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“Lots of ice. Probably not the best day to be running.”
“But you did it anyway.”
“It was that or run stairs at the high school stadium, and those can be icy as well, so I figured I’d stick with the river trail.”
“In winter, wouldn’t running on a treadmill be safer?”
“Maybe, but it’d also be boring. I’ve never been a fan of hot, sweaty gyms.”
“I think you’re thinking of saunas,” he deadpanned.
Amanda laughed out loud, and he grinned, pleased by her response. “That was good,” she admitted.
His grin widened, even more pleased. “What are you doing later?”
“Working.”
“After work.”
“Not much.”
“Come over tonight. I’ll make dinner.”
“At your grandmother’s?”
“She has a kitchen.”
“Ha-ha.” She adjusted her cap. “But seriously, what will she think if I come over?”
“She’ll think I enjoy spending time with you.” His gaze met hers and held. “And I do.”
Amanda’s pulse quickened, her heart skipping a beat. “Bette takes these things seriously,” she said, fighting to sound normal. “She’ll think it’s going somewhere.”
“Maybe it is.”
She felt her eyes widen and her heart did that crazy leap thing again. He was smiling at her, and yet the expression in his eyes was surprisingly earnest.
She didn’t know whether she should giggle, blush, or lean in to kiss him. She clapped her gloved hands together. “Don’t you have that call today with Cormac?”
“I do. And why are you changing the subject?”
This time she couldn’t hide the heat rushing through her, warming her face. “Because I’m not sure what to say.”
“Say yes you’ll come to dinner. I’ll make my famous lasagna and garlic bread. You’ll love it. And if you don’t love it now, you will because it’s one of the few things I know how to make.”
“You’re making all kinds of assumptions, handsome.”
It was his turn to slowly smile, his straight white teeth flashing. “Am I?”
She shook her head and began jogging in place. “I’m getting cold. I have to go. And, yes, you’re handsome. I’m sure you know it.”
“It never hurts to hear.”
She groaned even as she laughed. “Look who’s become the funny man.”
“You make me happy.”
Her feet slowed. She stopped jogging. “Do I?” she asked softly, all laughter gone.
He nodded, and leaning forward, kissed her. “Yes.” He kissed her again, then tugged her cap lower, all the way down her brow. “Go home and get warm. And I’ll tell Gram you’re coming for dinner.”
Amanda had been to Bette’s house countless times, and knew her way around the house and kitchen, and yet it was suddenly completely different being there with Tyler. He made the rooms feel small, and overly warm, and she kept bumping into walls and corners of furniture—the couch, the sideboard, the dining room table. She didn’t feel any pain from the bumps, just klutzy. And giddy. And overly excited.
Tyler’s lasagna was good, very respectable, and while it was in no way the best she’d ever had, his garlic bread probably was. The outside was lovely and crusty while the inside melted in her mouth, all warm soft bread fragrant with garlic and real butter. She ate two slices, and then another, mopping up the red sauce from the lasagna, while silently telling herself she’d just have to run an extra fifteen minutes but it would be worth it.
After dinner, Bette settled in to her reclining armchair to watch her favorite show and Tyler took a seat on the couch, and then patted the cushion next to him, indicating that Amanda was to sit next to him. Amanda darted a look in Bette’s direction and Bette said loudly, “I know all about you two. Just ignore me. Pretend I’m not here.”
Tyler shrugged. “She said to ignore her.”
“As if,” Amanda muttered, taking the empty spot next to him, and then privately delighted when he slid an arm around her and pulled her even closer.
“Feel like you’re back in high school?” he asked in her ear.
Amanda fought a giggle. “I do. And it’s weird.”
“And nice.”
She couldn’t stop smiling. She didn’t even feel sixteen anymore, but closer to eleven. “So how did it go with Cormac today?”
“The call got postponed at the last minute,” he answered.
“That must have been disappointing.”
“A little,” he said.
She glanced up into his face. He didn’t seem worried. “Has it been rescheduled yet?”
“No.”
“You’re not anxious?”
“No. Because I’m going to stop by his office tomorrow to see him.”
Amanda went to bed humming songs from show tunes. She couldn’t remember when she last felt so happy. If this was love, no wonder people found it so addictive. She suddenly stopped pulling the throw pillows off her bed, freezing in place.
If this was love?
No.
That was just ridiculous. She wasn’t in love, or falling in love. She’d only met Tyler two weeks ago. She couldn’t be in love. She was simply infatuated. She had a crush. He was handsome, and athletic, creative and successful… as well as Bette’s only grandchild, and determined to move her away from Marietta.
Amanda climbed into bed, no longer humming. She pulled the covers up to her chin and held her breath, trying to ignore the hint of panic. She was nearing twenty-eight. She’d dated plenty of nice men, but she’d never once come close to falling in love, so why now? Why Tyler? What made him special?
Everything, answered the little voice inside of her.
Tyler continued to have a difficult time connecting with Cormac Sheenan. Either Cormac was constantly out of the office, or he had an incredibly efficient front desk receptionist who was operating under instructions to let no one past her.
Instead of getting annoyed, Tyler poured his energy into a new, secret project, as well as a new game he’d wanted to work on for quite some time, but TexTron hadn’t been enthused about new games. They just wanted to capitalize on what had already been created. Well, he didn’t have to answer to TexTron anymore. He didn’t have to answer to anyone anymore, which meant he could devote hours every day to his project, as well as coding and designing, and all the things he’d once loved to do before running the business got in the way of creating.
Tyler wasn’t the only one immersed in work. Time seemed to fly by for Amanda. Her days were spent at the salon, and her evenings were more often than not spent with Tyler. Some nights they stayed in Marietta, while other nights they headed to Bozeman or Livingston. Amanda enjoyed showing off the neighboring communities, but was always glad to return to Marietta. It was small, but it was home.
Except it wasn’t his home, she knew, glancing at Tyler one night as he drove them home from Bozeman where they’d gone to watch the Montana State Bobcats play Eastern Washington. “When do you plan on returning to Austin?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” he answered. “There really is no reason to be there anymore.”
She processed this for a moment. “What about your house?”
“I’ll have to sell it.”
“The house isn’t ready to sell though, is it?”
“No.”
She wanted to ask more questions. She wanted to ask if he had a time frame for putting the house on the market. She wanted to know if he was planning on eventually returning to California—it was where he was from, after all—or if he was going to stay in Montana longer. She didn’t want to worry about the future, but she was finding it increasingly difficult to manage her feelings. She was becoming so attached, and Amanda was beginning to think of them as a couple. Was that a mistake? Was he just killing time with her, or did he have deeper feelings? It had been so long since she’d dated anyone seriously that she couldn’t even remember
how this worked. All she knew was that it felt right being together. She wasn’t a different person with him, she was just a little happier, and a whole lot more content. But if he wasn’t going to stay in Marietta long-term, maybe she needed to do a better job protecting her heart?
He must have picked up on her pensive mood, because he lifted her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing the back of her fingertips. “What’s wrong?”
It was such a sweet gesture, and the fact that he could read her so well, put a lump in her throat. She’d really fallen for this guy, hadn’t she? “Can you see yourself in Montana long-term?” she asked carefully, as he put her hand on the stick shift, his fingers laced through hers. “I know your father didn’t have fond memories of Marietta, but what do you think of it? You’ve been here a couple weeks now. Is it a place you could live?”
He hesitated. “If I had work here, I could see trying it for a couple of years.”
“But only a couple of years.”
