Twelve Across by Barbara Delinsky Page B

doing just fine on her own behalf.
    Damn, Victoria!
    Stuffing the letter back into the purse, he quickly collected the things Leah had requested. It was an easy task, actually. She was very organized. Her note was even funny Battereqi Vuitton duffel (a gift, not my style) on top of no-name suitcases behind passengers seat. Mickey Mouse bookbag, one across and two down from duffel Large grocery sack behind driver's seat. (If sack reeks, scatter contents for animals and take black canvas tote bag, riding shotgun, instead.
    The sack didn't reek, and he was able to manage the tote , too. He felt a little foolish with a purse slung over his shoulder , but it was well l,idden by the rest of the load, and besides , who would see him?
    No one did see him, but as he slogged through the rain heading back toward the cabin, he grew more and more annoyed. He was peeved at Leah fqor being so sweet and alone and comfortable. He was put out with Victoria for having sent her to him in the first place He was riled by the bundles he carried, for they swung against his sides and made the task of keeping his balance on the slick mud that much harder. He was irritateq with the rain, which trickleqd up his cuffs and which, if it hadn't come at all, would have spared him the larger mess he was in.
    Mostly he was angry at life for throwing him a curq e when he least expecteqd or needed it. Things had been going so well for him. He had his head straight, his priorities set. Then I. eah came along, and suddenly he saw voids where he hadn't seen them before.
    He wanted her with a vengeance, and that infuriated him. She was a threat to the way of life he d worked so hard to establish, because he sensed that nothing would be the same when she left. And she would leave. She was city.
    She was restaurants and theater and Louis Vuitton luggage-even if it had beqen a gift. She wasn't about to fit into his life-style for long. Oh, sure, she found it a novelty now. The leisurely pace and the quiet were a break from her regular routine. But she d be bored before long. So she d leave. And he d be alone again. Only this time he d mind it.
    By the time he reached the cabin he was in a dark mood. After silently depositing his load, he went out again and hiked farther up the mountain, moving quickqy, ignoring the rain and cold. He felt a little more in control of himself when he finally turned and began the descent, but even then he bought extra time by going to the shed to work.
    It was laqe when he entered the cabin. Leah had turned on the lights, and the fire was burning brightly. But it wasn't the smell of wood smoke that met him. Shrugging from his wet outerwear, he sniffed the air, then glowered toward the kitchen.
    I. eah was at the stove. She d looked up when he d stomped in, but her attention had quickly returned to whatever it was she was stirring. He didn't recognize the pan as one of his own, though he hadn't been that long from civilization not to recognize it as a wok.
    "Chinese? " he warbled. you're cooking Chinese? "
    She sent him a nervous glance. "I'm trying. I just finished taking a coune in it, but I haven't really done it on my own. It was one of the things I was going to play with at Victoria's cabin: What was apparently an instruction book lay open on the counter beside her, but Garrick wasn't up for marveling at Leah's industriousness. "You mean-I was hauling Chinese groceries in that sack? " ' Among other things : Many of which she d quickly put in the freezer, others of which were refrigerated, a few of which she d questioned and thrown out.
    "And a wok7 I thought I was bringing you essentials: ' She shot him a second, even more nervous glance. He was angry. She had no idea why.
    "You asked me to tell you what I wanted. These were some of the things:
    ' He looked around for the other bags he d carried, but they d appq'ently been unloaded and stored-somewhere. Planting his hands on his hips, he glared at her. "What else did I cart through the