Laurant returned to the living room, tossed Nick a bottle of Evian, and opened her own. She took a big drink and headed for the stairs.
"I’m going to take a shower."
"Wait," Nick said as he went up the stairs ahead of her. He looked in the bathroom to make sure there weren’t any surprises waiting. He was being overly cautious, and she was thankful for it. "Okay, go ahead."
"You could shower in the other bathroom down the hall," she suggested. "I’ll wait."
Nick was sitting on the bed talking on the phone when she came out of the bathroom fifteen minutes later. Her hair was dripping down her back, and she was wearing a short cotton robe that had seen better days. He took one look at her and promptly lost his train of thought. He knew she was naked under that thin material, and he had to force himself to turn away so he could concentrate on his conversation.
"Look, Theo, we’ll talk about this when I get back to Boston. All right?" He hung up the phone and slowly turned his head to get a glimpse of Laurant out of the corner of his eye. He watched her open the dresser drawer and take out two little wisps of lace. Immediately, his mind went to visions of her wearing them.
Get a grip, he told himself. She was off-limits, and he had no business fantasizing about her. What the hell kind of a friend was he to lust after Tommy’s sister?
Berating himself didn’t do any good. He wanted her. Simple as that. There, he finally admitted the obvious. Now what was he going to do about it? Nothing, he decided. Not a damned thing. Even if she weren’t his friend’s sister, he wouldn’t get involved with her. A relationship between the two of them was impossible. It would never work out, and she’d end up hating him. She wanted what she had never had, a family and kids, lots of kids, and he didn’t want any of that. He’d seen too much to ever let himself become that vulnerable. Even though he came from a family of eight, he was still a loner, and that’s the way he liked it.
He never should have kissed her. Bad idea, he decided. He hadn’t been prepared, hadn’t realized how good it was going to be. God he was arrogant. He actually thought he could remain distant and professional, but when she wrapped her arms around him and he felt her soft lips, thoughts of being professional went flying out the window, and he’d turned into one of those perverted teenagers outside All he could think about was getting her flat on her back.
Maybe Morganstern was right after all. Maybe Nick was too close and personal for this assignment. His boss had been referring to his friendship with Tommy though. What would Pete think if he knew that his agent was lusting after the friend’s sister? Nick already knew the answer to that question. Pete would have his hide.
The phone rang again. Nick answered it, listened for a minute, and then said, "Yes, Monsignor. I’ll be sure to tell him. Thanks for calling."
Laurant was standing in the closet doorway, shifting from bare foot to bare foot as she searched through the clothes crammed together on the single, bowed rod.
When Nick hung up, she asked, "Was that Monsignor McKindry?"
"What? Oh, yeah, it was. Tommy left his Daytimer in the kitchen, and Monsignor said he’d mail it to him."
"Did he mention when Tommy and Noah left?"
"Yes," he answered. "At the crack of dawn. Laurant, for the love of God, put some clothes on."
She kept sorting through her clothes as she answered him. "As soon as you give me a little privacy, I’ll be happy to get dressed."
He could hear the embarrassment in her voice. "Okay, okay," he said, feeling like an idiot. Heading for her shower, he added, "Don’t leave the bedroom until I’m dressed, and keep the door locked."
"Joe’s downstairs."
"Yeah, well, I still want you to wait for me." His voice didn’t leave room for argument.
She ran after him. He was peeling his T-shirt off as she reached behind him to grab her hair dryer and brush from the counter behind the sink. Her hand accidentally rubbed against the base of his spine, and he reacted as though she’d just burned him with her curling iron He flinched.
"Sorry," she stammered.
He sighed as he tossed the T-shirt into the sink. "I made you feel awkward again, didn’t I?"
They were standing toe to toe, facing each other. She clutched the robe to her chest with one hand and gripped the hair dryer and brush with the other hand.
"Is Mr. Wesson listening?" she whispered.
He shook his head. "The pin’s on the dresser with the earpiece."
"I don’t want it to be awkward, but it’s just that we kissed. I know we were supposed to, but I…"
"What?"
Shrugging, she said, "It just made things awkward again. That’s all."
"We both got…"
"What?" she whispered.
"Hot."
She’d been staring at his toes until he’d said that word. Her eyes flew to his.
"Yes, we did. What do we do about it?"
"Get past it," he suggested. "I know one way."
The sparkle in his eyes should have been a warning. "How?" she asked.
"Take a shower with me. That should get you past your shyness."
She was so shocked by the suggestion she laughed, which was exactly what he wanted her to do. The tension vanished. His grin was comical. "You’ve got that leer down perfectly," she told him as she turned around and left the bathroom.
Because the mirror was still clouded with steam, and the bathroom was sweltering, Nick told her to leave the door open. She waited until she heard the shower running, then hurried to get dressed and dry her hair. Since they were going shopping for an engagement ring, she decided to dress up a little, and she put on her white pleated slacks and a peach silk blouse. Then she found her white canvas slip-ons in the back of the closet.
Nick made the bed while she brushed her hair. The coverlet was all lopsided when he was finished, but she didn’t criticize his effort.
Nick wore jeans and a white polo shirt. He clipped the leather holster to his belt. Then he pinned the red disc back on, added the earpiece, and shoved his wallet in his back pocket.
"Okay, so what’s the schedule?" he asked after he gave her a quick once-over.
"Some breakfast first because I’m starving, then the grocery store for Joe. After that, I want to check on my store to see if they’ve started on the floors yet. If they haven’t, I’ll work there all afternoon."
"Then the jewelry store," he suggested as he slipped on a pair of leather loafers.
"I’ve got to pick up the bridesmaid dress too," she remembered. "And I should spend an hour or two at the abbey. I’ve got to get started on the attic."
They spent the morning doing errands. It was all so ordinary, tasks that couples did together all the time, but there wasn’t anything ordinary about their situation. She was constantly looking over her shoulder, even when they were in the grocery store getting supplies for Joe. Laurant was stopped by a friend or neighbor on almost every aisle, and each time, she introduced Nick as her fiance.
He put on quite a show. He was attentive and affectionate, and it was all so natural, she had to remind herself that it was just an act.
She relaxed only when they were inside the car. She felt safe then. Nick drove through McDonald’s to get breakfast and headed home again. He turned on the radio, and they listened to Garth Brooks croon about a love lost and found again.
She was eager for Nick to see her store. She helped him carry the groceries inside, and left them in the hall for Joe to put away. Then they got back in the car again. Since they were going up to the abbey after they purchased an engagement ring, he decided to drive to the square.
He stopped at the fountain so that he could see all the buildings ahead of him. None of them were historical treasures by any means, but the old structures were charming. Most of the facades needed work, but nothing major.
"Do you see what it could be?" she asked.