Page 51 of This Moment

A smile played at the edges of her pretty mouth.

Don’t look at her mouth, Kian. No matter how soft and kissable it appears.

“I wouldn’t have pegged you for a hot chocolate guy.”

I pretended to be offended by her remark. “I am a huge hot chocolate lover. Don’t tell Sally, but Opal makes the best hot chocolate.”

She took another sip and set her mug down. “She does. She made some for me after we ate with her the other day. When did your heater go out?”

“Earlier today. I think I noticed it around seven. By then, it was too late to call someone, and I figured I could just layer up, and I would be fine. Turns out I was wrong. That house must be terribly insulated because it was so cold in there I could see my breath. I finally called it and decided to come up here.”

“I don’t blame you,” she said, again picking up her mug. “It’s freezing outside. Which is crazy to me because we were eating ice cream and sitting outside the other day.”

I laughed. “That’s Upstate New York for ya. Granted, we were probably crazy for eating ice cream when it was in the forties.”

“It was so good though!”

I chuckled. “I won’t be here more than one night. I’m sure the heater guy can come by tomorrow and fix whatever is wrong.”

“Kian, this is your house. I’m the one who is staying as a guest, not you.”

Smiling, I replied, “I get that, but I don’t want to make you uncomfortable with me being here.”

She shrugged. “Sally is here, and I’ll be fine.”

I finished off my hot chocolate and stood. “Done?”

Cadie took another drink and then handed me the mug. “Thanks, that hit the spot.”

“I’m just going to wash these up quickly, then head upstairs. Again, I’m sorry if I scared you. I really should have at least sent a text.”

“Nah,” she said with a wave of her hand. “I overreacted. I’m glad you’re warm now. Sweet dreams.”

A sudden urge to pull Cadie into my arms and hug her goodnight hit me, and I took a step away from her as I pushed my hand through my hair. “Yeah, sleep well.”

She smiled before turning and walking out of the kitchen. I leaned against the counter and looked up at the heavens. “Please let the heater be fixed tomorrow.”

Staring at the heater repair guy I hadn’t ever met before, I asked, “Are you certain?”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “Yes, I’m certain. This isn’t my first time figuring out what is wrong with a heating unit. You need a new one.”

My hand instantly went to the back of my neck to rub at the ache that was beginning. “And Tom wasn’t able to make it out?”

A look of frustration instantly appeared on the guy’s face, and I knew I had fucked up. He was offended now, and I would probably never get a new heater, at least from this guy.

He folded his arms over his chest and glared at me. “Like I said earlier, Tom is on vacation. Listen, I know you don’t know me, and I don’t know you either, but I know I have fifteen years of experience in this industry. You’re going to need a new heating unit, Mr. Carter. This one is older than you, probably. This thing is obsolete. The gas valve is shot, the board is out, and they no longer make the parts for this thing. I’m surprised it lasted as long as it did.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry; what was your name again?”

“Chuck.”

“Chuck, yes, please forgive me. I didn’t sleep much last night and wasn’t expecting that kind of news. Of course, you know more than I would. How long before we could get a new one installed and up and running?”

“I’ll have to return to the office and have Janice look it up. She can give you an estimate for the new unit and a time frame for when it will be and when we can install it. I’d say a week…most likely two.”

My mouth fell open. “A week?”

“If we’re lucky.”

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