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CHAPTERTWENTY-SEVEN
Jane felt bad about having to refuse Mike’s invitation to lunch, so she baked his favorite chocolate chip banana bread and headed over to his place with Cooper.
Mike lived in a townhouse in a development called Boulder Hills. Even though Jane did have responsibilities at Tides, she was still able to carve out enough personal time to spend quite a bit of it at the townhouse. She felt right at home there, which she should have because Mike had consulted her on every aspect of its decor and even on which unit to buy. She wondered if maybe he was going to ask her to move in, but how could she do that? She needed to be at Tides to run it. It was too much to think about.
Cooper raced to the front door, and Jane rang the bell, feeling a little nervous. Mike had given her a key, but she didn’t feel right walking in unless he knew she was coming. And considering how frustrated he’d sounded when she’d had to say no to lunch, she wasn’t even sure if she’d be welcome.
He opened the door with a curious expression on his face. His brown curly hair was tousled, as if he’d been running his hands through it. His green eyes widened when he realized who was at the door.
“Jane! I wasn’t expecting you. Thought you had an interview?” He bent and petted Cooper, who wriggled with excitement.
“I hope you don’t mind me dropping by?” Jane hesitated.
“Of course not.” He sounded sincere. She’d been worried he was mad about the lunch thing, but maybe that was just her overactive imagination.
She held up the tinfoil-wrapped loaf. “I made some banana bread as a peace offering for missing lunch.”
Mike laughed and took the bread. “A peace offering is not necessary, but I’m not going to turn down fresh baked banana bread.” He opened the door wider, and Cooper raced right in.
Jane followed him to the kitchen. She loved the white cabinets, the marble counters, and the breakfast nook with its large windows. She’d picked it all out, and Maxi had helped decorate it with splashes of sunny yellow and bright blue.
Mike got out a cutting board and cut two slices of bread while Cooper ran around sniffing every square inch, as if expecting the condo to be full of new smells since the last time he was there, just two days ago.
“How did the interview go?” Mike asked.
Jane settled into a chair at the breakfast bar on the other side of the counter from where Mike was working. “Not very good, I’m afraid. She insisted I call herMrs.Weathers, and she seemed like a bossy fussbudget that would micromanage and disapprove of everything that went on at the inn.”
Mike grabbed the butter tray out of the fridge. “So I guess she’s out.”
“Yeah, sorry.”
He slid the plate of bread slices and butter over to her, and she picked up a piece.
“I’ll try to get some better people in,” she said. “I never realized how hard it would be to find someone.”
He sat beside her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t feel pressured. You need to find the exact right person, and if that takes some time, then so be it.”
“But I thought you were getting frustrated with me because I had to spend so much time at the inn.” Jane was a little relieved that maybe Mike was less put off than she’d thought.
Mike bit into his slice of banana bread and chewed for a bit before answering. “No. Not really. I mean, we have the rest of our lives to spend together.”
Jane’s heart hitched. Did he just say the rest of their lives?
He smiled and reached for another slice of bread. “Besides, if breaking a lunch date means I get fresh baked bread, I won’t mind if it happens a few more times.”
