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They drove to the airport in silence. Lindsay felt like bursting into tears, but she swallowed the lump in her throat. Upsetting Charlie was the last thing she wanted to do.
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Blake was at the airport, talking on his phone to the fire chief when Lindsay’s plane landed. He kept an eye on the plane as he spoke. “So you’re sure it was arson?”
“We have to wait for the investigators to finalize their report before I can make an official statement, but there were indications it was arson. For instance, we found two clear points of origin, one of the things that usually suggests the fire has been set deliberately. But I’ll keep you posted.”
“Thanks, Chief—I appreciate your call.”
They finished the call just as passengers began to disembark from the plane. Blake put his phone away and walked to arrivals to wait for Lindsay.
He scanned the area while waiting, but he didn’t see anyone resembling Taylor. There was no doubt in his mind Taylor was behind the fire in Lindsay’s studio—a sure way to get Lindsay to return to Alisson. Taylor seemed to be always two steps ahead, and he would’ve checked flights to Bozeman today and would probably know exactly when Lindsay would be arriving.
It was just after five, the sun had set, and by the time they’d be on the road to Alisson, it would be dark. Earlier he’d also spoken to Jim, the chief of police in Livingston who’d helped them on Sunday. Jim had agreed to check cars driving through Livingston, at least until Blake and Lindsay were safely back in Alisson.
Taylor’s actions were escalating, one of the reasons Blake was glad Lindsay was coming home. Taylor was waiting to strike again, he could feel it, and he wanted her close to him when that happened.
Passengers were finally coming through the doors. His heart kicked against his ribs. Any minute now, he’d see her again. And there she was, helping an older woman with her cart. He exhaled slowly. Typical Lindsay. A nurturer. Always giving a helping hand. He remembered the scene in her shop when she took her customer to the mirror, making her feel good about herself.
Another couple rushed forward to help Lindsay and they took the cart from her. They were obviously here to pick up the older woman. As they left, Lindsay looked up and caught his eye. She was clutching her bag, looking beautiful and a little apprehensive.
His feet finally listened to the messages from his brain and he moved forward. For the life of him, at this moment, he couldn’t remember any of the reasons why he hadn’t talked to her or texted her again after Sunday. At the time, he’d thought he was doing the right thing. Now it sounded ridiculous.
She was also moving towards him, and within seconds, he was right in front of her. With a soft curse, he pulled her close and buried his face in her hair, drinking in her presence, her softness, her scent.
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Lindsay clung to Blake. She had no idea what his hug meant, if it meant anything at all, but for the first time since she’d heard about the fire, her shoulders relaxed slightly.
“Thank you for picking me up,” she said softly, and pulled out of his arms. If she stayed there a minute longer, she might never want to leave.
“Of course,” he said and took her suitcase. “Do you need anything from the store before we leave?”
“Maybe milk and bread...”
But he was shaking his head before she’d finished. “I’ve bought the necessary; we should be okay for a few days.”
She was irked because, while she was nearly hyperventilating after the hug, he seemed totally unaffected by it, and to add to her irritation, he’d again done things she could do herself.
Lifting her chin, she grabbed her suitcase from him. “It has wheels. I can easily pull it myself. There was a fire in my shop. That doesn’t mean I’m helpless all of a sudden.” And she took off, dragging her suitcase behind her. Seconds later, she stopped. She had no idea where Blake had parked.
He took her hand. “This way,” he said gravely but his eyes were laughing at her.
As they walked towards the parking area, she sighed, feeling slightly foolish. “I didn’t mean to snap, but you do have a tendency to take over. I’ve been doing things on my own for quite some time now.”
He didn’t say anything, just made way for them through the throng of people walking in all directions.
She looked at him but he ignored her and simply kept walking. “I probably owe you quite a lot of money by now. Please let me know what how much I owe you for the plane ticket and everything you’ve bought for the house,” she said.
But instead of answering her, he laced his fingers with hers and kept on walking. They were getting on an escalator, and she pulled her hand out of his to lift her suitcase with two hands.
Again, without saying a word, he picked up her suitcase and took her hand again.
“Seriously, Blake...” she began hotly, but they were at the top of the escalator, and again ignoring her remark, he lengthened his stride as they began walking again.
They reached his car minutes later.
Miffed, she walked to the passenger side. “I could easily have asked Lilly to pick me up. It’s quite clear you don’t want to be here...”
