“You have to havesometime off each week.”
“I will, once things get more settled. We weren’t sure how soon we’d be able to hire extra help, but business has been going so well that we’re trying to convince Jamie to work full-time so Beth and I can stagger days off for ourselves.”
“That’d be nice. There must be things you need to do.”
“At least a million. Sundays are a help—we’re only open from one till six—but I’d really like a day off in the middle of the week once in a while. If I don’t start hiring people to fix up my farmhouse, it’s apt to give a final groan and crumble at my feet.”
“Maybe I could help with that.”
“With the farmhouse? But you’re leaving.”
“I’ve got some good contacts, and while I’m in Leominster I can check around for more. What do you need?”
“You name it. Plumber, electrician, roofer, carpenter. Actually, I was exaggerating before. The structure of the house is sound. I had that checked out before I bought the place. But I want to do extensive modernizing inside, and I need good people I can trust, since I won’t be able to stand around and supervise.”
He gave her hand a squeeze. “Got it. I’ll see what I can do.”
They walked on in silence for a time. Lauren felt simultaneously content and unsettled, if that were possible. Finally she couldn’t help but ask, “When will you be flying back to San Francisco?”
“Not for another week or two. I’ll be here in the city early next week, then back in Leominster…. Where are you parked?”
She pointed in the direction of the garage. “You don’t need to—”
“I insist.”
“But it’s out of your way.”
“What else do I have to do?” he teased.
“Sleep. You’ll have to be on the road very early to get to Leominster by nine.”
“It’s okay. I’ll sleep tomorrow night.”
All too soon, they had reached the garage, climbed to the third level and found her car. Reluctantly, she unlocked the door and opened it, only then turning to Matt. “Can I give you a lift back to the hotel?”
He shook his head. “It’s out of your way.”
“But this was out of yours.”
“I’m on foot. It’s ten times harder by car, what with one-way streets and all.”
“I don’t mind. Really—”
Any further words she might have said were stopped at her lips by the single finger he placed there. The dim light of the garage couldn’t disguise the way his eyes slowly covered her face. They were hypnotic, those mellow brown eyes, and they conspired with the unmistakable vibrations from his body to suspend Lauren’s thought processes once more.
His finger slid to her chin, where it collaborated with his thumb to tip her face up. He kissed her once, then again, then brushed his lips over her cheeks, eyes and nose. Lauren was entranced. Her own lips parted, then waited, waited until he’d completed the erotic journey and returned home.
But if she’d thought what he’d already done was erotic, she was in for an awakening. The tip of his tongue flicked out to paint her lips in the rosy hue of passion, and if she hadn’t been clutching the top of the car door, she might have collapsed. She’d never experienced anything as electric, and the hardest part to believe was that the only points where their bodies touched were his tongue and her lips.
When he severed that connection, she stood still, eyes closed, mesmerized by the lingering flicker of a sweet, sweet longing. With regret, she finally opened her eyes.
“Can I come out to see you when I get back to town?” he asked. There was a trace of hoarseness in his voice.
Clearly implied was that he wanted to see her in Lincoln. Without a second thought, she nodded. “I’d like that.”
He smiled, then cocked his head toward the car. “Get in. I might not let you leave if you wait much longer.”
“Is that a threat or a promise?” she quipped softly, but she was already sliding behind the wheel. One part of her was tempted to wait much, much longer. The other part knew that things were happening quickly and that there were too many considerations to be made before she dared Matt to follow through.
