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‘More?’ he offered, and watched as she eyed the fresh pancake still in the pan. ‘Go on.’
‘OK. You’ve talked me into it.’
‘Wasn’t difficult.’ He scooped it out and put it on her plate, secretly pleased that she liked his cooking.
‘How did you make them again?’
‘You were sitting right in front of me when I did it,’ he pointed out.
‘Yes, but I was distracted not only by your daughters but by your mother’s inquisitive stare.’
‘She was staring?’ Jasper was horrified and closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head. ‘I’m so sorry, Jennifer.’
She laughed. ‘Don’t apologise. She was just surprised, I guess, that you’d brought a colleague home.’
‘It has nothing to do with you being a colleague, Jennifer, let me tell you that right now. It does, however, have everything to do with you being a woman.’
‘Oh. You don’t bring your dates home for pancakes?’ As she said the words, she realised that they could be taken another way. ‘Er…I mean…’
Jasper laughed, watching the way a small flush of colour tinged her cheeks. She was becoming more adorable, more addictive with each passing moment. ‘I know what you meant and the answer is no. I haven’t brought the few women I’ve dated home to have breakfast with me and my family. You’re the first.’
‘But I’m not your date.’
‘No, but definitely the first woman.’ He stood and cleared the plates, switching the kettle on again for another cuppa, knowing he needed to keep things light. ‘It’s as you’ve said, though. We both know Sara. We’ll both be mixing socially, as well as working together at the hospital, so even though we may not have mixed those worlds in the past, they’ll definitely be mixing in the future.’
‘So I take it from what your mother said that the girls have never met anyone you’ve dated?’
‘Nope. They don’t need short-term acquaintances coming in and out of their lives. Way too confusing for them and far too many questions for me to answer.’
‘Ah, now we come to the real crux of the matter. You’re scared of your girls.’
‘Scared of the way they’d question me to death? Yes.’
‘I take it you don’t classify me as a short-term acquaintance?’
Jasper thought about that for a moment. ‘No. Your work contract is for at least the next two years but as you’re now in your dream job, I doubt you’ll be giving it up after that. Add to all of that the fact that you already know the girls, which makes you a low-risk friend.’
‘Low risk?’
‘Low risk of hurting them.’ And me, he added silently. Inviting Jennifer home had been done on a whim and he wasn’t the type of man to give in to whims, especially where the girls were concerned. He might even tell himself that he’d only done it so he could help Jennifer see the house down the street, as he would have done for any other colleague, but deep down he knew he’d wanted to see how Jennifer looked in his world and he had to admit she looked pretty darn good.
Their eyes met and held, both of them content to simply stand there for a moment and connect. Jennifer wasn’t at all sure how this happened but it was as though she could feel whatever Jasper was thinking about. It was a connection on a level she hadn’t really encountered before, not even with Arturo. In one way she was delighted to be experiencing something new, but on the other hand it terrified her. She wasn’t good at taking steps outside her comfort zone. Still, Jasper looked at her, the colour of his irises deepening with an appreciation for the woman before him. She could see it. Could see the attraction he’d spoken of the other night when they’d had dinner. They hadn’t known each other long but it was as though they’d known each other for ever. It was as though both were too scared to take that first giant leap of exploration yet eager to get the expedition started.
‘Strange.’ The word was barely audible as it slipped through her lips and Jasper’s gaze dipped to her mouth as though he was eager to explore that terrain as well. He moved, taking a step closer, needing to close the distance between them but maintaining eye contact at all times.
The giggling and splashing from the bathroom became louder and Jasper eased back, rolling his eyes. ‘Never a dull moment.’
‘Go and deal with them and I’ll tidy the kitchen.’ Distance. She needed distance, if for nothing else than to pull herself together.
He was about to refuse her offer of help but decided against it. Nodding, he agreed. ‘OK. Thanks.’ He headed off in the direction of the bathroom and Jennifer smiled as she heard him questioning his daughters, wanting to know why the bathroom floor was covered with water. Not too much later, she laughed as one of the girls came streaking past stark naked, with Jasper hot on her heels, before he scooped her up and carried her back to her room.
