“Good night, Kelly. Thanks for the chili.”
She stared at the door that he had closed behind him. “What was that?” she asked the empty room.
Shane had obviously been angry. Was it only because he was tired of hiding their relationship, or had she done something else to annoy him? How was she supposed to know why he was mad when he wouldn’t even admit that he was?
She plopped heavily onto her couch, her shoulders sagging. What more proof did Shane need that they were making a mistake? They’d hardly gotten started with this...affair, for lack of a better word...and already they’d had a quarrel. Sort of. He’d already slammed out of her apartment. In a manner of speaking. He was furious with her. At least she thought he was.
Thank goodness no one else knew about this, she thought. Then mused wistfully that it might have been nice to be able to talk to someone right now.
Chapter Thirteen
“Shane, what in blazes is wrong with you today? That’s twice you’ve damned near hit me in the face with your hammer.”
Sitting back on his heels on the roof of the barn Monday morning, Shane winced. “Sorry, Dad. I guess my mind’s wandering.”
“I’ll admit reroofing the barn isn’t the most mentally stimulating activity, but it’s got to be done before the worst part of winter sets in. You’re the one who said today would be good for you.”
“Yeah, it’s as good a day as any. I’ll try to pay closer attention to what I’m doing.”
“I’d appreciate it. I’d like to have all my teeth for Christmas dinner.”
Shane reached for another shingle. “We should be able to finish this today at this rate.”
“Anything you want to talk about?” Jared asked casually.
There was nothing he would have liked better than to tell his father everything. To talk about how damned frustrating it was for Kelly to keep denying their involvement in front of everyone else. And for her to suggest that they “postpone” their affair until after the holidays... What was that supposed to mean?
Maybe Jared, having had more experience with women than Shane, could shed some light on Kelly’s strange behavior, but since he was sworn to secrecy, he couldn’t ask for his father’s advice. At least, not specifically, he amended, carefully overlapping two shingles.
“I’m, um, having trouble with a woman,” he admitted tentatively.
“Anyone I know?”
Shane would evade, but he wouldn’t lie. “You know her. But I’d rather not mention her name right now.”
“Okay. So what’s the problem? Or would you rather not mention that, either?”
“She and I have been getting, er, close, but I can’t get her to admit it. She won’t even let me tell anyone we’re seeing each other. She’s so convinced that something will go wrong, she’s all but written us off before we’ve even gotten started.”
“What is she afraid of?” Jared asked without pausing in his work.
Appreciating the casual way his father was conducting the conversation, Shane kept his eyes focused on his own work as he chose his words. “Being hurt, I suppose. She’s been let down before by people she cared about.”
Like the father who had abandoned he
r. The grandparents who hadn’t wanted to know her. The mother who had died. Had there been others who had failed to live up to Kelly’s expectations, leaving her so wary of emotional attachments?
“And does she have reason to fear being hurt? Are your feelings for her the kind that will last?”
“I...” He cleared his throat. “She hasn’t given us a chance to find out yet.”
He could have answered more completely. He could have admitted that he was certifiably crazy about Kelly Morrison. But he couldn’t say that, of course. Not to his father. Not even to Kelly. She wasn’t ready to hear it.
Would she ever be?
“What are you going to do about it?”
“Be patient, I guess. Hope she’ll see how foolish she is to be afraid.”