“Yeah. Got them in lemon-lime and raspberry.” He crossed his fingers as he opened the refrigerator. “See, there they are. Even some of those little chocolate milks you like.”
She reached around and grabbed one of the pink cans then opened the pantry. He glanced over her shoulder and inwardly grinned. The lady at the vacation rental agency where he had his house listed for lease had done a good job of stocking what he’d asked for when he’d called yesterday.
“You’ve been paying attention,” Liz said as she fingered a loaf of whole wheat bread and a jar of pimento stuffed olives sitting on the pantry shelf.
“By the way, there’s turkey and provolone cheese,” he said.
“Good. I think I’ll make a quick sandwich before we head upstairs.” She laid everything on the counter. “Who did all this for you?”
“I called the cleaning lady, and she stocked everything.” That was close to being the truth, so he counted it as all he needed to say. But he made a mental note to send the rental lady a tip, because right now, he was making the best impression he had since meeting Liz.
“Would you like me to make you a sandwich, too?”
“No, I don’t like turkey.”
“So, what did you get for yourself?” She motioned that she needed a knife to spread the mayonnaise on the bread.
Thinking back to the phone conversation with the rental company, he couldn’t remember if he ordered anything for himself. Didn’t matter. As long as Liz…uh, the client…had what she needed, he’d find something to eat.
The problem at hand, though, was that she needed a knife. And, next, she’d probably want a fork. Where the hell was the silverware? He opened one drawer, then another, then another. Dishtowels. Placemats. Handyman.
She reached in and picked up the pliers and a screwdriver. “These might work, but they don’t exactly fit my idea of utensils.”
Her knife and fork pantomime with the screwdriver and pliers almost made him laugh. Instead he frowned, shooting her his best not-funny look. She shook her head, pouting her lower lip along with the batting of her eyelashes, then dropped the tools back in the drawer.
He grabbed the next drawer handle and pulled. Then, the next. Bingo! Finally. “Here they are. Anything else you need?”
“Plate? Glass?”
Son of a bitch. With fourteen upper cabinets in the kitchen, his odds weren’t good.
The quizzical look she shot him said she was assessing this scene one move at a time. As if she had all the time in the world, she leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. Five opened cabinets later, a stack of plates finally appeared.
“There,” he said, pointing to the plates.
“What about my glass?” She kept her arms crossed, but the corners of her mouth lifted.
Yeah, in hindsight, he should have known where things were stored in his own home, but he didn’t. And pretending he knew didn’t seem logical at this point. The few times he’d actually been here hadn’t left an indelible layout in his mind.
He grabbed a plate and sat it on the counter next to hers. “If you need anything else… Get. It. Your. Self!”
Soft, breathy giggles bubbled from between her lips as she walked to the cabinet next to the fridge, opened the door, and there were the glasses. Glancing over her shoulder at him and laughing, she held one up. “Would you like a glass?”
Before he thought better, he shook his finger at her. She shook hers in return then wholeheartedly laughed. He needed to get control of the situation fast because she was for damn sure working his last nerve.
“Think you’re pretty smug, don’t you? Well, why don’t you see what else you can find while I get the bags out of the car?” he said.
Anything to get himself out of her eyesight sounded like a good idea, besides which he needed to set up the OPAQUE equipment in his room upstairs. Reese and Josh would be expecting his check-in signal. If they didn’t hear from him by twenty-three-hundred, they’d be the ones making the calls.
He hurried down to the car, grabbed three of the bags, and took them to the third floor, dropping his on the balcony landing and putting her two totes in the guest bedroom. Yesterday, he’d spoken to the lease company, told them what he wanted the room to look like. Right down to the seahorse pillow tossed on the bed and the starfish laying on the nightstand. He smiled.
After jogging back down to the car, he hoisted the two heavier bags onto his shoulders. They held everything from guns and ammo to computers and screen panels. All the equipment he should need to set up the OPAQUE security system for communication. Good thing headquarters had been able to get the equipment to Ft. Benning before Liz and he landed there. He’d been able to pick it up on the fly.
“You about ready to go upstairs?” he asked as he set down the security system after his final trip to the car.
“Sure.” She quickly placed her dishes in the sink. “Those bags look heavy. Why don’t you take the elevator?”
“No problem. I’ve got them.”
