Chasing Rainbows A Novel - By Long, Kathleen Page 0,27

in my chest and face, and I knew the sensation had nothing to do with exercise.

Unlike Ryan’s crystal swimmer, the sound of the pedometer meeting its end filled me with satisfaction--misguided, perhaps--but satisfaction, just the same.

“Did you need some help?” A male voice rumbled from somewhere close by.

I squatted and tried to scoop up the shattered pieces of the pedometer as I searched for the source of the voice. A man I’d never seen before ambled toward me, the upturned corners of his mouth suggesting he’d seen the entire pedometer desecration.

“Aidan Kelly.” The stranger stopped close to where I still squatted and held out his hand.

Countless childhood warnings about talking to strangers flew through my head, but I took his hand just the same.

He pulled me to my feet then shook my hand. “I’m moving into number thirty-six. And you?”

I wondered if I’d be smarter to offer up an excuse for what I’d just done, or if I should say nothing.

I chose nothing.

“Number thirty-two,” I answered, working up a polite smile. “Bernadette Murphy.”

“Nice to meet you, Number Thirty-Two.”

He nodded to the pedometer pieces in my opposite hand. “What is it?” He grinned, the move lighting up his dark blue eyes. “Or rather, what was it?”

“A pedometer.” I wrapped my fingers around the shards of plastic to hide them. “Must have fallen off my waistband.”

“Must have.” But, the glint in his eyes suggested he was not a man easily fooled. “You run often?”

“Pretty regularly.” I nodded. Why go for honesty now when I was handling the fabrication so smoothly?

“Great morning for it,” he said, and I kept nodding.

Suddenly, I remembered how I’d looked when I left the house. I could only imagine how incredibly scary my appearance must be by now, while the man standing before me looked anything but scary.

His gray T-shirt had gotten smudged with something black, probably from loading or unloading the moving van. His dark brown hair was long enough that he’d shoved it behind his ears, but it was his smile that captured my stare.

I couldn’t remember the last time one of Ryan’s smiles had reached his eyes. Number Thirty-Six’s smile not only reached his eyes, it crinkled the skin around them.

“You live alone down at number thirty-two?”

My back stiffened instantly. Why in the hell would he ask me that? “No...er...yes. I mean. Now I do.”

I wanted to say something a bit more coherent, but this was the first time I’d had to address the issue of living alone.

The reminder of my newly found marital status rocked me to my core. Then I thought of something I’d forgotten.

“I have a dog.”

Number Thirty-Six nodded slowly, his probing gaze never leaving mine. “I have a cat.”

A cat? This guy looked nothing like any cat person I’d ever known.

Damn. He’d said something and I missed it. “Pardon?”

My new neighbor’s grin widened and the move shifted his entire face from alluring to...well...wow.

“I asked if you’d like to stop by for coffee sometime.” He nodded at the smashed pedometer in my hand. “Maybe after one of your runs.”

I bit back my laugh. Runs. Good thing he’d only caught the last part of today’s little show.

I realized a good neighbor would invite Number Thirty-Six to her house, seeing as he was in the middle of unpacking. I, however, was not a good neighbor.

“No thanks.” I spoke a little too sharply and the man’s smile faltered. “I mean, no coffee for me. Doctor’s orders, but thanks anyway.”

I jerked a thumb toward my house. “Better get going. Don’t want to keep you from your unpacking. Welcome to the neighborhood.”

The grin returned to his face, and I had to admire the man’s ability to remain charming after his encounter with...well...me.

Truth was, if Ryan hadn’t left me, I’d have no problem sharing coffee with Number Thirty-Six. I’d be perfectly comfortable, because I’d be married, and I--unlike the man to whom I’d once pledged my love--had never considered being unfaithful.

But now...well...now I was available, wasn’t I? I wasn’t sure I wanted any part of that realization. Of course, Number Thirty-Six most likely didn’t want any part of my availability either. He’d merely been neighborly, and I was about to run like a scared girl.

“Nice to meet you,” I mumbled as I turned for the safety of my house.

“See you later, Number Thirty-Two.”

I gave a quick wave over my shoulder and picked up my pace. I could feel Number Thirty-Six’s eyes burning into the back of my head, but I didn’t look.

I concentrated only on making it to