Page 36 of Breaking the Ice

“And she wanted more?”

“Apparently,” he drawls.

“I’m going to come right out and ask her what she wants from you,” I tell him. “I mean, why beat around the bush?”

“We don’t want her to suspect you’re also working for me,” he warns.

“Don’t worry, Zach. I’ll make sure she knows that I don’t like you.”

His eyes pop open like he’s just had a shock. “But you’d be lying, right? I mean you do like me.”

I offer a small grin before saying, “I like you just fine.” Even while the words are coming out of my mouth, I know they’re a lie. The truth is that I like Zach a lot. I’m just hesitant to give into those feelings because I don’t want him to break my heart in six weeks when he leaves Maple Falls for good.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Zach

It’s obvious Ellie has thoughts swirling around that pretty head of hers. If I had to guess, I might think they were about me. Although, I’m not sure they would be flattering. For all I know, she still thinks I’m a waste of space.

After paying the check with her credit card, Ellie announces, “I need to go home and get everything ready for my mom.”

“I’ll help.”

Shaking her head, she tells me, “You’ve done enough, Zach. And while I’m very grateful to you, I want to take care of the rest on my own.”

I don’t want to push my attentions where they’re not wanted, so I simply say, “Fine. But I’m going to help you unload.”

As nice as the afternoon has been, it’s clear Ellie is done talking. For that reason, I don’t try to engage her in conversation on the way back to her house. Instead, I try to figure out what Yolanda wants from me. Short of being in a relationship for real, I come up dry.

Once we get back to Maple Falls, I tell Ellie, “I’ll give you my phone number so you can text me.” I reach my hand out for her phone and create a contact for myself while adding, “I’ll use a code name so that we don’t have to worry about Yolanda finding out we’re in touch.”

Ellie takes her phone back. Looking at the screen, she laughs. “Mr. Wonderful, huh?” She immediately hits the button that calls me and says, “Now you have my number.”

I create Ellie’s contact, naming her Gorgeous Landlady. “We probably shouldn’t be seen together while Yolanda is in town,” I tell her.

“And when she’s not in town?”

“We should still stay out of the public eye as much as possible. You never know who she has reporting back to her.”

“That makes sense.” Is it me or does she sound disappointed?

After turning off the ignition, I open the back hatch and take the wheelchair out. Once it’s on the driveway, I put all the other purchases on top of it.

“I’ve got it from here,” Ellie says as she maneuvers it toward the front door. She doesn’t look back.

I’m not sure what to do now, so I head down to my cottage and give Troy a ring. If he doesn’t need me for anything, I might hit that hammock by the creek and take a little nap.

I’m about to call my brother when my phone starts playing “Whip It” by Devo. As my assistant is always cracking the whip, I thought it the perfect tone for her. “Hey, Belle, what’s up?”

“You just got a call from Anthony Jenkins.”

Tony is one of the partners at Fame, Inc. “Finally, someone is calling me back.”

“He gave me his private number and asked that you call him.”

“Text it to me,” I tell her. Then I tease, “I’m thinking about moving to Maple Falls and falling off the face of the earth.”

“Dibs on your condo,” she says without missing a beat.

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