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They spent the next several hours in job interviews and finally agreed on a former nurse who’d applied. She’d taken early retirement due to problems with her feet and was eager to continue doing something to help patients.
Kayla tried to focus on the paperwork needing her signature. She’d expected to feel better now that she was back to her usual routine, but if anything, she felt worse. She couldn’t even get away from thoughts of Jackson in her sleep. He was in her dreams, but in them, he kept slipping away, out of her reach, and she’d wake up with her pulse pounding.
Was it a message from her subconscious?
If so, it must mean one of two things—either her head was telling her that Jackson was a poor prospect and could never really be hers...or her heart was saying she’d let something wonderful go without finding out the possibilities.
But which one was it?
* * *
MORGAN TOSSED HER suitcase on the bed of the motel room. Her dad’s room was through a connecting door.
Taking out her cell phone, she checked the latest message from Alex. She’d been fishing for clues about what he was doing that day, and now she knew he’d gone to Sandy’s house.
Her dad knocked and peered through the door. “You settled in?”
“Sort of,” she said. “I want to walk over to Sandy’s and surprise Alex. I checked and it’s only about ten blocks away.”
He was quiet a minute before answering. “Why don’t I drop you off instead, and you call when you need a ride?”
“Ah, Dad.”
“Humor me.”
It was strange that he wasn’t asking to see Alex, too, but she didn’t say anything about it. He was probably tired, or maybe he wanted to let her surprise him alone first.
Dad parked down the street from Sandy’s house, but she knew he was watching while she walked to the door and waited for it to open.
It was Sandy, and her mouth dropped open. Morgan grinned. “Surprise. Alex is here, isn’t he?”
“Yep. But wait a sec, I want my camera so I can catch his face when he sees you.”
Morgan waved as her dad finally started the Suburban and drove down the street. This was going to be fun.
* * *
KAYLA GOT HOME midafternoon, her briefcase stuffed with a backlog of technical material to read. Usually the bustle of employees at the office didn’t bother her, but today was an exception.
She was deep in an article about electronic file management when the doorbell rang. Yucca was on her lap and meowed a complaint as she shifted him onto the couch.
“Sorry, pal.”
Kayla opened the front door and the air whooshed from her chest. What was Jackson doing in Seattle?
“Hey,” he said. “Am I interrupting something?”
“I was just studying a business article.” She glanced behind him. “Is Morgan with you?”
“She’s surprising Alex at Sandy’s house. May I come in?”
“I... Uh, sure.”
If returning home after spending so much time in Montana had felt strange, having Jackson in her house felt positively bizarre.
“I’ll make coffee,” she said.
He glanced around as they walked to the kitchen. “This is nice. I see why you’ve been reluctant to sell.”
“Yeah, but I’ve started searching online for real estate in the area. There’s a property I want to see—it’s got terrific outdoor space and lots of light, and is closer to Alex and DeeDee’s schools.”
“Oh.”
He sat at the table while Kayla started the coffeemaker and got cream from the refrigerator. After so many meetings at the Coffee Shack, she knew Jackson invariably took his black, but she needed something to buffer her stomach.
“Have you eaten?” she asked. “I could order something.”
“Not right now, unless you’re hungry.”
“I’m fine. I got pizza for my employees and ate a slice before leaving the office.” The conversation was inane, but at least it was giving her a chance to pull her wits together.
It was unnerving to see Jackson comfortably ensconced in her bright kitchen. She would have expected him to look out of place in Seattle, but he didn’t. Instead, he looked sexy and dependable and wonderful... Kayla threw the brakes on her runaway thoughts.
When the coffee finished brewing, she poured two cups and sat across from him.
“So what are you doing in Washington?” she asked finally.
“Shopping for Morgan’s school clothes. She was thrilled at the idea.”
Kayla tried not to feel disappointed, though she wondered why they’d come to Seattle for their shopping. “I need to get busy doing that with Alex and DeeDee. Their school year starts even earlier than it does in Schuyler.”
