The Moment of Truth
CHAPTER TEN
EIGHT O’CLOCK AND Josh was at loose ends. He got out his tablet and, with L.G. under one arm, planted himself on the couch he’d moved into the living room by himself with the help of a furniture dolly.
That accomplishment had been four days ago. He’d taken the trailer back to a rental place in Phoenix before stopping in to introduce himself to Cassie Montford.
Now he’d saddled himself with a four-legged practice run.
L.G. plopped down on the sofa next to Josh and started to nip at his arm. They’d been through this on Sunday, too, before he’d headed over to Dana’s place for an unexpectedly memorable evening of cards. Bending over, Josh picked up what had once been an expensive leather shoe from the floor and shoved it in L.G.’s mouth.
He leaned back into the couch, preparing to make a grocery list. And then the doorbell rang.
* * *
SHE SHOULDN’T HAVE COME. Or should have taken the time to pull on a nice blouse instead of the black sweater she’d worn with her faded jeans to go to class that day.
What little bit of makeup she’d brushed on that morning had long since worn away, but Dana wasn’t out to gather catcalls.
“I brought you some food,” she said, walking into his house as though she’d been doing so for weeks instead of a day or two. Heading for the freezer, she carefully and neatly stacked containers with their labels facing outward. “There’s casserole, ground-beef barbecue and buns, chili, potato soup and some apple cobbler. I can bring more, but didn’t want to take up all the space in your freezer. I didn’t know when you’d be going shopping, and since you’ve been so occupied with Little Guy I thought it was the least I could do.”
Stopping to take a breath, she realized he hadn’t said a word since she’d walked in the door. She turned and saw him standing with Little Guy perched on his left arm—and a wide-eyed expression on his face.
“What?” She really shouldn’t have come. She’d pissed him off.
“I just can’t believe you did this.”
He sounded incredulous. Good incredulous or bad incredulous, she couldn’t tell.
“Did what?” Bring him something to eat to tide him over while he got settled in?
He sure looked good enough to eat. She’d never seen him in business clothes. And that body of his, the shoulders and thighs and...they filled out dress clothes like she’d never seen before.
He’d loosened his tie, but still had it on. At eight o’clock in the evening. What guy did that?
“The food...”
“You ever hear of the Welcome Wagon, Redmond?” she asked, feeling stupid again. And trying to play down the impact.
He frowned. “No.”
Oh. She’d thought everyone had.
“Well, it’s a neighborhood program. They’re all over Richmond. Neighbors bring over packages to help welcome new people to the area. I brought a frozen-food package, is all.”
Anyone else would have done the same. It had nothing to do with Dana’s inability to stop mentally drooling over the man. As soon as word got around about him and the college girls took notice of him, she’d be relegated to the far back of the line.
“I just sat down to make a grocery list,” he said. “How’d you know?”
Now she had to confess to snooping. She looked him straight in the eye as she apologized for poking around in his fridge.
“No! Don’t apologize! This is great! I mean, what do I owe you?” He pulled a wallet out of his back pocket.
Dana stared and felt as if she’d been slapped. “You want to pay me for being neighborly?”
The wallet disappeared. “No, what I want to do is heat up one of everything and eat,” he said, still holding the puppy, as though as long as he kept Little Guy between them, she wouldn’t hurt him.
“I’ll be going now,” she said, folding up her bag and walking back through to the living room.
“Wait!”
She turned.
“I... Are there instructions?”
“Instructions?”
“For...you know...cooking stuff...”
“It’s pre-made,” she explained, wondering what part of her earlier exposition he’d missed.
“I know...and frozen.”
“You put it in the microwave.”
He nodded. Shrugged as if that was something he could handle. And stood there, unmoving.
“You do know how to use a microwave, don’t you?”
“Of course.”
Walking back into the kitchen, feeling him right behind her, she stopped in front of the built-in microwave above the stove and glanced over the controls.