“Why would I need more of my things?” It was her turn for her eyes to twinkle.
His face froze for a second, then he tipped so their foreheads touched. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be alone.”
“Because of my injury?” Had she misread his intentions?
“No. Because when you’re alone, you aren’t with me. Or Jordan. I’m being selfish with themepart.”
“I like being withyou,Theo. A lot. I’ll get more of my stuff today.”
His hands roamed down her arms as he kissed her. “Darn, I really hate to go. Thinking of you, and what we can do in this bed tonight, that’ll have to get me through the day.”
After one more kiss, Theo reluctantly pulled away and headed for the door. It wasn’t long before Jordan woke up and bounced into her room.
“Mama, you here again. Are you staying forever?” The optimistic look in the child’s eyes grabbed her by the heart.
“I hope so, sweetheart. Your daddy said I should get more of my stuff so I can stay a little longer. We’ll have to see after that.”
Once they’d both washed and dressed, Chelsea attempted to make breakfast. She’d gotten good at toast and bagels, not that there was much to it. Loading Bandit and the kittens in the car was also challenging, but Chelsea wasn’t sure how long she’d be gone. If there were problems at the cottage, she might need to stay there for a bit. Jordan would be thrilled to play with them in the back parlor that was still cleared out.
Brett’s car was in the driveway when they got there, and Jordan carefully lifted the soft-sided kitty carrier out of the back seat while Chelsea grabbed hold of bandit’s leash. Brett greeted them at the door.
“Hey. Wasn’t sure if you’d be here today,” he said, his face neutral. “You haven’t been around much the last few days.”
“Sorry,” she said as they went inside. She directed Jordan to the back room with the animals and closed off the gate. “I had a car accident earlier this week and was injured.”
“Are you okay?” His expression showed his concern as he glanced at her. “I see some bruising. What happened?”
“Theo’s car had some brake problems, and I went into a tree. I’m okay, but the doctor thought I needed to be with someone for a few days, so I stayed with him and Jordan.”
“Why did you have his car? And why the heck didn’t he check his brakes to make sure they were working properly?” A scowl crossed his face. Yeah, there wasn’t any love lost between those two, but no way she was getting involved in that right now.
“I’m a decent mechanic, if you need anyone to do repair work. Let me know.”
“Thanks, Brett. I appreciate it. What are you working on today?”
“Mostly, peeling the tape off the rooms that were painted. The painters did a good job. Do you want to see?”
Peeking back into the room where Jordan played, she hesitated.
“I’ll keep an eye on her if you want to walk around and check it out. Better to see now if something isn’t to your liking.”
“Thanks. I’ll take you up on that.” She patted him on the arm and headed into the living room. The soft sage that dusted the walls gave the room a cozy feeling. The dining room in a light blue and the office in gray looked great, too. When she entered the kitchen, she sighed. It was the exact color of Theo’s kitchen. The exact color she’d wanted all those years ago.
Now, she realized it didn’t matter what color the room was, only that she and Theo shared it. Funny how years and hardship changed your perception of things.
The four bedrooms upstairs, as well as the two bathrooms, had cleaned up nicely. The room Jordan wanted was a soft shade of pink. Both the bathrooms already had new plumbing, and the flooring was due in as soon as the walls had been painted. Deciding exactly what she wanted should be next on her list. Would she ever stay here? This house meant so much to her, as it reminded her of all the great times with her grandmother. But if she had to choose between this and Theo, there was no choice. Theo won. After last night, she never wanted to be apart from him again.
“The rooms look excellent, Brett,” she said as she peeked into the back room. He sat on the floor with Jordan while the kittens crawled all over him. Laughter completely softened his expression. Picking up her purse, she fished out the envelope of cash she’d prepared for him and held it out. “I want to give you this before I forget.”
The intensity returned as he took it and shoved it in his back pocket. Had she done something wrong? Before she could ask, her phone sounded. Retreating a few steps down the hallway, she didn’t bother looking as she swiped across the screen.
“Hello.”
“Chelsea? Where in the world have you been?”
Frank. Great. Not who she wanted to chat with right now. She felt bad about that, because honestly, he was running her father’s business and taking care of so much for her that she should be grateful. But Frank was also a reminder of what had happened to her. Her old life. He still saw her as someone who couldn’t take care of herself, and maybe she wasn’t proficient at everything yet, but she was getting closer.
“I’ve been busy, Frank. Sorry I haven’t called.”
