Josie Day Is Coming Home by Lisa Plumley Page A

the spacious living room. “You’ve got one thing right. This
place is important to me.”
    “See? That’s how I know I can trust you. You’re
dedicated to your work. That’s not something you see every day.”
    He shot her a look. “You spent the whole day telling me
how crappy my handyman work was.”
    “Well, you can’t hold that against me. It’s been a
pretty tough day.” Josie yawned. “Which means that now I deserve to
cut loose a little. What with being kidnapped, and all.”
    “Come on. It hasn’t been so bad.” Luke hunkered
down beside the coffee table, adjusting the pair of pillows beneath her
propped-up ankle. “You got your choice of ground-floor servants’ bedrooms.
And you got to keep your cell phone.”
    “True. That’s another reason I know I can trust you. A
homicidal maniac ax murderer would never have let me keep my trusty Nokia.”
Josie patted the customized pink-sparkle-plated phone on the sofa cushion
beside her. She’d called Parker with an update not two hours ago. “I
figure you must be okay.”
    Actually, she figured he was more than okay. Strange as it
seemed, Josie trusted him, which was more than she could say for most of the
people she met. Unlike the high rollers, playboy gamblers, and
entitlement-obsessed CEOs who came to Vegas with the idea that everything there
was for sale—even the showgirls—he hadn’t patronized her. Or lied to her.
    Also unlike them, Luke hadn’t tried to grab her ass.
    She frowned, suddenly off-kilter by the realization. Why hadn’t Luke tried to grab her ass? Was she the only one feeling a buzz between
them?
    Wondering, Josie tilted her head. Luke still crouched beside
the coffee table, now exchanging her limp bag of frozen corn for a package of
frozen peas. He patted it gently in place—the “icing” portion of her
sprained-ankle treatment. He glanced at his watch.
    “What’s the matter? Got a hot date?” she teased.
    He hesitated. Josie’s heart stuttered.
    Get a grip, she commanded herself. You just met
him. He doesn’t even want to grab your ass .
    But that didn’t seem to matter. As aggravating as Luke
sometimes was—especially when arguing against her dance school idea—Josie had
to face facts. His was one of the few friendly faces she’d encountered since
setting out on her big adventure. Unlike another of those friendly faces—her
mother’s— his didn’t belong to someone who’d once scraped Gerber mashed
sweet potatoes out of her nose. That was a plus right there.
    Besides, being with him just made her feel better.
    “I’m timing the ice packs for your ankle,” he
said.
    Great. She was getting sappy. He was getting practical.
    What were the odds?
    “Oh. Right. The ice packs.”
    “But if you want me to leave, I will.”
    Josie didn’t want him to leave. But she didn’t want to say
so. After all, the man had (kind of) kidnapped her. She was still officially
opposed to that.
    Biting her lip, she glanced around the living room. Among
all the tarp-shrouded furniture, Luke had only uncovered the sofa. The fire was
great, but the shadows it cast in the corners and the whole Scooby-Doo atmosphere of Blue Moon at night was starting to spook her.
    “I’ve got some things to do in the carriage
house,” Luke said. “I’ll check on you in twenty minutes.”
    “Wait! You don’t have to rush off.”
    He glanced over his shoulder, one eyebrow lifted.
    “Umm, what’s all that for?” She pointed to the
things he’d brought. Yes, it was a lame distraction. It was all she could muster
on short notice. Being kidnapped had damaged her flirting abilities.
    Cooperatively, Luke lifted the soda. “Refreshment.
Seven-Up is the only thing to drink when you’re under the weather. At least
according to Marta.”
    Finally. A personal detail. “Marta?”
    “My…babysitter. When I was a kid.”
    “Ah.”
    Next, Luke lifted a Ding Dong. “Sustenance.” He
lifted the deck of cards. “And entertainment. But I’m having