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“We didn’t know you were coming, Kit,” Rita said. “And we had all this fish, so Mom invited a friend and he’s bringing two friends. So ten.”
With that, the giggling girls left with a smug Akiko, and Kit sighed. “You invited Sam Reeves, didn’t you?”
Harlan chuckled. “We did. It wasn’t an ambush, honestly. Nobody knew you were coming home tonight.” He tilted his head at the same moment that Snickerdoodle ran from the kitchen to the front door, barking. “I think they’re here.”
Kit sighed again. “I’ll help Sam. Miss Eloise is going to need help getting up the porch steps, Pop.” That Sam’s two friends were Georgia and Eloise was not in doubt. “The ramp was wobbly last time I checked it.”
Harlan wrapped up the potato peels and wood shavings to put into the compost pile. “I made sure the ramp was secure right after Sam called to ask if he could bring his friends.” He met Kit’s gaze. “You aren’t the only one worried about what’s going on in that place, Kitty-Cat. Sam’s worried, too.”
Betsy put a stack of plates on the table as Harlan left the room. “Let your father help the women in, Kit. It soothes his need for chivalry. I need you to wipe down the table, if you don’t mind. Tiffany and Emma asked if Sam could come, so they can thank him for recommending that they get placed with us. He didn’t want to leave his friends there alone, so I suggested he bring them, too. It’ll be good for them to get out of the home.”
Kit nodded. “You’re right.”
“I always am,” Betsy said lightly.
Still seated, Kit leaned her head against Betsy’s soft middle for a quick hug. “You really are.” Then she rose and cleaned the table, setting it for ten as requested.
She was smiling when Miss Eloise breezed through the doorway, her rhinestone-studded walker sparkling in the overhead lights. “Miss Eloise. Welcome.”
Eloise beamed. “Thank you, Detective. I didn’t know you’d be here.”
“Neither did Sam,” Georgia said dryly. “You should have heard him sputter when we saw your vehicle in the driveway, Detective.” She held out a box to Betsy. “Thank you for inviting us, Mrs. McKittrick. I’m Georgia and this is Eloise.”
“You will call me Betsy,” Betsy said firmly as she dried her hands on her apron and opened the box. “Oh my. How lovely.” She drew a piece of art glass from the box, holding it to the light. “Look at it shimmer. Thank you, Georgia.”
“It was made by a glassblower in Ireland,” Georgia said. “I’ve been waiting for the right person to gift it to. Please enjoy it.”
Betsy beamed. “Oh, I will. Kit, please put it on the mantel, where the sun will hit it in the morning.”
Kit complied, ignoring the smirk on Harlan’s face as she brushed past him in the doorway to the living room. Where Sam stood, looking a little uncertain and a lot guilty. Butterflies took flight in Kit’s chest and she had to remember to breathe.
“I didn’t know you’d be here,” Sam said. “I’m not trying to crowd you or intrude on your family time.”
Kit placed the glass on the mantel, taking longer than she needed to straighten it. “Sam, it’s all right. It’s more than all right.” She turned to meet his gaze directly. “You’re welcome here. So are Georgia and Eloise.”
“Okay,” he said. “For the record, I am glad you’re here.”
She wanted to smile at him. She really did. But the butterflies had become bats and, once again, she was struggling to breathe. “I’m glad you’re here, too,” she managed to say, but it sounded stilted and insincere. “Let’s join the others. Mom will have dinner ready soon.”
Grimacing, Sam followed her and she hated that she was so uncomfortable in her own skin. Abruptly she stopped and turned.
Sam’s eyes widened as he looked down at her, closer than she’d expected he’d be. “Kit? I…I can leave.”
“No,” she said too quickly. “I’m sorry. I…” She closed her eyes, her cheeks heating in humiliation. “I’m no good with this,” she confessed.
“With what?” he asked so softly that she almost couldn’t hear him.
“With what you want from me,” she blurted out, too embarrassed to look at him. “And I’m truly sorry for that.” More than she could say.
She was simply not relationship material, and the sooner Sam Reeves accepted that, the sooner he could find someone else and be happy.
But the thought of him with someone else made her stomach curdle.
His warm hand cradled her cheek and she leaned into it, unable to stop herself. Her eyes burned and she had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep the stupid tears at bay.
“I’m not in a hurry,” Sam whispered. “I can wait until you’re ready.”
She drew a breath that hurt. “And if I’m never ready?”
