sparkled with amusement. “Now that’s a question you should be asking him, but I think you can figure it out if you put your mind to it.”
“It’s because I was in the other half of that bed, wasn’t it?” she asked, astonished that her presence had actually scared the man out of his own home.
“You never heard me say such a thing, now did you?” Rory replied, a grin splitting his face.
“He doesn’t trust himself around me,” she concluded with a sense of wonder. She’d suspected it, but the confirmation was music to her ears.
“That would be my impression,” Rory agreed. He studied her intently. “What do you intend to do about this power you have over him?”
Rather than replying, she met his gaze. “Any suggestions?”
“Now if a woman affected me the way you affect our Ryan, I wouldn’t mind if she were to make an outright pass at me,” the Irish cook said, then sighed heavily. “But sadly, Ryan is a better man than I. I think a subtler approach is called for.”
“Meaning?”
“Persistence and patience,” he recommended. “Whatever you’ve done to rattle him, do that and more of it.” An unrepentant grin suddenly crossed his face. “Ah, here is the very man in question, looking oddly unrefreshed from his nap.”
“Go to hell,” Ryan muttered as he crossed to the coffeepot and poured himself a cup. Only then did he glance at Maggie. “Want some?”
“I’d love a cup,” she said, noting that Ryan’s gaze fell on Rosita as he poured the coffee. He hesitated, then gave a resigned shake of his head before handing Maggie her coffee.
“Okay,” Rory declared, “there are too many people in my kitchen. You two, out. I’ll fix you an omelette and bring it out, or would you prefer a sandwich since we’re well into afternoon now?”
“An omelette sounds lovely,” Maggie said.
“Perhaps Rosita could fix it,” Ryan suggested.
“She’s on a break,” Rory retorted emphatically.
“Come on,” Maggie encouraged before Ryan could debate the topic.
“I knew hiring that woman was a mistake the instant I saw she was pregnant,” he complained as they went to a booth. “If nothing else, Rory is gallant. I knew he’d never let her do a lick of work.”
“If it’s any consolation, I think Rosita is as frustrated as you are.”
“That doesn’t actually help. I hired her because Rory claimed to need help.”
“And now he’s satisfied. Maybe all he really needed was company.”
“I am not paying someone to sit in there and chat with him. Besides, she doesn’t know enough English to carry on a conversation.”
“Oh, I think she knows enough,” Maggie said, then captured and held his gaze. “So, Rory tells me you slept down here. Mind telling me why?”
“I sat down for a minute and fell asleep,” he said defensively. “There’s nothing more to it.”
“But why were you down here in the first place? You were as exhausted as I was. I thought you were going straight to sleep on the sofa upstairs.”
He shrugged. “I changed my mind.”
“I hope it wasn’t because of me.”
He didn’t look away as she’d anticipated. Instead, he turned the challenge around.
“Now why would you have anything to do with it?” he asked.
“Oh, I don’t know,” she said with an offhand shrug. “Maybe because you were tempted to crawl into your bed with me.”
“Absolutely not,” he said.
Maggie laughed at the too-quick response. “Liar, but I’m going to let that pass this time.”
“How gracious of you,” he said sourly. “Did you explain to your mother that I couldn’t come to dinner?”
“She wasn’t home. I left her a message to that effect. Just to prepare you, though, don’t be surprised if she comes in here to demand an explanation.”
He frowned at that. “Can’t anyone in your family take a simple no for an answer?”
“Not usually,” she said cheerfully. “You should probably try to get used to it.”
“Why? Eventually you’ll go back to Maine, and that will be that. I’ll probably never see you or any of your family again.”
Maggie shook her head at the note of resignation in his voice. “That’s not how it works with us. Face it, Devaney, we’re here to stay.”
“What about Maine?” he asked, a faint note of desperation in his voice. Apparently, he’d been clinging to the notion that she would be leaving after the holidays so he could let himself off the hook and never have to deal with his all-too-apparent feelings for her.
“I’ve decided not to go back,” she announced, making the decision on the spot. Whatever happened between her and Ryan,