seat, along the frame, and down both arms of the front fork. “You put reflectors on it.”
“Safety first,” he said, reciting the words as though they were some kind of personal motto.
It wasn’t cute. It wasn’t.
“Right. Safety. Okay. Uh…you can just leave it there. That’s great, thanks. What do I owe you?”
“Nothing; Tim said you could pay him the next time you’re by.” He leaned her bike up against the house, beside the back door, then gave her sensor light a doubtful look. “You should really lock it up.”
“I know. I mean, I will, thank you.”
“Good. Then, uh, I guess I’ll leave you to it.” They’d just rounded the corner at the front porch when his footsteps slowed. “Do you want a ride on Saturday? Class is in the multipurpose room at the high school, nine to five.”
Ellie stuffed her hands into her pockets and exhaled a long, slow breath before dropping her chin to her chest. How could she have let herself get into this mess? And of all people, why did it have to be Poncherello who could help get her out?
“No, but thank you again,” she chuckled. “I’ll figure it out.”
“So I’ll save you a seat, then?” He cleared his throat quietly and shrugged. “Just need to make sure I have enough materials for everyone.”
Of course she’d be there. What other choice did she have, really?
“Yeah, I’ll be there.” And though she hated to admit that Gail was right, the truth was, she’d be the best damn student he’d ever had. Top of the class, go big or go home, play to win, and all that crap.
On the top step, she turned back to face him. “Thanks again for the help with my bike. You really didn’t have to do it.”
“You’re welcome. Thanks for dinner.”
“You said that already.” She lifted her foot to take a step, then stopped again. “Are you really moving back to Ontario?”
His left eyebrow lifted slightly. “That’s the plan.”
“Huh.” Nodding absently, she blinked back at him for a second. “Well, as happy as my bank account’s going to be about that, Nick and Jayne are really going to miss you.”
She’d just grabbed the doorknob when his voice stopped her.
“Not you, though?” There it was again—that barely there ripple of mirth in his voice that gave away his joke, even if his expression didn’t. “Not even a little bit?”
“Ha,” she snorted, but she couldn’t stop the smile as she shot him a look over her shoulder. “In your dreams—”
Holy mother of the sweet baby Jesus! If he hadn’t been standing in the glow of the porch light, she might have actually missed it, but there it was…there he was…his expression relaxed, the corners of his mouth tipped up a little, a slight flash of teeth, and that dimple…
Yowza.
Wait a second! What was she doing? She didn’t smile at cops, she didn’t make nice with them, and she sure as hell didn’t care if they left town or not. What she did care about was getting inside the house right that very second.
“G’night.” In one not-so-smooth move, she turned to go in, lost her grip on the doorknob, and slammed face-first into the closed door. “Oof!”
“What the— Are you okay?” By the time his foot hit the first step, Ellie’s hand was already up.
“Yeah, I-I’m fine.” With both hands now over her nose, which, thankfully, wasn’t bleeding, she nodded briskly as she desperately tried to control the tears that had sprung up. Ugh—taking a shot to the nose always made a person look like a wimp, and Ellie didn’t do wimp very well. “Guess I’m supposed to turn the doorknob first.”
“That’s generally how it works, yeah.” Why did he have to be standing right in front of her now? Why couldn’t he have just stayed on the bottom step? “Let’s have a look.”
“No, it’s…it’s fine.” He was way too close for her liking. Between rapid-fire blinks, she forced a smile, then realized he couldn’t see it anyway, with her hands covering her face like that. “Not the first time I’ve taken a hit to the nose, though, uh, every other time it came from a bat or a ball. Or an air bag.”
“You sure?” No smile, no dimple, just back to his usual straight face. Good.
“Y-yeah, yeah, it’s fine.” Taking the doorknob tight in her right hand, she cranked it around, pushed the door open, and forced a short laugh. “Look at that. Infinitely less painful when it’s open.”
He tipped his chin up a little