Her body stiffened, though she never pulled away. “I can hardly share Jordan’s tiny twin bed with you, plus I need to make sure the animals are okay. Brett said he’d walk Bandit a few times and make sure they had enough food. But he’s long gone by now, I’m sure.”
The idea of Brett Sheehan anywhere near Chelsea boiled his blood. He wasn’t about to start an argument with her now. Not when they’d come so far in the last few days. Soon enough, they’d be able to be together permanently.
His sigh was long and loud. “I guess the animals win. How about you bring them over tomorrow when you come? That way you can stay later if you want.”
“You’re sure your parents won’t mind?”
“My parents have three dogs, much larger than Bandit, and two cats. They’ll be okay.”
Chelsea glanced at her watch and sighed against him. “Fifteen minutes. I’ll leave in fifteen minutes.”
A grin formed on his face. “If that’s all I have for now, I’ll take it.” And he took her mouth once more with his.
Chapter seventeen
Banditliftedhisheadfrom his dog dish and started barking.
“Your food is right there, you silly dog. What are you yipping about?”
There was a quick knock on the front door, then the sound of it opening. Chelsea scrambled toward the entryway. Before she could take more than a few steps, a singsong voice called out, “Hello. Anyone home?”
The buxom redhead who worked with Theo, Dina something, strolled through the hall and entered the kitchen like she owned the place.
“Hi, um…Dina, right?” What the heck was this lady doing here? “Is Theo all right?” It had been bad enough when he’d been trapped under the tree. If something else had happened to him, what would she do?
“Theo is perfect, as I’m sure you know.” She cocked her head to one side and slid a large manila envelope onto the counter beside her.
Relief. But then what did this woman want? “Theo’s not here. He’s working today.”
“Yes, I know. We were justtogether.” Dina glanced around the kitchen and wrinkled her nose at the disarray. The wallpaper had all been stripped and the floors had been ripped up.
“Sorry, it’s a mess. The painters are coming this afternoon to do most of the rooms, and the floors will be done next week.” Brett had done a great job getting the walls sanded and ready. Theo still didn’t trust the man, but he’d been a godsend to her.
Dina’s long red nails tapped a rhythm on the counter, then played with some leftover screws and the taped-up hammer resting next to them. Bandit growled. Yeah, Chelsea didn’t like her any more than the dog did.
“I didn’t come over to discuss your decorating.”
“Why are you here?”
A smirk twisted Dina’s painted lips. “I wanted to discuss Theo.”
“You said he was fine.”
“And he is fine.” The way Dina emphasized the word told her exactly what she meant byfine. “But I’m worried about his happiness.”
“His happiness? What about it?” He’d seemed pretty darn happy the last two weeks. Their time on his porch canoodling had been the start of nightly make-out sessions. She wasn’t quite ready to go any further. Or maybe she was afraid to. Using Jordan as an excuse, she’d always left once things heated up too much. Theo had seemed to understand and hadn’t pushed. It had made her love him even more.
“I think you need to leave Theo alone. He was satisfied with his life until you came back. He may think everything will be great, and you can go back to playing house again, but really, let’s face it—you left before, and you’ll leave again when you realize he’s not that into you.”
“He discussed this with you?” The only time she’d seen Dina before, Theo had seemed uncomfortable around her. Was it because they’d had something going on?
“We’ve had conversations about you. He was all set to move on with his life and then you showed up, confusing him. Now, he’s stalled.”
Dina pushed the large envelope across the counter. “Then again, maybe not. I’m guessing divorce papers. If you know what’s good for you and that little girl of yours, you’ll sign them and disappear again. She doesn’t need a mom who isn’t there for her, one who pops in and out of her life.”
“I would never leave Jordan.” Would she? Self-doubt crowded in, smothering all the confidence she’d attempted to build up the last few months.
Dina didn’t appear to have heard her as she peeked into the dining room. “I know a great real estate agent who could get you a few million for this house. Imagine all the places you could go with that kind of money. Better than this little island.”
