Page 146 of This Heart Of Mine (Chicago Stars 5)

He felt himself growing defensive. “I don’t think so. We’ve had lots of fun without her.”

“No, we haven’t. The O’Brian boys keep complaining, the old folks miss her, and you’ve been grouchy and unreasonable.” She leaned against the sink. “Kevin, it’s been two weeks. Don’t you think it’s time to go after her? Amy and Troy and I can take care of the place for a few days.”

Didn’t she realize he’d already thought about this from a hundred different angles? There was nothing he wanted more, but he couldn’t go after her, not unless he wanted to settle down forever as a married man, and that was something he couldn’t do. “It wouldn’t be fair.”

“Fair to whom?”

He poked at the label on the bottle with his thumbnail. “She told me… She has feelings.”

“I see. And you don’t?”

He had more feelings than he knew what to do with, but none of them were going to make him lose sight of what was most important. “Maybe in five or six years things will be different, but I don’t have time right now for anything but my career. And let’s be realistic—can you see Molly and me together long-term?”

“Without any trouble.”

“Come on!” He shot up from his chair. “I’m a jock! I love being active, and she hates sports.”

“For someone who hates sports, she’s an excellent athlete.”

“She’s okay, I guess.”

“She swims beautifully and dives like a champ.”

“That’s just from summer camp.”

“She plays an excellent game of Softball.”

“Summer camp.”

“She knows everything about football.”

“That’s only because—”

“She plays soccer.”

“Just with Tess.”

“She’s studied martial arts.”

He’d forgotten about that kung fu move she’d put on him last winter.

“And she told me she’d played on her high school tennis team.”

“There you go. I hate tennis.”

“Probably because you’re no good at it.”

How did Lilly know that?

Lilly’s smile looked dangerously sympathetic. “I’d say you’re going to have a hard time finding a woman who’s as athletic and adventurous as Molly Somerville.”

“I’ll bet she wouldn’t go skydiving.”

“I’ll bet she would.”

Even to his own ears he sounded sulky. And Lilly was right about the skydiving. He could almost hear the sound of Molly’s screams when he pushed her out of the plane. But he knew she’d love it as soon as her chute popped.

He still felt queasy about her falling in love with him. And angry, too. This had been temporary right from the beginning, so it wasn’t as if he’d led her on. And he sure hadn’t made any promises. Hell, half the time he’d barely been civil.

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