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Abby didn’t understand. But she smiled at him and then turned back to Lucy. “Sleep tight,” she told the little girl, “and don’t let the bedbugs bite!”
Lucy laughed. “Aunt Abby, we don’t have any bedbugs.”
Abby wrinkled her nose. “Sleep tight anyway,” she said, and grinned. She kissed Lucy once more. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Okay. Night!”
“Good night,” Cody and Abby both echoed.
Abby turned out the light and closed the door, leaving the two of them alone in the darkened hall.
Cody pulled her close and just held her, rocking her in his strong arms. It was like coming home. He’d never experienced such a feeling of tenderness, not even when he thought he was deeply in love with Debby. That was nothing like this.
Abby didn’t say a word. She stood quietly in his embrace, loving the way he smelled, the way he felt against her. She never wanted to move out of his arms.
But after a while, and reluctantly, he let her go, brushing a soft kiss across her mouth.
“We have to exercise a little restraint,” he pointed out.
“We do?” she murmured absently, her eyes on his hard mouth.
He cleared his throat. “Abby, men can’t really hide their emotions when they’re wearing close-fitting trousers,” he muttered bluntly.
It took Abby a few seconds to realize what he was saying. She flushed and then laughed, and then she hit him on his broad chest.
He grinned at her.
“Okay,” she said. “How about coffee then?”
“Coffee sounds good.” He bent to her ear. “And when we don’t have to worry about witnesses, I won’t care if my trousers tell on me.”
She burst out laughing.
He linked his fingers with hers and led her into the kitchen, where Hannah gave them a knowing smile and poured coffee into two mugs.
Abby had never been so happy in her life. She loved Cody deathlessly, and it looked like he shared those feelings. At least, he wasn’t backing away anymore. Perhaps he really was able to deal with Debby’s betrayal and go forward.
AHAPPYHORACEWHATLEYwas released from jail as the former eyewitness, Cappy Blarden, was processed and placed in detention. Horace went home to a beaming Julia, who met him at the door with a homemade pie and an expression that made him feel as if he could walk on clouds. A number of local people came by in the next few days to wish him well, and one of them noticed that Julia was wearing a brand-new diamond ring on her ring finger.
ONTHEWEEKEND, Cody took Lucy and Abby ice-skating at the local rink.
He was good on skates. Really good. Abby just shook her head as he instructed Lucy on the correct way to get up from a fall, how to fall, how to do a snowplow, and half a dozen other essential pieces of information that even Abby hadn’t known.
“How do you know so much about ice-skating?” she wanted to know.
“I took lessons, years ago,” he said. “It was a way to get out of the house,” he added, and Abby knew he was referring to his brutal, alcoholic father.
“You’re really good on skates,” she remarked, her eyes on Lucy, who was doing much better as she skated on the edge of the rink.
He moved closer and bent to her ear. “I’m really good at some other things, too,” he whispered wickedly. “And very modest about it as well.”
She laughed, looking up into his soft eyes. She got lost in them.
He brushed back a loose strand of hair as he searched her face with quiet, inquisitive eyes. “Abby...”
Before he could say anything, Lucy called to them.
“Aunt Abby, look what I can do!” And she demonstrated the snowplow that Cody had taught her, which she’d been painstakingly practicing.
