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She smirked. “I didn’t think so. Tell her to come over for an interview, and I’ll see what I can do.”
“Really?”
“Sure.” Lena smiled. “Things have a way of working out. Maybe this is a sign that I should be baking more.”
I laughed and dumped a packet of sugar into my coffee. “Well, I appreciate it.”
“Before you go,” she held up a finger, “take this with you. Just in case Jude doesn’t get to town later this week.”
Lena handed me a fresh loaf of bread in a paper bag. We kept whatever Lena sent us in the lodge kitchen, and I don’t think any of the guys would ever admit how quickly we went through it. “I’m sure he’ll be here. As far as I know, he hasn’t missed a week since he started coming.” I pretended to ignore her second blush. “I’ll send Evelyn over tomorrow.”
“Sounds good,” she said. “Make sure to stop by again soon.”
“Will do.”
The drive back to the ranch always seemed shorter than the drive away. But today, I was glad for that. I wanted to tell Evelyn the news. And more than that, I wanted to see her again to know if the reaction I’d had yesterday would be the same today.
As far as I knew, she hadn’t left the Bitterroot House. She could. I hadn’t mentioned that to her, but I would. I didn’t want her to think that because she was staying here she had to be locked in the house like some kind of prisoner.
I parked near her car and knocked on the door. It took a couple minutes, but there was a soft shuffling inside before Evelyn pulled open the door. She’d been sleeping—that much was clear—dark hair messy and eyes still bleary. That was also something I recognized. If she was running from something, she would be exhausted and probably needed to catch up on what she’d missed in her flight.
I felt bad for waking her. “Hello.”
“Hi,” she said, stepping back from the door. It was deliberate, to put as much distance between us as possible. Not exactly a surprise. I wasn’t a small man, and there wasn’t any way for me to hide that. If Evelyn was a victim of abuse, then my silhouette in her door probably wasn’t a comforting sight.
“May I come in for a moment?”
“Sure.”
I didn’t close the door behind me all the way, intentionally making sure she saw it. I wanted her to feel comfortable. More than that, the very idea of her being afraid made me sick. I didn’t want that.
“Thank you,” she blurted out. “For letting me stay.”
“It’s no trouble,” I said.
“Maybe not, but it... means a lot to me.” She seemed better than yesterday. She was still nervous, but I could see something more now. A spark under all the nerves.
“I just got back from town, and I spoke to Lena Mitchell—the owner of Deja Brew. You’re welcome to go there anytime and have an interview. I mentioned that you might come tomorrow.”
Surprise was clear on her face. “Oh. Wow. Thank you.”
Interesting. I had promised I would put in a good word. So she wasn’t used to people keeping their promises. “As far as food, I’m sure that you saw there’s a kitchen in here. So feel free to do whatever you like. However, we do host communal meals a couple times a week for the ranch residents. Tonight is one of those, actually. Everyone contributes to the cooking and cleaning. No pressure at all if you’re not up to it, but you’re welcome to join the meal tonight, and get on the cooking and cleaning schedule if you enjoy it.”
She looked at me, blue eyes hitting me square in the chest. There was so much in her eyes it was practically pouring out of her. “Will you be there?”
“Yes.” It wasn’t my turn to be at dinner, but the word was out before I’d registered saying it. Even if my mind had given me a chance to think, I still would have said yes. I wasn’t about to turn down a chance to see Evelyn in a natural environment.
She didn’t respond, and the silence stretched thin between us. I couldn’t help but notice again that she was beautiful. Delicately made and soft. But whatever she’d gone through had hardened her edges. She was thin and there was fear in her eyes that I wanted gone. No one should look that haunted.
I kept my voice low. “While you’re here, if you want to talk to someone about what you’re running from, you’re welcome to. Resting Warrior works with therapists for exactly that reason.”
Evelyn’s spine snapped straight and there was fire in her gaze. “I’m not running from anything. And if I were, it would be none of your business.”
Our eyes locked, and she didn’t look away. There were no nerves now. Only anger. I liked that fire, and the sudden strength. I nodded.
The air between us went tight, and suddenly, it felt like there was no distance between us. I didn’t want there to be. I’d never been so viscerally attracted to anyone, like a magnet buried deep in my gut was pulling me toward Evelyn.
I wanted to crack her shell and know what was wrong. To see the problem and fix it. To pull her close and tell her that she was safe and that everything was going to be okay. To whisper those words into her ear as many times as she needed to hear them.
