Hero (Hero 1)

Caine looked from her to me, his lips pinched together. Finally he settled his irritation on me. “I will eat all of the lemon meringue pie,” he warned.

The thought cut off my laughter. “You can’t. Effie won’t let you.”

“Christ.” He shook his head. “You’re on a first-name basis? I’m fucked.”

Effie chuckled, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes. “Let me go get that pie.”

His eyes followed her as she disappeared into the kitchen and then he turned his attention to me. He leaned across the table and lowered his voice. “Look, I’m not sure I like you spending time with Effie. She’s like family to me. I don’t want my business life mixing with my personal.”

Some might call me stupid to make myself vulnerable to Caine, but I’d just had one of the best afternoons in a really long time and that was because of Effie. I didn’t want to lose that just when I’d found it. “I really like her,” I said quietly. “I can talk to her.”

Caine’s eyebrows drew together, but not in annoyance. There was curiosity in him. Finally he made me feel less stupid about my honesty. “Okay. Just no talking about me.”

I smiled and crossed my fingers under the table. “Deal.”

By the time we’d finished the most delicious lemon meringue pie I’d ever tasted in my life and Caine stood up to clear the table and load the dishwasher, I’d lost count of the many times he’d surprised me that night.

“Effie, you’re running out of detergent for the dishwasher,” Caine called through to us. This was followed up a few seconds later with “And milk. And eggs.”

“I used the last up on the pie,” she called back before taking a sip of the fresh tea she’d brewed.

“I’ll run out tomorrow morning and get you some more. Do you need anything else?”

My jaw practically hit the table.

Effie chuckled at me. “I’m in the mood for an omelet tomorrow. Can you get me some cheese, red and green peppers, and spring onions?”

“Just write down what you need and I’ll get it,” he said, wandering back over to us.

I was choking on my words.

Caine took one look at me and his eyes glinted with mischief.

I stood up abruptly. “I’m going to leave now.” Before I commit homicide!

He grinned evilly as Effie stood up, still laughing.

“It was lovely having you, Lexie. You sure are fun.”

Ignoring the devil, I looked at my wisecracking angel. “Thanks, Effie. I had a wonderful time. I hope we can do it again sometime.”

“Oh, sweetie, you come by anytime you want.” She rounded the table and enfolded me in a surprisingly strong hug.

“I’ll walk you to your car,” Caine said as Effie pulled back.

“You don’t have to,” I said, still pissed at him for making me do shit he was perfectly capable of doing himself and clearly was used to doing for himself.

“Alexa.” He used the old familiar warning tone. “You knew what the job was when you took it.”

And wasn’t that the truth? I exhaled heavily, trying to let go of my annoyance. I nodded and then gave Effie a small wave, grabbed my bag, and followed Caine to the door.

We were silent as we stepped into the elevator. Caine pressed the button for the underground parking garage.

“I saw the kimono,” he said as we neared the garage level. “It’s perfect for Effie.”

Yes, I’d definitely lost count of the many times he had surprised me this evening. “Was that almost a ‘good job’?”

We stepped out of the elevator into the coolness of the garage. Caine threw me a quelling look as he led me to my car. “Don’t ruin it by being a smart-ass.”

I grinned. “I don’t think it’s possible to ruin an almost ‘good job.’ A good job, yes, not an almost.”

We stopped at the car and Caine did so with a weary sigh. “Fine. You did a good job.” He leveled me with that heavy, dark gaze of his. “You are doing a good job.”

And there he went, shocking me again.

A smile prodded my lips.

There was a whole other side to Caine, and Effie Flanagan, a seventy-seven-year-old Broadway actress, brought it out in him. He was relaxed, he was funny, and he could even be … yes … sweet. Just like Effie said.

A wary aspect had entered Caine’s eyes, as if he was waiting for me to say something cheeky that would piss him off.

“Thank you.”

The wariness disappeared and he gave me a little nod of acknowledgment that was so much hotter than it should have been.

“I’d better get back to Effie. I promised to fix that railing.”

“So you did.” I smiled and opened my car door.

“Good night, Alexa.”

“Good night, Mr. Carraway.”

Caine responded with a stiff smile and then he slowly retreated and strode off.

I got in my car and drove out of there, wondering why the hell I couldn’t let this go, why I had to push my way into his life, just so I didn’t have to deal with my own. I wasn’t sure about anything anymore. The only thing I was starting to predict was that if I did by some miracle find a way to make Caine see who I really was, I was almost positive that I wasn’t going to come out of it unscathed.

CHAPTER 8

My prediction started coming true almost immediately. That Monday when I returned to work, Caine was back to his usual charming, clipped, and cool self. It was like Saturday had never happened. I had to admit it hurt.