She giggled as his whiskers graced her neck. “That’s not snuggling.”
“Then what is it?” His lips were so close to her skin, he could feel her warmth on them.
“It’s tickling.” She laughed again and pushed back so she could look him in the eye. “You go to work, and when you come home, I’ll show you how to properly snuggle.”
His heart thudded loudly. “Deal.”
She pecked a kiss on his lips and sauntered back to their new home.
He stared after her, wondering what he’d done in his life to deserve a second chance. “Whatever it was, dear Lord, thank you.”
Chapter 15
The silence in the clearing was unnerving as Maggie made trip after trip from the house to the trailer, transferring as many of her tools as she could to the smaller space. Yes, there was a sign on the door that said the place was unhealthy and no one could enter, but it had been placed there by a liar and a cheat and she was going to get her stuff, darn it. Let them haul her off to jail or whatever; the whole situation was ridiculous.
The few cabinets in the trailer made for a tight fit. The memory of how close she and Cash had to stand to maneuver made her body grow warm. They’d have two weeks like this. Two weeks of bumping into his solid form at every turn.
It wasn’t an unpleasant thought.
She’d managed to pare the pans down to two—a fry pan and a simmering pot—when her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and brushed the hair out of her face before answering. “Hey, Sammy. What’s up?”
“I loved the breakfast recipes you sent over. The egg casserole is amazing.”
“You made it?” She’d been especially proud of that dish. Ted had mentioned he was trying to put on muscle, so she’d taken Grams’s potato and veggie dinner dish, added eggs, and made it a breakfast casserole. Ted raved about it, and she’d made it twice more to feed the men who worked hard every day to restore the homestead to its former glory.
“Made it and loved it. So homey.”
“That’s what I was going for.”
“It’s your gig. How are we doing for the next section?” Sammy often saidwewhen what he really meant was her.
“I’ve hit a snag.”
He grunted. The funny thing about his grunts was that they said so many things without using any words. This one said “not again,” “I can’t believe this girl,” and “you are pushing my buttons.”
“We were kicked out of the house just this afternoon.” She tugged on her hair and then flipped it over her shoulder. “I’m on a small stove with limited dishwashing ability.” Try no dishwasher and just her own two hands.
“We? Did you get a roommate?”
“I, uh, got married?” It came out as a question, because she wasn’t sure how he was going to take the news. “It’s a long story.”
Sigh. “It always is. You’re writing a cookbook, not a novel. Get it together.”
She put her hand on her hip. “I had it together. And then this inspector showed up—sent by the devil himself—and threw a wrench in everything.”
“Excuses. Things happen. You have to keep going. That’s what separates those who become great from those who stay average. You want to be great, don’t you?”
She gritted her teeth against the sense of failure his words scrubbed over her. “Yes. I’m trying, Sammy. Really.”
“Try harder.”
Her eyes darted around the small space, noting the bad lighting that would make taking pictures a nightmare. “I will.”
“Wonderful. I’ll expect the side dish recipes within the week.”
They said goodbye, and she hung up. Staring down at the phone in her lap, she briefly considered calling Cash and offering to look for an apartment. The trailer was a wonderful effort on his part. And truly, he needed to be close to the house to keep it secure. Who knew what Mark the Jerk Murdock would stoop to in his efforts to sabotage them? No. Cash needed to be here. And after the way he’d reacted when he’d thought she would leave him, she couldn’t walk away without causing damage to the fragile thing growing between them. Was it trust? Yes. But there was something more. Something abiding. Her instincts told her that walking away now would kill all that.
Therefore, she needed to be here too.
