all. Suddenly, the only person she could see was Tom.
Tom was glad they had finished. By the time they’d eaten lunch, found a present for Rivka, and started making their way out of the mall, the crowds had grown even larger. Getting out at last was a relief, though being forced into such close proximity with Lila had its advantages. For one thing, he’d been able to link his fingers with hers at the merest excuse.
"Thanks again for coming with me, Tom."
They’d finally managed to escape the hordes of shoppers. They had just broken out of the building and had paused on the sidewalk to breathe in air untainted by the sweat of bargain-hunters.
"My pleasure."
It had been, too. Though he hated shopping, especially in the frou-frou, delicate sorts of shops she’d dragged him into, being with Lila made even porcelain clowns seem bearable. Not that she’d bought a porcelain clown, of course, and thank God. As much as he liked her, seeing her plunk down good money for such an atrocity might have dimmed his estimation of her.
She’d bought Rivka a delicate six-pointed star of stained glass. In vivid shades of purple, red, green, and blue, the star would look beautiful in the front gallery window surrounded by the hues of Rivka’s paintings. It was a perfect choice, one that had made him think Rivka wasn’t the only sister with artistic talent.
"Oh, no," Lila protested when he voiced his thought aloud. "I don’t have an artistic cell in my body. I’m the pragmatic Lazin daughter. It’s like that old joke about sisters, you know? She’s the pretty one, and I’m the smart one."
"Does that mean poor Rivka’s ugly and stupid?" He liked to see her blush at his teasing.
She immediately caught his meaning, which pleased him inordinately. He’d never been with a woman who didn’t need his jokes explained to her. She didn’t protest, which pleased him even more. He reached out to brush a stray chocolate curl from her cheek. He’d tell a thousand jokes if it made Lila smile. A light snow had begun to fall, the first of the season. It dusted the ground everywhere with white, like the sugar on a powdered doughnut. It made him feel like a kid. As they walked to where he’d parked his truck, he even managed to skid a little, sliding sideways through the slush like he was on a skateboard.
"Snow." Lila’s face had lit up in wonder. "How pretty."
She tilted her head back to catch a flake on her tongue. At the sight of the small pink ribbon sticking out from between her perfect lips, the low flame of desire in his belly kindled into something stronger. Lila was giggling, trying without success to catch some snow. In the harsh fluorescent light from the parking lot, her face was sculpted into lines and shadows broken by the curve of her mouth as she laughed. She was beautiful.
"Tom? My God, is that you?"
The feminine voice from behind them broke him from his silent admiration of Lila’s face. Her cheeks pinking, Lila stopped trying to catch a flake. Tom turned.
"Susan." He wasn’t at all thrilled.
Cloaked with the reek of cigarette smoke, Susan exclaimed loudly in her husky voice how glad she was to see him. It had been ages, just ages, hadn’t it? Why hadn’t he called?
"And who’s this?" Susan turned her bright, ferrety gaze on Lila and stuck out her hand. "I’m Susan Warner. A friend of Tom’s."
"Lila Lazin." To her credit, Lila shook the other woman’s hand with no apparent attempt to crush her fingers.
With the introductions over, Susan quite conspicuously looked Lila over from head to toe. Then, obviously dismissing her as no threat, Susan turned her attention back to Tom. She forced a hug on him, one he did his best not to return.
"Remember the time we went on that ski trip? What a blast! Let’s do it again this year, Tom! The ski club’s having the same trip. Lila, do you ski?"
Lila looked like a rabbit flushed out in front of the lawnmower. "No, I don’t."
"Too bad," Susan crooned, turning back to Tom. "Let me know, Tom, okay? You have the number."
Before he could stop her, she’d forced her lips against his cheek. Tom wasn’t one to be rude, but he wanted to push the annoying woman away. Of all the times to run into her, just after meeting Heidi…it was a nightmare.
Then, thankfully, she was gone. The stench of her cigarettes still lingered, though. He