Page 54 of This Heart Of Mine (Chicago Stars 5)

“Life’s a bitch.”

He leaned back in his chair until it rested on two legs. She waited for it to tilt over, but he was too well coordinated for that to happen. “Do you really know how to cook, or were you just winging it in front of the guests?”

“I was winging it.” She lied hoping to make him nervous. Her everyday cooking might leave something to be desired, but she loved to bake, especially for her nieces and nephews. Sugar cookies with bunny ears were her specialty.

“Terrific.” The legs of the chair banged to the floor. “God, this place is boring. Let’s take a walk along the lake before it gets dark.”

“I’m too tired.”

“You haven’t done enough today to make yourself tired.” He was full of restless energy with no place to go, so she shouldn’t have been startled when he grabbed her wrist and tugged her from her seat. “Come on, I haven’t been able to work out for two days. I’m going stir crazy.”

She pulled away. “Go work out now. Nobody’s stopping you.”

“I have to meet my fan club on the front porch soon. You need the exercise, so stop being stubborn. Stay here, Godzilla.” He opened the screen and gave Molly a gentle push, then firmly closed in a yapping Roo.

She didn’t offer any real resistance, even though she was exhausted and she knew it wasn’t a good idea to be alone with him. “I’m not in the mood, and I want my dog.”

“If I said grass was green, you’d argue with me.” He tugged her along the path.

“I refuse to be nice to my kidnapper.”

“For somebody who was kidnapped, you’re not trying too hard to get away.”

“I like it here.”

He glanced back at the cozy nest she’d made for herself on the porch. “Next thing you’ll be hiring a decorator.”

“We rich girls like our comforts, even if it’s only for a few days.”

“I guess.”

The path widened as it got closer to the lake, then wound along the shore for a while before narrowing again and making a sharp incline up a rocky bluff that overlooked the water. Kevin pointed in the opposite direction. “There are some wetlands over there, and behind the campgrounds there’s a meadow with a brook.”

“Bobolink Meadow.”

“What?”

“It’s a—Nothing.” It was the name of the meadow on the edge of Nightingale Woods.

“You can get a good view of the town from that bluff.”

She gazed up the steep path. “I don’t have enough energy for the climb.”

“Then we won’t go all the way.”

She knew he was lying. Still, her legs didn’t feel as wobbly as they’d been yesterday, so she set off with him. “How do the people in the town support themselves?”

“Tourism mainly. The lake has good fishing, but it’s so isolated that it hasn’t been overdeveloped like a lot of other places. There’s a decent golf course, and the area has some of the best cross-country trails in the state.”

“I’m glad nobody’s spoiled it with a big resort.”

The path was beginning to angle uphill, and she needed all her breath for the climb. She wasn’t surprised when he left her behind. What surprised her was the fact that she kept on going.

He

called down to her from the top of the bluff. “Not exactly a walking advertisement for physical fitness, are you?”

“Just skipped a few”—she gasped—”Tae-Bo classes.”

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