The Best Man to Trust - By Kerry Connor Page 0,62

headed to bed, exhausted from the work he’d done that day and needing to get some rest for the big day ahead of him tomorrow. Ellen finished cleaning up the kitchen, then accepted Meredith’s offer to fill the dishwasher, retreating to her own room.

Meredith and Tom were left in the kitchen, working in silence. She’d noticed that he hadn’t said much at dinner, so she didn’t try to get him to talk. They all had a lot on their minds.

There was something comfortable about being with him, doing something as mundane as loading a dishwasher together. She tried not to read too much into it, didn’t want to make more of it than it was. It was nice. No more, no less. And after everything that had happened over the past few days, a nice, quiet moment was more than enough.

When they were finished, they made their way out of the kitchen, shutting off the lights, heading back to the main foyer. It was still early, but Sutton Hall was silent and tranquil.

Unsurprisingly, no one was up for wandering the halls.

“Thank you for volunteering to help Rick,” Meredith said softly as they climbed the staircase to the second floor. “I think everybody is happy to be getting out of here sooner—and to have the police finally arrive.”

“Somebody had to do it,” he said flatly. “I just wish it didn’t have to be me.”

“I know it’s going to be a lot of work, and I would do it if I could, but I wouldn’t feel right leaving Ellen and the rest of the wedding party alone in the house. Not when we don’t know who the killer is. I need to be here for them. I have to do my best to make sure nothing else happens.”

They’d reached the second-floor landing. As expected, the hallway was empty.

He looked over at her in amazement. “I don’t care how much work it’s going to be. I hate the idea of leaving you alone in the house. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Irritated, she shot him a glare. “I told you I don’t need a babysitter.”

“And I told you I wasn’t saying you need one. But everybody can use somebody to watch their back, especially with a killer on the loose.”

“I can take care of myself,” she told him firmly. They’d reached his room. Expecting him to stop, she picked up speed, continuing on toward her room.

To her surprise, he fell into step beside her. “I can’t believe I care more about your safety than you do.”

“You don’t.”

“It sure seems that way.”

They arrived in front of her door. With nowhere else to go, she stopped, whirling to face him. “Is this because you feel sorry for me? Because of what happened with Brad? Because I don’t need your pity.”

“Is that what you think?” he asked with a combination of amusement and disbelief. “I don’t want anything to happen to you because I feel sorry for you?”

It did sound kind of foolish when he said it like that. “Then what is it? I don’t see you getting this protective with anyone else.”

He looked at her for a long moment, something in that steady gaze setting off a nervous flutter in her belly. “You really don’t know?” he asked, his voice suddenly softer.

He moved closer, forcing her to tilt her head up to meet his eyes. Only a step separated them, maybe less. She didn’t look to see. She couldn’t. She could only stare into his eyes and the unexpected heat she saw simmering in them.

Deep down she felt a whisper of disbelief, the doubt of that girl she’d once been, unable to fathom that she could possibly be seeing what she thought she did in Tom Campbell’s eyes.

But she wasn’t that girl anymore. And he wasn’t that boy. He was a man now, a man standing mere inches away, a man looking at her as no man ever had.

The man who wanted her.

A thrill raced through her, exploding along her nerve endings at the certainty, the absolute firmness of that knowledge inside her, just before he lowered his mouth to hers.

The kiss was soft, gentle. His lips brushed against hers with the sweetest caress, strong and sure and lingering. Her eyelids automatically drifted shut as the feeling of that achingly sweet contact washed over her. At the same time, her lips instinctively parted. His immediately moved against them again, then again, gradually deepening the kiss. His tongue dived forth into her mouth to