скачать книгу бесплатно
* * *
Brendan stepped onto the patio and felt a stab of unease.
The evening breeze stirred shadows into the river, turning the water from sapphire to a deep indigo.
After Lily had returned from the grocery store, he’d watched her disappear into the woods, a colorful backpack slung over one slim shoulder and Missy trotting along at her heels.
They should have been back by now.
Had Lily decided to hike up to the falls? Alone?
The path along the river wasn’t well marked, although Brendan could have found it in the dark. He and his brothers had explored every inch of these woods when they were kids.
If you’d had lunch with Lily, maybe she would have told you her plans.
Brendan tried to shake the thought away but it stuck to his conscience like a burr on a wool sock.
It had been self-preservation, pure and simple. There was no doubt in his mind that Sunni had had an ulterior motive when she’d hired Lily.
Mom thinks you’re lonely.
Once again, Aiden’s words cycled through his mind.
It wasn’t that Brendan was anti-relationships. He just knew the successful ones took time and attention—and right now, the business required all of his. He’d been talking to the CEO of Extreme Adventures for several months and, finally, it looked as though his persistence was paying off. Filling orders for the sporting-goods chain guaranteed stability in a competitive market and uncertain economy.
Brendan should have realized that Sunni hadn’t given up her matchmaking, she’d simply changed tactics. His mother knew the long hours he spent in the office weren’t exactly conducive to getting to know the single women living in Castle Falls, so she’d imported one.
Although why Sunni thought he’d be attracted to someone like Lily Michaels was a mystery. The woman was too stubborn. Too…perky.
Too distracting.
The fact that he was in front of the window instead of his computer screen proved it.
Unfortunately, Lily was also running out of daylight.
Which meant it was up to him to make sure her and her furry sidekick made it safely back to the house.
Brendan grabbed a flashlight from a shelf in the hall closet on his way out the door. The moon was already rising over the trees, and adrenaline spiked Brendan’s blood as he picked his way along the narrow foot path that ran parallel to the river. If Lily was on her way back, he should have met up with her by now.
He hiked another quarter mile, judging the distance by the subtle change in the river’s current. Castle Falls was just up ahead, an appropriate name for the steep sandstone wall that towered above the water.
“Lily?” Brendan pitched his voice a notch above the rushing water. In the fading light, he spotted the trunk of a dead aspen near the base of the falls. The jagged stub of a branch had caught on one of the rocks, holding the tree in place as it bobbed gently in the foam.
Like a suspension bridge.
Brendan’s breath snagged in his lungs even as he tried to rein in his overactive imagination. The challenge of crossing the river on a stick might prove irresistible to his two younger brothers, but a grown woman would be too level-headed to attempt it….
“Hi!”
He twisted toward the lilting voice and saw Lily waving to him from the opposite side of the riverbank.
Apparently not.
Stubborn. Perky. Now Brendan could add reckless to the list he’d started.
“It’s so beautiful here!” Lily skipped across the fallen tree with the nimbleness of a professional tightrope walker.
Halfway across, the log shifted, and Brendan heard her gasp.
Without thinking, he splashed into the shallow water, shoes and all, and reached for her.
“Thanks.” Lily latched on to his hand, and the warmth of her touch shot up his arm like a current of electricity.
Brendan sucked in a breath and let her go the moment their feet touched dry land. “What—” he tossed the word down like a gauntlet “—did you think you were doing?”
Lily smiled up at him, eyes shining in spite of the fact she’d almost fallen into the river. “Exploring, of course.”
Of course.
Brendan shook his head. “Look, the sun is setting—”
“I know! I watched it from up there.” She pointed to one of the granite turrets that bracketed the water spilling over the top of the falls. “The best seat in the house.”
The best seat… Brendan tried to shut down the image what could have happened if Lily had lost her footing and slipped. Or somehow stumbled upon the cave located behind the falls.
Brendan battled the temptation to share the discovery he’d made years ago. To watch her face light up with wonder.
Now who’s the reckless one?
“You probably spend a lot of time here.” Lily clapped her hands and Missy trundled out of the brush, sporting a brand-new collar that could have only been purchased in the pet food aisle of the grocery store.
“No.” Spotty cell phone reception and no internet equaled no customers. “Not really.”
“You should.” Lily cast one more longing look at the falls before she fell into step beside him.
Brendan didn’t answer.
There were a lot of things he knew he should do.
Spending time with Lily Michaels definitely wasn’t one of them.
Chapter Four
Lily’s gaze bounced from the gleaming, freshly primed wall to her laptop, where a perky woman wearing a pristine white smock was demonstrating a cutting-edge technique in the world of faux finishes. She made it look so easy. But then again, that painter didn’t have to contend with a neighbor who didn’t want her to listen to the radio. Or sing along with it. At one point, when Lily had started a pleasant, albeit one-sided conversation with Missy, the heels of Brendan’s chair scraping against the floor on the other side of the living room wall let her know that he didn’t want to hear anything at all.
Absolute silence might have been Brendan Kane’s idea of a perfect work environment, but it was driving Lily bonkers. Listening to music while she worked helped her stay on task. And she could use a little focus—especially when the only thing she could hear was the husky—and rather appealing—rumble of a masculine voice on the opposite side of the wall every time the telephone rang.
And it rang a lot.
“You’ll want to work quickly before the base coat dries,” Perky Painter was saying. “Then, wait thirty minutes! Plenty of time to grab a fresh cup of coffee or take a little walk and stretch your legs.”
Missy, who’d been napping in the corner, lifted her head at the word walk.
“Later,” Lily promised. Because, while she’d been tuned into Brendan’s rich-as-dark-chocolate tenor on the other side of the wall, the base coat had started to dry.
She tapped the rewind button on the DVD player and followed the directions, ignoring the pull and protest of unused muscles while she worked. Who would have guessed that painting could take the place of a daily workout? No wonder Shelby didn’t bother with a gym membership.
A red-winged blackbird landed on a low branch just outside the open window and trilled a greeting. Lily responded with a series of whistles that sounded, in her opinion, like a fairly decent imitation of the bird’s cheerful dialogue.
A floorboard creaked. The door at the end of the hall snapped shut. Was Brendan taking an unscheduled coffee break? Or had he added whistling to his own personal neighborhood-watch list?
The steady tread of footsteps drew closer.
Watch list.
“I’ll distract him while you make a break for it,” Lily told the bird. She felt a pinch of envy when it took wing and disappeared into a hedge of golden spirea. The only cover available for her was the drop cloth that now doubled as a dog bed.
While Lily contemplated how long it would take to displace the basset hound and dive underneath it, Brendan appeared in the doorway.
He looked frazzled. And grim. Two things that should have canceled out the “and handsome” part of the equation. But—Lily tried not to sigh—they didn’t.
When Brendan had shown up at the falls the evening before, she’d been ridiculously glad to see him. Not because the sun had retreated, allowing shadows to fill the spaces between the trees while she’d been exploring, but because the man had finally ventured out of his office.
Apparently the only thing that separated Brendan from his routine was something that disrupted it.
And that something would be you, Lily.
As someone who’d had to rewind the video tutorial—twice—since she’d started working, she decided they were even.
“The delivery truck has a flat tire a few miles from town so I’m going to round up a spare and drive it over,” Brendan said. “I’m expecting an important call, so I’ll be back in half an hour or so.”
“All right.”
Lily tried to sound casual, but the sudden glint in Brendan’s eyes meant he’d seen the hopeful glance she’d sneaked at Sonia’s radio, a charming relic from the 1970s that resembled a toaster and boasted real dials instead of a touch pad.
“You’ll have plenty of time to bang a few pots and pans together.” Brendan’s dry statement could only be a reference to Lily’s brief foray into the kitchen, when she’d whipped up a veggie omelet for breakfast. “Sing. Tap dance. Make all the noise you want.”
Cheering, Lily thought. That would be the noise she’d be making.
Brendan’s lips twitched. That he’d read her mind was as unnerving as the possibility a real live heart beat underneath the pocket of his black polo.
Lily was relieved when Missy rolled to her feet, spotted her reluctant host and released a joyful howl.
He winced. “You’re still here.”
Lily imagined Brendan had thought the same thing a few hours ago, only he wouldn’t have been referring to the basset hound.
“Where else would she be?”
“In the kitchen, chewing on a table leg? Hunting for shoes to bury underneath the hostas?”
At least now Lily knew where to look for her missing flip-flop.
Not deterred by Brendan’s less than flattering assumptions, Missy shuffled toward him, tail wagging.
“I’ll be back.” Brendan ducked out of the room before the basset hound could shed on his khakis.
Lily smiled down at her. “You just earned that walk.”
The phone rang while Lily was in the kitchen, mixing up a fresh pitcher of iced tea. Brendan still hadn’t returned, although it had been well over an hour since he’d driven away to assist the truck driver. The ringing stopped, only to start up again less than a minute later.
Brendan had said the call was important….
She dashed down the hall to his office and reached for the phone. “Good morning! Castle Falls Outfitters.”
“Who is this?” The question wielded a suspicious edge, as if the caller knew someone else should have answered the phone.
“Lily Michaels. I’m—”
“The painter Sunni hired to give her house a makeover! She told us all about it the book club meeting last week.” The caller’s tone warmed several degrees. “She didn’t mention you’d be helping Brendan out in the office, too.”
“I’m not.” Lily wondered what the woman would say if she confessed the man had banished her from that particular room. “Brendan had to step out for a few minutes, but I’d be happy to take a message.”
“I’d appreciate that! This is Jill Robinson, and I’m calling to remind Brendan about the picnic the soccer team is hosting on Tuesday.”
Lily reached for a pen to jot down the details. “Soccer picnic. Tuesday.”
“This is the first year the kids at New Life Fellowship formed a team,” Jill chatted on. “The booster club parents host a picnic at the beginning of the season to thank the businesses that provide funding for our equipment and uniforms. Brendan agreed to sponsor the Conquerors.”
“That’s great.” So great that Lily might be forced to reevaluate her first impression of the man. “What time?”
“Four o’clock in the field right behind the church.” Jill paused. “By the way, our Sunday morning worship service starts at ten if you’re interested in attending tomorrow.”
“I’d love to.” Lily meant it. Church attendance was one of the things she’d added during the recent but major restructure of her life.
“My husband and I will be manning the coffee station in the foyer, so be sure to stop by and say hello.”
“I will. And I’ll pass this information onto Brendan as soon as he gets back,” Lily promised. “He was looking forward to your call.”
“He…” Jill had a sudden coughing fit. “Really?”
“Of course.” Lily drew a smiley face next to the information, ridiculously pleased to discover that Brendan did occasionally venture out of his office.
“I can’t wait to meet you, Lily.” Jill chuckled. “You certainly seem up for a challenge.”
“It’s not so bad.” Lily eyed the algae-green walls. “All the place needs is a little updating.”
“Oh, I wasn’t talking about the house, honey.”
