Page 15 of Just One Kiss

"Okay," he said happily.

She took his hand as they got up and headed into the bedroom. She found his PJs, which were on top of the clothes in the suitcase. All of the items in the case seemed to belong to Brett, which made her wonder where Kelly's clothes were. She helped Brett change into his pajamas and brush his teeth, then tucked him into bed.

"Are you going to sleep now, too?" he asked her.

"I'll be in soon."

"Can you tell me a story?"

"A story, huh? What kind of story?"

"Do you know the one about the little girl in the balloon? She wanted to fly far away and have adventures."

Her heart flipped over at the mention of Kelly's favorite story, one which Kelly had shared with her many a night. Even as a child, Kelly had wanted to fly high and far away.

"I might remember part of—" She stopped abruptly, realizing Brett was already asleep. She blew out a breath of relief, because she didn't really want to relive that story.

She got up and turned off the light. She left the door ajar and then returned to the living room.

Jake was on the couch now. He had turned on the news, but he muted the sound when she appeared. "It's supposed to snow until midnight. If it clears after that, we should be able to get back to town in the morning."

"Good." She sat down on the couch, keeping some distance between them.

"You look a little more stressed than you did a few minutes ago. Why?" he asked curiously.

"It's silly. Brett asked me to tell him a story, and it was Kelly's favorite tale about a girl in a hot air balloon who flies away from all her problems."

"Sounds like your sister lived that story."

"She did fly away, but I have no idea where she's been living all this time. I have so many questions. What does she do for money? Who is Brett's father and where is he? And most importantly, why did she come back to Whisper Lake now? And why didn't she just ask me to help her?"

"Maybe she wasn't ready for you to see her, or she thought you might say no."

"I wouldn't have said no. But it does amaze me a little that even though she abandoned me and Tyler that she thought I would instantly step up for her."

He smiled. "It doesn't surprise me. Anyone who knows you, Hannah, would know that you would step up. That's who you are. You've always been that girl, even before Kelly left. And since then you've been taking care of everyone in the family."

It was nice to know that Jake could see the burden she'd been carrying, and she was a little touched by his description of her.

"Kelly knew you wouldn't turn your back on Brett," Jake added.

"But she was still afraid to ask or to explain. She should have done both."

"I don't disagree. But it is what it is. And no matter what you think about Kelly, you're already in love with Brett."

She smiled at his words. "I am. He's adorable."

Jake gave her a soft smile. "He is."

Under the warmth of his smile, she felt her anger toward him weaken, which scared her. Anger was what kept the wall up between them.But did she really need that wall?It wasn't like anything would happen between them ever again.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, giving her a speculative look.

"That I'm tired."

"You should go to bed."

"Not that kind of tired."

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