Page 47 of No Love Lost

She slipped off her boots and put her slippers back on to help warm her feet. Without taking off her jacket, she moved to the stove and then filled up the kettle. “I don’t have coffee, but I’ve got a variety of teas and hot chocolate.”

She pulled down mugs, tea, and hot chocolate and turned to ask for preferences. No one was in the room behind her.

Face flaming, she realized they’d gone into her bedroom. The tiny space was her haven and while she would enjoy having Heath in there, she didn’t want the others in her space.

She walked in to find them all picking up branches. “It’s fine. Leave that stuff, and I’ll get to it later.”

Jonas smiled. “It’s fine. It’ll just take a minute.”

It would, but she didn’t like it.

Heath picked up on her feelings. “Addy’s right. It’s her space, and we’re invading.”

She felt silly watching them troop back out with most of the branches, but she couldn’t deny that she felt better once they were out.

They moved outside to put the collected branches in the bin, and she turned off the kettle and slipped off her jacket. The house and her embarrassment were warm enough.

Heath returned first, and while the others were taking off their jackets, he approached her and took her hands. “You okay?”

She nodded, wishing they were alone and she could step into his arms. “I’m good. The crash surprised me, but it’s all good now.”

She pulled out some banana bread she’d bought from Ginny and sliced it up. Sitting down, she forced down her embarrassment. “Thank you again. I appreciate you wanting to help in my bedroom, but it just felt weird. Sorry.”

They all smiled at her and waved off her worries. Sean grinned. “Does Nina get the larger bedroom because that girl has so many interests, it’s hard to contain them?”

Addy smiled back, relieved that her actions hadn’t offended anyone. “You got it. When we moved in here, it was the only way to contain the chaos.”

Once everyone was warmed up, she thanked them again. Sean grabbed his jacket. “Get the dimensions on that window, and I’ll get one ordered for you. It’s a quiet time of year, so we should be able to get one fairly quickly.”

Jonas grabbed his outerwear and handed Heath his jacket. He took it and thanked the man, but didn’t put it on.

When the other two had left, Heath hung his jacket back up and moved to wrap himself around her. “Now. How are you really doing?”

She smiled into his chest, finally relaxing. “Better. Much better now. It scared me right out of my story.”

He laughed. “Well, if the buzzers don’t work, we can always find a sound of breaking glass to get you to finish a session.”

Her phone rang with a call, and she grabbed it from her coat pocket. “It’s Graham. I bet he’s done with my car. Hi Graham. You’re on speaker. Heath is here with me.” It would be easier than repeating whatever Graham said about when it would be ready.

“Hi. I’ve got news about your car.”

“That’s great.”

Graham made a noncommittal noise that had her heart thumping. “Looks like someone sabotaged Wabi, but didn’t know what they were doing. A few wires were removed and switched in the engine. Nothing that makes sense, so it wasn’t an experienced saboteur or car thief. I called Marcus, and he’s out here checking for fingerprints.”

She looked up at Heath, who was gritting his teeth together, body stiff and ready for battle. Her knees were wobbly, and she thumped onto a chair. Someone had tried to sabotage her car? “Okay. We’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Heath frowned as she disconnected the call. He squatted down beside her and took her hands in his. “I think someone might be stalking you.”

CHAPTER 15

Losing Ground

Heath gripped the steering wheel as tightly as he gripped his temper. Someone was targeting Addy. There’d been too many incidents that he knew of in the short time they’d been together.

And he’d bet there’d been more. She’d been worrying her lip while he drove out to Midnight Lake, where apparently Graham Buchanan worked on engines out of an old sawmill. This area of Vermont was certainly unique.

He’d bet this was the only place in the world where an old fishing lodge and sawmill had been turned into a security business and a center for an eclectic bunch of scientists and artists.

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