Harvest Moon - By Robyn Carr Page 0,51
and looked into her eyes. “Nothing about you disappoints me, Kelly. I wasn’t attracted to your mothering skills.”
“Lucky for you. I don’t have any.”
“That’s not what I’m after. I’m not looking for someone to take care of Courtney for me—I’m going to do the best I can with that. In fact, I wasn’t after anything. You took me by surprise. I saw you and something started to happen to me…”
“Yeah, and I started to pass out on the bar and needed help getting home…”
He smiled at her. “I’ve been off the market a long time, so it was unexpected, but the minute I saw you I needed to kiss you. When Colin lifted you out of the truck to carry you upstairs, I wanted that to be me. You turn me on like mad. And I know I have a lot more on my plate than you ever bargained for, but try to remember it’s my plate, not yours. Now, I don’t get many nights off and I don’t want to spend this one grousing about my teenager.” He took a breath. “Come home with me.”
She was shocked. “But what about…your teenager!”
“She can’t drive. The Hawkinses wouldn’t leave her on the doorstep if she needed to come home—they’d call me. I’d go get her. Go write a note to Jill. Come home with me.”
“Seriously? Because I’m not sure I’m ready for that. Quite yet.”
“I was sure the minute I met you.”
Oh, she wanted to. She knew what it was like to be off the market, too—it had been a couple of years that she’d been unable to see anyone but Luca in her vision. And she felt the pull with Lief. Like him, she’d felt it almost immediately. It would feel so good to slip into his bed, feel his arms around her, experience him. She had the craziest idea that with him she wouldn’t feel she’d just wasted her time… But…
“I’m sorry, Lief. That’s not going to happen tonight…” She took a breath. “And believe me, I am sorry…”
He kissed her brow. “Just not ready yet?”
She shook her head.
“I think I could get you ready…” he said, kissing the corner of her mouth, her neck, her ear.
“I’m not really old-fashioned, either. And I’m not going to kid you—you’re very tempting. But my life is a little unsettled now. And yours isn’t exactly—”
He tightened his arms around her. “I know. It’s cumbersome. It is what it is. I’m not going to apologize.”
“Then you’ll understand this,” she said. “Before I find myself in love with you, I’d better make sure I’m up to it.”
“Perfectly understandable. Maybe I should have waited, too.”
“Waited?” she asked.
“To fall in love.”
Nine
Kelly was up long before the sun, burrowed into the kitchen, chopping, dicing, cooking, boiling jars. Thinking.
Jillian was an early riser, and by the time she came into the kitchen, there were already two dozen filled canning jars lined up on the counter and another large pot simmering with a new batch. Jillian looked in the pot. “Nana’s peach chutney?” she asked.
“And spicy peach and tomato,” Kelly said.
“Good lord, what time were you up?”
“I’m not even sure. At least three hours ago.” She gave her pot a hearty stir.
“Did Lief leave right after Colin and I turned in last night?” Jill asked.
“No. He stayed late. We pulled a second Duraflame out of the shed.”
“And you’ve been awake for hours? What’s up with that?”
Kelly looked at her sister and shook her head. “I didn’t sleep well at all.” She banged the spoon on the side of the pot, laid it in the spoon rest and leaned against the counter. “I always saw myself as a good planner. Real sensible and logical and not overly emotional.”
“Pragmatic, I would say,” Jill agreed. “But sensitive. You’re very sensitive, Kelly. What’s the matter? Did he hurt your feelings?”
She shook her head again. “He told me he loves me.”
“Get out!” Jillian said. “Love? Really, love?”
“What a fool, huh?” Kelly asked, wiping her hands on a towel. “He must be crazy.”
“Well… I wouldn’t call him a fool. I’d just call him quick and to the point. And obviously someone who doesn’t need a lot of time to know what he wants…”
“Honestly, my ridiculous romantic situations lately make your romantic foibles look like kid’s stuff.”
Jillian perched up on one of the stools at the workstation. “I’ve given all that up since I met Colin. He is my last impulsive act.” Then she smiled sentimentally.
Kelly took the chair opposite her sister. “Do you have any