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“Here’s some socks.”
“Thanks. Is there a bag I can put my wet clothes in?”
Jared grabbed a plastic grocery bag from the top of the fridge. “Here you go. I can dry them and get them back to you.”
“No, it’s okay. I appreciate the offer though.” She stood up on her tip toes and kissed him. “You’re sweet.”
“I know, but my willpower can only take so much. Let’s get you home.” Jared took her hand and led her through the front door. He closed it on Rip, who barked with outrage through the thick wood.
“Sorry, buddy. I still love you.”
Anna Beth laughed. “It’s so funny the way you talk to him.”
“He’s my only company most of the time.”
Jared turned the keys in the ignition and cranked the heat on high.
“Hey,” Anna Beth said.
Jared turned in time for her to slide across the seat and kiss him. “Thank you. This is the best day I’ve had in a long time.”
“It won’t be the last, A.B. I promise you that.”
Jared cupped her cheek, his heart aching like crazy. Before she’d come to town, he’d been so sure he was over her, but the truth was, he’d never stopped wanting Anna Beth Howard and he had less than three weeks to convince her to stay.
Sixteen
Cycling through several emotions as they made the drive back to her aunt’s house, Anna Beth stared out the window trying to make sense of them all. Frustration that they’d been interrupted. Worry over Mittens. Happiness as Jared drove with one hand and held hers with the other.
And below all that, the niggling sense they were making a colossal mistake.
As good as it felt being with him, something could just as easily go wrong and then they’d be right back where they started, only worse. The two of them not talking and Anna Beth missing him like crazy.
Whenever she’d slipped and mentioned Jared to Ian, he’d always urged her to call him to work things out, but Anna Beth could never work up the courage. A few days ago, she’d thought they could rebuild their friendship again, but there was no way they could go back to being platonic even if she wanted to.
She’d never be able to forget the way his kiss made her burst into flames.
Jared parked along the street in front of her aunt’s house and killed the engine. There was a blue pickup in the driveway next to Anna Beth’s car.
“Wonder why Ernie’s here,” Jared said.
“Ernie? From The Peaks?”
“Yeah, that’s his truck.”
Anna Beth smiled, the potential of solving the mystery of her aunt’s special friend pushing back her deep, emotional dilemma. “Let’s go find out.”
Jared squeezed her hand. “Should we get the tree first?”
“Absolutely. And I’m helping this time.
Anna Beth let go of his hand and climbed out of the truck. She caught her aunt watching them from the window and wondered if she was upset to see her. Sarah told her on the phone she didn’t need to come home, but Anna Beth didn’t feel right leaving her aunt alone with a sick kitten. Mittens was her responsibility, but if she’d known her aunt wanted her to stay away because she wasn’t ready to introduce Anna Beth to her company, she probably would have stayed at Jared’s despite her concern for her kitty. They’d made so much headway in their relationship, Anna Beth didn’t want to ruin it by pissing Sarah off now.
Even if she was dying to meet the person who had made Sarah so emphatically happy.
Jared climbed into the back of the truck while Anna Beth took the skinny end of the tree and lifted. A rusty old truck slowed next to them and the passenger rolled down their window. It was Rachel Walsh, Bianca Price, and Linda Richards, three of her aunts sewing circle friends. Anna Beth had a fondness for them, as they tended to be more laid back than the other women Sarah collaborated with.
“Anna Beth, it is so good to see you,” Bianca called from the driver’s seat. A thin woman in her fifties, Bianca wore her blonde hair in a sleek a-line.
