Ms. Lloyd shrugged. “Had a few before. Seven or eight. From previous ads. He always did ’em for me, no problem. I read ’em in the paper—every one but this one. He always said theGazettewas sold out so I didn’t see it this time.” She sounded listless, nothing like the woman Uma had grown to tolerate, if not completely like.
“Have you been advertising for a while?”
“Few years now. Maybe five?”Whoa.That was a long time. “Ive always does it for me. Always. Such a nice boy.”
“You’ve had eight different people here in five years? How long did they last?”
“Couple of days. One of ’em lasted fifteen minutes.” After a pause, the old widow reared her head. “And good riddance too. Darn girl couldn’t even speak English right. Sounded like she’d been brought up by retarded pigs.”
And there it was. The woman had a knack. In one fell swoop, sympathy gone, although the anger still lingered.
Ms. Lloyd swiveled to face the TV and turned the volume up, a clear indication that the conversation was over.
The rest of the evening was quieter than usual.
Uma found that she almost missed her boss’s constant commentary.
* * *
Later, in bed, it was harder to forget. What the hell was that ad about? Why would Ivan do something so cruel? It didn’t fit. Rolling, she turned her pillow over and smacked it before laying her head back down. Uma closed her eyes. Drew in a breath. Opened them again to glare up at the ceiling.
He must have had a reason for placing that ad. Right?
She twisted and flopped in the silence.
And why the hell wasn’t he working? It was too darned quiet.
God, her head. She couldn’t take another minute of this silence and doubt, wondering… She should go over there and ask. He wouldn’t betray Ms. Lloyd like that for no reason, would he? And why did it feel like he’d betrayedhertoo when she’d answered it?
Because I like him.
Oh God, there it was. She liked him, and she’d turned down his request for a date, and here she was, alone in this crappy bed, again, and he was off…somewhere. Not working in his forge, in any case. Not keeping her company in that roundabout way, and somehow, the quiet was lonelier now than it had ever been before.
It felt like she’d been here in bed forever with nothing but questions and irritation and doubts, and damn it, where was he? If she went over there and asked him… No. Stupid idea. Besides, he wasn’t even home, he was—
Clang.
There it was. The breath left her body, relief pressing her into her bed. He was there. Another bang, and another, and soon, without effort, her heart fell into step with his rhythm.
Nothing,nobodyhad the power to relax her like this, to take everything else away. Rather than fight the urge, Uma went with it. She got up and dressed in the dark, grabbed that stupid ad and stuffed it into her pocket, and then tiptoed past her boss’s door, down the stairs, and out the kitchen door—headed straight for Ivan.
As she walked, the clanging rang out, louder with each step she took. The thought that she’d finally get to witness Ivan the blacksmith excited her—and almost made her forget everything else.
The door stood open, leaking warmth like an oven. The place must get incredibly hot in the summer.
He was bent low over the anvil, hammering a piece of bright-red, burning metal with a mallet. Sparks flew like some kind of crazy fairy dust. He looked magical and mythical and so very…right. Powerful back and arms and hands worked in concert to hammer order into iron, and an errant thought escaped: images of him working her over the same way. Shaping and molding her into something strong and lasting. She trembled.
It took Squeak’s wet nose to shake Uma out of her reverie. The dog met her in the doorway with what could only be described as a series of squeaks.
When Uma glanced up, Ivan was watching her. Only he no longer looked like the same man. This Ivan was a whole new creature, transformed. Intimidating in an entirely different way. He looked pleased to see Uma, but insecure, awaiting a verdict.
“Oh,” she stammered out. “Wow, you’re… Just wow.”
And what a verdict it was. Gone was the beast she’d had a grudging connection with two nights before. This man was breathtakingly handsome.
“You shaved. And you cut your hair and… It’s… Wow. Amazing.” The shock of the change was solid in the pit of her stomach.Attraction, she thought, skittering away from the notion.
Ivan got a pleased, self-conscious look on his face. A kid given a compliment he didn’t know what to do with. It was adorable.
