the kitchen and dining room shared space with Christine’s studio. Weak sunlight streamed in through tall windows, highlighting the multicolor pottery dishes waiting on the rough-hewn table loaded with white cardboard takeout boxes.
“What do you want to drink?” Ellis poked him in the ribs with a set of chopsticks as she passed by to the kitchen.
“Anything’s fine.” He peered into a container. Yep, General Tso’s chicken. He’d been right about the moo goo gai pan, and more boxes held shrimp lo mein and egg rolls. His mouth watered and he smiled, remembering Angel’s shock at the idea of what he considered the ultimate Thanksgiving meal. Thinking of her sent a dart of mingled warmth and loneliness through him.
Christine folded her voluminous skirt around her legs and handed him a pair of chopsticks. “Phoning someone special?”
He paused in the act of snitching an egg roll and darted a look at her serene, knowing expression. No point in trying to prevaricate. She knew him too well. He laid the steaming wrap on his plate. “Angel.”
“Oh.” A pleased smile flirted over Christine’s mouth and she nodded. “Angel.”
What was that all about? Shrugging, he reached for the box holding the General Tso’s chicken.
“Mom.” His other sister Montgomery rested her elbow on the table and leaned toward her mother, a teasing glint in eyes the same shade of blue as his own. “She’s older than he is.”
He gave her a look. One day he’d learn not to confide in her. She couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it.
“Really?” Christine ladled shrimp lo mein onto her plate. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Ellis set a glass of iced water before him and sank onto the chair next to his. “Does that mean I can go out with David Norton?”
Christine pinned her with a look. “No.”
With a pout, Ellis subsided. Troy Lee swallowed a chuckle. Although she was only sixteen, she was already enrolled at Georgia Tech, a freshman just a year behind Montgomery, who was a sophomore at nearly twenty, attending the Atlanta campus of the Savannah School of Art and Design. Since that made Ellis think she was all grown-up, having to toe Christine’s relatively strict line grated.
“So tell us about your Angel.” Christine clicked her chopsticks at him.
His Angel. Damn, he liked the sound of that. “She’s…great. Smart, funny, owns her own business. Makes the best burgers you’ve ever tasted.”
Not to mention absolutely beautiful and a fantastic kisser. More than that, they clicked in a way he’d not experienced before. He could laugh with her, talk with her. Hell, he was beginning to think this was the woman he could live his life with.
And what had he done? Convinced her it was all about fun and games.
He was a damn idiot. But at least he was an idiot who knew where he wanted to be.
“So.” He closed the sticks around a piece of spicy chicken. “Would it bother you if I didn’t spend the night and went home after dinner?”
He didn’t miss the excited look his sisters exchanged, a verbal giggle of sorts. Christine smiled her serene smile, pleasure lighting her eyes. “Not at all.”
Something was off. Feeling like he was trapped in one of those “how many things can you find wrong” cartoons from the Sunday paper, Mark followed Tori out to her mother’s patio and settled next to her on the glider. The sense of things being out of whack niggled at him, the same way it did when somebody moved the stuff around on his desk when he was out of the office.
At first, he’d thought maybe it was being here with Tori for the first time in the official “boyfriend” role and having her other brothers Del and Chuck size him up the way Tick had been doing for weeks, but neither Chuck’s open yet easy assessment nor Del’s quiet observation got under his skin. Maybe it was being part of a family celebration when he’d been alone for so long.
Mentally shrugging off the unease, he
“What do you want to drink?” Ellis poked him in the ribs with a set of chopsticks as she passed by to the kitchen.
“Anything’s fine.” He peered into a container. Yep, General Tso’s chicken. He’d been right about the moo goo gai pan, and more boxes held shrimp lo mein and egg rolls. His mouth watered and he smiled, remembering Angel’s shock at the idea of what he considered the ultimate Thanksgiving meal. Thinking of her sent a dart of mingled warmth and loneliness through him.
Christine folded her voluminous skirt around her legs and handed him a pair of chopsticks. “Phoning someone special?”
He paused in the act of snitching an egg roll and darted a look at her serene, knowing expression. No point in trying to prevaricate. She knew him too well. He laid the steaming wrap on his plate. “Angel.”
“Oh.” A pleased smile flirted over Christine’s mouth and she nodded. “Angel.”
What was that all about? Shrugging, he reached for the box holding the General Tso’s chicken.
“Mom.” His other sister Montgomery rested her elbow on the table and leaned toward her mother, a teasing glint in eyes the same shade of blue as his own. “She’s older than he is.”
He gave her a look. One day he’d learn not to confide in her. She couldn’t keep a secret if her life depended on it.
“Really?” Christine ladled shrimp lo mein onto her plate. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Ellis set a glass of iced water before him and sank onto the chair next to his. “Does that mean I can go out with David Norton?”
Christine pinned her with a look. “No.”
With a pout, Ellis subsided. Troy Lee swallowed a chuckle. Although she was only sixteen, she was already enrolled at Georgia Tech, a freshman just a year behind Montgomery, who was a sophomore at nearly twenty, attending the Atlanta campus of the Savannah School of Art and Design. Since that made Ellis think she was all grown-up, having to toe Christine’s relatively strict line grated.
“So tell us about your Angel.” Christine clicked her chopsticks at him.
His Angel. Damn, he liked the sound of that. “She’s…great. Smart, funny, owns her own business. Makes the best burgers you’ve ever tasted.”
Not to mention absolutely beautiful and a fantastic kisser. More than that, they clicked in a way he’d not experienced before. He could laugh with her, talk with her. Hell, he was beginning to think this was the woman he could live his life with.
And what had he done? Convinced her it was all about fun and games.
He was a damn idiot. But at least he was an idiot who knew where he wanted to be.
“So.” He closed the sticks around a piece of spicy chicken. “Would it bother you if I didn’t spend the night and went home after dinner?”
He didn’t miss the excited look his sisters exchanged, a verbal giggle of sorts. Christine smiled her serene smile, pleasure lighting her eyes. “Not at all.”
Something was off. Feeling like he was trapped in one of those “how many things can you find wrong” cartoons from the Sunday paper, Mark followed Tori out to her mother’s patio and settled next to her on the glider. The sense of things being out of whack niggled at him, the same way it did when somebody moved the stuff around on his desk when he was out of the office.
At first, he’d thought maybe it was being here with Tori for the first time in the official “boyfriend” role and having her other brothers Del and Chuck size him up the way Tick had been doing for weeks, but neither Chuck’s open yet easy assessment nor Del’s quiet observation got under his skin. Maybe it was being part of a family celebration when he’d been alone for so long.
Mentally shrugging off the unease, he
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