Page 58 of The Matchmaker and the Marine

“Adam, let me in.” The doorknob didn’t turn. “Unlock the door or I’m going to call Will.”

“I’m okay, I just knocked over the side table. Give me one more minute.”

She pulled her phone out just as the door opened. Adam had a three-day growth on his chin. At first glance she saw the apartment was a mess, which was surprising given his tendency toward neat and tidy. His face lit up when he saw her. His brown eyes twinkled with merriment as he noticed the cooler over one arm and she balanced her phone and handbag in her other hand. He held out his good hand to take the cooler. “You’re a persistent lady, aren’t you?”

Melinda stepped into the apartment, dropped a bag on the sofa and immediately walked over to the table, righting it and picking up the shards of coffee-coated glass.

“I’ll get that,” Adam said, coming up behind her.

“It’ll be quicker if I do it.” She gestured to the kitchen. “You can unload the cooler and I’ll take it with me.”

With a soft laugh, he did as she asked. She heard him give a low whistle. “I’m not starving or anything.” He poked his head out of the kitchen. “But everything looks great.”

“That’s good.” She entered the kitchen and walked to a long cupboard. “Is the broom in there?”

“I’ll get it for you.”

She found it cute as the flush covered his cheeks. “Tell you what, you can make us coffee and I’ll finish cleaning up, and then I need to get back to my office.”

“Working today?” He filled the coffeepot with fresh water and measured out the beans to grind.

Melinda took the container from him and nodded appreciatively at the label. “Grinding beans? You’ve got fancy coffee.”

“My sister got me hooked on it when I retired from the Corps.”

“Remind me to thank your sister, if I ever meet her.”

“By any chance did you tuck anything sweet in that other bag?” He pointed to the one she had set on the sofa.

“You’re incorrigible, but yes. I brought muffins—banana nut, which I believe is your favorite.” She gave him a saucy grin.

With mild surprise he beamed. “A woman who takes note of the little things. Nice.” Turning the coffee on to brew he said, “One of these days I’m taking you out for coffee.”

She started to mildly protest and Adam laughed. “Mel, it’s just coffee.”

She wiggled her eyebrows. “In my line of work lots of things can happen with ‘it’s just coffee’.”

Chapter 22

Adam left his doctor appointment feeling pretty pumped. He was going back to work. Taking a week to let the cut heal without pulling at the stitches had been the right thing to do, but he was bored out of his mind. There were only so many crossword puzzles he could do and daytime television didn’t interest him.

After stopping at the drugstore for latex gloves to protect his hand, he drove straight to Melinda’s house. When he arrived, there was a car in the driveway, so he headed for the backyard.

After setting the sawhorses in place, he remembered Mel had said his tools were in the garage. He debated between knocking on the door to see if she could open the garage or just sit and wait until she was done. He wasn’t all that anxious to interrupt her, so he flopped into a chair, stuck his legs out in front of him and soaked up the afternoon rays. There was a nip in the air—fall was on its way too quickly, as far as he was concerned.

He felt his leg being nudged and quickly sat up straight. Melinda was staring at him as she tried to hold back a smile. “Adam, what are you doing here?”

“The doc said I could go back to work, so here I am.”

Melinda teased. “Snoozing in my yard constitutes as work now?”

He had never met anyone who was as good at bantering with him as Mel. “In my defense, I got here and realized all my tools were locked in your garage. I knew you were with a client, so I was just going to wait until you finished.” With a sheepish grin he said, “I must have nodded off.”

She crossed her arms over her stomach. “Maybe this is a sign you should give yourself another day?”

He sprang up. “I don’t think so.” He put his hands together like he was praying. “Please, if you would be so kind as to let me into your garage I can get busy.”

“Sit back down and keep me company. I’ve been in the office all day and could use some fresh air and vitamin D.”

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