His easy-going demeanor could fool you into thinking he was low-key through and through. However, she’d learned that a smart, high-powered engine hummed beneath his exterior. If you looked closely enough into his eyes, you could see banked intensity smoldering there. Eli was driven. He’d entered the Air Force Academy out of high school, earned excellent grades, and eventually achieved his boyhood dream of piloting fighter jets. She’d learned from Eli’s Air Force friends that Eli possessed a legendary combination of nerves, reflexes, talent, and focus—all of which made him perfectly suited for his job.
Because she and Eli were both in Theo’s solar system, they’d continued to see each other often socially. Whenever they did, they joked and laughed and bantered.
Over a period of months, it had occurred to her that Eli might be just what she’d been hoping to find—a successful, honorable man whose faith was important to him.
Nine months ago, he’d started asking her out. She explained her rule and regretfully turned him down. Their paths continued to cross. He continued to ask her out. For the next three months, she continued to say no even as the chemistry and fondness between them mounted sweetly higher and higher.
Penelope’s friends and family liked to tease her about her tendency to get “too wrapped up” in things. At the age of seven, she’d famously gotten wrapped up in Legos and created masterworks that stretched from the floor to her bedroom ceiling. Since then, she’d become obsessed with the country of France, painting with watercolors, playing the violin, songwriting, Himalayan cats, Ford Broncos, and, most recently, pie-making. Each of these eras had lasted for years at a time.
She viewed her ability to immerse herself in a pursuit as an asset. However, she could admit that making Eli into her newest obsessionwas not wise. She refused to become the gullible local girl. She would not surrender who she was at the throne of his career, then weep tears over him her friends had to mop.
Also, she suspected that he could not possibly be as decent and trustworthy as he seemed to be. So she hunted for evidence to support her suspicion. When the other shoe dropped, she planned to point to it and crow, “Ah-ha! I knew dating you would be a terrible idea!”
Theo gave a weary grunt as he straightened. “I’m going back in.”
“I’m coming with.”
She chatted with Aubrey for thirty minutes, then drove her own car to her apartment, located on the second floor of one of the historic commercial buildings near the grassy park at the heart of Misty River’s downtown.
When she entered the space, her Himalayan cat greeted her by weaving through her legs. She lifted him and gave him a thorough head rub. “Greetings, Roy.”
As always, her cheery, light-filled apartment surrounded her with comfort. Ferns, ivy, violets, and cyclamen lent bursts of color. Bookcases stuffed with volumes on cooking, music, and art lined several of the walls. She’d decorated the space with an eclectic mix of furnishings and artwork she’d scored at flea markets.
She loved living within walking distance of many of Misty River’s restaurants and shops. In fact, her relationship with Eli had come to a head six months ago, precisely because they’d attended a group dinner at a restaurant a few blocks from here and, afterward, he’d learned that she intended to walk home.
She set Roy on his feet and began the process of making iced tea.
On that long-ago night, as she’d donned mittens, a hat, and a scarf, Eli had offered to give her a ride home. She’d told him that she preferred to walk. At which time, he’d said he wanted to walk with her. At which time, she’d told him that would be acceptable.
They’d taken the riverwalk, deserted at that late and frigid hour. While they’d chatted companionably, she’d snuck glances at him when he wasn’t looking. As they approached Midnight Ranch, the sound of live country music tumbled from the bar. The lyrics of an old, familiar song by Lonestar reached her.I don’t know how you do what you do. I’m so in love with you...
They passed by and the music was lessening slightly in volume when they reached a small courtyard framed by winter flowers and dark businesses.
“May I have this dance?” he’d asked her.
Her caution whisperedno, but her mouth said, “Yes.”
She placed her hand in his and her skin rushed with heat. Chuckling, they stopped and started a few times before finding the rhythm of the two-step. They made slow circles around the courtyard—a private, moonlit dance.
“Your stairs playground me,” he mumble-sang under his breath. “Baby, you astound me.”
Her laughter rang clear in the cold air. “‘Your hair all around me,’” she corrected. “‘Baby, you surround me.’”
The few times they’d attempted karaoke with mutual friends, she’d cajoled him into singing “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’,” the song Tom Cruise had immortalized inTop Gun. Even with the lyrics on a screen in front of him, Eli’s attention would wander, and he’d end up fudging some of the words. He was a lost cause with lyrics.
“But you do astound me,” he pointed out reasonably. “The words should be ‘baby, you astound me.’”
“And do you also contend that ‘your stairs playground me’ is a superior lyric?”
“I admit that one leaves a little to be desired.”
He spun her and she came to a stop flush against the front of his jacket. The motion between them ceased and their teasing melted into seriousness.
He looked at her with so much tenderness that it stole her breath.
His head bent toward hers. He paused, halfway, his gaze searching. The yes/no battle she’d been feeling toward him for weeks continued to rage in her mind even as her body rushed with ecstatic anticipation.
When his lips took hers, she curved her fingers into his down jacket. His arms banded behind her. They kissed like they were the last two people on earth and they had five minutes left to live.
