“You’re welcome. Is my advice helping?”
“I told my brother to put a sock in it today.” Molly smiled at the memory of Shane’s expression. “He was bossing me around about something this morning, and I let him know I don’t need him to tell me what to do all the time.”
“Good for you. How did he take it?”
“He got sort of mad at first—and then he acknowledged that I have the right to make my own decisions.”
“It sounds as though you handled it quite nicely. Of course, you’ll have to remind him a few more times before he really gets the message.”
“I’m sure I will.”
They chatted for a few more minutes, and then Molly concluded the conversation. Jewel made her promise to call again sometime before letting her disconnect.
“Just one more thing,” Molly said before hanging up. “Would you mind not telling Kyle I called?”
“If that’s what you want.”
“I think it’s best for now.”
“Then I won’t say anything.”
Molly thanked her and replaced the receiver into its cradle. And then she picked up the photograph again, wishing she had the ability to read Kyle’s mind through the snapshot and across the miles that separated them.
Kyle sat in his exercise room on the third Saturday afternoon in November, staring morosely at the equipment scattered around him. He wore sweatpants and a T-shirt with cross-trainers, and he was prepared to start working out—but he just couldn’t seem to muster the energy.
Could be that he was thirsty, he decided, pushing himself to his feet. Usually he needed a drink after his workout, but what the heck. He needed to jump-start himself somehow. He’d have some juice. If he didn’t start feeling more energetic soon, he might have to consider drinking caffeine again, he thought ironically.
He was halfway to the kitchen when someone knocked on his door. Probably Mack, he thought. They had said something about working on the cabin today.
But it wasn’t Mack. Feeling his face freeze with surprise, he stared at the beautiful redhead on his doorstep. She wore a coat this time—a puffy, lime-green jacket that just skimmed the hips of her dark jeans. A fuchsia-colored shirt peeked out from beneath the jacket, and he noted in his first stunned glance that she wore boots. No sign of the brace she’d had on last time he’d seen her.
“Molly?” he said, finally finding his voice. “What are you…?”
He couldn’t read her expression, though her emerald eyes seemed to be brimming with emotion. “May I come in?”
It was almost tempting to tell her no. He was afraid that if she came inside, he would never want to let her go again. Not to mention that he had spent the past five weeks trying futilely to exorcise her memory from his home. Now he was going to have to start that process all over again.
Instead, he stepped aside and said, “Yeah, sure. Come in.”
He couldn’t take his eyes off her as she crossed the room, shrugging out of her jacket and tossing it over a chair. She didn’t even limp now, he noted, painfully aware of his own permanently halting gait when he followed her.
His hands clenched at his sides as he fought the urge to reach out for her. “What are you doing here? Do your parents know you’ve come?”
“I didn’t need their permission the last time I came here, and I didn’t ask for it this time. I’m an adult, remember?” She turned to face him, tossing her hair back over her shoulder. Except for her eyes, her face was smoothly composed, her posture relaxed. Only the faintest quiver in her voice betrayed her underlying nerves. “Do you remember that first time I came to your door?”
“Of course I remember.” He could still see her standing on his doorstep for the first time, could still remember how he’d felt when he had seen her there. Even before he had known who she was, before he had known what it was like to touch her and hold her—even then, she had taken his breath away.
Her voice brought him back to the present. “You gave me five minutes to convince you to come back to Texas with me.”
Rather embarrassed by the reminder of his inhospitality, he nodded shortly. “Yeah. I remember that, too.”
“Consider this my way of repaying the favor.” She glanced at her watch, then looked up at him again. “I’m giving you five minutes to convince me to stay in Tennessee.”
Thoroughly confused, he shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Then maybe I should put it in simple words so you’ll be sure to understand.” Her all-too-accurate mimicry of him made him wince. “I took you back to Texas with me, and you knew you couldn’t be happy living there. Your heart, and the responsibilities you’ve taken on, are here. So, now’s your chance, if you want it. Tell me why I should stay here with you.”
He pushed a hand through his hair, annoyed to find that it wasn’t quite steady. “This is crazy.”