Page 38 of A Package Deal

“It’s the end of March. Anything is possible.” She draped her coat on the back of a chair and Chet’s stomach clenched. A person hung their coat when they planned to stay, but draped it when they planned on a quick escape or goodbye. She grabbed the towel closest to her, and her hand trembled as she smoothed it.

“Can I get you something to drink?” he asked, as a litmus test of the length of her stay.

“Hot chocolate with a kick?” Chet’s stomach muscles eased. A hot drink would take time to make, cool, and drink, and he knew Nelie wouldn’t leave chocolate unfinished. It sounded like she planned to stay.

“Coming right up.” He moved toward the electric kettle.

“Let me,” Nelie said, pulling milk from the refrigerator. Chet brought her the box of cocoa mix as she measured the milk and poured it into a small pan.

“Ah, that’s why yours is always better.” She gave him a smug smile. Chet leaned against the counter and watched her as she slowly stirred the milk. When tiny bubbles appeared at the edges, she asked him to open the packets and add them to the milk. He did, and then he reached around her for the small whisk. She smelled like fries and the chocolate powder he’d dumped into the pan. Chet handed her the whisk, and she murmured her thanks. “I’ll get the RumChata,” he said, needing some space. She’d only been here for a few minutes, but he felt his resolve crumbling.Fries, chocolate, and teamwork, a new aphrodisiac, he thought as he opened the bottle.

Nelie poured the hot chocolate into two mugs and Chet added a shot of the creamy, cinnamon-spiced liqueur. “You might want more of that.” Nelie nodded to the RumChata as she leaned against the counter, cradling her mug in her hands.

“You don’t?”

“Not if I’m driving home.”Right, she’s not staying.

“Do you want to talk here or in the living room?”

“Living room, please,” Nelie said. “It’s more comfortable,” Chet nodded and followed. Surely if she was going to break up, she’d do it quickly in the kitchen, like ripping off a bandage. And she wouldn’t have wanted a hot beverage, but her exaggerated politeness concerned him.Not staying but might not be breaking up?he thought as he sat on the couch next to her. She tucked her feet underneath her and leaned into his space.

They sat in silence, sipping their drinks, and Chet wondered if he should turn on the lamp. Her features were soft in the muted light coming from the kitchen and upstairs. She looked lovely, and he forced himself to sit still. If he could abandon his stupid principles, he’d have her in his arms in less than five seconds. Nelie wasn’t Heather. He didn’t think she’d discard them, but he couldn’t risk it.

“So,” Nelie said, setting her drink aside and rubbing her hands down her pants. “I had a lovely speech prepared, but I’ve forgotten it, again.” She frowned and Chet wondered what other speeches she’d forgotten.

“Take your time.”

“First, I love you, and I have for a while.” Chet’s heart soared at her admission, and he covered her smile with his, but he kept the kiss light. He didn’t want Nelie to distract him.

“And second?” he asked. Nelie closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and laced her fingers through his.

“I was Nate’s donor. Suzanne Hart Wyatt is my birth mother. I’m not an orphan, and Gus and Stella didn’t take me in. They adopted me a few days after I was born,” she blurted. Her blue eyes bore into his and her lower lip trembled.

Ho-ly shit! No wonder she’s been a mess.

“Jackson is your brother,” he said, needing something easy to say as he processed her words. From the look on her face and her non-Nelie behavior recently, he knew she was still processing, too.

“Half. And Pris is my half-sister.”

“You don’t look like any of them.”

“I’ve been told I take after my birth father, but we share this,” she said, pointing to her eyebrow and lifting it. Chet exhaled swiftly.

“And strong genetics. Enough to save Nathan’s life.” He took her hand in his, marveling at her. “That’s why you missed the spelling bee and canceled your vacation. And why your back was sore,” he said as the puzzle pieces fell into place.

“And why I avoided people and masked up beforehand. I needed to stay healthy.”

“Are you okay with all this?”

Nelie chuckled, but she didn’t sound amused. “Wait, there’s more. Remember? I told you to take a second shot.”

“Too late. I’m not moving. Tell me.” He squeezed her hands. Chet held tight as she dropped her next piece of news. He huffed out a breath when she finished telling him about her financial windfall. “So, in the last month, you discovered a secret family, and you’ve got more zeros in your bank account. Your world exploded. I can see why you lost your footing.”And I’m losing mine. She’s a Hart and rich. She doesn’t need me.

“It’s still shaky, and I could use a hand building a bridge.” She gave him a shy smile.

“What do you want?” he asked, pushing through the hope clogging his throat.

“I want you and the girls. And them, if they want me.” She sounded hesitant, and he hopedthemreferred to the Harts, because by now Nelie had to know how much the girls loved her.

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