Page 38 of Melody

More than that, she knew in her heart, based on what he’d just said, that Kyle was nothing like her ex. If he was, he deserved an Academy Award.

After placing the paperwork on Al’s desk, she grabbed her coat off one of the hooks and then closed the door behind her, locking it as her boss had instructed. Then she bounced back out into the main room and rushed over to the bar. After washing her and Kyle’s glasses, she said, “Ready!” Then she put on her coat. “Do you have a coat here?”

His sheepish expression melted her heart. “I left it in my car. I was overheated when I took my guitar back to my car and we loaded up everything else…and I didn’t bother dragging it back.”

“Where’d you park?”

“On Fourth Street—just at the end of the block.”

Although that wasn’ttoofar, it would be a chilly walk. But he hadn’t seemed to get as cold as she had on their date the other night, so maybe he could handle it better. When they got to the door, she flipped off several switches, leaving on a few select lights as Al had instructed. As they exited the doors, Scarlett had the key ready to lock the front—but she was distracted bythe snow falling outside. It was beautiful, highlighted by the streetlamps as it flurried to the ground in almost straight lines at a diagonal, thanks to the biting wind.

After locking the doors and pulling on them to make sure they were secure as Al had asked, her thoughts spilled out of her mouth before she could stop them. “It’s beautiful out here, but whatever you had planned for tonight might be better for another time.” She couldn’t read Kyle’s eyes and just kept going. “When’s the next time you’re not working?”

“No idea. Now is my best answer.” His grin elicited a smile on her own face.

“Then why don’t you just come up to my apartment for a while? I could make some coffee before you have to head home.”

The snow was starting to stick to his hair and, although he wasn’t shivering without his jacket, Scarlett felt colder just looking at him in that t-shirt. He said, “Maybe I should just head on home. My car’s okay in the snow but not great. The more snow that sticks to the road, the more I slide. I need to buy new tires.”

Scarlett’s heart clenched, because she heard all the words he hadn’t said. New tires could be expensive; she knew that from experience. That compassion combined with feeling like she’d wrecked his evening, not to mention her desire to spend more time with him caused her to say, “You can crash at my place if you want.” Even in the muted light, she could read something in his eyes—but she didn’t see desire or an immediate assumption that she was inviting him into her bed—and that simply confirmed her belief that Kyle was a genuinely good guy.

She wasn’t good at spotting them…but this time, she was positive she had.

But he didn’t say anything. It was as if he was at war with himself, struggling to say the right thing.

So she added, “You didn’t go home earlier because you stuck around to help me.”

Finally, his tongue was loose, but the tight tone told her the cold was getting to him. “No. I mean…that wasn’t the only reason.”

“I don’t want to worry about you on the road. Just come in. My couch is pretty comfy. I’ve napped on it a time or two. Or you could sleep on the bed and I could sleep on the couch. It doesn’t matter. But I’m freezing watching you out here without a coat and I want you to be safe. I don’t want to worry about if you’ll make it home okay.”

Without a word, Kyle simply nodded, letting her take his hand, guiding him to the door a few yards away leading to her upstairs apartment. Even in that cold, his hand felt warm and protective, assuring her that this was not as stupid a move as part of her brain was trying to insist.

Scarlett broughttwo mismatched cups of hot cocoa across the room to where Kyle stood in the tiny living room area in front of the bookcase. He was glancing at the handful of books she’d picked up at the quaint used bookstore a block away and Goodwill, a few novels, DIY books, one cookbook, and her mother’s family Bible.

Or so she thought.

When she handed him the mug, he asked, “Is that you in that picture?”

Ah. Hehadn’tbeen looking at the books. Instead, he’d been examining the one picture, a 5 x 7 in a plain frame, one of the few things she’d brought with her when she’d escaped to Silver City. “Yeah.”

It was a photo from long ago, back when she’d had both her parents, a time when she was happy and had felt loved…not knowing that her life was about to change forever.

“You had red hair when you were a kid.”

If only he knew…the red hair was still there, but it was nothing a bottle couldn’t cover. “Yeah.”

“Is that your mom and dad?”

“It is.” Her nerves began to settle a bit because, even though he was asking questions about things she’d been trying to hide, she realized she didn’t mind if he knew a little.

“Did they name you Scarlett because of your hair?”

Now, however, had to come the lie. “Yep.” The truth was they’d had her name picked out long before she’d exited the womb…a name Kyle didn’t know. Herrealname.

Grinning, he finally looked her in the eyes again. “They didn’t know you’d grow up to be a cute little Tinker Bell. Otherwise, they might have named you something different.”

“Drink your cocoa, smarty-pants.”

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