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Now what? What in the world would they talk about?
Elizabeth watched as he sipped from his mug. Her gaze focused on his mouth, and she couldn’t help but wonder how his lips would feel against hers, and how he might taste.
Good God, where did that come from?
“My sister said she thinks you’re really nice.”
She shot him a sideways glance. ”She did?”
“Why are you so surprised by that?” Joe asked inquisitively.
Elizabeth thought for a moment. “I think...people usually don’t take to me...I think they think I’m...well, kind of standoffish.”
“Really, why do you suppose that is?” His direct eye contact made her nervous. He lifted his cup to his mouth again. His interested gaze stayed on her.
She took a moment to compose her response. “I think it’s because I have different priorities than a lot of women my age.”
“What’s different about them?”
“Well, take a look at my friends, Holly and Jody. All they seem to care about is partying and men. And look at your sister and sister-in-law. Their lives revolve around their children. I don’t have time for any of that nonsense right now. I’m focused solely on my work. I’ve set career goals, and I’m determined to meet them.”
Surprisingly, she found it easy to share her thoughts with Joe.
“Hmm, you know Elizabeth, Holly, and Jody, and Angelina and Maria, probably don’t think their priorities are, as you said, ‘nonsense.’ People don’t often take too kindly to those who treat them as if they’re inferior. From what I’ve seen, you have a tendency to be kind of hard on people, including yourself.”
His lips pinched shut and his gaze drifted to the tabletop. She guessed he wasn’t always so curt, and took a moment to process his comments. “I guess I didn’t think they really cared that much about what I thought or said.”
Joe cleared his throat and realigned his gaze with hers. “You’re an extremely smart, successful woman, I’m sure they value your opinion very much.”
Deafening cries shot through the hallway and into the kitchen, interrupting their conversation. Joe sprang to his feet and rushed down the hall. Jake’s nonstop barking accented the cries. Elizabeth’s heart raced even though she didn’t have a clue as to why one of the kids was crying and the dog was going ballistic. All she knew was that the sheer pain in the tone of the cries indicated it was serious.
As the wailing subsided, Elizabeth’s heart rate slowed as well. Joe returned to the kitchen moments later with his daughter nestled in his arms. Tears dampened her rosy cheeks. Max and Jake followed. Joe pulled an ice pack from the freezer, wrapped it in a cloth, and held it to Molly’s head before he returned to his seat at the table. His grip looked snug on her. He swayed back and forth as if trying to soothe her.
“What happened to her?” Elizabeth asked as an unfamiliar ripple of concern swept through her.
“She bumped her head on her nightstand when she jumped off her bed,” Max chimed.
Curiosity nearly killed her. “Why did she jump off her bed?”
“We were pretending we were jumping into a swimming pool,” the boy replied as he scooted his kitchen chair tightly to Elizabeth’s and sat, invading her personal space.
She leaned in the opposite direction of the child so as not to be touching him, and glanced over to Joe, hoping to get some sort of assistance with Max, but he looked on as if nothing unusual was happening. Then she caught a little something in his eyes that led her to believe he could see her discomfort with the boy’s proximity. He appeared to be enjoying it. It didn’t take long for Elizabeth to realize that Max wasn’t her only immediate problem. Jake decided to lie under the kitchen table and rest his big smelly dog body on her feet. She was pinned into place.
Molly’s tears dried and her breathing calmed. Joe kissed the bump on her head and told her he loved her.
“I love you, too, Daddy,” she replied as she slid off his lap and hit the ground running with her brother on her heels.
Joe met Elizabeth’s gaze. A playful smirk spread over his face. “You know, they’re not aliens. They’re just your average American kids. You don’t need to be afraid of them.”
“I’m not afraid of your kids,” she snapped back.
“Yeah, I know, you’re afraid of all kids.” His playful grin grew wider. His warm eyes crinkled at the corners. “I take it you haven’t spent much time around kids.”
“Haven’t really seen the need to. They seem kind of needy and messy.”
“That they are, but I can’t imagine my life without them, and being needed by them,” he replied as his smile grew soft.
A complete look of satisfaction consumed his handsome face.
