good-bye.”
“It’s going to be a wonderful day. What do you want to do?”
He pushed the gun-cleaning equipment under the couch and went into his bedroom to replace his gun. When he returned, he watched her setting the table in his kitchen with her breakfast materials.
“Just what I’m doing. Nothing.”
“Nope. You did that yesterday.” She sat down and gestured for him to join her. He sidled over to the sink and leaned on the counter. “So you’re over your little snit and you think you can come in here like nothing happened.”
She poured milk over her cereal and used her spoon to bury the Cheerios in it. “Basically. Come on. I went to a lot of trouble to prepare the breakfast of champions. The least you can do is eat it.”
“Wheaties are the breakfast of champions.”
“Come eat, Joe.” She leveled a spoonful of sugar over her bowl.
www.samhainpublishing.com
81
Joey Light
He turned his back on her and set up the baby bottles. He proceeded to fill them and pull the box of kittens over to the couch. Plopping down, Joe reached in and picked one of them up. He pretended to be very interested in what he was doing. She was being dismissed again.
“You can ignore me all you want. I’m not going away.”
“I don’t care what you do,” he grumbled.
Sterling got up and snatched one of the bottles from the sink. Picking up one of the kittens, she went out onto the deck and sat on the top step. When she had finished feeding it, she placed the kitten on the deck and watched it crawl around. She ran a finger down the soft fur and encouraged it to explore.
Joe came out on the deck and scooped the kitten up and returned it to its box.
“You tried to feed me and you fed the cat, now go home, Sterling. I don’t need Mother Superior around all day.”
“That’s not very neighborly of you, Joe.”
“I’m not neighborly. And I’m not your knight in shining armor. You know that by now. Just leave me alone. If I’m screwing up your job, that’s your problem. If you’re here on vacation, then just do what you were planning on doing—without me. I’m not dependable, remember?”
“I wasn’t going to bring up the incident. Why are you?”
“Because it’s a something-nothing.”
She looked up at him then. “You mean it’s something that means nothing or nothing that means something?”
He snorted. “Would the robbery have occurred whether we were there or not?”
“Yes. It would have happened regardless.”
He shrugged. “Something-nothing.”
82
www.samhainpublishing.com
Sterling’s Reasons
She smiled at him and he continued to watch the waves. “Maybe you’re right. But that’s over. I’ve already been busy this morning. There’s a dinner cruise tonight. I’m not going to go alone. I made reservations for both of us.”
He turned to look at her. She had let her head fall back a little, to catch the direct rays of the sun. Her hair streamed down behind her, curling and soft.
Inviting. Her eyes were closed, but he knew the animation that would fill them.
“I don’t think so.”
She opened her eyes to slits. “I can’t very well go without an escort. Well, I could, but I prefer not to. I know. You can’t dance. That’s why you don’t want to go.”
“You’re probably right.”
When he just lit a cigarette she sat up straight and looked at him. “The other day you decided where we would go. Today it’s my turn. It’s that simple. I’ll teach you,” she teased, knowing a man like him knew how to dance.
He blew a smoke ring. “Right.” He watched it widen and disappear on a drift of wind.
Satisfied, Sterling smiled. He still wasn’t looking at her. He watched the ocean curl and roll. He watched the gulls swoop for breakfast. Though he had merely finger-combed his hair and his eyes still held that haunted look that touched her so deeply, he was coming out of it. Slowly, but surely. If he didn’t recognize it, she did.
She was pleased. When he had
“It’s going to be a wonderful day. What do you want to do?”
He pushed the gun-cleaning equipment under the couch and went into his bedroom to replace his gun. When he returned, he watched her setting the table in his kitchen with her breakfast materials.
“Just what I’m doing. Nothing.”
“Nope. You did that yesterday.” She sat down and gestured for him to join her. He sidled over to the sink and leaned on the counter. “So you’re over your little snit and you think you can come in here like nothing happened.”
She poured milk over her cereal and used her spoon to bury the Cheerios in it. “Basically. Come on. I went to a lot of trouble to prepare the breakfast of champions. The least you can do is eat it.”
“Wheaties are the breakfast of champions.”
“Come eat, Joe.” She leveled a spoonful of sugar over her bowl.
www.samhainpublishing.com
81
Joey Light
He turned his back on her and set up the baby bottles. He proceeded to fill them and pull the box of kittens over to the couch. Plopping down, Joe reached in and picked one of them up. He pretended to be very interested in what he was doing. She was being dismissed again.
“You can ignore me all you want. I’m not going away.”
“I don’t care what you do,” he grumbled.
Sterling got up and snatched one of the bottles from the sink. Picking up one of the kittens, she went out onto the deck and sat on the top step. When she had finished feeding it, she placed the kitten on the deck and watched it crawl around. She ran a finger down the soft fur and encouraged it to explore.
Joe came out on the deck and scooped the kitten up and returned it to its box.
“You tried to feed me and you fed the cat, now go home, Sterling. I don’t need Mother Superior around all day.”
“That’s not very neighborly of you, Joe.”
“I’m not neighborly. And I’m not your knight in shining armor. You know that by now. Just leave me alone. If I’m screwing up your job, that’s your problem. If you’re here on vacation, then just do what you were planning on doing—without me. I’m not dependable, remember?”
“I wasn’t going to bring up the incident. Why are you?”
“Because it’s a something-nothing.”
She looked up at him then. “You mean it’s something that means nothing or nothing that means something?”
He snorted. “Would the robbery have occurred whether we were there or not?”
“Yes. It would have happened regardless.”
He shrugged. “Something-nothing.”
82
www.samhainpublishing.com
Sterling’s Reasons
She smiled at him and he continued to watch the waves. “Maybe you’re right. But that’s over. I’ve already been busy this morning. There’s a dinner cruise tonight. I’m not going to go alone. I made reservations for both of us.”
He turned to look at her. She had let her head fall back a little, to catch the direct rays of the sun. Her hair streamed down behind her, curling and soft.
Inviting. Her eyes were closed, but he knew the animation that would fill them.
“I don’t think so.”
She opened her eyes to slits. “I can’t very well go without an escort. Well, I could, but I prefer not to. I know. You can’t dance. That’s why you don’t want to go.”
“You’re probably right.”
When he just lit a cigarette she sat up straight and looked at him. “The other day you decided where we would go. Today it’s my turn. It’s that simple. I’ll teach you,” she teased, knowing a man like him knew how to dance.
He blew a smoke ring. “Right.” He watched it widen and disappear on a drift of wind.
Satisfied, Sterling smiled. He still wasn’t looking at her. He watched the ocean curl and roll. He watched the gulls swoop for breakfast. Though he had merely finger-combed his hair and his eyes still held that haunted look that touched her so deeply, he was coming out of it. Slowly, but surely. If he didn’t recognize it, she did.
She was pleased. When he had
Similar Books
