Page 63 of When the Smoke Clears

“Jamie.”

I turn. “Jaymes?”

She casually nods.

“Why?”

“You’re awfully curious.”

I shrug, stepping past her. “Just making conversation.”

“Oh, I like conversation. Early this morning, I signed the papers for my land. How was the rest of your afternoon? Did you grab a nap after Alba finished cleaning? Did she do a marvelous job?”

Why did I speak to her?

I remove my boots and step into the house, setting them just inside the door.

“Looks clean to me,” she says, moseying into the kitchen and then depositing her bag on the table, where it doesn’t belong.

“That just proves you’re easy to please,” I say, washing my hands.

Everleigh flips her hair over her shoulder and laughs. “You’ve known that for a long time.”

I won’t take the bait. It’s a sex reference. We’re not talking about sex or kissing or anything like that.

“How’s Jamie? Are you moving out now that you’ve closed on your land?” I ask, grabbing a beer from the fridge, then twisting the top.

“Jamie’s good.” She sits on the sofa, tucking her legs under her while ignoring the moving out question.

“She’s feeling okay?” I ask, leaning against the counter before gulping the beer like a bottled water.

“Yes,” she says slowly. “Why do you ask?”

I shrug. “No reason. What did you two talk about?” My control evaporates. Did she tell Jamie about the kiss?

“Will, I think we should discuss what happened earlier, so it’s not weird.”

I take my time nursing the next sip of beer, and then I rub my lips for a few seconds while I ponder if there will ever be a day when my relationship with Everleigh Reichart is not weird. “Your housekeeper woke me up. Then you kissed me. I’m not sure why. Then my dad called. I ordered him cookies to be delivered. What’s there to discuss?”

“Since you don’t know why I kissed you, I think we should start there.”

“No.” I scoff, shaking my head. “Don’t talk like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you talk to your patients.”

“You’ve never observed me talking to my patients, so how would you know how I talk to them?”

“You sound clinical when you talk, saying things like we should start there.”

“Fine. I kissed you because you’re sexy. I kissed you for the same reason you kiss women you meet at a bar.”

“I kiss women I meet at a bar because I want to fuck them.” I drink more beer.

“Well, there you go.” She holds her hands out, palms up.

“There I go?”