For the Love of Ivy - Cindy Kirk Page 0,38
have been interested at one time,” he said slowly. “I didn’t give her any encouragement and it never went further.”
“She didn’t make a fool of herself and proposition you.” Though the words were light and teasing, the hitch in Lauren’s voice told him the incident between the two of them still weighed on her mind.
“That’s because I didn’t lead her on,” Seth said. “My actions led you to draw the wrong conclusion. I was feeling that electricity, too, and I let it affect me.”
“I’m feeling the sizzle now,” Lauren admitted with a rueful smile.
“Me, too,” Seth concurred. “Look how well we’re handling it.”
He expected her to laugh or say something smart.
Instead her eyes narrowed and her hand curved around his arm. “I don’t like the looks of that.”
Seth turned and followed the direction of her gaze. Adam was helping Kim put on her coat and they were both laughing. “It’s good to see her having fun for a change. What’s the problem?”
“I’m just not sure what he’s up to.” Lauren tilted her head and her expression turned pensive. “I don’t know Adam well, but I don’t think he’s interested in her.”
“How can you know that?”
“Because he asked me out.”
Chapter Twelve
Seth stumbled on the dance floor but quickly brought his footwork and his emotions under control. “When?”
“Pardon me?”
For a second Seth considered dropping the subject. What Lauren did on her own time was none of his business. On the other hand, she was living under his roof, if only temporarily. That meant he had an obligation, no, a duty to protect her from men like Nordstrom. “When did he ask you out?”
“Shortly before you walked in.” Lauren pulled her gaze from the couple who were now walking out the door. “Jacob Weitzelman, a well-known psychologist, will be speaking in Bozeman next weekend. Adam thought I might like to see him.”
“What did you tell him?”
The band shifted into another romantic ballad, but Seth didn’t mind, especially when Lauren rested her cheek against his chest.
“I told him I needed to check with you first.”
Seth chuckled. “I bet he loved that.”
“Not so much.” Lauren chuckled.
He tightened his fingers around hers, and they swayed as one on the dance floor. “Did you tell him that to get out of going or because you really did want to check?”
She lifted her head. “If I hadn’t wanted to go, I’d have said no.”
Seth’s heart plummeted to the tips of his cowboy boots, but when he spoke his tone was measured and businesslike. “It’s your decision, Lauren. If you decide to go, let me know the date and time. I’ll make sure I’m home.”
“Are you sure? I know you’re getting better every day but—”
“I’m positive.” Seth was positive, all right. Positive he didn’t want her going out with Adam. Yet equally positive he had no right to stand in her way.
It was barely past ten when Lauren asked Seth if he was ready to head home. Lines of fatigue edged his eyes and his skin had taken on a dusky pallor. She was relieved when he said yes. After saying his goodbyes— and being razzed for heading home with the seniors— Seth left to get the truck.
Lauren lingered behind, wishing friends and acquaintances—and even people she didn’t know—a happy New Year before heading outside. She must have stayed longer than she realized because Seth’s truck was waiting at the curb when she walked out.
Her heart did a two-step. Being so close to him all evening had been unbelievably weird. Though she’d felt a definite pull, Seth had seemed totally unaffected. He hadn’t even appeared upset about her “date” with Adam.
With a resigned sigh she reached for the passenger’s side door handle only to have Seth appear and open it with a flourish.
Strangely touched by the chivalrous gesture, she impulsively brushed a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, kind sir.”
“There’s a time and a place for that,” a voice called out from the shadows. “A public venue isn’t the time or the place.”
When she’d left the center, Lauren hadn’t noticed anyone on the sidewalk. If she had, she wouldn’t have given Seth the friendly peck. In a town like Sweet River, even an innocent gesture could be misconstrued, especially by some of the town gossips.
Her heart dropped as Loretta Barbee stepped from the shadows into the golden glow of the streetlight. Lauren had heard an earful from both Stacie and Anna about the pastor’s wife. But she hadn’t been on the receiving end of the woman’s meddling nature until