Hearts Made Whole by Jody Hedlund Page B

a try then.”
    He stuffed his other hand into his pocket and rocked on his heels, the tension rolling away and a smile tugging at his lips. “Good.”
    â€œThank you.” In spite of the temporariness of the plan, she was still grateful to him for his sensitivity and kindness.
    He nodded and said, “Your beau will be disappointed.”
    â€œI don’t have a beau.”
    â€œCould have fooled me.” His tone was teasing. “Arnie Simmons sure has it bad for you.”
    â€œArnie’s just a friend.”
    â€œIt’s obvious he doesn’t think of himself as just a friend.”
    â€œI’ve never encouraged him in anything beyond friendship. I’ve only shown him the courtesy and kindness that others neglect to give him.”
    â€œBut he’s still a man.” Ryan grinned. “And a man would have to be blind not to notice how pretty and sweet you are.”
    Ryan thought she was pretty. Even though his words were spoken lightly, they made something warm flutter to life in the pit of her stomach, something she’d never felt before but that she liked.
    â€œI guess you’re just going to break his heart,” Ryan teased.
    She wished she knew how to banter with a man. But the fact was, even if there had been suitors available, she wasn’t sure she could have flirted. She wasn’t like Tessa. Making eyes and joking didn’t come naturally to her.
    Even so, Caroline couldn’t resist returning Ryan’s smile. “Arnie was only trying to help me. I don’t think he really wants to marry me.”
    â€œOh, he wants to marry you,” Ryan insisted, his eyes dancing with a light that sent another flutter through her middle, this one warmer than the last.
    She wasn’t sure how to respond. There was something honest and clear in his eyes, something that beckoned her to banter with him. And there was also a frank appreciation of her as a woman—something she hadn’t experienced before either.
    His gaze held hers, bold and unswerving, until she squirmed and looked away toward the rocky beach. The warmth inside spread in a pleasurable trail to her limbs.
    She needed to go. Needed to keep her dignity. Before she made a fool of herself and ended up acting silly like Tessa. She spun to leave, but then stopped. “You’ll join us for meals in the house, won’t you, Mr. Chambers?”
    â€œNay. I can’t.”
    Her lips stalled around her sentence.
    Seeing her surprise, he fought back a smile. “I won’t join you unless you promise to call me Ryan instead of Mr. Chambers.”
    â€œI can’t.” It was her turn to try to hold back her smile. “I’ll only use your given name if you bring your dirty laundry up to the house tomorrow and allow me to wash it. Ryan.”
    He laughed, giving her a smile wide enough to reveal the full power of his attractiveness. The humor and laughter in his eyes transformed his face into one of the handsomest she’d ever seen, and her breath caught in her throat.
    â€œDo I stink that bad?” he asked too innocently.
    She flipped her hair over her shoulders and started back to the house. “Perhaps on the morrow I’ll draw water so that you can take a bath. I’m not sure which needs the scrubbing more, you or your clothes.”
    His low chuckle followed her.
    And it wasn’t until she was inside the house, her back pressed against the closed door, and her knees trembling, that she realized she’d done it. She’d flirted.
    For the first time in her life, she’d flirted. And she couldn’t deny that she’d rather liked doing it.

    â€œYou will absolutely not lose your keeper job simply because you wear skirts and have the ability to bear children.” Esther Deluth’s voice boomed over the town square, making Caroline want to jump into one of the large barrel flowerpots that dotted the corners and burrow under the