My Deadly Valentine - By Valerie Hansen & Lynette Eason Page 0,13
smile.
“What’s so funny?”
“Me,” she answered, feeling her cheeks flush.
“Is that why you’re blushing?”
“I am not.” But she was, and she knew it. Worse, she didn’t seem to be able to stop. The more time she spent in Jace’s presence, the more she felt like a teenager experiencing her first crush.
“Have another piece of pizza,” Jace urged. “I can’t eat all this by myself.”
“Then take the leftovers home with you. Where do you live, anyway? I never asked.”
“Right now, behind the jail in the old caretaker’s quarters. I haven’t been able to find a decent apartment.”
“I’m not surprised. You’d be better off looking for a house. There aren’t any apartments closer than Hardy, unless you want to live at one of the old motels, and they don’t offer the same facilities as a regular house.”
“I’ve been checking the ads in the local papers but there hasn’t been a thing listed that I’d consider.”
“No wonder,” she said, smiling knowingly. “You’re going about it all wrong. Nobody advertises the good places. They don’t have to. It’s all handled by word of mouth.” The astonished expression on his face made her chuckle.
“Really? No ads, no nothing?”
“Nope. I suppose a real estate broker like Smith Burnett could help you but the best way is to just put out the word that you’re looking and wait.” She grinned across the narrow, Formica-topped table at him. “Want me to ask around for you?”
“Sure. I’m willing to consider almost any kind of place as long as it’s bigger than the caretaker’s rooms. I don’t like hanging out at the jail all the time. I have no real off-duty time when I’m that handy.”
“I understand. Sometimes I feel as if I might as well sleep at the card shop.” She checked her watch. “Which reminds me. Would you mind dropping me off there? I have a few things to do that I didn’t finish on Saturday.”
“Then how would you get home? It’s still too cold to walk and your house is at least a mile from the square.”
“A mile and a quarter,” Rachel said. “I don’t mind walking. I love the exercise and the fresh air.”
Jace shook his head. “No way am I leaving you like that. If you want to go by the shop, fine. I’ll wait for you.”
“Have it your way,” she said, hoping that she didn’t sound too happy about his decision. The last thing she wanted to do was inconvenience him, yet the notion of being the only one in the empty store and then having to walk home, unescorted, gave her the shivers.
That reaction angered and disgusted her. Someone had done this to her, had stolen her peace of mind and left her unsure of everything. It wasn’t fair. It also wasn’t easy to push those feelings aside and ignore them.
Perhaps her strong craving for Jace’s continuing company was the Lord’s way of taking care of her, she thought, slightly amused by the convenient rationalization. Nevertheless, she did want him with her and was well aware that that was the smartest move.
“I would be delighted if you stayed with me,” she finally admitted. “I really don’t relish spending a lot of time alone in the shop. Not when we’re closed, at any rate.”
His resulting grin warmed her cheeks to the point where she knew she could never deny the telling reaction. She averted her gaze and busied herself picking up her purse and grabbing her good coat off the booth bench. “Well, shall we get going?”
“As soon as I get a box for our snack later,” he said.
Later? Her eyebrows arched as she watched him walk to the counter and speak to the clerk.
Yes, later, she told herself. It was evident that Jace was planning to spend the whole day with her. Why she had not realized it sooner was a tribute to her closed mind. The man had appointed himself her guardian and was not about to leave her to fend for herself.
To Rachel’s surprise, she was not only in total agreement, she was thrilled.
Chalk up another point for my stalker, she thought, sighing and shaking her head. In less than a week my whole outlook has changed and I don’t like it. I don’t like it one little bit.
Jace wasn’t too concerned about Rachel’s safety as long as they were together but he sure wasn’t looking forward to the moment when he had to bid her goodbye.
One problem at a time, he lectured himself. As the Good Book said, “The cares of