car with the man who’d broken her heart, and he blamed her for this. She checked her watch—almost five o’clock.
“Did they say how long they’d be?” Aiden asked.
“She warned me it might be a while.”
Aiden sank back in his seat, heaving a sigh. “Great.”
* * *
Aiden’s phone went dead. Playing Alto’s Adventure for two hours had been a waste of battery, but he knew he’d go crazy without something to do. Shortly after Sophie had gotten off the phone, she’d begun making some kind of list on her laptop.
Aiden texted his dad to tell him he was still in Piper’s Cove. He was excited about getting the roofing contract for an apartment complex, and they texted back and forth for a while.
Then he checked in with Ross via text, updating him on his situation and assuring him he’d be back in time for the ESTA ceremony. Surely the airport would open in time. He thought about texting Tiffany to kill time, but that felt weird with Sophie only inches away. Anyway, what if Tiffany called instead of answering his text? Awkward. He hadn’t exactly told her he was riding out the storm with his ex-girlfriend.
He hadn’t exactly told Tiffany about Sophie at all. He hadn’t known the woman that long, and he wasn’t in the habit of opening up to someone he was only casually dating. He didn’t want to think about Tiffany right now.
Bright lights shone through the rivulets of water running down the windshield. It appeared help might be arriving. He could only hope.
“Finally.” Sophie echoed his thoughts as she closed her laptop and gathered her things.
The lights got brighter and closer. Aiden lowered the window enough to make eye contact with a fiftyish policeman with a military haircut. Deep frown lines creased the man’s face, indicating a perpetual scowl.
“Well, what are you waiting for?” He peered around Aiden to Sophie. “She can ride up front.”
“Yes, sir.” Aiden raised the window and handed Sophie the keys.
They exited the SUV and dashed to the other vehicle. By the time Aiden got inside he was soaking wet. He hadn’t brought a raincoat to Piper’s Cove, as he’d expected to be home before the storm hit.
He buckled up and dried his face with the damp tail of his T-shirt.
“Address?” The officer’s gravelly voice indicated the consumption of many packs of cigarettes.
Sophie rattled off the address.
The officer scowled at Aiden in the rearview mirror. “This is a bad night to be out. You might exercise some common sense next time we have a hurricane moving through the area.”
Aiden frowned at the back of Sophie’s head. “We appreciate the ride.”
“There are people out there with real emergencies, you know. Woman had a chair come through a window and knock her out cold. Fire started inside a garage, and a little boy is on his way to the ER. And that’s to say nothing of the everyday emergencies like heart attacks and strokes.” He mumbled something, but Aiden only caught the words stupidity and common sense.
Sophie was apparently too busy on her phone to respond.
“Sounds like you’ve had a rough night,” Aiden said.
“You don’t know the half of it.” The officer kept up a running monologue, and he had nothing positive to say.
Of all the cops in Piper’s Cove, they’d had to get this one. Feeling tenser by the moment, he tuned out the man. What a long afternoon. Aiden tried to feel sorry for Sophie, who was in for some expensive car repairs. But she’d been the one who’d insisted on this ill-conceived adventure.
As soon as they pulled into the drive, Aiden unbuckled his belt, as relieved to escape the officer as he was to be back at the house.
“Do everyone a favor and stay put till the storm’s over,” the officer growled.
“Yes, sir.” He ground out a thank-you, then he dashed through the rain, following Sophie up the porch steps and into the house.
* * *
Sophie dried the last plate and set it in the cabinet. The kitchen was now sparkling clean—at least she thought it was. Hard to tell when she was working by candlelight. She dried her hands on the towel. She’d officially run out of ways to occupy herself.
Aiden was in the living room, working a crossword puzzle by candlelight. He’d been silent since that officer had dropped them off.
What in the world were they going to do for the rest of the night?
Unable to stall any longer, she returned to the living room and sat across from him