wore us both out.”
“What would you have done?” she asked.
His gaze didn’t waver from the road. “I would’ve allowed them to play quietly in their room until they’d tired themselves out.”
Quietly? He had to be joking. Wynn seemed to have conveniently forgotten that during the short time they were on their own, Zoe and Zara had gotten into his overnight bag. Thanks to their creative use of his personal things, the goldfish now had a bluish tint. The two Yorkies were nearly hairless. She could argue that because the girls considered themselves free, they didn’t see anything wrong with opening his bag. The lack of boundaries created confusion and misunderstanding.
“Twins are not the norm,” he challenged. “They encourage ill behavior in each other.”
“However, before Zelda read your book, they were reasonably well-behaved children.”
“Is that a fact?” He sounded as though he didn’t believe her.
“Yes,” she said swiftly. “Zoe and Zara were happy and respectful and kind. Some would even go so far as to say they were well-adjusted. Now they constantly demand their own way. They’re unreasonable, selfish and difficult.” She was only getting started and dragged in another breath. “Furthermore, it used to be a joy to spend time with them and now it’s a chore. And if you must know, I blame you and that blasted book of yours.” There, she’d said it.
A stark silence followed.
“You don’t mince words, do you?”
“No...”
“I respect that. I wholeheartedly disagree, but I respect your right to state your opinion.”
The tension in the car had just increased by about a thousand degrees.
“After this weekend, you still disagree?” She was astonished he’d actually said that, but then she supposed his ego was on the line.
“I’m not interested in arguing with you, Katherine.”
She didn’t want to argue with him, either. Still, she’d hoped the twins would convince him that while his theories might look good on paper, in reality they didn’t work.
After Wynn exited the freeway, it was only a few short blocks to Blossom Street and the parking garage beneath their building. Wynn pulled into his assigned slot and turned off the engine.
Neither moved.
K.O. feared that the minute she opened the car door, it would be over, and she didn’t want their relationship to end, not like this. Not now, with Christmas only nine days away.
She tried again. “I know we don’t see eye to eye on everything—”
“No, we don’t,” he interrupted. “In many cases, it doesn’t matter, but when it comes to my work, my livelihood, it does. Not only do you not accept my theories, you think they’re ludicrous.”
She opened her mouth to defend herself, then realized he was right. That was exactly what she thought.
“You’ve seen evidence that appears to contradict them and, therefore, you discount the years of research I’ve done in my field. The fact is, you don’t respect my work.”
Feeling wretched, she hung her head.
“I expected there to be areas in which we disagree, Katherine, but this is more than I can deal with. I’m sorry, but I think it would be best if we didn’t see each other again.”
If that was truly how he felt, then there was nothing left to say.
“I appreciate that you’ve been honest with me,” he continued. “I’m sorry, Katherine—I know we both would’ve liked this to work, but we have too many differences.”
She made an effort to smile. If she thought arguing with him would do any good, she would have. But the hard set of his jaw told her no amount of reasoning would reach him now. “Thank you for everything. Really, I mean that. You’ve made this Christmas the best.”
He gave her a sad smile.
“Would it be all right—would you mind if I gave you a hug?” she asked. “To say goodbye?”
He stared at her for the longest moment, then slowly shook his head. “That wouldn’t be a good idea,” he whispered, opening the car door.
By the time K.O. was out of the vehicle, he’d already retrieved her overnight bag from the trunk.
She waited, but it soon became apparent that he had no intention of taking the elevator with her. It seemed he’d had about as much of her company as he could stand.
She stepped into the elevator with her bag and turned around. Before the doors closed, she saw Wynn leaning against the side of his car with his head down, looking dejected. K.O. understood the feeling.
It had been such a promising relationship. She’d never felt this drawn to a man, this attracted. If only she’d been able to