Page 10 of Holding Holly

Her expression becomes a neutral mask, yet her eyes lose some of their light. “Dad left when I was five. Mom’s living in Ireland with her boyfriend.” She pronounces the wordboyfriendlike most people pronounceasshole, so I know not to ask any follow up questions there.

My hand covers hers on the table. “I’m sorry.”

A slight shrug. “It’s fine.”

I want to tell her that it’s not fine. That an amazing woman like her should be cared for and nurtured.

Not yet, James. Pace yourself.

“Hey – so what’s the deal with only one cop in town? How does that actually work?” She’s clearly changing the subject. I’ll let her.

“It’s a bit of an odd situation. There’s a county sheriff, of course, but the founders of this town didn’t think there was enough of a visible law enforcement presence here.”

“So they hired their own police officer?”

“The town did, yes.”

“So… Do you answer to the town, or that sheriff?”

“Bit of both, but it’s the town council who would holler at me if anything went sideways. I’m paid an extremely generous salary to be very visible here. Maintain the great personality of this place and connect people to the right kind of help when they need it.”

“Cool.”

I share more stories about the town while we eat, and she seems genuinely interested. I hope that Holly falls in love with the town like I did. The thought of her moving on somewhere else… My gut clenches at the thought of it, and not from the hot peppers in the curry.

Every chance I get, I touch her hand, caress her arm, brush our knees together. I’m happy to notice that she’s doing the same – reaching over to remove a thread from my shirt, or gently tapping my hand to make a point.

When we’re finished, I dig out containers to divide the leftovers into Holly-sized portions. “These should be good snacks for the rest of the week.” Once everything is in the fridge and the dishwasher is loaded, I slip my arms around her.

“Would you like to stay for a movie, or—” She yawns, trying frantically to cover her mouth in time with zero success.

“There’s no way you can stay awake for another two hours, angel.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You’re under no obligation to entertain me. Really. Now, do you shower in the morning or at night?”

“Morning. It helps wake me up.” She laughs lightly. “At least here the owner gets everything started for me. At my last bakery job I had to be there at four.”

“That’s inhuman. How about I finish cleaning up and you go get ready for bed?”

They say that women love a man who is handy in the kitchen and cleans up after himself. Judging from the unbelievable force of Holly’s kiss, they’re right.

She heads to the guest room, and I hand wash the pot and skillet. Once I’m done and my hands are scrubbed and dry, I call down the hallway, “May I pop in for a quick good night kiss?”

“Sure.”

When I reach the doorway, I slump to the side, leaning on the frame. “Damn. You’re always beautiful, Holly. But this…” I wave my hand at her. “Ridiculous. Too much. I’m sorry, you’ll have to tone it down.”

Every time I make her laugh I feel like I’ve scored a point.

“Don’t be silly.” She glances down at the oversized white t-shirt hanging loosely on her delicate frame and purple floral boy shorts. “It’s just my version of pajamas.”

“And it’s adorable.”

Walking in, I flip open the covers. “Get in.” Her eyes widen as I undo the collar of my shirt. “Don’t worry, I’m not joining you. I’m just going to lie down for a minute.”

Damn…that smile. The warmth of it tangles around my heart, putting down roots.

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