Second Time's the Charm

“No.” The shake of his head was easy, as was the hint of a grin at the corner of his mouth. “Just warned that if I hurt you, I’d best leave town before anyone got wind of it.”

“Oh.” She was hot again. “They watch out for me.”

In the five years she’d been in Shelter Valley, she’d never done anything worthy of the gossip mill. She liked it that way.

“I got that.”

“I’m just surprised...other than at the day care, I didn’t think we’d been seen together.” She thought back over the past couple of weeks, and added, “I told Bonnie and Caro what a great job you did on my French doors....”

“I... Just someone who knew I’d been to your house mentioned that I should be careful not to...toy...with you.”

The care with which he chose his words was endearing. And maddening, too.

“Toy with me?”

“I think I got the go-ahead to see you, just not to break your heart.”

Oh, well, then. “No worries there. My heart’s not available for breaking.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“I know yours isn’t, either,” Lillie assured him quickly, lest he think she considered her feelings more important than his—or that she was only looking out for herself. “I fully realize that Abraham has your whole heart right now.”

Right now. Why had she tacked on the qualifier? Like, maybe, sometime in the distant future, he might be available to her?

Because, sometime in the future, she might want that?

She didn’t want that—and couldn’t lead him to believe she did. “Look, I’m making a mess of this whole thing. Let’s just agree to tread carefully, shall we?”

“Of course.”

Jon nodded. Stared at her lips as though he wanted to kiss them, and then started his truck.

Taking the cue, Lillie leaned over, planted a lightning-quick peck on his cheek and ran up to her door without looking back.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

ALL THOSE CROWDS and not one tantrum. New words every day. Abraham was on track and as normal as any other two-year-old. They weren’t going to need Lillie’s help much longer.

But they needed her.

Jon sat in class on Monday, stared at photos of art in places he’d probably never see, talked to Mark about chemical compounds, figured out a calculus problem before the professor had it solved on the screen—and daydreamed about Lillie Henderson.

She thought her heart was inaccessible. He knew better. He could feel it every single time she was anywhere near Abe.

And even if she’d never love Jon, it was pretty clear she liked him. A lot.

He could settle for that.

At work that afternoon, he heard about yet another break-in. Closer to town. At the home of another woman living on her own. She wasn’t home when it happened. But more stuff had been taken from her house than the previous homes. The word was that the sheriff was on a mission to find the guy responsible. He had a posse of volunteers 24/7 helping him now, and anyone walking alone at night was subject to suspicion.

Which meant J

on wouldn’t be doing any walking at all, except from his truck to wherever he was going. And he had to dispose of some of his tools—the ones he’d used to remove Lillie’s sliding glass door—no matter how much of a waste it was. He couldn’t afford to come under suspicion. If they arrested him, Abe would be put in foster care, at least until he could prove his innocence. And he’d have to drop out of school, which would mean he’d not only lose the scholarship, he’d have to pay back the thousands of dollars he’d already spent.

Sweating, and working himself up to panic mode, Jon reminded himself he’d done nothing wrong.

This time.