He paused, and their gazes met and held. It seemed as if he was leaning closer and closer and her heart beat frantically in her chest—
Then the lights came on in the kitchen.
“Power’s back,” he said, leaning backwards and glancing over at the lights.
“I should be going home. It’s late.”
The time had flown by. She couldn’t remember when she’d enjoyed an evening so much—and all they did was talk. And hold hands. Reluctantly she slid hers from beneath his and scrambled to get up.
“I’ll walk you home.”
He rose easily to his feet. They stood so close she could see the fine lines around his eyes, feel the soft brush of his breath across her cheeks.
“Thank you for dinner,” she said politely.
“You can repay the favor sometime,” he said casually.
In only a few minutes, Angelica closed the door to the cottage and leaned against it. She’d halfway hoped he’d kiss her good night. Which was idiotic. He’d outright admitted he wasn’t sure if he even liked her. Why would he want to kiss her?
She knew why she wanted to kiss him. It would be amazing. Her heart pounded just thinking about it. And her hand still held the warmth from his.
Tomorrow—she’d see him again tomorrow. Would they go hiking? She needed time to get back to the library and listen to more CDs. And Sam was coming over again in the afternoon for another practice session. Two days in town and already she had a full agenda. She grinned as she walked back to the bedroom.
It was after ten the next morning when Angelica gave up on Kirk and walked to the library. She’d risen early, eaten quickly and sat with an ear to the door expecting him to come over. He’d said he’d show her around. Yet they’d made no firm plans. Maybe he had merely been being polite.
Twice she rose and went to the window in the music room that faced Kirk’s house. She saw no signs of activity. Had he gone to work on that barn? He had to work every day like most people. Smoky Hollow didn’t look like it sported a lot of millionaires.
When she reached the library, Mary Margaret was sitting behind the desk and greeted her warmly.
“I thought you’d be back this morning, what with the power knocking off everything yesterday. I’m sure you didn’t hear enough. Do you need any help finding anything specific?”
“I’m not really looking for anything special. I want an overview and choosing the CDs randomly seems to give me that,” Angelica said.
She glanced behind her through the double doors. No sign of Kirk. She was acting like a school girl with a crush, hoping to catch a glimpse of a special guy. Raising her chin slightly, she headed back to the media room. She had better things to do than moon over some sexy man who was only showing her around because of a promise to his friend.
Two hours later, while changing one CD for another, Angelica heard Kirk’s voice in the main room of the library. Shetook a breath, held it, trying to quell instantly clamoring nerves. Would he come back here? Was he looking for her? She strained to hear what he and Mary Margaret were saying.
She heard his footsteps. He stepped into the doorway and she looked up, immediately aware of every inch of him. His wide shoulders leaned casually against one side of the door frame. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her, his dark eyes focused solely on her.
“Finished?” he asked, taking note of her replacing a CD in its case.
“I’ve been listening for a couple of hours. I’m not finished. It’s fascinating. I love the rhythm of the songs. And the words are funny sometimes.”
“Take a break. We’ll go for lunch.”
“I’m working with Sam this afternoon around three,” she said, longing to ditch the library and go wherever he asked.
What about her vow to resist temptation?
“We’ll be back by then. I picked up lunch from the store. Bella makes a great picnic basket.”
“Are we taking your motorcycle?” she asked.
“Nope, walking. Come on. Best time of day.”
He turned.
He seemed so sure of her, she thought, following along. She had to admit to being intrigued.
