think of something better to say, he finished with, “That’s just not going to happen, I can promise you that much.”