Hard to Resist - By Kara Lennox Page 0,9
the point of being pushy about it. But she knew his heart was in the right place. He’d done so much for her during their marriage. He’d been kind and giving and gentle—the exact opposite of the men she’d known growing up.
“I’ll pay you back,” she said.
“You don’t have to,” he said with a rueful grin. “But I know you will.”
* * *
IT WASN’T UNTIL Saturday that Kat had the chance to retrieve her kitten. She’d spent the previous day running around like crazy—having a locksmith make new keys for her car, contacting her insurance agent, buying some clothes, replacing her cell phone and Sam’s asthma meds. Then she’d crashed at Deb’s place—a tiny efficiency apartment—and had slept for ten hours straight, despite the fact that her “bed” was a hard sofa.
The next morning, feeling more like herself, she pulled from her pocket the crumpled scrap of paper she’d been carrying around like an amulet. As she dialed Ethan’s number, she felt a thrill of anticipation. She’d been savoring the thought of this moment ever since she’d been handed his note at the hospital.
“Kat. Is everything okay?” he asked the moment she identified herself. His voice was filled with concern, which made her stomach swoop, but of course he would worry about her. He’d saved her life and probably felt a responsibility to make sure he hadn’t saved it for nothing.
“I’m doing great,” she said with a bit more enthusiasm than she felt. “How’s Bashira?”
“He’s good. I gave him a bath to get the soot off his fur. His ears are kinda raggedy.”
The thought of a big, strong firefighter trying to bathe her little kitten touched her heart. She wished she could have seen it. “I bet he loved that. How many stitches did you require?”
He laughed, and she tingled at the sound of it. Deep and rich. “No stitches. Bashira’s my bud. He’s already taken over my house. You want me to bring him to you? I’m off today. Where are you staying?”
“You don’t have to bother,” she said. “I’ll come get him. Would ten o’clock be a good time?”
“Ten is good.” He gave her his address in Winnetka Heights, Oak Cliff’s historic district. She loved that area, with its tall trees and hundred-year-old houses. Some were showplaces, fixed up and painted in period colors, with thick carpets of green grass and bright flowers planted in front. Some were grim, sagging affairs, waiting for a loving owner to do the urban restoration and fill them with charm. She wondered which type Ethan lived in.
After hanging up, Kat found Deb staring quizzically at her. Deb was just out of college and a real go-getter. Blonde and bouncy, she was grateful to have a job that put her sociology degree to good use, and Kat was happy to have her organizational and fundraising skills for StrongGirls.
“Who was that?”
“The fireman who saved our lives,” Kat said, trying to sound casual.
“Is he cute?”
“Well…yeah. Not cute, exactly. Really handsome, but not movie-star pretty.”
“I figured he had something going for him.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because of how you sounded when you talked to him. Your voice got all mushy.”
“It did not!” Kat laughed. “You have a lot of imagination. I am grateful to this man. I admire the fact that he risks his life for strangers. That’s all.”
“Hmm, we’ll see.” Deb looked at the newspaper classifieds spread out over her coffee table. “How goes the apartment hunt? And no, I’m not anxious for you to leave. Take as long as you want.”
“Dismal. The rental market is tight right now, especially in my price range. I looked at a couple yesterday, but…” She shuddered. Grim was the only word that fit.
Her budget had been tight the past few months. She’d obtained the funding to start StrongGirls and was paying herself a modest salary. But it was less than she’d been making at her previous job as a school counselor, and she’d had to cut a few corners. She’d been lucky that her apartment manager liked her and hadn’t raised her rent since she’d moved in. But she was unlikely to find another apartment that nice for the price she’d been paying.
She would be cutting it close for a while. The settlement from her renters’ insurance would help, but it wouldn’t cover everything.
She dressed in a flowery skirt and matching blouse from her small stash of new clothes. It was the most feminine outfit of the bunch, the least businesslike, and she chastised herself for “gussying up”