“I think we do.”
That’s what she was afraid he’d say. She took a seat on the edge of the leather sofa, while Ian stayed by the door, arms folded, leaving miles of distance between them. As she waited for the inevitable “it’s not me, it’s you” litany, she struggled to keep from tugging at her neckline.
Wearing the flannel had been a mistake. That they both knew she’d slept in the shirt left her feeling more exposed than the wide-open collar. Exposed, foolish and a thousand other adjectives. Didn’t matter that Ian had yet to look her in the eye, choosing instead to focus on a spot on the floor; she still felt naked.
“I owe you an apology,” he said.
“No, you don’t.” Please don’t, she added silently. Apologizing meant he regretted kissing her, and she didn’t want to hear the rejection out loud. No matter how confused her thoughts, she needed to believe he’d wanted her, even if only for a moment. “You kissed me and I kissed you back. End of story.”
Well, the end except for the fact that her skin still burned where his lips had touched her, and that staring at him this morning, she ached for him to kiss her again.
He lifted his eyes. Chloe immediately wished he’d go back to staring at the floor. “I had no right—”
She couldn’t do this. Couldn’t sit and listen to his excuses. “Look, we’re both adults.” This time, she held up her hand. “Last night was...We got caught up in the atmosphere after a stressful day. It happens. There’s no need to make a federal case out of it.” Considering how her insides were trembling while she spoke, she applauded herself for sounding so mature.
“Are you sure? I don’t want things to be awkward between us.”
“They’ll only be awkward if you keep apologizing for something you don’t need to apologize for.” Or that she wanted to hear him apologize for. Hearing the note of relief in his voice was hard enough.
Besides, she realized there was some truth to her statement. Between their conversations and the storm, yesterday had been an emotionally draining day. They probably did overreact to the romantic atmosphere. Things between them would be much different now that the sun was out.
If he would stop studying her, that is. With her hand clutching at her open neckline to cover herself, she rose and walked to the window. On the other side of the glass, a sparrow hopped from shrub to icy shrub. Chloe watched, grateful for a distraction. “Believe me,” she told Ian, “if you needed to apologize, you’d know. You’d be wearing a cup of coffee.”
There was no missing the relief in his chuckle. “Lucky me, then, since I don’t have a spare shirt.”
Before she could blink, he’d joined her at the window. Leaning on the sill, he stretched his long legs in front of him. “Far as I know, only the cars in the parking lot are stuck here. The rest of the street should be fine.”
Chloe frowned. “What does that mean? You planning to buy someone’s car?”
“Nothing that drastic, but I was thinking there’s got to be a train station within a town or two. I could walk up to one of the neighbors. See if they’d be willing to drive you there.”
So he could ship her back to New York. “You want me to leave?” She was surprised by how much the suggestion hurt. She’d rather have the apology.
“This was supposed to be a one-day trip. I’ve already derailed your weekend. There’s no need for you to miss work, too.”
“I appreciate you thinking of my career.”
“And your friend’s wedding. We’re assuming they’ll have the tree cleared in twenty-four hours. Could take longer. Don’t you have maid of honor duties to do?”
Yes, she did, and his arguments made sense. There was absolutely no reason to stay if she could find a way back to the city. Better yet, he was offering her a way to escape the romantic fishbowl they’d found themselves in. Seeing how the sun was shining and his nearness still ignited a longing sensation in her chest, heading home might be a good idea.
Except...in laying out his argument, he’d left out a very important reason, perhaps the most compelling of all. “Is this what you want?” she asked. “Do you want me to go back to the city?”
“You’ve long since paid me back for the purse snatching.”
She’d forgotten that’s how the trip began. At some point between New York and this morning—the moment she’d slid into the passenger seat of his car, most likely—obligation had stopped playing a role. “Maybe I want to see this trip to a successful conclusion.”
“What about your friend the bride?”
“Delilah? She’ll be fine. So, if you’d like me to stay, I will.”
If Chloe hadn’t been holding her breath, waiting for his response, Ian’s slow smile would have taken it away. “I’d like that,” he said in his sandpaper whisper.
Her heart did a little victory dance. “Good.”
Turned out Delilah wasn’t fine with the decision. “What do you mean you’re stuck in Pennsylvania?”
“Long story.” Chloe took a few steps away from the building. With the storm over, she’d discovered she could get a faint cell signal by standing on the back patio, and so she’d called to update her friend. “I’m here to give Ian moral support.”
“The guy from the coffee shop? Are you nuts? You barely know him.”
And yet Chloe felt as if she’d known him forever. “I know him better than you think,” she said aloud.
“Seriously? Three days ago you thought he was an unemployed slacker.”
Only three days? Wow, it seemed so much longer. “Since then I’ve learned a great deal more about him.”
On the other end of the line, Delilah sighed. “You’ve done some crazy things, Chloe, but this...? Going away for the weekend with the man?”
“We planned on it being a day trip. Just long enough to drive to the state university and back.”
“Awful long way to go for a day trip.”
“He wanted to visit his son. They’ve been estranged for years, and this was the first time they would meet in person. I thought he could use the support.”
She chewed her lower lip and waited. Delilah knew enough about her past that she didn’t have to say much more. “Does he appreciate the gesture?” her friend asked after a moment.
Chloe thought about the smile she and Ian had shared in the library. “I believe he does.
“Look, I know what I said the other day, but he’s not at all the guy I thought he was. In fact, he’s very...” Sexy. Funny. Incredible. “He’s nice.”
“You like him then.”
“Of course I like him. I just told you he’s a nice guy. Why else would I agree to take an eight-hour car ride with the man?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Nothing romantic is going on. Ian’s not—that is, neither of us are interested in romance.”
“Never stopped you from falling before,” Delilah replied. “In fact, isn’t ‘disinterested’ a job requirement?”
“Very funny.” Just once she wished her friends didn’t pay such close attention to her behavior. “You’re as bad as La-roo, you know that?”
“We try.”
“In this you can stop trying. I can guarantee nothing’s going to happen.” Ian had made it quite clear. “You can pass the message along to Larissa, too. I don’t need her calling and gushing about some potential romance that isn’t.”
“I will, if I can reach her. She hasn’t answered her phone all weekend, either. Maybe she and Tom got stuck in the storm, too.”
“Either that or the two of them are spending the weekend reading the hotel brochure for the thousandth time. Or making little doohickeys to give away to the wedding guests. Did I mention I’m grateful you don’t worry about those kinds of details?”
“Right now the only detail I’m worried about is whether I’ll have a maid of honor. Promise me you won’t run off to Hawaii with your new boyfriend until after the ceremony, please?”
“I promise,” Chloe replied, refusing to comment on Del’s using the word boyfriend. “Besides, I spent way too much money on that dress not to walk down the aisle.”
A few minutes later, she clicked off the phone with a sigh. Something Del had said disturbed her. Not when she called Ian her boyfriend—that was typical teasing—but earlier. That’s never stopped you before.
“Ow!” An object smacked her head. Looking up, she saw that pieces of ice were falling from the tree. All around her tiny chunks were melting on the patio. Funny how quickly things could thaw. By evening, much of the ice would be gone. Already, the same frozen crust that she’d had to jam her heel into yesterday to cross had turned to slush.
Voices sounded from the driveway. Picking her way across the parking lot, she found a circle of male guests staring at the tree in the road, pointing out other large branches that littered the area. It was easy to find Ian in the group. He was the most masterful figure there. How on earth did she ever think him a slacker?
One of the men said something, causing him to laugh. The throaty sound reached her insides despite the distance, lodging in the center of her chest like a warm fuzzy ball.